Living and Learning: I can assess my own risks
Following our staying safe learning last week, we thought about how that links with another area of living and learning, rights and responsibilities.
I have the right to be safe.
I have responsibility to make safe choices.
This week, our living and learning statement encourages us to take responsibility for our own safety. Using the learning from our themed week, we thought about how we can assess our own risks and stay safe.
‘I take responsibility for my safety online by never giving my personal information and password.’ Sophia
‘I take responsibility for my safety online by not playing with others who are being mean.’ Gabriel H
‘I take responsibility for my safety at home by not jumping on my bed.’ Jodie
‘I take responsibility for my safety at home by tidying up my toys after I have used them so nobody trips up.’ Iris
‘I take responsibility for my safety at school by following instructions.’ Junior
‘I take responsibility for my safety at school by having four legs of my chair on the floor.’ Zain
‘I take responsibility for my safety in my environment by not talking to strangers.’ Gurvar
‘I take responsibility for my safety in my environment by not stroking dogs that I don’t know or if I haven’t asked their owner.’ Ewan
Ask your child about other potentially unsafe situations and how they can take responsibility and assess their own risks.
Parent / carer information
Thank you to all parents and carers who attended appointments this week to discuss how your child is getting on in Year 2.
As promised, here are some links to support your child at home.
LEXIA is still available to all pupils. Please ask if your child needs their password to access this at home. As a guide, once your child has reached Level 10, they have covered the Year 2 learning.
Hit the button can support the quick recall of number bonds and times tables (x2, x5 and x 10 is our focus in Year 2).
The times table checks, like the ones the children have started to complete every Friday, can be accessed from the calculations and times table section of our website.
Our handwriting guide is useful to reinforce the cursive writing that we use at school. This can help to support spelling practice and completing homework.
The Year 2 common exception words can be found in your child’s reading record book and can be used for reading and spelling practice.
Finally, here is the link to the Year 2 SATs information. The short video will help you gain a greater understanding of the tests. (They’re labelled 2018, but the tests haven’t changed since then.)
If you would like us to go through any of the information above or you want to discuss any other aspect of your child’s learning, please do come and see us.
Maths at home
After conversations had at parents’ evening, here is a list of some areas of maths that we don’t cover in a lot of detail in Year 6 as they’ve been taught lots in previous year groups. Using the revision guides sent home, the tests the children have brought home and your own ideas, see whether you and your child can practise these skills at home and become really confident with them.
- converting measures: the children need to be really confident converting between g and kg, ml and L, mm>cm>m>km, units of time, pounds and pence.
- co-ordinates: using a four quadrant grid, chn need to be able to confidently plot co-ordinates, identify already plotted co-ordinate and complete shapes on a co-ordinate grid.
- shape: for both 2D and 3D shapes, the children need to be able to confidently name shapes, including different triangles. They should know what angles add up to in the most common shapes (particularly triangles and quadrilaterals) and know what line of symmetry shapes have.
- symmetry: being able to identify lines of symmetry and complete a shape or pattern in a line of symmetry to a high degree of accuracy are important skills to practise.
- measuring: using a ruler and a protractor to a high degree of accuracy.
A-maze-ing Games
Inspired by our Fighting Fantasy class novel, we made some games where players had to conquer a maze. We had to think about symmetry, straight lines, interesting paths and the right level of challenge.
Once we’d decided on a maze design, in teams we made the aim of the game and added coins, other players and objects to avoid.
We used feedback from other teams and our own evaluations in order to debug our mazes. Ask your child what this means and how they debugged their own maze.
Next week, we will take our learning online and use Kodu to create virtual maze games!
Living and Learning: Staying Safe in the environment
Staying safe in the environment was one of our main areas of learning during ‘Staying Safe Week’. Year 1 went on a walk around the local area and to the park to see what dangers there might be. The children were very knowledgeable about road safety and stated the importance of staying well away from the road when walking on the pavement. Fortunately, we didn’t have to cross any roads but the children had remembered the Green Cross Code in case we needed it. We also discussed the importance of staying in sight of the adult you are with and not talking to strangers.
Whilst at the park, we had a good look at the equipment and decided that it was not safe to play because it was too wet and slippy. Hopefully we can visit the park again when the equipment is safe to play on.
o
Living and Learning: Staying Safe week comes to an end
The final two days of our Staying Safe themed week continued to be filled with visitors, visits and more great learning.
Thank you to Allerton Grange who supported our themed week by hosting two of our classes. Year 6 had to be very safety conscious when attempting to scale the climbing wall. The technology department allowed Year 5 to safely investigate and explore a variety of different equipment.
Rachael from the Dogs Trust visited all classes on Thursday to talk about keeping safe around dogs. The children were taught to always check with an owner to see if it is safe to stroke a dog and what to do if a dog runs towards you. Have a look at Year 3’s class news post to find out more.
Jane Cusworth from Leeds Beckett University also joined us on Thursday to cover some basic first aid with different classes. Thank you to those parents and carers who joined her for the first aid workshop at the end of the day.
On Friday, Steve from British Military Martial Arts gave some great self defence tips to the children. BMMA run a martial arts after-school club at school every Monday so contact the office if you’d like more details.
