Pursuing Peace

The International Day of Peace was observed at DRS international School through a special assembly conducted by the IBDP students directed towards the need for creating and sustaining peace through understanding. The choir sang the song “Where is the love?”, a powerful song was written to commemorate the lives lost in the Brussels terrorist attack.

After the assembly was over, the students of IB Diploma Programme then took to the classes themselves to present the school community with each of the aspects that define peace such as liberty, equality, love, security, religion, trust, hope, life and the rules of law. Each of these aspects was covered by different students of the IB Diploma Programme group. Students of grades 6 to 12 wrote their views on peace on flags. Also, a wall-of-peace was created on which teachers and students wrote their views on world peace. Students also put up a collage depicting the poignant distinction between peace and the lack of it.

After the peace talk was completed, all the students were then asked to add their handprints and write a message that they believed in which would hold true for peace. The International Day of Peace was observed with much somberness and hopefully ignited a ray of hope and courage in many hearts.

A Grand Get Together!

The IB PYP at DRS International School took the opportunity to celebrate the unique bond between grandparents and grandchildren by celebrating this special day on the 15th of September. 

The grandmas and grandpas who were the guests of honor were first greeted and felicitated by their grandchildren with attractive banners and colorful bubbles that added gaiety to the day. 

The International Kindergarten welcomed the gathering with dance performances to cheerful and peppy tracks such as ‘Happy Happy Grandparents Day’ and ‘Welcome You’ while Grade I and Grade IV students let music do the talking with their rendition of special songs such as ‘We Love Grandparents’ and ‘All Things Bright & Beautiful’. 

The Grade-2 students performed a play on ‘Grandparents’ which focused on the importance of grandparents in one’s life and sensitizing one and all about respecting and caring for them, while the Grade-3 students used mime to comically show the ‘Side Effects of recklessly using Mobile Phone’. 

The performance showcase ended with Goan and Hawaiian Dances which were performed by the Grade-5 students involving the grandparents who were very impressed and overwhelmed to see their grandkids performing for them. 

Thereafter, indoor and outdoor games such as ‘Lemon and Spoon Race’, ‘Passing the Balloon’ etc were followed by hands-on activities including painting challenges and a photobooth, which really helped the generations connect, and appreciate the special place they hold in each others’ hearts.

Carleton Calling!

Mr. Rob Finlayson, the Manager for Admissions & Pathways from Carleton University, visited DRS International School to interact personally with the Grade XI-XII CBSE and IBDP students. The various UG courses offered by the university were explained in detail in the session. With our students participating in large numbers, Mr. Finlayson’s session was full of with questions from both students and teachers, ranging from the admission requirements and scholarships, to life in Ottawa and even the coverage of medical insurance.

The students not only obtained more information about education in Canada but thoroughly enjoyed the session.

Today’s Peacemakers, Tomorrow’s Citizens!

On 2nd September 2018, the students of DRSIS have participated in a peace walk organised at KBR Park by Rotary club. Interact Clubs from different schools and the Rotarians participated in this walk.The peace pole was inaugurated by the President of Rotary Club Hyderabad Deccan. 

This peace walk highlighted the need of the awareness of various issues such as drug abuse, prevention of polio, water sanitation, need of peace, etc. The Interact Clubs and Rotarians of different schools united for a cause i.e. the betterment of the society that we live in. 

This peace walk cultivated important life skills in the arts of our students,  them, in the process, to be better global citizens. The walk lasted for 4 kilometers with every member making their voice heard!

The Future Begins Now

DRSIS had conducted a US Universities Fair, in association with Education USA, USIEF Hyderabad. The participation of numerous universities and an overflowing student-parent crowd facilitated meaningful interaction among them. The universities that were present at the fair include:

1. Arizona State University

2. Bradley University

3. Central Michigan University

4. Colorado State University

5. California Baptist University

6. Drexel University

7. Elmhurst College

8. ECPI University

9. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

10. Florida Institute of Technology

11. Foothill + De-Anza Colleges

12. Full Sail University3

13. George Washington University

14. Michigan Technological University

15. Marist College

16. New York Institute of Technology

17. NYU School of Professional Studies

18. North American University

19. Rochester Institute of Technology

20. Stevens Institute of Technology

21. Tiffin University

22. University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

23. University of Massachusetts Lowell 

24. University of South Florida

25. University of Southern California, Viterbi School of Engineering

26. University of Utah 

27. University of Bridgeport

28. Wayne State University

The students and parents could not only get more information with regard to the various undergraduate subject options available but also got their doubts about the documentation process to study in the U.S.A clarified.

Fun, frolic & More!

On the special occassion of Janmasthami, our adorable kids of the International Kindergarten showed their festive spirit by dressing up like Radha and Krishna. A special assembly was conducted to signify the importance of this festival followed by a fun-filled symbolic Dahi-Handi ceremony.

The symbolic Dahi-Handi celebration thrilled and inspired our kindergarteners who cheered one another in turns, enjoyed the music and danced for the special songs that were being played. Overall, their attempts to break the Dahi-Handi was not just adorable to watch, but a sweet memory for the little ones themselves.

As part of the celebrations, the story of the birth of Lord Krishna was also shared with the students through a special screening.

Timeless Bonds

The Teachers’ Day Celebrations at DRS International School was a day full of moments of fun and frolic. An amazing student presentation accompanied the special morning assembly hosted by the primary and secondary students. Heart-warming speeches and musical performances, uproarious skits, and skillfully choreographed dance sequences made the day exceedingly special for the teacher-mentors.

