TEACHING MATTERS

TEACHING MATTERS
ABU DHABI SCHOOL MODEL E-NEWSLETTER FOR KG, C1 & C2
K
G
C
1
C
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Welcome to Issue 17 of
Teaching Matters
The focus of this issue
is Innovation.
From KG to C3 Schools, innovative teaching and learning is encouraging students to think, problem solve, expand their views
and create their own vision.
Message from
the School
Administration
Division Manager
This is an exciting time for students in ADEC schools. All stake- Welcome to Issue 17 of
holders involved are witnessing the transformation of today’s Teaching Matters, which
celebrates innovation in
students into the thinkers and leaders of tomorrow.
schools across the Emirate.
The aim of the Teaching
Matters eNewsletter is to
support the effective implementation of the Abu Dhabi
School Model (ADSM) in
KG, Cycle 1 and Cycle 2
schools across all regions.
It has been wonderful to
read about and see the variety of innovative teaching
and learning experiences
taking place in schools. I
hope you also benefit from
these experiences too.
On behalf of H.E. Dr Amal Al
Qubaisi, ADEC Director General H.E. Dr Mugheer Al
Khaili, and Executive DirecHow to contribute
tor of School Operations,
To contribute to future editions of Teaching Matters, please Mr Mohammed Salem Al
send your article and picture submissions to the relevant team Dhahiri, I would like to exmember (@adec.ac.ae):
press our appreciation to all
of you for your commitKG: jeannine.laubner or aminah.knight
ment and efforts in schools.
Cycle 1: leanne.shay
English: hana.twebti, leanne.shay, hebert.anthony
Mathematics: pansy.walker, badder.chaudri,
marco.mendoza, christopher.west
Science: zahida.fortuin, stephanie.giardinadedman,
qaisir.khan, tanver.chaudri, william.baini, rugaya.essa
The focus of our next edition and the deadline for contributions
will be announced soon. Thank you for reading and sharing your
experiences, ideas and successes!
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
Dr. Ahmed Deria,
School Administration
Division Manager
Key Dates
PD week
3-7 Jan
Page 1
T H I S
CONTENTS
Page 3
KG
Explore, move and be active. Innovation is mobile in KG.
Page 4
Cycle 1
Delicious and original ideas are used
to move from conceptual to concrete
understanding.
Page 4
KG/C1 Innovation
Why innovate? How do we innovate
in KG and Cycle 1 Schools?
Pages 6 - 7
C2 English
“Making it Happen” innovatively allows students to celebrate their creative thinking. Wedding planning: a
real-life link to learning.
Pages 8 - 9
C2 Mathematics
Successful strategies in the classroom; Mathletics; Practical and innovative mathematical applications by
students.
Pages 10 - 11
C2 Science
Mechanical arms are no challenge for
these talented students; Curriculum
training is reviewed; Artistic recycling
designs.
E D I T I O N
Innovation
In this issue of Teaching Matters,
INNOVATION is the overarching theme.
Be inspired and celebrate the impact that
innovative teaching and learning has had on
our students, the leaders of tomorrow.
“The education of our people is a
great wealth. We are proud of our
educated nation because through
knowledge and science we will
open the horizons of a
glorious future.”
His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al
Nahyan, Founding Father of the UAE
What is INNOVATION?
Change, revitalisation, transformation, new ideas,
new methods, break with tradition, change in direction.
“More than any other time, we need to boost innovation
among young people, build nurturing environments in our
society, and encourage our schools and universities to equip
our youth with skills in research and
discovery methodologies.”
H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum,
Vice-President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai (2014)
The new Irtiqa’a Inspections Framework contains a strong focus on
innovation and the ways in which it is promoted in schools. Inspection
Pages 12 - 13
C2 Innovation
A special feature celebrating the suc- teams will explore the school’s vision and interpretation of innovation as
cessful implementation of innocation found in selected indicators and elements of the inspection framework.
across all regions. Young Scientist Inspectors will seek to understand how it is defined, designed and
expressed in schools and classrooms. Innovation comes in many forms:
launched.
 the way schools are owned, organized and managed,
 curriculum design models,
Pages 13
ADEC Calendar
 teaching and learning approaches,
 the ways in which learning technologies are used,
 classroom design, including virtual spaces,
 assessment and timetabling,
 partnerships to promote effective learning,
 partnerships to promote engagement in the economy,
 the ways in which teachers and leaders are recruited, trained,
developed and rewarded.
