AMBRIT ROME PHILOSOPHY AND OBJECTIVES
Ambrit Rome provides an international education for students from diverse cultural backgrounds. The school's programmes of study and activities foster the cognitive, aesthetic, physical, social and emotional growth of the whole child, helping each child to reach his or her greatest potential in a stimulating and caring environment. Children are encouraged develop a sense of identity, self-esteem and independence.

The interdisciplinary curriculum is designed to maintain high standards of academic learning while allowing children to make meaningful connections across subject areas using an inquiry-based approach. Classroom activities provide opportunities for cooperative and experiential learning which emphasise process oriented skills and the communicative importance of language.

Children are taught to respect others, their natural environment, and to develop an awareness of global issues through school and community service activities. Cooperation amongst parents, staff, students and the community is actively encouraged. Students leave Ambrit with an appreciation of different cultures and the tools to become life-long learners.

ADMINISTRATION

Director - Bernard C. Mullane
Co-Director - Loretta Ward Nannini
Middle School Principal - Richard Hester
Dean of 8th grade students - Robin Gilbody
Primary Principal - Pascale Salomon
Early Childhood Principal - Josie Fabiani
PYP Coordinator – Nicky Shamash
Curriculum Coordinator- Maria Casson

Parents should notify the school office in the morning at 09:00 when your child is absent. If absence is longer than 3 days, or when a child has acquired an infectious disease a medical certificate must be provided the day your child returns.

The office and class teachers should be notified at least one week in advance of any extended vacations so that class work for the child can be prepared.

ACCIDENTS/ILLNESS/HEALTH RECORDS

During registration parents are asked to fill out and sign an emergency release form in case of an accident. Emergency and home and cellular numbers are very important. Please notify the office of any changes in contact numbers.

Accidents - Minor accidents are reported to the office and treated by the school nurse or staff member with knowledge of first aid. The teacher will write a note to the family explaining what happened. The heads of school will be informed.
If a child is seriously injured or ill, he/she will be taken to the nearest hospital (usually San Camillo) accompanied by a school official who speaks Italian. Parents are notified immediately and told to meet at the hospital.

Illness - If a child arrives at school ill or becomes sick during the school day, parents will be called by phone to come and collect their child. Please do not send in medicines of any kind. If your child is not fit enough to play outside please keep him/her at home as we cannot supervise a child in a classroom at break time.

Infectious Disease - When a child returns after having had an infectious disease (measles, whooping cough, strep throat, etc.), the child will be allowed to enter class only if he/she has a medical note. If your child has an infectious disease, please notify the school office so other members of the class can be informed.

Policy on Administering Medicine - The school is not authorised to administer medication.

Policy on Keeping Children Indoors - If a child is well enough to return to school, he/she should be able to play outdoors.

Head Lice –
Head lice policy:
If your child is found to have lice or eggs while at school, parents will be notified and asked to take their child home immediately. Re-admission to school can only occur when your child is nit free.
 To prevent head lice, take great care with personal hygiene. Head lice cause itching and sometimes skin infections. If a child has lice, treat him/her at once and inform the class teacher or the school office. Parents of other children in the concerned class will then be informed and recommended to use a preventive shampoo such as Pidix or Mom. The shampoo can be purchased in most pharmacies and must be applied more than once in the course of a week. For more info click here.

Health Records - All new students must provide the school with a copy of completed vaccinations (including DPT, Hepatitis B and boosters) certificate. Each student should have a complete physical/health examination before entering school, which must be repeated every year. The school doctor will send the necessary form home with the summer information mail. Parents are asked to return the completed forms promptly. You can also download the medical form by clicking here.

School Health Policy
Ambrit regards safety and health as a primary concern for the school community. All children entering school are required to have an immunisation record with current inoculations of DT and the polio vaccine. (Bivalente or Trivalente). The Hepatitis B vaccine is optional but advisable.

Fevers - Children who develop fevers during school hours will be taken out of class and the parent will be called to collect the child. The child will rest in the nurse's office until the parent arrives.

Stomach Upset. Children who have upset stomach with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever, will also be taken out of class until the parent is able to pick them up. If a child has vomiting or diarrhea, the family is requested to keep the child home for 36 hours after the last episode of sickness.

Cuts and Bruises. All minor injuries (e.g. cuts, sprains, bruises) will be treated immediately with disinfectant and bandage. All injuries of a serious nature will receive prompt attention. Parents will be notified and, if they cannot be reached, the student will be taken to San Camillo Hospital in Monteverde.

Conjunctivitis. If a child presents the following symptoms: itching, burning sensation, redness, profuse tearing and eye secretions, parents will be notified and a medical doctor should be consulted to make a correct diagnosis. Viral conjunctivitis is extremely contagious and the prescribed doses of medicine for treatment must be taken before re-entering school.

Chicken Pox. (Varicella) Chicken pox is a highly contagious virus that usually occurs in spring and has an incubation period of 1 to 2 weeks. After a child has developed pox marks, usually on the abdomen, they will spread over the body. There can be 2 separate occurrences of the rash and the child may have a fever. Treatment is based on soothing the rash. A child may not enter the school with any open sores which usually last for 7-10 days after the first spot. A doctor's certificate will be needed to return. The class parents will be notified for each case.

