Weekly Blog Friday 5th July 2024
Date: 5th Jul 2024 @ 7:48am
Attendance
Every week in our Celebration Assembly, we celebrate the class who has achieved the highest attendance for that week. This week Mrs Ronan & Mrs McAllister's class had the highest attendance with a fabulous 100%! Well done Year 1!
Please see below for the attendance figures for this week. The target attendance for all children is currently set at 97%.
Nursery - 92.71%
Reception - 93.42%
Year 1 Mrs Ronan & Mrs McAllister - 100%
Year 2 Mrs Davies - 98.44%
Year 3 Miss Scott - 97.31%
Year 4 Mrs Wood - 97.71%
Year 5 Mrs Pickersgill - 95.07%
Year 6 Miss Dunn - 91.67%
Celebrating fantastic attendance!
Each week, each class with 100% attendance on a particular day will receive one letter from the word MAYFLOWER to put on their classroom door. Once a class has spelt out the word MAYFLOWER, a member of the class will bring all their letters down to the office to claim their prize from our box of Awesome Attendance Activities!
Please see below where each class stands at the end of today:
Nursery - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W
Reception - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y
Year 1 - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F
Year 2 - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O
Year 3 - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A
Year 4 - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L
Year 5 - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W
Year 6 - M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A Y F L O W E R M A
This week, Year 3 completed MAYFLOWER for the second time and have enjoyed their prize of a movie and popcorn session this afternoon.
Let's see how many classes can get their next prize by the end of this term. Let the challenge commence!
During commencing the 24th June, we saw our whole attendance dip under 90% for the first time this year. Please see the data figures below as this shows we were considerably under the attendance figures collated for the rest of the country.
Looking at our school picture, this was due to a large number of parents requesting holidays and some families taking up to 10 days out of school. There are many reasons for this, as I do understand, but in terms of attendance this impacts school significantly. Although we are headed towards the end of the year, contrary to some opinion, school is not slowing down. If a child is on holiday in these weeks, they miss important data collection for their end of year progress, they miss transition sessions with their friends that they then have to complete separately on their return, there are curriculum gaps that can then cause a knock on in understanding in the next year and we have also seen that some children then find it difficult to settle back in to school routine on their return which again impacts further on their learning time.
So why is this important? If a child’s school end of year attendance is 90% or below this means they have missed approximately 4 complete weeks of school. This equates to one half day every week or 113 lessons in that year. This in the long-term will only impact on their outcomes across school. So as you receive the end of year reports in the last week of term, please take a second to have a look at attendance and the importance of that tiny part in their whole school picture.
Stars of the week
Each week in our Friday Celebration Assembly, we celebrate our stars of the week. Each class teacher chooses 2 children from their class each week who have really impressed them. Please see below for who has been chosen this week, together with the reasons for them being chosen.
Nursery & Reception
Star of the week in Nursery goes to Patrick. He has been a superstar this last week, he has been trying really hard to listen and follow instructions. He has been working really hard in Read Write, Inc, at recognising his sounds. He has also done really well with transition and staying for his dinner.
Reception have got two stars of the week this week - Gracie and Darcy for being really grown up and helpful and showing lots of responsibility by supporting the younger children when they have stayed for dinner. Thank you girls!
Year 1
Owen for giving 100% in his recent assessments. He read each question carefully, he took his time to show any working out to help him and he checked his answers after he had completed each question. Owen showed courage to give every question a go no matter how challenging it looked or seemed.
George for having the courage to keep going even though he sometimes finds his learning tricky. I watched his determination and perseverance during recent assessments, he kept on trying and used a range of methods to help him solve questions. George did exactly what I asked by trying his best. I am so proud of you George.
Year 2
James - for being a shining light in our classroom. He shows how courageous he is when he answers tricky questions, explains how to do things and tries new things. He also has the courage to share his knowledge of football, rugby and all sports with the rest of the class. Well done, James!
Sadie - for showing how courageous she is by trying new things and having a go, even when she is not sure if she is right. Her reading is an absolute joy to listen to and she always has the courage to share books with others. Well done Sadie for having the courage to always be your wonderful self!
Year 3
Kiera - Kiera has been really courageous this week and has given everything a really good go. She has pushed herself in her writing this week and has stepped out of her comfort zone. She has been getting involved in group and class discussions and has been heavily involved in working with her peers to support their learning.
