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ST. NICHOLAS COLLEGE

DINGLI PRIMARY

Guidelines for

Parents/Guardians

2017 – 2018

Contents Page

1 | Guidelines for Parents/Guardians 2017 - 2018

CONTENTS Pages

1. Mission/Vision Statement 3

2. Important Points 3

3. Start and End Time 5

4. Uniforms 6

5. Policy for a Healthy Lifestyle 8

6. Celebrating Birthdays 9

7. Personal Information 9

8. Circulars 10

9. Educational Outings 10

10. Unecessary Spending 10

11. Books 11

12. General Information 11

13. Absenteeism Policy 12

14. School Bags 13

15. Conclusion 13


Dear parents/guardians,

We wish to welcome you to the scholastic year 2017-2018!

First, we would like to start by thanking you for your co-operation which led us to

work successfully together during the past scholastic year. We are sure that

during the coming scholastic year we will once again work together for the

benefit of our students.

This booklet is full of important information which we all should be familiar

with, so that the school, parents/guardians and students will be able to work hand

in hand during the coming scholastic year. It is also suggested that

parents/guardians read carefully the points related to absenteeism. These useful

points are found in Section 13: Absenteeism Policy.

We suggest you also view Section 5: Policy for a Healthy Lifestyle as you can

find details about what your children should or should not eat/drink at school.

We would also like to emphasize the importance of reminding your children to

revise daily all the work done at school and also to read daily apart from doing

their written homework. Living in an era of technology surely makes it difficult

not to let our children use technology and children are entitled to play with such

technology but this should not take up all their free time. Apart from reading and

revising as mentioned above, it is also fruitful for them to spend some time

practising sports or their favourite hobby. The above surely applies for their

summer holidays too.

As always, in case of any problems, kindly phone the school so that an

appointment will be made with the administration. You can contact us on:

21454496 0r 21456247 or contact us via email: [email protected]

I, together with the assistant head and all the staff, are looking forward to work

hard to continue to improve the school in every aspect especially to help all the

students to be successful not only accademically but also in a holistic manner,

according to their individual aptitudes and capabilities.

Don’t forget to browse through our school’s website which is full of activities

organised throughout the year. Our new website is:

htpps://dingliprimaryschool.wordpress.com/


Do not forget to access Dingli Pr Carers Room which you can find in your

child’s ilearn. There can you can find different information. In addition you can

also find other necessary information related to school activities such as the

school’s calendar (Section: School Calendar) and school circulars (Section:

School Notices). During the year all circulars will be uploaded in the above

mentioned section so it is extremely important that you check this section

regularly.

Thanking you in advance,

Best Regards

Mrs. E. Galea - Head of School

Mrs A. Camilleri - Assistant Head of School 1. Mission/Vision Statement

Vision Statement

Mission Statement 2. Important Points The smooth running of the school as a learning community needs organisation and discipline. Good manners are expected from all the stakeholders and the balance between duties and rights is very important for this smooth running. This booklet aims to help you understand what is expected of you so that we will be able to reap the benefits of a successful school.

We are a school whose main priority is to strive at providing quality learning with care for every student in a stimulating environment.

The caring school community at St Nicholas College, Dingli Primary believes in the development of learners to their full potential through enjoyable learning, the acquistion of positive values and the promotion of holistic education.


The following are some rules which need to be followed for the maximum benefit of our students:

Regular and punctual attendance and with an enthusiasm for learning.

Rules which will be agreed upon in class will be explained clearly and there will be consequences in case of breaching.

There are school rules which concern Health and Safety issues especially during playtime in the yard, toilets and during school outings.

Attendance is recorded first thing in the morning and it will be relayed to the directorate via an electronic system. There is the possibility of students being marked absent if they arrive late at school.

Whenever you detect any sympthoms of illness such as influenza etc., kindly inform the school by means of a note or a Medical Certificate in case of an absence of 3 days or more, on their return to school.

When your children are absent from school due to illness, please do not ask for homework. Teachers will do their best to help your children catch up with any work missed during their absence.

