Island Primary Update #4

It's hard to believe that what started over 2 years ago, is now a mere 3 months away from our first official day, and with that realization is the combination of excitement and stress (but mostly excitement) as we draw ever closer to the big day.

As we look back at the pictures along the way, it's a true tale of a dream becoming a reality. While a few pictures in isolation, and without context, may seem that there's still a long way to go, the true progress becomes so stark when we compare the pictures from our last newsletter to today. The remaining work is the final pieces of the puzzle which start to pull together at a rapid pace as the days tick down.

For those who like details and facts, our front parking and laneways are being curbed and will be paved over the next two weeks, with the parking area trees starting to find homes in the midst of the dust and dirt. Our tennis/pickleball/basketball court is also almost ready for its flooring and fencing, and our football field, after a minor dirty setback (literally, bad dirt), is being re-plugged and the new grass appears pretty happy.

The machinery and materials are almost all off site, allowing us to get cracking next week on our play areas to push out good dirt (I've learned a lot about dirt lately), install our irrigation lines, and get ready for our trees to arrive.

Around the building, our scaffolding has been taken down, and our awnings and metal works are in the process of being installed, giving us our first glimpse of the green splashes on the building.

Our cabana and walkway are nearly complete, classrooms are 90% there with the baseboards, final painting and lights going in, and our lunch hall is getting its funky tiles installed which will delight the kids and have our tiler shaking his head for years to come.

We recently completed a large number of milestone inspections, and our final CO (Certificate of Occupancy) inspections are scheduled to get underway at the end of June. For those who drive past the site, the NRA has thankfully been working on the Linford Pierson to allow us to connect our entry road in good time.

Please see our short video of our recent progress here.

The building (and parking, playgrounds, etc) are by far the largest piece of the puzzle, as without that there's no school. But it's not the only part, and just like any puzzle it isn't complete unless we have all the pieces in place.

Our furniture, resources and materials are all en route from the UK and USA, arriving on our shores at the end of June and packed into 4 shipping containers. That's four, 40-foot containers, and when you consider a lot of the furniture arrives flat packed, our team will be opening thousands of packages over the summer, sorting through a mountain of materials whilst trying not to stop and play with everything. Christmas in July for teachers...!

On the playground, our crew have started working on the assortment of tree forts, slides, swings, climbing walls, boats (yes, a boat), and more. It's going to be a busy summer and we can't wait to kick the construction crews off the site so we can get in and roll up our sleeves.

According to Albert Einstein, “the only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library.” Well, it just so happens that we’ve made that task as easy as possible, not necessarily in deference to Mr. Einstein’s sage advice, but because we ourselves realise the importance of our library in representing two key elements of Island Primary: learning and community.

Deliberately placed at the very front of the school our library, already affectionately known as 'The Hub', welcomes students, staff, parents, and visitors to our budding community of learners.

But far beyond being a threshold to our school or even a symbol of what we value, its true purpose is twofold: it will link learning across the curriculum and across classes, providing access to books and a variety of other media with the hope of cultivating curiosity and igniting imaginations but, equally importantly, it will also serve as a critical intersection between school and home; an inviting space for our families to visit, get to know, and enjoy.

Libraries bring information and people together so please, whether taking Einstein’s advice or ours, do become acquainted with The Hub of our Island Primary community when we open our doors in September.

During the month of June, our Parent Portal will go live, and families starting in September 2023 will receive an email over the week of June 19th with information on how to access that.

The portal will be a valuable source of information for parents, where our handbooks, detailed school calendars, policies, guidance documents and more will be available.

Also coming in mid-June will be our Uniform Order page, where parents can place orders for uniforms directly with the school and pay online. Our supplier is working to have our uniforms ready for collection towards the end of June, and we'll contact families directly to let them know where to collect the orders.

More information about our uniform can be found on our website by clicking here, and the school will have available for purchase our school shirts, PE shorts and PE shirts and hats. We are also working to secure a selection of school shorts and skorts, however parents are also welcome to purchase their child's khaki shorts/skorts from any local or overseas retailer.

A common question (besides the building progress), is whether we have any spaces available for September. Whilst our classes are slowly filling, we do still have spaces available in all year groups, and we'd be happy to answer any questions prospective parents might have if they are considering joining our school community. Please email us anytime at info@islandprimary.org

Missed a past newsletter? No worries, use this link to look back at our past newsletters in our series.

It's often hard to see the progress when you are in the thick of things, the 1,000 details all competing to be ticked off the list, but when we take a few moments to step back, clear our minds, and look with fresh eyes, it really dawns on us what we're accomplishing.

I'm often told by people how remarkable this is, the sheer undertaking of tackling a project this large, with little margin for time delays, at a time of shipping slow downs, inflation hikes and with no large organization behind us to fall back on, it really does come down to sheer determination and never losing sight of why this all started.

I will never be able to properly thank everyone for their help in making this happen, from the hardworking construction crew who have worked through so many weekends, rain or scorching sun, to the quiet unseen folks in the background helping with the over 600 registrations, set up and staff administration and more, and of course our amazing senior leadership team who have given up their nights and weekends to meet to go through the mountain of tasks to be completed before we welcome our families in September.

Whilst our next newsletter isn't due to be published until the end of July, we'll be posting a series of progress pictures over our social media accounts regularly, as these last few months is where the 1,000 final details pull magically together.

So until next time, please keep spreading the good news about us, and as always, please reach out anytime to learn more about our school. We have 3 months to go, and what an action-packed summer it's going to be!

With kindest regards,
Jenn

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Jenn Cowdroy

Director & Project Manager

Email: info@islandprimary.org
Website: www.islandprimary.org
Location: Buttonwod Park, Grand Cayman
Phone: (345) 746 1600
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/islandprimary

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