Thursday, 28 May 2020

Term 3 Week 6 - Online Learning

Vision: Udon Thani International School (UDIS) inspires internationally-minded, balanced learners who thrive and become active, global citizens. 

English
This week we have given a lot of attention to speaking and listening. This is because we have been preparing our presentations for the PYP Exhibition. We've gained experience in keeping eye contact, nodding to show understanding and expressing thoughts in clear ways.

We also wrote an information report about the topic we are passionate about. It was an opportunity to review how to present information in an organized format. These are available to see with our exhibition work.

Science
Our ongoing focus on energy continued this week as we looked into how energy transfers from one form to another. We considered examples of this from around the home.

Maths

We have had another busy week of virtual learning looking at our new topic Number Sense.
Next week, we will be doing a small Maths project focusing on statistics skills, including line and measure.

PYP Exhibition
Please join us via video link next week. Details are here

We look forward to seeing the children at school next week. Please look at the information that has gone out in emails from the school office. 

Sunday, 24 May 2020

Term 3 Week 5 - Online Learning



Vision: Udon Thani International School (UDIS) inspires internationally-minded, balanced learners who thrive and become active, global citizens. 


The half-term break on Monday and Tuesday meant that this was a short week, but with a lot of learning going on.

English: We continued on from similies last week and moved onto metaphors this week. We saw how metaphors are used daily around us in songs, chit -chat and for formal writing too. Our task was to enhance a previous piece of writing by adding similies and metaphors.

We also reviewed how to write an information report. This was part of the work which we will present as part of our PYP Exhibitions in a couple of weeks.

EAL: Our focus has been on reviewing some of the basics patterns of English. For Thai speakers using the English structure. 'There is/ are..' is often a challenge. We were able to turn this into an interesting verbal exercise which involved discussing pictures. We then had to write about Udon Thani using this structure.

Science: We have been inquiring into changes in forms of energy. We found that some of the electrical power used in Udon Thani comes from a dam in Laos. the movement of the water causes turbines to spin, which in turn cause generators to produce electricity. This is an example of kinetic energy being transformed into electrical energy.

Exhibition; Students received support in how to present their work as a video. A lot of self-management skills were exercised in doing this. Communication skills were used as students were required to explain themselves clearly in video format. We look forward to sharing these videos shortly.

Maths

We have had a short week this week, but continued to work hard as usual. The students completed the final part of their probability topic this week as we focused on:

To understand and use the probability scale.
To know that the sum of probability for all possible outcomes is 1.

The students also recapped using mental addition and subtraction strategies to solve calculations as part of the new topic: Number Sense.


Next week, we will continue our next topic 'Number Sense':

To know and use mental multiplication and division strategies for integers.

To use factors to simplify calculations.
To use estimation as a method for checking mental calculations
To know when to use a mental strategy, formal written method or calculator.

As there is a now a strong possibility that online learning will continue until the end of the academic year, this means we may be unable to complete practical elements, which were postponed. This means there will be a standalone lesson from the Lines and Angles Part One topic. Based on this, next week, we will also be focusing on:


To interpret simple pie charts using proportion.

It is really important that all students complete each assigned piece of work. The marks from each piece will contribute towards their final mark of the topic. All students have opportunities to make corrections to their work after submission. If a piece of work is missed, they will be given 0% for that piece of work, which can have an impact on their final topic score. It is essential that all students attend the Google Meetings as this will allow for clearer understanding and opportunity for face-to-face questions, which will help with the student's score that piece of work.

Please note - all pieces of work for 'Probability and Sets' must be handed in no later than today (22/05/2020). If there are any issues with work submission, please email me. Scores will be given on Monday 25th May 2020.


If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on charlotte.r@udoninternationalschool.com.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Ms.Charlie :)

Thai and Thai history


Thai and Thai history
Thai language the learners their study about Literary and literary values It is a reflection of traditions,
traditions, culture and society. All Friday will study of Thai development in the 3 Rattanakosin periods is the Early Rattanakosin period Reform era into a modern country And the era of democracy Development in various fields Of each period is the foundation of the development of the Thai nation today.) for this week they have had slides showed about Rattanakosin era establishment.



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Friday, 15 May 2020

Term 3 Week 4 - Online Learning


Vision: Udon Thani International School (UDIS) inspires internationally-minded, balanced learners who thrive and become active, global citizens. 


