HBH_October 8, 2021

OCTOBER 8, 2021 | AY 2021 - 2022

HONEY BADGER
HERALD

Domuschola International School Newsletter

Message from the
Head of School

Angelica R. Fernandez de Castro

Dear Domuschola community,

This week was a special week. We honored our dear teachers and expressed to them our
appreciation for all their selfless service. We did not only celebrate Teachers’ Day, we
celebrated Teachers’ Week!

We started the week with a Faculty Briefing where we, in the Leadership Team, greeted all
the teachers. It was our opportunity to recognize all their hard work and dedication,
especially in this time of pandemic.

Last Wednesday, we in the administration prepared a special program for our faculty. Each
member of the Leadership Team shared their messages for the teachers in a short video.
Then, members of the administration led different games when we went into breakout
rooms. They all came back to our main meeting room laughing. All seemed to have
enjoyed the games we prepared. After our hour-long celebration, the Student Council also
prepared an activity, where they had a quiz about some interesting facts about their
teachers.

And finally, thank you dear parents, for the class passes that you are offering to our
teachers. They are really looking forward to a fun and relaxing afternoon today. And as an
added bonus, our school community is invited to attend an inspirational talk by Mr. Francis
Kong entitled, “Passion, Purpose, and Productivity.” Hope to see you all tomorrow at 2:00
pm. Thank you to our dear PSA.

To our dear teachers, our Heartliners, thank you, thank you very much for responding to
the call of this wonderful vocation of teaching. Remember, “To teach is to touch a life
forever.”

OCTOBER 8, 2021 | AY 2021 - 2022

Also for this week, we have successfully launched our Mental Health Month daily
activities that consist of coping strategies beneficial to our physical, emotional, and
psychological well-being. Specifically, the entire community shared what they chose to
do for themselves during the “Chooseday Tuesday” activity as well as words of gratitude
and self-appreciation for “Thankful Thursday.” Please feel free to visit the Padlet sites
and you can actually add more entries and show affirmation and support by commenting
on the posts of others. Furthermore, we already started with our first run of Workout
Wednesday this week. Through this, we are hoping the entire community would
consider any physical activity a priority because it is definitely good, not only for their
physical condition, but also for their mental health.

Have a restful and safe weekend ahead!

PRIMARY SCHOOL 3

MAKING CONNECTIONS IN MUSIC

At the beginning of the school year, it is imperative that Music lessons begin with Beat
and Rhythm, especially since these are the most basic elements of Music. Steady Beat
gives music its pulse, while Rhythm showcases its sound patterns. Both are necessary to
help musicians, composers, and the audience to keep in time. Games, songs, chants,
body percussion, and rhythmic instruments were all used by the students from
Kindergarten to Grade 2 to reinforce these concepts in all PYP levels to varying degrees.

Unit 1 was the Kindergarten students’ first foray into Music as part of their curriculum.
They first learned how to identify common sound sources through many listening
exercises. By the end of the unit, the students are able to distinguish natural from
artificial sounds and pleasant from unpleasant sounds. They then came to know how to
hear and listen to steady beats in common sound sources, chants, and songs. By using
their favorite toys as beat buddies and their bodies to express steady beats in songs, they
were able to share something about themselves in relation to their Myself and Others
unit.

PRIMARY SCHOOL 4

Meanwhile, the Grade 1 students learned that Music is very much a part of one’s healthy
lifestyle. By understanding the elements of Steady Beat, Rhythm, Tempo, and Dynamics,
they learned that knowing how to move rhythmically with a beat and applying the right
speed and volume to music can help us enjoy healthy physical activities even more! By
the end of their unit on Health and Well-Being, the students were able to put together
what they learned through a class composition, which they used to perform a pound
fitness routine as their final output in Music and PE. They were surprised to discover
that rhythm patterns can keep one healthy!

