I hope you and your children have had a good break from the routine of school and are now fully charged and raring to go for the long haul to Christmas!
Please remember that children in years 1-6 should now be in their winter uniform of shirts and ties. Also given the change in temperature the children (years 1-6) will need an outdoor PE kit, this can be joggers and a sweatshirt of any colour.
We have had a term of using Accelerated Reader in KS2 and despite a few minor teething problems it is going well. We are however looking to supplement the books the children can choose from, and in particular are looking for more non-fiction and classics. I have the very generous offer of time from a parent who is willing to add and mark up books to the system. If, therefore, you have any books in excellent condition that your child has finished with, and you would like to donate them then they will be gratefully received. A chance to have a pre-Christmas clear out!
Another request for help: Does anyone have the carpentry skills to build a bespoke bench for the Junior playground? This is so the children can sit and change their shoes for trainers and therefore still be able to use the field at lunchtime. Unfortunately, in the same way that I have limited funds to purchase books, I have no money for this project so would really be looking at a donation of both time and resources. Please contact me if you feel you could help.
We are planning to celebrate Christmas with individual class events again as this proved to be a great success last year. The Twelve Days of Christmas class events will be as follows:
30th Nov 2pm Rhinestone
3rd Dec 1.45pm Ruby
4th Dec 10am Opal
5th Dec 2pm Onyx
6th Dec 1.45pm Amethyst
7th Dec 2pm Diamond
10th Dec 2pm Topaz
11th Dec 4pm Crystal
12th Dec 4pm Coral
13th Dec 3.30pm Amber
14th Dec 10am Jet/Jade
18th Dec 3.45pm Turquoise
Our next parent ‘drop in’ to share your child’s work with them is planned for 22nd November 3.15 until 5pm.
Over the next couple of weeks, we shall be acknowledging the commemorations for the end of the Great War. I think this is a significant part of our history and as such we have a duty to share it with our children so that they may appreciate the sacrifice given by so many. As part of the school events we shall be inviting the children (and staff) to take part in a dressing up day on the 12th November. Costumes can be of the era, or simply in something red or poppy related. As always there is absolutely no obligation to dress up and this certainly mustn’t incur significant cost.
Increasingly I have parents and staff raise concerns about children’s use of Social Media. I have some links here that may help support you with this absolute minefield.
This one in particular is for Snapchat: https://storage.googleapis.com/sc-support-web/safety/parents-guide-en.pdf
And this for Fortnite: https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/blog/parents-guide-fortnite-battle-royale
This is another site which has some general information about keeping safe online: https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/
I am very much looking forward to the term ahead and all that it has to offer in terms of work and play. See you tomorrow!
Kind regards
Nicola Wood