CLASS PAGE ARCHIVE
Posted by: Ms. Yasmine Nour El Din
Student of the Month Corner

Hania and Joumana have both been selected as students of the months of March, as they have worked hard since the beginning of the sencond term to improove the quality of their homework and class work. Also, the effort that they have been putting into their the play and song rehearsals is truly very pleasing, and both of their performances are oustanding.

Sohaila has been selected as student of the month of February, as she has worked really hard to present work of high quality, always keeping her work tidy, organized and neat, while handing it in on time. Her behavior has also been outstanding.

Hana Salamahas been selected as student of the month of November, as she was able to work hard in

class and at home to present work of high quality. She has also been an active participant in all of our classroom. Her behavior has also been very good.

Ahmed Abd El Rahman has been selected as the student of the month of October. During this month, Ahmed was able to work hard in class and at home to present work of high quality. He was able to work quickly and efficiently in class, and was always willing to help fellow classmates. He has demonstrated outstanding leadership skills whenever he was in charge of managing a specific task. He has participated regularly during whole class sessions and his work and behavior inside the class, have been a model for other students to follow.

Ahmed Iskandarani has been selected as student of the month of September, in the class of primary two yellow, because he has worked hard in class and at home to present work of high quality. He has also always demonstrated good behavior, and his contributions to the class discussions were very valuable.

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During the months of September and October, in the classes of primary two, children have learned: (Information on what your kids have learned will be up-dated on a bi-monthly base). Be sure to look at the bottom of this page, this is where samples ofstudent work can be found.

Literacy:
Topic:
Primary two's topic for the past two months has been "light". Your kids have learned many concepts relating to light, and they have done several experiments:
Concepts learned:

• Light travels in straight lines.
• There are two different kinds of sources of light. There are artificial sources of light that are man-made such as the light bulb and the television. While there are natural sources of light, which have been created by God, such as the sun and fire.
• Different types of material allow different amounts of light to pass through (transparent material allow all the light to pass through, translucent materials allow some light to pass through, while opaque materials allow no light to pass through).
• Shadows and how they are formed, and how the size and definition of the shadow changes as the distance between the object and source of light changes.
• They have learned how the eye works, to allow us to see different objects in our surrounding environment.
• They were introduced to the pin-hole camera as an object that mimics they way the eye works.
• White light is actually composed of the seven basic colors (the colors of the rainbow: Red/ Orange/ Yellow/ Green/ Blue/ Indigo/ Purple).
• How do we see different objects as being colored the way that they are. For example how do we see that a red apple is red. Well the red able receives all the colors of the rainbow, it absorbs all of them, and only reflects the color red. Hence we see the apple as being red.

Experiments performed:

• Light travels in a straight line experiment.
• Shadow experiment: to look at how shadows are formed and how the size and definition of the shadow changes as the distance between the object and source of light changes
• How different types of material allow light to pass through (glass, cloth, oil, water, wood, steel ect…)
• The pinhole camera experiment to look at how the eye works.
• The colors of the rainbow experiment. Using mirrors, sunlight, and water students saw how white sunlight is actually made of the seven basic colors.
• Seeing the colors of the spectrum, while using a prism.

Sample of Student Class work:
Describing a Setting:
Students have worked in paris to produce interesting descriptions for various settings. The Zoo In the Zoo there are lots of cats and dogs. In the zoo there are lots of fierce lions. In the zoo the birds are singing. In the zoo, the pigs are taking a shower with mud. Cheetahs are running in the zoo. The baboons are saying "hi ha ho…" The monkey and the gorilla are eating bananas. The rabbits are eating carrots. The gorilla is going crazy.

By Mostafa Fetouh and Laila Shadad
The Ocean The ocean has lots of whales and fish. It is so big and it has a lot of weeds and sharks and dolphins. The ocean is in the middle of the seas. It's blue, some are green and red. It has lots of coral. It has a lot of fish, houses and crabs. It has sand, lobsters and sharp stones. There are lots of baleen whales and it is do deep. It is so dark in the bottom of the ocean. At the bottom of the Ocean there are lots of electric fish and lots of rocks.
By Hossam Khaled and Youssef Samer
The School In school children learn stuff. They take breaks. They take music, P.E., German and English lessons. The have a teacher. The teacher is called Yasmine. In school, nail polish is not allowed. Jules are not allowed. There is a school principal. You should not break school rules, and they are: no Jules, no nail polish, do not talk without permission. Also in school, you are not allowed to speak in Arabic, except in the Arabic lesson.
By Joumana Omar and Nour Adel

