TENBY SCHOOLS IPOHNewsletter #135 - February 2017

Highlights in this newsletter:

Community Issues

Improving Facilities

Creativity, Action, Service and Enrichment ( C.A.S.E ) Portfolios

Lost & Found

PA Facebook

School Improvements

School Production - Items Needed

Dates for Your Diary

From the Campus Principal Jane Kuok

Dear Parents and Tenby Community,

We were very glad to see everyone back on Campus this week after the mid-term break. This week kicked off with a visit from the Deputy Minister for International Trade and Industries, Datuk Chua Tee Yong and representatives from the Malaysian Industrial Development Fund (MIDF) and Malaysian International Trade & Industries (MITI). This visit was in conjunction with MIDF and MITI, who nominated Tenby Schools to showcase their success story. The media and press accompanied the entourage. Datuk Chua was especially impressed with our student leaders who led the tour of the Campus.

Thank You - Annual Dinner Thank you for collecting your children before 15:00hrs on Friday 10th February to facilitate the staff Annual Dinner. It was a most enjoyable evening.

Building the Community – The Meaning of Friendship by Year 5 Just before the mid-term break, Year 5 led a terrific assembly for the rest of the primary school on the topic of ‘Friendship’. They shared some insightful thoughts on what it means to be good friends, which are the basis of building any community - showing respect, care, trust, responsibili-ty within the community etc. These are important messages that we have to work together to instill amongst our students. Have a look at the Powerpoint slides after this message. Well done Year 5 on sharing this with us.

Community Issues On the day of the Annual Dinner, after school, a student in primary returned to where he placed his bag after his CCA to find that his shoes were thrown into the toilet bowl and the bag which had his uniform in had disappeared. Unfortunately, we could not identify any suspects through CCTV and we have not been able to find the missing uniform. During the holidays, damage to the MPH was discovered which included a broken window, clock and acoustic ceiling boards and two damaged badminton rackets. This week, two students were meddling with a fire extinguisher and accidentally activated it.

In short, this type of behaviour is not acceptable or socially responsible and we make the assumption that this was purposeful as no one has taken responsibility for these acts. We must collectively work together to build a commu-nity of trust, civic responsibility and collegiality. We will be relentless in stamping out such antisocial behaviours – please work with us to do this.

Improving FacilitiesAs a School, we continuously work to improve the amenities for students - we listen to feedback and suggestions, however, they must reciprocate in thought and action. We are pleased to report that following such feedback, we are planning to install hair dryers in the changing rooms and hot water showers and we will trust the students to use these properly.

Additional lights have been installed in various places around the School, notably on the walkway between Block A and Block B. We have a security guard stationed there between 07:00hrs and 08:00hrs to control traffic as students cross.

Creativity, Action, Service and Enrichment (C.A.S.E) Portfolios – To Purchase from BookshopThe Secondary sections of the School will be introducing C.A.S.E Portfolios for students to log their achievements in creativity, action, service and enrichment. This will enable students to be able to actively work on developing key skills in areas such as tracking academic attainment, leadership, initiative, team work, productivity, environmental awareness, service to others etc. all of which are vital to achieving the School’s Mission and Core Values that we would like to instill in our students. This programme will be introduced gradually so that students will become familiar with how they can lead their development in these areas.

Secondary students will need to purchase a C.A.S.E Portfolio from the Bookshop at a cost of RM17.50. They will be available from Monday 27th February and will be a one off purchase as the folders will be re-used annually.

Visit from Stranmillis University College LecturerNext week we will welcome Dr. Sharon Jones, Senior Lecturer in Education Studies(with Modern Languages) from Stranmillis University College. She will come to the School to observe and moderate the work that the teachers on the Post Graduate Certificate in Education international (PGCEi) are doing.

PA Facebook PageThank you to parents who have written into ipoh@tenby.edu.my to verify that they are parents at the School. Anyone who did not confirm their status through this e-mail has been removed from the group. Should parents wish to re-join this group, they may do so via the Facebook page where they will need to fill in the details of their child’s name and class. This information must be provided for us to verify that the request is authentic. Unfortunately, without this, the administrator will not be able to accept the request.

