FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK

February 2020 Newsletter

Senior School Indus Day:

Our Senior School Indus Day was an evening that celebrated the importance of

the performing and visual arts in a child's education journey! It was an evening

that celebrated the uniqueness of every child in our care!

For second year in a row, this was a student led initiative!

Right from designing the invitation and brochure, to working on the backdrop,

props and costumes, to directing parts of the drama, our students from Grade

6 upwards have been involved in all aspects. The students also created a

special logo which symbolised the urgent need to find the true essence of

humanity by healing and protecting the Earth through 'Tikkun Olam'; a Jewish

Philosophy which teaches us that it is possible to repair the world through

small acts of kindness.

We congratulate the students who displayed impressive leadership skills and

also the members of staff who guided and supported the students throughout

in their planning and hard work!

Primary Years Programme (PYP):

Parent orientation to the PYP curriculum:

Grade 2 End of Unit Celebration

Grade 2 learners culminated their unit under the Transdisciplinary theme -

Where we are in place and time through a vibrant end of unit celebration. The

learners demonstrated agency wherein they wrote a script for the same,

named it ‘Around the Country in 25 Days’. They showcased their talent in

performing arts through a skit. The celebration ended with a pledge to save

our monuments. Students then took their parents through the entire inquiry

cycle of the unit; The factual learnings, their conceptual understanding and the

ATL skills developed in the unit.

Grade 2 Guest Lecture

As a part of the ongoing unit- Who we are, Mr Febin, our in house sports

facilitator was invited to speak to our young Eagles. Mr Febin spoke to the

learners about the importance of being healthy and how exercises are crucial

to maintain a healthy lifestyle. He also demonstrated a few simple movements

which each one of us should practice every day for few minutes to maintain a

healthy body and mind.

Grade 3 End of Unit Celebration

The learners of Grade 3 celebrated their end of unit with great enthusiasm and

excitement. Inquiring under the transdisciplinary theme- Where we are in

place and time, they had researched about various explorers, the reason for

their exploration and its impact on our daily lives along with its influence on us.

As a part of student agency, which talks about the voice, choice and ownership

of learners, they planned the entire event, working collaboratively with each

other, displaying excellent social and self-management skills. To make it

engaging for parents, the learners planned some interactive activities such as a

treasure hunt, quiz and puzzles. They confidently presented their inquiry cycle,

unfolding each stage of inquiry, highlighting the ATL skills and learner profile

attributes they developed through the journey. Some went ahead and

presented a song created by them. Parents appreciated and encouraged the

presenters and enthusiastically participated in the activities conducted for

them. We are proud of our young explorers!

Mother tongue Day

International Mother Language Day is celebrated on February 21 of every year

in many countries across the world. To underscore the importance of cultural

and linguistic societies and preserving the diversity in languages this day has

been observed since the year 2000 (https://en.unesco.org/ ). At IISP we

believe in celebrating the varied languages and cultures that our students

come from. To help students understand and honour their roots, our very own

teachers led guest speaker sessions for each native language that our students’

speak. It was an interactive experience that included sharing our favourite

stories and celebrating our places of origin. Students also put up a wonderful

assembly in the four second languages they learn here at IISP.

Workshop for Parents:

On the 8th February, the PYP organized two workshops for the parent

community. One was conducted by the PYP Counselor on Positive Discipline

and Finding a Balance, where various strategies were discussed on disciplining

children and why it is important for parents to be involved in their child’s

learning journey.

The other important workshop was Understanding the PYP curriculum where

the PYP Head of School and the Early Years Coordinator took parents through

the essentials of the PYP classroom and the delivery of the curriculum under

the 6 transdisciplinary themes, IB-PYP Learner Profile, Key concepts and the

ATL (Assessment to Teaching and Learning) skills.

Field Trips:

Our young activists of Grade 2 protested against vandalising our monuments

and spoke to visitors about preserving them to protect our rich culture and

heritage. They visited the historic site of Shaniwar Wada in Pune City and held

a silent march to express themselves and spread awareness of why our

heritage sites are important.

