Westlea Primary School
Langstone Way, Westlea
Swindon SN5 7BT
Headteacher
Mrs R Carberry
Dear Parents,
Telephone: 01793 870469
Fax: 01793 882992
Email: admin1@westlea.swindon.sch.uk
School website: www.westleaprimary.co.uk
February 5, 2016
The children have settled into their new classes and groups very well and we are now in to the full swing of
school life! Thank you to those parents who were able to attend the PACT meeting last week and I hope it gave
you a clearer view of the year ahead. Some of the details that were discussed in the meeting are included in this
letter. We have high expectations for the children and throughout the year we will be encouraging children to
take greater responsibility for their own learning and we will be challenging the pupils to set and meet personal
and academic goals.
Organisation
We now have three parallel year 5/6 classes with Mr James, Mrs Neale and Mrs Sumner teaching these classes.
This organisation will ensure that children in all three classes will receive the same experiences and study the
same curriculum topics. Each morning, the children are now split into four groups (with Mrs Pass also having a
group) for both Literacy and Numeracy. Children will be grouped according to their year group and ability for
both of these subjects. This enables the children to follow the curriculum for their year of study and allows for
smaller teaching groups of about 22 children. In the afternoons children will be taught all other subjects,
including topic, science RE, PE PHSE ICT, history, geography D&T and art, as a whole class with their class
teacher.
Topics
We are studying two topics this term. The first topic, taught until the October half term, is ‘I’m a Year 5/6
Pupil Get Me Out Of Here!’ and will have a geography and mapping focus. Our second topic, that will take us up to
Christmas, will be on the Vikings. With this in mind, we have organized a Viking day in October to kick start our
second topic. Further details about the day will be sent out in the next few days. More information about the
topics being studied in each subject can be found in the curriculum maps sent out at the end of the last school
year.
Homework
The children are expected to read, at home, for 15 minutes each school day (5 times a week) and record this in
their reading record. The children do not need to read to an adult everyday and should be encouraged to read a
range of materials and not only their school reading book. If children forget to read then they will be expected
to read for part of their morning break time.
We will continue to offer the children e-learning platforms such as Education City and Bug Club. Some homework
may be set on these platforms so please let your child’s class teacher know if you they do not have access to the
internet at home so that alternatives can be provided.
Literacy and Numeracy homework will be set on a Friday and will need to be handed in on a Wednesday. For this
term, Literacy will consist of spellings and a reading comprehension and Numeracy will consist of some questions
based on what they children have been studying the previous week. A small part of the Literacy and Numeracy
lessons on a Wednesday will be spent marking and giving feedback to the children about their homework so it is
essential that it is handed in on time. The children have been encouraged to look at their homework over the
weekend so that they can ask questions, if they have any, on a Monday. A lunchtime homework club is available
for any children who find it difficult to complete work at home.
PE
PE will take place twice a week and it is important that your child has their PE kit in school all week in case there
is a change in the PE timetabling. The children need a white t-shirt and black shorts for indoor PE and a white tshirt, black shorts or jogging bottoms (especially in colder weather) and trainers (not daps) for outdoor PE. If
children forget their PE kit, they will be unable to borrow kit from other children due to hygiene issues.
Behaviour and Rewards
We have high behaviour expectations and expect children in year 5 and 6 to set an example for the rest of the
school. Rewards for good behavior and consequences for bad behavior have been designed so that they are
consistent between all 3 year 5/6 classes. This will enable staff to be consistent with rewards and consequences
when the children are being taught by different class teachers.
Rewards
Children are all placed in a house group and can earn house points when they display good behaviour or complete
exceptional work. House points are earned throughout each term and the winning house is rewarded with a
special treat at the end of each term. Star of the Day and Star of the Week will also be given to children at the
end of each day and week respectively.
Consequences
A traffic light system is used to give children opportunities to correct their behaviour if it has slipped. The
system works as follows:
- Verbal Warning - Choose to change behaviour.
- Yellow Warning Card
- Red Consequence Card - means that they will lose some of their playtime to talk about their behaviour.
There will be a consistent approach so the children know what is expected and what will happen if behaviour and
attitudes are not what is expected.
Trips
The year 5/6 residential trip will continue to be a week’s visit to Treginnis farm this year. Children in year 6 who
did not go to Treginnis last year (those who were in Mrs Neale’s class last year) will be given first refusal on the
places available. Children in year 5 will then be offered the remaining places depending on numbers.
General Reminders
 The school gates open at 8.40am and children are set a start task to complete as they arrive. In order to
make sure the children have a positive and calm start to the day, all children need to be in their
classroom by 9.00am.
 Dinner money MUST be handed in by Thursday for the following week. Due to the need to pre-order
ingredients for the following week, no dinner money for the following week can be accepted after
Thursday.
We hope you find the information provided useful. If you have any questions , at any time during the year, please
do not hesitate to come in to school to see your child’s class teacher.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs Sumner
Mrs Neale
Mr James