Thomas - Thomas has been a great example this week in our class, he has volunteered to read out loud, got involved in class discussions and given 100% in his writing. He has worked well as part of a group and with a partner. I am really pleased with how Thomas has pushed himself this week and how he has tackled everything head on.
Year 4
Frankie - Frankie has demonstrated how courageous he was this week when he stood in for Mrs Wood as class teacher this week! He stood at the front of the class and went through all of the arithmetic answers. He spoke with confidence and demonstrated his excellent knowledge of maths!
Sophia - Sophia has worked incredibly hard this week to follow all of our school rules and make the right choices. Keep this determination and courageous behaviour up Sophia!
Year 5
Be courageous.
Elodie, Gracie-Leigh, Gracie-Mae, Lucy, Elsie and Kaylan.
This week, these children have been both responsible and courageous. During production practise, they have really stood out. They have demonstrated confidence and bravery by performing in front of everyone; delivering their lines with confidence and great acting skills. It is clear that they have worked hard in their own time and have taken their role seriously.
Well done everyone!! Keep up the hard work!!
Year 6
This week across school, our focus has been on one of our important Learning Powers: Be courageous; the adults in school have been looking out for those children who have shown courage through their actions. This week's Stars of the Week in Year 6 have been chosen with this in mind.
Alfie - Alfie is a determined, courageous learner who will give any lesson his full attention and effort. He is not afraid to tackle difficult challenges and does so with a smile. Alfie approaches all feedback with a positive attitude and views it as a way to make progress rather than a mistake that he has made. He has worked hard to learn his lines for the end of year production and his confidence on the stage really makes me smile.
Caitlyn - Caitlyn is a determined and courageous learner who is not afraid to make mistakes; she welcomes feedback as a way to improve. Caitlyn has shown great courage during production rehearsals, learning her lines and performing them with confidence and conviction. She tackles new challenges and situations with courage and embraces change, taking it all in her stride.
I have been so impressed with the courage that all Year 6 have shown this week. They have adapted to our new 'classroom' incredibly well and approached all of the changes that this week has brought with maturity and with a smile on their faces. I'm proud of you all. Miss Dunn
Headteacher Award
Each week in our Celebration Assembly, Mrs Powell chooses someone who has really impressed her during the week and presents them with her Headteacher Award trophy.
My Superstar award this week goes to someone who always shines in all she does. With her fearless determination and 100% in her work every day, Ella in Year 2 truly deserves the recognition in receiving this award. She always checks in on others and will put others first offering to share equipment or help when they need to refine their work. What a superstar!
Makaton Sign Of The Week
The children have recently started learning Makaton's 'Sign of the week' each week. Each Monday, the children learn the new sign for that week. We thought it would be useful to share the following week's sign with parents/carers on our Friday blog so you can get involved too if you wish. Please click on the link below to see the sign for the coming week.
https://makaton.org/TMC/News_Stories/SOTW/SOTW_Tennis.aspx
Thank you Mrs McAllister
We said goodbye this week to Mrs McAllister, one of our Year 1 teachers. Mrs McAllister has been with Year 1 since Mrs Singh left us and has done a brilliant job. The children will really miss you Mrs McAllister and everyone at Bawtry Mayflower would like to thank you for everything you have done for our children. We wish you well in your future plans. We are sure there will be lots of holidays involved, as we know you love to travel.
Welcome Back!
Over the next couple of weeks, we are excited to welcome Mrs Parkes and Mrs Birkinshaw back to school from maternity leave. They are really looking forward to coming back and can't wait to meet their current and new classes. As advised in our letter earlier this term regarding staffing, Mrs Birkinshaw will be working with Mrs Ward in Year 1 and Mrs Parkes will be working with Mrs Ronan in Year 3.
Transition for September 2024
We have loved welcoming our new Nursery and Reception children into school over the past couple of weeks. We are already getting to know them and their families and they are becoming more familiar with their new classroom and teachers.
Next week, we have some more transition sessions for the children and our families.
