Dear Parents and Carers,

And just like that, we've reached the end of the first half term!

This week, we successfully held our Parents' Evenings. Thank you to all the parents and carers who came in to discuss your child's progress. If you were unable to attend, please ensure you liaise directly with your child's class teacher to arrange an alternative time to speak. Also, today our PTA are hosting the Pumpkin Ball as a way to celebrate the end of term. Thank you to POWs for all their support and providing this opportunity for our children.

We were thrilled to host our first Sharing Assembly of the year this week, presented by Year 3. It was a lovely opportunity to showcase the children's learning and confidence. Thank you to all the parents and carers who came to watch and support them.

Today, we have sent home several important updates, which you can find in our usual letter directory. These include reminders about uniform expectations, a critical notice regarding illegal parking at Woodside, updates on attendance, and details about an upcoming Chartwells Coffee Morning. Please take the time to read these letters carefully.

Looking ahead to next term, we will be continuing with our 'Parents in to Read' sessions, and we are also busy planning to share more exciting parental and school events with you after the half term break.

Finally, some exciting news. Miss Jackson (our Assistant Headteacher) is getting married over half term and she will be returning as Mrs Oni. We wish Mrs Oni the best wedding and celebration possible and I know many of you will be sending your well wishes to the happy couple.

We wish you all a very restful and enjoyable two-week October half term break! We look forward to welcoming everyone back to school on Monday, 3rd November.

Iman Atwal

Headteacher

A reminder that we have started the year with a focus on the value of Excellence. This week, in our assembly, we focused on being reflective - how we have to think about what we have done well and what we could have done better. Taking responsibility with our own excellence by reflecting.

So ask your child:

• What is your reflection?

• What did you do well?

• What could you have done differently?

School breaks, while exciting for children, can also bring significant disruptions to the routines that pupils with SEND rely on. Here are some effective strategies for maintaining routines and preparing pupils for the break.

Transfer to Secondary School September 2026

If your child’s date of birth is between 1st September 2014 - 31st August 2015, they will be due to start Secondary School in September 2026.

Reminder!!! The deadline for applications is 31st October 2025.

Late applications will be processed after those received on time, which could severely reduce your child’s chances of being offered

a place at your preferred school.

Applications are made online through eAdmissions which can be accessed through Croydon Councils website - click on the link below; 

Apply for a secondary school place: step by step | Croydon Council.

You will also find information on local Secondary Schools and step-by-step guidance to help you through the application process.

If you are familiar with the application process, you can apply straight away here; www.eadmissions.org.uk

Click here for the  Link to Croydon Secondary Schools Prospectus;

Secondary-admissions-prospectus-2026-2027 

Follow this link for the Transfer to Secondary Schools open days / evenings; Open-Days-Evenings-Timetable-for-Secondary-Schools-2025-2026   

If you missed an open day/evening for a particular school, please contact the individual school

- most will be happy to accommodate you at another time.

Click on this link Half-term Holidays Discounted or Kids Eat Free for a list of restaurants and cafes that are offering discounted or free children's meals for the holidays.

Follow links to the relevant websites for further information on each offer - please ensure that you check the terms and conditions before you set off.

For further information/advice, click on the following link; Child protection and safeguarding | Croydon Council 

You can also get advice and guidance from the NSPCC here; Report child abuse | NSPCC 

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

Nest

It's hard to believe this half term has already come to an end!

We've had such a wonderful and productive time in the Nest, and we're incredibly proud of how much the children have learnt and grown. This week, we focused on developing our gross motor skills through a fun and engaging activity, threading large beads onto a lace.This seemingly simple activity has been a fantastic way for the children to practice and improve their coordination. All the children showed great focus, carefully manipulating the laces and beads with excellent hand-eye coordination.

Mathematical Skills: We also continued to incorporate mathematical skills into the activity by counting the beads they had successfully laced. Counting is a great way to reinforce number recognition and sequencing!.This term has been fantastic, we've seen a huge leap in the children's independence and social skills. They are now confidently following the Nest routine and expectations. Developing excellent social skills, including sharing and waiting for their turn during activities. Becoming much more independent in their self-care, with many able to put on their aprons and even their own shoes! Accessing resources both indoors and outdoors independently, showing great initiative and curiosity.

Saplings

This week in Saplings, we have been exploring Black History Month by focusing on the artist Alma Thomas, who created wonderful, colourful collages with ripped coloured paper. The children enjoyed ripping the papers into small pieces and creating their own inspired images to take home. We are also exploring how we can explore our senses through this, such as seeing colour and feeling the texture of the ripped paper.

In Numeracy, we are focusing on 2D shapes, where we can find circles, squares, rectangles and triangles in the classroom and outdoor area around us. The children have enjoyed going on ‘shape hunts’ to see what different things they can find.

In Literacy, we are looking at the key vocabulary of the term which focuses on sight, sound, touch, smell and taste.

Year 1

This week in Maths, we have been writing addition sentences within 10. We used a tens frame and counters to support our learning. We used the language of adding more (eg; first there were 3 people, then 4 more came) to answer word problems. We created jumps on a number line to show the starting number, how many more were added and then what the final total was.

In English, we have finished our work about the 'Lonely Beast' by doing some independent writing. We used everything we have been learning this term - capital letters, full stops and finger spaces - to write about the Beast’s journey back to his home. To help us write sentences that make sense, we used the story map to say our sentences before we wrote them.

