December2024

As we reach the end of a truly wonderful term, we would like to express our gratitude for your continued support. Our students have thoroughly enjoyed preparing for and participating in a variety of festive activities. The recent Christmas productions were a resounding success, and we were delighted to welcome so many parents, carers, and friends of Lea Forest to share in the festivities. We are incredibly proud of the academic excellence and diverse opportunities offered at Lea Forest. Our dedicated staff strive to provide an exceptional education for every child, every day. We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Winter Fair

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all our families and friends who attended our Winter Fair on Friday, December 13th. Thanks to your generosity, we raised an incredible £2072.20! The festive atmosphere and excitement were palpable throughout the event. We would also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to our dedicated staff who volunteered their time to create and host the various stalls. A special thanks also goes to our 'Friends of Lea Forest' for their invaluable contributions. If you have any suggestions for future stalls or events, please don't hesitate to share your ideas with a member of our staff. Thank you once again for your support!

INSET Day

Please be advised that school will be closed for ‘Teacher Training’ on Monday, 6th January 2025. We look forward to welcoming all children back to school on Tuesday, 7th January 2025 as we embark on the Spring Term.

Staff Christmas Video

In keeping with tradition, our dedicated staff team has created a heartwarming Christmas Video to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. 

MP Liam Byrne & CEO of Restore the Music, Polly Moore Visit

We were honored to host MP Liam Byrne and Polly Moore, CEO of Restore the Music, at Lea Forest on Friday, December 13th. Both distinguished guests were deeply impressed by the high-quality music education we provide for our students and our commitment to the arts. We extend our sincere gratitude to the dedicated staff who lead our music curriculum and to the talented students who performed for our visitors.

We would like to wish each and every one of you a truly special Christmas. We hope that our children have a special time with their families and loved ones over the Christmas period. They have been a credit 

to you this last term and we look forward to seeing you all safe and well on Tuesday, 7th January 2025.

Miss Francois & Mr White 

This half term we will be running several initiatives to encourage great attendance from all of our pupils.  The winners of the Attendance Leagues will win a ‘Pick and Mix’ party. Look out for more information about all attendance initiatives on Class Dojo. Also, look out for daily updates on your child’s teacher about their class attendance. One class each week will achieve the ‘golden ticket’ and a class reward for the best attendance.

Our attendance dropped below our target this week. We need everyone's support to help achieve 97% in 2025!

Our attendance for 

the week is

94.41%

Our attendance for 

the year to date

95.43%

Keep up the great work!

The children in nursery and reception have had an amazing start to their learning journey at Lea Forest. Everybody comments on how settled, engaged and independent the children are. Nursery have had the opportunity to learn and explore inside and outside and to develop their communication and social skills. We are amazed by the progress they have made.  Reception have learnt all of the Phase 2 phonemes and are able to apply these sound in their reading and writing. The writing across Reception is truly remarkable. We can’t wait for 2025!

Children in Years 1 and 2 have made a wonderful start to the school year! They've enjoyed enriching experiences like workshops with The REP Theatre and a visit to Wonderland. We're dedicated to helping our children transition from learning to read to reading to learn. Our daily 'Hit Squad' sessions are proving highly effective in improving reading fluency across KS1. The Spring term promises exciting adventures! Year 2 will embark on a trip to Hatton Country World, while Year 1 will work with Anthony from Creaturama. We look forward to sharing more updates with you soon.

It was a pleasure to welcome back all pupils in September. The high standards set in the previous year have been maintained, and each child has demonstrated a strong commitment to learning. This positive momentum has made for a fantastic start to the year for Years 3, 4, 5, and 6.

To enrich the curriculum, KS2 has participated in a variety of exciting trips and visits. These include excursions to Cadbury World, art galleries, places of worship, and a residential trip. These experiences align with our core principle of delivering both fun and fundamentals in education.

A new English approach has been successfully implemented this year, significantly enhancing pupils' enjoyment of reading and writing. The quality of work produced is truly impressive, and we are delighted with how well the children have adapted to the new curriculum.

We eagerly anticipate the opportunities that the Spring term will bring.

Elmer’s and Gruffalo's have had a remarkable term. The children have had the opportunity to work with Will our Actor in Residence. Through engaging activities and exciting trips, they have made significant strides in their speech, language, and communication skills. We've been impressed by their growing independence and eagerness to learn. As we look forward to 2025, we anticipate continued progress and development for each child.

There are lots of choices we make all the time. Having the freedom to make these choices is part of our individual liberty. Individual liberty is the belief that we should have the right to express ourselves and live our life as we choose while respecting and protecting the rights of other people. 

