Message from the Principal:

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to our first newsletter of 2024. It seems late to be saying this but a very happy new year to you all!  We have had a great start to the new term, and have enjoyed a special treat today with a visit from a famous author. Jenny McLachlan, author of The Land of Roar, Dead Good Detectives, Sun Kissed and many more fantastic children’s books, came to work with us for the day. Please ask your children about this tonight!

We have welcomed Miss Hutson, our new Vice Principal this term and many of you have already met her on the gate with me each morning. We had to say a temporary goodbye to one of our teachers last week, as Miss Jervis left us to have her baby! I will update with news as soon as I have it but at the minute she’s still waiting for the new arrival!

Just a reminder to ensure that the children are well wrapped up as the weather seems to have turned at the minute and we have still had some children coming in with no coats. Unless we have heavy rain, we will still be outside for fresh air so gloves and scarves are a good idea. We have also had a huge increase recently of children without PE kits. It is really important that children get their full allocation of PE time; this is a government requirement therefore kits must be in school on PE days. Thank you for your support with this.

Please enjoy looking at what the children have been up to in each year group, and I hope you all have a lovely weekend.

S Sargent

Principal

This year in school, we aim to improve attendance and punctuality as a key priority.

Here are the attendance figures  per year group: 

The link between attendance and attainment is clear: 

In 2018/19, just 40% of persistently absent (PA) children in KS2 achieved expected KS2 standards, compared with 84% of pupils who were regular attenders. 

But attendance is important for more than just attainment: 

Regular school attendance can facilitate positive peer relationships, which is a protective factor for mental health and wellbeing. 

What's happening in class at WBJS? 

Maths

Suffering From Maths Anxiety-Don’t Stress!!

However you feel about maths, you’re not alone. Some parents and carers try to avoid maths in their daily lives. For some, the thought of helping children with maths homework fills them with dread. Adults often experience worry, stress or fear around numbers. If you feel this way about maths, it is not unusual. You can still support your children with their maths learning – but you may find it more comfortable to do so if you overcome your fears. And these feelings can be overcome.

Why is it common to feel anxiety around maths?

There are lots of reasons why someone could feel anxious about maths:

• Bad experiences at school

• Feeling under pressure

• Fear of failure

• Being told they’re not a maths person

• Lack of support

These reasons are often beyond our own control. They do not truly reflect our abilities. If you feel anxious about maths, it doesn’t mean that you are unable to learn.

Tips for feeling differently about maths

• Talk about your feelings about maths. Finding a supportive person to talk to about your feelings and worries can often help overcome anxiety. You might learn that lots of people feel the same. But be sure to have these conversations away from children – always try to be positive about maths around them.

• Challenge your own beliefs. Think about why you don’t feel good about maths. Are those reasons fair? For example, does finding maths hard at school mean that you’ll always be bad at it?

• Try not to compare yourself to others. Maybe you find maths harder than some others do, or feel that other people have better maths skills than you. Learning is not about being better than others, but about improving on your own skills and confidence.

• Reduce pressure. You don’t have to rush and you don’t have to show anyone else what you’re doing. Other people knowing if we are getting things wrong can sometimes make us panic. It’s ok to learn at your own pace – maths is not a race! You can learn without pressure by using resources like the National Numeracy Challenge: www.nnchallenge.org.uk/fmt

• Set realistic goals. Don’t expect yourself to become a maths professor overnight. A little bit of learning on a regular basis can help you improve at a steady pace.

What are we currently reading in English?

 General Information

• We have a new information rack in our school office with helpful information and advice for our parents.

• At William Barcroft Junior School we pride ourselves on having high expectations about the school uniform. Recently we have noticed that a number of children have not been wearing appropriate school shoes. If your child arrives at school without the correct footwear they will be provided with a pair of plimsolls to wear for the day. Thank you in advance for your support  

• Uniform Direct are our uniform provider for our school and provide a wide range of William Barcroft Junior School uniform available to purchase from the Grimsby store, at 54 Victoria Street (opposite Marks and Spencer Food Hall).

• Please do not ride bikes and scooters on the school grounds, this is for children and adults. This is for the safety of our children, thank you. 

• Please do not bring pets onto the school site due to health and safety regulations.

PE kit MUST be brought to school on your child's PE days,

Year 3 will have PE Monday and Wednesday

Year 4 will have PE Tuesday and Thursday

Year 5 will have PE Monday and Wednesday

Year 6 will have PE Tuesday and Thursday

For Parents - Fortnite Guidance

Epic Games (which includes Fortnite, Fall Guys and Rocket League) provide some really useful features for parents to manage their child's gaming experience. This includes 'cabined accounts'  which are accounts where the child is under 13 and certain restrictions are applied by default, e.g. talking to other players. You can find further details and instructions from Internet Matters.

https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/gaming-consoles/epic-games-store-parental-controls-guide/

For Parents - WhatsApp Guide

Even though WhatsApp has an age restriction of 16+, during our recent student survey the most popular messaging app from Y4/5 upwards. Over the last year or so WhatsApp have introduced new features so we have included an updated guide on this week’s newsletter so that parents can ensure the most appropriate settings are applied for their child. 

https://www.internetmatters.org/resources/whatsapp-safety-a-how-to-guide-for-parents/

We are excited to announce the official launch of the Settings, Parents and Carers for Education (SPACE) Forum on the 16th of January 2024 at Grimsby Town Hall 9.30am -11.30am. The forum originally started as part of the Autism in Schools project and was so successful and productive that NEL were determined that it continued. 

It is the only forum in North East Lincolnshire that provides a regular opportunity for parent carers and educational settings to meet and work in partnership to improve the educational experiences for our Children and Young People (CYP) with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND). SPACE Forums will be held monthly at the Town Hall with every session featuring a different topic/theme decided by Forum members. 

So, whether you are a parent carer or a SENDCO/teacher/practitioner working in an educational setting (nursery to college) please come and join us at the SPACE Forums. You will receive a friendly and warm welcome; meet likeminded people and share your views and experiences while enjoying a drink and a biscuit in a safe space