International School of Düsseldorf

ISD provides support for physical, emotional, and social wellbeing for students, parents, and staff. A team of school counsellors offers comprehensive support at all grade levels. Life Skills for grades 6-10 deliver a flexible, experiential curriculum focused on adolescents' social, emotional, and personal growth. Pastoral Care includes counselling in the Elementary and Senior Schools to promote educational, emotional, and social welfare and to support transitions and social skills. SMART Moves Ambassadors help new students integrate socially, and transition mentoring provides one-on-one support for newcomers.

ISD guides and encourages students to meet their potential while acknowledging and addressing learning differences. Targeted support is provided and strategies are taught to transfer learning across classroom settings. An individualised education plan (IEP), containing learning goals broken down into learning outcomes, is developed for each student. A referral process yields a full psycho-educational assessment with recommendations for specific accommodations and modifications. ISD regularly collaborates with students, parents, teachers, and other professionals to design the best possible support plan. The program includes activities to develop memory, organisation, and study skills, health and well-being, and literacy and numeracy.

The English as an Additional Language (EAL) team supports students whose first language is not English to acquire the linguistic competence needed to succeed in mainstream classes. EAL is delivered in an authentic, comprehensible environment that is challenging. The curriculum recognises diverse backgrounds and provides a progressive course focusing on the structures and functions of language with emphasis on communication. Students are assessed on participation, oral work, and teacher observation. Students can exit the programme when fluency and accuracy reach the required standard to succeed in the mainstream classroom. Students are encouraged to access their mother tongue to support content while learning.

ISD provides levels of support focusing on physical, emotional, and social wellbeing for students, parents, and staff. A team of school counsellors offers comprehensive support at all grade levels. Life Skills for grades 6-10 focus on wellbeing, including mental, social, emotional and physical health. The Counselling Department mission is to develop each student's academic, social, and emotional competencies through a developmentally appropriate counselling and Life Skills curriculum. Pastoral Care includes elementary counselling to promote welfare and transitions, and senior-school counselling to address life events and other concerns.

ISD is committed to safeguarding and providing a safe, welcoming environment where children are respected and valued. ISD Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy and Procedures are established in alignment with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and local German law. Child protection work is informed by the International Task Force on Child Protection, a branch of the Council of International Schools. ISD has appointed a Safeguarding Lead and two Safeguarding Coordinators to promote the education and training of staff as related to child protection under German school law and to ensure that all suspicions of abuse are promptly reported and appropriately responded to.