Latest News | Balliol Primary School

Bedtime stories by Mrs Hennessy

Tue 31 Mar 2020 J Driver

Check out our video resource centre on the home learning page to hear Mrs Hennessy Reading bedtime stories for KS1 and KS2.

Also have a look at www.eyfshome.com fir daily activities to keep our youngest pupils busy!

Stay safe everyone!

Team Balliol

Seven Stories - Tony Ross reading I don’t want to wash my hands’ 10am Friday 27/03/20

Thu 26 Mar 2020 J Driver

Tune in to www.facebook.com/7stories at 10am on Friday 27/03/20 related activities on Year 1 and Year 2 Home Learning pages!

Online home learning resources

Thu 26 Mar 2020 J Driver

Dear parents and carers

I hope you are all settling in to new routines during this strange period. I know some of you found the Steve Backshall resource enjoyable yesterday. We are adding resources to support you every day and will continue to let you know what we find. The BBC are also putting additional educational programmes on iPlayer so you should always be able to find something to keep your children busy.
Please remember that we acknowledge you are not teachers and we do not expect you to have your children doing school work every day from 9am - 3pm. See our previous newsletter for our daily expectations for KS1 and KS2.
However, if you do want educational activities to keep your children busy here is a selection of what various celebrities are offering you while schools are closed: 👏🏼

9.00am - PE with Joe Wicks https://youtu.be/6v-a_dpwhro

10.00am - Maths with Carol Vorderman www.themathsfactor.com

11.00am - English with David Walliams https://www.worldofdavidwalliams.com/elevenses/

12.00pm - Lunch (cooking with Jamie Oliver) https://www.jamieoliver.com/feat…/category/get-kids-cooking/

1.00pm - Music with Myleene Klass https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQh2wgJ5tOrixYBn6jFXsXQ

1.30pm - Dance with Darcey Bussel https://twitter.com/diversedance…/status/1241098264373592065

2.00pm - History with Dan Snow (free for 30-days) https://tv.historyhit.com/signup/package

4.00pm - Home Economics with Theo Michaels (Mon/Wed/Fri) https://www.instagram.com/theocooks

Non-daily events include:
Science with Professor Brian Cox, Robin Ince & Guests https://cosmicshambles.com/stayathome/upcoming-schedule
Steve Backshall - Facebook, Twitter and Instagram live streaming

We will continue to update you as we find more and remember to check the home learning pages on the school website too.

Kindest regards and Stay safe!
Mrs Driver

School expectations for Home Learning

Mon 23 Mar 2020 J Driver

Dear Parents and Carers

Please see our school expectations for home learning below. We recognise that you are not teachers and we do not expect you to provide activities for children to do from 9am - 3pm each day. We would much rather your children do a little bit of learning at their own pace every day and enjoy it! We will update class pages each week with new ideas and activities and will be adding to the video resource log over time. These expectations can also be found on our website under Children > Home Learning.

Stay safe - Team Balliol

Home Learning Expectations – KS1

Daily Expectations:

Listen to child read for 15 minutes and read to them for 15 minutes.
Practice spellings on weekly spelling sheet.

Sentence writing – Practice creating sentences that include capital letters, full stops/exclamation marks/question marks and ‘wow’ adjectives.

Practice times tables (10, 5 and 2s).
Re-visit number bonds up to 20 using addition and subtraction – children are allowed to use number lines/objects to help them work these out.

Whilst government guidelines allow, ensure you spend at least half an hour outside.
Spend at least half an hour doing something active – there are many resources available online to support you with ideas.
Communicate! Make sure you’re talking to each other, especially about your feelings and emotions during this difficult time.

Weekly Guidance

Each week, a list of fun activities that you can encourage your children to complete will be added to the website. These will include science experiments, art projects and learning linked to our curriculum topics. These will be learning experiences that can be enjoyed together. You will also have lots of links to online videos, games and content that will help your children progress with their learning.

Home Learning Expectations- KS2

Daily Expectations

Log in to reading plus for at least 15 minutes.
Reading for pleasure with your child- read anything!

Practice spellings- weekly rule updated on the blog and on spelling shed.

Practice times tables- could use hit the button, maths shed or on paper is fine too!
LBQ quizzes- a QR code will be added to the blog for your children to access.

Whilst government guidelines allow, ensure you spend at least half an hour outside.
Spend at least 30 mins doing something active- there are many resources available online to support you with ideas.
Communicate! Make sure you’re talking to each other, especially about your feelings and emotions during this difficult time.

Weekly guidance

Each week, a list of fun activities that you can encourage your children to complete will be added to the website. These will include science experiments, art projects and learning linked to our curriculum topics. These will be learning experiences that can be enjoyed together. You will also have lots of links to online videos, games and content that will help your children progress with their learning.

