Dear parents,
I hope your family had an enjoyable and refreshing summer holidays and your children are now keen to begin a new school year in ‘Year 3 Kites’, we hope to make the transition from Key Stage one to Key Stage 2 as smooth as possible.
Equipment and Clothes
To help reduce items being lost please ensure ALL children’s possessions, especially fleeces, sweatshirts, plimsolls and stationery are named and easily identifiable.
Physical Education
PE and Games is timetabled for Tuesdays and Wednesday however an opportunity has arisen for the FA to come in to teach football on Mondays (this will replace the Wednesday slot for six weeks), your child will need both indoor and outdoor PE kit in school for these lessons. Indoor kit consists of shorts and a T-shirt. Outdoor kit must include a school sweatshirt and school jogging bottoms. Black plimsolls are mandatory, but trainers are advisable for outdoor games. Long hair will need to be tied back, and earrings (studs only in school) must be removed.
P.E. days have a nasty habit of changing throughout the year depending on events going on in the term. To make it easier a full P.E. kit can be sent at the beginning of the week and we will return it for washing at the end of the week, unless unused.
Homework
Spellings and times table practice homework will be set weekly, given on Mondays, these are not collected but the children will be tested on the spellings on Friday mornings. A homework based on the weeks topics will be given for the weekend, this will be given on Friday and collected on Wednesday. Please encourage and support your children to do their homework by themselves, writing in pencil and using a ruler or straight edge for all straight lines. Each child will receive a homework book.
Reading
We expect all children to read daily, either independently or to an adult. The children will be provided with appropriate reading book, which will be exchanged regularly in school. If your child is on free readers, they can choose to read a book from home if they wish. Reading books will need to travel to and from school each day with your child in a suitable book bag or folder.
Reading will continue to be recorded in a reading diary. Please let me know via the reading diary, with a date and initial, when you hear your child read. Don’t feel you always have to write a comment in the comment box, staff will write comments in the diary to help you and your child. It is important to talk to your children about the stories they read as well as just hearing them read the words. This will help you gauge how well your child understands what they read and whether they are enjoying their book. (I have attached a list of comprehension questions which may help you do this).
Reading in class comprises of a rotational guided reading schedule whereby all children are grouped where they read are taught and assessed based on further developing their ability to decode and comprehend.
Water and Snacks
Children should bring a water bottle to school with them which they can keep in a designated area during lessons. Please ensure that this only contains water, and is clearly named. Fruit or vegetables can be brought in for morning break; please ensure that this is named and separate from your child’s packed lunch as once school starts the children are not able to access their lunch boxes until lunchtime. A box for the storage of playtime fruit will be kept in the classroom. It is also possible to purchase milk for your child to drink at playtimes; please contact the office for more details.
Pencil case
Stationery and writing equipment is provided, but children are encouraged to have their own writing equipment in a named pencil case. This should contain the following;
• Pencils
• Pencil sharpener, preferably one which contains the sharpening’s
• Glue stick
• Small 15cm ruler
• No rubbers please
This can stay in school drawers or return home if needed for homework.
Absences
All absences should be notified by telephone or letter on the first day of absence, and followed up in writing on your child’s return. Letters will also be required if your child is to be excused from specific school activities for any reason.
Dropping off and picking-up arrangements
Children will come into school in the morning via the junior school playground. Children may only come into the building before school if they have a music lesson, or a musical instrument they need to bring in, and on these occasions they will enter and leave via the front office.
The children will be collected at the end of the day from the infant school playground. Please let me know in writing if there is any change in your child’s usual collection arrangements. Under no circumstances will we allow a year three child to leave the school building unless collected by a known adult.
PPA
I will be out of class on Wednesday mornings before lunch and Wednesday afternoons following lunch. During this time the children will be taught Literacy, French and Art. Music is taught by a specialist on Thursdays.
Wednesday
• Literacy 9.00 – 10.10 Mrs Russell
• French 1.15 – 2.15 Mrs Keenan
• Art 2.15 – 3.15 Mrs Russell
Thursday
• Music 10.45 – 11.45 Mrs Venvell
Citizenship Project
Given the closeness of the school to Wycombe hospital I would like to create a link whereby the children can provide something for the hospital, be it for the chaplaincy or patients. This is still in development and I will inform all children and parents when a project can be confirmed.
Parking
No parking is allowed at the front of school, as this is for staff and visitors.
Parent Helpers
Parent helpers are always welcome in school. We particularly value help hearing readers, or with art or science. Please speak to the office if you are interesting in supporting the school in this way. If you have a particular interest or skill which can be shared please feel free to talk to me about the possibility of utilising your skills within the class/school.
Problems/Information
Please come and inform me if you or your child have any worries or require information however small (sick over weekend/hasn’t done homework/upset over weekend...etc.), but please remember that we have more time to listen after school than in the mornings. If you would prefer a meeting, I have set aside Tuesdays and Thursday 3.45 – 5.00 for this purpose.
Yours faithfully,
Mr Sgorlon