Lost & FoundAlthough we aim to clear all the lost and found items each week, there are many items that would be a waste to throw away. Please could we encourage parents to ensure that all their child’s belongings are labelled with their name and class so that we can return them if they are lost or misplaced?

We will display these items in the Canteen on Friday 3rd March from 12:00hrs – 15:00hrs in the hope that many of the items will be claimed. Thereafter, we will have to dispose the items. School ImprovementAs you are aware, we are focusing on working towards Mission Point 1 which states that we aim ‘To enable students to achieve their full potential for academic excellence and achievements in sports and the arts’.

In the Year 7 – 9 parent forum this week, questions arose whereby parents wanted to find out more about how the School caters for different learners in the classroom and how we work to support teachers to be able to deliver to those needs. In-service training is part and parcel of School operations so it was not something that we thought to share with parents. However, we realise that some parents would not know this so, we will begin to highlight some of the things that we are doing behind the scenes to drive academic excellence and achievements in sports and the arts. This week we will share some of the drives for academic excellence. In subsequent Newsletters, the different sections of the School will share snippets of what they are doing.

The School has a whole school strategic and development plan. From this, each section of the School e.g. Interna-tional Primary, National School, International Secondary and Early Years detail specifically how they will achieve the whole school targets in their development plans. These goals are shared with staff so that they remain focused on the School’s aims for the year and these are reviewed and shared with the Academic Leadership team on a termly basis.

For the teaching & learning strand in our development planning, we have been focusing on raising academic achievement in various ways. Here are some examples:

• Raising expectations e.g. • Students will automatically aim for English (first language) IGCSE if they are in the international stream, the number of IGCSEs that students sit has increased, extension work for able students in Malay, English and Chinese will be provided in Year 11 to those who are capable of completing the relevant IGCSE in Year 10, option blocks have been organised so that students can study Chinese or French in addition to Malay and English at IGCSE. • International Primary have introduced ‘Tickled Pink & Green for Growth’ – a system where both students and teachers are able to highlight aspects of their work against the learning objective and success criteria to show where they were successful and the areas that need improvement. This makes the learning far more explicit and focused. • National School have focused on target setting that will support students learning on an individual basis.• Training for planning using standardised planning templates across the School.• Training for teachers on Differentiation – catering to different abilities and needs.• Training on Assessment strategies - looking for learning • Training on moderating students’ work• Training on Active Learning strategies• Assessment for Learning – regular short term tracking systems are in place for individual students that are followed by pupil progress meetings where teachers analyse the data to identify students that may need intervention or short term booster tools.• Supporting Teachers through formal and informal observations, peer observation, learning walks, team meetings to share good practice and plan together etc.

All these listed above are just some of the examples of the initiatives that are being embedded by staff outside their teaching times.

We have also put into place leadership training for the leaders in both the administration and academic teams of the school to provide strategies for managing change, whereby they were given the tools to empower them to lead their teams effectively. Topics that have been covered so far are:

• Leadership & Management – What is the difference?• Developing Teams & Teamwork• Team Management Strategies• Communication• Conflict Resolution• Leading Meetings• Change Leadership & Management

Dates for Your Diary & Parental Involvement:

1.Community Dress Up on Friday 3rd March – Favourite Book Character On Friday 3rd March, students and staff are encouraged to come dressed as their favourite book character in line with Literacy/Literature Week. We look forward to seeing the imaginative costumes!

2.Upcoming ISAKL (International Sports Association of Kuala Lumpur) on Saturday 4th March Netball Tournament – Community SupportWe are pleased to inform you that we will be hosting the upcoming ISAKL Netball Tournament in the MPH on Saturday 4th March from 09:00hrs – 14:30hrs. It would be great if parents and student could come to support the School teams (U15 & O15). Our sister school, from Penang will be joining the tournament too.

3.Science Fair – Friday 24th MarchThere will be a Science Fair on Friday 24th March where we need the help of the community to judge the Science projects across the secondary section of the school. We need at least 20 judges in total. If you have an interest in Science, or are in the field of Engineering, Science, Medicine, Technology etc. and could volunteer your time from 08:00hrs – 12:00hrs on this day, please let us know via e-mail at ipoh@tenby.edu.my. We would be most grateful for your contribution.