These innovations can be small or large, recognizable or entirely
different.
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
Page 2
K I N D E R G A R T E N
Active SHARING in KG
Six weeks ago, teachers were involved in a Gallery Walk Day where they looked for new and different teaching
strategies and innovative activities that related to discovery, problem solving, creativity, science, mathematics
and literacy. The intended task for teachers was to select one strategy from the gallery walk or develop a
particular strategy and implement it for 4-6 weeks. In the next sharing session they presented the strategies they
chose and explained how they implemented them in their classrooms, the changes they made and how they
overcame difficulties.
In this featured session, the Heads of Faculty started by sharing new ideas for using ADEC’s resources, as well as
some other resources. Some ideas that were presented can be used by both Arabic and English teachers, such as
using the teaching and learning kits from speaking and listening, science and mathematics. During the sharing
session, all teachers presented strategies and activities they had implemented in their classrooms. Some of them
brought tangible samples of the activities. Others preferred to share videos and photos of students engaged in
the activities. The presented activities varied from discovery and problem solving to literacy and classroom
management. Some of the teachers participated with more than one strategy.
Teachers were highly engaged in both sessions. The results of the feedback survey showed that the teachers
were interested to attend future sessions to share experiences with other staff and be inspired by the ideas of
others.
Al Nakheel KG
Al Ghadeer get ACTIVE
The students at Al Ghadeer KG expressed themselves
via physical and health education. The focus of Innovation Week and National Day Celebrations was physical
application. Celebration of their homeland through
collaboration and movement was enjoyed by
everyone involved.
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
Page 3
C Y C L E
1
INNOVATIVE Approaches at Hili Cycle 1 School
Studying measurement and data just got interesting for one Grade 4 class at Hili Cycle 1
school. An innovative and hands-on approach to learning in Mathematics created
enthusiasm, intrigue, collaboration and risk taking. Trying new approaches was
highlighted as a strength when problem solving was used to meet learning outcomes.
Pamela Farah, Head of Faculty, reports:
“They [students] were using their 21st century
critical thinking and problem solving skills to
balance an object with weights. The students
found that they were often not using enough
weights, so they had to find a suitable
replacement and then calculate its weight to
determine what weight was needed to balance
it.”
She added, “students were innovative in finding
their own solutions to the problems they
faced.”
Interesting articles are often
shared in our wider learning
community. Gerald Mercer,
Cluster Manager, shared this
relevant article written by Terry
Heick, an Educator focused on
social improvement through
learning innovation. This timely
and
relevant
educational
approach is closely linked with
the following lessons featured in
this edition of Teaching Matters.
The illustrated steps featured
above are a condensed version
of his article. The whole article
can be found here:
http://www.teachthought.com/
pedagogy/12-rules-of-great-teaching/?
utm_campaign=trueAnthem&utm_content
=564b60db04d3017f652a8e2c&utm_medi
um=social&utm_source=facebook
Conceptual Learning Made Palatable
A delicious science lesson took place at Hili Cycle 1 School. Teaching concepts such as phases of the moon is often quite
difficult, and one that learners find challenging to grasp. What better way to engage learners with a strong visual and
kinaesthetic approach to this concept. Students were able to process their thinking by physically removing the creamy
filling from the centre of a delectable cookie in order to reveal not only their understanding, but a highly visual
understanding of the moon’s cycle.
The photographs featured here give more insight into
this very original lesson. The follow up lesson allowed
students to make their own moveable parts featuring
the sun, earth and moon. By interacting with the
parts, students were able to better appreciate moon
phases, while enjoying a cookie.
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
Page 4
K G / C 1
INNOVATION
Why Innovate?
How do we innovate in KG and Cycle 1 Schools?
