DESS Newsletter - 33

DESS Newsletter - 33 - Fairness

Fairness is a character strength that helps us connect in community along with the other strengths that fall within the virtue of Justice. Fairness in essence is ‘impartial and just treatment or behaviour without favouritism or discrimination’. Reading that, people may agree it isn’t something abundant in the world. Fairness really is a character strength the world needs.

In child development, fairness helps support the development of empathy as they learn to recognize at what point being unfair becomes hurtful. Research has suggested that children begin to show inequality aversion from the age of 3 and their ability to understand and demonstrate fairness increases from there onwards. They start to decipher this complex word more accurately at around the age of 5. From what probably seems like an early age to parents, they start to decide whether they think things are fair or not and use the phrase “it’s not fair” very quickly; particularly when it’s bedtime or ice cream before dinner seems like a good idea! 

Acting fairly is a choice and a learned behaviour, something we as adults practise with most choices we make. Common ways of teaching fairness usually start with physical demonstrations such as, having the same amount of toys, going to bed at the same time or by taking turns in a game. Examples of fair behaviour in books, stories, real life contexts with more complex implications begin to be shared and we then praise them for being fair in their decisions.

I can imagine that you as parents might be hearing your children expressing that things at the moment don’t feel fair as they struggle with understanding the magnitude of the reasons why they need to stay indoors, can’t see their friends or come to school; it may all seem very unfair to them and even you, when actually staying at home, is the fairest thing we can all do. Often acting in the fairest way, isn’t the easiest and at times it takes real strength.

I hope this week everyone has been able to focus on this character strength when talking about our current predicament, to support each other with what we can’t control, to overcome the feels that it is very unfair and I hope we can all find strength in our combined fair actions to keep our community safe.

Wishing you a calm weekend.

Rebecca Eldred
Assistant Headteacher

Staff Stars of the Week

Mrs Ammoury	Mrs Tom

Message from the Student Advisor

The National Programme for Happiness and Wellbeing, NPHW, has launched a national campaign for mental support for all UAE residents to help them overcome the psychological impact resulting from the spread of COVID-19. The National Campaign for Mental Support is an online initiative using modern digital solutions and social media channels. It consists of three components

• “Let’s Support, Together”, features daily online live sessions in which mental health professionals and experts provide mental support, answer questions, and offer the necessary tips and guidance to help people overcome the challenges they face under these special circumstances. The daily sessions start at 20:30 and are broadcasted via the NPHW social media channels (@HappyUAE).
• The second component, “Let’s Reassure, Together”, is a series of short, focused, awareness-raising videos prepared by a group of mental health professionals, experts, and life skills coaches, providing information on the means to build coping skills and mental resilience. These programmes will be periodically published on NPHW social media channels.
• The third component, “Let’s Talk, Together”, is a series of virtual support groups that provide mental support to various community segments, including mothers, students, and elderly caregivers, who may need support to face the current situation. Application for participation in these online groups will be opened periodically.

The UAE have also recently launched a new helpline to support mental health / to provide family counselling for free to all UAE community members –  Details can be found here:  

The four interactive services provided by MoCD include the Taaluf hotline 800623, available daily from 09:00 to 21:00 except on Fridays and Saturdays, as well as video calls via WhatsApp (individuals need to register for an appointment on the Ministry website to use this feature). Taaluf is also available 24/7 on the ministry website, and weekly live streaming services via the Ministry’s Instagram account (@mocduae) will be available to members of the public.

Meet the Staff

Mr Jamin

What is your full name?
Mikaël Jamin

What do you teach?
I teach French.

What is your top tip to dealing with the stay at home policy?
Meditate early in the morning. Check out Heartfulness relaxation and meditation techniques https://heartfulness.org/en/

Putting things in perspective: Always consider and look at people who are worse off than you and find reasons in your everyday life to be grateful before you go to sleep at night. Remember these in the morning as you get up.

How are you staying active?
I have a home gym, so I try to work out most nights. Teaching my daughter to catch balls, frisbees and doing fun gymnastics also keeps me active.

What is your favourite food? 
I am mainly vegetarian, so anything with beans, lentils, lots of vegetables and rice makes my day!

How do you relax in the evenings?
Learning languages (watching Netflix in a foreign language is part of that! I have finally given in to watching Casa del Papel, brilliant!), Reading (off-screen time is so precious these days) and playing guitar are my main occupations. I also have a slight Youtube addiction! Great for dreaming about kitesurfing again.

Mrs Chapman

What is your full name?
My full name is Beatrice Antonia Chapman. Quite long isn’t it?!

What do you teach?
I am the class teacher in Year 2 Blue.

What is your top tip to dealing with the stay at home policy?
My top tip would be to make sure you schedule in some ‘me time’! For example, taking mini breaks during the day and then make sure you switch off and relax completely for a couple of hours in the evenings.

How are you staying active?
I am enjoying lots of virtual exercise classes and I am lucky to have my own exercise machine so I can get some ‘steps’ in! Staying active is hugely important to me and I think it is having a big impact on my wellbeing whilst staying at home. I highly recommend it!

What is your favourite food?
I am a real lover of food and will eat basically anything you put in front of me. I love to travel and try foods from all over the world, for example crocodile in South Africa! I would have to say that my favorite foods however, are steak and chocolate (not together though obviously!)

