The Kentmere PostOctober 2020

Headteachers’ UpdateWe wanted to officially welcome you all back to Kentmere.

It is so lovely to see you all again. We are delighted at

how well the children have all settled. We have a resilient

group of young people and we are extremely proud of

them as they have adapted to new routines, settled back

into their learning, and most importantly, are looking after

each other and enjoying being back with their friends.

We would like to welcome Miss Santana, Miss Nolan

and Mrs Dodds to Kentmere. We know they will be

valuable additions to our team. Miss Santana teaches

in KS1, Miss Nolan in KS2 and Mrs Dodds has joined

the office team.

We want to reassure you that every effort is being made to protect your children and family during this

unprecedented time. Lots of measures have been put in place and these are detailed in the risk

assessment that was text out to you and it is also available on our website.

To summarise here are a few key features….

● Children are in bubble classes so there is less moving around school and between classes.

● Teaching staff and pupils are kept consistent where possible.

● All pupils have staggered break times and lunchtimes. Each bubble group has a set time and set

area of the yard to play in. Lunches are eaten in the classroom so that they are not mixing in the

central area of the dining hall. EYFS eat in the dining hall as they don’t have a desk each in their

unit.

● Frequent cleaning by all members of staff and an additional cleaner has been employed.

● Regular hand washing and hand sanitizing. Each classroom has the facility to do this.

● All desks in the classroom are facing forwards (as per government guidance).

● Pupils who sit on the carpet have a coloured spot or marker to encourage them to spread out.

● Windows / air vents and doors open as much as possible whilst ensuring pupils are safe.

● All parents to wear masks when dropping off and collecting pupils.

The school has a thorough risk assessment which is reviewed regularly. This has been agreed and

passed by governors, The Watergrove Trust, Trustees and an external appraiser. As guidance is

released and updated we revisit, review and amend our practice.

If your child has COVID symptoms they should not attend school and you will be advised by our

attendance officer, Miss Grantham to take them for a test. If school has a confirmed case then you will

be informed and those who have been directly in contact with the person will be required to self-isolate.

School will provide some work and home learning activities in this instance. Should you have any

questions Miss Grantham is always happy to assist.

It is hugely important that our children are reading all the time and develop a love of reading and

literature.

We will be sending reading books home on a weekly basis so please read with the children as much as

you can.

Due to the virus, we cannot change the books daily due to the need to sanitize them.

EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT

Eco News

The Eco council harvested the fruit from the school fruit

trees which were planted by our Eco team back in 2017.

We collected a selection of apples and pears which we

then gave to Mrs Long our school cook. She then made

some delicious cakes using the fruit that all the Eco

council were lucky enough to taste. They were

delicious.

All the children have settled back into school

life well and the staff are very proud of them

all. At Kentmere we are completing a

'bounce back' curriculum over the half term

so that children can talk about their time over

lockdown and talk about the events of 2020.

The lessons also allow us to talk about the

things we enjoy and can look forward to in

the future.

Prosocial News

The Prosocial team met briefly last week to welcome

a new ambassador to the team, Afsah from Year 4.

All Prosocial ambassadors are chosen by teachers

due to their caring nature and the fact that they lead

by example. All the ambassadors freely give up their

time to assist children on the playground and to

support anybody who may be upset or lonely.

Did you know …?

We are proud to announce that Kentmere has been shortlisted for

the TES Primary School of the Year award. Well done to the whole

school community for a tremendous achievement.

Class UpdatesEYFS

The nursery children have settled brilliantly into our nursery

routine.

We have been listening to stories about keeping safe, sharing,

taking turns and looking after our nursery equipment.

The class fairy has been checking that we have been washing our

hands correctly and regularly, also coughing and sneezing into our

arms. She said we were all amazing!

We have also been exploring our nursery environment and making

new friends.

On Monday morning, Year 1/2 discovered a rocket that had crash landed in the school hall. We found

alien slime, a broken engine and control panel and flashing lights. We decided to write labels for the

things that we had found and added adjectives to make the descriptions more interesting. After that, we

wrote a CSI report about the discovery. Each person had to write their police name and as many details

as possible about the incident. We needed to note down the time, location and description of our

discovery. We are unsure as to whether any aliens have hidden themselves around school and are

keeping a close eye on all our teachers just in case.

