EYFS HANDBOOK NURSERY AND RECEPTION
THE BRITISH SCHOOL AL KHUBAIRAT PO Box 4001 | Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates T. +971 2 204 0200 F. +971 2 204 0201 bsakabudhabi
BSAKAbuDhabi www.britishschool.sch.ae
BSAK_AbuDhabi
Our School The British School Al Khubairat (BSAK) is Abu Dhabi’s leading British not-for-profit, co-educational day school. From Nursery to A Level (3 – 18) our dynamic school culture offers students an enriching experience and outstanding results.
Our Vision Building on our unique local heritage, we will provide a world-class British education, inspiring all our students to exceed expectations.
Our Values Empathy and Care Honesty and Integrity
Respect and Inclusivity Endeavour and Resilience
CONTENTS Welcome From Our Head Of Primary
02
General Rules And Regulations
09
Deputy Head And Assistant Head
03
Attendance And Punctuality
10
Our Year Group Leaders
03
Healthcare And Nursing
11
Introduction To Nursery
04
Communication From The School
12
Introduction To Reception
05
BSAK Social Media
13
Safeguarding And Counselling
06
Transportation
15
Our Code of Conduct
07
Parking And TrafďŹ c Safety
16
Uniform And Appearance
08
Dining And Snacking
17
Learning Support
18
Library
19
WELCOME FROM OUR HEAD OF PRIMARY We are a lively, busy, happy and hardworking school where our students are helped to develop a ‘growth mind-set’ and achieve the best they can. All students in BSAK Primary School are encouraged to achieve their best in academic, sporting and creative fields, whilst at the same time developing their social skills; manners, a respect for each other and those around them, kindness, helpfulness and a willingness to participate for the benefit of others. “Achievement and laughter are out trade marks!
Children are central to all we do and our school is a way of life for all students. We are in the business of teaching children to a high standard, turning them into confident and interested learners. It is not just our heritage and facilities that mark out our school; it is the atmosphere and happiness that runs throughout our community. MRS ELAINE RAWLINGS Head Of Primary
02
DEPUTY HEAD PETE COLLINGS
pcollings@britishschool.sch.ae
ASSISTANT HEAD ELEANOR EDGAR eedgar@britishschool.sch.ae
OUR YEAR GROUP LEADERS
Rosy Turnbull Nursery Leader
rturnbull@britishschool.sch.ae
Sarah Jones Reception Leader
sjones@britishschool.sch.ae
03
INTRODUCTION TO
NURSERY
Our excellent team of Nursery teachers look forward to welcoming you and your children into your new classes in September. We have been extremely busy creating an inviting environment that will make your children feel safe, secure and truly at home during their time in school. At BSAK Nursery, we pride ourselves on our ‘In the moment planning’ approach. We cannot wait to explain more about the process in which we encourage and motivate your children to learn through the joy of play. During the school year, you will see your children develop socially, growing in confidence and enjoying every aspect of school life. With our fantastic ‘in the moment’ approach, we get to know each and every child as an individual. Through this, we are able to create learning opportunities to encourage and extend their development, through their own particular interests and ideas. Throughout the year we will host ‘special days’ for the Nursery children. These will be based upon their own interests during each term. This could be anything from a ‘rainbow day’ to a ‘superhero day’ and we endeavour to give you as much notice as possible for these events and will let you know via our weekly newsletters on the Seesaw app. Thank you for all the support we know you will be giving your children as they transition into BSAK. We look forward to meeting you and welcoming you into our British School community. Please feel free to direct any questions, queries or concerns directly to your child’s Class Teacher. Working together in partnership we aim to provide the best possible start for your children.
