STMARKS NEWSLETTER 13 (18 NOVEMBER 2022)

SCIENCE EDUCATIONAL SEMINAR FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND FOR YEARS 7-12

Our students were privileged to learn many interesting concepts at Dr. Gurion Ang's presentation last Friday, 11 November.  Dr. Ang is from the School of Biological Sciences, at the University of Queensland, Australia, and has conducted  many interactive workshops for international high school students through the faculty’s high school outreach programs.  With his very interesting presentation, he has inspired our students to be fascinated by science and we hope it will instill a love for learning science in our students.  St. Mark's, being a school of Mathematics and Science, hopes to see our students benefit from such a special opportunity, and hopefully, the wonder of science will ignite their minds and interests. 

During his presentation today, he touched on the following topics:

Pokémon™: Are they biologically possible?

The weird and whimsical world of Pokémon™ is filled with colourful animated characters, many of which draw inspiration from animals and plants of the natural world. Through a comparison of anatomy and physiology, students will be challenged to identify the living representatives of certain Pokémon™, to determine if they are biologically possible.

Topics covered: structural colour in nanostructures of butterfly wings; tissue regeneration and stem cell biology in amphibians.

Concepts covered: applied physics, cell biology, genetics

SCHOOL FUMIGATION

We wish to inform everyone that we will facilitate the fumigation of our whole school on Thursday, 24 November at 4 pm. This is one of our precautionary measures to safeguard the health of our students and staff against dengue fever. 

We would like to ask parents for your cooperation to pick up students no later than 4 pm.

STUDENT SHOWCASE: PREP-YEAR 4

Our Student Showcase aims to present parents with an opportunity to experience what our students have been learning in school across different levels. It also provides a venue for our students to demonstrate their capabilities and presentation skills.  By getting involved with the Showcase presentation, our students learn to develop their soft skills, which are increasingly essential for the 21^st century.  

The upcoming Showcase for students in Prep to Year 4 will be held on Friday, 25 November from 3.30 pm to around 5.00 pm.  

Parents of the performing students in the Showcase are strongly encouraged to be present at the Showcase, to support your child during his/her performance.  At the same time, other parents who wish to attend the Showcase are also welcome.  Please note that not every student will be performing in the Showcase, but every student will have their turn in at least one of the Showcases.

Please see below for details of our Showcase Itinerary.

Parents of the performing students for this Showcase are strongly encouraged to be present at the Showcase to give support to your child.  At the same time, other parents who wish to attend the Showcase are also welcome. Please note that not every student will be performing in the Showcase, but every student will have their turn in at least one of the Showcases.

CONSTANTLY CONNECTED: HOW MEDIA USE CAN AFFECT YOUR CHILD

Today's children and teens are growing up immersed in digital media, ranging from TV to social media, all available on multiple devices—computers, gaming consoles, smartphones and other screens. Media can influence how children and teens feel, learn, think and behave. This is why it's important to understand the risks & benefits of digital media use and how to keep them in balance for your family.

Risks & benefits of media use by children & teens
Why use digital media?
Digital media use can:

• Expose users to new ideas and information.
• Raise awareness of current events and issues.
• Promote community participation.
• Help students work with others on assignments and projects.

Digital media use also has social benefits that:

• Allow families and friends to stay in touch, no matter where they live.
• Enhance access to valuable support networks, especially for people with illnesses or disabilities.
• Help promote wellness and healthy behaviours, such as how to quit smoking or how to eat healthy.
  

Why limit media use?

Overuse of digital media may place your children at risk of:

• Not enough sleep. Media use can interfere with sleep. Children and teens who have too much media exposure or who have a TV, computer, or mobile device in their bedroom fall asleep later at night and sleep less. Exposure to
  light (particularly blue light) and stimulating content from screens can delay or disrupt sleep and have a negative effect on school.
  
• Obesity. Excessive screen use can increase the risk of obesity. Watching TV for more than 1.5 hours daily is a risk factor for obesity for children 4 through 9 years of age. Teens who watch more than 5 hours of TV per day are 5 times more likely to be overweight than teens who watch 0 to 2 hours. Food advertising and snacking while watching TV can promote obesity.
• Delays in learning & social skills. When infants watch too much TV, they may show delays in attention, thinking, language and social skills. One reason for this could be that they don't interact as much with their family members.

Parents who keep the TV on or spend excess time on their own digital media miss precious opportunities to interact with their children and help them learn.

