AMERICAN INERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF BUCHAREST 1

AISB NewcomerS HANdBook

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For up to date admissions information and tuition and fees, please scan the QR Code. Or visit our websitewww.aisb.ro

AISB was founded in 1962 by the US Embassy to serve the educational needs of the American and international expatriate community. As the school has grown, many local Romanian families have become part of the school community together with expatriate families from government, business, and social welfare organizations.

AISB has a richly diversified population of approximately 950 students from 59 nationalities attending Early Childhood 2 through Grade 12. Romanians comprise approximately 29% of the student population, North Americans 13%, Turkish 6%,Israeli 5%, and British 3% each. The balance are from Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Australia, and South & Central America.

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Credits for this project go to Mrs. Martina Schretzmeir, member of the AISB parent community who had the initiative of this handbook and put it together. Thank

you to the AISB Parent and Teacher Organization, to the Leadership Team and the Administrative Assistants, for their help updating this handbook.

2017 - 2018

Copyright © 2017 AISB. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or

retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

AISB NewcomerS HANdBook

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ImPorTANT coNTAcTS

DEPARTMENT NAME EMAIL TELEPHONE

Admissions Manager Catalina Gardescu cgardescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 33

Business Manager Lia Comanescu lcomanescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 50

Cashier Adina Licu alicu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 86

Reception Rucsandra Obretin robretin@aisb.ro 021-204 43 00

Director Dr. Robert Brindley rbrindley@aisb.ro 021-204 43 11

Director’s Assistant Cristina Marinescu cmarinescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 11

ELC Principal Rosella Diliberto rdiliberto@aisb.ro 021-204 43 07

ELC Admin Assistant Iulia Trandafir itrandafir@aisb.ro 021-204 43 07

ES Principal Elyane Ruel eruel@aisb.ro 021-204 43 01

ES Admin Assistant Cristina Iordache cristinaiordache@aisb.ro 021-204 43 01

ES Counselor (Grades 2-5) Amanda Quigley aquigley@aisb.ro 021-204 43 16

EC / Grade 1 Counselor Franny Stewart fstewart@aisb.ro 021-204 43 16

Secondary School Principal Jon Cain jcain@aisb.ro 021-204 43 15

Secondary School Vice-Principal Fiona Moss fmoss@aisb.ro 021-204 43 02

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DEPARTMENT NAME EMAIL TELEPHONE

Admissions Manager Catalina Gardescu cgardescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 33

Business Manager Lia Comanescu lcomanescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 50

Cashier Adina Licu alicu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 86

Reception Rucsandra Obretin robretin@aisb.ro 021-204 43 00

Director Dr. Robert Brindley rbrindley@aisb.ro 021-204 43 11

Director’s Assistant Cristina Marinescu cmarinescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 11

ELC Principal Rosella Diliberto rdiliberto@aisb.ro 021-204 43 07

ELC Admin Assistant Iulia Trandafir itrandafir@aisb.ro 021-204 43 07

ES Principal Elyane Ruel eruel@aisb.ro 021-204 43 01

ES Admin Assistant Cristina Iordache cristinaiordache@aisb.ro 021-204 43 01

ES Counselor (Grades 2-5) Amanda Quigley aquigley@aisb.ro 021-204 43 16

EC / Grade 1 Counselor Franny Stewart fstewart@aisb.ro 021-204 43 16

Secondary School Principal Jon Cain jcain@aisb.ro 021-204 43 15

Secondary School Vice-Principal Fiona Moss fmoss@aisb.ro 021-204 43 02

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DEPARTMENT NAME EMAIL TELEPHONE

Secondary Admin Assistant Florentina Frunza ffrunza@aisb.ro 021-204 43 02

Secondary School Attendance Floriana Micu secondary.attendance@aisb.ro 021-204 43 02

MS Counselor Stephanie Finnell sfinnell@aisb.ro 021-204 43 69

HS Counselor Tim Battersby tbattersby@aisb.ro 021-204 43 55

HS Counselor Oddny Bakke obakke@aisb.ro 021-204 42 38

IB & Counseling Admin Assistant Simona Stan sstan@aisb.ro 021-204 42 01

IB Diploma Program Coordinator Arpita Tyagi atyagi@aisb.ro 021-204 43 91

Registrar & Student Information System Coordinator

Laura Amza lamza@aisb.ro 021-204 42 37

Athletics and Activities Coordinator - PYP Alex Sota asota@aisb.ro 021-204 43 27

Athletics Director – Secondary School David Hughes dhughes@aisb.ro 021-204 42 31

Secondary Activities Admin Assistant Oana Velcu ovelcu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 08

