Issue 7 - Friday 11th October 2024
Headteacher's Welcome
Dear Parkfield Families,
We are holding our annual Harvest service this Monday and we would love for our Parkfield families to demonstrate their kindness and generosity by donating items to our local foodbank. This year, The Lighthouse Project is asking for the usual non-perishable food items, as well as toiletries to support vulnerable families in our borough. Any contributions will be greatly appreciated. If you're able to donate, please send your items with your child on Monday morning. Your support truly makes a difference to those in need.
Our Year 6 Parkfielders had an unforgettable week with two fantastic trips out of school.
Crucial Crew: At this event, the children participated in workshops that taught them essential life skills, focusing on how to stay safe in various real-world scenarios.
Creative Arts Day at St Anne's Academy: The children also had the opportunity to take part in a range of creative lessons delivered by the staff at a local secondary school. This gave them a glimpse into secondary school life, and as you can see from the photographs found here, they had a brilliant time!
Both experiences were valuable in expanding their horizons and preparing them for their future transitions.
Did you know that you can track when your child receives a Positive Dojo Point? This is our way of celebrating when your child goes above and beyond, helping to foster a positive and encouraging environment both at school and at home. If you download the ClassDojo app, you'll receive real-time notifications when your child is recognized. Over 80% of our families are already using the app, and it’s a wonderful conversation starter at home time! If you haven't signed up yet, please do so by clicking here.
Wishing you all a restful and enjoyable weekend!
Mr. Kemp
LATEST NEWS
YEAR 3 FAMILY LEARNING
Our year 3 families are invited to join our next 'Family Learning' event of the year this Tuesday 15th October from 9am - 10am in the school hall. The event will include the opportunity to work alongside your child with some maths activities and we hope that this will give you the confidence to better support at home. We hope to see you there.
FUTURE FAMILY LEARNING EVENTS
For information the future family learning events this term are:
Tuesday 5th November, 9-10am: Y2
SCIENCE CLUB
We can confirm that we’ve had a great response to the Mad Science After School Programme and it will be going ahead as scheduled on Fridays from Friday 8th November 3:15pm-4:15pm. There are places remaining so if you want to book your child on please book online at https://northengland.madscience.org/parents-register-a.aspx or contact the Mad Science Team on office@madsciencenw.com or call 01772 628844
HARVEST SERVICE
Our annual Harvest celebrations are going to be taking place on Monday 14th October. The day will include an assembly and later on in the week, Y2 and 4 will be visiting All Saint's and Martyrs for a 'Harvest Experience'. On the day we welcome food donations that will be collected by The Lighthouse Project and sent to vulnerable families across Middleton. Any support is appreciated.
PARKFIELD MATHS DAY - WE ARE DRESSING UP!
Parkfield Math's Day will take place on Friday 25th October. Throughout the day children across school will take part in engaging and exciting Math's challenges and events. This is an opportunity for us to celebrate Maths as a whole school which will help to promote positive Math's mindsets for all of our children. As part of the Maths day, the children will have access to their Times Table Rockstars and Numbots accounts. Therefore, on Friday 25th October, children across the school can come to school dressed as a number, a robot or a rockstar. Please use materials/ clothing that is inexpensive, or use items that you already own. Costumes can be crafted from old t-shirts, boxes, tin foil, fabric pens etc. There will be a certificate for the best dressed in each class, so get creative!
CLASS DOJO FOR COMMUNICATION
We are trialing the use of Class Dojo as a communication tool over the next few weeks across Year 1 and 2. It will be used to promote the phonics videos that children can watch. Please ensure you have the dojo app on your phone so you can follow what is happening. You can sign up by clicking here.
AFTER SCHOOL SPORTS CLUBS
Please can your child come to school in their PE kit if they have a place in the After School Sports Club.
Monday - 14/10/24 -Year 3/4 Football
Tuesday - 15/10/24 - Year 5/6 Football (CANCELLED due to football match)
Wednesday - 16/10/24 - Year 5/6 Multi Sports (CANCELLED due to STAFF INSET)
Thursday - 17/10/24 - Year 4/5/6 Cross Country
REMINDERS
EMILE SPELLING
We are aware that some parents/carers are having problems accessing their child's Emile account at home on a range of devices. The current issue seems to be with accessing the app on iPads. We are meeting with the company to discuss the issues shared with us and we will send out an update to all parents/carers when we have further information within the next week. In the meantime, all children have the opportunity to access the games and activities once per week in one of their three spelling lessons. We will continue to monitor children's progress and an update about this will be shared with you at Parent's Evening.
Thank you for your patience with this.
PROSPECTIVE PARENT OPEN MORNINGS
Is your child due to start primary school in September 2025? Do you know anyone that has a child starting school in 2025? If so, we are inviting prospective parents into the school on Tuesday 12th November from 9.15am. There will be a presentation from the headteacher followed by a tour of the school from our school councillors. Please contact the school office to book your place.
KS1 READING
Thank you for all of the reading support you are providing with your children at home. Reading is fundamental to children accessing the whole curriculum and has a significant impact on their future success. Your child will be reading every day in school during their phonics lesson. This reading will no longer be recorded in their diary, but please be reassured that reading in school is happening daily. If your child reads with an adult in addition to the phonics lesson, this will be recorded in the reading diary.
Please encourage your child to read their Read Write Inc. book with you at home every night, this does not need to be the whole book and can be a few pages at a time. Once you have heard your child read please sign their diary to let us know they have read at home.
A reminder that your child needs to bring their reading diary and reading book into school everyday.
CLASS DOJO
Would you like to see how well your child is doing at school? We award Dojo points for pupils that go 'above and beyond' in the classroom and these can be seen by parents if you download the app. We have over 80% of our families signed up already! If you click this link to set up a parent account we will then approve it. This acess will provide you with the opportunity to see how many Dojo points your child has earnt and what for. Please note that we are only using the app for Dojo points, not messages or photos, therefore you do not need any of the subscription options you might be offered.
Latest Class Updates
SAFEGUARDING INFORMATION
Mr Kemp is our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) supported by Mrs Clawson and Mrs Smith (Deputy DSL). 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
ATTENDANCE and PUNCTUALITY
As you are all aware, school attendance and punctuality is one of Parkfields priorities and I have been thrilled with the support that parents have been giving with regards to improving their children’s attendance.
Our school target is 96% this year and we need your continued support to ensure that we meet this mark.
ATTENDANCE - HOLIDAYS IN TERM TIME
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 £60 per child per parent which equates to a £240 fine for a two parent family with two children. 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
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. This could also result in the authority taking legal action against parents, resulting in a fine or court appearance. Over the next few weeks I will be making contact by letter with the families of children whose attendance is below 90% to invite you into school for a discussion about how we can support you to improve your child’s attendance.
Thank you so much to all the families who have been working hard to ensure children’s attendance and punctuality is high. Establishing early good habits really will make a positive difference to their lives. 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.
Punctuality
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 shortly after.
If you arrive after the doors are closed you will have to come through the school office.
Arrivals after 9.30am are classed as an unauthorised absence for the morning session.
HEALTH and SAFETY
STAY SAFE EARLY BIRDS - REMINDER
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 at any time.
Children are not allowed on the play equipment before and after school. Please keep them off.
MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING
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