Latest News | Instow Community Primary and Pre School

School Updates 30th April 2020

Thu 30 Apr 2020 HK

Dear families and friends of Instow Community School and Pre-School,

Just a quick update for you all. We staff are meeting with on-line platforms like Zoom and Google Meet, trying to work out which one is the best quality!

All our teaching assistants are keen to let you know that you are in our thoughts and that we miss being with you all.

I am working to find out what any return to school may look like. We have had no guidance on this as yet, but we do know that there will have to be some rotas and changes to practice in school when this does happen. As soon as I know I will inform you. I am mindful of families attending school with siblings, as well as conflict for parents who are working, so we will take these issues into consideration. For the time-being stay home and stay safe!

If you are unable to print out or access the online learning packs, please email your class support email to request a pack to be left in the box on the veranda in the school garden, which you can pick up.

We are seeking advice and guidance on residentials booked for September as well. There is no updated news on that currently.

However, we do all, as a nation have VE Day coming up on Friday 8th May! We are suggesting that you might like to take a family photo dressed in costume or in red white and blue and create some colourful bunting - your choice - and create an at-home celebration to share with everyone. Please do upload a photo onto Tapestry for Class 1 and Seesaw for Pre-school, Classes 2,3,4 and 5 for us all to share! This is an important time for our community and I know that you are supportive of our heroes past and present. Your teachers will also upload some enjoyable activities that link to this important day onto Seesaw and Tapestry.

Don't forget to book any school places if you are a key worker and returning to work. Use the Google Booking form on our school website please.

https://www.instowcps.co.uk/news/detail/instow-key-worker-quesionnaire-post-easter/

Sending our very best wishes to you all; thank you for all the contributions on our on-line learning platforms, carry out a little each day.

I shall aim to Parentmail again next Thursday afternoon. If you have any questions please email admin@instowcps.co.uk and we shall endeavour to respond within 48 hours.

Mrs Knight and team xxx

Phonics Support 14th April 2020

Tue 14 Apr 2020 ES HK

Dear parents,

This is an additional email that gives you links to continue to support your child with their reading and phonics.

Children can now use the following apps to support phonics learning in pre-school, YR, Y1 and for some children in Y2:

Teach Your Monster to Read
Read With Phonics

Parents can download these apps from their app provider and then access them as follows:

Teach Your Monster to Read
Children login with their first name and a star code: 1854614

Please ignore the Password box as this is not needed.

This app is set up so that all children access the learning at a level that is appropriate to learn or to recap phonics. For this reason, it is important that your child logs in with their first name.

It may be that, for some of you, there is more than one child with the same first name across Pre-school, Reception and Y1. If the app will not log your child in with their first name only, please add the first letter of your surname without a space e.g. GeorgeC.

When you have logged in once, the app will remember your settings.

Read With Phonics

This app requires no login. Children click on the 'island' that has the phonic sounds they want to learn or recap. They have to work through the sounds in order to unlock the next sound and continue to play.

Kind regards

Mrs Knight and team x

Summer Term Planning 2020

Tue 14 Apr 2020 KB hK

Go to Key Information - Curriculum to find the Summer Term Overview planning.

School Updates Summer Term 2020

Tue 14 Apr 2020 HK

Dear children and families,

I hope you had an enjoyable Easter, staying at home together? We are now into an altered version of our summer term and while we fully acknowledge that parents are not being asked to be teachers, we do understand this and appreciate all the support you are giving your children with their studies. Your child will now be expected to spend part of their day studying - this can be in a manageable block or in shorter periods of time.

The Government expects children to learn remotely, via apps, websites and distance learning sites, so we have attached an overview planning grid to this email that you, or other adults/teenagers at home, can follow and support your child. We are grateful for you continuing with daily reading and giving your child guidance and access to the school apps that we have set up for their learning.

