Issue #15 - June 12, 2026

IMPORTANT REMINDERS AND POLICIES

🔷 GEMS American Academy – Vision Statement for School Development

At GEMS American Academy, we are committed to delivering a consistent and high-quality educational experience for all students from Kindergarten through Grade 12. Our vision is to build a school community rooted in excellence, inclusivity, and innovation — where every learner is supported to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.

This vision is realised through a culture of shared responsibility and strategic collaboration. Students, parents, teachers, school leaders, governors, and support staff are all actively involved in shaping the direction of our school. Their voices and contributions are central to our development journey.

We use evidence-based practices and rigorous self-evaluation to embed impactful, student-centered approaches across every phase and subject. From early years to senior grades, we ensure that our values, expectations, and standards are clearly aligned and consistently upheld.

Our goal is to nurture confident, compassionate, and globally-minded individuals who are equipped with the knowledge, skills, and character to succeed in a rapidly changing world.

IMPORTANT! Updates to Policies Regarding Attendance, Absence, and Punctuality

Visual Guide on Attendance Rules- En.pdf

Visual Guide on Attendance Rules- Ar.pdf

FROM OUR SAFEGUARDING TEAM:

Hazard Alert - Button batteries

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

We would like to share an important safety reminder, particularly for families with children in Kindergarten and the early primary years.

Small coin and button batteries are commonly found in household items such as toys, remote controls, car keys, musical greeting cards, and watches. If swallowed, these batteries can cause severe internal injury very quickly and require urgent medical attention.

What happens if a button battery is swallowed?

When a button battery comes into contact with saliva, it can create an electrical current that produces a strong alkaline chemical. This can cause serious chemical burns inside the body, particularly to the esophagus.
Severe damage can occur in as little as two hours, even if the battery appears used or no longer working.

Button battery ingestion is a medical emergency and requires immediate treatment. Potential harm may include:

Severe internal chemical burns
Damage or perforation of the esophagus
Internal bleeding or infection
Long-term difficulties with swallowing or breathing
Life-threatening injuries or death if not treated promptly

How you can help keep children safe:

Regularly check that battery compartments in household items are secure and cannot be easily opened by a child.
Store spare and used batteries out of sight and reach of children.
Dispose of used batteries safely and promptly.
Please do not send toys to school for gifts, goody bags, or “show and tell” if they contain coin or button batteries.

If you think a child may have swallowed a battery:

Seek emergency medical care immediately.
Do not give food or drink, and do not induce vomiting.

Although such incidents are rare, awareness and quick action are extremely important. Thank you for your continued support in helping us keep our community safe.

Kind regards,

GAA Safeguarding Team

SLICES CATERING: IMPORTANT NEWS

Canteen Payments via Student ID Cards

To support our No Mobile Phone policy and make canteen payments quicker, we kindly ask parents to top up their child’s Student ID card through the GEMS Connect Parent Portal.

Students can then use their ID cards to pay at the canteen. This also ensures that students wear their ID daily, which is mandatory.

For step-by-step instructions on how to top up your child’s ID card, please check out below video.

Thank you for your support and cooperation.

Cashless Top-up Procescedure.mp4

Dear Parents,

We hope you and your family are keeping well.

As we look ahead to Term 2, Slices will continue to provide nutritious, balanced and freshly prepared meals for students throughout the school day.

Parents are kindly requested to ensure a meal subscription is in place for Term 2 to avoid any disruption to your child’s meal service from the first day of term.

How to subscribe:

Please login into the GEMS Connect App and select a suitable meal plan (Daily, Weekly or Annual) at your earliest convenience.
Menus for Term 2 can also be found on the GEMS Connect App.

If you have any questions or require assistance, our team will be happy to support you.

Thank you for your continued trust in Slices. We look forward to serving your children wholesome meals in Term 2.

Warm regards,

Slices School Dining Team

GEMS Schools Term 2 Menu Flyer.pdf

PARENT/STUDENT HANDBOOKS 2025-2026

Elementary School Handbook 2025-2026.pdf

Middle School Handbook 2025-2026.pdf

High School Handbook 2025-2026.pdf

IMPORTANT REMINDERS FROM SCHOOL CLINIC

Dear Parents,

Flu season is upon us, and we kindly ask for your support in keeping our community healthy. Please do not send your child to school if they show any of the symptoms listed below. Inform your child’s teacher or the School Nurse about the reason for their absence.