While we hear many people from various industries talk about innovation, we need to take some time to think
about not only what it is, but more significantly about ‘why we innovate’ and how it is applicable to what we do.
As educators we need to ask what impact innovation has on our students. More importantly, we need to ask why
and how we are addressing these innovators that are before us each day.
Being a part of The Knowledge Age is an exciting time because education no longer solely consists of simply obtaining knowledge. We know that information is no longer power. Information can be easily accessed by many
people. However, it is what we do with this information, how we ‘collectivize’ this intelligence that is important
and is thus the key to innovation. How well do the students in your class collaborate for a specific purpose? How
well do you facilitate opportunities for them to be innovative or to develop skills that will enable them to contribute to the age beyond The Knowledge Age?
OECD (2009) defines innovation as ‘investment to produce and apply new knowledge’. Thus, we need to start
thinking about the aforementioned questions and how we are investing in the students before us to ensure they
have opportunities to not only gain knowledge but to produce and apply new knowledge.
ADEC’s “A Guide to Development and Promotion of Innovation Skills” states that ‘there is agreement beginning to
emerge among educators that the best preparation (for their social and economic role as adults) is to equip
students to be innovative, flexible and adaptable to the realities that they will face in their roles as learners and
in the social and economic roles as adults’. Given that this is one of the reasons as to ‘why we innovate’, it is
clear that in the classroom our practice needs to accommodate such an approach so that we do not fail to prepare our youth to face the challenges of tomorrow.
The Innovation Skills, as set forth by ADEC’s “A Guide to Development and Promotion of Innovation Skills”, include
Imagination, Creativity, and Critical Thinking and Problem Solving. Knowing this enables us to look at the ways in
which these skills are embedded implicitly and explicitly in the English, Mathematics and Science KG and Cycle 1
Curriculum. The teaching and learning experiences that we plan for our students should ensure that the skills
defined above are addressed through our pedagogical approaches.
Below are some exemplars of teaching and learning ideas that address these skills. They are designed with a
cross-curricular approach and utilise the ADEC English Reading Scheme: Reading Time resource that is available in
KG and Cycle 1 Schools.
Natalie Dahdal, Specialist – Learning Resources
Subject Area
Innovation
Skill
Mathematics
Learning
Outcome
Problem Solving K2SGD1
and Creativity
(Trimester 2)
Manipulate, identify
and sort familiar 2D
This is just one of the many
and 3D shapes in
resources provided to schools
exploration
and
by ADEC.
play and recognize
This table provides support
them in everyday
when planning with
contexts.
innovation in mind.
In the next issue of Teaching
Matters, further support ideas
will be featured that use such
resources.
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
Pedagogy
Suggested
Resources
Teacher is to arrange students Book title: Shapes on
into groups of 6 and provide the Seashore
each group with a set of Publisher: Collins
picture shape cards. Students
are to find a space on the
carpet and draw a picture
card from the pack and show
the group. Using their
collaboration and problem
solving skills, students create
the shape with their body /
bodies. Students repeat this
for all of the shapes on the
cards.
ADSM eNewsletter
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C 2
E N G L I S H
W E D D I N G P L A N N I N G : Real-life Experiences
For most people, living a healthy lifestyle means eating right and exercising. For the Grade
7 girls at Hamdan Bin Zayed School, it means a little bit more. While proper eating and exercising are certainly important components of a healthy lifestyle, these girls realised that
emotional wellbeing is also a key factor to living a happy, healthy and balanced life.
The girls spent several weeks reading the novel The Turtle Secret. They identified with the
main character, Hessa, who was struggling with grief following her mother’s death. The
family had not had any family celebrations for some time, but now Hessa was expected to
help her sister plan her wedding. The students discussed that family celebrations, especially weddings, are extremely important to emotional health and overall happiness. They decided to connect with the main character by planning the wedding for her sister. The wedding exhibition project was conceived from this idea. Our focus question became, “how do
family celebrations enhance your physical and emotional wellbeing?”
