Themaid News | Monday, 7 October 2019

Dear Parents, 

“World Teachers' Day recognises the contribution educators make to the world and reminds people to show their gratitude for the teachers who impacted their own lives.”

I am sure many of you remember teachers who had a positive impact on your life and who inspired you to reach for your goals and achieve success. The theme for 2019 is young teachers, the future of the profession and the challenges they face in a rapidly changing world. Congratulation to all our fantastic teachers who inspire and guide our children every day and create lasting memories. 

We had an exciting week at Themaid campus with events and celebrations of success taking place.

Thank you to those of you who came along to our first Drop in for Coffee on Wednesday morning. It was lovely to meet you and have an informal chat. As mentioned, we would like to set up a Friends of Compass School (FCS) group at Themaid to share ideas and introduce events and social activities for our families. FCS groups at our other campuses are eager to meet you to share their ideas and promote some whole school events.

If you would like to join the group, please come along to the first meeting on Thursday, 10 October. If you would like to join, but cannot make the first meeting, please let me know on ann.djedid@nais.qa.

The group will meet once a month and I am flexible on arranging the meeting times to suit the group’s needs. I look forward to welcoming you to the group and working together to make Themaid campus a thriving community for students and parents.

On Wednesday the students were entertained by the amazing AFCENT band, a group of US musicians who work in partnership with schools to bring the message of music to our students. They had us singing along and dancing throughout a thoroughly enjoyable performance which enthralled our students and brought a smile to their faces. It was definitely a great way to start the day.

After two weeks of reflection and communicating their messages, we presented our Student Voice winners with their caps and badges to celebrate their success in being elected to a post. On Thursday morning, Mr Rowntree, our Student Voice Leader, announced the winners and asked them to repeat their oath of allegiance to the role. It was a proud moment for both students and parents as they walked to the front of the auditorium.

The winners are as follows:

At Compass International School, we believe that Student Voice inspires and empowers students and enables them to use their knowledge to contribute to the classroom and to the school. We look forward to hearing and sharing their ideas in the coming months and watching them grow into ambassadors for our school.

Year 8 and 10 students have their Parent Consultation evening on Tuesday, 8 October from 2.00pm to 6.00pm. It is important that you meet the teachers to discuss your child’s progress and next steps in learning. Your child should have booked appointments for you with each of their teachers.   If you cannot attend on Tuesday, please contact Mr Porter, Head of Secondary, to arrange a suitable time.

Absence and Late collection reminders: The teacher or school office should be informed by parents via email, Class Dojo, or telephone if your child is absent.  Parents should then send a letter when their child returns to school so that attendance records can be maintained.

Late arrival: this is deemed to be a child arriving after registration.  Any child arriving after 7.30am (primary) or 7.15am (secondary) should report directly to the school office to be registered and collect a Late Pass. 

Late collection: uncollected children from Early Years to Year 10 will be taken to the Primary Library at 1.40pm and should be collected from there. Students should be collected promptly after Extra Curricular Activities (ECAs) and are expected to leave school premises by 2.40pm latest.

Leaving during the school day: Students should not leave school before the end of the school day unless there is an emergency and the parent has telephoned the school personally to notify reception. Students who fall ill at school will only be allowed to leave school premises with authorisation and contact home from the School Nurse. Students will be collected by reception staff when they are due to leave the school for an appointment.

For further details on our Attendance Policy, please see the link here. Absence and late arrival are shown on reports.

Our Arabic Coordinator, Ms Enaam Taweel, will be holding a Parent Seminar to outline the Arabic as an Additional Language Programme in school. The presentation will be held in English, on Tuesday, 8 October at 7.30am. I hope you can join her to hear about the teaching and learning of Arabic.

On Wednesday, 9 October, the school photographers, Pret a Portrait, will be in school to take photographs. Details of the package and a schedule for family photographs will be sent to you.

Please contact our school secretaries if you have any questions about attendance, photograph or any administrative issues. Their contact details are as follows:

Nidhal Moughrabi-Secondary Secretary; nidhal.moughrabi@nais.qa

Aisha Aziz: Primary Secretary; aisha.aziz@nais.qa

Have a great week ahead.

Kind regards,

Ann Djedid

Head of Campus, Themaid