Week 17 - Friday 22nd January 2021

Letter from Mrs Littlewood to our pupils

Dear Pupils of Oldcastle,

As you have been away from school for three weeks, I wanted to tell you how much we are all missing you and how quiet the school is without you in it. I walk through the corridors and see the empty classrooms and feel very sad that they are not full of pupils enjoying their learning and having fun with their friends.

Your teachers have been telling me how hard you are all trying with your home learning and they are very proud of your efforts and dedication to your schoolwork. Remember though it’s ok if you don’t complete all your tasks, you just have to do what you can.

We are so excited to start the morning check-ins with you next week. It will be a good opportunity to see your class teacher and classmates. Miss Hodgson and I will also visit as many check-ins as we can to say hello to you.

We have also been very busy at school preparing a little gift for you, which we hope will make you smile during this difficult time. So next week keep an eye on your post box because something special is on its way to you.

Please continue to look after yourselves and keep safe. I am so looking forward to seeing you all when it's safe to return to school.

Take care

Mrs Littlewood - Acting Headteacher

Remote Education Policy

Yesterday we emailed parents with details of our Remote Education Policy and drew parents attention to the launch of our Check-In Sessions which will start from next Monday. We are delighted to be able to offer these short check-in sessions and provide an opportunity for the class teacher to discuss the school work and also check in with pupils. The session also enables pupils to ‘see’ their friends.

Please note you will need to use your child's Oldcastle Primary email address to access the Check-In Sessions. Parents in foundation phase have received an email with details of your child's account - if you have not received the email please get in touch with us.

Please follow these instructions to access Check-In Sessions:

• The Google Meet session time is provided below for each class. All parents have been emailed a Google Meet code for their child's class - if you have not received the email please get in touch with us via ask@oldcastleprimary.co.uk. The same meeting code will be used every time they enter a check-in session.

• Google Meet can be accessed via this link https://meet.google.com/ or by searching for Google Meet in an internet search engine.

• Please note if you are using an IPAD you will need to download the Google Meet app.

• In Google Meet you will need to click on the icon at the top right of the screen and sign into Google using your child’s Oldcastle Primary email address. It is important that you use this email address as teachers will only be able to allow access to the Check-In Session to children with an Oldcastle Primary email account.

• The teacher has control over who will enter the meeting and only children with an Oldcastle Primary email address will be allowed access.

• Next click on ‘Join a Meeting’ and enter the code for your child’s class as provided in the email to parents and click ‘Continue’.

• We ask that all pupils and parents are aware of their environment and have their microphones turned OFF for the duration of the Google Meet. The teacher will be able to switch on a microphone if they request a response from a pupil.

• We recommend that cameras are turned on to allow the teacher to engage with the children. Although we do appreciate that internet connections may not always make it possible for the camera to be on at all times.

Miss James has put together a short video explaining how the check-in session will work on Google Meet.

Check In Sessions - Explanation for Parents

If you would like assistance with any part of the above process please do not hesitate to contact us via our ask@oldcastleprimary.co.uk email address.

We look forward to seeing the children at the Check-In Sessions. The times of the sessions are detailed below.

For your information, the Remote Education Policy can also be viewed on our website or by clicking this link.

Remote Education Policy

Critical Worker In School Provision

Our on-site provision continues to be available for children whose parents are classed as critical workers as defined by BCBC:

• Those employed in the 'blue light' services - frontline NHS, ambulance, police, fire and rescue service, teachers and support staff working in schools, prison officers and social care workers.

Welsh Government Guidance also states:

‘The law only requires one parent to be a critical worker.

Being included on the above list does not mean children of all workers in these categories can or will be able to continue to send their children to school. Many parents working in these sectors may be able to ensure their child is kept at home. Every child who can be safely cared for at home should be.’

Where possible we would be grateful if you could adhere to the guidance provided above.

The booking form for in-school provision for critical workers is sent to parents on a Monday for the following week. The application process will close at midday on a Thursday.

Children's Mental Health week

Children's Mental Health Week will take place between 1st and 7th February and this year's theme is 'Express Yourself'. At Oldcastle, we are delighted to support this cause and our teachers have been developing some fantastic learning resources for pupils to take part in during the week.

Expressing yourself is about finding ways to share feelings, thoughts, or ideas, through creativity. This could be through art, music, writing and poetry, dance and drama, photography and film, and doing activities that make you feel good.

It’s important to remember that being able to express yourself is not about being the best at something or putting on a performance for others. It is about finding a way to show who you are, and how you see the world, that can help you feel good about yourself.

For Children's Mental Health Week 2021 we will be encouraging children (and adults) to explore the different ways we can express ourselves, and the creative ways that we can share our feelings, our thoughts and our ideas. More details will be provided via Google Classroom and Seesaw. We look forward to sharing further information with you in the weekly newsletter and on our Twitter account.

Thrive

During the last school closure we shared with parents resources that are available through Thrive - social and emotional development for children. Thrive is used in Oldcastle Primary School as a tool to support and encourage the development of confident, curious, creative and capable children and young people who are open to learning and better equipped to deal with life’s ups and downs.

PLease have a look at our website for further useful Thrive resources - Thrive

BBC Home Learning Resources

As we are sure you aware the BBC have produced a timetable of learning that is broadcast across their network. They have brought together hundreds of online learning resources that parents might find useful.

Please take a look here - BBC Home Learning resources

Violin

If your child has been receiving violin lessons in school, Mrs Goss and Miss Ellett have uploaded violin lessons to your child's Google Classroom. If you cannot find the information within your child's Google Classroom please get in touch.

Inset Days

Inset days for the school year have been approved and these are:

• Monday 12th April 2021

• Monday 7th June 2021

• Monday 19th July 2021

• Tuesday 20th July 2021