Middle Years Programme (MYP):

MYP-Y5 Personal Project Exhibition on 14th February 2020

Indus international School Pune celebrated its first Personal Project Exhibition on 14th February 2020 with 83 students of MYP 5 presenting the outcome of the 8 months of hard work and dedication put in. The exhibition was inaugurated by the Principal of IISP Ms. Preeti G. Prabhu and in her opening remarks she congratulated the students and thanked the supervisors for their steadfast dedication and constant support. The Personal Project, being a crucial component of the IB MYP year 5 prerequisite, the students are expected to drive an 8 month long in-depth inquiry into a field of their choice with a goal masked around a global context.

The journey of the project exposes the students to different forms of pressure and deadlines for which they focus on developing Self-Management Skills. Critical and Creative thinking skills are naturally enhanced in the students when they counter road blocks in their project which they themselves cross. Among many of the projects the students showcased their talents in writing and publishing books, crafting cook books and serving food off of live counters, photography, fine arts, sewing, crochet etc.

Professional development - Unconference Way

Education is a never-ending process and we believe in continuous professional development

for excellence and lifelong learning. Regular Professional Development sessions as well as

their follow-up sessions are conducted to ensure successful incorporation. Professional

Development sessions are conducted not only on working Saturdays, but also during

collaborative periods, staff meeting, department meetings and stay back on a weekday too.

To encourage teachers to pursue professional development, not only to ensure the best

learning outcomes for their students but also to be more effective and satisfied in various

other aspects of their work, MYP team has started conducting professional development

through unconference model wherein expert teachers lead various sessions depending on the

requirement of the team as well as students. We conducted one such session on Integrating

ATL Skills in our planning as well as Giving and Receiving Feedback on 20th February in which

the teacher participants were the organizers. The discussions were open and engaging and all

participants, depending on their knowledge and experience, took turns as a group to share

and share alike.

Career counselling – Y5

To accelerate and guide Y5 students in their career choices as well as subject selection in IBDP,

the Placement team has started providing personalised guidance and all-round support. For

personalised guidance, the Placement team has divided the Y5 student cohort in three groups

and have conducted 4 sessions of career counselling on 28th January, 30th January, 4th

February and 6th February to guide the students in their career choices as well as subject

selection in IBDP. An aptitude test through CIALFO was also conducted to guide theY5

students in understanding their unique strengths and abilities. This was preceded by an

orientation by the DP team about the DP requirements as well as the IBDP subjects groups on

23rd January.

Mock exam preparations-Y5

The best preparation for the IBDP is successful completion of the IB Middle Years Programme

(IB MYP) course in grades 9 and 10. The MYP stands apart from other curricula in requiring

students to develop analytical skills and to put learning into contextual understanding. This is

our first batch of Y5 students who will be sitting for their first on-screen examination in May

2020. As part of preparing these students for their on-screen examination, we conducted a

serious of practice mocks in the month of February to help students build on their time

management skill as well as practice in the usage of online tools. Students have shown a

continuous improvement not only in time management and familiarity of online tools but also

their overall performance.

Diploma Programme (DP):

February month saw Design thinking presentations from Biology, ESS, Mathematics and

History classes. One of the presentations in the Math AA HL class saw students predicting the

number of people anticipated to be affected by Corona virus worldwide…predictive analysis at

its best.

At the same time our Grade 11 students have immersed themselves in Indus Day practices.

With just a week to go for the Evening of Performing Arts, our students have left no stone

unturned to make the event memorable. Right from the logo, the invitations to the stalls that

will be put up, everything has been led by Gr 11 student initiatives.

Grade 12

Meanwhile, Grade 12 students are wrapping up their IAs and gearing up for the crucial mock

exams. As of this week, Boarders will have more structure in the prep with teachers coming in

with 40 minutes of focused revision. The revision plans in the regular classes has also become

more focused based on the feedback collated from students- for syllabus understanding.

The Grade 12 Virtual Art exhibition on 14th Feb saw Grade 12 students from the Art

department showcasing months of hard work and talent on canvas and installations. The IB

oral exam for second languages was also held in the 2nd week of February.

Professional Development

The Thursday stay backs had teachers revisiting and re-examining their ideas about both

Design thinking and self- directed learning. In the session teachers have set goals for self-

directed learning to be reviewed in April through a follow- up workshop. They also had a short

session on meditation and simple yoga Asanas which was led by one our faculty members- Ms

Alba Cobos.

SPORTS:

Interschool Football Competition- 1st February, Saturday at Riverdale

International School, Rawade - Pune.

We are happy to share that our students participated in an Interschool Football competition on the 1st of February 2020 organized by Riverdale International School Rawade, Pune. The students have displayed their potential, skills and good team coordination and achieved success.