This forms part of our basic rights and freedoms. Our human rights are things we are all entitled to, to help us lead happy, safe and healthy lives. 

This week’s free online safety guide, provided by the National College, focuses on ‘Among Us’. A multiplayer ‘social deduction’ game set in outer space, Among Us enjoyed a surge in popularity in 2020 and has since maintained a dedicated fanbase (globally, around 60 million regular players each month) thanks to its unique nature, simple premise and ease of access across numerous platforms. The game’s onscreen action revolves around danger, disguise and deception - and there are certain parallels to be drawn with some of the real-life risks that parents and carer of need to be aware of.

Positive Parenting

This week our safeguarding focus is positive parenting and  relates to parenting techniques to help support with managing challenging behaviour at home. A child’s needs and behaviours can change as they grow and it is how we respond to those changes that can make a difference. Every child needs love, guidance, rules and boundaries. It is important to have set routines and be consistent with these. Rewards and sanctions can be used effectively to manage challenging behaviour.These should be clearly defined and followed through. Always remain calm and try not to get into a confrontation with your child. Try to find the underlying cause. Birmingham City Council provides a free online parenting course: From Birmingham with Love.

As the festive season approaches, Lea Forest has been bustling with activity. This week has been particularly busy, with a variety of visits, trips, workshops, awards ceremonies, and celebrations. The school community has been immersed in a rich tapestry of educational experiences, from hands-on learning to creative performances. The dedicated staff at Lea Forest have worked tirelessly to organize and facilitate these enriching activities. 

Attendance & Punctuality 

We have noticed a recent decline in attendance and punctuality. It is important that all children arrive at school before 9:00 AM to ensure they do not miss out on valuable learning time. We kindly request that you make every effort to ensure your child attends school regularly, even if they may feel slightly under the weather. If your child becomes unwell during the school day, we will contact you to arrange for their collection. Next week, we challenge all classes to achieve 100% attendance and punctuality. By attending school every day and arriving on time, children can maximize their learning potential and earn rewards, such as stars for their passports. Your support in prioritizing regular school attendance and punctuality is greatly appreciated.

Aston Villa Communication & Oracy Project

We were delighted to welcome visitors from Aston Villa Academy to our school for a special community project. Our students had the unique opportunity to learn from professional footballers and collaborate on an oracy project. The project focused on the importance of effective communication and tailoring messages to different audiences and can be found online using the following link. 

Friends of Lea Forest Meeting

The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, 8th December, from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM to discuss the ‘Winter Fair Itinerary’.

Winter Fair 

We're excited to announce our upcoming Winter Fair, which will take place on Friday, 13th December 2024. To ensure a smooth setup for our wonderful stalls, please collect your children by 2:30PM. The fair will commence at 3:00PM. Please use the Door 4 Entrance on Eddish Road to enter the fair. We look forward to seeing you there!

Final Day of term

On the last day of term (Friday 20th December), we will finishing at 1:30pm.  Please make arrangements 

for your child(ren) to be collected on time on this day. Early Years will be dismissed from 1:00pm, 

Key Stage 1 at 1:10pm and KS2 at 1:20pm.

Have a fantastic weekend :)

Miss Francois & Mr White 

This half term we will be running several initiatives to encourage great attendance from all of our pupils.  The winners of the Attendance Leagues will win a ‘Pick and Mix’ party. Look out for more information about all attendance initiatives on Class Dojo. Also, look out for daily updates on your child’s teacher about their class attendance. One class each week will achieve the ‘golden ticket’ and a class reward for the best attendance.

Our attendance dropped sharply below our target this week. We need everyone's support to help achieve 97% next week.

Our attendance for 

the week is

94.31%

Our attendance for 

the year to date

96.1%

Keep up the great work!

Sometimes we are asked the question: Is 90% good? It would be if you were taking a test or an exam, but if we are talking about attendance 90% would be extremely concerning.:

When talking about attendance - achieving 90% over a school year means your child will have missed:

• 3 and a half weeks of school

• 18 school days

• 18 hours of Maths

• 18 hours of English

• 21 hours of social interaction time with their peers

We set a target of 97% attendance or higher for all of our pupils. You can see below how reaching or exceeding that target drastically shifts the missed opportunities.The next time you are thinking about keeping your child off school, just ask yourself again whether that is the right thing to do. If you are unsure, get in contact with us - we are here to help pupils achieve that 97%.

This week, Year 3 and 4 girls participated in a thrilling football festival, where they honed their dribbling, shooting, and penalty-taking skills. The event provided an excellent opportunity for them to 

develop their footballing abilities and social skills. Well done, girls!

