Lingwood Primary Academy Newsletter 29th November 2024

ashley.coley • November 28, 2024

Headteachers Update

Attendance across the school the last two weeks has taken a dip due to the inclement weather.


If you are having any challenges please let us know so a member of our staff can best support you. Miss Hatch and I are on the gate every morning, Miss Coley and teachers are available to talk to daily. Ms Clack (senco) also visits our school every Tuesday.


The Lingwood and Unity team are always here to help.


Thank you for your continuing support.

Miss Laycock and the Lingwood Team

Dates for the diary 

  • Monday 9th December - FOLPA School Discos KS1 Disco 3.30 - 4:15pm KS2 Disco 4.30 - 5.30pm
  • Tuesday 10th December - KS1 Christmas Performance 9:30 am
  • Wednesday 11th December - EYFS Christmas Performance 9.30 am
  • Wednesday 11th December - Smiles Dentist Sessions (EYFS/KS1)
  • Wednesday 11th December - Christmas Lunch Day (book meal before Monday 25th November)
  • Thursday 12th December - Christmas Jumper Day - £1 donation for save the children
  • Friday 13th December - Rock Steady Autumn Term Concert 
  • Monday 16th December - KS2 Christmas Performance 9.30am
  • Friday 20th December - Last day of term
  • Monday 6th January - Spring term begins

Year Group News

Nursery



Reception

Reception Rabbits have been reading the story of ‘The Gingerbread Man’ this week and really enjoyed making their own gingerbread biscuits to take home. They have been painting gingerbread men and acting out the story with character masks too. In maths we have been thinking about how to make the numbers 4 and 5 using songs like ‘5 Speckled Frogs’ and ‘5 Currant Buns’ to help us. 


Year 1

This week year 1 have been finishing writing their stories set in familiar settings.  They enjoyed following the plans they had drawn and editing and evaluating their own work.  In maths we have been continuing to consolidate our subtraction knowledge and have also revisited 2d and 3d shapes.  In Art we looked at the work of Piet Mondrian and will be using primary colours to create our own versions of his work next week.


Year 2   

Year 2 have worked hard this week finishing their maths unit on shape. All of the children have enjoyed identifying shapes and creating patterns with them. We are certainly in the Christmas spirit, the children have enjoyed rehearsing songs and lines for the Christmas performance. In D.T, they finished their cooking unit by making pita chips with Miss Phillip's support. This was a firm favourite with the children - a 5* rating!


Year 3

This week Year 3 have been learning how to punctuate direct speech. In maths they have been working hard to learn how to multiply and divide by three. It has been lovely seeing the pupils connect current learning to prior learning especially identifying different spellings patterns. Well done everyone. 


Year 4

This week Year 4 have been working extremely hard on their multiplication and division. They have discovered factor pairs and their relationships between them. In Writing, they continue to write their 3rd person narrative, looking at powerful verbs and how they can improve our writing. In Science, we looked at how every material has a different melting point.


Year 5

This week, Year 5 have been learning how to convert fractions, as well as recognising how to change mixed numbers to improper fractions and vice versa. The children have extremely impressed me with their swimming lessons during PE, well done! During our Art lessons, the children have mastered the reduction printing technique and have produced fabulous art, which they are proud of - well done!


Year 6

Year 6 have finished editing their explanatory texts this week and are the best pieces of work they have written this year. Also, they have been making great progress in mathematics with their fraction work.

Achievement Awards

Rabbit Class  - Freddie, for great reading this week and even trying to read words around our classroom too!


Squirrel Class – Joshua - for his story writing.


Hares Class  – Benjamin - for working hard in maths making patterns with 2D and 3D shapes.


Fawns Class  – Annabelle for making fantastic links in her learning.

               

Otter Class – Evie - for your fantastic powerful verbs suggestions and your use of them in your own sentences.


Badger Class –  Alfie - for making brilliant progress in your recent arithmetic paper!


Fox Class - Evie for fantastic editing in her English work on explanatory texts.


Star Pupil Awards


Rabbit Class -  Penny, for being a great role model to her friends during Christmas singing practise. 

Squirrel Class – Elio for always putting consistent effort and great ideas into his learning.


Hares Class  – Brody - for always being kind and trying his best in every lesson.


Fawns Class - Mason for excellent attitude to learning this week.


Otter Class – Ramona - for always been friendly and kind to all members of staff and her peers.


Badger Class – Rose - for challenging yourself and for working hard in all lessons. Well done!


Fox Class – Bailey for always being helpful in the classroom and trying his hardest.


Congratulations to you all - we are very proud of you!

Attendance Update
   
This week's whole school attendance

95.7%

Our whole school attendance decreased this week again to 95.7% . In first place is Year 3  with 96.7%, in second place is Year 1  with 96.5% and in joint third place is Year 4 and 6  with 95.5%. Well done to all the children arriving at school on time, ready to learn lets see if we can increase our attendance next week!


A reminder that the school gates will continue to be open from 8.30 am. Registration is at 8.40 am and school finishes at 3.25 pm.


Please note that the DFE are making changes from August 2024 with regards to term-time holidays and fixed penalty notices. See link below for further information. 


