News

Annual survey results

Thanks to all of you who returned a survey before the summer holiday.  We received 70 responses (most from parents of children in younger classes).  Look out for a second news-post with some responses to respondents’ comments, but, in the meantime, here’s a summary of how many agreed with the statements:

• My child is happy to come to school – 96%
• My child learns a lot in lessons – 99%
• The school helps my child to do as well as he/ she can – 93%
• I know how well my child is doing at school – 87%
• Adults in school explain to me how to support my child at home – 91%
• Teaching at this school is good – 97%
• Teaching at this school helps my child to develop skills in communication, reading, writing and mathematics – 100%
• I am happy with my child’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development – 97%
• Behaviour is good at Moortown Primary School – 96%
• Behaviour is good in lessons – 93%
• The school deals with all types of bullying very well – 90%
• My child feels safe at school – 100%
• I am happy that my views will be listened to – 97%
• I am happy with the after-school clubs on offer – 83%

Obviously, we’re delighted that 100% of parents said they are happy with the teaching of key skills and that their child feels safe at school.  One or two statements have a lower number of those who agreed; here is a response to those points.

Communicating how well your child is doing is important to us. At the moment, there are two parents’ evenings and a final report at the end of the year (perhaps it’s low because parents responded to the survey before they received the reports).  In addition, teachers frequently remind you in newsletters that you can drop in to see them.  Whilst the figure who agreed is lower than others, it’s reassuring to read that no one actually disagreed (others stated they were unsure).  Last year, we introduced a third parents’ evening for Reception parents and we have already amended the report format in light of the survey (and your separate feedback regarding the reports); next year’s report will tell you exactly what level your child is working at in reading, writing, maths and science.  Please let us know how you would like us to keep you informed more.

Supporting your child at home is also quite low – in response to this, we have organised more learning workshops.  This term, there are three coming up, and there will also be an open morning where some of you (numbers will be limited for space reasons) will be able to spend time watching literacy and maths being taught.

• YR, Y1 learning workshop: Monday 07 October, 2.30am – 3.15pm
• Literacy workshop: Monday 14 October, 2.30am – 3.15pm
• Maths workshop: Monday 04 November, 2.30am – 3.15pm
• Open morning: Tuesday 05 November, 9.00am – 10.30am

(Apologies – there are no evening workshops planned so far.  This is because we’ve found that day-time workshops are actually more popular.  If you can’t attend during the day, please let me know.)

Numbers who agreed with the statements about bullying and behaviour appear low, but respondents were simply unsure because they’ve never experienced a problem (nobody disagreed).

Regarding after-school clubs, we always try to provide a wide selection. This term, we’ve offered computer, sports, fitness, dance, cookery and French clubs.  If we offered more, the take-up rate for each one would drop, and we’d struggle for space.  This term, nine clubs are on offer, but only five so far look set to go ahead – take-up of others is too low.  We’ll keep trying hard to match interests.

If you have any further feedback on the points set out here, don’t wait until next summer’s survey – contact me or your child’s teacher!

Industrial action

As you will be aware the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and National Association of School and Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) have voted to hold a regional strike on Tuesday 01 October.  This action is being taken as part of a campaign against proposals to make changes to public sector pay, working conditions and pensions provisions going forwards.

The staff at Moortown Primary who are members of the affected unions will meet on Monday regarding whether they will be participating in this strike action.

I’m sorry I can’t confirm for definite if the school will close or remain open on this day, but I can say that it seems likely that we will at least partially close.  There is a possibility that part of school (eg Key Stage 2) will remain open.

I’ll will inform you of definite plans on Tuesday.

Tuck shop is back!

Our Key Stage 2 (Years 3 – 6) fruit and veg tuck shop regularly sells about fifty portions of fruit each week and it will be returning next Tuesday 17 September, during playtime.

Does your child sometimes forget their 20p to buy an item from the tuck shop and so misses out on getting one of their five-a-day?

From Tuesday 17 September 2013, for the remainder of the autumn term, we are offering you the option of paying in advance for your child to have a portion of fruit or veg from the tuck shop. We know that some children like to buy more than one portion of fruit or veg, either for variety or to top up their packed lunch and we can also offer the option of paying for two items.