CAS Coordinator Quentin Young qyoung@aisb.ro 021-204 42 25

K-12 Service Learning Coordinator Margritha Hofman mhofman@aisb.ro 021-204 43 89

Health Office Manager Dr. Anita Pop apop@aisb.ro 021-204 43 17

Doctor Dr. Cristiana Avramescu cavramescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 17

Health Office Assistant Sandra Ziptzer sziptzer@aisb.ro 021-204 43 04

Cafeteria Manager Daniel Obretin daniel.obretin@flavours.ro 0767 067 520

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DEPARTMENT NAME EMAIL TELEPHONE

Secondary Admin Assistant Florentina Frunza ffrunza@aisb.ro 021-204 43 02

Secondary School Attendance Floriana Micu secondary.attendance@aisb.ro 021-204 43 02

MS Counselor Stephanie Finnell sfinnell@aisb.ro 021-204 43 69

HS Counselor Tim Battersby tbattersby@aisb.ro 021-204 43 55

HS Counselor Oddny Bakke obakke@aisb.ro 021-204 42 38

IB & Counseling Admin Assistant Simona Stan sstan@aisb.ro 021-204 42 01

IB Diploma Program Coordinator Arpita Tyagi atyagi@aisb.ro 021-204 43 91

Registrar & Student Information System Coordinator

Laura Amza lamza@aisb.ro 021-204 42 37

Athletics and Activities Coordinator - PYP Alex Sota asota@aisb.ro 021-204 43 27

Athletics Director – Secondary School David Hughes dhughes@aisb.ro 021-204 42 31

Secondary Activities Admin Assistant Oana Velcu ovelcu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 08

CAS Coordinator Quentin Young qyoung@aisb.ro 021-204 42 25

K-12 Service Learning Coordinator Margritha Hofman mhofman@aisb.ro 021-204 43 89

Health Office Manager Dr. Anita Pop apop@aisb.ro 021-204 43 17

Doctor Dr. Cristiana Avramescu cavramescu@aisb.ro 021-204 43 17

Health Office Assistant Sandra Ziptzer sziptzer@aisb.ro 021-204 43 04

Cafeteria Manager Daniel Obretin daniel.obretin@flavours.ro 0767 067 520

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Dear families,

Welcome to the American International School of Bucharest! You are part of a great community that comes together to engage, prepare and inspire not only its students, but also their parents and educators. Parents play a vital role in the education of their children and the Parent & Teacher Organization (PTO) is involved daily in the activities of the school.

This handbook, prepared for you by the PTO and updated by school staff, is a first step in making sure that parents just entering our community, as well as parents with a long history at AISB, are well prepared to support their children’s learning. It is a guide that outlines important AISB events and details. This will be extremely helpful to new parents who have just recently become part of the community but will also provide support to current families who want to stay up to date with changes in procedures or events.

The school evolves continuously together with its constituents and it is crucial that we all keep up to date with these changes. Please provide feedback to us at cgardescu@aisb.ro if you think more should be included in this handbook, or that edits are needed. Thank you!

Catalina GardescuManager of Admissions & External Relations

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TABle of coNTeNTS

1 Getting ready for school 12

2 Communicating at AISB 18

3 Liaising with other parents 20

4 Eating at school 22

5 Medical assistance 25

6 Extracurricular activities 29

7 Library & Media 33

8 Security on campus 34

9 Transportation for students 37

10 Miscellaneous 38

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AISB GUIde for NewcomerS

Wherever you are coming from in the world, we look forward to welcoming you. We have compiled some information here so that you have a one-stop shop for all you need to know. In preparation for your first day as part of our amazing community or of your return to a new school year, here are some important details:

FIRST WELCOME1. Orientation Day for New Students and Parents will take place on

August 21st, 2017 starting from 8:30 AM until around 12:00. This day will include a general overview of the important contacts at school, visiting the student’s class, touring the school with peers, and meeting key contacts such as the: transportation companies, Parent and Teacher Organization representatives, Cafeteria crew, School Photographer, and many more. Signs will be displayed for your guidance, EC and ES class lists are posted near the Offices and our staff will be there to guide you as well. Detailed information about the schedule of the day will be sent closer to August 21st.

2. If you are joining AISB later in the year, please contact the Manager of Admissions, Mrs. Catalina Gardescu at cgardescu@aisb.ro to arrange an individual orientation meeting. This should be planned before the first day of school for any student as it offers an opportunity to look around the school without the pressure of being new in class.

