Dear Parkfield Families,
From Shakespeare to spectacular theatre performances, it has been another week filled with memorable experiences at Parkfield! There has been plenty happening across school, including our class photographs on Tuesday, exciting creative opportunities and lots of sporting action.
Our Year 5 children enjoyed a fantastic Shakespeare-themed drama workshop this week. It was a wonderful opportunity to explore the world of Shakespeare through drama, creativity and performance. The children thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and it was great to see them developing their confidence and imagination.
On Thursday, our school hall was transformed into a theatre as we welcomed M6 Theatre for a special performance of 'All the Small Things'. What a fantastic experience for everyone who watched! Opportunities like this are an important part of our commitment to providing a rich and exciting curriculum, creating memorable moments that our Parkfielders will hopefully remember for years to come.
It has also been a busy week of sporting events, with children representing Parkfield in both cross-country and football competitions. A huge well done and thank you to everyone who took part. We are always incredibly proud of the enthusiasm, determination and sportsmanship our children show when representing the school.
Our Year 3 children had a very special experience this week as they met the wonderful children's author and illustrator David Litchfield! It was a fantastic opportunity to meet a real author and hopefully inspire our budding young writers and illustrators. Even better, every child got to take home one of his books to enjoy! These books were generously funded through our PTA, so a huge thank you to everyone who supports their fundraising efforts. It is another lovely example of how these funds help us provide memorable experiences for our Parkfielders.
Finally, a reminder that Parents' Evening takes place next week. If you haven't already done so, please book your appointment with your child's class teacher through Arbor. These five-minute meetings will focus on how well your child has settled into their new class and provide an opportunity to discuss their start to the school year. We look forward to welcoming you into school.
Thank you, as always, for your continued support. Have a wonderful weekend!
Mr Kemp
TUESDAY 20TH OCTOBER - Y3 FAMILY LEARNING @ 9AM Familes of our Y3 pupils are welcome to join us in the school hall for a lesson focussed on reading.
WEDNESDAY 21ST OCTOBER - PARENTS' EVENING - 3.30 - 6.30PM You are now able to book a slot on Arbor for a meeting with your child's class teacher about how they have settled into their new class. Please be advised that due to Parents’ Evening, children attending Busy Bees will need to be collected from the Year 4/6 door instead of the usual collection point.
FRIDAY 23RD OCTOBER - SCHOOL FINISHES FOR HALF TERM
MONDAY 2ND NOVEMBER - SCHOOL RE-OPENS AFTER HALF TERM
READ WITH YOUR CHILD? SIGN THEIR PERSONAL ORGANISER
A reminder to please record and sign your child's personal organiser when you have listened to them read. If you can listen to your child read a minimum of three times a week it makes a huge difference!
DONATIONS FOR EARLY BIRDS/BUSY BEES
We’re looking for any unwanted dolls or wooden food that you may have at home and would be happy to donate to our Breakfast and After School Club. The children love using these items in their imaginative play, and they would be a lovely addition to our resources. If you have anything suitable that you no longer need, we’d be very grateful for your donations. Please send them into school with your child or hand them to a member of staff.
POETRY COMPETITION
The children in Years 1-6 may have come home with a booklet with details of a poetry competition on the theme of 'This is Me' for Year 1 and 2 children and 'Wonder' for Years 3-6. The booklets will look like this:
This is an optional poetry competition for the children to take part in and it is not homework. We encourage your child to take part if they would like to. Please return the booklets to Mrs Clawson by Thursday 22nd October. Mrs Clawson will be sending the entries to Young Writers on Friday 23rd October. Happy poetry writing!
BABY NEWS
We'd like to announce the lovely news that our office administrator, Miss Pritchard, had a baby boy earlier this week. Congratulations to the whole family on the new addition.
PREVIOUS NEWS AND REMINDERS
Please note that you can use the links on the left (if viewing on a computer) or the top of this page (if viewing on a phone/tablet) to look back at previous news and messages that have been shared in previous newsletters.
DINNER MENU NEXT WEEK - WEEK 3
If you'd like to know what is on next weeks menu, please click here: https://www.parkfieldprimary.com/families/dinner-menus
If your child has gained a place you will have received an email to confirm this.
Please always check the newsletter to make sure your child's club is on the following week as they are sometimes cancelled due to Middleton Schools Sports fixtures.