E-mailing is a great medium to promote communication. We hope that its use at Ambrit will contribute to our students' educational needs while respecting the time constraints of our staff and parents. Consequently, we ask that you please follow these guidelines:

• Use e-mail only for non-urgent matters.
• Teachers will respond to emails as soon as possible. This will depend on the importance of the matter in question and the teacher's availability.
• Please identify your purpose in the subject line of your e-mail message.
• Your child's academic progress and social development are best addressed by telephone or by scheduling a personal conference with your child's teacher. An e-mail message on these matters is not appropriate.
• Use e-mail to give teachers advance notice of planned absences, to arrange a conference, but not to arrange play-dates, organize birthday parties or make bus changes. For bus changes, you may email Gigi at buses@ambrit-rome.com before 13:00.
• We welcome your ideas for field trips, guest speakers and curriculum related activities.
• Do not use this medium for personal advertising.
• Please DO NOT send group emails to the parent body.
• Please remember that the teacher’s priority is teaching and emails should only be sent when necessary

Teachers' emails follow this format: firstname.lastname@ambrit-rome.com (ex: mary.smith@ambrit-rome.com).

General admissions criteria
Admission is open to all students of all nationalities. Ambrit aims to create heterogeneous groups for each grade level. The school makes every effort to maintain a student body composed of at least 20% English first language, 35% Italian first language and 45% native speakers of other languages. A classroom that is balanced by gender, academic and language abilities facilitates appreciation of diversity, positive social interchanges, and cooperative learning. At the end of each academic year teachers and specialists will meet to decide student class placement for the following year. Classes will be recomposed annually to reflect the above criteria and the philosophy of the school.

To be admitted to Ambrit's Nursery class, a child must be potty trained and must be 3 years old by the 31st of August of the year of entry. Children then progress to Kindergarten, Preparatory and Grade One with their year group unless the teachers and administration feel that it would be beneficial to the child's development to stay in a class. Below is a chart showing how classes are organized at Ambrit compared to the UK and USA systems.

If there is a question as to a child's placement for the subsequent year, parents will be informed by the beginning of the Spring term of that calendar year. Children entering the school mid-year will be informed of the placement decision for the following school year within two months of entry. Children entering the school with known special needs or who are subsequently identified as having special needs will be reviewed individually as to placement each year. In certain circumstances, it may be necessary for the parents to pay for an assistant in the classroom for children with special needs.

New Pupils - Screening - A general screening takes place in Prep, Grade 1 and in Grade 5. In addition, all new children entering the Primary and Middle School are routinely screened. Further assessment will be administered by the Resource Department. This usually occurs after referral by staff (or parents) or may be indicated as a result of the initial screening. Parental permission is sought for this additional testing and parents will be informed of the results.

Italian first language students are accepted:

• in pre-school providing that one parent of the applicant speaks English;
• at other levels if they have attended school abroad and require no EAL support.

Third language speakers with no English:

• are admitted through grade 6;
• may on occasion be admitted in grade 7 and 8 if half-day, private EAL instruction is provided by the family. 

BOOKS AND MATERIALS

Exercise books and workbooks are supplied by the school and may be kept by the student. Any textbooks, reading series or class/school library books are to be returned at the end of the school year in good condition. A fine will be levied on books returned in poor condition.
Materials - At the beginning of each year and periodically throughout the year, make sure your child has these supplies:
Primary Classes
- a pencil case with coloured pencils, pens, 2-3 pencils,
pencil sharpener, 2 rubbers (erasers) and measuring
instruments.
- a book bag.
- a lunch box.
- a painting smock or an old and big T-shirt for art projects.
- a homework diary and calculator for Grade 5.
- a dictionary and markers for Grade 4 and 5.
Middle School
- In addition to all the materials required in the Primary School, the Middle School students need a compass, a protractor and a ruler. All Grade 8 students require a personal scientific calculator.

If you would like to arrange a playdate for your child with another child, please remember that a WRITTEN note must be given to the class teacher or to Ms. Gigi (or a phone call or email before 12:00).  For safety and security NO CHILD MAY LEAVE WITH ANOTHER PARENT OR BABYSITTER WITHOUT PARENTAL PERMISSION IN ADVANCE. 

1. Parents may celebrate their child's birthday at school with a cake, or drinks, if they arrange it with the class teacher at least 2 days in advance.  Parents are requested to bring or send in everything required, including plates, napkins, etc.
 
2. If you are planning on inviting children to a birthday party you MUST invite all the children in the class. If you prefer to only invite a select few you NEED to phone the parents, send invitations via post or email or directly speak to parents. Please DO NOT ask teachers to distribute only a few invitations nor should parents try to distribute only a few invitations at school.  This hurts children's feelings and is unfair. 

1. If you are organizing a party OUT OF SCHOOL, please make sure that your invitations CLEARLY say that for all children going home in a different way than usual (i.e. not taking the regular school bus), each parent MUST contact Ms. Gigi with a written note or a phone call (3472170724) or email buses@ambrit-rome.com BEFORE 12:00.
 
2. Please do not expect Ms. Gigi to phone parents!  Ms. Gigi cannot phone every parent of invited children to confirm party attendance.  Parents must contact Ms. Gigi in advance.
 