During the planning process, the girls conducted research and made links to their own experiences of attending and participating in Emirati weddings. They chose four main categories to present at the exhibition: the food and wedding cake, the henna party, the wedding
theme and of course, the wedding dress.
The students worked in pairs to design vendor
booths for each of these four categories. They
created three-dimensional artefacts, display
posters, PowerPoint Presentations and speeches
to deliver to potential clients.
A
fter sending out hand-crafted invitations, the Grade 7
English classroom was transformed into a wedding
exhibition hall complete with tea, coffee, cakes, henna
and even a beautiful wedding dress! Students
presented their individual speeches and PowerPoint Presentations
to a room full of lovely guests, including the Principal, Miss Fatma
Al Bastaki. Through their research and presentations on how to
plan the perfect wedding, the girls not only addressed the learning
outcomes, but also made connections from the novel to the
theme of healthy lifestyles, and also to their own lives.
According to Aisha, a Grade 7 student, “When you’re with your family, you feel happy and safe. When you are
happy, you have more energy and become more creative. When you celebrate with your family, you feel
more excited and become healthier.” Similarly, Roqaya, a Grade 7 student said, “Family celebrations are
important to personal health and happiness, because it keeps you motivated for the future, you get to
celebrate it yourself and it keeps you social and happy.”
The Grade 7 girls astonished the guests by their knowledge of the culture, and the idea of a healthy, balanced
life. The 2015 Wedding Exhibition at Hamdan Bin Zayed School will not be forgotten.
Louise Joanne McMillan, English AQIO
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
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E N G L I S H
The ‘Make It’ Competition
The ‘Make It’ competition recently took place at New York University,
Abu Dhabi. Grade 6 and 7 girls, and Grade 7 and 8 boys of Hamdan Bin
Zayed School participated in the competition with great distinction.
The competition originated in the UK and this year’s competition in Abu
Dhabi was the first year it had taken place outside the UK. The
competition was sponsored by ADEC, BAE and Strata to ensure students
gain a firsthand experience of marketing and engineering. The
competition was designed to enhance students’ interest in these fields.
During the competition, the students had to:





Design an unmanned rescue vehicle, which was innovative and that
would solve a real-life problem facing today’s world.
Assign roles for each group member to take responsibility for, such
as the Managing Director, Financial Director, Marketing Director
and Design Engineer.
Design and build the vehicle.
Create a marketing campaign and choose a particular target
audience to sell to.
Present their ideas to potential investors (judges).
Students were required to do all of this within a set budget and time
frame. The key skills required of students included being creative,
collaborating effectively, critical thinking and communicating effectively.
The competition required the students to use the skills and knowledge
that they had learnt in English, Mathematics and Science. The following
are just some of the learning outcomes they used:
English:
7W1.1: Plan for writing by generating and selecting ideas.
7L1.3: Use vocabulary to convey meaning related to the theme and task.
Mathematics:
7N1.1: Add and subtract integers.
7SG1.4: Draw views (top, side, front) of a 3D solid given an isometric
drawing of the solid.
Science:
6P5: Compare the use of renewable and non-renewable energy
resources.
7M4: Classify metals and non-metals from their physical properties.
The students were assessed throughout the day by a panel of judges. The final assessment involved the students delivering a
two minute presentation and answering questions the judges had regarding their project and vehicle design. Each
representative of the school from both the girls and the boys performed fantastically. We are delighted to report that the
girl’s team from Hamdan bin Zayed School achieved first place in the competition, beating of a long list of public and private
schools in Abu Dhabi.
Danny O Sullivan, Edward McNeil and Roisin Hensman
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
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C 2
M A T H E M A T I C S
Teaching Strategy: PAT
Naomi Morrison from Al Dana School (Abu Dhabi) has applied
PAT (Productive Activity Time / Positive Award Time), a system
of classroom management originated by Fred Jones. This
method effectively turns unused time into productive learning
times. Below, Naomi describes her application of PAT:
Using the steps below, I have seen success in my classroom
management and in the students’ engagement levels.




Clear routines are in place at the start of the lesson, so
that students know that they must enter the room, sit
down and begin working right away.
