Clarence Road,Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B74 4LD

Telephone: 0121 308 5392 Fax: 0121 308 5061

DATES FOR YOUR DIARIES Tues 13th Sept Year 6 visiting Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery Year 5 Parents’ Meeting - ”Ipad” - 6.45 pm - KS1 hall Wed 14th Sept “Big Breakfast” Themed Lunch Thur 15th Sept KS1 Parents’ Meeting “How do we teach Reading and Phonics” - 6.45 pm - KS1 hall Fri 16th Sept Squirrels visiting Blakesley Hall Eid Celebration - Year 3 Assembly - 2.30 pm - Gandhi & Barnardo - KS1 hall Mandela & Pankhurst - KS2 hall Mon 19th Sept Bikeability for Year 5 this week Moles visiting Blakesley Hall Wed 21st Sept International Day of Languages Celebration—Balloon Release pm Reception Parents’ Meeting “Foundation Stage Profile” - 6.45 pm - KS1 hall Thur 22nd Sept Olympics “11 months to go” - Year 6 Assembly - 2.30 pm - KS1 hall PTFA AGM - 8.00 pm - KS1 hall (all welcome) Sat 24th Sept Community Fayre - 10.00 am to 1.00 pm - Arthur Terry School Mon 26th Sept Robins’ INSPIRE Parents’ Workshop - 9.00 am to 11.00 am - KS1 hall Wrens’ INSPIRE Parents’ Workshop - 1.15 pm to 3.15 pm - KS1 hall Tues 27th Sept Year 1 visiting Aston Hall Wed 28th Sept Year 6 Parents’ Meeting “Learning Expectations” - 6.45 pm - KS1 hall Tues 4th Oct Parent Council Meeting - 2.20 pm Fri 7th Oct Harvest - Year 6 Assembly - 2.30 pm - Barnardo & Gandhi - KS1 hall Mandela & Pankhurst - KS2 hall Mon 10th Oct Bikeability for Year 6 this week Swifts’ INSPIRE Parents’ Workshop - 9.00 am to 11.00 am - KS1 hall Swallows’ INSPIRE Parents’ workshop - 1.15 am to 3.15 pm - KS1 hall PTFA Meeting - 7.30 pm (all welcome) Fri 14th Oct PTFA Halloween Disco - 7.00 pm to 9.00 pm - KS2 hall Mon 17th Oct Owls’ INSPIRE Parents’ Workshop - 9.00 am to 11.00 am - KS1 hall Kingfishers’ INSPIRE Parents’ Workshop - 1.15 pm to 3.15 pm - KS1 hall Tues 18th Oct Individual Photographs Parent Consultations - 3.30 pm to 5.00 pm for KS1. 6.00 pm - 8.00pm KS2 Wed 19th Oct Parent Consultations - 3.30 pm to 5.00 pm for KS2. 6.00 pm - 8.00pm KS1 Thur 20th Oct Olympic “10 months to go” - Year 4 Assembly - 2.30 pm - KS1 hall Fri 21st Oct BREAK UP FOR HALF TERM Mon 31st Oct Staff INSET Day - school closed for children Tues 1st Nov School re-opens for children

Friday 9th September 2011

WELCOME BACK

I would like to extend to you all a very warm welcome back to school. I hope that you all had a very good summer and I look forward to working in partnership with you this year.

A special welcome to all of our new Reception children and parents and also to the new

families who have joined us in other parts of the school.

We also extend a very warm welcome to Miss Doyle who has joined us this September as Squirrels’ Class Teacher, Mr Cross who will be teaching across KS2, Mr Jeffries

who will be teaching music across the school and Mrs Parkes who is joining us one day a week in Foxes. We would also like to welcome

Mrs Griffiths as our new admin assistant in the School Office.

Also we would like to congratulate Miss Dutton (now Mrs Willmore) on her marriage during the holidays;

Mr Hamilton on becoming a father for the first time and Mrs Everton for giving birth to her second baby girl.