3. Please see Ms. Gigi the morning of the party to provide a list of all confirmed participants. Confirming party attendance to the host parent must also be accompanied by notification to Ms. Gigi, whether children are going home with another parent, on a party bus or remaining for a party at school.
 
4. NO CHILDREN MAY LEAVE THE SCHOOL WITHOUT PARENTAL PERMISSION TO MS. GIGI.  IF Ms. Gigi does not receive confirmation, children will be sent home in their usual manner. 
 
5. Whenever you would like to arrange a party bus please contact Pino, the head of the bus company. Cellphone  number is 3407783505. He will let you know the bus availability and bus price.
 
6. Payments need to be made through Ms. Gigi or directly to the bus driver.
 
7. Please be at the school no later than 3:30 pm. This will give you enough time to collect the children and be ready to leave after our school bus dismissal at 3:45.

1. Birthdays celebrated on the Early Childhood playground should be arranged and payments made to our E.C. Principal at least one week in advance. Parties can happen only if there are no previous conflicts in our EC area. Please confirm before invitations are made! 
 
2. If you are organizing a party at school please make sure that your invitations CLEARLY state that for all children are going home in a different way.  (i.e. not taking the regular school bus) Each parent MUST contact Ms. Gigi  BEFORE 12:00 with a written note, phone call 3472170724 or email buses@ambrit-rome.com.
 
3. Parties are organized by parents hosting the event and are not the responsibility of Ambrit teachers.  A teacher will remain at school in EC only to ensure that the party finishes on time and that the alarm is properly turned on at 6 p.m.
 
4. Please see Ms. Gigi the morning of the party to provide a list of all confirmed participants. ALL children attending the party must have parental confirmation with Ms. Gigi. 
 
5. Parents hosting a party should ask the class teacher for a class list so that they have a list of parent’s phone numbers.  At 5:40, if there are children without parents, please begin phoning their parents. At 5:45 please accompany any remaining children to the benches in the Atrium and wait for parents to arrive. It is the responsibility of the hosting parents to wait until all children are picked up. 

Please remember if you need to make a bus change or have any questions about procedures you can contact Gigi at the school anytime from 8:30 until 12:00. Cellphone number is 347 217 0724
 
The following table outlines the rules and expectations for all students who use the buses. Please discuss these with your child, so that everyone is familiar with the expectations.

 

Bus Procedures 

The following list outlines the basic Bus procedures and guidelines for the AMBRIT buses.  PLEASE READ CAREFULLY!
 
Bus Changes:

Morning Bus:

• Parents must call the driver directly in the morning regarding lateness and absences. All bus drivers have cell phones for receiving calls.  The drivers do not speak English, but they can understand enough to communicate.  It is important to remember that DRIVERS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO WAIT LONGER THAN 2 MINUTES FOR ANY CHILD.

Afternoon Bus:

• Any changes to the regular bus schedule need to be made through Ms. Gigi. Dial the school number, 'press 1 for bus inquiry' and ask for Gigi or email her at buses@ambrit-rome.com before 12:00.  The 'bus change form' (also available on-line) should also be completed and given to your child's classroom teacher in the morning. Bus lists are completed by 1:00 and any changes after that time are extremely difficult to make.

 
Guests on the bus:

• Parents must request permission 24 hours in advance for a guest to ride the bus.
• All guests on the bus are subject to seat availability.  We suggest that children do not have 'sleep overs' during the week, as there is never space on the morning buses.
• Parties or groups of children are forbidden to take the bus.  The 'Center Bus Co.' can provide small buses at reasonable prices to help transport groups of children. The bus company has decided that all guests on the bus will pay.

 
Changing routes:

• Drivers are not permitted to change their regular bus routes in order to drop students off at a different location (ie. any activity outside of Ambrit).

EC Children:

• EC children will have chaperones to accompany them to their classes in the morning and their bus lines in the afternoon.   

 
Safety:

• All buses are equipped with seatbelts.  Please remind your child/children to buckle up their seatbelts.
• All child-care helpers who wait for children must be introduced to the drivers first.
• No child is to be dropped off at the appointed spot without someone to meet them.  In this case the child is brought back to the school. Parents must be punctual at all times for both pick up and drop off. Drivers cannot wait more than two minutes!

 
Late buses:
Late buses are for the use of students who do after school activities. Priorities are given to students who are on the bus program.  Students wait on the adventure playground where their names are called and checked off the bus list.  These late buses travel to FAO, IFAD and WFP.  The FAO bus leaves the school at 5:00 and arrives at about 5:15.  The other buses usually arrive at their destinations at around 5:45.
Pickup/Drop Off at FAO (Viale Aventino right next to the Petrol Station)
Pickup and drop off is inside the building D. Parents must pick up their children as soon as they are drop off inside that area.  Children are not to enter the building alone unless written permission is given.
 
Drop Off at WFP  (Via Viola Cesare Giulio, 68, Parco dei Medici)
The drop off site is alongside the guards' offices.  AMBRIT buses do not go inside the gates of these buildings.
 
Drop Off at IFAD  (Via Paolo di Dono, 90)
The drop off site is now at the back entrance of the new IFAD building.  Entrance to the new IFAD headquarters is highly restricted, children whose parents do not work at IFAD must present a document to the guard each time they pick up their child(ren).
 
