Dear Parents and Carers,
As we head towards the last few weeks of term the children have continued to amaze me with their learning, progress and development. In mathematical learning some children have done some brilliant problem solving and some of our older children were able to talk to me about fractions, telling me what they had learnt about halves and quarters and thirds. One of our younger pupils did some great counting and was able to count down from 10. Other pupils have been working hard on their literacy development in regards to their reading and writing. In our EYFS classes some of the children can recognise some phonemes (S A T P I N) and make the sounds. We have had some really good progress in PE this week with some pupils attending a Curling competition. Others performed some exciting balances in PE. Another child has been swimming using doggy paddle and another has worked really hard on performing the sit to stand manoeuvre within their physio programme. Some of our youngest pupils have enjoyed exploring umbrellas and spraying rain! In creative learning one pupil painted in between the lines beautifully, whilst others enjoyed looking at different colours through slides. Some of our Investigator’s created great pictures of the sea and were able to tell me what they had put in their drawings. This sparked off a great conversation where they showed me how well their communication skills were developing; ‘I think we should have a class called chicken class!” ‘I think we should have one called Megalodon!” One of our pupils has worked really hard on her vocalising too and others are saying new words that they haven’t used before! I had a great intensive interaction session with a pupil this week where they gave me excellent eye contact, made a range of vocalisations and showed me they understood that conversation went back and forth between people. I hope you enjoy these small examples of the range of learning going on at Palatine each week. I am extremely proud of all that the pupils achieve.
Parent Focus Group
This week we had our first meeting of the Parents Focus Group. Our plan is to report back to you each half term in the end of half term newsletter. For our first agenda item we looked at speech and language provision. In the New Year we have planned to discuss the staffing crisis facing schools and communication systems. Please do let Kaarina know if you would like to join the group kdougherty@palatineschool.org
The world is consumed by social media. There are over 2.8 billion people around the world with a Facebook account, sharing 3.3 million posts every minute. In that same minute, 450,000 tweets are being posted and 66,000 pictures are being uploaded to Instagram. Almost all large companies, charities, celebrities and politicians use social media to engage with their communities. Schools are no different. Social media offers a mix of useful information, reminders, school events and it is also a great way to celebrate successes and fun activities.
With access to and use of social media being so common these days almost second nature to many of us, we all need to ensure that we do not put ourselves at risk when posting things online. Comments made online are not safe and secure and should never be considered as such. We all want to set the best example for our children, so please do think carefully before typing/posting on social media.
From time to time, you may have concerns, worries or frustrations about a matter in school and when such circumstances occur, we want to know about it and look into the situation in order to resolve things as speedily as possible. Please speak to your child’s class teacher or email them asking they give you a call rather than expressing your concerns online. You can also speak to our Family Liaison Officer or a member of the Senior Leadership Team. Posting a concern on social media will not resolve the matter and sometimes posts can cause unnecessary worry for other parents/carers.
In ensuring that staff and children are protected at all times, please refrain from posting negative comments, using inappropriate language and not naming or tagging other children in posts. We are all working in partnership to achieve the best possible outcomes for our children and we all want to be strong role models for them.
The use of apps such as Whatsapp can spread misinformation, moreover, it can bypass the necessary safeguarding and data protection checks that we work so hard to use. Adding or commenting on posts can mean that a child’s confidentiality can be broken which is contrary to normal GDPR requirements. There is no substitute for the continued existence of face-to-face communication channels or telephone calls that allow contact which creates trust and professional working relationships between parents/carers and school. There is a lot at stake if this relationship breaks down.
Help for Households – find out what support is available to help with the cost of living, including income, benefits, bills, allowances and childcare. Click here.
(https://helpforhouseholds.campaign.gov.uk/housing-support/)
Early Help Service
Pop in to see Early help staff on December 8th, 2pm – 4.30pm at Worthing Library Hub Meeting Room 1 if you have any questions around parental emotional support and supporting the wellbeing of your child. You can also scan the QR code for support for a Young Person
Attendance Focus
For the week commencing 14th November, the classes with the best attendance were;
- Explorers hub – Llama class
- Investigators hub – Leopard class
- Engineers hub – Koala class
- 100% attendance – Llama and Polar Bear classes
Reporting absences
Just a quick reminder and request to remember to notify school if your child is absent due to illness by 9am. There is a voicemail system in operation outside of school hours so that a message can be left.
For planned absences such as medical appointments, please inform your child’s class teacher and the office with as much notice as possible.
For all holiday requests, an absence request must be completed and submitted well in advance of the planned absence.
If there are any questions or queries relating to attendance, please contact Kaarina – kdougherty@palatineschool.org
This week’s sign of the week is care!
Have a lovely weekend!
Very best wishes,
Catriona
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