Headteacher Newsletter 467

WELCOME BACK! I hope you had a fantastic summer with your family. We have loved welcoming the children back to school and seeing them settle in so quickly!

Our Curriculum

Our whole school curriculum is designed around four curriculum drivers - conflict, culture, communication and conservation. Each of these four drivers act as a focal point to help pupils acquire the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values of the National Curriculum to become more globally aware, educated citizens. Our children learn from the past to help shape a better future.

Our Curriculum Theme for this term is…Conflict

Throughout this theme, we shape learning tasks to enable children to understand what conflict is, why it exists, the difference between positive and negative conflict; before linking this understanding to why conflict remains a global issue. 

We want our children to learn how to handle disagreements constructively and resolve their differences in a positive manner. I shared this message in my school assembly earlier this week. Conflict can be seen as an opportunity for learning about and understanding our differences. We can all live harmoniously, despite conflicts, as long as we know how to responsibly manage these struggles.

New Class Parent Drop-ins

We’re excited to start the year with our first parent engagement event - classroom drop-ins! On Monday 14th from 3.15-3.45pm, parents are invited to pop into their child’s classroom to meet the teacher and see the learning environment. It’s a lovely opportunity to say hello, put a face to a name, and get a feel for where your child will be spending their school days.

Reading Books

Reading is hugely important to us at Woodland View, and we want to make sure every child has books that are appropriate, enjoyable and help them to develop as confident readers. This week, children are continuing to enjoy lots of reading opportunities in their new classes, while teachers take the time to ensure that the right school reading books are selected and ready to come home next week, along with their new reading records.

Your child may bring home a library book this week to enjoy, but please rest assured that reading is very much underway in school and we are looking forward to getting everyone’s regular home reading routines up and running next week!

Homework

Homework will remain the same as last year - for those of you who are new to us, don’t worry; a more detailed explanation will be coming out soon! Managing time is an important skill and that is why we ask children to prioritise some key elements at home. Homework for children across the school remains a focus on reading and key maths knowledge as we believe that these are the foundation for all of their future learning. This approach allows them to consolidate their learning at home, develop further and it gives you an insight into how they are getting on with these key elements. We understand the importance of children resting, playing, socialising, exercising, taking part in extra-curricular clubs and having family time when they are not in school so we want to set a very manageable amount of homework. If we can work together to develop a love of reading and a knowledge of key mathematical facts, our children will have a great platform to build upon with their learning. Occasionally, there may also be additional whole school challenges linked to key events in our school calendar. Further details about homework will be shared, along with the children’s login details, in the coming weeks. 

We thank you for your continued support with learning at home.

Parent Volunteers

Last year saw the highest number of parent volunteers supporting in our school, and what a difference it made! We had volunteers supporting us in classrooms, helping with readers, venturing out on trips and manning our library. We are so grateful for every single one of you that has offered your time and support in recent years. With a new year, we are always looking for more! If you think that this is something that you would like to get involved with, and you have some time that you can offer, be that a morning, an afternoon or a lunchtime, please call the office and ask to speak with Mrs Cox - she will be very happy to speak to you!

SEND Coffee Mornings

Throughout the year, we will be holding SEND Coffee Mornings - a friendly and informal opportunity for parents and carers to come along, have a cuppa and chat with our SEND team. Whether your child already has an identified Special Educational Need or Disability, you are wondering if they may need some additional support, or you simply have a question or concern, you are very welcome to join us. We will also be inviting a range of external agencies and professionals to attend throughout the year, giving families the opportunity to access advice, guidance and support in a relaxed setting. No diagnosis or formal SEND need is required - sometimes it’s helpful simply to have someone to talk to. We look forward to welcoming you! 

If you wish to come to any of the dates below, please come to the main reception for 9am:

• Tuesday 29th September
• Wednesday 11th November
• Monday 25th January
• Friday 19th March
• Monday 24th May
• Wednesday 7th July

Facebook

We're excited to be launching an official Woodland View Primary School Facebook page very soon. Mrs Cox has been busy working on this in the background for many months in readiness for this launch! The page will celebrate the wonderful learning, achievements and experiences that happen in school every day, while also helping us share news with our wider community.

To help us showcase school life, we'd like your permission to use photographs and videos of your child on our official Facebook page. Please look out for a consent form very soon. Consent is entirely optional and can be withdrawn at any time by contacting the school office. As always, we will use images carefully and responsibly. We will avoid identifying children by their full name alongside photographs, and only children with parental consent will appear on our social media.

Thank you for your support - we're looking forward to sharing all the fantastic things happening at Woodland View!

PE Days - reminder

Following last week’s Ping, please see a reminder below of the PE days for your child so that they can arrive at school wearing their PE kits on these days. The children in Foundation Stage begin the year bringing their PE kits in a bag and getting ready in school as part of their curriculum. 

• Foundation Stage - Thursdays
• Year 1 - Tuesdays and Fridays
• Year 2 - Mondays and Wednesdays 
• 3KH - Mondays and Fridays
• 3HY - Wednesdays and Thursdays
• Year 4 - Wednesdays and Fridays
• Year 5 - Tuesdays and Thursdays
• Year 6 - Thursdays and Fridays

Smartwatches

A quick reminder that smartwatches which can take photographs, make recordings, or send and receive messages should not be brought into school. We appreciate that many children enjoy wearing smartwatches, but devices with these functions can create privacy and safeguarding concerns within school.

Thank you for your support in helping us to keep this consistent.

Staff News

It has been lovely to welcome some new faces to the Woodland View team this term.

Mr Wilson and Mrs Barrett have recently joined our teaching team and have both enjoyed a really positive start with their new classes in Key Stage 2. We have also welcomed Mrs Patel to our School Office Team and Mrs Di Lorenzo to our support staff team.

A very warm welcome to them all - we hope they continue to enjoy settling into life at Woodland View, and wish them all the very best for the year ahead!

Key Dates

Monday 14th September - New Classroom Drop-ins - 3.15-3.45pm
Tuesday 29th September - SEND Coffee Morning - 9-10am (details above)
Thursday 15th October - Individual Pupil Photos (details to follow)
Thursday 22nd October - Flu Immunisation for pupils (details to follow)
Friday 23rd October - Term Ends
Monday 2nd November - Teacher Training Day
Tuesday 3rd November - School Opens for Autumn 2

Yours sincerely,
Mark Horsley, Headteacher