 
Other concerns:
The guards are not responsible to wait with the children so parents should meet their children at the appointed time at FAO, WFP and IFAD. 
There are times when children miss their bus due to lack of communication.  Should there be need to contact the school Gigi should be contacted. Cellphone number is 3472170724
Every effort will be made to find a convenient pick up and drop off spot for children who join the school in the middle of the year.
 
EMERGENCY CONTACT NUMBERS
Bernard Mullane - 3473813188
Gigi - 347-2170724
School Fax - 065595309
School email - ambrit@ambrit-rome.com
Bus email - buses@ambrit-rome.com
Director email – director@ambrit-rome.com


DAILY SCHEDULE
School receives children at 08:00 hrs. They are supervised in the garden until 08:45 hrs. Classes end at 15:20 hrs Monday through Friday. Buses depart at 15:30 in the order of their distance from the school. Parents are expected to collect their children no later than 15.45 hrs. In case of unexpected lateness, the school must be notified.

CLASSROOM RULES:
All students will:
- be punctual for lessons
- be prepared for lessons
- behave responsibly in the classroom
- hand in assignments on time
- present own work
- keep lockers and classroom tidy and clean
- be responsible for personal belongings

BUS RULES
Students will be expected to know and follow all Bus Rules. Students who continually break bus rules will be reported to the school office by the bus driver, teacher or monitor, resulting in disciplinary measures. Any kind of vandalism to the buses means that the student(s) responsible will have to pay to repair damages. Every student will be responsible for his/her own behaviour while traveling on the school bus. Older students will be expected to remind younger children of the bus rules.

AFTER SCHOOL RULES:
- All students should leave school by at 15.45 unless they have an afterschool activity
- The adventure playground will be open from 15.30-16.45 but children must be supervised by their parents during this time
- Students who have not been collected must wait in the Atrium where they will be supervised until they are collec

DRESS CODE

• Dress comfortably. It is very important that children feel comfortable, free to move and are not worried about getting paint, food or mud on their clothes. They will be running, kicking balls and climbing; therefore, it is important to dress them safely for playtime. Please see that children can remove clothing easily by themselves in order to use the restroom.
• Dress for weather. The children play outside almost every day, so it is very important for them to be dressed appropriately for the weather. Remembering gloves, hats and socks on days when the child may need them.
• Comfortable rubber soled shoes are the best. Shoes that are slippery on the bottom or are always falling off can be dangerous for children. Please NO backless shoes. Please see that all sandals have a strap around the heel.

• Students should wear neat clothing which is practical and, above all, seasonally appropriate.
• T-shirts and sweatshirts may not display any inappropriate words, pictures or slogans.
• Hats, including baseball caps, visors, bandanas and stocking caps may not be worn inside classrooms or during assemblies.
• Clothing must not have tears or holes.
• All tops, blouses or shirts must cover the midriff area and shoulders at all times. Spaghetti straps, halter tops, off-the-shoulder and tube tops are not acceptable clothing for students.
• For safety reasons, thonged beach sandals/flip-flops should not be worn to school.
• Sports shoes are required for P.E. days.

• Wear neat and clean clothes, outerwear and footwear.
• Wear proper footwear befitting the climate and weather; no flip-flops.
• Wear clothes covering the shoulders, midriff and cleavage; no spaghetti straps, off the shoulder, haltertops or tube tops.
• Do not wear see-through clothing.
• Do not dress in a provocative manner.
• Do not wear clothing that displays offensive or inappropriate words, pictures or slogans.
• Do not wear hats including baseball caps, visors and bandanas inside the building.
• Jeans are permitted as long as they do not have tears or holes.
• Ensure trousers are pulled up to the waist so that undergarments are not visible.
• Skirts, dresses and shorts should be no shorter than 10 centimeters above the knee.
• No make-up except for middle school dances.
• Ensure that your clothing does not offend any of our diverse cultural sensitivities.

Please note that the above dress codes apply to field trips, travelling groups and other school related activities.
 
The final judgment on the appropriateness of student dress will rest with the Principal.

1. Students who do not honour the dress code will be asked on the first occasion to secure alternative clothing from the office at a rental of 10.00 euros which will be donated to one of the Ambrit charities.
2. For a second infraction of the dress code students will follow the above protocol and will be required to contact home via telephone.
3. If a third infraction of the dress code should occur then the student will be sent home accompanied by a note indicating the expected school dress. If, for any reason, sending the student home is not possible, then the student will remain at school, but not in class. In this case the student is responsible for making up any missed school work. In addition, on that day the student will not be permitted to participate in after-school activities.

DIGITAL EQUIPMENT

- cell phones
- cameras, digital or film
- iPods or mp3 Players
- portable game consoles (GameBoy, PSP etc.)
 
Should a child need a cell phone in order to contact their parents after school, the phone must be checked in with the office, where it will be kept until the end of the school day, then returned to the student. The office will require a letter from the family, explaining the student's need for a cell phone.
If students bring the above items to school, they will be confiscated and kept in the school office for collection by their parents. The equipment will not be given back to the student. This policy was implemented because the above items cause too many distractions for students during the school day, and the school cannot be held responsible for lost, damaged or stolen property.

