Newsletter November 2019

Overseas Family SchoolMiddle School

Master Policy:To maintain a happy, safe and effective school for overseas families living in Singapore

From The Parent Association (PA) Desk

Michael LeeMiddle School Principalmichael_lee@ofs.edu.sg

Principal’s MessageQuarter 1 ended with a fabulous Middle School United Nations Concert held in our Auditorium on the evening of Thursday, 3 October 2019. Almost every student in the Middle School participated on the stage. We were entertained with a brilliant variety of concert items and treated to a kaleidoscope of lighting, sound and stunning backdrops from each item. The night was celebrated with over 1,600 members of the Middle School Family in the Auditorium. Many thanks to our families for your support, concert performers, comperes, teaching staff, maintenance and IT crews and especially to Mr Oliver Ramos our Dean of Performing Arts. You can order the souvenir video via the School Shop. Quarter 2 has started with our parent-student-teacher conferences, held from 22 to 25 October 2019. Continual communication is important throughout the year with our teachers, to ensure students are on track. The High School MUNOFS XII Conference, Languages’ Week with a Multicultural Dress Day, Exam Week and Grade 7 Camp are also fast approaching. Auditions and rehearsals for our Semester 2 blockbuster musical, ‘Fame! JR.’, have also commenced, with all who auditioned, participating in the musical.

Deepavali Themed Coffee MorningThe Parent Association (PA) invites all parents to join us for a special Deepavali Themed Coffee Morning. Deepavali (or ‘Diwali’) is the Indian festival of light celebrated to mark the triumph of ‘good over evil’ and ‘light over darkness’. Event: Deepavali Themed Coffee Morning Date: Thursday, 14 November 2019 Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon Venue: PA Lounge (Level 4 of Administration Block)

You will have the opportunity to participate in many activities including decorating the Indian “Charpoy” and using it as a serving platter, making colourful door tassels and swinging to the rhythms of popular Bollywood Beats. In order to provide adequate craft supplies for this event, please register your attendance by signing up on the OFS webpage:http://www.ofs.edu.sg/events/2019/deepavali-themed-coffee-morning/

If you would like more information about this or other PA events, please contact our Chairperson by email: parent_association@ofs.edu.sg.

The Middle School United Nations Concert 2019 souvenir video and photographs can be ordered via the School Shop.

Middle School UN Concert 2019 (selected photos on OFS website)https://www.ofs.edu.sg/news/2019/10-03-ms-un-concert/

Fame! JR. – The MusicalWe are gearing up for our production of Fame! JR. In addition to being a whole lot of fun for everyone involved, our students are gaining valuable life skills through this production, like Ensemble Building, Public Speaking Skills, Self-Discipline, and Engaged Imagination to name a few.

“In Fame! JR., the characters discover it takes much more than talent to achieve their goals, they must find their true artistic voice, build up their confidence, learn how to collaborate well and work very, very hard.”- Freddie Gershon, Chairman of Music Theatre International (MTI)

The musical follows the bittersweet but inspiring story of a diverse group of students as they commit to four years of gruelling artistic and academic work in order to achieve their dream of “hitting the heights” and putting their “name in lights.” With insight and humour, the show explores the issues that confront many young people today, including prejudice, identity, self-worth, literacy and perseverance. We are looking forward to jumping into rehearsals and hope you will join us on opening night, Tuesday, 31 March 2020. Thank you for your continued support in providing our students with this educational experience.

