Pioneer september 2017

BERSEPTEM2017 The Monthly Newsletter VoluImsse u- e0-604

PIONEER - September 2017 01

WHAT OCTOBER 2017 CARRIES Curricular 07th – Open House (KG to G12) 26th – Written Assessment-4 – English (G1 to G4) 28th - Open House (Slow Bloomers) 29th Oct to 06th Nov – Periodic Test – II (G5 to G11) Extra/ Co-curricular 01st Oct – Bhavanites Got Talent (G 9 to 12) 08th Oct – Sports Day (G1 & G2) 10th Oct – Global Cardboard Challenge (G4 to G8) 18th Oct – Singing in French (Competition) 19th Oct – Sports Day (G3 to G5) 22nd Oct – Inter-house Debate (semi-finals) 23rd Oct – Money Stuff Challenge (G8 to G12)02 02 PIONEER - September 2017

Founder’s day PIES celebrated Founder’s Day on 14th September, 2017, with Mr.Kapil Raj (Second Secretary, Embassy of India) as the Chief Guest. Mr.N.K Ramachandran Menon (Chairman - Bhavan’s Middle East), Mrs.Sudha Ramachandran, Dr.Abdulrahman Ayed Al Shameri (CEO to His Highness Sheikh Saeed Bin Saif Muhammed Al Nahyan), Mr.Sooraj Ramachandran (Director, Bhavan’s Middle East), Dr.Vineetha Sooraj, Mr.Ahamed Abdulrahman Al Shameri (Representative of the office of His Highness Shaik Saeed Bin Saif Muhammed Al Nahyan), Mrs. Meena Viswanathan (Education Officer, Sikshan Bharati, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan), Ms. Girija Baiju (Principal, PIES) Ms.Leena Menon (Principal, Bhavan's Al Ain), Mr.K.T.Nandakumar (Vice Principal, PIES), Ms.Smitha Vimal (Academic Coordinator, Bhavan's Al Ain), Ms.Megha Mariam Victor (Academic Coordinator, Bhavan's Ajman), Mr.Krishnakumar Das and Ms.Shailaja Das graced the occasion by their presence.PIONEER - September 2017 03

The theme this year was EKATVA - on the principle of ‘Vasudeva Kutumbakam’, whichmeant ‘the world is one family’. The formal events were followed by felicitating StudentAchievers and Staff Members. “Prayana -2”, the documentary on Bhavan’s MiddleEast, was also released.In true ‘Bhavanite’ spirit the students of PIES in unison with Al Saad Indian School AlAin, presented a cultural extravaganza that brought alive in exhilarating brilliance, thetheme of ‘Ekatva’ . Janarajani Malalagama HoD - Fine Arts 04 PIONEER - September 2017

BHAVANS AT AJMAN ान कम की ोित जगाता अमतृ मय िव ा सरसाताThe opening verses of the Bhavan’s Anthem extol the role vidyalaya in disseminating thelight of Gyan and Karma and spreading the sweetness of wisdom. Our vidyalaya, theBhavan, pursues this mission with intense zeal. In an attempt to spread the sweetfragrance of wisdom across the length and breadth of UAE, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan hasadded Wise Indian Academy (Ajman) to its network of schools. The school operating fromKG to Grade 6 has a strength of 500 students with an expansive campus and excellentinfrastructure.WISE Indian Academy, and now also known as Bhavan's Ajman becomes the youngestmember of the Bhavan's family, which is fast expanding. Currently, Bharatiya VidyaBhavan operates over 400 schools in India and 10 international centres in the UK, USA,Singapore, Australia, South Africa, Portugal, and schools in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, AbuDhabi, Al Ain and now in Ajman.Wise Indian Academy, was put on the map of Bhavan's on 16th September, 2017 when aformal function saw a ceremonial change of guard wherein the Directors on Board of WISEIndian Academy officially handed over the managerial charge and responsibility to theChairman of Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, Middle East, Mr. N.K Ramachandran Menon and tothe Director Mr. Sooraj Ramachandran.PIONEER - September 2017 05