Fines for parents for taking children out of school: What you need to know 

Remember that every day counts and we are in every day next week!

School Lunches


Aspens Select - Lunch ordering system

If you wish to order your child a school meal please note that the orders have to be placed before 9am on the day. If you have not set up your account and need some assistance please visit the school office so we can provide you with your log in details and help with setting up your account. To find the link to access Aspens Select, go onto MCAS, select 'announcements' and the link can be found in this section. If an order is not placed for your child we will not be able to offer them a choice on the day, they will be charged for a school packed lunch.


Free School Meals

A reminder that if your child is in Yr2 (Hares), they will no longer be entitled to a universal free school meal when they move into Yr3 (Fawns). You may still be entitled to free school meals and you can check if you are at www.norfolk.gov.uk/neo You could save up to £400 a year.

Hello Lingwood families,


My name is Kara Stock, and I’m the Family Support & Attendance Officer for Unity Schools Partnership and Lingwood Primary Academy. I want to reassure you that I am here to support you with any challenges you may face—whether related to your child’s school attendance or other family needs.


I can provide advice, connect you with resources, explore your family network for support, and assist with referrals to other services, or other support networks. We all know how important regular attendance is for your child’s learning and their sense of belonging at school. As we approach the end of the term, I’ll be sending out letters to some families to offer extra support. These letters are not meant to worry you but to identify challenges early and work together to prevent further dips in attendance. If you receive one of these letters and have any questions, or if you’d simply like to chat, please don’t hesitate to contact me at kstock@unitysp.co.uk

I’m here to support you and your family in any way I can, and I look forward to working together to help your child thrive.