Central Idea:  
Present-day societies are built upon the systems and technologies of past civilizations.
Line(s) of Inquiry :
- The connection between past and present
- Societal errors of the past
- Processes involved in collecting, analysing and validating evidence

English
This week we revised how to use similies. These certainly make writing more fun. We enjoyed looking
at a the lists of usual ones and then trying to create more creative ones ourselves. We eventually
came up with poems that used similies and then shared them with one another.
Next week we will revise metaphors.

E.A.L
students are obviously interested in the history of their own country, Thailand. This has
meant that rather than researching Romans, Aztecs or other ancient civilizations, the students have
been very actively finding out about life in Thailand long ago. We looked into education, agriculture
and government systems of Thailand long ago. This was the perfect opportuinty for the students to
exercise proper use of the past tense.

Science
This week we learned that energy cannot be created or destroyed, it just keeps changing form.
Students followed a story that showed examples of what this looks like in daily life.

Maths
This week, we continue with our topic of Probability and Sets.
The students have looked at the following:
To understand and use the union of sets.
To generate sample spaces for single events.
To calculate the probability of a single event.

The students have also had an opportunity to do further research about probability on Monday and completed a revision task of prior learning on Thursday.


Next week, we have a three day week due to being on half term Monday and Tuesday. We will finish our 'Probability and Sets' topic and begin our next topic 'Number Sense':

To understand and use the probability scale.
To know that the sum of probability for all possible outcomes is 1.

New topic - To know and use mental addition and subtraction strategies for integers.

It is really important that all students complete each assigned piece of work. The marks from each piece will contribute towards their final mark of the topic. All students have opportunities to make corrections to their work after submission. If a piece of work is missed, they will be given 0% for that piece of work, which can have an impact on their final topic score. It is essential that all students attend the Google Meetings as this will allow for clearer understanding and opportunity for face-to-face questions, which will help with the student's score that piece of work.

Please note - all pieces of work for 'Probability and Sets' must be handed in no later than Friday 22nd May. Scores will be given on Monday 25th May 2020.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on charlotte.r@udoninternationalschool.com.

Ms.Charlie :)


Next week we will look at the PYP Exhibition presentations and spend time bringing the work to a conclusion. Students will begin to plan questions to ask one another.


Friday, 8 May 2020

Term 3 Week 3 - Online Learning



Vision: Udon Thani International School (UDIS) inspires internationally-minded, balanced learners who thrive and become active, global citizens. 


Central Idea:  
Present-day societies are built upon the systems and technologies of past civilizations.
Line(s) of Inquiry :
- The connection between past and present
- Societal errors of the past
- Processes involved in collecting, analysing and validating evidence

Unit of Inquiry
This week we looked into how ancient civilizations regularly mistreated people and denied people their human rights. We were particularly interested in anciet civilizations of Thailand, Greece and Eqypt. It seems that children often had a hard lifebecause they had to work to earn their living.

Reading

The online research for the unit of inquiry has been a opportunity to practice skimming for information and grasping the main points.


Writing
This week we practiced editting our own work to check for grammatical accuracy. We also were required to add the most suitable words from a thesaurus.




Science

We are now reviewing types of energy and how they are used.





Student have been preparing for the PYP. This is an online presentation they are going to share.


8 tips for studying at home efficiently: please click this link


Maths

This week, we finished our Lines and Angles Part Two topic and moved onto our new topic: Probability and Sets.

The students have looked at the following:

To solve angle problems using properties of triangles and quadrilaterals. (end of topic)
To identify and represent sets.
To create, analyse and identify elements of a Venn diagram.
To understand and use the intersection of sets.

The students have also had an opportunity to research and prepare for the new topic on Monday.

Next week, we will continue with 'Probability and Sets'. Along with the revision and recap learning sessions, we will be focusing on the following:

To understand and use the union of sets.
To generate sample spaces for single events.
To calculate the probability of a single event.

It is really important that all students complete each assigned piece of work. The marks from each piece will contribute towards their final mark of the topic. All students have opportunities to make corrections to their work after submission. If a piece of work is missed, they will be given 0% for that piece of work, which can have an impact on their final topic score. It is essential that all students attend the Google Meetings as this will allow for clearer understanding and opportunity for face-to-face questions, which will help with the student's score that piece of work.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on charlotte.r@udoninternationalschool.com.