• Negative effect on school performance. Children and teens often use entertainment media at the same time that they're doing other things, such as homework. Such multitasking can have a negative effect on how well they do
  in school.
• Behaviour problems. Violent content on screens can contribute to behaviour problems in children, either because they are scared and confused by what they see or they try to mimic on-screen characters.
• Problematic internet use. Children who spend too much time using online media can be at risk for problematic internet use. Heavy video gamers are at risk for Internet gaming disorder. They spend most of their free time online and show less interest in offline or real-life relationships. There may be increased risks for depression at both the high and low ends of Internet use.
• Risky behaviours. Teens' displays on social media often show risky behaviours, such as substance use, sexual behaviours, self-injury, or eating disorders. Exposure of teens through media to alcohol, tobacco use, or sexual
  behaviours is linked to engaging in these behaviours earlier.
• Sexting, loss of privacy & predators. Sexting is the sending or receiving of sexually explicit images, videos, or text messages using a smartphone, computer, tablet, etc. Teens need to know that once content is shared with
  others, they may not be able to delete it completely. Kids may also not use privacy settings. Sex offenders may use social networking, chat rooms, e-mail and online games to contact and exploit children.

Make a family media use plan.

• Children today are growing up in a time of highly personalized media use experiences. It's smart to develop a customized media use plan for your children. This helps your kids avoid overusing media by balancing it with other healthy activities.
• A media plan should consider each child's age, health, personality and developmental stage. Remember, all children and teens need adequate sleep (8–12 hours each night, depending on age), physical activity (1 hour a day) and time away from media.

YEAR 5 THAI SHOWCASE: THAI IDIOMS AND POEMS

Students and parents had an enjoyable time competing to recall some Thai idioms based on each letter in the Thai alphabet, which were chosen at random.  This activity gave parents opportunities to connect with their children in a meaningful and entertaining way.     

YEAR 7 MATHS SHOWCASE: TRANSFORMING RECURRING DECIMAL AS FRACTION IN SIMPLEST FORM

The renowned American physicist, Frank Oppenheimer once said, "The best way to learn is to teach". 

In this showcase, Year 7 students gave a step-by-step demonstration on how to convert a recurring decimal number into a fraction in simplest form.  By doing this step by step, students experience a clearer understanding on how to carry out this procedure methodically. 

YEAR 9 BIOLOGY SHOWCASE: RESPIRATORY, CIRCULATORY AND DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

Students in Year 9 had the opportunity to exhibit the different biological systems in the human body, including respiratory, circulatory, and digestive systems.  They also presented many interesting facts relating to the different systems.  With this, we hope they will understand what they have learnt in class at a deeper level.  

YEAR 10 ENGLISH SHOWCASE: THE RAVEN

"The Raven" is a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe published in 1845. It tells of a talking raven's mysterious visit to a distraught lover, tracing the man's slow descent into madness.

Our Year 10 students presented this famous poem in a very creative fashion, by alternating between individual and group narration,allowing everyone to participate, while also developing their team-work skills.

PREP SCIENCE: NATURAL AND PROCESSED FOOD

Healthy eating is beneficial for everyone and is a habit that should start from an early age. This week our Prep science class focused on educating our students about the differences between natural and processed food, and how to classify them. They participated in numerous hands-on activities like separating processed and natural food from a basket. This kind of interactive lesson ensures that the children can learn in a fun and engaging way.

YEAR 1 MATHS: ADDITION AND SUBTRACTION

This week, our Year 1 Maths class focused on topics which we all use in everyday life: addition and subtraction. The students were given numbered cards and asked to pick cards of their choice that would add up to a specific number that the teacher chose. Afterwards, the students wrote equations based on the cards they had used. This is foundational for preparing them to be able to solve more complex equations, which they will come across in the future, during their later studies.

YEAR 2 PE: TEAM-BASED ACTIVITIES

In this Year 2 PE lesson, students participated in many activities like relay races, as well as cup stacking and other team games. The students had to use many interpersonal skills which are essential for character development such as patience, resilience, and the ability to work with others. PE classes like these ensure that students get enough exercise and have plenty of fun while doing so.

YEAR 4 ENGLISH: LEARNING IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN

Once in a while, a change of environment is always beneficial. Our Year 4 students had their English lesson in the school garden, which is a change from the usual classroom environment. As part of their 'Garden Quiz', students had to find and answer questions hidden around the garden based on previous lessons, preparing the students for their upcoming unit test, as well as developing their grammatical skills in a fun and enjoyable way.