04
INTRODUCTION TO
RECEPTION
Welcome to Reception! There will be lots of exciting and challenging learning opportunities during the year as well as lots of fun and laughter. The Early Years curriculum has been designed to support your child as they start an incredible learning journey developing many new skills and interests. By following the interests and ideas of all our children, we aim to provide engaging, play-based learning experiences. Through this we help children develop their conďŹ dence, creativity and resilience, as well as providing them with a sound understanding of basic Literacy and Numeracy concepts. The curriculum will look different each term, and will be shaped by the children themselves. We will have some special days, some of which you are invited to join us: Winter craft afternoon - all parents invited National Day celebrations - children can wear UAE national dress or wear colours of the UAE ag. Minibeast ball - children can dress as a minibeast of their choice World Book Day - dress as a favourite book character Sports Day - all parents invited Pirates and Mermaids day
05
SAFEGUARDING AND
COUNSELLING
MS PRIYA MITCHELL School Counsellor Designated Individual
MRS ELAINE RAWLINGS Head of Primary
MR MARK LEPPARD MBE Headmaster
MISS TERESA WOULFE Head of Secondary
MR PETER CHURCH Bursar
The welfare and safety of children who attend the British School Al Khubairat is our paramount concern. We will promote the health, well – being and safety of the students in all we do. Our children have the right to protection, regardless of age, gender, ability, race or social background. They have a right to be safe in our school. BSAK expects all of its employees and volunteers to share this commitment. The school recognises and understands its responsibilities to work together in partnership with other agencies both here in the UAE and the UK to help children to grow up in a healthy and safe environment. Appointments are subject to satisfactory checks including the enhanced DBS check, Prohibition check and references. If you have any concerns in this regard please contact any member of our Safeguarding Team on +971 2 204 0200 safeguarding@britishschool.sch.ae
06
OUR CODE
OF CONDUCT The Code of Conduct lies at the centre of everything we do in school and forms the basis of our rewards and sanctions systems. Please take time to read it through with your child. It will be discussed in detail (including the few written rules referenced below) with pupils at the beginning of term and will be constantly referred to throughout the year. We are a caring learning community, whose values are built upon mutual trust and respect for all. Every member of our school should feel safe and valued; each person should be treated well and fairly at all times. All pupils must follow the ‘Golden Rules’ of Behaviour: We We We We We
are gentle are kind and helpful listen to each other work hard look after property
There are three underlying principles of respect that ensure that pupils at BSAK benefit from their time here and enjoy all that school has to offer. Therefore all pupils are expected to act respectfully by: “Taking care of ourselves, others and our environment”
02
07 02
UNIFORM AND
APPEARANCE Students are expected to take pride in their uniform and appearance, creating a positive first impression of themselves and the school. The wearing of school uniform is mandatory and all uniform must be purchased through our official supplier, Aquarius Textiles. There will be an on-site shop from August 2019. https://issuu.com/bsakabudhabi/docs/bsak_uniform_requirements GIRLS Everyday • Light blue polo shirt with BSAK Logo on the front • Navy blue shorts • White ankle socks • Trainers (Any colour) • Sun hat with BSAK logo. Any other branded caps or hats are not permitted.
PE • There is no separate PE uniform in EYFS Swimming (Reception only) • Plain one-piece, navy, school swimming costume • Waterproof PE/Swimming Bag • Swimming Towel • Goggles and flip flops
BOYS
Everyday • Light blue polo shirt with BSAK logo on the front • Navy blue shorts • Navy blue ankle socks • Trainers (Any colour) • Sun hat with BSAK logo. Any other branded caps or hats are not permitted. PE • There is no separate PE uniform in EYFS Swimming (Reception Only) • Plain navy school swimming trunks • Waterproof PE/Swimming bag • Swimming Towel • Goggles and flip flops
Please ensure that ALL items of clothing and all personal property eg school bag, PE/ Swimming bag, book bag, lunch box water bottle and hat are CLEARLY marked with your child’s name and class
08
GENERAL RULES
& REGULATIONS Equipment And Keeping It Safe Please ensure all items of clothing and all personal property eg school bag, PE/Swimming bag, book bag, lunch box, water bottle, hat, jumper and pencil case are clearly marked with your child’s name and class. Lost Property Lost property is stored in the central location. Items Not Allowed In School Knives, laser pens, chewing/bubble gum, large amounts of money (if not for a specific purpose eg a sponsored event or trip payment, in which case it is to be passed immediately to your class teacher), sweets or fizzy drinks, glass bottles, cans, nuts, personal music players, mobile phones, jewellery (other than one small pair of stud earrings for girls) including friendship bands and bracelets, aerosols, correction fluid, expensive toys or computer games. Please do not let your child bring toys into school. Sometimes children will be asked to bring items in from home, in which case you will be informed by the class teacher or class contact parent.
