We are starting our new Geography topic this half term, comparing the Amazon Rainforest and Horsell Common.  The children were given a challenge in half term to visit Horsell Common with their family and take some photos or do some research online to create a poster.  It was lovely to see the posters the children made.

We have started our new Science topic about Plants this week.  The children recalled the key parts of plants and looked at the jobs each part does.  We are looking forward to carrying out some exciting investigations this half term to find out the best growing conditions for plants.

In Maths, we have just to come to the end of our Multiplication and Division unit.  The children have been learning about remainders and explored this using lolly sticks.  In the next few weeks we will be looking at Geometry and Fractions, Decimals, Percentages.

In Literacy, we are looking at the text ‘The Great Kapok Tree’ linked to our Rainforest topic from last half term.  Our focus is persuasive texts and how to write in a persuasive way.  We have explored the story through a playscript and linked this to our Reading focus this week.

In Computing, we are starting an exciting new Photo Editing topic!  The children love this topic and will get to edit, improve and create some funny looking images!

In Literacy, the children have been engaged in writing non-chronological reports about natural disasters. They have explored various features of this genre, including main titles, subheadings, the use of present tense, technical vocabulary, and the inclusion of pictures with captions. It has been wonderful to see their creativity and understanding develop in this area.

In Science, we concluded our unit on sound by engaging in a hands-on project where the children made their own pan pipes out of straws. They experimented with changing the pitch of the sounds produced, which was both educational and enjoyable. We will now be moving on to learn about living things and their habitats, which I am sure will capture their interest just as much!

Our art lessons have been particularly fun this half term, as we have been exploring different printing techniques. The children studied the works of artist Andy Warhol, and in turn, created their own tiles from polystyrene and cardboard, which they then printed onto calico. The results have been impressive, showcasing their artistic talents.

In Computing, the children have been working with BandLab to record audio, including their own voices, in order to create podcasts. They have learned how to include sound effects and backing tracks, while also paying careful attention to the quality of their audio to ensure an enjoyable experience for their listeners. We have had a great deal of fun throughout this unit and it has been great to see the children’s skills in this area develop over the term.

In Maths, we have been studying what fractions are and moved on to equivalent fractions, where the children learned that different fractions can represent the same quantity. Simplifying fractions has also been a key focus, and most children are now able to reduce fractions to their simplest form with confidence.

Additionally, we have practised adding and subtracting fractions, along with finding fractions of amounts. These skills will be invaluable as we continue with more complex concepts. To further support their learning at home, I recommend involving your child in cooking or everyday situations where fractions can be applied. This practical approach can reinforce their understanding and be great fun too!

Sea Turtles have had a great start to the second half of Spring term! We have begun a new unit in Literacy which is on reading and writing newspaper articles. We will be using the book, ‘Tuesday’ by David Wiesner to base our newspaper articles on as well as reading through model texts to identify key features and cohesive devices to apply in our writing. In Maths we are still focusing on fraction and decimal equivalents; the children have been able to use their knowledge of tenths and hundredths as fractions and understanding what the decimal equivalents are.

In DT, the children will be applying their understanding of the computer program ‘TinkerCad’ (which they were introduced to in their Computing unit last half term), to research, design, create and evaluate a room within a house. As we are living in an ever-evolving technological world, it is important for the children to understand that most designs for houses, cars, etc are created using computer software. Therefore, this DT unit allows the children to continue to develop their computer assisted design skills.

In PE this half term, the children will be continuing to develop and learn new gymnastic and rugby skills. We are fortunate to have Miss Young again on Wednesdays this half term where the class will continue to benefit from her specialist teaching! Our PE sessions will take place on the same days as last half term- Tuesday and Wednesday- so please ensure your child comes to school in their PE uniform.

As we ended our History unit on the Tudors last half term, we will now begin our Geography unit, ‘Exploring Europe’! Within this unit the children will enhance their physical and human geographical skills through learning about all of the countries and capital cities of Europe as well as some key geographical features.

At the end of last half term, Sea Turtles took a trip to the Shah Jahan Mosque as part of their unit on ‘Islam’ in RE. This is a truly valuable and educational excursion, where the children learnt a lot about the history of the Mosque, key features of the building and important religious practices. It was a fantastic trip led by the Mosque manager who kept the children and adults fully engaged throughout. In RE this half term, the children will be learning about the idea of ‘salvation’ within Christianity.

It was wonderful to have a few of our parents attend our class Online Safety Workshop where we learnt about gaming and the PEGI system. It was a successful session whereby key statistics relevant to year 5 children were shared and healthy/unhealthy gaming habits were brainstormed and discussed. Thank you so much to those who attended.

Just before the half term break, a letter was sent out about Book Week, which we will be celebrating in the 2nd week of this half term. I am very much looking forward to all the amazing book character costumes the children will be dressed up in next Friday, as well as the other exciting events taking place – such as: the author visit and Scholastic Book Fair!

At the end of last term, we started our new World War 2 topic, ’Blitz and Pieces’, with a fantastic workshop with Mr Dilly. We learnt so much about the War and even got to role play being air raid wardens and being in the Blitz, it was very loud and very disorientating! The children had so much fun and over the half term they have managed to remember a lot of facts from our morning.

In literacy, we are continuing to read ‘War Horse’ and the children are really enjoying it. So far, we have written: diary entries, a balanced argument and a newspaper report about the beginning of the Blitz. The children listened to old radio news reports and then worked on creating their own.

In maths, we have been continuing to look at fractions, decimals and percentages. We are focusing on converting them and solving problems including them.

In computing, the children have now finished their Scratch games with moving objects and they have evaluated each others by playing them. This half term, we are moving onto creating our own webpages! The children are very excited about this unit and can’t wait to get started!

