AL NOOR-ABA NEWS 14 th September 2017 Superintendent s Message Dear Parents, We believe that in academics and in our extra-curricular programme the school should offer balance. We do this in the hope that students will see the importance of participating in sports and the arts, in addition to working hard in their academic programme. We are convinced that such participation enhances learning. In the High School, ABA is part of the Middle East South Asia Conference (MESAC) that comprise six schools. Though ABA has the smallest High School of the six, we have done well. However, we have found it difficult to raise competitive Junior Varsity (JV) and Varsity (V) teams for some tournaments. The American Embassy School (AES) in Delhi has also declared that it has similar challenges. Still further, the American School Doha has found itself limited this year in it s ability to participate due to a travel ban between Qatar and the three schools in the UAE. These issues and an acknowledgement that the economy, school budgets and costs to parents are also concerns for schools meant that there was much to discuss at the meeting of heads of school and athletic directors in Delhi this week. Upcoming Dates 19 Sep Introduction to the Library Grade 1-5 Parents 7:40-8:20am 20 Sep MYP Information Workshop for Parents Secondary Lecture Hall 7:45-9:00am 21 Sep Peace Day Celebrations Bake sale, Photo Booth, Pizza & Performances Drama Court 10:25am-12:55pm 24 Sep Vipers Booster Club Fundraiser Mini Fair MPH 7:00am-2:00pm In an effort to ensure Doha s participation this season, ABA and AES have offered to host all the Season 1 tournaments. ABA will now host all volleyball and golf while AES will host academic games and swimming. This will not cost either school more as MESAC funds will be redirected and the athletic directors from the original host schools will travel to help us with the organization. This is a wonderful opportunity for ABA. On the question of participation, the outcome of discussions was a favourable one for ABA and AES. Next year, both schools will be permitted to enter teams that they feel are competitive. ABA will primarily focus on Junior Varsity (JV) participation while AES will mainly focus on Varsity (V) teams. If ABA can enter a V team, it will. If it can t, a second team from other MESAC schools will be invited. A similar arrangement will pertain to AES and JV teams. The only unresolved matter is how Doha will participate in Season 2-4 this year. This will be discussed later this month. This is going to be a brilliant season for ABA with lots of opportunities for our community to enjoy some great sport. The Booster Club is going to be pulling out all stops so please do come along and support our Vipers. Simon Taylor Message from the Elementary School Principal Parent Library Session: Tuesday 19 th September, Elementary Library Mara Hakim, the Elementary Librarian, would like to invite you to this session, which will be geared towards supporting parents of students from Grades 1-5 and new parents who have joined us this year at ABA. The session will
focus on the role of the elementary library, the library homepage and the resources available to students as well as the importance of internet safety. Please save the date to attend this useful workshop. Books Connect People to People, People to Places, People to Learning. Parent Workshop an Introduction to the PYP This week we held a workshop for parents new to the PYP, to share the key elements of the programme and how it differs from traditional education models. Although new to ABA, I shared with the attendees how familiar the school feels to me, as it so strongly reflects the key strengths of the programme. We began by exploring the alignment between the IB mission statement and our own Mission, Vision and Values, and I was again struck by how strongly connected they are. The following ideas feature in both statement: international education, caring, knowledgeable, inquirers, intercultural understanding, respect, lifelong learners. Mr Derrick, our PYP Coordinator, shared an overview of the programme, with its emphasis on inquiry (learning actively by building or constructing meaning, rather than by receiving knowledge), transdisciplinary learning (making connections between subjects to focus on a big idea, rather than learning separated into traditional subject domains), conceptual understanding (a focus on understanding big ideas rather than remembering information) and international-mindedness (developing students who demonstrate the attributes of the IB Learner Profile). Some of the ways that the PYP represents a shift from more traditional approaches to teaching and learning were also shared. Our commitment is that PYP students will benefit from some of these approaches to become confident, responsible, caring, lifelong learners. Increased emphasis on Decreased emphasis on Viewing students as thinkers with emerging theories of the world Building on what students know Viewing the teacher as the sole authority Focusing on what students do not know Empowering students to feel responsible and to take action Seeking student responses in order to understand their current understanding Involving students actively in their own learning Teaching about responsibility and the need for action by others Seeking student responses solely to identify the right answer Viewing students as passive recipients Addressing the needs of students with different levels and types of ability Pursuing open-ended inquiry and real-life investigations Employing teaching strategies suitable for one level and type of ability A teacher-directed focus on rigid objectives From: Making the PYP Happen (IBO; 2009) Sam Cook
