NNEEWWSSLLEETTTTEERR NNOO..88 ((22000099//22001100)) Dear Parents/ Carers,

It was an eventful welcome back to school for 2010

with the snow and ice at the beginning of January. I want to especially thank my staff for their commitment in making it into work every day despite the difficult conditions.

I also want to thank all you for bringing your children to school during the difficult weather and for supporting us with the temporary early closing measures. Safety of children, staff and visitors is always our priority.

It was pleasing to see so many children in school despite the weather conditions. Education is very precious and every single day missed from school is “lost” and can never be replaced. If you keep your child at home you are “stealing their education” from them. Our attendance levels in school are well below the national averages and we see every year when children leave school in Year 6 that those who have had the worst attendance often achieve poorly in the SATs tests. We need to improve our attendance to over 96% and to do this I need the help of every single parent/ carer by ensuring that you send your child to school every day of the school year. Please do read through the newsletter to find out about the many exciting activities taking place in school and the fun learning units that classes are studying as part of their work on the IPC (International Primary Curriculum).

Mr Dave Woods Head Teacher

Parent Hotline number: 08447 707 576 School ID: 71486

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Free Computers for Families

This has already been a very popular programme with many people signing up to receive free school meals as part of the qualifying process.

Your child must be in Key Stage 2 (Year 3 – Year 6) to apply for this scheme. This is government scheme to provide free computers (lap-tops, PC’s or notebooks) to families to encourage computer use at home.

To register for the scheme and to receive the application form you need to phone: 0333 200 1004 The advisor will ask you a series of questions to establish that you are eligible to apply for the scheme.

www.homeaccess.org.uk/

When completing “Section 4” (page 9) of the application form you are asked to complete details about the school. Please use the these details: Beaconsfield Primary School Beaconsfield Road Southall UB1 1DR Staff in school will be pleased to assist you in checking that you have completed the form with all the required details. However, we cannot always immediately check forms. You need to allow us up to 5 days of time to check through the information on your form. CURRICULUM NEWS During our staff meeting time this half-term we have continued to look at the ways in which we use questions and questioning skills in our teaching. All staff have been able to receive updated training on child protection procedures as part of our commitment to safeguarding. We also had some training from our clinical psychologist, Ms. Holly Diamond on aspects of children’s behaviour.

In January we held our annual Citizenship Week with a theme of “Water”. Classes completed work around the theme looking at ways of conserving water and providing safe drinking water to countries around the world where children do not always have clean, safe water to drink. Classes completed collages, information leaflets and debates around the issues. We collected money through our non-uniform day to make a donation of £125 to the charity “Water-Aid”.

The China Project Following some confusion after we received letters from “Cheng Guan Primary School” in China we have now confirmed that our link school is “ Sang Yuan Primary School”

We have received many letters now from pupils at Sang Yuan Primary. Our children are busy replying to the letters so that we can send our replies back to China. There are over 500 pupils at Sang Yuan Primary with 33 teachers.

This weekend is the “Chinese New Year” and on Friday 12th February some of the children from the “China Project” group along with Miss Starr have presented a special assembly on Chinese New Year celebrations. The new year is the year of the “tiger”.

PREMISES NEWS We are now in the final stages of planning for the installation of our solar panel array to the front roof facing towards Beaconsfield Road. We hope to have this work completed before the Easter break.

When this work is taking place we will likely need to restrict access at the front of the school for up to 4 days. I will write to you with any changed school access arrangements to allow this work to be completed.

We are also continuing to plan for some major re-furbishment works during the summer period (June, July and August). We are looking to improve the facilities available for disabled persons using the site and to replace old toilets facilities on the ground floor

of the building.

All of these works are designed to keep our 100 year old building in a very good, safe, working condition to provide excellent learning for our children. Please use bins provided on the school site for any rubbish and help us to keep the school clean and tidy.

