NEWSLETTER

18th May 2016 Letter from Mr May

Dear Parents, What to write about first: OFSTED or SATs… in the same week! Last week we received a call Monday lunchtime, informing us that OFSTED would be visiting Mayhill on Tuesday for a two day inspection. May I thank all of the parents who were able to provide feedback to OFSTED, either online or in person, it was lovely to hear such positive feedback about how the school has progressed. Your children were an enormous credit to you, impeccably behaved, respectful and hardworking. The report normally takes about 3-4 weeks to be published, at which point I can provide greater feedback on the visit. Meanwhile…SATs in Year 6 were taking place and once again, the children at Mayhill were a credit to all the staff and parents who have supported their learning over the last four years. The tests this year have been made significantly harder, with lots of Y7 content being included as part of the Government’s decision to increase the expectations. This year, the Y6 children have had only two years of teaching to learn the new content but I was amazed to see such determination and enthusiasm to do their best and give it their all. Having looked at the new tests, the reading paper certainly stands out as challenging, with the children being expected to show greater stamina and speed as well as being able to quickly interpret the author’s intent. The punctuation and grammar test was fair but required children to have a clear and secure knowledge of key terms such as ‘determiner, demonstrative, active and passive’ etc. Finally, the maths papers whilst challenging in places, were fair and a reflection of areas covered this year. Copies of this year’s SATs paper will be available on the DfE’s website from 23rd May. Call for help – any Carpenters or parents with a skill for making furniture out there?

We are looking to receive quotes or support for making some custom fitted furniture for our new outdoor Chill Out Club – what was the David Knightly building in the playground. The job will include making some benching with storage under the seats, a long table out of sleepers and benching on the other side. If this is something either you or your company may be able to help with, we would be very grateful to hear from you. Our new welly rack!

Requested by the school council, our new welly rack will hopefully be very useful for all the children who do the daily walk across the field and then change into their shoes at the start of the day. We’re now waiting for our 1st pair of wellies to christen the rack!

Problem Solving, Communication, Team Work, Positive Attitude, Confidence, Creativity and Independence

Two final reminders Shoes We are noticing an increase in children wearing trainers in school with the explanation that their shoes no longer fit them. Our school policy is that if children do not have shoes, they are allowed to wear black pumps instead, of which we have some spares in the office. The reason behind this is to stop the annual increase in trainers every summer term and to maintain the high expectations around uniform. Your child will always be we welcome to wear their trainers at break/lunch if the pumps are uncomfortable or not suitable for outdoor play. However, please can we ask for your support with this as it can be awkward for the child when they are caught in the middle between what the school is asking and what they may have been asked at home. Thank you. Dinner Debts Please could I ask that parents pay promptly for their child’s school meals and do not incur debts with the school. Unfortunately, the school is not in a position to carry financial arrears and ask that parents are considerate of this. School meals are £2.10 per day and we ask that children who regularly have school meals have a £10 credit on the account which is topped up every week. Having a £10 balance allows some flexibility when accounts are not topped up regularly. If your child’s account goes into arrears, they will be removed from the meal ordering system and we ask that you provide them with a packed lunch until their debt is cleared. Thank you for your co-operation with this.

SCHOOL NEWS ‘A Night at the School – Year 3 Sleepover’ We are excited to have our first ever Year 3 Residential experience at Mayhill on Thursday 26 th May – a large sleepover in the school hall. Over the next two years we are reviewing our residential structure and wish to provide children of all year groups the chance to spend a night away from home, gradually building up to a 5 day residential in Year 6. For some children, this opportunity might be their first chance to experience a sleepover away from home and we hope it will build the confidence and excitement to increase the levels of participation in future years. Letters have gone home to Year 3 and need to be returned by Friday 20th May. PE Kits Please could you ensure your child has their PE kit in school with them every day. Thread Worms A few cases of threadworms have been reported to the school. We have emphasised to the children the importance of handwashing, but if your child is showing symptons of threadworms please can you treat them as a matter of priority. For further information on the diagnosis and treatment of threadworms please click on the following link to the NHS website: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Threadworms/Pages/Introduction.aspx Future Postings and House Moves We are starting to put our plans together for the next academic year, if you know you are being posted before September and your child will be leaving Mayhill please could you let the Office know. Thank You

School Uniform Ordering If you require new uniform for September, please make sure you order by Wednesday 30th June for delivery to school by Monday 11th July. Any orders received after this deadline cannot guarantee delivery by the end of term. Thank You. Sports Day Sports Day will be held in the morning of Thursday 30th June this year. We ask that the children wear a T-shirt in the corresponding colour of their house. SEA KING

PUMA

MERLIN

CHINOOK

Remember that Michael Hope, our uniform suppliers are selling house T-shirts. Please visit www.michaelhope.co.uk. Year 5 Swimming Statement from RAF Odiham Swimming Pool “The RAF Odiham Swimming Pool has experienced a number of separate and unfortunate technical failures over the past few weeks, resulting in the closure of the facility. The Air Handling Unit has been fixed which means the air can circulate, filter out the chlorinated air and reduced the moisture content. The chemical dosing system has been partially fixed, the second stage of the fix can only happen once we are able to remove half the pool water. We are waiting for a decision from the water board to let us remove the water, once this happens and we refill the water the final stage of the sensor fix can occur. Unfortunately some of the decisions that we have been waiting on are out of our control and RAF Odiham is doing all it can to hasten them. We are doing everything we can to minimise the time the pool is closed and understand it can be a huge inconvenience, especially when the cancellations are last minute. The pool management and committee are only forced to cancel lessons and swim classes if a dangerous bathing environment occurs (high chlorine levels, air handling unit broken etc). We take the health and safety of our users seriously so that the environment they swim in is as harmless as possible. We apologise for closure and impact it’s had on your lessons and will endeavour to rectify missed classes in the future.” The school will advise parents on the status of this week’s swimming lessons later in the week. Planned Swimming Dates May 20th, 27th June 3rd Half Term June 10th, 17th June 24th is Camo Day – No Swimming July 1st, 8th, 15th

Lost Property The lost property box is full of coats. Please check the box in the medical room. All unnamed items will be sent for recycling.

