March 2023

Wednesday 15^th and Thursday 16^th March 2023

Dear Parents/Carers,

I am sure you are already aware that the third and fourth days of industrial action by the NEU will be going ahead on Wednesday 15^th and Thursday 16^th March 2023.

We had hoped to be able to accommodate all children in school on both days as normal, but this is simply not possible due to some limitations with staffing on those days. This means we will have to close four of our classes. Classes will return to normal on Friday. The affected classes are set out below and will be closed for the day:

• Cherry (EYFS) - Wednesday only
• Rose (EYFS) - Thursday only
• Galaxy (Y5)
• Comet (Y5)

All other classes remain open and are staffed.

I am aware that this obviously creates challenges for some affected families but as I said in my previous strike update letter, staff will have not taken this decision to strike lightly.

As we tried to prepare in advance for this day, we cancelled lunches for some year groups to ensure less food wastage. Do not be alarmed if you have had a cancellation message from Chartwells and your child will be in school. Lunch will be provided if you preordered.

Our aim was always to try to offer families as much notice as possible about our plans for the planned industrial action, but unfortunately this has not been possible.

I apologise for any inconvenience caused at this stage.

Mr J Churchill

Headteacher

February 2023

Dear Parents and carers,

Firstly, we’d like to say a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has donated books to school in recent weeks, your support is invaluable to our book fundraising efforts.

We are very excited to be partnering with Pop-Up Bookshop and the Great Big Read initiative again to fundraise for new books to benefit all children at Heatherlands Primary School.

Over the last 3 years, we have raised a phenomenal £3,485 extra books through our reading challenges and book fairs!

We are now looking forward to celebrating World Book Day in March and sharing everything we love about books and reading for pleasure with the children!

PRE-LOVED BOOK FAIR

The children can build their home library by visiting a pupil-only pre-loved book fair held during the school day. All pre-loved books are kindly donated by our school and wider community, with a large selection of titles to choose from. 

The Great Big Read team will visit Heatherlands Primary School on Tuesday 28th February during school hours.

We encourage children to come to school on this date dressed as their favourite book character - we are looking forward to seeing your creative outfits! This is a date change as previously this was planned for Thursday 2nd March.

Throughout the day, all pupils will visit the book fair to select a pre-loved title to keep at home!

We ask for a suggested donation of £2 per child towards school book fundraising.

This event is fully inclusive and donations are optional - all children will join in the fun! You are welcome to contribute a higher amount to this initiative should you wish to do so. Donations can made via;

• Cash on the day (mark envelope to ‘Great Big Read’)
   
• PayPal at this link: https://bit.ly/3oE87VN (select ‘Heatherlands Primary School’ in drop down)
   
• 100% of children receive a book to keep at home!
   
• 100% donations benefit Heatherlands Primary School with extra books!
   

Thank you for supporting Heatherlands to help promote reading for pleasure and in our book fundraising efforts! 

Thank you

Miss Collis

Year 5 Hampton Court visit

Dear Parents and Carers of Year 5 pupils,

I am pleased to let you know that we have secured a date to visit Hampton Court Palace. We will be visiting on Wednesday 26th April 2023. The cost for all pupils is now £7.50 per pupil. This cost has been hugely subsidised by a large amount of funding from Hampton Court Palace, alongside a generous contribution from the Friends of Heatherlands; both donations we are hugely grateful for!

I know many of you have already paid towards the previous trip, but we will now refund this money and set up a new payment plan for £7.50, split across two payments of £4.00 and £3.50. It is easier to do it this way on our school money systems; I do apologise for the inconvenience. The money needs to please be paid by Wednesday 8th March 2023. If we have not received the full payments by this date, we may need to cancel the trip again and will lose the funding we have been granted.

This will be a long day and children will need to be at school earlier than usual at 7:30am. The expected return time at school is 4:50pm. School staff will support the children on the visit and so we do not require parent helpers this time.

I will write to you again to confirm all final arrangements. Over the next few days, we will begin to issue refunds and set up the new payment system online. We no longer use paper permission slips, however, please email the school office giving your child’s permission to attend the trip. Thank you for your ongoing support and enthusiasm with this trip to Hampton Court Palace.

Kind regards, Mrs Deverill

Year 3 Roman Day 2023

Dear Parents/Carers,

As part of our current topic on the Romans, we are excited to announce that we will be running a Roman themed experience day for Year 3 children on Tuesday 28^th March.

We would like the children to come into school dressed as a Roman on this day. Please do not feel that you need to spend lots of money on a costume. A small effort is all that is required, so making your own costume from clothes and materials you may already have at home is absolutely fine. Below is some information on the type of clothing that was worn at this time. One of the activities we will be doing with the children on this day will involve the use of clay, so please feel free to send your child in with an old t-shirt to wear to protect their costume.