On Tuesday 9th July, the children will spend some time with their new teachers. Most of them will go into their new classrooms; however, this obviously won't be possible for our current Year 4 and Year 5 children. Current Year 4 children will be with Mrs Pickersgill in our top hall and current Year 5 children will be with Mrs Dunn in Mrs Westerman's room in our lower building.
On Tuesday, all children just need to go to their current class as normal in the morning and they will be released from their current class at the end of the school day.
After school on Tuesday 9th July, there will be a 'Meet The Teacher' session from 3pm to 4pm where parents and children can pop along to meet their child's new teacher. The classrooms for this will be as follows:
Current Nursery - Foundation classroom
Current Reception - Year 1 classroom - please walk round the lower building and the Year 1 classroom is in the corner on the left.
Current Year 1 - Year 2 classroom - please walk round the lower building and the Year 2 classroom is to the right round the last corner.
Current Year 2 - please enter the Year 3/4 building (the building to the right hand side of the top playground) and turn right. The Year 3 classroom is through the double doors and is the classroom on the left. A member of staff will be there to greet you.
Current Year 3 - please enter the Year 3/4 building (the building to the right hand side of the top playground) and turn right. The Year 4 classroom is through the double doors and is the classroom on the right. A member of staff will be there to greet you.
Current Year 4 - please wait on the lower playground for Mrs Pickersgill
Current Year 5 - please wait on the lower playground for Miss Dunn
Wednesday 10th July is our Move Up Day where the children will spend the whole day in their new class with their new teacher. On this day, the children should be dropped off and collected from their new classroom as below:
Current Nursery - as normal through the Foundation gate.
Current Reception - in the morning, please wait on the lower playground for the Year 1 staff to collect the children. Please wait on the lower playground at the end of the school day.
Current Year 1 - in the morning, please walk round the lower building and Mrs Davies or Mrs Aiston will be on the classroom door to welcome everyone. Please wait on the lower playground at the end of the school day.
Current Year 2 - please wait on the top playground for staff to open the Year 3/4 doors at both the start and end of the school day.
Current Year 3 - please wait on the top playground for staff to open the Year 3/4 doors at both the start and end of the school day.
Current Year 4 - please wait on the lower playground at the start and end of the school day - the children will be spending the day in the lower hall with Mrs Pickersgill.
Current Year 5 - these children will be in the classroom they are currently in, but with Miss Dunn.
Our current nursery children will stay for lunch that day, along with those children who don't currently attend Mayflower but who will be joining us in Reception and other year groups in September. Further information has already been sent out regarding this to those involved.
We hope that our transition sessions are really useful for the children. They are designed to provide the children with an insight into their new teacher, together with an idea of what to expect when they move up in September. It is also really useful for the class teachers to start to get to know the children too.
Year 6 transition to Secondary School
This week saw the start of the Year 6 transition to Secondary School in September. A few of our children visited their new schools and came back with lots of exciting stories! They had a brilliant time and are really looking forward to their new adventure in September.
Next week, the majority of our Year 6 children will be away from school on Tuesday and Wednesday as they head to Hayfield for their transition days. Year 6 parents/carers should have received information regarding transition arrangements directly from Hayfield. We look forward to hearing all about their visits when they return to us on Thursday.
Foundation sewing morning cancelled
As advised earlier this week, unfortunately we have had to cancel the Foundation sew-a-thon which was due to take place next Monday, 8th July. Apologies to those who had already volunteered.
Year 2 sewing morning Monday 8th July
Thank you to those who have volunteered for the Year 2 sewing morning next Monday. Once you have taken your child to class, please come round to the school office to sign in. We will then just wait for Year 2 to finish their morning register before taking our volunteers through to the classroom.
Art Festival week commencing 8th July
From Monday 8th July to Wednesday 10th July, we will be holding an art gallery in our lower hall. This will showcase the art that our children have been recently working on, based on a variety of different artists and art styles. Mrs Davies' daughter Jenna has been busy this week preparing all the artwork for the gallery. We are very lucky to have Jenna with us for this - she is a very very talented artist herself and has been blown away by the standard of some of the artwork our children has produced. Thank you so much Jenna for all your hard work this week.
The gallery will be open Monday to Wednesday from 8.30am until school starts and 3pm to 3.30pm after school on those days.
Please come along and view the art - you definitely won't be disappointed!