Ms.Charlie :)



Wednesday, 6 May 2020

Term 3 Week 2 - Online Learning


Maths

Even though we have had a four day week, the students are getting back into a routine with online learning.

We have continued this week with our Lines and Angles: Geometric Reasoning topic. The students have looked at the following:

To know and apply the sum of angles in a triangle.
To know and apply the sum of angles in a quadrilateral.

The students have also had opportunities to complete revision and recap learning on Monday and Thursday this week. Recap learning focused on the current topic as well as previously covered topics this academic year.

Next week, we will finish our 'Lines and Angles Part Two' topics and begin our new topic of 'Probability and Sets'. Along with the revision and recap learning sessions, we will be focusing on the following:

To solve angle problems using properties of triangles and quadrilaterals.
To identify and represent sets.
To understand and use the union of sets.

Further to my previous recommendations, in order to ensure these lessons are completed effectively, I would advise the students to invest in a geometry set. A few of the students already have their own and they agreed it has proven useful to have their own.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on charlotte.r@udoninternationalschool.com.

Ms.Charlie :)





Term 2 Week 13 - Online Learning




Well done to Year 7. We have made it to the end of term 2.

Over the past two weeks, we have certainly developed some important skills. Firstly, self-management. Most students were very good at planning their times and joining meetings.  They've also done well in terms of simply getting their work done in challenging situations.

We will begin term three by continuing with the same unit of inquiry:

Central Idea:  Present-day societies are built upon the systems and technologies of past civilizations. (Thai Link)
Line(s) of Inquiry :

  • The connection between past and present -connection 
  • Societal errors of the past - reflection 
  • Processes involved in collecting, analysing and validating evidence -form

This unit is focussed particularly on history, and so we're learning how to make sense of primary sources such as photographs, artefacts and such things. We are linking this with science and learning about the simple machines of the past, particularly gears.  The social studies aspect is concerned with looking at how previous generations did not appreciate human rights as we do today.

The English work related to this unit of inquiry has been concerned with writing in a persuasive style. When we return we are going to work especially carefully on how to write good descriptions. This will support the history work we are doing.

Maths

We have made it to the end of Term 2! A huge congratulations to those who have really persevered with online learning in Maths. I know some of you have found it tough, but you can all definitely give yourselves a pat on the back.

On Monday, the students completed their Fractional Thinking assessment online. This proved to be a success. We have had positive feedback from the students and this may be something we can look into in the future. All students who took the assessment were sent their scores on Tuesday morning. If you are unaware of your child's score, please discuss this with them.

Our new topic is 'Lines and Angles', which has two subtopics. The first subtopic we are working on is 'Constructing, measuring and using geometric notation'. The learning this week included:

Letter and labeling conventions
Draw and measure line segments
Angles as a measure of turn
Classify angles

Further to my previous recommendations, in order to ensure these lessons are completed effectively, I would advise the students to invest in a geometry set. A few of the students already have their own and they agreed it has proven useful to have their own.

I hope you and your families all have a wonderful break. Please stay safe during this time. If you do have any questions over the break, please do not hesitate to contact me and I will try my best to respond. See you in term 3 whether in the classroom or via Google Meet.

Ms.Charlie :)

Term 2 Week 12 - Online Learning

What a very unusual week!

This week we teachers have been teaching without actually meeting our students face to face! For Year 7 this meant doing learning via Google Meet and Google Classroom. Both students and teachers have been getting used to doing things differently. The learning has still gone on, although in a different format. Here's an overview of our learning.

Central Idea:  Present-day societies are built upon the systems and technologies of past civilizations. (Science & Thai Link)
Line of Inquiry: The connection between past and present.
Science- this week we looked at the six kinds of simple machines. The challenge was to take some of these and develop them into a toy. This gave students something active to engage in during the time that they were unable to go out. Next week we will learn about gears and consider how our toys or devices could be improved by adding gears.


English - our focus this week was on reading about a civilization of the past and researching either education, healthcare or government worked at that time. The task was then to take the notes and present them as an information report with an introduction, paragraphs and a conclusion.
Next week there is going to be a particular focus on reading. We are going to read about how historians work and look at some examples of things they might read. The writing focus is going to be on persuasive writing.