Dear Children and Parents/Carers,
I’m really excited to welcome you to 3H! My name is Angela Harris and I too was lucky enough to attend
St Michael’s Primary School as a child.
Year 3 is full of exciting events, such as: our class assembly, a Roman workshop, a trip to the synagogue,
School Discos, PTA events and much, much more.
Teaching is an absolute passion of mine, I am extremely excited to work with you and your children. I
have high expectations of Key Stage 2 children as they become role models for the younger children in
Key Stage 1 and reception. I want Year 3 children to show their commitment by always trying their best.
We are going to have a year full of fun and lots of adventures and I can’t wait to see what the year has
in store for us.
We are also very lucky to have Barbara as our wonderful and experienced Teaching Assistant. She will be
supporting the children in class, listen to readers out of class and is also there during lunch times.
Please make sure you check the website regularly for class and school information.
Essential Equipment
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A clearly labelled book bag (order form available from our website: http://www.stmichaels.wandsworth.sch.uk/index.php/our-school/school-shop/ ).
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A pencil case containing two HB pencils; a 30cm ruler; an eraser; a sharpener and a glue stick.
If you receive your ink licence this year, you can also bring in a good quality ink pen and cartridges or a Berol handwriting pen. Children write in pencil until they get their licence.
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A clearly labelled PE kit which will be stored in a locker: A plain white t-shirt; plain blue
shorts; plimsolls for PE; trainers for Games and a tracksuit for winter (advisable). Your kit
needs to be stored in a small, clearly labelled drawstring bag .
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Please note that children are not permitted to wear leggings or cycling shorts for PE.
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If you are bringing in fruit (which is a good idea!) it must be ready to eat and stored in a
small named container with a lid.
Structure of the Days
In Year 3, Maths and English are taught daily, alongside other subjects. Science, Computing, RE, PE,
Dance, Geography/History, French, Italian and Art/DT are also taught weekly. Please be aware that
the whistle is blown at 8:40am and we carefully monitor attendance and punctuality.
Reading
Reading is the single most important contributor towards children’s learning and it is vital that children
read regularly. Children will be heard in guided groups on a regular basis during quiet reading sessions.
Children are also encouraged to read regularly/daily at home to an adult (10 mins). We ask that this is recorded in their Reading Records by putting a date, signature and an occasional comment. At this stage,
reading with an adult is about developing comprehension as well as decoding. Asking questions and discussing meanings, themes, characters and the author’s style and use of language is as important as the actual
reading. Staff will monitor the Reading Records once a week to check that children have read 3 times during the past week to an adult. We will also be continuing with Reading for Pleasure on a Friday, so please
encourage your child to bring in a text they enjoy for these sessions; it can be a recipe book, sports annual, newspaper etc.
Overall Homework Grid
YEAR
MATHS
SPELLING
ENGLISH
R
Maths Facts
Word Books
Phonics
1
Mathletics
Spellodrome
Phonics
2
Mathletics
Spellodrome
Phonics / Grammar or
Punctuation task*
3
Mathletics
Spellodrome
Punctuation, Grammar or
Comprehension task*
4
Mathletics
Spellodrome
Punctuation, Grammar or
Comprehension task*
5
Mathletics /
Arithmetic*
Spellodrome
Punctuation, Grammar or
Comprehension task*
6
Mathletics /
Arithmetic*
Spellodrome
Punctuation, Grammar or
Comprehension task*
* Alternating weeks
In addition to this, all pupils will need to learn their times
tables and read at home regularly to a parent / carer.
TIMES TABLES
READING
Learn their times tables for a
weekly test.
Daily reading. 3 recordings in
children’s reading records by
an adult.
PE and Games
The children will take part in two sports sessions per week. One will be dance and the other will be
Games (on the field/playground or MUGA). Our sports coaches will be working with the children in
these sessions. You will find out when your child has PE/Games when you come to the Introductory Talk
for Year 3 in September. Year 3 also go swimming and you will be given information about this at the
Introductory Talks in September too as we are waiting to hear when we have access to the pool. If you
are not a very confident swimmer - maybe you could practise in the Summer Holidays so that you feel
more confident. Don't worry if you cannot swim - the lessons are for all abilities.
