The Importance Of Art In A Child’s Development
There is an overwhelming excitement and enthusiasm throughout the School as the students are busy creating the most amazing works of Art for the upcoming Art Auction on Tuesday, 26 April from 5:30pm.
It is wonderful to see the concentration on the students faces and the joyful expressions of art explored!
Creating art expands a child’s ability to interact with the world around them and provides a new set of skills for self – expression. Not only does art help to develop the right side of the brain, but it also cultivates important skills that benefit a child’s development.
SKILLS CHILDREN DEVELOP THROUGH ART ACTIVITIES:
- Life skills
- Communication skills
- Problem – solving skills
- Social & Emotional skills
- Fine Motor skills
- Self – expression & creativity
It is important, however, to separate “talent’ from ‘creativity” – a child does not have to create a masterpiece to have a meaningful artistic experience. Art is a process not just a product. It is the process of creating – exploring, discovering and experimenting – that is important and adds the greatest value. Through self – expression and creativity, a child’s skills will develop naturally. Art matters the same way language matters. It is a fundamental component of what makes us uniquely human.
Hope to see you all at our Art Auction!
Cindy Nunan
Pre-Reception Teacher
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Healthy Eating
Going forward into a new term I encourage parents and students to consider adopting healthy eating habits throughout their day. In the Junior campus we have incorporated a robot system which gives the children a visual aid of which foods are a healthier choice.
The red light is used for foods which should be avoided in school lunches. “Red light” foods include items such as sweets, fizzy drinks, pastries, chocolates, etc.
The orange light is used for foods which can be incorporated occasionally in school lunches. “Orange light” foods include white grains (such as white bread or pasta), chips, etc.
The green light is used for foods which are encouraged in school lunches. “Green light” foods include fruit, vegetables, wholegrain foods (such as brown bread and whole-wheat products), water, etc.
It has been proven that sugar hampers a child’s ability to concentrate and focus. In the Junior classrooms the students are very proud when they have healthy items as snacks and love to show these to their classmates. We would like to encourage this behaviour and really adopt a positive attitude towards healthy eating habits. If we do this from a young age then we can be assured that our children will grow up with this healthy frame of mind regarding food habits.
For some inspiration for healthy school lunches, please see the below article entitled Healthy Food for Kids: Are your kids hooked on junk food? With these simple tips, you can get children to eat right without turning mealtimes into a battle zone.
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/healthy-eating/healthy-food-for-kids.htm
Kim Hahn
Reception Year Teacher
Foundation Finger Fun (Fine Motor) Club
This year we reintroduced after school clubs. I decided to start a club that focuses on strengthening fine motor muscles and make it lots fun. I think I am starting to achieve my goal! The students do not even realise that they are refining their fine motor skills, because they are having a great time while doing so.
Fine motor skills refer to how we use smaller muscle groups in our bodies to perform tasks, mainly involving the muscles in their hands, fingers and wrists. Children use their fine motor muscles to do various things, namely, writing their names, cutting paper with scissors and to tie their shoelaces.
When a child develops their fine motor skills they are also mastering their coordination. Using the smaller muscles requires thought, action and precision. Fine motor skills are crucial for doing many of the actions we take for granted, like feeding ourselves, holding things, doing up zippers and buttons while getting dressed, drawing as well as colouring to name only a few. Learning to use smaller muscle groups leads to bigger accomplishments.
Fine motor movement:
- Allows a child to play with small objects.
- Encourages creativity.
- Assists in development of communication skills.
- Encourages independence.
- Improves physical awareness.
- Builds confidence.
It is really wonderful to see how enthusiastic the students are about our Finger Fun Club. They can’t wait for their lesson on Tuesday afternoons. Our last lesson of the term was a hit when they got to make shapes out of toothpicks and jelly tots.
We can’t wait to have more fun in Term 2.
Cindy Nunan
Pre-Reception Teacher
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Founder’s Day Celebrations
Founder’s Day is traditionally a very important day in the school calendar when members of the school community meet to remember those who founded the school and who have developed the school.
An atmosphere of celebration filled Blouberg International School when the students and teachers gathered to celebrate Founder’s Day on Friday, 4 March 2022. The day began with Mr. Swart addressing the students, teachers and parents. He acknowledged a wonderful and dearly missed music teacher, Mr Johann Smal who wrote the school song. We need to remember and strive to reflect the words of the school song to improve our future and then our school will continue to be a school of excellence.
We live our lives to the full
Here at BIS
We want to make a success
Trying our best
We want to lay a foundation
to build our lives upon
As students we want to learn
and discover ourselves
Blouberg International School
Blouberg International School
We live our lives to the full
here at BIS.
We respect all people
in reaching our goals
We work together as a team,
united we shall stand.
We turn failure into success,
Proud to be a part…
Of Blouberg International School
Blouberg International School
B.I.S.
B.I.S.
B.I.S.
Blouberg!
The day was celebrated with enthusiasm in the school. An extravaganza of activities was conducted. Starting with box car races as well as boere sport during the school day. We then watched Mr and Miss BIS and we were treated with performances from our very talented staff members. We also enjoyed food from different countries at the International Food Fair.
It was one of the best days of this year!
Martie van Dyk
Pre-Reception Teacher
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Lovely Letters Of Encouragement
Last Friday, the students had a surprise visit from Postman Sean who delivered letters to each of the Foundation Stage classes. Excitement filled the students’ eyes as Postman Sean entered the classroom, and the students eagerly made their way to the carpet find out more about his special delivery. Postman Sean then told the students about his job as a postman and explained the different stages from posting a letter to receiving it. He then handed out each of the letters to the delighted students.
