KHALIL GIBRAN SCHOOL

Mission Statement

KGS exists to provide the highest possible standard of education, and to achieve academic excellence for each student, develop independent critical thinkers, lifelong learners and responsible citizens. It is the mission of KGS to provide internationally accepted, comprehensive, Moroccan Arabic, English medium and French educational programs throughout the school (no French in Kindergarden).

Our school Values are: Respect, Honesty, Solidarity, Altruism and Integrity.

Expectations

All students are expected to take pride in being part of the KGS community and to behave at all times in ways that will bring credit to themselves and the school.

All parents are expected to role model acceptable behavior while on a KGS campus.

School Hours:

NB: ‘After School Care’ and ‘Extra-Curricular Activities’ timings not included.

These will be announced at the beginning of the academic year.

At the start of the day it is important to begin classes on time. Constant lateness disrupts classes and can impact a student’s academic progress and results.

Students will be recorded as ‘Absent’ for half a day if they arrive to school up to 30 minutes after classes begin in the mornings. Students arriving later than 30 minutes after classes begin will be refused entry to school for that day, unless prior arrangements have been agreed with the Head of School Section (blaming bad traffic is not considered a good reason for continual lateness) Attendance data will be officially recorded on school reports.

The school is not responsible for students who are ‘dropped off’ outside the school late, it is the parent’s responsibility if they choose to ‘drop off’ their child in this manner, and the school is not liable in any way if this happens.

Staff on the school gates will have been instructed not to allow entry to students arriving after the specified morning timings and the school will not tolerate parental abuse towards these staff.

Parents will not be allowed to pick their children up before the school day ends without prior agreement with the Head of School Section or unless there is a family emergency. Parents are expected to support the schools’ stance on these arrangements.

For students who are consistently arriving late to school, the school will consider further sanctions throughout the year. The school reserves the right to refuse enrollment for the following academic year if lateness or absences are too common.

Parent appointments with teachers / staff on campus:

There are 3 options for parents to make appointments to see staff:

1. Call the office for an appointment request form to be filled in by the receptionist.
2. Fill in the appointment request form yourself at Reception.
3. Use the appointment system on the website.
4. Kindergarten and Primary parents may use the ‘Class Dojo’ system (once it is operational).

On entering the school site you are required to wear a badge for Health, Safety and Security reasons. Expect to be confronted by staff if you are not wearing a badge.

Each school section has age appropriate expectations of its students, therefore each school section approach is as follows:

Attendance

We expect our students to attend school on time.

Excused absences: Absences for reasons listed below will be excused when accompanied by a written explanation from the parents. Official justification from a doctor or other relevant professional institution should be provided whenever possible.

• Illness or injury
• Medical emergencies
• Family emergency (death)
• (Medical appointments should be scheduled out of school time whenever possible).

Special arrangements can be made in the case of prolonged illness, contagious disease or family emergency. Students are expected to make up all missed work in the case of an excused absence.

Unexcused absences: Absences for any other reason are considered unexcused, even when accompanied by a parental note. Students will neither receive grades for the work missed nor be given work in advance of an unexcused absence, nor are teachers expected to ‘re-teach’ missed class time.

Sanctions for skipping classes are as follows:

• First offence: An-after school detention and a parent notification.
• Second offence: Two after-school detentions and a parent notification.
• Third and subsequent infractions: The Head of Secondary/Middle School and the Director may begin recommendation for withdrawal from KGS.

Tardiness during the school day:

All students are expected to arrive on time to classes. Whoever is late to school or to class will be marked as ‘tardy’. Students who are late to class from another class and who do not have an appropriate written excuse will be marked ‘unexcused tardy’ by their teacher. This may be reflected in school reports.

School Dress Code:

Conduct on the bus:

Students who choose not to abide by the bus rules will be suspended from riding the bus for periods ranging from one week to permanently. Bus fees are refunded for the periods of suspension or if the student is excluded permanently from the bus. Students are requested to meet their bus time. Bus drivers have been requested to allow one minute’s grace before moving on. Any form of abuse means loss of the privilege.

