Dear Parents

It’s been another busy and fun month in the Primary School.

Assessment

We have just completed the termly assessments and are busy writing Progress Reports. These will be issued on the 6th of December, followed with an opportunity to discuss the report with the class teacher. This process is repeated at the end of Term 2 and 3 as well.

Sport

We have taken part in some inter-school sports competitions, but because of rain some were postponed:

Year 3 and 4 boys football- They played fantastic game against other schools and came 3rd in their group and 5th overall against 12 schools.

Year 5 and 6 boys- The Year 5 team came 2nd overall in the tournament and did brilliantly for their first competition.

Year 3/4 girls- Postponed to 2019

Year 5/6 girls- Postponed to 2019

After School Activities

These are well underway and will run into the new year. If your child did not get a particular activity this time, we will ensure they will next time.

Canteen

Students in Years 3 and 4 can now start using the school canteen for lunches. Parents need to come to the canteen between 07.30 and 08.30 any school day to pay for a lunch card as the canteen does not accept cash from students.

Council of International Schools Accreditation

As explained before we are in the process of becoming an accredited member of the Council of International Schools. We have a visit from CIS scheduled on the 10th and 11th of December, they will review what we do and decide if we can become a full member and progress to the next stage of accreditation.

I explained the process at a recent workshop but the award of CIS International Accreditation demonstrates that the school:

  • is devoted to its mission and vision for students;
  • has thought deeply about the services it offers to students, family and community;
  • invests the time and resources for validation from a globally-recognised accreditation authority;
  • focuses on the quality of teaching, student learning, as well as student safeguarding and well-being;
  • is committed to the development of the students’ global citizenship;
  • has a suitable philosophy of education suitable for its students;
  • promises only what it can deliver;
  • is open to regular evaluation by its own school community and peer evaluators; and
  • constantly seeks improvement in all areas of the school's strategic plans for the future.

Please find below the link to the CIS Presentation.

One of the traits of a really good international school is being pro-active about developing all stakeholders as Global Citizens and actively supporting Inter- Global Learning. As a school we do that by:

  • Learning about our Host Country through Qatar Studies, learning the basics of the Arabic Language and celebrating National Day.
  • Learning a modern foreign language (MFL) which for the moment is Spanish and over the years we hope to add more languages to this.
  • Celebrating our Home Countries through International Day where all of our countries have the opportunity to be proud and share our pride with each other.
  • Making links to Home countries in the curriculum. For example in maths, if the students are learning about money and as a British school we use British money, we will convert to home country currency.

This year we will develop other opportunities to grow our students as Global Citizens. As parents you can support this in so many ways especially with your amazing opportunities for travel. When you visit a new destination eat local food, try to learn a few words of the local language, for example.

We will be enhancing our blank walls with some evidence of our rich and diverse cultures and could use all your assistance with this project.

I would like to add a few images to our Digital Screens, it would be good if you could get together with some Oryx friends from your Home Country and send in a photo that shows you all in your home country colours and clothes. It will add some colour to our lives.

Facilities

The facilities are almost complete and in the past few weeks lots of playground equipment has arrived and is currently being erected and our children will soon be able to have even more fun. I have spent some break times outside with the students and they are having a great time playing on the field, creating their own games, making up their own rules for football. There are so many benefits to play. Play allows children to use their creativity while developing their imagination, dexterity, and physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. Play is important to healthy brain development. It is through play that children at any age engage and interact in the world around them.

Regards,

Jarlath Madine

Head of Primary

One of my favourite quotes is from George Bernard Shaw:

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.”

Play is not just for children but for all of us and it’s important for our children to see us having fun as well.