2. Spring Term 2008 Newsletters

Dear Parents / Carers,

The Y5 / Y6 performance of Macbeth is almost upon us and all the hard work, practice and preparation will, I am certain, come to fruition this Wednesday January 23, at 2pm and 4pm. The scenery and background looks fantastic and the final rehearsals see the children acting and singing like young professionals. There has been a great deal of work from staff and pupils at all levels, but also a wealth of learning, fun, excitement and anticipation. The input from parents and families must also be highlighted – the costumes are great along with the props – I’m surprised we haven’t had a visit from the authorities such is the number of children arriving at school brandishing swords! Fortunately they are all of the plastic variety; we have no need for the metal detectors just yet.

I look forward to welcoming parents and family members to what will be two very enjoyable shows. Please ensure that all children are collected after the final performance which should conclude around 5.20pm.

Unfortunately, as the performance takes precedence, we have had to cancel All Wednesday’s Extended School Activities. This is unfortunate but the weather at this time of the year reduces our options, the traffic in the yard will be very heavy and you will appreciate that for the sake of the children in the production, we do need corridor areas to be quiet throughout.

Letters have been sent to all participants in Karate and Infant football – there is also a notice in the Infant Notice Board and this newsletter should suffice for Card and Computer club members. Staff will look to reschedule.

Though the date of the performance has been widely publicised the decision to postpone after school clubs should have been made clear in the first newsletter of the year. I apologise for this omission.

Yesterday the Junior Football course leaders allowed themselves to be persuaded by the children to hold the session outdoors despite the inclement weather. The hall was available and should have been used last night. The leaders are aware of this and will look to make a more appropriate decision should the situation arise again.

The Admissions procedure for school has been extremely bureaucratic and time consuming this time around. The difficulty lies in the Government’s “Equal Preference” policy which sees every application, regardless of whether or not the school is first, second or third choice, needing to be considered by the Governors and judged against our Admissions criteria. As you can appreciate, at this moment in time, the school cannot be anywhere near certain as to the identities of the final 30, we, like the parents / carers, await contact from the LA in March. This is an anxious time for parents / carers with children approaching Reception age, I certainly sympathise with them during this period of uncertainty. I would add however that changes can and do occur in the intervening period between the March decision and the September start – families move, some opt to continue with the Nursery cohort and move on with them into the school setting, so there may possibly still be some room for manoeuvre. Future years should be less problematic as the birth rate is declining and we should be better able to meet parental preference needs.

A number of our children are involved in the Making Good Progress Pilot, with several having taken Single Level Tests in December. The results of these trial tests were expected on January 18^th but I received notification recently informing me that the deadline had been extended and asking me to apologise on the DCSF’s behalf. Test results will be communicated as soon as they are received – it seems that there has been some difficulty with the “pattern of results”, whatever that means!

I look forward to seeing many of our Y5 and Y6 parents / carers at “Macbeth” on Wednesday.

Best Wishes.

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.

Head Teacher.

Spring Term Newsletter 3: Friday February 1st 2008.

Dear Parents / Carers,

The Y5/Y6 performance of “Macbeth” was, as one parent kindly put it, “a triumph” for all concerned. The children were magnificent and performed to a very high standard throughout both performances, watched by two very appreciative audiences who enjoyed every minute. Both staff and children very much appreciated the praise and recognition from parents / carers, governors and visitors that came their way at the conclusion.

Mr Allon has produced a very professional DVD and both Y5 and Y6 children have received details should they wish to have a souvenir of the event.

A second visitation of parents / carers occurred as recently as Wednesday as the Y3 children, led by Miss Smyth, gave a very moving interpretative assembly for World Holocaust Remembrance Day. It was very encouraging to see yet again such a good turn out of support to attend our half termly assemblies – the children were delighted to speak and perform for the wider audience.

