· PDF fileHappy New Year to all members of the ABS Community! ... The religious aspects of both occasions were addressed in our Islamic, ... stunning solo piano composition,

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22 October 2015 Issue 2

Jan

.18

ISSUE 4

Inside this Issue

IB College News…………..………..…..….……..4

MYS News………..…………..…..……..……..….8

PS News…...……………………........................12

Highlights and Announcements

DT Exhibition

Group 4 Project

Jerusalem

Media Centre Chess Tournament

Mindup Parents Training

Primary School Student voice

Primary School Concert

Robotics Activity

Theatre in Education Show

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Mr. Stuart Bryan

Happy New Year to all members of the ABS Community! As you can see from the pages that follow, our students have continued to engage in a wide range of activities and demonstrated their enormous talents in a number of events both at the end of last term and the start of this term. We are so proud of the contribution that each and every one of them makes to ensuring that ABS is such a wonderful institution to be part of!

I am delighted to share with you that we have now received the Five Year Evaluation Report from the International Baccalaureate (IB) for all four IB Programmes (PYP, MYP, DP and CP). The overall report is very positive indeed, with no fewer than 45 commendations for all aspects of the school operations, and has confirmed the authorisation of the school to continue to offer all 4 programmes for the next five-year period. As with any evaluation process, there are also, of course, a number of recommendations for us to work on and we will now be incorporating these into our action and strategic planning processes to ensure that we continue to offer the highest quality IB education possible. Click here to view IB Commendations and Recommendations. Following the decision that was communicated last term to revise the school day timings for next academic year 2018 - 2019, in order to bring the official start times of all four schools in line in the morning at 8.50 am, I can inform you that we are now finalising all the details and logistics of this development. I can confirm now, however, that the school will be open to receive students at the same time as currently; full supervision will be provided for Kindergarten (same arrangements as now) and for Grades 1 - 5 (at no additional cost) for parents, who need to drop off or send their children to school before the official start of the day at 8.50 am. After further consultation with the PTA and the Academic Committee of the Board of Trustees, we are planning to hold an 'open house' meeting, which will take place after the February half-term holiday, for all interested parents, to go over our revised school day arrangements in detail. We will let you know the date and time of this meeting in due course.

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http://www.abs.edu.jo/ibcis-commendations-and-recommendations/

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Tuition Fees for 2018 - 2019 Details of the 2018-2019 tuition fees can be accessed here. With best wishes,

Stuart Bryan

Principal

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http://www.abs.edu.jo/tuition-fees-2018-2018/

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ISSUE 1

Sep.8

Ms Cathy Souob

A happy and peaceful New Year to you all.

In the run up to the Winter holiday a few events took place in the IB College

which kept everyone busy.

The Business Management students in Grades

11 and 12, led by Ms. Suha Nashif, organised a

bake sale to help fundraise for the play Point

of View in order to ensure that a sufficient

amount is available for donation to the Blind

Institute.

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Jan.18

Grade 11 students also prepared business plans as part of their Term 1 P roject. They gave very

impressive presentations to an audience of parents and teachers in which they included their mission,

vision, marketing plans and branding among other things. They also provided food samples for the

audience to enjoy.

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Our school counselor gave an informative presentation for Grade 11 students about the addiction to

mobile phones. The presentation included symptoms and effects of being addicted to mobile phones and

virtual social media. The counsellor suggested different approaches to limit attachment to mobile

phones and to improve students’ wellbeing.

Meanwhile Grade 12 turned their thoughts to official exam regulations and were reminded what

constitutes malpractice in an exam setting and its serious consequences. They also took the opportunity

to choose their graduation song and so the countdown to the graduation of the Class of 2018 begins….

This year’s Grade 11 Group 4 Project was a great success with the Science Department introducing a

new structure. The students enjoyed being challenged by scientific experiments in the Physics,

Chemistry and Biology laboratories as well as in the Innovation and Design Centre. They had “escape the

room” experiences that put their critical thinking, problem-solving and team work to the test. It was a

joy to witness how motivated the students were to finish as many challenges as possible.

