A new member of our school community announced their arrival this week! The recently hatched duckling made a special guest appearance at breakfast club on Wednesday morning and was made to feel very welcome.

Our current expectation regarding mobile phones is that independent travellers in Y5 or Y6 can bring their phones to school, present them to the school office each morning and they are locked away safely until the end of the day. This expectation had been reviewed and adjusted during the Lockdown period so that pupils now give in and collect their phones directly to and from the class teachers. Pupils are not allowed their phones in school and they are not expected to switch them on whilst they are anywhere on the school site. We will be reminding pupils in Y5 and Y6 of these expectations, next week. We hope that families understand and appreciate the need to be very firm about mobile phones at school and hope that you will support and reinforce these rules and expectations with your children.

Please could you send your child to school with a re-fillable water bottle each day. Shared water fountains at school cannot currently be used due to COVID-19 measures therefore we ask that pupils have their own re-fillable bottles so that they can access frequent drinks throughout the day.

Hertfordshire County Council would like parents and carers to complete a survey about mental health information, support & services for children. Closing date – May 17th.

3G are setting a very high standard with their class attendance. For the seventh week running, they have the highest attendance of all classes in KS2. This week – 99% attendance. Fantastic!

Enjoy your bank holiday weekend!

Pupils returned to school last week, after the Easter break, ready for their final term of the school year. Hopefully, as more Lockdown measures are lifted, pupils will be able to enjoy a full, settled summer term, taking part in many of the activities that they would normally experience towards the end of an academic year. Two weeks down….. 12 more to go!

Since all pupils returned to school on March 8th, whole school attendance has been consistently above 96% which is really positive. It would be great if we could maintain this standard for the rest of the school year, ensuring that all pupils are attending school every day, unless they are ill or self-isolating. Excellent attendance and punctuality is essential to help your child recover and catch-up after the loss of so many hours of face-to-face teaching and learning, this year and last. Congratulations to RecEK and 3G – the classes with the best attendance last week.

Yesterday was Earth Day. This annual, global event celebrates and raises awareness of environmental protection. This week, pupils have been learning about Earth Day and the importance of looking after and protecting our planet.

Mrs Gritz is working with our newly-formed eco-committee, to increase our school community’s awareness of and participation in environmental action and to encourage pupils across the school to help care for our planet. There are lots of activities and events planned throughout the summer, including developing a wildlife garden and entering District in Bloom. If your child is in Key Stage 2, please could you send your child into school next week with a yoghurt pot or small drinks carton (labelled with their name or initials) as they will be planting sunflower seeds.

Please could we remind parents and carers to ensure that pupils wear full school uniform every day, including footwear which should be plain black. Hoodies and tracksuit tops are not part of school uniform and should not be worn instead of Bowmansgreen jumpers, cardigans or fleeces. Next week, staff will be speaking with all pupils who are not in correct uniform, reminding them of our expectations. Please also remember to name all of your child’s uniform so that it can be returned to them if it is lost around school.

On Wednesday, the Children’s Commissioner for England launched The Big Ask – the largest ever consultation with children aged 4 to 17 in England. It aims to find out children’s concerns and aspirations about the future, as part of the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Please encourage your child to take part in the survey which takes around 5-10 minutes. Parents and carers are also invited to complete the adult survey to share your views about the future for children and young people today. The results from this survey will help identify the barriers preventing children from reaching their potential, put forward solutions and set goals for the future.

Enjoy your weekend.