Welcome to our weekly newsletter!

The Spring term has flown by and we are incredibly proud of everything our fantastic pupils have achieved! 

Not only have the classrooms buzzed with learning, but the children have also embraced a wealth of exciting extracurricular activities including World Book Day, Tom's talking Reptiles, Science week plus a range of sporting events.  Their unwavering enthusiasm has been truly inspiring. 

We wish all our pupils and their families a joyful Easter break filled with rest, relaxation and some Easter treats! 

We can't wait to welcome you back for a fun-filled Summer term on Monday 15th April!

Key Stage 1 Easter Run

Several of our Year 1 and Year 2 children attended the Sutton Sports KS1 Easter Run event.  They had great fun working as a team to find clues and complete challenges.  

Key Stage 1 Easter Experience

Year 1 and Year 2 had a wonderful time at Christchurch with St Phillips this week where they experienced a multi sensory Easter experience.  They thoroughly enjoyed learning about the different parts of the Easter story - particularly re-enacting the sharing of the bread which helps to remember Jesus as well as a chocolate egg to remember Jesus was resurrected.   

A huge 'Thank you' to all our parent helpers.  

Attendance Matters

While we appreciate, over the last few weeks there has been an increase in illness, we would like to remind you of the importance of attending school.  

Regular school attendance is essential for academic success, social development, and forming positive habits for life.  Did you know that even a few missed days here and there can have a big impact on your child's learning? 

Why Attendance Matters:

• Learning Builds on Learning: Every lesson builds on the one before it. Missing school creates gaps in understanding that can be difficult to catch up on.

• Staying on Track: Consistent attendance helps students stay on top of assignments and deadlines, leading to better grades and a sense of accomplishment.

• Social Skills Development: School provides a crucial environment for children to develop social skills, build friendships, and learn teamwork through interaction with peers.

• Habits for the Future: Regular attendance helps children develop a strong work ethic, responsibility, and time management skills – qualities valued in future education and employment.

Tips for Encouraging Attendance:

• Establish a routine: Set a consistent bedtime and wake-up schedule, even on weekends, to ensure your child feels rested and ready to learn.

• Talk about the importance of school: Discuss the benefits of learning and how much your child contributes to the classroom.

• Communicate with the school: Inform teachers of any upcoming absences as soon as possible.

• Make school fun: Show an interest in your child's schoolwork and celebrate their achievements!

By working together, we can ensure every child gets the most out of their time at school and reaches their full potential.  

Please contact the office if you would like to discuss your child's attendance.    

 The Nursery children have had another busy four days at the end of the term.  On Friday they thoroughly enjoyed bringing in their teddy bears to join them for their 'teddy bears picnic'.  The edible 'bear' sandwiches were a particular favourite as were the bear biscuits.  

The children have also had lots of fun completing Easter activities.  They had fun printing Easter chicks as well as rolling eggs in paint and 'fork painting' to make fluffy chicks.  

In maths, as well as developing their 1:1 correspondence, they also developed their ordering skills. 

As we have had some better weather, they have also had lots of fun in their outside learning environment.  

Great job.

 This week in Reception we continued to learn about 'People who help us' and explored the roles of doctors and nurses. We drew on our own experiences of being helped when we were poorly and enjoyed taking care of the sick dollies. 

In Maths we began exploring teen numbers. We learnt what each number in a 2-digit number represents and demonstrated our understanding using tens frames.

We have enjoyed learning why Easter is such a special celebration for Christians and made beautiful finger painted crosses.  We also enjoyed making Easter cards for our families!

Hedgehogs demonstrated their amazing imagination in the outside area by creating a 'human to dog machine converter' out of community blocks! The children lined up as humans and came out the other side as dogs!

Finally Reception came to the rescue when a newt was found in the Year 1 playground. With the help of some Eco Squad members and Miss Ella they carefully released the newt into the Junior school forest school pond where we hope it will live a long and happy life.

Well done Reception! Have a wonderful Easter break! 

Year 1 started the week with a very educational trip to St Phillips Church. The children really enjoyed moving around the church to different stations learning about the Easter Story and how Jesus died and rose again. We were very proud how the children listened intently and focused on the true meaning of Easter. They were excited to end the wonderful, thought provoking session with a mini egg!

In English, the children have continued learning about 'One day on the blue planet, in the Savannah'. They have been enjoying writing about the setting and we have been really challenging them. They have really enjoyed learning about the animals that live in the Savannah and which animals come out at night. 

As mathematicians, the children have been learning to count in tens and partition numbers to 100 in tens and ones in multiples of 10s. 

Ask your child to count forward and backwards in 10s?

As scientists, the children have learnt about amphibians and wrote simple sentences about the characteristics of a amphibian like they have dry, scaly skin, they lay eggs, they live on land and in water. 

Can your child say what animals are amphibians and how they are different from reptiles?  