It also was a forum where the parents of the newly inducted school were introduced to the80-year-old educational movement founded by Dr. K. M. Munshi and the cultural and moralethos the institute creates. Ms. Meena Vishwanathan, a stalwart in the Bhavan's family andunder whose mentorship BVB Middle East has grown, enlightened the new members ofthe Bhavan's WISE family, on the core values the Bhavan stands on. To apprise theparents of the operations of the new management, a team of speakers including thePrincipals and Vice Principals of the Abu Dhabi and Kuwait branches, lead by theChairman and the Director, discoursed on the functioning of the schools, their curricular,extracurricular structure and on the value addition a child would have once he/she passesthrough the Bhavan’s system. Megha Mariam Victor Academic Coordinator - Bhavan’s Ajman 06 PIONEER - September 2017

Chord to RecordPIES continues to enhance facilities in all spheres with very many endeavours, the latestbeing the addition of our recording studio ‘Bhava Tharangini’ which was inaugurated byour Principal Ms. Girija Baiju on 11th September 2017. Aptly housed in a room adjacentto the stage in ‘Ram Manch’, the facility will be utilised for sound recording, mixing andfor programme production. This venture would also innovatively cater to the needs oflearners to make use of the platform more effectively and would also include interac-tive sessions. As rightly put forth by our Principal, “This will be a great exposure to thestudents in many ways since it provides a firsthand experience on the art of recording.”We ardently hope many RJs and VJs from PIES will benefit from this experience tospread their wings into the world of a very challenging arena, with panache.May this be the forerunner of greater glories for the school in the days to come.PIONEER - September 2017 07

Aneesh Nair Supervisor – Community Relations08 PIONEER - September 2017

Reaching out to the Needy “Charity Begins At Home” – how aptly conveyed! And how diligently our children took this up to an unimaginable level. Many of our students ensured such deeds were carried out during the summer holidays, magnanimously allotting time to make the needy happy. Our annual magazine ‘Bhaavna’ will throw more light on this noble feat that was willingly and enthusiastically executed by our children. We thank parents for extending untiring support towards this noble act which would em- power the young minds understand the necessity to consciously invest time for such deeds. Geetha Chandran (Editor)PIONEER - September 2017 09

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”PIES organized a Community Outreach Programme in India in August ’17. The decisiontook shape as an extension of the charity programme taken up during the Holy Month ofRamadan this year. As a start, two charity programmes were coordinated to support theunderprivileged in some of the remote areas of Kerala – one on 4th August at Sri SankaraBala Sadan, Calicut, and the other on 6th August ’17 in a tribal colony located onCalicut-Wayanad border.A day’s meal was provided to the 44 inmates of Sri Sankara Bala Sadan.Mr. Nandakumar.K.T (Vice Principal, PIES), Usha Kumari.V and Ms. Manjusha Vipinfrom the Department of Science, feel it was a privilege to have spent a day with suchchildren.The tribal colony, near Thiruvambadi, was more than happy to welcome therepresentatives of PIES - Mr. Nandakumar.K.T, Ms. Manjusha Vipin and myself. Onbehalf of PIES, we offered grocery kits to nine families of that colony. The entire schedulewas planned and coordinated by Mr. Nandakumar.K.T, with the strong support andcooperation of the District Police, Kozhikode Rural and the Chief Guest was Mr. Ashraf,Sub-Inspector of Police.We feel honoured to have spent time with the undAenre-epsrhivNilaeirged whose smiles and Supervisor – Community Relationscontentment will bless all of us a long way. Usha Kumari.V Coordinator - SSI and Eco Club 10 PIONEER - September 2017

Moral Education ProgrammeADEK conducted the National Training on Moral Education for schools in Abu Dhabi, atCENTRO (Capital Centre, Abu Dhabi). The workshop, held on 10 Sep ’17 and attendedby Ms. Geeta Bhatt and Mary Joseph, was filled with activities to transfer a clearerpicture on its objectives. Mr. Jeff Evans & Mr. Joshua Hema clearly presented eachmodule which helped us understand the expectations that rest on all schools, to carry outthis programme to the students of Grade 1 to Grade 9, beginning from September 2017.The training session included seven modules:1. Introduction to Moral Education – Expectations & Requirements from schools byRegulators2. The Moral Education Curriculum – Four Pillars and the learning outcome of each Pillar3. Planning & Teaching Moral Education4. Resourcing the Moral Education Curriculum5. Planning & Teaching Moral Education6. Resourcing the Moral Education Curriculum,7. Involving Parents in Moral Education, Assessment of Moral Education, andImplementation of Moral Education.PIES has allocated specific periods specifically for this subject that is carefully designedto be a separate entity by itself.The workshop by ADEK was cascaded for the teachers, to enable effective implementation.PIONEER - September 2017 Mary Joseph Counselor 11

