Another school year – welcome back.

And, just as importantly, welcome to all our new parents, carers and children, whether in Early Years or to those who have join us in other classes in school.

Our first weekly message of the year has some important information for the year ahead at Scholes (Elmet) Primary School…

Dates for the year

Key dates for the school year are in our school calendar. We’re preparing a list for you to print out and have ready to check, too.

Attendance

Last year’s attendance rate across England was 92.5% – a figure which is considerably lower than before Covid.

We’re really pleased that last year’s attendance at Scholes (Elmet) Primary was 95.3% – let’s see if we can beat that this year.

Read this help helpful guide from the NHS to decide if your child is ill enough to have to miss learning.

Homework

This Homework Guide sets out what we expect children to do and why. Reading, spellings, times tables and number facts are essential for all children to be confident with. The focus of your support at home should be ideally around these areas. Your comments in the Reading Record book (at least once a week) are really helpful for your child’s teacher.

Every child in Key Stage 1 and 2 has a Reading Record. Please sign the Reading Record so we know your child has been reading at home. You might also include a comment that relates to how they got on. In the Key Stage 2 Reading Record book, there are activities – one of these is set by the teacher each week. There are other activities for children to engage with in the Reading Record, too.

Your child’s first Talk Time task is published today.

Check out the weekly Living and Learning theme in our school calendar, too – there are more learning ideas here (usually showing on each Monday of the school year).

Each child in Key Stage 1 and 2 has a new homework book. The book is for your child to practise spellings, writing, times tables and number facts. It doesn’t need to be sent back to school.

Uniform

A uniform develops a sense of belonging, prevents competition and saves money. Wearing school colours helps us to keep up our high standards of behaviour. Please make sure your child is following our Uniform Policy. If we notice any problems, we’ll send home a reminder. A few things come up most often:

Hair: Long hair should be tied back, and hair accessories should be small and simple (this is so that it does not distract from learning and for hygiene reasons)

Jewellery, watches and other accessories: Only plain stud earrings (no more than 4mm wide) and items that are absolutely required by a religion are allowed. Advisors recommend no earrings are worn for PE; therefore, we’ll ask your child to remove earrings before the lesson. This needs to be done by the child. If they’re unable to remove or put their earrings back in by themselves, they must not wear them on the day they have PE.

PE kit: Keep it simple and non-branded – check out page 2 of our policy for a handy guide.

Our school rules

We’ve three school rules:

• We’re respectful.
• We’re ready.
• We’re safe.

Help at home. Talk with your child about the rules:

• Make sure your child knows the three rules.
• Is one more important than another?
• Is there a rule that your child thinks is missing and should be included?
• Make a link between our school rules and home: are there similar rules in your home?
• Discuss these rules and other rules in a wider context, including the country’s laws.

Read our full Positive Relationships Policy.

Reading in Key Stage 2

In Key Stage 2, once children have become independent readers, they’re involved in the process of choosing what book they read at home. To make sure children read a wide range of suitable texts, we rotate between ‘solo reading’ and ‘group reading’:

• solo reading happens in the first half-term of each term: Autumn 1, Spring 1 and Summer 1
• group reading happens in the second half-term: Autumn 2, Spring 2 and Summer 2

So, this half-term is solo reading – each child in class has taken home their own book.

• Each child’s book is checked by the teacher to make sure it’s appropriate in both content and challenge – please check that your child’s reading a book at what seems like the right level, so they can read it fluently and enjoy it.
• Your child should read the book at home on a daily basis – 10-15 minutes should be the minimum.
• In ‘Book Club’ sessions, teachers may direct children to an activity to complete alongside their reading for that week.
• A signed Reading Record allows parents to communicate with their child’s teacher that reading at home has happened regularly – please make sure your child is reading at home, and add comments in the Reading Record.
• In the weekly ‘Book Club’ session, children discuss their book with their class mates and celebrate a love of reading.

 

As always, contact school if you’ve any questions or concerns about anything we’ve said here.

Children settled into the new school year really well this week. It’s likely they’ll feel tired after a busy (and hot!) week back. Have a restful, happy and healthy weekend.