Summer 2022
12th May
The 2022 Big plastic count
With the Eco Group's poster competition in school displayed in the entrance and hall and assemblies this term, we are in poll position to reduce our single use plastic waste and make a useful and kind contribution to our local area and planet Earth.
Next week, a special assembly on Monday will welcome Northwich general store Weigh of the World to Kingsmead Primary where they will see our commitment to caring for the environment and share what they are doing, right here in Northwich. Weigh of the World sells environmentally friendly cleaning products, unpackaged food (bring your own container) and toiletries. Being so local we can walk and reduce our carbon footprint even more. Shopping at Weigh of the World has reduced Casa Stewart's weekly shopping bill and the amount in our landfill and recycling waste. Best of all, we often bump into Kingsmead children and families doing their shopping at the Northwich store.
Next week, environmental campaigners Greenpeace are launching a Big Plastic Count and families can join in at home. Our school governor with special responsibility for our environmental impact, Mrs Pittaway, is visiting the Eco Group and will be working with Mrs Gajjar and the children to continue our work reducing our use of single use plastic.
Ms S
9th May
team teach
‘When little people are overwhelmed by big emotions, it’s our job to share our calm, not to join their chaos.’
L.R.Knost
Donna Davies, a behaviour consultant, came to deliver Team Teach training to eight staff members this term, a mixture of midday assistants, teaching assistants and teachers participated in this training. Team Teach is an accredited provider of positive behaviour management training, equipping individuals to deal with challenging situations, distressed behaviours and conflicts safely and respectfully in ways that lead to desirable outcomes and positive relationships.
Behaviour, both positive and negative, is a form of communication. Everybody communicates through behaviour. A baby may cry when they are hungry or wet, just like an adult may yawn when they are bored at work. Adults and children are communicating something through their behaviour during every moment in every day, even if they are not aware of it.
How children behave in school is influenced by many factors. Children’s behaviour, including challenging behaviour, may be an attempt to satisfy a valid need or express a want, or be an indication of their needs or interests not being met. Environmental conditions may also influence children’s behaviour and generally with good environmental support, children thrive.
Children who feel valued and who observe and experience respectful and caring relationships between children and adults will generally learn to behave in respectful and caring ways with other children and adults.
Just like other special educational needs and disabilities, some children need additional support to help them manage their behaviour, learning how to regulate their emotions and how to respond appropriately in a range of different situations. When children have a barrier to learning in Maths, we look at what reasonable adjustments we can make to ensure that they are able to engage in learning alongside their peers. We may need to provide some further small group or individual intervention to really help target their particular areas of difficulty. Through this support children will begin to make small steps of progress, but they will still make mistakes so we will continue to support them and adapt our intervention as needed. When a particular maths skill is practised over and over it gradually becomes automatic and effortless. Behaviour is no different. Some children will need adaptations making to the support they receive from adults in school, they will need small targeted intervention but they will still make mistakes and need to continue to learn how to respond to challenges they face.
Children grow at different rates, with development being typified by plateau punctuated with spurts of growth. The educational system uses chronological age to group children, in spite of the reality that at times their emotional development may vary greatly. Early life experiences can have a detrimental effect on children, disrupting a child's development, resulting in cognitive, social, emotional and behaviour deficits. Therefore we need to consider carefully how we best support children who find emotional regulation more difficult, validating their emotions, helping them to regulate themselves and working together to build relationships so that all children can feel safe.
Mrs RB