School Newsletter : 25 October 2024

| Issue 6 | Autumn 1 | Week 7 |

Out & About…

Tuesday 22nd October: Year 5 Trip to the Science Museum

Year 5 had an amazing visit to the Science Museum, where they took part in an interactive workshop focused on Forces and explored the Wonderlab. The students had the chance to explore key concepts like push, pull, gravity, and friction through fun, hands-on activities and real-world experiments. It was an exciting opportunity to see science in action, bringing their classroom learning to life and sparking lots of enthusiasm. A memorable day for everyone involved!

Secondary School Application 2025

Thank you to those parents who came along to our Secondary Transfer meeting held on Thursday this week.  We hope that you found this session helpful as you navigate this process.

Please remember that the admissions process is for children in Year 6 born between 1 September 2013 and 31 August 2014, who will start secondary school in September 2025.

The deadline to submit your online application is 31st October 2024.

  • If you have any queries or should require any help with your online application, please make an appointment via the school office to meet with Mrs Deary (Tuesday – Fridays).

Biscuit Bytes

Woof….

🐶 Happy Friday everyone!

Wow, it’s hard to  believe that it is the end of our first half term already. What a great half term it has been, with lots of trips and visits for classes and events taking place in school.

There have been many wonderful projects coming into school this week from pupils in all year groups, highlighting the amazing ways they have interpreted and understood the learning linked to their History topics.

Thank you to pupils and parents for taking time to work together on these home-learning projects.

We really do enjoy seeing and hearing from the children, about the opportunities for collaborative working together at home, sharing and reflecting on the learning taking place.

I really enjoyed seeing some of the Year 1 projects coming in on Monday this week, and I know several of those can be seen in the Year 1 News section further down 🙂

You will be excited to know that new projects will be included in your Autumn 2 class newsletter which will come home with your child on the first day back after the October half term break.

Enjoy the October Half Term Break. It is one of my favourite holidays because there are lots of autumn leaves to run around in, muddy puddles are starting to appear and really nice crisp mornings (sometimes with lovely blue skies) for long walks.

I especially like going on a countryside walk, where we stop at fabulous places with nice big log fires which are soooo lovely to lie down and warm up in front of.

Whatever you maybe doing over the holidays, enjoy spending time with each other and I hope you to get to visit the parks and run around in the leaves too (although maybe avoid the muddy puddles🐶 ).

Wishing you all a wonderful half term break, and see you all back on Monday 4th November.

Love Biscuit x

October Half Term: Sports Programmes

FREE CRICKET COURSE: for children aged 7-11 years old taking place at Grey Coat Hospital School, 98 Regency Street (St Michael’s site), Pimlico SW1P 4GH. Please see click on the flyer below to see the full details.

FOOTBALL CAMP COURSE: £13 per day for children aged 6-11 years old taking place at Archbishops Park, Carlisle Lane, SE1 7LQ. Please see flyer below or scan the QR code for booking details.

Class Assembly & Collective Worship Services: Autumn 2024

All parents & carers are invited to attend the following services, unless specified differently eg: Year 6 parents & carers only etc. If you’re attending, please ensure that all mobile phones are either switched off or on silent mode.

Please also ensure that you arrive on time as you will not be able to join assemblies or services once they have begun. This is to ensure that those speaking or performing are not distracted by late arrivers.

Kindly note that we will not be able to make any exceptions, so please be aware of arrival times, traffic/travel conditions etc so as to avoid any disappointment.

A reminder that any photos taken are not permitted to be uploaded to public social media sites.

DATE (FRIDAY) SERVICE/ASSEMBLY DETAILS & TIMINGS
8 November Remembrance Day Service For all parents & carers. The service is from 10:30 – 11:30, and will be held in the KS2 playground (weather permitting). The main gates will open at 10:20 and close at 10:30
15 November Year 5 Class Assembly For Year 5 parents & carers only. Please arrive and wait in the Ground Floor Hall by 09:00. A member of staff will let you know when to proceed up to the First Floor Hall to take your seats.
22 November Year 6 Class Assembly For Year 6 parents & carers only. Please arrive and wait in the Ground Floor Hall by 09:00. A member of staff will let you know when to proceed up to the First Floor Hall to take your seats.
29 November INSET DAY SCHOOL CLOSED TO ALL STUDENTS
2 December Key Stage 2 Nativity For KS2 parents & carers only. The nativity is from 14:30 – 15:15 and will be held at St Stephen’s Church. The doors will open at 14:20 and close at 14:30.
9 December EYFS & Key Stage 1 Nativity For EYFS & KS1 parents & carers only. The nativity is from 14:30 – 15:15 and will be held at St Stephen’s Church. The doors will open at 14:20 and close at 14:30.
16 December Christingle Service For all parents & carers. The service is from 10:15 – 11:15, and will be held in St John’s Smith Square. The doors will open at 10:10 and close at 10:15