Symptoms that require your child to stay home:

Fever of 100°F (38°C) or higher. Children should remain at home until they have been fever-free for at least 24 hours without using fever-reducing medication (such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen).
Vomiting (even once)
Diarrhea
Chills
General malaise: fatigue, discomfort, weakness, or muscle aches
Frequent congested/wet or croupy cough
Significant nasal congestion with frequent nose blowing

To help prevent the spread of flu and other illnesses, please reinforce good hygiene habits at home:

Wash hands frequently
Avoid touching the eyes, nose, and mouth
Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue, dispose of it properly, and wash hands immediately
Avoid close contact with people who are sick

Please remember that colds and influenza are most contagious during the first 48 hours. If your child wakes up with vague symptoms, it may be best to observe them at home for an hour or two before deciding to send them to school.

Keeping sick children at home helps protect classmates, teachers, and staff from the spread of infections.

We also encourage all individuals 6 months of age and older to receive the seasonal flu vaccine each year.

Thank you for helping us keep this school year as healthy as possible.

GAA Nurses

email: nurse_Gaa@gemsedu.com

PARENT ENGAGEMENT POLICY AND PARENT CODE OF CONDUCT

MANDATORY! Please read the below document and complete this Acknowledgment Form

Parent Engagement Policy and Code of Conduct (3).pdf

MOBILE PHONE POLICY

GAA Mobile Phone and Device Policy.pdf

HEALTHY EATING POLICY

GAA Healthy Eating Policy - Copy.pdf

STUDENT PROTECTION POLICY

POLCSG002V2 GEMS Student Protection Policy for Abu Dhabi.pdf

ADEK_S_Student Protection Policy_EN (1).pdf

GAA_Session 1 - Guardians of Safety.pptx

ADEK BAG WEIGHT POLICY

Kindly assist us in maintaining the appropriate weight limit by ensuring that school bags are not excessively packed with additional items. It is important that the weight of any school bag for ALL students does not exceed 20% of their individual body weight. For your reference, see attached the ADEK weight scale guidance.

PARENT LANYARDS

While on campus parents and guardians MUST wear the GAA yellow lanyard. If lanyard is not worn, we kindly request you to register as a guest before entering the campus. This is to ensure that every adult in school is identified clearly for the safety and security of everyone on campus.

At GEMS American Academy, we issue parent ID cards to our parents only. No ID Cards are issued for guardians, domestic helpers, drivers or relatives.

The Parent ID includes photos of the parent. The Parent ID does not expire and is valid as long as the child attends GAA. You will be asked to return Parent IDs, should you withdraw from GAA.

New Parents, you may obtain your Parent photo identity card by emailing a photo (jpeg format) along with the parent’s first and last name to pre_gaa@gemsedu.com. Please also include your child/children’s full name and grade in the email as well. You will be notified when your ID cards are ready.

If you have ordered new IDs and received confirmation that they are ready, please remember to collect from Main Reception.
If you have not received your Parent ID yet, please email your photo to pre_gaa@gemsedu.com as soon as possible.

UNIFORM

ELEMENTARY UNIFORM GUIDELINES

The student uniform is compulsory and students are to arrive at GAA in their complete school uniform, including:

Any color athletic, closed toe shoe. No sandals, no crocs, no open toe
Socks: Solid black, blue or white
If girls wear leggings/stockings/pantyhose/tights under their skirts, color must be solid navy blue or black.
For Physical Education, Athletic shoes must be worn.

Students wear the PE uniform for the entire school day on days when the student has scheduled PE classes.

On swim days, students should wear their GAA school uniform and bring the recommended school swim kit.

The GAA uniform supplier is Threads. The uniforms for GAA will only be distributed from Threads’ Retail outlet in Dalma Mall. Uniforms can be purchased online at www.threadsme.com

GAA may not require uniforms whilst participating in after or out of school activities or on designated special dress days. However; students should be properly dressed in a manner that is not offensive to our host country. The following rules will apply:

No tight clothes
No spaghetti strap shirts
No exposed midriff
No offensive logos or expressions on clothing

Personal Presentation

Students are expected to arrive at school and depart from school in full school uniform. During school hours and while in school uniform, the following rules apply:

No makeup or loose jewelry is allowed.
Necklaces should not be visible.
Non-regulation outerwear may not be worn in school; it should be kept in lockers.

