Quarter 2 Newsletter 2022

8 “Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty, and persistence”. ~ Anonymous GRADE SIX We have had a jam-packed quarter with our Africa Day Celebrations, Cape Philharmonic Orchestra, exhilarating sports matches, Elmer Day, and not to forget, our academic assessments. The Grade 4s certainly deserve their holidays! We look forward to welcoming all our special Grade 4s back refreshed and ready to tackle their next adventures in quarter 3! Phenomenal, astounding and remarkable... are just a few words to describe our Quarter 2 adventure! These are also some of our advanced vocabulary words that we’ve brought to class! The quarter started with an exhilarating outing to the Iziko museum where our PBL was launched. The Grade Fives loved the fact their friends and parents were involved in the project and had to give them feedback before their final presentation. The learners had to be critical thinkers and effective communicators researching what physical features they could include on their map design. The Grade Five teachers were so impressed with the quality of work that was produced. The Grade Fives are always game for dress-up days and have been creative agents in the wonderful costumes put together for World Book Day, Africa Day and the oh so colourful Elmer Day. We celebrated all of these exciting days by embracing diversity and accepting each other for who we are. We were treated to a Hooked On Books performance, a tantalising talk by Riaan Manser and we even got to shop for our very own books during the book fair. We took part in the Africa Day celebration and enjoyed the day singing, dancing and learning about the beautiful heritage of our continent. Elmer Day is always a highlight. Our classrooms were lit up with all the colours of our unique Elmers, and we got to know new friends and shared words of kindness with them. The days got colder and we got settled and snug into our winter uniforms, but boy did we turn up the heat with our Mathematics master class! The Grade 5’s spent the day in the hall working collaboratively on Living Maths Olympiads. During English we focused on improving our writing by extending our vocabulary. We played an abbreviation board game and ‘guess the word’ with parts of speech, and had loads of fun with collective nouns. Things have slowly started to return to normal and we really got into the swing of assemblies in the hall and lines on a Tuesday morning. We look forward to an even more amazing Quarter three. GRADE FIVE Quarter 2 for Grade Six has been an eventful journey. Learners have been encouraged and challenged in so many ways and there have been some great success stories. We are proud of the progress that each one has made whether in academics, the cultural sphere, socially or emotionally. The Grade Six learners continued to explore and identify challenges in their community and how they could help. Their Invention Convention PBL this quarter, “What difference can you make in your community by creating an invention that will have a positive effect?” had them create, design and solve problems in the community. The seven step invention process was followed to help create inventions, some of which we may even see in the near future. Kettle blankets to help conserve electricity and unnecessary boiling, new low cost housing designs, water conservation solutions and various litter contraptions are only a few of their original inventions. Past famous inventors and inventions were researched to see how they had once shaped our world and how significant they were during their time. In Robotics, through Swift App Development, a set of detailed programming skills and instructions were taught to allow the learners to create an animated program that would assist them in their final oral presentation. From companies being created to detailed presentations, the Gr 6's have been creative agents, critical thinkers and purposeful collaborators within this PBL that continued to challenge them to grow and take ownership of their learning as well as being meaningful within the community. “What does freedom mean to you?" During the quarter, the Grade Six learners sought the answer to this very important question during their Life Skills lessons. Through detailed discussions in class, interviews conducted with other people in their community and a closer look at why South Africa celebrates Freedom Day on 27 April, learners wrote their own opinion essays and created inspiring videos on the topic. The videos demonstrated a new appreciation for freedom in our country and were thoroughly enjoyed by all who watched them. At the start of the year, our Grade Six learners embarked on a Science Project that was spread out over Quarter one and two. Parklands College Senior Preparatory has always been well represented at the Cape Town Regional Science Expo. Our learners began their Expo journey of exploration by being introduced to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Learners were then required to select a SDG as the theme for their project. This afforded them the opportunity to develop their own scientific knowledge in their chosen topic. This journey of hard work and discovery culminated in a successful Grade Six Expo. There was great excitement on presentation day, when all the vibrant and well thought out projects were displayed and could be admired by both parents and judges. Our Grade six learners can be very proud of their projects, which were methodically presented and of a very high standard. The learners again proved to themselves that success is a result of very hard work of which they can be exceptionally proud. With holidays imminent, we wish the learners a relaxing break and if there is travelling to be done, may it be wonderful and full of sunshine.