CISH MAPLE DRAGON (May Week 4, Part 4)

Pre-K

Our Pre-K students explored texture and colour through an exciting bubble wrap painting activity today! Using rollers to spread paint across bubble wrap, they created unique patterns by pressing paper onto the textured surface. The popping sounds and colourful impressions brought joy and wonder to their artistic exploration, developing fine motor skills and sensory awareness.

K1

Our K1 learners enthusiastically engaged in an artistic activity using recycled tissue paper rolls. They painted the rolls in their favourite colours and decorated them with pre-cut geometric shapes, demonstrating their understanding of colours and shapes. The children created vibrant containers while confidently identifying and discussing different shapes and colours used in their designs.

K3

Our K3 students explored the fascinating technique of pointillism today, using Q-tips as their innovative painting tools. Just as pointillism artists create images through small, distinct dots of colour, our young artists dipped their Q-tips in paint to create colourful compositions dot by dot. This hands-on experience helped them understand how individual dots can blend together to form beautiful pictures.

Grade 1

This week, we started the final trans disciplinary unit, How We Express Ourselves: Stories We Tell. Students are bringing their fairy tales to art class as inspiration for creating shoe-box puppet theatres, complete with characters and immersive scenes. Working in small groups, they’re practicing collaboration through idea-sharing, creative roles, and managing clean-up routines together.

Grade 2

We are continuing our I Am an Artist projects by exploring the stories of artists from both history and today. Students have finalized their concepts and are now developing rough drafts, using a mix of books and iPads to support their visual research and strengthen their ideas.

Grade 3

Our mini art gallery curation project is in full swing. Students have chosen themes for their exhibitions and are now drafting layouts and sketching artwork. This week, we examined how curatorial choices affect viewer experience, comparing shows by artists such as Nicolas Party and Rembrandt to reflect on how presentation can shape interpretation.

Grade 4

Grade 4 students are wrapping up their vibrant yarn paintings, inspired by traditional Huichol art. With the art show approaching, students are focused on filling their illustrations with colorful yarn to bring their animals, landscapes, and imaginative scenes to life through rich texture and bold color.

Grade 5

This week, Grade 5 completed their Gelli prints, which will serve as dynamic backgrounds for their graduation portrait display. In addition, students are finalizing their ceramic sculptures, painting them with acrylic and experimenting with color mixing to add personal expression and detail.

Grade 6

This week, students painted patterns and designs onto their ceramic artifacts, adding color to finalize their pieces. This step encouraged personal expression while reinforcing an understanding of decorative traditions across cultures.

Grade 7

Grade 7 students have begun adding color to their final optical illusion artworks. They are applying visual strategies such as contrast and repetition to enhance the illusion of movement and depth.

Grade 8

Students in Grade 8 are now incorporating color and individualized concepts into their perspective drawings. Their work reflects a growing ability to combine technical skill with creative vision.

Grade 9

Stop motion animation is a type of animation that uses a film-making technique where objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames. When these frames are played back in sequence, the objects appear to move independently or change. While any kind of object can be animated, puppets with movable joints (puppet animation) or plasticine figures (claymation) are most commonly used. During this unit, students will work in groups to experiment with various types of objects and digital software to create their own animation films. By the end of the unit, students will be able to describe the concept and provide details relating to stop motion animation, correctly operate the production equipment, and produce a five to ten-minute short stop motion animation film. This hands-on experience will enhance their understanding of the animation process and develop their technical and creative skills in visual storytelling.

This week, Grade 9 students continued working on their storyboards, collaborating and delegating roles within their group.

Grade 10

This unit serves as a comprehensive guide to understanding, interpreting, and appreciating works of art and architecture. While it includes elements of art history, its fundamental purpose is to equip students with the skills to 'read' a work of art or architecture, enabling them to explain and discuss it in an informed and meaningful way. Students will learn to recognize the significance and value of an artwork's qualities. When observing works of art and architecture, we encounter a variety of elements. In a painting, these may include colours, lines, shapes, the artist's application of paint, the painting's size, and more. These are known as formal features, and understanding them is key to interpreting the artwork. Alongside formal analysis, students will also explore the contexts in which art is produced and received. This includes the historical, social, cultural, psychological, and other circumstances that influence a work's creation and its subsequent reception. By integrating formal analysis with contextual knowledge, students will develop a holistic approach to art appreciation. Throughout the unit, students will practice using these two methodologies—formal analysis and contextual understanding—side by side. By the end of the unit, they will be able to analyse and discuss works of art and architecture with a deeper, more nuanced understanding, recognizing both the intrinsic qualities of the works and their broader significance.

