Life at Templewood

Before starting at Templewood, you will have had the opportunity to attend an Induction meeting (Nursery & Reception parents) or may have had a meeting with a member of the Senior Leadership Team. To limit the amount of paperwork distributed during these meetings, we have created an area where all documentation is available for you to access in your own time.

SCHOOL TIMES

Nursery			Reception & Key Stage 1	Key Stage 2
Session starts	8.45am	School starts	8.40am - 8.55am	8.40am - 8.55am
Session finishes Lunch Club 11.45am - 12.45pm	11.45am	Break	10.35 - 10.50am	10.35 - 10.50am
		Lunch	11.55 - 1.05pm	12.15 - 1.10pm
		School finishes	3.05pm	3.15pm

Uniform

Templewood School Uniform is available to order from the School Office. Please complete the order form and return to the school office via email. The Templewood School Association (TSA) organises a sale of nearly new uniform each term. Please look out for details in the newsletter. Items can also be ordered using this form, subject to availability. Please ensure all clothing is clearly named.

Uniform

Grey skirt and trousers
Long or short sleeved white shirt or polo shirt
Maroon jumper/cardigan with or without school logo
White, grey or black socks / tights
Black shoes

Summer Term Uniform

Grey or black shorts / culottes
Yellow and white checked/striped dress

PE kit

Outdoor trainers
Tracksuit or jogging bottoms for winter
Maroon hoody (optional)
Plain black shorts
White polo shirt

EYFS (Nursery and Reception classes)

Children wear the same school uniform but with maroon jogging bottoms.

No PE kit is required in EYFS.

Pupils need a spare change of uniform in a draw string bag.

Please can all pupils in EYFS bring in a pair of wellies to be kept in school.

Other information

The children may wear a watch but no other jewellery items. Children with pierced ears must wear one pair of plain studs only. Please try to avoid large bows and headbands and ensure long hair is tied up. Nails should be short with no varnish.

DROP OFF AND COLLECTION (all pupils)

In order to ensure that all children are safe in school, all pedestrians must enter the school site via the pedestrian gates.

Please ensure a responsible adult is with all EYFS and Key Stage 1 pupils on the playground before school and for collection. Nursery parents can access the school via the Infants gate (to the left of main school gate) and through the Key Stage 1 playground, around the Reception classroom and up the pathway to the Nursery building.

A member of staff will be on duty on the Key Stage 2 playground from 8.40am to welcome and supervise children. Pupils can access the playground via the Key Stage 2 entrance gate (to the right of the main school gate) and walk up to the top playground without an adult.

At the end of the day, KS2 parents can access the playground from 3.05pm to collect their child from outside their classroom. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 can walk home without an adult if they have provided consent through School Gateway or given written consent to the school.

Dogs are permitted on site if they are on a lead at all times and any dog waste is removed immediately.

If a parent is running late and unable to collect at school pick up time they will need to report to the school office to collect their child. In an emergency where the responsible adult is unable to arrive on time they should telephone the school with the name of another adult from their data collection sheet.

We kindly ask that conversations between parents and class teachers at the end of the day commence only once all pupils have been collected by their parents.

CAR PARKING

Please note the school car park is very small and spaces are limited, therefore no parents may drive into the school at any time. Parents with a disability may request to use the car park. Any parents with this concession are responsible for ensuring that their child arrives safely through the main entrance.

SCHOOL ASSEMBLIES

Assemblies cover a whole range of subjects and themes. They emphasise the importance of learning how to live together and cover a variety of current issues. The children are encouraged to participate in a range of ways including reading, singing, playing musical instruments, drama and sharing work.

We ask that during Sharing assemblies (Autumn term 2, Spring term 2 and Summer term 2) that photos are not taken to ensure the safety of all our pupils.

Monday	Values/Topic Assembly	9:00am	SLT
Tuesday	Singing Assembly	9:00am	Mr Lovell
Wednesday	Safeguarding/Wellbeing Assembly	9:00am	SLT
Thursday	In-class Assembly using Primary News resources	Varies	Teachers
Friday	Learning Assembly	9:00am	SLT

Home learning

At Templewood our home learning is a whole school approach and is usually completed weekly. Pupils start this approach from January in Year 1 and continue until they leave in Year 6.

Spellings are sent home each week via Google Classrooms and assessed in class.

Teachers set a range of challenges linked to their class mathematic topics via an online programme called Mathletics. We also use Timetable Rockstars for children from Year 1 upwards to encourage practising of mental maths recall.