09
ATTENDANCE AND
PUNCTUALITY
Regular attendance and punctuality are prerequisites for pupil progress and vital preparation for adult life. Please promote positive attitudes towards learning in your child through supporting your child’s regular attendance. Levels of attendance and late arrivals and collection are logged and monitored in the interests of pupil welfare and may trigger a letter of concern to parents. Request for Leave of Absence Whilst we understand that, in certain exceptional circumstances, students may have to be withdrawn from school and miss curriculum time, we would advocate that this disruption is minimised wherever possible. If you intend to withdraw your child, you are requested to email the school primaryabsent@britishschool.sch.ae with reasons clearly stated, in advance, so that the details can be added to your child’s attendance record. We would strongly advise parents to avoid holidays during term time. Absences for holidays will be recorded as ‘unauthorised’. Beginning of the School Day The school day begins at 7.40am. Children in EYFS should be brought to the external classroom door, in the EYFS playground, by an adult and directly handed over to their teacher. The classroom doors will be opened at 7.40am and parents are requested to wait outside until this time. (Or in the corridor by the library during hot weather) No child may be left unsupervised at any time anywhere on the school campus, including the above areas. Children arriving before 7.40am must continue to be supervised by a parent/designated adult until they are handed over to the Class Teacher. Parents must ensure that their children are playing appropriately and under direct supervision at all times.
10
HEALTHCARE
AND NURSING The Clinic opening times are as follows: Sunday – Wednesday 7.30am – 2.30pm (nurse available until 5pm for anything urgent during after school clubs and sports) Thursday 7.30am – 1.30pm (nurse available until 3pm for anything urgent during after school clubs sports) School Telephone Number – 02 204 0200 Email – nurses@britishschool.sch.ae
The school clinic at BSAK is staffed by a team of HAAD registered school nurses and professional administrators. The nurses main role is to provide first aid and/or emergency care to all students and to ensure the safety of children at all times. When To Keep Your Child At Home BSAK has a policy for when children are unwell. Please see the School website for certain illness’s that require you to keep your children at home. BSAK Healthcare Contact Details For Parents When children become unwell in school and parents need to be contacted, it is important to ensure that parental contact details on our system are correct, as these are used when we call you in an emergency. Your contact details can be updated via the Parental Portal. Collecting Your Child From The School Clinic If you receive a call about your child who needs to either go home or be seen by a Doctor, we request that you collect your child as promptly as possible. We suggest that within 1 hour is an acceptable time frame, however, we appreciate that this may not always be possible. If parents are unable to collect their child, they should notify the Nurse of the details of another person who is able to collect them. Children must sign out at Reception with their parent in order to receive an exit pass to leave the school premises. Healthy Eating and Food Policy BSAK promotes Healthy Eating and we are a Nut free school. Please see the School website for our Nut and Prohibited Food Policy. Medical Information for School Trips At the start of each year each child is issued with a Medical Sports and Trip form for that academic year. It is an ADEK requirement that we receive a form for every student.
11
COMMUNICATION FROM
THE SCHOOL
We believe that communication is vital in strengthening the partnership between students, teachers and parents. Particular concerns regarding individual student’s progress may be communicated by teachers via telephone or email. Regular communication is maintained via SeeSaw, email and the student planner. More details regarding these will be provided at the Parent Assessment Information Evening over the first two weeks.
All physical activities and games will be assessed and criteria shared with students. Students will be Reports are delivered each term via the Parent Portal. encouraged to be part of this process and will have many self and peer assessment opportunities via video analysis. Students will also have a theoretical Parent Portal examination during (Exam week), which The ‘BSAK Parent Portal’ will help keep you up-to-date with the term data3the school holds on will allow us to assess their knowledge of Sports Science your child, as well as important information about what is going on at the school. Features and the theoretical concepts that underpin sporting include; a daily bulletin; school calendar; Newsletters and other information documents; performance.
your child’s timetable; rewards your child receives; exam timetables and results; Skills Developed assessment and reports; links to staff contact details; ability to update contact details A range of skills are developed and refined with a yourself.
key focus on team work, collaboration, tactics and strategies. Students are also encouraged to analyse once a week. The portal their performance usingcan ICT. be accessed via
Ideally, it is advisable to check the portal the school website, or by using the direct link: https://parents.britishschool.sch.ae Equipment Needed PE and codes House if Kit, Games socks, registration you are new to football boots, trainers.
