Dear Parents,

Welcome to 2024, I hope that you all had a good break and had the opportunity to meet with friends and family.

The highlight of this week was the Well Being Entry point that we held on Monday, we had a number of learning areas that were focusing on during the event; the connection I saw between older and younger students on the day was a positive outcome of the day. Collaboration across all organisations is key, we clearly witnessed our students as strong team workers during the sessions. Ultimately, as adults we need to work in teams, one of our many aims is to ensure our students start developing the required skills to collaborate at an early age. As parents we can often place an over emphasis on academic achievement (which of course is important) however, we also need to develop the 'softer' skills that will all help to develop Adaptable, Resilient and Respectful children.

Thanks to all the school team that organised such a positive learning experience for all.

Tim Robinson

Headteacher

Early Years

Many thanks to Early Years parents for attending our coffee and curriculum phonics and reading workshop.  The workshop provided information about Phase 1 pre-phonics and outlined the RWI program used at school to teach reading and writing.  Parents were also able to view resources, including reading books and sentence packs, which will be sent home for Reception children next week.  Parents who were unable to attend the meeting can access the slides here.

Milepost 1

Year 1 enjoyed their trip to the Children's Public Library in December. Children were excited to travel by bus to the local library which was a first for many. Children loved exploring the continuous provision area, sharing ideas and building new creations. A favourite activity was showing our creative sides with some art activities. Thank you to the parent volunteers for your support.

Milepost 2

Fashion in Oman was the Year 3's IPC unit at the end of term 1. Through this unit, the children developed knowledge and understanding of the traditional clothing worn by men and women in Oman.  They also learnt how other countries have influenced traditional fashion within our host country. Finally, the children worked collaboratively to design and create their own Omani-inspired bag, necklace or massar.

Milepost 3

Children in Milepost 3 have been leading a range of games and activities at lunchtime for the younger children. Using a range of new playground equipment, the Playground Leaders have been teaching others how to play cornhole and new skipping games. The new Lego and blocks have given children the opportunity to make some fantastic models and the poppers have proven to be very popular. There have also been some giant games of Tic Tac Toe and a range of team games on the sports field.

Class Photographs and School Yearbook

This year, we will take a photograph of each class and give a copy to each student. Please check Seesaw next week to see the date that your child's class photograph will be taken.  Please ensure that your child comes to school wearing their school uniform on that day. 

We will give a class photograph to each student by the end of Term 2.  Digital copies will be available too. Please note that we will not take individual photographs of students this year.

Class photographs will also be added to this year's School Year Book, which will be available at the end of Term 3.

Wishing you a pleasant weekend,

The PDO School Team