There was also a water safety theme to the day with a visit from the Canal and River Trust to help to keep us safe by rivers and canals. Key water safety messages were given such as lying down on the floor when pulling someone out of the water.
Finally, thank you to Catering Leeds, our school meal provider, who gave hand hygiene sessions to Reception and KS1 classes. Keeping our hands clean and safe from germs will protect us from becoming sick and passing on germs to others.
There have been some great safety messages across the week from all our visitors. Ask your child/children what they have learnt across the week in respect to staying safe
- online
- at home
- at school
- in their environment
Staying Safe
The children took part in lots of activities last week as part of our ‘Staying Safe’ themed week.
We also thought about our school rules and how these keep us safe.
Safety Week Summary
We have come to the end of our ‘Safety’ themed week. Year 4 have had many visitors relating to different aspects of staying safe. We would like to thank Mrs Taylor who works hard to organise the events during a themed week. She has provided us all with many interesting and exciting safety workshops.
Below are a few snippets from some of the sessions.
Safety Week: Dogs Trust
Dogs Trust
We all enjoyed a visit from Dogs Trust on Thursday. The dedicated staff help find homes for hundreds of dogs. It is important that children understand how to behave around the dogs in their homes and in the community so they can enjoy their company and remain safe. 
There are many benefits of having a dog in the family:
- they provide loyalty
- petting a dog or cat can reduce anxiety and owning a pet can aid relaxation
- walking a dog and caring for them is good exercise
- children can learn about responsibility, compassion and respect for another living thing
However, we often hear in the media of children getting bitten by dogs. Year 4 learnt all about different dog behaviours and how to remain safe around them.
The reasons dogs bite:
- protecting themselves or their property
- may be in pain
- may feel trapped
- may have been surprised by your actions
- may be very excited
Ask your child how these dogs may be feeling. Would it be safe to approach them? What does their body language tell you?
Rules when we are out and about:
Always ask before approaching any dog. (CONSENT) Ask the owner where on the body to stroke the dog.
Never touch a dog that is left alone outside a shop or similar situation.
Don’t enter a garden if a dog is loose, even if you know it.
Never run or shout around a dog. Always walk past calmly.
Do not hug a dog. How would you feel if a stranger hugged you?
So how should we behave around dogs?
Always be calm, quiet and move slowly around pets.
If a strange dog runs up to you or if the dog you are visiting is very excited to see you:
- stand still
- make no noise
- if you are carrying food or toys, drop them away from you
- fold your arms
- look away from the dog
- move away slowly
- never run
This will make you very boring to the dog and help him to calm down
If you are knocked to the ground:
- roll up into a ball with your face to the ground
- make no sound
- cover your face with your hands
Thank you Dogs Trust
Living and Learning: Giving Consent
Continuing our learning about staying safe, Year 4 thought about consent and what this actually means.
First of all, what is consent?
“It means you say yes.” commented Emma.
Consent is the act of giving permission for something to happen or agreement to do something.
“Do we always have to give our consent?”
“We can say no and not feel bad about it,” stated Musa.
“Why do we ask for permission?”
“You can ask to play with someone’s toys or ask your friend if they’d like to play your game,” said Jasraj.
“Asking for permission can keep us safe. If your parents say no then you should accept that,” quoted Sami.
“Never consent to competitions online,” suggested Mrs Freeman.
The children went on to name occasions where they believed they should ask others for their consent.
“Would you like to play this online game with us later?”
“No, I’d rather not as it’s not really my thing. Thank you for asking.”
We talked about respecting boundaries and that each and every one of us has the right to say NO! This doesn’t have to be said rudely but it is very important that if you don’t want to do something then you don’t give your permission.
The important thing to remember about consent is that you should always respect others when they say ‘no‘. That is their choice to make, not yours! Even if you might not like their choice you should always respect it.
“Can I take your photo?” asked Mrs Freeman.
“Yes, of course that’s fine,” replied Sami.
“I’d prefer it if you didn’t,” said Jess.
“Thanks for asking but no,” stated Noah.
“I’m not happy about that so no,” mentioned Felix.
Year 4 were taught that they have the right to withhold consent or to give consent at a later date. Giving consent and knowing that it can be withdrawn at any time, is all part of staying safe. Using the poem below, the children used some inference skills to decipher the effects peer pressure can have on individuals and the importance of saying yes/no for the right reasons.
Peer Pressure 
The fear of being left out is what it’s all about
No one wants to get laughed at or be the odd one out
No one likes to feel rejected put down and dejected
we all love to feel accepted, we’re all affected
but you have to learn to be your own person
just be yourself and aim to be your best version
You’re not a robot programmed to follow without thinking
just acting brainless with empty eyes blinking
I understand the pressure it doesn’t stop as you grow
It’s natural to follow where everyone goes
and sometimes it’s ok to go with the flow (follow the crowd)
but other times you have to swim against the tide and so (do your own thing)
you’ll have to say no, when everyone says yes
and be firm with your choice deep in your chest
and overcome that fear of being left out
because that’s what peer pressure is really all about.
Year 4 showed empathy, understanding, maturity and a good understanding throughout our lesson.
Well done!