The final week of the summer holidays is traditionally a busy period for parents eager to ensure their children are ready for the school year.
While that once meant making sure pupils have uniforms and supplies in place for the first day back, the Covid-19 age has put PCR testing and vaccinations at the top of the check-list for many.
Pupils aged 16 and over must be immunised to return to in-person learning, while others will require nasal swabs to show they are clear of the virus.
Hundreds of thousands of pupils across the UAE are set to begin the new school year on August 29.
The National has examined some of the important issues for parents before children go back to school.
Who needs to be vaccinated?
Children aged 16 and above, as well as all school staff, must be vaccinated to return to school after the summer, the Ministry of Education said in early August.
They are required to have had two Covid-19 vaccination jabs to enter schools in all emirates, apart from Dubai, unless they have a verified exemption certificate.
Children aged 3 to 15 do not have to be vaccinated to return to school.
Officials have urged pupils to sign up for doses as soon as possible to avoid delays in returning to classes.
If parents decide not to vaccinate their children who are 16 and over, those pupils must learn remotely.
In Dubai, authorities do not yet require pupils to be vaccinated to attend school.
Where can pupils get vaccinated in Abu Dhabi?
School staff, teachers and pupils aged 12 and above who want to get vaccinated against Covid-19 before the new term can visit two dedicated medical centres in Abu Dhabi.
The clinics are in the Green Halls at the Mina Zayed Vaccination Centre and Al Ain Convention Centre, and are open daily until October 31, from 8am until 8pm.
First, second and booster doses of Pfizer-BioNTech and Sinopharm vaccines are available and free.
New teachers, pupils and school employees can also get the shot, even if they do not yet have their Emirates IDs.
Appointments are not required, although pupils under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
Visitors would need to show their Emirates ID and a green or grey status on the Al Hosn app.
Do pupils need PCR tests before they return to school?
Private school pupils in Abu Dhabi who are 12 and above must take a PCR test every two weeks to return to school.
In Abu Dhabi, pupils aged 12 and over, as well as staff, will also have to undergo PCR tests within a 96-hour period of returning from school holidays, including Eid, winter, summer and spring breaks.
In Dubai, all pupils must declare their recent travel history by completing the Dubai Health Authority form online.
Pupils who have returned from travel abroad also require a negative PCR test taken within 48 hours to resume learning at school.
If they do not have a negative test result, they will be required to do distance learning for 10 days from their arrival date.
Private school staff in Dubai who are eligible but choose not to be vaccinated need to take a PCR test every week.
If they do not have a negative test result, they will be required to complete distance learning for 10 days from their arrival date.
All school staff and pupils aged 12 and above must have a negative PCR test to return, Sharjah Private Education Authority said. Staff and teachers should have received both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine but can be exempt if they have a medical condition.
Exemptions will need a doctor’s report and they must take a weekly PCR test.
How can parents prepare their children for return to school?
Children may feel anxious about returning to school after a two-month break, especially with the pandemic still looming large. For many pupils, this may be the first time they will have had to wear masks at school.
It is normal for children to show signs of anxiety when their routine is disrupted by the start of a new term.
Parents have to help ease the transition from holidays to classrooms by preparing children mentally for the change a week before they go back to class.
Parents can help children settle into their routine by ensuring they sleep early so their sleep pattern is in line with school days.
Dr Beno Kurien, principal at International Indian School in Baniyas, said parents should talk to their children every day before they start school.
Once classes resume, he said parents needed to have conversations with children about what was happening at school. If the child faced a problem, parents needed to inform the school, he said.
He asked parents to ensure their children got ample rest before they returned and to cut out junk food from their diets.
The school has a team of teachers who have studied psychology and will help train parents in how to help children before pupils return to school.
Pupils have access to tailored mental health support should they need it.
