Dear JKS Community
As we embark on another school year at JKS we would like to welcome the entire community back and trust that you had a relaxing and restful summer with family and friends. A special warm welcome to all our new students and parents who have joined the JKS family.
As a staff, we are looking forward to another exciting year filled with great enthusiasm as we strive to provide the best education possible for your child.
We have had a great start to the quarter one session with our teaching and learning, but also exceptionally proud of our wide range of extracurricular activities including the introduction of the FFA( French Football Academy), our intensive and informative campaigns, productions , UN day and Saudi National Day celebrations. Students and teachers have settled into a sustainable pace to ensure that students experience learning through various activities whilst enjoying their school day. This year we are also focusing on social guidance as a major part of our students’ holistic development, emphasizing positive developmental strategies and goals.
We wish our JKS community the very best for this academic year. Please keep connected to us through our email, social media accounts and through visits to give us your comments, feedback and concerns. In this way, we will build the foundation for a strong home/school relationship.
Ms. Yasmin Suliman Head of School |
Ms. Elham Alfadli Executive Director |
Dear JKS Newsletter Readers
It gives immense pleasure to circulate the Quarter 1 newsletter. I would like to thank parents, students, and staff on the successful completion of Quarter 1. At JKS, we believe in creating open lines of communication with our community to enable a positive and conductive learning environment.
This newsletter is one such initiative which will be shared with JKS community every quarter. The IB, Primary Years Program, is a very important stage of development to creating lifelong learners. The PYP encourages overall child development, ignites a lasting love for learning and prepares children to tackle real-world problems. In addition, the comprehensive curriculum promotes inquiry-based learning that encourages children to take charge of their education.
This quarter, students have been involved in developing their “Approaches to Learning” (ATL) skills. ATL skills can significantly benefit students in managing their own individual learning styles and needs. Our upcoming quarters’ target will be to incorporate ATL skills and the qualities of the IB Learning Profile, while improving their holistic learning. The daily living of the learner profile facilitates students’ self-understanding, openness to others and builds their international-mindedness.
At JKS, our students do not just learn, but instead “learn how to learn” which drives students to become a life-long learner.
Respectfully,
Ms. Heather Champion
Head of Primary
The Unit of Inquiry entitled “Me, My Family, and Friends” is the unit of inquiry in which students learn about self-respect, respect for others, individuality, healthy choices and their own autonomy. Throughout this unit, students gained an understanding of their role and the roles of others in which they are surrounded by. This unit covers multiple environments including home, school and society. Students are encouraged to not only respect themselves, but just as importantly, others they are surrounded by.
During this UOI, students have gained knowledge of their own role and attributes in each place. They learned the roles and attributes of family members in their homes and classmates/teachers in school. Students were encouraged to love learning and developed a good understanding of the world around them. They were encouraged to speak their mind and express their feelings in a variety of situations, understanding the importance of making choices, that lead to a healthy lifestyle and wellbeing.
Ms. Micah San Nicolas
Preprimary English Teacher
To motivate and empower young learners to live a healthy lifestyle, our opening Unit of Inquiry: How Are You? centered on eating a balanced diet, personal hygiene, exercise, relaxation and sun safety. Through fun-filled creative classroom activities, our students learned how to make healthy life choices. Incorporating healthy eating and physical activity across the curriculum positively impacts academic performance and sets the stage for health and wellness far into adulthood.
Ms. Yasmina Abdullah
Preprimary English Teacher
IXL is regarded as very important at Jeddah Knowledge School and it is incorporated into our weekly homework schedule because of its value to our students’ development. The program, which applies to both Math and English, works by offering skills that students practice one at a time, earning them points when they get questions correct. There are lots of drill-and-practice options that allow students to complete work independently. This reinforces their competence in class assignments. Students enjoy the challenges that the questions offer and they are able to have fun while they are learning. The system itself is able to master what a student needs to work on and then offers new experiences to suit their needs. The built-in diagnostic works out what the students’ proficiency levels are in each given topic and subject.
