Headteacher’s Blog

It has been a privilege to welcome all of the children back into school this week after not only a 6 week summer holiday but, for over 50% of our school population also, a 6 month period away.  Making that brave step onto our school site took great courage for some on Wednesday, and even greater courage if it was the first time that they had actually ventured out of their homes since the lockdown began in March.  As we all get used to doing what we would normally, albeit differently,  a process of adjustment begins – and this is very true of all of the staff and children in school.  A new normal is very much upon us.

You will all be aware of the safety measures that we have implemented in school, and the extensive thought that went into applying the government guidance to fit with our unique setting.  Getting things in place for our school was certainly a challenge because of the following reasons: no corridors around school – pupils have to travel through other rooms to get about, pupil toilets are positioned in actual classrooms, not every classroom has a sink, due to having a small team some support staff work across the school in normal circumstances so we can best share their skills and some staff members are only just returning from shielding.  All of these challenges have been overcome and I must pay tribute to the staff, for the way how they have adapted pretty quickly to ensure that the children are as safe as can be.

I also wish to thank all parents and children too.  As I mentioned in my newsletter on Wednesday evening, we appreciate your co-operation with the staggered drop off and collection times, and the use of different entrances.  We know it is a little inconvenient to come through different gates, and particularly if you have children in each bubble but, for the time being, we feel this is a necessary measure to reduce a build up of adults in one place.  A few parents have suggested the use of a one-way system so that every child/parent comes in the same way and then out the same way at their allotted bubble arrival time.  We took time to consider this when we composed the safety measures in July and felt that this would cause us a challenge if some children from the Key Stage 2 bubble were dropped off early in the morning (and were then mixing with the Key Stage 1 children who were lining up in the same place also).  Rest assured, we will keep all measures under review and, just as the pandemic is evolving daily, so are we!

In respect of safety, please can I ask all parents who are dropping off their children in the morning, or picking them up in the evening, to be mindful of social distancing.  To some people who have been out of their homes many times since the outbreak of COVID-19, social distancing is maybe something that has been forgotten about.  For those adults who have not been out a great deal, or any person who is living with a family member who was previously in a shielding category, being in a place where people are situated is worrying.  Out of respect for each other, we’d ask you to consider this each day. Please keep a 2 metre social distance of others outside of your household and apply caution when leaving through the gate due to there not being a one-way system at present.

In school this week, we have had many conversations about our feelings.  In each classroom, we have displayed a huge feelings barometer and, if children feel comfortable, we are asking them to position their name or picture on the barometer each morning. Year 2 Potters were keen to show me where they had placed their name earlier, indeed every time I poked my head into their classroom this week.  This has also been true of some children in the Year 1 Foresters this week.  It is important that we keep a check on how the children are feeling, especially after so long away from school and them being out of their normal routine. Having the confidence to ask for help, to say if they are upset or worried,  or if they are angry or puzzled, is really important.  Bottling these feelings up only intensifies them!

There have been some really interesting things going on in the classrooms this week too.  Welcome Week officially started on Wednesday afternoon and the children in each class started learning about their new identity. It was vital that the children had a renewed sense of belonging – i.e which class they were in!  Y5/6 Miners have been researching into the history of mining and how this practice has evolved over time.  Laura (Y3 Coopers) was telling me that she had been learning about the different types of barrels that have been used over time and doing a chronology in class, putting them in order.  Elodie (Y2 Potters) was really proud to show me the clay pot that she had made with Miss Lester – a number of pottery techniques were shown to the children and I was really impressed with how well they all adopted what they had been taught. Harry & Darcy (Y1 Foresters) have been getting creative this week also, doing a collage of the woodland animals which are found in forestry areas.  Darcy was easily able to tell me why she was doing a collage of a squirrel when I challenged her about it.  Over the next week or so, we will be capturing some pupil voice on how Welcome Week has helped the children get back into the routine and settle them back in but from what I’ve seen this week, they are all enjoying their learning.

We have increased the amount of PSHE being taught in class at this time also. This year we are following a curriculum called; PSHE Matters and each class is compiling a scrap book of the work they are doing in these lessons. After all, mental well-being should have the same level of importance placed upon it as physical health!  In addition to the scrap book, all classes are having a daily circle time or a discussion time where they can share their feelings and talk through what’s on their mind.  I was really impressed to witness Circle Time in Y1 Foresters on Thursday afternoon – all of the children were taking it in turns to speak and showing active listening when others were speaking.  These basic rules of etiquette and good manners are essential if our children are to successfully get on with each other and build up good relationships once again.

At this week’s Key Stage 2 Bubble Rewards Assembly, I was thrilled that Miss Bains issued 4 pen licenses.  Every year, the children in Years 3 and 4 are encouraged to prove that they are forming their letters correctly and joining them in a clear and legible fashion.  The school’s cursive script! The children are expected to maintain this standard in every piece of work, and every lesson, in order to firstly achieve their license and then retain it thereafter.  Massive congratulations to Lucas, Olivia, Eve and Amelia (all Y4).  Achieving this after only 3 days in school is phenomenal! I am immensely proud of the 4 of you; it really bodes well for the year ahead and it is living proof that our school’s ethos and vision is bearing fruit.

This year, Miss Knowles is taking on the role of our school Well-Being Warrior and we both had a useful chat with each other this afternoon.  We chatted about some extra things that we are going to be implementing  in school to support the children foster a good state of mental health in the coming months. One idea being a weekly well-being focused session in Key Stage bubbles, around the art of being brilliant!  Doing all the right things to keep your mental state of mind looked after.  I will share more with parents at my HT Share a Brew Session in the coming days, but much of our School Improvement Plan is going to be centred around building greater levels of resilience in the children this year; supporting them to solve their own problems and helping them to control their own response to the feelings they have on a daily basis.

I’d like to take the time to welcome some new pupils joining our school for the new academic year.  First of all, a warm welcome to our new parents and children in EYFS Farmers.  Miss Knowles and I are so looking forward to working with you all, and Mrs Mailer has already noted that many of you are confident learners.  Also, I’d like to give a shout out to Rohan (Year 1), Carsyn (Y2 Potters), Cole (Y3 Coopers) and Maisie (Y5 Miners).  These children have recently changed school and joined our family. We hope you have a wonderful time learning in our school.

I’d like to officially welcome our new staff members on here, the first blog of the new school year too.  Miss Gibbons had a great start to her time in our school office this week and she is part of the Key Stage 1 staff bubble – this means that the children in Farmers, Foresters and Potters will get to see her collecting the registers each day! Miss Dennis has had a great first week in the school too, and really put the new Year 1 children at ease. In her room, she has displayed a reading tree for the children – you know that we always stress the importance of reading on you all!  Finally, Miss Lester has made an excellent impression and I must thank her for the amazing art work that she produced in the outside area to the new Year 2 classroom over the summer holiday period.  A rainbow mural has been painted on the wall where the greenhouse used to be situated – thank you Miss Lester!

On the subject of the new classroom for Year 2, all of the Y2 Potters were ‘wowed’ when they walked into it last Wednesday.  The building work and decorating has been completed much quicker than we anticipated, meaning the children have been able to learn in their new room from the outset this week.  We are just waiting for the interactive TV board and also the new furniture to arrive and then we’ll take some photos of it to go out as a general announcement.

Next week sees the continuation of Welcome Week for the children and the extension of learning surrounding their class names.  All classes have a giant shield emblem to complete. ‘Formal’ English and Maths lessons will commence the week after next.  We also continue to welcome our new children in EYFS – half day stays are happening until Thursday this coming week.

