Ofsted data
This week, Ofsted published short data reports based on end of Key Stage assessments for 2012. The data for any school in England can be accessed on the Ofsted website – this includes the Moortown Primary data.
I’m delighted to draw your attention to our excellent Key Stage 2 results. For Reading, Writing and Maths, we are in the top 20% of similar schools. Progress is a little lower – this is due to being in a relatively small school where just one pupil can make a difference. What the tables don’t show is the stories behind the data. We’re proud of our results, but they are a little lower than 2010 and 2011. One child missed out on a Level 4 by a couple of marks in Maths but achieved Level 4 in English this is shame, especially since Ms Hazell reports that the pupil was working quite securely at Level 4 for much of the year (perhaps SAT nerves or test technique let this pupil down on the day ?). Another much-loved child has very specific special needs meaning he could not do the tests at all, but is included in our school results parents and carers are often surprised to hear even pupils with quite extreme special needs are included in Ofsted data.
Our results for Key Stage 1 are nearly always above national levels in 2010, 2011 and 2012. This is good, but we want it to be better. I’m happy to report that our forecasts for the current Year 2 and Year 1 classes are looking very promising. We’re confident that our continuing aim for excellence is having a good effect on learning in Reception, Year 1 and 2, and this will show in the 2013 data.
Finally, it’s great to see that attendance is in the top 20% of all schools in the country.
As always, please contact me if you have any questions, comments or concerns.
01 March 2013
This week’s spellings will be tested on Friday 08 March.
Lions
These are compound words. These are words that are made up of two other words.
- bedroom
- football
- goodnight
- handbag
- outside
- paintbrush
- playground
- weekend
- cupboard
- blackbird
Tigers
These are words beginning with ‘wh’.
- who
- what
- why
- where
- when
- which
- white
- while
- wheel
- whale
Zebras
Please practise these tricky words.
- saw
- come
- what
- have
- went
- was
- came
- the
- some
- and
01 March 2013
Next Thursday 07 March is our annual school council election. This week’s homework, linked to the elections, is talk time. It’s due in on Wednesday 06 March 2013. Your child has a choice:
Either:
If your child would like to be a candidate for their class, their homework is to prepare a speech to present to their class. This should include the following:
- Why they think they can represent their class well.
- What qualities they have to make a good school councillor.
- What suggestions they have for the new school council to consider. Think of realistic ideas.
Some websites to help with this homework include http://involver.org.uk and http://www.pupilvoicewales.org.uk
Or:
If your child does not want to be a candidate in the elections, their homework is to discuss:
I understand the importance of voting.
This week, in class and assemblies, children have been learning about voting, school councils and why their vote, in the elections next week, really does count.
Top tips in maths
In recent weeks, our maths focus has been adding and subtracting. We’ve practised using number lines to count on in jumps of 1, 2 and 10. Some children have also begun to learn the column method. Why not practise counting in tens from different numbers when you’re walking to school? Start at any number, and add (or subtract) ten as you walk along: 46, 56, 66, 76…
We’re currently learning all about data. We’ve read information in pictograms and bar graphs. We created our own graphs in ICT, too. In the next few weeks, we’ll learn to multiply, divide and know about fractions. Why not try discussing fractions with your child when you next cut a cake or a pizza, or or when you look at the segments in fruit or chunks in chocolate bars?
Top tips for reading
The children’s reading and writing in Year 2 is coming on well. Remember to keep checking your child’s understanding of what they are reading. Here are some tips to help you:
- Find the word / phrase that tells me that…
- How is the character feeling on page _? How do you know?
- What is the problem in the story? How do you think it will be solved?
- Why are there words in bold / capitals / italics?
- Was there a meaning / moral to the story?
What do you treasure?
Over the next few weeks, we’re going to become artists using photography. Our iPads will be used to record treasures that are important to us. We will use these photos to create collages of our treasures. Please can your child be ready to bring in two or three items that are important to them and be ready to explain why it is a treasure. Children may want to bring in a certificate, a medal, a photograph, a souvenir or perhaps a toy that has a special meaning. Please make sure children have their treasures in school by Friday 08 March. They will be returned to you at the end of the day on Friday. Thank you.
School Council elections 2013
Today, during our whole class assembly, we launched our annual school council elections.
Our current school council feel these qualities are very important in a school councillor:
- Good listener
- Confident speaker who is prepared to contribute in school council meetings and feedback to their class
- Has lots of realistic ideas and suggestions to improve the school
- Good decision-maker
- Works co-operatively with others
Other key points about the election include:
- Two members of each class, including Reception, make up the school council.
- Current and previous school councillors are welcome to stand again in the elections.
- Children can vote once for one person.
- Children can vote for themselves – just like in a UK election.
- Vote for the candidate with the best qualities to make a good councillor – don’t just vote for a friend.
- Good school councillors represent the class well – always!
If your child is interested in representing their class on the school council, they need to prepare a speech to present to their class. This will be the homework for this week.
Here are the key dates for the election process:
Friday 01 March
Homework to prepare a speech for those children interested in becoming a school councillor.
Wednesday 06 March / Thursday 07 March
Speeches from all the candidates to their class.
Thursday 07 March
Children vote for their chosen candidate. Results counted.
Friday 08 March
New school councillors announced.
Good luck to all children who choose to stand as candidates and thank you to the current school council for their valuable contributions and decision-making over the last year.
New SEAL theme – Relationships
Our new SEAL (Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning) theme for this half-term explores feelings within the context of our important relationships including family and friends. The key areas of learning are self-awareness, managing feelings and empathy.
There is a focus throughout the theme on helping children understand the feelings associated with an experience that we all need to cope with at some time: that of loss – whether of a favourite possession, a friend, a family home, or a loved one. Although relatively few children are bereaved, most will experience losses of other kinds during their childhood; losing a home, losing friends because of moving house or changing schools, or losing a pet are examples.
We would therefore ask for parents /carers to alert us to any experiences your child has had that might make this area particularly difficult for them – for example, a bereavement.
‘I know how I feel and how others make me feel‘ is the first SEAL statement to launch the theme of Relationships.
Green screen news reporting
Before half-term, we went to the City Learning Centre (next to Allerton Grange) to create some news reports based on an alien crash landing which happened in the school field. The children had to write a script which they performed whilst being recorded. They then had to edit the videos and add titles and credits to them.
Marvellous Maths
We’ve been learning about 3D shapes. You might be surprised when you discuss shapes with your child, but remember it’s important for them to know mathematical vocabulary.
Do you know how many vertices a cube has?
Over the next few weeks, there’ll be a lot of reasoning about numbers and some problem-solving. This will mean deciding which calculation to do, following sequences and working out number patterns. Symmetry and handling data will also be featuring in our learning towards Easter.
Is this Easter egg symmetrical?
