Newsletter 15.11.2024
Reading was very important today, but there is also a lot more to report from this week and the pre-Christmas period is also arousing anticipation.
Yesterday our Baby Club took part in Read Aloud Day and it was a great experience! Together we told a wonderful story about a witch and her friends on a broom. Reading aloud to babies is not only fun, but also a wonderful way to encourage their development. Each story strengthens language skills, encourages listening and instils a love of reading that will last a lifetime. Thank you to everyone who took part in the Baby Club this week!
This week, Alicia Bergner and Lina Robst were at our partner school Universal Wonderful Street Academy in Old Ningo and continued the project on plastic waste in a practical way. The whole school took part in a successful clean-up of the school grounds and the beach directly in front of the school grounds.
Join us this Sunday for a cake and coffee picnic at the German International School Accra! Bring something sweet and enjoy a relaxing afternoon while the kids have fun in the playground. This Sunday, 17 November 2024, from 2pm to 5pm. See you there!
Look forward to our Christmas market, which will enchant you on Saturday, 23 November 2024 from 3 pm to 7 pm. Look forward to great vendors, delicious food and drinks, live music and much more. An event for the whole family, with fun for the little ones - even Father Christmas will be dropping by! We look forward to your visit.
This winter holidays, your child can immerse themselves in a world of wonder at the ‘School of Magic’ winter camp! From 16-20 December, children aged 1-12 years are invited to spend a week full of magical activities, creative fun, a bathing day and magical secrets at the German International School Accra. The camp runs every day from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm and lunch is included for school children. Please note that only school children need to register, while for our kindergarten and preschool children the camp is already included in their regular calendar. However, they will need to pay for their own school lunch from the North Ridge Café.
Kindergarten and nursery:
There was a lot to celebrate at the crèche last week! On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday we had three birthdays, which were of course celebrated extensively. We also made some great Christmas trees! First we painted a sheet of paper green and then we cut out a Christmas tree from it. This was not only a lot of fun, but also improved our fine motor skills. At the end of the week on Friday, we said goodbye to two children who are now moving on to kindergarten. We wish you lots of fun with the older children!
As soon as St Martin's Day is over, the pre-Christmas spirit is slowly beginning to take hold in the kindergarten, as our two Christmas elves Tomte and Lasse have reported back to us for the first time. They are currently building their houses in our groups and we are excited to see what else will happen...
During learning time, we continued to work with instruments, among other things. The children recognised and named different instruments and explained which part of the body is used to play them. We also used different picture cards to tell our own stories and stuck colourful Christmas tree baubles on them, which now decorate our groups.
In ‘English Club’ this week, the children formed sentences with words such as ‘wake up’, ‘go to school’ or ‘have lunch’. They then matched these to the appropriate pictures. We also learnt Christmas words in English as an introduction to our new topic.
There was also a lot on the programme on Friday: the big reading day was coming up and we were able to listen to two great interactive stories in German and English in the morning. We travelled to a king and his sons and then went on a treasure hunt through the school to rescue a dog from a castle. Luckily we were able to help, found all the keys and freed the dog.
Primary school:
This week, the Christmas decoration activities began in the classes, including Grade 1/2. Beautiful, colorful folded stars were created. Why not try it at home? Your children are already experts. Great instructions can be found at: www.deschdanja.ch/zauberhafte-fenstersterne. In the beginner's English class, the topic this week was "Fruits." Through various exercises and the Anton app, the students worked towards making a banana milkshake on Thursday. Delicious! In science, we explored different materials, grouping them into natural and artificial. In maths we continued our work on the topic money. What do the different Euro coins and bills look like and how many cents do you need to make a Euro? And how can different amounts be arranged?
On Friday's Reading Day, our class enjoyed stories read in two languages. Thanks to Molly for reading the book "The Crocodile That Didn't Like Water" in English. Afterwards, the children shared what they enjoy doing with their families and illustrated or wrote their ideas in their own little booklets. German children's book author Christina Groth read from her book "Mopping" and, as she is also an illustrator, she showed us how her illustrations were created.