4.Family & Friends Day – Saturday 25th March from 08:00hrs – 14:00hrsPlease book this date in your diary! It will be a fantastic event for the Tenby Community to come together to have a day of fun. There will be food stalls, drinks, games led by students, entertainment, a lucky draw and many more prizes.

All participants for the Lucky Draw stand to win one of these fabulous prizes!1st Prize – MacBook Air2nd Prize – i-Pad Air 23rd Prize – Fit Bit

Please bring along your family and friends! Further details to follow.

School Production – Items NeededWith six weeks to go to the School Production ‘The Wizard of Oz’, we would like to ask for any of the following: • Any tins of PAINT – any type, colour, half empty/full, spray, gloss emulsion, vinyl, indoor, outdoor etc• ANY JACKETS/HATS – male or female, formal or informal, large or small – even battered and torn ones can be used!• Old CHECKED shirts – (these will be for Farmers – so even a few holes or paint stains on them is fine! • A briefcase or small old case• Is there anybody out there with an unwanted BROWN ONESIE – to donate (not lend – as we need to make it into a lion’s costume!)• The BIG GREEN APPEAL – ANY fabric/textiles/clothing that is GREEN – scarves, rugs, clothing, mats – you name it – the more GREEN THINGS we can collect, the more creative we can be in creating an EMERALD CITY! • We would also like to know if anybody has a contact that could provide school with some STRAW BALES – to use for the farmers’ scene. (We only need these for the performance week.) Please send in items to Reception marked ‘Production Donation’ and Ms. Stephanie will collect them.

Thank you.

Leadership Training

FriendshipBenjamin Ng of 5E

What `s the meaning of friendship?

Friendship is having a relationship, feeling or state of being friends.

How to value friendship ?

• Be open-minded• Be caring • Be respectful• Be there for your friends in good times and

bad times.• Hold each other responsibly.

How to value friendship ?

• Be positive all the time• Don`t talk behind each others back.• Be there when your friend needs you ;A Friend

In Need Is A Friend Indeed• Seek to find out their interest even if their

aren`t yours.

How to maintain friendships

• Don`t gossip• Don`t back stab• Keep your promises• Keep secrets• Show appreciation

How to maintain friendships

• Show interest in your friends life• Build trust • Have fun together• handle arguments maturely• Maintain contact

Hi, my name is Christopher. Here’s more about friendship.

Friendship is being kind and helpful to each other.

Here are the good examples of friendship:>Not talking bad about others>Helping them whenever they are in danger>Treating nice to the person even if you don’t friend

him/her>Lending them what they need>Not getting yourself into trouble by bullying the person

Ways to stop bullying and increase friendship

1. Warn the person that they will get a fine scolding from the School Principal if they continue bullying the innocent people.

2. Try to stop yourself from bullying if you are a bully. Tell other people to stop group bullying.

3. Tell them they would get into a big trouble for bullying and that they will have a good punishment time.

‘The only way to have a friend is to be one.’

Ralph Waldo Emerson

So friends please remember!!!

A friend should be:• Honest• A good listener• Trustworthy• Encouraging• Caring• Be there for you when you need them• Someone who gives you compliments • Someone who asks if you are okay

Last Wednesday and Thursday (1st and 2nd February), students from Standard 1T and 1E were learning how to write the word “rooster”, 鸡 and made a 2D rooster by themselves to usher the rooster year.

Standard 1 Mandarin

Dalili and Nurin from Standard 1E were writing their “鸡” attentively on their worksheet.

Students were able to write “鸡” using the correct strokes and steps. Here are the two beautiful handwritings produced by

Emeer and Yuni from Standard 1T. Well done!

Besides that, students were taught how to make a 2D rooster based on a given template. They drew patterns on the rooster template.

Standard 1 students were diligently doing their tasks! They enjoyed themselves so much while making their own rooster.

At the end, students were guided on how to cut out their rooster nicely from the template. Beautiful roosters were born, out of their superb creativity!

Adrian

Typewritten Text

PENDIDIKAN ISLAM

SUBJECT :PENDIDIKAN ISLAM CLASS :SM 4 TOPIC :TAJWID (RULES OF

RECITATION – AL QURAN) ACTIVITY :

1. 50 questions pasted around the classroom.