As we will be making lots of wonderful Roman arts and crafts for the children to take home, if you would like to make a voluntary contribution towards the cost of supplies then please bring in £1 on the day to give to your child’s class teacher.

Yours sincerely,

The Year 3 Team

Dressing up as an Ancient Roman

Roman clothes were made of wool and spun into cloth by the women of the family. If you could afford to buy clothes, you could buy linen, cotton or silk, which was brought to Rome from other parts of the Empire.

Men and boys clothes

The Toga – The man on the right is wearing a toga. Only male citizens of Rome were allowed to wear togas. A plain white toga was worn by all adult male citizens.

The Tunic -The tunic was standard dress for all men from slaves to the nobles. It could be worn plain, belted at the waist or under a cloak. Citizens of Rome would wear a tunic under their toga.

Women and girls clothes

Women wore a longer tunic which was often ankle-length. Over this they wore a stola which was full length from neck to ankle, high- waisted and fastened at the shoulders with clasps.

Rich women wore long tunics made from expensive cotton or silk. They also wore lots of jewelry and make-up, strong scent and elaborate hairstyles. They had specially trained slaves to help them dress, arrange their hair and put make-up on their faces.

Good afternoon parents/carers of year 5 and 6,

We have decided to email all parents/carers in years 5 and 6 in response to conversations had with the children as part of our Internet Safety Day. (7.2.23)

We had an assembly today and discussed scenarios that the children may find themselves in and how we can protect ourselves when using social media apps on our devices. 

It has come to our attention that some children within years 5 and 6 have access to Snapchat and through this app, have been receiving some negative and hurtful messages. This concerns us as a school as the minimum age limit for Snapchat is 13 years. However, we understand that some parents/carers have allowed their children to use apps such as Snapchat. If this is the case, we urge you to check your child's phone/device regularly to ensure that the app is being used responsibly. Attached to this email is some helpful guidance about Snapchat.

As a school, we are vigilant in ensuring the children understand appropriate online behaviours. However, as we do not allow personal electronic devices to be used in school time, it is very difficult for us to monitor this behaviour at home and so ask for your continued support with this.

Kind regards,

The Year 5 and 6 team

January 2023

Dear Parents and Carers of year 6 children

As you may be aware, year 6 is a very special year for children, as they take on more responsibility and learn the skills of independence including self-directed study, which over time becomes a key secondary school expectation and skill.

As part of the uniqueness of year 6, the children undertake national testing called Standard Assessment Tests or simply SATs.

'SATs are used to measure children’s progress and achievements in maths, spelling, punctuation & grammar, plus reading. The results show the progress between Year 2 and Year 6, which is really important to show what children have particularly learnt in English and maths. SATs also help prepare children for the next stage of their education.'

Throughout this school year, the year 6 team work very hard to prepare the children to take these different SAT tests, but it is also essential that children complete the homework tasks that are set each week, which provide them with further opportunities to gain the knowledge and skills required to prepare for the SATs.

The children are given special CGP books which guide them through the work they need to complete each week, although this is linked to the work they do in class, it remains essential that parents help provide the encouragement and motivation for children to complete this work each week and return it school for checking.

The systemic support from home to help your child remain focused when completing their homework will support the children with their SATS when they sit them in May. The partnership between home and school will be vital if the children are to achieve their potential in reading, writing and maths.

Parents and carers are informed of the outcomes of the tests late in the summer term and further updates on the administration of the tests will be shared nearer time.

Thank you for your support in the coming months as we continue to work towards preparing all our children to undertake their SATs and prepare for secondary transitions.

Best wishes

Mr Churchill

December 2022

Dear Parents and Carers

We have been provided with the following information from BCP to share with you as we continue to see an escalation in illnesses at this time of year.

There are several viruses including Covid which are circulating in our community and there are things we can all do to reduce the spread of the virus and other respiratory infections. This includes keeping children off school when they are unwell. If your child has symptoms that concern you, call 111 and look at getting an online appointment or support from pharmacies with medication to reduce symptoms.

If your child is unwell with symptoms of a respiratory virus, they should:

• Stay at home and avoid contact with others where possible
• Return to school and normal activities when they no longer have a temperature and feel well enough to attend

If a child has a positive COVID-19 or has confirmation of another infection illness, they should:

• Stay at home and avoid contact with others for 3 days after they took the test or confirmation of illness or as recommended by their GP
• Return to school and normal activities after 3 days if they no longer have a temperature and feel well enough to do so

Full guidance for people with symptoms of a respiratory virus is available on gov.uk

In addition, the NHS website has some very good advice about symptoms of Strep’ A and some on Scarlet Fever. The symptoms are best looked at on the NHS website for accuracy UKHSA update on scarlet fever and invasive Group A strep - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

There are very few cases but it is infectious and you should not send your child to school if they have symptoms. Like with Covid you should encourage hand cleaning regularly and schools are doing that too.