Spare Clothes Requirement:

All Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten students need to have an extra set of clearly labeled uniform clothing (shirt, shorts, underwear, and socks) sent to school in a Zip-Lock bag in case a spare is needed.

SECONDARY SCHOOL UNIFORM GUIDELINES

The aim of our uniform policy is for students to present a neat, school-like appearance at all times and to take pride in being members of GEMS American Academy. In accordance with ADEK policy, the school’s uniform is compulsory and should reflect the school’s commitment to honor UAE traditions, culture and religion.

All students must adhere to the GAA dress code policy.

First dress code violation: Contact with parents and warning given to the student.
Second dress code violation: Contact with parents and a change of clothes brought to school by parent/ guardian.
Third dress code violation: Contact with parents and student sent home for the day.

Personal Presentation:

Students are expected to arrive at school and depart from school in full school uniform. During school hours and while in school uniform the following rules apply:

No excessive makeup or jewelry is allowed.
Students with pierced ears may wear studs or small hoop earrings.
Rings should be small without sharp edges or loose parts.
No visible body piercings or tattoos.
Outerwear may not be worn in school; it should be kept in lockers.

Dress Down Days

GAA does not require uniforms whilst participating in after or out of school activities or on designated special dress-down days. However, students should be properly dressed in a manner that is not offensive to our host country. The following rules will apply:

No tight clothes (this includes no leggings or yoga pants)
No skirts/ shorts above the knee.
No spaghetti strap shirts
No exposed midriffs
No hoodies with hood up
No holes in jeans
No offensive logos or expressions on clothing
No hats.

If a student is not in alignment with these expectations, their parents will be contacted to either drop appropriate clothing off or pick them up from school.

Spirit Days- every Friday

A day where students can wear items of clothing created and sold by GAA groups, such as Booster Club, Sports and Activity teams and Student Government. These may include:

Powderpuff T-shirts
Spirit Wear (cohort related)
House Shirts
Athletic’s Sweatshirts
Booster Sweatshirts
Old Senior Sweatshirts
UAE National Dress

If a student is not in alignment with these expectations, their parents will be contacted to either drop appropriate clothing off or pick up the student from school.

ATTENDANCE

Late Arrivals

All students arriving at school past 7:45 a.m. are considered tardy and must receive a late pass before entering the classroom. Tardiness is discouraged as it interrupts the learning process in the classroom.

School staff will record every time a student is late to school. During the day, staff will record tardies in PowerSchool. Disciplinary action and re-enrollment considerations will result from excessive tardiness to school and/or individual classes for students.

Late attendance for Kindergarten and Elementary will be marked after 7:45 at KG Reception.
Late attendance for Secondary Students (Grade 6-12) will be marked in Cafeteria and later on Second Floor by Attendance secretaries.

Student Dismissal Timings

2:45 Access Doors Open (Fridays at 12:00)
2:55 Elementary Bus students dismissed to walk to Buses
3:00 Elementary students who are not collected from classroom, are accompanied to Cafeteria for supervision
2-55-3:00 Middle and High School Students are dismissed
3:30 Elementary late pick-up students accompanied to cafeteria for supervision
3:15 Afterschool Activities (ASAs) begin
4:20 ASA elementary students are accompanied to Cafeteria for supervision
4:45 Late bus departs

Early Dismissal Procedures

We understand that there are times when you need to pick up your child early from school, whether for a doctor’s appointment or a family emergency. However, frequent early pick-ups can affect your child’s learning and overall well-being. When students leave early, they miss valuable lessons and activities that help them stay on track with their classmates. It can be tough for them to catch up, and we want to make sure every child gets the most out of their school day.

Moreover, early pick-ups disrupt the class, making it harder for other students to focus on their learning.

To best support your child's education, we kindly ask that early pick-ups be kept to a minimum and only for essential reasons.