During this week, Grade 10 students continued working on their tasks expanding their understanding and skills on analysing works of art and architecture, tackling topics like Genres and Subjects, Materials and Techniques, and Form, Style and Function.

Grade 11

In DP and NB Programmes, our students continued working on their 2D and 3D units adding to their portfolio, while developing their concept based sketches of ideas into finalised pieces.

Pre-K

This week, our little musicians danced to "Shoo Fly, Don’t Bother Me!" They waved scarves high on "Shoo Fly," marched in a circle to the beat, and practiced sharing space while moving together. So much rhythm, teamwork, and giggles! Ask your child to show you their fly-shooing moves at home!

K1

Today was such a wonderful day with our K1 students during Week Without Walls! We spent our time at the farm, connecting with nature and enjoying its peaceful harmony. The kids loved listening to the natural sounds around them the chirping of birds, the gentle flow of water, and the sounds of farm animals. It was a beautiful reminder of how amazing and balanced nature truly is. Such agreat day full of learning, exploration, and joy!

K2

This week, our K2 students enjoyed an interactive musical exploration with the classic song "Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me!" Through singing, creative movement (including waving, swaying, and imaginative gestures), and rhythmic play, students developed gross motor skills, auditory discrimination, and self-expression. The activity supported key learning objectives: enhancing coordination through beat-keeping, fostering creativity through movement improvisation, and building confidence in musical participation.

K3

K3 students engaged in a circle activity with "Stand by Me," developing musical and social skills. Through body percussion, they explored rhythm and musicality while enhancing fine and gross motor skills with coordinated movements. The activity also emphasized teamwork, as students collaborated to maintain tempo and spatial awareness within the group.

Grade 1

This week, Grade 1 students focused on preparing for their Spring Concert performance of the Chinese poem Spring Morning. They practiced singing clearly in both Chinese and English and added hand movements to help tell the story. We also spent time working on singing together as a group with steady rhythm and pitch.

Grade 2

Grade 2 continued working on their concert dances. The boys are practicing their animal-themed forest dance, focusing on expressive movements and timing. The girls are rehearsing their flower / princess-style dance with graceful motions. We also started discussing the possibility of inviting dads to join the final part of the performance and practiced some simple partner movements.

Grade 3

Grade 3 is rehearsing their performance of Eye of the Tiger. They are working hard on their recorder introduction and learning to play the melody confidently and in sync. Students are also practicing vocal strength and stage presence to bring energy to their singing.

Grade 4

This week, Grade 4 practiced their bucket drumming routine for the Spring Concert. We focused on creating a thunder-like effect through group coordination, dynamics, and rhythm accuracy. Students also began memorizing their parts and learned how to listen to each other while performing as a team.

Grade 5

Grade 5 continued preparing their performance of Counting Stars. They practiced harmonizing and refining their group vocals while adding expressive gestures to enhance their stage performance. Students are also collaborating to create simple choreography and are showing great enthusiasm for their final primary school concert.

Grade 6

Grade 6 students are currently exploring the unit “Formal Elements of Music,” where they’re learning about the foundational building blocks that make music more than just sound. These elements—loudness, pitch, duration, tempo, timbre, and reverberation—are the tools that musicians use to create more complex musical ideas such as melody, harmony, rhythm, and key.

To put these concepts into practice, students are now working on creating a 4/4 rhythm ensemble piece using binary form and exploring the use of dynamics (variations in volume) to add expression and shape to their performance. This hands-on experience is helping them understand how structure and contrast bring music to life.

Students have also begun preparations for their performance in the upcoming spring concert.

Grade 7

Grade 7 students are currently immersed in our unit “World Drumming – Music and Community,” where they are discovering how percussion connects cultures and brings people together across the globe. Percussion instruments are found in nearly every society, and their rhythms and traditions offer rich insight into the history and identity of different communities.

Through this unit, students are learning that communities can be defined not only by location, but also by shared values, beliefs, and traditions. They’re exploring how music—especially drumming—can serve as a powerful means of communication and unity within these groups.

In class, students are practicing musical concepts both as a large ensemble and in smaller groups, as well as through solo activities. This variety helps them build key skills including critical thinking, collaboration, self-management, and research.

As they deepen their understanding of rhythm, technique, and cultural context, students are also preparing for their contribution to the upcoming spring performance.