ENTERING THE SCHOOL CAMPUS & THE SCHOOLSecurity and wellbeing of all students, parents and staff on our campus premises are of utmost importance to us. Please see below, in brief, compulsory security measures you must follow to be able to enter the campus with your car and to be able to enter the building.

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• A Parking permit is needed to enter the school campus by car. Every family may receive a maximum of 3 permits. Parents can obtain these permits by completing a form at the school Reception. Contact: Rucsandra Obretin; robretin@aisb.ro

• Parents must have a school ID badge to enter the campus. Visitors, as well as family aides (nannies, drivers, relatives) will be issued a badge for the day. See Security Chapter

• The caretakers of your children (nannies, drivers, family members) must be registered at the offices at the beginning of the school year.

• AISB is a completely non-smoking campus. If you are a smoker, please exit the campus premises before lighting up a cigarette (even an electronic one).

• AISB is a plastic free campus – plastic cups are therefore not offered for water drinking at school. Please bring a refillable water bottle or purchase one from the school store. Ensure your children have refillable bottles every day.

• Traffic on the road to the school is quite busy in the morning and it is advisable that students be dropped off early so that they are not late for their first class. Students should be dropped off at the latest at 7:45am, Monday – Friday. School ending times are as follows:

• Early Childhood (ELC): 14:50; Elementary School: 15:00*

• Secondary school (Middle & High School): 15:10

• On Wednesday school ends at 14:00 for all sections

If you need assistance or need more information, please contact Reception Office, EC / ES / SS Offices or Mrs. Catalina Gardescu in the Admissions Office. We will be happy to assist you!

*early childhood students are dismissed at noon for the first week of school.

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GeTTING reAdY for ScHool

When a student starts school, either for the first time or in a new location, there are many things to include on the list of needed items. Below are some important ones for the AISB students of different ages:

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SECTION NEEDED SUGGESTIONS

Early Childhood

Indoor shoes, a refillable water bottle, a blanket and a pillow; changes of clothing library bag

IKEA; Carrefour; JYSK

Elementary School

• Indoor shoes, a refillable water bottle and a back pack. Students backpacks should fit into a space of 35 cm wide, 19 cm deep and 50 cm high

• 5th Grade Students must bring in their own laptop (see computer specifications on pages 16 & 17)

• All ES students need to wear PE uniforms during PE classes. Students have PE three times per week.

• ES students will also need to purchase an AISB library bag.

• All school supplies for students in grades EC2 – Grade 5 are provided by the school.

Water bottles may be purchased at the AISB School Store

PE uniforms and library bags can be purchased at the AISB School Store

Secondary School

• Refillable water bottle, personal laptop,

• PE shirt and trousers for PE class.

• School supplies: A school supplies list for Grade 6 – 12 students will be provided at the Secondary School Office upon school start

• Grade 6th - 12th Students must bring their own laptop (see computer specifications on pages 16& 17)

Water bottles, Shirts & school supplies may be purchased at the AISB School Store

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AISB STORE

SCHOOL SUPPLIES & P.E. UNIFORMSAll Early Childhood and Elementary School students will receive their school supplies in their classrooms at the beginning of the year. Middle and High School students are expected to purchase branded school supplies from AISB. Notebooks and folders appropriate for each subject, will be sold in grade packages starting with August 21st. At the beginning of the school year, given the high quantities of merchandise that will be required, we will be selling from the Choir Room near the Atrium, not from the AISB Store.

The steps to make a purchase are:1. Get the list with school supplies according to the grade the student is

in, from the MS/HS Office

2. Pay for the package at Cashiers Office in the Atrium at the 1st floor and receive a ticket which will be used to collect the supplies

3. Go to the Choir Room and collect your package in exchange of the ticket, from the store staff

PHYSICAL EDUCATION UNIFORMSStudents from grade 1 to 5 must wear a uniform and MS and HS students must wear the school branded T-shirts during their PE classes. These uniforms / T-shirts are compulsory from the beginning of September and can be purchased from the school store temporarily located in the Choir Room as of August 21st.

During the schools year, you can purchase PE uniforms, school supplies, water bottles and other fitness accessories from the school store, located across from the Reception in the Main Campus.

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For any questions, please contact the store manager.