Just before I leave you I had a few other messages to pass on:

• Illness – if your child is ill, under the current situation, we’d ask you not to send them into school to see if they can get through the day.  We understand that this is the reverse of what we would normally say for some very minor illness symptoms, but in the current COVID-19 climate we need to be extra careful.  This year, we are taking a different approach to the rewarding of pupil attendance so that no child is penalised if they are unwell or isolating due to Covid 19.  Attendance will continue to be monitored however.
• Web Alerts – You will have gathered that we have started how we mean to go on this year regarding correspondence.  If you are reading this blog, it is possible that you are doing so because you have signed up for email alerts.  This week’s newsletter was sent to you via the website also, as we strive to do our bit for the environment.  Please sign up for email alerts so you don’t miss out on what is going on!
• Diary Dates – please familiarise yourselves with what is happening in school this year.  All dates are subject to the COVID-19 safety restrictions and we may organise them slightly differently based on where we are at the time.
• Wraparound – I am thrilled with the number of children who have used our Clubs Complete wraparound service this week!  From Monday, our breakfast club will be happening in The Nest from 7:30 am.  The after-school provision will take place in the main school hall as normal.

Have a good week – P.E.A.C.E be with you!

 

I do hope you enjoyed the VE Day celebrations last Friday, despite the difficulties surrounding social distancing. We had planned to mark this event in school until the enforced school closure took hold.  A week on from the last time I wrote and we are still no more the wiser as to when the current situation will end.  We will be anxiously watching Boris Johnson’s announcement this evening for more news. However, in spite of this announcement, no matter how long the current situation continues, hopefully the celebration and reflection of the last few days will all support us to move forward – there are many lessons which we can take from the great war effort.

Let’s start with the art of perseverance – one of our school words.  I am so proud of all our children and families for how they are coping with the current situation – not one single person will tell you that this situation is easy – it is incredibly difficult. Painful in fact.  In my welfare calls to parents this week, it has been great to hear how each individual family is effectively managing the current situation and what they have been doing to get through.  There is no right or wrong way and not one single person will say it has been ‘plain sailing’ but we are not giving up and we keep on going until we know more. This level of determination is exactly what we wish to foster in all of our children around school – whether it is coping with Power Maths, writing that extended piece of writing that a teacher has asked for or simply getting through the day without seeing Mummy or Daddy.  Perseverance was a quality held by everybody during the war.

As I did my daily bout of exercise last Friday, I saw many families and neighbours gathered at the end of their gardens, surrounded by red, white and blue bunting, union flags a-plenty and the presence of those who they love the most.  One of the blessings with this current lock-down is the time it has afforded us with the people who matter.  During the war, families had to make the most of the time they had together, make the most of what they had and be thankful for the simple things.  Let’s remember – many families didn’t see their loved ones for such a long time as they went off to defend the country or to contribute to the war effort.  Some children had to be evacuated from where they lived and go to another school – where they didn’t know anybody.  I speak from myself when I say that sometimes today, we can be plainly dedicated to the quest of finding our ‘ideal’ or a level of perfection that doesn’t exist. We strive and we aim high, we want better than the best – an admirable quality that is handy to hold at times as it means we don’t get complacent. However, it can be quite easy to forget everything that there is to be thankful for at the same time and to appreciate just how lucky we all are.  Sometimes the green grass of home is more than good enough and we don’t realise this until we’re away.  Jayney (Terrific Turtles) knows that one of my favourite sayings is; ‘The grass is as green as you make it!’

Let’s not forget just how adaptable and how flexible everybody who lived through wartime had to be.  Take many of our Grandparents and Great Grandparents. Maybe they had to be evacuated to another place in the war? Maybe they had to be away from the people they loved – not knowing when they would see others again. And every citizen had to adapt – even our wartime leader, Winston Churchill, and the King.  The approach to the war effort kept changing, as did the strategy, many things didn’t go to plan and our leaders didn’t get everything right as is often the impression.  However, it is often reported how well they responded to every challenge that was presented, showing real resolve and courage to face things head-on and get through it all.  Adapting is something we are all going to have to do more of, as the time goes on.  Whether it is staying in lock-down for a bit longer or coming out of the lock-down and returning back to school after such a long time away.  Getting used to being away from our parents, getting used to sitting down in a lesson for an hour at a time, re-establishing relationships with our teachers and seeing our friends again.  Covid-19 is a ‘moving target’ and the situation is evolving daily – such is our response to it all.

Speaking of evolving – the same can be said about resources that have been communicated for use by the children at home.  One of our challenges at this time, has been ensuring that all children have the capacity to continue some learning at home and that we can provide some access to useful materials for the time they are away.  It is true that many Primary Schools were simply not set up for home-education and we were unfortunately in this position ourselves.   We have been trying since the Easter break, to secure access to our Power Maths resources for parents and children at home. Frustratingly, until today, Power Maths didn’t have these resources available and we had advised Primary Oak Academy or White Rose as a suitable maths resource to be used at home.  Sure – many of you could buy the exact same Power Maths books that we use in school excluding the lesson plans, guidance, physical apparatus and online teaching materials, but we would never advocate this and a home-edition of Power Maths – written specifically for out of the classroom use, away from teachers, hasn’t been available.  Well, I am happy to report that this morning, Mrs Weston and I received a notification that Power Maths have finally launched their summer lock-down editions of workbooks.  Next week, we will be emailing every parent with a link to the relevant Power Maths Home Edition for their child’s year group. Please make sure you check your inbox in the next few days! Each Power Maths Home Edition workbook will have a contents page, split into weeks and we would advise all children to take a week’s learning ( 4 lessons) at a time.  This leaves one day left each week for either Primary Oak Academy or TT Rockstars – much like we have in school. Power Maths replaces our suggested use of White Rose.  All topics covered in the Power Maths workbooks are a consolidation of what the children learned prior to the enforced closure of March 20th so they are specially written for this current period.  It will mean that every child can practise what they have already been taught and not lose the Power Maths habit.  All activity pages can be printed out too.  Given that this resource has only been made available TODAY – we’d ask all parents to bear with us.  Aside from sending you an email with the relevant link, we will also be amending the suggested timetable for home-learning, replacing White Rose with Power Maths.  We very much advocate focusing on Power Maths moving forward as this is what the children are used to and what they’ll be using in next year also.

Focusing for when the children do come back into school, I have had quite a few questions from parents about what will happen and it is quite understandable given the situation. In keeping with what I said above, we are all going to have to take the time to adjust and adapt when the children return. It is going to take time for things to go back to how they were.  Last week, Mrs Weston, Mrs Smith and I met to discuss some of the approaches that we may take, when our children do eventually come back in.  Whilst we have yet to be given any concrete information on a return date – and this may change by this evening – the three of us talked about which areas of learning would need to be prioritised in English and in maths, to account for the time away from the classroom.  Often the areas of maths with the most importance placed upon them are place value, calculation and number.  Reading and comprehension was cited as a huge priority for English also.  Last week I had a look at just how many children had logged onto our new reading program – Bug Club.  I found that a total of 29 children have not yet logged on.  This may mean that other reading is going on in the home of course but one needs to be mindful just how important the art of reading is in breaking down deprivation barriers and enhancing the writing of our ‘middle achievers.’

Our leadership team also talked about how we could support every child’s emotions and mental well-being on their return.  What we would do first thing in a morning for instance so children ‘looked forward’ to coming in after being at home for so long.  We explored the changes that we might make to the school day so life at school is suddenly more manageable and how this would taper up to the old ‘normal’. We ‘touched’ upon lunchtimes also and whether they’d need to be some role-modeling by older pupils or a ‘buddy’ system.  At my Governor Finance meeting last Thursday evening, we looked at our school budget and how this could be carefully calibrated in response to Covid-19. Our move to have 5 full time classes instead of 4 (3 single year group KS1 classes) next year is certainly going to help but we also talked about the setting up of a Nurture Group.  Whatever the situation, please keep the faith in us – you know that we will do what we can and we always take a pragmatic approach.

