ELEMENTARY

May 27, 2021

Dear Elementary Families,

 

It is hard to believe that we are going into June next week! We wanted to provide you with some key dates and information as we begin the last month of school.

 

MAP

Our MAP testing begins on Sunday, May 30 and runs until June 16. 

 

Individual grade levels (Grades 1 to 5) will be running their assessments within our window of May 30 to June 16. Your classroom teacher will let you know the exact days. For consistent assessment conditions, all students who have been participating in on-site learning this term are expected to be in-class for their assessments.

 

Library Books

Our library book borrowing program will end on June 1st so that our library team can begin the library inventory process for the year. Please have your child’s library books returned to the school by June 14th. After that date all students with overdue books will be notified by email.

 

Thank you for all your support of your school library!

 

Grade 5 Completion Ceremony

Our Grade 5 completion ceremony will take place on June 21. At this time it will be a virtual event.

 

iPad Return

Each summer our IT team resets, cleans and updates our school iPads. This is a very important process to ensure a smooth transition for students’ use of devices in their new grade. 

 

This year we will be collecting the iPads in classrooms on:

 

June 24 – KG1, KG2, Grade1, Grade 2

June 24 – Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5

 

If you are a remote learner, we will have an opportunity to return your student’s iPads at the end of the week as well. More information will come closer to the time.

 

If you are leaving for the summer early, please see “Absences” below.

 

Absences and Leaving Early for Holidays

Though it is June, we are still very much engaged in vigorous learning. With MAP, end of term assessments for report cards and other end of year routines, it is important that students remain consistent in their mode of learning (on-site or remote).

 

We understand that some people are exploring an early departure from the country with travel opening up. Our expectation is that students will be in attendance, in the mode chosen from the beginning of Term 3, until the end of the school year.

 

Should families choose to leave early to begin holidays prior to the end of the year, student iPads must be returned to the school prior to your departure. This includes students who will be returning to DAA as our IT department must complete their summer work as stated above. Please also contact the grade level administrator for approval.

 

Ms. Salameh – Grade 4 and 5

Ms. Bishara – Grade 2 and 3

Ms. Gandhi – KG1, KG2, Grade 1

 

We ask any families who are considering leaving early to wait until MAP is complete and reporting assessments have been finalized in order for your child to demonstrate their full year academic growth. 

 

Thank you for adhering to your child’s current mode of learning as this aligns to our reporting of your child’s attendance to KHDA. Changes to remote learning  will only be approved should it be related to testing positive for covid / being a first contact. The consistency of students remaining in their current mode is beneficial to high quality learning, peer consistency and teacher planning. That said, it has been a very unique school year and should you choose to leave the country prior to the end of June, your school iPad must be returned, please notify your classroom teacher, seek approval from the grade level administrator and enjoy your holidays.

 

Report Cards

As per our original academic calendar, student report cards will be sent to families on June 23.

 

Thank you for your attention to these matters. It has been an excellent year and we look forward to an incredible June.

 

Sincerely,

Craig Cantlie

Executive Principal, Elementary 

Message from the ES Library 

Message from Middle School

Bring your Own Device in Middle School

As part of our school BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) program, all Dubai American Academy students in Grades 6-12 are required to bring a laptop to school daily.For parents of students entering Grades 6-12, who have not yet purchased a laptop, we highly encourage you to purchase a MacBook Device so there is continuity in the use of Apple technologies (specification listed in the table below). If you have already purchased a PC laptop, this is still applicable to the BYOD program and your child’s learning will not be disadvantaged. In the absence of covid restrictions, we have a number of iPad carts available for student and class use. The middle and high school libraries also stock extra laptops for students to sign-out on a daily basis if needed. 
As part of our school BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) program, all Dubai American Academy students in Grades 6-12 are required to bring a laptop to school daily.For parents of students entering Grades 6-12, who have not yet purchased a laptop, we highly encourage you to purchase a MacBook Device so there is continuity in the use of Apple technologies (specification listed in the table below). If you have already purchased a PC laptop, this is still applicable to the BYOD program and your child’s learning will not be disadvantaged. In the absence of covid restrictions, we have a number of iPad carts available for student and class use. The middle and high school libraries also stock extra laptops for students to sign-out on a daily basis if needed. For Students Who Already Have a LaptopIf you already own a laptop please answer the following questions:1. If my laptop is a MacBook, it has Mac OS 10.14 or higher, in English.2. If my laptop is a Windows laptop, it has Windows 10 Version 1901 or higher, in English.3. My laptop is not older than 3 years.4. My laptop has at least 4GB of RAM (Preferably 8 GB RAM).5. My laptop has a 3 to 4 hour battery life.6. My laptop has working WiFi which supports 2.4Ghz/5GHz FrequencyAccessories: 1 set of inexpensive headphones (mobile phone earbud sets are fine)If you answered ‘YES’ to all these questions you do NOT need a new laptop.For students who need a new laptop, please find our recommendations below.MacBook Pro
Apple M1 Chip with 8-Core CPU and 8-Core GPU
8GB Memory
268GB SSD storage
Retina display with True Tone
MacBook Air
Apple M1 Chip with 8-Core CPU and 7-Core GPU
8GB Memory
256GB SSD Storage
Retina display with True Tone
Our Apple-approved vendor, JTRS will be able to assist you with your purchase. JTRS also provides trade-in options for old Mackbooks. Please see the flyer below and E-Store Guide for details. JTRS GEMS FlyerJTRS Estore Guide

Elementary Update from May 6, 2021

A window into our world as a learning community.

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key contacts

Should your child(ren) need to be away from school due to illness or appointments, please contact our School Secretaries.

KG1 - Grade 2: Grace Ajib  g.ajib_daa@gemsedu.com /04 704 9705

Grades 3-5: Jessica Oppermann  j.oppermann_daa@gemsedu.com /04 704  9724

General Elementary Inquiries:  elementary_daa@gemsedu.com

Craig Cantlie 

Executive Principal of Elementary (K - Grade 5)c.cantlie_daa@gemsedu.com

Nathalie Salemeh   

Elementary Principal, Grades 4 and 5n.salameh_daa@gemsedu.com

Noha Bishara              

Assistant Elementary Principal, Grades 2 and 3n.bishara_daa@gemsedu.com

Tooshna Gandhi          

Assistant Elementary Principal, KG1, KG2 and Grade 1t.gandhi_daa@gemsedu.com