The Oxford Front News Letter 2015-16 - May-June Edition

THE OXFORD SCHOOL, DUBAI

Pencil Collection

Toys Collection

From the Principal’s Desk Dear Parents,

Welcome to the final newsletter for academic year 2015-16. The year is winding down at a fast rate and students and teachers are busy with the prepa-rations for the end of the year formalities. This is the time for students to consolidate their learn-ing and ensure strategic preparation for the next year of learning which leave enough provision for healthy eating habits and rest. Reflection is a key value in education. You need to encourage your child to take some time to re-flect on how this year has gone by and identify the strengths and areas for improvement. This will lead to the identification of changes that need to be embraced in readiness for a great start in the next academic year. Staying in training as a learner over the summer break between school years is critical so that students hold on to prior learning and return to school in end of August with the be-haviours and attitudes for new learning to take hold. The summer holidays should be utilized effectively with reading for knowledge and enjoy-ment as well as fun activities that involve writing, calculations and inquiry.

You can provide opportunities for them to do all that and more including polishing their talent for Art, Music or Drama. Some examples could be storytelling, pottery, crafts making, dancing, gardening etc. It is advisable for senior school students to look for opportunities for community service, voluntary work or in-service training which would enrich their skills and experience. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all your participation and support during this academic year and look forward to even stronger home school partnership in the academic Year 2016 - 17.

Education Empowers!Aisha AnsariPrincipal

FS2 Section

Graduation Day is a special day for each and every student. May 29, 2016 was the Graduation Day of the Foundation Stage. It is the day where parents and children gain the fruit of their labour. Students were very excited to receive their certificates and to bid farewell to their classmates and friends. It actually marks the beginning of their journey towards the reality of life.

Fs 2 Graduation Day May 29th, 2016

FS2 Class Party

After the graduation, students celebrated the year end party. They brought snacks and foods that they shared with their classmates and friends. Children had so much fun during that day, they danced, sang and enjoyed the food that they shared. Final-ly, they went home with smiles on their faces.

Foundation stage 2 had their class party on the 2nd of June 2016. Students were dressed up in coloured clothes; they looked stunning. They brought snacks to share with their peers . We played games , ate to our hearts content. We

had lots of fun!!

Transition Day: FS2 Students of FS2 were bubbling with excitement when they were told they are being taken to Year 1 “for a peek” to next year!!They were completely prepped up beforehand as the Teacher shared with them they will be given tour of Year 1 class. They were looking forward to go to their respective classes for next year and see what waits for the coming year!Children were warmly welcomed by both Year 1 Teachers and students alike.They were shown a power point presentation about things they will be learning next year. They were given hands on activity to be done in the calss along with the support of the teachers . Year 1 students were very cooperative in assisting them to settle down, they were given a greeting card template and each one took efforts to help at least one FS2 student to complete the origami craft work and their greeting cards.It didn’t end there, and while they were leaving FS2 students were given goodies and balloons as a takeaway token.All in all children thoroughly enjoyed the Transition Day.

Primary Section

Year 2 Assembly The Assembly for Year 2 was presented by the students of Year 2 Violet. It started with the recitation of the Holy Quran, followed by the English Translation and the UAE National Anthem.The theme being “International Family Day”, Ms. Kumari’s class showcased their talent in singing a song on the theme. At first, they hooked up the interest of other students by narrating the importance of relationship and family. They even talked about the importance of loving each other in the family. Then, they sang the song with a message about Family - “I love my Family.’’

Our new Primary Head was introduced to the Year 2 children.

Lastly, the Head of Primary, Ms. Zaakiya, gave a short talk about the theme and good manners.

