St Theresa College Birkirkara Primary School

School Policies

OUR SCHOOL’s GOLDEN RULES

GOOD STUDENTS’ BEHAVIOUR POLICY

Embrace the School’s Core Values:
Respect. Responsibility. Resilience. Inclusion. Care. Honesty.

Be responsible. Be at school on time. School starts at 08:30am.
Be responsible. Treat others the way you want to be treated.
Be responsible. Obey the instructions of the Head of School, Assistant Heads, teachers, LSEs, KGEs and all other professionals assigned by the school.
Be responsible. Behave in class to ensure the best learning and teaching experience for everyone in class.
Be responsible. Play fairly and behave in the yard and in after school activities.
Be responsible. Be a good example of the Birkirkara Primary School student during all activities and outings.
Be responsible. Do your homework (which includes revision and reading) and give it in on time.
Be responsible. Bring consent forms, especially for outings, on time.
Be responsible. Bring the necessary school items to school every day. keep anything which has nothing to do with lessons at home (mobile phones, toys, stickers, cards, jewelery).
Be responsible. Pupils may not be allowed for outings if they forget to bring the consent form repeatedly.
Be responsible. Pupils will not be allowed back to the classroom at the end of the day if something is forgotten there.
Be responsible. Pupils may not be allowed to phone home to bring things forgotten at home.
Be respectful. Use proper language and tone with everyone. Mind the voice levels.
Be respectful. Zero tolerance to Bullying. By-standers have an important role too.
Be respectful. Walk slowly and with consideration for others in corridors.
Be respectful. Say Good Morning and Good Afternoon to teachers and adults in school.
Be respectful. Respect teachers, adults and peers anywhere in the school.
Be respectful of the environment which includes the school building and its surroundings.
Be honest. Say the truth always.
Be kind. Use good manners and be courteous. Say Thank You, Please and Sorry.

Negative and Positive reports are sent via email to parents and professionals working closely with the child through the MySchool Online Reporting System. These reports remain visible for one scholastic year.

Birkirkara Primary – Leaving School Early Policy: SECURITY MEASURES FOR THE BENEFIT OF OUR STUDENTS:

When students need to leave school during school hours, one of their parents or carers must pick them up upon presenting their original ID Card. The parent is asked to sign the Early Leavers Book at the Reception.

Parents who DO NOT present their ID Card WILL NOT be allowed to collect their children from school before dismissal.

Students requiring to leave school during school hours must see an Assistant Head, first thing in the morning, with a note from the parent or carer. This note is to be written in the child’s communication book (or the school diary) and signed by the parents. The Assistant Head will sign the note and the student will be required to show it again at the door before leaving school.

When both parents/carers are unavailable to pick the child from school, a signed consent note and the original ID CARD are to be presented by the person picking the child from school. Signed consent is required from both parents, unless otherwise stated by a court order. Court Orders are to be respected.

In cases of emergency, parents are to call the school on phone. Clerks taking the call are to inform the Class Teacher and/or the Year Group Assistant Head immediately.

Amended October 2020 – A written note to the class teacher on MSTeam is also considered as an official communication with the school. It is the class teacher’s duty to show this electronic note to the Year Group Assistant Head for verification purposes. Therefore this electronic means of communication is also accepted, instead of the communication book or the school diary.

Permission To Pick Up Students From School

Consent is sought from both parents/guardians, unless there is a party who obtained the Full Parental Authority. Legal documents are to reach Head of School’s office as soon as they are presented by parents/guardians.
Unless there is consent from both parents, children cannot be handed to third parties.
Parents are to inform the class teachers in writing on the communication copybook (MSTeams is allowed too) so that s/he would know beforehand who is picking the child on the day; in cases of emergency parents are to inform the school through the phone so as to avoid any difficulties. This information has to be brought to the attention to the Year Group Assistant Head and the class teachers. Third parties are to present an ID card for identification purposes.
Moreover, in emergency cases the school clerks should always give a phone call to both parents/guardians. If parents/guardians are unreachable, we use the other emergency call numbers which are provided by parents/guardians at the beginning of the scholastic year.
Written and signed consent forms are handed out to pupils in a hard copy. It is the parents’ responsibility to inform the school of any updates they wish to carry out to this list.
Hard copies of these consent forms are to be kept in a file by the class teacher, in a place which is easily accessible by the other educators in class, the replacement teacher/s and the school leadership team, when required.
Without this written and signed consent form, children shall not be handed to anyone except the parents.