CLASS NEWS Foundation Stage (Nursery) In Nursery we have been looking at some Traditional Tales. We have made paintings, drawings and models of our favourite characters and can now join in with telling the stories.

(Little Red Riding Hood)

We have also been having lots of fun in our new playhouse that we have pretended to be lots of things such as the brick house from ‘The Three Little Pigs’ and Grandma’s house in ‘Little Red Riding Hood’. Next half term we are

going to learn all about growing.

(The house of bricks that the wolf couldn’t blow

down!)

Foundation Stage (Reception)

The Reception class went to the Sports Centre. We

had lots of fun and kept fit. The best game was

sleeping lions.

We had to get the treasure without waking the lions.

If they woke they chased us and took the treasure.

Key Stage 1 (Year 1)

As a part of Citizenship Week this half term, Year 1

explored people who keep us safe.

We had a visit from PC Rubai who talked to us about

her job in the police force. She also told us about

what we can do to keep ourselves safe. At the end of

the session we got to try on her police hat and handle

some real handcuffs!

Key Stage 1 (Year 2) Year 2 completed work on saving water during Citizenship Week.

How to Save Water in School?

Save rain water.

Close the tap when not using it.

Drink water from bottles.

Don’t use hose pipe to water school garden.

Make sure the taps are not leaking but if you

find a leaking tap tell someone to fix it.

By: Muhammad Ali Jamali (Year 2) In literacy lessons the children have been reading the story, “The Fisherman and His Wife”

The Fisherman and His Wife

The part of the story I like the most is when the old couple

live in a small hut at the end because it tells you that you

should not be greedy.

If I find a magic fish I will ask her to grant me a wish that is

a PSP and an X-Box 360.

By: Noor & Zaheer Abbas (Year 2)

The Fisherman and His Wife

Long, long ago there lived a fisherman and his wife who

lived in a small hut by the seaside but that wasn‟t where his

wife wanted to be because she didn‟t like to live a small

hut. One day he found something terribly strange it was a

fish but he knew it was magic so he set it free. When he

told his wife she wasn‟t happy. She said “if it‟s magic it can

grant me a wish”. Then she said “I want a new house and I

want it today”. So the fisherman went to find that magic

fish. He said “magic fish where are you “. Then the magic

fish said “I‟m here “. Can you grant my wife a wish? Yes I

can. What does your wife want? She wants a new house.

Ok I granted the wish. You have two more wishes.

Next she wanted a mansion but she wanted much more.

Then she wanted a palace. So the fisherman went to find

that magic fish. Then the magic fish granted the wish. But

next she wanted to be the emperor of the whole earth. But

the fisherman said “please don‟t make me do that “. But the

fisherman‟s wife said “go now don‟t delay “. So the

fisherman went to find than magic fish again. But the magic

fish was angry and she turned the palace back to the hut.

The story teaches us never to be greedy.

By Rajivr and Aanum (Year 2)

Key Stage 2 (Year 3) In Citizenship week we had so much fun because we made

so many different things. We made posters about how to

save water and leaflets about Water aid. Water aid is a

charity that helps build pumps and wells and provide clean

safe water for people to drink in poorer countries. I

enjoyed colouring and designing my poster.

By Abhneet (Year 3)

I enjoyed doing the run around debate during Citizenship

week. We had to decide which different statements we

agreed with and run to the „Agree‟ or „Disagree‟ side, it was

fun. We did different things like make leaflets for Water

aid and design colourful posters.

By Kajani (Year 3)

Year 4 As part of their IPC topic Year 4 have been studying a topic called “The Active Planet”. They have been learning about earthquakes and volcanoes around the world. During this time they have also looked at the disaster that has occurred from the recent earthquake in Haiti.

Volcanoes

Volcanoes are like huge mountains made out of rock. When

they erupt hot lava comes out. The proper name for lava is

“magma”. In Hawaii there are over 10 active volcanoes and you

can go on tours to see them

Some volcanoes are so tall they go past cloud level. In Pompeii

there was a volcano that destroyed the whole city. In class we

watched some videos of volcanoes erupting and looked at some

images. We did an experiment on how thick or thin lava was.

