February 2021

I hope that you all managed to have a good break during half term. Thank you to those of you who took part in the kindness and reading challenges - the photographs received really put a smile on my face.

Earlier this week the Prime Minister brought us the long awaited news that children in England can return to the classroom on Monday 8th March. His announcement signals the start of what we all hope is a step towards a more familiar and better way of living, where children can once again enjoy all of the benefits of being back in school.

As a large majority of our teachers and support staff have not been in school regularly since before the Christmas break, we will use Friday 5^th March 2021 to make sure we are ready to welcome all of our children back. This means that no children will be in school and no online lessons will be taking place on Friday 5^th March 2021. Pupils can use this time to prepare for their return to school and/or complete any unfinished work they may have.

The safe return measures we used in the last full return to school will apply from Monday 8th March 2021. In short, children will be kept in consistent groups (bubbles) for lessons/learning activities, lunchtimes, assemblies, sports, playtimes and extra-curricular activities. Social distancing will be in force at all times and safe hygiene practices actively promoted.

The key headlines are:

• All year groups (Nursery to Year 6) are expected legally to return to school on Monday 8^th March 2021

• The school gates will open at 08:45 - 09:00 (as normal) for the start of the day

• After school clubs will be offered after the Easter break

• Unfortunately, there will be no Breakfast Club until further notice

• Pupils are not required to wear face masks in school

• Staff will be wearing face masks in communal areas around school

• Teachers and school staff will be preparing in school on Friday 5^th March 2021 for the restart - the school will be closed to all children and there will be no online lessons

I would also like to take this opportunity to remind parents and carers to adhere to social distancing rules at drop off and pick up, not to enter the school site or congregate near the school gates. You can find a summary of our Safe Return plans on our website.

We can’t wait to have all the children back in school. Some will require time and space to adjust and we will work together so they can all find their feet, re-orientate themselves socially and get back into the rhythm of day to day school life, so that they feel confident and most of all, happy.

Thank you so much for your support and commitment throughout lockdown; we are proud of the children and grateful to you for all you have done during this difficult time.

As ever, please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.

It is good to end a busy week knowing that there has been some exceptional learning taking place both in school and at home. Once again, our remote learning offer and engagement has been outstanding. We are so proud of each and every child and impressed by the support they are receiving at home.

Although we have had snow showers this week, the nights are getting lighter and Spring will soon be here. I know everyone is waiting for the change in season and hopefully the change in lockdown rules. We do not have any information about the opening of schools to all pupils to date. However, as soon as we know, we will of course let you know immediately. Fingers crossed for a return to some normality!

Despite it is only February, we are starting to plan for the new academic year. We are opening our applications for Nursery. We will be continuing to offer a morning only Nursery for 2021/22 with up to 26 places available. Please spread the word and tell friends and families what an amazing school this is. The admissions for Reception places for September 2021 have been impressive, with over 189 applications being made for Lea Forest - this shows how much our school has grown in reputation over recent years. If you have any questions about admissions or you know someone who would like a place for their child, please contact Mrs Wakelam in the school office.

Thank you for your lovely comments in the recent weeks in response to surveys and our ‘Thank You’ padlet wall. On behalf of all the staff, can I thank you for your kind comments and appreciation of the work the staff are doing during this difficult time. The online provision that has been provided to the children attending Lea Forest has been second to none. We have taken on board many of the suggestions from parents and in the next half term, we will be carrying out a virtual parents evening (meet). Each teacher will provide a set time where you will be able to hear about the progress your child has made this year and how you can help them further.

Like you, we are very proud of the educational offer we are providing all of our pupils. As well as school work we have lots of fun ideas and physical activities. We have live lessons, topic ideas, lots of additional activities and ideas, as well as our very own Virtual Library. Check out the ‘Virtual School’ section of our website to find out more.

As I am sure you will appreciate, there is no need to set additional homework as the activities and lessons on our website are endless. Don't forget to encourage your children to get involved in all the fun competitions and games the teachers are setting over the half term break. There will be no live lessons during the half term to ensure everyone gets the chance for lots of screen breaks.

We look forward to welcoming all of the children back online at 9am on Monday 22nd February 2021.

Again, thank you for all your support. Have a good half term break - stay safe and take care!

Mr Clarke

If you have been receiving FSM vouchers you will continue to receive a voucher during half term. However as this voucher is being provided by Birmingham City Council it will be from a different company called Sodexo. You will receive an email containing your eCheque, follow instructions to get your eVoucher.

How To Use your eCheque and eVouchers Birmingham City Council: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1L1l-NymQjwnjM07JIh4kyCwV8uM5sBci/view?usp=sharing

eCheque and eVoucher FAQ's: https://drive.google.com/file/d/17-F67rSGxHcXLQTE0YAAcUPrJ9Gc6Ff7/view?usp=sharing

We have been advised that Nursery children who do not have lunch in school will not get a voucher for half term.

