Welcome Back to School!

Readiness Checklist

Update Brightwheel

Update your child’s Brightwheel profile to make sure we have up-to-date information. Remember that you can message all staff or admin only through Brightwheel message! This is the most efficient way to connect with your child’s classroom teachers as well as drivers. We have a designated parent coordinator in charge of checking messages promptly as well. Most importantly you need to add:

  1. Parents/Guardian name and phone numbers

  2. Emergency contact name and phone numbers

  3. Allergies and medical conditions

  4. Student profile photo, so our drivers and new teachers can identify your child

  5. Student birthdays so we can celebrate with our kids in the classroom and help all the teachers and classmates to get to know your kids better!

Authorize Pick-Up and Inform Child

Give your child’s day school the authorization to release them to Immersive Beijing for pick up each day. This is most important for the lower elementary schools and San Carlos Charter.

Share or remind your child about the pick-up process and details, which we will provide via Brightwheel messaging within two weeks of school starting.

Our drivers are trusted team members, each has done their background check and dedicated to a specific school so children will have consistency in knowing their driver/teacher, and each van seat is equipped with a car seat. We will update you promptly every day on Brightwheel (via a “check in” notification) once your child is safely on the van.

For everyone’s safety and schedule timeliness, we kindly ask parents to abide by the following:

  • Not to directly visit school to “assist” pick-up/or be immediately visible to your child during pick-up time — if your child sees you, they may become attached and delay the schedule for the rest of the group.

  • Stay phone-connected during pick-up hours in case we need to reach you.

  • Notify us via Brightwheel messaging an hour in advance of pick up time if your child will be absent from pick up and LLLC, to prevent our drivers and staff from unnecessary urgent concern, from delaying all other student schedules, and to avoid a fee for non-notification.

Label Everything

Water bottles, lunch boxes, jackets, backpacks — it saves so much time and avoids lost items! Please also try to collect all the belongings when you pick up your child. Train your child to be responsible for their own things!

Notify Us of Planned Absence

If your child will regularly miss the after school program, arrive late, or leave early, please inform us in advance. Additionally, if you plan to be away for part of the week due to travel, kindly keep us updated.

Practice Chinese at Home

Saying "hello" (你好) or "thank you" (谢谢) in Chinese at home can significantly boost your child’s confidence and help them quickly get back into a positive mood for learning. Even if you're not fluent in the language, simply showing genuine interest and making the effort to use these simple phrases is a powerful way to encourage and support your child’s language development.

Set a Positive Tone

As you talk about starting school again (or starting with us as a new after school member), speak positively! You have a powerful impact on your child’s perceptions and attitudes. A positive attitude can influence your child’s enthusiasm and willingness to embrace the learning environment. Encouraging excitement and confidence helps set the stage for a successful and enjoyable experience. Learning a new language and being in a new environment can be challenging for kids, but we witnessed students transform and be resilient. We deeply appreciate your trust in our team and the unlimited potential of your own child to adapt and grow!

General Information and Reminders

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  • Two weeks before school starts, we will publish the following via Brightwheel messaging to you directly. Please start checking Brightwheel for updates!

    • Your child’s class assignment

    • Class schedules for each level and dismissal/pick up windows

    • Fall elective options, scheduled outside of regular class time to support a well-rounded development

    • Day school pick up details, driver name, pick up location, and expected process

  • Our teacher’s will continue to snap photos of students in action during after school and load photos to Brightwheel, shared only to your child’s class. Photos are loaded when teacher’s have a moment of time - may be during the afternoon or in the evening. You can also continue to expect newsletters for each class, to keep you informed about their learnings and to help you support them at home in continued practice.

  • We use Brightwheel to communicate with families - for all broader communications, newsletters and direct messages for any topic, from absences, incidents, or early pick-ups. Please communicate with us through the app! If there are days where your child is absent or will not need to be picked up by our driver, please message us to let us know an hour in advance, so our driver and team are not worried and waiting at the school. Please don’t hesitate to message us here on Brightwheel if you have questions or want to connect with us.