Methodology:

Children learn in very different ways at vastly different rates. Junior  school of CIDER International school aims to offer an inclusive curriculum that meets the needs of all the learners.

The learning environment should be managed in such a that can facilitate different styles of learning, with particular regard to the specific educational needs of the children and the ways in which they learn their best. By understanding how children learn the best we are able to include many styles of learning in our teaching and learning process. For children with specific learning needs, we involve the use of additional staff and appropriate resources. An inclusive curriculum provides opportunities for children to learn in a variety of ways through high quality learning experiences based on:

• Auditory learning (listening)
• Visual learning (looking)
• Kinesthetic learning (moving/touching/active)

Pre-Primary Unit & Theme Based Learning

To start with a different knot, the” Pre-Primary Section” of CIDER Junior School follows the unique, ”Theme & Unit based” curriculum. We know, “Intelligence is fixed at birth”, with our activity based programs the tiny tots become more creative. In a short span of time CIDER has made significant progress & designed a comprehensive world class curriculum. We believe “Every child is special “and this curriculum affirms our belief. To trigger the minds of our tiny tots we conduct various topic based activities, field trips related to the theme, indoor & outdoor games sessions etc. Learning while playing is a unique method of teaching. Here the energy levels of the children are properly channelized so as to get the best out of them by developing their thinking process.

Our curriculum promotes their development through various theme based learning where each class follows 6 themes & units in each session. Such as Play Group has themes like “Shapes & Colors”, “Birds & Insects”, Fruits”, “Five Senses” etc. Nursery implements themes like “My Family”, “Body Parts”, “Fairy Tales”, “Sports” etc. KG includes themes like “Animals”, “Plants”, “Transports”, “Community Helpers” etc.

This learning process assists our little angels in developing their Gross Motor Skills, Fine Motor Skills, Social Skills & Cognitive Skills through workstations & adding many other ways to stimulate them.

Project and Inquiry based learning in Primary:

Project based learning focuses on developing critical thinking and problem solving skills in the students. Its inquiry based method of learning to solve the problems given as projects to the students is a style of active learning.

We are providing Project Based Learning method in which students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an authentic, engaging, and complex question, problem or challenge. Our students are doing an excellent team work with their teachers. Project Based learning method aims to provide students with the opportunity to synthesis knowledge from various areas of leaning and critically apply it to real life situations. Each and every teacher of junior school is conscientious for implementing Project in their respective classes. Students often work together in self-selected groups. Our educators help students and encourage them to combine it with regular lessons.

Assessments in Junior School:

Assessment methods are the strategies, techniques, tools and instruments for collecting information to determine the extent to which students demonstrate desired learning outcomes. Student learning and assessment go hand in hand when done naturally. When assess for learning, it becomes a natural part of the teaching and learning cycle. This idea of assessing for learning allows teachers to use assessments as feedback and guidance for next steps. Our school is following Summative and Formative assessment methods in both Primary and Pre-Primary sections.

In the Pre-Primary section innovative formative assessment examples are parts of what defines modern classroom. It provides information about what students understand & what they don’t. Our formative assessment includes:

*Visualization

*Quizzes

*Mini Whiteboards

*Drawing

*Pasting

*Quick Nod

*Watching Body Language

*Running Records &

*Thumbs Up/Down.

These assessments help our tiny tots to grow and also help the teachers to know the depth of their understanding. For the formative assessment we provide parents with “Mini Unit Report Card” at the end of each unit. Our circle time also helps in formative assessments process where children open up & cheerfully share their understanding of any concept without any hesitation. Beside this, their learning through field trips, classroom activities are also a form of such assessment.

In Summative assessment we conduct the “Mid Term” & “Final Term” in Pre-Primary. But CIDER doesn’t believe in judging high abilities of our tiny angels only through marking system. It encourages our tiny flowers to bloom without hesitation.

“Mastering others is strength; Mastering yourself is true power” this very philosophy is genuinely instilled in the minds of our little angels through such assessment system.

