Welcome to Raha Your Raha journey starts here! This Handbook is here to ensure your experience is as seamless as possible. Please read it carefully and refer to it when you need any guidance.
Here's to a SUPER year ahead!
Our Mission & Vision
Hello, From Our Leadership Team
Welcome! We are thrilled to welcome you to our Raha family. Our school is a vibrant place where fun and learning go hand in hand. Our aim is to help our littlest learners grow and flourish over these formative years and help develop their natural curiosity and love for learning. We encourage them to inquire, embrace challenges, take risks and become principled, open-minded people. We are extremely proud to be an IB School and offer the PYP Curriculum. Our approaches to learning and Units of Inquiry support the IB mission: ”To develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect." We look forward to partnering with you to provide your child with the best possible start to their education journey.
Eileen Butler Head of Early Years Gardens Campus
Vanessa Keenan Deputy Head of Early Years
Joanne McLeod Assistant Head of Early Years
Our Philosophy
The Learner • We see every child as capable, inquisitive and creative with the right to be nurtured in a safe, supportive environment. The Teaching and Learning • Our practice is informed by research which supports our belief that young children learn through investigation, exploration and play in a social context, where they have a sense of agency. • We view teachers as facilitators in our children’s learning journey. We guide learning through a pedagogy of observing and listening. • Our learning spaces reflect our belief that aesthetically engaging, carefully planned and purposeful environments significantly enhance the quality of learning experiences. The Learning Community • We value the culture and diversity of our learning community. • We see relationships and connections to be central to learning. There is a shared commitment to maintaining respect, open dialogue and collaboration with families.
Life in the Early Years
Life in EY is a little different to the rest of the school. Think of EY as the foundations of your child's school journey. We take pride in being the facilitators of that journey and we are here to nurture and guide your child through this learning process as well as support you as parents every step of the way. In our EY classrooms, you won't find mass-produced, identical pieces of work. You will see adults and children working together to solve problems and children being scaffolded by adults to reach the next step in their chosen learning experience. You may find one child writing independently in their play, yet another child learning to control a pencil. We are not driven solely by academics. We are here to encourage physical, personal, emotional, social and language development. We are here to build confidence, independence, creativity and imagination, so that children are ready to apply themselves academically when the time is right for them. The diversity and individuality of our children in EY is the reason we love our jobs and find this group so special.
The Team
We are a highly experienced and dedicated team from a range of different countries and curriculums. Raha brings us all together through our passion for teaching and because it matches our beliefs and knowledge of child development. Gardens Campus We have 8 classes in EY1, 8 in EY2 and 7 in Grade 1. Each class has a homeroom teacher and a Learning Assistant. We have an experienced Specialist teaching team which includes; Inclusion teachers, PE/swimming teacher, Arabic and Islamic Teachers, Music Teachers, Art Teachers and Librarians. Overseeing the above is our Head, supported by the Deputy Head and the Assistant Head. We also have our EY Assistant, who is always available to support parents.
Meet our Team
HEAD OF EARLY YEARS! Gardens Campus Ms. Eileen Butler
Head of Early Years
Ms. Vanessa Keenan
Deputy Head of Early Years
Ms. Joanne McLeod
Assistant Head of Early Years
Ms. Anne Raagas
Assistant to the Head of Early Years
Meet our Team
HEAD OF EARLY YEARS! Early Years 1 - Gardens Campus Ms. Lisa Templeton – Learning and Teaching Lead and Ms Anila Nayani (LA) Ms. Sharnee Sharif and Ms. Behnaz Kakia (LA) Ms. Hayley Garner and Ms. Nelly Ortega (LA) Ms. Kim Horan and Ms. Reinelle Mendoza (LA) Ms. Jill Isayama and Ms. Bozenya Gabryszewska (LA) Ms. Anja Van Der Walt and Ms. Reem Da’abes (LA) Ms. Rebecca Wormald and Ms. Maricar Pagaling (LA) Ms. Natalie Brimacome and Ms. Zoila Tabil (LA)