PE Lessons

Please ensure that your child is wearing the correct PE kit to school each week on their allocated PE day.

Pupils not wearing their full PE kit will not be able to participate in lessons, and a note will be sent home indicating why they were not able to participate.

Please ensure that all items of school uniform are clearly labelled with either a permanent pen or label.

The full PE Kit for the Autumn/Winter Term is as follows:

  • Plain navy blue leggings or tracksuit bottoms
  • School navy blue PE t-shirt
  • School navy blue sweatshirt (all year groups)*
  • Plain black trainers (velcro or slip on if they can not do their laces).

* Kindly note: Pupils in KS2 (Years 3-6) must wear a school sweatshirt for PE lessons and not the v-neck jumper from their main school uniform.

Autumn Term PE Lessons:

  • Monday: Year 4
  • Tuesday: Year 3
  • Wednesday: Reception & Year 5
  • Thursday: Year 6
  • Friday: Year 1 & Year 2

Our PTA: The Friends of Burdett-Coutts

Welcome back to the new school year and a warm welcome to all our new families who have joined our school’s community this term.

If you are a parent, carer or a guardian of a child that attends our school, then you are automatically a member of our Parent Staff Association, Friends of Burdett-Coutts.

Being part of our PSA offers an exciting opportunity for you to meet other parents, whilst supporting our school, through organising fundraising events, volunteering and much more.

Even if you can only give a small amount of time, you will be making a difference to the school experience for your child and other pupils in our school.

Please join in our next meeting to discuss our upcoming event, the Christmas Fair on 18 December @ 15:30 – 17:30. Everyone is welcome, and your energy & support is very much needed!

Meeting dates (Wednesdays):

  • 6th November
  • 20th November
  • 4th December
  • 11th December

Accelerated Reader Program

We are very excited to announce that we are now part of the Accelerated Reader program, for children in Years 1 to 6.

Accelerated Reader encourages children to read regularly, while ensuring that they bring home a book appropriate to their reading level. There are three steps to the program:

1. Pupils complete a star assessment which informs us of their reading level
2. They choose a reading book from the library, appropriate to their reading level
3. After they’ve read the book, they complete an online quiz about the it. The children earn points for the quizzes that they complete.

Pupils can log into the Accelerated Reader portal @ https://global-zone61.renaissance-go.com/welcomeportal/2243804

They can also log in by clicking on the Accelerated Reader link found at the top right hand corner of our website (in between Staff Login and Sooper Books).

Please click the image below for information about Accelerated Reader, or click here for a PDF >

Upcoming Events

October:

  • October Half Term: Monday 28th October to Friday 1st of November School Closed

November:

  • Wednesday 6th November: Year 1 Trip to the Florence Nightingale Museum @ 09:00 – 15:00
  • Friday 8th November:  Remembrance Day Service (in school) 10:30 – 11:30.  Parents are warmly invited and need to be in the school playground (weather permitting) by 10:30, the main gate will open at 10:20.
  • Friday 8th November: Year 6 visiting Westminster Abbey as part of the “Moving Away Your Dust” Project @ 13:00 -15:00.
  • Monday 11th November: Year 5 Trip to The British Museum @ 09:00 – 15:00.
  • Monday 18th November: Year 3 Trip to The British Museum @ 09:00 – 15:00.
  • Monday 25th November: Year 4 Trip to The British Museum @ 09:00 – 15:00.
  • Tuesday 12th November: Year 1 Trip to The National Portrait Gallery (Significant People Exhibition) @ 09:00 – 15:00.