Grade 8

This unit, Grade 8 students have begun an exciting journey into the world of theatre with our focus on “Devising and Script Writing.” Working in small groups, students are tasked with creating an original short play centered around the broad theme of loss—a concept they are encouraged to interpret in their own unique ways.

To start the creative process, each student developed a detailed character and backstory. The challenge then came in sharing these characters within their groups and collaboratively shaping a storyline that weaves all their ideas together into a cohesive and meaningful performance.

This process not only nurtures creativity but also builds essential skills in communication, compromise, and teamwork. Once the plays are fully developed, students will perform them for their classmates and complete a reflective writing piece. This reflection will focus on the challenges they faced during the devising process, as well as the insights and successes they gained along the way.

Grade 10

This unit, Grade 10 students, explored the IB Areas of Inquiry through the lens of music, examining its power as a tool for sociocultural and political expression. They investigated music’s role in performance, storytelling, movement, entertainment, and its evolution through electronic and digital technologies. Students engaged in a variety of thought-provoking and creative activities that deepened their understanding of music’s diverse functions and impact. Building on their exploration of sampling in music production, they began preparing their original work for the upcoming annual spring concert.

Grade 9

This week, students wrapped up their Q&A sessions for the modernised Commedia dell’Arte project, reflecting on their performances and giving thoughtful feedback to one another. With that project complete, we’ve now shifted focus to reading two new scripts: The Performance is Not Cancelled and The Play That Goes Wrong. Students have begun exploring the characters, staging, and comedic styles in each play, with the aim of pitching which one they’d like to take forward as our next project. We’ll soon begin rehearsing and preparing to perform an extract from the chosen play.

Grade 10

This week, students performed their original school-based play as part of the Spring Concert. The performance was a success, receiving a great reaction from the audience and showcasing their hard work and collaboration. The piece blended drama with elements of musicianship, adding depth and atmosphere to the storytelling. It was a strong finish to their rehearsal process and a proud moment for the group.

Grade 6

This week, Grade 6 students began their Probability unit, focusing on calculating probabilities in various real-life contexts. They explored theoretical probability involving single and basic compound events, developing a strong understanding of outcomes and likelihood. Students also engaged in hands-on activities to collect and analyze data, preparing them for next week’s lessons on experimental probability. Their enthusiasm and inquiry skills were evident as they connected mathematical reasoning with everyday situations.

Grade 8

Grade 8 students focused on statistical measures this week, particularly measures of central tendency and data dispersion. They evaluated when to use the mean or median based on context and outliers. The class also explored quartiles and the interquartile range, using this knowledge to create five-number summaries and construct boxplots. Students demonstrated growing confidence in interpreting and comparing data sets visually and numerically, laying the foundation for deeper statistical analysis in the coming weeks.

Grade 9

This week in Grade 9,

- This week the G9’s continued with the Statistics  Unit.

- This week the G9s was introduced Bivariate Data Analysis.

-Students studied how the relationship between two variables from the same source can be explored. Identifying any correlation and what that indicates.

- Students looked at how an established correlation can be used to predict (Interpolate, Extrapolate) data using the Line of best fit. The Line of best fit was plotted using the mean of the variables as an anchor point. The equation was found using the point/gradient equation. This is good revision for their final exam as well.

-Students also practiced for the Criteria B assessment next week, support material is available on Managebac through discussions. The assessment will be next Thursday.    

- Revision material for the End of year exam have also been made available on CanGlory. Students are encouraged to work through these and ask any questions they may have.

Grade 10

Grade 10 students enthusiastically began their interdisciplinary unit (IDU), integrating Design and Mathematics under the theme "The House Always Wins." Students spent the week in the design lab, creatively preparing their final game prototypes. This innovative project incorporates core probability theories, including permutations, combinations, conditional probability, and expected value.

Students explored the ethical dimensions and psychological biases involved in game design, ensuring their creations are both engaging and thoughtful. We're excited to see their final prototypes and detailed analyses at the upcoming Game Fair!

Grade 11 (AA)

This week, our Grade 11 students actively engaged in collaborative learning sessions, focusing on Paper 2 cumulative-style questions. These student-led sessions encouraged peer teaching, with students using the TI-Nspire online Graphic Display Calculator (GDC) and official mark schemes to guide discussions.

Students took ownership by explaining effective methods to maximize 'method marks,' crucial for achieving high overall scores. This interactive approach fostered deeper mathematical understanding and helped students refine their problem-solving skills and exam techniques.

Great teamwork and peer support were evident throughout the week, showcasing our students' growing confidence and expertise in IB DP Mathematics!