Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.

• Poets in the making...

  Fri 27 Sep 2019

  We were delighted to welcome the Mayor of Wellington to our assembly on Monday to present prizes to our successful entrants into the Peggy Harrison Poetry competition, a local event run as part of The Wellington Literary Festival. Cyprian in Year 2, Zakk-Phoenix in Year 3 and Lena who was in Year 6 last year all won prizes with their poems.  Congratulations to them and thanks to Helen form the Literary Festival team who came along to support the prize giving.

   

  Thank you to everyone who attended Parents Evening this week, teachers were delighted to hear from you about your child's strengths and what they enjoy to do.  Having these meetings so early in term enable us to ensure we are all working together to do the best for our Short Woodies.

   

  Key Stage One's harvest celebration on Thursday was a lovely moment this week. Cerys from Christ Church and  visitors from the KIP project were overwhelmed by the generosity of everyone at Short Wood, the donations received will support so many people who are facing homelessness locally - thank you.

   

  Year 5 have been experiencing what life may have been like for the Cornovii Tribe this week.  They have been outdoors, whittling, carving, building and cooking over the open fire. The enthusiasm for these experiences and the sense of challenge for the children is contagious, we love chatting to the children about their experiences.

   

  Year 6 representatives visited us yesterday to talk to the children about life at Ercall Wood.  This is the time of year our Year 6 pupils and their families are thinking about where they go next, it is a big decision.  We do advise families to visit all of the local secondary schools in order to make an informed decision.

   

  This afternoon we are holding a coffee afternoon in aid of Macmillan. We hope many of you are able to join the PTA to raise money for this worthy cause.

   

  Congratulations to all of our Golden Leaf winners again this week, it is a special assembly sharing in their achievements and seeing how proud they are of themselves.  Sharing this with siblings in school is lovely too, please enjoy sharing in their successes at home too.

  

• Looking to the stars!

  Fri 20 Sep 2019

  Year 6 started their week with a visit to Keele University.  They experienced a lecture and spent time in the observatory. In the star dome you could lie back and star at the stars -  magical moments This visit has really brought the topic, Space - Is anybody out there? to life.  Stimulating their imaginative ideas and generating questions to investigate.

   

  A meeting of the full governing body took place this week.  We are currently seeking a new parent governor.  The Governors meet formally twice a term and in between times work with the school team to support the strategic vision of the school.  If you are interested in volunteering to take up this role please contact the school office.

   

  You may have seen that Aldi have launched a promotion 'Kit for schools'.  When you spend £30 in store you can collect a Team GB sticker, you just need to send in or drop off your stickers at school to help us complete the poster.  We then have to send a the completed poster back to be in with a chance to win £20,000.

   

  Our girls football team played their first match against Apley Wood this week, Apley won 1-0 in a really good match.  despite the result Coach B was really proud of the team performance, and so early in the school year.

   

  Next week is parents evening, you should have been able to book appointments online - there are still some appointments available so if you haven't got your slot please book a time.

   

  Congratulations to our Golden leaf winners again this week, we are really proud of their attitude to learning and positive approach to school.

   

   

  

• A view from The Wrekin

  Fri 13 Sep 2019

  This week our Year 5 pupils have all taken a walk up The Wrekin to consider just who does live 'In the shadow of The Wrekin', which is their topic this year.  Supported by our colleagues from Arthog Outreach they explored this local landmark, found out about the Cornovii Tribe, who once inhabited the site, and began to consider just how our local area has developed.  This topic runs across the year to support our pupils in understanding our local community, how it has developed and how we have all arrived here - it is designed to really engage pupils in their local area and understand their rights and responsibilities, not only as a Short Woody but also as a Wellingtonian. The fantastic weather and positive behaviour of the pupils made these trips really great days out.  The staff and pupils returned with a sense of exhilaration and,for some, achievement as they may never have been up there before.

   

  We feel really privileged to be receiving a donation from a charity set up in memory of Stuart Taylor, the father of an ex - pupil (but always a Short Woody) Lydia.  She will shortly be starting her final year at the University of Leeds studying Politics and Sociology, it is a delight to hear of her on going success and how the family feel Short Wood set her off on an excellent path.  The link to 'Gifted on behalf of Stuart Taylor' is below.  The family have identified a number of local causes that they are donating to as a result of fun fundraising activities that family and friends can complete together. Please take a look at their page to find out further information behind their initiative:

  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=2316078842043187&ref=br_rs

   

  Our intention is to use the money to fund a project with our Year 5 group to create a trail of ceramic tiles around the local area celebrating all that is good about Wellington and its history. We would like to design and make the tiles at Jackfield  - we would be liaising with Wellington Council about how and where to put them.  We want to say a big thank you to the family for thinking of Short Wood as a worthy recipient of a donation from such a lovely initiative. 