The Grade 2 students’ rhythm sense was reinforced further this year with the
introduction of new rhythm symbols. Feeling the strong and weak beats was
strengthened even more this year too, especially when they learned that most pieces of
music have beats that are grouped into 2s, 3s, and 4s. In doing this, the students
discovered that relationships are not just for people. Relationships are present in music
as well. We cannot create a song with just a single sound or rhythmic symbol. Just like
people, music symbols rely on each other in groups too, in order to create beautiful
music together.

PRIMARY SCHOOL 5

All in all, the Music program for Lower Primary was off to a great start! We look forward
to more creative musical compositions and activities in the coming units.

SECONDARY SCHOOL 6

GRADE 12 STUDENTS SIT IN THE MIND OF
CHARACTERS

For their formative assessment, the Grade 12 students play the role of one character in
the play they are studying this semester. 12th Night by David Henry Hwang is a play
about the mystery of the Orient and the supposed strength of the West. The objective of
the story is for the students to showcase their interpretation and analysis of the
characters they have studied through their resourceful and creative versions.

Aika as Maria Orange as Olivia Vyktor as Orsino

Yoachim as Sir Andrew Aquecheek Ethan as Sir Toby

STUDENT LIFE 7

Everyone’s school journey consists of memories that are worth remembering. Moving to
a new school is exciting! However, some families move from one country to another for
various good reasons, requiring the children to move schools as well. It then becomes
another exciting experience full of hope, while also missing the school, the teachers,
classmates, and friends even before they leave. The silver lining to this is the
opportunity for the children to develop resilience, get to experience new cultures, and
become more international-minded.

In this issue of the Honey Badger Herald, we send off Renzo and Juliana Lacida with good
wishes and we look forward to seeing them again. Hopefully, that would be when the
pandemic is over. We wish them well in their future endeavors.

STUDENT LIFE 8

The experience both of us siblings, Juliana and Renzo Lacida, had here in Domuschola
was one we will not be able to forget. Both of us joined the Domuschola community in
2018, when we started in Grade 4 and Grade 7. Our journeys included a lot of twists and
turns, all for the better. This was the first time we have lived in the Philippines, despite
us being Filipinos. Through events and the Domuschola Community, we got to learn
more about where we come from and the Filipino culture.

Something the two of us had appreciated in Domuschola was the growth we both had
here. We were able to strengthen our voice, confidence, and our academic grades. What
also helped incredibly was the community we were put in. For us, it had not been
difficult to fit in, as we made friends easily who were always approachable and fun to talk
to. Not only have we been talking about the students in the DIS community, but we have
observed that teachers have always been accommodating, thoughtful, and easy to learn
from. We believe that the type of kindness and support from our environment has
positively impacted us greatly.

We would both personally like to thank the students, teachers, and staff who have made
these past 3 years a memorable and enjoyable experience. Thank you to those who have
become our friends and welcomed us into the country we are from, but never lived in.
We wish all of you the best in your future endeavors and we will see you when we see
you :)

Thank you for the pleasant experience!

ASAC AND EVENTS 9

SPIRIT WEEK BEST DRESSED 2021

Once again, we would like to express our appreciation to all students, parents, teachers,
and guardians who supported our recently concluded Spirit Week. Our hearts are
overjoyed to see all your efforts in helping your children prepare their attires and take
the most creative photos for each day of the week to show your support and cooperation
with the school. It speaks loud of what our school is known for, home and school
collaboration.

Last September 13 to 17, our school observed different themes for Spirit Week. Monday’s
theme was “Crazy & Colorful,” Tuesday was “Simon Says,” Wednesday was “School
Pride”, Thursday was “Game Day,” and lastly, Friday was “Cozy Day.” Students were
encouraged to dress up, take creative photos of their #OOTD and send them to ASAC to
participate in the Best Dressed Contest. The number of entries we have received each
day is remarkable and we are so grateful to each of you for patronizing this special event!

