Dear Parents
We still have no phone line! You can imagine our frustration, we are in daily contact with the phone company, but for the time being please continue to email us at parents@writtleinfantschool.com and use our mobile number for emergencies: 07745 216022.
This week
It's been a week full of parent meetings! Thank you to parents for attending our introductions to Year 1 and Year 2, we hope you found them useful. Information from both meetings has now been published. Anita from the Essex Road Safety Partnership gave a talk to Foxes and Squirrels parents today, regarding those important messages we impart at this age to instil lifelong awareness of road safety. Finally we are endlessly grateful to our parents association, who held their AGM this afternoon. They have had a record year of fundraising, the proceeds of which directly enhance your child's experiences at both schools, so if you can support them in any way please contact them at wispacharity@gmail.com.
Maths skills
This week the staff have been training in the Mastering Number programme. This teaches mental maths skills for children, helping them to develop number sense from Reception onwards, so that they leave at the end of Year 2 with fluency in calculation and a confidence and flexibility with numbers. We look forward to disseminating this throughout the school.
We are also offering all Foxes and Squirrels parents a free 2 week course in how maths is taught in school. Every parent who completes the course receives a £10 Amazon voucher. A ParentMail was sent home last week with sign-up details, but if you have any questions please speak to the school office.
Belongings in school
We do ask that coats are waterproof if possible to protect against all weather conditions and for EYFS children playing in the mud kitchen. If your Foxes/Squirrels child has waterproof trousers, these are helpful to send to and from school in book bags. We would rather you had use of them at home as well, rather than keeping them on a peg at school until they've grown out of them!
As you know, space in our classrooms is very limited, so can we please ask you to try and minimise the number and size of bags that children bring into school! We’re not trying to be Ryanair, but we would prefer if bags were a little smaller and keyrings were kept to a minimum. We appreciate that your children are adjusting to being more independent and we know we ask them to carry a lot separately. Book bags are available from the school office for £5 and these fit in the children's trays, which helps them to remember to bring their reading books home too! Please ensure the children have their books and reading records in school every day.
Next week
Remember your Bag2School bags on Monday morning - there are details from the PTA below. On Thursday we are hosting our annual Macmillan coffee morning. This is always a lovely event, with lots of homemade cakes and goodies (donations are very welcome, so please pop in to the hall after you’ve dropped off your child for a morning cup of tea or coffee and a delicious breakfast. As you know, it’s in aid of a very good cause that’s close to all our hearts.
Messy Church is going "wild and fruitful" on Sunday morning at 10am for those of you who would like to attend. Enjoy what’s left of the late summer weather this weekend!
Best wishes
Tracey Wilson
Message from WISPA
Thank you to everyone who attended the AGM this afternoon. Copies of the reports for the 2023-24 fundraising year are available on request, please email wispacharity@gmail.com.
Bag2School
A gentle reminder that Monday is our Bag2School collection. Donations must be dropped off before school, please make sure your bags are tightly closed to protect your donations from the expected inclement weather. Please take a look at full details of what can and can’t be accepted by Bag2School.
Paint & Sip
Our popular Paint & Sip guided art event returns on Saturday 19th October. Tickets for the event will be released on Monday, watch this space for booking links!
Highlights of the week
Year 2
The children have written some fantastic facts about the Great Fire of London, ask them to share their knowledge! We looked at number lines in maths and spotted the missing numbers, as well as revising the greater than, less than and equal to symbols. It's all about properties and materials in Science, which links perfectly to our Great Fire of London work.
Year 1
EYFS
Forest School
We found a newt this week, while spending time around the pond creating a den and new habitats. We made clay tree faces and animals and talked about this week's supermoon!
Home learning
Home learning passports have now been published for this half term. Please try to complete these activities over the course of this half term, and email any work or photos to parents@writtleinfantschool.com.
Year 1 Home Learning Passport, Autumn 1 2024
Year 2 Home Learning Passport, Autumn 1 2024
Daily Essentials
- 2 snacks (fruit/veg/healthy savoury) and a bottle of still water.
- A coat
- Book bag (no large backpacks please)
- Trainers rather than formal footwear or sandals (this is non-negotiable on PE days).
- PE kit must be worn on PE days and jewellery MUST be removed.
- Forest School clothes must be worn on Forest School days. Wellies must be brought to school.
- All clothing, footwear and belongings MUST be named!!
Keeping Children Safe
- Emergency contact details must be up to date. Please email us at parents@writtleinfantschool.com if your details have changed.
- Any food brought to school must not contain nuts or egg-based foods (e.g. egg mayo, scotch egg, omelette etc.).
- We all have a duty to safeguard the children in our care. If you have any concerns about a child, please contact the school, the Chairs of Governors (if your concern is about a member of teaching staff), or the Essex Child and Families Hub on 0345 603 7627.
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