Message from the Extra Curricular Program Under the watchful eyes of our great coaches, our teams have been working on their skill and game understanding. It has been wonderful to watch our Middle School (MS) athletes and MESAC participates develop so quickly after only two to three weeks of training. Our JV volleyball teams have kicked the year off with great success on Tuesday night winning their games against TAISM very comfortably. We have a big week coming up. I hope to see you at the volleyball court or by the poolside. 18 th September U14 Boys VS PSO @ ABA 3:30 4:30pm 18 th September U14 Girls VS PSO @ ABA 3:30 4:30pm 19 th September U16 Boys VS PSO @ ABA 3:30 4:30pm 19 th September U16 Girls VS PSO @ ABA 3:30 4:30pm 19 th September U19 Girls VS TAISM @ TAISM 4:00 5:00pm 19 th September Swim meet for selected swimmers, Grade 6 and above @ TAISM 4:00 6:00pm 20 th September U19 Boys VS PSO @ ABA 3:30 4:30pm 20 th September U19 Girls VS PSO @ ABA 3:30 4:30pm 21 st September U12 Boys VS PSO @ ABA 2:30 3:30pm 21 st September U12 Girls VS PSO @ ABA 2:30 3:30pm Grade 6-8 Tennis Temperatures in Muscat are starting to drop so training for MS tennis will start on Thursday 21st September. Training will be every Monday and Thursday from 2:30pm-3:30pm with Coach Ms. Valerie Ritchie. MS tennis is a recreational program for all students in Grades 6-8. The main focus will be working on the basics of the game, footwork, stroke work, serving and positions on the court. This will all be done through mini games in a fun environment. Ensure your child brings a water bottle, hat and sunscreen. MESAC To follow up from Mr. Taylor s message about MESAC, the dates and venues have been set for MESAC season one. In order for these tournaments to take place at ABA and New Delhi, hotel stays will be necessary for all participants with the exception of our swimming team that will be housed by AES Delhi families. ABA Tournaments JV Volleyball: Wednesday 25 th Sunday 29 th October Teams arrive Wednesday 25 th October; Competition days Thursday, Friday and Saturday (26 th 28 th October) Teams depart Sunday 29 th October Golf: Tuesday 31 st October Thursday 2 nd November Teams arrive Tuesday 31 st October; Competition days Wednesday & Thursday 1 st and 2 nd November Teams depart - Thursday night, 2 nd November
Varsity Volleyball: Wednesday 1 st Sunday 5 November Teams arrive Wednesday 1 st November; Competition days Thursday, Friday and Saturday (2 nd 4 th November); Teams depart Sunday 5 th November. AES Delhi Tournaments Swimming: Thursday 2 nd November Monday 6 th November (Home stays) Travel Day Thursday 2 nd November; Competition days Friday, Saturday and Sunday (3 rd 5 th November) Returning to Muscat on Monday 6 th November. Academic Games: Friday 3 rd November Monday 6 th November (Hotel = 3 nights) Travel Day Friday 3 rd November; Competition days Saturday, Sunday and Monday (4 th 6 th November); Returning to Muscat on Monday night, 6 th November. Now that venues have been set letters will be coming home over the coming weeks to MESAC season one families outlining the costs. As the tournaments are not far away please ensure payment for the MESAC tournaments are made on the due date. Paul Brace Athletics Director Message from the Lenders of Monetary Assistance (LOMA) We would like to thank the ABA community for their generosity in donating 51 OMR during the recent high school meet the teacher evening. With these funds, we will be able to lend to five more borrowers in economically developing countries. Over the summer, our focus was in giving micro-loans to individuals considered to be in conflict zones. We joined with others on the Kiva website to finance loans in Congo, Liberia, and Pakistan. Our complete portfolio can be found here. Since the inception of the micro-lending club, we have lent to 240 people in 48 countries. Our assistance is typically $25, but sometimes these loans may be $100 to $200. Our borrowers have been repaying their no-interest loans at a rate of 97.74%. When this money is returned we lend it out again. Jeff Lowman Message from the PTA Grade 11 & 12 Coffee Morning Meet with Mr. Simon Walker - High School Principal to discuss the grade level queries Wednesday 27 th September 2017, 7:30 am to 8:30 am in the PTA Room Please send in any questions you would like to be addressed to ptahighrep@abaoman.org before the coffee morning. ABA 30 th Birthday Party Thursday 28 th September 2017, 5pm to 8pm in the Drama Court
Your PTA Messages for the Community How are your Volleyball Skills? SPIKE STRIKE SCORE Our first student fundraiser for the year will kicks off with Spike Strike Score on Sunday 24th September. Students from Grades 2-12 can come try their skills at spiking the ball through the VIPERS board for a chance to win VOX Movie tickets. Tickets on SALE Wednesday 20 th & Thursday 21 st! MONTHLY POP-UP SHOP our next Pop-Up Shop is Monday 2 nd October! Come see the friendly Booster Club team to purchase your official VIPERS merchandise. NEW sports bags are on their way from the UK! stocks are limited. Drop us a line to pre-order yours today! Only OMR15 DON T MISS OUT! CHEER! CHEER! CHEER! Do you have experience in leading a cheer squad? Drop us a line at boosterclub@abaoman.org! Exciting times ahead!! GIVE US an E
If you would like to know more about the Booster Club, simply drop us a line and we will contact you directly. Booster Club is a great way to support our kids while making new friends and having fun. Yours in community spirit VIPERS Booster Club When: 11 th November 2017 Where: National Museum in Muscat What: TED is an annual event that brings together the world's leading thinkers and doers to share ideas that matter in any discipline technology, entertainment, design, science, humanities, business, development. The talks at the conference, called TED Talks, are then made available to watch for free on TED.com. In the spirit of "ideas worth spreading," TED has created TEDx, a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connections. Our TEDx event is not organized by TED Conferences, but is operated under a license directly from TED. TEDxQurum is an Omani infused TEDx event! Our speakers are Omani or have Oman imprinted in their hearts. The voices resonate or are yet to be discovered, a convergence of minds that will speak out of passion and continue to inspire and innovate. What do we need from the community? 1. CAS students, Grade 6 to 12, who wish to volunteer as ushers and servers on the night of the event. 2. Students to volunteer their art; visual, dramatic or musical. All the art must represent how you are #omaninfused, a representation of what you love about Oman or how Oman has become part of you. 3. Teachers, parents and students should sign up to be audience members. For more information and to sign up to become a volunteer or an audience member visit: www.tedxqurum.com Lama Samman - Co-Lead Organizer