Should you have any queries or questions please get in touch via FSM@leaforestacademy.org - Please DO NOT send Mr Clarke or other members of staff ClassDojo messages about FSM enquiries.

It is good to end a busy week knowing that there has been some super learning taking place both in school and at home. I am forever impressed by the children's engagement to their learning and the commitment and support they get from their families and carers at home. Once again, our remote learning engagement attendance has been outstanding.

We are still awaiting an announcement, but have our fingers crossed for a March 8th return. The government has promised to give us 2 weeks notice this time and it could be a phased return for certain year groups. It can’t come round soon enough for us! School just isn’t the same without all of us being together. We will of course keep you informed along the way of any announcements and decisions.

Every child and family is unique and one of our priorities is to make sure the work set is right for your child. I know that not everything can be completed everyday and that you and your child(ren) are doing your best. As we have come to the end of yet another week of lockdown, I wanted to reiterate my commitment to our 3 central themes:

1. Great Virtual Learning:

We continue to listen to your feedback each week through the pulse survey and, together with our Trust (AET), we are always looking at ways to improve the virtual learning both in quality and experience. So far this term we have introduced so many amazing initiatives and we are always looking to make our offer the best we can for each and every child. We will also be giving away an ipad in the next few weeks for remarkable home learning - watch this space! Check out our website to find out more.

2. Wellbeing Support:

Please do take a look at our well being tips, support and resources here. Over the last two weeks we have been busy carrying out check-ins with each and every child. We’ve also introduced Wellbeing Wednesdays to help you and your children. This week’s Wellbeing was a HUGE success with 99.59% of our children and families engaging with the fun activities. It was also wonderful to see everyone dressing to express.

3. Having some fun:

You spend a lot of time staring at screens everyday concentrating on learning and it’s important we get some ‘Screen Break’ time. As part of a ‘Wellbeing Wednesdays’, we are setting weekly competitions which are linked to AETs Remarkable Lives Festival. So far, we have set poetry and an art competition and we have been completely amazed by the entries. I shared the poetry competition winners last week and I’ll share the winners of the art competition in next week’s newsletter.

Looking ahead to next week - We will be taking part in Internet Safety Day on Tuesday 9th February. More information about this event can be found here and on page 2 on this newsletter. We will also be sharing daily updates and information via Facebook, ClassDojo and other platforms.

Again, thank you for all your support. Have a good weekend - stay safe and take care!

The global theme this year is ‘Together for a better internet’ and in the UK the theme is ‘An internet we trust - exploring reliability in the online world’. Children learning at home online and in school will be taking part in lessons to explore how to separate fact from fiction on the internet and how they can stay safe, responsible and wise in the digital world. Lessons will be linked to children’s rights: Article 16 - the right to privacy and Article 17 - access to information from the media.

We will be sharing online safety advice and resources for parents from a range of organisations throughout the week.

Danielle in 6CF has written the following letter about saving our planet. Please read the points she has to make and see if you can do your bit to help out...

Dear fellow citizens,

I am deeply concerned about OUR world as it's being destroyed day by day due to climate change. If we all made one little change to our daily life it would have a huge impact on our world. This could be something as simple as:

Use cars less because vehicles have a major impact on our environment by releasing carbon dioxide, which is the largest source of greenhouse gases and emissions. As these gases build up, they trap heat in the atmosphere, causing climate change. So, if everyone uses their car for at least one less journey a week and cycle or walk instead that could reduce the emissions.

Another one could be, you can turn down your heating by a couple of degrees and wear a jumper as this will save energy and could reduce bills for gas and electricity.

Only wash your clothes if dirty, to reduce the water wastage and try to dry naturally if possible instead of using a dryer as that also uses a lot of energy.

There are other things that you can do but the main one is STOP tossing rubbish on the floor and in the ocean because that is how you are killing animals and preventing this world to have plastic everywhere and ruining our planet. So stop throwing rubbish on the floor and PUT it in the BINS because that is what bins are for. 260 million tons of plastic is produced each year and 10% of it ends up in our ocean.If that percent is getting thrown in our ocean how much do you think is ending up on our ground levels?

If you want to know more ways to save our planet by doing things check out my letter for ‘what can you do to make a change’.

Living in a world that is getting destroyed is not good for nature and us so make a change. Make our world a better place and plastic free. Do recycle because that will make a good environment for us to live in.By getting rid of more waste and garbage use reusable things for instance: reusable water bottles,straws,bags and more.

Your sincerely

Danielle Cawser (6CF)