November (continued)

  • Thursday 14th November: Year 6 Trip to Churchill War Rooms @ 09:30 – 14:30.
  • Thursday 28th November: Year 6 visiting The Abbey Centre, as part of the “Moving Away Your Dust Project” @ 10:00 – 12:30.
  • Friday 29th November: INSET Day, school closed for pupils.

December:

  • Monday 2nd December: 9 Lessons Carol Service at St. John’s Smith Square Church @ 09:30 – 11:00. Parents are warmly invited to attend and we asked that you are seated in the church by 09:20
  • Wednesday 11th December:  KS2 (Year 3 – 6) Disco @ 17:00 – 19:00
  • Wednesday 18th December:  School Christmas Fair @ 15:30 – 17:30
  • Friday 19th December: School closes for the Christmas Holidays @ 13:30.

Term Dates 2024-2025

Please find here the agreed term dates set by our school’s Governing Body for the upcoming academic year, starting September 2024.

Please remember that holidays will not be authorised during the school term, and that all children should be in school (on time) every day.

Please refer to the table below for the term dates, including INSET days and Bank Holidays when the school will be closed to pupils.

Alternatively, you can click on the image thumbnail on the right to view the PDF (please note this will open in a new window) or you can click on the link below:

 

AUTUMN TERM 2024

Start of Term (for Years 1-6)

Tuesday

03 September 2024

To

Thursay

24 October 2024

Half Term

Monday

28 October 2024

 

Friday

01 November 2024

Return on

Monday

04 November 2024

End of Term

Friday

20 December 2024

 

SPRING TERM 2025

Start of Term

Tuesday

07 January 2025

To

Friday

14 February 2025

Half Term

Monday

17 February 2025

 

Friday

21 February 2025

Return on

Monday

24 February 2025

End of Term

Thursday

04 April 2025

 

SUMMER TERM 2025

Start of Term

Monday

22 April 2025

To

Friday

23 May 2025

Half Term

Monday

26 May 2025

 

Friday

30 May 2025

Return on

Monday

02 June 2025

End of Term

Friday

22 July 2025

 

INSET DAYS
Teaching & Learning: Curriculum & Safeguarding

Monday

02 September 2024

Teaching & Learning TBC

Friday

25 October 2024

Teaching & Learning: Wellbeing

Friday

29 November 2024

Assessment & Pupil Progress

Monday

06 January 2025

Teaching & Learning: Curriculum, Assessment & Pupil Progress

Friday

27 June 2025

BANK HOLIDAYS (school closed)
May Bank Holiday

Monday

05 May 2025

Online Safety

Did you know that not all apps are safe for children, with many popular ones having certain age restrictions. For example, WhatsApp, Tik Tok, Instagram and Facebook operate a minimum age of 13+ years, and therefore primary school children should not have their own, nor access to, such apps or accounts.

As parents, you can help safeguard your children online by researching these apps and their purposes, as well as their age restrictions, BEFORE agreeing to download them. If you do choose to download them, remember that parental controls such as password protection, can be set up so that in-app downloads or purchases, cannot be completed by the children themselves.

For example, to prevent iTunes, Apple App Store purchases or downloads, all you need to do is:

  1. Go to Settings and tap Screen Time.
  2. Tap Content & App Privacy Restrictions. If asked, enter your passcode.
  3. Tap iTunes & App Store Purchases.
  4. Select a setting and set to Don’t Allow.

Tips on how to install parental controls on other apps and devices (Android or Apple) can easily be found online, or even from the app developers themselves.

Preschool, Nursery & Reception Admissions

We have the following availability for places in our Early Years provision:

Reception class:

  • 2 places

Nursery Class (3-year olds):

  • 2 full-time places
  • 2 part-time place (afternoon)

 Preschool (2-year olds)

  • 1 full-time place (starting now)
  • 2 part-time places (starting now)
  • 2 full-time places (1 from January 2025)

If you are looking for a Preschool, Nursery or Reception place for your child we’d love to have you join us for a 30-minute bespoke EYFS tour. Here, you’ll have the chance explore our Early Years setting, speak to key staff and ask any questions regarding admissions and your child starting with us at Burdett-Coutts.

