FAQs

Nursery - 1 teacher, 2 TLAs

Reception - 1 teacher, 2 TLAs

Year 1 - 1 teacher, 1 TLA

Year 2 - 1 teacher, 1 TLA

All teachers have recognised Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and Teaching and Learning Assistants have a minimum of the Early Childhood Diploma.

• Nursery: eight classes of 20 children
• Reception to Year 2: eight classes of 24 children

Please note that the maximum class size may be exceeded on occasion due to extenuating circumstances at the discretion of the Head of School with the support of the CEO.

At Tanglin, we have high expectations of our children’s behaviour and use lots of positive language to promote behaviour which enables and encourages outstanding learning. 

In Nursery & Reception, the children focus on three classroom promises which help them to develop a sense of what is expected right from the start. In Year 1 & 2, these extend to five promises. Nursery and Reception are also introduced to some of the IB Learner Profile and what these positive attributes look like, before all ten character strengths are explicitly taught and enacted within Year 1 and Year 2.

All year groups have a similar approach to managing behaviour in ensuring that the classroom promises are adhered to and the IB Learner Profile characteristics are celebrated. Children gain House Points when displaying positive behaviour; feedback from teachers will always be specific and explain why a child is receiving a House Point, meaning that children will be able to reflect upon their achievement. If a child is not demonstrating the expected behaviour, a restorative discussion takes place. If a child is still not responding, further discussions happen and actions are agreed upon to find a positive solution. This restorative approach fosters empathy, responsibility and accountability from a young age.

Year 1 and Year 2 celebrate Magic Moments in their weekly assembly, reflecting on examples of the Learner Profile in action. House Points are added to the House team total for Infants.  
All children will also use Griff’s Great Choices in school, a conflict resolution tool that helps them to build resilience and independence when solving small problems. 
 

Co-curricular activities (CCAs) are included within our school day. Reception can choose an activity on Thursday, while Year 1 and year 2 can choose an activity on Tuesday and Thursday.
After school, the Gymnastics and Learn to Swim programmes are available on specific days for Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.

For Infant co-curriculum information, click here.

The core focus in the Infant School is the essential English skills; speaking, listening, reading and writing in order to deliver high standards in all other subjects.  

However, all children have Mandarin lessons twice a week and a linguist-in-residence programme operates in Nursery and Reception. The focus is on nurturing a love of language learning and encouraging children to develop confidence when expressing themselves in Mandarin, moving on to reading and writing as they move through Year 1 and Year 2. 

We also offer the following Mother Tongue programme for Infants: 

• French
• Mandarin
• Japanese
• Hindi

Infant children enjoy a range of physical activities using our extensive range of facilities. These include the 25 metre pool, a large playing field, numerous indoor hall spaces, creative play areas, our Forest School provision and an indoor climbing wall. 

We are an accredited member of the Independent Association of Prep Schools (IAPS) so that we benchmark ourselves against the very best. 

We are the first school in Asia to achieve the Curiosity Approach Accreditation, and were the first school in Asia to be awarded the Basic Skills Agency Quality Mark for EYFS and the Infant School. We have also been awarded the Primary Science Gold Quality Mark. 

Our most recent inspection by British Schools Overseas (BSO) took place in November 2022 and the result was once again ‘Outstanding’ in all aspects. 

In 2020, ISC Research shortlisted our Curiosity Approach initiative within the innovation category and they awarded us International School of the Year in January 2023. 
 

Although our curriculum encompasses elements of the English National Curriculum, it is adapted to reflect the needs and circumstances of our children and our international context, as well as being informed by educational research and best practice from around the world. 

We encourage a close home-school link through: 

• Our open-door policy. Parents are welcome before and after school to speak to staff 
• Individual Seesaw journals to share ongoing learning 
• Extended orientation process for Nursery families and 1 formal report in Term 3 
• Two reports per year for Reception, Year 1 and Year 2, in Terms 2 and 3  
• A series of open classroom sessions where children share their learning informally with their parents 
• Formal Parent Teacher Conferences termly