Teams Achievement

U13 BOYS WINNER

U17 BOYS WINNER

OPEN GIRLS RUNNER-UP

The following students are awarded for individual performance.

Name Grade Award

Reual Mankad 6 Best goalkeeper

Hunaid Tayed Md 6 Best striker

Rudrakksh Jain 7 Best Player of the series

Ismail Tayeb Md 9 Best defender

Shrushti Domadia 12 Best goalkeeper

Cricket Premiere League at Riverdale International School, Rawade –Pune

from 27th Jan to 3rd Feb

Our U/16 boys Cricket team participated in the league match and though couldn’t qualify for semi-finals, they showed good sportsmanship throughout the tournament. Best Performers- Vedant Kangude (Grade 7) and Atharva Sanas (Grade 9)

Senior School Aquatic Meet:

The Aquatic Meet saw a good number of students participating enthusiastically in the heats and the finals. Congratulations to all the Winners!

Friendly exposure matches and team building sessions: Our U/12 girl’s football team had a friendly match at Vidya Valley School on 9th Feb, Sunday. Swimming and badminton team building practice sessions took place during one of the weekends in the month. Dhruv Invitational Sports Summit: Our football, basketball, badminton and swimming teams participated in the DIIS at Dhruv Global School, Sus Hills – Pune on 15th and 16th February. The event saw a total of around 91 students participating and performing to their best. Our swimming teams grabbed several medals and brought laurels to our school.

BOYS INDIVIDUAL

SL.NO

NAME GRADE AGE CATEGORY

EVENTS POSITION

1

RANVEER GULATI

6

U-12

50M FREESTYLE I

50M BACK STROKE II

50M BUTTERFLY II

2

UPAMANYU MUKHERJEE

7

U-15

50M FREESTYLE III

50M BACK STROKE I

50M BUTTERFLY I

RELAY /UNDER-10

RELAY /UNDER-12

GIRLS INDIVIDUAL

SL. NO NAME GRADE EVENT POSITION

1 RUHAAN GULATI 2 4X25M FREE STYLE RELAY

II 2 AARYAVEER GULATI 3

3 DEVADYUMNA MUKHERJEE

3

4 AGAM SINGH 4

SL. NO NAME GRADE EVENT POSITION

1 TARAN TACK 5 4X50M FREE STYLE RELAY

I 2 ARYAN SANGHVI 5

3 YAJAS GUPTA 5

4 RANVEER GULATI 6

SL.NO NAME GRADE AGE CATEGORY

EVENTS POSITION

1 KIARA GADA 3 U-8 25M BREAST STROKE III

2 AHILYA AWASTHI

3 U-10 25M BREAST STROKE II

25M BUTTERFLY III

3 CHAITALI THAPAR

4 U-10 25M FREE STYLE III

25M BACK STROKE III

4 SAMIYA GULATI

5 U-12 50M FREE STYLE III

50M BACK STROKE I

5 SAISHA BHALLA 9 U-15 50M FREE STYLE III

50M BREAST STROKE I

6

SAVARNA TACK

9

U-15

50M FREE STYLE II

50M BACK STROKE II

50M BREAST STROKE III

50M BUTTERFLY II

RELAY /UNDER-8

RELAY /UNDER-10

RELAY /UNDER-15

Inter house matches

Inter house Cricket match: PYP - Grades 1 -3 Inter-house Box Cricket Championship was organized for PYP Grade 1 to 3 on 4th and 11th of February 2020 and played between 4 houses. The Finals was played between Orion and Hercules House and Third Place match was played between Phoenix and Pegasus House. Winner of the Tournament was Orion house and Hercules house being the Runners up and third place was given to Phoenix house. Man of the Match in Finals: - Hrehaan Chhaje - Grade 1 (Hat- Trick- Bowling)