“Fame! JR. is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorised performance materials are also supplied by MTI. 421 West 54th Street, New York, NY 10019 Phone: 212-541-4684 Fax: 212-397-4684 www.MTIShows.com”

Overseas Family School Middle School Newsletter November 2019

Deputy Principal’s MessageIt has been a busy start to Quarter 2, with the Grade 10 students putting on an exhibition to showcase the results of their Personal Project. This project is the culminating event of the Middle Years Program, where students are required to research a topic and create a product based on their personal interests. This allows students to transfer and apply skills and approaches to learning developed

throughout Grades 6 to 10. Our Grade 8 students were given the opportunity to visit the exhibition to get inspiration for their own projects which they will start in Grade 9. Our Middle School students are currently preparing for the Semester 1 Examinations which will take place during the week of 18 to 22 November 2019. These internal examinations are designed to help students develop effective procedures and to experience examination conditions. All students will receive study guides and examination tips from their teachers to help them. During the examination period, students will complete one examination each day from 9:05am-10:05am; the remainder of the day will continue as normal, with the usual timetabled classes. For students who are unable to attend an examination, their Semester 1 report grade will be generated from existing assessment data in that Subject Area.

(Hayley Brian – Middle School Deputy Principal)hayley_brian@ofs.edu.sg

Grade 7 Science Heart Dissection

‘As part of the Global Context ‘Identities and Relationships’, students in Sciences explored the structure and workings of the heart. To observe closely students had the opportunity to dissect a sheep’s heart as part of the exploration into health and well-being.’

(Stephen Foster – SAL Sciences)

Master Policy:To maintain a happy, safe and effective school for overseas families living in Singapore

United Nations Concert 2019On the evening of Thursday, 3 October 2019 the annual Middle School United Nations Concert took place. The concert was a huge undertaking involving all students and staff in the Middle School. From the very first UN ECA session, commencing Friday, 16 August 2019, right through to the final concert, the Middle School students showed enthusiasm, creativity, dedication and commitment towards their concert item. The overall result was a spectacular celebration of the cultural diversity of the school community here at OFS. Through music, dance, drama and public speaking, the students extended themselves in ways which many of them didn’t think was possible, and discovered invaluable links to their own and/or another’s culture. Congratulations and well done Middle School students on a highly successful United Nations Concert 2019.

(Oliver Ryan Ramos – Dean of Performing Arts)

French Mother Tongue Fashion Show

Overseas Family School Middle School Newsletter November 2019

Sports News

OFS Invitational - 12U Netball It is a unique privilege to host such tournaments that welcome neighbouring schools, as well as teams from our international community. Yumin Primary School showed they have been training hard by winning all of their round robin games without conceding a single point. White Sand Primary School came second while our OFS team claimed bronze.

OFS Invitational - 14U Girls TouchWhile we had netball on the courts, Touch was on the turf with a lot of very closely fought matches. On the day, the UWC Dover teams were the teams to beat taking first and second. LFS edged out OFS for the third spot. Well done everyone for a huge afternoon of competition!

(Jason Lawrence – Dean of Physical Advancement)

Languages’ Week takes place from 4 to 8 November 2019 In preparation for Languages’ Week, a poster competition was launched in Quarter 1 for students to advertise the event in the language they are studying and to reflect on why we celebrate Languages’ Week. Multicultural Dress Day is on Friday, 8 November 2019 and all students are invited to dress in the culture or languages they feel connected to. On this day, we will also be celebrating the linguistic and cultural diversity of OFS with a celebration of music, dance and culture in the Auditorium at lunchtime.

(Michele Monti – SAL Language Acquisition)

Health and Social Education The second quarter Health and Social Education Program will see the students focus on creating MYP Action initiatives in their Homebases and developing affective skills. The MYP Action initiatives will be developed around the themes of responsibility, respect and relationships. This is an opportunity for

the students to work together in order to serve the OFS community and learn invaluable lessons in the process. The affective skills focus by grade-level will be on ‘emotional management’ for Grade 6, ‘mindfulness’ for Grade 7 and ‘self-motivation’ for Grade 8. All these skills are particularly important for Middle School students who need to adjust to the demands of their school, social and personal lives. These will be taught during the quarterly Health and Social Education lesson, Homebase times and reinforced through the weekly Focus of the Week.

(Aidan Spencer – Middle School Student Advisor)