Lisa Templeton EY1 Learning and Teaching Lead
Meet our Team
HEAD OF EARLY YEARS! Early Years 2 - Gardens Campus Ms. Caroline Murphy – Learning and Teaching Lead and Ms. Lizel Tabo (LA) Ms. Sarah Lloyd and Ms. Elisangela Salmito (LA) Ms. Laura Sanford and Ms. Luciana Barros (LA) Ms. Karen Leach and Ms. Meifang Wang (LA) Ms. Angela Barnes and Ms. Vicky Wilson (LA) Ms. Mindri Pretorius and Ms. Iwona Kalinowska (LA) Ms. Sarah Omar and Ms. Shery Basta (LA) Ms. Aoife Brady and Ms. Perlita Hobson (LA)
Caroline Murphy EY 2 Learning and Teaching Lead
Meet our Team
HEAD OF EARLY YEARS! Grade 1 - Gardens Campus Ms Symunek Taylor– Learning and Teaching Lead and Jessica Riviere Ms. Lindsey McKeown and Ms. Cynthia Muzenda (LA) Ms. Anna O'Connor and Ms. Jamie Richards (LA) Ms. Evelyn Bukiejko and Ms. Nikki MacLachlan (LA) Ms. Sheona McCarthy and Lindsey Mujana Mr. Conor McGuinness and Ms. Tamasin Cronje (LA) Mr Colm Doyle and Ms. Portia Marimo (LA)
Symunek Taylor Gr 1 Learning and Teaching Lead
Meet our Team
HEAD OF EARLY YEARS! Specialists - Gardens Campus Language Leader
Ms. Kerry Mesmer
PE
Mr. Alen Dzaferovic, Ms. Louise O’Connor
Music
Ms. Terresa Novak
Art
Ms. Kate Clohessy
Inclusion Leader
Ms. Margaret Hennessy
Arabic
Ms. Ayat, Ms. Sanaa, Ms. Hana, Ms. Itemad
Inclusion and Reading support
Lucy Currie Nicole Ducry
Curriculum
Curriculum
Vanessa Keenan – Early Years PYP Coordinator and Deputy Head Throughout the year we will be hosting curriculum information sessions. These will cover areas such as: • • • • •
An introduction to the PYP in Early Years What is inquiry? Supporting your child with Reading and Writing Practical activities to support Mathematics Our PYP Curriculum
Our website www.ris.ae is also a great place to find policies and curriculum outcomes and information.
Start of the School Day
• Our gates open at 7:30am. • The National Anthem plays at 7:40am each morning. This marks the start of the school day. Students and parents are expected to stand respectfully while this is playing. • Students will enter the classroom through the external doors. • Your child is late if they enter class after 7.50. Our registers will be closed and you will need to report to main reception to collect a yellow late slip. Late students will not be permitted into class without a late slip. • The first few weeks of school are likely to be unsettling for your child. This is completely normal, and we are highly experienced with this. • EY1 to G1 bus children will be dropped at class by a Bus Monitor in the morning.
Settling in How can you help? We ask that the parents take their children to their class, say their goodbyes and leave straight after the National Anthem at 7.40 am. Our kind, experienced teachers and LAs will take it from here and will contact you, if it is needed, to update you on how your child has settled. Try to remember that your child is in an unfamiliar place, with unfamiliar people and it will take time to adapt. In the first few weeks your child will build relationships with us and become familiar with the environment. Once those bonds are made, your child will not look back! Keep the bigger picture in mind and remember the settling in period is just that.
End of the School The end ofDaythe day • • •
EY 1 - School finishes at 1:00pm EY 2 – School finishes at 2:00pm Grade 1–12 – School finishes at 3:00pm
All students finish school at 12:00 on Fridays.
Students will need to be collected from the class from EY1 to Grade 1. Students will not be allowed to leave the campus without an adult or older sibling and must have a prior arrangement with absent@ris.ae and the student's teacher. Students who have not been collected 15 minutes after the end of the day will be sent to EY Assistant's office. Pick-up during the day must be arranged through Reception or absent@ris.ae prior to the time. Parents are not permitted to collect students straight from their classroom during the school day. ECP pick-up will be from the classroom by the external provider. Our EY1 to G1 bus children will be taken to the bus by the classroom LA.
Uniform
Uniform
EY1 - G1 Uniform School uniform should be purchased from Zaks at Raha Mall or through their online store. The Early Years uniform consists of grey trousers/shorts with a green tee shirt.