   

  Staff in school have received additional training on the use of Espresso this week. This is an online resource which supports many different aspects of learning.  Students can log on to the site at home as a student - class teachers will be informing pupils of how to do this soon.

   

  We are really pleased that so many of our parents have signed up for Parent Pay already.  While this online payment system is new to our school there are many schools locally and nationally that use it.  There have been some 'glitches' as we are learning to use the system and set up processes that are effective so thank you for working with us during this period.  If you need any support in setting up the account please just contact our school office. 

   

  Parents evenings are planned for the 24th and 25th September. These are to provide an opportunity to share information with your child's new teacher about what your child enjoys and things they are good at and ways in which we can work together to address your child's needs.

   

  A quick reminder that our doors open at 8.50am, children need to be in school and settled to learn from 9.00am.  At the end of the day at 3.00pm children need to be collected from the designated areas.  If you are going to be late please inform the office in advance so we can let your child and their teacher know. 

   

  The library is open after school on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays for families to choose books to take home.  Mrs Link and Miss Smallman have a range of events planned to encourage children to get lost in a book and promote a love of reading for pleasure. 

   

  We are aware that parking outside of school in the morning and afternoon continues to be challenging.  We are working with the council and local police team to try to explore ways in which we can ease the pressures.  If you are able to walk to school then please do, but if you do have to drive then please ensure you allow additional time and are considerate to everyone using the road and car parks. Please do not park in places that block other parked cars as this does cause great frustration.

   

  Our PTA are always looking for new faces to join their team, if you can spare a little time to support events or have ideas we could try please get in touch.  Marie Duce (Chair) and Hannah Cooper (Secretary) can be contacted through the school office.  The PTA will be running a coffee afternoon to support Macmillan on 27th September so look out for details.  This will be an ideal opportunity to come along before picking your child up for a slice of cake, a drink and a chat with fellow Short Woodies.

   

  We are delighted with how well we have started this term, there is a calm, purposeful atmosphere around school as Short Woodies return to the routines of school life.  Congratulations to all of our golden leaf winners again this week - they are super examples of everything we expect from our Short Woodies.

  

• Welcome to a new school year.

  Fri 06 Sep 2019

  We are delighted to have welcomed everyone back to school this term.  It has been a real pleasure hearing about holiday adventures and catching up with everyone in the Short Wood Community.

   

  We have a number of new members of staff that have joined us.  Miss Matthews (Class 8), Ms Edge (Class 12), Mrs Anderson (Class 16), Miss Taylor (Class 11), Mr Walker (Class 17) and Mrs Morris-Batement (Year 5). We know they will be made very welcome as they get to know how the school runs and become familiar with the whole community.

   

  Congratulations to Mrs Loakes, Mrs Tymon, Mrs Fairgreaves and Mrs Dallow whose babies arrived over the summer holidays, it has been lovely seeing the photos of the new arrivals, we look forward to meeting them all in person.

   

  There are plenty of exciting learning opportunities planned this term  across school.  You will be receiving information and dates as planned trips and visits come up.  We will also be planning dates for events across the term shortly. 

   

  Last year we held our parents evenings early in the term and this proved to be successful.  Our first parents meetings this term will be on Tuesday 24th and Wednesday 25th September.  These will provide an opportunity for parents and carers to tell their children's new teacher all about them, what they are great at, their interests and the things they may need additional support with.  In order to get the very best out of every child we know that working in partnership is essential. 

   

  ParentPay has been introduced this term so all payments can be made online.  This has been a service we have had many requests for.  We recognise that as we get up and running, and set up the system, there may be some teething problems - please just contact the school office if you have any concerns or issues arising.

   

  Congratulations to our first Golden Leaf winners of the year, they have had an excellent start to the year and are great role models for all of our pupils.

   

  We are looking forward to a really successful year and all the learning adventures ahead.  As always if you have any concerns arising do not hesitate to contact school.