The Annual ForumThe Abu Dhabi Department ofEducation and Knowledge(ADEK) organized the2017-2018 Private SchoolsAnnual Forum on 25 Sep ’17that had the participation ofPrincipals and Vice Principals ofmore than 400 schools acrossthe Emirate of Abu Dhabi.Pivotal topics such as International Assessments, End of Cycle Inspections, MoralEducation and Special Olympics were discussed and presented. The importance offocusing on International Assessments was also emphasised along with the targetsrelated to PISA 2018 and TIMSS 2019 for Grade 4 and 8 students, based on examplesof TIMSS and PISA 2015 school reports.The Moral Education Curriculum, a nationwide initiative rolled out for the students ofGrades 1 to 11 of private schools, is aimed at promoting positive character traits, ethicalvalues, community spirit and cultural pride amongst students, was also presented.The Moral Education Curriculum, will be taught during a weekly period that replaces oneof the Social Studies classes, where students get to learn more about tolerance, respect,entrepreneurship skills, positive interaction and responsibility, along with a sense ofcommunity service. Crucial traits required for the current job market will also behighlighted, some of which include innovation, creativity, ambition, and excellence. Girija Baiju Principal12 PIONEER - September 2017

Programme forInternationalStudentAssessment (PISA)As a part of UAE vision 2021, the UAE aims to be amongst the 20 highest performingcountries in the PISA.To enlighten us on its objective, a workshop was held at Al Shawamekh School on 19 Sep’17. The session started with an Introduction to PISA by Dr.Qassim Alshanng (Assess-ment Division Manager). It also included an elaborate session on the National Agenda ofU.A.E and PISA Mock Test.Major points like Aims, Framework, Administering the Examination, Question Type andMarking Scheme were also explained in Arabic & English by Ms. Hessa Al Wahhabi &Mr.Chris Jenkinson.In order to improve stakeholder readiness, engagement, and student performance ininternational assessments, ADEK administered a mock PISA examination on 26 Sep ’17,to all students born in 2002. The two-hour paper-based test, covered Mathematics,Science and Reading. The second Mock Exam will be held in February 2018.PIONEER - September 2017 13

Janarajani Malalagama Coordinator (PISA)14 PIONEER - September 2017

A VIEW TO REVIEWThe review of SDP (School Development Policy) for the first term was conducted for theteachers of PIES, by Suma Pramod (HOD Science- Primary) on 05 Sep ‘17. Generalinformation about SDP was shared to accommodate teachers who were recentlyrecruited. The session mainly focused on Priorities, Goals and Targets set by the schoolas recommended by ADEK. A clear-cut idea was shared to the team to enable and easethe process of evidence-collection for Term 1.PIONEER - September 2017 Suma Pramod HoD – Science (Primary) 15

Another Step ForwardSighting the wisdom of providing professional development sessions, PIES organised anenriching professional development session for teachers on the 29th of August, 2017. Dr.T.P. Sasikumar, a renowned Educationist, Space Scientist, Meditation Master and aWriter superintended the session. He capitalised on the importance of motivatingstudents as it energises, directs and sustains behaviour. This clear-sighted sessionprovided a flood of new ideas to the teachers and also paved way to the discovery ofa unique creativity hidden within the selves. Divya Sharma HoD – English (Primary) 16 PIONEER - September 2017

Occasions To RejoiceAs a part of unwinding moments to energize its staff, PIES gave us the opportunity tocelebrate Onam, Eid, and Teacher’s Day in ‘Ram Manch’ on 5th Sep ’17.The schedule related to Teacher’s Day celebrations was planned and implemented bythe Department of Social Science, which was followed by the events related to Eid andOnam.The ever-enthusiastic staff members of PIES participated actively, and to regain ourenergy the Management provided us with a grand, wide-spread and sumptuous‘Sadhya’.PIONEER - September 2017 Janarajani Malalagama HoD - Fine Arts 17

