DHA News & Updates
Friday 25th February 2022
Week 7
Unbelievably we are already at the end of February and to finish the week we celebrated our This is Me day with an international theme. It is always great to see the students and staff display their individualism and diversity.
It has been a sporty week at DHA with the return of curriculum swimming lessons and our school sports days. It has been lovely to hear the children excitedly heading to the swimming pool and the sports field, as well as to see the fun, competitiveness and sportsmanship the students have displayed this week.
On an annual basis a team from the KHDA inspection division, DSIB (Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau), visit schools across Dubai to evaluate standards of education delivered. As you may remember we were scheduled for our first inspection visit in March 2020 but this was postponed due to COVID-19. On Monday we received our 5 day notification that our school DSIB inspection will be taking place next week from Monday to Thursday. Although inspections can be gruelling, this is an opportunity for us to showcase all the wonderful learning and social opportunities that your children experience at DHA. We are confident that the inspection team will be pleased with the progress that the school has made.
On Saturday 26th February we will be holding our FS Stay and Play Morning, an opportunity for prospective parents to see what our outstanding Foundation Stage has to offer. Don't forget this is also an opportunity for you to take advantage of our 'Refer a Friend' programme.
Please continue to stay safe and keep well. We wish you a pleasant weekend and look forward to seeing you back at school on Monday.
Dates for your diary
February
Friday 25th February - This is Me Day/International Day
Saturday February 26th - NEW ADMISSIONS - FS Stay and Play morning
March
Monday 14th March - Expo Trip 2 - Legacy of the UAE - FS2 - Year 1
Tuesday 15th March - Expo Trip 2 - Legacy of the UAE - FS2 - Year 2
Thursday 17th March - Art Day (TBC)
Saturday 19th March - Community Beach Clean Up - March 19th (TBC)
Monday 21st March - Expo Trip 2 - Legacy of the UAE - Year 5 - Year 8
Monday 21st March - World Down Syndrome Day
Thursday 24th March - Expo Trip 2 - Legacy of the UAE - Year 3 - Year 4
Friday 25th March - Arabic/Islamic Day - This is Me Day
Friday 25th March - End Of Term 2
Don't forget you can keep up to date and access our calendar online via our website or by using the following link and adding it to your own calendar:
NEW ADMISSIONS - FS Stay and Play Morning
Our fantastic FS Department and SLT Team will be hosting an FS Stay and Play morning this Saturday February 26th from 9:00am to 10:30am.
Prospective parents are invited to join our upcoming Stay & Play to see what our outstanding Foundation Stage has to offer. Children will have an opportunity to participate in an interactive session with our excellent Foundation team, to meet the teachers and spend time exploring and playing in our wonderful learning environments.
Our existing parents can also benefit from our friend’s referral scheme whereby a payment of AED 2000 will be made towards your child's tuition fee for every new enrollment we receive as a result of parent referral (Up to a maximum of 3 families per academic year)
Please note that the referral rewards are NOT applicable for siblings of existing Dubai Heights Academy students.
An application fee of AED 525 (Inclusive of VAT) will be waived for every attendee.
Call now on 04 356 3333/058 537 8634 to book your slot or use the link below and come and see why we believe in "Every Child, Every Mind and Everybody”.
Re-enrollment and school fees for Academic Year 2022/2023
We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for being a valued member of Dubai Heights Academy and for placing your trust with us. We hope that you have had many good experiences with us so far and that you plan to remain with us as valued members of our community.
Please download the PDF below to discover our updated benefits, discounts and fee structure for next year.
REMINDER: Parent ID card
Many thanks to those parents who are now wearing their green lanyard and ID card.
Don't forget only parents/guardians who are in possession of a parent ID card on a green lanyard will be allowed access to the school site.
ID cards MUST be worn at all times around your neck when on the school site. This includes during pick up/drop off times and, once we resume holding events in school for parents, during ALL events such as sports day, coffee mornings and parent teacher meetings.
If you have not received a parent ID and Lanyard or have lost your original ID card you will need to complete the request below. Additional and/or replacement ID card will be charged at AED 50 per card. Our Finance Department will send you an invoice for additional or replacement cards.
To request your new parent ID card please click the link below.
Masks
We have noticed a growing number of students who are not wearing their masks correctly. For the majority of these students it is typically because they are wearing non-medical masks which slip off the nose easily. We recommend that students wear the medical mask as the fit can be improved by using different methods, such as adjusting ties, or ear loops and adjusting the flexible nosepiece.
“DHA’s Best Storyteller Through The Lens”
We have had 15 amazing submissions and good luck to everyone taking part.
DHA PTA - Community Beach Clean Up
We have 30 families signed up for our Community Beach Clean up on March 19th. There is still time to confirm your attendance using the link below. The location will be confirmed and further details provided once we receive the DMCC approval.
Off the back of this and with other PTA items pending (review of PTA policies, PTA newsletter, Teenage Coach Workshop, Ramadan) we will have our next PTA meeting on-site on Wednesday 16th of March so we hope you can join us.
Inclusion & Wellbeing at DHA
We are delighted to finally announce our new Inclusion Support Team (IST) for DHA. Please join us all in welcoming two new parent representatives to the IST, Satya Klever and Katie Laing.
The IST plays a fundamental role in supporting the school community, leadership and Governors in driving the inclusive vision and ambitions of DHA forward. As always, if you have a matter you would like the IST to address or include in our next meeting, please do not hesitate to contact any member of the team;
Inclusion Governor - Isti Al Riyami
Inclusion Leader: Principal - Alison Lamb
Inclusion Champion / Head of Inclusion - Aisling Keaveney
Deputy Head of Inclusion - Terrie Spencer
Inclusion Teacher - Elaine Irvine
Head of MOE - Ruba Awwad
Therapist representative - Masnoena Allie
Parent representative - Satya Klever
Parent representative - Katie Laing
Our other fantastic news this week is the addition of our new team member Mrs Rachel Brown to our Inclusion team. Mrs Brown is a qualified Social Worker from the UK and will be supporting our inclusion team with the ASDAN curriculum pathway and whole school well-being support. If you have concerns about your child’s well-being and would like to discuss this further with us please do not hesitate to contact the Head of Inclusion, Aisling Keaveney at akeaveney@dubaiheightsacademy.com, or Miss Hayley Burrows, the school Safeguarding Lead at hburrows@dubaiheightsacademy.com or any member of the Senior Leadership Team and we will be happy to support you.
Finally, we are excited to announce our next inclusion parent workshop will be a face to face active session on Mbode on Tuesday the 9th of March at 2.30pm. Mrs Shirley Vardi is our Child Development Therapist at DHA and Mrs Vardi is looking forward to modelling and sharing some helpful strategies, activities and exercises that you can use at home to support your child’s concentration, listening skills, coordination and ability to process instructions. As this session will take place on site, spaces are extremely limited to ensure social distancing restrictions. In order to attend the session you will need to sign-up to reserve a space, and also confirm that you will present a valid vaccine certificate or a negative PCR test (taken within 48 hours of being on school site). Please sign up by following the link below.
PE & Sport at DHA
The students were super excited to get back into the swimming pool this week. They focussed on their kicking technique and began to improve their overall fitness and stamina in the pool.
We also had our Sports Days. Well done to all the students on their participation and congratulations to the winners. The awards ceremony will take place during next week’s assembly.
On another note, our DASSA fixtures will begin next week and continue for the remainder of Term 2. We will compete in inter-school competitions across a range of sports including girls football, netball, athletics, aquathon and swimming. Further information to follow!