2. Students worked in pairs to walk around the classroom to categorize words according to the correct “tajwid” group.

Constructing a Building by Form 5 In learning about construction, the student is the architect of his/her own expression. Through this strand the student learns how things are made, how they balance, how things fit together, how things support each other, and how the environment is affected by architectural planning. He/she is encouraged to become aware of how some things enhance our environment while other things detract from it. The student is engaged in finding personal expressions of constructing, inventing and manipulating in 3D as well as exploring the qualities, limitations and potentials of various materials. This is ideally suitable for group projects and collaborative learning, and integrates extremely well with work in shape and space in mathematics or with work in designing and making in science.

Students with their 3D models

News from Tenby Early Years Centre Ipoh

Thank you to the parents who were able to join us for the Parent Teacher Conference (PTC) which was held on Tuesday 7th February and Wednesday 8th February. Parents had their first time experience, logging into the Parents’ Portal to make an appoinment to see their child’s class teacher to discuss the progress the child had made. It was a good turn-up and it created a two way relationship in helping their child in dealing with areas of concern. Overall, parents were happy with their child’s learning and activities taking place.

Friday 10th February - Exit Point for the Nursery classes on the topic of “Animals”. We invited Dr. Reza Singam a Veterinarian who shared with children on how to care for animals. He gave a presentation on what he does as a vet, giving the children a better understanding of the nature of his job. The Year 1 students joined in as it linked to their topic on “A Day in the Life”. Dr. Khoo, a Plastic Surgeon, briefed the children on what she does as a doctor and the instuments used to treat patients. The sharing was very interesting and informative session for the children.

Parents’ Forum: Monday 27th February @ 08:15hrs Book Week: 27/02 – 03/03 (Book Character Day – Friday 03/03) Open Day: Saturday 11th March Early Years Fun Day: Friday 17th March

Reception B children are going into an imaginary world under the sea by creating the treasure bottle to search for treasure.

We begin to put the sand into the bottle carefully.

Secondly, we added in colourful sequins into the treasure bottle.

Finally, we filled the bottle with sea coloured water.

Shapes! Shapes! Shapes! Toddler Y are learning to identify and recognise the shapes.

We are learning about shapes.

This is a circle.

Chloe says, “This is a triangle.”

Vyshal picked a rectangle shape.

A circle is a shape, that is perfectly round.

When it has four equal sides, we call it a square.

A triangle has equal sides, but only just three.

A rectangle looks like, a fallen old door.

There are plenty of more shapes, that you may go and explore.

To further enhance their fine motor skills, Toddler M enjoyed the art activities through painting and pasting.

We are pasting colourful pieces of paper within the

outline of the butterfly.

We painted the paper plate and pasted stripes of crepe paper to form jellyfish.

Butterfly Collage

Creating a Jelly Fish

News from Primary

In conjunction with Book Week which will run from 27th February to 3rd March, 2017, the Primary Team has organised many exciting and fun activities for the children.

Here is a sneak peek of what’s in store:

Over the half term break, we invite the children to take part in our Primary Extreme Reading Competition (open to both TEYCI and Meru Campus). This is what you need to do:

Scout for an interesting or unique setting Choose a book that you plan on reading during half term break Work on your pose Get an adult or friend to snap a photo Write an interesting caption for your photo Send your entry to Miss Shona (Primary Secretary)

at shona.chin@tenby.edu.my. Alternatively, you can also bring in a printed copy of your entry when you come back to school on Monday 27th February, 2017.

Entry deadline: 16:00hrs on Tuesday 28th February, 2017

Winning entries will be announced in the Newsletter on 10th March, 2017. Winners will receive a prize.

On Friday 3rd March, 2017, the children are invited to come to school dressed up as their favourite/chosen book character and bring along a copy of the book for Book Character Day.

Your child’s safety is of utmost importance to us. Please ensure that your child is properly supervised when they take the photos.

To encourage children to read a wider range of books, there will be a Book Swap Day on Thursday 2nd March 2017. To participate children need to bring in a new book wrap in newspaper. Please indicate the Year Group (e.g. Year 1) on the wrapping.

