Autumn Term

Friday 18th October 2019

The new @Alex newsletter will be out this coming Friday.

Thank you for reading @ALEX we hope you find it useful. @ALEX, our weekly email newsletter, will go out via Parentmail on Thursday/ Friday. Download the School News App for your smartphone featuring all the latest news and calendar events from school.

 The website is updated daily

School Twitter @AlexandraschKT School Facebook Page

 School web address;   http;//www.alexandra.kingston.sch.uk

@ALEX

Version suitable for using the Translate Button within our website.

Friday  18th October   

This week at Alexandra School

Dear Parent and Carers, I wanted to provide a reminder of the drop off and pick up arrangements at Alexandra: At the start of the day Pupils should not arrive before 8.40am, when the school gates are opened. Pupils are then allowed to walk into the school playground in a sensible and orderly manner. A senior member of staff will be on playground duty to welcome the children. A member of staff will also be in the classroom to supervise children as they settle into their early morning work. Electronic registers are taken at 9am promptly. The school gate is closed at 9am. Children arriving after this time will need to report to the main office to register. At the end of the day Pupils in upstairs classrooms will be brought down to the playground at the end of the day. To ensure we hand over your child at this point, staff will do a visual check to ensure a parent is present. If you are unable to pick up your child at the end of the school day it is expected that you confirm alternative arrangements with the school office or if there is a long term collection arrangement please put this in writing to the school. We appreciate your support with our arrangements.

---

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

---

Reporting absence

Please report your child’s absence either:

1. Via the Parentmail app – this is very easy to do and similar to sending a text

2. By leaving a telephone message before 9am – please clearly state your child’s name, class & reason for illness.

Any absence requests must be submitted on the school application form (available from the office or our website) at least 2 weeks’ in advance.

Many thanks for your support.

---

HELLO
Did you know you can change the language on the school website – choose from the drop down menu.

---

Yr 6 Isle of Wight Trip

On Monday, our Year 6 children set off to the Isle of Wight on their outdoor sea based adventure. The staff have been keeping us posted on what an incredible time the children are all having. Mr. Waiting joined them on  Tuesday and Wednesday.  You can read about their experiences on our website  https://www.alexandra.kingston.sch.uk/page/?title=Year+6&pid=140

---

Next week at Alexandra Primary School   Class photos are taking place on Wednesday  23rd October.      We break up for half term next Friday 28th October at 3.25pm. We return to school after the staff INSET day on Tuesday 5th November.   Parent – Teacher meetings are being held on Wednesday 6th and Thursday 7th November.

Hedgehogs Class Cake sale today Friday 18th October 

Please come and support the class by donating / buying cakes. 
The class teachers are reliant on money raised from cake sales to purchase extra resources to enhance the children’s learning.  Many thanks for your support.

---

Our annual Sparkle Night is coming up on Friday the 8th November. Tickets will be available on Parentpay this week so do get involved and come along! There will be a disco, candy floss, glow products, sparklers in the ball court, marshmallows on the fire and a selection of cakes, hot dogs, soft drinks and a bar for the adults! Tickets £5 per child (adults go free) available this Friday on Parentpay. Friday 8th November 6.30-8pm Governor Update Governors met on 10th October for a full day in school and to hold their first full governing body meeting of the school year.  Their initial focus was on the draft findings from the ofsted inspection which took place in early September.  Governors worked with the headteacher and senior leadership team to develop an action plan to ensure plans are in place to address the content of the report.  The report will be published and sent to parents, on Wednesday 23rd October.  A parents meeting will be held on that day so that leaders and governors can share the report, our reaction to it, and share the plans that are in place.   Governors also spent time looking at the nationally published results of last year's assessments.  Our results were strong last year.  Reception pupils meeting a 'Good level of development' were in line with national averages, our year 1 phonics screening results were significantly above national averages and all key stage 1 outcomes, including the number of pupils achieving 'greater depth' were above average levels.  Governors are really pleased with this set of outcomes and it shows how well prepared our children are for the next stage of their education. Job opportunities at Alexandra school We are currently recruiting for the following vacancies. We are looking for lunchtime assistants to support our existing team. We are looking for pupil-specific learning support assistants to support children with additional needs. We are recruiting Higher-level teaching assistants to support our KS2 classes.    Please refer to the website if you are interested in applying for any of these opportunities or know someone who might be interested. Alternatively, please contact Liz Annesley (eannes@axi.rbksch.org) for further details.

