Establishing Routines in our Early Years! - written by Mr Graeme Noble, Early Years Coordinator.  It has been a truly wonderful start to the 2023/2024 year in our Early Years classes. The children are happy to be at school, engaged with learning and are building relationships with each other.

For the first week, establishing routines is fundamental for students in Early Years. This helps them to develop in their self-management skills and become more independent. Students are getting into principled habits by walking nicely in the corridors, being balanced at learning stations and showing care when tidying up.

There are lots of wonderful learning stations set up inside and outside of the classrooms this year in each of our Early Years classrooms. Setting up the learning spaces allows for our students to be engaged and practice a wide variety of skills. These are skills that can be transferred across all areas of learning.

For our assembly this week, we were explicitly taught about the learner profile caring. I must say that I have seen caring in action across the school in Early Years. This is our expectation as we strive for an outstanding year of learning.

Introducing the new IBDP course at Hanova – DP Music - written by Ms Sharon Zhu, DP Coordinator.  We are thrilled to announce an exciting addition to our DP curriculum for the 2023-24 academic year here at Hanova. We are introducing the highly anticipated International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB DP) Music course. This course has been designed to provide a comprehensive and immersive musical education, catering to the diverse interests and talents of our students.

In the new IB DP Music course, students will embark on a transformative journey that combines theoretical knowledge with practical skills. The students will explore genres, styles, and historical periods, deepening their understanding of music's cultural significance. Through hands-on engagement with instruments, composition, and performance, students will hone their technical expertise and develop their unique artistic voice. The course encourages students to engage in ensemble performances, group projects, and interdisciplinary collaborations. With the guidance of our experienced music teacher, our students will cultivate their creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities.

We are confident that this new offering will inspire our students' passion for music and provide them with a solid foundation to pursue further studies or careers. We look forward to witnessing the growth and accomplishments of our students as they embark on this musical journey!

A great start for MYP Drama - written by Mr Ferdinand Els, MYP Drama.  MYP Drama has started off with a bang! Joining us for the first time, the Year 7 students have come to class eager to explore the magical world of theatre and performance. With a little more experience under their belts, the higher grades have dived straight into the creative process: The Year 8 students are exploring physical performance, the Year 9’s are learning about different facets of theatre production,  and the Y10/11 cohort are honing their performance skills in preparation for their monologue presentations. I am truly honoured to be on this creative journey with so many talented individuals and look forward to seeing them share their talents on stage with you all.

Hanova’s little ones are ready for their new journey! - written by Ms Alicia Price, Nursery Teacher.  The start of a school career is always a roller-coaster of emotions - for students AND parents. Hanova’s little ones are ready for their new journey and on Monday they stood in the halls of their new home, faces filled with curiosity, a little bit of fear and a whole lot of excitement. We can imagine parents feeling the very same way. While we don’t know what the future holds for all of these little ones, we know they are off to a great start by joining Hanova.

The first days of school are so different than what kids are used to before coming to school. Here at Hanova we have learned a lot of new routines and school expectations but most importantly - we have made so many new friends that we cannot wait to come back to school every day to play with them.

First week of music classes - written by Mr Desmond Simonis, Music Teacher.  The first week of music at Hanova flew by in a whirlwind of introductions, new classes and exciting new topics being experienced by students and teachers alike.  Primary music students were given their first taste of practical music attempting to play string instruments such as the ukulele and the guitar.

In MYP, students from grades 7-10 have had to hit the ground running exploring the creative skills of composing and arranging musical scores of up to 3-4 parts.  Tasks such as these require a very good level of theoretical knowledge and music literacy.  MYP classes have worked together in a collegiate spirit, sharing their knowledge and demonstrating a collective desire to achieve set tasks in a timely manner.

Diploma students have been introduced to the structure and demands of a challenging and ultimately rewarding course.  Samantha and Tony (year 12) began to explore the topic of socio-political music working towards the ultimate goal of composing a ‘protest’ song to be performed both for the class and in any external settings of their choice eg. At a school assembly.  Both students have demonstrated a good understanding of the social issues and musical concepts and forms being explored.