Our school offers multiple learning support options to every child entrusted to our care. Those include the following:
English As an Additional Language (EAL)
As a primary international school in Bangkok, St. Andrews Sathorn warmly embraces diversity and opens doors to children of all cultures. In fact, St. Andrews Sathorn international primary school revels in serving as the second home of children from more than 40 countries all over the globe.
Parents of children with a first language other than English need not worry because our school offers a rigorous and thorough English as an Additional Language (EAL) programme. The children receive language support starting from year one, which may be provided either in-class or in small ‘pull-out’ groups, based on the level of assistance needed.
Our EAL programme is designed to:
• Enable children to easily apply the English language in their studies as well as social interactions in school through quick learning of basic English
• Empower the children to gradually become highly proficient in English so they can succeed in school activities and no longer require the programme
Our specialist instructors possess appropriate language teaching credentials, and a specially-trained EAL teacher is in charge of evaluating every child’s progress through this programme.
However, the success of our EAL programme does not rest solely on the assigned teachers. To optimise the program’s value and results, all of our school’s staff members are trained on the subject of language acquisition (particularly for English).
Special Educational Needs (SEN)
At St. Andrews Primary School in Sathorn, we recognise the diversity of children through their cultural backgrounds and also when it comes to their personal learning requirements. In line with this, our school’s Learning Support Provision is tailored to the individual needs of every child, based on the ‘Assess, Plan, Do, Review’ approach.
We conduct regular meetings among children, parents, school staff, and (whenever needed) even external consultants such as therapists to discuss our learning objectives for each child and collaborate as a team to achieve them.
Inclusion
It should go without saying that, as a genuine British primary international school in Bangkok, St. Andrews Sathorn is dedicated to inclusion. As such, our school proudly embraces inclusivity and personalises learning for every child to succeed.
Class sizes in our Bangkok primary school are small. From Years One to Three, there’s one teacher and one teacher assistant for 20 children in a class. By the time children are in Years Four, Five, and Six, they are guided to be much more independent and would have one class teacher for every class of 20.
St. Andrews Sathorn provides a variety of Learning Support services, such as (but not limited):
• Expert help from a speech and language therapist
• One-on-one guidance from a learning support assistant
• Targeted interventions delivered by our learning support coordinator or case workers
• Educational testing for Access Arrangements
In addition to those, our primary school in Bangkok has strong ties with a network of providers of additional learning support services, including the following:
• Child psychiatrists
• Educational psychologists (for children who need a more thorough assessment)
• Speech and Language Therapists
• Occupational therapists
The Arts
At St. Andrews International School Sathorn, we are of the belief that children’s engagement with Music, Dance, Drama, and the Visual Arts not only boosts their confidence and interpersonal skills but also cultivates a lasting appreciation and involvement in various art forms.
As testament to that belief, Drama, Music, and Visual Arts constitute the core specialist subjects in our curriculum, which are taught to the children starting in our Nursery classes, and until their Year 6. Our school’s dedicated instructors in drama and music help nurture and enhance every child’s artistic prowess.
Children who are interested in the arts will find many amazing opportunities to pursue it in St. Andrews Sathorn. Our school’s choir and musical groups, as well as drama productions, allow children to hone their passion. On the other hand, for children who are interested in furthering their musical education, we offer private lessons in violin, piano, and guitar during school days for a minimal charge, as part of their extracurricular activities.
All year round, we have numerous occasions that allow the children to showcase their talents, whether in school productions, assemblies, or other significant events. The St. Andrews Sathorn primary school choir organises performances at prestigious venues, such as the British Club in Bangkok, hotels, shopping centres, and more. In addition, our school’s Rock Band actively participates in the TISAC Battle of the Bands.
Library
“A seeking or request for truth, information, or knowledge. An investigation, the act of inquiring or of seeking information by questioning; interrogation”.
(Dictionary.com)
We believe that having the right learning materials is crucial for optimal learning. With this in mind, we ensure that our school library houses a wide variety of books and promotes a positive view of reading. Our end goal is to inspire the children to become lifelong readers and passionate advocates of literature.
That’s why St. Andrews international primary school in Sathorn has more than 13,000 books (both fiction and non-fiction), including poetry books, board books, picture books, biographies, and many more. Our curriculum also incorporates Reading Challenges from Year 1 all the way to Year 6.
Children from Nursery to Year 6 enjoy library lesson story-time. We also hold special events such as Library weeks and activities, including a yearly Book Week, celebrations of children’s literature, and school visits of authors. We even have a Creative Space, a room that serves as a site for book-related activities during classes and lunchtime.
Active Library users are encouraged to join our school’s Library Club and the Junior Librarian programme. Meanwhile, our online, interactive Library system—called the Reading Cloud—gives the children an opportunity to delve deeper into the world of books by allowing them to reserve, give ratings on, and write reviews on their reads.
Last but not least, we promote close ties with the bigger community through an active Parent Library Group, which provides support to our library initiatives.
Science