Monday - Year 3 & 4 Multi Sports -
Tuesday - Year 5 & 5 Football - CANCELLED DUE TO RUGBY TOURNAMENT
Tuesday 22nd September - Cookery Club
Wednesday - Year 5 & 6 Multi Sports CANCELLED DUE TO PARENTS EVENING
Wednesday - Karaoke Club
Thursday - Year 4, 5 & 6 Cross Country Club (Lunchtime)
Thursday - Year 4, 5 & 6 Netball Club - THIS WILL FINISH AT 3:50PM
Mrs Gooding is married and has two grown-up children—a son and a daughter—and a little black dog named Pip. She is a lifelong book lover who, as a child, would read under the covers with a torch, and her love of stories has never faded. She has a soft spot for chocolate and enjoys cosy evenings snuggled in front of the fire, especially when watching a feel-good film.
Mrs Gooding has been teaching at Parkfield for over 25 years and still loves it just as much as ever—she has even taught some of the parents!
Reception: 95%
Year 1: 95%
Year 2: 96.3%
Year 3: 95.3%
Year 4: 93'6%
Year 5: 90.7%
Year 6: 94.8%
Whole School: 94.4%
Number of lates this week: 39
A reminder that classes that achieve at least 96% attendance (no more than 6 days of absence across a class) get a reward on their attendance ladder!
This year children can be awarded with either a Platinum, Gold, Silver or Bronze certificate of attendance in recognition of meeting our school target of 96%. We will regularly update you on how well your child is doing.
Platinum: 100% attendance (0 days absent)
Gold: 98% attendance or above (3 days absent)
Silver: 97% attendance or above (5 days absent)
Bronze: 96% attendance or above (6 days absent)
Please note that, in line with the school policy, fines will be issued to families that go on a term time holiday where children miss 5 consecutive full days. Currently the fine is £160 per child per parent which equates to a £640 fine for a two parent family with two children. This is reduced to £320 if paid within 21days. If you are going on holiday due to exceptional circumstances, please speak to the headteacher as a fine may not have to be issued. More information an be found on our attendance policy found here.
Persistent absence is defined by the Government as attendance below 90%. This equates to 19 days or more of absence a year or 100+ lessons missed. If a child’s attendance drops below 90% this could lead to them becoming a safeguarding concern and will certainly lead to them doing less well than their peers.
The link between attendance and achievement cannot be over stated. Your child will achieve better if they are in school every day. Only in very exceptional circumstances should a child be absent from school. Please ring the school office no later than 8.30am to report an absence.
Please get your child to school on time. Poor punctuality can lead to your child…
Feeling embarrassed in front of their friends
Missing the beginning of vital lessons making them fall behind
Missing important instructions for the rest of the school day
At Parkfield children are to line up before school and doors open at 8.45am. They close at 8.50am.
Arrivals after 8.50am are to sign in at the main office and anyone arriving after 9.15am are marked as an unauthorised absence for the morning session.
Our overall school attendance is steadily increasing and one reason is due to many of our families taking up the school offer of bringing a bottle of Calpol in for their child if they are feeling slightly under the weather. The medicine can then be administered by school staff if your child needs it throughout the day. We do find that many of our Parkfielders show that true resilience when they arrive in school and get through their day with very little support. However, if your child is too poorly to stay in school, we will contact home so that they can be collected.
Mrs Smith is our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) supported by Mr Kemp, Mrs Clawson and Mrs Edyvean. If you have any concerns about the needs or welfare of a pupil, please don't hesitate to contact the school. We all share a responsibility to our pupils safety and wellbeing.
As a school our promise is: We will listen, we will support and we will take action.
More information can be found on the school website here: https://www.parkfieldprimary.com/website/safeguarding-and-child-protection.html
STAY SAFE REMINDERS
If your child is attending Early Birds, please walk down the path and through the KS1 yard - it may take a few more seconds but it's much safer than walking through the busy car park. If the hall door is ever closed, simply ring the bell for assistance.
Dogs are not permitted in the school playground.
If driving, park further away from the school and walk to reduce congestion and the possibility of any serious accidents.
Unfortunately, Parents and Carers are not allowed to drop off and pick up from the school car park between 8.30am and 4.00pm.
Children are not allowed on the play equipment before and after school. Please keep them off.
5 WAYS TO WELLBEING
At Parkfield we promote the 5 ways to Wellbeing which can help children and adults to achieve a more positive lifestyle.
#THRIVE offer a local service for children and young people aged up to 19 years who are experiencing health and wellbeing issues such as feeling stressed, worried or not enjoying things. #Thrive can also provide advice and support to parents, carers and anyone that works with a child or young person. You can find out more information about the service by clicking here: https://www.penninecare.nhs.uk/thrive
Latest Class Updates