PE Uniform PE uniform can be purchased from Magrudys online store or Forsan Mall
Footwear Footwear forms a part of our uniform expectations. If you prefer to buy shoes which meet the requirements of both general and PE days then your child can wear the same shoes all week.
General School Day
PE Day
• Black shoes only
• White or black socks only
• Safe and secure
• Sport shoes
• Velcro fastenings preferred
• Easy for the child to manage
No open toes
No slip-ons
No laces (preferable)
Swimming On swimming days, EY1 and EY2 students may arrive at school wearing their swim clothes and shoes. They will need to bring their uniform to change into afterward. G1 students will come in school uniform and bring their swimming gear to change into. Please bring the following: For EY1 – EY2, a twopiece suit like this can be worn to school instead of uniform.
For EY1 – EY2, shorts like this must be worn underneath the full school uniform.
G1-3 students may wear this for swimming.
G1-3 students may wear this for swimming.
These shoes may be worn to and from school only on swimming days.
For EY1 – EY2, shorts like this can be worn to school instead of school shorts.
G1-3 students must wear regular school shoes.
G1-3 students may wear this for swimming.
For EY1 – EY2, a swimsuit like this must be worn underneath the full school uniform.
These shoes must only be worn at the pool. Please send your child to school in normal school shoes.
G1-3 students may wear this for swimming.
In addition to the items on the left, children need:
Goggles
Swim Cap
Towel
Drawstring Bag
IMPORTANT At Raha, we believe that if children are well enough to come to school then they are well enough to take part in swimming. All children are expected to swim unless a letter from a doctor is provided, with the reason why and the length of time the child must not swim.
September 2019
Be Prepared
There is nothing more important than being prepared for your child's first experience of school. This information will help you when choosing your child's school belongings. The correct equipment will help your child to be independent within school and will also help them to stay safe around the school campus.
Bags Your child needs a small back-pack which can hold their food, water bottle and hat. Please avoid Trolley bags as these will not fit in your child's cubby.
Be Prepared
BE PREPARED
Eating times Children have 2 opportunities to eat throughout the day. The first is a morning snack time. The second is lunch time, around midday. We advise you to send ONE lunch bag containing enough food for the day. The lunch bag should be small enough to fit inside your child's backpack:
We allow the children to eat as much as they need during both eating times. We do encourage children to eat their healthiest options first so always pack food which you know your child will eat. We promote healthy eating so please save unhealthy options for outside school. We are working with Slices to provide packed lunch options for our older grades.
Raha International School
September 2019
Be Prepared Proud to be green We strive to be as eco-friendly as possible. This is a mindset we instill in the children from day one, but the impact will be far more powerful if we have all parents and carers on board too. You can help your child pack their waste-free lunch by using reusable containers, bags or bottles, or sending in loose foods without plastic wrapping, for example, apples. Please remember the following:
Please include: • All food in reusable containers • • •
Whole fruits without packaging Drinks in reusable containers Reusable ice packs
Please do not include: • Individually wrapped snacks • • •
Plastic bags that are not reusable Disposable forks and spoons Plastic straws
Items such as yogurt pots or yogurt bottles are washed by the children after use and recycled or used for junk modelling during creative tasks.
Be Prepared
BE PREPARED
No hat, no play! We operate a whole school policy of 'No hat, no play' during outdoor playtime. The children are taught that it is not safe to play in the sun without protection. A Raha hat or any other hat of your choosing is fine! Children without hats must stay in a shaded area throughout their playtime, which limits their active experiences. Please ensure your child brings their hat so they can access the full range of outdoor learning. HATS ARE COMPULSORY!
Water bottles Every child needs a refillable, reusable water bottle every day. All children have access to water at all times. We help children to fill their bottles at first, but it doesn't take long for them to do it by themselves. PLEASE DO NOT SEND DISPOSABLE WATER BOTTLES!
Naming belongings It cannot be stressed enough just how important it is to name EVERY SINGLE PIECE of your child's belongings. Even names on items wash off over time so it is something which must be checked on regularly.
Library Bag Your child will need a library bag for their weekly session at the library. This can be the 'Zaks' Raha library bag, or any other lightweight bag big enough to fit a book inside. Children only need to bring this bag on their library day.