Accessing and contacting school during Corona Virus Closure

Mon 23 Mar 2020 J Driver

Dear Parents and Carers

Although our school is closed for the majority of pupils we remain open for children of key workers who have applied and received confirmation email they can attend. They should access school via the main entrance. Sign children in and out and observe social distancing guidelines by standing behind the line when talking to office staff.

Families who are entitled to free school meals may collect them from 11:30 today via the quiet garden/breakfast club entrance. Please let us know via email as soon as possible if you intend to use this service.

For all other families we are here to support your home learning via information on the school website. We will also be contacting some of you by telephone from time to time to check you are okay. If you need to contact use please use email. The office may not always be manned as we are running with a skeleton staff so won’t always be manning the telephones. We will also be sending out regular communication via the School Gateway App.

Kind regards

Ms Driver

Information regarding Emergency Child Care provision from Monday 23rd March 2020

Fri 20 Mar 2020 J Driver

Dear parents and carers

Today our school is closing. From Monday the government has stated the following:

· If it is at all possible for children to be at home, then they should be.

· Schools as they normally run are closed.

· Every child who can be safely cared for at home should be.

· Parents should also do everything they can to ensure children are not mixing socially in a way which can continue to spread the virus. They should observe the same social distancing principles as adults.

Please let us assure you that we will do all that we can to support our families and community at this uncertain and extremely challenging time. Those families who are entitled to Free School Meals (including universal free school meals) will be able to collect a packed lunch for their child from School on Monday from 11:30 onwards.

Responding to the virus is a constantly changing situation. As headteacher it is up to me to interpret and apply the government guidance in a way which I feel best meets the needs of our school and community. This sometimes means disappointing people and in this situation, I am sure some people will not like the decisions I will make. However, ultimately it is my responsibility to create an organised and calm situation for emergency child care to support those Key Workers where it is absolutely impossible for their child to be at home without impacting on essential front-line services.

From Monday for a small number of children and families, there will be a different (non educational) provision moving forwards. The school can only open if it is safe to do so. It is an essential part of our national effort to combat this disease, minimise the risk for staff and keep this emergency provision open for as long as possible. The continuation of this service will be dependent upon our staffing levels, of which, we will keep you updated on a regular basis. Should the school have to close you should contact the local authority to signpost you to an alternative school.

We have made separate provision for vulnerable pupils to fulfil our statutory duties for these pupils during the school closure period. Families have been personally informed and given the choice as to whether to keep their child safe at home or access the provision.

I want to take this opportunity to thank staff, who despite serious medical concerns for themselves, partners or family members have continued to come into work to try and keep education and normality for the children going as long as we physically can until the enforced government closure this evening.

The planned emergency child-care strategy and procedures we put in place will develop over next week as demand and available provision becomes clearer and again may well change with very short notice. Schools and parents will have to adapt and respond to this, so communication is critical; as is total compliance, transparency, honesty and a thought for others including the staff trying to run this provision.

Our strategy for responding to this change in provision is as follows:

1. Government guidance is very, very clear. ALL children must remain at home for their safety and to reduce the transmission of the COVID 19 unless absolutely necessary. This applies to all children, regardless of their parents’ occupation.

2. Balliol Primary School and the national education system will close today and this enforced closure will remain in place until the order is lifted by the government.

3. We have been asked to facilitate emergency child care, deploying only a ‘skeleton staff’ for the children of Key Workers (as now defined by the government) where it is critical for the continued delivery of front line services, that they access this emergency provision. I would ask parents to read and consider this statement VERY, VERY carefully. Just because your occupation is listed on a government website, does not mean that you should or have to send your child into school when they would be far safer staying at home. Parents need to act responsibly and consider others and the impact on wider society of accessing this limited childcare when they do not absolutely have to.

4. Parents working from home will not be able to access emergency childcare provision.

5. Parents who meet the criteria as a Key Worker MUST apply for a place by completing an application form and sending it via email to the school office info@balliolprimary.co.uk We are initially asking for you to indicate the days and sessions you anticipate using the emergency child-care next week but fully appreciate that this can change at short notice for you as well.

6. Details of both parent/carers occupations must be given to determine priority if we reach a limited provision situation. Our strategy is to prioritise children where BOTH parents are Key Workers and have to work simultaneously rather than share childcare first. We will then assess availability for provision where ONE parent is a Key worker and there is compelling evidence in the application that the second parent/carer/family member cannot safely look after the child at home.

7. This is a real national crisis and access to this provision should be viewed as a serious, emergency step. All of our lives may come to depend upon it so it MUST NOT be abused.

8. We will assess all the applications and parents securing a place will be informed by email. ONLY children, where parents have been sent a confirmatory email, will be admitted to school next week, starting with absolute priority children on Monday. If you do not receive a confirmation email you will need to make alternative childcare arrangements for Monday.