The drivers, the monitors and all teachers are in authority on the buses. The transportation coordinator has the authority to assign seats on the bus. The bus rules are as follows:

• Keep noise to a minimum on the bus because excessive noise may distract the driver.
• Do not talk to the driver except in an emergency.
• Remain seated at all times while the bus is moving.
• Do not consume food and beverage on the bus.
• Use seat belts at all times.
• No littering.

Photography:

For child safety purposes, the use of cellular phones or any device capable of capturing images is strictly prohibited on KGS school campuses or on school-related trips.

Parents who bring students to school related events such as ‘Moroccan day’ or ‘Graduation Day’ do so at their own risk i.e: during such events the school cannot be responsible for photographs being taken by anyone in attendance, or how they use those images thereafter outside the realm of the school’s influence. During such events it is the parents responsibility to supervise their children.

In limited circumstances and in accordance with law, a student’s personal electronic device may be searched by School Heads.

Technology Violations in general:

A technology violation is the repeated misuse of devices, including but not limited to, cellular telephones, camera telephones, surveillance camera, MP3 players, iPods, e-readers, computers (school property), tablets, and other electronic devices. Students must not use any such personal devices during school time, unless specifically asked to do so by teachers for lesson purposes.

 Smoking:

Smoking is not permitted on campus or outside the school gate, or at any school-sponsored functions. Students who are found smoking on the school site will receive a two-day-out-of-school suspension. Repeated violations may lead to a recommendation for expulsion.

Food Deliveries:

NO FOOD DELIVERY IS ALLOWED IN SCHOOL – This includes foods such as McDonalds, Pizzas, Fries, Fried foods as chicken etc… – and/or fizzy drinks and confectioneries.  Any food orders delivered to the school during school hours will be sent back.

 School property:

Writing on desks, walls or any other school property or any other damage or destruction to school property is a serious offense. Students who are found causing such damage will pay all costs to repair or replace the damaged property.

Sanctions Process in General:

• The breaking of any school rules can lead to:

1. Discussion or counseling with staff: The purpose of such a discussion is to find out the reasons for the behavior and to explain why it is inappropriate.
2. Detention (break, lunch or after-school): A detention is normally served on the day the misbehavior occurs or on the day immediately following, as determined by the teacher or administrator supervising the detention.
3. In school suspension: The student spends the day isolated but does his/her regular class work, as far as possible, and receives grades for the work done. The student’s lunch periods and breaks are not taken with the other students.
4. Behavior contract: This is used to specify the behavioural problems of a student and the specific steps the student must take to improve and / or to remain in the school.
5. Behaviour probation: Behaviour probation can occur for two or more poor behaviour grades from classroom teachers or for behaviour which is seriously disruptive to the school or class. Behaviour probation lasts for 5 weeks. During the period of probation, students may not participate in extracurricular activities and must attend one after school detention day each week.
6. Permanent Exclusion: The student is no longer able to attend KGS.

• The penalties are decided upon using the following criteria:

•  The severity of the incident
• The number and severity of prior incidents
• Timing of previous incidents
• The age of student
• The attitude of the student
• The consequences of the student’s action.

Permanent Exclusion is at the discretion of the Directors as long as all parties have been informed in a timely manner. The parents will be informed when the Directors are agreed that the progressive discipline approach is not modifying the student’s behavior and Permanent Exclusion may result.

 GOLDEN RULES for Students:

• Always try hard to do your best

• Treat other people with kindness and respect

• Show respect to other people, their possession and school property

• Try to be helpful at all times

• Ask for help, or tell an adult, if you are unhappy or need advice

• Accept responsibility for your actions.

Sanctions Process:

What happens if a child behaves inappropriately?

The child will be warned with non-verbal and verbal warnings. They may be given ‘time out’ to calm down and reflect. If inappropriate behavior continues, the child will be sent to another class for 5-10 minutes to reflect on their behaviour.  This incident will be recorded on a’ Sanction Record’ to track behaviour for an individual student. This is step 4 of the Sanctions Process.

