Starting School

Starting School at Grange Primary

We are delighted that your child has been offered a place to join our wonderful school.

We have a very experienced staff team who are looking forward to meeting you and your child and welcoming you to the Grange community.

Meet the Reception Team

Mrs Camm Mrs Pointon Mrs Birks Mrs Johnson

(Teacher & Acting EYFS Lead) (Teacher) (Teaching Assistant) (Teaching Assistant)

Our EYFS Vision & Values

Living

At Grange Primary School, we aim to create an EYFS curriculum, which develops children as confident learners who work in collaboration with others. We aim to provide children with an environment in which they feel safe and secure, where they are not afraid to face challenges and are encouraged to take risks. We endeavour to create enthusiastic all-round individuals who embody the Grange vision of living, learning and laughing.

Learning

At Grange Primary School, we deliver a creative, engaging curriculum where children are given a wide variety of opportunities to develop their knowledge and skills. Through an exciting, interactive, enabling environment, we aim to develop our children as independent learners who follow their own interests, showing curiosity and resilience.

Laughing

At Grange Primary School, we plan our learning around children’s interests. We use special events, such as Welly Days and Messy Days, to capture children’s passion for learning and further their personal, social and emotional skills. A range of opportunities such as, forest school days, trips and our the use of our imagination station, are regularly planned to support the learning inside the classroom.

A Day in Reception

8.35-8.45	Meet and greet at the Reception classroom doors
8.45-9.00	Children self-register and have access to continuous provision in the classroom
9.00-9.30	Phonics
9.30-10.30	Continuous provision inside and outside/group learning.
10.30-10.45	Snack time - healthy snack from home or fruit option from school
10.45-11.00	Literacy
11.00-11.30	Continuous provision inside/reading/interventions
11.30-11.45	Numeracy
11.45-13.00	Lunchtime - school dinners or packed lunches in the hall.
13.00-13.15	Register and Dough Disco.
13.15-13.30	Topic ‘I wonder’ learning.
13.30-14.50	Continuous provision inside and outside/group learning.
14.50-15.10	Story time
15.15	Home time - children are dismissed one at a time from their classroom door.

What Will I Need for a School Day?

Uniform

Yellow or white polo shirt
Burgundy jumper, cardigan or fleece
Grey or black trousers, skirt, shorts or pinafore
Yellow or burgundy summer dress
Black school shoes
No jewellery or nail varnish

PE kit - Thursday

Plain yellow or white t-shirt
Burgundy shorts
Black trainers

Equipment

School bag
Lunch box (if they have chosen to have packed lunches)
Water bottle
Waterproof coat
Sun hat/warm hat
Healthy snack (optional)
A change of clothes (kept in their bag)

Please ensure that all clothing and equipment is clearly name-labelled, so that we can ensure that the children can identify their own belongings and that they are easily returned to the correct child.

Top Tips for Starting School

Talk to your child about school:

Talking about the exciting things your child is going to do at school helps them get over any nerves. You could:

Talk about what your child might expect for their day at school. It is important to talk to your child about school and what they can expect. Explain that they will be making new friends, playing with new toys and learning new things. You can also use this page to share some photos (Starting School Booklet) and information with your child.
Talk about how fun school is and what you enjoyed about school when you were their age.
Discuss your child's feelings about school.
Read stories all about schools, related to what might happen and feelings about school.

Best books about starting school: Activity and story books to prepare them for the new term | The Independent

Visit Us:

Visit the school - Attend some of our story and formal sessions, where your child can get to know their school environment and the adults and children that they will be spending their time with. Walking or driving past the school at the end of the school day and watching children come out in uniform can also be very exciting!
Practise the school routine- It can be helpful to do a practice journey before the big day, looking for interesting things on the way. It might be a good idea to make sure your child has school-friendly bedtimes and getting-up times a few days in advance.

Practise Independence:

Developing independence and resilience is key for your child to have a successful start to their school journey. Before starting school, encourage your child to become independent in:

Showing curiosity in their interests and the world around them
Asking for help when they need it
Communicating with friends and adults
Sharing with others
Toileting (Please refer to the 'eric' charity website for support with this - https://eric.org.uk/)
Self-care - hand washing, getting dressed etc

Some tasks may be overwhelming for your child and hard for them to manage. Break these bigger tasks down into smaller steps. As your child gets more confident, you can then gradually build on these steps. It is important to make sure you give your child lots of praise and encouragement. It will help them to keep learning and to want to learn more. The best way for child to learn is through play. The more fun and exciting you make learning new skills, the quicker your child will pick them up.

Please refer to the 'Top Tips for Starting School' poster below, for more detailed steps on how to help your child be ready for school.

Story Sessions & Formal Sessions Dates

Parent Information Sessions

Tuesday 10^th June 4.00-5.30pm OR Thursday 12^thJune 5.00-6.30pm

We will be running two new starter information sessions for parents/carers in the school hall on the above dates. Please make sure you choose the session you will be attending. This session is for parents/carers only and will give you the chance to learn about the curriculum and the provision that Grange has to offer. It will also give you the opportunity to meet the Grange Community – The catering team, School Governors, leadership team, family liaison support, SEND team and an opportunity for you to purchase or order school uniform.

It is at this meeting that you will find out which class your child will be in, visit their classroom and meet their class teacher.

Drop In Story Sessions and Lunch Experience

Tuesday 17^th June 9.15-9.45am (story session) AND/OR Wednesday 25^th June 1.00pm-1.30pm (lunch experience) then 1.30pm-2.00pm (story session)

When you attend your chosen parent information meeting you will be given the chance to sign your child up to a number of our transition activities. We feel that it would be valuable for your child to attend at least one story session where possible. These sessions are an opportunity for your child to meet their class teacher and other children in their class. Your child will be able to explore their new environment and get a taste for school before their longer visits in July.

As part of the second visit on Wednesday 25^th June, you and your child will have the opportunity to experience a cooked school dinner. This would be at 1.00pm in the school hall prior to the classroom story session at 1.30pm. This lunch experience is optional, and you can still sign your child up to just the story time session at 1.30pm if you would prefer.

We will give you more details about these visits at the parent information session where lunch tickets will be on sale for £4.26 per adult and £3.25 per child. (If you wish to purchase lunch tickets at the new parents meeting, please bring the correct amount in cash, thank you).

Formal School Visits

Thursday 3^rd July Classroom Visit 1.30-2.30pm

Tuesday 8^th July Classroom Visit 1.30-2.30pm

Two formal visits have been arranged, so all children can spend a session together as a whole class with their new class teacher and teaching team. We feel that it would be valuable for your child to attend both sessions where possible.