These letters of encouragement had been sent in during the course of the two week theme. Some children even received letters from grandparents, cousins, siblings and other loved ones in their family. We read out the letters in class and it was so beautiful to see the smiles on the students’ faces as they listened intently to the very special messages from their lovely ones.
This was such a lovely and memorable way to end off our theme.
Bronwen Nuthall
Reception Year Teacher
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People Who Help Us
For the past two weeks, the Foundation Stage has been learning about People Who Help Us in our community and how they help us in our daily lives.
The students also learnt how some of these people help us in emergencies, like firefighters, police, doctors and nurses. If there is an emergency, they will need to know how to get in touch with the right person to help in the situation (however old they are).
They also learnt of other people who help us stay safe and healthy, like opticians, dentists and refuse collectors.
Learning about this topic helps the students to make connections between themselves and the outside world. It makes them more aware of the different jobs and roles people take on in their own homes, in school and in their community. By educating the young students about the people who try and prevent these things happening or help us if they do, we are showing them the systems in place within our society to ensure that we live in a safe and supportive community.
The theme also provides key life skills for children, e.g. knowing how to dial the emergency services, who to ask if they get lost, what to do in case of a fire etc.
The Foundation Stage students were visited by law Enforcement Services, Fire and Rescue Services and Neighbourhood watch. They learnt what to do in various emergency situations and to call the toll free numbers 107 & 10111 to get help in any emergency.
This theme encourages children to notice places and people in their community and show them that they are part of a wider community that opens up possibilities for them to consider for future careers.
Cindy Nunan
Pre-Reception Teacher
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Everything has a cycle and every person a story to tell
The Year 3’s have been learning about Living things this term. As part of this theme, each student was asked to make a presentation about the life cycle of different types of animals and include an interesting fact.
These they presented with great pride and excitement in an oral.
We learned that:
- Baby koalas eat their mother’s poop to learn to digest eucalyptus leaves.
- The poison from the blue poison dart frog is used to tip the arrows of Amazon hunter’s darts.
- A dog has 28 teeth and 1700 taste buds.
- Jellyfish do not have brains.
- A Monarch butterfly – the female is attracted to the male’s perfume.
- Dolphins have two stomachs.
- A koala bear is as small as a jelly baby when it is born.
Well done to the Year 3 students for making their projects so visually stimulating and extremely interesting.
Carey Schoots
Year 4 Teacher
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Year 5 Solar Systems
In Science, the Year 5s have been learning about The Earth in Space. One of the core concepts this unit of work is based on is the fact that everything in the solar system orbits the sun.
We decided that a practical demonstration was in order, so we built ourselves some solar systems. This helped us to gain a concrete grasp of how the solar system fits together. We included the eight planets of the solar system – and some of us even got creative and added Earth’s moon to our models!
Now, as we like to say, the whole world is not only in our hands, but also hanging from our classroom ceiling…
Hannah Kirkaldy
Year 5 Teacher
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Valentine’s Day And Core Values
We have become so used to extended periods of lockdown and limited social opportunities during the Covid-19 pandemic. That is why this year’s Valentine’s Day, whilst still following social distancing, was such an exciting event for the Nursery, Pre-Reception and Reception students. They had the opportunity to interact in larger groups during our Teddy Bear’s picnic and it was so nice to see them bonding, laughing and thriving socially. Our Valentine’s Day was filled with love, hugs and beautiful pink, red and white outfits.
From this Valentine ’s Day onwards, we will focus on the core values of being kind, caring and encouraging. Mr Swart introduced these core values to us in our first assembly for the year. These values can be accomplished even at an early age and are implemented and encouraged in every classroom in the ELS.
I asked a few students in Reception Year what it means to be a kind friend and they had some very special responses:
“If someone doesn’t have anyone to play with then you can play with them.”
“Don’t tease or use unkind words with your friends.”
“If your friend is hurt or sad you can help them or give them a hug.”
“If you share your toys you are being a kind friend.”
“Helping your teacher is a kind thing to do.”
I think it is encouraging and exciting to see that our BIS students will grow up to be thoughtful, empathetic and compassionate people in a society that is in such dire need of these qualities.
Please continue to encourage your child to develop and grow in these qualities, irrespective of their age. Being a kind, caring and encouraging person will guarantee healthy friendships and relationships that blossom. They are excellent building blocks for a solid foundation for the remainder of their lives.
Kim Hahn
Reception Year Teacher
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Nursery Tackles Responsible Hygiene
It’s probably not surprising that learning about hygiene and self-care at a young age contributes to healthy social and emotional development. Encouraging independent self-care skills has a significant long-term impact on children, and attempting to complete these self-care tasks, builds on their confidence and promotes a healthy lifestyle.
Good hygiene expands further than just using hand sanitizer in class – it’s about keeping our surroundings clean and maintaining that cleanliness whenever possible. That’s why this week, during our Skills Programme, Nursery took the opportunity to learn about taking responsibility for our personal hygiene – as well as for the hygiene of the classroom.
We embarked on a fun-filled adventure to the garden, where we cleaned all the class toys with warm water and soap. The students worked as a team, learnt about germs and enjoyed cleaning all the crevices of their much-loved toys.
The best way to encourage good hygiene habits in our little tots, is to be a good role model and to set the standard at home. Keeping the conversation going will not only normalize the responsibility, but it will also ensure that the children are keeping their body happy and healthy. Self- care is the most important skill we can learn and starting today, no matter the age, will ensure self-love.
I am so proud of how far the little tots have come and I am so excited to put this new skill to good use in our future lessons.
Jo-Anne Dickason
Nursery Teacher
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