Dear Parents / Carers,

This week has been very busy.  We’ve been observing and interviewing teachers for the SENDCo role.

I’ve been showing teachers around to cover Mrs Rafferty’s maternity leave.  As soon as we have found the right person, I’ll let you know.

This week I have been sent the following online safety information which you may find useful.

For Parents – Gaming

We all know that gaming is a hugely popular activity for a number of different reasons, e.g. socialisation, coping mechanism, skill building and much more. Many games are not appropriate for children and plenty of parents struggle with this. Internet Matters have put a guide together which details some alternative games beyond the most popular ones and promoting gaming as a family affair. There are games from 3+ upwards so there’s something for everyone. You can download the guide HERE.

Additionally, Andy Robertson from Ask About Games has some family guides which parents will find really useful. You can find all the guides HERE.

Dear Parents / Carers,

Welcome back to our Summer term.  I hope you all had a lovely Easter break.

Thank you everyone who has returned their Dougie Mac sponsor forms.  If you’ve forgotten, please don’t worry, you can bring it in on Monday.

Safeguarding 

As part of our duty to safeguard children, we also have to ensure that any child displaying any extremist or radicalised behaviour is reported.  We will work together with the police and the parents to support the child.

If you have any concerns about a child’s behaviour please let either myself or Mrs Hartley know.  There is a form on our website called ‘report a concern’ (top right of website).  You can report any safeguarding concerns using this report form including if you have concerns about radicalised / extremist behaviour.

Dangerous parking on Abbots Way

Please can I remind you to park safely along Abbots Way.  There have been quite a few complaints this week regarding how dangerous some of you are parking and driving.  

We want all of our families to be safe walking to school and crossing the road. Thank you.

Strike Action

On Thursday 27th April there is a strike day planned for teachers of the NEU union.  This is a national strike regarding funding for schools, pay and conditions.  Friarswood will remain open to all pupils.

Eco-warriors

You may have seen on our social media that a group of our older children took part in an eco-warrior activity day on Tuesday.  The children went to Angel Square in Manchester to share with the other academies what we have been doing to make our school a ‘greener’ place. They got up and did an excellent powerpoint presentation that they had created so confidently! They have been very busy and have big plans to create a community herb garden for everyone to use, so watch this space!  Please take a look at the social media for photos of what these children got up to including making a wallet out of a juice carton! 

Our Year 3 class went in to our local area to clean it up so that it can be safely enjoyed by everyone and for the wildlife by picking litter. It was amazing to see how much litter our children were able to find and properly dispose of. They had so much fun with the litter pickers and as a bonus they were joined by a Womble! Thank you to Year 3 for helping Newcastle Borough Council’s Green team. #Succeed Together #Do What Matters Most

Just before we ended this term ready for the Easter break, we had a chance to invite our parents in to see just how busy our children have been this term. Our parents were able to join in with lessons (some were cooking and tasting!), to see their children’s work and their projects that they have been completing. It was very busy in every room which was so lovely to see. The Uniform Exchange was also out and our parents were able to take the next sizes of uniform as by now, the children have grow so much from when they started back in September! This is available everyday if any parents didn’t get the chance to stop and look. We really hope that everyone who came enjoyed the time in the classroom with their children, it was amazing to see the pride on everyone’s face. #DoWhatMattersMost #BeYourselfAlways #ShowYouCare #SucceedTogether

Our Year 1 class were very lucky to take part in this year’s Great British Spring Clean. We joined forces with NBC Green team and had a very special helper called Orinoco! Although it was a bit soggy (and muddy!) the children had a great time. They were able to find litter and dispose of it in a better way. They were brilliant and really enjoyed helping to keep Britain tidy. #DoWhatMattersMost

Dear Parents / Carers,

Year 5 Netball

Some of our Year 5 and 6 children took part in a netball tournament on Tuesday and were amazing!  They played so well as a team and showed off their netball skills, their confidence and their sporting attitudes.  I’m so proud to say that our team came 3rd out of 8 schools.  A huge well done to Evelyn, Mila, Gini, Anna-Frieda, Flo, Sienna, Georgia and Hattie.

Small & Tall closed

A reminder that on Wednesday May 3rd, Small & Tall will be closed after school due to staff training.  We’re sorry for any inconvenience.