We would like to use this opportunity to recognize all our winners. Each winner will
receive a total of 10 points for their respective houses. Congratulations to all of you!
Crazy Colorful Monday Winners:

Grade 1 - Alison Sebastian (Cobras) Grade 3 - Leean Park (Cobras)

Grade 2 - Shreya Daswani (Eagles) Grade 4 - Aanya Malhi (Eagles)

ASAC AND EVENTS 10

Grade 5 - Georgina Chua Grade 7 - Aidan Sebastian Grade 11 - Caitlin Sebastian
(Eagles) (Cobras) (Cobras)

Simon Says Tuesday Winners:

Kinder - Lucas and Lyanna Mangahas (Cobras) Grade 1 - Liam Sarmenta (Tarsiers)

Grade 2 - Ziva Cancio Grade 3 - Leean Park Grade 4 - Aanya Malhi
(Cobras) (Cobras) (Eagles)

ASAC AND EVENTS 11

Grade 7 - Aidan Sebastian Grade 8 - Bree Sicat Grade 11 - Caitlin Sebastian
(Cobras) (Cobras) (Cobras)

Game Day Thursday Winners:

Kinder - Lucas Mangahas Grade 1 - Alison Sebastian Grade 2 - Shreya Daswani
(Cobras) (Cobras) (Eagles)

Grade 3 - Kelsey Cukingnan Grade 4 - Colin Sebastian Grade 5 - Peyton Raymond
(Cobras) (Cobras) (Tarsiers)

Grade 7 - Aidan Sebastian
(Cobras)

ASAC AND EVENTS 12

Cozy Friday Winners:

Grade 1 - Allegra Sunico Grade 2 - Shreya Daswani
(Cobras) (Eagles)

Grade 3 - Kelsey Cukingnan Grade 4 - Aanya Malhi
(Cobras) (Eagles)

Grade 7 - Aidan Sebastian
(Cobras)

OCTOBER 8, 2021 | AY 2021 - 2022 13

ANNOUNCEMENTS

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

RYAN ON HIS JOURNEY IN GO-KARTING

On January 13, 2021 I went with my dad to go to Clark International Speedway. I thought
that I was only going to see some cars racing, meet new people and then just go home
but things were about to get very exciting. At one point of the day my dad’s friends,
Uncle Ron and Uncle Sky, the founders of PCRC asked me if I wanted to try driving a
junior go - kart which I accepted excitedly. When I drove the car I felt the speed and
adrenaline rushing through me and it felt amazing. At the end of the day my dad asked
me if I wanted to start driving the go - kart professionally and start practicing. After
thinking for some time I decided I wanted to try.

On January 31, 2021 I started my first practice session with a Kart Republic chassis
together with an X30 engine and learned the basics of driving the kart. Over the days of
practicing I got better and faster every session. Until one day my dad and my new coach,
Coach Elson, decided that since I still have time I can try to drive Minirok go karts.

On June 23, 2021 I started driving my official Cosmic go - kart. During this time I also met
Ate Bianca, a professional Junior go - kart driver, who also is the only Asian among the 28
selected participants for the 2021 FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars program, helped me
understand the minirok go - kart and some race craft.

After seven days of practice, my coach said I will join the 6-round race on July 4, 2021. In
the final race in round one I placed 4th/last but I was glad that I, at least, gave a good
fight and set the fastest lap record of the race.

After having my first race, I realized the race was like a guessing game because I had to
guess if my opponents would make a mistake and if they did, how to react to it. And on
September 18, I won the 2021 ROK GP SUPER KARTING SERIES CHAMPION MINIROK
XCS in Clark International Speedway, Philippines. So far my karting career has changed
me to improve my time management, physical fitness, and understanding of me and my
kart because like Ken Miles in the Ford vs Ferrari movie “You can feel the car struggling
under you and you still have to push it to the limits of you, the track, and anything else.”

OCTOBER 8, 2021 | AY 2021 - 2022 14

UPCOMING ACTIVITIES

OCTOBER 8, 2021 | AY 2021 - 2022 15

DIRECTORY

For any questions and concerns, please get in touch with the
following:

Academics - [email protected]
Administration - [email protected]
ASAC - [email protected]
Athletics - [email protected]
Registrar - [email protected]
Finance - [email protected]
Admissions - [email protected]
Learning Resource Center - [email protected]