It has been another wonderful week at Panaga School, full of energy and enthusiasm from our students. This week has been Maths Week, and the children have enjoyed a wide range of exciting activities and competitions, including our own version of Countdown (a TV favourite that some of our UK parents will know well!). Across the school, subjects beyond maths have also been highlighting mathematical links, helping children see just how important and relevant maths is in our everyday lives.
In addition to the focus on mathematics, we are currently in the process of selecting leadership positions for our Teraja and Melilas Student Councils, as well as our newly formed Rampayoh Student Council, which is proudly led by our Year 3 children. It is wonderful to see so many of our students stepping forward to take on leadership roles and contribute to our school community.
We are also pleased to introduce House Captains and Deputy House Captains this year, as we continue to expand the breadth and depth of our House competitions. This will provide even more opportunities for teamwork, leadership, and healthy competition across the school.
Thank you to our Early Years and Key Stage 1 parents who attended the Settling In meetings this week. Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 Settling In meetings will take place during Week 6, and we look forward to welcoming parents then.
Our After School Activities (ASAs) have also commenced this week, and it has been wonderful seeing the children immerse themselves in activities they are passionate about, as well as trying something new.
Congratulations to our Year 6 athletes who represented the school so well, this morning, in the first BJSLevent of the year.
Thank you to our Parent Reps who attended our meeting this morning. Valuable feedback was received regarding school photos, ASA pick-ups, healthy eating (including allergy awareness), and our counselling provision. We will be hosting a Parent Forum on Healthy Eating before the end of this half term, eliciting further information about last year’s school photos, and providing clarity on ASApick-ups.
It was also agreed that the Parent Reps will be rebranded as the Panaga Parent Community Committee (PPCC), which will continue to have two broad purposes:
1. Aid communication between school and parents
2. Help organise social and informative events for the community
We are having a few issues with the Parent Calendar on the School Website and are working hard to rectify this. You can still access calendar details by using this link: Parent Events Calendar
There will be lots of exciting events next week including International Dot Day on Rampayoh, a special screening of 'Ocean' by David Attenborough, a FOBISIA Code Breaking Challenge Competition and our United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Day. Adate for your diary is a joint JIS and Panaga School Parents Coffee Morning on the 10th October (see poster for further details).
Finally, good luck to our Spelling Bee competitors for tomorrow.
Wishing everyone a lovely and safe weekend. Don’t forget that school will be closed on Tuesday—but we are very much open on Monday!
Best Wishes, Brian, SLTand all of our staff.
CounsellingService
Mr Chris is our school Counsellor. He will be in Teraja on Wednesdays andThursdays.
If you would like to arrange a meeting with him to speak about your child or for your child to have a session with Chris, then please email:
Counsellor@Panagaschool.net
Parents of any children who were having regular sessions last year with Mr. Dean will also need to contact Chris if they wish their child to continue with regular sessions.
Encouraging your children to talk is the best way to help them recognise and process their feelings
ArrivalsandDepartures
At Panaga we want to maximise learning time and encourage punctuality for all students.
PLEASE NOTE - REGISTRATION IS PART OF THE SCHOOL DAY SO CHILDREN SHOULDARRIVE IN TIME FOR THIS.
At the end of registration time the registers close and children need to be registered at the admin office where they will be recorded as late.
We understand that delays happen, so if you are going to be late for pick up, please inform us so we can reassure your child
Section Arrival time Registration Departure time ASA
PN and N Mendaram From 7:40 From 7:40 11:50 - 12:00
Collect children from classrooms N/A
Reception to Year 2
Rampayoh 7:15-7:30 7:30 to 7:40 14:00*
Year 3
Collect children from classrooms 14:05 to 14:50 (Reception only from term 2)
Rampayoh 7:10-7:20 7:20 to 7:30** 14:35 ***
Collect children from the Foyer 14:45 - 15:30
Years 4-8
Teraja/ Melilas 7:00-7:20 7:20 to 7:30 14:35
Collect children from the Foyer
Collect children from the Foyer
Notes
*Rampayoh parents can wait with children in the central play area or in the library
**Year 3 parents with a sibling inYear 1 or 2 can leave the child with the LSAon duty in the play area from 7:20
***Year 3 Pick up could be on Rapmayoh orTeraja depending on specialist lessons and assemblies
Spelling Bee Competition WHOLE SCHOOL International Dot Day
After last year’s fantastic performance fromYear 6, our current team had a lot to live up to!The competition was, as always, highly competitive. As our athletes moved from station to station, they continued to generate points for the team. With pupils from JIS, ISB, ISB (Seria) and Hornbill, there was no room for mistakes!