Organised by the University Counselling Department, those Grade 12 students who applied for medicine

in the UK had mock interviews with members of the Board of Trustees and the Leadership Team. The

students were challenged by a focused medical question and engaged in role play with a “patient” to

help prepare them for their interviews in the UK. We wish them all the best of luck as they face the real

thing in the coming few weeks.

Grade 12 kick started the new term with their pre-mocks and the Grade 11s with their weekly tests. We

wish everyone the best of luck during Term 2.

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Celebrating Achievement and Excellence in Design and Technology

On the 19th of December 2017 the class of 2018 Design Technology students celebrated finishing products for their final design project. A wide variety of innovative products were presented at the exhibition using various manual and computerised techniques. The design solutions were targeting real users in authentic life situations. Rina Tadros, a grade 12 Design Technology student, shares her experience with the design project: “My experience with the design project was definitely memorable. As DT is my favourite subject, I was definitely interested in going through the design project. Throughout it I learned the validity of the topics in the syllabus, as I had to consider almost all of the syllabus through the design project. The ideas are stored in my brain now and I learned how to apply them to real life situations. This not only helps me revise for exams as I fully understand the syllabus now and have more experience with dealing with case studies, but it has also helped prepare me for university in terms of stress and what I will go through when studying architecture or industrial design as a major.”

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Ms Sarah Byham

Jerusalem

Inspired by the AL TARBIYEH attribute of Arab Heritage, the Middle Years School

held a special assembly on Jerusalem, its significance, and the repercussions of

recent world events. Students from Grades 6, 7 and 8 were introduced to the

city's history, its central role in Arab and Palestinian identity, as well as its religious significance, and how recent events impact Palestinians, Arabs, and the

rest of the world. Students considered the challenges of being agents for positive

change in the world and global citizens, ending with a rousing rendition of

Ibrahim Touqan's classic "Mawtini".

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Religions Assembly

In our assembly, on the 29th November the MYS celebrated two very important religious occasions – the birth of the Prophet Mohammad (Mawlid Nabawi) and the birth of Jesus (Christmas), Peace Be Upon Them. After the assembly, the Student Council arranged a lunch celebrating the traditional elements of Christmas and Al Mawlid Al Nabawi, such as eating turkey and serving mushabak as dessert, as it is a traditional sweet served on the occasion of the Prophet Mohammad's birthday. The religious aspects of both occasions were addressed in our Islamic, Christian and World Religions activities. Religions Field Trip On Thursday, 9th November, Grade 8 students visited nursing home for elders, to promote the shared value of honouring your father and mother that Prophet Mohammad and Jesus both preached, as part of a shared unit addressed in Religion lessons for both faiths. On Wednesday, 22nd November, Grade 6 students visited the National Association for Special Needs to demonstrate the value of giving. The students were very happy that both events were taking place so close to each other, as this promoted our belief in the shared values of both religions and allowed us to come together as one community, Muslims and Christians, to share in our joy at this holy time.

Media Centre Chess Tournament

The final Media Centre chess tournament was concluded with Omar Baalbaki winning first place. The tournament was managed by the student, Rakan Hammouri.

Congratulation and well done!

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On Monday 4th December, ABS was honoured to

be visited by the famous composer Tareq Al

Nasser who came to give workshops to students

from Grades 8-10 . Tareq is famous for working

on the soundtracks for Arabic series such as " نهاية

and also for hisالملك فاروق" " andرجل شجاع""

work on film scores. Tareq demonstrated to the

students, using the Global Context of Personal and

Cultural Expression, how he has been influenced

by Jordan's outstanding landscapes, particularly

Wadi Rum, in defining himself as a musician.

Tareq formed the famous band "Wadi Rum

Group" and is currently working in Wadi Rum as

part of his inspiration. Students from Grades 8-10 benefited from a deeper insight into the AL

TARBIYEH attributes of Arabic Heritage and

Holistic Education through the visit, and were

truly inspired and encouraged to develop their

own artistic expression.