A TRIP TO ADVENTURE LAND -

Year 3 and Year 4 The Oxford School organised a fun filled trip to Adventure land on the 16th May, 2016. We started our trip from School around 8:45am and returned around 12:45 pm. The Trip was con-ducted for all the sections of Year 3 and Year 4. The students were accompanied with thier respec-tive class teachers with few more for safety of the students. In Adventure land the students were divided and accompanied by their Class Teacher and one Adventure land staff was provided for each class group to help manage the class and also to guide them around on the rides. The staff had a list of number of stduents in their group to look after. The ratio was 15:1 . Towards the end the students and the teachers were provided with meal and juice . There was an option of vegetarian meal as well . As many as 20 rides were enjoyed by the students . They all loved the rides. Teachers were aslo asked to take the rides and have fun . After all is was a fun trip for the teachers and students as this was the end of the term trip. They had a wonderful time.

KEN KEN COMPETITION For Years 3 to 6 The students from years 3 to 6 participated in the Ken ken compeitition which is a puzzle , similar to Sudoko. This competition is the first level and nearly 90 % of the students cleared it . They were given question papers as per their age level and year level where in they had to solve the puzzle given. The Game was not only interesting but a challenge for all to click their brains and come out with flying colours. Most of them were able to solve the puzzles within the given time limit , few others required help . Later the results were declared after a week and the winners were given medals and certificates . Those who couldn’t clear the first round were given the participation certificates. The best part of the competition is that it has 3 levels . The next level is the NATIONAL LEVEL and the final level is the INTERNATIONAL LEVEL , which has more challenges and is more brain ticking.

Secondary Section

ASSEMBLY REPORTS OF YEAR 7 AND 8

THEME – APPRECIATION OF LABORS

Labor Day is celebrated on 1st of May in order to honor the contribution of working men and women. Year 8G1 presented assembly on the topic of Appreciation of Labors. Their main objective behind this was to support the lower working class of our society and to thank this community who works so hard especially those who are associated with The Oxford School like our nannies, bus drivers, guards and sweepers. These people have dedicated their lives in order to make Oxford school a better place for future generations. Students interviewed the above mentioned and shared their contribution they have made to the organization. We all are very thankful to this community who makes us feel safe and secure.

THEME –HOW TO HANDLE EXAM STRESS

In view of the upcoming final examinations, Year7B3 was tasked to present an assembly on exam stress. The assembly started with the Qur’an recitation followed by Hadith of the day.The class prepared a wonderful skit on exam stress which gave a picture of a scenario in the class. Through that a clear message was sent for those who don’t take their studies seriously. The class concluded the assembly with some effective study habits.

THEME :- IMPORTANCE OF READING AND FOLLOWING QURAN

Year 7 and 8 students conducted Quran assem-bly on 23rd May in the Mosque area. Quran rec-itation with Saif translated by Hania followed by Hadeeth by Sara and Aisha. Abdul Rahman shared nine benefits of reading Quran and facts about Quran was shared by Kifah. The assembly was concluded by Quiz between girls team and boys team and the former was declared as the winner.

THEME:- THANKS GIVINGAs the academic year 2015-16 is coming to an end, students of Year 8G2 conducted Thanks Giving assembly on 30th May 2016. Umaima recited meaningful poem thanking teachers. Teachers have been inspirational, motivational and have always encouraged students and develop their skills and bring the best in them. They appreciated teachers and presented them with the beautiful cards and flowers and expressed their sincere thanks. In the end, certificates for ICT quiz were distributed. Assembly ended with a good note.

ASSEMBLY REPORTS OF YEAR 9 AND 10

THEME -WORLD RED CROSS DAY

The students of 9G1 presented the assembly to mark the “World Red Cross Day” on 8th May 2016. The assembly started with the blessings of God through the Quranic recitation and its trans-lation. A brief introduction of World Red Cross Day and its significance was shared explaining that it is a humanitarian movement that aims to protect people's lives and health, alleviate or prevent suffering and ensures respect for all. The World Red Cross Day is celebrated every year on 8th of May and students were briefed about the significance of the day by highlighting its con-tribution to the relief of human distress and the theme of years 2013 to 2009 were shared.

Finally, students introduced the main theme of World Red Cross Day 2016 as “ille-gal animal poaching” They talked about the illegal acts practiced all over the world and the after effects of it which causes diseases like bird flu (H5N1), Monkey Pox. The assembly conclud-ed with a few words which was shared by our respected Principal Mrs. Aisha Ansari.

