Going Global

Upper Primary pupils have started up the new school year in a great way. New pupils have joined us and we welcome Matheus and Vitor from Brazil, Aki from Japan, Kavya from India, Martina from Spain and Ariadne from Greece to ISG. Upper Primary pupils are eager to welcome even more pupils to our class, so we look forward to the ones joining us later this year. Upper Primary pupils spent the first school week getting to know each other, with lots of team building activities, and art activities and class room discussions where they got a chance to express who they are. Miss Suparna from India is helping out in Upper Primary a few days per week, and she is already part of the Upper Primary team as well. Pupils decided on what Classroom rules we should have in our class and made a beautiful display on our classroom wall. They have also started incorporating the first Personal Goal, respect, in our different activities and discussions. This year is all about team work, co-operation and good communication = respect!

September is a busy birthday month in Upper Primary. We have already celebrated Ariadne’s birthday, and soon it is time to celebrate Kavya, Diya and Hanna as well! Happy birthday, dear Upper Primary pupils!

Pupils really like the first IPC-unit this school year, ‘Going Global’, and they have already started researching different countries’ export and import, global trading and how to transport commodities around the world. They discuss the pros and cons with global trading – how it affects a country’s economy and how it affects the environment. During an excursion to the city centre they observed and researched our local community, looking specifically at small locally owned and operated shops versus the bigger retail chain stores. They start to see why it is important to buy locally produced items and buy food that grows during a specific season.

They have also looked more into what it means to be a responsible member of a smaller community – like our school community – and bigger communities – like being a citizen in a country or even part of the global community. To sum up the classroom discussion, pupils agreed that we share responsibilities, we have to take care of each other and our planet. Now, pupils have started looking into tourism and how it affects a country. They can see both positive and negative effects.

Pupils are working on grammar, vocabulary and writing skills during Literacy lessons. These first weeks, they review previous grammar learning by working their way through the different word classes. Why are adjectives useful? Will extended noun phrases make a text to specific? Is it important to stay in the same verb tense when writing? They will need these skills when writing independently. During reading sessions, pupils also work on their language skills – pupils add words to their vocabulary, work on correct pronunciation and discuss the meaning of different types of texts.

During Numeracy lessons, pupils are now revisiting basic number facts, like place value and good strategies for adding and subtracting numbers. Some methods are easier to use than others, but it is good to have an array of methods to choose from when starting to work with more complex questions.  

Upper Primary pupils are in for a great year together! School has just started, and they are already busy learning and sharing their knowledge, skills and understanding!