Over St. John's CE Primary SchoolHead Teacher Blog: Friday 16th July 2021
Date: 16th Jul 2021 @ 10:54am
We’ve made it! We are finally at the end of what seems to have been one of the longest years in education that I can remember – and I have been in education for quite some time! I cannot praise the entire school community enough for the way that everyone has risen to all the challenges that this year has thrown at us – our fabulous children, amazing staff and governors and our incredibly supportive families – and in doing so, we have managed to get through this pandemic with the minimum impact on learning as there have been no bubble closures at all, which is no mean feat. A heartfelt thank you for all that you have done to support our children and the school over this past year, whether that has been in school or at home and I have no doubt that this will continue into the new academic year in September.
Year 6 Leavers
This morning we paid tribute to our wonderful Year 6 children at our virtual Leaver’s Service. It was a great pleasure to lead the school as we invited parents to share in this special event and I don’t think that there was a dry eye in the house or school or office or back garden – wherever people were able to join in from!
Our Year 6 children have been exemplary students and we will miss them greatly, but as I always say, OSJ will always be their home and they will always be welcome here.
September Arrangements
Just in case you missed it, here is a reminder of the information that was shared last week with regards to the start and end of the school day in September.
From September, school will start at 8.45am for all children, like we used to before the pandemic. The gate will open at 8.35am and from this time for a 10-minute period, children can enter the playground at any time, unaccompanied as they have done this year and go straight into the building to class. Children in Blakemere and Sandymere will enter via the nearest door and Linmere, Oakmere and Delamere will enter via the door where the children have come out at the end of the day. The new Hatchmere children will use their own door. Children do not need to wait on the playground. When in class, there will be a small activity for the children to complete before the day officially starts with the register at 8.45am.
This may take a little getting used to and I’m sure that it may seem a little chaotic at first as we have become unaccustomed to seeing so many people at once and people are a little unsure, but I am certain that it will settle very quickly.
This year, we have found that the mornings have worked really well for everyone with the ‘drop and go’ system and we have worked to try to keep that element for September. There is a 10 minute window for drop off and children will only receive a late mark on the register if they are not there when it is taken at 8.45am, so please do not feel that you need to be at school before 8.35am ready for the gate to open.
At the end of the day, the gate will open at around 2.55pm for adults to enter the playground – you will not need to wait on the lines or socially distance, please use all of the space available. Staff will bring the children out at 3pm, from the same doors that the children entered so you know roughly which area to wait. Staff will identify adults and send the children over to you as opposed to you going over to them as we have done this year. Children will stay with the staff until they see their adult.
In September, we will continue to keep children’s belongings in the classroom instead of cloakrooms. Please may I encourage your child to bring a bag only if it is really needed and to keep it small. Thank you.
All the staff and I are very excited about the changes for September as we come together again as the close school community that we are.
School Uniform
As thoughts turn to September, please may I take this opportunity to remind you of our School Uniform Policy as children grow out of things and new items are purchased in preparation.
Over St. John’s CE Primary School’s uniform consists of:
- Light blue polo shirt
- Blue school sweatshirt or cardigan with school logo
- Grey skirt or trousers
- Sensible black shoes (not trainers) which are flat and offer support
- Grey or white socks or grey tights
- In summer, a blue checked school dress or grey shorts may be worn.
Sweatshirts and cardigans with the school logo are available locally via Julie Clare Schoolwear on the market or from the Uniform Exchange Winsford. For storage reasons, we no longer hold stock of pre-loved items but send these to the uniform exchange if we receive any.
This week we received some information from the Uniform Exchange as to how they will be working over the summer holiday:
My name is Emma and I run the Uniform Exchange Winsford.
I collect in pre loved/unused school uniform items, both school specific logo items and general uniform. These items are then given out to families within the local community for free, helping not only with the financial impact of purchasing uniform for the upcoming school year but also keeping hundreds of items of useable uniform from landfill.
I am collecting in uniform donations from now until Friday 13th August, these will then be sorted in time for the two free uniform events that are scheduled for 21st and 22nd August. Please find below a copy of the Uniform Amnesty poster (explaining what we accept) and also the poster for the two free uniform sessions.
If you come to the end of term and you have any uniforms that you don’t need, then take a look at the information below to see where you can donate outgrown and no longer needed items.
Summer Holiday Challenges
Vale Royal Schools Sports Partnership have prepared some activities for the children to keep them active over the summer holidays. The various activities can be undertaken at any point during the holiday and most of them require no specialist equipment and can be done with limited space. These are a mix of activity challenges and trails created over the past 16 months plus two new activities:
- A ‘Beat the World Record’ challenge
- The 'Ultimate Warrior' challenge - scores for this element can be entered online and feed into local leaderboards which participants can view.
Please click on the file below to take a look.
Edsential Free Summer Holiday Activities
Edsential are providing free activities available to the children, young people and families in school throughout the holidays. Thanks to funding from the DfE, there are a number of activity clubs, food & activity parcels and more this summer, at locations across west Cheshire, which are completely free for eligible FSM children. Please take a look at the file below for more details or for further information, please visit edsential.com/holidayactivityfund2021or email them directly via HAF@edsential.co.uk
#WakeUpWednesday
A smash hit since its release last year, Valorant is a powerful new force in the team-based shooter realm of online gaming. Though the game’s range of high-tech weaponry and constant rapid-fire action do glamourise gunplay somewhat, Valorant mostly steers clear of the blood-spattered ultra-violence associated with, for example, the Call of Duty franchise.
The simple concept is well executed and the different combinations of characters and weapons in team-based combat offer a variety which keeps players coming back for more. That presents its own risk, however – young people can become so absorbed in Valorant that they find it difficult to switch the game off. The possibility of compulsive gaming is one of the hazards highlighted in this week’s National Online Safety #WakeUpWednesday guide.
Confirmed Dates
Friday 16th July School closes for summer with bubble closure times as follows:
Blakemere at 1:45pm
Linmere at 1:45pm
Oakmere at 1:50pm
Delamere at 1.55pm
Sandymere at 2pm
Hatchmere at 2.05pm
Thursday 2nd September School starts at 8:45am for all children – no bubbles!
I hope that you all have the most gorgeous summer with family and friends and I very much look forward to seeing you all again in September. Take care.
Mrs E Snowdon