Mathletics:
Innovation in Mathematics
A Daily Student Record Sheet is used for attendance, Top performers in Mathletics at Al Qarm Cycle 2
recording the arrival time of late students, and for Boys School in Abu Dhabi were presented with
positive and negative notes about students (class dojo certificates of achievement by the Academic
also works well for this purpose).
Vice Principal, Mr. Leonard Murphy, and the
Mathletics Coordinator, Mr. Mohamed Said
How the class can earn/lose time:
Ibrahim Meslihy.
 Earn time by: entering quietly and beginning
work without being asked, no interruptions, not
going to rest room during class time and All Grade 6-9 students in Al Qarm School are
registered for the world-renowned Mathletics
homework completion.
 Lose Time by: talking during instruction, violating program as part of an innovative pilot project to
class rules.
improve students’ knowledge and skills in
Mathematics, set forth by ADEC.
How it works during a school week:
 At the beginning of each week, each class gets 10 Mathletics developed some of the latest
minutes.
technology in its field to encourage maximum
 Each day, add the class’ total so that students can participation and promote interest among
see their totals. Teachers maintain accurate
students to develop their mathematical skills in
records in a notebook as well. This is good
an exciting and healthy competitive learning
exposure to adding and subtracting integers.
environment.
 At the end of the week, calculate the class total.
This valuable online resource assesses and
supports students to meet their needs. It also
allows students, parents, teachers and
administrators to effectively track student
progress. The positive impact on student
attitude and improved levels of engagement to
improve themselves has been impressive.
The Al Qarm School leadership team extends a
special word of thanks and appreciation to
ADEC for allowing our students to benefit from
this innovative pilot project.
Johannes Bodenstein, Mathematics AQIO
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
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C 2
M A T H E M A T I C S
Inno va tio n We e k P r o j e c t s
The students at Al Suqoor School had an exhibition in
the foyer area to display projects produced for innovation week. Students were very excited to explain
to other students, teachers and parents the process
and purpose of their inventions. Parents were very
impressed regarding the creativity of the students.
Hamad Ahmed, Hamdan Abdulla, Hamza Ahmed and
Sultan Faisal of Grade 8 invented a robot that can
measure the area of a surface. They connected the
wheel to the robot and ran it along the width and
length of a surface. It would then automatically calculate the area.
Al Suqoor School, Abu Dhabi
Spaghetti Towers
Students were tasked to create a freestanding tower that could hold a
marshmallow on top of it, using:




20 pieces of spaghetti,
1 m of tape,
1 m of string and
1 marshmallow.
Students were creative in their ideas and
enjoyed the challenge. Many students
chose to tape the spaghetti to the table
and tried to build it as high as possible.
The winning tower was 56 cm by three
Grade 8 students. They chose to reinforce
their tower by using the string to stabilise it
on two sides.
Building
Bridges
In order to give a real world application of the Geometric unit
learning outcomes for grades 6 and 7, and as part of innovation
week, students at Sa'ad Bin Mo’aath Boys School used their
knowledge of angles and three-dimensional shapes to build bridges out of popsicle sticks.
Students made predictions, tested the strength of their bridges,
recorded their results and then made adjustments to the bridges
in order to strengthen them to withhold more weight.
Mr. Anthony at Saad Bin Mo’aath School helps his Mathematics
students to reinforce their bridges for their trimester 1 project.
Anthony Anamelechi, EMT,
Saad Bin Mo'aath School, Abu Dhabi
Sarah Corcoran, EMT,
Maryam Bint Omran School,
Abu Dhabi
Real-life experiences bring learning to life for our students. Consider
these suggestions for trimester 2 learning experiences. The impact
on learning will inspire creative thinking and bring
learning experiences to life.
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
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C 2
S C I E N C E
Salama Bint Butti School Eco Club
Thirty two girls attended Salama Bint Butti School’s Eco Club on Monday 23 rd November 2015 to participate in a number of activities. The club members comprise
of Grade 6-9 students, who work in mixed grade groups.