It has been great to see many Year 1 and 2 children beginning to upload photos and videos onto Tapestry in the coming days. Again, in the spirit of evolution, this is something that parents requested a few weeks ago. Although the content and usage of Tapestry is bound to vary in these year groups, compared to EYFS where the curriculum is very different, it now means that we can see all the wonderful things that our  Year 1 and Year 2 children are getting up to at home.  On the subject of Tapestry (or Bug Club in fact) should you wish to know how to log on and how to use these programs, Mrs Cresswell added a page under the ‘Parents’ tab on the school website last week.  It has guidance for how to use both online platforms and is there if you are unsure.

Thank you to the 4 families who contacted the Learning Support email last week, requesting tailored activities for their children on the SEND register.  Please remember to let us know if you need something more tailored to help your child meet the targets on their SEND Learning Passport.

This week in school, I am busy with recruitment.  On Monday and Tuesday, myself and our governors will be shortlisting for our KS1 teacher vacancy and also a job-share partner for Mrs Smith. We are also looking appoint a permanent teacher for KS2 Maths every morning.  We’ve had a great many applications for these positions and we are keen to get yet another member of staff who fully embraces our school vision and ethos.  It is so essential that we find the ‘right fit’ for our school after working so hard to build a great team of staff in recent times. Every staff member that we appoint must hold our values – supporting families, being kind to each other and being pragmatic to the needs of every individual child.  We will of course let you know who have been appointed in the coming weeks.

Finally, I am going to be starting work on our plans for transition come September.  We are interested in getting another booklet made – a social story for the children – to support the jump from EYFS to Year, Year 2 to Year 3 and then Year 5 to Year 6.  We hope to outline the changes that will occur in the new year groups and what this means for parents also.  I am going to be asking a few parents to help us out on this and to provide their thoughts on what information could be usefully shared at each transition point.  Please keep an eye out for an announcement on this next week.

Have a great week ahead – please remember to stay positive and look to last Friday’s VE celebrations.  There is so much to take from 1945 and all that!

P.E.A.C.E. be with you!

 

This week, I want to chat about all of our parents who are currently working on the frontline at this time of national crisis and say a massive thank you to them! Much has been said about the role of our key workers in the media and indeed, every Thursday evening when we clap to show our appreciation. However, within our little ‘school bubble’ we have so many families who are at the epicentre of the Covid-19 effort, we must take a step back and consider how they are all doing, despite a number of challenges.

Firstly, there are those families who have more than 1 key worker.  The daily ‘juggle’ which goes on to support their child’s learning at home, keep their own children safe, and at the same time make a contribution to the national effort, is an enormous task.  I understand first hand how difficult this is – both my wife and I work in schools – going into work, trying to occupy a 6 month old and also support his development is interesting to say the least.  We absolutely adore him and it is great to spend some extra time to see him ‘grow’ but without being able to call upon grandparents or friends, the level of challenge is increased.  Many of our parents are in this position – Coton School has a number of families who have two key workers in the household and multiple children at home, never mind just the one!

There are also those families who have a key worker right at the epicentre of the pandemic – i.e in the NHS.  I really take my hat off to you, your unselfish dedication and professionalism to the national effort is exemplary.  Coming in after a shift and then having to shower and change clothes before you pick up your children or interact with them takes so much additional time and adds to the situation.  The emotional drain of working ’round the clock’ and supporting people who are very ill indeed does also.  As does caring for those patients who sadly, won’t get better.  I, for one, wish to thank the NHS staff who looked after my Grandmother in her final days.

Then, there are the families who don’t have a key worker but where parents are still working from home. We get how difficult it is for the children to concentrate at home – getting them to sit down and work on a task whilst home-working parents can get the space to do their jobs is no mean feat!  Maybe there is only one laptop in the household or one ‘quiet space’ to work, perhaps there simply isn’t the room for multiple siblings to sit down and get on with their home-learning tasks at the same time – maybe a rota or timetable has to be made so everybody has a fair chance of doing what they need to do.

One of the best things which will undoubtedly come out of this situation, is a reaffirmed respect for all of the sectors which have carried out a vital role at this time. The Covid-19 situation is evolving daily and there is no template to follow.  We all love the NHS, we all value it, but maybe for too long, some have taken it for granted?  It is quite easy to get taken along by what we read in newspapers or what we see on the television.  It is quite easy to cast judgement and criticise those workers who are on the front line day by day – face to face with the general public.  These workers who have to ‘rise above it’, roll up their sleeves and just get on with it. Rest assured, this is not a political statement, just a reminder to us all of the sacrifices being made and a massive thank you.

Last week, I sent out a parent questionnaire about the level of support that was still needed by our families.  As I’ve said previously, the longer that our country is in lock-down, the more challenging it can become for some. Week by week, the staff and I are trying to respond to the poignant questions raised and we are ‘working through’ every individual query, helping where we can.  Thank you so much if you did fill in our survey, we really value your feedback as it helps us to get better and better.  You know that our school very much subscribes to the notion of ‘continuous improvement.’ Thanks also, for the many positive comments.  Your kind words will really help to keep our staff upbeat at this time.  In response to the feedback, I wish to let you know a few things:

• A few parents have asked whether we can change the set up of our Tapestry platform so that children in Years 1 and 2 can also upload some of the things that they have been doing at home.  This works brilliantly for our EYFS children – they have been using this platform all year as part of their ongoing assessment. Sorting permissions for Tapestry has been a really difficult task for school to look into but we have now managed to do this.  From tomorrow, if your child is in Year 1 or Year 2, should you wish to upload a photo, video or picture of the children’s work – this will be possible. There is no obligation to do this however.  I will ask Mrs Cresswell to reissue the guidance for how to upload things onto the Tapestry platform.  We’d ask all parents of Year 1 and 2 children to be mindful that not every post you upload will necessarily be commented on by a member of staff, however we will of course endeavour to respond to what we see in some way.
• Some parents have asked if the teachers are looking at what is completed on Purple Mash each week. I can confirm that this has always been the case – and I monitor usage figures each week, looking at which children have logged on and when they last logged on.  Last week, 92 of our children went on to complete some of the tasks.  Keep your eyes out for the teacher comments on what the children are doing on Purple Mash. It will either be a positive comment or a developmental one. Again, this won’t be every single task that your child completes as this is not actually possible for some activities on Purple Mash but teachers will do their level best to respond to each child at least once a week
• Free School Meal Vouchers – some parents have asked for guidance on what they should do if they are unable to redeem their vouchers to purchase food products online.  I have investigated this with the Department for Education and it varies between individual supermarkets as to how vouchers can be redeemed.  Should the voucher system be difficult for your circumstances, we can provide a packed lunch for collection each day if this works better for you. Let the school office know if this option will work better for you.
• Some ‘key worker families’ have asked if their children can have access to some of the online learning tasks being set for home, when they are in our childcare service over at The Nest.  We are more than happy for children in the childcare service to do this and we now have the internet capacity in The Nest for this to happen.
• Reading was a big concern with some of our parents and a few of you asked about how you could increase your child’s access to a range of reading books.  In addition to the Oxford Owl website which we posted on our Facebook site, we have set up a Bug Club subscription for your child and they will have access to the correct level of reading book for their current ability (matched to the bands in school).  Look back at the ‘General Announcements’ tab to see how to access this if you have not already been on.
• Some parents with children on the SEND register have asked about slightly more-tailored work as their child is working below their curriculum year group. We have been looking at setting some ‘key skills’ tasks to embrace some of the SEND targets on a child’s SEND Learning Passport. Mrs Butler and I had discussion about how best to respond to this request last Thursday and we will issue a communication to the families for whom this applies next week.