In case of infective diseases such as chicken pox, ring worm etc, parents should provide a Medical Certificate which states when the child can return to school. In this case, if the student is sick for more than 5 consecutive days, the Medical certificate should be handed by not later

than the 5th day of his/her absence. If the school identifies such illnesses, the parents/guardians will be

contacted immediately. Then the latter will have to come to school at their earliest to take the children with them. Only when a Medical Certificate, stating that they are clear is presented to the school, will the children be able to return to school. The same applies if children feel sick at school and are sent home.

Hair has to be washed regularly and tied back especially in the case of long hair.

When the school suspects that pupil/s are carriers of head lice, TopBrands Medica Malta clinic are informed immediately. If this is confirmed by TopBrands Medica Malta, who will visit the school, the parents/guardians of the concerned children will be asked to pick up their children as soon as possible. The parents/guardians then have to contact TopBrands Medica clinic. The children concerned will be able to attend school again only

when TopBrands Medica clinic certify that the issue has been resolved. A certificate issued by TopBrands Medica clinic has to be presented on the children’s return to school.


Children should not bring toys, soft toys, fidget spinners, stickers or some other new trend toy to school.

It is important for personal items such as uniform items, school bags, lunch boxes, pencil cases, etc., to be marked with your child’s name and surname. We also suggest that each item found in pencil cases (such as biros, pencils, etc.) should be marked with the name and surname so that it will be easier for teachers and students themselves to identify the owner of the item.

3. Start and End Time From September to May school starts at 8:30 am. During the month of June, school starts at 8:15am. During winter school time, Kindergarten children will exit school at 2.15 pm while Primary children will exit at 2.30pm. During summer time, Kindergarten children will finish at 11.55 am and Primary children at 12.00pm. The entrance for all children is that from Buskett Road. Children who have the services of a full time one-to-one LSA should be handed over by the parents/guardians directly to the LSA at 8.30 am and vice-versa during dismissal. Children who arrive and leave school by means of a van are to exit school from

the gate next to the main entrance. The gate is situated in Buskett Road.

Parents/Guardians/family members are strictly prohibited to enter school while waiting for school to finish. It is very important for children to miss the least amount of lessons possible. Children can only be picked up early from school in case of an emergency.

WHENEVER YOU NEED TO PICK UP YOUR CHILDREN EARLY (DUE TO A HOSPITAL APPOINTMENT OR OTHER SUCH APPOINTMENTS) IT IS IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO SHOW THE APPOINTMENT NOTE AT SCHOOL. If you need to pick up your children early, kindly inform the class teacher by means of a note and when you pick them up, please, do remember to sign at the clerk’s office before you leave school.

Those who wish to speak to the class teacher, please phone for an appointment.


Teachers or Administration members will remain with your children until they are picked up but kindly remember to pick up your children on time.

It is also very important that parents stay outside the school premises both while children are entering and exiting the school.

4. Uniforms

Both the Kindergarten and Primary School uniform can be bought from Yorkie Mix & Match - St Julian’s Road - B’Kara which is located very close to Mater Dei Hospital - Tel No 21497278.

Children should wear their summer uniform in September, October, May and June. Winter uniform should be worn between November and April (or when asked to do so by the Administration).

All children: Any hairbands, scrunchies, bows or hair clips should be navy blue, orange or black.

Accessories that are not part of the school uniform are not allowed at school. These include: Any form of gold, silver and costume jewellery/accessories, such as

bracelets, necklaces and rings; No face and body piercing, Make-up and nail polish; Inadequate hair styles and hair colour. (Hair must always be kept

clean and tidy); No caps or hats should be worn in the school corridors and classes.

All earrings should be of the stud type. No other type of earrings such as rings or pendants are allowed. The school is not responsible in case of accidents with earrings. Besides, the school is not responsible for any lost jewellery.

Only school caps with the college logo or white caps only are allowed.

The school jacket with an adequate hood should be worn to protect your children from adverse weather. Black or navy blue boots are also allowed during such weather. The school will accept only jackets that are navy blue or black.

Scarves, hoods and tights should only be navy blue or black.

Umbrellas are too dangerous in children’s hands and thus they are not allowed on the school premises.


Important points regarding uniform:

The Kindergarten uniform consists of an orange and navy blue jogging suit in winter and an orange polo shirt and grey shorts in summer. White shoes with velcro together with white socks should be worn both in summer and winter. No other coloured socks and shoes are allowed. Therefore, laces should be avoided.