Applications are screened by the Admissions Department. Parents will be required to have an interview with the Director. Previous records will play a vital role in the decision to admit a new pupil. A decision on admission is made within two weeks of the interview. Once a place has been offered it will be held for one month. It should be noted that entry into a 'year' group is based on the child's age as of August 31st and thus students are placed with their peer groups. Classes shall not exceed 24 pupils.

FIELD TRIPS

Living in Rome with its rich cultural heritage makes local visits to archaeological sites and museums an important aspect of host culture study. In the upper levels of the school students travel to Italy's art cities. All field trips are included in school fees.

FINANCIAL AID

The school offers no financial aid.

FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS

School fees are payable with one of the various payment schemes, giving parents the chance to choose the most suitable. Click here to view current payment schemes.
If a family is transferred during the school year, the school must be notified 3 months beforehand; otherwise the family is responsible for the full year's fees.

FIRE DRILLS

Fire drills are held frequently. Students walk in file and in silence out of the building when they hear one long continuous ring. After the building has been evacuated, the all clear signal (three short rings) is rung. The total evacuation takes about 3 minutes.

FOOD

The children should bring a mid-morning snack such as a sandwich, crackers, cookies, peeled fruit or a mini carton of fruit juice. Please do not send chocolate, sweets or drinks in glass bottles or cans. Students enrolled in the lunch programme are provided with a first course, second course and fruit. The expense of this programme will be invoiced separately.

If you wish to celebrate a birthday at school you may send a cake to be shared during the afternoon.
Parents may celebrate their child's birthday at school with a cake, or drinks, if they arrange it with the class teacher at least 2 days in advance.  Parents are requested to bring or send in everything required, including plates, napkins, etc.

* When parents have specific concerns about the school or their child's academic progress, it is important to deal with these concerns in a timely and constructive manner.
* The first step is to contact the appropriate member of the teaching staff, (e.g. your child's homeroom teacher) directly stating what problems or concerns exist.
* If issues are not resolved at that level, the Principal of the student's grade level should be brought into the discussion. This constitutes the second step. Parents and staff should try to resolve problems at the lowest possible level. (i.e. teacher/parents)
* The third and final step should only be used in extreme and unresolvable situations. The parent should:
a) submit in writing a statement detailing the grievance;
b) request a meeting with the Director to provide additional insights and back-up information concerning the grievance;
c) the Director will meet, discuss and finalise a statement and/or action which in his opinion best solves the problem to the benefit of AMBRIT and the family involved.

HOMEWORK

Early Childhood
Homework reinforces skills learned in subject areas. It provides an opportunity for communication between parents, teachers and child. Homework can also promote independence and responsibility.
Nursery & Kindergarten - It's important that children have stories read to them at home. Encourage your child to talk about his/her school day and of the art work that he/she brings home. Children are sometimes asked to bring pictures and materials based on current units of inquiry to school. In Kindergarten, consolidation number and language work may be sent home.
Preparatory - The children have 2 or 3 fixed days per week on which homework is set; it may be a spelling/writing exercise, a math page or home reading. The homework policy and suggestions for helping students are explained during the September parent meeting. The work should take 15-20 minutes to complete and can be explained by the parent, gradually leading to the child completing the work on her/his own (depending on level of reading skills and command of English).
Responsibilities of Parents
Parents can help find the best time after school for homework. They should provide a quiet, well-lighted work area. They may explain, where necessary, but then should promote independence in their child(ren) completing homework.
Parents are asked to inform teachers well in advance if they have a holiday planned during school time so the child's homework can be prepared. 

Primary School
Homework provides an opportunity for consolidation and reinforcement of material learnt in class. Homework gives the student the time to develop and practice time management skills.
Guidelines on How to Complete Homework
First, the child should have an opportunity to relax after returning home from school. Free time, socialising and playing are important. Second, a quiet, organised and well-lit space should be provided for him/her. A time should be set aside as "homework time," when the television is off, the telephone is off limits and ipods, Game Boys etc. are put away.
Responsibilities of Parents
Parents should provide adequate time and an appropriate environment. Parents should remind their children that they might have assignments to complete. Show a helpful interest in your child's assignments. Remember if he/she is having any difficulty with the task DO NOT DO IT YOURSELF. Send a note to the teacher explaining the problem.

Middle School
Homework is important because it is a valuable aid in helping students make the most of their experience in school. Homework reinforces skills and concepts learned in class, allows students to prepare for upcoming lessons and establishes an on-going liaison between the classroom and the home. Through these assignments, students develop self-discipline, responsibility and organisational skills.
Homework is generally assigned daily and will involve reading chapters in the textbook, answering study questions, solving computations, and completing related worksheets.
The following guidelines should be observed for successful homework completion:
1) Assignments should be copied from the board into a homework diary.
2) All assignments must be turned in on time.
3) Students are responsible for making up homework missed due to absence.
4) If a student is unable to finish his/her assignments, a parent should inform the teacher in writing, stating the reason it was not completed. Consistent failure to complete assignments will result in a lower final grade.
Responsibilities of Parents
Parents play an important role in making homework a positive experience for their children. Homework should be made a top priority with a specific time set aside, and parents should provide students with necessary materials and a quiet study environment. They should encourage their children with an effective mixture of support, discipline and praise. Teachers should be informed of difficulties in homework completion.