We put 3 liquids on different plates and we saw which liquid

spread out the most and which the least.

We learnt that the gas pushes up the lava from inside the

centre of the volcano. The lava can come out anywhere from

the volcano and ash also comes out with the lava. Some of the

dinosaurs may have become extinct by the eruptions of

volcanoes.

By: Sarah (Year 4)

Year 5

Citizenship Week 2010 During Citizenship Week, we were studying about water. We studied the effects of wasting water as well as saving water. We also had a debate on ‘Should cars be banned’, Rajpreet, Zaynab, Yaseen and Aymaan had some very interesting points and we came to the conclusion that cars are a necessity in our society. We had a non-uniform day where we wore our own clothes and paid a £1.00 contribution which went towards ‘Water Aid’ charity. Our class collected £45.00 and we were very proud of our achievement. Quantum theatre performed a pantomime on ‘Walking to School - Don’t be a Fool’, which I thought was too loud. In our classroom we created persuasive leaflets to highlight saving water, we also had an art project on creating posters on ‘Water Aid’. Our power point presentation was excellent. We worked as a team and had lots of fun. We also learnt a lot about ‘Water Aid’ Charity and how they help people across the world. By: Hani (Year 5)

Year 6 In literacy lessons the children in Year 6 have been

learning about the features of newspaper articles.

By: Karim (Year 6)

By: Muqeet (Year 6)

COMMUNITY NEWS

Parent/Carer Toddler Group Our toddler group continues every Friday morning from 9:00am in the dining room. This is an excellent opportunity for very young children to learn to socialise with other children and it is also a time for mums to meet other mums for a chat and a coffee.

New children are always welcome to join our group. The group is for children from 18 months to 3 years of age. We are continuing to update and provide more equipment and resources for our toddlers.

Please speak to Mrs Poonai or Mrs Panesar if you have any questions about joining the toddler group.

Adult Learning ESOL classes are continuing on Friday mornings. These classes are for adults who have already been attending classes in the autumn term. The advanced ESOL class will also continue for the summer term (after Easter)

If you are interested in future ESOL classes please speak to Mrs Poonai to place your name on a waiting list.

Family Learning We are currently running a “Family Links” course in school. In the coming weeks we hope to run some coffee morning/ workshops for parents of children in Year 4, 5 & 6 to look at, “What we teach and How we teach Maths”.

Please look for notices after half-term for these maths coffee mornings. SCHOOL INFORMATION/PROCEDURES Uniform

Lost Property

Please make sure that your child’s name is on all items of clothing. We always end up with a large number of lost items at the end of each half-term. (jumpers, shirts, plimsoles, lunch boxes etc) Our lost property box is located near the door of the rear playground. At this time of year we often have single gloves, hats and scarves. Please do look for any missing items as we have to dispose of lost property every few months.

It is important to ensure the children’s shoes are in a good condition. Our school uniform includes black shoes (NOT trainers or boots). Shoes should have some grip on the soles to prevent slipping.

School Dinners

On a Friday (only) children having a packed lunch are permitted to have crisps or biscuits or a small chocolate bar as part of their lunch. This is in line with our school food policy on promoting responsible healthy eating. Dinner Money A very big thank you to all of those parents/carers who send in their money regularly either half-termly or weekly on a MONDAY MORNING. School dinners should always be paid for IN ADVANCE. You do not eat in a restaurant and then pay two or three weeks later. The cost of school dinner is £2 per day (£10 per week). Harrisons Catering no longer accept cheques for payments. Payments will need to be made using the internet payment service at www.ealingmeals.com or by phoning Harrisons on 020 8280 0318. Cash payments can still be made using the payment box in school.

The cost for the next ½ term will be £58.00 (22nd February – 1st April = 29 days @ £2 per day). Please note that Harrisons Catering are not part of the school and that school staff have no access to dinner money.