Father Michael has very kindly agreed to visit school next Wednesday (Ash Wednesday – February 6: 2.30pm, School Hall) to join with the children to mark the beginning of Lent. Parents / Family members are cordially invited to join with us should they be able to. An indication of attendance would be useful just in case numbers exceed space – please contact the school by telephone / note via child if you intend to come along. Thank you in anticipation.

Looking further ahead, I can confirm that our First Communion Celebration this year will be held at St Gregory’s Church at 10am on Saturday May 17. There are some concerns as to the organisation of the numbers as the expected turn out may well see the church overflow, however, we hope to liaise with parishioners to best manage the event.

SAPA are meeting next week to plan a Valentine’s Disco with a tentative date set for Friday 15^th of February, the last day of this half term – further details and confirmation expected next week.

It is becoming apparent that several parents’s, including some from Reception, have not yet managed to confirm their telephone / emergency contacts with the school. Others have changed mobile numbers etc, a regular occurrence these days. If a child is unwell we make every effort to contact parents / carers immediately but we are sometimes thwarted by having only the home phone on the list. If you are unsure as to whether or not we have all your details please contact the school and we will be only too pleased to update our records.

Our Extended School programme is back in full swing now and things seem to be running relatively smoothly. We are experiencing some problems, and I’m sure some parents will be in agreement, with the younger children “losing” clothing, misplacing shoes etc. We have a growing number of items in the “lost property” area - please feel free to call in and check if your child has lost anything in the past week. Also, just in case, if your child has taken home someone else’s shorts / dress / shoes – we have a few missing items too.

The younger children are becoming more able at being able to dress themselves, under supervision; however, some can take a little longer than others. I would be grateful if parents could wait for their children to emerge and resist the impulse to go and help them along. The Child Protection laws are very clear in this respect and the school has to abide by them. Thank you for your cooperation.

The Y5 response to the Thurston invitation has been 100% and I am certain that they will have a memorable and enjoyable time. Watching the snow fall I’m beginning to feel slightly worried as to whether or not my daughter will be back on time today from Derwent Hill (Sunderland’s equivalent of Thurston), after her exciting week in the Lake District. I’m sure the weather will have improved by the time we set off for Thurston in May!

Have an enjoyable weekend.

Best Wishes,

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.

Head Teacher.

Spring Term Newsletter 4: Friday February 15 2008

Dear Parents / Carers,

A reminder from Father Michael that he is looking forward to welcoming the First Communion children to a special Mass at Holy Rosary (Saturday 5.30pm) or St Gregory’s (09.30am Sunday) as part of their sacramental preparations. Several of our children will be participating in the Mass with readings etc. I do hope this goes well as, for the vast majority of the children, it will be the first time that they have read from the altar.

On a more troublesome note the regular school scourge of head lice seems to be particularly prevalent at the minute with a number of outbreaks across the school. I am well aware of the nuisance this causes to the entire family, but it is very, very common and something that may well touch every child of primary school age at least once.

Half Term is an ideal opportunity to check, double check and treat where necessary, thus breaking the school based, (if indeed it is school based) cycle. The treatment should be extended to the entire family and repeated at intervals for up to two weeks – this ensures that anything emerging from eggs after the first treatment is caught before they can lay more. I’m sorry to be so explicit and I am aware that the Local Authority frowns at any mention of head lice and schools in the same sentence, but some may find the advice helpful. Contrary to popular belief, we do not have a store of them in school which we release the minute the children return. Hopefully we can avoid a further outbreak.

The SAPA Valentine Disco is scheduled for this evening and promises to be a fun occasion. SAPA have an excellent team at the helm and have generated a lot of renewed and new interest since they re-launched earlier this year. They will have a good number of assistants on duty this evening and the event is expected to run smoothly. The last disco for Halloween was a lot of fun and behaviour, given the setting was, relatively good, however I think that we can improve a little and I’m looking forward to seeing the children enjoying themselves this evening.

I would be grateful if all parents pick up their children at 6pm sharp, it is only fair that SAPA members and staff are able to return home on time, rather than have to wait with children whose parents are behind schedule.