Fabiana Papastefani Pezzoni store@aisb.ro

Regular Store Hours:Monday: closedTuesday: 7:30-8:30 // 14:30-15:30Wednesday: 7:30-8:30 // 13:30-14:30Thursday: 7:30-8:30 // 14:30-15:30Friday - closed

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PC - WINDOWS MAC - iOS

OS Windows 7 or higher iOS 10.6 or Higher

Processor i5 or greater Processor i5 or greater

Memory 4 GB or greater Memory 4 GB or greater

Hard Drive 250 GB 250 GB

SSD Hard drive Greater Performance

Laptop Backpack with cushioned sleeve

HDMI Projector Dongle to be able to hook to school projector

Headphones basic, not expensive

SOFTWARE TITLE COST TO PARENT WHERE TO BuY

Logger Lite 0 AISB will install

MS Office 365 0 AISB will install

Anti-Virus ~ 50 € Recommended: AVG

RECOMMENDED

MINIMUM REqUIREMENTS

SOFTWARE

RECOMMENDED FREEWARE SOFTWARE (MAY BE REqUIRED)

SOFTWARE TITLE PC MAC

Adobe: Reader, Air, Shockwave, Flash Player √ √

Audacity- for MP3 √ √

Google Earth √ √

iMovie √ √

Java √ √

MovieMaker √ √

Mozilla Firefox √ √

QuickTime √ √

VLC √ √

GRADE 5 COMPUTER REqUIREMENTS

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PC - WINDOWS MAC - iOS

OS Windows 8 or higher iOS 10.6 or Higher

Processor i5 or greater Processor i5 or greater

Memory 4 GB or greater Memory 4 GB or greater

Hard Drive 250 GB 250 GB

WIFI- 802.11ac WIFI-802.11ac

SOFTWARE TITLE COST TO PARENT WHERE TO BuY

MS Office 365 Provided by AISB NO NEED TO BuY

Geometry Sketch Pad € 8.50http://www.cymaths.co.uk/khxc/gbu0-prodshow/GSP_v5_Stu-dent_Licence.html

Logger Pro Provided by AISB PARENT provided

Finale Notepad Provided by AISB

Anti-Virus http://www.avg.com/eu-en/homepage

Recommended: AVG

MINIMUM REqUIREMENTS

REqUIRED SOFTWARE

RECOMMENDED FREEWARE SOFTWARE (MAY BE REqUIRED)

SOFTWARE TITLE PC MAC

Adobe: Reader, Air, Shockwave, Flash Player √ √

Audacity- Lame for MP3 √ √

GeoGebra √ √

Google Earth; Google Sketchup √ √

iMovie; iWisoft ; MovieMaker √ √

QuickTime √ √

Screencast-o-Matic √ √

TI-nspire √ √

VLC √ √

Adobe Digital Edition Home √ √

Paint.Net √ √

SECONDARY COMPUTER REqUIREMENTS

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commUNIcATING AT AISB

PLATFORM PURPOSE FREE / RESTRICTED ACCESS

www.aisb.ro School website: external & internal info unrestricted

Noticeboard School News unrestricted

Social Media Communication for events, articles & videos unrestricted

ManageBacE-Learning platform: calendar, newsletters, grading, report cards.

username & password for parents & Secondary School students. If you have trouble signing in please contact lamza@aisb.ro

PYP Grade Level Sites (former Weeblies)

Class & specialist information for EC and ES

Password for parents. Contact class teacher to receive password, or if forgotten

Parent’s teacher conferences link

Setting up conferences for EC and ES

username & password for parents – invite will be provided when conference times become available

Naviance 11 & 12 grade platform, university research username & password

Weekly & monthly newsletters

Informing families about weekly news and happenings

Sent via email to parents

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Stay in touch with teachers and administrators:

• Attend Coffee Mornings with Principals and Counselors – read the newsletters every Friday to put important dates in your calendars

• Email teachers directly: you can find their e-mail addresses on ManageBac

STUDENT ABSENCES: If a student is not able to attend school, please inform the offices before 8:00am. Parents may also indicate a child’s absence through the parent portal on ManageBac.

DEPARTMENT NAME CONTACT

Early Learning Center Iulia Trandafir 021-204 43 07; itrandafir@aisb.ro

Elementary School Cristina Iordache 021-204 43 01; cristinaiordache@aisb.ro

Secondary School Floriana Micu 021-204 43 02; fmicu@aisb.ro

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lIAISING wITH oTHer PAreNTS

THE PARENT AND TEACHER ORGANIZATION (PTO): The PTO is an organization of parents and teachers whose goal is to support the education of AISB students by fostering relationships among the school, parents, and teachers, all in the benefit of the students. The PTO strives for continued parental involvement to help build a better educational environment for our children.

