Headteacher Newsletter Issue 2
FORTNIGHTLY NEWSLETTER ISSUE 2: 24.9.21
We are thoroughly enjoying resuming our whole school activities and we were really pleased to see parents in school this week for the Meet the Teacher event. We look forward to seeing you all at further events. We will also be resuming our Parent Forum and parent volunteers later this term.
We are excited to announce and introduce our Head Boy and Head Girl along with our Deputy Head Boy and Deputy Head Girl. These Year 6 children are school ambassadors and will be meeting with the school leadership team on a regular basis so we can share ideas and work on projects together for our school.
Congratulations to:
Head Boy – Oscar
Head Girl – Olivia M
Deputy Head Girl – Martha
Deputy Head Boy – Woody
Lisa Dunlop visits
Last week Mrs Dunlop visited from Joyce Franklin to take PE lessons with years 2 and 3. Year 2 worked on their skipping skills ready for a skipping competition in the coming weeks. Year 3 practiced ball and racquet control in a tennis session. All children thoroughly enjoyed the session.
National Fitness Day
Wednesday 22nd September was National Fitness Day, the children took part in a range of mini minute challenges aimed to improve their fitness among other skills. Everyone really enjoyed taking part in the sunshine!
Girls Football Festival
This week the year 3 and 4, and year 5 and 6 girls enjoyed a visit to Chrishall to take part in a football festival, the aim of which was to build confidence and skills. The girls all practiced dribbling, shooting and throw-ons before taking part in some friendly 5 a side matches. All of the girls worked really hard.
Wider Ops
The children in KS2 have enjoyed their first Wider Ops Music Lesson with Mr Malam from Essex Music Services. He is teaching whole class brass so the children are playing a range of instruments – trumpets, trombones and euphoniums.
Book Fair
Our book fair will be arriving later this week. From Tuesday 28th September there will be the opportunity for children, along with their parents, to visit and purchase books from the fair. There is usually a lovely selection of books for all age groups.
The book fair will be open each evening after school from 3:25 until 4pm on Tuesday 28th, Wednesday 29th, Thursday 30th September, Tuesday 5th and Wednesday 6th October.
Please do come along and have a browse; the school will receive a percentage of the total sold, which will be used to purchase books for everyone to enjoy.
We will be able to take cash or cheques and ask that any adults attending the book fair use antibacterial hand gel before handling books and wear a mask – thank you.
To avoid too many people in the same area, we would ask that, if the book fair appears busy, that you return on another date (the first couple of dates are usually the busiest).
Harvest
We will be celebrating harvest with a special assembly on 13th October. We would be very grateful if you could make a food donation for the Uttlesford Food Bank during that week:
· Instant rice / noodles (preferably flavoured) Tinned fruit / vegetables | · Vegetarian tins e.g. mac and cheese Baked beans / soup |
· Tinned sausage and beans, spaghetti bolognaise, ravioli | · Rice pudding, custard, microwave puddings, jelly |
· Crackers, savoury snacks, crisps · Long-life juice / squash | · Instant mash / tinned potatoes Peanut butter |
Many thanks for your support with this.
Friends in Five
Class 1 and Class 5 joined one another for a Friends in Five session. Buddies have already been getting to know one another at playtimes but this was a chance for Class 1 to enjoy time with their buddy whilst enjoying reading a book of their choice from their class reading corner in our reading circle area. There was a real buzz in the air! Following on from this, our Friends in Five session ended with some activity celebrating National Fitness Day.
Meet the Teacher Evening
Thank you to all the parents that attended the evening this week. We hope you found it informative.
MacMillan Coffee Morning
It was great to see so many parents in school again today for our special coffee morning. It was pleasing to be able to introduce our Heads of school, show you our new outside space, that has replaced our decking area, and raise money for MacMillan.
The year 6 were amazing hosts running the event. We were extremely proud of how they took on the challenge so independently and confidently.
We are still counting the money raised, but we can already see that everyone has been extremely generous.
Thank you so much for supporting this event either by attending or donating cakes.
A special thank you to the Friends of Clavering for their support in particular Katie French, Jenny Middleton, Julie Rotheram and Anna Gawthorpe who organised the refreshments.