Mr. Stephen O’Shaughnessy
PYP Deputy Head
23 من شهر سبتمبر هو تاريخ محفور في قلوبنا قبل ذاكرتنا، كيف لا وهو الذي جعل مملكتنا لنا دارًا ووطنًا، وجعلنا أهلًا لها ، إنّ الفرحة في ذكرى اليوم الوطني السعودي تنبع من الفخر بهذه المملكة وبأبنائها التي وضعوها على سلّم المجد فحلقّت عاليًا مع الأيام في سماء العزة والشرف ونافست أفضل البلدان على مختلف الأصعدة الدولية.
وعلى كلّ مواطن سعودي أن يقف شامخاً فخورًا بما حققه هذا الوطن المعطاء، وأن يحرص على إكمال مسيرة آبائه وأجداده بالبذل والعطاء في سبيل ارتقاء الأمة الإسلامية عبر مملكتنا الغالية.
دمتِ يا مملكتي متفردةً بالعطاء والبذل، ودامت ثراكي آمنةً لنا ولجميع من وطئها، ودام عزّك ومجدك وقوتك، إلهي أسألك في عيدنا الوطني أن تحفظ لنا هذا البلد وتجعله آمناً مطمئناً اللهم واحفظ لنا ولي العهد الأمير محمد بن سلمان، وخذ بيده إلى خير ما لهذه البلاد وخير ما للعباد يا رب العباد.
في ذكرى يوم التوحيد وفي هذا اليوم العظيم لا يسعنا إلا أن نبارك لوطني وأبنائه عيدهم الوطني وأن أدعو لهم بالأمن والأمانة والسلامة والاطمئنان أعواماً مديدةً وكثيرة لا تنتهي إلى الأبد.
أ. عبد الرحمن عسيري
مدرّس اللغة العربية للمرحلة الابتدائية
How We Organize Ourselves – School is the first unit of inquiry our Grade 1 students study. The main lines of inquiry develop students’ knowledge and understanding of the people (and their roles) in our school, class and school organization and management, class ‘Essential Agreements’, and the purpose of rules, schedules, and routines.
Exploration of these concepts allowed our students to become responsible and reflective learners. They begin to develop an awareness of the wider school community, looking beyond their classroom and toward the plethora of staff who help support us here at JKS. Students relish the opportunity to be thinkers and ask relevant questions in each line of inquiry. Extending further, these young IB learners are able to settle into the new school year smoothly as they learn and ask questions about their school environment. We build our positive class ethos through this unit which is an integral part of our students health and wellbeing at school.
Ms. Kathryn Cowie
PYP Homeroom Teacher
At JKS we believe students can make a huge impact on our world by reading daily.
Raz-Kids, a weekly assigned reading program, is a major factor in the success of avid readers beginning at grade 1 for students at Jeddah Knowledge International School. Raz-Kids allows students to be monitored by their teachers as they read through assigned leveled, until grade 5. As a highly regarded program, our students love to record themselves reading for their teachers, taking fun quizzes to test their comprehension, and explore hundreds of books at their fingertips which are at the level they are currently at. We are proud of the continuous progress our students are making independently to love reading. Readers today make leaders tomorrow!
Raz-Kids is an adult and child friendly website that JKS subscribes to yearly.
Ms. Sarah Heldreth
PYP Deputy Head (Primary to Grade 5)
Second graders began this academic year exploring the concept of “communities”. We learned to define it. Then we looked at different kinds of communities, their features, and how they can change. We investigated the different communities to which we belong, starting with our families all the way to the diverse global community all over our precious planet. Next, we discussed ways in which we could cooperate, empathize, show respect, and appreciate one another as well as our environment successfully. A fun round-off was thoughtful and targeted group activities incorporating multiple learning strands. Students constructed 2D and 3D homes and services citing the wants and needs for a happy life in either an urban, suburban, or rural community. Ultimately, we endeavor to encompass the IB learner profile through work, learning, and playing together happily in our school community.
