2 months ago
Posted on 03rd Sep 2025 by Miss Hill

E-Safety Top Tips- September Newsletter

Each month, an online safety newsletter will be shared with you to help give advice and top tips on how to keep your child(ren) safe online.

Please see the newsletter attached below as well as a summary of the themes covered.

Online Safety Newsletter Sept 2025_Newdale_02-09-2025

The Online Safety Act 2023 This edition highlights the new Children Codes of Practice introduced in July 2025 under the Online Safety Act. These rules require online platforms to:

Enforce age limits
Protect children from harmful content (e.g. self-harm, eating disorders)
Provide easy ways to report inappropriate material

Ofcom now oversees these regulations and has the authority to issue fines to companies that fail to comply.

App Watch- Coverstar Described as a “safe TikTok alternative,” Coverstar allows users to post, comment, and livestream—but without private messaging. It uses moderation tools but still permits public interaction and in-app purchases ranging from £0.99 to £59.99. Parents should:

Ensure children know how to use reporting tools
Be aware that users under 13 need parental consent
Monitor usage and spending

Scam Awareness Quiz- Childnet has launched a fun and educational quiz for 9–13 year-olds to help them spot online scams. It includes examples and tips to build scam awareness and digital resilience.

If you need more support or guidance with online safety, please contact a staff member or send us an email : newdale.primary@taw.org.uk

2 months ago
Posted on 03rd Sep 2025 by Miss Hill

Year 2 Homework

We would like to share some information about our weekly homework routine to help support your child’s learning at home.

Weekly Homework Overview

Each week, your child will receive two pieces of homework:

Spelling
Maths

These will be handed out every Friday, and both are expected to be completed and returned by the following Friday.

Spelling Homework

The spelling homework will include a list of words for your child to practise throughout the week. We use a method called Look, Say, Cover, Write, Check, which helps children learn spellings effectively. Here’s how it works:

Look at the word carefully
Say the word aloud
Cover the word so it can’t be seen
Write the word from memory
Check to see if it was spelled correctly

Children should practise their spelling words each night—Friday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday—to build confidence and accuracy.

Spelling Test – Spelling tests will take place every Friday afternoon, and results will be recorded in the back of your child’s homework book.

Spelling Extension Activity- As an optional challenge, children may write a range of sentences using one of their spelling words in each sentence. This helps them understand how to use the word in context.

Maths Homework -The maths homework will focus on developing fluency and confidence with key skills. Tasks will be designed to reinforce what we’ve been learning in class and support your child’s progress.

Submission Reminder- Both spelling and maths homework should be completed and handed in by Friday morning each week. New homework will be issued every Friday.

We ask that children read at home at least three times a week to help build fluency and confidence. This can be with an adult or independently—whatever works best for your family. They can also write a personal comment in their reading diary based on what they have read or an adult can record a comment too.

Thank you for your continued support. If you have any questions or need further guidance, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

The Year 2 Team

*Please note their will be no spelling test this Friday. The first spelling test will be 12/09/25 based on the rule a before l and ll. This set of spellings will be sent out on 05/09/25.

2 months ago
Posted on 03rd Sep 2025 by Miss Hill

European Day of Languages – 26th September

On Friday the 26^th September, Newdale will be celebrating European Day of Languages.

It is a day to promote awareness of the importance of language learning and protecting the linguistic heritage.

Each year group will be celebrating a different country (please see below).

Nursery -Germany

Reception -Italy

Year 1- Sweden

Year 2-Poland

Year 3- Denmark

Year 4- Switzerland

Year 5- Greece

Year 6- Germany

The children are invited to come into school wearing the colours of the flag that they are celebrating.

3 months ago
Posted on 01st Sep 2025 by Miss Hill

Year 2- Welcome Back

The classrooms and teachers are ready, and we are so looking forward to seeing you back in the classroom soon! We hope you are feeling excited, looking smart and ready to get started.

Here’s some information about Year 2:

PE days are Wednesdays and Thursdays.
Outdoor learning is on Fridays– remember we go whatever the weather so be prepared! Please bring clothes in a spare bag to change into in the afternoon.

If you have any questions or queries, please email the Year 2 email address as seen below:

newdale.year2team@taw.org.uk

We look forward to welcoming your children back tomorrow.

Year 2 team :)

4 months ago
Posted on 05th Jul 2025 by Miss Hill

E-Safety -Parental Controls

Please find a link below to an updated ‘Parent Online Safety’ booklet which includes an overview of key parental controls.

4 months ago
Posted on 05th Jul 2025 by Miss Hill

E-Safety Top Tips – July Newsletter

Please find below the Online Safety Newsletter for July:

Online-Safety-Newsletter-Primary-July-2025_Newdale_30-06-2025

This month, it includes information on: Nintendo Switch 2, Omegle and online challenges.