Sharing Assemblies – an invitation to Parents
We will be resuming our Sharing Assemblies for Parents from this term. As before, it will be our usual Friday Sharing Assembly with an invitation to parents from a particular class as outlined below . The assembly is at 2.45 until 3.15pm
Autumn Term
Year 6 5th November
Spring Term
Year 2 date to be confirmed
Year 5 date to be confirmed
Summer Term
Year 1 date to be confirmed
Reception date to be confirmed
Year 3 date to be confirmed
Year 4 date to be confirmed
Supporting Learners At Home: A Parent Guide To Mindsets, Learning Behaviours And
Metacognition
- Mindsets – the beliefs we have about ability and growth, and importantly, those beliefs we have about ourselves and our capabilities.
- Learning behaviours – the behaviours and habits that contribute positively to our learning.
- Metacognition – an understanding and awareness of the learning process and our own thinking and development.
At Clavering, we work hard on embedding positive learning mindsets and behaviours, and helping pupils develop metacognitive skills.
Understandably, you may not be familiar with our approach in school. Knowing the central role that you have in supporting your child’s learning, we would like to promote an e-learning video. This outlines key thinking and principles about mindsets, learning behaviours and metacognition, as well as offering practical ideas and useful tips for use at home.
Please see the link below to the video which lasts approximately 30 minutes.
https://vimeo.com/536271559/a42264971d
I am sure that your child will benefit from a powerful and consistent message from both home and school
in relation to this, as it will enable us to continue to develop children holistically in a way that enhances
their self-belief, confidence and self-efficacy. It will empower them and make them better learners.
“If parents want to give their children a gift, the best thing they can do is to teach their children
to love challenges, be intrigued by mistakes, enjoy effort, and keep on learning.”
Carol Dweck, Educationalist
Sickness
The school office should be notified on the first day of each absence before registration at 9.00am and this should be followed up in writing on the day of return.
If your child has been vomiting or had an upset stomach a 48 hour leave of absence from the last episode is required. For guidance on other illnesses please contact the School Office or refer to the document on the website in the ‘Attendance’ section – “Guidance on infection control in schools and other childcare settings”.
COVID
Restrictions and protective measures have been reduced but it is vital that we are still vigilant and recognising and acting on COVID symptoms.
The main symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) are:
- a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
- a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal
If anyone has any of the COVID symptoms, no matter how mild, they must stay at home and take a PCR test. If the results are positive then they must isolate for 10 days. If they have symptoms they must isolate whilst waiting for the test results. If anyone has a positive result on any test they must isolate.
Please inform the school if anyone in the household has COVID symptoms.
Protective measures
Staff will continue to take Lateral Flow tests twice a week. As per the government guidance ventilation, strong hygiene and cleaning routines will be in place. These measures will be increased if the virus rate increases. Visitors coming into the school will be asked to wear a mask if they cannot distance during their visit. For school events we may request for families to take Lateral Flow tests beforehand.
Self-isolating and taking a test
Close contacts will now be identified via NHS Test and Trace and education settings will no longer be expected to undertake contact tracing.
As with positive cases in any other setting, NHS Test and Trace will work with the positive case and/or their parent to identify close contacts. Contacts from a school setting will only be traced by NHS Test and Trace where the positive case and/or their parent specifically identifies the individual as being a close contact. This is likely to be a small number of individuals who would be most at risk of contracting COVID-19 due to the nature of the close contact. Schools may be contacted in exceptional cases to help with identifying close contacts, as currently happens in managing other infectious diseases.
Individuals are not required to self-isolate if they live in the same household as someone with COVID-19, or are a close contact of someone with COVID-19, and any of the following apply:
- they are fully vaccinated
- they are below the age of 18 years and 6 months
- they have taken part in or are currently part of an approved COVID-19 vaccine trial
- they are not able to get vaccinated for medical reasons
Instead, they will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace, informed they have been in close contact with a positive case and advised to take a PCR test. We would encourage all individuals to take a PCR test if advised to do so.
To avoid issues accessing a PCR test without symptoms you should book online : Get a free PCR test to check if you have coronavirus (COVID-19) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Those who have tested positive for COVID19 should not undertake regular/asymptomatic testing within 90days of their positive test result. They should seek a PCR test if they develop new symptoms within the 90days.
Staff who do not need to isolate, and children and young people aged under 18 years 6 months who usually attend school, and have been identified as a close contact, should continue to attend school as normal.
Vigilance re possible symptoms and care around distancing, where possible, needs to take place.