The following suggestions were offered to parents by Dr. Virginia Rojas and are key ideas to best help emerging bilinguals.
1. Maintain the mother tongue. Parents should always enrich language with their own mother tongue. An elaborate, developed mother tongue will significantly help the acquisition of a second language. Reading to your child in your mother tongue is extremely important.
2. Be bilingual models. Be consistent in maintaining the bilingual model within the family.
3. Supply multicultural models. When you travel, bring back language and cultural material to share with your child. Talk about the languages and cultures that surround you.
4. Give wait time. Five to seven years of instruction is required to achieve academic competence in English and other second languages.
5. Clap for every effort to victory. Just as we delight when an infant says his first words, remember to continually praise your child for every step forward in language acquisition.
6. Create language playtime. To fully enjoy a language, remember it must also be fun. Playtime in English is important. Encourage opportunities for your child to develop hobbies in the second language. Attend a summer camp or join a creative arts club after school.
7. Do not create anxiety. Give your child time to acquire the second language. Don't pass on indecisiveness about bilingualism to your children. They will certainly feel and react to your doubts. Such doubts may well interfere with your child's progress in the new language.

MAKE USE OF TEXTS IN NATIVE LANGUAGE AS WELL AS ENGLISH

We recommend that parents participate as much as possible by discussing themes and topics being studied in various subjects, in their native language. It is highly beneficial when support material in the native language can be purchased as it reinforces the understanding of content while at the same time facilitates the student's language acquisition.

Making the most of reading with your child

Most parents, especially parents of very young children, spend time reading to or with the child. These notes may help to make that time even more useful.
A REGULAR TIME - It is helpful to set aside a few quiet moments each day when you share a book with your child.
PHYSICAL CLOSENESS is important. Sit next to your child but let her or him hold the book and turn the pages.
WHY WAS THIS PARTICULAR BOOK CHOSEN? Look at the cover, the title and author's name, and talk about the book in general terms. What might it be about? Has your child heard it before? Why was the book chosen? Before starting, establish the fact that you are interested in your child's reading in a general sense.
SHARE THE PICTURES FIRST. In a picture story book, they may well give an outline of the story. This will help to establish the over-all shape of the story and the characters in it. You can give your child a sense of pleasurable expectation.
KEY WORDS for you to use when looking through the book are words like 'beginning' and 'end' 'page' - even if your child has no idea at all about reading, show him or her the lines of print as you read.
DRAW ATTENTION TO THE PRINTING and, if your child is able to read a little, point out any words that your child may be able to read. Keep it jolly and don't make it a chore.
SHARE THE BOOK WITH YOUR CHILD. Putting your arm around your child or sitting close to her or him helps.
WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL HAPPEN NEXT? is a useful ploy to use from time to time - perhaps once in the course of a new book. It's important to keep it as a game, not as a challenge or something that holds up the flow of the story and spoils the child's pleasure.
WHEN THE STORY IS OVER talk to your child about it. Were there any favourite bits of the story? Let your child know how much you enjoyed sharing the book with him or her. PLAN the next session together.

The primary aims of Ambrit's EAL programme are:
·      to enable English Language Learners (ELL's), initially, to acquire basic survival skills
·      and then Conversational Fluency (link on website)
·      with Academic Language Proficiency and full independent participation in the mainstream English curriculum as the long term objective.
 
EAL students, from Grades 1-6, are identified and placed on the Rojas Academic Language Proficiency Scale (link on website) through:
·      the administration of standardised tests and teacher-made assessments
·      consulting student portfolios and other samples of work, school reports and records and teachers' anecdotal records and observations
·      conferencing with the students and their mainstream teachers.
 
The principal standardized tests and commercially published assessments which may be used are:
·      IDEA PROFICIENCY TESTS, Ballard & Tighe
·      Scholastic Reading Placement Test,
·      Classroom Teacher's ESL Survival Kit #1, Pearson Education
·      Basic Reading Inventory, Kendal Hunt
·      Developmental Continuums, Christopher Gordon
·      Classroom Based Assessment, Christopher Gordon
 
These test results, together with the authentic assessments listed above, provide the information required to place ELL's on the Academic Language Proficiency Scale.

EAL teachers collaborate with mainstream teachers to facilitate the integration of ELL students into the mainstream classrooms. This partnership operates in the following ways:
EAL teachers
·      participate in the mainstream classes to support ELL's on curriculum activities.
·      develop instructional activities and provide linguistically appropriate materials to support ELL students in curriculum work thereby enabling the students to go ahead with the curriculum and learn English at the same time.
·      work with mainstream teachers to produce assessment procedures to  monitor students' progress. All such documentation is kept in the students' portfolios or EAL file and is available to students, parents and teachers.
·      in certain cases work intensively with students outside the regular classroom to support class work and to address individual language needs.
 
EAL teachers are available to meet with parents to discuss their child's progress in the acquisition of their English language skills. On these occasions EAL teachers will stress the importance of continuing to foster fluency, literacy and cognition in the child's primary language.
 
