Latest News
Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
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25th September 2020
Fri 25 Sep 2020Dear Parents,
It is hard to believe that we are already in October; the weather certainly feels very autumnnal. School life is getting busier by the week. I am delighted that the new Key Stage 2 School Council representatives have been elected, well done to all of them. I know Mrs Dodds is pleased to be working with the children, be it outside and at distance! Some of our Year 6 have now been awarded their Prefect badges, I hope they wear them with pride and committment. This week would have been the week for Year 6 PGL. The Year 6 have been aware of this but I hope when they go on the rescheduled date in June they will have sunshine instead of showers! We did have a lunchtime treat for the Year 6 children today in recognition of their missed week away this week.
Since my letter last Wednesday some children have enjoyed the benefit of having a fleece to wear in school. Please make sure they are plain but any colour is fine. Every child should have a coat in school each day for playtimes and outdoor learning. We are committed to being outside with the children for our learning and play when we can.
Throughout the school attendance is good and I hope we all stay well. I wanted to inform you that we do have a Goldfinch pupil isolating at home along with the household and look forward to welcoming them back next week.
I understand that many people nationally are finding government guidance confusing. As a school we are confident with the decisions we are making and with the processes we are following. We can manage possible cases and I will of course keep parents informed.
Next week staff will begin phoning parents for Learning review meetings. It is such a pleasure to walk around school and see the children so engaged in their learning. Whilst we continue to focus on our curriculum, we are dedicated to the wellbeing of our children and I thank the staff for their hard work in supporting the children in this way. I am pleased that both Gail Farrell and Julie Bardsley will be training this term as Nurture Assistants; this will enable us to further support the children both in Key Stage 1 and 2. Next week is Hello Yellow day on the 6th October. This day will be focused on caring for our mental health. The children do not need anything different for the day and we look forward to it.
I wish you a good weekend.
With kind regards
Jacquie Vanstone
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18th September 2020
Fri 18 Sep 2020Dear Parents,
Another week has flown by; it has been a cheerful, sunny week and both staff and children are adapting well to our new ways of teaching and learning. I have enjoyed seeing the children outside in PE encouraging each other and celebrating each other's achievements. We had the whole school together on Thursday for a Fire drill (a distanced, short time together). Reception were brilliantly calm and the whole school behaved beautifully.
I am pleased that throughout the week we have received several negative test results for family members who were displaying symptoms of Coronavirus. Please only attempt to access a test for a high temperature, persistant cough and/or loss of sense of taste or smell. Parents are keeping school fully informed which is helpful; there is now a new designated phone line for schools which is open during the week and for reduced hours at the weekend. Please email me at any time if your child receives a positive test result. head@finchampstead.wokingham.sch.uk
Each week that goes by we are extending our provision; it has been great to see clubs start up this week, with more next week. We are working hard on plans to develop the role of our Year 6 children as Prefects as well as other roles for children throughout the school. This time certainly allows us to reflect on the value of the extra responsiblities given; we will do all we can to ensure the children have these opportunities allbeit very differently.
We are looking to start using Google classrooms for more whole school activities which will include Achievement assemblies. In the meantime I would like to take this opportunitity to congratulate the De Meyer family on their super tennis achievements. Isla already has a place in the County squad for the U10s and Briony has just been informed that she will be in the U8s squad; well done girls, we are very proud of you.
I wish you a lovely weekend and I thank you for the consideration you are showing our school community. I know many children are keen to go to the park straight from school which I understand but please keep in mind the effort we are making to keep our bubbles separate in school. Many choices are difficult at the moment and I know we all trying to make them with the safety of our staff, children, parents and families in mind. Thank you.
Jacquie Vanstone
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11th September 2020
Fri 11 Sep 2020Dear Parents,
We have reached the end of our first full week and it has been filled with fun and learning. The children have adapted well to the new routines and the class contracts set by each class. Normally at this stage in the year we would hold class meetings with parents. To ensure you have the information needed the teachers have uploaded a powerpoint presentation onto the class page on the website. We hope you find them useful and if you have any questions, please ask.
As a school we must ensure we are prepared for remote learning at any time. The Reception and Year 1 children will use Tapestry for this and the rest of the school will use Google classrooms. Login details have been sent out if you haven't already got them. Both platforms will be used continually for home learning which will help us all use it more confidently in the event of a bubble or school closure. If this poses any difficulties for you please let me know.