The goal of Summative assessment in primary section is to evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it against some standards or benchmarks. Junior school is having Half yearly Examination and Final term Examination throughout the year. Before Half Yearly and Final term examination which are of 70 marks each, our school is having two Unit Tests which include 30 marks. Our students are also giving Sample test which helps them to take preparation for the main exam and also they can get the idea about the structure of the question paper. Student Profiles can assist the process of identifying the specific needs of students who require adjustments to their learning program and help teachers to meet their responsibilities.

Formative assessment refers to a wide variety of methods that teachers use to conduct in the process of evaluations of student comprehension, learning needs and academic progress during a lesson, unit or course. In our primary sections by applying formative assessments our teachers can identify that if students are having any difficulty in skills, learning standards or not so that adjustments can be made to lessons, instructional techniques and academic support. For example our school is arranging “Quiz Competition” every year and our students  participate in these competition. Constructive quizzes will not only furnish teachers with feedback on their student, but they serve to help students evaluate their own learning. Worksheet based assessment is another formative assessment of our school. Our teachers prepare subject wise worksheets so that the students can get the clear idea about the lessons. By giving motivational cards our teachers  encourage and motivate our students in academics as well as in extra-curricular activities. Class wise discussion, debate, graphic organisers are some other tools which our teachers use to conduct the formative assessments in our schools. Hence the main objective of our school is to build a strong relationship with students and the goal of our school is to spark each student’s imagination, to find a hook in their heart mind so that they feel a need to learn each and every material.

Teacher’s training:        “We are what we repeatedly do”

The concept of ‘quality’ in education is understood in numerous different ways. This is something that is related to the quality of the work undertaken by a teacher which has significant effects upon his/her pupils.

The acquisition or improvement of teacher’s competence requires professional training which improves educational planning and assessment, educational ethics, philosophy of education and subject specific teaching method. To fulfill all these requirements teachers of CIDER International School receive/attend multiple training programs conducted by national and international trainers that enhances-

*Expert communication skill

*Superior listening skill

*The ability to build caring relationships with students

*Strong work ethic

* And deep knowledge with passion for their subject matter.

PARENTS WORKSHOP

CIDER FAMILY believes that parental involvement provides a great support for children which is particularly important for all kinds of development in their lives. So to provide them the opportunity and to make them know their child’s education journey is going we offer workshop for parents that is related to the curriculum and ethics of the school to make the learning process much more easier and effective for all our students.

STUDENT WORKSHOP:

According to W.B.Yeats-

“Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire”. Going beyond the horizon of text book and making something innovative is certainly a method to improve an individual in practical and regular terms. CIDER International School arranges seminars, conference and workshops at regular intervals that make the learners more prone towards learning that ensures-

*Active learning process

*Group work activities

*Council how to cop oneself with stress

*Guideline for time management.

These regular trainings and workshops instill various academic skills and make our students life long learners.

Sports:

Games and sports are very much important in students’ lives. Games and sports are physical activities that provide freedom from the stress and worries. In our school we have indoor and outdoor games facilities.

Indoor games are as follows:

• Table Tennis
• Badminton
• Carom
• Chess
• Ludo

Outdoor games are as follows:

• Football
• Cricket
• Basketball
• Athlete

We have a Basketball court, a Football field and a Cricket pitch.

Other than the above sports/games we arrange annual sports day every year. We have games period allocated in our regular class schdeules where every student participates in different games.

Music:

Our school has a very nice Music department. We have all the latest musical instruments. We have allocated the Music classes for all the students. Students from Play to Grade-II learn vocal music to gain the basic of music and students from Grade-III to Grade-V learn both vocal and instrumental such as Guitar, Keyboard and Drums etc.

We arrange various Music Competitions and Music Fest every year.

Dance:

We have a modern Dance  room surrounded by mirrors and all modern equipment. We have both audio and video system to learn dance. There are dance classes for all the students.

