A day in the life of Wescott Infant School

Uniform Our school uniform is grey trousers, skirts or pinafore with a white polo t-shirt and logo sweatshirt or cardigan. In the summer boys can wear grey shorts and girls can wear a green check summer dress if they choose. Uniform can be ordered online at : http://www.schooltrendsonline.com/schools/WescottInfantSchoolRG402EN

Snack time Fruit or vegetables are provided by the ‘School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme’ every day. These are available to children at playtime – or your child can bring their own healthy snack of fruit of their choice Any left over snacks are available at lunchtime too (Please note that we have children with severe nut allergies and as such ask that you are mindful what you give your child)

Lunch There are 4 choices for lunch every day Lunch There are 4 choices for lunch every day. Hot meals are provided by Caterlink – the choices are main meal, vegetarian or jacket potato – the children make their choice from the menu every day by clicking on the interactive whiteboard screen as part of registration. Copies of the 3 week rolling programme menu are sent out each term – or available on their website. You can also choose to send your child in with a packed lunch.

P. E Your child needs to have their indoor and outdoor P P.E Your child needs to have their indoor and outdoor P.E kit in school every day. There are 2 sessions of P.E for every class each week which will be inside or outside depending on the weather. The children may also need their PE kit on different days for other in-school activities such as workshops. Outdoor kit – tracksuit bottoms, green t-shirt, trainers or plimsolls Indoor kit – shorts and green t-shirt

Homework There is no statutory homework at Wescott Homework There is no statutory homework at Wescott. We ask parents to read with their children at least 3 times a week. We send the children home with an optional Letters and Sounds take home activity each Friday – to be returned the following Monday. We ask Year 2 children to complete a maths activity, game or sheet to consolidate their learning in maths that week. This also comes home on a Friday to be returned the following Monday. Foundation Stage have a weekly home learning activity that is communicated via email every Friday. When the children are ready for a Letters and Sounds take home activity this is sent out on a Friday.

Reading The children may do individual or group reading – depending on their level/fluency. We aim to hear every child read twice a week. Your child will bring home a book that has been read (either partly or completed) in school as well as a book of their choice – a ‘home reader’ within their colour level. We ask all parents to support their child by reading with them at least 3 times a week. This does not have to be the school books – please feel free to read other books you have at home or that your child chooses for interest. Please do note what they have read in the reading record and note any comments you wish to share – or just sign to say you have read with them. Please remember reading with your child can be a shared experience – taking turns to read a page each, playing games by finding key words. . . Your child will also bring home a library book of their choice each week.

Spellings Children in Foundation Stage will be sent home a ‘pot/envelope’ of high frequency words to read – when they are ready. When they can read all these words then they start to learn how to spell them. In years one and two the children have spellings to learn at home – these are based on words they repeatedly spell wrong in class, alongside some that are required to learn as part of the National Curriculum. Children are ‘tested’ on a weekly/fortnightly basis – depending on how many spellings they have to learn. We do rely on parent volunteers to ensure this happens as regularly as possible – but sometimes circumstances mean this is not always possible. (absence, illness, trips etc) If you want to find out the proposed day of the spelling ‘test’ please ask your child’s class teacher.

Handwriting At Wescott we encourage cursive handwriting and actively teach it when the children are ready.

Letters and Sounds Every morning your child will take part in a 20 minute letters and sounds group where they will be taught based on the Department for Education (DfE) programme. The programme is taught in phases – from 1 to 6. Your child will be in a group alongside other children all working on the same phase of the programme. These groups are flexible and children may move groups over the course of the year.

Maths All children are taught the mathematic skills from the Foundation Stage curriculum or the National Curriculum (years 1 and 2) We use a variety of strategies and methods to teach and for the children to learn. Please see more about the strategies in the Maths Booklet and Maths Parents Workshop on the school website.

Spanish Each week the children have a Spanish lesson with Señora Clays Spanish Each week the children have a Spanish lesson with Señora Clays. Please see the Spanish booklet on the school website for more information on what is taught. At the end of each year you will be invited to a Spanish assembly where the children showcase what they have learnt.

Marking At Wescott we use the system of ‘tickled pink’ (success) and ‘green for growth’ (areas for improvement). You will also see blue for spellings. You may also see purple which is used for feedback and when the children respond to feedback.

Home Time Arrangements If your child is being collected by an adult other than yourself, please can you either inform the TA’s in the playground with clipboards in the morning or telephone/e-mail the school office during the school day. (before 3pm) If the school is not informed about a change in home time arrangements we will need to confirm with you by telephone before allowing your child to leave the premises.

Attendance As a school we monitor every child's attendance on a regular basis. Each term we will notify you if attendance has dropped below 90% or if your child is persistently late into school. The school strongly discourages any absences during term time as absence has a negative impact on children’s learning and progress. However, should you need to request an absence this needs to be made directly to Miss Hunter or Mrs Drew using an absence request form which are kept in the school office or on the school website. Each application will be considered on an individual basis and will depend on the circumstances as whether it is authorised or unauthorised. Medical appointments and genuine illness are always taken into account when monitoring attendance.

Communication At the beginning of each half term you will receive a Topic Newsletter detailing all the areas of learning your child will be covering in their topic. As parents you will also receive a weekly school newsletter (via email) which will keep you informed of current and upcoming events, initiatives, key dates and any further information you need as parents. Each Monday you will also receive a ‘reminder’ email about key events for that week.