Please register your child’s absence in Tempus. - Parents must inform the school by 8:15 if their child will not be attending school that day. The class teacher will receive this information via Tempus.

Notification of Planned Absence
In case of planned absences please inform the teacher in advance, in addition to registering the absence in Tempus. 

Please note that prolonged absences may lead to your child losing the placement in EY.

When should a student stay at home due to illness, and for how long?

Students must stay at home if they are ill and not well enough to take part in the full school day and its activities. Students can attend school with minor symptoms, such as a slightly runny nose or light cough, as long as they are generally well enough to be at school.

Fever: Students should be fever-free for 24 hours before returning to school.

Stomach problems:  Students should stay at home for ideally two days (48 hours) after the last episode of vomiting/diarrhoea. If there is a widespread and hard-to-eradicate outbreak of the stomach flu virus at the school, it may also be necessary to keep all of your children at home.

Eye infections: Eye infections are highly contagious. The child must stay at home until the infection has cleared.

Head Lice: Head lice are found in the hair and on the scalp and usually cause itching. Anyone can get head lice. They are found in both washed and unwashed hair. They are caught as a result of close head-to-head contact lasting one minute or longer. Lice rarely spread via objects, as they can only survive a few days away from the scalp. It is important to check your child's hair regularly for lice.

If your child comes to school with signs of lice, he/she will be sent home. Over the counter remedies (Paranix, Hedin, Linicin) can be bought at pharmacies/ “apoteket” and it is important that all the instructions are followed. Comb the child’s hair thoroughly each day, using a lice comb for two weeks to check that the treatment has helped. Check everyone in the family and treat if needed.

Once treatment has been completed, your child can go back to school. It is highly recommended you continue to check your child’s hair a few times a week for lice.

Pinworms: Pinworms are 10mm long and as thin as a needle, they are a common and harmless complaint. Infection begins with severe itching, primarily in the evenings or night, when the worm emerges to lay its eggs around the anus. Children often have repeated infections from the eggs. Itching may start up to 3-7 weeks from infection. Treat using over-the-counter medication – ask at the pharmacy. Make sure your child has clean hands with trimmed nails, put on clean underwear every day and change the bedding frequently.

Information can be found at www.1177.se or you can telephone 1177 for information about children’s health in Swedish or English.

In order to support and encourage effective teaching and learning it is essential to have meaningful assessment in all three IB programmes. Assessment needs to involve students to make them aware of the criterion/criteria before the coursework begins. We believe assessment is necessary in facilitating growth of students by identifying areas of achievement and areas of improvement. We believe feedback is beneficial when it is constructive, meaningful and timely. 

Often EY children like to celebrate their birthdays at school by bringing in food to share with the class. If you would like to bring food to share with the class we request that you provide cupcakes (no whole cakes), ice lollies or a fruit and vegetable platter.

We do not allow a full birthday party to take place within school. Please discuss in advance with your child’s teacher before sending in the treat as there are many students with allergies.

Ensure that you do not bring in any food that contains peanuts, peanut products or nuts of any kind as some children are fatally allergic.

Party bags are not allowed and private invitations will only be given out if the entire class is invited.

Clothing: To make your child's day comfortable please make sure they wear  appropriate seasonal clothes. Children must have indoor shoes, which have hard soles and a closed toe (no crocks, slippers or flipflops). All students in EY classes must be prepared to go outdoors in all types of weather, so appropriate outdoor clothing is a must. Rain gear ( rain pants, coat, gloves, wellies or rainboots) and winter gear (gloves, hat, snow boots) are a must. All students should have two or three full sets of clothes that can be kept at school ( including underwear and socks)

 “Accidents” can be a reason for a need to change clothes as well.  Label all items of clothing so that the clothing can be returned to the correct student.

Dress: Students should dress in an appropriate manner for active play. Dress should be neat and clean. T-shirts or sweatshirts should not display offensive slogans or promote drugs, alcohol or tobacco. All students  are required to wear indoor shoes at all times.

Clothing for PE: Students are required to wear appropriate clothing for PE lessons. Clean indoor shoes must always be worn when the lessons are indoors.  

Toys: Children are discourage from bringing toys and unnecessary accessories such as tiaras to school. Toys can be easily lost or  broken, causing unnecessary distress for the owner and other children.  The school cannot accept responsibility for the personal property of children.  All  items should be labelled and please make sure your child does not bring valuables to school.

We have created a zero tolerance policy. A behaviour contract will be sent home at the start of the school year for all parents and students to sign. Bullying, physical fighting, stealing, swearing (in any language) is not accepted in school.

Expected School Behaviour

Respect yourself (listen, be responsible for belongings, be on time etc.)

Respect others (walk in hall, avoid name-calling and fighting, be polite, wait your turn, etc.)

