September 2019 newsletter

Dear Parents/Carers,

I hope all of you had an enjoyable summer break. A warm welcome to our new pupils and families – we hope that you will be very happy here. In the meantime, if there is anything that we can assist you with, please do not hesitate to get in touch. We would also like to extend a welcome to our new members of staff – Miss Conboy, Miss Simbanda and Mr Pharamond.

Our new class arrangements are as follows:

Old Class	New Class	Teacher
Egypt	3 Willow	Mrs Kemp
Kenya	3 Palm	Miss Weller
America	3 Poplar	Miss Conboy
3 Holly	4 Holly	Mrs Bush
3 Maple	4 Maple	Mr Frith
3 Birch	4 Birch	Mr Steele
4 Ash	5 Ash	Mrs Cross/Mrs Sharma
4 Elm	5 Elm	Miss Simbanda
4 Oak	5 Oak	Miss Bryant
5 Pine	6 Pine	Mr Pharamond
5 Cedar	6 Cedar	Mr Hackett
5 Fir	6 Fir	Mrs Marshall
5 Beech	6 Beech	Mr Fowles

Reminders

The children have returned looking very smart and ready for school – thank you! Just a few polite reminders.

School shoes - All pupils are required to wear plain black shoes which are suitable for school.

Jewellery – Pupils are not allowed to wear earrings or any other jewellery to school with the exception of watches which may be worn to help with time keeping.

Nail Polish - Girls are not to wear nail varnish to school, please ensure that this is always removed before coming to school.

Hair – Long hair (both girls & boys) should be tied back

Uniform and lunch boxes – Please ensure that all school uniform, P.E. kits and lunchboxes are clearly marked with your child’s name.

Mobile phones - Your child should only bring a mobile phone to school if they have a valid reason for doing so. All phones must be handed in to a member of staff on the gate in the morning & collected from Mrs Marshall, who will be outside the library, at the end of the day.

Learning Mentor

Our Learning Mentor, Mrs Wells, is happy to help if your child has any worries or concerns about school or friendship groups. Pupils can write a note and place it in the worry box at school if they wish to see Mrs Wells or let their teacher know. Mrs Wells is usually at the school gate in Salisbury Road each morning before school and each evening at dismissal time should parents or carers wish to speak to her. She can also be contacted by phoning the school office.

Homework Diaries and Informal Parents’ Meeting

The children have all received a copy of the School Diary. Please read through the Home/School Agreement with your child. This sets out the responsibilities of pupils, parents and the school. We ask that you sign the relevant section. Pupils are asked to bring their diary to school each day as it will be used to record their reading (both at home and in school) as well as their homework. Teachers or parents may also use the book to communicate messages. We will be holding Informal Parents Meetings (please see diary dates below) so that parents can meet with their child’s new class teacher and year group team to learn about expectations, topics for the term and any special events or arrangements for the year group. If you are able to, we would strongly encourage you to attend.

School Blog

 If you have not yet had a look at our school blog, please make the time to do so. The blog is a great way to keep in touch with what is happening in school, including photos from key events. There are a number of posts already with more being added all the time. To access the blog, please go the main page of our school website and click on the School Blog tab.

 Attendance and Punctuality

As a school, we work hard to promote good attendance and punctuality. Children are able to come into school from 8:30am. Teachers will be in their classrooms from this time and will have work on the board for the children to complete. This will often be work to support or recap previous learning. The time may also be used by staff to hear pupils read or to address misconceptions. We would therefore strongly urge pupils to be in school at this time if at all possible. If children arrive after 8:50, they will be marked as late. Parents of pupils who are persistently late may be asked to attend a meeting with myself and the Education Welfare Officer.

We have had a number of requests already this term for a leave of absence during term time. In most cases this has been for the purpose of a family holiday. We would kindly ask that parents/carers refrain from taking their children out of school. When children are not in school, they miss vital lessons which inevitably affects their understanding of key concepts. When they return to school, they often find it difficult to catch up. We realise that this is often a cheaper time to travel but we hope that parents will support the school in our goal to ensuring that all pupils make the best possible progress and meet their full potential.

 School drop off

We would like to kindly ask that you refrain from parking on zig zag lines both at the front and the back of the school. The lines are there to protect our pupils so that they may enter school safely. Your cooperation would be much appreciated.

 Dates for the Diary

September
17th	6 Fir & 6 Pine to Tate Gallery
18th	Yr 3 to Hylands Park
19th	6 Cedar & 6 Beech to Tate Gallery
23rd	Yr 4 Informal Parents Meeting at 9am
24th	Yr 6 Informal Parents Meeting at 9am
25th	Yr 5 Informal Parents Meeting at 9am
26th	Yr 3 Informal Parents Meeting at 9am
27th	Online safety police talk for parents at 9am
October
4th	Y3 to Gidea Park Library
8th	Y6 Height & Weight Measurements
14th	Yr 3 Harvest Assembly to Parents at 2.15pm
15th	Yr 3 Harvest Assembly to Parents at 9.05am
16th	End of topic celebration at 2pm – all years – parents invited Individual Photos
17th	Yr 6 Shakespeare workshop
18th	Yr 6 Shakespeare workshop
21st – 25th	Half Term
28th Oct – 1st Nov	Y5 Bikeability
November
5th	Flu Immunisations (details to follow) Open Evening 3.30pm – 5pm
7th	Open Evening 3.30pm – 6.30pm
8th	Yr 6 to Millfield Theatre
December
11th	Yr 4 Christmas play to parents at 2pm
12th	Yr 4 Christmas play to parents at 6.30pm
13th	End of topic celebration at 2pm – all years – parents invited
17th	Yr 5 Carols in the playground at 3pm
18th	Yr 6 Carols in the playground at 3pm
19	Yr 3 Carols in the playground at 3pm
20th	Last day of term
January 2020
6th	Inset Day (School Closed)
7th	Children return to school
February
17th – 21st	Half Term
March
6th	Yr 5 to Stubbers
April
3rd	Last day of term
20th	Children return to school
May
8th	May Day (school closed)
22nd	Inset Day (school closed)
25th – 29th May	Half Term
June
July
22nd	Last Day of term