Dear Parents/Guardians
Welcome, everyone to a new school year. We’ve all had a week to reacquaint ourselves with the routines of the school day and establish an atmosphere of calm industry. It is important at the beginning of the new academic year that we revisit some of our procedures and policies in order that we can, together, ensure that your child is provided with a safe environment which supports teaching and learning.
ROUTINES AT THE BEGINNING AND AT THE END OF THE DAY:
ARRIVING IN THE MORNING: We have staff on duty on the school premises from 8.50am. Only pupils who are registered with and actually attend the school’s Breakfast Club will be supervised before this time. The gate at the junior end of the school will be open for pupils to attend Breakfast Club from 8.15am. Any other pupil must wait until 8.50am. No Junior parents (apart from those taking children to Breakfast Club) should be on the junior yard at any time.
The gate to the infants’ yard will be opened at 8.15am. Again, pupils will be supervised by school staff from 8.50am only.
Once the gates are locked, late arrivals, both juniors and infants, should arrive via the main reception entrance. There will be no access for pupils to the school from reception before 9.00am.
AT THE END OF THE SCHOOL DAY – INFANTS
Infant pupils finish school at 3.00pm. Parents/Guardians of pupils in Infant classes can gain access onto the infant playground area via the gate at the infant end of the school. Please do not gather at the door and windows of the classes. Teachers and pupils require the time at the end of the lesson to reflect upon the learning of the day. It is very distracting for them if people are peering through the windows or talking loudly immediately outside the class. We appreciate your patience and co-operation in this matter. Parents/Guardians will be able to receive their children from the infant staff outside their classrooms. Once Parents/Guardians have collected their children from the infant classes they should then leave the school premises via the gate at the infant end of the building. This is very important. The school grounds are an extension of the classrooms and are important teaching areas. Parents/Guardians with infant pupils must not remain on the premises between 3.00pm and 3.30pm in order to wait for children who are in junior classes to finish school. We ask very kindly that you adhere to this arrangement as it is a matter of child protection and health and safety. It is also extremely distracting for pupils and teachers who are still in lessons (in classes and on the yard/school field) until 3.30pm. Please do not be offended if asked to leave.
AT THE END OF THE SCHOOL DAY – JUNIORS
We ask you very kindly not to gather around the gate onto the pavement at the end of the day. Please keep the area around the gate clear to enable pupils to exit the school grounds safely. Avoid obstructing the pavements with bikes and scooters etc. Please do not feel offended if you are asked to move to clear the gate area. The gate at the junior end of the school will remain locked until 3.30pm. Junior pupils are old enough to make their way to the gate on Clarence Drive and meet their Parents/Guardians there. Older siblings, parents and guardian should wait at the gate and not walk down the ramp to the school grounds as this causes congestion which makes it difficult and potentially dangerous for our pupils to leave the school via this route. It also makes it more difficult for staff on duty to monitor and supervise the pupils. You will be asked, politely to remain at the gate to collect your children.
SCHOOLCOMMS SYSTEM REMINDER
Our school makes use of the Schoolcomms communication package which facilitates communication between school and parents by text message or e-mail – please note that only numbers registered as the FIRST PRIORITY contact for a pupil can be enabled on the system. The Headteacher’s letter is e-mailed via Schoolcomms and is published on the school website ysgolcraigydon2.cymru. If you have an Apple or Android mobile phone, you can download a free app for Schoolcomms (instructions available on the website). Parents can also reply to text messages received from school. Remember, please ensure you always telephone the school with urgent messages.
Occasionally, head lice appear in school. When this happens, we shall contact parents of pupils in that class by text and ask them to check and treat their children’s hair as necessary. The best advice we have received regarding head lice is “Prevention is Better than Cure”.
PLASC Forms – these have been distributed to the children today. Please ensure that any amendments to details in particular emergency contact details are up to date. Also please ensure that we have an e-mail address for the first contact person in section 9 of the form. Please return these forms to school urgently, thank you.
Mangahigh. The school has purchased a membership for every pupil in years 1 to 6 to Mangahigh, the online maths resource. Work will be assigned by the teachers which pupils will be able to complete as homework. Each pupil will be given unique log in details over the next couple of weeks. The programme will be rolled out to year 1 pupils once it is well established in year 2.
TUESDAY 13TH SEPTEMBER – JUNIORS ROALD DAHL DAY!!! Children can come to school dressed as a Roald Dahl character and enjoy fun activities. There will be prizes for the best costumes – thanks to the PTA for these.
AFTER SCHOOL CLUBS
These will start week commencing 19/9/16 (apart from Cookery Club which has already started). PLEASE ENSURE YOUR CHILDREN ARE COLLECTED FROM SCHOOL ON TIME. Please note that there will be no Tri-Golf for the time being.
MONDAY – DRAGON SPORTS for YEARS 4, 5 and 6. 3.30 – 4.15pm.