On Thursday, we had our 'This is Me Day'. It was a great day! It was lovely to see some children in their traditional clothes and children enjoyed sharing their home learning about themselves and their country. In addition, everyone enjoyed sharing foods that they brought in and creating a flag to represent themselves. 

Thank you for all your support this half -term. We hope you have a good holiday. Please keep reading with your child!

Year 2

We’ve had a fantastic week in Year 2! The children have been busy and full of enthusiasm as we wrapped up the term.

In Maths, we had lots of fun exploring new learning and challenging ourselves with problem-solving activities.

In Art, we completed our beautiful art project for Black History Month, inspired by the artist Romare Bearden. The children created stunning collage portraits of Bearden, showing great creativity and care in their work. These were proudly displayed during Parents’ Evening — if you didn’t get a chance to see them!

In English, we’ve been reflecting on our art by writing diary entries to capture our thoughts and feelings about the process. It’s been a packed but thoroughly enjoyable week, and we’re so proud of all the children’s hard work this term.

We can’t wait to see what the next term brings!

Year 3

A big thank you to all the parents who came and saw our assembly this week.The children were very excited, even if they were all a bit nervous!

This week in Maths, Year 3 has been busy strengthening key skills in addition, subtraction, and number sense. They have been adding two and three digit numbers, finding compliments to 100 and estimating. The children were able to grasp the process of exchanging by first using resources and then applying that knowledge to their written methods.

In Music, they completed the final performance of the song they have been working on throughout the term. The children were able to perform the singing in two groups, the main chorus and a backing group.

In Science, they shared their learning of the topic of light and completed a double page spread, showing their understanding of the key vocabulary associated with the topic. They were able to draw upon all their previous knowledge and had illustrations to annotate to show their understanding.

Year 5

This week, the children focussed on comparing calculations without necessarily completing them. The goal was to explore the structure of a calculation to understand how changing the numbers affects the final answer. The children investigated the effect that adding to or subtracting from the components of a calculation has on the result. The children then explored inverse operations as a powerful strategy for problem-solving. By understanding that addition and subtraction are opposites, they were able to strategically use one to check the other, confirming the accuracy of their work. This skill is vital for finding missing numbers within equations.

In English, the children immersed themselves in the world of poet Benjamin Zephaniah, exploring his unique voice and powerful messages. They began by watching videos of the poet performing, which allowed them to appreciate the lively rhythm and energy of his 'dub poetry' style.

The children then worked collaboratively to create a fact file. This required them to select the most significant details about Zephaniah's life and work, from his Birmingham roots to his passion for social justice, effectively summarising his journey.

This week in History, the children created detailed double-page spreads documenting the history of Henry VIII and the broader Tudor period. They used information gathered from prior lessons to structure their work around distinct topics - The War of the Roses, Henry VIII and his six wives and the Tudor Class System.

Year 6

We wanted to extend a huge thank you to all the parents who were able to join us for our recent Reading in Class session! It was wonderful to see adults sharing books and time with children.

Your presence not only shows your commitment but also reinforces to the children just how valuable reading is. We can't stress enough the importance of consistent reading at home—it is the single best way to support their literacy and open up new worlds of learning. Please continue to make it a regular and enjoyable part of your daily routine.

In Math this week, the children tackled the concept of simplifying fractions. This is a tricky topic, but they used several engaging tools to secure their understanding. We focused heavily on using concrete fraction walls and corresponding fraction wall sheets. Initially, the children encountered a bit of a struggle—which was actually a fantastic learning opportunity! It allowed us to clearly address misconceptions and teach them the correct, systematic way to use the fraction wall to find equivalent and simpler fractions. They were reminded that struggling is an essential factor in growth, and by persisting, they ultimately deepened their understanding.

We are very proud of their hard work and determination!

Celebrating Our New Woodside Reading Ambassadors!

We are absolutely thrilled to formally introduce and congratulate our new team of Woodside Reading Ambassadors! These brilliant students were selected for their exceptional passion for books and commitment to literacy. We can't wait for them to step into this important role, sharing their enthusiasm and inspiring a vibrant love for reading across all phases of the school community this year!

We are using in-app messages to communicate with parents through the app - please could parents ensure they are able to log-in and Arbor is set up to accept these messages - they should be visible in the Communications section of the portal.

Parents who have the app should enable Push Notifications - this will alert you through the app that a message has arrived.

Over 90% of our parents have logged into Arbor - if you are having difficulty, please talk to the office who can help.

Check your Child's Data

Please log in to Arbor and check your child's/children's details are correct - and let us know if not. You can also request changes directly through the app which will take place once we have seen them - if we have questions, we will get in touch. Or you can let the office know directly.

It is important we have the correct data for all our families.

Please remember to check Arbor - either the Parent Portal (at https://login.arbor.sc/) or the parent app (available from the App Store or Google Play).

Parents who log in can:

* see their child's attendance

* log consent for local trips and those further afield

* pay for trips and book and pay for clubs

* receive In-App messages - and message the school

* book parent consultations

* see their child's details and request changes to ensure they are completely up to date

If you have more than one child at the school, they should be visible via a drop-down so you only need to login once.

To set up your account, you need the email you use for school communications and the date of birth of one of your children. Follow the Forgotten Password link on either the app or the website.

If you need support with logging in, please talk to the office team who will be glad to help.