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November/ December 2007

(Dear Parents please note that things in this section are only a sample of what your kids have been learning in class). Be sure to look at the bottom of this page, this is where samples ofstudent work can be found.
Literacy: ·
The characteristics and elements of a story (Such as: setting, characters, plot, and atmosphere…ect). · They have learned how to look up definitions of words in a dictionary and synonyms for words in a thesaurus. · They have learned what a poem is and how it is different from a story. · Samples of Rhyming, Alliteration, Acrostic pomes have been shared in class and the kids wrote examples of each in their copy books (the most important of which are the "all about me poem" and "the best friend poem"). · Several samples of play-scripts have been shared in class such as "the man, his son and the donkey" and the "conjuror". The kids have learned difference between a play-script and other forms of writing and have written an ending the conjuror play, and have even written their own made up plays. · The elements of a play have been discussed and explained in detail (stage directions, characters, setting, scenes, narrator ect…) · Students have learned several prefixes such as (dis, un, re and others) and their meaning. · They have also learned several suffixces such as (ful and ly) and they have learned how to add them to words.

They have learned the difference between the present and past tense and how to add "ing" and "ed" to a verb. · They have learned how to use speech marks when including speech within a sentence, and how to write speech and punctuate it properly within a speech bubbles. · They have learned the different types ofwords such as "Nouns (naming words), Adjectives (Describing words) and Verbs (Doing words)".
Math: ·
In Math they have learned how to add numbers using a number line. · They learned how to count in ones until they reach a perfect ten and then count in ten until they reach a hundred. · They can now add and subtract various monetary amounts. · They have learned the basic fractions (1/2, 1/4, 1/3, 1/6, 1/8). · The have also learned how to calculate fractions of numbers EX 2/3 of 9.
· They can identify a shaded fraction on any given shape. · They can perform additions and subtractions within word problem, find out the final answer and write it in a sentence. · The can complete sequences of number that go in ones, tens and hundreds. · They can identify the place value of any digit in a three digit number.
Topic:
Primary two's topic for the past two months has been "Insects". Our kids

have learned many things relevant to insects. It was a topic that they have found interesting and exciting.
Concepts learned: ·
They have been introduced to what an insect is, and how they can identify them. · They have learned the way in which insects can be beneficial and harmful. · They have learned the three main body parts of an insect (the head, thorax and abdomen) which have been written in order of ascending size. · They studied the life cycle of an insect and were able to produce their own life cycles of a butterfly. · They have learned how bees feed and how they make their honey, and why there are different kinds and tastes to the honey that they produce. · They discovered that bees and ants are very organized creatures that work in an organized hierarchy, and in union to achieve their goals. They went to the Wadi Food Trip, where they were able to perform a lot of hand-on insect related activities. (It was a lot of fun). Samples of Student work: An ending to a play script, written in play script form: The kids had read a play script called the "conjuror", a little boy (called Stuart) was having a birthday party where all his friends were invited. The mom had a conjuror "magician" come to entertain the kids. Stuart did not like the conjuror, he was openly rude towards him, and did not believe that he could do any magic. The play script was open ended and so the kids were required to write an ending to the play, also in the form of a play script. This is what Youssef Samer wrote: Narrator: the next year of Stuart's birthday, the conjuror has practiced so much, he could do anything. Children: We're bored! Rachel: Where is Mr. Conjuror today Stuart? Stuart: Maybe he is embarrassed cause he can't get a monster out of the hat. Mum: Children sit down, Mister E should be here by now. Narrator: The conjuror was so late to this party. Mister E "the conjuror": I'm here, and I shall unleash the monster. Narrator: There was a strange knock on the door. Children: Yay, the conjuror came! All the children hugged the conjuror. Conjuror: Where's Stuart children? Rachael how about you, tell me dear. Rachael: He is in his room Mister E. Conjuror: Who wants to know what the "E" stands for? Children: Us us, me me ( the children screamed). Stuart: hey where is the monster? The conjuror: in the hat Stewey. Stuart: Get him! Conjuror: Abracadabra and post man pat what's inside the magic hat? Children: Yay a monster! (they clap). Narrator: Stuart was so scared from the monster that he cried. The End By Youssef Samer Sample of Acrostic Poems Written by the kids: Dad is kind Always travels Dad always plays with me. By Ahmed Seif Sample or Rhyming Poems written by the kids: My best friend is nice. She does not like ice. She likes to eat Rice. My best friend is kind. She never minds. She has a lovely part. And she is really smart. My best friend plays in the yard. She loves to play with the car. And she can run far. My best friend is a queen. Her favorite color is green And she likes to be seen My best friend is cooking food in the pot, And she forgot that it is hot. And she forgot the spot. By Nada Ahmed Hammad Dear Parents please note that things in this section are only a sample of what your kids have been learning in class). Be sure to look at the bottom of this page, this is where samples of student work can be found.
Literacy:

• Students have learned revisited fiction and non-fiction books.
• They can now name off the top of their heads, the mains differences between fiction and non-fiction books.
• They know that a fiction book usually does not have a table of contents, nor does it have an index or a glossary.
• They know that fiction books are usually not true, though they may sometimes refer to real life events or aspects.
• They have learned that non-fiction books always have a table of contents, and an index, and that most also have a glossary (which is a mini dictionary that is relevant to the book and that contains the difficult words that are found inside the book). They understand that these features in a non-fiction book are there to facilitate the process of researching and finding information within a non-fiction book with relevance to a particular topic of questions.
• Students are now able to research information within non-fiction books, and answer questions written on index cards.
• They are also able to select the kind of fiction book that is most likely to contain the answer to their questions.
• Students have looked at various kinds of non-fiction text such as extracts, books, dictionaries and thesauruses.
• They know that dictionaries and thesauruses are organized alphabetically to facilitate word searches.
• Reports about various animals, which were written by students within the same age range, were shared in class. The kids read them and evaluated them.
• Students were then assigned books, and were required to write a book report about a specific animal such as a lion, giraffe or tiger.
• Students during this period also rehearsed and presented a mini-presentation called "The Grass Hopper and the Ants). This presentation gave them a chance to deal with a real script, act it, look at stage directions, and understand the role of a chorus within a play. It was also a chance for them to show off their acting skills!

Math:

• The concept of multiplication was introduced to the kids. Multiplication was introduced in several ways. First as repeated additions. Then as counting in given number on a number line, and also in the form of drawing sets. Students should now feel free to use which ever strategy they are most comfortable with to generate a correct answer to any given multiplication.
• They have also been introduced to the idea that multiplication is reversible; in the sense that 2*4 is equal to 4*2 (they also drew arrays to represent this reality).
• The concepts of doubling and Halfing were revisited and consolidated.
• Division was introduced at first as multiplication with a missing number and then as a reverse to multiplication. They can now perform divisions of various numbers, and are familiar with the mathematical division sign.
• They were also introduced the concept of division with a remainder.

Topic:

• During this period, students learned about the fascinating history of ancient Egypt.
• They were introduced to the map of ancient Egypt, which is pretty much similar to what Egypt looks like today.
• They understood that Egypt is a gift of the Nile, and that the great civilization that blossomed in Egypt, would not have been possible without the Nile River.
• They understood that most of Egypt was desert land and that only the area around the Nile was occupied and harvested by the Ancient Egyptians.
• They learned how Egypt was first unified under the rule of Narmer, and were introduced to the meaning of the word pharaoh.
• They learned how and why the ancient Egyptians built pyramids, and how the perfect pyramids at Giza were the result of many years of work, and several trials and errors.
• They were given a lecture by Dr. Tammy Gaber, Assistant Professor of Architecture at Misr International University, (Hossam Khaled's mom) about architecture during the time of the ancient Egyptian (with special focus on temples and temple design).
• They learned about the Ancient Egyptian Alphabet (Hieroglyphics) and this information was consolidated by a lecture given by Ms Nashwa Awad, Egyptologist (Mostafa Fetouh's mom). They also wrote their names in hieroglyphics.
• They learned about the mummification process, which organs were removed, why the ancient Egyptians mummified the bodies of their kings, and which Gods were responsible for looking over the organs that were placed in canopic jars.
• They learned that the ancient Egyptians believed in many Gods, and that they believed that a person is judged after death.
• They learned about Howard carter's discovery of Tutankhamoun's tomb, and the many wonderful treasures that were discovered in it (of which they were able to see some during their visit to the Egyptian museum).
• Students also researched and presented information about an ancient Egyptian king or queen that fascinated them.
• During their studies on Ancient Egyptian history, culture and monuments the primary two students went on two trips. The first trip was to the pyramids, where they got to marvel and the beauty, precison and magnificience of the three pyramid, and the sun boat. They also went on a trip to the Egyptian Museum, where they got to see many samples of ancient Egyptian monuments, art forms, and even statues that depicted the culture, art, army, and even various stratas of the Egyptian society at the time. Both trips were very interesting and exciting for the kids. Sample of their writings about the trips will be added to the sample of students work section.

