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An early Christmas present! - Link Changes for Class 5 - Link Class 2 - Link Maths Groups for Year 5/6 - Link Homework - Link Intervention Groups - Link Behaviour Management - Link Headlice / Nits!! - Link Early Morning Arrivals - Link Children's Reading - Link Year 6 Booster Sessions - Link Toddlers or younger siblings in the playground - Link |
Christmas Technology Day - Link Christmas Parties - Link Christmas Productions - Link Cold Weather Message! - Link Kenyan School - Link New Governors - Link Swimming - Link 'Friends' Family Christmas Disco - Friday 9th December 7-9pm - Link Carol Concert: Friday 16th December - Link Christingle Service at St John's - Link Christmas and the New Year - Link Mr Justin Ward - Link |
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Once again
the children did us proud. What an achievement! They sang so sweetly
and deserved the applause that came their way. The Commanding Officer
from ARRC, Lieutenant Colonel Simon Butt, must surely have been impressed
by our school choir. How brilliant were our speakers? The clarity
of their voices belied the fact that they were still primary school
children.
Mr Ward has announced that for family reasons, he will be resigning his position as a class teacher at this school from Friday 16th December. This has come as a shock to us all and I know how upset Class 5 will be on hearing this news. I had already made the decision that I needed to come out of the classroom and spend more time on monitoring progress across the school. From January 3rd 2012, Class 5 will be taught by Mrs Kemmett as she has agreed to return to fulltime teaching for the rest of this year. I am very grateful to Mrs Kemmett as her decision allows the Year 6 to continue working towards SATs with a teacher who is well known to the majority of them and has experience of teaching this age group. Please read the tribute to Mr Ward at the end of this newsletter. Straight off
the press! We are delighted to tell you that Miss Lewis has been appointed
to take over the jobshare position from Mrs Kemmett. The children
will know Miss Lewis as she has recently covered supply in the Upper
School and this week she is in the Lower School.
From January, we have decided to change the maths groups for Year 5 & 6. This is because we are starting revision for Year 6 and so want to make the groups slightly smaller. There will be three groups: Mrs Jenkins, Mrs Kemmett and Miss Schofield. The children will know which group they will be in before the start of term.
Unfortunately,
there have been an increasing number of children not handing in their
homework on the due day. Please could you ensure that homework is
handed in on a Tuesday so that it can be marked in time for the new
homework to be handed out again on a Thursday. Early morning Intervention Groups across the school will finish this week. The groups will be re-evaluated and children will be invited to attend new sessions in the spring term. An amendment to our Behaviour Policy is that if a child has been given an internal exclusion, this will now finish at 4.15 p.m. An Internal Exclusion is only given when a child has received two pink slips [this means the child has been sent to another class on several occasions]. Again, parents will be given advance notice if this is to take place. I had one
very angry parent in reception last week! No, it was not a teacher
who had caused him so much angst! It was because his child keeps being
reinfected with headlice due to families not carrying out the 'Sunday
Night Check'!
We are becoming rather alarmed at the number of children who are arriving in the playground so early in the mornings. Our supervision outside begins at 8.35 a.m. so your child will be at risk if they are arrriving well before this. It really pleases me that children are so eager to come to school but we must recognise the dangers that an early arrival could bring. As parents, you must weigh up the consequences of allowing your children to leave home well before 8.30 a.m. Some schools will not open their gates until supervision is in place: we do not want to do this. This is why we are bringing it to your attention.
Last Friday evening I noticed that there were a lot of red Reading Records left in school. Reading is a vital skill. Please would you reinforce the message that children must also read over the weekend. Having spent each week this term with three Guided Reading groups, I have come to recognise that many children do not naturally understand the 'finer points' which underpin a story. This is what reading is about and only regular reading will allow the children to develop these higher order reading skills. Many of the Year 6 children will shortly receive an invitation to attend the early morning booster sessions, which start in January. As we have offered these sessions for many years, we do know that they work. They give the children the opportunity to work in small groups and allow targeted intervention to be put in place. If your child is invited to participate, your support will be vital as the children will need to be in school by 8.20 a.m. Toddlers or younger siblings in the playground
A parent popped
into school last week to warn us that there was an accident waiting
to happen outside in the playground! This was apparently to do with
youngsters climbing in the hedgerow [at some time a head was seen
to emerge from the top]. Some of the inner branches are so sharp that
skin could be ripped apart very easily. Climbing does come naturally
to many children but this is the wrong place to climb.
On Wednesday 14th December the children will be taking part in a Technology Competition. This is top secret - the theme is a Christmas Decoration. The interpretation of this is up to the individual. As in previous years, children can bring in Christmas 'bits and pieces' to help them make their decoration. Prizes will be awarded across the school.
Please make sure that you look out for the letter about Class party food. It should be with you by the end of the week. Thirty parents do not all want to be making sausage rolls! Party clothes can be worn to school on this day.