Contact us to register for our tours which take place every Thursday, with times available from 10:30 – 14:30 during term time.

Funding eligibility letter for Pupil Premium, Early Years Funding & Free School Meals

Due to changes in the eligibility criteria for Pupil Premium, Free School Meals and qualifying for 30 hours of funding for Nursery provision, many pupils currently enrolled at our school may now be entitled to one of these funding allocations.

We will be issuing letters to families who are currently not in receipt of the above, asking you to complete the registration for the identified funding option your child/ren maybe eligible for. Thank you so much in advance for your help in completing this.

This funding allows us to increase additional staffing hours to run booster groups, and an exciting range of extended day activities, that benefit our school and your child, and your cooperation is greatly appreciated at this difficult time for school budgets.

  • If you should have any queries with regards to the letter sent to you, please contact Mrs Deary or the school office.

Preschool:

This week in Preschool, we continued learning about animals through the story Handa’s Surprise. We’ve also been focusing on the colour blue, creating fun blue crafts and going on a colour hunt around the school to spot different shades of blue and other colours. These activities help the children develop their colour recognition and fine motor skills through creative play. It’s been an exciting week of exploration and learning!

Nursery:

Nursery had a great time this week, exploring the outside environment, collecting leaves and sticks for our nature wands. The children were excited to find different materials we could use, sharing what they discovered and using descriptive words to talk about the colours, shapes, and textures. After gathering everything, they added their unique touch and made their wands, showing off their creativity. It was great to see all the kids involved and having fun together.

Reception:

As budding Biologists this week, Reception created their own collaborative forest environments. We discussed how animals would love to hibernate under the warm leaves, what children love to do in the forests (eg: play in the leaves) and that squirrels and other animals like to look for nuts and leaves to eat and keep in their homes during the winter. It’s very much like the animals have their own harvest festival, just as we did last week!

Year 1:

We have been blown away by the amazing projects that our talented Year 1 pupils have submitted. Pupils have used these projects to demonstrate the learning they have gained over this half term related to our History topic, ‘All About the Past‘. They have presented projects about transport eg: buses, fire engines and space travel, plus toys we have and pens from the past. They presented their projects in front of the class confidently and with much pride. We were very impressed with their efforts. Well done Year 1!

Year 2:

This week as Writers, Year 2 children have been busy retelling the delightful story of The Lonely Beast by Chris Judge. After reading and exploring the story together, children practised identifying the key events and retelling the story in their own words. As part of their grammar lesson, they focused on using time connectives to help sequence the events clearly. Using story maps, they illustrated the main characters, settings, and important moments, which served as a guide for their independent writing. Children then wrote their own versions of the story, making sure to use past tense, time connectives and descriptive language to bring their retelling to life.

Year 3:

This week, Year 3 have really started extending their knowledge of the human body. We looked at different organs and how they help us to live. As a class, we discussed how these organs need energy to perform their functions. Next term, we will apply this knowledge, as well as our learning about muscles and skeletons, to discussing nutrition and how to look after our bodies. We also started learning a Michael Rosen poem called ‘Eagle and Donkey’. We learnt the poem – which is very funny, and then wrote our own versions!

Year 4:

This week in Year 4 we have begun applying our knowledge of shadows and shading to create a 3D effect with written text. Children decided whether to apply skills shared in the lesson in writing their own name, or following the modelled session to create our class name ‘Year 4’. We discussed how making changes to the tone of our shading affects the 3D depth and impact on the appearance of the artwork being made. This applies to a variety of media including pencil, pens, pastels, paint, ink etc.

Year 5:

This week in Maths, Year 5 have been learning about prime numbers. A prime number is a whole number greater than 1 with only two factors (itself and 1) and cannot be divided by any other positive integer without leaving a remainder, decimal or fraction. We then used our knowledge of factors to prove why numbers are prime, and that a composite number is a natural number or a positive integer which has more than two factors. For example, 15 has factors 1, 3, 5 and 15, hence it is a composite number.

Year 6:

This week, Year 6 completed their first mock SATS week, showing great resilience and determination to ensure they all achieved their best. Alongside this, we also finished our much loved reading text ‘Private Peaceful‘. We have all thoroughly enjoyed reading it and even shed a few tears at the demise of the main character Charlie.