On Monday, 11th December, Amman Baccalaureate School students from Grades 6-10 gave an

outstanding performance at the Abdali Boulevard. Rakan Hammouri opened the concert with a

stunning solo piano composition, "Fur Elise with a Twist" and later also performed his own composition

"Alaila bilaila". Tala Salfiti sang a beautiful solo of Norah Jones' "Sunrise". David Nino performed an

outstanding solo baritone rendition of "White Christmas", accompanied by Rakan Hammouri on

piano. Zein Abu Irshaid and Hisham Khatib both performed soothing solo piano pieces, "Noivle

Bianche" and "Waltz in A". The ABS Upper School Choir closed the performance, accompanied by a

number of Grade 6 students, playing the qanun, piano, tableh and drums, performing “بيني وبينك” and a

rousing Christmas medley in Arabic and English. It was a memorable occasion for all involved and we thank the Abdali Boulevard for their excellent support in making this performance such an enjoyable

occasion!

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Robotics Activity

On January 4th, the MYS hosted a session in the theatre to promote the Robotics after-school activity for

Grades 6, 7, and 8. In this session, students from different schools shared their own learning journey in

robotics. They showcased their robots, which performed a vast array of tasks to solve a wide range of

problems, such as helping the disabled people to use computers, a remotely controlled robotic arm to

move heavy items and a robotic candy dispensing machine.

A follow-up hands-on practical session took place on the following Monday in the Media Centre where

students got the chance to work on and program robots to perform a variety of tasks.

A detailed email about the Robotics after-school activity is going to be sent out to both parents and

students soon.

Media Centre Book Club

The students discussed the book “Of

Men Kuthrat Elwajebat Elmadraseah”.

The students have established rules and principles for a school free of

homework. They have also discussed

various strategies to avoid serenity and

enhance concentration skills inside the

classroom.

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Dear Primary Parents,

My staff and I would like to wish you and the students a very happy and

prosperous New Year!

Our second semester has already been a very busy one. It was lovely to see so

many parents, both old and new, at the KG entrance interviews last week. The

format of the day involved our students rotating through a variety of learning

engagements and information being collated by KG teachers and staff from

Additional Educational Needs Department. The process allowed us to really

get to know our new students and parents and plan for their future arrival

according to their needs.

This semester will also see our staff undertaking mindfulness training as part of our drive to become

an emotionally intelligent school. Mind-Up training sessions will be delivered to all K-Grade 5 staff, we

will also be running a session for any parents that may be interested in learning more about this

programme. This training will take place for teachers on Saturday 20th January 2018 and for parents

on Sunday 21st January 2018.

I am looking forward to working with you all closely this year as we continue with our school

improvement focus. In light of this, I have also included a number of important upcoming events and

dates at the end of this newsletter for your information.

Mr Fiyaz Ahmed

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Jan.18

MindUp Parents Training: 12st January 2018, from 9:30 -11:00

Assessment Information Session: 12th January 2018, from 9:00 - 10:30

Target Setting Parent / Teacher Conferences: 21th February 2018

Non-Uniform Day 21th February 2018

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Primary School Concert

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Christmas Celebration

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Student Voice

As the Primary Student Voice continues to promote

environmental awareness, they have decided to

recognise and celebrate Primary Students who take

the time and effort to support their cause by

making them honorary members of ‘The Green

Team’.

The Student Voice encourages all students to join

'The Green Team' in promoting and further

instilling the importance of environmental

protection.

KG1

The KG1 students enjoyed going on a field trip to the Haya Cultural Centre to watch a live show titled “A

Trip to the Moon with Lulu and Janjoon”. They were fascinated to meet and interact with the two mice

Lulu and Janjoon who discovered that they had no more cheese left to eat for their New Year’s

celebration and decided to come up with a solution to the problem.

