By DAISY SAMPSON daisy.sampson@theresidentgroup.com
Dutch residents celebrated Queen’s Day on May 1 during an open day held at the soon-to-open O4M international Dutch school located between Ferragudo and Sesmarias.
More than 300 people enjoyed live music from Ilse van Zanten and a street fair while the event was also used as an introduction to the community to the new school and O´Kido play centre with an opportunity for guests to meet with teachers at the renovated site.
“Almost all Dutch families find it important to enrol their children in Dutch education while abroad,” said Hilde West from the O4M School.
“The reasons for this vary but do have the common element that parents and children want to maintain a link with the Dutch language and culture.”
The O4M School will be subsidised by the Dutch government and supervised by the ministry of education in the Netherlands with inspections by the Netherlands inspectorate of education and the inspectorate and foundation for Dutch education abroad, Stichtin Nederlands Onderwijs in het Buitenland.
“This will guarantee the education of your child at the school,” said Hilde West.
The diverse facility will act as a school during week days while at weekends it will be used as a play centre open to members of the community.
The second phase of construction to create extra classroom and shower facilities will be completed over the next few months before pupils start school in September.
“Children will have Portuguese language and culture lessons and English lessons alongside the Dutch curriculum taught in the school. We will also provide after-school activities and a homework institute for pupils making O4M similar to the een brede schools found in Holland, which encompass many different educational services under one roof,” said Hilde West.
The new facility will open as a play centre on June 12 and as a fully functioning school on September 1.
For further information about the facilities, please call Hilde West on 935 250 645. Alternatively visit www.siteright.com/nederlandseschoolalgarve
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