Reception

The children in reception have been learning their numbers, starting with number 1 and number 2. We

have been using the numberblocks to help us, on BBC iplayer, and the numberblocks in class. We have

also been subitising! This is saying how many they can see without counting them. When we looked at

number 1, we even created our own number 1 song! Some children also created their own at home using

objects from within the house.

Year 1/2

Class UpdatesYear 3/4

The children have settled back into Year 3 and 4 incredibly well. We have looked closely at our own

mental health and wellbeing and our feelings towards returning to school. We have also started to

think about our aspirations and ambitions for the future. We have created some lovely pieces of art

work which will be displayed within the school environment. We have worked hard within our classes

developing the sense of teamwork and perseverance to help us ‘keep going’ when times are tough.

Well done Year 3 and 4 for a fabulous first few weeks!

Year 5/6This half term, we are learning about life cycles, reproduction and life processes. To bring this learning to life, we are

investigating the life cycle of a butterfly and have our very own class caterpillars! Each day, we are observing and

noting any changes to them. We are excited to watch them continue to grow. When they eventually become

butterflies, we will set them free and watch them fly away in the secret garden.

Liam- "I enjoy coming in each day and seeing how they've grown. They are always trying to climb to the top,"

Haleema- "I can't wait to see them change into beautiful butterflies."

From September, pupils and staff at Kentmere will start making their way to

Tokyo with the launch of the ‘Daily Mile’ for over 350 pupils and staff in a

campaign to get fit, increase exercise and have fun whilst improving their

physical and mental health.

Those taking part will track their progress at school and learn about the

countries and places of interest they will travel through along the way to Tokyo.

During assembly time, Kentmere will also celebrate the distance they have

travelled, and staff and pupils will share their experiences of the project.

The Daily Mile is a national campaign that encourages a social physical activity,

with children running or jogging at their own pace in the fresh air with friends.

Children can occasionally walk to catch their breath, if necessary, but should

aim to run or jog for the full 15 minutes. The aim is to give every child the

opportunity to do The Daily Mile at primary school.

Rochdale to Tokyo

As part of our Recovery Curriculum and Bounce Back PSHE work, we

have been encouraging pupils to reflect on different feelings and

emotions. This week we have been discussing KINDNESS.

We are currently experiencing some very strange times and it is

important that we are kind to each other as we don’t know how anxious a

person may be feeling and what their worries may be.

Our children express their kindness every day and it has been lovely to

see them caring for one another.

What to do if… Action needed Back to school…

…NHS Test

and Trace

has identified

my

child as a ‘close

contact’ of somebody

with symptoms* or

confirmed COVID-19

(coronavirus)

• Child shouldn’t attend school

• Child self-isolates for 14 days

(as advised by NHS Test and

Trace) – even if they test

negative during those 14 days

• Rest of household does not

need to self-isolate, unless

they are a ‘close contact’ too

…when the child has

completed 14 days of

self-isolation, even if

they test negative

during those 14 days

…we / my

child has

travelled and

has to self-

isolate as part of a

period of quarantine

• Do not take unauthorised

leave in term time

• Consider quarantine

requirements and FCO advice

when booking travel

• Provide information to school

as per attendance policy

Returning from a destination

where quarantine is needed:

• Child shouldn’t attend school

• Whole household self-isolates

for 14 days – even if they test

negative during those 14 days

…when the

quarantine period of

14 days has been

completed for the

child, even if they test

negative during those

14 days

…we have

received

advice from a

medical /

official source that

my child must

resume shielding

• Child shouldn’t attend school

• Contact school as advised by

attendance officer / pastoral

team

• Child should shield until you

are informed that restrictions

are lifted and shielding is

paused again

…when school / other

agencies inform you

that restrictions have

been lifted and your

child can return to

school again

….I am not

sure who

should get a

test for

COVID -19

(coronavirus)

• Only people with symptoms*

need to get a test

• People without symptoms are

not advised to get a test, even

if they are a ‘close contact’ of

someone who tests positive

…when conditions

above, as matching

your situation, are

met

For further information:

gmhscp.contacttracing@nhs.net

gov.uk/backtoschool