INSPIRE PARENTS’ WORKSHOPS

Robins Monday 26th September - 9.00am-11.00am Wrens Monday 26th September - 1.15pm-3.15pm Swifts Monday 10th October - 9.00am-11.00am Swallows Monday 10th October - 1.15pm-3.15pm Owls Monday 17th October - 9.00am-11.00am Kingfishers Monday 17th October - 1.15pm-3.15pm Hedgehogs Monday 14th November - 9.00am-11.00am Rabbits Monday 14th November - 1.15pm-3.15pm Moles Monday 21st November - 9.00am-11.00am Squirrels Monday 21st November - 1.15pm-3.15pm Foxes Monday 16th January - 9.00am.11.00am Otters Monday 16th January - 1.15pm-3.15pm Hares Monday 30th January - 9.00am-11.00am Badgers Monday 30th January - 1.15pm-3.15pm

HEALTHY SNACKS AND LUNCHES

In line with our Healthy Eating Policy and for the benefit of our new parents

please may we remind you that children should only bring into school healthy

snacks - eg fruit or cheese snacks - and lunches. We would be grateful if you could ensure that children do not bring

crisps, chocolate biscuits or sweets of any kind. Water bottles should contain

flavoured or plain water

PARENT HELPERS

At school we welcome parent helpers/volunteers to work in class and support our

children’s development. If you have some free time and would like to

help out for a short time each week please come

PTFA AGM  

The PTFA AGM will be held on Thursday 22nd September at 8.00 pm in KS1 hall. 

 If you have an interest in 

finding out more about the PTFA or in standing for office, and raising much‐needed funds for our school, I would urge you to come along and 

join us. 

International Day of Languages

On Monday 26th September it will be the International Day of Lan-guages. To mark this we will be holding a celebration event on

Wednesday 21st September.

On that day children should come to school dressed in the colours of their allocated country. For a £1.00 contribution each child will be given a helium balloon to re-lease with a message attached.

There will be a prise for the bal-loon that travels the furthest.

IF YOU HAVE A CONCERN

In the first instance you should speak to your child’s Class Teacher. If he or she is unavailable please leave a message with the School Office and they will ask the teacher to telephone you as soon as

possible. If you are not satisfied

with the outcome of this discussion then you should seek

further support from:

Mrs Joy Tombs, Assistant Head; Mrs Nichola Leeson, Assistant Head, Miss Fiona Marsh, Deputy Head; or Miss

Beth Clarke, Head Teacher Appointments to see any of the

above can be arranged via the main School Office.

SCHOOL PROFILE

As you know the school profile now

replaces an Annual Governors Report to parents. Our school profile is complete and can be

viewed on www.direct.gov.uk

END OF DAY ARRANGEMENTS

If your child is in KS2 and

you wish them to walk home unaccompanied we would kindly ask you to send a letter to that

effect to your child’s class teacher. Children without a

letter of consent will not be permitted to walk

home unaccompanied.

WALK TO

SCHOOL ON WEDNESDAYS

Our Walk to School on Wednesdays campaign will begin again this

week.

Meet us either at Wild Wood Florist on Clarence Road or at the bottom

of Four Oaks Common Road at Razor’s Edge Hairdressers at 8.30

am and we’ll walk to school together, alleviating the

congestion on Clarence Road and reducing the number of car

journeys made.

KS2 TUCK SHOP PRICES

Toast (1 slice) 15p Crumpets (1) 20p available Monday, Wednesday and Friday Bacon sandwich 55p available Tuesday and Wednesday Fruit flakes 35p Fresh fruit 25p Milk shake 35p Fruit juice 20p

.

HOMEWORK Children will receive homework on

Monday, Wednesday and Fridays. One of these pieces of homework will be set via Moodle our

Virtual Learning Environment and children will need to complete this on-line. If your child doesn’t have access to the internet at home,

please let your child’s Class Teacher know so we can make alternative arrangements.

A copy of our Homework Policy is available at the School Office or on our website.

On occasions children may also receive homework on one of the days

unspecified e.g. if they have not completed an activity in school within the given

time frame or if the teacher feels that reinforcement of a particular skill is necessary. All homework tasks

will be included in your child’s homework diary

Wagtails and Woodpeckers

As you know this year we are oversubscribed. If you need child care

before or after school it is essential that you book you child in well in advance.

Wagtails - 308 8656

BIRTHDAY ASSEMBLIES

Birthday Assemblies will be on Wednesday afternoons at 2.50 pm in KS1 and 3.10 pm in KS2.

If you are around and would like to pop in for your child’s birthday please do, we would love to see you.

CYCLING TO SCHOOL

To increase pupil fitness and reduce air pollution we

are actively encouraging our most responsible students in

Years 5 and 6 to cycle to school. Please send a letter of consent to your child’s

Class Teacher beforehand. Please note ALL pupils

cycling to school MUST wear a helmet. Bikes can be stored AT YOUR OWN

RISK in our bike shed and should be securely locked.

