Hi everyone and thank you for taking the time to look at our pupil page before you come back to school. Firstly, we’d like to tell you that we are so happy to be able to welcome some year groups back from Monday 15th June. We have been working really hard to get our school ready for you returning and we know that you are going to have a great time!
When we were thinking about how to organise this page, we started by asking some of the children who are already attending school in our Key Worker Hub, the types of questions they would like to have answered to help them feel better and more comfortable about returning to school. So that is what we have done, to try and give you an idea of what a day in school will look like when you come back. We have also added some pictures so you can see exactly what it will look like too. We hope you enjoy having a look round this page and if you have any extra questions, please ask your parents or carers or you can also contact your teachers on your class Facebook or Tapestry pages.
What should we wear for school and what can we bring?
You don’t have to wear your school uniform because we would like you to wear clean clothes each day. You will need to come to school in comfortable clothes and shoes. We won’t be able to get changed for PE so clothes such as tracksuit bottoms or leggings, T-shirts and trainers would be best. You will also need to bring a jumper or hoodie as you might get cold because we have to keep the doors and windows open. You can also bring a coat if the weather isn’t great. If the weather is sunny, please put on your sun cream before you come to school and you can also bring sun cream with you and a hat.
We are also happy for you to bring a school bag (to carry your packed lunch in) and a water bottle with your name on it. We will give you everything you need for the day so please leave your pencil cases and stationery at home. You might remember that when we finished school in March, teachers gave you reading books to take away with you. Please bring them back with you on you first day of school.
Here is a picture of some of our children all ready for their day at school.
How will our classes be organised?
Classes are going to be organised into ‘hubs’ and the hub you are working in will be a bit smaller than your usual class. Because we all have to stay 2 metres apart from each other, we can only fit up to 12 children in each hub, but many of these will be much smaller. Your hub will include some of your friends and two adults you will already know from school. You might not have all your friends in your hub, but you will have some of them. Nearer the time of you coming back school, we will send you an email telling you who your teachers will be.
Your hub will do all of their activities together. You will work together, play together, think together and eat together.
Your hub will have a classroom space inside and some space outside. It will be all yours. None of the children in the other hubs will come in to your classroom and you won’t be able to go into theirs. Even though we won’t be spending time with the children in other hubs, if we see them we can wave and shout ‘Hello!’
Will we be in the classroom we usually work in?
You might not be in your usual classroom but we think you will soon get used to your new space. The classrooms look a bit different from how they normally do because we’ve had to take out a lot of the furniture so it is safer for us to work in there. You might also notice that lots of the toys and books are missing too – this just makes it easier to clean. Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to read loads with your teachers and there will still be lots of things for you to use and play with. We just need to make sure we clean them afterwards. We have taken some photos of the classrooms so you know what to expect when you get here.
What happens when we arrive at school?
Each hub will be starting and finishing school at a different time. This is so the main entrance to school doesn’t get too busy. When you arrive at school you will need to line up with the adult who has brought you to school on the yellow marker lines outside the main gate, like in the picture below.
Please make sure you arrive at school on time! Your hub teachers will be waiting at the main gate to meet you. Once all of your hub is lined up, we will say goodbye to all of the grown ups and your teachers will lead you into school.
You will notice as you walk around the school grounds, we have put lots of markers to show you where to walk and to remind you to stay 2 metres apart from each other. This includes a one way system at the front of school and near the Early Years area.
When we get to the porch door, we will line up on markers and the teachers will invite you in one by one. Once we get into school, we will hang up our coats and bags and wash our hands for 20 seconds before we go into our classroom. We will be washing our hands a lot during the day to keep us all safe!
What will we be learning during the day?
This will depend on how old you are – but you will all be doing similar things to what we usually do at school each day. The older children will do English and Maths each day and the younger children will still focus on learning to read, write and use number. You will do lots of different subjects, including art, geography and history and we will try to get outside and do as much PE as we can. The Early Years children will still be working down in the forest and continue to do a lot of their learning outside. We will also do PSHE lessons so that you can talk about how you are feeling at the moment if you want to. The main thing is that we will definitely be doing lots of fun tasks and activities which we are sure you will enjoy!
Will we still get a break-time in the morning?
Of course! You will have your break-time with the children and adults in your hub. All the hubs have different break-times which means that you might not see the children in the other hubs, but you will have the whole playground and field to play on! We can’t use the wooden play equipment at the moment but your hub will have its own bucket of equipment you can use, such as bats, balls and hoops. We will make up our own ‘socially distant’ games (so we stay 2 metres apart) and then clean the equipment after we’ve used it. Break-times will still be fun!
The classroom doors leading out to the playground have markings outside of them. This is for when we come in off the yard at break-time. We will line up on markings. Then the teacher will ask you to stand in the box outside the door and you can go in the classroom – this is so we don’t all rush in at once. Then we’ll wash our hands again!
Will we get homework?
No! You will do plenty of work at school, so you don’t need to do anymore at home – unless you want to! You can’t bring workbooks or folders or even reading books in between home and school like we normally do. On the first day back, you will need to bring in all your school books and then keep them at school. Your teachers will read with you at school but you won’t bring reading books home. You can read your own books at home or there are lots of books available online. Ask your teacher if you’re not sure how to read these.
