1. Every Day, a Learning Journey Wednesday 7th December 2016
Parent Forum Evening
Every Day, a Learning Journey
Wednesday 7th December 2016

2. Agenda for the Evening
Reading and writing – whole school community engagement
Building resilient children – greater focus on character building opportunities
School development plan discussions
Homework – purpose, length and format (reflecting on last year’s points and changes made within school)

3. Reading and Writing Engagement
Greater focus on reading – sequences of learning
‘Reading into writing’ teaching approach
Comprehension skills – much higher expectations
SPAG skills within independent work
Bug Club and reading awards
Parental engagement and support

4. Reading and Writing Engagement
Sequences of Learning – displayed on the class walls for the children to see how their learning will progress over the unit of work.
Focus is on reading into writing, much longer spent on reading, comprehension expectations are now much higher.

5. Reading and Writing Engagement
Bug Club and reading awards are encouraging children to engage with reading but as with all activities the level of uptake does vary with some children accessing Bug Club 50+ times and having a silver star award to some children having never accessed Bug Club and not yet gained their bronze award.
For those children we will look at ways within school which allows them to access the same materials and gain the same rewards.

6. Building Resilience/Character
Preparation for Life in Modern Britain – 9 protected characteristics – looked at which ones apply to children in first schools and how we deliver these at Dodford.
P4C lessons now delivered weekly – some research has shown that P4C helped increase reading and maths progress as it improved questioning skills, how children created constructive arguments and they participated in reasoned discussion better.
SMSC breadth and balance reviewed annually.
Continue to strengthen Pupil Voice by more input into newsletters and the school website.
Mental health in children – mindfulness, yoga and other techniques are being explored to improve children’s state of mind and approach to the challenges they encounter.

7. Building Resilience/Character
Themes Of The Mindfulness Curriculum are:
INTENTION
refers to the inner decision to be mindful. This relies on motivation. Children learn how the brain can change and grow and why paying attention to the present moment can be of benefit to them.
ATTENTION
refers to the practice of bringing the attention back to the present moment, how it’s key to our experience and how it tends to wander.
ATTITUDE
refers to the way we pay attention. Children learn the value of non-reactivity; learn how to cultivate the freshness of the beginner’s mind and learn to develop their willpower and diligence.

8. Building Resilience/Character
Growth Mindset Techniques – attended a course and hearing lots of positive messages about how using these techniques have improved children’s attitudes towards learning and their progress rates.
‘Believing that your intelligence, talents and personality are not fixed but can be developed through dedication and effort.’
Cbeebies website has some useful information about Growth Mindset.
‘Children (and adults!) with a growth mindset think very differently. They believe that they can get better at something by practising, so when they’re faced with a challenge, they become more and more determined to succeed, wanting to persevere and overcome knockbacks. They tend to feel as if they’re in control, and are not threatened by hard work or failure.'

9. School Development Priorities
Continue to raise writing and reading standards.
Providing maths opportunities across the curriculum.
Reviewing assessment and record keeping procedures.
Build more resilient children by continuing to offer character building opportunities throughout the school week.
Tracking progress across the foundation subjects.
Working towards the Artsmark Award

10. Homework
Reception – focus on phonics and reading but also provide maths and other useful packs
Year 1 and Year 2 – reading, spellings and either maths or English (writing focus) each week. Occasionally other projects or tasks to complete.
Year 3 and 4 – reading, spellings and either maths or English (writing focus) each week. Occasionally other projects or tasks to complete.
Areas addressed –
Set days of giving homework out and handing in of homework known by parents and children.
Longer tasks are clearly explained to enable parents to support their child.
Parents are encouraged to put short comments, for example, ‘needed support’, ‘found this challenging or easy’.

11. Questions?