SENIOR STUDENTS We are now appointing our new Senior

Students in Year 6. Our Senior Students are those who demonstrate a mature and

responsible attitude and as such have specific duties assigned to them. All our

Senior Students wear a Senior Student badge and you’ll be sure to

meet them during forthcoming events.

HARVEST HARVEST for Free the Children

This year all proceeds from Harvest will go to Free The Children. Free the Chil-dren believes in a world where all young people are free to achieve their fullest potential as agents of change. The charity empowers young people to remove bar-riers that prevent them from being active local and global citizens. Their interna-tional project have led to over 650 schools and school rooms and provided clean water, health care and sanitation to one million people around the world, freeing children and their families from the cycle of poverty. This year we will be asking children to bring their donations into school in a decorated recyclable container. Something re-used from home e.g. a yoghurt pot

MEDICINES IN SCHOOL

We can only administer prescribed medicines which need to be taken four times a day in school. Please obtain a

form from the School Office and complete it to show details of the

medicine and dosage. All medicines should be handed to the

School Office by the parent or carer.

PPA STAFF (Planning, Preparation and Assessment)

Our PPA teachers this year include Mrs Maddox, Mrs Beesley and Mr Cross. Mrs Beesley will specialise in the teaching of French and Mr Cross in the teaching of mu-sic and citizenship. Mrs Maddox who is based solely in KS1 will be delivering phonics into reading sessions. If you want to know more about PPA please speak to your child’s Class Teacher.

WET MORNINGS - PLEASE NOTE

Children in KS1 should enter school through the YEAR ONE fire exit door (not the main entrance)

which is accessed via the KS1playground. The children can then wait under teacher supervision in the KS1 hall until school starts. We would kindly ask parents not to accom-

pany their children inside. Children in KS2 should enter school through the FRONT DOORS

and wait under supervision in the KS2 hall.

MONIES COMING INTO SCHOOL

All the administration of dinner money, clubs, trips, book clubs etc is done by the admin staff in the School Office,

therefore, to ease the congestion in the entrance please do not bring any returns direct to the office.

EVERYTHING should go with your child to their Class Teacher who will then forward the items to the Office.

There are a wide range of activities and events that we collect money for ranging from trips, to dinner money, to uniform payments, to after school clubs, to name

just a few. Therefore it is essential that all monies that come in are clearly labelled with your child’s name and class and state what the money is for. Many of you already do this and it is greatly appreciated. We don’t expect you to go

out and buy lots of new envelopes, old ones you have received at home are perfectly alright so long as you have room on them to write the necessary

information.

Thank you to everyone who has already paid dinner money this term. For anyone who hasn’t yet paid

the amount due is £66.50.

CELEBRATING SUCCESS

At the end of the Summer Term we were thrilled with the progress made by our pupils in KS2 SATs. Our provisional results were: 88% of children achieved level 4+ in Maths - 40% achieved Level 5 93% of children achieved Level 4+ in English - 42% achieved Level 5

Year 3 Recorders Mr Jefferies, our music teacher, will be teaching the recorder to Year 3 children every Tuesday. Recorders are available to buy from the school

office if you have not already bought one. They cost £5.00.

WORK CARRIED OUT AT SCHOOL OVER THE

SUMMER

You will already know that there has been a lot of refurbishment taking place at school during the summer break. This has included:

Refurbishing our parent meeting room – Kestrels.

Extending the KS1 play-ground.

Installing a friendship area in the KS2 playground.

Refurbishing the Year 2 toilets.

Extending the perimeter fence.

Re-carpeting some areas of school.

HOUSE SYSTEM

As you know we operate a house system at school and the children are

allocated to a house for the duration of their time at Hill West.

Again this year we will be holding our celebration assemblies (eg Eid, Divali, Harvest, Nativity, Easter etc) in house

groups.

Do you know which house your child is in? If not don’t worry we shall shortly

be sending you this information.

ABSENCES FROM SCHOOL

If your child is absent from

school you must telephone us on the first morning of absence so we can accurately complete our registers. On return to school it is essential that you send a written note giving the reason for the absence. Thank you.

SCHOOL UNIFORM

School uniform bearing our school logo is available to purchase from the School Office any time after 9.30 am each day.

If you are unable to come into school please do not worry -

order forms are available from the School Office or from our website. These should be returned enclosing the required amount and your

order will then be given directly to your child when the items are available.