TUESDAY – Cookery Club for Year 6, 3.30 – 4.30pm (for those registered)
WEDNESDAY – NETBALL for Year 5 & 6 girls. 3.30 – 4.15 pm
WEDNESDAY – FOOTBALL start date to be confirmed. 3.30 – 4.30pm. Football sessions will be run by Football in the Community (FITC). A fee will apply and is normally payable to the coach on the first session. Consent forms will be distributed to children prior to the club starting..
THURSDAY – CLWB URDD for Years 3 to 6. From 3.30 – 4.15pm.
The Urdd Club is run by the school teaching staff who will provide a wide range of exciting activities for the pupils from Years 3 to 6 through the medium of Welsh. During the year, there will be sporting tournaments, and competitions in the local and regional Eisteddfodau. These vary from singing, reciting and acting, to literacy, art and craft. In order to compete in these events, your child must be a member of the Urdd. The membership of 2016/17 is £7 per child (£19 for a family of 3 children), if paid before December 1st. . Cheques should be made payable to Ysgol Craig y Don who administer the Urdd membership. To ensure that your child joins the Urdd, there is a membership envelope which can be collected from Mrs Merian Hughes, Year 4. On obtaining the envelope, it must be returned to Mrs Hughes with the fee and your child’s full details.
TENNIS Years 1 and 2 – details to follow.
PTA
The first meeting of this school year will be held on Wednesday 28th September at 3.30pm in the Staff Room. Please come along and bring your ideas. Four meetings are held a year and new members are welcome. The PTA have just installed notice boards for parents – one by the Junior gate and the other for Infants so that you can keep up to date with events etc.
MONEY BEING PAID TO SCHOOL. Please can we ask that any money paid to school e.g. dinner money, fruit money (for Infants), trip money is given to school in separate envelopes clearly marked with your child’s name, class and what the money is for. Junior pupils are expected to be responsible for their own fruit money (£1 a week or .20p per day), there is no need for them to give their money to their teacher. Junior Fruit Club this will start again on Monday.
SCHOOL DINNERS. Infants £2.10 per day, Juniors £2.15 per day. Please can parents pay in advance for the week’s school dinners on a Monday. Unfortunately if a child has more than two weeks’ dinner money outstanding, we can not provide them with a school dinner until the balance is cleared as this money is lost to the school which should go towards paying for educational resources for all pupils. Free School Meal forms are available from Reception.
SCHOOL UNIFORM. The pupils are looking ever so smart in their school uniforms and are a credit to you as parents and to the school. Thank you for making such a great effort. Clothing our children has become such an expensive business and we want to help you ensure that the uniform you have purchased comes home at the end of each school day in good order. Therefore we ask you very kindly, please, please put your child’s name on the label inside their clothes.
PE KIT (JUNIORS): A kindly reminder that children need a change of clothes for PE i.e. white T-shirt and black shorts/trainers and a tracksuit/rainproof jacket dependent on the weather – children will be having PE whatever the weather. If you want your child to be excluded from PE, a letter giving the reason why MUST be provided to the teacher.
LLANDUDNO IN BLOOM COMPETITION: We have been advised that we have received a Silver Gilt Award in this competition this year. Thank you to all the parents, staff and volunteers’ hard work in the gardens.
Thursday 29th September – WORLDS BIGGEST McMILLAN COFFEE MORNING – Non Uniform Day and cake donations please. Please can we ask children to bring a monetary donation to this worthwhile cause in lieu of not wearing their uniform – many thanks! A Coffee Morning will also be held for parents/guardians/friends of Ysgol Craig y Don in the Main Hall of School from 10am – 11am all welcome! Cakes will also be available for school children to buy from the Coffee Morning. We will gratefully receive any donations of homemade cakes on the day. Thank you for your support. Please note that we have changed the date of the coffee morning to Thursday, not Friday due to Tempest photography being here on the Friday.
DATES FOR THE DIARY:
w/c 19th September After School Clubs start this week (football arrangements to follow)
Wednesday 28th September – PTA Meeting to be held in Staff Room, 3.30pm. All welcome.
Thursday 29th September – Worlds Biggest McMillan Coffee Morning – Non Uniform Day (details as above). Being held 9.30 – 11am in the main hall. Cake donations gratefully accepted.
Friday 30th September – Tempest Photography – Individual and family photos, details to follow
10th October – please note children ARE IN SCHOOL on this day (this was originally a staff training day but date moved to Friday 2nd September so that children started school on Monday 5th September)
Half Term – Monday 24th October to Friday 28th October.
Parents evening dates to follow
I am looking forward immensely to the next year at Ysgol Craig y Don. We are extremely fortunate in having such experienced and dedicated staff and pupils who are so enthusiastic and eager to learn. We are also fortunate that we have such a positive relationship with you, the parents and guardians. The partnership between school and home is vital in ensuring our pupils are happy and successful.
Yours sincerely
Iwan Lloyd Jones, Headteacher