The Importance to Immunize Parent CornerAll of us want to do what is best for our children. We know the importance of car seats,baby gates, and other ways to keep them safe. But, are we aware that one of the best waysto protect them is to make sure they have all their vaccinations done?Immunizations can save child’s life. Because of advances in medical science, children canbe protected against more diseases than ever before. Some diseases that once injured orkilled thousands of children have completely been eliminated and others are close to beinggone – primarily due to safe and effective vaccines. One example of the great impact vac-cines can have is the eradication of polio in most parts of the world including India.Vaccination is safe and effective. All vaccines are only given to children after a long andcareful review by scientists, doctors, and healthcare professionals. Vaccines will involvesome discomfort and may cause pain, redness, or tenderness at the site of injection butthis is minimal compared to the pain, discomfort, and trauma of the diseases these vac-cines prevent.Immunization protects others we care about. Serious vaccine-preventable diseases stilloccur. Unfortunately, some babies are too young to be completely vaccinated and somepeople may not be able to receive vaccinations due to allergies, illness, weakened immunesystems, or other reasons. To help keep these individuals safe, it is important that adultsand children who are able to get vaccinated are fully immunized. This not only protectseach family, but also helps prevent the spread of these diseases to friends and loved ones.This is called \"community immunity\" or \"herd immunity\". 18 PIONEER - September 2017

Parent Corner Immunizations can save the family time and money. A child with a vaccine-preventable disease needs be kept out of schools or daycare facilities. A prolonged illness can take a financial toll because of lost time at work, medical bills, or long-term disability care. In comparison, getting vaccinated against these diseases is a good investment and usually covered by insurance. The commonly available vaccines are against the following: Diphtheria, Haemophilus Influ- enzae Type B (Hib), Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Human Papillomavirus (HPV), Influenza (Flu), Measles, Meningococcal infections, Mumps, Pertussis (Whooping Cough), Pneumococcal Disease, Polio, Rotavirus, Rubella, Shingles (Herpes Zoster), Tetanus andVaricella(Chick- enpox). It is essential to make sure that all the children are vaccinated appropriately on time ensuring a healthy life for them as well as for the community. PIONEER - September 2017 Dr. Moideen Jeilani Parent of Sajid Meeran Mohideen (G-10C) and Fawaz Ahmed (G-5D) 19

Champ To CherishChampions Rarely Talk. They Just Perform And Make The World Talk.Our little champ Gowtham Ramamoorthy of Grade 4 was felicitated for bagging theChampionship (Under 10) in The Chess Festival, conducted by The Abu Dhabi ChessClub. Haneesh Karthikeyanon HoD – Physical Education 20 PIONEER - September 2017

SCRATCH TO VISUALISESCRATCH is a visual environment that teaches students how to programme computers inan easy, entertaining and engaging way and is used by top schools all over the world. Theoverall goal of SCRATCH is to encourage students learn essential programming andcoding basics right from an early age. The long-term goal is to promote the education ofSTEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) in particular and to equip studentswith sophisticated skills required for a knowledge-based economy.The SCRATCH competition was conducted by The Abu Dhabi Department of Educationand Knowledge on 23rd May 2017 at Abu Dhabi University, Khalifa Campus, on the theme“Read Now, Write the Future”. Adhithya Jino and Soumen Mohanty from Grade 10 Drepresented Team Puzzle Fighters and Shreesh Sakshya Bajpai from 10 D and VishwamPiyush Raval from 10 C represented Team Coding Budgies.PIONEER - September 2017 21

The competition supports the UAE government’s vision to support and promote the cultureof innovation across all sectors of society. The one-day competition brings together teamsof students from all over the Emirate of Abu Dhabi to present their work for a committeeto judge. These projects must be completed using the SCRATCH tool and the platform alsoaims to encourage love for reading. Praseedha Menon (Dept. of Computer Science) 22 PIONEER - September 2017

Marching With HindiA few teachers from the Department of Hindi attended a workshop by Dr. Vinod on 06 Sep‘17, in Dunes International School, Musaffah. The interesting and informative sessionshighlighted the nuances of teaching methodology.PIONEER - September 2017 Shwetal Sawatkar HoD – Hindi (Primary) 23

Enhancing EnglishKeeping in view the wide spectrum of external influences, the primary English teachers ofPIES, Abu Dhabi, attended a penetrating professional development session on the 9th ofSeptember, 2017 at Indian High School, Dubai. Ms. Sadhna Syal, a renowned specialist inthe theories and methods of education, led the session. She conferred about a range ofpedagogical approaches to teaching. The session centered on the supremacy of ActivityBased Learning (ABL) and how it provides varied experiences to students to facilitate theacquisition of knowledge, experience, skills and values. The teachers were able tocomprehend how ABL serves as a model of child-centered and child-friendly education.Activities in each milestone namely picture games, rhymes and drawings to teach differentconcepts were also illustrated. Divya Sharma HoD – English (Primary) 24 PIONEER - September 2017