If behaviour persists for acts of unprovoked aggression, rudeness, swearing, or persistent misbehavior that could endanger or distract other children, the Head of Section will discuss the child’s behaviour with the child and parents will be notified. We expect parents will support the school by also showing their disappointment in the poor behaviour. All staff in school will keep in mind that:

 “EACH DAY IS A FRESH START”.

We will always try to work with parents. Good behaviour is the result of a partnership between home and school and standards set at home and school should complement each other. If any student lets his or her standards of behaviour fall, we will inform parents and discuss it with them. It may be that sanctions outside school can help to reinforce sanctions being used in school. If parents are having problems with their child’s behaviour at home we are always happy to discuss it with them and offer advice or suggest where extra help may be available.

For ongoing and more serious behaviour issues parents are informed that we follow a daily report to monitor ongoing behaviour and/or implement more serious sanctions (such a day’s suspension, week suspension).

What happens if a parent behaves inappropriately?

With the school values in mind, we expect parents/guardians to respect the caring ethos of our school by:

• Understanding that both teachers and parents/guardians need to work together for the benefit of their children.
• Demonstrating that all members of the school community should be treated with respect and therefore set a good example in their own speech and behaviour when communicating with any member of the KGS school community.
• Seeking to clarify a child’s version of events with the school’s view in order to bring about a peaceful solution to any issue.
• Correcting their own child’s behaviour especially in public where it could otherwise lead to conflict, aggressive behaviour or unsafe behaviour.
• Approaching the school courteously to help resolve any issues of concern.

In order to support a peaceful and safe school environment at KGS we cannot tolerate parents/carers and visitors exhibiting the following:

• Disruptive or aggressive behaviour.
• Being rude or using offensive or threatening language to a member of school staff, visitor, fellow parent/carer or student; in person, over the telephone or in written communication.
• Approaching someone else’s child in order to discuss the actions of that child towards their own child or to chastise them for those actions.
• Smoking and consumption of alcohol or other drugs whilst on school property.
• Pets being brought on to school premises.

Inappropriate use of Social Network Sites

Social media websites can sometimes be used to fuel campaigns and complaints against schools, senior managers, school staff, and in some cases other parents/carers/students. The School Community considers the use of social media websites in this way as unacceptable and not in the best interests of the students or the whole school community. Any concerns you may have about KGS must be made through the appropriate channels by communicating with the Head of Section or the Director, so they can be dealt with fairly, appropriately and effectively for all concerned. We would expect that parents/carers would make all persons responsible for collecting children aware of this policy.

Food Deliveries:

NO FOOD DELIVERY IS ALLOWED IN SCHOOL – This includes foods such as McDonalds, Pizzas, Fries, Fried foods as chicken etc… – and/or fizzy drinks and confectionaries.  Any food orders delivered to the school during school hours will be sent back.

Healthy Eating:

Please only send healthy food and drinks to school with your children. Our school endeavors to sell the same in our cafeterias and snack bars.

Communication:

Class Dojo

• Class Dojo will be introduced into the classrooms from September 2018 as a platform for communication between teachers and parents

• Importantly, this is used to communicate rewards and consequences to parents who have signed up for notifications.

We take discipline, respect, and good manners very seriously. We would appreciate your support to maintain these three pillars of good conduct. With your help, we would like our children to respect themselves, their teachers, their classmates, and the school environment.

Our scheme is simple: For every action there is a reward or a consequence.

Every child who completes the task given properly will be sent home with a “Well Done Badge” to recognize his or her efforts at the end of each week. We also hold a class Dojo for year 1, each child has a Dojo Character named after them and would collect points daily based on different criteria such as good team work, hard work, being kind, being on task… The Class Dojo also allows teachers to remove points if the child displays an undesirable behavior.

Also, teachers nominate daily or weekly classroom helpers to motivate our children, reinforce positive behaviour and promote a sense of responsibility. As well as a reward chart, children who have demonstrated excellent working skills and behaviour will be recognized as “Star of the Week”, evaluating the child’s progress as an individual and not compared to the whole class.