Their first activity was to make an anemometer in groups and then use it to test
wind speed. Pictures of the end product were given to groups in order to provide
a clear idea of what a successful model looked like. Students collaborated on
how to make their anemometer with paper cups. By using a basic structural idea
from a picture, the groups made a variety adjustments to ensure they had the
best anemometer.
Some groups used sellotape to secure the cups to the straws, while other groups
put the cups centrally on the straws. When students finished making their anemometer they tested it by putting it under the AC or by blowing onto it.
Final adjustments to the original designs were then applied. The next step allowed the students to venture outside to find different places to check the wind
speed. It was a calm day with little wind and so it took the groups some time to
find a breeze strong enough to be measured. Groups peer assessed each other in
order to evaluate their designs. Some groups then redesigned their anemometer
again, this time using plastic cups. They improved their models and tested them
again before going back outside to see what would happen. Most groups found
that the plastic cups worked better.
The next activity was an individual task: to make a robot hand! This task was much simpler than it sounds. The
students followed a series of instructions. By drawing an outline of their hand on card, cutting it out, attaching
string through straws and then connecting one to each finger and the thumb, the robot hand took shape. Finally, by pulling on the string the finger moved. The featured pictures show how it works. The girls strengthened
the joints of their robot hands to prevent the strings being pulled out when in operation. This engaging and active learning was very well received by the students.
Science Team, Salama Bint Butti School
Mechanical Arms in Action!
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
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C 2
CURRCULUM
S C I E N C E
TRAINING
Curriculum training took place for Cycle 2 Science Teachers at the end
of trimester 1. Our facilitators were outstanding in presenting the
training in two very distinct ways. The practical side of each session
was relevant since it was applicable to the classroom situation and it
could be implemented immediately. The sharing of practical ideas and
best practices in the classroom was very meaningful as teachers
could identify with many of the challenges being faced every day. It
was also refreshing and encouraging to learn from colleagues how
they have succeeded in solving problems and challenges in their own
situations. The theoretical side of the training was very informative
and teachers gained insight on recent research and developments in
education, which is of utmost importance to the success of the
ADSM.
Examples of best practice included: building relationships with
learners, parents and colleagues, gradual release of information with
the objective that learners will eventually take ownership of their
own learning, Inquiry-based learning and 21st century skills are
amongst the many ideas, methodologies and teaching strategies that
were addressed during day 1. The overall feeling from teachers was
that the wealth of information gained and the professional support of
the facilitators and colleagues made the workshop a real success.
“I have been in the classroom for about
two months, and this training was
very
beneficial.
The
guidance
and
knowledge
of
the
AQIOs
was extremely helpful, reassuring me
that we have a very support system.
The
two
days
spent
interacting
with
fellow
colleagues
were insightful and definitely helped
ease stress levels. Many hands-on activities were demonstrated that promoted
critical thinking. Thank you to all of
the
Science
AQIOs
for
your invaluable support and positive attitude. I am looking forward to attending
more of these!”
Taybah Jaffar, Science Teacher, Al Ma’ali School
Johan de Villiers, Science Teacher, Al Dhaher School
USEFUL LINKS
Cycle 2 Science
Curriculum Training
Report
G I S To o l s i n S c i e n c e
1. ADEC’s ArcGIS direct link where all
existing
exercises
are
available:
www.abudhabi.maps.arcgis.com
On Wednesday 18 November, Cycle 2 Science teachers and Science
AQIOs attended a conference at ADNEC organised by ESRA, covering
the use and implementation of GIS tools in Science, particularly in the
use of the ArcGIS application, which is available for free for all ADEC
2. The ESRI site link to teacher resources
educators on the ADEC portal.
