Welcome to your newsletter for week ending November 8th

It’s been wonderful seeing our children back in school. We’ve got straight back to lots of learning in the classrooms, as well as hosting the first two of our ‘Stay and Learn’ afternoons for parents and carers. Next week we have more, so please look below for your opportunity to visit your child’s classroom and join in with some learning.

We didn’t have our usual values Assemblies today as we marked Remembrance Day with two special assemblies. (Unfortunately we were missed off the list for the Poppy Appeal boxes this year so we’re trying to get some delivered for Monday - you may want to give children a bit of small change for a donation in exchange for a Poppy.)

Read on for more news about what coming up!

What's Coming Up

Monday sees the start of Anti-Bullying Week and to mark the end of the week, children across school have voted for the way they will show their support. Using our new 'Democracy Station' which was installed at the request of our Rights respecting School Ambassadors last summer, children across the school voted for either 'odd socks, wearing purple, 'face paints' or 'crazy hair'! And the option that got the most votes was...... face paints! We look forward to seeing some wild and wonderful creations. (It's entirely optional!)

We know lots of children enjoy travelling to school on bikes and scooters- please can we urge you to ensure children are wearing a helmet so any trips and tumbles don't become anything more serious. Thankyou.

Our next Parent Voice meeting is going to be held via Teams on Tuesday 19th November 6-7pm. It's another chance to ask questions, give feedback and pose ideas for working parties and other parent/ carer involvement in school life. If you are able to come along, please email Jogita via [email protected] so she can send you the link.

Dates for upcoming meetings (one per half term) are all on the website calendar here-htthttps://www.bournvillevillageprimary.org.uk/Page/Calendarps://www.bournvillevillageprimary.org.uk/Page/Calendar

Thank you to those Reception parents and carers who came to our SEND support session this morning. Our next session is on the 27th November at 9am and we will be joined by our NHS Speech and Language Therapist. The session is open for parents and carers of children in all year groups. 

It’s been a few weeks since our last “Who’s behind the book?”

Last time it was…Miss Owen! Did you get it right?

Who do you think is behind the book this week?

This week, we are marking Remembrance Day in school. Talking about Remembrance Day with children can be a challenging task. How do you explain complex ideas like sacrifice, bravery, and the realities of war in an age-appropriate way?

Books can be an invaluable tool in sparking these meaningful conversations, offering gentle guidance and relatable characters to help children understand why we mark Remembrance Day.

What’s the problem with kids and smartphones?  

 
When children first started getting smartphones a decade ago, there was no research about their impact. Now there is, and it’s overwhelming. Exposing children to things their brains aren’t yet developed enough to deal with can cause a whole host of problems, from triggering anxiety and eating disorders, to opening the door to cyberbullying or sexual predators, according to the latest research. 

When we give our children access to the whole world in their pocket, we give the whole world access to our children. 

Use the link here to find out more about a WhatApp parent/ carer group which is a community of over 150,000 parents working together to change the culture around kids and smartphones.

You may remember that one of our pupils was successful at the World Kick Boxing Championships last month. Well the BBC are doing a live report from D’s boxing gym and will be interviewing him and others who took part in the event – the report will go out on the BBC evening news (6-7pm) on Tuesday 12th November.

Thankyou so much to the parents who have volunteered to help with our library! We are still looking for more volunteers that could come and help us out with keeping it tidy and organised- if you love books (and organising!) and are able to give us a little of your time, we would love to hear from you- please get in touch via [email protected]

School dinners

We would like to remind all parents that you can pre-book your children's dinners on the Arbor app! This will help reduce the number of incorrect meal charges. You can select whether your child has school dinner (halal option available as well) or a packed lunch from home (This really helps us in the office when children select a different option). 

Instructions:

Once you opened your Arbor App go to Menu>> School Meals>> Select Autumn Term 2024/2025>> Select the chosen day of the week and confirm your child's meal choice>>

If you tick the box to "pick for all future dates" it will apply the same meal choice until the end of term e.g if you tick the box for a Monday meal, it will add it to all Monday's till the end of term. 

If you're having any difficulty with this, please contact the school office for assistance!

And finally...

We gave you an update on our 'Little Angel' a few weeks ago. (For our Reception parents, this is one of our pupils who suffered a devastating injury last year.) Well folks, we are now fully preparing for her return in January. Today her class were given lots of details about her recovery and what to expect when they see her next, and next week they'll be linking up via a video call (hopefully the first of many!). We are all over-the-moon to be preparing for what we thought would never happen. 

Enjoy the weekend and we hope you all get an extra moment or two with friends and family. Take care. 

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is the responsibility of everyone in our school and at all times we consider what is in our children’s best interests. We work to ensure our children are safe and cared for and by doing this we are protecting their health and development and preventing them from harm. If we are worried, we will raise concerns, share information, and take prompt action with the aim of ensuring families receive the right help at the right time.