Not long to go before you will be able to come along and wipe away a tear, as Christmas 2011 gets under way. Please make sure you are able to come along as children become very upset when everyone else's parents are in the audience, but not theirs! We welcome younger children but if they do become unsettled, please could you take them out of the hall so as not to disrupt the performance. Many thanks.
If we wake up one morning and all is white around us, do not panic! Our set procedure for 'snow' days is:
As we have
enough staff who live locally, the snowy conditions would have to be
extremely bad for the school to close.
If we had a difficulty with frozen pipes or a lack of water and the school had to remain closed, the procedure would be just the same as above. We would also use our Text Messaging Service to update you about any school closures.
I have recently
spoken to our local contact, Mrs Nuttall, about the school we help
to support in Kenya. She has given each class a 2012 calendar which
contains photos, one of which shows some of the Kenyan children with
the toothbrushes you kindly donated this time last year.
We have recently
appointed two new parent governors.
Last week
we had an Open Morning for our Year 2 parents from Innsworth Infants
to come along and view the school. During our discussion, I asked
them for their views about retaining swimming for 2012/13. They were
very much in favour of keeping swimming on the curriculum. I would
also like to hear the views from our Year3 /4 parents after their
experience of swimming this term. If you would like to send an email
to school, I would be most interested in hearing whether you think
swimming should be retained for Year 3/4 children. 'Friends' Family Christmas Disco - Friday 9th December 7 - 9pm
Don't forget to come along to the family disco tomorrow evening. There will be a tuck shop, soft drinks, Pizza and an adult bar! Carol Concert: Friday 16th December
Parents are very welcome to come along to our Carol Concert on Friday 16th December at 10.00 a.m. Remember Friday is a 'free dress day' in aid of CLIC Sargent (Caring for Children with Cancer). This is a very worthwhile charity and I hope you will give generously. Many thanks. Christingle Service at St John's
Reverend Philippa would like to invite children and parents to a Christingle Service taking place at St John the Evangelist Church, Churchdown, on Christmas Eve at 3.00 p.m. In case this is my last newsletter of 2011, on behalf of all the staff at Innsworth Junior School, may I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! See you all on Tuesday 3rd January 2012, bright and early, ready to join in with "Wake and Shake!" Happy Christmas to you all! Nadolig Llawen Joyeux Noël Buon Natale Veselé Vánoce
Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia Feliz Navidad Iyi Bayramlar Krismas ko subhakamana tatha nayabarsha ko subhakamana Frohe Weihnachten Naya Saal Mubarak Ho
Mr Ward arrived at Innsworth Junior School in September 1985 as a class teacher for a 4th year class [now known as Year 6]. Prior to this, he had taught at Monkscroft Junior School and Linden Secondary School, which was where his teaching career began. For many of his former pupils, it will not come as a surprise to find that Mr Ward originally trained as a Primary/Secondary school teacher. We have occasionally tried to tempt Mr Ward into teaching the younger-aged children but he has always stubbornly refused! In fact, he was remaining true to his belief that his teaching style was more in tune with the abilities of the Year 5 and 6 children. Mr Ward's three passions, which have influenced his teaching life have been evident throughout his time at this school: History; the Tudors, the Tudors and the Tudors, Art and Literacy. At Southampton University, Mr Ward studied Social and Economic History and completed his dissertation on …………the Tudors (and Stuarts)! Many former pupils will think fondly of their 'Tudor' education, as often it is years later [when they are trying to answer questions in University Challenge] that they amaze themselves with their repetition of 'Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, Survived.' For those of you who have not been taught by Mr Ward, this rhyme refers to Henry VIII's wives and their demise! Many owe a great deal of appreciation to Mr Ward for his love of both the English language and English Literature. His ability to not only support, but push the children's boundaries in the higher order writing skills is where he will be best remembered. Whilst a few children have resisted his expectations, many have relished his expertise. I have lost count of the former parents who have come up to me and lavished praise on how Mr Ward's teaching had contributed towards their child's academic achievement. Teaching the classics such as Jane Eyre and Cider with Rosie came naturally to someone who relished the complexities of language choices and structures. Art is also an area close to Mr Ward's heart. Whenever an Art lesson has taken place, Mr Ward's own 'masterpiece' has been incorporated as a visual aid! All in all,
Justin Ward is a teacher who stands by his standards, and is not willing
to compromise. He has been judged as 'outstanding' on several occasions
by Ofsted and as a school, we are going to miss his commitment to
"making achievement possible for all children". Mr Ward, you have been a very gracious member of staff, an inspired teacher and a caring individual. We wish you the very best in the years ahead. For those parents who have known Mr Ward across the years, and wish to contribute to the collection which has been started, please contact the school office or send in a donation in a marked envelope. We hope to give Mr Ward a good send off on Friday 16th December. |
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