We have access to an online reading scheme called Rapid Readers to ensure pupils have access to a range of books at home and can answer comprehension questions.

We believe at Templewood that children should have the opportunity when they get home to relax and just be children. So we have reduced our home learning to the above and this has been welcomed by our parents.

EYFS pupils are encouraged to complete the Magic Moments sheet with their parents to share with their class. They will then be added to their Learning Journals. Parents also have access to Tapestry which is our online recording system for each pupil in Nursery and Reception. Parents can upload activities or observations from home on to Tapestry for staff to see.

Assessment Information

Understanding Assessment at Templewood

Communication

At Templewood we want all parents and carers to have a number of opportunities to communicate with us. We have Parent Surgery on Tuesday afternoons with two slots at 2.45pm and 2.55pm. If you wish to make an appointment to speak to your child's class teacher, please book through the school office. Unfortunately we are unable to offer this at the moment so please do contact the office if you wish to speak to the class teacher or write a note in your child's Home School Link Book / Reading Record.

Information is updated on our website and emails are sent to parents and carers regularly.

We hold Parent Consultations in the Autumn and Spring terms. A school report is provided in the Summer Term.

In the Autumn term we hold Meet the Teacher meetings for parents and carers to learn about a typical weekly timetable and a wider focus on the curriculum.

Text messages are also a form of communication to parents and carers.

Each term we also hold School Improvement Evenings and SEND Coffee and Chats which are based on a range of topics. Please click on left hand tabs for more information.

Snacks and milk

Pupils are given free milk until the term they turn five. Following this, pupils up to the end of Year 2 can have milk at break times. Letters will be sent out to parents each term for them to opt in and to remind them about payments.

Fruit and vegetables are provided as snacks for all EYFS and KS1 pupils.

In KS2 pupils can bring in a healthy snack from home. Please do not provide your child with chocolate or crisps.

All pupils need to bring in a water bottle each day, ideally with their name on.

School Lunch

Hertfordshire Catering Limited (HCL) provide our school meals. They provide us with a three week menu which is updated twice a year. Children can choose from a meat or vegetarian option. They also have the option to choose a jacket potato each day. Please follow their parent link for more information https://hcl.co.uk/parents. HCL must be informed of any allergies pupils have.

Reception and Years 1 and 2 are entitled to free school meals. Your child may be entitled to free school meals from Year 3. To apply please follow this link https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/services/schools-and-education/at-school/free-school-meals/free-school-meals.aspx

Packed lunch - pupils can bring in a packed lunch if they wish. We are a nut free school so please ensure you check all food items. A balanced lunch should include a protein item, small sandwich or alternative, fruit or vegetable and a snack such as a cereal bar. Please do not provide fizzy drinks or sweets.

Birthday Treats

To help promote our ‘Healthy School’ status we kindly ask that parents do not provide sweets or party bags for their child's class. An alternative idea is to bring in a book which could be new or one in good condition. The teacher will put a special label inside commemorating the event and acknowledging the donation. This book will be read and enjoyed by the class and longer lasting as a birthday treat!

We hope you will support us on this idea.

School closures due to snow

Occasionally it has been necessary to close the school due to bad weather. When making a decision to close the school, there are a number of issues that have to be considered:

Some staff members live a considerable distance from Welwyn. We have to be confident that there will be sufficient staff able to get here in order to teach the students. We have to ensure a safe level of supervision.
The condition of the site – is it safe for students and staff to move around the school?
It is a difficult decision to make and parents will appreciate the dilemma between giving everyone sufficient notice of closure and trying to guess what road and weather conditions will be between 8.00 and 8.30am

If at all possible a decision will be taken the night before or as early as possible on the day. Our decision will be posted on the school’s website and our school App, which will be updated regularly. A text message will also be sent to parents and carers via our School Gateway. Please make sure you download the app to save school costs as text messages are charged at 10p per text.

We will inform local radio stations – BBC Three Counties 103.8FM, Heart Four Counties 97.6FM or Bob FM 106.7FM and 106.9FM. We will also inform the local authority of closure – this information will be found on the Herts Direct website.

No closure message on our website means that we intend to open and all students will be expected to attend.

When the school closes we appreciate how inconvenient and difficult this is for families and how disruptive it is for students’ learning. Our primary concern has to be the safety of the students and staff. Please be assured we will not make this decision lightly.

KEY DOCUMENTS

Please find a list of documents designed to help starting school at Templewood a little easier.

You will be asked to complete some of these forms (along with a few others) by the schools office staff.