Newsletters

Dorchester News -22nd November 2024

Newsletter

22nd November 2024

Dear Dorchester Families

There is certainly a sense of great anticipation in the air today as the children look forward to one of their favourite events of the school year - the annual FODS Discos.  A huge thank you to everyone who has volunteered to help to make the event special and memorable for all our children. More thanks for the donations for the Christmas Hampers that you donated this morning - fingers crossed I'm lucky in the raffle again and get to win one of them!

Last week, we had our termly meeting with our Attendance Officer from the Local Education Authority.  Excellent school attendance is clearly linked to children's future success and so it is great to see a significant improvement in our attendance from this time last year - an increase of 2.3% may not sound much but it means that children have been in school for over 1,100 more sessions than they had this time last year.  Definitely worth celebrating!

 

The season is almost upon us - and we will once again be holding a Christmas Jumper Swap.  Please see the Eco-News below for more information.

Have a great weekend.

Cathy Bell
Headteacher

 

Latest News

21 Nov 2024
Big Friends, Little Friends
Year 5 met the Reception children for the first time this week, as part of our 'Big Friends, Little Friends' project. This first initial meeting involved becoming familiar with each other before next week, when we will match up two Year 5 children with their 'Little Friend...
Read more

Eco News

22 Nov 2024
Christmas Jumper Swap
In the interests of saving the environment as well as saving money for our families, we will once again hold a Christmas Jumper swap, ahead of our Save the Children Christmas Jumper Day on Thursday 12th December.
Read more

Sports News

21 Nov 2024
Yr 5 Sutton and Cheam Cup Football vs Cheam Fields ​​​​​​​
Won on penalties This was the boys’ first competitive match together and what a way to start their Cup campaign!It was a nail-biting game seeing the score tied at 2-2 at full-time, both of the Dorchester goals coming from Teddy, with the boys heading into penalties to decide who w...
Read more
21 Nov 2024
Girls’ Fulham Foundation Cup ​​​​​​​
It’s always a lovely opportunity for our children to be able to play at an event hosted by Fulham and use the Premiership level indoor facilities at their training ground.The Foundation Cup sees schools from a wide area come together to compete for the title and also the opportunity to rep...
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Friends of Dorchester School

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Christmas Fair and Christmas Raffle

SAVE THE DATE: Saturday 7th December we will be having our Christmas Fair. Please pop by & be sure to spread the word with friends & family, the more, the merrier. Our raffle is now live & we have some fantastic prizes up for grabs, like two cash prizes of £100 courtesy of KWP – Kevin Williams Peare & Sons Ltd. For your chance to win, enter now via the following link. Good luck everyone!

https://www.peoplesfundraising.com/raffle/FODS-Big-Christmas-Raffle-2024?fbclid=IwY2xjawGkHVBleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHRV5cQtKMzSOoBSn3SPBLQf0W0YkecemCS0ujTsGcPJO0a5XNTx1wV7vWw_aem_DoEwrDibD_5FZ4wuK2pgGA 

If you, or anyone you know, has a business which would like to donate a raffle prize, please don’t hesitate to contact us at dorchesterpta@gmail.com. Thank you. We would also be very grateful for any donations of Christmas decorations. Thank you.

Did you miss the deadline for Christmas Cards/Gifts with your child's design on them?

We have some fantastic news; we have been able to re-open the Christmas/Celebration shop for a limited time. If you missed out the first time or would like to order more, please place your orders by 11.30am on Saturday 23rd November. Orders will be delivered to school, and we will notify you all once they have arrived. Thank you for your orders. Please see poster for details.

We have until Saturday 30th November to see how much we can raise together with Asda’s cashpot for schools! With your help we've already raised an amazing £264.41 let's see how much more we can raise for the school. Please opt in on your Asda rewards app & select Dorchester Primary School.

We love to hear your feedback & suggestions, please don’t hesitate to contact us at dorchesterpta@gmail.com

More ways you can help us?

- by volunteering at, or even just coming along to, FODS events

- give us money for nothing by signing up for easyfundraising before you do your Christmas shopping.  That means FODS gets money every time you buy something from Amazon, Tesco, Argos , John Lewis and many more major retailers.  It is quick and easy to sign up and if you download the toolbar you don't even have to remember to use it - you will be reminded automatically.  Well worth doing!

 

- join Your School Lottery
Dorchester Primary School is part of this fantastic lottery which has been set up specifically to raise money and make a difference for our children! It's a fantastic way to bring parents, carers, teachers, and the wider community together, in partnership with our school, and at the same time give something back. There are lots of amazing prizes to be won, your support is greatly appreciated, and we wish you good luck! To sign up or find out more information, please visit the website via this link: https://www.yourschoollottery.co.uk/lottery/school/dorchester-primary-school?fbclid=IwAR2UqkYQ4Yf79s9ZZul-tgcgLtJp9McVlXXqWutUrjklVom85O1EppaUonM

- If you aren’t already, please follow us on Facebook where we keep you up to date on all things FODS! Find us at: Friends Of Dorchester School PTA