I am delighted that the safety barrier is now in place; we can begin using the front entrance as a one way system which will begin next week. Further developments are happening in school due to the hard work of the FOFSA committee and their families! Mr Wilson organised for some office furniture to be given to school and he kindly delivered it on Saturday. There was group of parents ready to unload the furniture at school and I thank everyone for their time. Our budget is very tight as you know and this has made a wonderful difference throughout the school. The renovation of the staff room is going ahead in a considered and careful manner; it is a difficult time with many people incredibly busy and I am grateful for the time and effort given to our school.
We are keen to keep school as tidy and clear as possible to ensure cleaning is easier; please be assured that if we send old exercise books home, we have quarantined them and handled them with gloves.
We are excited to be starting some clubs, with football club starting today and netball on Monday. Beehive have worked hard over the summer and we are delighted that they are offering Breakfast club and After school club. You can book online both adhoc places and regular places.
It is such a strange time and as normal as school feels, it has been a very different September start. This is what the children had to say about it:
'I like to be with my friends again, playing on the playground.' Briony
'I like playing with the lego and with my friends on the playground. I like eating my lunch.' Alfie O
'I am happy making lots of friends.' Ksawery
'I was happy having my birthday in school.' Harrison
'I loved art because we were drawing patterns and it helps with drawing other things.' Lara
'I liked PE because I was in a group with my friends and we had fun.' Bill
'It has been very different but we get to see our friends.' Mia
'It was easy to come back and now I can be with my friends.' Freya
'It is so much fun to be back; I have enjoyed seeing my friends.' Alfie
'It's been interesting and very different to how it used to be. Sometimes confusing but lots of fun.' Connor
I think it goes to show the importance of friendship and it has been so wonderful seeing our new Reception children forming and strengthening friendships that may last a life time.
Thank you for your continued support, I will send out a mid-week update as well as my newsletter and I look forward to seeing you next week.
With kind regards
Jacquie Vanstone
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4th September 2020
Fri 04 Sep 2020Dear Parents,
I hope you all managed to have a lovely summer given the current circumstances. It has been wonderful to have all our families back. The enormous amount of preparation carried out over the summer has enabled us to start the term in a positive and safe way. It is such a pleasure to see the children with each other and with the staff; there have been some special moments which celebrate the vision of our school. Today our new Reception children joined us; they had great fun and their Year 6 buddies were pleased to introduce themselves at distance.
The organisation within school is carefully structured and is restrictive. Our staff are all working incredibly hard to ensure the smooth running of the day; I cannot thank them enough for their commitment to the wellbeing and learning of our pupils. We are ensuring that staff have breaks but with the children eating in the classroom it has been an opportunity to chat to the children at this time. It is great to see that we have a few budding gardeners who are bringing in their home grown vegetables. Can I remind all parents that we encourage a healthy lunch, snacks must be fruit or vegetables and the drink for the classroom should be water. There is so much media coverage on the importance of healthy eating and we want to encourage this as much as we can.
Yesterday I was concerned about the collection of children at home time; I wanted to see if it was better today. I can see that, as a school we can make some changes that I hope will create more space for distancing and keep everyone safe from the busy road. As a result, I would like to share new arrangements for collection. This will be more complicated in school but I hope it will alleviate some of the problems I can see outside. I was disappointed to see a number of parents not adhering to social distancing measures whilst having let their children go and play, as well as parents staying to chat once they had collected all their children and could have left the site. The school community is strong and valued by us all but during this pandemic we must keep our distance and support each other to do so. We are working so hard in school to follow the safety measures we have introduced. Our staff and children's safety is dependent on the choices made within the entire school community. I want all staff, all children and all parents to feel safe, so with increased care, consideration and with the revised plan in place I hope our home time will run smoothly. I would like to thank you in advance for your support.
Rosefinch arrangements will remain unchanged although we will bring them to the front of school if they have Chaffinch or Goldfinch siblings.
Bullfinch children (who do not have siblings in other classes) collection - 3pm.
3.05pm Bullfinch children who have siblings in other classes collect all your children
Chaffinch children and siblings of Chaffinch children will come out between 3.10 and 3.20.
Goldfinch children who have not yet been collected will then go home at 3.20
Please arrive promptly at the time allocated to your youngest child. The doors will not change from this week with Bullfinch and Chaffinch using the front, white door and Goldfinch using their door.
If you have questions please email me and I will try to answer!
I would like to wish you all a lovely weekend and I look forward to seeing you all next week.
With kind regards
Jacquie Vanstone