Ms. Natasha Gounden
PYP Homeroom Teacher
The first quarter of 2022 began with great excitement and expectations, both from the teachers and the students. During our first Unit, which is How We Organize Ourselves, the students learned a variety of ways to become self-managed and more independent. During the first week of school, the Essential Class Agreements were discussed. The students eagerly participated and suggested appropriate rules for the classroom with guidance from the homeroom teacher. This is to give the students more agency and feel a part of the self-management process. The central idea for the unit is Self-management skills are an integral part of achieving goals. The students learned how to set achievable goals for Math, Language and UOI as well as personal goals. Their work was displayed on the unit board. During this unit, the students learned, time management skills, self-discipline and commitment to achieve their goals. The IB Learner Profile was also emphasized, with Knowledgeable, Caring, Principled and Risk–taker being being the main attitudes discussed.
As the weeks passed it was pleasing to note a great improvement and pride the students Showed in their self-management skills, manners, and independence. This has been an excellent start to the year, which benefited the students and teachers.
Ms. Marion Ruth
PYP Homeroom Teacher
In 4th grade this year, our first unit of inquiry is about who we are as humans. We will explore the nature of the self, our beliefs and values, our personal, physical, mental, social and spiritual health, our human relationships including families, friends, communities and cultures, the rights and responsibilities we have as humans, and what it means to be human.
We will also explore different aspects of the human body such as the brain, reflexes, and central nervous system. Students will observe a dissection of a sheep brain which will help them visualize the basic parts of a brain. They will also observe common reflex tests and experience some on their own.
Other things we will discuss are character attributes. This unit focuses on becoming inquirers where students are encouraged to ask questions about topics that interest them related to the unit. We will also talk about being open minded, especially to those who are different that us. This will help build the character of our students and allow them to see things from the perspective of others.
Mr. Ruan Vreugdenburg
PYP Homeroom Teacher
Grade Four girls have been learning about how the brain and nervous system function in the body, and how learning takes place. The students have been learning about the three main parts of the brain and their functions. Also, how neurons make connections throughout the body and communicate with the brain without them even realizing it.
Additionally, the students are learning how they learn best and how to apply that in the classroom. They are learning to be responsible for their own learning. Furthermore, they are learning how to brainstorm using a mind map. This allows the students organize their thoughts better before they write.
Ms. Patricia Anne
PYP Homeroom Teacher
Throughout the first quarter, we have had the perfect introduction to learning about Who We Are. Our learners have learned about a healthy, balanced-diet, and good exercise habits.
The food pyramid was the basis of our dietary learning. This, in addition to our morning exercises and cyclic PE lessons, including swimming, should stand our learners in good stead, with regard to their physical well-being.
Hopefully, we will see this knowledge transferred to our actions, in order to establish better habits, thus, forming better lifestyles.
Mr. Justin Nortje
PYP Homeroom Teacher
Grade 5 students have started the year off with a bang! They learned and researched all about the body systems and healthy balanced diets. The have brainstormed the topic, Fit for Life, and developed their own central ideas and lines of inquiry. This is evidence that JKS motivates their students to take ownership of their learning. Students are excited and have discussed external factors that influence the body. They learned more about the importance of healthy eating, exercise, and the effect sleep on the body.
Ms. Lucinda Wessles
PYP Homeroom Teacher
Jeddah witnessed a deep partial solar eclipse on 25 October 2022 that lasted for four hours, and four minutes between 11:58 a.m. and 04:02 p.m. Parents, students, and teachers were all excited to witness this event. So many students had questions about the solar eclipse which the admin and teachers tried to answer. Many students had misinformation about what a solar eclipse was. The aim of this article is to explain the true nature of a solar eclipse:
What is a solar eclipse?
A solar eclipse happens when, at just the right moment, the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth. This causes a shadow of the moon to fall onto the earth. Sometimes the Moon only blocks part of the Sun’s light. This is called a partial solar eclipse. Other times, the Moon blocks all of the Sun’s light. This is called a total solar eclipse.
Saudi Arabia will experience a total Solar Eclipse on Monday, 08/02/2027. Depending on where you are in Saudi Arabia, you might only witness a partial solar eclipse.
How to protect your eyes during a solar eclipse
Exposing your eyes to the sun without proper eye protection during a solar eclipse can cause “eclipse blindness” or retinal burns, also known as solar retinopathy. This exposure to light can cause damage or even destroy cells in the retina (the back of the eye) that transmit what you see to the brain. in.
