ABU DHABI // When nine-year-old Tamara Khoury sees a fellow pupil sitting alone on a bench during break time, she and her friends spring into action.
Tamara, along with her fifth-grade colleagues Cynthia Stephan and Afra Al Ali, are members of Al Mushrif’s Private School’s anti-bullying council. Their job is to promote inclusion and extend a helping hand to any student who may feel left out, lonely or bullied.
“We have this bench and whenever anybody like, they’re sad or something, they sit on this bench and one of the anti-bullying people comes and they let them be friends and fix the problem,” said Afra, a 10-year-old Emirati.
“Yeah, it really helped a lot,” said Tamara, a Jordanian in Year 5. “It’s called Buddy Bench. There was a big sign. It really helped.”
The Buddy Bench is one of a number of strategies developed by the school community over the years to tackle bullying from a grassroots level.
The school also makes an effort to keep the children busy and well supervised during break times, when bad behaviour is more likely to surface.
“To me, bullying doesn’t happen at Al Mushrif because if the children have a falling out and either hurt someone by pushing them if they’re angry or using a bad word or hurtful word, we’re really quick to respond so it doesn’t escalate into a bullying scenario,” said Emma Shanahan, the school’s principal.
“One of our key priorities this year is to have very active and positive playtimes for everyone. So we’ve invested a lot of money and time in organising resources – there’s more staff on duty to engage children in lots of different physical activities.
“There are more adults there who can coordinate play and we’ve got our anti-bullying council and we’ve got play leaders as well in Year 6.
“So, they really are very happy, positive times.” The school also hosts an anti-bullying week once a year that encourages students to design posters and reenact scenarios in class that promote making the right choices when it comes to bad behaviour.
“We really care about one another here at Al Mushrif and that’s very evident in what we say and what we do,” Mrs Shanahan said. “But we explicitly teach it as well.”
The school’s behavioural policy is centred around teaching the four Cs – courtesy, cooperation, common sense and consideration.
“It’s quite easy for everyone to remember, and actually everyone is demonstrating that,” Mrs Shanahan said.
“Every single person in school – the staff, the pupils – they demonstrate it, we’re reinforcing it, so it’s implicit in everything we do.”
rpennington@thenational.ae
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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Keep it fun and engaging
Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.
“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.
His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.
He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.
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