Autumn was a great first term, with lots of progress made by the children. The term ended with some amazing school plays by foundation and year 1, which were really well attended by parents. The children looked wonderful in their costumes and sang beautifully. The year 2 carol concert had a really Christmassy feel to it and was attended by lots of parents and extended family. We would like to thank parents for all their support during the Christmas period. While we all enjoy the festive spirit and the fun activities running up to the big day we also recognise and understand that Christmas can not only be a very expensive time but it can also be very stressful. We aim to provide the children with not only the highest quality of education but also the valuable experiences of celebration and we hope that we maintain a good balance between fun and education.

Going forward this term, we have parents evenings where you will be able to discuss the autumn term's progress of your child and have a conversation around what their key targets are for the spring term, gaining an insight in to what we will be focussing on and how you can support this at home. We do hope that parents found the written reports useful before Christmas and will allow you to discuss any queries with the teacher during your parents evening appointment.

With the recent weather warnings reference to snow. As a school we always aim to remain open. If staff are unable to get in to school due to the amount of snow or the school grounds are deemed unsafe we will notify you through the school alert system. This will be posted in the school app, the school website, Twitter, MKFM radio and text messages.

Staff Changes this term:

We have employed a Higher Level Teaching Assistant (HLTA) to support over the next two terms. Mrs Begum is very experienced and looking forward to working with us all at Heronshaw.

We have also employed two teaching assistants, one of which who will mainly be working with our SEND team and will support accross classes. We would like to welcome Mrs Dawson to Heronshaw. We also welcome Mr white who will also be joining us as a general TA and will support across the school as well as during the lunchtimes.

INSET day (January).

Often parents wonder what the staff do during the training days at the start of terms. This year the staff had an external trainer in to focus on the teaching of Science. The professional development ensures that the quality of learning at Heronshaw remains high.

Heronshaw Houses

The autumn term winning team was Willen with 482 points

Here was the final tally:

1st place: Willen 482 points

2nd place: Tongwell 472 points

3rd place: Furzton 435 points

4th place: Caldecotte 426 points.

The points from autumn will be saved and added together with the spring and summer totals. In July the House Cup will be awarded to the overall winning team.

We hope we have another successful term, and I look forward to working with you all.

Regards
Mrs Saunders-Short

Head Teacher

C-Touch Screens
As a school we continually strive to stay ahead with educational developments. One way of ensuring that the quality of learning and teaching remains high is to invest in our resources. In December, each classroom was fitted with a new interactive whiteboard. The new boards (C-Touch) have advanced technology that our old Smartboards did not have. The screens work like a TV screen, so there is no projector required (no more shadows when working on them). Each screen has been mounted lower so that the children can interact with the technology. In January all staff will have further training on how to maximise the potential of this technology and how lessons will be developed. There are some very exciting times ahead.

Mastery in maths
Maths is always a key area to invest in and this year each class has been supplied with a maths resource trolley complete with number lines, Numicon sets, bead strings and dienes, plus more. All of the concrete resources are available for the children to self-select as part of their number understanding. The varierty is there to allow children to consider what may be the best resource to support a calculation.

As part of our review of the rewarding system at school we have invested in a computer-based reward system which replaces our old traffic light system. Each class screen displays a class list where the children earn rewards for demonstrating 'good listening', 'being on task', 'tidying up' and much more. Children can also be awarded the superstar for exceeding expectations at any time in the day.
Behaviour is monitored with the positive greens and also orange and yellow if negative behaviours are noticed. The children see a visual record and can change their behaviour accordingly. Incidents would be recorded with red and parents would be informed of this.
Each term the children from each class who have earned the most positive points will be given a special reward. In January the children from the autumn term will be announced.

In accordance with our attendance policy we will be monitoring attendance and lateness this half term. Anyone who falls below the expected standard of 95%, will receive communication from the school. Those of you who are struggling with attendance and wish to discuss it with us prior to receiving a letter or appointment please make contact with Penny Meehan (School Parent Liason Co-ordinator). She can be found on the main playground Tuesday- Thursday mornings, or through contacting the office.

Attendance is very important to us. So that we ensure we provide all children with the best start we ask that parents take children’s schooling seriously and not to book holidays during term time, or take any time off that would be unauthorised (see attendance policy for clarification). Any unauthorised holiday that meets 5 days, either in succession or in accumulation, will result in a fine.

Please remember that to request a club you will need to do it online, via the website. the clubs for this half term are now due to start. We will let you know when we are launching next half terms. Please can you ensure that you pay promptly for clubs please. Any outstanding club payments will mean that the place is removed and this will risk you being offered a place on subsequent clubs. We are finding that we have to chase people a lot to pay for clubs they have requested, please ensure you only pick clubs you are willing to pay for.

We like to offer a wide variety of clubs and try to keep the prices broad so there is something for everyone, but to ensure the school does not have to pick up the cost of unpaid clubs, we will have to cancel any clubs that don't meet the full quota.

Please check the calendar for up-to-date calendar dates for the coming half term and beyond. The 'OurSchools' app is also great for getting reminders for diary dates too. You can sign up for that and receive information directly to your phone.

10th/11th January Parents Evenings
16th January Book Swap Day
Week beginning 5th February Internet Safety Week
6th February Safer Internet Day 2018
10th Feb - 18th Feb Half term
19th February Children back to school
1st March World Book Day 2018
6th March Theatre in school for production of 'The Little Princess'
23rd April Easter egg competition and Foundation assembly

This half term we will be concentrating on the Value 'Success'.

Please talk with your children about what success means and how we have to try hard and keep practising to be succesful.
Success can come in many forms, such as academic achievements like moving a book band or getting our spelling all correct, but it can also come in many other forms such as, learning to ride a bike or tidying our room. Please do celebrate and share in all your children's successes as well as sharing with them your own personal success.

SPRING 2018

Inset Day - Tuesday 2nd January 2018

School Starts - Wednesday 3rd January 2018

Break Up - Friday 9th February 2018

School Starts - Monday 19th February 2018

Break Up - Friday 23rd March 2018

SUMMER 2018

School Starts - Tuesday 9th April 2018

Break Up - Friday 25th May 2018

Spring Bank Holiday - Monday 7th May 2018

Inset Day - Monday 4th July 2018

School Starts - Tuesday 5th June 2018

Break Up - Friday 20th July 2018

Breakfast Club: children will need to book with Mrs Kibby if they require a place in Breakfast club

7.45-8.40

Child 1-£3.50

Sibling- £2.50

8.00-8.40

Child 1- £2.50

Sibling- £2.50

8.15-8.40

Child 1- £1.50

Sibling- £1.50