Theme: The International Day of Families

The International Day of Families is observed on the 15th of May every year. This Day was pro-claimed by the UN General Assembly in 1993 and reflects the importance the international community attaches to families.

Year 9B hence arranged an assembly to highlight the importance of families. A brief introduction of the international family day and the themes for each year along with the mottos of the past 10 years were shared. Students stressed upon the importance of world family day and its impact on our lives through a skit.

The assembly concluded with a poem about the importance of a family as an important unit of our society.After the assembly students were awarded with certificates by the Head of School for their participation and several competitions which is being conducted during the month of Literacy.

Theme: IMPORTANCE OF RAMDAN

To raise awareness about the month of Ramadan, students of The Oxford School had decided to pres-ent special assemblies on the importance of Rama-dan.An assembly was conducted on significance of Ram-adan and importance of conservation of food by year 9B. Students performed a skit to highlight the importance of being grateful for being given food on time. Through the skit students tried to convey the message about life without food and how we should be grateful by behaving respectfully, especially at

Theme: IMPORTANCE OF RAMDANTo raise awareness about the month of Ramadan, students of The Oxford School had decided to present special assemblies on the im-portance of Ramadan.An assembly was conduct-ed on significance of Ramadan and importance of conservation of food by year 9B. Students per-formed a skit to highlight the importance of being grateful for being given food on time. Through the skit students tried to convey the message about lifewithout food and how we should be grateful by behaving respectfully, especially at meal times.

Year 10 girls was shared a hadith allowing the people to ponder upon the words of the prophet and giving an insight to what the assembly was going to be about.To brighten things up, an informative skit was performed by Year 10, showing the ways of how different people from different religions can re-spect the month of Ramadan. It also demon-strated the attitudes of the people and how we should face the challenges of Ramadan, encour-aging the people that a reward awaits them after the holy fast.The assembly ended with Ms. Amina thanking the students and the teachers for being a part of the wonderful journey of her life, and with the students giving out the teacher appreciation book marks.

XXIII-AL SADIQ INTER SCHOOL QIRAT COMPETITION

A group of 5 students; 2 boys a 3 girls from Year 5-9 participated in the Qirat competition, organ-ized by Al-Sadiq school on 25th of May. It was gratifying experience for our students and they got a chance to showcase their talent. Oxford school is proud to have such students who are not only dili-gent in studies but also have a flair for co-curricular activities.

ANTI-NARCOTICS SEMINAR

The Oxford School had the privilege to be visited by The Anti-Narcotics Department from the Dubai Police. Mussa Julieed, of the Anti-Narcotics Department, presented a lecture on the abuse of drugs and the problems they can cause, specifically targeting the youth of this age.

Mr.Mussa Julieed started off with an introduction to the types of drugs that had been illegally sold in the UAE. He demonstrated the ways the people may use these types of drugs as well as the psychological and physical effects that will affect the youth of today. effects that will affect the youth of today. The students of The Oxford School attentively listened to the seminar; some were even asked to testify their hearsay with certain drugs and warned the crowd of the harmful effects they bestow.

Mr.Julieed effectively answered their queries by giving a description of the cases he had held, advising the students along the way. He had cases involving young children to mature students, most were pressured by peers and influenced by their parents’ behaviour.This was then followed with a presentation presenting the features of the types of drugs, their effects and causes. To keep things on a light note, Mr Julieed had also called out some students to express their opinions and views about the drugs use of today’s generation.

Finally, the seminar ended by advising and ed-ucating the people regarding the situations they had encountered or witnessed, thereby, satisfy-ing curiosity of the students. This initiative was aimed to prevent the spread and reduce the prevalence of drug culture.

Visit to Beit Al Khair Society

The Islamic department organized a trip to Beit al Khair Society, a charity organization.

