18 12 20 Letter to parent carer FINAL

Return to School – January

You may have read in the press the decision made by Welsh Government to stagger the return of pupils to school in January. It has been decided by the City and County of Swansea that ALL schools across Swansea will take the first two days of the Spring Term as buffer days to establish staffing levels and align health and safety protocols. School for Waunarlwydd Primary pupils will start back on Wednesday 6th January. A letter from the interim director of education will follow. As always, we appreciate your understanding and support on this matter.

We sincerely hope that all our families enjoy a happy and healthy Christmas period.

Stay safe and we will see you all in 2021!

Mr Jamie Evans (Acting Headteacher)

Merry Christmas everybody! We managed to complete our recording in time! We hope you all enjoy watching and listening to our superstars! Stay safe and remember if you have any home learning or wellbeing concerns, please contact us via phone or email.

Christmas at Waunarlwydd

Friday December 11th

End of term update

You will all now be aware of the City and County of Swansea’s decision to close Primary School’s to pupils and move to blended learning from Monday 14th December. This decision follows the rise in COVID-19 cases in the local and wider community.

As today (Friday 11th December) is now the last day in school for pupils before the new year, I would like to thank the whole school community for the support they have shown during a term we will never forget. The situation we have found ourselves in has affected everyone in different ways but, as a school, we are extremely proud to be able to say that the children’s wellbeing has always remained central to any decisions made. Keeping the pupils safe, happy and learning has been the priority throughout. This has been achieved through the unquestionable dedication shown by a wonderful team of staff and the support of parents, families and governors. We look forward to welcoming the children back to school on Tuesday 5th January.

Home Learning

You will be able to access tasks and fun activities on the class pages of the school website from Monday, alongside other online tasks such as Reading Eggs and Mymaths. There is no obligation to complete all tasks. Please remember that, although the pupils are not in school, we are still open. If you have any concerns regarding home learning next week, please email class teachers and they will get back to you as soon as they can during working hours. If you have any other concerns next week, contact the school or Mr Evans directly.

There may be some muddy shoes leaving the school today. Apologies for this, but staff have worked really hard to adapt plans so that the children could enjoy some Christmas surprises. We were  fortunate that a very special guest was able to visit us at short notice today. We have managed to complete the recording of ‘Waunarlwydd’s Christmas Album’ and we will let you know how you can access it as soon as possible.

A huge thanks for your support of ‘Save the children’ for Christmas Jumper Day. We will let you know the amount raised next week.

Another massive thanks goes to our friends at St Barnabus. The pupils thoroughly enjoyed watching the virtual performance of ‘Postcards from Bethlehem’ as well as reading their Christmas books. Diolch yn fawr!

We wish you all a safe and very happy Christmas and New Year!

Mr Jamie Evans (Acting Headteacher)

Last week of term

Please follow the link for an important announcement regarding next week. More information will follow tomorrow.

City and County of Swansea update regarding the last week of term

End of term 

Many parents have been asking if school will finish early this term. The advice from the City and County of Swansea is…‘Unless there is a national directive to do so, Swansea schools will remain open until 18 December. Nearly all schools/ providers will finish on 18 December and utilise INSET days on 21 and 22 December.’

Some parents have expressed concern about the potential of their child(ren) having to isolate over Christmas. Some have already notified us that their child(ren) will not be attending school during the last week. We understand the concerns that you may have. All we ask is that you let us know via email or telephone if your child will be absent from school during the last week of term so we are able to monitor where all children are.

Thanks for your continued support! 

Mr Jamie Evans (Acting Headteacher)

Friday 4th December

Highlights of the week

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Waunarlwydd Primary School. Thanks again for all the kind donations. The decorations are up in classrooms and the children have begun rehearsing their Christmas songs. You are in for a treat! Other highlights this week include designing, making and testing aqueducts in year 5 and 6. Children in year 3 and 4 have thoroughly enjoyed making WWII board games and writing instructions. Rewriting a Christmas story was the Year 2 highlight and making wand sticks in Forest School was a big hit with Year 1. Santa needed a new roof for his sleigh in Reception and the children loved investigating waterproof materials, while Nursery retold the story of ‘The Billy Goat’s Gruff’ during outdoor learning with some amazing troll voices.

After Christmas, we will be welcoming Mrs Horseman back to school following maternity leave. Mrs Horseman will be job sharing with Mrs Tucker and taking over the teaching of Mrs Leyshon-Breeze’s Year 3 and 4 class. I’m sure you will join me in thanking Mrs Leyshon-Breeze for her dedication during her time as a class teacher at Waunarlwydd.

 Christmas reminders for next week

Please take individual responsibility for social distancing. The Welsh Government has updated its guidance on the use of face coverings in schools. To reduce the risk of transmission amongst parents and relatives, please wear masks when visiting school, and at drop-off and collection areas.

Can my child come to school?

Does your child or anyone in your home have one of the following symptoms?

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal.

If the answer is YES to ANY ONE of the above symptoms, for anyone in your household, your child CANNOT be in school, no matter how mild the symptoms are.

To arrange for a test contact https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-and-tracing/ 

As always, if you have any concerns, queries or feedback please don’t hesitate in contacting the school or Mr Evans directly evansj737@hwbcymru.net

Thanks for your continued support! Have a great weekend!  