The parent questionnaire was also helpful to us because it gave us an indication of what support we would need to provide for our families when schools do happen to reopen. The key concerns that you raised were; making up for ‘lost learning,’ mental health support and your child’s transition back into school.  We know that a few of our children may struggle to be separated from you after this period – indeed, it will be hard for some parents to separate themselves from their children also. There is much speculation in the media about when and how schools will reopen – as always, once we know this information we will work on a plan for every child’s reintegration. Please be assured, we want our school to be a safe environment and so we are already looking at the potential steps we may need to take in relation to the following:

• Controlling the further spread of infection with children and staff
• What areas of learning will be prioritised in the short term
• How we can tailor the curriculum to support the children on the back of this pandemic
• Curriculum organisation and delivery through a ‘phased return’
• Additional resources and intervention to support mental health of our children and families
• Changes to the organisation of our school day
• Transition for Year 6 pupils and also EYFS children in September

Our school has a history of responding to the needs of its pupils and we always take a pragmatic approach to every situation we face. Changes take place every school year to facilitate our children and their areas of development.

Last week, the governors and I held another routine meeting to complete a number of essential tasks that are so crucial at this time of year.  For one, we updated and ratified a number of our school policies including the subject policies across the curriculum, for example – our Maths Policy, Religious Education Policy, Design & Technology Policy etc. We also ratified an addendum to the Child Protection & Safeguarding Policy in light of the current situation – this is a useful read and it sets out our extended obligations at this time. Finally, a number of our essential policies in relation to PSHE were adopted including our new Relationship & Sex Education Policy, and a Drugs Education Policy   We will ensure that the policies page on the website is updated to reflect the new additions – it is actually some time since we last did this. Please have a good read.

Also at governors, we ratified our plans for staffing next year.  Many of you will be keen to hear that we are going to have 5 classes next year and we are planning to split all Key Stage 1 classes into single year groups.  This means, no more must we have a mixed Reception/Year 1 class or a mixed Year 1/Year 2 class.  I know this will be of great comfort to you all – and it will mean smaller class sizes of around 20 pupils each in Key Stage 1.  We are planning to split Key Stage 2 classes into single year groups for Maths also – this is something that we have done for most of this year and it is so essential to the work we are doing to improve our maths provision with Power Maths.  Again, despite the fact that pupils numbers are rising, we will still be able to offer class sizes of 20 or below for Maths lessons in Key Stage 2.

Last week, I wrote to all parents who are due to join EYFS from September, about how we may facilitate effective transition for our pupils before the new academic year.  It is so difficult in these circumstances but hopefully, things will become much clearer in the coming days.  If you are due to join us in September and you didn’t get a letter then please call the school office.

On the subject of transition, Mrs Smith and I had a discussion about what we could do towards the end of this year to support our existing children move to their new year groups.  Most notably, at the key transition points – EYFS to Year 1, Year 2 into Year 3 and from Year 5 into Year 6.  We are currently considering what key information we need to pass on to all parents, and also how the expectations can vary from the previous year group.  Developing greater transition for pupils is a big item on the School Improvement Plan this year, we know that there is more work to do to support the children as they move through – even in our close-knit school.  I’ll share more information about this in the coming weeks.

 

Mrs Weston and I were busy with more ‘welfare calls’ last week.  We are continuing to ‘tie in’ with families over the phone, to see how they are getting on during this time.  Aside from meeting our statutory obligation to phone all of our vulnerable families for whom we have safeguarding concerns, we are also extending this so we touch base with all of our other families at some point in the coming weeks.  This is because we believe that every family is vulnerable at this time and we miss you all.   We’ll be touching base with more of you this week.

Before I leave you for this week, please can I say a big thank you to the children who have tied in with me this past week.  I arrived at work last Monday to find a lovely letter on my desk from Hughie (Year 2).  It was great to hear what you had been getting up to Hughie – I hope you got my reply in the post.  Thank you to Lochlann and Oban too – I sent you both an email, responding to the messages that you sent via your Mum.  Finally, thank you to Leonard.  I went into school on Saturday morning to find a lovely card from you on my desk, along with some cakes.  This really made me smile.

Have a good week everybody, please don’t forget to get in touch with us if there is anything else that we can do to help you at this time.  Stay strong.

P.E.A.C.E. be with you!

I want to start this week’s blog by saying a huge thank you to those of you who have been in touch with us by letter, video or by email over the last week or so.  The current lock-down is really difficult for every single one of us, in our own unique way, and it is important that we do our best to keep everybody’s spirits up.

My spirits were lifted instantly last Monday, when I received an email from Willow’s Mummy (Jolly Jellyfish).  Willow has been getting really active whilst she has been off and making the most of her lock-down by doing something really worthwhile for charity.  At the same time as keeping her mental and physical health in good shape! Willow is running miles and miles for the Age Uk Derby & Derbyshire Charity – so far she has managed a fantastic 63 miles miles in total – and let’s remember that she is only 5 years old!!!! Willow has vowed not to stop running until lockdown is over, she has managed to raise over £1000 up to now – this is simply amazing! Both Miss Knowles and I are incredibly proud of her and I wrote a special letter to her last week, telling her just that. Willow has really shown great tenacity, perseverance and overwhelming compassion – well done on behalf of the whole school Willow!  Should any of her Coton friends wish to donate to this worthy course and show their support, please visit the link: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/derbyandderbyshire/about-us/news/articles/2020/5yr-old-willow-run:/

I hope that all of the children enjoyed receiving their special greeting cards in the post this past week – we really miss each and every one of them and it is so upsetting not to be able to do what we know and love.  School is simply not the same without them and we think about them all, every single day, believe me!  We look forward to the children’s safe return, whenever that time may be.

I had lots of conversations with parents again this week, as I continued to phone around or have a nose on Tapestry and Purple Mash to see how you were all getting on.  It was super, getting to know what you have all been doing.  Maggie (Dolphins) has been going on a lot of bike rides with her Daddy and also doing some maths with lots of objects from around the house.  Austin  (Dolphins) has been starting to learn his times tables and Megan (Seahorses) has been keeping up with her English and Maths work over the last few weeks also! I really enjoyed looking at Florence’s writing (Jellyfish) – some super letter formation and finger spaces!   Joseph (Jellyfish) has been doing Fancy Dress Friday and finally, I wish to give a ‘shout-out’ to Henry (Turtles), who has been trying really hard to complete his Purple Mash work with care and precision during this time and Mrs Weston remarked just how well he had been doing last Thursday.

On the subject of Purple Mash, last week I did a bit of a check to see just how many of the children were managing to log on and have a go at the activities that were being uploaded. Your teachers are taking the time to put activities on each week and, because of this, we want it to be useful to you all and beneficial for the children.  I think there was a little technical issue last Monday which was beyond our control but i understand that it is now fixed!  It is worth pointing out that I know many of you are doing a wide range of interesting things online and that Purple Mash is only one of the ample of things that you could be doing at home, to keep up with your learning during this time – White Rose, Joe Wicks, STEM activites, baking etc.  However, it was really interesting when Mrs Smith and I had a little nosy at Purple Mash.  Last week there were 87 of you who went on to have a go at some of the activities. Let’s see if we can up this next week.

In chatting to some parents over the last few weeks, it has become clear that all families are doing their level best at this time and working incredibly hard.  Juggling working from home and ‘home educating’ is not easy and many of our children love to be occupied all of the time.  When we initially set up Purple Mash – this was on two days notice of the school closure and we never expected that this lock-down situation would go on as long as it currently has.  With this, last week I mentioned that we were looking into more online subscriptions to aid our children at home. I can now inform you that the school has signed up to Pearson Active Learn and your child can use this from tomorrow.

Active Learn is an online subscription which will enable the children to access Bug Club and ePhonics from tomorrow morning. Bug Club is a reading resource featuring loads and loads on online reading books, akin to all the levels that we have in school.  It also features simple questions to aid the children’s understanding. Children should be aiming to read for a short period every day. And to echo what Mrs Smith said in her reading workshop during January, reading a book more than once is actually more helpful to a child’s development over a time than simply ‘ploughing’ through. ePhonics is a games resource so that our children can keep this aspect of their reading going also.  Last week, all teachers went onto Bug Club to set it up ready and when your child logs on tomorrow, you’ll see that teachers have set their reading level to what they are currently on in school.  It will automatically give each child, texts akin to their individual level.  To log in, the children are to use their Purple Mash password and voila – they should be able to get on.