Settings will continue to have a role in working with health protection teams in the case of a local outbreak. If there is a substantial increase in the number of positive cases in a setting or if central government offers the area an enhanced response package, a director of public health might advise a setting to temporarily reintroduce some control measures.
Please let the school know if anyone in the household has COVID symptoms.
School Admissions – Primary and Secondary – Apply Now!!
To apply quickly and easily for primary and secondary school places go online to https://www.essex.gov.uk/admissions-to-essex-schools-for-the-next-school-year
Secondary school places for September 2022
From 10 September 2021 you can apply online for your child’s school place https://www.essex.gov.uk/apply-for-a-secondary-school-place
You must submit an application by the national closing date of 31 October 2021. Applications received after this date will be considered late and you may reduce your chance of being offered a place at your preferred school.
Primary and junior school places for September 2022
From 8 November 2021 you can apply online for your child’s school place https://www.essex.gov.uk/apply-for-a-primary-school-place
You must submit an application by the national closing date of 15 January 2022. Applications received after this date are considered late and will reduce your chance of being offered a place at your preferred schools.
Free School Meals Funding
You can register for Free Schools Meals Funding if you meet the criteria below.
If you have a child in Key Stage One and are receiving the free meal, which is part of the universal offer, you could be missing out on this additional funding for the school, which will support your child with their learning, if you meet the criteria below. You have to apply for this funding. If you think you meet the criteria below then please follow the guidance below and contact the school office.
https://www.gov.uk/apply-free-school-meals
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DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
22.9.21 Fitness Day
22.9.21 Girls’ Football Festival years 5 and 6 am, years 3 and 4 pm
24.9.21 School Coffee Morning for Parents – view decking and raise money for MacMillan
27.9.21 – 30.9.21 Book Fair
30.9.21 Sports Ambassadors training
6.10.21 Years 5 and 6 Football Tournament – boys am and girls pm
13.10.21 Years 3 and 4 Multi Skills event pm
19.10.21 Flu Vaccine
20.10.21 Cross Country Event years 1 – 6 am
22.10.21 INSET Day – school closed to pupils
11.10.21 E-safety training for Staff/Pupil/Parents – online
18.10.21 – 21.10.21 Bikeability for year 6
1.11.21 – 5.11.21 Friendship Week
3.11.21 Dodgeball years 3 and 4 pm
15.11.21 Odd Sock day Anti Bullying Week
17.11.21 Dodgeball years 5 and 6 pm
17.11.21 Parent Evening
18.11.21 Parents Evening
19.11.21 Children in Need
25.11.21 Flu Vaccine
1.12.21 Sports Hall Athletics years 3 and 4
6.12.21 Tray Day
14.12.21 KS2 Dress Rehearsal (for pupils) am, KS1 Dress Rehearsal pm and KS2 Evening Performance for Parents of years 3 and 4
15.12.21 Church Service
15.12.21 Christmas Lunch
16.12.21 Reception Nativity am, KS1 Performance pm and KS2 Evening Performance for Parents of years 5 and 6
17.12.21 Last day of term
4.1.22 INSET day – school closed to pupils
5.1.22 New Spring term begins
ACHIEVEMENTS
STAR OF THE WEEK
Week ending September 10th
Reception not this week
Year One Caleb – for being an excellent role model in class by being really respectful and
working hard. He listens carefully to others and thoughtfully completes his work
Year Two Phoenix – for a fantastic attitude towards her work
Year Three Ethan – for excellent effort tin PE this week
Year Four Cindy – for great use and understanding of inverted commas
Year Five Finlay – for his use of wonderful expanded noun phrases
Year Six Will – for being a thoughtful and responsible member of the class and buddy
Week ending September 10th
Reception Thea – for excellent listening and for answering questions well too
Year One Lila – for her positive attitude to learning. Lila has worked really hard to improve her
phonics
Year Two Alfie – for challenging himself with his Maths
Year Three Joseph – for always being kind, considerate and putting 100% into all learning
Year Four Rosie-Ann – for a super effort in her reading and writing
Year Five Sidney – for a fantastic understanding in French
Year Six Rory – for being a thoughtful and responsible member of Class 6
Look out for our second edition of ‘Friday Focus’ next week:
The fortnightly Friday Focus is a chance for every class at Clavering to share their learning with the Clavering School community. It is a great opportunity to find out what each year group has been up to and engage in conversations around learning.
If you have any questions at any time then please feel free to make an appointment.
Have a good weekend.
Rosalind Allsop
Headteacher