KG & Elementary

KG SECTION FOUND IN DROP DOWN MENU

Message from our Elementary Principal,

Mr. Mike Hopaluk

Dear GAA Community,

Please view the video below to get information on:

Kindness
A few changes
Are you ADVENTUROUS?!?
Communication survey

Mike Hopaluk

Elementary Principal

email: esprincipal_gaa@gemsedu.com

IMPORTANT:

COVID-19 PROCEDURES

Testing Requirements for Students aged 4-11, returning from international travel

(no need for testing if your child did not leave UAE)

We have been requested to follow additional precautionary measures by ADEK and Health Authorities for students aged 4-11 (including Students of Determination) returning from international travel before physically returning to school:

Students returning from green-listed countries:

No need to quarantine.
96-hour valid negative COVID-19 test result required prior to returning to school.
Green countries list is constantly updated and can be accessed through this link: https://visitabudhabi.ae/en/plan-your-trip/covid-safe-travel/permitted-countries

Students returning from other countries:

Must show 96-hour valid negative COVID-19 test result prior to returning to school
Must submit a quarantine completion certificate from SEHA for one of the parents/guardians, which is issued upon removing their quarantine tracker/bracelet. This certificate can be obtained from the following locations:
- - - - Abu Dhabi: COVID-19 Prime Assessment Center in Zayed Port
        Al Ain: COVID-19 Prime Assessment Center in Al Ain Exhibition Center – Al Khabisi
        Al Dhafra: Any of Al Dhafra SEHA hospitals

Testing options:

Students can choose to either get a non-invasive and painless saliva PCR test or nasal swab PCR test free of cost. Here is the list of drivethru centers.

Students must have their Emirates ID or Passport (if ID is not issued). They will also need a proof of travel (passport stamp or airline ticket).

For Students of Determination: Home testing service (includes PCR and saliva tests) can be requested by calling Estijabah Hotline at 800-1717 or DOH Hotline at 02-4493333

What if my child feels unwell at school?

Non-COVID-related: If your child develops any symptoms during school hours:

The student will be flagged by the teacher and will be referred to the school clinic for triage. If child does not have fever or any other COVID-19 symptoms, Nurse will contact the parent to investigate any possible illness at home by family member. Depending on the condition of the child, parent may be asked to collect from school.
If student is sent home, parent must provide doctor's medical certificate for return to campus.

COVID-related: Your child will be considered as a suspected case of Covid-19, if displaying any signs and symptoms such as cough, fever or breathlessness and:

Child will be moved to Quarantine Room, where they will be monitored by a School Nurse.
Nurse will contact the parents immediately to retrieve the child from the school.
The school shall not administer any medicines to the child.
The school will inform the parents about the nearest hospital and COVID-19 testing center.
If the child tests positive for COVID-19, parents are mandated to inform the school so that they can take measures to secure the health of other students and staff who may have been exposed to the virus.
If child has siblings at GAA attending in-campus, they must be quarantined at home as well.
Student(s) will be able to return to school after 2 consecutive negative COVID tests and doctor's medical certificate.

COVID-19 Reporting Procedures at GAA

We remind parents of our safety protocols with regards to COVID-19:

What if my child or a household member tests positive?

Notify school immediately by calling GAA's COVID-19 Hotline at 052 1048099 to enable us to activate appropriate response. Or email: pre_gaa@gemsedu.com
Keep your child and other GAA siblings isolated at home for at least 10 days and follow the instructions of Health Authorities.
Distance Learning will be enabled for your child.
Child will be cleared to return to school once they have 2 consecutive negative test results, submitting doctor's note and results to the school nurse.

What's the Return to School protocol?

Positive case: They must show a Clearance Report from SEHA or their Health Care Provider confirming they are clear to return to school. This report shows the high-level history of the case including date confirmed positive, the 2 negative results and that the patient has completed the isolation period.

Contacts of the positive case: contacts must continue their 10 day home quarantine, even if they test negative, and are only allowed back in school after receiving 2 consecutive negative test results (approximately day 1 and day 8 testing).

We thank you for your continuous support.

Message from our Elementary Vice-Principal, Mr. John O'Neill

Dear GAA Families,

Ramadan Kareem! I am amazed that we have already reached this point in our school year. I can not believe that we have just 10 weeks remaining in the school year. Though we are moving closer to the end of the year and things slow down for the holy month of Ramadan, we still have many goals that we will work toward in order to achieve a strong finish to an exceptional school year.

With shorter school hours, our focus always narrows on maximising our time in school for learning and growth. We have kept this focus all year because of the health and safety restrictions that have impacted our school hours. During this month, we will continue to maintain this focus, using the experience that we have gained all year.

At home, when possible, please take time with your children to read together, in English or your home language. Our children are always encouraged to make use of our online tools to foster individual learning and growth. If you would like your child to focus on reading or Math skills at home, please speak to your classroom teacher to make the best use of the tools and resources available in your child’s classroom that you can make use of at home.

This is a special time of year. Even during the month of Ramadan, we see our children make major growth in their classrooms. This growth has come from months of teaching and learning with their teachers and classmates. The results of this effort really begin to show in these next 10 weeks. Please speak to you children and encourage them to do their best. We all will enjoy seeing the rewards of this effort by the end of this school year.

Sincerely,

John O’Neill

Upper Elementary Vice Principal

News from Grade 3B

Ms. Janielle Headen

Why do different places experience different climates? How do people live their lives differently because of the climates that they live in? These are just a few of the questions that our grade three inquirers will be uncovering in our “How the World Works” unit. We began this unit by exploring different types of climates and extreme weather around the world. We soon will start to research answers to inquiries our students have created. Throughout their research, students will explore how people adapt and prepare for potential weather catastrophe in many different ways. We look forward to our grade three meteorologists grow in their knowledge of how weather and climate affect how and where people live.

News from Grade 5B

Mr. Michael Brady

Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, you are ever so welcome to 5E's Sharing The Planet Padlet and Websites. This is excellent preparation for our upcoming PYPX.

I think you will agree that our websites are impressive.

Please take the time to look through all our topics covering a range of Sustainability issues on our planet. There are some introductions here on padlet and you can click on the red link on top which will take you to their website.

Feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of our Padlet after you have explored our websites. We have left some feedback ideas on Padlet for you to use.

Sharing The Planet Padlet and Websites.

CulturALL

The Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT- Abu Dhabi) is launching the “CulturAll Thursdays” initiative for students to view weekly cultured-themed videos.

The videos average 10 minutes and will introduce students from Grade 2 and above to a different topic each week. It is expected for students to participate in this initiative, where they will watch a different video each week. They will learn about various cultural themes ranging from Emirati heritage and history to contemporary arts and music.

This may be a great video to watch during break time and be a great provocation for some conversations.

A video will be launched every Thursday.

Click on the CulturAll Youth banner on the right-hand side on the website: http://www.culturall.ae

This week is about the History of Marawah Island!