It is never safe to look directly at the sun’s rays – even if the sun is partly obscured. When watching a partial eclipse, you must wear eclipse glasses at all times if you want to face the sun.
Proper eye protection, like eclipse glasses or a special solar filter, is the only safe option. Sunglasses don’t work.
Mr. Gregory Lewis
Head of Boys (6-8)
Why are ATL skills important?
ATL skills help students prepare for, and demonstrate learning through, meaningful assessment. They provide a common language that students and teachers can use to reflect on and articulate on the process of learning.
What is an ATL Skill?
Approaches to learning (ATL) are skills designed to enable students in the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) to “learn how to learn.”
There are 5 elements of Approaches to Learning
· Thinking skills – critical thinking. creativity and innovation. transfer.
· Communication skills.
· Social skills.
· Self-management skills -organization. affective. reflection.
· Research skills – information literacy. media literacy.
When specific ATL skills become an explicit focus for teaching and learning, students can begin to take responsibility for their own development. Over time, students can identify themselves and their competence in any learning strategy.
At JKS, we incorporate ATL Skills in all our subjects. In English for example, students are allowed to demonstrate their research skills by first researching a topic, noting down their sources, and once they have completed their writing topic, they create their reference lists under the title Works Cited. JKS students also learn how to do in-text citations from early on to avoid academic plagiarism.
To conclude, the ATL skills focuses on “learning how to learn.”
Mr. Gregory Lewis
Head of Boys (6-8)
This year, the Boys’ section celebrated UN Day on Wednesday, 9 November 2022.
UN Day, celebrated every year, offers the opportunity to amplify our common agenda and reaffirm the purposes and principles of the UN Charter of 1945. This charter gives hope to so many people for a better world and can deliver the future we want.
The UN Day activities for this year were planned by the student council. There were highly energetic mini-Olympics in football, badminton, tug-o-war, and an egg-spoon race.
Students dressed up in the national costumes of the countries they represented which were Egypt, South Africa, Turkey, Palestine, Spain, Brazil and of course, Saudi Arabia.
The sharing of food turned out to be a mini-market with the younger students ardently selling food items from the countries they represented to the older students. By the end of the day, students donated a total amount of 2031 SAR which will be used as start-up funds for the Mark-IT Day later this year. All donations will eventually go to charities in and around Jeddah.
Mr. Gregory Lewis
Head of Boys (6-8)
The long-term vision for JKS Physical Education and Team Sports is to install knowledge, skills and motivation necessary for a healthy lifestyle and lifelong participation in physical activity and sports.
WHATS NEW!!!
New PE Kit to wear with pride
We have added a new logo to the JKS PE kit. We hope you like them!
During the PE lessons it is important to create a collaborative, safe environment in which students support one another and have fun at the same time. Students at JKS have been learning Volleyball, Basketball, Soccer, Badminton, Floor Hockey, Futsal, Netball, Softball, Handball, Swimming and the Performance class of Dance, Yoga, Aerobics, Zumba and Step Aerobics.
Returning to Swimming: G6-8 has begun the swimming curriculum which includes water safety, Brest stroke, front crawl and back stroke. The students will showcase their talent during the Swimming Gala (TBA).
Also added to our program is a performing arts class – Movement for G8. Students are thrilled to learn through practicing, rehearsal and performance of their artistic work.
JKS buzzing about Volleyball, Soccer and Basketball Team! The students that are on the teams are extremely excited to represent JKS in competitions.
Ms. Jamela Antone
MYP/DP P.E. Teacher
In alignment with the aims of the MYP sciences, the MYP science department in Jeddah Knowledge International school aims to provide students the opportunity to understand and appreciate science and its implications. We will do this by providing students the opportunities to think critically, inquire and pose questions, and solve problems we find in our everyday life. During the year students will show their investigation skills by designing and carrying out scientific investigations and explore their world through research. Another focus this year is assessing for learning which is going to be used by students to improve their performance. We hope to have a successful year ahead
Ms. Prabashinee Pillay
MYP Science Teacher/Coordinator
In a world of increasing complexity, schools are being intrusted with the full development of students, be it academic, social, emotional or personal. As so, JKS has a developed curriculum which not only delivers the knowledge and content which students require, but also provides them with the big ideas or concepts which are transferable across disciplines, allowing them to make connections in their learning. When studied in a specific context, students make links to their personal lives and experiences, aiding them in understanding the purpose of what they are learning.
