Friday 26 September 2014


I am typing this today in a sea of red and yellow as everyone is dressed up for the end of our ‘Spanish Week’ which the children appeared to have thoroughly enjoyed. I have had to miss a lot of the activities today because I have had a lot of meetings to attend but I do not think that my absence has spoilt the day. The children have been involved in a lot of interesting activities this week and have produced some really high quality work – some of which will be displayed in the school hall next week. The most important thing is that they know more about Spain than they did at the beginning of the week and I think they will all agree that they do.

I am not going to discuss the argument that occurred outside of the school this week because I think I covered it all in my newsletter. However, I would just like to emphasize that as adults we should be setting our children an example and that includes following rules. Parents should not be parking where the signs show quite clearly that they should not be doing so. The governors and I will be seeing taking guidance as to what measures we can put in place to get rid of this problem once and for all. The police guidance is that the school staff should not get involved in disputes about parking outside of the school but parents can complain to the police directly if they feel there is a need.

Looking forward to better things we have out Harvest Festival next Friday. Over the last couple of weeks the children have been preparing songs to sing to you and I know they are looking forward to performing them to you. If I could remind you that we will need donations of cakes and biscuits sent in on Wednesday and Thursday morning to ensure that we have plenty of cake for Friday (it is the cake that makes it one of my favourite mornings of the year). On the day we also ask for a money donation towards a named charity and we will let you know which one it will be on the morning.

We also have the ‘Book Fair’ arriving next week and starts on Thursday after school. The children always get excited when they see all the new books which I think is a great reaction because you can never have too many books.  As I stated in my newsletter if you are able to help out please contact the school office and then Mrs Richardson will contact you.

I look forward to seeing many of you next week at the Harvest Festival and Book Fair – enjoy your weekend.

Friday 19 September 2014


I found it hard to believe that it was time to write my blog again because the week has just flown by. I have had a lot of meetings to attend so you may not have seen a lot of me but I can assure you I have been working.

One of the more pleasant tasks that I did this week was to go with some members of Year 5 and 6 to the ‘Lochinver Maths Challenge’. Both sets of children had a most enjoyable time and I am pleased to say that we did well in both competitions. Year 5 finished third in their category and Year 6 finished an impressive first. Let us hope that this is the first of many victories for the school this year.

Next week in school is going to be a very exciting one because we are having a Spanish Week. As I explained in my newsletter this is to make the children more aware of Spanish culture as this is now the language we teach in school. I know the children are going to have a great time and we are ending the week with a ‘Red and Yellow Day, which are the colours of the Spanish flag. Do not worry if you cannot dress the children totally in those colours - as long as they have one item that will be sufficient.

The fine weather still seems to be hanging on so enjoy it while you can because autumn in full force will soon be upon us – we have already had a little taste with the misty mornings and the storm during the night. Even when the weather changes we still have lots to look forward to in school such as the Harvest Festival and the Bonfire Night so there will still be plenty to keep us cheery. Have a nice weekend.

Friday 12 September 2014


Second week in and the term is now in full swing. Most of the after school clubs have started up again and key stage two have had a particularly exciting week because of their visits to Stanborough Lake. They all returned after their visits very excited with loads of them rushing to tell me how wet they got and how many times they had been in the lake. Getting wet did not seem to bother them but then the weather has been good so that probably helped. Our new children also seem to be growing in confidence and are coming in by themselves – I am sure before long they will all be racing in like all the other children.

Unfortunately I have had some distressing news this week which I feel I need to share with you. We had a complaint from an elderly gentleman who lives in Frampton Road that some children in Little Heath school uniform were walking to school and were knocking on some doors in the road and then running away. He then claims two girls in our school uniform walked into his kitchen and only left when he shouted at them. He claims that the girls left a boon box behind. As you can imagine he was very distressed and shocked and was not able to contact the school until his carer arrived. This is not the type of behaviour that we expect from Little Heath children and I can only hope that the elderly gentleman is mistaken in his belief that they came from this school. What I would ask you to do is if your children come to school with their friends remind them of what is acceptable behaviour and if they do know anything about the incident to come and talk to me.

It was very pleasant to see many of you in school last night for ‘Meet the Teacher’ and I believe that all the sessions went well. I was a little disappointed that some parents were unaware of the no children rule and claim that they had not been informed. The information about the event was in my blog and last week’s newsletter and so it is clear to me that some people are not reading the letters or the blogs which is our way of communicating with parents.

Summer still seems to be hanging on so enjoy the weekend and I look forward to seeing you all next week.

 

Friday 5 September 2014


It does not seem like two minutes since I was wishing you all a great holiday and here we are back for the start of a new school year. Although it is difficult getting back into a routine I always enjoy returning to school because it is a pleasure to see everyone again and there is something comforting about getting back to your normal routine. That is not to say that I did not have a wonderful holiday but as I went away right at the beginning of the break it does seem like a dim and distant memory.

All of the children appear to have settled back into the school routine and although we have had one or two yawns from them having to get up early again they do not seem too upset at being back again. Even our new children seem to have settled very quickly, which is great, and I am sure that in a short while they will feel like they have been here forever and it will all feel very normal to them. I think it is sometimes more upsetting for the parents to see them start school than it is for the actual children.

Next week we invite in all the parents to a ‘Meet the Teacher’ meeting so that all parents can get to talk to their child’s class teacher and learn about the expectations of the year. We make these meetings for parents only following a request from parents who like the opportunity to ask questions they would not ask in front of children. Although the majority of parents do comply with this request we always seem to have a couple who think that it is okay for them to bring their children and just leave them in the school while they attend the meeting. However this is not acceptable and parents who do bring their children with them will be asked to leave. If you do have problems with childcare ‘Kids and Clubs’ are offering for a one-off payment to look after your child for the duration of the meeting but as I stated in the newsletter they will need to know by Tuesday so they can ensure they have the appropriate cover for the extra numbers. If you are unable to attend because of other commitments the class blogs do keep you informed of what is happening in the classroom.

All the clubs run by the school staff will start again next week so please make sure you return your signing up form by Monday so your child can participate. Those of you who are familiar with our after school’s timetable will notice that there is less netball available than we usually offer. This is because the lady who runs the netball for us has less time available because of other commitments. However, we are looking into ways of running more after school netball and we will inform you if this is possible in the near future.

Have a pleasant weekend - let us hope that the summer weather can last a little longer so we can all enjoy it a little more.