The cost for one portion of fruit or veg from 17 September to 17 December 2013 inclusive (13 weeks) is £2.60 and the cost for two portions is £5.20. Please note that if you choose to pay in advance, your payment is non-refundable and must be made in cash with the exact money.

If you prefer your child to continue paying in cash on a weekly basis, that’s fine – we’ll continue to operate this system.

If you would like to pay in advance for your child to visit the tuck shop, please return the slip, from the letter sent home today, and money to the office by Friday 13 September 2013.

Thank you for your support for the fruit and veg tuck shop.

Attendance

A letter from Paul Brennan, Deputy Director of Learning Skills and Universal Services for Leeds Children’s Services:

Dear parent/carer,

I would like to advise you about important changes to legislation announced by the Department for Education (DfE) with regard to holidays in term time.

From 1 September 2013, schools are no longer allowed to authorise any requests for children to be taken out of school for a holiday during term time.

Requests for leave can only be granted in exceptional circumstances, and a holiday would not be considered exceptional. Requests for leave must also be made to the school in advance, as the DfE have told schools that they cannot authorise any absences after they have been taken.

Parents may receive a penalty notice if their child is absent from school without permission. From September 2013 the cost of these notices will be £60 per child per parent if paid within 21 days, and £120 if paid between 22 and 28 days.

We appreciate the challenges that some parents face when booking holidays, particularly during the school holidays. However, regular attendance at school is vital in helping children and young people to achieve their full potential and get the best possible start in life.

Nationally, five million school days were missed in the academic year 2011/ 2012 because of family holidays in term time, which is 10.1 per cent of overall absence in schools. This high level of absence has led the government to make this important change to legislation.

We anticipate that all schools in Leeds will introduce firm policies, and we will work closely with them to ensure that this change to the law has a positive impact on rates of attendance in the city.

I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of the council and your child’s school to thank you for your full support in this matter.

Further information can be found at http://www.education.gov.uk/.

Yours sincerely

Paul Brennan

New SEAL theme - New beginnings

As we start the new school year, our SEAL (Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning) theme focuses on New beginnings. 

We begin this half term with a focus on manners: I can greet someone politely.

Subsequently, I can make someone feel welcome is the first SEAL statement to launch the theme of New beginnings.

New beginnings allows children the opportunity to discuss and reflect on how they or others may feel in a new situation or setting.  This SEAL theme offers children the opportunity to see themselves as valued individuals within a community, and to contribute to shaping a welcoming, safe and fair learning community for all.

The key areas of learning throughout this theme are empathy, self-awareness, social skills and motivation.

Through discrete SEAL lessons, circle times and across the curriculum, children will explore feelings of happiness and excitement, sadness, anxiety and fearfulness, while learning (and putting into practice) shared models for calming down and problem-solving.

New beginnings supports the development of a learning community in each classroom where all members feel that they belong.  Class contracts, produced at the start of the year, allow children to contribute to how they feel they can achieve a safe and fair learning community.

Time for a Smart Restart?

Coming back to school after the holidays is a great time to make a fresh start and to get into a healthier routine for the new term. Change4Life’s brand new campaign – Smart Restart – has now launched and encourages families to take on one change for the better, for six weeks.

Have you seen the TV advert for the campaign?

Research by Public Health England shows that sticking to a healthy routine right from the start of term can have real benefits. Children that do more physical activity have improved concentration levels, enjoy good relationships with classmates and have fewer reports of problems. It is also associated with lower levels of worry amongst children.

So by signing up for the free Smart Restart, you will receive offers, discounts and lots of support with the free app, emails and texts to help you stick to your chosen healthy change all the way through to half term. You can also enjoy Disney family fun and games in the kids’ zone.

From super lunches to beat the treats, there are a variety of changes to follow. Let us know how you get on.

Tryzone success

Well done to Luke, Nevan and Husna for all their enthusiasm and effort over the last eleven weeks taking part in the pilot Tryzone Learning programme, run by the Leeds Rugby Foundation.  Based at the learning centre at Headingley Carnegie stadium, Tryzone is an education programme to support children and families across Leeds.  As part of the Year 6 group from local schools, Luke, Nevan and Husna have been involved in street dance, yoga, hearing inspirational speeches by Leeds Rhinos players and creating the Tryzone logo, amongst other activites.