First and foremost, your child's class teacher will communicate with your child via Seesaw (Pre-school, Classes 2,3,4,5) and Tapestry (Class1). Please ensure you support your child to use these apps. Your child's teacher is also able to see when they work on activities such as Doodle, Times Tables Rock Stars, Mangahigh etc. Your child also has an exercise book for recording any of their studies and projects too.

Attached to this email is a one-sided plan that will cover the next two weeks of learning time at home for all year groups. Any key worker's children attending school during this time will also follow this plan, so the children have similar experiences.

If you have any questions regarding your child's learning over the next couple of weeks don't forget to email the following addresses for your child's teacher:

class1support@instowcps.co.uk,

class2support@instowcps.co.uk,

class3support@instowcps.co.uk,

class4support@instowcps.co.uk and

class5support@instowcps.co.uk.

If you a key worker and need to place your child in school, then book them in via the google on-line booking form on the school website (Latest News).

I will also send out a separate email to parents of some younger learners, as well, which details some further learning support.

With best wishes,

Mrs Knight and team x

Front Line Worker Google Booking Form

Mon 06 Apr 2020 HK

If your child comes in to the category stated by the Government, please click on the link below to book your child's place in school from Tuesday 14th April:

https://www.instowcps.co.uk/news/detail/instow-key-worker-quesionnaire-post-easter/

Bookings must be completed by Thursday 9th April so that teachers and our school cook can plan from Tuesday 14th April - and our families can enjoy a bit of peace over the Easter weekend.

Thank you - Mrs Knight and team

School Update 6th April 2020

Mon 06 Apr 2020 HK

Dearest children, parents, carers and friends of Instow,

I hope this email finds you well and managing some sunshine. Although this is our official Easter break at the moment I felt it was important to write to you and reassure you that our teachers and support staff team have been working in the background to ensure a version of a summer term ahead.

The government is steadfastly maintaining a 'remain at home' policy and our school is no different. If you are able to keep your children at home, even as a key worker, then this should continue until we are told otherwise.

If you need your child to attend school, we have organised a rolling three week rota of teachers and support staff to be available for the children of front-line key-workers and for any children who have an Education and Health Care Plan who may need specialist care within the school environment while parents are working and who do not have a pre-existing health condition. Mrs Turner has already communicated with the families of these identified children.

If you come under these categories, please visit our website and complete a new Google form, to attend school, from Tuesday 14th April. You must complete this form by Thursday 9th April so that our teachers and school cook can plan. On the form you are able to let us know whether your shift starts early and which days you will need child-care.

I know you understand that I have a responsibility to keep my staff team safe, as part of their working conditions and there are at least half of our staff team who must remain at home for health reasons within the family, so I hope you support us with the scaled-down version of on-site schooling in the weeks ahead.

Having said all this, our teachers are organising an overall, looser style of timetable and topic study via Seesaw and Tapestry apps that you all should have accessed by now. We are recommending that you and your children set up a varied routine in the day, so that all family members know when they should/could be studying, balanced with time for exercise and down-time together. Please remember that you, as parents, are the most natural teachers for your children and that your 'teaching' can come in the form of baking, art work, forest trails for daily exercise, identifying cars for a fact-file, or for natural plants and animals, growing seeds, or making and posting cards to relatives and friends.

I will upload this email and information on to the school website - Latest News tab - as well. If any parent-friends appear to not have received this email, please direct them to the website or to email admin@instowcps.co.uk, if they appear to not receive our emails to you all. If you need to make me aware of something, please use the admin@instowcps.co.uk email address.

If you haven't already, make an Easter Garden on a plate or tray and place it outside your front door/garden for others to enjoy this Easter weekend coming? Take a photograph and upload it to Seesaw so that we can all share something together?! Also - we have donated Easter Eggs in the school hall - once we are back together we shall still hold a raffle! Ha ha!!

Stay strong and positive, we are all learning to cope with this vitally important new way of living, so that we keep everyone as safe as possible. Please know you are in our hearts and minds.

Love from Mrs Knight and team xxx