Respect the environment (use equipment safely, clean up after yourself both inside and outside, etc.)

Weekly newsletters on email will be sent out via ManageBac to keep you informed of what is happening in your child’s class, as well as the school as a whole.

It is vital that you read this information as it is the main source of communication from the school. Please remember to update your contact details in OpenApply (see 'Updating your contact details') if your email address changes, just as you would inform if your telephone or physical address changed.

Learning Celebrations
Each spring term, parents will be invited in to take part in their child’s learning celebration. This will be an opportunity for you to spend some time with your child in the classroom. Your child will guide you through a few learning activities demonstrating their learning.

Please keep in mind, this is the time for your child to shine. Siblings who attend the celebration must be supervised by the parent and must have something from home to occupy their time. If there is disruptive behaviour, the teacher will ask the family to return another time without siblings.

Meet the Teacher
Our Meet the Teacher Evening is held at the beginning of the first term of the school year. This is an opportunity to visit your child’s classroom, meet the teachers and hear in more detail about the curriculum and procedures.

EY Time - EY class runs from 8:30 -11:30. The students have various educationally focused activities based on the programme of inquiry such as circle time, math, language, art, music and library and P.E Students also have time to learn and play outdoors.  

Snack - All students in the EY classes are given a portion of fruit for snack between 9:30 - 10:15.  Students who attend extened hours will also receive a snack at 14:30 and another piece of fruit at around 16:45.

Lunch - Lunch is served for EY classes at11:40. Students in extened hours, are required to eat the school lunch that is provided by the school.  The meals contain ingredients required for a balanced diet. If your child has a special dietary concern, please let the school know about it . In order to have special dietary food provided, a medical note from the doctor must be submitted. Due to allergy concerns the school is a nut free environment.  

Resting time - Students in EY1 have a 30 - 45 minute resting time after lunch. Students are not required to sleep, but to at least spend the time quietly relaxing and resting. EY2 EY3 have  story time.

How we process your own or your child’s personal data
This is information for you as a parent or student about how we work in our activities with personal data such as name, image, film and sound.

Our processing of personal data
We process personal data about children, students and guardians in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other legislation relating to data protection. By “processing” we mean that we, for example, collect and store personal data. We only process the personal data that we need and we take necessary action to protect access to the personal data.

Pedagogical documentation
As part of our undertaking, we document the learning and development of children and pupils. In order that we can comply with the Swedish Schools Act, we process your child’s/children’s personal data when we, for example, set grades, record attendance and absence, contact guardians and document the learning and development of children and pupils by means of image, film and sound.

Informing about our activities
We publish images and films on our website and social media in order to inform about our activities. These images and films sometimes depict children and students. We use these images and films with care and always with consideration of your own or your child’s privacy.

Consent for publication of images and film when we market ourselves
When we want to use an image or film of you or your child for marketing purposes, we ask for consent for this on a special form.
If images and films of you or your child appear in places where you do not wish to be involved, please contact us.

Find out more about our processing of personal data
You can find more information about how we process personal data at https://helsingborg.se/om-webbplatsen/sa-har-behandlar-vi-dina-personuppgifter/

As part of the curriculum, students at ISH often go on short distance field trips throughout the year. These are trips that are within the local area of Helsingborg and can be within walking distance or on local buses. In such cases, information about the date, time, and destination as well as any other pertinent details will be shared with you through the class newsletters.

For any longer trips a separate permission form will be sent out to parents.

Packed Lunches
Students are sometimes required to bring a packed lunch to school if they are going out on a school trip. Packed lunches should be healthy and nutritious and not include nuts, candy, chips, chocolate biscuits or fizzy drink.

Student Identification
Occasionally classes will journey to Denmark for a field trip. All students will need a valid passport or Swedish ID card for such instances.

ISH observes all Swedish national holidays within the approved school calendar. In addition to national holidays, there is an Autumn Break, Winter Break, Sports Break and Spring Break.

A list of important dates are available in weekly newsletters and the EY calendar.

During the  first week of school you and your child will follow an induction schedule. This will help your child feel more secure and accepting of their new environment. Every child reacts differently in new situations.  Some children may become upset when you leave. However, be assured, if your child is unable to be consoled by staff in a reasonable time, we will immediately let you know. Please talk with the staff about how your child feels and how you are feeling.

During your child’s induction week the following schedule applies:

Day 1
9:00 - 10:00
One or both parents join their child in the classroom for the whole time.

Day 2
8:30 - 10:30
One or both parents join their child in the classroom for 30 minutes and then stay in the vicinity. Collect your child at 10:30.

Day 3
8:30 - 11:00
You will leave your child with the teacher and stay in the vicinity. Collect your child at 11:00.