IMPORTANT! No early releases at or after 2:30pm (Mon-Thurs) and 11:30am (Fridays)
If a student is leaving school early, parents should inform the classroom teacher or relevant divisional secretaries at least an hour in advance by email
Parent/Guardian must come to the Main or KG Reception for “early release” slip.
Students will be collected from classrooms by assistants and brought to parents in the Main or KG reception for collection. For safety and security reasons, parents are to refrain from entering the corridors or classrooms while instruction is taking place.
Parents should not pick-up directly from classrooms before 2:45 pm.

Absences

All students are expected to abide by the ADEK provided school schedule and attend school on the days before and after school vacations. All students are also expected to follow ADEK Policy 55 on absenteeism which states that students with an absenteeism rate of more than “10% should be regarded as a cause for concern.” Acceptable attendance, as reported to and mandated by ADEK, is being present 95% or more of the time.

We understand that absences happen—whether due to illness or other reasons. While some absences can’t be avoided, it’s important to remember that regular attendance plays a big role in your child’s success at school. Studies show that missing too many days can impact reading levels and overall engagement in the classroom.

If your child’s absences reach more than 10% of the school year, we’re required to report this to our safeguarding team for review. This will include a meeting with parents to discuss how we can work together to improve attendance. When a student is absent for more than 10% of the school year, it may lead to lower grades (which will be reflected in their reports) and could even impact their re-enrollment for the next academic year.

WHAT TO DO: If your child will be absent, it’s important to inform the school and let us know the reason. Please contact the Elementary or Secondary secretaries by email before 7:30 a.m. on the day of the absence. If the absence is due to a medical issue and will be prolonged, please submit a medical certificate.

Elementary Attendance Secretary: esattendance_gaa@gemsedu.com
Secondary Attendance Secretary: ssattendance_gaa@gemsedu.com

For planned absences, we ask that you apply for Authorized Absence ahead of time. Requests for extended leave will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

SCHOOL TRAFFIC COURTESY

DO'S

Please be mindful of UAE Traffic Laws (UAE Government Website and LIST OF TRAFFIC OFFENCES AND VIOLATIONS)
Please exercise Culture of Kindness towards your Community members.
Be attentive and follow the guidance of our staff members! You will see them directing traffic and ensuring the safety of our students.
Instruct your drivers to follow the pickup/dropoff guidelines and instructions of our staff members.
Park in designated parking spaces.
Please continue forward in the pick-up lane if the car in front of you has picked up his/her child and is exiting. Do not stop midway – continue forward to allow cars lining behind you to enter parking.
Keep the sidewalks and crosswalks clear.

DON'TS

Do not double park.
Do not exit your car if waiting in pick up lane.
Do not park on the sidewalks (red-bricked areas near back gates) – this is in violation of UAE Traffic Rules.
Do not drop off or pick up students from the Main Road. For the safety of your children and to avoid traffic congestion, PLEASE DROP OFF AND PICK UP FROM DESIGNATED SCHOOL GATES.

RECOMMENDATIONS

If you arrive early to park in designated areas within school parking, please be mindful that you may find it difficult to exit immediately after pick up, as transiting cars may be blocking your way. We recommend to arrive during dismissal time. Alternatively, please park in designated parking areas in public roads (for example, after Beverly Cakes pastry shop, on Al Mutaabid Street, or Al Waqaa street).
Carpool when possible
Consider using school bus service
Weather permitting, consider using bikes or walk, if living near school.

PARKING ENTRY/EXIT PROCEDURE

We have assigned 2 entry points and 1 exit point in the back parking area (see attached map). NO EXIT IS ALLOWED THROUGH DESIGNATED ENTRY POINTS.
To enter the back parking area, please use one of the entry points indicated in the map. The 1st entry point is near tennis courts (in front of SmileRite), the 2nd entry point is through Bus parking. If the 1st entry is full, please continue forward on the main street towards the 2nd entry (through the Bus Parking).
Please continue forward in the pick-up lane if the car in front of you has picked up his/her child and is exiting. Do not stop midway – continue forward to allow cars lining behind you to enter parking.
Exit from center (EXIT ONLY POINT) as indicated in the map. Please use common courtesy and Culture of Kindness when exiting from parking and follow our staff members’ directions.
Students exiting from the back gates will be waiting in the designated waiting areas to be picked up. Please make sure you discuss the pick up timing with your child before school.

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