Of course, if you really want to do homework, you can still use Lexia or Mathletics at home, as well as being able to find work on the Home Learning pages of our website!
What happens at lunchtime?
Your lunchtime might be at a different time from normal. Everyone will be eating a packed lunch at lunchtime – this might be in your hub classroom or if the weather is fine, your hub might eat outside. You will always eat together with the children and adults in your hub. There won’t be different adults on duty at lunchtime – just your usual hub teachers. When you have all finished eating, you can go and play on the playground or field. Many of the hubs will eat at different times but there will sometimes be other hubs of children playing at the same time as you. If this happens, your teacher will give you a special area of the playground or field which you will have to play in with the other children in your hub. You can wave at the other children but you can’t go and play with them – they will have their own special place to play in.
What if I need to go to the toilet?
At any time of the day, including break and lunchtimes, you need to tell your teacher that you need to go to the toilet and they will take you there. Each hub has their own toilet and sink which has a sign reminding you which one to use. The teacher with you can also tell you this and will remind you to wash your hands. In Year 1 and Year 6, boys and girls will still use separate toilets but you can only use the one for your hub.
What happens if I hurt myself or feel poorly when I am at school?
If you hurt yourself or feel ill when you are at school, you need to tell the adults in your hub. If you need some first aid, they might be able to help you right where you are or if they can’t, they will use their walkie talkie to ask another adult in school for help. The same will happen if you feel poorly or are ill. We might ring your adults at home and ask them to come and collect you. While you’re waiting for them to arrive, you will have to wait in a room with a teacher until you are picked up. You might have to stay off school for a while until you are well enough to come back.
When the adults in school help you, they might have to put on special protective clothing (you might have heard it called PPE) so they can keep you and themselves safe while they help you. Some people think they look funny or a bit scary – it’s okay to think that – just remember it’s just one of the adults you know. Can you guess which teacher this is?
It’s also important that you tell your adults at home if you are feeling poorly as it might be better for you to stay at home until you are better. This picture might help you all decide. If you click on it, it makes it easier to read.
What do I do if I hear the fire bell?
If you hear the fire bell, it means that there is a real fire or it is a fire drill. If this happens, you would do like we have practised before and go outside through the nearest door as quickly, safely and calmly as you can. The main difference will be that you will line up with your hub and you might have to stand in a different place from normal. You will have to stand on the markings next to the fire point sign for your hub. Don’t worry though, your teachers will show you exactly where this is and we will have a fire drill every time a new year group comes back to school.
How can I stay safe at school?
The adults in school have been working hard to make the school as safe as possible for you to return – as well as being as fun as we can possibly make it! But it’s important that you do your bit too and there are many ways you can help keep you and everyone else safe whilst you are at school.
Washing your hands
You will be washing your hands a lot through the day so you need to remember to do a really good job every time you do it. You must always use soap and water and wash your hands for 20 seconds. Sometimes your hands get sore when you wash them a lot. If this happens, you can ask us for some hand cream or you can bring your own from home.
Handwashing is your superpower
How to wash your hands
More handwashing instructions
When you cough or sneeze…
You can cough or sneeze into your elbow or a clean tissue. All the hubs have lots of tissues which you can use. Then you must throw it straight into the bin and wash your hands. We have special bins in our hubs which are specially for tissues and wipes.
Help keep your hub clean and tidy
We need to keep our classrooms and equipment as clean and tidy as possible. Sometimes dirt is so small that we can’t see it and germs can be left on things we use or touch. You can help by keeping your equipment tidy on your own desk and not putting it on anyone else’s desk. Only touch your own equipment and if you use toys, you can help the adults keep them clean by letting them know what you have played with. You will notice that all the adults are cleaning everything more often and it will be easier for them if the surfaces are tidy. You will also notice that Mr Sparks and Mrs Newton are taking it in turns to be in school all day long so that they can help clean our school and keep it safe.
Social Distancing
You’ve probably heard about social distancing a lot recently! All it means is that at the moment, we need to keep apart from each other (about 2 metres) to keep each other safe. You have been staying in your houses for a long time and we know that you will be really excited to see your friends after so long. Some of you coming back to school is the next step to us all being together again. For now though, we can’t get too close to other children and teachers – unless they live in your house. We can still work and play together but we can’t sit right next to each other, hug each other, hold hands or high five. There are loads of games and ways of doing things though which will still be fun and will help keep us safe. You should try and stay in your own space and apart from other people – but if you sometimes forget, don’t worry! Your teachers will remind you but you won’t get into trouble. In fact, the teachers will be finding it as tricky as you are not to work as close to you or to give you a high five. We really can’t wait until we can do that again! Until then though, here are some ideas of what we can do instead:
Downloads
Ideas for social distancing
Give air high fives!
Share air hugs with each other
Show kindness by smiling
Step aside
Smile and wave!
Here is some more information you might find useful all about social distancing at school.
How school will be a little bit different when we go back
Any more questions?
We want you to feel as comfortable and excited as possible about coming back to school and we think the more you know, the better you will feel! We hope we’ve thought of everything that you might want to know before you come back, but if you have another question, no matter how small or silly you might think it is, please ask us by emailing or phoning us.
Thank you for taking the time to read this page and we look forward to seeing you all very soon.
Adobe Reader
You may need a product like Adobe Reader (free download) to view our PDF documents on our website.