Furthermore Ambrit EAL teachers are committed in their practice and philosophy to the idea that second language learners draw on their home language and culture:
·      as a resource in their learning,
·      as a celebration of their diversity,
·      and to develop their personal identity as full members of the learning community

TEACHER PLACEMENT

On April 1st of each scholastic year the Director will assess the staffing needs for the next school year. The Director will meet with Department Heads and develop a staffing strategy from a list of returning faculty and newly hired teachers. The fundamental objective of the school administration is to create the strongest team in each sector of the school. In the initial staffing draft the following criteria will be used as a guideline. A final decision will be made by the first of May. Parents will be officially informed of September staffing with the summer mailing.
Criteria
- Qualifications
- Experience with an age group
- Capability of team teachers to work together
- The Director will interview all staff in the spring to review the current school situation and openly discuss preferences.

LATENESS

Classes begin at 08:45. If a student is repeatedly late the parents will be informed and asked to have child(ren) arrive on time.

LIBRARY - go visit the Library Homepage

Ambrit library has expanded in recent years to become two separate places; the junior and senior libraries. They aim to provide stimulus, enjoyment and entertainment for students, teachers and parents.
The libraries offers a wide variety of fiction ranging from picture books for Early Childhood to novels for the Middle School encyclopaedia and other reference books, and a good selection of non-fiction books catalogued using the Dewey Decimal system for school libraries. Our growing CD-Rom collection adds another dimension to library research.
Students spend one lesson a week in the library learning a variety of library skills from care of books to use of the cataloguing and Dewey systems.
The video library may be used by parents and teachers only. Videos may be taken out for a maximum of one week. Library books should be treated carefully and returned promptly. Lost or damaged books or video cassettes must be paid for.

LOST AND FOUND

All lost items will be placed in the lost and found boxes located at the Adventure playground entrance area. In the downstairs EC corridor, there is also a lost and found box for items found in that area - Nursery, Kinder, Prep, lost items. If an item is not found, the concerned student is requested to ask his/her class teacher for assistance. The lost items will be kept in the boxes for two weeks. Then they will be stored until the end of term. If the items remain unclaimed by the end of term, they will be given to relief organisations in Rome.
 

EARLY CHILDHOOD INFORMATION

All families with children in Early Childhood programmes will be sent a home survey which is to be returned to school before the beginning of the first term. The responses to the questionnaire provide class teachers with useful information that helps EC teachers have a more complete understanding of children new to the school.
In September, class teachers will send a letter to inform parents of what each child needs. This may include:
 

• A plastic art smock (can be found at Citta del Sole, Via della Scrofa) or a cotton smock. An oversized T-shirt will do. (All EC classes)
• A small bag containing a change of clothes: socks, underpants, vest, jogging suit and indoor shoes - all clearly named (All EC classes)
• A small blanket, sheet, pillow/pillowcase for rest time (Nursery)

 
Please make sure that all these items are clearly labeled.
 
Bags and Folders
A small back pack can be used with lunch kept in a lunch box, plastic container or bag inside the back pack if the child is not part of the Ambrit lunch programme. A small healthy snack may be brought for recess time; fruit and juice will be provided by the school.

Clothing
Children should wear clothes that they can cope with by themselves during bathroom visits, i.e. without belts or complicated fastenings. Please dress your child appropriately on gymnastics days. On rainy days children can wear boots but should bring a change of shoes for indoors.

Contact
Individual teachers are best contacted via email for all non-urgent communication (firstname.lastname@ambrit-rome.com). A message may be also be left with the school office. Notes can be given to students to pass on. Please notify the office by telephone or in writing before 13:00 hrs if you wish your child to travel on a different bus.

Toys
No toys please, as they may get broken or lost. A soft toy for rest time can be brought to school at the beginning of term for Nursery children.
 
 
Early Childhood Discipline Policy
Co-operative behaviour, respect of others and of school materials and politeness in school and play
are an integral part of the Early Childhood programme. Teachers emphasize positive behaviour and help each child understand their emotions, actions and consequences of acceptable and unacceptable behaviour.
When discipline is needed, teachers talk with the child about what has happened and what is expected. The child is asked to sit away from others in the class or group for a short period of time. Before returning to play or work again, the child and teacher(s) talk about what has happened and will happen as a consequence.
Parents, children and teachers work together whenever possible in solving behaviour problems. Teachers talk to parents and/or send letters noting particular achievements or difficulties. This communication clarifies any in or out of school changes that may be occurring. When a child exhibits continued aggressive behaviour the Early Childhood Principal or Director will speak to the
child and his/her parents.

REPORTING AND PARENT CONFERENCE

Calendar of Reporting for Early Childhood and Primary

What is Target Setting?
The week before target setting day, students will reflect on their learning with teacher support to identify three or four long-range goals that the child will work on throughout the school year.

Your child’s goals may fall into three categories:
Social – behavior in class, relationships with peers, role in group work, sense of
social responsibility, participation, leadership, etc.
Academic – learning in specific subject areas, basic facts, becoming a self-directed
learner, attitudes towards learning, willingness to take risks and make
mistakes, etc.
Organizational – turning homework in on time, completing assignments, organizing materials, etc.

