Dear Parents and Carers,

As my first term a Principal rapidly elapses, the buzz of learning and children's excitement to celebrate the successes of their peers never fails to amaze me. It is music to my ears to walk into classes filled with ambitious inquirers hoping to deepen their learning and take action in the world around them. Last week we welcomed visitors from the Alumnis Academy Trust in North Devon. The children in Year 2 were quick to quiz them on how their school is different to ours and requested to collaborate with their Year 2 class to take action against littering and plastic pollution in our oceans. I was wowed by the power of conferencing between a group of children who asked whether we could conduct a live lesson survey with our friends hundreds of miles away!

Our visitors showered the children with praise for their welcoming nature, inquisitive minds and desire to make the world a better place.

I also must do my fair share of praising as last week marked a record for school attendance, with classes battling in the upper ninety percent range for the coveted Attendance of the Week Award. Congratulations to Blackbird Class with an outstanding 98.43% attendance. I challenge each class to push past the 99% boundary after half term!

Twice last week, myself, Mrs Osborne, Mrs Mehigan and Mr Perkins had the joy of closing the school gates to a full house of attendance prior to the nine o'clock deadline. I can not stress highly enough how important it is for the children to be in school already learning, settled and prepared for the day prior to our nine o'clock deadline. This additional time in school has a remarkable impact on learning, social skills and well-being.

Have a happy and safe half term.

Mr Moore

School Council

This term our School Council has been working together with their classmates to come up with some exciting new ideas for extra activities that can be put on during break and lunch time. All these ideas and suggestions on improvements within the Academy have now been put into a letter to Mr Moore.

Our next meeting, we will be organising a fundraising event for Slide Away Bereavement charity. Slide Away offers support to children and young people in West Kent who have been bereaved of a family member or friend. They also support children and young people who have a parent or sibling with a life limiting illness.

PE

We are coming to the end of term 3 and Yr 6 have been busy working towards finalising their performances in gymnastics. They have been working in groups, building a sequence to include 6 different elements eg jump, roll, travel which incorporates 4 compositional elements ie direction, speed, level and unison. To add to this, they could choose a piece of equipment for their sequence to add further skill and impact. The creativity of their performances has been outstanding.

They have also been working very hard in the swimming pool and this week have been preparing for their 25m badge test. Good luck everyone.

To finalise a fabulous end of Term, our Yr 6 netball team played Allington Primary School last Thursday afternoon on a full size court and WON 8 - 5 in a very hard fought, determined game demonstrating great communication, resilience and calm when under extreme pressure, particularly when shooting for goal.

The whole school are very proud of you. Well done.

School Attendance and Absence

Going to school regularly is important for your child's future. Parents are responsible for making sure their children receive full-time education. Parents are legally responsible for making sure that children attend school. If your child doesn't go to school, you could get fined or prosecuted.

Benefits of school attendance

Good attendance at school is not just valuable, it’s essential. As well as this, going to school helps to develop:

• Friendships

• Social skills

• Team values

• Life skills

• Cultural awareness

• Career pathways

Absence from school

All schools must record details of pupils’ attendance and absence at school. They do this at the beginning of morning and afternoon sessions meaning that each day your child receives two half day marks.

If your child is going to be absent from school, (e.g. for an unavoidable appointment) then you should let the school know as soon as possible an provide proof of appointment. If your child has been absent due to an unexpected event such as bereavement or illness then you must also let the school know on the first day of absence in line with the school’s attendance policy.

The school will then record the absence. If you fail to tell the school as to why your child has not been present then the school may record that period of absence as being unauthorised. A call will be made home and a text sent. If you do not respond, this then becomes a safeguarding issue which will result in a home visit. This will be made by Mrs Osborne and a Senior member of staff.

Attendance in figures

Achieving 90 per cent in an exam or test is a fantastic result but if your child is at school for only 90 per cent of the school year then they will have missed almost 120 guided learning hours. This is a big gap for any child to make up.

Your legal responsibilities as a parent

By law, all children of school age (aged four to sixteen) must receive a suitable full-time education. Once your child is registered at a school, you are legally responsible for making sure they go regularly.

How to prevent your child from missing school

You can help prevent your child missing school by:

• having a routine from an early age and sticking it to it

• making sure your child understands the importance of good attendance and punctuality

• making sure they understand the possible implications for themselves and you as a parent if they don't go to school

• taking an interest in their education - ask about school work and encourage them to get involved in school activities

• discussing any problems they may have at school and letting their teacher or principal know about anything that is causing concern

• not letting them take time off school for minor ailments or holidays during term time

To avoid disrupting your child's education, you should arrange (as far as possible), appointments and outings:

• after school hours

• at weekends

• during school holidays

As always it is your responsibility to phone on the first day of absence on 01622 755960 leaving your child’s name, class and reason for absence or email clo@oaksprimaryacademy.org.uk.

Lateness

Please make sure your child/ren are in School before 9.00am. The gates open at 8.40am for Nursery pupils and 8:45 for Reception to Year 6 pupils. Registers are taken between 8.50am-9.00am and anything beyond this is marked as Late.