KG2

During their inquiry into the unit “How we organise ourselves”, the KG2 students learnt how different

jobs are connected to each other through their visit to Mega Hardware Store. They explored the

materials available in the store and related them to the jobs they have been learning about. The

students identified that the store offers several jobs and the connection between them is what makes a

successful community in their business.

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Grade 1

The Grade One students enjoyed the visit from Raya Abu Younis, a nutritional expert, who shared ideas

with them about how to choose healthy and balanced food. She also stressed upon the necessity of

doing exercise every day. She distributed a table to help organise the learners’ daily healthy food intake.

The learners are becoming more balanced individuals and taking responsibility for their health.

Grade 2

For our unit about “Where We Are in Place and Time”, Grade Two hosted some of our parents and/or

relatives to talk about their own experiences with migration. Through slideshows, and posters they

explained about the effects of migration on their lives. They were also kind enough to let us taste some

of the food from their home country.

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Grade 3

For our third Unit of Inquiry, How We Express Ourselves, Grade Three learners excitedly visited the

Wadi Finan Art Gallery. Artist Zaid Shawwa exhibited

his paintings and drawings in the gallery. He discussed

the paintings and their interpretations

with learners. They were in awe with all the amazing

faces and musical instruments he created for the

exhibition "Watar". Learners were given blank paper to

recreate their favourite paintings and showcase their creativity to the artist. Mr. Shawwa was very impressed

with their artwork and the learners truly enjoyed the

trip.

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Grade 4

In our third Unit “Who We are” Grade 4 learners welcomed Dr. Tamer

AlNasser as he gave them an informative and interactive session about

the Musculoskeletal System. Learners posed key questions that led to an

in-depth inquiry of the bones and muscles, which made Dr. Tamer very

impressed with their level of knowledge.

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Grade 5

Our Grade Five learners enthusiastically visited the 1001 Invention Exhibition at the Jordan Museum.

They delved into a world of influential Arab people from the past and their inventions that led to main

creations we still use today. They connected the central idea, “Past civilisations shape the present

systems and technologies” under the transdisciplinary theme, “Where We Are in Place and Time” to

what they have observed. They listened attentively and took notes as they watched a short film and visited different stations where they participated in engaging presentations about the different

inventions.

Science in the Primary

Grade 3 have had a blast the past two weeks exploring properties of solids and liquids as part of their

Science unit on matter. Students were left in awe as they poured liquids with different densities over

each other and constructed a layered colourful tower. This was followed by writing a lab report

explaining their predictions and discoveries.

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Performing Arts

Videos of the much-appreciated play ‘Point of View’

are now available for purchase in three locations:

The main school reception

Through Mr. Karam in the MYS Music Department

Through Miss Jane-Ann in the IB College

The cost of the video is only 5 JDs. Please don’t allow your

video to be copied as we need to sell our copies to make as

much money as we can for the final donation for the blind

school.

Don’t miss this golden memory!

Miss Jane-Ann Heffernan: Head of IB Theatre and Director of Theatre Performances

‘The Absurdity of it!’ - Theatre in Education Show

Rehearsals for the next Theatre in Education show performed by Grade 12 Theatre and Gr. 12 Literature

and Performance students with the help of Gr. 11 Theatre students have begun. The show will take

place on Tuesday 6 February at 9 am and will be seen by grades 8 – 12, teachers and parents of the Gr.

11 and 12 actors performing.

The performance will feature an exciting presentation on the history and philosophy behind the genre

before the performed extracts from several famous absurd comedies including; The Sandbox, The Zoo

Story, Endgame and The Bald Pima Donna.

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Performing Arts

Miss Jane-Ann Heffernan: Head of IB Theatre and Director of Theatre Performances

In foreground, Sarah Wheat and Patrick Cisar, and in the background, Nathan Kirsch and Christopher

Harpenau rehearse a scene from ‘Endgame’, the next play at Briar Cliff University photo by Joanne Fox

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Documents

· PDF fileHappy New Year to all members of the ABS Community! ... The religious aspects of both occasions were addressed in our Islamic, ... stunning solo piano composition,