November 2019

WEST TOWN LANE ACADEMY WHERE LEARNING IS AN ADVENTURE

The Bristol Pupil Voice Survey! We have recently received results from a survey conducted by the Schools Health Education Unit (SHEU), which was completed by our Year 6 pupils during the last academic year. The feedback contains detailed information about the health beliefs and behaviour of our pupils. The report compares data collected from our children with those from a larger, wider sample. Below are examples, which makes interesting reading. To see the entire report please go to our website.

(Bristol Primary data in brackets)

WTL - 89% (83%) of pupils responded that they ‘often’ or ‘always’ feel safe during school playtimes.

WTL - 48% (27%) of pupils responded that they spent at least ‘about an hour or two’ looking at a device screen for social media on the day before the survey.

WTL - 80% (74%) of pupils responded that they have been told how to stay safe while chatting online and they always follow the advice they have been given.

WTL - 2% (7%) of pupils responded that they enjoy school lessons ‘hardly any’ of the time.

Poppys are available from the school office. As always a small donation is required.

November

11th – Anti-Bullying Week

15th – 4JW Museum trip

15th – Children in Need - Coffee morning

15th – Friends of School – Fizzy Friday.

22nd – 4J Museum trip

25th – 1B trip to Blaise Castle

26th – 1W trip to Blaise Castle

27th – 1K trip to Blaise Castle

28th – 4HW Museum trip

28th – Reception 2020 intake tour.

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Times Tables Rockstars As you will be aware our children (Yr 2 -6) are lucky enough to have access to the ‘Times Tables Rockstars’ website, and can use this to practise their tables both in school and at home. In order to encourage the children to use the system even more we have introduced a ‘TT Rockstars’ trophy. The trophy is awarded every week and various statistics are used to increase the competition. Please see the list of winners below: Week 1: 4JW & 4HW (Most Active Players) Week 2: 3O & 6ST (Highest daily mins per player) Week 3: 6L & 4J (Most Active Players)

Competitors Corner In our last newsletter the WTLA Healthy Heroes asked parents/carers & children to email in photographs of themselves enjoying a favourite sporting activity. Thank you to those that have sent in photos, these can be found on our website in the ‘Healthy Schools’ area. Please keep the photos coming in!

Anti-Bullying Al liance Our ‘Anti-Bullying Alliance’ project is now well underway with ambassadors established in each year group. The ambassadors are a point of contact for pupils who have concerns about bullying, but may not be ready to speak with an adult. The children have completed questionnaires and the overwhelming response so far is that pupils feel safe at school and incidents of this kind are minimal. However, there are always improvements to be made. A full report on the results and our subsequent actions will be available in the next newsletter. In the meantime, if you or your child have any concerns about bullying please speak with your class teacher in the first instance.

Coffee morning – Children in Need Please come and join us at our next Coffee Morning on the 15th November, on this occasion we will be raising money for, ‘Children in Need’. The last event was a huge success, we hope to see you there!

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Parent/Carer Incidents Thankfully, incidents involving uncooperative parents/carers are extremely rare, however, we have received some complaints from other parents following a couple of incidents last term. They involved unpleasant behaviour towards our staff, including raised voices and the use of inappropriate language. We would like to make it clear that this behaviour will not be tolerated and any further incidents will be dealt with swiftly. Actions could involve individuals being banned from the school site. These incidents are extremely unpleasant and can be distressing for our children, other parents/carers and staff. We are always happy to meet with parents/carers, but this must be done calmly and at a time suitable for all parties. This will ensure the best outcomes for our children.

November 2019

Sports Premium Every year the Government present schools with a grant which is spent on improving the provision of physical education and sport. This year we will be buying in Sports Coaches to work with our children at lunchtime. The coaches will set up a range of different games and activities for our pupils, which will enhance the lunchtime experience, as well as ensure they are fit and active at this time. The grant will also be spent on activities such as ‘Bikeability’, swimming, the implementation of new clubs and special events to be held during sports week later in the year.

Poetry Day Our Year 3 classes produced some wonderful poetry for our Poetry Trial this month. Holymead Primary and Woodlands Academy also took part and visited our school in order to complete the trial. The poems were based on Pirates, Nature and Colour and the children were required to take part in some performance poetry in front of the other schools. Parents/carers were invited and commented on our beautiful grounds and the fabulous poetry that had been created. Well-done Year 3!