We also spent time looking into whether we could access Power Maths.  Unfortunately, after much work at this end, Mrs Weston and I found out that this was simply not as straight forward as was advertised.  We have been told that Power Maths are going to be releasing some special lock-down resources to be used at home in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we have set up Oak Academy and also White Rose for the children to access online maths lessons akin to their year group. White Rose follows all the principles of Power Maths so this should mean some continuity.

Finally,  a number of parents have asked just how much their children should be doing each day.  We have always been very clear on this – there is a balancing act to strike.  We know that the children require the structure to their day that they would normally get in school. We also know that they need to be kept occupied.  Our school has always, and will always advocate a ‘balanced diet’ featuring a variety of activities.  In response to this, Mrs Smith, Mrs Weston and I have put a sample weekly timetable together for all children last week.  The suggested timetable will be issued on the ‘General Announcements’ tab tonight, ready for use tomorrow, and it features all the relevant hyperlinks to a range of sites and online resources – this way, there is no need for parents to spend the time ‘trawling’ through.  As I said, the timetable is a guide only. You must do right for your own child and their needs. As always, please contact; learningsupport@coton-in-the-elms.derbyshire.sch.uk, if you have a query or need support.

Last week, your teachers were busy doing some online training for Dyslexia Awareness and also Mental Health.  The staff were due to do their Mental Health First Aid qualification on an INSET morning this past Monday, but with social distancing, this could no longer happen.  As a substitute for the time being, all staff have undertaken an online module to help them support our children’s mental health for when school returns.  They also completed a module on how to support children recovering from a period of trauma or an unprecedented situation.  As I said last week, we continue to make provisions for supporting the children when they return.

Also this week, I started writing to our new families due to start the EYFS in September.  We have started to think about how we may provide effective transition into our school for the children, in the event that the current restrictions continue. If you are new to our school or you have younger siblings who are due to start, you should be receiving a letter this week.  Keep your eyes out for this.

Finally, we now have Internet in The Nest!  This is fantastic for our school as it means that more children can use the facility in the future, and access the resources that are available in all of our other classrooms.

In finishing, I wish to say a huge thank you to all those parents who are defined as ‘Key Workers’ at this time.  Only last week, a close family member of mine passed away from Covid-19 and I know first hand, just how difficult this situation is!  My Grandmother was really well cared for in hospital and I wish to thank you all for the contribution that you are making to this great effort.  Whatever essential service you provide – thank you so much from all connected with our school.

P.E.A.C.E be with you!

This week, I have spoken with lots of parents on the phone, about how we can further support you all at this current time.  As the weeks go by, this situation becomes much harder to facilitate, much more stressful and frustrating and above all, much more worrying. Many of us in the teaching profession expected a period away from school for sure, and some speculated that we’d simply have an ‘extended Easter break.’  However, we didn’t quite expect how this situation would play out. With another 3 weeks of lock-down in place, and possibly more after that, over the last week I have been getting further provisions in place to ensure that we are here for you.

Our school vision is very much about working with families and providing the bespoke support where possible.  Compassion is one word which springs to mind here! Rest assured, myself and all the staff will continue to be there to get you and the children through this uncertain time. We care about their education and we also care about their well-being.

Firstly, Purple Mash activities will continue to be put in the ‘to do’ folder for the children every Monday – this will restart from tomorrow. Miss Knowles will continue to use Tapestry to set activities – LET US KNOW IF YOU CAN’T GET ON!  When speaking to most parents, they are succesfully able to get on to these from home and children have been completing the tasks and games set by each teacher.  In response to a couple of queries;  we are currently investigating if there is a way of taking things out of the Purple Mash ‘to do’ file each week when we put new activities in.  Secondly, some games on Purple Mash will allow the children to start again and have another go automatically if they don’t get the answers correct.  This is something beyond our control.

TT Rockstars is still in operation and it has been great to hear that some Key Stage 2 children have been going on. IF YOU DON’T HAVE YOUR PASSWORD TO HAND – PLEASE EMAIL THE LEARNING SUPPORT EMAIL ADDRESS – we can get it sent to you!  I also know that some parents are going onto this with younger siblings in Year 2 – well done to Laura (Dolphins) for making a start at learning your tables.  Mrs Smith always practices times tables when you normally come into the classroom each morning, so it is great for you to get some additional practice.  It will mean that you are well-placed for Key Stage 2 next year!  Unfortunately, our TT Rockstars subscription is limited to KS2 but you are able to purchase this yourself at home should you wish.

On the subject of when children return, a number of parents have expressed worries that their child may be ‘behind’ or will have ‘fallen back’ in their learning.  Some have said that they worry they’ll be unable to get the child back into the school building also.  Please don’t worry.  As a school we have already got a number of contingency plans in place for when this happens – I am also drafting a COVID-19 Response Action Plan too.  We will ensure that the necessary resources and support is in place for when your child steps foot back into the school grounds.

We understand that for some children, completing Purple Mash takes no time at all.  Whilst we are not expecting the children to be working full days, and the Department for Education has been quite clear that schools are not to provide ‘lessons’ each day, I have just purchased a new online learning subscription for the children to have more access to resources at home – it lasts for the next 90 days.  It should feature Power Maths activities, reading ebooks, ephonics and much more. I am going to be sharing this with teachers this week and then hopefully rolling this out to all parents and children thereafter – PLEASE KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR WEB ALERTS – I will put a ‘general announcement’ on the website with all the details.  Your child will be given a password and username and then have access to pre-selected tasks chosen by their class teacher.

Mrs Butler and I have been working hard behind the scenes to get some extra support for children on our SEND register.  We understand how difficult it must be when you are trying to support them at home and you don’t have direct access to external professionals for advice.  Rest assured – our school is here, either via learningsupport@coton-in-the-elms.derbyshire.sch.uk or by telephoning school.  We have a few children for which we are in the process of applying for additional funding, as they meet the eligibility criteria, and we have some who this week  have been booked in to see the Educational Psychologist for an informal assessment of their needs. Please, if we have issued paperwork for you to fill in, do your level-best to post it back to us, filled in, as soon as possible. Alternatively, scan the paperwork and email it to the school office email address – don’t forget to mark it as ‘Confidential.’  The sooner we receive the paperwork, the sooner we can get the applications in and then the additional support in place.

I wonder how many of you are having a go at the varied activities that Mrs Cresswell is posting on our school Facebook site?  Over the last few weeks, a long list of links and activities have been uploaded, from stories with David Walliams, art & crafts, STEM Science activities, as well as games and useful resources for looking after your child’s mental health.

On the subject of mental health, another reason for phoning many of you over the last 4 weeks, is to check in with how you are feeling. Being stuck indoors is tricky and juggling working from home, alongside childcare, is harder still. Did you know – the school is able to access a range of counselling services through our Early Help Service.  Should you need support with mental health, parenting tips, or advice surrounding complex home issues – we can point you in the direction of our service. It is a non-judgmental approach and fully supportive to whatever needs a family has. A number of families have already subscribed to this service and they are finding it really helpful.  Please let me know if we can help with this.

It would be really helpful at this time, if you could support your fellow parents get through this terrible situation. Thank you to those parents who have already done this – positivity at this time really helps.  It also transcends to the children. There are a number of ways how you can support your fellow parents;

1. Encourage your fellow parents to go onto the school website under the ‘general announcements’ tab – by scrolling back quite a way, all the communication surrounding Covid-19 is there from the week we broke up (should your child have been in isolation) as well as lots of online links for learning
2. If your fellow parents are concerned that they haven’t heard about the information coming out of the school – check that they have signed up to receive email alerts using the star button on the home page.  Whenever information is put on the website, an alert is sent out to an email address of their choice.  At this time, it is more important than ever to make the most of all communication avenues.
3. Advise them to ring school or email us if they are unsure of anything – we really want to support

Alongside our support in response to Covid-19, a number of things have been happening in the school building this week.  Firstly, the playground has been dug up and re filled-in!  We have had an underground link put in between the main building and The Nest.  It now means that staff and children can access the same internet service provider and our school server in both buildings.  Secondly, we had contractors in school – measuring up to place new carpet and blinds in our new classroom.  Mrs Harris and Mrs Billings have completed the sealing of the hall floor – it is now nice and shiny, ready for when we return.

