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On 25th February, students of Grade 1 were as excited and anxious as their parents about their first ever overnight camping experience! After gathering in school, we proceeded on a short drive to Camp Tikkling, which is surrounded by extensive wilderness of the rocky Aravalis. Once at the camp site, the students spent an adventurous day, engaged in a variety of challenging activities. They were indeed ‘risk takers’, as they enthusiastically took up CAMP HATHIPAON- GRADE 5 The students of Grade 5, began their adventurous four day camp to Haathipaon, Mussoorie in the wee hours of 26th February 2013. The following day, the 27th February, after a hearty breakfast the students embarked on a trek to George Everest Point and enthusiastically participated in rock climbing and rappelling. They wound off the day with dinner and played antakshari around the bonfire. After breakfast on the 28th February the students trekked 8 km to the Jwala Devi temple which tested them physically and mentally. Back to base camp, they had a sumptuous lunch and participated in various confidence building activities. Later, the students also went on a night trek and had a Maggie making competition using natural resources, in which they displayed their teamwork. On the 1st of March, the last day at the camp, the students visited a village near the LET’S GO CAMPING CAMP TIKKLING - GRADE 1 the challenges of the Artificial Wall Climbing, Zip Lining, Crossing Obstacle Course and many more. The day at the Camp Tikkling ended with an entertaining magic show, but the students were more excited to spend the night on the school campus. They had a scrumptious dinner and happily explored it at night with their torches. A hot chocolate milk and movie was a perfect winding up for the campers. They were up earlier than expected the next morning and enjoyed the art activity after breakfast. After so much fun, they were ready to get back to their parents, a little more grown up than before! - Shilpa Narang camp site and interacted with the villagers to learn about the simple lives the villagers lead. We were also fortunate to sight the snow capped peaks of the Himalayas, after being hidden over three forecast days. It was a life changing experience and a breathtaking memory that I am sure we will all cherish for many years to come! On returning to base camp, the students packed their belongings and soon were on their way to the railway station. Tired, exhausted but more responsible and aware, the students returned to the welcoming arms of their parents and the comfort of their home. - Aashna Verma INTERNATIONAL MOTHER LANGUAGE DAY 2013 ‘Everything can change, but not the language that we carry inside us, like a world more exclusive and final than one's mother's womb’ – Italo Calvino International Mother Language Day (IMLD) is celebrated all across the world on 21st February. Multilingualism is the norm of the day and the day is of special significance to our school, Pathways, being a multicultural and multilingual community. The theme for IMLD '2013 as proposed by the UNESCO is “The Book". Celebrations started a week in advance. Students designed "Picture books" in English as well as in their mother tongue with the help of teachers and parents. The students were also given a word every day for a week, in English, that they translated and displayed on the board in their mother tongue. They were also encouraged to bring a book in their Mother Language for the class library. They read the book to their friends and were helped in translation by others. A variety of other activities like caption making for funny pictures, finding the meaning of their own names, tongue twisters, language treasure hunt, and word splash were also organised throughout the various grades. Musical songs and poems were taught to students in different languages by the music department. A special assembly was organized to mark the culmination of the day. Students recited songs, poems, verses in their mother tongue. An interactive language based quiz was held boosting the competitive spirit amongst the various houses in the school. The children were informed about the various languages prevalent in different parts of the world through a power point presentation.Celebrating the International Mother Language Day inspired solidarity based on understanding, tolerance and dialogue. - Alka Balain KINDERGARTEN- DAY OUT AT CAMP TIKKLING The Kindergarteners also spent a day at Camp Tikkling along with Grade 1. Children displayed the profile of being ‘Risk – takers’ by enthusiastically participating in various challenging activities. They enjoyed the Obstacle Course, the Crocodile pit, Commando net and Burma Bridge. After a mouth watering lunch, the students learnt how to pitch a tent which was followed by the Tug of War. The children finally left the camp site happy and exhausted carrying back precious memories with them. -Ruby Gandhar PICNIC TIME FOR PRE- NURSERY & NURSERY There was heightened excitement in the Early Years building on the 27th of February, as the students of Pre Nursery and Nursery geared up for their picnic at the Chancellor’s Club. The little ones thoroughly enjoyed the short, five minute trek to the club revelling in the flora and fauna and even collecting some seeds along the way. The students enjoyed exploring the hilly trails at the club and playing games like hide and seek and oranges and lemons. We also managed to play some soccer! The weather was splendid, the food lip-smacking and definitely it was a fabulous experience. A great