Secondary Newsletter
A look back at what has happened in September 2019
Dear Parents and Carers,
The month of September has come and gone so quickly, and already I find myself looking back on the first four weeks of term!
It has been such a pleasure to welcome so many new students to Ajman Academy, and we all look forward to meeting you, the parents, throughout this school year. I have been delighted with how our students have settled back into their regular routines.
To help us with this, we still very much need your support in these ongoing areas of focus:
- prompt arrival (first school bell rings at 7.40 AM);
- no early exits (we must have students in the class for the whole day);
- end of the school day (2.45 PM from the correct Secondary boys’ or girls’ exit).
Within school, things have been busy, and all classes are now very much up and running. The addition of French, Music and DT brings an enhanced flavour to our curricular week in Grades 6-7-8, and the appointment of Ms Vicki to oversee our Additional Needs Department is a significant step forward for the school.
Indeed, there is to be a huge focus this year on improving still further the quality of classroom learning and teaching across the Secondary School, with higher expectations of both our students and our teachers.
We are delighted to have the experience of Mr Simon, who has been appointed to AJAC this year as the school’s Learning & Teaching Leader.
Our Artificial Intelligence Programme continues to run this year and will prove very popular within the MYP. We also hope to be able to offer AI to our older students as an Extra-Curricular Activity later in the school year.
The appointment of Mr Diego to the position of International Award & Student Leadership Coordinator means that the outdoor Duke of Edinburgh Programme will again be available. I look forward to seeing good numbers of students committing later this term to the excellent opportunities offered by this activity.
As always, there is so much happening both inside and outside the classroom. I invite you to peruse the rest of this Secondary Newsletter as an enjoyable way of gaining an informed insight into weekly life here at Ajman Academy.
Thank you all for your ongoing support.
Mr Colin
Ms Vivki
Mr Diego
Mr Simon
A message from our Head of English, Ms Sophia
The English Department is delighted to be able to include drama as part of the Grade 6 - 8 curriculum study this academic year.
There is a lot of established research about the positive influences of drama. Students can build skills such as self-confidence, empathy, cooperation, concentration and communication.
So far students have learned about characterisation, freeze frames and thought tracking.
They have thoroughly enjoyed working in groups to devise and present their work to their appreciative class audience.
Saif in Grade 8 commented, "I enjoy drama because we work in groups and can act out our own ideas."
As a team, we are proud to be able to contribute to the excellent work of Miss Maram on building self-esteem through our drama teaching.
A message from our Head of Mathematics, Ms Farah
On behalf of the Secondary School Maths team, I am delighted to welcome all parents to a new academic year. Our team is committed to helping each one of our students to develop love, respect and appreciation for mathematical concepts. Maths is not only an important subject but more particularly an essential subject for life. Therefore, we will always ensure that we present maths practically and with application to real-life situations.
To ensure that your child does well in class, please encourage him/her to come prepared every day, the must-have supplies and maths guidelines information we have shared with students during the first week of school.
Home learning is assigned every week, which we encourage students to complete independently. However, there are many ways in which you may still support your child’s growth in Maths at home.
You may:
Ask your child questions that focus on effort and choices and get them to reflect on the satisfaction of that effort (What did you learn today? What mistakes did you make? What would you do next time to avoid this mistake?)
- Talking about maths with your child will help strengthen his/her mathematical reasoning and understanding.
- Take advantage of maths in the world; you can be relating different mathematical concepts to the real world (double the recipe, measuring quantities, estimating prices, percentages of a value etc.)
This month our MYP1 students have been investigating about fairness and equality through learning about percentages and fractions.
MYP2 students looked into Numbers and Number Systems.
MYP3 students have looked in more depth into the historical part of mathematical symbols and how we may use them in different situations. Schemes of work have been shared with the IGCSE students and AS/A Level groups.
Feel free to contact; Mrs.Farah Mahmoud, Mr Simon Hanks, Mr Greg McCullough and Ms.Lucy Kamau via email or by calling the school if you have any queries about your child’s progress and maths development.
Let us work together to ensure that maths and success become synonymous.
Head of Mathematics
Farah Mahmoud
A message from our Head of Individuals and Societies, Ms Debbie
The new academic year is well underway, and the students in Individuals and Societies are settled into their units of study.
Grades 6 to 8 have started the year studying the Global Context: Identities and Relationships, which explores different topics related to Who we are and where we are. Grades 6 students are studying different types of settlements and how they have changed over time. Grade 7 students are learning about Biomes around the world, and the recent wildfires in the Amazon Rainforest have been an important topic of conversation in these classes.
Grade 8 students are looking at the effect of Technology on our Identities and the impact of technology on our lives.
Our IGCSE and AS students in Business Studies, Economics and Geography have begun the year on a positive note and are enjoying the challenges that a new curriculum brings.
A message from our French Teacher, Ms Zahra
With lots of enthusiasm and energy, our grade 6, 7 and 8 students have embarked on an exciting language learning journey.
We aim to allow students to gain proficiency in an additional language while supporting the maintenance of students’ mother tongue and cultural heritage.
French and exploring French culture:
Students have started an introductory unit where they learn daily greetings, basic vocabulary related to daily routine and the basic grammar they need to build their foundation in the French language.
A message from our new Design and Technology Teacher, Mr Thomas
Design and Technology give young people the skills and abilities to engage positively with the designed and made world. It also allows students to harness the benefits of technology.
They learn how products and systems are designed and manufactured, how to be innovative and to make creative use of a variety of resources, including digital technologies, to improve the world around them.
Design and Technology lessons provide students with the opportunity to apply what they learn in maths and science - directly preparing them for a career in engineering.
At Ajman Academy, we offer design in the following areas: CAD/CAM, Benchwork, Jewellery and Product Design.
Grade 6-8 Students have completed a baseline assessment where design skills such as measuring, marking out, safe use of tools, machinery and equipment are assessed for target setting. Grades 9 are investigating and analysing clocks as part of the design and making process.
Pupils demonstrated outstanding skills in the model making during baseline assessment.
A message from our Head of ICT & Artificial Intelligence, Ms Asma
Middle school is the most formative time in a young student's life. The best way to instil a lifelong interest in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) is to provide a fun, engaging, and hands-on opportunity to explore and experience it for themselves.
The course in Swift playground Code1 and two is meant to be a gentle introduction of how to program Bee-Bot using Functions, Commands, Logical operators and Loops.
Secondary students are learning about the main components of computers; hardware, software and input/output devices.
Bookworm Book Fair
Wednesday 2nd October 8.00 AM - 3.30 PM
Thursday 3rd October 8.00 AM - 3.30 PM