Day 4
8:30 - 11:30 or 13:30
You will leave your child with the teacher. Collect your child at 11:30 or by 13:30 depending on your work/study hours.

Day 5
8:30 - 11:30 or 13:30
You will leave your child with the teacher. Collect your child at 11:30 or by 13:30 depending on your work/study hours.

After the induction week the pick-up time will be according to your child’s type of placement and/or your working and studying hours. 

At ISH, the students have access to support in order to be successful both academically and socially. There is a Student Welfare Team which consists of learning support teachers, Community Psychologist and the principal.

We provide preventative programs such as ;

• Second Step program - all the students included in the program focus on social-emotional development and well-being. The program is run in the form of small, play-based group work.

• Learning support in the group - supporting students with engaging in the learning activities as well as following routines and instructions

• Learning support out of the group - supporting students by offering one-to-one support related to learning activities and/or social emotional support

• Guided reading groups - support with reading in small groups (EY3)

• Self esteem groups - support regarding building up confidence and self image  (EY3)

• Meetings with families - meetings regarding student’s support and progress together with class teachers

We model action to inspire action 

The school community at ISH will strive to become engaged global learners who demonstrate these attributes through the actions they choose to take both now and in the future.

At ISH students and staff enjoy learning together in a safe and secure environment.
We recognise, acknowledge, understand and celebrate diversity. 

We provide opportunities to inquire, to think and to reflect, so that we may learn from our experiences. Partnerships in learning are developed within the school community, which then expand to both the local and global community. Continued development of mother tongue languages and the learning of new languages strengthen our ability to fulfil our mission. 

The ISH community acknowledges our host country by appreciating and learning the language and culture of Sweden. 

Students are empowered to be able to make responsible choices as global citizens through learning engagements which bring knowledge, skills and attitudes together. In our school community we use communication and information technologies to enhance and expand the traditional role of education.

We strive to ensure your child has the best opportunity to become a caring, responsible, and independent individual. The only way this works is by having the school and home work closely together. At ISH, we have a very involved parent community and this one of the factors that has made the school so successful.  

In order for things to run smoothly, parents/guardians need to:

• Keep up-to-date with school news by reading the weekly school newsletter 

• Volunteer for at least one event: field trips, spring/winter fair, class assistance, Parent Teacher Association (PTA)

• Keep the main office and class teacher informed if emails, addresses, phone numbers change

• Inform us via Tempus if the schedule will change

• Ensure your child is dropped off and picked up according to the schedule

• Maintain close contact with their child’s teacher

• Inform if there is a change in employment status

This association consists of parents, staff and principals. The PTA Board is elected annually and is led by the PTA Chair. In addition to this board, there are also parent representatives from each class who volunteer at the beginning of each school year. If you are interested in volunteering as a class parent, please speak to your child’s teacher.

The PTA requests a voluntary annual donation depending on the number of children in the family. This money and all other funds raised by the PTA are invested back into the school. Investments that are made are to benefit all within the school.

In addition to the annual donation, each family is asked to volunteer throughout the school year. This may be done in a variety of ways, such as helping with school activities, assisting with PTA activities, or donating items.

Please keep in mind how important it is for students, parents and teachers to be involved together in a child’s education. All new families moving to the area receive a helpful booklet with practical information from the PTA.

The PTA has their own website where current information is published: https://www.ishpta.se/

There are two types of preschool available in Sweden which at ISH correspond to the following:

Early Years Extended Hours (förskola)

• Available to children from the year they turn 3

• Both guardians work, study, are jobseekers or on parental leave

• Fee based on the guardians’ incomes

• Hours based on the guardians’ work and study hours or Monday to Friday, 08:30–11:30, if a guardian is a jobseeker or on parental leave

• Available during school holidays

All new students will be enrolled in this type of placement unless stated on the original application.

Early Years 15 Hours (allmän förskola)

• For all children from the the autumn term the year they turn 3

• Free of charge

• Monday to Friday, 08:30–11:30

• Available during the school term only

Please note that students starting in EY must be diaper free.

Changing type of placement

Changing from EY Extended Hours to EY 15 Hours, or vice versa, requires a new application for the type of placement requested.

Please note!
Resigning from Extended Hours, applying for 15 Hours
• there is a 1 month resignation period during which fees are payable
• you have to re-apply at least 4 months in advance if you want to to go back to Extended Hours.

For more information about rules and regulations please visit helsingborg.se.

It is essential that we have up-to-date contact information for ISH families at all times. The information you provide is used when the school needs to contact you, e.g  if your child is sick, regarding progress talks and reporting, as well as when teachers need to contact parents.

You can check and update your contact details in Open Apply using the same log-in details as for ManageBac.

If you have moved, please remember to register this with the Swedish Tax Authority (Skatteverket) as well.