Dear Parents,

I hope that you are well.

At times like these, it is very much appreciated to have the support of our GIS community and I would like to thank you for your messages. I trust that you received my recent letter, sent on Wednesday 12^th January, informing you that we had sought approval for a full return to face-to-face learning from Monday 17^th January onwards. We have now been granted this approval by the authorities, who congratulated us on our approach and flexibility when facing the current challenges. Extra-curricular activities, trips, events and PE classes are not permitted by the authorities throughout January. However, I am pleased to say that Slices have been granted approval to provide a delivery service to classrooms. Please see the link here if you wish to pre-order for your child.

Our students also deserve a well done for adapting quickly and engaging so well. There are so many highlights from the classroom and I hope you will view these in the Primary and Secondary sections of this newsletter. Two students even reached the semi-finals of a poetry recital competition in the Emirates Festival of Literature, from their own bedrooms! Saara O (5E) and Sateena H (4C) were selected from over 20 students at school, then competed in the semi-finals of an online competition, with numerous other schools in the UAE, run by the Emirates Festival of Literature and three external judges. They both recited their poems with poise and confidence and were an absolute delight to watch and a credit to GIS! The results will be forthcoming soon. Here is the YouTube link to the Semi-finals, thanks to Ms MacLeod.

Even during the challenges of the pandemic, some of our community went to extraordinary lengths to help others and reflect the GIS values. I would like to commend Ms. Ranjanie and Ms. Lilitha, two of our bus guardians. They noticed that our support staff, many of whom were quarantining in camps as close contacts, did not have the best food being delivered to them. Ms. Ranjanie and Ms. Lilitha decided to cook wonderful home cuisine for all these staff: not only did they manage this, they also organized delivery, which was hugely appreciated by all! We are delighted to have such caring people in our community, providing a role model to our students. I had pleasure presenting Ms. Ranjanie with a Head of School’s Commendation in person. Ms. Lilitha will receive hers on her return to school next week.