As the principal of GAA, I would like to take a moment to address the importance of parent partnerships in your child's educational journey. Parents are an integral part of our team at GAA, and involvement and support play a critical role in the success of our students.

• First and foremost, parents are needed for meetings and progress checks. We understand that parents are busy and have many responsibilities, but we strongly encourage them to attend parent-teacher conferences, open houses, and other meetings where they can learn about their child's progress and receive updates on what is happening in the classroom. These meetings provide an opportunity for parents to ask questions, provide feedback, and work together with their child's teacher to set goals and create a plan of action to support their child's learning.

• In addition to meetings and progress checks, parents also play a crucial role in goal setting. As educators, we work with students to set academic and behavioral goals, but it's important for parents to be a part of this process as well. By setting and working towards goals together, parents, teachers, and students can create a shared understanding of what needs to be achieved and how to go about achieving it. This allows parents to understand the expectations for their child and how they can support their child's progress at home.

• Furthermore, parents are needed for the bridge between school and home. Students spend a significant portion of their day at school, but it's important for parents to understand that their child's learning doesn't end when they leave our building. Parents can support their child's learning by creating a positive and supportive home environment, setting aside time for homework and reading, and communicating regularly with their child's teacher. This can include regular check-ins with the teacher, reviewing homework and test scores, and staying informed of upcoming assignments and projects.

• Lastly, parents are needed for providing emotional support. Education is not only about academic success, but also about the social and emotional well-being of students. Students who feel supported and have positive relationships with their parents tend to have better academic outcomes and are more likely to succeed in school.

The role of parents in their child's educational journey is vital and cannot be overstated. We understand that parenting is a challenging and demanding task, but we are here to support and guide parents in any way we can. We encourage parents to be actively involved in their child's education, and to communicate regularly with their child's teacher to ensure that their child is reaching their full potential. Thank you for your continued support and partnership in education.

Thank you.

Leia Kraueter

Elementary Principal

Dear Parents,

IT is time for the second round of MAP testing at GAA. From January 23rd - February 10th your child is scheduled to take tests called Measures of Academic Progress™ (MAP). MAP Growth scores help teachers check student performance by measuring achievement and growth. Teachers use results to tailor classroom lessons and set goals for students.

MAP Growth tests are unique, and it adapts to your child’s responses to measure your child’s skill level. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. These results will provide a more complete picture of what your child knows and is ready to learn—whether it is on, above, or below their grade level.

Since MAP Growth tests provide immediate and accurate information about your child’s learning, it’s easy for teachers to identify students with similar scores that are generally ready for instruction in similar skills and topics, and then plan instruction accordingly.

When?

MAP Growth reports also provide typical growth data for students who are in the same grade, subject and have the same starting performance level. This school year, students in grades 1 to 5 take the tests. Following each testing period, you will receive a Family Report showing a summary of how your child is performing academically.

Science

We are excited to be adding Science tests for Grades 3, 4, & 5. These tests, along with other teacher created assessments will help us analyze your child’s learning. With this information in hand we will plan your child’s learning program.

Grade Levels and testing requirements

• Grade 1: 2 tests MAP Growth: Reading and Math 

• Grade 2: 3 tests MAP Growth: Reading, Math and Language

• Grades 3-5: 4 tests MAP Growth: Reading, Math, Language and General Science 

For more information about MAP Growth, visit Family Tool Kit

For information about the MAP test in Arabic, Korean and other languages please see this LINK

Your child’s homeroom teacher will provide more information about testing times in each classroom.

If you wish to practice at home: 

1. Go to the address practice.mapnwea.org 

2. Enter credentials:

• Username = grow

• Password = grow

The unit of inquiry: How We Express Ourselves, is always a favorite with the children and the teachers alike. The children learn about their emotions and how we express them. They learn that emotions can be expressed verbally, through actions and through the arts.  The children of KG1B have spent time looking at the Art of Vincent Van Gogh and Wassily Kandinsky. They spent time recreating some of the masters work as well, playing musical instruments VERY loud and softly and have entertained their classmates by being Risk Takers, singing songs on the little stage in the classroom. They definitely know what it means to feel happy, sad, fearful and angry!!!

What’s happening in KG PE

We are busy getting ready for our Sports Day in KG. We are enjoying the good weather outside before it gets too hot! We used the Athletics Track for the first time and practiced our running and relay skills. We have also used baseball bats for T-ball which was great fun. This week we are currently exploring how to use a Parachute. The Parachute is a fun team building activity as everyone has to work together. We love working together as a team!! 

KG Students are celebrating the “cold” weather in the UAE by participating in some snow related activities, such as cooking banana pancake snowmen, having a snowball fight, creating sleds for snowmen to slide down a hill (STEM activity from the book, Snowmen at Night), building snowmen out of play dough, and having fun in the snow play area. We’ve also been busy reading as part of #READBowl

Elementary art students have been really excited to get back into the art room and creating! This January we started off by making a personal mantra. A mantra is a positive set of words or affirmations that you can say to yourself to inspire and motivate yourself! Every time students come to Visual Art they say The Art Mantra: “My Mantra, I am positive, I am creative, I am mindful, I am amazing, I am an artist!” For this project they used oil pastels and watercolors to write down 3 words they wanted to say to themselves. Check out the amazing pieces below! One student wrote, “I am Artistic! I am helpful! I am skilled!”. What amazing work. When they were finished students even created videos of themselves saying their mantra with motions and actions. 

Within the framework of applying knowledge to the real life, Elementary students created and participated to the Arabic language market, where students were able to buy what they love by using the "money" "earned" with their hard work in Arabic Language classes.

ضمن إطار ربط التعليم بالحياة الواقعية للتلاميذ، تم تنفيذ سوق اللغة العربية حيث تمكن التلاميذ من شراء ما يُحبوه عن طريق استخدام الأموال التي حصلوا عليها نتيجة لاجتهادهم داخل صفوف اللغة العربية.

Please check out the January 17th Update by our Student Leadership comprised of 4th and 5th graders. 

• January 25: International Food Festival Planning meeting @1:00, GAA Planetarium

• January 26-27: Aladdin Elementary Musical at GAA Auditorium @6-8pm

• January 27: Elementary Dress Down Day

• January 27: GAAPA Used Uniform Sale

• January 27: Pizza Day by GAAPA

• February 8: Learn About Middle School at GAA @8:00 Auditorium (For Grade 5 Parents)

• February 8-9: GAA High School Musical @6:00pm Auditorium

• February 8-10: Elementary Sports Days

• February 8-9: Stu Williamson Official School Photoshoot (for new joiners and students who missed previous photoshoots)

• February 13-14: Mid-term break (no school)

• February 25: International Food Festival