THEMED LUNCHES

Big Breakfast on Wednesday 14th

September.

Look out for other exciting and tasty menus throughout the school year

PARENT MEETINGS

We have various evening parent workshops taking place this half term.

For parents in KS1 The first meeting on Thursday 15th September is for ALL KS1 parents and will explain

our approach to the teaching of reading and spelling.

The second is for the parents of children in our new Reception classes and it will take place on Wednesday 21st September. This meeting will look at helping your children

to learn to use letter sounds and names.

For parents in KS2 On Tuesday 13th September we will be holding an “Ipad” meeting for ALL the parents

of children in Year 5. The second meeting is for parents of children in Year 6 and this will take place on

Wednesday 28th September. This meeting will talk you through what will be expected

CATCH IT, BIN IT, KILL IT

Can all parents remind children that we reduce transmission of cold and flu-like

symptoms by Washing of

hands Coughing and sneezing into

a tissue Disposing of tissues in bins

AFTER SCHOOL CLUBS We will be running the following clubs this half term

MONDAY

Samba Drumming for KS2 Cheerleading for Yrs 1 & 2

Cross Country Training for Yrs 4,5 & 6 ICT for Yrs 2 & 3

TUESDAY

Hill West Singers for KS2 children

German for Yrs 4,5 & 6 ICT for Yrs 2 & 3

WEDNESDAY

Drama for KS2

Basketball for KS2 ICT for Yrs 4,5 & 6

THURSDAY

ICT for Yrs 4,5 & 6

Instead of places being allocated on a “first come first served” basis as previously, all club acceptance slips will be put into a “hat” and

successful names drawn from that. Applications should be in an enve-lope clearly marked with your child’s name, class, and the club for

which they are applying. The draw will be made on the day following the return date given on the club letter and you will be

notified by a return slip whether or not your child has been allocated a place. If there is a payment required please send this is in with your application and it will be returned to you if your child’s name is not drawn out. Maximum numbers for clubs will be strictly adhered to.

If you have any queries about clubs please speak to the School Office

in the first instance and they will be pleased to help you. Please do not approach club instructors directly as they will be busy supervising

activities.

We hope that this system will be more fair to those children whose parents are not able collect them or bring them to school.

We have now been using Parentmail for three years and we have found it has greatly improved communication with parents. However, we still have over 100 children whose families have not signed up to Parentmail. The service is free to parents and we can send emails to up to three email addresses so you can receive information on your work computer as well as at home. We are also able to send out texts to nomi-nated mobile numbers, although we will reserve the use of texts for emergency situa-tions where we don’t have time to communicate through normal means. If you have not yet signed up to Parentmail please do so, it will save you time having to search through school bags. It will also go some way to reducing the amount of paperwork sent home, thus helping the environment. Just send your email and mobile phone details to Mrs Balla in the school office.

BEHAVIOUR

We have recently completed a review of our staffing structure and I am pleased to tell you that Miss Fiona Marsh will be the whole school lead for behaviour. Her role will be far-reaching but her main responsibilities will be to Ensure that policies and procedures in relation to behaviour are re-

viewed and evaluated To Oversee all rewards and sanctions To Be the first point of contact for parents who would like to discuss

behaviour related issues To Contact parents to inform them of behaviour related incidents To Identify with class teachers those children who would benefit

from additional support to make the right decisions To Hold regular meetings with parents, teachers and children to

draw up Individual Behaviour Plans and review these To Support lunchtime supervisors with the management of behav-

iour at lunchtime. When Miss Marsh is unavailable, Mrs Tombs will be only too happy to help.

Dear Parents, Just a few words of thanks for the cards and gifts that you kindly gave me at the end of last term. They were much appreciated. From John, the lollipop man

The Arthur Terry School Community Fair will take place on Saturday 24th September 2011 from

10.00am until 1.00pm. This local event provides free information about local services and businesses in the Four Oaks

area. There will be music and dance performances, the Staffordshire Brass Band, a dog display team and displays and tournaments from local sports

clubs and schools. If you have a business, service or charity to promote

at this event then please contact Amanda Lansdowne on 0121 323 1121

CHICKENS

Later this month the school will take delivery of two lovely little hens. They will live in a fox proof “Egglu” and the children from a nominated year group will take it

in turns to care for them. We will run a competition in school to

name the chickens and will let you know shortly.