Active Kids Vouchers The Active Kids Vouchers campaign is now closed please send in any vouchers.

YEAR 4 GARDENING CLUB The school gardening club are having a Plant Sale on Wednesday 18th May at 3.10pm in the school playground. Please donate any spare plants, cuttings, seedlings etc to the sale from 11th May. Thank You.

GOVERNOR NEWS

GOVERNOR VACANCY Would you like to join our Governing body at Mayhill? We are a committed team whose aim is to ensure our children achieve a high standard of education. We currently have three vacancies for co-opted governors. The core functions of the Governing Body are to:  ensure clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction  support the headteacher, but hold him to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils  oversee the financial performance of the school and make sure its money is well spent. Being a Governor is rewarding and enjoyable, but it can be challenging and will require a commitment of time. School governors make a substantial and valuable contribution to our school. The full governing body meets every half-term and governors are expected to sit on a committee. Some of our monitoring is done by visits to the school, learning walks and pupil or staff conferencing, so availability during the day is essential. An important part of the role is to both support and challenge the school. We work as part of a team, so full support will be given to new governors. If you are interested and would like to know more about the role of a governor please speak to Sian Taylor (mum to Isabel in yr 5 and Scott in yr 6) or contact our clerk Alan Behagg through the school office. For more general information on becoming a governor http://www3.hants.gov.uk/education/governors/gov-volunteer.htm, and to complete the application form http://documents.hants.gov.uk/governors/SchoolGovernorApplicationFormDecember2015.pdf

FRIENDS OF MAYHILL

We have a busy time ahead, with all the summer fairs, fetes and celebrations. Please come along to our stall, we have lots of fun treats in store....! Upper School Cake Sale, Thursday 19th May. Any donations will be gratefully received by the office that morning. Cakes will be available for the whole school to buy during first break. Please send your child in with £1 maximum to help raise money to support your school. FOM next meeting - Thursday 19th May, 2pm, Conference Room - All welcome. 27th May – Own Clothes Day in exchange for a Bottle. Please bring a donation of a filled bottle to school that day in exchange for wearing own clothes. Any bottles are welcomed... shampoo to champagne, beer, fruit cordial, wine, cider...everything! The bottles will be used on our stall at the Bands & Blues village event on 25th June. Thank you for your help on this. Queen's Commemorative Tea Towel Design Competition Congratulations go to Molly Maidment (5M) for winning our Tea towel design competition in celebration of The Queen's 90th birthday. These limited edition Tea towels will be on sale soon!! Queen's 90th Birthday Street Party - Sunday June 12th Visit our stall, we will be selling commemorative Tea Towels & various patriotic attire; bowler hats, crowns & ladies scarves, sweets and some fun games to amuse the children. Bands & Blues - Saturday 25th June FOMs will be hosting a bottle tombola and games for the children. Come along and try your luck! Induction & Leavers Disco - Thursday 14th July yr's 2,3 & 4 - 5pm-6pm yr's 5 & 6 - 6.15pm-7.45pm Happy Bags – the last collection raised £94.40. Thank you. ...and finally... Is there anybody out there willing to start up a second-hand uniform sale, possibly once a term? It seems a shame to throw away Mayhill jumpers/cardigans. Please contact the office if you are interested. Thank you Friends of Mayhill

KEY DATES MAY 16th – 20th 16th 18th 19th 26th 27th 30th – 3rd

Walk to School Week Plant Sale – 3.10pm Plant Sale – 3.10pm Cake Sale Year 3 - Sleepover Mufti Day – in exchange for a bottle HALF TERM

JUNE 6th 7th 9th 10th 12th 14th 21st 22nd 23rd 23rd 24th 25th 29th 30th

INSET DAY Year 2 Visit to Mayhill 1.05 – 3.15 Parents to collect from Mayhill Year 3 Trip to Wisley Gardens Queen’s Birthday Tea Party – Red/White/Blue Dress up Street Party in Odiham for the Queen’s Birthday Year 2/3 New Parents Meeting 7pm Year 2 Visit to Mayhill 9.15 – 11.50 Year 4 Trip to Museum of London Class Photos Year 5 Open Evening at Robert Mays School 7pm Camo Day Bands and Blues American Lunch – whole school Sports Day

JULY 4th 5th 5th 6th 7th 7th 9th 14th 14th 15th 20th

Transition Day Year 5 Trip to the Primary Prom Year 5/6 Production at 6.30pm Year 5/6 Production at 1.45pm Happy School Bag Collection Year 5/6 Production at 6.30pm Church Fete Year 6 Think Safe Event Induction and Leavers Disco Last Year 5 Swimming End of the Summer Term – 1pm Finish 2016 – 2017

SEPT 5th 6th 21st 26th – 30th

INSET DAY First Day of Term Individual School Portraits Year 6 Bikeability

OCT 17th – 21st 24th – 28th

Osmington Bay Residential HALF TERM

NOV DEC 16th

End of Autumn Term

Please note this list may change and further dates may be added. Information of events will be sent out nearer the time.