Before I leave you, on behalf of everybody connected with our school,  I  would like to say a very ‘Happy Birthday’ to our Caretaker and Cleaner-in-Charge, Mrs Harris.  On Saturday, she celebrated a special landmark birthday and we really hope that she enjoyed her day – despite the current lock-down situation. There is a special collection from all the staff on its way to her, if it hasn’t already arrived.

Finally, please remember to book onto our Key Worker Service if you are eligible and you need the help with childcare at this time.  Our school has 27 Key Worker Children and I wish to thank all of their parents for the contribution they are all making to the Covid 19 effort.

 

Have a good week – P.E.A.C.E be with you!

For this week’s blog, I felt it important to bring to your attention the simple things in life that can bring us the most pleasure of all.  Being stuck indoors is really tricky for everyone and we all deal with this in a slightly different way.  At this moment in time it is important to keep calm, take a day at a time and live in the moment.  Making the most of those ‘small pleasures’ like spending time with the family and making memories.

Click here to continue reading… “Small Pleasures!”

What a week it has been!  In all of my 16 years in education, never have I been faced with the situation that presented itself last week.  I hope you are all managing to keep safe and to follow the strict guidelines on social distancing. We must all do our bit to look out for each other and take the necessary precautions to prevent the spread of this nasty virus. However, we must also do our bit to look after our own mental health  Staying in is quite tough for some!  Put quite simply; now is the time to pull together.

I want to start by thanking the many NHS staff and front line workers who are doing their bit to keep the country moving. We have quite a few parents who work in the NHS and many more who work in the key services sector.  Every day, they unselfishly put themselves in harms way – so to look after others or to make this country work!  On behalf of all in our school, thank you so much!  Please spare a thought for all of the wonderful things that they do!

Thank you also to our own staff, for their dedication and hard work over recent days. Following on from our closure, a week last Friday,  much work has been going on behind the scenes: working out how many children would need our key worker service, working out which staff were medically cleared to support the effort, looking at health and safety practices and how we mitigate for the risk of infection spread, talking to other local schools about their own provision and coming up with a contingency plan to maintain a service in the local area – should staffing levels drop.  Finally, trying to put together some helpful things for the children to do at home -mitigating for the lost learning time. It has been a massive task and I thank all staff for their efforts. Easily, one of my hardest weeks as a Headteacher!  To train as a teacher with a passion for educating young people is one thing but to be asked to change one’s primary role at such short notice is going to take some getting used to. And of course, the fallout from their period will carry huge implications for the profession as a whole moving forward. Our primary role in the interim period will be quite simple – keeping our children and families safe, keeping our children happy, and supporting those families who are essential to the national effort.

Last week I made several phone calls, tying in with some of you and checking to see if you were doing okay.  Just because school isn’t open does not mean to say that we stop thinking about you all – we’ve really missed not seeing you!  I heard some wonderful stories about what some of you had been getting up to.  It was great to hear that some of you had been getting out into the garden or working down the allotment.  Education is about providing a rounded experience – getting out into the garden plays an important role in keeping you fit but also it makes a difference to your mood too.  I will be calling some more of you this week, I look forward to hearing how you are getting on.

I had a little look on Tapestry last week too. Our EYFS families use Tapestry to record how well the children are developing in a range of EYFS areas at home – we use it in school also. What fantastic work you have all been doing! It really cheered me up watching all of your videos and looking at pictures of your work. Thank you so much parents – a massive effort which is much appreciated.  I was so impressed with the home-baking that was being done too – it was a real Jolly Jellyfish Bake-off! Mrs Cresswell and I particularly enjoyed the video that you posted for us Eloise! I hope you saved a cake or three for Miss Knowles, Mrs Cresswell and me!  Scarlett set up her own assault course in the garden – a really good way to keep yourself fit and healthy, Scarlett!  There has been some superb spelling work going on as well – Bryony got all of her spellings correct this week – well done!  Joseph has been a very busy beaver and both James and Millie have been working hard too. What excellent writing Millie – and James – you really looked the part in the kitchen! It was a real pleasure to see some wonderful reading too – Mrs Smith will be very pleased to hear this!  Mikey and Molly were each sharing a book with an adult and having a really good go at using their sound buttons!  Finally, I loved the dressing up – Max and Millie!  Max – you well and truly looked The Greatest Showman of all!

Facebook has been awash with comments this week also.  It made me smile to hear that Sophia (Super Seahorses) had been doing a morning workout with Joe Wicks but she expressed disappointment not to have received her full entitlement to one hour of PE as she normally does in school.  In fact – as a guide, the children do two full hours of physical activity in school over a week but I guess a weekly workout will give you more than enough physical activity Sophia!  I also smiled when I heard that Olivia’s mum (Super Seahorses) had been learning lots herself this past week – notably antonyms and synonyms!  Felicity (Terrific Turtles) has been busy planting daffodils in the garden too.  On top of this, I’ve heard about letter writing to care homes, bug hunts, diary writing each day, TT Rockstars, painting, lego and of course, life skills with Dad! Once again, to all parents and home adults, thank you for keeping us in the loop with what you are getting up to and a big thank too, for enabling your child to continue their learning at home. We simply don’t know when we’ll be back so it’s good to keep those skills sharp! As the saying goes – if you don’t use it, then you lose it!

On the subject of home-learning or home-schooling, I am really pleased that many of you have been using the learning support email link to get in contact with us.  As I said before, the school’s primary role through the current period is about keeping every member of our school population safe and providing childcare for families of key workers in the first instance.  We have made a pledge to set some weekly Purple Mash activities for the children in each class, ready for the start of each new week, however we know that these may need to be supplemented with your own activities around the house. And judging by the last week or so – you’ve all been getting really inventive.  A number of you have been asking questions in relation to the Purple Mash activities which we have been setting.  All parents and carers – please don’t hesitate to email us if you have a query or you want to communicate with us about any of the activities.  We have set up a rota of staff members to check the email inbox remotely from home, each day, and respond where necessary.  In addition to Purple Mash – Mrs Cresswell posted lots of fun home-learning opportunities on Facebook last week too.  Don’t forget about Oti Mabuse’s online dance class or David Walliams and his audio story of the day and never underestimate the power of lego!

As you know, Maths has been a key area of learning for us this year.  I am sure that some of the children are missing their Power Maths sessions – I know Mrs Weston will be!  Mrs Weston has kindly found some White Rose Maths problem solving activities and these were posted onto the Facebook site last week.  Feel free to have a dive into some of them and keep your maths brain active!

Well, that’s what you’ve been getting up to at home but what have we been getting up to in school or in the comfort of our own homes, I hear you ask!  Well last week, we moved our key worker services over to The Nest and we also merged these with Rosliston Primary School for the foreseeable period.  I am proud that our school can lead the way in our local community by hosting the provision between the two schools.  For any key worker families who may need to go into work, you can book your childcare each week by clicking on the Survey Monkey link on the general announcements tab, this is on our website.  As I mentioned in my letter to all key worker families – you must do your level best to keep your children at home where possible, so to minimise the chance of infection spreading and to ensure that our staff are protected also.  However, some families have no choice and childcare is a must – particularly those families which have two key workers.  Don’t forget to present some identification of your job role when your child attends their first session – we have to complete a register for the Department of Education each day.