A group of 20 students from year 7 and 8 boys vis-ited the Organization on the 17th May, 2016. The objective of the visit was to let the students be cog-nizant of community service and how important charity is for the development of the society. Stu-dents had a very enlightened experience and they

learned how the organization works, how we as re-sponsible people can help them to serve the society.

We at The Oxford School are proud to embrace ini-tiatives that make students aware of their social responsibilities. When students are taught the values of sharing, caring and being sensitive towards the needs of others, they are learning to be ‘Global Citizens’, willing to make a difference in whatever ways it is possible. Keeping this in mind ,

we organized Toy Collection Drive as a part of their Community Services for the students. The drive “Bring a toy, share some joy” was started on May 10 until May 19. The students par-ticipated commendably and motivated their peers to donate generously as the toys were being donated to the orphans through Bait Al Khair Society.

Community Service Programmes

The purpose of this drive was to encourage students morally so that they consider it as their social responsibility towards society and for people in need. The students visit all the classes to provide motivational speeches and to request students to donate generously for making this drive successful. The students at the end of the drive managed to collect and donate 17 Big bags and 13 Box cartons of toys which was a great success for them.

Pencil Collection Drive The pencil Collection Drive was started on 25 May until 30 May 2016 as a part of Community Service.

“No one has ever become poor by giving”

When students are taught the values of sharing, caring and being sensitive to the needs of others, they are learning to be “Global Citizens”, willing to make difference in whatever ways it is possible. The students donated pencils which were handed over to Mr. Venkatraman- Pencil Man of UAE. He collected new and old stationery from various schools in UAE and distribute it to the needy and poor children through NGO’s.Through this way our students can learn to make contribution towards society. The students collect-ed 4 Boxes full of pencils which were around 3212 pencils. The students packed them attractively and handed it over to the Pencil Man who visited Oxford School to motivate students for different charity drives. He will further donate these stationaries to the less fortunate ones across the Asian States.

Uniform Collection Drive Oxford School ,launched a campaign for Uniform Collection. Generally, all the students buy new uniform when they are promoted to new classes. Therefore, we planned to collect these uni-form and distribute among those who are in need. The Uniform collection campaign was started from 18 June till 28 June. For uniform distribution our first priority is our existing parents who are unable to buy a new uniform . They can get it from our collection and after that rest of the uniforms will be distributed to a charity organisation . The parents and students distributed openhearted-ly and made this campaign a success.

“Reading Nation”- A Ramadan CampaignThe Reading Nation campaign was launched by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. It was launched on the first day of Ramadan.

The campaign set a goal to distribute five million books to children in need around the world. The wide participation and response from individuals and businesses have allowed the campaign to exceed its goal to reach more than 7.3 million books.This was an ideal opportunity for our students to participate and show that they do care for others , which was evident from the donation of books that will be distributed to children in need globally. The campaign was run in Oxford School Dubai from 8th June until 15th June. The stu-dents distributed books generously which includ-ed their old reading books, novels, english classic literature books and the like. Most of the students were sensitive as they wanted their novels to be donated which they felt was very good for read-ing. This proved that the students are now aware about their social responsibility towards society. The aim of this campaign was to distribute 5 million books to children in refugee camps in the Arab world and schools in need across developing countries. The collection was then wrapped neat-ly and couriered to Dubai Cares who works hand in hand for this campaign .

COUNSELLING AND SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

SUB: REPORT ON A VISIT TO AWLDOUNA CENTRE FOR LEARNINGAND

REHABILITATION

The members from the Counselling and Special Education department visited Awladouna Center for Learning and Rehabilitation on 26th June 2016 to donate the money collected during the school carnival. We also distributed gifts, bands, book marks etc to the students.

Miss. Maha Khouzami Elazar the managing director of the centre explained the procedures they follow and also how they cater to the individual needs of the students. They have Vocational Training Programs under the motto “Do not bind my Hands”. The vocational training programme is part of the educational programme which aims on introducing different jobs and occupations to SEN students which will enhance their working skills as well as making them more familiar with various vocations.