If your child has these symptoms;

As a parent, if you feel that your child seems seriously unwell, you should trust your own judgement. Contact NHS 111 or your GP if:

·       your child is getting worse

·       your child is feeding or eating much less than normal

·       your child has had a dry nappy for 12 hours or more or shows other signs of dehydration

·       your baby is under 3 months and has a temperature of 38°C, or is older than 3 months and has a temperature of 39°C or higher

·       your baby feels hotter than usual when you touch their back or chest, or feels sweaty

·       your child is very tired or irritable

Call 999 or go to A&E if:

·       your child is having difficulty breathing – you may notice grunting noises or their tummy sucking under their ribs

·       there are pauses when your child breathes

·       your child’s skin, tongue or lips are blue

·       your child is floppy and will not wake up or stay awake

Thank you

Mr Churchill

November  2022

14.11.22

Message from Mr Churchill

Dear Parents and Carers

As part of our work at Heatherlands, we maintain a focus through the curriculum of what it means to be British, British values and those events that can help celebrate being British.

As you may be aware, over the next month, England and Wales will be taking part in the football World Cup, a global festival that brings countries together to unite in the name of sport. At Heatherlands we now have families from all over the world and we recognise the importance of celebrating our diversity in different ways, including the World Cup and the different cultures we represent. 

Many of our children at school play for teams outside of school and we are particularly aware that there is a global explosion in girls and women's football with participation increasing by 54%. To that end, as a school we remain committed to offering all our children a wide range of sporting experiences and we are pleased that we now have representative teams in boys, girls and mixed football. The children will be wearing their new kit in the new year, thanks to the generosity of one our parents, Mrs Small, who has provided sponsorship. We are very excited about the new design in the Heatherlands school colours.

From feedback, wider participation at lunchtime and school clubs, we know many of our children have a real interest in sport and are now beginning to talk about sporting events like the World Cup with many aspiring to one day represent England at some level in a sport. Events like the World Cup help to generate a' buzz' around the school and provide teachers with opportunities to cross reference the World Cup to key subjects like PE, geography and English.

As we learn to live with covid, we are now in a position to now bring more of the 'awe and wonder' back into the school to help create lasting memories for all the children, where school becomes more than reading, writing and maths lessons.

To this end, On Monday November 21st, England play their first World Cup match against Iran with the kick off scheduled for 1pm. As the game falls during the school day, all the children will have the option on this day to wear their England football shirts, shirts of the teams they play for locally or any sports top of choice to show solidary for their home country as they begin their pursuit of the World Cup trophy. 

Additionally, children in KS2 (Years 3 -6) will have the option to join together in the hall to watch the England verses Iran match at 1pm on our smart screen. Our younger children will remain in classrooms due to the length of time they would be expected to sit and the available space, but they will have access to the game via classroom smart boards should they choose to watch. Activities will be prepared for the children in classrooms who chose not to watch, to ensure they have a productive afternoon which links to the global and diverse nature of this event.  

As we know, the children have missed out on many milestones and the enjoyment that going to school can bring, especially when surrounded by your friends as a direct result of the restrictions enforced by Covid. Hopefully we can now move forward without distraction to continue to provide all the children with the right academic, social and emotional balance as they continue their journey through Heatherlands.

We look forward to an exciting day, a positive result and finding out if the World Cup trophy could actually be 'coming home'

See your goal; Understand the obstacles; Create a positive mental picture; Clear your mind of self-doubt; Embrace the challenge; Stay on track; Show the world you can do it - That's success

Thank you

Mr Churchill

Message 21 Oct 2022

On Tuesday 1st November we are holding an 'Introduction to using Bug Club' workshop for all parents in the hall from 2.45pm. This will help you understand how the programme works and why we use it to support the development of reading at Heatherlands.

October  2022

Message 21 Oct 2022

The gates will open at 3pm on Monday 31st October for 'View Your Child's Work'. Please come in and have a look at your child/rens work so far this year with your child. You are welcome to take them home once you have shared their learning.

Information for next half term at Heatherlands

Good afternoon,

I would like to take the opportunity to wish you all a safe and restful half term and look forward to seeing you all on 31.10.22 for the rest of our Autumn term.

I would also like to give you some information relating to key dates and events that are planned in advance of any reminder texts, to give information and enable you to add them to your diaries.

1. Monday 31st October at 3pm

We will be opening the gates early to enable you to 'View your child's work'. For those of you who have not experienced this before, it is a chance to talk through your child's english, maths and topic work with them in their classroom before going home. If you have children in different year groups or classes, this will hopefully give you plenty of time to visit each of them and share their work before going home.

