Creating Cultures of Thinking – two quite distinct projects being worked on by our Year 1 and Year 5 students.
Yin Yang Island Development Project
Our Year 1 students have been working on a project to develop ‘’Yin Yang Island’’, acting as a metaphor for the Earth and the challenges it faces. Yin Yang Island is a fictitious island in the South Pacific. The Sultan, or supreme ruler of the island chain which includes Yin Yang Island, has commissioned a development study with a proposed investment of up to $500 million. The Year 1 teams formed development companies and created proposals to attract inward investment in the island. Each team will be ready to explain their concept, show you a model of their project and also a brochure. You will be asked to vote on the best concept and the winning team will be given an unusual and exciting prize. The winning team will run the school for a day, taking over the Headmaster’s role, his office and face some expected challenges in running a school.
Knowledge News Network Television News Show
Knowledge News Network or (KNN) is a student-driven media initiative. The students, alongside their teachers and a professional videographer, created a news programme with a twist. In the style of Panorama (UK) or Události (CZ), KNN doesn’t only report the news as it is but reports on how we know what we know or how we gather and assess the facts. In part a response to the rise of “clickbait” media and fake news and in part to enrich our IB Theory of Knowledge Programme, KNN asks students to demand more rigour of themselves in exactly how they know the things they know rather than simply accepting knowledge at face value. With the use of a green screen to create our news studio and weather report, and various locations in and around the College, KNN tackles the hot topics of the year – technology, equality and the environment – and immerses students in the experience of being a journalist and news producer. If you are interested in your child developing skills in investigative journalism, media and film production, or simply improving critical thinking skills, please encourage them to get involved in this project and, of course, come along.
