I hope you all had a great half term and are glad to be back at school. As usual everyone has settled back into their routine very quickly but I would have liked better weather to welcome us back. I am bored with the dark mornings and wet weather so I hope as March arrives we can experience some fresh, spring weather.

I know that with all the news coverage that some parents are getting very anxious about the coronavirus but I would like to reassure everyone that we are following all the guidance and sending you updates as we receive them. We have been told that the risk of catching it is still very low in England and if you follow good basic hygiene you reduce the risk of all viruses spreading dramatically – good hand cleaning is especially important and to support this we are putting hand sanitisers in all the classrooms.

Next week is another busy week in school. On Tuesday we have the NSPCC coming into school to talk to the children in KS1 and KS2 about how they can keep themselves safe. Thursday is World Book Day when we would like all the children to come into school dressed as their favourite book character. We would also like them to bring in a book they enjoy reading as we are going to have a whole school reading session during the morning. This is a very important day for us at Little Heath as we love to promote the importance of reading.

Some members of the choir are also going to perform at the Albert Hall on Sunday 8^th March. This is a great event for them to attend and I know they are looking forward to taking part. I would like to thank Mrs. Lawrence, Mrs Robinson and Miss Bradford for all their hard work in preparing them for this concert.

I hope you have a lovely weekend – more rain is forecast but I hope you will not let it dampen your spirits. I look forward to seeing you all again on Monday.

I feel that I do not need to write this blog to inform you of what has happened in school because we have had a lot of parents in school this week. On Monday we had a Sharing Assembly and lots of parents were in school to see their children present work that they were proud of. I know each child only does this once a year but they do get excited when they know their parents are coming into school to see something they have done. It is also good to see parents being very supportive of all the children and not just their own because it is nerve-wracking to present your work in front of a large crowd and it is good to have a strong positive vibe when you do it. Presenting to a large crowd though is a good life skill to master which is why we have the children do this.

On Wednesday we had our Open Afternoon and loads of parents came into school to see their child’s learning from the last half term. Although it has been a short half term the children have covered a lot of learning and I know that this is another event the children really look forward to as they are proud to share their work with their parents. I have got lots of positive feedback from that event but if you do have any queries after seeing your child’s work please do not hesitate to contact the class teacher or myself.

Although it has been cold recently this has not stopped the children taking off their coats and jackets outside when they get hot from running around. This in itself is not a problem but when we try to return them to the correct children we are still finding many items with no name labels inside. Can I please ask that over the half term holiday that you check your children’s uniform to ensure that all items are clearly labelled?

We now have the half term holiday to look forward to. I cannot believe that the last holiday we had was Christmas as that seems a long time ago and yet it was only six weeks since we started the new term. I hope you all have a great time and I look forward to seeing you all again on Monday, 24^th February.

I got a real shock when I was setting the dates for next week when I realised that we break up for half term on Friday - where has the time gone? We have even had some lovely sunny weather this week which could allow us to believe that spring is on its way although I think some of the weather we are expected to experience this weekend will let us know that it is still winter.

As some of you know, I am using our sports premium money this year to pay for the children to attend an ‘outdoor and adventurous’ activity. The Reception children and Years 1-3 have been signed up to attend the Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead for a ‘rubber tubing’ experience. The Reception children went on Wednesday and even though a couple of them were a little timid and frightened at first they all really enjoyed themselves. I do think it is good that we can provide the children with these adventures outside of their normal experiences as it is good to extend their experiences in all areas of their lives. Next week the children in Year 2 will get the chance to go to the Snow Centre.

Next week is a busy week in school. On Monday morning we have one of our Sharing Assemblies and if your child is taking part in this one you will have been notified by letter this week. On Wednesday afternoon it is an ‘Open Afternoon’ for parents. This means that parents with children in Years 1 – 6 are allowed to come into school to look at their children’s learning over the last half term. We run these afternoons from 3.00pm – 4.30pm to enable parents to share the learning with their children.

I hope that if the expected wind comes this weekend that you do not get blown away.  Excuse me if I come out dancing on Monday morning but I am going to watch the ‘Strictly Come Dancing‘ tour this weekend and it may give me some ideas that I want to try for myself. For those romantics amongst you it is Valentine’s Day next Friday so if you want to be well prepared for the day you will need to organise something this weekend to ensure that your loved one feels loved and cherished. Have a good weekend.