Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome back to the final half term of this academic year. We hope you all enjoyed a restful half-term break. It certainly felt like the peak of summer had arrived early, with some exceptionally hot weather over the holiday. It has been lovely to welcome the children back to school, settled, happy and ready for the exciting weeks ahead.

As the warmer weather continues, we would like to remind families about the importance of sun safety. Please ensure that your child comes to school with a named water bottle every day and, where appropriate, a sun hat. We also ask that long-lasting sunscreen is applied before school each morning, as staff are unable to apply sunscreen during the school day. These simple measures help children stay safe and comfortable while enjoying outdoor learning and play.

A huge well done to all the children in Year 4 who completed the Multiplication Tables Check this week. The purpose of the check is to determine whether children can fluently recall their times tables up to 12 × 12, an essential skill that supports future success in mathematics. The results will also help teachers identify whether any additional support is needed. Your child's score will be shared with you in their end-of-year report.

A reminder that this year's Sports Day will take place on Thursday 18th June at 10am. All children should come to school wearing their PE kit and bring a water bottle. Please continue to monitor the weather forecast and ensure that your child has a hat and has had sun cream applied before school if needed.

Please also note that Friday 19th June is an INSET Day, and therefore school will be closed to all pupils.

We are looking forward to a busy and successful final half term, with lots of exciting learning opportunities and events still to come.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support.

Mrs Lloyd & the Forest Academy Team

As we begin our final term in Year 1, we are incredibly proud of all that the children have achieved this year. They have shown growing confidence, resilience and independence in their learning, and it has been wonderful to see the progress they have made.

This promises to be a busy and exciting term as we prepare the children for their transition into Year 2. One of the highlights was our much-anticipated Paddington Bear Experience trip, which enriched learning and created lasting memories.

The phonics screening check will also take place this term. Thank you for your continued support with reading at home. Reading with your child every day remains one of the most valuable ways to support their learning and helps to develop their fluency, confidence and enjoyment of books.

We look forward to a happy and successful final half-term and to celebrating the children's many achievements as they complete their Year 1 journey.

Our trip to the British Museum was a wonderful way of bringing our history topics to life with real objects. The children found it hard to believe some of the objects had been found from the time of the Stone Age and Bronze age. They also enjoyed looking at the ancient Egyptian statues and mummies which they had learnt about earlier in the year. 

In maths the children have been focused on time - converting to different units of time, from seconds to minutes and hours. They have been investigating what they can do in a minute. They have been using a time line to find the differences between two times. They used it to either count on or count back, to answer reasoning questions. 

In DT, we have been focusing on food technology.  The children researched foods that were eaten by the Victorians and compared this to the foods they eat today.  After taste testing, they used a tally chart to record what type of scone they would make and the fillings they would use. Then they wrote instructions and designed their scones. Making them was lots of fun and the scones were delicious! Finally, the children evaluated their scones reflecting on what went well and what they would change next time.

As part of our hook into our new core text in English 'The Invisible', the children reflected on ways that we could improve our local area. They planted some seeds in pots and took them home to look after, they also germinated some cress seeds to watch them grow.  

It's been an exciting first week back as pupils made their own pizza as part of D&T week! They began the week by sampling different pizzas and describing the appearance, taste and texture. Pupils then designed their own pizza toppings and wrote a set of instructions on how to make their pizza. They then made their dough on Friday morning before adding their toppings and cooking it in the afternoon. They then enjoyed eating their creation and evaluating it against a set of criteria.

In English, the pupils were introduced to their new core text 'Floodland'. They read the first two chapters before exploring the dystopian genre and identitfying the features. In maths, the pupils started a new unit on position and direction with a focus on coordinates. They revised how to read and plot coordinates before moving onto problem solving with coordinates. In French, the pupils learnt how to say what type of home they live in and where using the term 'J'habite ...' 

On Tuesday afternoon, the pupils enjoyed taking part in the 'Playground Prom', an interactive classical music educational initiative led by a group of classical musicians. The pupils were engaged and enthused which they applied into their weekly music lesson with Mrs Grainger.

If you have concerns about a child (or their families) welfare, contact Croydon Council’s Single Point of Contact (SPOC) 

Telephone: 020 8726 6400 

Out of hours: 020 8726 6400 (ask for out of hours team) 

Email: childreferrals@croydon.gov.uk 

Office Hours: Monday – Friday 9:00 – 16:00 

If you think a child is at risk of immediate harm telephone 999