Mr Jamie Evans (Acting Headteacher)

Friday 27th November

Highlights of the week

The return of our wonderful Reception class has to be today’s highlight. It’s great to have you all back in school! Other high points this week have included reading the story of Rainbow Fish in our Nursery class. The children thoroughly enjoyed making their own Rainbow fish with a variety of materials. The stories of ‘Swansea Jack’ were a big hit in Year 1, with children voting on which story was true. They also loved making predictions and testing which materials are waterproof. Year 2 also highlighted their ‘Swansea Jack’ work as a favourite this week and particularly enjoyed creating collages. The trundle wheels were out in year 3 and 4 as they continued with their focus on measure. Developing sketching skills, with particular focus on light and shade, was another popular activity with the children. Year 5 and 6 classes have had another busy week. Hockey and basketball skills are improving considerably, while as part of their Roman theme they thoroughly enjoyed the virtual Roman tour and learning about the Hypocaust system. Other favourites were the aqueduct and ‘hot wheels’ ramp experiments. Well done everyone!

Current circumstances mean that Christmas will be slightly different in school this year. However, we are determined to make it as special as we possibly can for all the children. A big thanks to those parents that have already donated Christmas decorations as well as a Christmas tree. Any more donations will be gratefully received.

Friday December 18^th  – Festive Fun Friday. Xmas Jumpers or non-uniform.

Last day in school.

 

North Gower Partnership Cycling Project

As you are aware 2020 has been no normal year. During the pandemic, Wales’ love for exercise has been rekindled, and the values to the individual both physically and mentally have become invaluable. More and more people are turning to cycling as a preferred mode of travel and exercise. In and around the area of Gowerton, new cycle paths have been laid, and with this has come the highlighted need for cycle hire, maintenance, and safety training. Gowerton School plays a key role within its community. We want to help build further opportunities for our pupils and adults to engage in safe and enjoyable cycling experiences. For us to access funding to make this a reality, we require your help. We would appreciate you taking the time to complete the linked form’

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=Ug4_TzS3ZEGUCRtgHRR5k292MhOCSI5NgcATbDJ3a1dUN0k3TFlJOEZWQTFRSllTRjUxMFVEMjNSOS4u

Weekly reminder

Please take individual responsibility for social distancing. The Welsh Government has updated its guidance on the use of face coverings in schools. To reduce the risk of transmission amongst parents and relatives, please wear masks when visiting school, and at drop-off and collection areas.

Can my child come to school?

Does your child or anyone in your home have one of the following symptoms?

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal.

If the answer is YES to ANY ONE of the above symptoms, for anyone in your household, your child CANNOT be in school, no matter how mild the symptoms are.

To arrange for a test contact https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-and-tracing/ 

As always, if you have any concerns, queries or feedback please don’t hesitate in contacting the school or Mr Evans directly evansj737@hwbcymru.net

Thanks for your continued support! Have a great weekend!  

Mr Jamie Evans (Acting Headteacher)

Dear Parents,

Wearing of face coverings (primary)

The Welsh Government has updated its guidance on the use of face coverings in schools.

To reduce the risk of transmission amongst parents and relatives, please wear masks when visiting school, and at drop-off and collection areas. Maintaining clear social distance at the school gates will also reduce risk and set a good example to pupils.

If you have a secondary school aged child, be aware that face coverings should now be worn by year 7 and above pupils in all areas outside the classroom and be worn on dedicated school transport for year 7 and up.

Please follow these guidelines and encourage your child to follow theirs too.

Along with regular hand washing/sanitising and social distancing, this will reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 at school as far as possible.

They have been made stronger to keep you and your families as safe as possible. They are based on new advice from Welsh Government’s Technical Advisory Group, as we learn more about the way COVID-19 is transmitted.

Thank you for your help in doing all we can – together – to keep ourselves and others safe.

Friday 20th November

Highlights of the week

Although our fantastic Reception children haven’t been in school this week, they have still managed some awesome home learning based around ‘The Three Little Pigs.’ We can’t wait to see you all back in school at the end of next week! Exciting times in Nursery this week with their first visit to the school hall. They all had great fun playing with feathers. Year 1 created some very imaginative Rangoli patterns and thoroughly enjoyed learning about sources of light and life before electricity, while electricity was a big favourite in Year 2 as well with their electric circuits a highlight. Letter writing was a big hit in Mrs Leyshon-Breeze’s class with some impressive and very thoughtful letters written from evacuees and the standout activity in Mr Jenkins’ class was painting designs of their electrically powered WWII quiz games. Rapping was the runaway highlight in all three Year 5 and 6 classes this week. They applied their knowledge of the Romans and poetic devices to produce some wonderful pieces of music.

A big thank you for your generous donations towards ‘Children in Need.’ During these tricky times for all, we were still able to raise a magnificent total of £441.40. Well done everyone!

Influenza Immunisations

These will take place next week on Wednesday November 25th. Our Reception class has been rearranged for Monday 14th December. Please remember that if you have any queries, you should contact the school nurse (contact details on form).

INSET DAYS

We can now confirm our INSET DAYS for the Autumn and Spring terms:

Autumn

Monday December 21st

Tuesday December 22nd (Last Day for pupils Friday 18th December).

                              Spring

Monday January 4th (Pupils return to school on Tuesday January 5th)

Friday March 26th

Weekly reminder

Please take individual responsibility for social distancing. As the wearing of face masks becomes normalised in society, the Swansea  Education Directorate supports all schools in asking parents to consider wearing masks when in closer proximity to others such as drop off and pick up time. This provides clear benefits, with regards to reducing virus spread and risk of school closure. Many thanks for your consideration of this matter as we strive to ensure the health and safety of our whole school community.

Can my child come to school?

Does your child or anyone in your home have one of the following symptoms?

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal.

If the answer is YES to ANY ONE of the above symptoms, for anyone in your household, your child CANNOT be in school, no matter how mild the symptoms are.

to arrange for a test contact https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-and-tracing/ 

As always, if you have any concerns, queries or feedback please don’t hesitate in contacting the school or Mr Evans directly evansj737@hwbcymru.net

Thanks for your continued support! Have a great weekend!  

Mr Jamie Evans (Acting Headteacher)