Clarion Newsletter, May 13, 2022

Dear Clarion parents and friends of Clarion,

It’s been a wonderful week after the Eid break. Funny how some people before Eid week off were saying “do we REALLY need a week of now?” Funny how when we got back this week all of those same people were saying “WOW! it was GREAT to have the week off!”

Human nature. Neat how that happens.

Speaking of “Human Nature”, it’s time to nurture our nature with CPC and they have set up a parent social event - the flyer is attached to this newsletter. The social event will be next week, May 18th, and while not mandatory, it would be amazing to see as many of you as possible! The CPC is at an inflection point with their growth this year that meeting the needs of parents is something they will start doing with events such as this one, and more next year. Add onto it, their CPC initiative to encourage current parents to serve as ‘mentors’ next year for the many new families joining the growing Clarion community.

Welcome to Clarion as a member of the team, Ms. Deeksha Fernandes as PLO:

Speaking of our growing and evolving community, I would like to welcome Ms. Deeksha Fernandes as our new PLO (Parent Liaison Officer) for Clarion. Deeksha comes to us from another school where she was the PLO for several years, and her knowledge and capacity in the job will ensure that our front office- front of the building staff - have the capacity to help parents in so many ways. Deeksha will work closely with Ms. Heerral in all matters, and will work with me for the weekly newsletter and school events as well as serving as a critical friend for parents who want to come in and ask questions, to chat about school, and to make inquiries.

Welcome to Clarion as a member of the team Deeksha!

Cold and Flu “season”:

As we slide out of COVID in so many ways (but it is still here and we must wear masks inside and keep proper social distancing still according to news articles this week), we are finding that some children are coming to school with a cold, or even a temperature. Please be mindful of school and passing colds around and keep any child home that shows symptoms of a cold. If your child has a fever in the morning they are to stay home. Even if the temperature has been reduced with medication, please keep your child at home until they have been without a fever and without medication for 24 hours.

Thank you so much for your help in this matter!

Parent “Clarion Commons” workshop:

Ms. Meher Mirchandani will be at Clarion on the 25th of May and do a workshop on self- help and actualization at 8:30 AM. We welcome all of you after drop off, get some coffee or a cool refreshing beverage at the cafe, and join us for an hour of learning!

I certainly am looking forward to learning from this too!

Art Competition outside of School for all students:

You may have seen this online this week- there is an Art competition in Dubai for students at schools.

The Painting Wizard invites you to the most prestigious inter-school painting competition for all students across the UAE. This hybrid competition aims to bring back normalcy in the lives of children post- COVID. The idea is for students to engage and create interaction with other students, while learning and exploring their own creative side. And what’s best is that there is a lot to win, along with the joy of painting and discovery.

Spread across three weeks, The Painting Wizard is split into different stages of competition to finally reveal the top four students/young artists from the UAE.

Here is a link to the actual article: https://www.education-uae.com/time-to-get-your-hands/ and here is the actual Registration link - www.thepaintingwizard.com .

Reminder that Friday pick up is 12:00 Noon Midday…etc

Parents, please remember to be here at noon on Fridays for pick up. We did have an atrium full of children at 12:15 today and we appreciate you understanding pick up time. Thank you!

The final word…this week!

Yesterday we had a wonderful presentation of the Grade 7 program at Clarion for the 2022-2023 school year. Ms. Suzanne and Ms. Nada, the other 2 members of our school SLT (Senior Leadership Team) joined me in presenting the Grade 7 as a natural progressive progression of the current Grade 6 program. Some additions to the school were also discussed, such as adding a “Maker Space” room in the new “Design Center” (to go into the ‘old’ canteen space); the addition of Drama in Primary and Middle school as well as a teacher to teach choir/drama in partnership with Ms. Iva; and the construction already underway of the Multi-Purpose Center above the 25 meter pool behind the Library.

I will send out a specific email about the information above and attach the presentation to it; I will also check the recording we made for quality and size to see where we can post some or all of it (depending on film quality and size; the sound in the atrium at times can be iffy with the AC on in the background!).

If parents want to follow up with any of the three members of the SLT, we are here for you- pop us an email and we can set up a time to discuss the program.

Thank you to the parents who were present, and to those of you who sent your regrets and who asked for information- it is coming early next week!

Sincerely,

Jim #JustRealizedItIsFridayThe13th Pastore