The teachers and students made the day memorable by taking part in various exciting games that brought out the best in each other. The most memorable segment of this day was the ‘Students versus Teachers’ Throwball and Cricket matches which had both teams display sportsmanship and camaraderie. This was followed by a special lunch served by the students for their beloved teachers.

Towards the end of the day, all the teachers got together in the school atrium for a special afternoon featuring ‘Retro Rythms’ by the Music Department and other soulful performances by the facilitators. The teachers enjoyed the special games organized for them and the sweet cake-cutting ceremony organized by the management to mark the day.

The Fun Side of French

The workshop conducted at Merdian Madhapur in collaboration with <Le Frehindi>, lead by Mr. Haru Mehra, the director of Le Frehindi, emphasised on classroom activities and games to ameliorate French vocabulary and listening skills using the App method.

The workshop commenced with the host school students addressing and welcoming the French teachers with French songs and poems.Considering the fact that French doesn’t emphasise on pronouncing the last letters, Mr Haru introduced the inclusion of the colloquial language (Hindi) to the verb conjugations in a rhythmic and rhyming tune (like a song). This aids in retaining the conjugation as well as the pronunciation of the conjugation and makes it unforgettable as well as fun.

The App method of teaching a language comprises of: 

1. Activities

2. Power Point Presentations

3. Phonetics

4. Practice

5. Performance Evaluation

The quality of incorporation of all the five components serves to the efficient delivery of the language.

The significance of conducting a 5 minutes activity to begin the class reaps the benefit of gaining the attention and interest of the students towards the language with added academic benefits.

Certain such activities are Jeu Pendu (HangMan), Les dominos verbaux (Word building); Qui est-ce (Guess the person); etc.,

The active teachers have also shared some of the activities they use in their classroom transactions like Jacques Dit (Simon Says/ Dumbcharades), using a Dictionary to find the Synonym/Antonym of the word.

Supplementing yet another effective activity, <Find the word with sentence clues> which aids the student to understand the grammatical structure to form the sentences plus the pronunciation of the sentences.

The program also included the awareness and importance of Exchange programs for the students by Le Frehindi in France and Spain to experience the culture first hand, along with the cultural and educational trips to Auroville-Pondicherry and BhaluGaad-Uttharakhand.

The workshop has uplifted the spirits, acknowledged and appreciated the efforts of French teachers who are persistent to spread the love for the Language and concurrently also imparted the methods of inducing various activities in teaching for the purpose of pronunciation and enriching the vocabulary of the students.

Green Games!

As part of the Green Day Celebrations at DRSIS, our little ones of the International Kindergarten celebrated the color ‘Green’ in good spirit. The IK-1, IK-2 and IK-3 students came dressed in fancy shades of green and had a gala time. 

To explore the color ‘Green’, the IK-1, IK-2 & IK-3 students presented a special assembly with a showcase of performances on songs related to the color ‘Green’ such as ‘Jelly on a Plate’ by IK-1,’It’s a Beautiful Day’ by IK-2 and M-I-C-K-E-Y Mouse and ‘I Can Do It’ by IK-3. They also enjoyed the outdoor activity of identifying green color through a nature walk and even enjoyed crafting bright and beautiful take-aways of butterflies and bugs, owls and earthworms as a token to remember the celebrations.

Action for Awareness!

As part of the IBDP CAS project on ‘Food Management’, our IBDP-1 students conducted a 6 week long activity from August to September 2018. This involved measuring food waste in the canteen every day by the students, recording it and raising awareness about it. The students put up posters made by themselves and measured the food in the bins and further, wrote it on their class chart and the bulletin board outside the canteen. They also put up a percussion cum talk show in the school canteen during lunch. This was done to raise awareness about food wastage among the students at the school.

                           

A Win to Remember!

Our students under the age group of U-13 and U-16 took part in the 2nd Chairman’s Trophy 2018-19, an Inter-School Basketball Tournament held at St. Peter’s Residential School, Maisammaguda, Kompally on 30th and 31st August,2018 and came home with many laurels. A total of 30 schools from across Hyderabad with over 400 participants took part in the prestigious tournament.

Under several categories of the basketball tournament and over various stages such as the quarters, semifinals and finals, our aspiring players demonstrated exceptional teamwork and skills to emerge as champions of the tournament. They also secured the 1st Runners-Up Trophy in two other categories. Master Nehanth Varma of Grade X-A, was recognized as the most valuable player of the tournament while the most outstanding player of the tournament was declared as Master Vibhi Jain of Grade VIII-D. Additionally, Master Mohit Kumar Modi of Grade IX-B, was also announced as the most promising player of the tournament. A successful tournament, indeed!

Careers, Colleges & More!

The International Career & College Counseling Conference (IC3) 2018 was held in New Delhi from 27th August to 30th August. With the agenda to empower high schools to guide the student community better, the conference witnessed the participation of 700+ high school delegates and 158 universities from across 17 countries.

The sessions ranged from topics such as pursuing Liberal Arts for under-graduation, what measures can students take to find the ‘best-fit’ university, how is the education system evolving in India, to what each university offers in pushing each student to his/her potential for holistic development.

The conference provided many opportunities for networking and gaining understanding about the changing landscape of the higher education segment.