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- Parent Essentials
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- Physical Education
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"Why An Eco-Edventure?"
As early years and primary practitioners we all embrace the importance and benefits of children exploring outside in a natural environment. It provides a rich sensory experience to smell, touch, hear, and taste. This in turn helps develop the child’s sensory skills, which are crucial for cognitive learning. When interacting outside with children, practitioners observe them developing an understanding of growth and decay through being exposed to living organisms such as plants and insects. This leads to a two-way line of enquiry between teacher and child.
The Early Learning Goals, that form an essential part of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) we follow at BIS Abu Dhabi, state that children will explore the natural world around them, making observations and drawing pictures of animals and plants, they will know some similarities and differences between the natural world around them and contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class, and they will understand some important processes and changes in the natural world around them, including the seasons and changing states of matter. With our new Eco-Edventure and the experiences it will provide, we will be better able to support our children in reaching these goals.
Retrospective studies have shown that adults’ attitudes to nature are shaped by their childhood experiences with nature. There is a real concern that natural green spaces may be significantly reduced or cease to exist altogether, if the trend of ‘Nature Deficit Disorder’ continues.
“What Challenges Did We Face?”
Initially, we were asked to ‘think big’ and we came with an elaborate plan of interconnecting biomes under a glass dome. We envisioned cascading waterfalls, spritzing mists, butterflies, and tropical birds. We soon found out that the space we had earmarked for the Eco-Edventure did not lend itself to a large dome. The electricity required to run a functioning air conditioner to keep a glass structure of this size was not sustainable, and so back to the drawing board we went. Through careful research, we discovered that butterflies and tropical birds need specialised care and feeding. We then compromised and decided to have a semi-open structure to allow natural wildlife such as birds and insects to visit. The plans below will give you an insight into the finished Eco-Edventure area.
In episode 3 of our blog, we will focus on the ‘How’, looking more closely at some of the areas in the Eco-Edventure and exploring the function of these and how they will support our students’ learning.
Having seen the plans, we have a question for you, ‘How can we use Tilapia fish in our Eco-Edventure?’ Email us your answers at eco-edventure@bisad.ae.
The Eco-Edventurers
The end of the year is a time for reflection and celebration, as well as an opportunity to look ahead.
During the last weeks, we have celebrated students at the Sports Awards Assemblies, welcomed fathers sharing time with students in the Early Years team, enjoyed end-of-term showcases across many year groups, attended IB presentations, participated in a Science Fair hosted by the Science CCA, and watched the Dance Production, BISAD’s Got Talent Show, and the Music Open Mic event, to name but a few.
Earlier in June, a group of our IB students jetted off to Iceland for an unforgettable adventure. Damian Toader from 12A shares his experience of this incredible trip, capturing the essence of Iceland's breathtaking landscapes and unique natural phenomena through his lens as the group's photographer.
Dear Parents,
As we approach the end of this term and the academic year, we take great pride in celebrating the multitude of successes our children have achieved. This period has been filled with events showcasing the diverse talents and interests of our students here at BIS Abu Dhabi. From the creativity of our dance performances, our success at sports competitions to the incredible ongoing school trips, from the talent displayed at the BISAD’s Got Talent audition and our Open Mic sessions to the World Scholars Cup and the Quran reading, our calendar has been brimming with opportunities for our students to shine.
The British International School Abu Dhabi