College Uniform Policy: New College Uniform 2020 – 2021

1. Kinder 1 (October 2020 intake), Year 1 and new Induction Hub students need to buy the new college uniform for the scholastic year 2020/2021.

2. Kinder 2 and all other Primary students can continue to use the old school tracksuit items. However, when they need to buy a new uniform, they should buy this new one.

3.All students are to wear white socks and plain white runners (with velcro or slip-on).

4. Personal jackets, raincoats and umbrellas are not permissible in school. Pupils should wear the anorak as indicated in the attached official uniform items chart.

5. Donation of old school uniform items cannot be accepted any longer. These are to be disposed of in the large blue container outside the main door of our school.

6. Yorkie Clothing, supplier of the college uniforms, can be contacted on 2149 7278 or 7949 7278.

7. Online orders can be made here: http://schooluniformsmalta.com/

Participation in Research Studies

Our school participates only in research studies involving online close-ended questionnaires. A link is to be provided for the online version of the research study questionnaire, such as Microsoft Forms, Google Forms, Survey monkey and other similar online survey tools.

Members of staff, including the Senior Leadership Team, will participate on a voluntary basis. Their identity, as well as that of the school, should not be disclosed.

As per terms of reference outlined by the Research and Innovation Directorate and MFED Research Ethics Committee (MREC) , ‘Research work is carried out at the discretion of the Head of School, Institution or Organization, and is subject to their conditions’. The school may opt-out of the Research study, at any stage.

Link for MREC.

The School Eco-Code

The Eco-code is a living document of our school’s commitment towards a greener planet with bluer oceans. The EkoSkola council with representatives from pupils and educators meet on a regular basis to discuss issues related to this:

Drop Everything And Read – forming a new habit of reading

Research in psychology shows that it takes 21 days for a human being to form a new habit and 90 days to create a lifestyle, so on Monday 22nd February 2021, we, at Birkirkara Primary School, introduced a 10 to 15 minutes of independent reading time every day from Monday to Friday, Kinder 1 up to Y6, after the break, when we go back to class after playing in the yard.

Everyone is invited to bring a favourite book from home and keep it in their school bag to read during the DEAR time.

Pupils are encouraged to read in both English and Maltese. Pupils who can speak in another language are invited to bring a book in that language as well. Yes, we celebrate all languages in our school.

This is a technology-free time! We’re doing our utmost to limit screen time for our pupils as we are aware that they are spending more than enough time in front of a screen. We invite parents and guardians to continue this practice at home, as well.

”The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can’t read them.” – Mark Twain

This policy will be reviewed at the end of the scholastic year.

Our Online Safety Rules

Respect for All Framework

Click here to access policy documents

or HERE for more Policy Documents.

Click the cover to access:

Trans, Gender Variant and Intersex Students in Schools Policy

Managing Behaviour in Schools Policy

Addressing Attendance in Schools

A Whole School Approach to a Healthy Lifestyle: Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Policy

Substance Abuse Prevention Programmes and Interventions in State Schools

Click the cover to access the Policy on Inclusive Education in Schools:

School Dress Code

As a person whom pupils look up to, you should dress as befits the dignity of your profession. You are expected to present an example to your pupils through the way you dress. Strapless or low cut, revealing tops; straps; tube tops; tight clothes including leggings; short dresses or skirts; shorts, bermudas and ripped jeans; and any type of revealing clothing not adhering to the normal standards of decency will not be permitted. Any see-through material is not permitted. Flip flops, sliders are not permitted. Please use good judgement.

Educators should consult the School Leadership Team members when in doubt.

This page is updated regularly with school policies.