Check ManageBac calendars for the monthly PTO meetings. These are important monthly gatherings in which parents come together to support the PTO team at AISB and to hear from the Leadership Team of the school on the most important current issues. Info: pto@aisb.ro PTO Executive Committee 2017/2018:

President Sian Ashenden sianrob17@hotmail.com

Early Childhood Representative Neeta Agnani neetu204@gmail.com

Elementary School RepresentativeDawn Kovacs dawninbudapest@gmail.com

Middle School Representative Jema Rahatjema_r@hotmail.com

High School RepresentativeFabiana Papastefani Pezzonifabi_armando@yahoo.com

SecretaryJustine Christianopoulos thefivejaycees@hotmail.com

TreasurerDespina Szavujdespina@ines.ro

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Make sure you don’t miss the yearly PTO events – their exact dates are included every year on the PTO Board in the school atrium, in the newsletters, in the ManageBac calendar and on the website.

EVENTSSeptember Terry Fox Run

October Halloween

November Harvest Festival

Winter / Spring Artisan Fair

December Festival of Lights

March Auction Gala

May International Festival

COUNTRY LIAISONSEach country can be represented by a person who is sharing all AISB information and news in native languages and supports community events. If you would like to act as a country liaison or find out who your country liaison is, please contact the PTO at pto@aisb.ro

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PYP students will receive a morning snack. Should your child be enrolled in an after-school activity, please send your child to school with a snack to eat in the afternoon.

All AISB parents are welcome to open an account for each student at the school cafeteria for daily lunch or alternatively, send lunch from home. Each student must eat a healthy and balanced meal for lunch. Parents can also purchase a lunch menu with cash on an ad hoc basis from the Cafeteria.

The school Cafeteria offers two options for lunch: • Large meal - 25 RON

• Small meal - 18 RON

The large meal is generally appropriate for secondary school students, while the small meal is usually sufficient for EC and ES students. After an account is open, the student must also be present so that a fingerprint is associated with that account. The fingerprint will be used to deduct money from the account once a purchase is made. Parents will credit the

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eATING AT ScHool

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account as necessary and they will receive a notice from the Cafeteria when funds are low.

While an option for cash payment exists, the school advises against students carrying cash which can be easily lost.

Students between the ages of 2 and 6 are served their meals in their ELC Cafeteria. Grade 1 students come to the Main Campus Cafeteria for their meals but are served at their designated tables. All students between Grades 2 and 12, are able to make their own lunch choices and select their seating arrangements.

Students may bring their lunch from home. Make sure you send a healthy lunch, in appropriate containers. If you deliver the food, please do so via the lateral gate, near the Cafeteria.

The AISB guards will store it appropriately and the Cafeteria crew will pick it up at 11:45. Students will find the delivered food in the Cafeteria, first table to the right, as they enter.

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Please label the packages which are delivered with: name of student, grade, person who delivered the food. We are not able to receive and store food at the school Reception. Thank you for your understanding.

AISB is very much a community place. It is a welcoming environment where you can meet other parents with the same interests, who have children in the same class or belong to the same community.

A good meeting place is the Stradale Café next to the Atrium. This Café serves parents and faculty primarily but also Secondary School Students during break and lunch. EC and ES students are not allowed to buy from the Café.

The Café is open from 8:00 to 17:00 daily except on Wednesdays, when due to the short school day, it closes at 16:00.

Cafeteria Manager:Daniel Obretindaniel.obretin@flavours.ro

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medIcAl ASSISTANce

Please update the health file of your child on the ManageBac platform. It is unsafe for your child to attend school without complete medical information.

SCHOOL DOCTORThe medical office is open between 7:30 AM - 17:00 PM.

Students should not attend school if they show:• Fever – temperature above 100°F (37.8°C) or higher if taken under

the arm, or 101°F (38.3°C) orally, or above 102° F (38.9°C) rectally. If your child has a fever, even without any other accompanying symptoms, he/she should not return to school until at least 24 hours without a fever and without the use of fever medication

• Diarrhea with blood or mucus visible; diarrhea that is causing “accidents” in a child that already is toiled‐trained; diarrhea that is unable to be contained by the diaper

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Dr. Anita PopHealth Office Mangerapop@aisb.ro

Tel: (021) 204‐4304 or (021) 204‐4317From within the school: Extensions 304 / 317

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• Vomiting 2 or more times during the previous 24 hours

• Sores in the mouth or throat, if associated with drooling

• Any skin rash associated with fever

• Child feeling unwell, unable to fully participate in activities

• Conditions that suggest the possible presence of a more serious illness,

• Lice; in this situation, if the child receives an appropriate treatment, he/she could return to school on the next day, if there are not viable nits found on the child’s scalp

It is school policy that prolonged absences (more than 3 days) due to medical reasons should be communicated to the Health Office. Please ask your health care provider for a medical form that contains the diagnosis to explain the absences. The information will remain confidential with the doctor; unless, for your child’s wellbeing, preventative measures must be taken (i.e. severe allergies); in such situations, the information may be shared with key AISB employees.

