Dear Parents and Carers,
I led this week’s Senior Leadership Assembly about one of our important Kilmorie qualities, empathy. We unpicked how empathy is seeing with the eyes of another, listening with the ears of another and feeling with the heart of another, and how at times this can be difficult to do. We looked at how, if more people showed empathy, our world would be a happier and calmer place to be. We then looked at the skills of showing empathy and read the book ‘voices in the park’, by Anthony Browne. We ended the assembly celebrating all the fantastic sporting achievements. Throughout every event the children have really shown many, if not all, the Kilmorie qualities and truly are a credit to our school.
This week’s class assembly was from Ladybirds. It was lovely to hear about all the amazing facts they have been learning about in their topic ‘Animals’. I was super impressed with the wealth of information they knew and the confidence they showed sharing it with us. They clearly enjoyed themselves with big smiles throughout – well done Ladybirds. You can see photos here.
We have had another busy week!
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On Monday we had a visit from a local netball coach. She worked with girls across Years 5 and 6 playing games to get the children to begin to understand some of the rules of the game. If you are interested in your daughter joining a local team, please see Community News box (below) for further details.
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On Wednesday we had our annual Sports day – it was so lovely to see so many parents and carers and the children, from Reception up to Year 6 enjoying the activities. The feedback from the change of venue has been overwhelmingly positive and whilst I have not experienced the previous venue, I too was most impressed with it. A huge thank you to everyone who has worked incredibly hard planning and organising the event behind the scenes. We have not had a sports day off site for a couple of years, as a result there were a lot of questions from parents, and I would like to thank the school office who fielded a lot of emails and calls. Special mention to Kate G, Conor and Jane C for organising the day. See photos here.
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On Thursday, Kate M & Shona’s classes visited the Horniman Museum, Sarah C’s class went last week. Please see photos here, below are some quotes of what the children enjoyed most:
Abigail - My favourite thing was seeing one of the rocks that had a footprint from an extinct reptile.
Greyston - "I learnt that stoats change colour during summer and winter".
Evelyn - "I liked when we were touching all the different animals in the workshop".
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Today, the Educational Psychologist held another coffee morning. His focus this week was on the themes of Autism, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and ADHD. There was a very useful conversation which will help us plan further support for pupils next year. The last session will be on the 30th June at 9.10am.
Safeguarding reminder: please do not speak to any children through the fences (including your own child). There was a potential incident this week, and we want to make sure all our children are kept safe at all times. Your support is appreciated.
Change of system: we are continually reviewing systems to ensure we are getting the best value for money and looking at ways to streamline where possible. We will be moving across to Arbor at the start of the next academic year. We plan to move away from Wufoo and ParentPay and use Arbor as our single system. We will make sure all key information is sent in a timely manner to make the transition as smooth as possible.
Warmer Weather: As the temperatures remain high, please can I remind you of our school guidelines to keep your children safe in the sun:
- Sun cream needs to be applied before school, children can bring sun cream to school, please ensure it has their name on it.
- Sun hats – ideally wide-brimmed should be worn to protect face, neck and ears. Please ensure they are labelled with your child’s name.
- Sunglasses & flip-flops are not allowed in school.
- If your child is also a hay fever sufferer, they will need, if not a prescription, to take their medication prior to coming to school as we are only allowed to administer prescribed medications.
- I would like to take this opportunity to recommend that all children’s clothing covers their shoulders in order to protect their skin. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/seasonal-health/sunscreen-and-sun-safety
POLICY update: our Re-balancing Policy has been updated. From this year we will be re-balancing year groups at the end of reception and the end of year 3. These two points have been carefully considered. Our children have a varied experience prior to starting Reception and at times we have little knowledge of their accessibility to education, which can cause an imbalance across the year group. We also have a continuous enrolment policy; as a result, we take in children throughout the year, placing them in classes where spaces are available. By the end of an academic year or phase, with the natural movement of children in and out, classes can become quite unbalanced in terms of gender, education, language, social needs, maturity and friendships.
Book sale success – Last Friday’s book sale raised £301.65. Thank you to Rina and Kirstie for organising the book sale and their ongoing support of managing the library of books in the community room.
It has been lovely to see splashes of yellow across the school in support of Cystic Fybrosis. If you would like, you can make a donation via your ParentPay account.
Bake Sale for the Lion King performance – Wednesday 21st June, 3.30pm in main playground Rebecca and Kate G are working with FoK to organise a bake sale to raise funds for the Lion King production. If you can help before pick-up to set up, or on the stall from 3.30pm, please email FoK. More information in Friends new box (below)
Next week is Refugee Week 19-25 June, a UK-wide festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. As a Borough of Sanctuary, we will be taking part in unifying action. On Thursday we will be inviting children to wear something orange (the colour of solidarity with refugees) with activities planned to raise awareness. If you would like to find
out more that is happening across Lewisham, please check out these websites: Action for Refugees in Lewisham, Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network.
Pupil Voice: We are always supporting children to understand that their voice is important and that by sharing a concern or idea of how things could be done better, things can change. This has been evident with the work I am doing regarding school dinners. Amy in year 4 has taken this advice on board and wrote to the Prime Minister about the importance of more people understanding Dyslexia and having things in education to help dyslexic children more. Today she shared the reply she has received informing her that her concerns have been passed to the Department for Education – well done Amy for taking the time to raise these very valid points!
Please remember that next Friday (23rd June) is an INSET day.
Wishing all our families a lovely weekend.
Kind regards
Julie
Well done to our Year 5 & 6 boys for coming 2nd School Games Football Tournament.
The Winkworth Boards Are Up