The book will then be handed to the Primary Office so we can arrange for a Book Swap for those children participating.

Deadline to send in the book: Wednesday 1st March 2017.

Mathematics is a subject where you learn best by tackling problems/challenges. Every week, a new challenge will be posted here for you to pit your wits against. We invite you to have a go at solving it. If you get stuck, keep trying, and do go away and come back later- often, you will find that you have a better idea on your second, third or even fourth attempt. Solution for Maths Challenge #013 – What is the number?

? = 6 [(6 x 7) +2=44] Maths Challenge #014 – Addition Mania

Congratulations to Miqael Iman

from Class 3E

-ranked 17th (Boys U8) in the National Junior Ranking by Lawn Tennis Association Malaysia (LTAM)

Nyimas Ayesha from Class 3N

-ranked 2nd (Girls U8) in the National Junior Ranking by Lawn Tennis Association Malaysia (LTAM)

Please note that any Lost and Found items not collected by Friday 3rd March, 2017 will be sent for recycling.

Thank you.

Maths Calculations Parent Information Morning

Day: Wednesday Date: 1st March 2017

Time: 08:15 to 09:15hrs Venue: The Library

This information session will look at Maths Calculations in Years 3 and 4. However, all parents are welcomed to join us.

Ahoy me mateys! We participated in many exciting games and activities this half term.

Our IPC topic was ‘Treasure’. We made our own classroom pirate ship, jewellery for our

treasure chests, treasure maps, pirate masks, parrots, treasure discovery bottles and

many more. We also went for a treasure hunt for a whole week! We hunted for shapes,

colours, sounds and numbers around the school. We took pictures of each other when we

found a matching item. We also learned that treasure can represent anything including

friends and family we love. Enjoy the pictures and let us take you on an adventure! ARRR!

We are painting our classroom pirate ship together!

Treasure hunt time!

"What does it say?"

“Do you

think it is

buried

under

here?”

Year 5N children were excited about their new IPC topic of GO WITH THE FLOW. We started our knowledge harvest by making our own boats from recycled materials. It was fun working in our groups and sharing our ideas as well as working as a team.

We completed a knowledge harvest brainstorming session on ‘Go With the Flow’. Lots of information and colourful displays about features of rivers from around the world.

Mission accomplished after group discussion and planning. Our boats are READY!

Class presentation is our favourite activity. Sharing our group presentation on RIVERS.

United Kingdom has always been special to me, perhaps because I was born there. December 2016 was my

second trip to the country since I left it as toddler. There is so much to talk about, but I only have so much

space. So I shall put my holiday experience into three different themes:

Mysterious

Some of my adventures felt mysterious. One of these was the Lochness Lake in Scotland. I felt as if there was a

monster swimming underneath the boat .The myth that I heard about monster seemed so real, that it got me

thinking about it a lot .

Loch Ness in Scotland

There was another place that crept me out, it was an old castle called Warwick Castle. My mother went down to

the dungeons and said it was about the prisons, rats, the plague and witches. I felt scared but also mystified.

Warwick Castle

Naturistic

Now not all of my adventures were scary. I did experience wonderful nature as well. The most naturist place for

me has to be Sherwood Forest in Nottingham. The forest was full of trees, most of them oak trees. I was so

amazed that I just had to bring back home, a broken branch that had fallen on the ground. But I have to admit

that the most exciting part was seeing the 800-year old Major Oak tree, also known as the Robin Hood’s tree. I

also got to climb another younger oak tree. That felt really grand.

The Major Oak tree in Sherwood Forest

Besides Sherwood Fores, there was another interesting place called Traquair House, the oldest inhabited castle

house in Scotland. Its grounds were filled with trees. Moreover there was a maze that was a square-mile in area

and I nearly got lost in it. Nevertheless I was the first to complete it in my family!

The Garden Maze at Traquair House

Cold

Finally a very different experience for me was the cold winter. It had been ages since my parents wrapped me

up in coats, gloves and scarves. I still felt the icy cold air on my face, as if a permanent air-conditioner was

blowing at my face at 4 degrees Celsius. But I loved it !