We ended the week being creative, doing some lovely Easter crafts. The children are very excited to have a break for Easter and we hope you all have a wonderful holiday. 

What a busy four days Year Two have had!  

We finished our lessons on 'The Emperor's Egg' with some creative writing.  The children thought carefully about how penguins move before collaborating with a partner to create some great kenning poems. Some children acted as poets by using techniques such as rhyming and alliteration.  The teachers were thoroughly entertained by their end products.

The children continued to show their creativity in their Real Dance lesson. They loved representing the movement of silks and moved with expression and imagination.

On Tuesday, Year visited our local church, Christ Church with St Phillip where they found out more about the Easter Story.  The children represented the school beautifully and very much enjoyed trying the hands on activities.

Working as scientists, the children have been classifying objects into groups including 'alive', 'not alive' and 'have never lived'.  They thought hard about the life processes and what all living things can do.  

Can they give you an example for each category? 

In maths, the children have been working with 2D shapes and have been learning to move them and turn them on a grid.  The children have been giving each other instructions such as ' forwards, backwards, left and right'.  They loved joining in with the directions dance.

Can they show you what a quarter turn clockwise looks like?

As artists they used their observational skills to make still life paintings using gestural marks!

If you would like to inform us of any achievements your child has completed outside of school, please  complete this FORM

Please check the dates section regularly as dates may change and new dates will be added.

Friends Update

There are many different views about physical chastisement, but it is widely accepted there are much more effective ways to teach children right from wrong. 

As a local authority, Sutton has seen a number of children coming to the attention of police and social care due to the use of physical chastisement and as such has worked with other local authorities on an initiative to reduce this number. 

In line with this initiative, we agree that anything that causes harm to a child is unacceptable.

As a school, we have a duty to report incidents of suspected or confirmed physical chastisement to social care and the police and this can be with ot without visible bruising, grazes, scratches, minor swelling, cuts as well as stress injuries from prolonged standing, position holding as these are banned by law in the United Kingdom.

Smacking or chastising that does not leave a mark is now illegal in Wales and Scotland, and there is currently pressure being placed on the Government to make it illegal in England and Northern Ireland too. It is therefore important to understand that even if a child has been smacked but no injuries are visible, social care or the police may still choose to take further action.

If you would like support on how to manage your child’s behaviour at home, please do not hesitate to contact us, we are here to help. 

Safeguarding Team

The London Borough of Sutton is in the process of developing a new SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) strategy for the borough and is really keen to hear the views of children and young people with SEND/additional needs in the Borough. Barnardos are helping with this work. If you are a young person with SEND or additional needs, or a parent/carer of a child with SEND, please do contribute to this review by completing the survey by following the steps below:

1. Read about the survey here, what is being asked and how your privacy will be protected

2. Complete a short consent form here (upon completion you will be emailed a copy of the survey using the email address you provide) 

3. Complete the survey that is emailed to you prior to the 12 April 2024

What children and young people tell us will influence the SEND/AP review and will inform decision makers about what children and young people’s lived experiences are in Sutton and how we can improve them. 

Surrey County Council encourages residents to foster

Fostering is an incredibly rewarding experience that can transform the lives of both the children being fostered and the foster carers themselves. Children who enter the care system have often experienced trauma and instability in their lives, and a caring, stable foster family can make a significant difference in their wellbeing and development.

Nationally, there are currently over 70,000 children living with foster families in the UK. However, there is still a significant shortage of foster carers, with around 9,265 new foster families needed in the next year alone. In Surrey, there are over 1,000 children in care and Surrey County Council have just under 400 foster families.

Foster carers come from all walks of life and backgrounds, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to fostering. Whether you are single or married, young or old, own your own home or rent, you can still become a foster carer. The most important thing is a willingness to provide a safe and loving home for a child in need.

This is the message that Surrey County Council is promoting in national recruitment film ‘Any of Us’. The short film has been jointly funded by over 80 councils across England and aims to raise awareness about fostering, particularly among those people who may not have previously considered themselves suited to fostering. The film looks at the potential of three people from different backgrounds to become foster carers, and the potential of children they care for to grow and thrive. ‘Any of Us’ will be available to watch from 26 September.

If you have ever thought about fostering, now is the time to take that first step and find out more. The more people who consider fostering, the greater the chance of finding loving, stable homes for children in Surrey who desperately need them.

You can contact Surrey County Council Fostering Service on 0800 096 9626, via email at fostering.recruitment@surreycc.gov.uk or by visiting the website; www.surreycc.gov.uk/fostering

You can watch ‘Any of Us’ via Any of Us - YouTube and connect with the Fostering Service on social media via @surreyfostering

Dads' Football

Some Cheam Common School Dads get together on a weekly basis to play football and have a good chat. 

Join us in our WhatsApp group! ( https://chat.whatsapp.com/FwN7SksNXnBIxanYRJ9TEc) 

See you on the pitch!

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