HERO week starts Monday 8th July
Next week sees the return of our HERO week. During this week, each child who is 'Here, Every day, Ready and On Time' will be entered into a prize draw for a chance to win a family movie night hamper. The winner will be chosen next Friday and we will share who the winner of our latest prize on next Friday's blog.
Dance after school club performances
We hope the children who have taken part in the dance after school clubs with Paige from Cre8ive Dance this term have enjoyed themselves. They have certainly been working really hard and would like to showcase their learning in some performances at the end of their last dance sessions next week.
The performances will take place as follows:
Monday 8th July - Key Stage 1 dance club - performance to start at 3.45pm. Please come to the school office to sign in.
Wednesday 10th July - Key Stage 2 dance club - performance to start at 3.45pm. Please come to the school office to sign in.
PTA Colour Run Thursday 11th July
As advised previously on our weekly blog, our PTA Colour Run will take place next Thursday 11th July, starting at 1.15pm. A letter was sent home with the children at the beginning of this week to sign your child/family up to this event.
Everyone is welcome - children, adults and siblings not in school. Entry is £3 per child or £5 per sibling group and £2 for adults. No entries are available on the day, so please ensure you return the reply slip at the bottom of the letter, together with the entry fee, by the deadline which is next Monday, 8th July.
On the day of the event, children MUST be wearing old clothes and shoes/trainers, as they will get wet and covered in paint during the event. A white t-shirt is the most effective to wear as it will show the paint the best. Protective eyewear (glasses/goggles) MUST be worn throughout the event - if those wanting to take part don't have eyewear, they won't be able to join in.
If you are participating as a family, please arrive at the office via the Station Road gate by 1pm to collect your child/children. Please ensure you arrive on time. The event will start at 1.15pm for those taking part as a family. For the children taking part without their family members, the timings are as follows:
Key Stage 2 will join in at 1.30pm and the Foundation/Key Stage 1 children will watch from their designated zone.
Reception and Key Stage 1 will join in at 1.45pm.
Our nursery families are welcome to come and join in too.
Children not taking part will remain in a separate area supervised by members of staff.
At 2.30pm, there will be a group photo to end the event. After this, those family members who are in school are welcome to take their child/children home. All other children will return to their class at 2.45pm ready for home time.
There will be drinks, sweets and hotdogs for sale on the afternoon of the Colour Run. If an adult won't be attending, please send your child with money in an envelope/wallet. Card payment facility also available for adults on the day.
Please note, the gates will ONLY re-open at the end of the event, not during the event, so please only buy a family ticket if you are able to stay for the whole event.
Music Concert Friday 12th July
We are really looking forward to our music concert next Friday. This will showcase the learning this year of our guitar groups, woodwind group and our Year 6 children who have been learning to play brass instruments. We hope as many parents/carers of these children as possible will be able to make the concert next Friday. Please come to the school office to sign in when you have dropped your child off at school. The concert will start at approx. 9.15am.
Foundation picnics Tuesday 16th July
On Tuesday 16th July, our Nursery and Reception children would like to invite their families into school for a picnic to celebrate the end of the school year. The children will be making some sandwiches and decorating some buns. Depending on the weather this may be outside on the field, so you are welcome to bring a picnic blanket. If the event takes place inside, it will be in the Foundation classroom.
For Nursery, this event will take place at 11am and for Reception it will be at 2pm.
We would like to ask for a voluntary cash contribution of at least £1 per child please to enable us to buy the ingredients.
We hope as many of you as possible can join us. If you haven't yet returned your reply slip, please return this at the beginning of next week. If you will be joining us on the day, please come to the school office to sign in.
Year 5/6 production 16th & 17th July
Our Year 5 and Year 6 children have been working so hard on their end of year production 'Go For Gold'. Those with lines to learn have been diligently learning them and are becoming more and more confident on stage with each practise. The songs are sounding brilliant too, so we know that you are in for a real treat.
Letters came home with the children this week to enable families to order tickets for the performances. If you haven't yet returned your reply slip for this, please ensure you return it at the beginning of next week.
Both performances will start at 1.30pm so please ensure you arrive at the school office in plenty of time to sign in.
Rocksteady Concert Wednesday 17th July
As advised in the diary dates on our school blog and on the school website calendar, we wanted to invite families of those children taking part in the Rocksteady music sessions to our end of term concert on Wednesday 17th July, starting at 10am.