By ashley.coley February 14, 2025
Headteacher's Update Dear parents / carers, As we head towards half-term, I wanted to say a big thank you for all your support over these past few weeks. I have thoroughly enjoyed working at this lovely school. I must admit having a broken wrist has been challenging, and I have seen a little too much of trains and Premier Inns, but it hasn’t stopped me feeling very much at home at Lingwood. I will continue to lead the school until Miss Laycock is well enough to return. It’s good to see that class dojo is being used with parents now but as I explained last week we are not currently using it for contact between home and school. Please contact staff through office@lingwoodprimary.org.uk. As I mentioned in a previous message, we are working on ensuring there is consistency in what both staff and children do. You will be sent a document that we are calling the ‘Lingwood Way’. Please have a look at our expectations for the school day. Attendance hit a record high last week with our weekly school attendance hitting an impressive 97%. Well-done to everyone for this fantastic achievement. Have a wonderful half-term break with your amazing children and we will see you back at school on Monday 24th February. Regards, Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher Lingwood Primary Academy
By ashley.coley February 9, 2025
Headteacher's Update Dear parents / carers, It has been really useful speaking to children, staff and parents about how we can improve our behaviour systems and communication at our lovely school. I believe it is so important to praise, recognise and reward excellent effort and behaviour. At Lingwood, we award ‘dojos’ when a child has worked hard and/or demonstrated one of the values of the school. We would like parents to see this recognition and therefore we need you to be set up on class dojo. Today, your child should have come home with a login sheet with simple instructions on how to set this up. If you have not received this, please speak to the class teacher or Mrs Tubby. We are resetting children’s dojo scores at half term. When they earn 100 dojos, they will receive a silver badge to wear on their school jumper. This will be celebrated and awarded on a Friday assembly. If a child reaches 200 dojos they will be given a gold badge. Some schools use class dojo to communicate between the teacher and parents. For now, we are not going to use this facility. To speak to the teacher, please do one of the following: Catch them at the start or end of the day for a quick chat. This can’t be a long conversation because the teacher will need to have eyes on the rest of the class. Ring Mrs Tubby in the office on 01638 to arrange a meeting Email the office ( office@lingwoodprimary.org.uk ) and your email will be forwarded to the teacher We will continue to send out our weekly newsletter on a Monday with an update from me and your class teacher as I know this is appreciated. However, this week, we will send the final newsletter for the half term out Friday. Regards, Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher Lingwood Primary Academy
By ashley.coley February 2, 2025
Headteacher's Update Dear parents and carers, We seem to have had four seasons of weather in one week at Lingwood, but our children are hardy souls and don’t seem to be bothered by a bit of wind or rain. We had our first school council meeting of 2025 on Tuesday. It is always good to hear from our pupils. They were particularly keen to get some more equipment to use outside and had interesting ideas about our reward systems. As a staff, we have been working on having tight routines, so children are able to be ‘ready, respectful and safe’. We are striving for consistency and our focus for next week is the start and end of the day. Except for our Nursery pupils, children will be dismissed at the end of the day when they are sat down at their desk or on their carpet space. The teacher will call them up one at a time. Please be patient next week as this may take a bit of time to get right. In the winter months, the grassy areas around our paths and playgrounds become muddy and slippery. Please try and keep to the paved and concreted areas for your own safety. Please can you take a few minutes to complete the SEND survey for Norfolk County Council as this will give you a voice in SEND provision in Norfolk. Please follow this link. SEND survey 2025 - Norfolk County Council - Citizen Space Have a great week Regards,  Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher Lingwood Primary Academy
By ashley.coley January 27, 2025
Headteacher's Update Dear parents and carers, Another week flies by. The children have behaved brilliantly at break and lunch. We have given the children more equipment to use at break and lunchtimes and they have loved it. I have been particularly impressed with how they have put it way and taken responsibility for this.  We have an attendance review in a couple of weeks and have been speaking to the children about the importance of being in school. For the second week running Rabbit Class have won the attendance cup with a superb 99% - well done Rabbits. Have a nice week. Have a good week. Regards, Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher
By lorraine.long January 20, 2025
Headteacher's Update It has been a cracking week at Lingwood. One of the highlights was our new cricket coach (Aaron) coming in on Tuesday. The children loved the opportunity to bowl, bat and field, despite it not exactly being summer conditions. I was particularly impressed with how all of the children listened and responded to a new face. It has been useful for me to speak to several parents last week about things they think would make the school run more smoothly. Communication seems to be a key theme - as it is in most schools. We are working hard behind the scenes to make sure that parents are kept in the loop as much as possible. Please do come and grab me in the playground at the start and the end of the day if you want to give any feedback. We welcome back Miss Coley today, and she will start in her role as the main year four class teacher alongside her deputy head duties. There are fewer staff out on training this week so there should be less disruption. Key Stage two staff are currently being trained on how iPads can enhance learning, and we will have some exciting news about this in the near future. We have had a couple of children off with chickenpox. If your child does have chickenpox, please keep them off until the blisters have 'crusted' over. I am keen that Lingwood is a school with high standards across the board. One of the expectations we have is about wearing the correct school uniform. Please make sure your child comes to school in the correct uniform, including Lingwood PE kit. Have a good week. Regards, Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher
By lorraine.long January 13, 2025
Headteacher's Update Happy new year. The Christmas holidays already feel a long way away, but we have got back into the swing of things and have had a good week at Lingwood. Pupils have quickly got back into good learning routines and have coped well with some disruption to staffing. We had several staff off ill last week and also staff on really important training. Whenever we use supply teachers, we always try to make sure we have staff that know the children and have high expectations. As parents of year 4 children already know, Mrs Walker has started her maternity leave, we wish her all the very best. Mr Wills (an experienced teacher) will be teaching this class this week before Miss Coley takes charge the week after. This week, we welcome a cricket coach into school and the year sixes are doing a week of sats getting ready for May. In my assembly we talked about New Years Resolutions and making pledges to be the best version of yourselves. It has been interesting hearing the resolutions children have made but the real test for all of us is keeping them! Regards, Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher
By ashley.coley December 20, 2024
Headteacher's Update What a lovely way to finish the term with our celebration assembly. It was great to hear some of the songs from the Christmas performances and celebrate the achievements of this week. It was especially pleasing to see so many children achieve 100% attendance this autumn term. If you haven't yet please read my letter which was sent to parents yesterday. I hope that you and your families have a wonderful Christmas break and I look forward to seeing you all in the new year. See you all on the 6th January. Please note moving forward the newsletter will be sent on a Monday. The first being Monday 13th January. Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher
By ashley.coley December 13, 2024
Headteachers Update Hello, I would like to take this chance to say a massive thank you for the warm welcome I have received from children, staff and parents. The performances this week, were so lovely. I am really looking forward to leading the school in Miss Laycock's absence and already I feel I have got to know the strengths of this wonderful school. Fortunately, I have been able to spend a couple of days with Miss Laycock to handover and I know your thoughts and prayers will be with her and her family. I have been a headteacher for over 7 years, and for the past two years, I have been working in an advisory role supporting both Primary and Secondary schools. When Tim Coulson asked if I would come to Lingwood, I did not hesitate. I live just outside Bury St Edmunds with my wife and 16-year-old twin boys. I am an avid sportsman and fan and am currently training for an attempt to run a sub 3-hour marathon, so you might see me running around the village. I will be working from home on a Wednesday, but we have made arrangements for another senior leader from Unity to come and support Miss Coley when I am not in school. Please do catch me at the gate at the start or the end of the day and say hello. Have a lovely weekend. Ben Jeffery Interim Headteacher
By ashley.coley December 6, 2024
Headteachers Update The children have been working exceptionally hard this week, across the curriculum. We welcomed Sue in from OM health and wellbeing. She visited and delivered different workshops to Year 1 - 6. These were focused around topics like: being safe, resilience, understanding emotions and puberty. We look forward to her delivering more workshops next term. Next week, we are looking forward to our Christmas performances and events. We look forward to welcoming you all. Thank you for your continuing support. Miss Laycock and the Lingwood Team
By ashley.coley November 22, 2024
Headteachers Update Another brilliant week this week with children working hard and lots of children being brave during their winter health immunisations. A big thank you to the parents who attended the parent cafe session on Tuesday, it really is useful to hear thoughts and opinions from different perspectives. This week, with the snow and the children practising for their Christmas performances -it has certainly felt very christmassy. Thank you for your continuing support. Miss Laycock and the Lingwood Team
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