Year 1 Trip To Dudley Zoo and Castle

Tomorrow, we are off to Dudley Zoo and Castle.

In the morning, please drop your child in the usual place at 8:20am. Your child will need to have a small backpack with their water bottle, and packed lunch if you have opted for this. Your child must have a waterproof coat with them! Your child will be walking around the zoo and castle all day so may wish to wear suitable trainers instead of their school shoes.

We will return in time for normal dismissal.

RHSE Update

Dear Families,

In our curriculum, we continue to use PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic) programmes across our school called 1decision and Respect Yourself, a programme devised by the curriculum committee of Shropshire Council. These programmes include elements of Relationships Education, Health Education and Sex Education.  We shared our policy with parents and carers in the Autumn Term of 2022 and adjusted it according to feedback.

We give notice to families each year that the RSHE lessons will be taught during the Summer Term. We let you know so that if children want to talk to you about what they have been learning, you are ready to set aside some time to listen to their thoughts and feelings and help them to understand.

In every year group, the theme includes two or three lessons to help children understand the human body, including the changes that take place during puberty, and how human reproduction happens. There is a very serious safeguarding aspect to this work and obviously the younger year groups are not looking at these issues directly and explicitly but rather learning correct terminology for body parts and doing the foundation work for later year groups. Upper Key Stage classes look more fully at puberty and human reproduction.

We hope you will agree that this work is vitally important for children, that it needs to be done age-appropriately and that the 1decision and Respect Yourself programme gives us a secure framework in which to do this.

It is your legal right to withdraw your children from Sex Education that is outside of the National Curriculum for Science. Relationships Education and Health Education is statutory for all primary schools.

You may be aware that the government are consulting on changes to the statutory guidance on teaching relationships and sex education, and Health education.  This may affect the delivery of our programme next year and we will keep you informed.  There are no changes to our programme this year.

Please talk to us if you have any questions.

Yours sincerely,

Miss Cook

Y1 trip this Thursday

There will be no PE on Thursday. Children to wear normal school uniform.

Please remember to send your child with a rucksack to carry their lunch and a water bottle.

Children will need to arrive at 8:20pm at their classroom door.

Thank you

Year 1 team

Finance and Personnel Governors Involvement Update

The Finance and Personnel Governors met today and held discussions around our Early Years offer, with an update from our fantastic new nursery teacher. Governors were reassured that the standard of provision remains high. The enthusiasm demonstrated from the nursery teacher was very evident and it was great to hear how this is shared across the team. Governors were impressed with the early identification of SEND within the Nursery and could see how this supports children as they move into Reception.

Governors had an update on pupil premium expenditure and the impact of the sports premium. They could see that a lot of thought had gone into expenditure and that impact was evident.

Governors were happy to see that the staffing structure remains solid across all year groups as we plan ahead for the next academic year. The governors had an in depth look at the budget for 2024-2025. They acknowledged that school budgets are tighter than normal and were reassured that any savings that had to be made would be minimal.

Stamps Needed!

This half term, we have read the story ‘The Jolly Postman’ by Janet and Allan Alhberg. The children have loved learning all about the life of a postman and are working so hard with their writing in literacy.

To finish the unit, we would love for the children to write a postcard to post home about their trip to Dudley Zoo and Castle. Please can you provide your child with a stamp to attach to their postcard so that we can take the children to the post box to post. Please can you send the stamp into school with your child by Wednesday 22nd May.

We know the children will relish the opportunity to write to you and to post their own postcard home – it will give them a real, exciting purpose to their writing.

Thank you so much for your continued support,

Year 1 Team

Year 1 Phonics Screening Check

Today, your child will be coming home with a set of words to practise for the Phonics Screening Check. There will be both real and nonsense words for the children to read, checking that they can apply their phonetic knowledge.

The children will be completing their Phonics Screening Check the week beginning 10th June (the checks will be taking place throughout the week).

We will send out a leaflet for parents/carers produced by the Department for Education one week before the check with further information.

If you have any questions in the meantime, please speak to a member of staff in Year 1.

Thank you for your continued support.

 

Curriculum governors involvement update

The Curriculum Committee of Governors met on Tuesday 23rd April. They had an in depth look at our PE offer (with Mr Bryant) and our Maths offer (with Miss McCullagh). They met with some very keen mathematicians from across the school, who loved showing off their maths books and telling Governors all about their lessons.

Governors went on to look at our Equality targets and where we are in achieving them by the end of the year. Governors were reassured to see that attendance was looking more positive.

Governors really value the committee meetings as they always include gathering the views of children and seeing firsthand the work they do. They also value having valuable time with subject leaders so they can gain a very clear understanding about curriculum intent and impact.

Year 1 are BeSMART Cup Winners!!!

Both Year 1 classes have returned to school fantastically this term and the Year 1 team are super proud of them all. It was too tricky to choose between us, so both Year 1 classes are BeSMART Cup winners this week.

On Friday 26th, the children will be able to come to school wearing a costume for the day as their treat. If you have any questions, please speak to one of the Year 1 team.

Keep up the great work Year 1!

Attendance

Dear Parents,

We wanted to remind you how important being in school each day really is for your child.

Every lesson counts, and each lesson builds upon the previous one. We know children can become poorly, but every day missed can lead to gaps in learning and difficulty for a child to understand and therefore progress well. It can also lead to anxiety for a child who can feel they have missed out.

School is more than simply learning, it is also a place where children develop vital social skills, build friendships, become independent and learn how to deal with their emotions. Research consistently proves that children who attend school regularly perform better academically. Just a few days missed can impact overall achievement.

In addition, school is a community where its learners gain a sense of belonging. A teacher’s ability to personalise support and assess a child’s understanding can only be achieved at its best in the classroom.

It is not just missing days that can have a negative impact, but late arrival too – learning starts straight away each morning. Without a clear morning routine, perhaps a missed breakfast or being late into the middle of a lesson, children can lose confidence.

For these reasons, please remember that leave of absence in term time cannot be sanctioned for reasons such as holiday. We want to ensure that every child thrives. Only very exceptional circumstances will be considered. We do quite understand that holiday companies charge significantly more during school holidays. However, we are hoping that holidays will alter over the next few years which should make them more accessible for everyone, whilst not disrupting the education of your children.

Do contact our pastoral team or office should you have any concerns about attendance, so we can support you and resolve any issues quickly.

Please remember that every day in school is an investment in your child’s future. Working together to prioritise this can only support them to succeed.

Kind regards,

 

Miss Cook

Headteacher

Newdale Primary School and Nursery

Sports Days

Please see below this year’s sports days.

17th June – Y5 & Y6 Sports Day – 1:15pm

18th June – Reception Sports Day – 9am

18th June – Y3 & Y4 Sports Day – 1:15pm

19th June – Y1 & Y2 Sports Day – 1:15pm

20th June – Nursery Sports Day – timings given to parents nearer the date

21st June – Reserve sports day for rainy days