Earlier this month the Lower School had another session of Skype Inspires Literacy organized by Grade 3 teacher Mrs. Kumbier. Skype Inspires Literacy is a program run by the Internet video chatting service Skype, where published authors read their books to children around the world. Click here to read the blog post about the first session at QISS with Paul Czajak. This time author Ann McCallum met with us to talk about being an author, why she loves math, and to answer several questions from QISS students. You can see Charlie asking a question in the picture below. Ann McCallum also taught the students how to use a piece of string, a ruler, and some math to find the area of a cookie! The students loved this activity, and they had an awesome time interacting with another published author. Ann McCallum is the author of Eat Your Math Homework and several other children's books. You can learn more about the author and her books at her website - http://annmccallumbooks.com. A big thank you to Mrs. Kumbier and Ann McCallum for this wonderful event!
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March was an exciting month of school at QISS. The Grade 2 class was able to interact with Grade 3 on multiple occasions, including the first Skype Inspires Literacy session with author Paul Czajak. Grades 2 and 3 also had a lot of fun playing a predator vs. prey game out on the soccer field that helped them understand the interactions between the two groups within a habitat. The Grade 2 students finished the unit by creating food chain mobiles displaying the transfer of energy in various habitats. March ended with an awesome surprise! Thanks to PE teacher Mr. Krakowski, the Lower School attended a presentation from a local fencing club. Grade 4 student Lucas' father is a member of the fencing club, and Lucas is a competitive fencer as well. The students learned about fencing equipment, and some students were able to go on stage and learn some standard positions. Two members of the fencing club then treated everyone to an impressive duel! It was an impressive display of skill and athleticism. To end the presentation, Lower School principal Mr. Page and Upper School principal Mr. Thorpe had a duel of their own. I'm not sure who won, but they had a lot of fun! This was a great opportunity for the students to see a unique sport, and it showed the students that there are tons of different activities that they could join here in Qingdao. Thank you to our guests, and to Mr. Krakowski for organizing the event! Enjoy many more pictures below, and click on them to make them bigger.
Key Assignment Day for Unit 3 came the weekend before vacation, and what a day it was! The QISS Upper School held its annual Science Fair, which dozens of creative, inquiry-based experiments designed and put forth by Upper School students. This is a marvelous opportunity for the Lower School students to see the scientific method in action. The variety of theories and displays captured their attention, and truly inspired them to explore the sciences in their own studies. Though Grade 2 did not present a Key Assignment for Unit 3, it was still a busy day for the students. They began by watching the Grade 5 balloon car races, where groups of students had designed balloon-powered cars to achieve maximum speed and/or distance. The races were very exciting, and the class showed great vitality by cheering them on! The students then learned about tsunamis and crystalizing origami roses from some Upper School students. The class also attended the Grade 1 Key Assignment on forms of transportation, where the Grade 1 students did an excellent job teaching their audience. The day finished with a Chinese Key Assignment presentation from Grade 3 about the Chinese Zodiac Animals. This is something the class learned about in Unit 1, so they were ready to hear more about this interesting tradition. Grade 2 did an outstanding job listening attentively, asking thoughtful questions, and following instructions. Congratulations to everyone involved with Key Assignment Day for Unit 3!
January and February were busy months here at QISS. The entire school came together for several events, such as the week-long Festival of Words, Entrepreneur's Day, and the China Day celebrations. The Festival of Words featured English Spelling Bees held for Grades 2 and lower, Grades 3 through 5, the Middle School, and the High School. Lower School students also took part in Chinese language and character competitions. Grade 2 was well represented in these competitions, with five top-3 finishes! Yurim took first place in the Spelling Bee, and Luca placed third. Yurim was also in second place for the Grade 2 & 3 intermediate Chinese competition. Ye Seul placed second in the Grade 2 & 3 beginner Chinese competition, and Gina finished second in the Grade 2 & 3 advanced Chinese competition. They all did an outstanding job! Some of the pictures from January have already been posted on the Grade 2 Class Blog. You can click here to see the blog post about Entrepreneur's Day, and click here for the blog post featuring pictures from the Grade 2 field trip to Polar Ocean World. There are plenty more pictures from the first part of Quarter 3 below. You can click on them to make them bigger. Enjoy!
This week the QISS Lower School was able to participate in an awesome event organized by Grade 3 teacher Mrs. Kumbier. The Internet video chatting service Skype has a program called Skype Inspires Literacy, where published authors read their books to children around the world. Mrs. Kumbier arranged for Paul Czajak to read his books Monster Needs His Sleep and Seaver the Weaver to students here at QISS! This was an incredible opportunity for the students to interact with a real author, and they were able to ask him several questions about his books and about being an author. You can see Alvar asking a question in the picture below: Paul Czajak was wonderful with the students, and he did a great job answering their questions. The students had a lot of fun listening to him read his books. They were very lucky to hear him read Seaver the Weaver; this book is brand new and it's not even on sale yet! This was a fantastic event for the students, and it won't be the last time QISS and Skype Inspires Literacy team up to promote reading and writing! Thank you to Mrs. Kumbier and Paul Czajak! You can visit Paul Czajak's website here.
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Mr. AntonioQISS Grade 2 Teacher Archives
June 2015
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