Spare clothes For our EY1 children we will need a full change of clothes to keep at school. Spare clothes are needed for a variety of reasons, including food spills, messy play, toilet accidents, water play. The spare clothes do not have to be uniform.
Allergies If you have a child with an allergy, you will need to disclose this information on your enrollment form. All information and medications are stored by the school clinic and all teachers are informed of children's medical needs. Staff take allergies very seriously. Children are taught the importance of this in class and are not allowed to share food. We urge you to choose carefully when selecting food for your child's lunch as some of our children's allergies are lifethreatening.
WE ARE A NUT FREE SCHOOL The following items are forbidden as they contain nuts:
Absences
You are required to report your child's absence the night before if you know that your child will not be attending school, or before 7am on the morning of absence: • Please send an email to your child's teacher and the absent email – absent@ris.ae • Please do not leave recorded messages on the telephone answer machine. • All days missed from school for any reason will be reported on the report card as an absence. • When your child is absent from school for three (3) consecutive days or more, you need to provide a letter explaining their absence or provide a note from the doctor upon return to school. • Extended absences of 10 days or more will be followed up by the school. • After 21 consecutive absences a student may be withdrawn from school. • If your child has an illness or is recovering from an illness and is unable to participate in physical education or swimming activities a medical certificate should be issued by the child’s doctor. • The certificate should indicate the period of time that the child should be excluded from certain activities. • Absenteeism disrupts learning and it is not possible to “make up” in full the learning lost during a period of absence. We recommend you take your holidays during the school breaks to avoid disruption of learning and development. If you need to take term-time leave, then you must email the Assistant to the Head.
Birthdays
Birthdays are important for many of our families. We are happy to celebrate your child's special day in a small way. To make our celebrations fair, consistent, safe and practical we have the following guidelines: • You may bring one small piece of fruit, cupcake or cookie per child. Fruit kebabs are a great idea for a healthy treat. • There are to be no nuts in the food and the ingredients are to be clearly written so that if children have allergies, we are aware of what is in the food. • No knives, plates, accessories or individual giveaways/gift bags. • If your child has an allergy then you may send an alternative, safe option so they can be included in the celebration - we will inform you of birthdays in advance. • We will sing happy birthday to your child and they will present the cupcakes to their classmates. This will be done at the end of the day.
COMMUNICATION
Communication
Communication in any school can be quite overwhelming at times. We try to keep communication to a minimum. We may email you occasionally with reminders or upcoming dates for events, but the main communication will be in the following ways: • • •
• • •
Teacher Emails Newsletters – These are a celebration of the learning and highlight curriculum outcomes that we are covering. Noticeboards - At the front of the buildings there are noticeboards displaying the weekly learning outcomes and our current IB information. ISAMS iParent App/Portal SchoolsBuddy Toddle - you will receive an invitation to download this app to your device. You will then see posts individual to your child which will contain photos and information regarding their learning.
Please email your child’s class teacher with any questions, messages or concerns – the class teacher is always your first point of contact. •
Teachers will respond to your email within 24 working hours, sooner if they can.
•
Please note – teachers are busy with their students and seldom check emails during teaching times. If you email during the day, it is likely they will only read the message during the afternoon. Therefore do not send urgent emails regarding ECP’s, buses or pick-up as this information may not be received in time. For any urgent messages, please call the Reception or Assistant to the Head.
•
Please take the time to communicate all information to your Nanny or other person who may care for your child.
Buses
We use an external provider for our bus transport, Seven Stars. All arrangement for any changes to children catching the bus need to be communicated through Seven Stars directly using the email transportation@ris.ae We advise all parents to sign their children up to the bus in the week prior to school starting, otherwise students will be without bus transport for the first week.
Extra Curricular Programme We offer Extra Curricular Programmes (ECPs) through paid provider and we also offer teacher-led programmes. • • • • •
Information will be shared with parents about how to sign up for these Sign-ups take place termly For EY 1 we do not offer ECPs in the first term Students need to be collected from the ECPs promptly at finish time by an adult For alternative arrangements for children who catch the bus, please speak directly to the bus company and arrange, then let the ECP provider know as well
Our ECP coordinator is the contact person for all ECPs and can be emailed at ecp@ris.ae