Amazingly, our athletes gained enough points to again be crowned BJSL Year 6 IndoorAthletics Champions for 2025! I cannot stress how proud I was of their effort, skill level, athleticism, competitiveness and behaviour.They really are a credit to our school and community!
Growth Mindset at Panaga School
At Pana a School we’ve been practisin all week to prepare or the FOBISIA Code Breakin Challen e on Wednesday 24th September. Throu h code breakin , we build mathematical lo ic, problem-solvin , and—most importantly—a rowth mindset.
A rowth mindset means ocusin on improvement rather than worryin about rades or “bein smart.” Challen es and mistakes aren’t setbacks—they’re opportunities to row and stretch our abilities. Everyone can improve their maths skills with practice, effort, and uidance rom our teachers.
Here are some simple steps we can all take to stren then a rowth mindset:
● Acknowled e weaknesses: Don’t hide them—work on them until they become stren ths.
● Embrace challen es: Tackle problems step by step, lesson by lesson.
● Show rit: Keep chippin away at home learnin and practice—pro ress takes time, but it will come.
With effort, perseverance, and the ri ht mindset, every student can improve and achieve more in Mathematics and beyond.
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”
― Dr. Seuss, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut! Enjoyyourweek!
Does anyone know this animal? We found it in the pond and it looks pretty awesome.
A house points goes to the first student to tell Mr. Ben whatitis.
This Tuesday lunch became Tadpole Tuesday as some of our excellent scientists took it upon themselves to save some froglet friends from the fast drying puddles. We had fun, made some great observations and only ended up with one slightly soggy foot. Then it rained some more!
Exploring the World of Animals: Year 3 NTC’s Creative Adventure
InYear 3 NTC, we’ve been having a fantastic time studying the topic of animals. Our journey began with learning vocabulary to describe animal skin, from scaly to fuzzy, and everything in between. But we didn’t stop there! We wanted to make our learning even more exciting and hands-on. So, we took the classroom outdoors for a special activity: aTreasure Hunt around the school to discover natural elements that could mimic animal skin.
Nature’sTexture
Armed with curiosity and creativity, the students searched for objects in nature that could represent different animal skins.They quickly realized that nature has so much to offer! For instance, moss felt like soft fur, and tree bark became the perfect stand-in for tough elephant skin.The kids were amazed by how textures from the natural world could easily be compared to those of animals they knew.
Imaginary Creatures Come to Life
After our treasure hunt, the students worked on planning their own imaginary animals.They brainstormed everything from their animal’s skin to what material to use.. But the fun didn’t stop with planning. Once they started creating their animals, the students realized that their initial ideas could be improved. Maybe the wings would work better as leafy structures, or the skin could be smooth as stone instead of bumpy.The result?A truly stunning array of imaginative creatures that reflected their growing understanding of nature’s materials.
Why Is it Good to Go Outside?
Stepping outside and engaging with the world around us has many benefits. By using natural elements, we not only made our learning more fun and interactive, but we also deepened our understanding of how nature works. When students can see, touch, and feel real textures, it helps them understand concepts better than just reading from a textbook. For example, feeling the roughness of tree bark or the softness of moss gave the students a tangible connection to what they were studying.
Outdoor experiences also encourage creativity and problem-solving.As they searched for materials to match their plans, students had to think outside the box, adapt their ideas, and work together to make new discoveries.There’s something special about learning by doing—it helps students retain information and boosts their confidence.
Finally, being outside encourages teamwork and exploration.The students collaborated with each other during the treasure hunt, sharing ideas and finding new ways to connect with the natural world.
InYear 3 NTC, we’ve discovered that learning about animals doesn’t just mean reading about them. It’s about getting hands-on, experiencing nature up close, and letting our imaginations run wild.The results of our creative work are nothing short of amazing, and we can’t wait to continue exploring the animal kingdom—both in the classroom and beyond!
Year 3 Entry Point
“Chocolate”
Our chocolate unit started ever so sweetly with the children become expert chocolate tasters. First we breathed in the aroma - was it fruity, floral, nutty; then we took a small amount and moved it round in our mouths seeing if the texture was creamy or dry, paying close attention to the speed at which it melted; lastly we ate the whole piece trying to work out the flavour and thinking about the after taste! We showed amazing reflection and inquiry skills.