Finally, we wish the selected Year 5 and 6 boys the best of luck as they compete in the Yardley Fives football tournament next week. We hope they enjoy the experience and achieve success.

#TeamLeaForest

Travel Tracker is back for 2024-2025 and we're really excited to see if Lea Forest can continue to top the league table. This week 5SJ, 3BS and 3JM  are our most active classes. We have managed to record 1092 active trips to school so far this month.

We need everyone to help by choosing to walk, scoot, cycle, park and stride or use public transport to get to school. This will help to keep the roads around Lea Forest safe for our children and improve air quality for our community.

When children first started getting smartphones a decade ago, there was no research about their impact. Now there is, and it’s overwhelming. Exposing children to things their brains aren’t yet developed enough to deal with can cause a whole host of problems, from triggering anxiety and eating disorders, to opening the door to cyberbullying or sexual predators, according to the latest research. When we give our

children access to the whole world in their pocket, we give the whole world access to our children. We now that parents have been put in an impossible position. Either we allow our children access to something harmful, or we or risk alienating them among their peers. Please follow this link for more information 

Tens of thousands of families across the UK are linking arms to stand up for childhood against the harms of smartphones and social media.  Check out how many people have signed the Parent Pact in your county, school, and year group so far using this link. 

. As a school, we are encouraging parents to stand together and stop the use of  smartphones at an early age. Join the growing movement of parents across Britain who believe that childhood is too short to be spent on a smartphone. It takes 30 seconds to sign the Parent Pact. And the more of us who do, the quicker we'll change the social norm - and protect childhood for our children and future generations.

Every child has the right to privacy. The law should protect the child’s private, family and home life. This fundamental right extends to children’s digital lives, particularly in today's age of smartphones and social media.

In next week’s Vote for Schools our KS1 pupils will be discussing ‘Do emojis help you to communicate?In KS2 pupils will be discussing, ‘Do emojis make communicating easier?

We are pleased to announce that this year’s Christmas Fayre will be held on Friday 13 December. To make the fayre as successful as previous years, we will be holding non-uniform days and asking for an exchange of a small gift for the stalls, as listed.

Friday 13 December

Sweets

Damien Hirst, a leading figure in the Young British Artists movement, is renowned for his provocative art. His iconic works, like "The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living," feature preserved animals in formaldehyde. Hirst's work challenges traditional notions of art and has sparked both admiration and controversy.

Marie Curie, a Polish-born physicist and chemist, is renowned for her groundbreaking work on radioactivity. She, alongside her husband Pierre Curie, discovered polonium and radium. Curie was the first person to win Nobel Prizes in two different scientific fields: Physics in 1903 and Chemistry in 1911. Her dedication to scientific research and her inspiring legacy continue to influence generations.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, a prominent Russian composer, is celebrated for his contributions to classical music. His works, including ballets like "Swan Lake" and "The Nutcracker," and symphonies such as the "Pathetique," are renowned for their emotional depth and technical brilliance. Tchaikovsky's music continues to captivate audiences worldwide.

This week’s free online safety guide, provided by the National College, focuses on Grand Theft Auto. GTA is an action-adventure video game series where players control criminals and wreak havoc in order to complete missions and progress through the game. During the early stages of the game, it solely focuses on completing missions, however as the game grew more popular the makers of GTA decided to introduce a narrative to each edition of the game. Grand Theft Auto is accessible on a number of devices including: Playstation, XBox, PC and mobile…

This week our safeguarding focus is Criminal Exploitation. Criminal Exploitation is where children and young people are manipulated and coerced into committing crimes.They might be victims of violence or pressured into doing things like stealing or carrying drugs or weapons. They might be abused, exploited and put into dangerous situations, or find themselves as part of a gang. Some of the dangers of criminal exploitation are: being subject to threats, blackmail and violence; having their safety or the safety of family and friends threatened; risk of emotional harm or long term impact on education or employment prospects. For more information visit the NSPCC website.

Rethink Your Wrapping Paper

This holiday season, make a sustainable choice by opting for recyclable wrapping paper. Avoid glitter, foil, and glossy coatings, as these materials cannot be recycled. Consider eco-friendly alternatives like butcher paper or newspaper, or wrap your gifts in reusable boxes or bags to minimize waste.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all parents who attended our maths workshops this week. Your support and enthusiasm were invaluable. We were delighted to see such a strong turnout. Year 2 explored fact families using addition and subtraction, while Year 1 delved into the world of shapes.

Look out for more workshops in 2025.