Dear Parents and Carers,
We have reached the end of another busy week in school! Don’t forget to check the blogs at the end of the newsletter to see what your child has been learning in class!
Reading is at the heart of everything we do here at Dorothy Barley and we are very proud to be a Champion School, recognising our high standards in early reading and phonics.
Thank you to all the parents and carers from Reception who came to our Little Wandle meeting this week. Further resources and information for parents of children in all year groups can be found on the Little Wandle ‘For Parents’ page. The videos and resources on this page explain how we teach reading and how you can support your child at home. There are also fun Nursery Rhyme videos for parents of Nursery aged children!
Your support with reading is so important and makes a big difference in the progress your child makes as they learn to read. Listening to your child read every day is one of the most important things you can do, as quick progress in reading helps to build their confidence and unlocks the magical world of books and stories.
Harvest Festival is just around the corner and we will be thinking about how we can help our local community. In line with our school values of character and compassion, we will be collecting donations for the Trussell Trust. The Trussell Trust is a national charity with over 1,400 food bank locations in the UK, including locally to us in Dagenham.
We are encouraging children to bring in long-lasting food items to donate to the Trussell Trust, for example canned and dried foods. Children should bring donations into school the week beginning Monday 13th October. All donations will be gratefully received by the Trussell Trust.
We have been overwhelmed with applications for our Pupil Leadership positions! In particular, it’s wonderful that so many children want to be part of Team Protect, helping to support their friends in the playground and around the school.
Team Protect representatives from each class from Reception to Year 2 will be selected next week and announced in the newsletter next Friday!
Our first Parents Evenings of the new academic year will be held for Reception to Year 2 on the following dates:
Wednesday 22nd October – 3:30pm to 7:00pm
Thursday 23rd October – 3:30pm to 5:00pm
This first Parents Evening appointment is an ideal time to discuss your child’s transition to their new year group with their teacher, as well as finding out more about their academic and social progress. If you have any questions or worries about your child, it’s also an opportunity to discuss this. We know that our children achieve best when parents and school staff work in partnership.
Appointments will be bookable through Parent Mail using the same system as last year. Look out for a letter soon with further information about how and when to book your appointment.
Parent meetings for Nursery children will be held throughout the day on Thursday 23rd October. This means that the Nursery will be closed to all children on Thursday 23rd October.
Please ensure that all items of uniform, including PE kits and coats, are named. We have only been at school for a few weeks but there have already been many lost jumpers and cardigans! If your child’s uniform is named, we can make sure that we return it to you.
Have a lovely weekend!
Mrs S O’Hara
Head of School
This week in Nursery we have been learning the Nursery Rhyme ‘Incy Wincy Spider’. We have been taking part in different listening activities and the children have also created some wonderful creative spiders of their own! Also, in Science, we have been investigating different materials......
This week in Oak Class we have been building our independence in making toast with jam. The boys have been reading instructions on how to make toast. They then followed each step one by one. The part that they enjoyed the most was getting to......
When Reception returned from lunch earlier this week, they were met with a big surprise! Their classrooms were a mess with flour, ginger and broken biscuits scattered across the floor in their home areas, and little footprints everywhere. The children even found a rolling pin,......
In school this week, Year 1 have been thinking about different materials during our Science lessons. We went on a hunt around the school to see how many different materials we could find....
This week in school, year 2 learnt how to sew on a button ready to make eyes for our teddies next week!...
Please note: If your child is absent you must inform the school on the morning of the absence. Please do this by phoning the school office on 0208 270 4655 or emailing us at office@dorothybarleyinfant.org.uk.
We aim for the best education for your children at Dorothy Barley Infant School. Full Attendance and Punctuality are essential for your child to make the maximum progress.
To reach the school target pupils must not have any more than 6 days off per academic year. If you need to make appointments for your child, please aim to make them out of school hours or during school holidays. Thank you.
Children with 100% attendance each half term will receive a certificate. Pupils with 100% attendance for the whole year will receive a special reward.
| Attendance during one school year | Equals this number of days absent | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 90% | 19 days | ||
| 80% | 38 days | ||
| 70% | 57 days | ||
| Outstanding 100% | Good 96% – 99% | Requires Improvement 91%-95% | Inadequate (PA)Below 90% |
Do you know our Child Protection and Safeguarding Team?
Mrs Ratford
Assistant Headteacher & Designated Safeguarding Lead
If you have a concern about a child, please see a member of our Safeguarding Team.
In an emergency call 999.
| Class | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Reception | |||
| Ladybird | 96.67% | ||
| Bumblebee | 90.77% | ||
| Year 1 | |||
| Rabbit | 96.52% | ||
| Squirrel | 98.22% | ||
| Hedgehog | 93.75% | ||
| Year 2 | |||
| Kingfisher | 99.03% | ||
| Woodpecker | 98.29% | ||
The whole school attendance this week is: 96.05%