The Legacy of Ancient Greece
What did theAncient Greeks ever do for us? The children inYear 7 are on a Spartacular odyssey this half term to investigate this question in their history lessons. So far, they have found out the following ways in which the ancient past is all around them in the modern world:
- The Doric Greek columns in the Melilas area and many governmental buildings around the world.
- Around 20% of English words are derived from Greek.
- Athens was the world’s first democracy. Our students will be using a democratic process next week when choosing their representative for the Student Council.
- Many Greek myths are well known and still enjoyed by children today.
- The Olympic Games began in 776 BCE and are still enjoyed by people around the world every four years.
- Modern medicine and the scientific method originate fromAncient Greece.
- Let’s not forget theAncient Greeks’contribution to art, philosophy, theatre mathematics and so much more.
During Maths Week, the children make clepsydrae (water clocks) and learnt how Eratosthenes measured the circumference of the Earth to within 1% of the correct measurement using only logic. Here are some photos of their clepsydrae.
Wildlife Warriors: Kicking Off an Exciting NewYear!
The very first Wildlife Warriors meeting of the year was buzzing with excitement! This popularASAhas grown to an incredible 38 students fromYear 3 toYear 7 — it’s inspiring to see so many young people eager to change the world and protect our environment.
This year, our main focus will be on reducing single-use plastics, and we have plenty of exciting projects lined up.To kick things off, students watched a powerful film highlighting the impact of single-use plastics on our planet.Afterwards, they got creative by designing posters for our very first Zero Waste Lunch, which will take place on 25th September.
Remember — even the youngest person can make a difference. Every voice matters, however small!
Mandarin
In Mandarin lessons, students have been working on Chinese numbers from 1 to 99, practicing both recognition and writing. This activity helps them strengthen memorizationwhiledevelopingcharacterrecognitionskills, layingastrongfoundationforfuturelearning.
French at Rampayoh!
Year 3 French students enjoyed cross-curricular activities that combined maths and language learning, practicing numbers in French while making simple additions. As always,theyexcelledintheirweeklysingingfrenchrhymes!
FUN IN FRENCH
In Year 4 and 5, students have been creating their own puppets to practise French dialogues — it’s so much more exciting to act out conversations when you can pretend to be different characters!The children even collected their own sticks from outdoors and dressed them in little scraps of fabric to bring their characters to life.
We’ve also been following instructions and playing language games using the Gianfranco Conti method, which the students absolutely love. Some lessons have taken us outside, where the children followed instructions in French and used natural resources (including water!) as background instruments to bring their dialogues alive.
As part of our learning, Year 4 and 5 have even been doing maths in French using numbers 1–12 with all four operations — a fun way to practise vocabulary while strengthening their number skills!
In Year 6, we’ve begun exploring jungle animals, and through self-discovery, the students have learned that French nouns are either masculine or feminine.They have been playing lots of engaging games to revise grammar, and are now busy describing which animals live in their imaginary jungles.
We can’t wait to share more of our language-learning adventures with you — watch this space!
SpanishisBackinMelilas!
Spanish is finally back in Melilas, and our students are off to a fantastic start!
In the first few weeks, we’ve been focusing on Spanish pronunciation and exploring how nouns are either masculine or feminine, using indefinite articles.The students are finding Spanish surprisingly easy — and fun!
We play lots of games in our language lessons to help the grammar stick. Sometimes the games are a bit silly, but that’s exactly why they work! Changing activities regularly keeps everyone on their toes and makes learning exciting.
We’ve also been practising speaking and listening through interactive games, and students are quickly realising that Spanish words aren’t difficult to pronounce at all.
After learning how to use indefinite articles in both singular and plural, students are already writing and speaking full sentences to describe which jungle animals they have in their house. Who says language learning has to make sense? Trust us — they are learning Spanish properly, and having a great time doing it!
Get Ready for UNSDG Day – 25th September!
On Wednesday 25th September, our school will be celebrating the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) — 17 global goals that help protect our planet, people, and wildlife.
To get everyone excited, we’ve made three fun Blooket games that you can play at home together.
Each one is made for a different age group — so please choose the one that matches your child’s key stage:
● Key Stage 1 (Ages 5–7) — fun facts about nature, water, animals and helping friends