It is the responsibility of parents/carers to inform Harrisons when children are absent from school for any reason. If you fail to do this you will be charged for a meal.

HALAL MEAT TRIAL Our school is continuing with a trial period of having halal meat served on Tuesday and Thursday. This trial is expected to run until the end of March 2010. If the provision of halal meat is going to continue after the trial period there NEEDS TO BE A RISE IN THE NUMBER OF SCHOOL MEALS SERVED on TUESDAY and THURSDAY.

Currently there are not enough extra meals being served on these days for this trial to become permanent.

The school has worked very hard to get this trial underway and it is now up to parents to support the meal service on TUESDAY and THURSDAY if the trial is going to continue.

HELP THE SCHOOL TO SAVE MONEY We have a contract with Harrisons Catering to provide our meal service. Unfortunately if not enough children have a school dinner we still have to pay the catering company. Currently we expect to have to pay Harrisons £2200. This is money we should be spending on resources for all of the children in school.

ATTENDANCE Children are expected in school for 96% of all school days. That means we expect almost all children to have less than 8 days absence in a school year. Every school day missed is a day of learning that is lost forever. The Education Social Worker and the school regularly monitor attendance. You are breaking the law by not sending children to school every day and you can be issued with a penalty fine notice, prosecuted or even imprisoned.

Letters have recently been sent out to a number of families with poor attendance below the expected levels. Please understand that the school has a legal duty to ensure that children are attending school. Some families have been asked to make appointments to see Mr Woods regarding poor attendance. Punctuality

The school day starts at 8.50am and children should be in their class line by that time or will be considered late. It is good practice to arrive at school by 8.45am

Please allow more time for your journey to school if the weather is wet, foggy or icy.

We would like to remind parents not to include crisps, biscuits, sweets, chocolate or fizzy drinks as part of packed lunches.

The school playground is not supervised before 8.40am, therefore children should not arrive in the playground before this time. THE SCHOOL ACCEPTS NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR CHILDREN BEFORE 8:40am. Children who arrive at school before this time may be reported to Social Services. Requests for Leave (Holidays)

Children who achieve the lowest academic levels or make the slowest progress in learning are those that have frequent days of absence.

The school policy for not granting any approved leave during term time is strictly enforced at all times. The Education Social Worker will issue fixed penalty fines for unapproved leave taken during term time.

If children are away for extended periods of time they will lose their place in school to someone who is on the waiting list and they will re-join at the bottom of the wait list

Holidays should only be taken during the 13 weeks when school is closed.

Below are our approved school holiday dates through until July 2011. Please note these dates and ensure that any holiday bookings are made outside of the school terms.

Sping Term 2010 Monday 4th January 2010 – Friday 12th February 2010 Half term – Monday 15th February – Friday 19th February 2010 Monday 22nd February 2010 – Thursday 1st April 2010 Friday 2nd April – Bank Holiday

Summer Term 2010 Monday 19th April 2010 – Friday 28th May 2010 Bank Holiday – 3rd May 2010 Half term – Monday 31st May – Friday 4th June 2010 Monday 7th June 2010 – Friday 16th July 2010

Autumn Term 2010 INSET DAY – Wednesday 1st September Pupils return – Thursday 2nd September – Friday 22nd October 2010 Half term – Monday 25th October – Friday 29th October 2010 Monday 1st November – Friday 17th December 2010 INSET DAY - Monday 29th November

Spring Term 2011 Tuesday 4th January 2011 – Friday 18th February 2011 Half term – Monday 21st February – Friday 25th February 2011 Monday 28th February – Friday 8th April 2011

Summer Term 2011 Tuesday 26th April 2011 – Friday 27th May 2011 Bank Holiday – 2nd May Half-term – Monday 30th May – Friday 3rd June 2011 INSET Day – Monday 6th June Tuesday 7th June 2011 – Tuesday 19th July 2011