2. Tuesday 1st November at 2.45pm

We are running a getting to know 'Bug Club' workshop for parents in any year groups who want to find out more about why we use 'Bug Club' and how to use it as well as how we use it in school. We would love to see lots of you as this is such a fantastic resource. It will take place in the hall with Mr Arrowsmith as there is plenty of room in there for all of you to sit comfortably.

3. Friday 4th November

Year 4 have Forest School Friday and will need to wear outdoor clothing, including waterproof coats and sensible shoes. They will spend the day outside undertaking a range of adult led activities come rain or shine!

4. Friday 11th November

As above but for Year 2

5. Wednesday 16th November at 2.30pm in the studio

Year 3 and Year 4 parents are invited into school to meet Miss Hillier and find out more about the Mathathon and the Year 4 multiplication check which takes place in June 2023 for the current Year 4 and June 2024 for the current Year 3. She will also talk a little about the reading culture in key stage 2.

6. Friday 18th November at 2pm

Each year, Year 1 are given an opportunity to undertake road safety training with the council road safety team. To enable them to go 'road side' and experience crossing the road in a safe and managed way, we ask for parent helpers from Year 1 to support. To help you find out how this is run, we have a parent meeting planned for the 18th November at 2pm in the studio. The road safety team will take you through the process and ensure you are clear on the delivery of the programme. We do need at least 6 parents who can commit 2 whole Friday afternoons with us. Friday 2nd December and Friday 9th December from 1 - 3pm, weather dependant. Thank you in advance. Please let the office know if you are able to support this in Year 1. If we do not have enough adults for the 2 sessions, the children won't be able to go road side but will have an assembly instead, so they won't miss out entirely.

7. Week beginning 21st November

Early Years parents evenings will be taking place. in school. You will receive an email nearer the time to sign up. 

8. Monday 5th December 

Swanage class start their swimming lessons at Rossmore on a Monday afternoon. Permission forms etc will be sent out in November.

9. Week beginning 5th December

Ks1 and KS2 parents evenings will be taking place. in school. You will receive an email nearer the time to sign up. 

10. Tuesday 6th December & Wednesday 7th December

Early Years will be performing their nativity to their parents. This will be taking place at 2.30pm on the 6th and 9.30am on the 6th in the hall. More information will be sent out in November.

11. Thursday 15th December 3.30 - 4.30pm

This is Christmas jumper day for the children.

Also, we will be holding an outside carol service on the top playground for all families afterschool. Please wrap up and come along to join the teachers and teaching assistants as we end the term with a Christmas sing song around the Christmas tree followed by a biscuit sale in the hall. 

I hope this email is helpful in its content. We will continue sending text reminders as events occur and hope our communication with you is clear and useful.

Miss Collis

Message 21 Oct 2022

Reminder: It is non uniform today. The theme is 'mismatched' or 'bright colours'.

Message 13 Oct 2022

There will be no Valley Rangers after this half term due to the weather and light. We hope to take this up again in the spring term. Kind regards

Message 05/10/2022

There will be no drama with Ms Evans this Friday 07 Oct 2022

September 2022

Reminder  30 Sep 2022

We will be ordering Junior Duke booklets on Monday 3rd October.  If you child wishes to take part, we need full payment by 10am on Monday. Thanks 

*Heatherlands Lounge Breakfast Club*​​​​

Due to rising numbers at Breakfast club & to guarantee a space, we now require you to book 7 days in advance. This is to ensure we have the staff & enough food.

When booking, you will have 2 options, 7.45am start for £5, and 8am start for £4.

If you are already booked on, but would like to change the time, you can simply go in and delete your current booking and re book for the new time.

https://www.heatherlands.poole.sch.uk/the-breakfast-lounge-1/

Message from Mr Churchill 9.9.22

Messages 06 September 2022

100 Reads - all the children have a new grid in their reading pack.  If your child had not completed the last one, we shall add those books to the grid so they can keep going.  All children that completed it last year will then start again.

Welcome to Year 1.  The children have had a great first day and we have enjoyed having them back in the classroom.         

Message   02 Sept 2022

Cleverchefs Meal Ordering - please ensure that you register any allergies for your child with Cleverchefs before ordering any meals. Thanks

Email from Mr Churchill 2.9.22

Good morning, everyone

I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable summer - the weather was unusually kind to us and gave us lots of opportunities to get outside and explore our lovely local area.

Over the last few days, the staff have been in school undertaking important training and getting everything ready for the start of the new term. We are really looking forward to seeing all the children on Monday and continuing to return to normal as we all live with covid.

I would particularly like to extend my thanks to all parents and carers for your support around the tweaks to the school uniform and look forward to seeing the children looking smart and ready to get started next week.

Finally, I like to extend a warm welcome to our new starters and their families as they begin their school journey next week - We will endeavour to make their first day of school as memorable and exciting as possible! Don't forget to get that first day of school photo on Monday morning. 

Have an enjoyable weekend

See you all at the gates on Monday

Best wishes

Mr Churchill