MO
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre V8
Power: 480hp at 7,250rpm
Torque: 566Nm at 4,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: L/100km
Price: Dh306,495
On sale: now
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 849Nm
Range: 456km
Price: from Dh437,900
On sale: now
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Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
RACE SCHEDULE
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday, September 29
First practice: 7am - 8.30am
Second practice: 11am - 12.30pm
Saturday, September 30
Qualifying: 1pm - 2pm
Sunday, October 1
Race: 11am - 1pm
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
List of alleged parties
May 12, 2020: PM and his wife Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at least 17 staff
May 20, 2020: They attend 'bring your own booze party'
Nov 27, 2020: PM gives speech at leaving party for his staff
Dec 10, 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
Dec 13, 2020: PM and his wife throw a party
Dec 14, 2020: London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff event at Conservative Party headquarters
Dec 15, 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
Dec 18, 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
Sheer grandeur
The Owo building is 14 storeys high, seven of which are below ground, with the 30,000 square feet of amenities located subterranean, including a 16-seat private cinema, seven lounges, a gym, games room, treatment suites and bicycle storage.
A clear distinction between the residences and the Raffles hotel with the amenities operated separately.
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The five types of long-term residential visas
Obed Suhail of ServiceMarket, an online home services marketplace, outlines the five types of long-term residential visas:
Investors:
A 10-year residency visa can be obtained by investors who invest Dh10 million, out of which 60 per cent should not be in real estate. It can be a public investment through a deposit or in a business. Those who invest Dh5 million or more in property are eligible for a five-year residency visa. The invested amount should be completely owned by the investors, not loaned, and retained for at least three years.
Entrepreneurs:
A five-year multiple entry visa is available to entrepreneurs with a previous project worth Dh0.5m or those with the approval of an accredited business incubator in the UAE.
Specialists
Expats with specialised talents, including doctors, specialists, scientists, inventors, and creative individuals working in the field of culture and art are eligible for a 10-year visa, given that they have a valid employment contract in one of these fields in the country.
Outstanding students:
A five-year visa will be granted to outstanding students who have a grade of 95 per cent or higher in a secondary school, or those who graduate with a GPA of 3.75 from a university.
Retirees:
Expats who are at least 55 years old can obtain a five-year retirement visa if they invest Dh2m in property, have savings of Dh1m or more, or have a monthly income of at least Dh20,000.
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ramez%20Galal%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ramez%20Galal%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStreaming%20on%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMBC%20Shahid%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The biog
Age: 46
Number of Children: Four
Hobby: Reading history books
Loves: Sports
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Previous men's records
- 2:01:39: Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) on 16/9/19 in Berlin
- 2:02:57: Dennis Kimetto (KEN) on 28/09/2014 in Berlin
- 2:03:23: Wilson Kipsang (KEN) on 29/09/2013 in Berlin
- 2:03:38: Patrick Makau (KEN) on 25/09/2011 in Berlin
- 2:03:59: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 28/09/2008 in Berlin
- 2:04:26: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 30/09/2007 in Berlin
- 2:04:55: Paul Tergat (KEN) on 28/09/2003 in Berlin
- 2:05:38: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 14/04/2002 in London
- 2:05:42: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 24/10/1999 in Chicago
- 2:06:05: Ronaldo da Costa (BRA) 20/09/1998 in Berlin
Profile
Company name: Jaib
Started: January 2018
Co-founders: Fouad Jeryes and Sinan Taifour
Based: Jordan
Sector: FinTech
Total transactions: over $800,000 since January, 2018
Investors in Jaib's mother company Alpha Apps: Aramex and 500 Startups
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
25%20Days%20to%20Aden
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20Michael%20Knights%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPages%3A%20256%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAvailable%3A%20January%2026%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Under 19 Cricket World Cup, Asia Qualifier
Fixtures
Friday, April 12, Malaysia v UAE
Saturday, April 13, UAE v Nepal
Monday, April 15, UAE v Kuwait
Tuesday, April 16, UAE v Singapore
Thursday, April 18, UAE v Oman
UAE squad
Aryan Lakra (captain), Aaron Benjamin, Akasha Mohammed, Alishan Sharafu, Anand Kumar, Ansh Tandon, Ashwanth Valthapa, Karthik Meiyappan, Mohammed Faraazuddin, Rishab Mukherjee, Niel Lobo, Osama Hassan, Vritya Aravind, Wasi Shah
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
