Dear Parents and Carers

Welcome back to another exciting term! I trust you all had a rejuvenating Easter break filled with joy and relaxation, and that you return to us refreshed and ready for this term.

At the end of last term, a letter was sent out to the whole school community with some key reminders, which included reminders about children wearing the correct school uniform, as well as children should not be bringing in personal items into school. We reminded all children as we started this week with our welcome back assembly. We recapped the value of excellence and how we can show excellence in our behaviours and learning. Our new value for this month is forgiveness and we spoke about how asking for forgiveness means not repeating the same actions afterwards. 

This week we hosted our book fair. It was great to witness both parents and children deeply engaged in the wonders of reading. Our school thrives on fostering a love for literature, and events like these reinforce the importance of storytelling and imagination in our lives. Thank you to everyone who participated and contributed to making our book fair a success!

On Thursday, we welcomed a visit from our school improvement officer this week, with a particular focus on safeguarding. I am pleased to report that the visit went well, with progress being noted in our ongoing efforts to ensure the safety and well-being of all our students. Safeguarding remains a top priority for us, and we are committed to providing a nurturing environment where every child feels secure and supported.

I hope the weather starts to improve over the term and I look forward to working with the community throughout the Summer term. Have a good weekend.

Iman Atwal

Headteacher

We expect pupils to maintain a high standard of attendance here at Woodside. We want all our pupils to be able to achieve their very best and in order to do this, they need to be in school as much as possible so they don't miss out on any learning. Everyday is a new learning opportunity!

We want all children to come to school each day, but we know that there are some days children are just too ill to attend, or will spread illness to others.

The NHS website Is My Child Too Ill For School is a useful place to look for guidance.

If your child has vomiting or diarrhoea they should stay away from school until they have not been sick or had diarrhoea for at least 2 days (48 hours).

Children can attend school with cold sores, conjunctivitis, hand, foot & mouth disease, slapped cheek (fifth) disease, sore throat, thread-worms or ear infections as long as they don't have a temperature as well.

Please encourage your children to wash their hands regularly and use and throw away tissues properly.

Keeping Your Children Safe Online

Please use the links below to access the LGfL parent safe webpage. This is a great resource for parents who need advice for keeping their children safe online. 

Talking to children about life online - there are a number of ideas about talking to your child about their life online.

Undressed - a song to teach younger children about the importance of not getting undressed in front of a tablet or mobile phone.

Nest

Children have settled well after the half term break and are following the Nest routine and expectations. First week back our role play has been very popular. Children have been dressing up in different costumes, they have supported each other to dress up and choose the costumes for each other, this has been really supporting the Nest children’s Personal and social development, sharing and caring for each other, and being independent. 

This half term our Core Text is 'Jack and the Beanstalk'. Children have been listening to the story with interest, answering simple questions. Children have been really interested in our core text topic table, which we have used to retell the story. Children have been using short sentences to talk about what they can see on the topic table which has supported children’s communication and language skills. Children also have been enjoying exploring the small world, Castle. They have been pretending Jack is going into the castle and seeing the Giant and finding different objects. Children were very keen to build different structures, using a variety of construction materials, like airplanes, cars, trucks, big and small towers.

Nursery

Nursery children came back into their classroom to find plants in the role play area and the change from a castle to a garden centre, children were excited at the thought of having a garden centre. Most of the children were quick to take up the role of the shopkeepers and others wanted to shop for seeds and flowers. Children have been learning about the life cycle of a seed and created their zig zag booklets to show the cycle. They also watched a time-lapse of the seed growing.

In Maths, children have been learning about repeating patterns using cubes and talking about patterns on animals. They were also able to talk about patterns on their own clothes.

In maths, we have been counting in 2s, 5s and 10s. We have used our hands, songs and a hundred square to support our learning, identifying patterns and spotting missing numbers. We have then identified when equal groups have been made, counting the objects in each group carefully and recognising when groups are unequal. 

We started our design and technology project which this term is about weaving. We identified where weaving is used in everyday life, and had a go at making our own simple paper weave. We all enjoyed having a ago and were pleased when we managed to make the weave correctly!

Year 5

In English, we have started to prepare writing a biography on David Attenborough by understanding what a naturalist is. To do this we have researched his early life and the road he took to becoming a world renowned naturalist.

In Maths, we have been finalising our decimals, fractions and percentages journey, understanding the relationship between each of them.

In RE, the children have started to explore pilgrimages and how different religions experience their own pilgrimage. The children created postcards to emphathise with pilgrimages and how they might be feeling on their journeys.

Year 6

We are delighted to welcome back our Year 6 students, who have returned to school with a remarkable eagerness for learning and a positive attitude that is truly inspiring.

Since their return, we have observed our Year 6 students displaying a genuine enthusiasm for their studies. They are consistently seeking out opportunities to enhance their learning, preparing diligently for their upcoming SATs exams, and eagerly anticipating their transition into high school.

During the Easter holiday, many of our Year 6 students engaged extensively with Century, an online learning platform. Through their dedication and commitment, they have not only strengthened their academic skills but have also cultivated a deeper understanding of various subjects. These skills will undoubtedly serve them well as they progress in their educational endeavours.

We would like to extend our gratitude to you, the parents and guardians, for your continued support in nurturing and guiding your child's educational journey. Your involvement at home plays a crucial role in complementing their learning experiences at school, and we encourage you to maintain this support as we approach SATs and beyond.

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.

Collaboration matters   Excellence in everything   Community first   Equity for everyone   Continuous growth