Elementary School

La misteriosa vita dei Germo’GLI’

I bambini e le bambine di Grade 2K hanno festeggiato il ritorno a scuola e l’arrivo della primavera scoprendo la misteriosa vita dei germogli, fatta d’acqua, sole e… dal suono dolce “gli”!

VAN GOGH FEVER IN GRADE 4

Grade 4 students have been working hard during the last two weeks of school, continuing their classwork online and becoming independent learners who take responsibility for their work. During Art lessons, the children have been discovering Vincent Van Gogh and his masterpieces. Inspired by the artist, they created their own pieces by choosing their own style and materials to recreate some of his most famous pieces of art. The students have caught the Van Gogh spirit, as demonstrated in their effectively drawn pieces of work.

Ms Grace

Grade 4 Teache

In giro per il Friuli – Venezia Giulia… anzi no!

Con la metà del secondo trimestre, il programma di geografia di quinta entra nel vivo e finalmente vengono assegnati gli approfondimenti, tanto attesi dagli studenti, legati alla scoperta del nostro territorio. Si tratta di ricerche che partono dalla visita di persona di piccoli borghi caratteristici della nostra regione che spiccano per il loro valore storico, artistico, architettonico o naturalistico.

Ogni alunno, basandosi sull’esperienza diretta della scoperta della località assegnata, realizza una ricerca su cartellone o libretto fotografico. Le aree di approfondimento sono legate agli aspetti linguistici, paesaggistici e delle tradizioni popolari. Un appuntamento sicuramente atteso, accentuato dal fatto che dall’anno scorso non è possibile organizzare gite e uscite didattiche, pertanto quale migliore occasione per vivere un’esperienza allo stesso momento utile e distensiva.

Quindi, tutti pronti a viaggiare per il Friuli – Venezia Giulia? Macché… Al momento delle assegnazioni delle località non avevo fatto i conti con i colori e le restrizioni, causa pandemia, che hanno impedito a gran parte degli studenti di recarsi nel luoghi prefissati. Solo qualche alunno più fortunato è riuscito ad approfittare dell’ultimo weekend in zona gialla per visitare la località e realizzare la ricerca (bravissime Elisa di gr.5R e Sofia di gr.5T). 

Malgrado le limitazioni, il progetto è solo rimandato. Avremo modo di concludere il lavoro più avanti, quando sarà finalmente possibile muoversi all’interno della nostra regione. Intanto, i miei alunni stanno scaldando i motori e più di qualcuno mi ha svelato in che modo svilupperà il progetto! Forza allora, non vediamo l’ora di immergerci nelle ricerche del tour friulano!

Paola Bazan

Insegnante di Italiano Grade 5

Grade 1’s Spring Poster

As a joint effort and cross subject project, the Grade 1 children have unified Italian, IT and Art to collaboratively design a poster that represents Spring for them. Their task was to capture an image that had signs of Spring. Then they dropped their pictures in a shared file on google drive and/or emailed them. Subsequently we have met on zoom and with the aid of google drawings the children uploaded their chosen pictures and decorated them with a “hand drawn” borders. This is the wonderful outcome!

Mr JP  – ICT teacher

Maestra Sara – Italian Teacher

Grade 5 studies NASA’s Perseverance Rover

You could have heard a pin drop as the Grade 5 students awaited the 7 minutes necessary for NASA’s Perseverance Rover to enter Mars’ atmosphere and descend to its surface on February 18th, after approximately seven months in flight. Echoing the cheer of the crew at NASA headquarters, the students experienced first-hand the core motivations which push exploration forward… the never-ending desire and curiosity to know more about our world and beyond. 

As the students await news of signs of ancient life and rock and regolith samples from the Red Planet, they have been doing some exploring of their own, carrying out research about conditions on the fourth planet from the sun, and examining raw images of Mars sent to Earth from the Rover. Like the engineers at NASA, they’ve designed and built a helicopter, like the model attached to the Rover, that is deployed to places the Rover can’t reach. More importantly, the students have worked in teams to adjust the performance of their first helicopter model, calibrating the rotor blades and the angles of incidence formed between the rotor and its body. Students on distance learning contributed to the process, sharing their observations and hypotheses, and demonstrating their constructions. 

Needless to say, NASA’s ground-breaking mission in outer space has given both students and teachers lots to wonder about here on Earth, and its findings could very likely change our understanding of the universe. The budding aerospace engineers are deep in inquiry, asking some pretty tough questions. As adults, we don’t always have the answers, but embracing the curiosity together with our students sets us on the quest together, discovering more each day about our universe. In their enthusiasm, the students are already looking forward to a day when the “I” in UIS doesn’t just stand for “international”, but includes “interplanetary” students as well! 

Mara Tramontin 

Head of Elementary School and Grade 5 Teacher

CREATING CHARACTERS IN GRADE 5

This week, Grade 5T would like to introduce you to the newest UIS student, a porcupine they have named “Ricci Junior”. Now, Ricci isn’t just any porcupine. Ricci reads, writes, solves Math problems and even participates in Guided Reading groups. Two students in particular, Stella and Giorgia, have supplied him with everything he needs to feel right at home: a UIS school cap, a personal diary, a computer, and writing supplies. They have even offered him help with challenging concepts. The students have been brainstorming how Ricci could become a character for a series of children’s books, imagining all the adventures their friendly rodent could experience. Stay tuned for Ricci’s future escapades! 

Mara Tramontin 

Grade 5 Teacher

First Signs of Spring in the Garden.

When the Grade One students first heard they wouldn’t be able to bring their toys from home to share during this time, there were certainly some disappointed faces. With time, however, they have tapped into their creative juices, finding fun and lively ways to play during recess time. Lately, with the arrival of the first Spring days, they have been exploring the unexpected changes in the school garden, marvelling over new buds, leaves, and flowers. Playing tag games in the sun and making paper airplanes to fly in the breeze have been super popular activities! 

The Grade One Teachers