Deens Academy Route to Excellence
As we commence brand new academic year at Deens Academy, here is a gist of what was discussed on Orientation day- 27th May 2017
“Every child in our class is someone else’s whole world”, is what we believe at Deens. So as you hand over your whole world to us, we receive them with care and as much appreciation of their little selves as you have for them! We see every child as a unique individual who has unique needs and abilities. In this home away from home, their school moms strive to cater to their differences to the extent possible. In the end it is our endeavour collectively, you and us, to bestow the wind beneath their wings to become independent little beings, who realise their individual potential and work towards being successful.
“It is not what you do for your children but what you have taught them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings”
ACADEMICS: At Deens Academy we believe that independence and opportunities to experiment shape the child’s being, children must be taught how to think, not what to think. You will therefore find that this Deenite is increasingly challenged to think beyond and perform independently. We cover a wide array of topics in our indigenously created curriculum which is not covered completely in the textbooks provided.
Click to view list of Prescribed textbooks for every grade: Grade 1-5 ,Grade 6-8 , Grade 9-10,
Any additional information that the child will need will be supplied, but by far the activities surrounding the learning of a concept, the teacher talk, class discussions, related worksheets, related activities, related projects and written work are the reference points for the child while he is revising the topic dealt with.
ASSESSMENT PLAN: In order to chart the progress of your child, we have created assessment plans that cater to application and independent thinking. We believe assessments are for learning and learning is our goal and not the marks that reflect on any report card.
For primary school, assessments will be ongoing, need based and unannounced, planned by teachers to check progress and concept acquisition. The expectation is that your child revisits, each day, whatever has been covered in the classroom and completes all assigned tasks on a daily basis, thus keeping abreast of learning milestones set by the teacher. The grading system is explained on the following page: https://deensacademy.com/curriculum/primary-school/assessments-primary-school/
For middle school, grades 6 to 8-Formative assessments will be conducted as reviews and internal assessments. There will be two reviews altogether in an academic year in addition to the monthly internal assessments. Apart from these formative assessments we also have term end summative assessments conducted at the end of each term – in September and again in March. The assessment patterns of middle school are explained on the following page https://deensacademy.com/curriculum/middle-school/assessments/
FEEDBACK AND COMMUNICATION with the teacher: Feedback on assessment comes to you on a monthly basis for grades 1-5, , and after each assessment cycle for grades 6-10, is available to parents on their Eduflex portal. It is presented as a rubric which graphically indicates your child’s performance on the learning curve.
Feedback will be as regular as your interaction with the teachers, whichever class your child is in. To facilitate this, we have introduced the tool, Smartwork. Smartwork is a web-based tool which helps you communicate with your childs teacher regularly. Smartwork will, if you subscribe for this option, leave an email intimation for you, every time the teacher makes a post for your child. Our request is that you use this tool prudently, respecting the teachers personal time and work hours. Smart work is accessible from the website as Home work update in the Parent menu or directly https://swda2.codebluesoftware.com/login . This login id and password will be sent to you via email by first week of June.
Theme of the year: Deens believes that academics by itself does not lend to a holistic education. We have a conscious view of value acquisition and we are attempting to realise this through a multi pronged approach. To create an awareness of their global responsibility, we have chosen Sustainability- Shtairyam, as our annual theme for this academic session. Read more about it : https://deensacademy.com/theme-of-the-year-2017-18/
Community Service and Enrichment activities : Children of grades 6-12 will undertake community service activities through the year, planned independently by themselves, to imbibe the ethics of ownership of their community. In addition, we have planned a curriculum for Life skills for every grade from 1-8, which involves basic skills of survival, from tying the shoe lace, buttoning up, folding clothes to effectively presenting ones point of view or developing the skill to ask effective questions. Skills that will in the larger sense make them wholesome individuals.
We also offer hobby clubs within school hours for students of grades 4-7, on alternate Fridays of every month, for 1 ½ hours each. These are paid services, facilitated by experts from the field and it is compulsory for every child to be a part of a club. Information on clubs: https://deensacademy.com/club-activities/
Grade 8 : Interact Club which is in association with Rotary Club The aim of this Club would be to provide exposure to the students to various social and environmental issues and to think of solutions which can be taken up by them.
Calendar :Through the year, children participate and indulge in various activities and events. The year calendar is posted on the website: https://deensacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Deens-Year-Planner-2017-18-All.pdf
PSA: Parents to align with us through the parent forum we have strategically called the Parent School Alliance.To read more: https://deensacademy.com/parents/parents-school-alliance/
Our Team of facilitators go through rigorous training sessions, prior to commencement of every new session and through the academic year, in order to be updated with current global pedagogical practices, thus being readied to handle your child’s needs. Here are details of our teams
https://deensacademy.com/teachers/teachers-at-deens/teachers-grade-1-5/
https://deensacademy.com/teachers/teachers-at-deens/teachers-grade-6-10/
https://deensacademy.com/teachers/teachers-at-deens/teachers-grade-11-12/
Contact details are listed on the website: Kindly ensure you contact the right person for your needs: https://deensacademy.com/reach-us/contact-us/
Last but not the least: If you would like to send the Principal any feedback or suggestions, please write to Principal@deensacademy.com