Please remember that if your child is well enough to come to school, then he/she is expected to participate in all school activities (i.e. outdoor recess, PE lessons, etc).

In the case that your child visits the health office for any reason, you will be notified by email by the end of the school day. If your child needs to go home for a medical reason, you will be notified as soon as this decision is made. If there is a need to exclude the child for the day due to concerns of a contagious illness, we ask you to make arrangements for the child to be picked up by an authorized adult as soon as possible, within a maximum of 2 hours after notification.

AMERICAN INERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF BUCHAREST 27

If your child needs emergency care, life saving measures will be given first and a member of the school staff will notify you through a phone call as promptly as possible. Please make sure that your contact information, including an emergency contact number, is up‐to‐date.

We also would like to inform you that the following medications are available in our health office:

• Ibuprofen, Paracetamol, Tylenol (for pain or fever)

• Simethicone drops (for intestinal discomfort)

• Rennie (calcium & magnesium carbonate, antacids for stomach)

• loratadine, cetirizine (antihistamines for allergies)

• Ambroxol syrup (cough syrup, for children older than 12 years of age)

• Hydrocortisone 1% (for insect bites, allergic rashes)

• Cold/hot spray (for minor sprains and injuries)

• Voltaren gel (diclofenac, local anti‐inflammatory for sprains)

• Alcohol wipes and peroxide for wound disinfection

• Baneocin cream (neomycin, local antibiotic)

Your child will only be given medication if this is deemed necessary and you have previously given consent through the child’s health form. In all other non‐urgent situations, we will call a parent to receive verbal permission before administering any medication.

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PREVENTIONIt would be beneficial if we could count on your support in reminding your children to practice good hand hygiene and cough/sneezing etiquette. The Medical Office will be working with them closely to reinforce these behaviors. We have stations with hand sanitizers in strategic points distributed throughout the school to help facilitate hand hygiene.

Another great prevention tool is immunization. It helps protect your child and helps prevent spread the infection to others at home and at school.

We respectfully request that parents arrange a private medical service provider for their children and themselves for regular health care and illnesses.

We kindly inform you that the school medical office is not able to provide well child check‐ups or follow up for chronic medical needs during school hours. Our office is here to help with medical situations that might impact the child’s ability to fully participate on his/her daily activities.

We also cannot loan durable medical supplies (wheelchairs, crutches, nebulizers) outside of school hours. Our equipment is for school use only. We are happy to recommend primary care doctors, urgent care facilities, pharmacies and a durable medical supplier in case you would like us to.

Please feel free to contact the school Health Office with any questions or concerns at apop@aisb.ro

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eXTrAcUrrIcUlAr AcTIVITIeS & AfTer ScHool cAre AT AISB

Several after school activities are available for students from EC to HS.

Early Learning (EL): As the children’s day will be designed to be stimulating and challenging, and will require active engagement on their part, we will not be providing extra-curricular activities for 2, 3 and 4 year-olds. This decision is based on doing what is developmentally appropriate for this age group. Extending the day beyond the dismissal bell with structured activities proves tiring, stressful, and beyond the physical and emotional ‘readiness’ levels of very young children. We will, however, continue to offer a meaningful and varied extracurricular program for our KG classes, as part of the school tuition fee.

Elementary School (ES): there is a wide variety of after school activities included in the school fee. Please contact: Alex Sota, PYP Extra-Curricular Coordinator - asota@aisb.ro, to set up an account to enrol your child.

Secondary School (SS):• Central and Eastern European Schools Association (CEESA) activities• Other afterschool activities (Music club, robotics e.g.) • For more information please contact: David Hughes, our Athletics

& Activities Coordinator at dhughes@aisb.ro, or Mrs. Oana Velcu, SS Athletics Department Assistant at ovelcu@aisb.ro.

You can find detailed information on the CHQ platform.CHQ is our schools’ online platform for signing up to after school activities. Parents in elementary school will receive a username and password

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AMERICAN INERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF BUCHAREST 31

that parents can use to log on and register their child for an activity. In Secondary school, only the students can sign up to the activities, whilst parents can see what they have signed up to. We have some video tutorials on the school website that detail how to use a couple of the important features of the software, we encourage you to take a look here - http://athletics.aisb.ro/

CONCERTS AND PRODUCTIONS

ACADEMIC AFTER SCHOOLHomework catch-up club: All children in Secondary school will be sent to the homework catch-up club when they do not give in their homework on time. You will receive an email from AISB on the day your child has to attend the homework catch-up club.