Please refer to the list of PE kit in the “Essential Equipment” section.
Appointments with teachers
If you would like to meet to discuss anything before or after school, please just email the
address below and a time can be arranged: [email protected]
Please remember to copy the office into any e-mails sent to the Class Teachers:
[email protected]
Please ensure you are aware of our Staff/Parent Meeting Protocol: http://www.stmichaels.wandsworth.sch.uk/assets/Meeting-Protocol-for-Parents.pdf
Helping in Class
We all value extra help from parents! Please let me know if you are interested and available to help in
class e.g. hearing readers or outings. All adults are now required to have a Disclosure Barring Service
(DBS) clearance before working or helping in schools and these forms can be downloaded from the
school website. http://www.stmichaels.wandsworth.sch.uk/index.php/our-school/disclosure-barringapplications/
Modern Foreign Languages
French and Italian will continue to be taught across the middle and upper phases. In Year 3, children
have two 30 minute lessons per week. Chris teaches French using the program Rigolo. Lessons are
fun, interactive and cover a range of topics. We are lucky to have our Italian lessons taught by
Allesandra from the Italian Consulate.
Positive Behaviour
At St. Michael’s, we follow a Positive Behaviour Policy. Reward systems are in place, which reinforce
the school behaviour policy. You will be rewarded for good behaviour with House Points, Superstar/
Golden Superstar Certificates, Well Done Letters and Headteacher Awards.
Superstar Assemblies
Approximately every half term, two children are nominated from
Class 3H for Superstar Certificates and one child for a Golden
Superstar award which are given out in special assemblies. Children
can earn this award through good behaviour; making a special
effort; kindness towards others; doing your best and setting a
good example in and around school.
School Council
All classes in the middle and upper phases are represented on the school council. Each class democratically elects two representatives each year – one boy and one girl. The school council meets fortnightly
and discusses the issues raised by the pupils and then reports back to their classes. All pupils have
the opportunity to raise issues through these regular meetings. Please think about whether you would
like to be one of the Class 3H reps for next year!
Houses
At St. Michael’s we have four houses that the children represent - Melrose, Viewfield,
Granville and Seymour. Each half term, the children will participate in sporting, academic or personal
challenges to raise house points for their house. The winning house wins the prized possession - the
house cup!
Clubs
We are extremely fortunate to be able to offer many exciting after school clubs for you and your
friends. These clubs are run on a voluntary basis by the staff and a list of Autumn Term clubs will be
sent out via Parentmail towards the end of the Summer Term. Payment for these clubs is a nominal
fee that goes straight back to sports funding to help pay for our sports coach and sports equipment.
You pay the fee as part of each clubs sign up via Parentmail. Please speak to the office if you are unsure of how to use Parentmail or you are not signed up.
School Website and Communication
As a school we pride ourselves on having excellent communication between home and school. Please
ensure that you take time to read all of the Parentmails and letters that are sent home. We are
aware that at certain times of the year a lot of information is sent to you, but please be assured
that this is because we want to keep you fully aware of what is going on.
This year, Parentmail will be upgrading to Parentmail X. This will provide you with an app, making it
much easier to read parent mails and to book Parents’ Evening appointments and clubs. We hope this
will further support communication and make it easier for you to use as a parent.
Visit our school website to find out more about the curriculum, PTA, classes, prospectus, clubs,
news, calendar, links and much more. Please look on our class page to find out what we have been up
to each week.
Important Autumn Term 2016 dates for the diary!
School begins for children: Wednesday 7th September
Half Term: Monday 24th - Friday 28th October
Class Assembly: 11th November
End of term Church Service: Friday 21st December (3pm close)
Please refers to the Calendar on the School Website for a full list of important dates:
http://www.stmichaels.wandsworth.sch.uk/calendar/