This week, the fourth-graders in German went to the library to read to the kindergarten children and continue working on their fantasy stories. In Year 3 we have been strengthening our reading skills in preparation for Read Aloud Day. The pupils wrote a test about animals and continued to work on possessive pronouns and negative articles. In maths, we started with our trainee Lena Prosser on the topic of geometry and differentiated between surfaces and solids. In English with Clementia Mayoga, we looked at parts of speech and with Laura Lützeler we read the book ‘Dragon Post’ together and wrote our own little letter. In Science this week, we mainly focussed on recognising our own (physical) boundaries - who can get close to me and how? We also had the opportunity to ask questions about the class trip on Thursday - everyone's excitement is slowly building. Today's reading day was definitely a highlight of the week. It started in the morning with a shared story in the school playground. Afterwards, we created a very funny and exciting story together in class using chat GPT. After two hours of lessons, we were then introduced to the book ‘Mopping’ by the author Christina Groth herself in the 5th lesson and we were able to see how quickly she can draw mythical creatures. What a great day!
Secondary school:
This week was characterised by ‘Reading Aloud Day’ and the ‘Reading Competition’. Both Year 5 and Year 6 decided within their own class who would be allowed to take to the big stage. Kudos to all the readers and congratulations to Zoe, who was the school's ‘Best Reader’. IMPORTANT: A document was sent to the class group containing all the information about the class trip. History, art and geography: ‘The Etruscans had quite a formative influence on Roman culture’, the pupils learnt this week in history and also learned geographical details about the Apennine Peninsula. The major topic of ‘Europe’ centred on the continent's numerous flags, while in art we decorated for Christmas. In Ethics, we opened the topic of colonialism. Here we emphasised in particular that it is a sensitive topic and that we need to be careful with each other. We are currently combining ethics with IT across all subjects. We are researching and investigating together. In Year 6 German, we are creating a reading diary based on the book ‘The Brothers Lionheart’. Please make sure you have a suitable folder for this.
In maths, Patrick and Russell continued to engage the pupils in measuring angles and calculating them. The students were able to expand their knowledge and become confident in using different types of angles. In Physics and Chemistry, learners wrote Test 1 - the results were impressive and show how well prepared the students are. In Cambridge Science lessons, students were introduced to the topic of heat and electrical conductors. They learnt about the differences between conductors, insulators and good and bad conductors and their properties. For their projects on convection, conduction and radiation in relation to thermal and electrical conductors, the students were divided into three groups who will present their findings. In English grammar, we further deepened our knowledge by working intensively on noun and prepositional phrases. The students have been doing different activities to understand how these phrases can improve their writing skills. It's great to see how enthusiastic they are about writing! In history, the wall newspaper they produced about the Roman Empire was put up and the timeline of the Middle Ages was visualised - from the migration of peoples and the fall of Rome to important events such as the discovery of America and Martin Luther. There was also a Christmas atmosphere in art: after just 45 minutes, colourful stars adorned the window front of the classroom and spread a festive mood. The seventh-graders have been working intensively on two more ballads and have also been practising for the reading competition. Today they proved their worth in reading aloud and presented their ballads with great expression. It was an eventful week full of interesting discoveries and creative projects!
Outlook:
Sun, 17.11.2024 Cake and coffee picnic
Sat., 23.11.2024 Christmas market
Thu, 05.12.2024 St Nicholas Day
Fri, 06/12/2024 Farmer's Day - no lessons
Fri, 13/12/2024 Last day of school before the Christmas holidays
Mon, 16/12/2024 -
Fri, 20/12/2024 Holiday camp
Mon, 16/12/2024 -
Tue, 07.01.2025 Christmas holidays
Wed., 08.01.2025 First school day after the Christmas holidays - according to plan