Mother tongue program: We have several mother tongue classes at AISB: Spanish, French, German, Arab, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Italian, Turkish, Dutch, Hebrew and urdu.

To understand if your native language is covered and how you can enrol your child contact:

• EC2 – 5th Grade: Mrs. Alina Guzganu - aguzganu@aisb.ro; •MYP (Gr. 6-10) & DP (Gr. 11-12): Ms. Kate Sorrell - ksorrell@aisb.ro

AFTER SCHOOL CAREEarly Learning CenterWhile we recommend that the best situation for our youngest learners is to go home immediately after school, we do appreciate that there are situations in which parents or caretakers are unable to pick up their children at the time of dismissal.

• Spring / Winter Concerts•Musical / Theatre Productions

• AISB Talent Show•Music Club

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We are therefore considering running an EC After School Care Program for EC2-Kinder, similar to the one that is currently available for elementary aged children. Here are some of the details:

1. Program would run between the end of the school day and 17:00 (please note that this is earlier than the program for students over 5 years old)

2. Fee Structure: € 5 / hour for every child - billed by the half hour

3. We will appoint a coordinator for this program, specifically for the early learners and the program will run in the new Early Learning Center

4. The program will be relatively unstructured and provide students with a chance to rest or engage in free play

If you believe you would be needing this service for your child/ren in EC2, EC3, EC4 and Kindergarten please email itrandafir@aisb.ro .

Elementary SchoolAISB offers a safe space, complete with supervision, games and snacks from 15 minutes after school each day to 6 pm. This is open to students in grades 1 to 5. The rate is 5 Euros per child per hour and billed monthly. There is a late fee for pick-ups past 6 pm. This is a fantastic and affordable option for busy parents. It is important to note that any child still at school once classes are over and not involved in an after-school activity or directly supervised by a parent will be brought to our after-school care program.

For further information please contact Tara Lawford tlawford@aisb.ro.

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lIBrArY & medIA

The AISB Library holds over 30,000 volumes of mainly English language print material. In addition, the library offers over 60 magazine subscriptions and 16 research and literacy databases for patron use. Please see below the Library hours:

ELC Library 7:30-16:00; Monday - FridayES Library 7:30-17:00; Wednesday: 7:30-16:00 Secondary 7:30-17:00; Wednesday: 7:30-16:00

The Library staff is always available for patron support. Since the Library hosts several author visits and activities, watch the signs clearly displayed in its vicinity for modifications to its schedule. Parents of PYP students can keep up-to-date on Library events and useful resources through the Library Weebly Page. Parents can sign-up as patrons as well and check-out books and DVDs and they are always welcome to the Library.

Students and parents are encouraged to have an account in the Library, check out books and read, read, read! There are several online catalogues available. For more information contact Dr. John Kurtenbach at jkurtenbach@aisb.ro for the Secondary School and Ms. Stacey Socholotuk at ssocholotuk@aisb.ro for the PYP Library.

Check out the events calendar for Family Reading Nights – these are amazing events where parents and children are invited to spend a few hours together in the company of books and book authors.

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SecUrITY oN cAmPUSMeasures effective August 2017

1. Parking Permits: the current parking permits are valid through August 31st. Only families who are new to AISB must require permits before that date. These rules apply to the main campus parking lot as well as the new Early Learning Center (ELC) parking lot. Our number-plate recognition hardware has been upgraded to include access to the new building’s car park, where an additional 100 spaces will be available.

2. Driving within, and out of the school campus: driving within the grounds of the school should be done with utmost attention towards students and parents who are walking and other vehicles moving at the same time. As we will be opening the ELC, these families will need to drop off their children in two different campuses in the morning – given the traffic at that time, we suggest parking in the ELC campus and your older children walking to other sections of the school.

3. School buildings will remain locked at all times.

4. Electronic campus access will be granted as follows:

Parents and designated family members with chip-access cards will be allowed automatic entrance to the school.

All other people will not be allowed access unless by prior arrangement (see below).

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• FA (Family Aids) will not be allowed access to the Main Campus without prior notification but will be allowed access to the ELC for short instances (dropping off and picking up our early learners). The recipients of these badges must be registered by parents at the ELC Reception (itrandafir@aisb.ro ) as well as the Main Campus Reception (robretin@aisb.ro ) and must carry a valid ID when entering the school campus. They will need to leave the ID at the Reception / Gate to receive a badge. FA badges are not to be taken home, they are returned in exchange for the ID. It is the parents’ responsibility to inform the school if they no longer work with a certain caretaker.