You will be provided with the necessary For further support please contact isams@britishschool.sch.ae.
shin pads, the school.
Kit Policy
There are iOS and Android Apps. These Apps make even youall to students access are At will BSAK we it have a easier policy for where expected to bring a will kit toalso every lesson. If they are information and be kept up-to-date about your child. The Apps feature push injured or unwell, they must have a parental note notifications.
that excuses them from the practical element of the lesson. However, they must still get changed and they will develop their coaching and leadership skills. Setting Students will be set in both Physical Education
12
BSAK
SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOW US
We have a wide following on our School Social Media channels, which form an implortant part of our overall communication strategy for parents and wider School community.
@BSAKAbuDhabi
@BSAKAbuDhabi @BSAKParentCummunity @BSAKOAKS
For those on Twitter, stay up to date with the latest news of the whole School or choose an area of interest from the wide range of Twitter Handles shown overleaf. As you can see, our BSAK stories are provided directly by every department. Follow our BSAK Abu Dhabi Facebook page and Instagram feed for highlights of the week’s event and fabulous photos. Join our closed Parent Community Group for a friendly place to connect with other parents, ask questions, and keep up to date with events.
@bsak_abudhabi
BSAK OAKS is our Alumni site where old friends stay in touch and share news and events. The British School Al Khubairat
Connect with our community of staff, parents and Alumni on LinkedIn
13
HANDLES FOLLOW US
@BSAKAbuDhabi @BSAKheadmaster
PRIMARY
SECONDARY
GENERAL
@BSAKAbuDhabi @BSAKnursery @BSAKreception @BSAKyear1 @BSAKyear2 @BSAKyear3 @BSAKyear4 @BSAKyear5 @BSAKyear6
@BSAKsecHead @BSAKsecondary @BSAKyear7 @BSAKyear8 @BSAKyear9 @BSAKyear10 @BSAKyear11 @BSAKsixthform
@BSAKsports @BSAKadmissions @BSAKdofe @BSAKlibrary @BSAKnursing @BSAKphse @BSAKspecialEdu
@BSAKprimArabic @BSAKprimMaths @BSAKprimSports @BSAKdigitalEdu @BSAKprimLangs
@BSAKarabic @BSAKart @BSAKbiology @BSAKbusiness @BSAKchemistry @BSAKcomputing @BSAKdrama @BSAKdt @BSAKenglish @BSAKfoodtech @BSAKgeography @BSAKhistory @BSAKmediadept @BSAKmaths @BSAKmusic @BSAKmfl @BSAKphotography @BSAKphysics @BSAKpsychology @BSAKscience
HOUSES @BSAKcormorant @BSAKdhabi @BSAKfalcon @BSAKoryx @BSAKcentaur @BSAKchimera @BSAKgriffin @BSAKhydra @BSAKpegasus @BSAKphoenix
ALUMNI @BSAKoaks
14
TRANSPORTATION BSAK runs an excellent School Bus service which is provided by our new partner, Shanawaz Transport Services. Shanawaz operate a large Fleet of buses, all 32 Seat in size. The buses are equipped with point seat belts, internal and external CCTV and have GPS location systems. Parents have access to an App where they can view the time their child boarded and disembarked the School Bus and can see, in real time, the exact location of the School Bus their child is travelling on. The bus company is regularly inspected, is compliant with at DoT and ADEK Regulations and drivers and supervisors are professionally trained and certified. There is only one drop off in the morning for the start of School and one afternoon pick up once School has finished. Many pick-up and drop-off locations, both inside and outside Abu Dhabi city limits are offered. In order to support a consistently good service at an affordable price, ADEK have introduced a cap on school bus fees, reducing them, with immediate effect to AED 5,000 per annum. All payments for the School Bus should be made directly to the BSAK accounts department. For details of available pick up and drop off locations, please contact Shanawaz Transport at bsakbus@shanawazgroup.com. If you would like to speak to a member of staff, please contact The Clubs, Trips and Transport Officer, Mrs Carol Gray on Transport@britishschool.sch.ae.