In art, we completed our street art unit and had a go at screen printing  our own designs they had made using positive and negative space. The children were very pleased with their results.

In DT this half term, we are going to be creating our own phone cases. The children will research materials to use for it and then learn a number of different sewing stitches. The children will then plan their own design and select the stitch they feel is best. Once they are completed the children can take them home and use them!

In PE, we finished our carnival dance unit and filmed our samba dances. The children did a great job at timing their moves and making sure they were all synchronized.

In RE, we have just finished unit on the Holy Trinity and what it means to Christians. The children looked at Art work and created their own representations of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

We would like to take this opportunity to remind you that lunches are currently free for Reception, Year 1, and Year 2 students under the government's Universal Infant Free School Meals scheme. For children in Years 3 to 6, the cost of a school lunch is £2.95 per day / £14.75 per week. We would appreciate it if you could ensure that your child has sufficient funds in their lunch account. Please can we remind parents that school dinners should be paid for in advance. Please ensure that payment for the week ahead is made by the Monday morning.

Please click here to view the menus via our school website - School Meals

If your child would like to change from a packed lunch to a school dinner or vice versa, please contact the school office to advise of the change.  Please note changes can only be made at the beginning of a term.

Please be reminded that we are a nut free school.  Please do not send your child to school with any food containing nuts, for example Nutella / nut chocolate spread, Peanut butter, Peanut chocolate bars (Snickers) or nut cereal bars etc.  If you are unsure please visit the school office to pick up a healthy lunch leaflet.

If your child has recently borrowed spare clothing from school, in particular children in Reception class, year 1 and year 2 please can we ask that these are returned.  We have a washing machine onsite so you can be assured that any items returned are washed as needed.  

We are also looking for donations of spare clothing such as underwear, leggings, jogging bottoms in small sizes such as ages 4 - 8.  Please either hand into the office or to the class teacher.  Thank you for your support. 

Please see below for PE days for the Spring Term

The children will need to wear their correct PE kit on their PE day. Correct PE kit consists of:

·        Sky blue Maybury t-shirt

·        Navy blue or black hooded jacket

·        Navy blue or black jogging bottoms

Trainers (only lace up if your child can tie their own laces please) 

If you consider that there are exceptional circumstances relating to your request, please let the school have full details. Each application for a leave of absence will be considered on a case by case basis.

Penalty Notices to Address Poor Attendance at School

A Penalty Notice may be issued as an alternative to the prosecution of a parent/carer for their child’s unauthorised absence from school (absence without the agreement of the school or not covered by a medical note) and willbe used by Surrey County Council in the following circumstances :-

1. Pupils identified by police and Attendance Advice Officers (formerly Education Welfare Officers) engaged on Truancy Patrols and who have incurred unauthorised absences.

2. Leave of absence in term time (5 days or 10 sessions or more).

• Please be aware that The Education (Pupil Registration)(England)(Amendment)  Regulations 2013, which became law on 01 September 2013 state that Headteachers may  not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.

• The Headteacher is also required to determine the number of school days a child can be away from school if leave is granted.

• In such cases the Headteacher/Governing Body must decide whether there are exceptional circumstances.  They may request that Surrey County Council issue Penalty Notices when the absence is not authorised.

Warnings will not be given where it can be shown that parents have been notified that such absences will not be authorised.

3. Finally, the issuing of a Penalty Notice will also be considered where it is judged that a parent is failing to ensure their child's regular school attendance.

This will be considered when a pupil has incurred 10 or more unauthorised sessions in the previous 10 school weeks, which may include a pupil arriving late after close of registration.

If you believe at any stage that your child’s absence from school may leave you liable to receive a Penalty Notice, it is extremely important that you act without delay to secure their regular attendance. 

If you have any questions or require further support to achieve an improvement in your child’s attendance, please contact your child’s school or the Attendance Advice Officer.

Penalty Notice relating to Exclusions

If a child is excluded from school, Section 103 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 places a duty on parents/carers to ensure that their child is not in a public place without justifiable cause during school hours. 

This duty applies to the first five days of each exclusion.  Failure to do so will render the parent/carer liable to a Penalty Notice. (Alternative education provision will be made available from the sixth day of any exclusion.)

Amount Payable for a Penalty Notice and Consequences for repeat uauthorised absences

1. If you have not incurred a penalty notice relating to this child/children in a rolling 3 year period since 19 August 2024, then the penalty notice will be charged at the rate of £160.00, per parent/carer per child, if paid within 28 days. This will be reduced to £80.00 if paid within 21 days of receipt of the notice. Failure to pay the Penalty Notice will result in Surrey County Council considering legal proceedings against you in the Magistrates Court.

2. If you have incurred a penalty notice relating to this child/children since 19 August 2024, the rolling 3 year period will be activated from the date of the first penalty notice and the second penalty notice will be charged at the flat rate of £160.00, per parent/carer per child, if paid within 28 days. There will be no reduction for payment within 21 days. Failure to pay the Penalty Notice will result in Surrey County Council considering legal proceedings against you in the Magistrates Court.

3. If you have incurred 2 penalty notices relating to this child/children in the rolling 3 year period since the first penalty notice was issued, then you will NOT receive a third penalty notice – Surrey County Council will have no option but to consider a prosecution, per parent/carer per child, in the Magistrates Court under s 444 Education Act 1996.

Surrey County Council is not responsible for authorising pupil absence and therefore cannot withdraw any Penalty Notice requests without the written permission of the Headteacher.

Advice and support is available from an Attendance Advice Officer by contacting Surrey Attendance Service as follows:-

North West - Tel: 01483 518130 South West   - Tel: 01483 517179

North East - Tel: 01372 833588 South East   -       Tel: 01737 737777

Please bear in mind that all of these dates are subject to change