I’ve been busy making some plans for September this week.  March is always the time when Headteachers turn their attention to the new school year!  This week, I have been looking at our pupil numbers.  I am thrilled to see that our numbers are forecast to rise even further next year – hopefully a true reflection of everything that we do and all that we offer.  We had 39 applications to join Reception this year, and we usually have 20 spaces in total.  I am hoping to persuade Derbyshire County Council to allow us to take 23 pupils in EYFS come September because we are so well subscribed and we do have lots of physical space. As our pupil numbers are on the rise, this means that we can make even better provision for the children and smaller class sizes in some parts of the school.  Watch this space!

Also this week, I did some liaison for the building work which is due to take place in school over the summer holidays – all being well! I am of course, referring to the renovation of the former Computer Suite and the room adjacent to it.  The carpet has been chosen, as has the new furniture.  Judging by the plans that I saw last week, it is going to look absolutely fabulous – it remains one of the only areas of our school which has not been renovated in the last 4 years.  It will be really good to have another bigger classroom  and even better for the fact that it is going to be placed in the heart of the school – our current plan is for this room to house Key Stage 1 children.

I have also been looking at making some changes to our school website.  We have had so many positive comments about the current website but as with all good things, they can become even better and sometimes they need a refresh.  I am hoping that we’ll have a new website in place for September.  We will, of course, work hard to keep many of the good features that you all enjoy – most notably the STOP Button, a weekly blog and email alerts.

Finally, your teachers have been beavering away this week too.  Yes, even though they have not been in school every day!  Firstly, they have all completed up to date assessments of each child for reading, writing and maths – ready for us to build on when school returns.  Mrs Weston has updated the maths policy to reflect how we structure lessons across the whole school, Miss Knowles has been busy evaluating the impact of our Sports Provision of the last financial year.  You’ll be able to read her Sports Premium Statement on the website in the coming days.  Miss Bains has been looking at a Science Policy as well as updating our RE policy.  All of these subject policies will be uploaded to the school website once they have been ratified by our governing body.  Mrs Butler is continuing her 12 week isolation period by accessing lots of additional support for some of the children on our SEND register.  Mrs Smith has been working hard to evaluate phonics across the school – as I say, she’ll be most impressed to hear that you have been reading at home over the last week.

Before I leave you I just want to give you a ‘heads-up’ about what I am hoping to do next week.  Children, I am hoping to get all technical and produce a vlog for you all – for those of you who miss seeing my face, you’ll be able to hear what I am getting up to in school.  I certainly hope that I manage to keep your spirits up, whilst you are stuck indoors.

Please do have a wonderful week.  Look after yourself, follow Boris Johnson’s rules and shout up if you need anything.  It is now time for all of us to come together and do our bit!

Much love to you all.

We’ve had a very busy few weeks in school, with World Book Day, Parents’ Evening, our recent Y3/4 residential to Whitemoor Lakes and the visit of Alex Hamilton and the Midlands Today Weather Team to name but a few headline events.  This is certainly  no different to normal for this time of year, and certainly no different to many schools up and down the country, but the recent media attention surrounding the Coronavirus outbreak has certainly added to the in-tray in recent days and this has dominated my time and energy behind the scenes this week!

I issued a letter to all parents about 10 days ago, reaffirming what we are doing in school to control the further spread of nasty bugs and germs.  Mrs Weston added to this list of measures last week when she did an assembly on the art of hand washing! This term, our average school attendance has plummeted to 93% overall – it stood at 97% at the start of January!  We have certainly had our fair share of Chickenpox cases through school this term, as well as the usual seasonal cold doing the rounds.   However, in relation to Coronavirus, it is very much a case of keeping calm and carrying on, following the most up to date advice from the NHS and staying vigilant.  I will be issuing a statement to all parents this week so please keep an eye out in your child’s bag.  Myself and the leadership team have been working on contingency plans should a school closure be enforced upon us by the government or should we know of any confirmed cases affecting our staff or pupils and should we therefore have to take decisive measures to keep people safe. There are no known cases of Coronavirus at present so put simply, and to use a football analogy, let’s play to the whistle!  The ball is still very much in play!

There really is no apology to make for taking decisive action if it means keeping our children and staff safe, but for now, we are so glad that we can do what we do best – focusing on your child’s learning and doing our very best to improve the school even further.

On Tuesday and Thursday last week I met with each teacher individually to look at how much progress our children were making in their classes.  I have these discussions with the teachers each term and they always give me a good overview into those areas of the curriculum where more support is needed for children or where more resources are required for the school as a whole.  I also make connections to the children’s work that I have seen and also what I know about the classroom environment and opportunities.  I was thrilled to hear that some children, who were not previously on track, have now made accelerated progress in one or more areas of the curriculum. This was really encouraging and it is important that a reflection takes place on just how this has come about for these individuals. Our staff have worked incredibly hard to prepare extra work to take home and I know some of these children have made the most of this opportunity.  Thank you to their parents too – for supporting us and reaffirming the messages that we communicate to your child in school.

Last week I spent some time amending our school website page on the curriculum.  If you have not yet seen it, please have a look as it will give you information about what the children will be taught in each year group and how we measure the impact of their learning. There is lots of pupil voice already collected for many of the wider-school events which take place. For example, the Super Seahorses have given us some really useful feedback on their learning of the Djembe Drum with Derbyshire Music Partnership.  Just as many parents gave us some testimonial evidence on the impact of our Ocean Rescue Week last November.  Over the next few months, more information will be added to this page.  If ever you were in any doubt about why we do what we do, click on our Curriculum Intent document.

I had a lovely knock at the door on Monday afternoon last week – Maggie (Year 2) had been sent to me with some super writing.  I was not only impressed with the handwriting – she had remembered to use her finger spaces and also her sounds for the spelling of some tricky words – she had also added some excellent noun phrases into her writing so it was interesting to read.  I am so proud of you Maggie –  your progress is really clear to see when we do the ‘magic test’ by looking at the work from September and then looking at the work being produced now!

On Wednesday evening, the teachers and I did a ‘Book Look’  and checked the standard of writing across the whole school. Again, we formally check this at regular intervals throughout the year.  For a select group of children, your teachers brought to our meeting, a sample of writing work from a range of curriculum subjects – Science, RE, Topic etc. One of the things I have asked your teacher’s to nag you about is your handwriting and presentation – generally this is strong across the school but there are a few of you who sometimes become a little lax when writing outside of your English lessons. And some of you are really fantastic writers in terms of content but you just forget to do the usual fantastic things like using our cursive handwriting style or writing proper nouns with capital letters!   The standard of writing and presentation should be the same in all subjects – please don’t forget to DUMTUM too!  I want to give  ‘shout-outs’ to Reece (Year 2), Olivia (Year 3) and Norma (Year 6).  These children apply the same level of commitment to all writing activities across the curriculum!  I have asked your teachers to keep up the good work when planning what you all do in lessons – they are providing you with lots of opportunities to write, teaching you the skills in English and then letting you apply these in your topic work and science work.  I will be keeping an eye of this next term also – being a competent and functional writer is good for your life outside of the Coton Bubble when you leave us in Year 6.  It is also useful for when you apply for a job in the future.

Speaking of functional skills, Mrs Smith had a nosy into the Key Stage 1 phonic lessons last week, to see how the little ones were getting on. It is obvious that you all enjoy your phonics lessons and you all seem to be benefiting from the consistent approach to teaching which is being applied in school.  And the small groups sizes. One thing that Mrs Smith did mention was, some of you need to remember to use the pure sounds! Mrs Smith mentioned this to all parents at her Phonics workshop in November – it is really important that we all remember to do this. Mrs Smith is going to be talking to the staff members who hear you read about pure sounds next week – pure sounds really help when you are blending. Mrs Smith is also going to be making sure that you are paying attention to the school’s cursive script when writing sounds and words on the board!  Make sure you pay attention as your phonics adult may try and trick you by not doing it right! Finally, I issued a letter to a few parents on Thursday evening last week, about some Rise and Shine Phonics sessions that are starting for selected children this week. If your child has been selected, that is because they require some extra support to get to the national standard and we want to give them the best possible chance!