Furthermore, at JKS we ensure our students are equipped with the essential skills they require to be independent and responsible learners, such as research, communication, self-management, thinking and social skills, ones which will help them excel both in their post-secondary education and their work life. Through the variety of elective courses which we offer in grades 9 and 10, such as Interior Design, Home Economics, Business, Culinary Arts, Robotics and Auto-Engineering, students are given opportunities to further explore and develop their interest. Our cyclic campaigns and activities aid in shaping our students personal and social skills, learning to be the best versions of themselves.
Through such a holistic education, we aim at JKS to develop students who are thinkers, inquirers, knowledgeable, reflective and communicative learners, who are also principled, open-minded, caring, balanced and risk-takers, the attributes of an ideal IB student.
Ms. Sarah Bakkar
MYP Coordinator
عنيت مدرسة المعرفة العالمية ،بتعزيز الكتابة وذلك بغرس حب اللغة العربية وممارستها تحدثا وقراءة في نفوس طلابها ، وتنمية مهارة الكتابة الإبداعية لتكون وسيلة لتنمية الشخصية، والتفكير الناقد، وحلّ المشكلات، بالإضافة إلى التأكيد على أهمية الكتابة في تحقيق البنى التواصلية المعرفية والمهارية والثقافية، والأخذ بأيدي المبدعين، وإتاحة الفرص أمامهم للانطلاق والمنافسة.
ويتم تعزيز مهارات الكتابة من قبل معلمي اللغة العربية من خلال التركيز على مهارة الاستماع من خلال نصوص مسموعة وكتابة الأفكار العامة من النص ، مع إبداء الرأي.
وتشجيع الطلاب على إنشاء الخرائط المعرفية ، وتعزيز مهارة التلخيص ووضع نهاية مختلفة للقصص المقروءة.
يتم تدريب الطلاب على القوالب الكتابية المتنوعة مثل :” الرسالة ، المقال ، المدونة ، المقابلة ، الخطبة …). مع تدريب الطلاب على محاكاة التراكيب اللغوية المقروءة والمسموعة.
مع تزويد الطلاب بمعجم لغوي ،وتدريبهم على استخراج مرادفات وأضاد الكلمات.
ويبدع الطلاب في كتابات إبداعية ذاتية ، كلّ طالب حسب صفّه الدراسي وفق مهمات مركزية تراعي في موضوعاتها اهتماماتهم وتواكب العصر الذي يعيشونه من أحداث وتغيرات معاصرة لخلق طالب محافظ على هويته ومنفتح على العالم.
ومع الممارسة والتطبيق نتمكن من ممارسة اللغة بشكل فعال بكل مهارتها ، فبقدر تعلمنا المزيد من الكلمات بقدر وجود الثقة لدينا. التي تمكنا من الانطلاق.
أ. تهاني هميمي
المشرفة الأكاديمية
To the JKS Family
The start of a new school year always brims with energy and excitement. Teachers are working hard as they prepare for the arrival of their students and students are looking forward to being with their friends and teachers and the challenges of the next grade level.
At JKS, the energy is palpable. With a new set of goals and a loaded educational programme for our students, we expect the year to maximize our students’ learning while at the same time focusing on their social development.
Using the acronym AMP, for Academics, Manners and Physical Activity, we launched our Campaigns for the year and offered our students a range of after-school activities to suit all interests and aptitudes. Campaigns are student-led with line up activities and assembly presentations. We aim to give our students as many opportunities as possible to take responsibility for their own learning and personal development under the guidance of their teachers and administrators.
After all, school is where we learn the lessons and life is were we are tested!
Wishing the entire JKS community all the best as the school embraces its 27th year of learning.
Ms. Nicholette Marillier
Head of Upper and Middle School