Art Lab:

We have a modern Art Lab for the students. We teach art and crafts, origami, paper mash, clay modelling, paper model etc. to all our  students. There are regular Art classes for the students. We arrange annual Art competitions and students also take part in different outside Art competitions.

Assembly

Assembly is one of the most common phenomena in every school. Students come to the assembly in the morning just after waking up, do some physical exercise, take oath, sing national anthem, – and these all things create a sober image of traditional schooling system. This kind of morning activity is very helpful to a child’s mental and physical growth. CIDER has taken up this practice into another level. As the school is divided into two segments, Junior School and Senior School, both of the sections do the assembly separately. The junior school assembly takes place on ground floor’s convention hall room. Student and teachers from Primary section (both from CC and NC) gather there. Assembly starts with holy prayer and oath. Then comes a presentation segment. This segment is very interesting and innovative. Every morning different groups of student come with diversified presentation topics. Topic includes education, culture, tradition, awareness, social ethics and values. There is an organised system for conducting assembly presentation. Responsible teachers would get to know about assembly schedule beforehand and teachers plan and prepare the students accordingly. After the presentation, here comes birthday wishing. This segment is very exciting. Assembly conductor bring the birthday boy or girl front and wish birthday by singing ‘Happy Birthday to you’ and we also ask the students the meaning of their names and their birthday resolutions. Activity coordinators supervise the whole assembly session. Finally assembly finishes through national anthem. Moreover, awardees name, important notices and many other imperative information is announced in the assembly. The badge holders help to maintain rules, regulations and discipline in the assembly and on Wednesday badge holders themselves conduct the whole assembly instead of teachers.

Field Trip

Field trip is one of the best ideas to learn something practically for the students. When a child sees something is happening in front of his eye, he understands the scenario way better  rather than reading it in the classroom. Field trip makes the learning fun, interesting and exciting as well as it makes sure the highest level of understanding of targeted topic to the student. Junior school (preprimary section, National Curriculum and Cambridge Curriculum) always plans, implements and appreciates field trips in every class. Even the tiny tots of play, nursery, KG go the field trip frequently. Field trip makes the student enthusiastic and apparently it opens the windows of real world to the student. It provides the actual opportunity to learn something by being a part of the system. It encourages student to accept and feel that learning is not a pressure any more, learning is fun. Field trips in Junior School are organised according to subjects, e.g. Science, Math, Global Perspective. Basically, students find an aspects of learning something raw that will answer all the queries what grow inside a child’s mind. How does it happen, what catalysts are being used, how the worker do all the work together? At CIDER, process of arranging field trip is very transparent from both the ends. Students and parents are informed by a diary note and consent form beforehand. School takes necessary permission from the desired place’s authority by letting them know the purpose of field trip, number of student, etc. School bus is being used for this purpose. Bus is fully equipped with all kinds of necessary safety arrangements. Usually, field trips start from school and after the trip students return to the school by school bus.

Events and Celebration

CIDER believes that a child has to be prepared in all the ways to march with the era of 21^st century. Bookish knowledge is not enough in this regard. World is moving ahead in every second with the advancement of technologies. Furthermore, globalization plays a huge role in the culture of a nation. CIDER’s goal is to create an innovative, resourceful, sensible generation who will be aware of everything, not only what’s going on around them, but what’s going on all over the world. CIDER prepares student to be a lifelong learner academically, socially, physically and internationally. CIDER’s academic calendar is planned with so many National, International and local events and celebrations like spell bee, debate, inter house song competition, literacy week, subject wise fortnights, science fair, music fest, International Mother Language Day, World Water day, Pohela Boishakh, Independence day, Victory day, Halloween day, Teachers day, Children day and many others. All these events and celebration are observed in CIDER very significantly. With the help of Perspective (Junior School Newsletter) students and parents get to know about the upcoming events and celebration and they are also mentioned in our yearly academic calander. Before the event and celebration,  responsible teachers prepare the student. Through the practice students get to know about all these events and celebration as well as international values of these. This vibe creates massive positive awareness among the students. Apparently that helps the students to be a global citizen.

