Friendship Choices for 2023–24 Classes

Dear Parents,

We will soon be creating the classes for the next academic year in Early Years and Primary. As members of an international community, it is important we support our children to navigate through change, nurture existing connections and develop new relationships. With this in mind, each year we create new classes from Nursery through to Year 6.

The creation of classes is based on a number of factors. This includes:

  • Balance in gender;
  • The number of EAL/native-English speakers in a class;
  • Creating classes that have a broad range of abilities and learning needs;
  • Integrating new students alongside existing students.

When necessary, we include consultation with the Learning Enhancement and EAL teams in order to effectively support the decision-making process. The school leadership team reviews the proposed class groupings against the considerations above, and once classes are finalised, the unique needs of each class are taken into account to match the new classes to their teachers.

The children’s existing friendships also form an important part of this picture. The adults who work with your children have a very good understanding of the friendships that not only exist in their current classes but are also held throughout the year group. We would like to invite you and your child to be involved with this process by identifying four friends who they would be happy to be in a class with next year. As has been described, there are a number of factors which need to be considered when creating classes; therefore, we will guarantee your child is placed with at least one child from their list. 

As a parent you can support the class mixing process by:

  • Discussing with your child his/her reasons for friendship choices;
  • Choosing four different friends (remembering these are not ranked);
  • Helping your child understand that new classes are a great opportunity to make new friends;
  • Reminding your child that it is not possible to place them with all of their requested friends;
  • Completing the Friendship Jotform on time.

To make the choices, please use the link below and complete the Jotform by Friday 21st April, after which point the form will close:  

[LINK]

If the form is not completed, we will assume you are happy for your child’s class teacher to identify four friends for your child.

At DBIS we are aware of the importance of positive transitions for the children. The children have already been engaged with lots of opportunities to develop relationships across their existing year group, and we will be providing plenty of opportunities for your child to learn about what to expect from their new year group throughout Term 3. This will include visiting the learning environments and meeting their new teacher later in Term 3. Further information will be communicated about specific transition events closer to the time. 

We hope that you will enjoy talking to your child about their existing friendships as well as discussing the excitement of developing friendships from across the year group and meeting the many new students we will have joining us in August. 

Best wishes,

 

Hannah Tait and Susan Walter

Head of Early Years and Head of Primary

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Below is a list of FAQs which should cover the most common questions you may have. However, please contact your child’s current class teacher, or their Head of Phase, if you have any questions or concerns not covered below.

 

Can I leave the friendship choice for the class teacher to make?

Yes. We have many parents who are happy for the class teacher to make the friendship choices. The class teachers know the children very well and will happily pair up your child if you would prefer.

Are the friendship choices ranked?

Definitely not. It does not matter which order the friends are chosen in. We do not expect the children to be ranking their friends. Some parents may ask their children for a long list of friends and then choose four for them.

Can I request a specific teacher for my child?

No. For us to balance the classes and achieve an even mix of students, the taking of individual requests would make the entire process unmanageable.

My child has two close friends, will they all be together? 

Please place four different children’s names on the form, and we will do our best to ensure at least one of those requests is met. It is possible they will be with more than one friend, but we cannot guarantee this.

If my child chooses just one friend, will they be guaranteed to be with them?

We require four choices as this gives us the flexibility to create new classes. If only one friend is chosen, we cannot guarantee they will be placed with them, so the class teacher will need to add three additional friend choices. We therefore ask for four friends to be chosen.

Can my child choose friends from another class?  

Yes. Please make sure you know their first name, surname and the class they are in.

My child has just arrived at DBIS, and we are not sure who his/her friends are?  

If your child has already made a specific friend or two, please write their name on the form.  If not, your child’s teacher will try to identify a possible friend or friends, and we will take that into consideration as we place the children.

When will we find out who our child’s teacher will be? 

You will receive your child’s end-of-year report and a copy of their new class list via the Parent Portal on Friday 23rd June.

Can I request that my child is moved once I receive the list?

As outlined above, the creation of new classes is a complex process, and it will therefore not be possible to accommodate any changes once the lists are published.

 

DBIS Hub

DBIS Hub