The Nintendo Switch 2 (released last month) introduces a new feature called ‘GameChat’ which allows up to 12 users to voice or video chat and share screens whilst gaming. This feature is part of the Nintendo Switch Online membership and includes parental controls. Parents can manage ‘GameChat’ access through the free Nintendo Switch Parental Controls app, which also tracks gameplay time and restricts messaging and game access based on PEGI age ratings. It’s important to note that PEGI ratings do not cover user-generated content or in-game chat.

Ofcom’s 2025 report shows 68% of children aged 3-17 watch funny videos, pranks, or challenges online. Although much of this content is harmless, some online challenges can be dangerous, and there have been tragic cases of children being harmed or killed while attempting them. Since children may not yet have the critical thinking skills to recognize unsafe content, it’s important for parents to have regular, open conversations about what they’re watching. Rather than naming specific harmful challenge (which could spark curiosity) parents could talk about online challenges in general, emphasising that threats tied to these challenges are not real. For guidance on how to approach these conversations, you can visit How to prevent harm from online challenges | Internet Matters.

There is also an additional resource to support transition with children that are moving to secondary school- it helps children to understand the possible risks and benefits of going online.

Moving to secondary school: Online safety guide | Internet Matters

If you need more support or guidance with online safety, please contact a staff member or send us an email.

Email: newdale.primary@taw.org.uk

5 months ago
Posted on 27th Jun 2025 by Miss Hill

🌟🌟Friday 27th June – Achievement Assembly 🌟🌟

Friday 27th June 2025

This week, Year 5 had a wonderful morning on their taster session at Langley. They visited the Science labs and were wowed with some exciting experiments. They also were able to visit the arts department, the D&T workshops or the cooking facilities. Year 6 had a super day out at Crucial Crew and really impressed their adults with their enthusiasm and behaviour. On Friday, the whole school joined in with Careers Day. Each class had some very exciting visitors and the children were able to reflect on the type of job they might like to have in the future.

BeSMART Cup winners who will have a special treat next week:

Year 4 for their amazing efforts in the Multiplication Tables Check and their summer assessments. You have all worked so hard for all of it and we are so proud of you!

House Points

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AI-generated content may be incorrect.

The final house point totals from our Sports Days have been added in and…Severn have managed to hold onto first place. However, Wrekin are incredibly close – only 20 points behind!

Achievers of the week:

Year 6 achievers: Clara for pushing herself out of her comfort zone to contribute brilliantly during the workshops at Crucial Crew and Harlan for his fantastic behaviour and superb questioning at Crucial Crew, where he represented the school brilliantly.

Year 5 achievers: Zac for amazing effort in every lesson and always being polite and respectful. Kian for always working hard without any fuss and some great coding work today!

Year 4 achievers: Lily-Mae for a fabulously descriptive Chance to Shine about Sistine and consistently working her hardest to progress. CJ for fantastic effort with his Chance to Shine and focusing on improving the presentation of his work.

Year 3 achievers: Pixie-Belle for her beautiful presentation in all subjects. She always listens carefully and is a friendly member of the class to have! Miss Watson’s achiever was chosen for his fabulous engagement all week, always being ready and being a good role model to his peers.

Year 2 achievers: Isabel for consistently trying her best, following the Be Smart Code, being a kind friend and a fantastic role model to everyone. Eli for having a wonderful attitude towards his learning, his handwriting has improved and he has written a fantastic Chance to Shine about our Pirate Day.

Year 1 achievers: Harry for consistently working hard and giving 100% effort in all he does. Harry always works hard, listens carefully, is a good friend and a good role model to others. Well done Harry. We could choose you any week. Miss Fisher’s achiever was chosen for working so hard in all of her lessons and demonstrating the BeSmart code to her peers. You’re an absolute superstar.

Year R achievers: Sara for consistently showing excellent behaviour, effort and attitude to learning all day every day. Ivy for coming into school happily each morning this week, playing with her friends and working hard at her learning.

Readers of the week – these children were entered into our weekly reading raffle:

Year 6 readers: Mrs Stack’s reader was nominated for reading regularly in before and after-school club. Jack for a great mix of reading chapter books and shorter texts on Read Theory.

Year 5 readers: Mrs Arthurs’ reader was chosen for on upping his game during the Summer term with your regular reading and super comments; Platinum last week and now Reader of the Week. Alexey who won a brand new book in the KS2 raffle for consistently reading at home every week. Well done.

Year 4 readers: Isaac for brilliant efforts to read this week. He has worked so hard to create his own story based on his interest in History. Niall for his consistent home reading throughout the whole of year 4.