Take a look at the highlights from the recent presentation event.

Fab feedback

So that we can feel confident about what we do, we quite often invite feedback.  Thank you to those of you who have returned annual surveys (once again, your feedback is really positive, but with some useful suggestions, too).

Recently, a headteacher from another Leeds school was so impressed by our school’s learning environment, he asked if he could return with the school’s leadership team to get some ideas.  Here are some of the things he said:

Moortown Primary is a school where the learning environment has clearly been carefully considered and a high priority for all members of staff. The compact learning spaces and transitional areas are characterised by creativity, order and clarity.

The organisation and structure of all areas gives a strong indication that pupils are encouraged and able to self-select resources to move learning on independently. There is also an impression that all members of the school community put a high value on maintaining this high quality learning environment.

The use of space was exemplary. This was most strongly shown in the Reception classroom. Areas of provision were well defined, well organised and very engaging for the pupils. The creativity behind many displays/backdrops was admirable. The lack of space did not restrict the broadness of what was offered. Parents/carers had easy and immediate access to pupils’ learning journey folders.

The headteacher went on to praise particular strengths, including classroom displays, classroom management and resources.

Another visitor recently has been a Leeds Primary School Improvement Service consultant.  In her reports, she comments on the Reception classroom and the children there:

The indoor especially is bright, stimulating and offers challenge in all areas to ensure children are making progress. I spent the entire morning in the Reception class. All children were constantly on task due to the engaging provision areas.

When I visited again a week later, there were new challenges to inspire children’s learning at the right level.  All the children were on-task and involved in their own learning due to the challenges and stimulating environment offered to children. The children’s behaviour is impeccable because children are busy and on-task within the learning environment, even in the absence of the children’s usual teacher.

…Once again showing Moortown Primary is a happy, healthy and effective place to learn!

It's Community Week!

This week, we have another themed week at Moortown Primary.  Community Week is the second themed week of the year, following the popular Brain Week in the Autumn term.

Community Week will run along three themes:

Learning about communities

Your child will think about community along four broad objectives:

To know what community is: your child will think about what ‘community’ means, how it feels to belong to a community, and the various ‘scales’ of community, such as local, national and global.

To know what family is and know that families are different: we all know families are made up in different ways, from mum, dad and two children to single parent families and extended families; amongst other things, your child will think about reasons for families being different and how it might feel to belong to a different family.

To know who contributes to communities and how: we’ll think about who contributes to communities and how, referring back to the different ‘scales’ of commmunity, from local to global.

To be aware of who might feel vulnerable in a community and that we all might feel vulnerable at some point: your child will think about different individuals and groups in society who might not feel fully as if they belong, or who might not feel properly safe; individuals or groups which your child will consider will vary depending on age, but might include elderly, those with mental health issues and minority ethnic groups; issues such as sexism, homophobia and Islamophobia might be covered.

Learning about countries

One of the most popular aspects of our themed weeks is when classes mix up, so Reception children learn alongside Year 6 children and everyone in between.  This is obviously especially important in Community Week – highlighting Moortown Primary as a learning community.  Over the course of the week, groups will visit each teacher, from Mrs Burke to Mrs Hazell, learning about a specific country:

• Germany
• Peru
• Ethiopia
• New Zealand
• Canada
• Antartica
• Thailand

Children will be issued a ‘passport’ to complete as they visit each country, learning about language, climate, currency and other facts.

Special events and visitors

Alongside all the learning, we’re looking forward to some visits! Representatives from our current charities, Dogs’ Trust and Water Aid, will visit, as will a group called KidzAware (who promote equality ) and Carla Cantrell from Leeds United Ladies Football Club.

The climax of Community Week is on Friday afternoon.  PTA – a big part of the school community – invite you to our Community Fair.  We all hope to see you there!

Skyride

Launched today, Skyride is a mass participation cycling event taking place in Leeds on 07 July.  This marks the day of 1 year to go until the Tour De France Grande Depart 2014.  The event is anticipated to attract around 10000 participants, many of whom are likely to be families with young children.  For more information please see http://www.goskyride.com/leedsSkyRide.