The school closes for the Spring Half Term break this evening and we reopen at the usual time on Monday February 25^th.

I hope that the children enjoy the break and that we can all enjoy some family time next week.

Best wishes.

Yours sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.

Head Teacher.

Spring Term Newsletter 5: Monday March 3rd 2008

Dear Parents / Carers,

A brief post half term update following my belated return from Lisbon. I am very grateful for all the expressions of concern and support following my daughter’s recent illness. Our city break to Lisbon turned into a 12 day ordeal at the city hospital. Fortunately, despite all the difficulties the care was excellent and my daughter is now recovering well at home after her operation and our 32 hour rail journey.

The week’s break was unfortunately preceded by one of our younger children suffering a very nasty finger injury at the Valentine’s Disco. Accidents do sometimes happen at even the most well organised events but this is a trauma we wish to avoid at all costs and at the moment I am assimilating as much information as I can to try to ensure that there is no repeat. Any lessons that have to be learned will be learned and I will report back to as soon as the investigation by the school, SAPA and the Health and Safety executive has been completed. Whatever recommendations the latter make will be introduced as soon as possible.

The first week in March can be a very difficult period for parents of 2008 Reception age children as the Local Authority confirm school places for September. There will be several schools, as well as our own, oversubscribed and I am very aware that some of our own parents will be very disappointed with the outcome of their applications. A refusal is not necessarily the end of the story as there is still a considerable period between now and September. The school is most willing to help wherever we can and can offer advice re appeals etc should this be required.

Please offer a prayer for Bishop Kevin who sadly died of pneumonia at the weekend. He was only 57 years old and had made an excellent impact in the relatively short time he has served as our Diocesan Pastor. RIP.

Thank you again for your kindness and concern.

Best Wishes.

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.

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Spring Term Newsletter 6: Wednesday March 12 2008

Dear Parents / Carers;

The final two weeks of term are particularly busy with a full programme of events in place. Please see the following list and note key events in your diaries:

•   Holy Week Mass: Tuesday March 18that 2.30pm in the school hall. Father Michael has very kindly agreed to celebrate a children’s Mass to incorporate the Sacrament of Reconciliation for our aspiring First Communicants. All Parents / Carers are invited to attend. (An indication of attendance would be welcomed, please telephone the school office or send a brief note via your child);

•   Y3 / Y4 Special Easter Assembly “The Easter Story”: Wednesday March 19th at 11am. Parents of Y3 and Y4 children are invited to attend;

•   Open Evenings: Monday / Thursday, 17th to 20th of March. Individual appointments should have been distributed by now or are imminent. I anticipate the usual good attendance as staff will update parents / carers on the progress made both generally this term and specifically against targets outlined in the interim report;

•   The school will be closed on Good Friday and Easter Monday and reopen on Tuesday March 25th (4 days Dinner money for final two weeks of term £6.80);

•   The 2 week Easter break will commence at close of school on Friday April 4th until Monday April 21 at the usual time;

•   There will be a special meeting for parents of Y6 children at 3.45pm on Wednesday April 23rd. The focus will be on End KS2 SATs (May 12 – 16).

I look forward to seeing you at the forthcoming events.

Best Wishes.

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher.

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2. Spring Term 2008 Newsletters

Spring Term Newsletter 2: Tuesday January 22 2008

Spring Term Newsletter 3: Friday February 1st 2008.

Spring Term Newsletter 4: Friday February 15 2008

Spring Term Newsletter 5: Monday March 3rd 2008

Spring Term Newsletter 6: Wednesday March 12 2008

Spring Term Newsletter 2: Tuesday January 22 2008

Spring Term Newsletter 3: Friday February 1st 2008.

Spring Term Newsletter 4: Friday February 15 2008

Spring Term Newsletter 5: Monday March 3rd 2008

Spring Term Newsletter 6: Wednesday March 12 2008