Headteachers Message

KANP Weekly Newsletter

Dear Parents and Carers,

It has been a fantastic first week back after the half-term break. I hope you all had a lovely and restful week with your families.

As always, it has been an incredibly busy week at Northern Parade, with lots of exciting learning taking place across the school.

Today, we held a fantastic whole-school day focused on a project called The Air We Breathe. We were fortunate to welcome some very special visitors into school, who helped inspire the children to think carefully about the environment and the role we all play in protecting it. Throughout the day, children took part in a range of activities and created their own pledges linked to caring for our world and keeping our environment safe.

The entire day was dedicated to this project, with children enjoying an off-timetable curriculum experience that was both engaging and meaningful. The day began with some brilliant assemblies which launched the project and really captured the children's imagination. It was wonderful to see such enthusiasm, creativity and thoughtful discussion throughout the school.

Whilst the children were enjoying their half-term break, there was also a huge amount of work taking place around the school site. I would like to thank our site team for all of their hard work in helping to improve our environment for the children.

One of the most exciting developments has been the installation of new fencing around our Nature Nook area. This marks the start of an exciting project to create a new outdoor pond and wildlife area for the children to enjoy and learn from. We are really looking forward to seeing this project develop over the coming weeks and months.

We are also eagerly awaiting the delivery of our new outdoor classroom huts. These will provide fantastic additional learning spaces for children across the school and support our commitment to outdoor learning. We are hopeful that these will be installed before the end of this academic year, or as early as possible at the start of the next school year.

There is certainly lots happening at Northern Parade at the moment, and it is exciting to see some of our longer-term projects beginning to come to life.

We are also now entering an important time of year as we begin preparing for transition. I hope you have all had the opportunity to read the transition letter that was sent home recently. We know that moving into a new year group can be an exciting time for children, and we are working hard to ensure that the process is carefully planned and well supported.

Our first whole-school transition morning will take place on Monday 30th June, when children will find out their new classes and begin spending time with their new teachers. Our pastoral team are already working closely with children who may need some additional support during this process, helping to ensure that every child feels confident and prepared for the next stage of their journey.

Looking ahead, we have lots to be excited about over the coming weeks. Our Year 6 children are busy preparing for their end-of-year production for our Year 2 pupils and families. We are incredibly proud of the effort and enthusiasm they are already showing and cannot wait to see the finished performance.

We also have Year 6 Activities Week to look forward to in the final week of term, which promises to be a memorable experience for our oldest pupils as they prepare to move on to secondary school.

The final week of term will also include our whole-school transition programme, where all children will spend extended time with their new classes and teachers. This is always a positive and exciting part of the school year and helps children feel settled and ready for September.

Alongside all of this, we have a number of exciting trips, visits and enrichment opportunities planned across the school. Next week, our Reception children are looking forward to their visit to Longdown Dairy Farm, which links beautifully with their learning this term. We know they will have a fantastic day and gain lots of valuable hands-on experiences.

I have also had a number of parents asking about the Year 6 leavers' hoodies. I can confirm that these have been ordered and we are currently waiting for the company to deliver them. Unfortunately, this part is beyond our control, but please be assured that as soon as they arrive, we will distribute them straight away. We are just as excited to see them as the children are!

This week has also seen some lovely opportunities to celebrate our Year 6 pupils. Our school photographer visited to take the Year 6 leavers' photographs, which are always a special part of the final term. We look forward to sharing these with you when they are available.

As we move into the next few weeks, the weather looks set to become much warmer again. Please can I remind families about the importance of ensuring children attend school in appropriate school uniform. We have noticed an increase in children attending school in clothing that does not meet our uniform expectations, including branded clothing, hoodies and inappropriate footwear. We appreciate that warmer weather can make this more challenging, but our uniform expectations remain in place and help maintain consistency across the school.

Finally, I would like to briefly revisit the letter sent before half term regarding language around the school site. I am aware that there have been conversations amongst parents about this, and I fully recognise that language is a complex issue. Different families, workplaces and social settings all have different expectations and norms.

However, as a school, we have a responsibility to help children understand that there are different expectations in different environments. Part of our role is to prepare children for life beyond school, helping them develop the social awareness and communication skills that will support them in future education, employment and wider society.

We know that children learn not only from what we teach them but also from the examples they see around them. As adults, whether school staff, parents or carers, we are all important role models for the children in our community. By working together and modelling respectful and appropriate language, we can help children understand when certain language is and is not appropriate.

I am grateful to those families who have supported us with this message. If any parent would like to discuss this further with me, I would be more than happy to have a conversation. Please do get in touch.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. We are incredibly proud of our school community and the way that staff, children and families work together to make Northern Parade such a special place to learn.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Best wishes,

Kathryn Wilden
Headteacher

King's Academy Northern Parade

Mrs Wilden