Year 3 readers: Jack for really impressing me with his Harry Potter knowledge and reading 5 times this week! Well done Jack! Ted for regular reading at home every week. Super star!!

Year 2 readers: Miss Hill’s reader was chosen for working hard at home on chapter books. Astrid for her amazing efforts in reading not just at home but in school too.

Year 1 readers: Amelie who won a brand new book in the KS2 raffle for super reading at home and her perseverance when she finds a word challenging to read. Great job Amelie 😊 Erioluwa for her consistent reading and recording work at home. Always so proud of you!

5 months ago
Posted on 11th Jun 2025 by Miss Hill

E-Safety Top Tips

Please find below the Online Safety Newsletter for June.

June Newsletter

This month, it includes information on: Online Privacy, Virtual Reality and talking to your child about online mistakes.

If you need more support or guidance with online safety, please contact a staff member or send us an email.

Email: newdale.primary@taw.org.uk

6 months ago
Posted on 14th May 2025 by Miss Hill

Online Safety Survey -KS1 and KS2

We are pleased to share the headlines of our recent online safety survey, in which your children participated. The survey has provided valuable insights into students’ digital habits and awareness of online risks, helping us better understand how they navigate the online world. These findings will guide our ongoing efforts to promote responsible internet usage and enhance our online safety education. We encourage you to review the results and engage in discussions with your children about safe digital practices.

KS1 Headlines (Year 1 and Year 2)

Internet Usage at Home: Virtually all children (98.2%) use the internet at home.
Feeling Safe Online: Most children feel safe when using the internet at home (78.8%), however, a fifth of children still feel unsafe when using the internet at home.
Online Experiences: A significant majority (75.2%) have not experienced unkindness online, but 24.8% have.
Support Awareness: An impressive 95.6% know who to turn to if they encounter something upsetting online.
Parental Guidelines: 85% of children have internet usage rules set by their parents/carers, however, 15% of children said that they do not have rules when using the internet at home.
Parental Communication: 73.5% discuss their online activities with their parents, while just over a quarter of children (26.5%) said that they do not.
Gaming Trends: A striking 94.7% play online games.
Passwords: While many children have special passwords (65.5%), a notable percentage (34.5%) said that they do not.
Information Sharing: Most children (83.2%) are aware of what information is appropriate to share online.
More children appear to be using technology in their own bedroom (55.7%) compared to using it in a shared family space (44.3%).

KS2 Headlines (Year 3-Year 6)

Children have access to a range of devices at home to access the internet, the most popular device being a smart phone at 27.3% (the most popular last year was a games console meaning more pupils have access to a smart phone).
There has been a decrease in the percentage of children using a games console as the most popular device. The percentage from last year in 2024 was 30.1%, however now in 2025 the percentage is 25.1%.
The top 3 things the children use the Internet for are gaming, chatting and learning/research. This remains the same as last year (2024).
5% (previously 37.7%) of pupils have access to the internet in their own bedroom, with an additional 7% having access to the internet in a shared bedroom. This is opposed to 27.8% (previously 36%) who use the internet in a shared family space. The data shows that more children are accessing the internet in a private space away from parents/carers.
43.2% (previously 36%) of pupils spend more than three hours on the internet each day. This is an increase of 7.2%.
22.9% (previously 18.8%) of pupils said that they never talk to an adult about the rules for safe internet browsing. This is an increase of 4.1%.
All children could suggest what classes as personal information online and could identify systems we have in place in school to keep children safe online.
All children could give advice to others about online safety and could correctly identify what to do if they felt uncomfortable about something online.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss the survey findings, please contact school.

6 months ago
Posted on 07th May 2025 by Miss Hill

E-Safety Top Tips- May Newsletter

Please find below the Online Safety Newsletter for May:

May 2025

This month, it includes information on: cyberbullying, Minecraft and Wonderlab+.

There is a large section within the newsletter that outlines what cyberbullying is and what steps you can take to support your child, if you suspect that they are being bullied online. There is also further advice and support from Childnet and the Anti-Bullying Alliance.

Within the newsletter there is also information from Roblox. Please see below, three new parental/ carer controls that they have introduced.

Friend blocking – Block specific people on a child’s friend list.
Experience blocking – Restrict access to certain games.
Top game insights – View the games a child has played most in the last week.

Ask Silver – Scam Protection

Ask Silver is a tool that helps users determine whether messages or online content might be scams. Users can upload screenshots of suspicious messages, and Ask Silver will assess if it is safe or not. Please see the link within the attachment to access this.

There is also an additional resource below from the NSPCC that can be used to improve your family’s online wellbeing.

Positively online: top tips for online wellbeing | NSPCC

If you need more support or guidance with online safety, please contact a staff member or send us an email.

Email: newdale.primary@taw.org.uk