Learning Highlights

& Peek of the Week

22 Nov 2024
Nursery: How can you decorate for Diwali?
This week in Nursery, we have been learning about the festival of Diwali and how it is celebrated. We have learnt that Diwali is the festival of light and the children have enjoyed decorating Nursery with lots of battery-operated candles. The children have also experimented to make their own salt do...
Read more
21 Nov 2024
Reception: Can you retell the story of Rama and Sita?
Thi week the children from Reception have been learning about Diwali and the story behind why Hindus celebrate by lighting Diva lamps. They have listened to the story and interpreted some of the main characters and settings in Drawing Club. They rounded the week off with a fabulous Sparkle Party, ar...
Read more
20 Nov 2024
Year 1: What countries and capital cities make up the UK?
Our highlight of the week was our discussion about bedtime routines and when we acted out what a good routine looks like.
Read more
20 Nov 2024
Year 2: Who was Florence Nightingale, and why was she significant?
Ahead of our trip next week, Year 2 were introduced to Florence Nightingale. In the classroom, we acted out what hospitals would have been like before Florence Nightingale. The children were very concerned over the lack of bandages, cleanliness and staff to help out (Miss Bromley and Miss Flint were...
Read more
20 Nov 2024
Year 3: What physical features of Spain, Italy and Sweden can you recall?
This week in Year 3 we have all been working really hard to show off our learning so far! We have recapped our Maths knowledge and have practised our reading skills through our booklet week.  In Science, we looked at Friction and began to see how it impacts the speed of a car - a fun practical...
Read more
20 Nov 2024
Year 4 - What happens when a volcano erupt?
This week we have been showing off some of the best learning so far this year through our booklets. The highlight of the week was 'visiting' volcanoes using the VR headsets to look at how a volcano erupts. At least this way we don't get our toes burned! We have also finished making...
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19 Nov 2024
Year 5: What are the countries in North America, and where are they located?
This week the children have worked very hard completing assessment booklets in class. They also met their 'Little Friends' from Reception for the first time. This is a relationship we hope to nuture over the next year and into the Year 5 children's last year of Primary School. We we...
Read more
20 Nov 2024
How did your group decide to classify (sort) the images?
In Science this week, Year 6 have been looking at Classification of plants. They were tasked with classifying images of plants according to their own criteria, in groups. We then discussed the various different ways of doing this, which led us to the conclusion that there needed to be one agreed sys...
Read more

Safeguarding and Pastoral Care

What is inappropriate content?

Guidance to adult content impacting kids

Find out about different types of inappropriate content your child might see across the platforms and apps they use.

4 things to know about inappropriate content

What it looks like

Inappropriate content includes information, images or material that’s directed at adults. This might also include inaccurate information or information that might lead or tempt your child into unlawful or dangerous behaviour.

It can take many shapes, and impacts on wellbeing depend on each child.

A child might send inappropriate content

Young people sometimes send inappropriate content to others. While it’s essential to agree an action plan for how your child should respond, there are also guides to support children affected by child-on-child abuse and what action parents should take.

Things that increase risk of exposure

There are a few things that could increase the chance of your child accessing inappropriate content. These might include:

  • Joining social networks before reaching the minimum age, which is normally 13 or older.
  • Unsupervised access to the internet in private rather than in common spaces at home.
  • Playing games and using apps which are not appropriate for their age or development.
  • Streaming content which might show inappropriate material or taking part in livestreams and unconsciously being exploited.
  • Limited parental controls to restrict access.

You can check if content is suitable

Pan European Game Information (PEGI) informs consumers in the UK and mainland Europe about video game ratings. You can use these to check whether games are suitable for your child. https://pegi.info/ 

Other media such as films, content on streaming services and social media platforms have their own systems of ratings as well, but https://www.commonsensemedia.org/ is also extremely useful for honest reviews.

However, the best thing you can do is review content your child wishes to access or set up parental controls to limit access to inappropriate content.

Are you worried about a child?
https://www.nspcc.org.uk/what-is-child-abuse/spotting-signs-child-abuse/

If you think a child could be at risk of significant harm, you can call the children's social care team at the council in Sutton (Go to their website)

020 8770 6001 (Monday to Friday, 9am and 5pm)     020 8770 5000 (out of hours)

Always call 999 in an emergency

Lunch Menu

Our autumn menus are available here. 

Upcoming Events

To view the school calendar click here.

Hamper Donations for Christmas Fair - Non Uniform Day
All Day
22
November
Sapphire Class Assembly
8:55am – 9:25am
22
November
EYFS Sparkle Party
2:00pm – 3:00pm
22
November
Years 1-3 Disco
3:15pm – 4:45pm
22
November
Years 4-6 Disco
5:00pm – 6:30pm
22
November
Drop off Christmas Jumpers for Christmas Jumper Swap
All Day
From 25 Nov until 29 Nov
25
November
Boo Theatre Drama Showcase for Parents
4:00pm – 4:30pm
25
November
Boo Theatre Musical Theatre Showcase for Parents
4:00pm – 4:30pm
27
November
Open Evening for Prospective Parents
7:00pm – 9:00pm
28
November
Emerald Class Assembly
8:55am – 9:25am
29
November
Year 2 Discover Christmas Workshop
9:00am – 11:30am
02
December
Eco Club Christmas Jumper Swap
3:15pm – 4:15pm
05
December
FODS Christmas Fair
All Day
07
December
Yippy's Christmas Raffle Ticket Sales
All Day
From 09 Dec until 13 Dec
09
December
Save the Children Christmas Jumper Day
All Day
12
December