PYP 2 Newsletter

Clues from the Past, Unit 2

Celebrating Our Success!

We have officially completed our first unit of inquiry and we are proud to say it was a huge success! The children worked extremely hard to prepare for our book launch. We have gained a wealth of knowledge and perspective regarding the values of other cultures and how they may be communicated through the narrative process. Thank you to those who were able to participate in our Cultural Stories unit. You have greatly enhanced our knowledge and understanding of different cultures. We look forward to your continued support and enthusiasm in our next unit. Miss. Annette, Miss.Courtney, and Mr. Kingwell

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Unit of Inquiry- Clues from the Past

Central Idea: Evidence from the past is used to understand history. Lines of Inquiry: Different sources of evidence Evidence of change over time Case study or Roman times in Frankfurt area

Our second unit of the year is under the transdisciplinary theme Where we are in place and time. In this unit, students will explore the evidence used by historians to write history. We will look into the many different forms of evidence such as Antarctic ice cores, oral stories, fossils, photographs, paintings and so much more. Students will inquire into their own personal histories early in our unit and will need to conduct an interview with a family member collecting oral evidence to learn more about their family history. They can also bring in other evidence of their family history as long as it is not something precious.

Volunteers & Support Appreciated

Parent speakers are a powerful learning experience for students. If you have knowledge of how we use evidence from the past to inform history please consider coming in to speak to the class. You will only need to speak for as little as ten minutes and no more than fifteen. A visual aid always helps. You could bring in a powerpoint or photos on a USB and use the classroom computer set up to show the children. If you would like to speak to PYP2 please contact Ms Annette and we can make arrangements. We will be also be participating in three excursions during this unit, and would be grateful for parent volunteers to help with supervision.

Upcoming Events
Excursions1. GGmbH World Heritage Messel on the 28 of October

We will inquire into how paleontologists find out about the past from the clues left behind in the Messel Pit. 2. Archeological Museum on the 11 of November At the Cultural Museum we will handle artifacts from the past and from them find out how people lived in the past. 3. Romerkastell Saalburg Archaologischer Park 18 of November At the Romerkastell we will inquire into the history of the Frankfurt area during Roman times looking at the great deal of archeological evidence left behind in the area.

English Language
This unit will focus on developing students understanding of fact vs. opinion in text and discussion. When reading we will be making inferences and predictions using evidence within the text as support, as well as reviewing features of a non fiction text. We will be inquiring into elements of persuasion and practice writing and speaking persuasively using these techniques in preparation for oral presentations aimed at persuading the audience. Students will familiarize themselves with the mechanics of report writing and use them to create a report themselves. In ICT the students will learn to create a powerpoint to show their knowledge of how evidence from the past can be used to support an historical inference. Our library staff will also provide training on our school library database as well as an introduction to using the online version of Encyclopedia Britannica.

Maths
In this unit we take a brief look at number systems. The students will learn about the history of the number system we use (Arabic) and various other number systems and their origins. We will also learn about the properties of 2D and 3D shapes. Students will compare and contrast these shapes and learn the relevant terms. They will use their understanding to analyse 2D shapes and apply it when working with 3D shapes. The students will recognize and explain simple symmetrical designs in the environment and apply knowledge of symmetry in problem-solving situations. We will also be learning to interpret and use simple directions, describing paths, regions, positions and boundaries of their immediate environment. We will continue working on subtraction and consolidate all number work done during the first 8 weeks.

Physical Education with Mr Q and Mr T

During our second unit of inquiry, students will investigate ancient sports to help understand the origins of todays varied professional and recreational sports. In class, there will be a focus on learning new skills to help improve everyones attacking and defending skills in games of Speedball. Speedball is a fast-paced game that combines the basic rules of handball, basketball and football/soccer. Along with the development of our physical skills, students will engage in conversations about the importance of integrity and enthusiasm when playing team games. Naturally, students will also further develop the very valuable personal skills of cooperation and communication. To help students understand how our class games of Speedball are connected to the homeroom unit of inquiry, our first class will have a provocative scenario for the students where they will pretend to battle for their fate in front of the Strothoff Empires evil Army leaders Corporal Q and T. This will be sure to spark conversation and help develop interest in the history of ancient games.

Physical Education in ACTION

Music with Ms Greenberg

The students will make connections to this unit through discussions about music in the past like learning about composers and instruments. They will also be spending quite a bit of time learning some new songs that they students will later perform on xylophones. The students will first learn the songs and then use their musical knowledge to figure out the rhythms and notes that make up the song, just like composers in the past when they thought up a new melody. Ms. A. Greenberg

German as a Foreign Language

Beginner PYP 2with Frau Giesecke
In this unit we will also focus on clues from the past in the GFL beginners course. We will learn how families, clothing, housing, towns and cities etc. have changed over time by looking at clues from the past. We will learn plenty of new words and expressions, as well as the comparative adjective form to describe the changes from the past to today. Clues of the past such as photos, little films and pictures will help us to be detectives and to understand how things have changed. We will reflect about our findings in our own Clue-Buch in form of little texts and drawings. If you have any questions about our German lessons do not hesitate to contact me via email: j.giesecke@strothoff-international-school.de

German as a Foreign Language

Advanced PYP 2 with Frau Schneider
In this unit our 2 themes will be Was mir wichtig ist - what is important to me my toys and games, likes and dislikes. The second theme is Die Welt um uns herum - the world around us - what we see in a city, shops or buildings. We will increase our knowledge about the articles der, die and das and learn more about the conjugation of verbs. We will connect with the unit and inquire into how toys have changed over time. I will bring my old toys so we can compare them with modern ones. We will create a booklet about our favourite toys. For this we need some knowledge of the comparative adjective form to describe the changes from the past to today. We will learn about the seasons, especially about autumn and use arts and craft skills to create a booklet: Mein Herbstbuch.
Josina Schneider-Broekmans

German Mother Tongue

PYP 2 with Frau Abassi
In der ersten Hlfte dieser Unit werden wir ein Herbstgedicht verfassen, indem wir unsere Sinneseindrcke nher kennenlernen und versuchen diese in Worte zu fassen. Wir werden passende Gedichte lesen und errtern. In der SprachWerkstatt setzen wir uns mit der Wortart Nomen auseinander und wollen wieder regelmig Diktate schreiben. In der zweiten Hlfte der Unit beginnen wir mit einem Literaturprojekt zu Hanno malt sich einen Drachen von Irina Korschunow. Das Literaturprojekt mit lesebegleitenden und differenzierten Arbeitsblttern leitet die Schler zur intensiven Auseinandersetzung mit dem Inhalt des Buches an. Bitte untersttzen Sie ihre Kinder beim Lesen!