उड़ानसं सार की उ त भाषाओं म िहदं ी सबसे अिधक बोली जाने वाली भाषा ह।ै वह सबसे अिधक सरलएवं अिधक लचीली भाषा ह।ै िहदं ी दिु नया की सवािधक ती ता से सािरत हो रही भाषाओं म से एकह।ै िहदं ी का श कोश ब त िवशाल है और एक-एक भाव को करने के िलए सकै ड़ों शह।हम अपने देश से दूर रहकर भी भाषा के मा म से देश से जड़ू े रहते ह।यही यास हमशा िह ीिश कों का रहा है िक अिधकतर ब िह ी म बहते र बने । भाषा कौशल एक अिभ ि का साधनहै िजसम सनु न,े बोलने, पढ़ने तथा िलखने का कौशल सि िलत होता ह।ै इसी हते ु को िस करने केिलए िह ी िवभाग ने िह ी सं घ (HINDI CLUB) की ापना की िजसका नाम \"उड़ान\" रखा गयाहै । सं घ का उदे ह - छा ों म िह ी भाषा म झान लाना और छा ों म िह ी भाषा का िवकासकरना । इसके अतं गत कु छ विृ तओं को सि िलत िकया गया ह जसै े – अतंर ढूंढो , लेखन कौशल,कहानी लेखन/ बोलना,श खले /वग-पहले ी, नाटक, अनके ता म एकता ।अिभभावको का साथहमशा हमारे साथ रहा ह आगे भी रह यही आशा रखते ह । Deepti Takate Dept. of Hindi (Primary)PIONEER - September 2017 25

Science Expo 2017-2018As mentors, we firmly believe in setting platforms to tap, expose and nurture the very manytalents a child holds. The ‘Science Expo’, was one such platform that was conducted by thedepartment, at both Primary and Secondary levels, to bring out the scientific skillsembedded in children.The expo was conducted at two levels – one on 11 June ’17, when children brought manyworking models and experiments, for the committee to select. The selected ‘youngscientists’ went ahead to the finals which was held on 18 June ’17 when they were testedfor ‘on-the-spot’ scientific skills. The participants excelled in several topics like ‘light travelsin a straight line’, ‘constructing a catapult with marsh mellows’, ‘constructing anelectromagnet’, ‘egg and bubble wrap experiment’, ‘comparing and analyzing variousimplementation tools’, to name a few. 26 PIONEER - September 2017

From 30 participants who exhibited astounding performance in level 2, the following weredeclared winners:Grade 1Sachi – 1F (1st Prize)Lakshana – 1C (2nd Prize)Muthazidh - 1B and Rahul - 1F (3rd Prize)Grade 2Anirudh – 2A (1st prize)Krishnakiran - 2A (2nd prize)Litwesh – 2C (3rd prize)Grade 3Amogh – 3E (1st Prize)Cheryl – 3C (2nd prize)Grade 4Akshita - 4A (1st Prize)Ashwin – 4C (2nd prize)Adnan – 4E (3rd prize)Grade 5Kanishka – 5C (1st Prize)Sarvajeeth – 5F ( 2nd prize) Geesha Nair (Dept. of Science – Primary)PIONEER - September 2017 27

Play With ScienceThe Department of Science – Primary, conducted various club activities for Grade 1 and 2,for the first quarter in June 2017. As a part of activities, the students made good use of theopportunity to play Science-based online games which will help enhance their spatialreasoning skills.‘Ocean Day’ too was celebrated on 8th June ’17 where the children took up the challengeto write catchy captions based on this year’s theme ‘Our Oceans, Our Future’. This activityhelped children be more aware of the ocean life and the very many challenges faced by theaquatic organisms as a result of unfriendly human activities. The best captions wereselected and winners awarded. 28 PIONEER - September 2017

The main objective of such activities is to challenge young minds to ignite passion forScience. Geesha Nair Dept. of Science (Primary)PIONEER - September 2017 29

Highlights of Founder’s day

Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world -Nelson Mandela The Monthly Newsletter Copyright @ Private International English School - Abu Dhabi www.bhavansabudhabi.comSEPTEMBER 2017 Volume - 06 Issue - 04