We also organise events to promote and reinforce positive behavior in school, such as: Tolerance day, Pink Shirt/Blue Shirt Day, not to mention our morning assemblies “Good Manners – Good Habits” time talk where children have the opportunity to learn about essential social skills using different approaches.

Children who do not adhere to the School Golden Rules will be given three verbal warnings with a reminder of the school Rules. The next consequence is losing points/ smiley faces/ stars from their reward chart. After this point, teachers are allowed to proceed with “Time Outs”. Time outs include recess, extra-curricular activities and in extreme cases can also include outings. Finally, for very challenging pupils, parents will be notified and a meeting will be scheduled to discuss how we can approach and solve the issue “together”.

NB: Please DO NOT ALLOW your children to bring toys, make up, expensive sunglasses and candy to school. The school bares no responsibility for any lost, damaged items or valuables. We may also choose to confiscate them.

Healthy Lifestyle in KGS

At KGS we are committed to encouraging and developing positive attitudes towards food and a healthy diet

Promoting a healthy life style is integral to our curriculum and we recognise the importance of offering children the opportunity to make informed choices about what, when, where and why they eat. As a school we endorse fresh, local food.

As a school we know that food is fundamental to the quality of a child’s life; not just in providing essential nutrition but in communicating and sharing positive values, attitudes and experiences with each other.

We believe that adults (staff, parents and carers) should be good role models and should support the children in understanding how balanced nutrition contributes to a person’s health, happiness and general well-being.

PACKED LUNCHES

At KGS we are committed to encouraging parents to provide healthy lunchboxes for children.

1)Pupils’ lunch boxes should offer balanced nutrition. Across a week parents are encouraged to offer a variety

of healthy foods

2) Lunch boxes should not contain more than one of each of these foods: crisps,

confectionary, chocolate bars and sweetened drinks.

3) Fizzy drinks and chewing gum, nuts and sweets are not allowed.

4)The contents of children’s lunchboxes will be monitored, to ensure a balanced meal is being provided and the portion size is appropriate for the age of the child.

5) Children are taught not to share packed lunches and parents are reminded about the need to avoid sending in packed lunches containing nuts. Some children are allergic to nuts and a serious reaction, including breathing difficulties can occur.

6) Food not eaten in a packed lunch will be taken home by the child to ensure that parents know what their child has or has not eaten.

NO FOOD DELIVERY IS ALLOWED IN SCHOOL – This includes foods such as McDonalds, Pizzas, Fries, Fried foods as chicken etc – and/or fizzy drinks and confectionaries.  Any food orders delivered to the school during the lunchbreak will be sent back.

Parties:

It is at the discretion of the Class Teacher / Head of Section whether to allow a ‘Birthday Party’. Parents should seek permission to bring in foods for parties, as it is not always convenient for the school to support such activities.

Potty Trained:

As a general rule, children who are not fully potty trained by the time they reach Reception Class (and above), cannot be accepted in to school. Exceptions being specific medical conditions and by agreement with the Head of Section.

DINING ENVIRONMENT

At KGS we are committed to providing a welcoming eating environment that encourages the positive social and cultural interaction of students. The school will aim to provide a calm, ordered environment conducive to good behaviour and mutual respect.

1) The dining room is well staffed with lunchtime supervisors and older pupils who assist the children in a variety of ways such as serving dinner trays, opening containers, keeping table surfaces clean and tidy.

2)Children will be encouraged to develop good eating skills and table manners at lunch time and will be given plenty of time to eat. They will also

be encouraged to eat their savoury foods first.

3) Children will be encouraged to try a wide range of foods at lunchtimes to develop a taste for a greater variety of foods and achieve a balanced diet.

4) Children will be required to enter and leave the dining hall in an orderly way; to show respect for other diners.

5) The children will be encouraged to demonstrate good manners in the hall e.g. using quiet partner voices and saying ‘please and thank you’.

6) The children will seek permission from a Lunch Supervisor before leaving the table and they will be encouraged to eat the food they have been provided with.