and instructional materials:
www.esri.com/connected
The various seminars and information sessions provided some very
3. Lesson plans, resources and forums for useful information and links to a variety of resources, including the
actual ArcGIS application and supporting documentation about its use
teachers: www.edcommunity.esri.com
in mapping, inquiry-based learning activities and the importance of
4. Arc GIS direct link where you can linking items spatially. With the use of this application, questions such
create an account and use the data maps, as “Is there a relationship between health issues and the location of rubbish dumps?” or “Where do most deserts occur and why?” can be invesand create web maps: www.arcgis.com
tigated by using information on map layers across different regions of
5. Survey123 app for collecting data and the globe.
creating a survey to use with GIS:
These GIS mapping skills have been used in a number
www.survey123.esri.com/#/
of schools in activities involving mangroves in Abu
6. Earth Science GIS inquiry activities, Dhabi, as well as in investigating migration of the rare
Houbara bird across the UAE. Other resources were
such as volcanoes:
www.edcommunity.esri.com/Resources/ made available to educators and for teachers who did
Collections/geoinquiries
not attend the conference. Some of the links to these
are featured left.
7. Using pictures taken from your phone
and the location data embedded in the Another useful school based activity was suggested
pictures to create "story maps". An at the conference, whereby students can use any GPS
excellent tool to use with students.
enabled smart phone to walk around the school yard
and map out the various lines of latitude and longitude in their school area.
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
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C 2
INNOVATION
A
l Badiya School in Al Wagan continues to N A T I O N A L D A Y
work with its students to provide a releFLAGS
vant, creative and engaging curriculum. Innovation Day gave each student the opportunity At Al Khanoor School,
to explore and participate in activities providCycle 3 students
ed by each curriculum department. Students
supervised Cycle 2
had an enjoyable and productive day solving students, providing
mathematical problems, playing team games, scientific instruction
and creating impressive artwork.
through workshops
to prepare clay and
A visit to the Science Laboratories also took
paste, via chemical
place, where students were able to produce
reactions, to create
some exciting chemical reactions, power
the UAE flag colors to
clocks, sound chips and lights, using lemons,
celebrate the UAE’s
potatoes, soil and water.
44th National Day
during Innovation
Learners were fascinated
Week.
to investigate EcoScience
topics by building their
own devices for cleaning
dirty water and constructing a recycled solar car.
GIS at Al Sariyah School
The main objective of this exciting on-going study and data-collection
exercise is to analyze different sections of the mangrove ecosystem
and then upload the findings onto the internet via GIS, so that the
new data can be used to record changes that are taking place in the
mangroves of Abu Dhabi.
Project Steps and Timeline:
 The first Mangrove Inquiry trip in May 2014 aimed to identify and
understand the Mangrove Ecosystem around an island off Yas
Beach.
 Follow-up visits took place in May 2015. Students were able to
collect data and use iPads to record their findings.
 In October 2015, student set off in Kayaks to gather data to study
the impact of the previous Mangrove Initiatives.
Al Khanoor School
had an enjoyable
interactive learning
experience during
the “Floating
Photography
Workshop” during
Science Festival 2015.
Chromatography in Action!
After seeing the success that my
colleague, Donna Hill, had doing t-shirt
chromatography with her class, I
decided to try it with my own class. It
gave the students an opportunity to
showcase their creativity more than
they would have in a usual paper
chromatography lab. To pique their
interest, I showed the students a brief
video about paper chromatography and
we discussed what a real life application
could be.
During the activity, students drew
designs on their t-shirts with markers
and then used a solvent to separate the
different colors from the mixture of ink.
The students greatly enjoyed the
activity. During our discussion and
feedback session, I felt as though they
gained a good understanding of
chromatography. I also had the benefit
of getting great decorations for my
classroom board!
Brandy Giles, Makkah School
Ms. Diana Madrid led this project. The participating students were
from Grades 7 & 8:
Al Yazya Al Seboussi
Al Yazya Al Dhahri
Sheikha Al Mazroui
Shamma Al Seboussi
Hadil Al Musallam
‫اليازية السبوسي‬
‫اليازية الظاهري‬
‫شيخة المزروعي‬
‫شمة السبوسي‬
‫هديل المسلم‬
Great ideas spring to life at Al Sariya
School with beautiful results during Innovation Week. Students recycled aluminum plates and painted them to create beautiful artwork.
