Vol 44: Issue 5 (January 2023)

Happy New Year!

Welcome to our first blog of the year!

2023 is indeed in full swing here at ACA.

Take a first new year’s walk down memory lane with us,

as we bring you all the fresh highlights from JANUARY…

Happy New Year, and WELCOME to Semester II!

We are excited for the year ahead and look forward to bringing you more from life at ACA. Make sure you scroll all the way down to the end for our all-inclusive new year’s recap in our January 2023 issue. There is something for everyone! Here are some of this month’s highlights:

ACA’S International Flag Day

Friday, January 20, 2023

ACA’s Flag Ceremony, with the theme “Ask of Me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance” featured a parade of 17 selected students, dressed in their cultural attire, carrying the flag of his/her country. Students and staff honored each nation, standing in silence while a brief portion of each national anthem was played.

The 17 flags representing ACA students’ nationalities for the 2022-2023 year (Nigeria, Ghana, India, Lebanon, Syria, Venezuela, Russia, Italy, Kenya, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt, Pakistan, China, United Kingdom, and the United States of America) are now waving proudly above JC Hall.

ACA has welcomed students from over 60 nations in just over 30 years (since 1991).

MLK DAY

Monday, January 16, 2023

Martin Luther King Jr. Day (US) is celebrated on the third Monday in January to honor the life and legacy of civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr. Students from Preschool through High School gathered during their different assemblies to learn from the life of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968), a man of faith, courage and love, and indeed one of the world’s greatest heroes who suffered greatly, fought oppression, and won freedom through non-violent resistance.

Monthly Class Features

Preschool

As we welcomed our young Preschoolers into the new year and back to school, one of our major highlights was our ACA League of Nations Flag Ceremony. Here are some of our younger Preschoolers (CRÈCHE, PRE-NURSERY & NURSERY) all dressed up in their cultural attire!

NURSERY Planting Activities: Students learned about the needs of plants

PRE-K Show & Tell: “Sharing is Caring”

PRE-K Literacy: Learning 3-letter words in the “at” word family

PRE-K Mystery Reader: Ms. Abbie was our mystery reader this month!

Elementary School

Our Elementary Schoolers were not left out of our ACA League of Nations Flag Ceremony celebrations. We caught a few on the playground, all dressed up in their cultural attire:

Meanwhile, in our classrooms, our students rang in the new year with different activities, before settling in to another month of learning at ACA. Here’s a spotlight on our First Graders, who are halfway through their first year of Elementary School!

“HAPPY NEW YEAR!”

1ST GRADE Art: “Happy New Year!”

1st Grade kicked off 2023 with some new year’s art – handmade masks and crowns!

1ST GRADE Science: Movement

First Graders had a fun time playing in pairs with foil as golf balls and straws as golf clubs. The students were then divided into groups where they created their model design of a golf course, club and ball, as well as the entry point for easy movement of the ball… Can we pause for a moment and give a round of applause for our young engineers here?! WOW!

Continuing their lesson on movement, students and teacher moved around the court learning and demonstrating different forms of movement: round, straight, spiral and zig-zag.

1ST GRADE Math: Counting in 10’s and Rounding Numbers Up/Down

Our young mathematicians jumped over the number line, counting down and up in 10’s. They then learned how to round up numbers.

Our lesson continued with a math game of Scoot! The students rounded up numbers to the nearest tens using their scoot cards.

1ST GRADE Star of the Week

Every week, the star of the week gets a special treat! Here are a few highlights from last month’s special: lunch with mom and reading/storytelling!

2ND GRADE Science: Matter (Physical vs. Chemical Changes)

Second Graders learned to distinguish between physical and chemical changes in this physical science lesson on ‘matter’. The change from flour, sugar and yeast to these donuts was one that could not be reversed. So… “Donuts for everyone!”

3RD GRADE Science: Motion & Electricity

In this month’s Science lesson, we have been learning all about different types of motion, such as circular, angular, and periodic motion. And what better way to demonstrate than outdoors!

Third Graders then learned about static electricity and experimented using balloons, wool and hair to display static electricity. The students went on to experiment with circuits.

4TH GRADE Science: Potential and Kinetic Energy

It’s a science lesson in the playground (what?!) Fourth Graders learned about kinetic and potential energy on slides, swings, and anything else they could find around them on the playground. Some of us grown-ups might not mind shrinking for a day just to experience science class (and more!) at ACA. Does anyone remember their “Elementary School” classes being this fun and engaging? We are happy to see just how much our students are learning in this way, and their immediate practical applications to real-world scenarios.

4TH GRADE Field Trip: UI Zoological Garden

4TH GRADE Science Experiment: “Which materials keep water hot longer?”

5TH GRADE Science Experiment:

Middle School

7TH GRADE Chemistry Experiment

Students learned how to safely and accurately use different experimental techniques, apparatus and materials. This will aid their ability to plan experiments and investigations. We conducted various separation techniques and tests to carry out a wide range of qualitative analyses.

7TH GRADE Design & Technology (DT)

7th Graders made boxes from strawboard

8TH GRADE Art

Art students were introduced to drawing in the style of Charles Bargue through imitation.

High School

9TH GRADE Independent Project (IP)

Our student-led IP’s are in full-swing! Here, two high schoolers repaint the playground treehouse for our younger ACA family to enjoy. Stay tuned for more awesome IP features in our next blog!

11TH–12TH GRADE Entrepreneurship

As part of our 11th–12th Grade pre-university program, social science courses prepare students for independent research work and methods in their undergraduate studies and beyond. For her preliminary dissertation review, Ninma (12th Grade) presented her findings on her selected research project so far – “Racism in the Workplace: A Study of How Racism Affects Employee Productivity and Business in the USA”. We are so proud of her growth so far and look forward to her final dissertation next month!

11TH–12TH GRADE Art: Drawing like Charles Bargue

11TH–12TH GRADE Music Appreciation

Student Body Government (SBG)

SBG Bake Sale: A Fundraiser for SBG Events

January 30, 2023

Parents

Our commitment to parental involvement in the lives of our children here at ACA continues to hold true. We kicked off the new year with PTA meetings scheduled throughout the month of January to keep parents up-to-date with new developments all across school and also welcome their input.

All-School PTA Meeting (Semester I) – January 13, 2023