Parents

Weekly Parent Bulletin - Friday 17th October

Dear parents,

Thank you to the parents that packed our audience for the EYFS parent phonics session yesterday. There is such an art form to teaching phonics, so hopefully you found these sessions helpful.

You will hopefully have noticed a small rise in the frequency of posts our year teams are making on Instagram. I've asked all year teams to post at least once per week, providing an insight into part of their week. One of the big step changes from nursery to primary school, is the difference in personal comms due to the scale of the settings. We hope you find the posts to Instagram a conversation starter and small insight into their lives at Avonwood. I'm certain your likes and comments will help staff to feel the time invested in these posts is worthwhile. Important to note that whilst we'll aim for at least one post per week, sometimes they'll be more, others there may be none. Where teachers already juggle busy work loads, I'm conscious this is another ask. So your positive support and understanding around this is appreciated.

Our EYFS tours are starting to fill up now. If you have any friends or family looking to start at Avonwood in September 2026, please encourage them to call our office to book onto a tour slot ASAP. Where picking the right school can be such an overwhelming experience, coming to see us in action is a great way to help determine if Avonwood is the school for them. To book a tour, please pass on to call 01202 727910.

We bid farewell to the wonderful Mrs Sephton today. When I asked the children in our assemblies to raise their hand if she had ever helped them, it was incredible to witness a sea of hands in the air. We are so proud of her moving on to her promoted role... she goes from supporting one school... to supporting a whole local community area! We wish her the very best with this new role.

Lastly, a big thank you to everyone who donated to our Harvest Assembly. We filled the stage with donations that all go to the brilliant Hope 4 Food charity. This charity fills our own food pantry which is always discretely available to any family in need, it's located in the small room opposite our reception office. Please don't feel embarrassed, you'd be surprised how many families rely on this without anyone ever knowing. #TeamAvonwood

Have a great weekend!

Mr Jackson

Whole School Reminders

PTA Updates

Trustees and Treasurer

Thank you to everyone who has shown interest in being a trustee or the treasurer. We will contact you next week with how we will make it official. There is still time to let us know if you are interested in being a trustee. Just email us on avonwoodpta@gmail.com.

Fireworks Volunteers

Thank you to everyone who has so far volunteered for the fireworks event. We are very grateful for your help! There are still slots that need to be filled on bouncy castles and also we need some strong and willing volunteers to help Mr Baz pack down at the end.

Please follow this link to sign up (tidy up is on the second page) https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C094CACAC29A6FCC16-58472961-fireworks

Whole School Updates

Elsie's Rose Charity Fundraiser 💗

Mrs Peckham and Mrs Crook will be holding a special octopus teddy sale on Tuesday at afternoon pick up. See letter that was sent home this week or posters that are up around the school for more details. However, if you don't want a teddy but would like to donate then please do so via the link - Avonwood Just Giving Page.

Term Time Holidays and Attendance Expectations – BCP Guidance

Please be reminded that holidays taken during term time will not be authorised under any circumstances. Following guidance from BCP, any illness reported immediately before or after a term-time holiday will require supporting evidence, such as flight confirmation or travel documentation, to verify the dates of travel. From August 2024, under the national framework for school attendance, parents may be issued a Fixed Penalty Notice if their child has 10 or more sessions (equivalent to 5 school days) of unauthorised absence within a 10-week period. The fine is £80 per parent, per child if paid within 21 days, rising to £160 if paid within 28 days. A second fine within three years will be charged at the full £160 rate, and further offences may lead to prosecution and fines of up to £2,500. We appreciate your cooperation in helping us maintain high standards for all pupils and ensuring every child benefits from consistent school attendance.

Free Webinar - MHST

Please see flyer for a free webinar from MHST -

Weekly Year Group Updates

EYFS

A reminder that home learning and library books need to be returned on Thursdays. New home learning and library books will be issued on Fridays. Once your child has finished reading a recommended read, please return it with their book review and then a new one will be issued.

Year 1

Home learning - please return yellow folders with homework completed on a Thursday. Folders will be returned the next day.
Reading records - phonic reading books being read at home should be recorded in these records. Please read phonic books 3 times to ensure your child is developing all of the following skills for reading: fluency and accuracy, prosody, and comprehension.
Dates for diary - Friday 7^th November - Grandparents Afternoon Tea; Thursday 13^th November - King's Park walk (this has been rescheduled). Letters will follow regarding both these events.

Year 2

Please practise adding two numbers, use a pack of cards up to the Jack (which will count as 10) turn over two cards and work out the calculation. Encourage your child to put the biggest number in their head and then count on from this number using their fingers to help.

Year 3

Reminder to pay for the Stonehenge trip via Parent Pay.

Year 4

Online Reading Record - A polite reminder that our new online reading platform: Learning with Parents, will start on Monday 3^rd November. Keep a close eye on your emails where you will receive a link taking you to your child's reading account. To learn more about how to use the platform, watch the step by step video Parent Introduction to the Reading Log (video) - Learning with Parents
Residential - A polite reminder that the £50 deposit for the Y4 residential needs to be paid by Friday 17th October. Any queries, please speak to Miss Keates.
PE - Change of Day - After half term, our PE days will be on a Tuesday and Wednesday due to changes in our weekly timetable.