---

Our school policy states that: Hairstyles, hair accessories, jewellery and trainers

• Hairstyles must be sensible and appropriate for school, extreme haircuts are not acceptable. 

• Shaven heads (shorter than a number 2) or any haircut which involves the shaving of lines or symbols are not acceptable. 

• Hair should not be coloured.  

• Long hair must be tied back to reduce the possible transference of headlice and for health and safety reasons in PE.

• No jewellery should be worn to school; If your child has pierced ears a small plain stud should be worn.

• We do not allow hoodies, or non-school sweatshirts in class or long sleeved sports t-shirts under their school polo shirt.

• As we do so much physical activity during a normal day, children are allowed to wear black or blue trainers. However, brightly coloured designer trainers will not be allowed.

Thank you very much for your continued support in ensuring that our children look and feel smart in school.

---

PEGI ratings on Games

We have been alerted to the worrying fact that many of our children are playing the game FORTNITE. This is having an impact on the way some of our children are playing and in their behaviour and language at school. Please be advised that Fortnite has a PEGI rating of 12, PEGI have said this is due to the: ‘frequent scenes of mild violence. It is not suitable for persons under 12 years of age’.  This PEGI rating only takes into account the content in the game and not the contact element, where players may be exposed to swearing and offensive language from strangers in voice or on-screen text chat.

What are PEGI ratings?

Age ratings are systems used to ensure that entertainment content, such as films, videos, DVDs, and computer games, are clearly labelled by age according to the content they contain. Age ratings provide guidance to consumers (particularly parents) to help them decide whether or not to buy a particular product.

The rating on a game confirms that it is suitable for players over a certain age. Accordingly, a PEGI 7 game is only suitable for those aged seven and above and an PEGI 18 game is only suitable for adults aged eighteen and above. The PEGI rating considers the age suitability of a game, not the level of difficulty.

PEGI 3

The content of games given this rating is considered suitable for all age groups. Some violence in a comical context (typically Bugs Bunny or Tom & Jerry cartoon-like forms of violence) is acceptable. The child should not be able to associate the character on the screen with real life characters, they should be totally fantasy. The game should not contain any sounds or pictures that are likely to scare or frighten young children. No bad language should be heard.

PEGI 7

Any game that would normally be rated at 3 but contains some possibly frightening scenes or sounds may be considered suitable in this category. 

PEGI 12

Videogames that show violence of a slightly more graphic nature towards fantasy character and/or non graphic violence towards human-looking characters or recognisable animals, as well as videogames that show nudity of a slightly more graphic nature would fall in this age category. Any bad language in this category must be mild and fall short of sexual expletives.

PEGI 16

This rating is applied once the depiction of violence (or sexual activity) reaches a stage that looks the same as would be expected in real life. More extreme bad language, the concept of the use of tobacco and drugs and the depiction of criminal activities can be content of games that are rated 16.

PEGI 18

The adult classification is applied when the level of violence reaches a stage where it becomes a depiction of gross violence and/or includes elements of specific types of violence. Gross violence is the most difficult to define since it can be very subjective in many cases, but in general terms it can be classed as the depictions of violence that would make the viewer feel a sense of revulsion.

Descriptors shown on the back of the packaging indicate the main reasons why a game has received a particular age rating. There are eight such descriptors: violence, bad language, fear, drugs, sexual, discrimination, gambling and online gameplay with other people.   Bad Language: Game contains bad language.  Discrimination: Game contains depictions of, or material which may encourage, discrimination. Drugs: Game refers to or depicts the use of drugs.   Fear: Game may be frightening or scary for young children.  Gambling: Games that encourage or teach gambling.  Sex: Game depicts nudity and/or sexual behaviour or sexual references.  Violence: Game contains depictions of violence.  Online gameplay: Game can be played online.

Social media
It is our school policy not to allow pupils to have mobile phones in school. However, if you child is in possession of their own phone can we strongly recommend that the installation of group chat apps such as WhatsApp are not allowed for children. We have been made aware of some upsetting incidences within our school community involving  WhatsApp messaging. For further information and advice please see read the article below:
https://parentinfo.org/article/whatsapp-a-guide-for-parents-and-carers

Information Reminder *Please check the school website for events, dates, club information before telephoning the school office.* The website is updated weekly  - click here for @Alex , Dates, Activity Club Information, Frequently asked questions.   The class information pages and weekly information are updated every MONDAY. Nursery Reception    Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year5  Year 6