way to spend outdoors during school hours! - Sandeep Kamboj & Poonam Bhardwaj CAMP DAMDAMA- GRADES 2 & 3 While campers use the term “fun,” I prefer the term “engaging.” Camps are engaging, intellectually, emotionally and physically. For many, it was their first time away from home. The students learnt new skills, engaged in challenging activities and developed teamwork and a high level of independence, all in a safe and nurturing environment. The camps inculcated in children a love for nature, human values, morals and ethics. Children enjoyed a range of fun and rewarding activities including Free Fall, Commando Net, Burma Bridge, Artificial Wall Climbing, Cat Walk, Flying Fox, Low Ropes Course and team games. The professionals provided opportunities for students to live in shared accommodation, develop social skills, challenge themselves and enjoy the benefits of an active lifestyle. We are already looking forward to yet another camping experience! - Supriyaa Narula CAMP KALSI- GRADE 4 The tone for the Camp Kalsi was set way before the actual journey began. In the early hours on 26th February, students boarded the train to Kathgodam with knapsacks on their back and excitement in their hearts. At the foothill of Himalayas, amidst the beautiful valleys of Kumaon, Camp Kalsi was a sight to behold. Despite the hectic journey the students were all geared up to interact with the camp organizers and adventure guides on reaching the site. Later on they went for a night trek to the hills.Students enjoyed a sumptuous dinner around a bonfire dancing to the musical beats. Adventure sports and fun filled activities such as Rappelling, Trekking, Net Crawling, Commando Bridge, Burma Bridge, Wriggling, Tarzan Crossing, Twine and Ladder Climbing helped promote social and emotional bonding amongst them. They also had an interaction with the Primary School students in a school in Padampuri and donated stationery articles to the little ones. A long trek of 5 hours did not deter them and they enjoyed the scenic view of the mountainous terrain absorbing the beauty of nature.The students and teachers braved the cold conditions in the valley and returned with wonderful learning experience and loads of beautiful memories to cherish forever. - Deepika NUMERACY DAY The students of Primary School celebrated ‘Numeracy Day’ on 14th March 2013. The main objective of the event was to help the students appreciate and enjoy the beauty and fun of Math and thereby, helping them drive away the fear of Math! The theme for the day was Pi Day (3.14) and numerous activities like Puzzle of the Day, Mathematicians around the world and other games were conducted to enthuse the students. Students who could solve the puzzles right were credited with Edmodo badges and Marks of Appreciation. Games like Number Hat, Fishing Net, Math Cube, Dance-o-mania, Math Rap, Hot Potato, Eggs Act Addition saw enthusiastic participation by the students. An inter-house Quiz for grades 2 to 5 concluded the Numeracy Day celebrations. Mr. Shantanu Bhowmick, a Math teacher from Senior School shared some wonderful mathematical tricks with the students. The whole day was an enriching learning experience for each one of us and a true celebration of the beauty of numbers. - Sabeena Menon Pg 4
STUDENT LED CONFERENCE An important component of the PYP philosophy is the development of learners who are actively engaged in building on their previous knowledge and experiences and applying new understandings to become reflective, self-directed learners. In addition, the students at Pathways World School are encouraged to be independent learners who set and achieve worthwhile goals for themselves and effectively communicate their ideas to others. One way in which we help them accomplish this, is through student-led conferencing. The traditional ‘Parent Teacher Meeting’ for students of Nursery to Grade 4 gives way to the ‘Student-Led Conference’. The Student-Led Conference empowers the student to direct and report on his/ her progress at school. During the conference, students report on academic progress, articulate goals, report on assessment data, when appropriate, and share examples of their work with their parents. They present samples of work from all of their lessons. We view this as an extremely positive opportunity for these students to emphasize their strengths, acknowledge their weaknesses, and plan their approach with parents for the rest of the year. The parents also ask probing questions, help students look realistically at their own work and facilitate deeper student self-reflection. Parents become true partners in learning during the student-led conferences. The parents not only play the role of good listeners but also provide positive reinforcement, encouragement and praise which goes a long way in making the learning process more rewarding for the student! - Malini Ghosh WHAT IS THE PYP EXHIBITION? The PYP Exhibition is a grand summative assessment of the students of Grade 5, and an opportunity for them to showcase their Knowledge, Concepts, Skills and Attitudes through an independent and collaborative inquiry. The IB states about the PYP Exhibition: ‘The Primary Years Programme (PYP) Exhibition represents a significant event in the life of a PYP school and student, synthesizing the essential elements of the PYP and sharing them with the whole school community. As a culminating experience it is an opportunity for the students to exhibit the attributes of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Learner Profile that they have been developing throughout their engagement with the PYP. The students are required to engage in a collaborative, transdisciplinary inquiry process and be involved in identifying, investigating and offering solutions to real-life issues.’ The students of Grade 5 have embarked on this journey early this term and the work will be done in phases across February, March and April. The final day for showcasing to the school community is Friday, 26th April. We look forward to an exciting journey and a meaningful showcasing of the students’ learning and action! - Abhimanyu Das Gupta JOB ALIKE SESSION Pathways World School, Aravali was proud to host the 9th meeting of the PYP North India Network of Schools, as well as the 1st Job Alike Session for teachers from all its member schools, on Saturday, 8th December, 2012. It was a crisp wintry morning, as we greeted and welcomed more than 50 teachers, Coordinators and Principals from the 11 PYP schools in North India. The session began with the teachers going on a school tour, followed by an inauguration ceremony, in which the Chairperson, Abhimanyu Das Gupta shared the journey of the network. Ms. Meenakshi Singal, Principal, Primary School also welcomed the guests and Dr. Sarvesh Naidu, School Director formally declared the event open. The teachers were allocated year level groups and these were facilitated by Ms. Monica Bhimwal, Early Years Coordinator and Assistant PYP Coordinator, Ms. Malini Ghosh, Grades 2, 3 and 4 Coordinator, and Ms. CREATING INCLUSIVE CLASSROOMS IB workshops are always a pleasurable experience and I was fortunate to be able to attend a Regional Workshop on Creating Inclusive Classrooms in Mumbai last November. We not only get to learn a lot but most importantly we can validate what we have been doing. Networking with people from various parts of the world has given me an insight into how I can strengthen the practices at Pathways. Sharing of good practices also helped me to gather a lot of valuable strategies which could be used by us. Pathways is an inclusive school and with the learning from my workshop, we hope to be able to focus at making Pathways unique in the way we make our classrooms inclusive. -Malini Ghosh WORKSHOPS ASSESSMENT IN PYP One of the key beliefs of PYP and Pathways is to promote lifelong learners. Our school facilitates the professional development of teachers, by giving them opportunities to attend seminars and workshops. I was given one such opportunity to attend an online workshop of ‘Assessment in PYP’. Though I was apprehensive initially, considering my limited experience with technology, I took up the challenge and began the workshop in October 2012. This workshop explored the PYP assessed curriculum, to develop a deeper understanding of the purpose of assessment, assessment practices, student involvement in the assessment process and recording and reporting of assessment results in a PYP school. The workshop took me on an informative journey and I interacted with many other teachers from around the world. The workshop finally concluded in December 2012 and I think I passed with flying colours. - Shilpa Narang Renu Kaushal, Grade 5 Home Room Tutor. There was a lot of excitement in each group, as the teachers shared best practices centred around the theme of ‘Teaching and Learning in the PYP’, focusing on the pedagogy of Inquiry and using Inquiry for Numeracy and Literacy. The interactive sessions were filled with sharing and learning and everyone went back home having had an enriching experience. The 9th NINS meeting was also conducted simultaneously and the current Chairperson for the Network, Mr. Abhimanyu Das Gupta, was unanimously re-elected for the coming year. All in all, a Saturday well spent by educators in the true spirit of collaboration! - Abhimanyu Das Gupta COLLABORATIVE PLANNING I attended the Collaborative Planning Workshop at Mumbai in November 2012. This three day workshop emphasised the importance of collaboration in achieving goals through optimal utilisation of resources. The workshop leader talked about the stages of collaboration and the importance of collaborative planning, which utilises the strengths of many members, in providing quality learning experiences to the students. - Renu Kaushal ROUND SQUARE CONFERENCE - JAIPUR The Round Square Conference, Jaipur was a fun event to go for as it was interesting to learn out of the box, especially through the Barazza sessions with a very unique topic: ‘Fauna Leadership’. It was great meeting new people, making new friends from other schools and sight-seeing. The two days that we spent in January, attending the Conference were exciting, fun, informative, adventurous and full of enthusiasm! The key note speakers inspired us to be great leaders, love nature and care for it. We feel that a Round Square Conference makes you more independent, gets you a break from the usual studies and gives you opportunities to think, learn and work differently. Attending the conference has made us more confident and it was a great learning experience! --With inputs from Samarth Bhatia (5w), Chandan Samal, Nandini Aggarwal and Eesha Mathur (5x), Mahika Goel (5z), Compiled by Shalini Ranjan Pg 5 www.google.com is the source for some images. CHIEF EDITOR : Abhimanyu Das Gupta, PYP Coordinator EDITORS : Renu Kaushal, Kavita Reigo CONTENT COORDINATORS : Malini Ghosh, Monica Bhimwal DESIGNER : Devika Datta Elvin IT SUPPORT : Jim Elvin With the support of Ms. Meenakshi Singal (Principal, Primary School)
Page 1 and 2: March 2013 Issue 10 FROM THE EDITOR
Page 3: GRADE 2- SULTANPUR BIRD SANCTUARY I

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