IMPORTANT: All school uniform items should be labelled. Primary: Winter School uniform consists of:

white shirt tucked in the trousers/skirt

tie – for boys

cross-tie – for girls

navy blue trousers with black belt – for boys

navy blue skirt – for girls

orange V-neck pullover with the St Nicholas College name and logo

Navy blue Anorak with St Nicholas College name and logo

Long black socks

Black tights – for girls

Black shoes (ballerina shoes are not allowed for girls) Primary: Summer School uniform consists of:

Orange poloshirt with St Nicholas College logo and name tucked in the bermuda/skirt

Navy blue bermuda with black belt – for boys

Navy blue skirt – for girls

Black, long socks

Black shoes (ballerina shoes are not allowed for girls) Primary Summer P.E Kit consists of:

Orange T-Shirt with St Nicholas College name and logo

Blue shorts with orange piping on the side

White cap with orange piping and with St Nicholas name and logo

Long white socks

White sports shoes


Primary Winter P.E Kit consists of:

Tracksuit with St Nicholas College name and logo

Orange round neck t-shirt with St Nicholas college name and logo. This T-shirt should be worn under the track suit.

Long white socks

White sports shoes 5. Policy for a Healthy Lifestyle We are doing our utmost so that our school makes a difference in the Lifestyle of the children and the community in general. Therefore this policy aims at:

Making children aware of the importance of being healthy and enabling them to choose healthy and nutritious food.

Doing physical activity regularly at school, outside school and at home.

Making parents/guardians aware that a balanced diet consists of fibre (fruit & vegetables), carbohydrates (bread, pasta, rice), protein (meat, fresh milk and eggs) and good fats (nuts, olive oil).

Encouraging the children to eat wholemeal bread, drink water and eat fresh fruit for breakfast and lunch.

Urging parents to provide food which conforms with the Healthy Eating policy.

The school follows the guidelines in the document found on this site: https://education.gov.mt/en/resources/News/Documents/Healthy%20Eating%20and%20Physical%20Activity%20Policy.pdf

Parents are obliged to check that children bring nutritious food, water and fruit with them to school.

When activities involving physical exercises (like fun day, fun walk, etc.) are organised, your full cooperation is expected so that all children can take advantage of these opportunities offered by the school.

If for any reason you have to buy pre-prepared food, please make sure that it conforms with the Healthy Policy.

You have to inform teachers, kindergarten assistants or LSAs if your child follows a particular diet or if they are allergic to certain foods. If you have

https://education.gov.mt/en/resources/News/Documents/Healthy%20Eating%20and%20Physical%20Activity%20Policy.pdf

https://education.gov.mt/en/resources/News/Documents/Healthy%20Eating%20and%20Physical%20Activity%20Policy.pdf


important documents from doctors or professors kindly give a copy to the school.

Parents and guardians should not send sweets, bags of snacks and processed food to school.

Lunch should be brought to school in a clean plastic container.

Children wishing to have milk at school need to bring a clean cup and a napkin which is not disposable and which will be used to dry the cup after it is washed.

You are also being encouraged to give your children some wipes, tissues and a face cloth.

Cups and napkins should be labelled.

6. Celebrating Birthdays Any birthday cakes/cupcakes should be plain and without any chocolate, icing sugar, jam, cocoa powder, smarties, vermicelli, cream, cream filling etc. If a cake does not meet these requirements you will be kindly asked to bring another one. In case you are unable to come, the cake will not be cut and shared in class. Remember that this is a special day for the children so it is important that you co-operate with us so that your children will not be disappointed. 7. Personal Information

If you are unable to pick up your children and need to send somebody else to pick them up, inform the school with both the name and ID Number of the person.

You should also inform the school if your child is either undergoing CDAU procedures or if your child suffers from any allergies.

If your child needs any medicine, kindly note that you cannot send the medicine to school with your children and also, that your children cannot take any medicine unsupervised. Those who need the services of a nurse regularly, have to fill in a specific form which can be obtained from the school’s clerk.

Once the child starts using the services of a nurse, the parent is obliged to inform the school before 9.00 am whenever the child is going to be absent from school.