“Free the Child’s potential, and you will transform him/her into the World”, said by Ms. Maria Montessori. Junior school of CIDER International School nurtures every child’s potential into becoming a sure reliance for the preservation of individual liberty. Children gradually develop their ability to show empathy, compassion and social awareness. The most powerful way to encourage socially responsible children is to first ensure that our children are raised and well cared for themselves. Health and hygiene is the fundamental concern of every child. If we are not aware of it, people in our society will fail to maintain a healthy lifestyle. In our Pre-Primary sections, we start the day with circle time by delivering and assuring proper hygiene check. Not just verbally, but also by showing them various acts and videos. And in Primary sections, just after the assembly, there is a proper hygiene check for each and every student. Raising awareness for road safety is also one of our core social responsibilities. Here in junior school we observe a ‘Road & Safety’ week every year, where children learn to better understand the traffic rules and regulations.

A school plays a vital role in sowing seeds of moral education. Our ‘Moral Education Week’, helps our students to become more concerned about morality and ethics. In Southeast Asia, children are not aware of physical boundaries. Junior school organises different workshops on ‘Good touch & Bad touch’, to make kids comfortable and open up about their trust and feelings. ‘World Women Day’, celebration is another way of making young minds understand how to value and respect women.

Our social responsibility also covers the duty towards our national environment. We observe ‘World Water Day’, every year to enlighten them that every drop of water matters. In the Pre-Primary’s theme based learning, the little buds grow up realizing how to protect nature and her elements. Observance of Friendship day, Peace day with students, teachers and support staffs creates an amicable environment in Junior School, which helps them to maintain equality and cooperation in the society.

We acknowledge various National and International festivals such as Halloween, Christmas, International Mother Language Day, Noboborsho, Basanto Utsab etc. to make them think globally and not just locally. The eagerness that we saw in the students when they all participated in donation for the Rohingya people and also for the street children, it made us believe the path that we are following will lead them to become good human beings and also respected and cherished by the society.

CIDER International School is not only a school, it is also a place where students, parents and teachers are getting opportunities to expose their inner knowledge, inner talents and to judge themselves about their own efficiency.

CIDER is a place, where our students are upgrading themselves in every sphere of their life. This institution is bringing up our students’ inner talents. In different extracurricular activities like dance, music, art, sports, etc students are cherishing their passions. Students are having chance to write for school’s website and newsletter. They have their own space for writing; through their write-ups they can express their views about their school and school activities to other people. Students are also being appreciated for their different skills. CIDER evaluates our students based on their different talents. Theeir talents are being appreciated with motivational cards. They are also being appreciated with certificates in every inter school competitions. Students are divided into four houses (groups) and they are being appreciated with house points for their performances, which are helping them to become superior day by day.

CIDER is a place where all the teachers are work with creative minds; always they are try to come up with innovative ideas and new methods. Teachers can write for the blogs on the school’s website and also for the newsletter. Teachers are being able to express their thoughts, opinions, views about everything related to the school. Through teacher’s tent in school magazine our teachers are being able to deliver different massages about school’s day by day improvements, worldwide different topics, and so on. From which students are also learning about different things. Not only teachers but also the school parent’s are also most welcome to write blogs on school’s website and also to take an active part in various school’s events.

It is the place, where parents get opportunities to share their own ideas. Parents are also sharing their own opinions. They get the chance to show their talents through different events like Music Festival, Art Festival and Fashion show, etc. Parents get opportunities to take part in different cultural programs. Parents can also write for school’s welfare about different things on school’s website. These writing opportunities can enhance their skill of writing and the parents are also being benefited through the all extracurricular activities. Parents can take part in regular coffee morning which helps them to discuss and share their views and opinions about their children’s learning conditions and improvements.

Parents, teachers and students of CIDER International school get a suitable platform where they can nurture their talents and prepare themselves for the next level of life. Moreover we assure our parents of a better future for their children from the CIDER family.