Fire Making Skills with Debating Club

Debating club will be arguing that all children should be taught survival skills at primary school. For our first session, the children learnt how to use ferrocerium rods to create sparks. We talked about the fire triangle, fire safety and why we need fire. It was amazing to see their resilience with learning a new skill.


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.

Toy donation plea

Dear parents and carers,

We would like to add to our resources for lunchtime play and are looking for help if you have any good quality items you could donate to school:

  • Lego – including bases
  • Duplo – including bases
  • Small world figures – such as dinosaurs, animals, people etc.
  • Happyland characters

Please bring any donations to the school office.

We thank you in advance on behalf of the children who will greatly enjoy these items.

 

 

 

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

Year 5 P.E

Year 5 will have a bonus P.E session this Friday (19th April), so please can children wear their P.E kits on this day.

From next week (w/c 22nd April), Mr Jackson’s class will have their last swimming session and P.E for both classes will be on a Tuesday for Gymnastics and Thursday for Crossbar going forward for this term.

We are starting these sessions a week earlier than previous posts, apologies for any confusion this may cause.

Thank you for your continued support and cooperation.

The Year 5 team.

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

Volunteers Needed

 

Have you ever considered volunteering in a school or wanted to experience what it is like in a nursery environment? Well now is your opportunity to do so. Newdale Primary School and Nursery are looking for enthusiastic volunteers who would like to volunteer alongside our amazing team within our nursery. Can you help? If yes, please complete an application form and return it to our school office or alternatively email it to newdale.primary@taw.org.uk by Friday 12th April 2024.

 

We look forward to receiving your application.

 

Miss Cook

 

The school is committed to safeguarding children and young people, all shortlisted volunteers will be subject to online checks. All successful volunteers are subject to a satisfactory enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. Newdale’s child protection and safeguarding policy is accessible via the school website. We are also committed to equality and diversity.

 

 

Year 5 PE days

Year 5 PE days are currently Monday (swimming only for Mr Jackson’s class. Mr McFarland’s class will complete a PE session in school) and Tuesday (Gymnastics for both classes).

From the week beginning 29th April (school week 4), PE days will change to Tuesdays (gymnastics-indoors) and Thursdays (dodgeball and rounders-outdoors). This is for both classes.

Apologies for any confusion. We felt that it was important that Mr Jackson’s class have their full swimming entitlement and due to pool closures, this was unfortunately not possible during spring term and therefore delayed.

Many thanks,

Miss Jones