The children will be showcasing their learning and amazing talents - they have all done tremendously well in their Rocksteady lessons, so we are sure there will be some amazing performances.
Please come to the school office on Wednesday 17th July from 9.45am onwards. We are aiming for the concert to start promptly at 10am, so please ensure you arrive well in advance of the start of the concert.
Year 6 Leavers Assembly Friday 19th July
On Friday 19th July, we will hold our annual Leavers Assembly for our Year 6 families. This will start at 9.15am. We would like to invite Year 6 parents/carers into school from 8.45am that morning for refreshments before the assembly starts. Please come to the school office to sign in and the office staff will then direct you through to where the refreshments are being served.
If you cannot join us for the refreshments, please ensure that you do arrive on time for the actual assembly itself, as all the staff want to say goodbye to the Year 6 children and will therefore be in the assembly from 9.15am onwards.
Free child tickets - Doncaster Belles
Last week, some members of Doncaster Belles came into school to speak to the children in our Celebration Assembly. As part of the assembly, they presented us with a Doncaster Belles shirt. We will be holding a raffle in the last week of term to auction this shirt off, together with some other fantastic prizes.
Doncaster Belles are offering free child tickets for their game on Sunday 4th August. Please click on the link below to find out more.
https://www.doncasterroversfc.co.uk/belles/news/2024/june/belles-august-4/
To order tickets, please click on the link below. Please use the code POLYPIPE2024 on your order to get free child tickets. There are limited numbers of free tickets available.
https://tickets.clubdoncaster.co.uk/en-GB/categories/belleshome
Fun Opportunities
High School Musical Performance
Lunch Menu for week commencing 8th July 2024
Please see the menu below for next week. There may need to be last minute changes to the menus on occasion, to take into account availability of items or delivery issues.
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Diary Dates
Please see below our current diary dates. It may be that there are dates on here that involve your child that you haven't had any information for yet. Please don't worry, information will come out in plenty of time prior to the date concerned. Dates that have been added since the last blog are shown in bold.
Monday 8th July - Transition evening event at The Hayfield School 5pm to 6.30pm - information provided in the letter sent home last week on behalf of Hayfield
Monday 8th July - Year 2 sewing morning
Monday 8th July to Wednesday 10th July - art gallery in lower hall - Monday 3pm to 3.30pm. Tuesday and Wednesday 8.30am until the start of the school day and then from 3pm to 3.30pm
Monday 8th July - KS1 Dance performance 3.45pm upper hall
Tuesday 9th July - children to spend part of the day in their new classroom with their new teacher
Tuesday 9th July & Wednesday 10th July - Year 6 transition days at The Hayfield School - information regarding this should have been sent to parents/carers directly by Hayfield
Tuesday 9th July - 'Meet the Teacher' between 3pm and 4pm
Wednesday 10th July - whole school Move Up Day
Wednesday 10th July - KS2 Dance performance 3.45pm upper hall
Thursday 11th July - PTA Colour Run 1.15pm
Friday 12th July – Music Concert 9.15am (guitars, woodwind and brass)
Tuesday 16th July - Nursery picnic 11am, Reception picnic 2pm
Tuesday 16th July - Year 5/6 production 1.30pm
Wednesday 17th July - Year 5/6 production 1.30pm
Wednesday 17th July - Rocksteady concert 10am (for those parents whose children are taking part in the Rocksteady music sessions). Change of date and time due to change of Rocksteady day.
Friday 19th July – Year 6 Leavers assembly 9.30am. Year 6 parents/carers to come in to school from 8.45am for refreshments before the assembly starts
Friday 19th July - last day before Summer holidays
Monday 22nd July - Training Day - school is closed to pupils
Tuesday 23rd July - Training Day - school is closed to pupils
2024/2025 School Year
Wednesday 2nd October 2024 - individual & sibling photos
Thursday 24th October 2024 - Flu Vaccinations for Reception to Year 6
Thursday 21st November 2024 - Flu Vaccination catch up session for those not at school on 24th October
Thursday 8th May 2025 to Friday 9th May 2025 - Year 3 residential to Austerfield Study Centre
Thursday 22nd May 2025 - class photos