8. Circulars Keep your circulars available and teach your children to give you the circulars as soon as they return home from school. In case of any bookings needed, kindly abide by the closing date. If your child is sick, please make your booking by phoning the school. As mentioned before, this year the number of circulars sent at home will decrease. All circulars will be available on the ilearn room: Dingli PR Carers Room. In case of any difficulties to access the ilearn, contact the school administration as soon as possible. 9. Educational Outings Educational outings are part of a school day, so please do not allow your children to miss a school outing without a valid reason. You will be asked for your consent before each outing. Thus a consent form will be given to your children to fill in and sign accordingly. Kindly send any payment for the outings as soon as possible and not later than the closing date so that transport can be booked early. The exact amount of money and the consent form should be sent to school in a closed envelope. If the money of more than one outing is being collected at the same time, it is important to send the money in different envelopes. It is very important that children are on their best behaviour during school outings. Lunches taken on outings have to be healthy lunches, so sweets are still not allowed on outings. Kindly make sure that your child is wearing the adequate clothing as advised on the consent form. Children not wearing the proper clothing will not be allowed to go on the outing. 10. Unnecessary Spending Children are not expected to buy a new school bag and pencil case at the beginning of each scholastic year.


11. Books All school books which the children will be borrowing for the whole scholastic year should be covered without fixing any tape or glue to the book. Please also make sure that you label all books with the name of your child and class. If the book is torn or lost, parents have to replace it so that it can be used by someone else during the following scholastic year. To start reading from an early age, all children are encouraged to enrol in the Public Library and to borrow books from the Dingli Library branch which is within the school premises. 12. General Information Any correspondence at classroom level to: teacher, kindergarten assistant or LSA should be done by means of a note either on the homework diary or on a separate paper sent to school with your child. Any correspondence at school level should be sent to school through one of the following methods:

by means of a note with your child.

by e-mail addressed to: [email protected]

by post and addressed to: The Head of School

St Nicholas College Dingli Primary Main Street Dingli, DGL 1837

Any correspondence at College level should be posted to: The Principal Ms Josephine Mifsud St Nicholas College Fisher Road Imġarr, MGR 9054 Tel No: 2598 8000

mailto:[email protected]


Or via email on: [email protected] It is very important to remember that once you enter the school premises, you have to ask the Head of School, the Assistant Head or the School’s clerk for permission to speak to a teacher/LSA/KG Assistant. This is necessary for the safety of all children. Kindly remember that school is a public place and thus you are expected to wear decent and adequate clothing. 13. Absenteeism Policy The Directorate for Educational Services has implemented a policy in order to address attendance in schools. These policies are to be adhered to by everybody, in the best interest of the students. You are requested to abide by these new procedures:

1. When your child misses school, you are to call the school and inform the administration. You are then requested to present the absenteeism form, provided to you by the school, to the Head of School giving the reason why the student did not attend. For each day that is missed from school, there needs to be a justification, which will be accepted or otherwise at the discretion of the Head of School. If such justification is not accepted, the student will be marked absent.

2. If during the scholastic year students are absent for more than 9 days without any valid justification, actions will be taken.

3. If your children do not attend school for more than 3 consecutive days

due to illness, a Medical Certificate has to be presented. If they are unwell for less than 3 days, a written note should be enough. The Head of School can, however, still ask for a Medical Certificate.

4. Medical Certificates should be presented within 3 days from when the

children return to school. If the student is sick for 5 consecutive days, the Medical certificate should be handed in on the 5th day of their absence. It is very important that the Medical Certificate Record Card is to be filled and presented together with the Medical Certificate.


5. Permissions for holidays during school days are not granted, and in such case, the student will be marked absent. The students can only be marked as excused, in cases of Educational visits, family funerals, family marriages and medical interventions being held abroad. In such circumstances, the Head of School should be informed in writing and the necessary documents shall be presented beforehand.

6. According to the Education Act, Chapter 357 Article 2, the obligatory

school age is from five (5) years to sixteen (16) years old. This means that children who are in Kinder 2 and are 5 years old, should still abide to the policies.

14. School Bags It is the parents’/guardians’ responsibility to check that children do not carry extra items such as pencil cases or books which are not school books in their school bags. Carrying extra weight is potentially detrimental to the children’s back. 15. Conclusion This booklet should be kept as a reference throughout the whole scholastic year both for the benefit of our students and for the smooth running of the school! We appreciate your cooperation.