It has been wonderful to see all our children returning to school; eager to learn and happy to be back with their friends after such a long time away from the classroom. As we approach the half term break, we can reflect upon a very successful start to this new, albeit rather different, academic year.
I would firstly like to take this opportunity to welcome all our new families to the school. Not only do we welcome our new families in Year R, but another four pupils have joined us across other year groups and we extend a very warm welcome to those families as well.
Our new Year R pupils have all settled into school life very well and Miss Croft has been particularly impressed with their positive approach to learning and making friends and how quickly they have adapted to all their new routines.
We are delighted to also welcome our newest member of staff, Rebecca Benstead, who joins us working part-time in Willows (Years 3 and 4) alongside Miss Jones.
Despite all the new restrictions in place around the school; including regular hand sanitising, class bubbles, separate playtimes and most children eating lunch at their desks, this certainly hasn’t quelled the children’s enthusiasm, as there is still an unmistakeable buzz of learning throughout the school.
We are very grateful to Matthew who continues to lead Collective Worship for all classes within their individual bubbles. He is kept busy every Wednesday, with four separate visits to the school throughout the day. In line with our Christian values, he has been exploring the themes of Friendship and Responsibility with the children, through bible stories, reflection and plenty of lively discussion.
Another way we have had to adapt during these unprecedented times, is how we welcome prospective parents to our school. There has been a lot of work behind the scenes this term, to produce a ‘virtual tour’, which I am very pleased to say is now live on our website. Please do take a look, as it provides an excellent insight into all aspects of school life here at Amport. We hope that, whilst parents are unable to visit us in person, this short film will give them a good flavour of the happy, nurturing and welcoming school community we have.
The window for applications for YR 2021 for children born between 1st September 2016 and 31st August 2017 is from 1st November 2020 to 15th January 2021.
As we look ahead to the second half of the Autumn term, we are mindful that we will not be able to celebrate the festive season in the usual way. However, just as we have adopted new daily routines, so too will we adapt our traditional celebrations to ensure that all the children enjoy this very special time.