Please remember wherever possible your child should remain at home.

As the situation develops, we will be able to assess capacity and hopefully increase provision to meet essential demand but at this point in time I cannot promise parents’ anything other than we will do our absolute best to meet critical demand.

Thanking you in anticipation of your support at this challenging time.

Kind regards

Mrs Judith Driver

Headteacher.

Please contact the office for an application form via email info@balliolprimary.co.uk to apply

School Closure, home learning activities and continuation of Free School Meals Service

Fri 20 Mar 2020

Friday 20th March 2020

Dear Parents and Carers

It is with sadness that we are having to close our doors to the majority of pupils today until further notice. We will continue to keep in touch with you via the School Gateway App and website during the closure and hope that things will return to normal as soon as possible. However, we must all do what we can to fight the virus and ensure that the vulnerable in our society are protected by limiting social interactions. We understand that school closure is an important part of this process.

Your child’s education is, to us, equally important and we have put some materials onto our school website to keep them busy over the next week or so. Click on the Children tab then Home learning to access class pages, a video resource library and blog. We will be adding to these materials regularly. Class blogs have been set up for pupils in Year 3 – Year 6 so that they can contact teachers with any issues relating to the work. Pupils in EYFS, Year 1 and Year 2 should focus on daily phonics, reading, writing and maths activities and enjoy family time together. We have also provided materials and ideas for these pupils and will continue to update class pages with ideas and useful links.

I think it is important to also point out that the small number of pupils who will be accessing the emergency child-care provision will not be being taught during this time and will be expected to keep up with schoolwork during the periods when they are at home.

If your child in in Reception, Year 1 or Year 2 or is generally is receipt of Free School Meals this service will still be available to you. Packed lunches will be prepared and available for you to pick up from 11:30am each day starting from Monday. Please let us know if you intend to make use of this service so that we are not preparing lunches which may go to waste. You can let us know by email info@balliolprimary.co.uk or telephone call on Monday morning 0191 8142500.

May I take this opportunity to wish you and all of your family members the very best of health and some lovely family times during the school closure.

We look forward to seeing you all again as soon as possible.

Kind regards

Mrs Driver

School Closure

Thu 19 Mar 2020 J Driver

Thursday 19^th March 2020

Confirmation of school closure letter

Dear parents and carers

You will be aware that the Prime Minister and Education Secretary announced yesterday that tomorrow will be the last full ‘normal’ day of school. Schools will close indefinitely from Friday 20^thMarch 2020 for MOST children. Schools are to remain open for children whose parents are identified as ‘key workers’. The government will make an announcement later today to identify precisely which groups of workers this will be. However, we do know that the following groups have been identified:

NHS workers
Police
Teachers
Critical national infrastructure roles such as delivery drivers

While we wait to hear the exact identification of roles, we would like to take a proactive approach and begin to identify those pupils whose parents are classed as ‘key workers’ and are likely to need to continue attending school. If you believe you fall into one of these groups please contact the school office on 0191 8142500 by Friday lunchtime, so we can be prepared for next week.

We are working with our vulnerable families and social workers to identify those children who would need to continue accessing school.

We have a list of our pupils who currently have an EHCP and are expecting those children to continue accessing school.

With the deepest regret, only those children that fall into the categories identified by the government will be able to attend school. We ask for your understanding and consideration of this.

We will continue to update parents via the School Gateway App and will ensure our website remains a helpful tool to support online learning. Our office email will remain active for any queries.

We are working with the local authority to support children eligible for free school meals, and we will inform you how this will be organised by Friday.

We await further government guidance on the proposal to suspend public examinations for this academic year.

This is understandably going to cause many anxieties for families, and we hope that we will be able to continue to support you wherever possible. We will continue to keep you informed with any new information as we receive it, in what are incredibly difficult and uncertain times.

Kindest regards

Mrs Judith Driver

Headteacher

Ideas for well-being and family time

Thu 19 Mar 2020 J Crudace (School nurse)

A Message from Jane – The School Nurse

At the moment we know that many of our children are going to have an extended Easter break because of Covid-19 but none of us know exactly how long it’s going to be.

Whilst adults are all worried about the future and how this will change us as a country it’s important that our children are kept safe from grown up conversations and information that may frighten them.

Children listen to much more than we think, and they will ask you questions. When this happens its ok to say you don’t know all the answers, but you will keep them safe and protect them as much as you can. It’s important you don’t lie or tell them everything will be ok because that tells them their feelings aren’t valid and will make them more worried.

Mental Health is a huge issue for children, and we don’t know how the current changes and uncertainty will affect this. However, there are things you can do to support your child as much as possible. And at the same time you’re setting a good example to them about staying calm and being realistic.