During the Target-setting conference, teacher and parents will meet to discuss these targets and come to an agreement on how these goals can be met in school and at home. This is also an opportunity for dialogue about any other issues that may need discussing.
What are Student Portfolios?
A portfolio is a collection of student work that is designed to demonstrate successes, growth, creativity and reflection. Teacher and student will select work for the portfolio throughout the year, giving them the opportunity to reflect on their learning and select work based on different criteria.
 The age of students will determine how portfolios are developed and used. The portfolio provides evidence of academic growth and the PYP in practice.

What are Student-led Conferences?
Student-led Conference day is when parents are invited by the teacher to participate in a conference led by their own child. The student is in charge of the conference and shares work that he/she has selected from his/her portfolio.
Student-led conferences are school wide, from Nursery to Grade 8 and show growth and development in all subject areas. The teacher’s role is to guide and prepare the students for this important role.  The emphasis is on the discussion between a child and his/her parent.

Why do we have Student-led Conferences?
The three main purposes for implementing student-led conferences are to celebrate a child’s learning, show growth over time, and provide parents with a better understanding of their child’s learning process.
As students create portfolios and participate in student-led conferences, they learn to organize and self-evaluate their work on an on-going basis. It is also an opportunity to refer back to the targets set in October.

How can I support my child during Student-led Conferences?
While your child will be “leading” the conference, they may be nervous or excited about having you in class and sharing their work with you. In order to create a meaningful dialogue with your child about his/her work, we will provide you with guiding questions and prompts a few days before the conference to ensure a positive conference experience. Teachers will also be there to facilitate the conference.

REPORTING AND PARENT CONFERENCES MIDDLE SCHOOL
Subject teachers present the goals and objectives of the year at the September class meetings.
Student/ Parent Conference Day is held in February, during which pupils present to their parents a portfolio of a selection of their work from across the subject areas.

In the Middle School, report cards are issued by email towards the end of January and at the beginning of July.
Mid term progress reports are sent at half term dates listed on the school calendar. There is a week of final exams in June for pupils in the Middle School. See the Middle School calendar for exam dates. The following is the grading system:

SCHOOL SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES

After-School Activities (click here for listings)

Every year a range of after-school activities is offered at an extra charge. Violin, guitar, recorder, piano lessons, tennis, basketball, swimming, drama, journalism, choir, video, computer, volleyball, English, French, Spanish, Mandarin and homework supervision are among the activities available to students.  

FRIENDS OF AMBRIT

The Parents Association, Friends of Ambrit, welcomes all families to the new school year. All parents are members of the Association, and involvement in its activities is both rewarding and meaningful.
Its purpose is to promote social interchange between parents, teachers, friends of Ambrit, and students and to raise funds for specific projects. Annual events include the October Family Barbeque, the Holiday Bazaar, the International Dinner, Family Evenings and the Mayfair.
Monthly meetings are held regularly throughout the year. All parents are encouraged to attend and to participate actively in the Association.
 
The membership includes gifts for class teachers and Ambrit staff in December and June.

RECITALS

Every December all classes are involved in presenting a winter recital. The performances take place over several days. Musical recitals are also held throughout the year.

YEARBOOK

Each year the journalism club produces a school annual. It contains a review of the year and many photographs of the classes and children at work and play. Each student will receive a yearbook at the end of the school year (included in school fees).

TESTING

The school recognises the advantages of testing in certain situations but does not consider 'across-the-board' annual testing to be of sufficient relevancy to justify the time and disruption required.
The occasions upon which we would consider testing relevant and appropriate are as follows:
- when a pupil is not succeeding or progressing within his/her class, shows signs of anxiety or the teacher suspects an area of learning difficulty. In this case the tests used would be diagnostic rather than achievement oriented.
- to assess the need for EAL teaching where appropriate.
- Screening is done for diagnostic purposes on all children entering Grade 1, the Middle School and on all new students.
Any teacher may refer any child to the Resource coordinator for formal testing or informal assessment if there is any cause for concern.

RESOURCE CENTER

Ambrit acknowledges the importance of providing support for children with special needs and has developed a programme to meet its responsibilities towards the international community in this specialised area of education.
The resource center provides assessment and specialised teaching and/or class support for students. It is run in close cooperation with class teachers, subject teachers, and includes parents and external professionals when appropriate.
Children entering the school with known special needs or who are subsequently identified as having special needs will be reviewed individually as to placement each year. In certain circumstances, it may be necessary for parents to provide an assistant in the classroom for children with special needs.

POLICY ON ACADEMICALLY ADVANCED STUDENTS

The faculty and Resource Center have given careful consideration to questions raised by parents about their child's year placement when the child appears to be academically advanced. Students are considered academically advanced when they are tested and assessed to have an IQ above the 95th percentile and are achieving one to two grade levels above that of their age group. After identification, the special needs coordinator, school principal, class teachers and parents will consider the social, emotional, physical and cultural implications of the various educational options. Generally, it is considered preferable to keep the student with his/her peer group and to provide an enriched programme where appropriate, with possible grade-jumping in particular subjects. In rare cases, the school will elevate a student a full grade, but only after a very careful examination of all the implications.

Enrolment is for a full academic year September - June unless alternative dates have been agreed upon with the administration. If the child is withdrawing from the school, notice must be given three months prior to the date, otherwise the family will be responsible for the full year's fees.