My sister at Ben Navis

The coldest place was at Ben Navis, the highest mountain in Scotland. Its slopes were filled with snow, though it

was all iced up. It felt very unusual but in a good way. My sister crushed the ice and created snowballs. Then she

lay down on the snow and kept on laughing.

Conclusion

In conclusion I think the lifestyle in the U.K. is very different from Malaysia, right from the food, clothes,

weather and history. Nevertheless, I feel that I can adapt to the U.K. quite easily. Moreover, there are still so

many places to discover in that big country.

LITERATURE WEEK We are very excited to be running our annual Literature Week next week, Monday 27th-Friday 3rd March. Here is a preview of this year’s exciting events: During the week: Comfy Reading Zone- A comfortable and inviting quiet reading area with carpets, beanbags and sofas will be created in front of the school office. Reading Photo Gallery – Students and staff have been invited to send a photo to their form tutor of themselves reading or looking at books. All these photos will be displayed from next week onwards on classroom doors or outdoor spaces for all of us to view. My favourite Book- classes will be hosting a “guess Teachers and classmates Favourite Book quizzes” Quiet Reading- Please send along your child with his/her favourite book to be read in the class and/or the library during quiet reading tutorial time Creative Writing Competition- Students have already started working on their Poetry or Less Than 500 Words Short Story composition for the competition. Mystery Reader- Many students have kindly volunteered to prepare creative stories to read to Early Years and Primary pupils.

Book Cover Design Competition- During lunch time students can use the IT room to design a book cover. Revision Guides Sale- Students can buy many useful revision guides in the foyer by the school main office.

Monday to Thursday 2nd

March

Dramatic Reading and Poetry Open Mic- In the canteen during lunch time students can volunteer to read creative pieces of their choice. There will also be some live music performances from our talented students. Tuesday to Wednesday 1

st

March

Spelling Bee- Houses will compete against one another in this completion in the Auditorium. May the best house win! All teachers will also be hosting their subject focused spelling bee competition in their lessons. Wednesday 1st March

6th Form C.A.S.E. session in the Auditorium with renowned guest speakers: -1.30pm – 2.15pm: “Nature as Inspiration in Poetry” by Mr Raj Gopal Dronamraju US expat), Senior Lecturer in Linguistics, Quest International University, Perak -2.15 – 2.30 p.m: Higher Education Counseling by Associate Professor Dr Adeline Kok, Dean of Social Sciences, Quest International University,Perak

-2.30 – 3.00pm: Interhouse Literature Quiz Thursday 2

nd

March

Surprise Book Swap- Students may bring they unwanted books wrapped up in newpapers and swap them with others students. Book donation- We also welcome any books you and your child may want to donate to our library.

Friday 3

rd

March

Dress up Day - On Friday 3th of March all students and teachers will come to school dressed as a favourite book character. Wonder who we will see? Literature Week Assembly- Please join our special Literature Week assembly where there will be guest speakers, live music, drama performances from the 6th Form students, as well as a showcase of our forthcoming school production “The Wizard of Oz”. We will also have many prizes and off course, announce the Best Dress Up Day costume winners.

Hidayah Amin– A group of our students will host a Skype interview with the Singaporean Malaysian (and also fluent French speaker) writer of the book “Gedung Kuning, Memory of a Malay Childhood”. Many thanks for your on-going support and Happy Reading!

MSSD Badminton 2017

During the half-term break, two primary students from the badminton school team participated in the MSSD Badminton Championship 2017 held in GMB Badminton Hall, Menglembu. The two participants who represented Tenby Schools Ipoh were Khoo Xhin Hearn (Year 6T) and Tan You Ming (Year 7T).

Tan You Ming (left) and Khoo Xhin Hearn (right).

Both You Ming and Xhin Hearn competed in three matches against players from six other schools in the North Kinta district, including SMJK(C) Sam Tet, SK St. Michael, and SMJK(C) Poi Lam.

Xhin Hearn playing against player from SJK(C) Sam Tet.

You Ming playing against a player from SK Perpaduan.

Although You Ming and Xhin Hearn did not get into the semi-final, both of them displayed great sportsmanship throughout the competition. They were able to make new friends from other schools, as well as understand their own strengths and weaknesses in their badminton skills.

Well done to Xhin Hearn and You Ming!