As well as the information we are getting daily from the government it’s important we look after our own wellbeing. Avoiding the news and constant social media is a good idea. – We all know a huge percentage of it is not helpful. Maybe make a time each day that you look at the news and for a set number of minutes then turn it off.

Keeping busy – lots of chores and activities around the house. Making lists of things to do then ticking them off as you go. Games are a great way of distracting children either board games or challenges like the cereal box game https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FmWfJjC_yo

Or how about a treasure hunt or a quiz? https://www.parents.com/holiday/easter/printables/printables-treasure-hunt-and-scavenger-hunt-games/

Maybe play with some of the toys they got for Christmas but haven’t bothered with since. Or make a tower of toilet rolls if you’ve bought far too many. Read a book or colour with them. Or make up a story together.

This is the ideal moment for quality time. We want our children to look back on this with some positive experiences. https://www.crayola.com/featured/free-coloring-pages/

Potty train, teach times tables, do a daily challenge as a family, couch to 5k, make posters or craft projects, bake, dance, establish a routine. These are all things that will make the whole family feel less obsessed with the news and more involved with each other.

I hope when this virus is all over, we look back on some lovely family time and all the positives that brings. I think as grownups that’s the best example we can set just now.

Best Wishes – Jane

Latest advice re Corona Virus - Parent letter 17th March 2020

Tue 17 Mar 2020 J Driver

17th March 2020

Dear parents and carers

Apologies for the unusually long letter I want to provide you with as much up to date information as possible and let you know what we are doing in school in response to government advice. The government advice around responding to the Corona virus is rapidly changing and we will continue to keep you updated. This letter covers:

What to do if you choose as a household to self-isolate

What we are doing as a school in response to the social distancing guidance

What will happen in the event of the school having to close.

1.What to do if you choose as a household to self-isolate.

At present schools are to stay open however any households where a person has 

 a fever (temperature 38.5 or higher)
a new continuous cough

Should self-isolate for 14 days.

If you have chosen to self-isolate as a household then your child will not be allowed to return to school until 14 days have passed.

Any families self-isolating please let school know. We will apply a special absence code to ensure no fines will be issued and your child’s attendance figure will not be affected. 

Self-isolation means:

try to keep at least 2 metres (3 steps) from other people in your home, particularly people over 70, or those with long-term health conditions
ask friends, family and delivery services to deliver things like food shopping and medicines but leave them outside
sleep alone, if possible
regularly wash your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds
drink plenty of water and take everyday painkillers, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, to help with your symptoms

do not have visitors (ask people to leave deliveries outside)
do not leave your home, for example to go for a walk, to school or to public places.

2. What we are doing as a school in response to the social distancing guidance

Social Distancing means:

Avoid contact with someone who is displaying symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19). These symptoms include high temperature and/or new and continuous cough;

Avoid non-essential use of public transport, varying your travel times to avoid rush hour, when possible;

Avoid large gatherings, and gatherings in smaller public spaces such as pubs, cinemas, restaurants, theatres, bars, clubs

Avoid gatherings with friends and family. Keep in touch using remote technology such as phone, internet, and social media.

Use telephone or online services to contact your GP or other essential services.

Everyone should be trying to follow these measures as much as possible.

As a school we are:

Cancelling all assemblies and non-core business visitors coming into school. This includes parent teacher meetings.
Cancelling swimming lessons and any trips out of school until further notice.

Cancelling school events e.g. Easter Disco.
Bringing children straight into school in the mornings from 8:40am to avoid gatherings on the playground and encouraging children and parents to leave promptly at the end of the day.
Staggering break and lunchtimes to limit the number of children on the playground.
Limiting the number of classes in the dining hall and some children will eat lunches in the classrooms.
Cancelling any outside after school clubs – our in house after school club will continue.

EYFS are staying in their classroom and separate playground – eating their lunches in the classroom.
Teaching children what social distancing and self-isolation means and encouraging regular hand washing sessions throughout the day.

This advice is likely to be in place for some weeks.

We will continue to operate for as long as staffing remains safe for us to do so or until the government announce they are closing schools. We may have to close for certain year groups whilst remaining open for others if we have to close for staffing issues.

3.What will happen in the event of the school having to close.

In the event that the school has to close, all communication and on-line learning will be via the School website and School Gateway App. For each year group lesson information and activities for projects to do at home will be uploaded by staff. We are working as a staff to prepare a list of resources and links to be accessed via the website. We will not be sending packs of work home as this is could increase transmission of the virus through touch.

Any families concerned about how they will feed their children without breakfast club and free school meals in the event of school closure or self-isolation please contact us now so that we can support you in the short term.

Please try to remain calm during this difficult time and help one another where possible. 

Kind regards

Mrs Driver