General Admissions
Admission is open to all students of all nationalities. Ambrit aims to create heterogeneous groups for each grade level. The school makes every effort to maintain a student body composed of at least 30% English first language, 35% Italian first language and 35% native speakers of other languages. A classroom that is balanced by gender, academic and language abilities facilitates appreciation of diversity, positive social interchanges, and cooperative learning. At the end of each academic year, teachers and specialists will meet to decide student class placement for the following year. Classes will be recomposed annually to reflect the above guidelines and the philosophy of the school.
Admission and progression
To be admitted to Ambrit’s Nursery class, a child must be potty trained and must be 3 years old by the 31st of August of the year of entry. Children then progress to Kindergarten, Prep and Grade 1 with their year group unless the teachers and administration feel that it would be beneficial to the child’s development to stay in a class. Grade placements are based on age as of August 31. Students enter Ambrit from a variety of educational backgrounds and we consider factors such as age, previous educational system, grade placement and academic success within that system, as well as international school experience, English language fluency, learning/behavior challenges and sibling age when determining grade placement. Ambrit reserves the right to make the final decision regarding grade placement.
For our EC and Grade 1 students, the August 31 cutoff date is a strict requirement. Below is a chart showing how classes are organized at Ambrit compared to the UK and USA systems.
| Age (on 31 August) | AMBRIT | UK | USA | ITALY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Nursery | Nursery | Nursery | 1a materna |
| 4 | Kinder | Reception | Pre-K | 2a materna |
| 5 | Prep | Year 1 | Kindergarten | 3a materna |
| 6 | Grade 1 | Year 2 | Grade 1 | 1a elementare |
| 7 | Grade 2 | Year 3 | Grade 2 | 2a elementare |
| 8 | Grade 3 | Year 4 | Grade 3 | 3a elementare |
| 9 | Grade 4 | Year 5 | Grade 4 | 4a elementare |
| 10 | Grade 5 | Year 6 | Grade 5 | 5a elementare |
| 11 | Grade 6 | Year 7 | Grade 6 | 1a media |
| 12 | Grade 7 | Year 8 | Grade 7 | 2a media |
| 13 | Grade 8 | Year 9 | Grade 8 | 3a media |
| 14 | n/a | Year 10 | Grade 9 | 1a liceo |
| 15 | n/a | Year 11 | Grade 10 | 2a liceo |
| 16 | n/a | Year 12 | Grade 11 | 3a liceo |
| 17 | n/a | Year 13 | Grade 12 | 4a liceo |
| 18 | n/a | 5a liceo |
If there is a question as to a child’s placement for the subsequent year, parents will be informed by the beginning of the spring term of that calendar year. Children entering the school mid-year will be informed of the placement decision for the following school year within two months of entry. Children entering the school with known special needs or who are subsequently identified as having special needs will be reviewed individually as to placement each year.
Criteria for admissions
Language Competencies
English first language students are accepted throughout the school.
Italian first language students are accepted:
In Early Childhood providing that one parent of the applicant speaks English
At other levels, if they have attended at least 3 years of school abroad and require no EAL (English) support
Students who do not speak English or Italian are accepted:
Through Grade 6
May on occasion be admitted in Grades 7 and 8 if private EAL (English) instruction is provided by the family
After the age of 5, all students who do not speak English as their first language will be asked to carry out a language assessment prior to being enrolled at the school. The purpose of this is to identify the students’ language needs and establish if extra support (EAL lessons) are required.
Special Educational Needs
Due to restrictions of space, facilities, and personnel trained to cater for significant special educational needs, Ambrit is unable to admit children with serious learning, physical, emotional or behavioral difficulties. A child with mild to moderate learning difficulties may be admitted on a probationary basis with dates of evaluation clearly established in writing. When applying to Ambrit, parents are required to provide past records of students, which may include: previous diagnostic testing or evidence of special education assistance. Please note that some of the services in Learning Support incur additional fees. Under certain circumstances, it may be necessary for parents to provide an assistant in a classroom for children with special educational needs.