SL.NO

NAME GRADE EVENT POSITION

1 KIARA GADA 3 4X25M FREE STYLE RELAY I

SL.NO

NAME GRADE EVENT POSITION

1 AHILYA AWASTHI 3 4X25M FREE STYLE RELAY

II 2 CHAITALI THAPAR 4

3 PARI RAO 4

4 SAINA JADHAV 4

SL.NO NAME GRADE EVENT POSITION

1 RITIKA KUNKULOL 7 4X50M FREE STYLE RELAY

I 2 ALAIKA BANSAL 9

3 SAISHA BHALLA 9

4 SAVARNA TACK 9

PYP - Grade 4 and 5 Inter-house Cricket Championship was organized for PYP Grade 4 to 5 on 5th and 12th of February 2020 and played between 4 houses. The Finals was played between Hercules and Orion House and Third Place match was played between Pegasus House and Phoenix House .Winner of the tournament was Hercules house and Orion house being the Runners up and third place was given to Phoenix house Man of the Match in Finals: - Veer Vijay Patil - Grade 5 (22 Runs) IBDP - Grade 11 and 12 Inter-house Cricket Championship was organized for IBDP Grade 11 to 12 on 20th and 21st of February 2020 and played between 4 houses. The Finals was played between Hercules and Pegasus House and Third Place match was played between Orion House and Phoenix House .Winner of the tournament was Pegasus house and Hercules house being the Runners up and third place was given to Phoenix house. Man of the Match in Finals: - Shezad Hirani Grade 12 (20 Runs and 1 Wicket) Inter house Basketball IBDP match Winners – Orion house Runners up – Hercules house 2nd runners up – Pegasus house Player of the match - Advait Chalke (Orion)

Inter house Tennis Results IBDP

Boys

Name Place Grade House

Azfar Madhani 1st 12th Orion

Akshay Patwardhan 2nd 12th Hercules

Harsh Solanki 3rd 11th Hercules

Girls

Name Place Grade House

Anaaya Sancheti 1st 11th Orion

Ishita Sakore 2nd 11th Orion

Sanjana Pincha 3rd 11th Pheniox

BOARDING:

Warli Art Workshop

This workshop was conducted by a known artist Mrs Anu Kulkarni. Warli

painting art is a style of tribal art from the North Sahyadri Ranges. The

workshop continued for 5 weeks and our boarders learnt Warli Art and

displayed their best abilities and creativity. Boarders from Grade 3 to 8 are a

part of this workshop.

Pottery Workshop

The pottery workshop for our boarders was conducted by Mr Ganesh Prajapati

for our boarders. The aim is to make them learn new skills by using power of

their hands. It also relaxes body and mind while creating something beautiful

with own hands.

RESQ:

Our boarders continued their unconditional support towards Resq. The

dedication of our boarders towards this cause is commendable. These

volunteers from boarding are committed towards Resq from day one.

Community Kitchen:

Boarders volunteered to run community kitchen over the weekends. The

enthusiasm and teamwork is evident while preparing food for the labourer

women and children. Our boarding students came up with new ideas and

implemented new menu.

Weekend Activities:

Our boarding students took horse riding lessons on weekends, which apart

from immense fun improves coordination and balance. It also exercises the

mind. They also went for a movie outing and played cricket matches. They

attended “The Winter Carnival” at Royal Palms, Koregaon Park and engaged in

different games, enjoyed food, music, witnessed art and craft exhibition. Trek

to Sinhagad Fort was another adventure over the weekend. The Thai boarding

students attended Thai Street Festival in Mumbai. They enjoyed authentic Thai

food as well as various activities including music and cultural shows, Muay Thai

(Thai Boxing) workshop, handicraft workshop and kid’s zone.

Sessions by Counselor

Our boarding counsellor, Ms Manvi Sharma conducted two sessions for our

boarders. First session was for Grade 9 and it was on assertive communication

wherein the students were given situations based on conflicts they face.

Second session for Grade 10 students was a psychodrama activity of

perspective building followed by situation test of confrontation. The rationale

behind the whole session was assertive communication.

Dates For Your Diary: March 2020

Date Event

March 2nd Grade 10 & 12 Mock Exams commences

March 6th PYP Aquatic Meet

March 9th Mufti Day – Colours of Holi/ Neon colours

March 10th Holi - Holiday

March 16th Leadership summit - Grades 1 to 3

March 2nd to 16th Grade 10 & 12 Mock Exams

March 16th to 21st

Mid Term Test – 2

(Grades 6 to 9 & 11)

March 17th Leadership summit - Grades 4 to 5

March 21st Spring break commences

March 30th School reopens after spring break

Thanks and warm regards Preeti G. Prabhu Principal Indus International School Pune principal@indusschoolpune.com preeti.prabhu@indusschoolpune.com +91 8390905891 www.indusschoolpune.com