I’ve been keeping an eye out for how active the children are being over lunchtimes recently.  Mrs Thorne and the sports coaches are out there to make sure that the children are having a good lunch and that they are keeping themselves active.  Both sports coaches now have a clipboard and so if they wish to join in with the activity of the day -tell them to get their  name on the board and  join in!  It looked great on Tuesday lunchtime last week, there were so many activities and games in play. Miss Knowles, as our Sports and PE Co-ordinator is monitoring our sporting provision closely at the minute, she has been really busy setting up activity boxes for the children. Our Sports Link Governor, Mrs Mailer, has also been busy keeping her eye out for what is going on.

Thank you so much to James (Jolly Jellyfish) for being the first member of our school to submit an entry for the art competition we are running, in conjunction with the London based company, Barrow Hepburn and Gale.  Last week you may have seen the new Chancellor,Rishi Sunak,with his big red briefcase of important documents as he delivered the country’s budget.  I really hope many of you get your artwork in ASAP – the deadline for submission is Friday 20th March.  Don’t forget, in addition to the company offering some cash prizes, they are also busy making an official red box for our school to keep!  We will, very soon, be able to wear the same shoes as Boris Johnson or the Queen and have one of those heavy boxes in school!

School Parliament didn’t meet last week but we will do so again this week.  I have been making sure that our Ministers for Environment have all been carrying out their jobs seriously – please remember to put any used paper and card in your class recycling bin (no pieces of paper with pupil names should be in there) and also put your apple cores and fruit peel in the green mini composting pots.  Kayden, Alice and Jeffrey, ably assisted by the ever-dependable Thomas will empty class bins into the outside wheelie’s ready for Thursday’s council collection.

Last week’s theme in school was compassion and there were loads of really good examples of this mentioned in Friday’s Reward Assembly. Please remember – this week I am looking for EXCELLENCE.  Another one of our school words! It can be quite easy to forget all the little things that we do to ensure higher standards when we are busy.  There really is no excuse however.  How we look, how we walk, how we interact with others, how we think and how we concentrate and focus really impacts on the level of success we have.  And this is everybody of course.  It starts as soon as the bell goes and we come into the classroom – ready to work straight away with no wasted time.  It continues when we are in lessons – teachers have their lollipop sticks at the ready, there is no chance of ‘switching off’ or ‘zoning out’.  You know that the teacher leading worship each day is always ready 5 minutes before you all come into the hall, so they can spot who is smart and who is walking in calmly.  Our Ministers for Collective Worship are always on time to ensure that our ‘gathering’ is effective and you are all singing and joining in. Manners at lunchtime please, and good table etiquette – Mrs Bonsor is watching- and let’s not forget to be kind to all in our school. Excellence isn’t artificial – it’s a ‘being’. It’s intrinsic!

The Jolly Jellyfish have a mini WOW Day on Tuesday this week, when they take a visit on the farm!  The termly theme for Jellyfish is all about life on the farm  and the staff have planned a fantastic day for the children.  I really hope the weather manages to stay dry for the children on Tuesday!  What an adventure they’ll have – I’m sure! For reference, if you want to see what learning is being covered in their termly theme (or any other year group themes) don’t forget to look at the website – under the ‘Information’ tab and by clicking on the ‘Curriculum’ page.  All of this term’s planned themes are there for you to see.

Mrs Weston is coming into your Power Maths lessons this week – its been a few months since we all started our new approach to maths in school and a few months also, since your parents came in to see how we teach it. Power Maths is much more than a Maths Scheme of Work you know!   It requires a real shift in attitudes and a change to how we teach the subject.  I am hoping that Mrs Weston will tell me that you are all much better at explaining your reasoning and also showing it with the physical apparatus that we provide.  I also hope that you are getting better at answering your teachers’ probing questions and better at using mathematical vocabulary.

On Tuesday evening, your teachers are joining up with teachers at Walton Primary School and working on their subject leader areas of responsibility.  Miss Knowles will be teaming up with the PE Co-ordinator from Walton, Mrs Butler teaming up with the Music leader, Miss Bains with the Science, Mrs Smith with the Walton Primary’s Co-ordinator for Computing and Mrs Weston working on PSHE with her opposite number.  I will be working with our Safeguarding Link Governor on Wednesday, in addition to Miss Knowles also,on our Sports Premium Impact Statement.  Also on Wednesday – don’t forget we have a Mother’s Day Lunch taking place.

Mother’s Day Lunch is always a wonderful event for all in our school, last year we had 83 ‘special’ female visitors into school to sit with their child and Mrs Farmer and the kitchen did a super job as always.  I always enjoy seeing the look on the children’s faces when they see their grown-up and they line up for their roast dinner!  Don’t forget that the Friends of Coton body are running the Mother’s Day Gift Shop on Friday too. They’ll be selling gifts for the children to buy for that special female figure in their life.

Before I leave you, I have a few messages:

Firstly, our Facebook page – please remember to share the daily posts which are uploaded and ‘like’ the information and photos displayed on there.  We are trying desperately to profile the good work which goes on in school, across the full range of subjects.  ‘Liking’ posts or ‘sharing’ them really helps the name of our school go far and wide and it ‘puts us on the map.’ I have already started planning for the next school year and much of what we do each year depends upon just how well received we are. Miss Knowles has also asked all EYFS parents if they can ‘like’ our Tapestry alerts too – it is great to know that you are receiving the good news we share on Tapestry about your child’s learning and progress.

Secondly, our wraparound provision – you should have received a letter last week about the good news.  From after Easter, Breakfast Club will be running from 7:30 am until 8:50 and After School Clubs from Clubs Complete will be running from 3:15 pm until 6:00 pm.  Clubs Complete have had their Ofsted Registration granted and this means that they can offer extended hours for those parents who work longer hours.  Sessions can be booked in advance or by 3 pm on the day and the childcare vouchers are now able to be used.  From Easter, all wraparound provision will take place inside The Nest – not in the main school building. If you are interested in booking for this provision, please get a flyer from the reception, or look at the details on the letter that was issued last week.  There are a range of activities for the children to choose from and I know many of you were positive about taking up the service once longer hours could be provided.

Thank you to all members of our Friends of Coton School team for organising and supporting our school disco this past week.  We raised a fantastic total of £438 for school and this will really help to enhance what we offer the children in school.  For instance, in May this year, each class will be having some mindfulness yoga sessions with a special instructor – you know how passionate we are about developing the whole child and championing sound mental health in school. These sessions have been paid for using the money that is raised at our FTPA events.  Thank you all!

Finally, a thank you to all parents.  A few weeks ago, I stated the importance of all parents and carers saying at the top of the slope when the bell goes after our Morning Mile.  It has made a much calmer start to the morning with the children lining up themselves and we can get the children into the building much quicker – no wasting of learning time!  It is also safer for the children.

Have a good week everyone! Remember, the ball is still in play – you know the rules of the game – let’s keep going!

This Week’s Blog Box Question is: Who is the Music Leader in our school?

There is always a saying that one keeps coming back to in life; “If you need something doing, ask a busy person!” A busy person always finds the time to get a job done.  A busy person will always deliver!  Maybe it is something about the make-up of a ‘busy person’ that means they are tenacious and driven. Maybe it is just the fact that busy people have to organise their time more effectively.    The art of being busy certainly rings true at this time of year – especially as we are about to embark upon a bit of March madness!

 

Click here to continue reading… “The Art of Being Busy”

I hope you all had a wonderful half-term break and you are refreshed for the weeks ahead.  The spring term is always a busy one but I am thrilled with just how much we have achieved since Christmas, in the way of School Improvement.

Click here to continue reading… “Improving Together!”