How do you relax in the evenings?
In the evenings, I like to spend time cooking a healthy, nutritious meal and exercising. I have recently got into playing board games.

House Day Olympics

The first ever DESS virtual House Day took place on Thursday 16th April with many children up early in their PE kits ready and raring to go. The theme for the day was “The Olympics” and after an opening ceremony which saw an official welcome from our Year 6 House Leaders and the cutting of the ribbon by Mrs Dando, the day was off and running.

The first event of the day was the “Wake and Shake” which saw Mr Bosch, his twin brother and the DESS teachers lead the school through a series of aerobic exercises. It was an extremely tough workout, but with great resilience and perseverance the children did an amazing job.

The DESS Art Attack Olympics came next with the children having the option to do one of four activities – House Posters or bunting, Olympic rings or paper plane design. In true DESS style the children created some incredible piece of artwork.

It was then onto the Mini-Olympics led by the PE Department with some extraordinary scores and results being produced by the children at home. Activities included standing long jump, sock shot put and paper plane javelin!

Our amazing performing arts department then put together some incredible music and dance activities together which saw the children rapping, dancing and creating jingles all centered around our Olympic House Day theme. We definitely have some talented pupils at DESS!

These amazing lessons were all supplemented by some additional activities including an Olympic Quiz, Story time, some healthy recipes and activities from our nurses and an Olympic “Beat the Teacher” with Mr Clarkson.

A big thank you to all the children for all their incredible hard work and responses throughout the day – you truly were champions! And also, to our amazing teachers who put so much effort in to bring the day together – it’s greatly appreciated.

We also had year group winners who performed brilliantly on the day:

• FS1 – PANTHERS
• FS2 – JAGUARS
• Year 1 – LEOPARDS
• Year 2 – LYNX
• Year 3 – LYNX
• Year 4 – PANTHERS
• Year 5 – PANTHERS
• Year 6 – JAGUARS

Overall Champions – LYNX

A big congratulations to all the Houses, but in particular our “Overall Champions” for 2020 Lynx House!

And don’t forget to keep your eyes peeled on social media for our Olympic House Day Highlights video which showcases some of the highlights of the day!

Message from our Nurses

We all know that this lockdown can have many effects on our mental and physical health.

Many of us are confused as to why we would be feeling tired, drained and lacking energy when we are spending all of our time at home. This can be due to a lack of routine and Vitamin D.

ROUTINE:
Stick to a good routine with regular meal and bedtimes. If you can, try to exercise at least 3-4 times a week. Whether it’s your PE lessons, yoga, HIIT’s or joining in with Joe Wicks it all has a great benefit on our physical and mental health. Without exposure to natural light we are susceptible to a disruption to our circadian rhythms which regulate our sleep cycles. If possible, try to ensure that you are exposed to natural daylight during the daytime. Open your curtains and open a window if it is safe and cool enough.

VITAMIN D:
Many doctors talk about vitamin D deficiency in Dubai. It seems a little of an oxymoron – one of the sunniest places on earth yet many residents suffering from not enough exposure to it!
Vitamin D helps control the amount of calcium and phosphate that we absorb in our bodies. Both are needed for healthy muscles, bones and teeth.
Vitamin D is found naturally in a small number of foods, such as egg yolks, liver, oily fish, mushrooms and red meat. It can also be found in fortified cereals and some fatty spreads.
However, it is difficult for us to get enough vitamin D just from our food. The main source is from the reaction caused from sunlight on our skin.

There are many symptoms of a low vitamin D level in our bodies. These include a weakened immunity, fatigue, tiredness, bone, joint and muscle pain, depression, impaired wound healing and headaches.

Many of us are living in apartments in Dubai, without outdoor space to relax and absorb sunshine. During this period of lockdown, we are more prone to a lower level of vitamin D. A simple solution to this is to try a vitamin supplement. These are widely available from supermarkets and pharmacies.

Dr Francoise has recommended that if we cannot get enough natural sunlight on our skin adults would benefit from taking a daily vitamin D supplement of 100mcg. Lower doses can be effective but there is evidence that a higher dose of up to 100mcg daily provides a better effect. Children should take a lower dose. There are many varieties of vitamin D supplements available that are suitable for adults and children.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with any of your school nurses or Dr Francoise if you have any health queries.

Kind regards,
Nurse Anna

Fairness Begins with Me!

We must remember, if we want to be fair to others, we must be fair to ourselves.

This week, we wanted the children to draw or choose a picture of themselves and to then celebrate all the wonderful attributes, skills and talents that they have around the picture. Please enjoy what the children came up with.            

Let’s not lose sight of the incredible job we are doing, so treat yourself kindly and fairly over these testing times.

Don’t forget there are many ways you can communicate with us:

Parent / Teacher Communication: Parents can communicate with the class teachers using the designated class email.

Parent / School Communication: Parents will continue to contact the school via Jacqui Thurley or Reception for general enquiries.

Social media: Please share your comments on our social media platforms. We love receiving your messages and tweets. Don’t forget to include the following hashtags: #InThisTogether #WeHaveGotThis #DESStrongerThanEver #DESSremotelearning #RemoteLearning

Stars of the Week

We are proud to announce that the following children each received Star of the Week. Well done to everyone!