ESRI Middle East and North Africa User Conference
November 17-19, 2015
Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
Page 12
C 2
INNOVATION
Young Scientist Abu Dhabi is a collaborative effort with Ireland’s BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition, which was
cofounded by Dr. Tony Scott 52 years ago.
It aims to promote an integrated approach
to STEM and connects classroom learning
with local and global challenges.
The unveiling of the exhibition took place
at Khalifa City A School in Abu Dhabi on
November 23, 2015. Dr. Tony Scott, cofounder of BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition, one of the guests of honour stated, “What we wanted to do was try to get them to think about science in
a different way; that science isn’t actually constrained by the classroom or by the
curriculum. Science is all outside them (students) and all they have to do is to ask
two simple questions: why does something work or how does something work?”
After the speeches, attendees were able to talk to students about their winning
science projects from prior events.
During this exhibition, which will be held 11th-13th May 2016, students from Abu
Dhabi who are enrolled in either government or private schools will have an opportunity to win a share of 1 million Dirhams in prizes. The top prize winner will be
titled the 2016 Young Scientist Abu Dhabi of the Year and awarded 100,000 Dirhams. There are a total of seventy six winners including best individual or group in
each category awarded 70,000 Dirhams and two runner ups awarded 55,000 Dirhams.
The exhibition includes a non-competitive science fair for classroom projects of
students in Grades 3 – 5. The competitive level of the exhibition is divided into
three entry levels: Junior (Grades 6 & 7); Intermediate (Grades 8 & 9); and Senior
(Grades 10-12). The categories are: Biological & Ecological Sciences; Chemical,
Physical & Mathematical Sciences; Social & Behavioral Sciences; and Technology.
Dr Mugheer Al Khaili, ADEC Director General and chairman of the Health Authority
Abu Dhabi, stated, “We hope this exciting and new initiative will encourage students, parents and the public to think and learn more about science, while [also]
motivating students to follow career paths in science and technology.”
Young Scientist Team Members have been working since last year to assure that
the event is a success. Team members include: Dr. Najla Al Housani, Aysha Al Neyadi, Matthew Collins, Suzanne Giardina-Dedman, Tiffany Johnson, Pam Farah,
Naela Mustafa, Aysha Alghafli and Klaithem Al Neyadi.
Training will be offered in the near future, which will include an audience of school
representatives, administration, Cluster Managers and AQIOs. During the training,
specific details and supporting documents will be covered. More details can be
found at http://adecys.com/ and questions may be sent by email to [email protected]
or phone at +971 2 615 0000.
Teaching Matters - Issue 17, Dec 2015
ADSM eNewsletter
Page 13
2015/2016 School Calendar
Fri
Sat
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu
Pub Sch Administrators Start
Aug-15
1
2
3
Sep-15
Fri
Sat
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu
Pub Sch Teachers Start
2
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22 23 24 25 26
27
28
29
30
27
28
29
29
30
31
30
31
3
4
1
2
26
27
28
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
28
30
Prophet's b'day
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24 25 26
27
T2 start Pub Sch
Jan-16
1
2
3
Feb-16
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
29
30
31
Mar-16
T3 start Pub Sch
Apr-16
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
Isra' wal Miraj
May-16
1
2
3
4
5
6
Public Sch Staff PD
Jun-16
1
Public Sch Staff PD.
Jul-16
1
2
3
4
2
3
4
5
Last day Public Sch staff
5
6
7
8
9
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
11
12
13
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
Eid Al Fitr
School Holidays
Islamic/National Holidays
29
30
Last day Public Sch students; earliest last day Private Sch students
Ramadan start
10
Non-teaching days
Ramadan
Predicted Public Sch Exam days G12
Max possible teaching days Public Schools: 74 + 55 + 54 = 183 (for KG-G5); 64 + 55 + 44 = 163 (for G12); 74 + 55 + 44 = 173 (for G6-11)
2015-2016 Calendar - EN.xlsx
Sat
Eid Al Adha
1
3
Fri
T1 start Public Sch; latest start Private Sch students
National Days
Dec-15
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu
5
Oct-15
1
Sat
4
Hijra New Year
Nov-15
Fri
31