15
PARKING & TRAFFIC SAFETY AT BSAK Airport Road Residential Villas
Parking Zones Drop-Off/Pick-Up Zones
Waiting Zone
Street 17
St.Andrews Church
St. Joseph School Church
British School Al Khubairat
Street 1
Umm Al Emarat Park
Mosque
Secondary
No stopping
Primary
Umm Ammar Girls School
Evangelical Community Church
Cross Here
ONE WAY
Al Yasat Compound
Karamah Street
We spent a year discussing and agreeing on a set of traffic rules.
THIS IS OUR COMMITMENT TO EACH OTHER One Way: It’s one way flow on the road outside the Primary entrance and St Joseph’s School.
Drop-off / Pick-up Zones: These are near the Primary and Secondary entrances. • Parking or waiting is not allowed in these zones • Nursery – Y2 children must be accompanied. From Y3 up, children enter alone • Drivers should move on and wait in the Waiting Zone rather than park and wait on the road • Drivers should be notified by phone to pick up carers
Red Cones: Red cones indicate no stopping.
Pedestrian Crossing: Please do not ever stop, drop or park on or near the crossings.
Traffic Safety Team: The Traffic Safety team is here to help us, for the safety of everyone. Please remember to be patient, drive slowly and respect each other and the rules.
Parking on the roadside is at the car owner’s risk. The Dept of Transport decree (2011/5/31) states that stopping is only allowed here between 6.30am – 9.00am and 12.00pm – 4.00pm
Your Feedback Matters To Us Please contact us on Traffic@britishschool.sch.ae
16
DINING AND
SNACKING Hot meals ordered will be delivered to the classroom by food nation. At the beginning of the year there is a ‘Back to School’ event which will give you the opportunity to come in to school to sign up for Transport, Dining, Outside Provider Clubs ie H2O, PASS etc. The new uniform supplier will also be available then.
17
LEARNING SUPPORT The school values the abilities and achievements of all children and strives to meet the learning needs of every child. Lesson planning provides for differentiated learning tasks to make the curriculum accessible to all children, and to enable each child to make personal progress. If a teacher has concerns about any child’s personal progress, he/she will share these concerns with you. Likewise if you as a parent have concerns about your child, please speak to your child’s teacher at the earliest opportunity. Most learning needs can be met through class differentiation and by the teacher’s professional skills in managing a mixed ability class. However, if a teacher has more specific concerns about aspects of a child’s learning they may seek support from our Learning Support Department. The learning support team work with children within the classroom setting and through short periods of individual or group work away from the class. If the school feels your child will benefit from such support you will be fully involved in the process and begin to have regular review meetings with the learning support teacher. Partnership with parents plays a key role in enabling children with learning difficulties to achieve their potential. We recognise that parents hold key information and have knowledge and experience to contribute to the shared view of a child’s needs and the best ways of supporting them. The school will have regard to the UK Code of Practice when carrying out its responsibilities toward all children needing learning support, and ensure that parents are notified in writing of a decision by the school that support is being provided for their child.
18
LIBRARY BSAK Primary Library boasts over 30,000 titles by world renowned children’s authors. Spread out over two floors, the library is a treasure trove for curious young minds and contains a host of fiction and non-fiction books on topics ranging from dinosaurs to fairy tales. Our dedicated Librarians arm young learners with the tools they need to become responsible and capable library citizens through our fun and interactive library skills programme which begins in Nursery. At BSAK we understand the importance of parent and guardian involvement in children’s development, therefore parents are encouraged to visit and borrow from the library daily. On any given morning and afternoon, parents, grandparents and guardians can be seen reading to children in our library. We believe that promoting this sense of BSAK community spirit is what helps to foster a love of life-long learning in our young library users.
19
www.britishschool.sch.ae