(Dear Parents please note that things in this section are only a sample of what your kids have been learning in class). Be sure to look at the bottom of this page, this is where samples of student work can be found. Literacy:

• Fiction and Non- Fiction books were revisited. In whole class sessions, the kids were supposed to list the features of each, and then go through the books, to identify the elements which the had listed.
• They read several comprehension sheets and worked on ansewring them in their copy books on their own.
• There was an emphasis on how information is presented within a non-fiction book (big titles, sub-headings, pictures, pictures with label, diagram with labels, pictures with captions and just picutres).
• It was discussed that having the information presented in different ways inside a non-fiction book, actually helped reader find and make sense of the topic that was being presented.
• They wrote about their trips to the Pyramid and the Egyptian Museum.
• Students worked on labeling diagram.
• The students received letter from Pen Pals in New York State, these were read in class, and then the students wrote their own very interesting pen pal letters. Some kids even wrote to more than one pen pal.
• They also wrote, edited and rewrote mother day pomes (Acrostic and Rhyming).
• They wrote a litterary response, which is a written reaction to their play.
• They wrote about their character, customes and what they learned from the play.
• Students during this period also rehearsed and presented the Priamry Two production "Where is my Pyramid".
• In the process of preparing for the primary two theatrical production children benefit from several learning and character building experiences. They first need to learn the importance of committing to a task, when they are studying and memorizing their lines. They also realize that the play rehearsals are a collective whole class activity, and that everyone depends on every one else to take the task seriously in order to achieve success. New and more complicated vocabulary words are learned. They come to understand the importance of articulation and expression as it affects the way the audience understand the play. Acting on stage is a chance for the accomplished student actors to shine, and for those shy ones to overcome their fear of public speaking. Presenting a play is the also the ultimate lesson in group effort and team success
• Play Synopsis:
  Set in 2575 BC, 'Where is My Pyramid" is the story of a revolutionary ruler, who dared to dream of an achievement that was architecturally impossible, and that had never been attempted before. Snefru, first pharaoh of the 4th dynasty, after having completed Huni's step pyramid at Maidum, sets out to build, the first perfect pyramid. His first trial is met with a failure as the second pyramid ends up bent. He then starts all over again. Snefru, like Huni before him, struggles with his wife "Hetepherss" who does not see the point or use of building a pyramid, a task which seems to be exhausting the country's and her husband's efforts and resources. His lead architect "Werma'a", along with his two sons "Cheops" and "Ra'hotep" work restlessly to figure out how to build a perfect top to Snefru's perfect pyramids. Workers exhausted after having already build a pyramid gossip with the servants about how this is maybe a task that is unachievable. But at the end, will Snefru get his perfect pyramid? Watch and a you shall SEE!

Math:

• The concept of doing the multiplication of big numbers on a number grid was introduced.
• Adding fraction using visiual techniques was introduced.
• Multiplication, Division and calculating fractions and fractions of numbers were revised and consolidating.
• Measurmenets (cm, meters and kilometers) were revisited as well, and units of time (hours, minutes, days, weeks, month and years).
• Units of weight were introduced ( This is a concept that they got first hand contact with when they were baking in the kitchen).
• The concept of division and division with a remainder was consolidated.

Topic:

• During this period, students learned about the Oceans.
• They were introduced to the world of the Ocean. They learned that there are many different forms of life that live in the Oceans.
• They learned about how the waves are formed and how the tides happen.
• They discovered that some sea creatures live on the sea shore, while others live in shallow water, and others live in deep, and deeper water.
• They saw that each sea creatures phisically looked in a specific way to adapt to his enviorment inside the Ocean.
• The learned about he water cycle, and how water is constantly recycling itself, and that we need to use the water we have wisely as we will not be getting anymore from outside sources.
• We studied some of the Ocean animals, with a special emphasis on whales, and the kids presented self made borchures about various sea creatures.

They realized that all the creatures of the sea depend in one way or the other on each other. And that they form a life eco-system

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