• V (Visitors) to the campus must have a confirmed appointment. No walk-ins are allowed. All visitors must have the clear name of the person they are visiting and a valid ID. The security guard will make a copy of their ID for security purposes. All visitors will receive and must display the Visitors (V) badge while on campus. These rules apply also to visitors entering with parents in a car which has a parking sticker.

• SC (Subcontractors) to the school will present their ID and receive a SD badge from Reception /Gate. They will also enter the school only upon a prior arrangement / appointment.

• Families residing in the Ibiza Compounds (behind the school) and using the Cafeteria and back gate will be able to access the Main Campus using their photo badge which opens gate. No entrance is permitted through these gates with only your ID. If you need a parent / family member badge, please contact the school Reception office.

Thank you for partnering with us in making sure that our campus is safe and appropriate for our children’s education. Should you have any questions, please email cgardescu@aisb.ro

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WIFI POLICYAISB Wireless Network (AISBWNET) Access Disclaimer:Welcome to the AISB Wireless Network (AISBWNET). use of AISBWNET is exclusively for the members of the AISB community (faculty, staff, students, parents and authorized guests). All users of AISBWNET agree without exception to comply with all the terms and conditions for the use of technology facilities and services as specified by AISB. Any misuse or inappropriate access will result in immediate termination and loss of access to AISBWNET. Furthermore, any inappropriate use of AISBWNET as deemed by the system administrators will be reported and could result in action taken in accordance to AISB’s code of conduct and behaviour policy.

Please consult the IT department to clarify appropriate use of technology facilities and services at AISB and when in doubt please ask.

CELL PHONE POLICYEarly Childhood and Elementary School students are not to bring cell phones to school. Should they need to contact parents, they can do so with the help of the Admin Assistants at the ELC and ES Offices

Secondary School students may use cell phones and tablets during their classes should they be involved in projects which require this and only with teacher permission.

The use of cell phones and tablets during recess and lunch break is forbidden. If students are caught using these devices, the latter will be kept at the Admin Assistant’s office until the end of the day.

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TrANSPorTATIoN for STUdeNTS

While AISB does not employ its own buses, there are 2 companies that parents currently have contracts with. For further details, you can also ask Mrs Catalina Gardescu at cgardescu@aisb.ro

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Twins Tour contact:Anghel Olaru - 0788 294 719twinstour@gmail.com

Condor Impex contact:Luis Mihu – 0745 024 543condorimpexsrl@gmail.com

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mIScellANeoUS

• AISB parents have access to a file with service providers tested and recommended by our community members. To get this file or to add a provider please contact Rucsandra Obretin at the Reception Office (robretin@aisb.ro ).

• To advertise something in the community you can use the display board on the wall next to the Reception Office. Please give your message or advertisement to Rucsandra Obretin; do not post it yourself. Please note that the poster will be valid for only 2 weeks, so all members can be able to post announcements.

• All parents can access the school’s Wi Fi network while they are in the campus. Please refer to Rucsandra Obretin in the Reception Office to receive your Wi Fi username and password which will be valid for the whole school year. Please do not share your Wi Fi details with the children, they have their own secured Wi Fi network.

• For any issues related to enrolment fees please see Ms. Lia Comanescu, Business Manager in the Business Office & Cashier’s Office on the Admin Floor above the Atrium. Her office hours are 7:30 to 16:00. You can also email her at lcomanescu@aisb.ro

• The AISB Cashier’s Office is open from 7:30 to 16:00. There may be instances when our Cashier is off to the bank and is not in the office so please make payments in due time.

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Abbreviations you will see around the school and in our communication:

• ELC Early Learning Center

• ES Elementary School

• PYP Primary Years Program

• MS Middle School

• MYP Middle Years Program

• HS High School

• DP Diploma Program

• SS Secondary School

• WIDA English test used in ES for nonnative English speakers

• SEN Special Educational Needs

• EL Extended Learning

• MAP Measures of Academic Progress (standardized testing)

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Cafeteria contract

ManageBac account

Parking sticker

Parent badges

Registered Family Aides

Located important offices

Met the PTO

Visited the school store

PYP only – indicate how student will get home at the end of the day (on link from office)

Start of the school year checklist:

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Blvd. Pipera #196 Voluntari Jud. Ilfov 077190 Romania www.aisb.ro

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