Home Learning and Support
Our aim is for every child to continue to access their full timetable in school. There may be some circumstances where children have to work at home. This may be because they are isolating as they have Covid-19 or because we have temporarily had to close a class group due to staff members testing positive or alternatively if we are advised to close a class by public health. We will always strive to keep any disruption to an absolute minimum. From previous occasions where children have worked at home we have found that remote teaching via a digital platform such as Microsoft Teams, Google Meets or Zoom has been difficult for the children to access or they struggle to maintain concentration with online lessons. Therefore, at St Luke's we have put together a home learning plan that will ensure that families who have their children at home (whether it be for 1 day or a slightly longer period) have work that they can complete with their children that is similar to what we are delivering at school and for those children who are spending more time at home that you have a key contact who will support your home learning.
We have also put together a plan of how we will provide further support to families regarding other issues you may be facing. Further details of the support we will provide can be found below.
What home learning will look like
If your child is only due to work at home for a short time or if they are isolating due to having Covid-19 the teacher or a member of the class team will be in touch with you to discuss the work that will be sent home. Work will be provided to complete with your child at an appropriate level. If you child is able to access any online, face to face learning then this will be arranged.
If a whole class has to work at home we will send home a curriculum activities sheet. This will be similar to the weekly activities sheet that we sent out during the first lockdown. These will be class specific sheets and they will relate specifically to the topics your child would be following in school and the learning activities that would be taking place if they were at school. Your child's work will be supplemented with specific English (communication) and Maths (cognition) activities that your child can complete at home.
We will offer a blend of online activities, remote teaching and we can provide work packs that we can send home. Some of the online activities may include recommended online activities on websites or activities on Busy Things (this is a learning platform that we subscribe too). In some cases teachers will recommend that your child accesses online lessons on the Oak National Academy Website or the BBC Bitesize Website.
What other elements of home support will look like
We recognise that having your child at home for an extended length of time may be challenging and we have a system to support families. Class teams will contact parents of children who are not in school at least once a week. We also have a number of other members of staff who are supporting families at home.
If you are having any specific challenges or you feel you need someone to talk to then please do not hesitate to get in touch with school and we can get someone to speak with you.
Key Personnel
Natalie Haslam is our online learning lead. Natalie is the Assistant Headteacher (with responsibility for the Curriculum).
Kay Chappell is the school's communication lead and will support with any communication needs you have whilst your child is at home.
Amy Fowler is an Assistant Headteacher and our EYFS Lead. She will support children and families in the Early Years if they have to work from home.
Pippa Jones (Assistant Headteacher) and Emma Sylvester (Physical and Sensory Lead) will provide work for children in the purple group and they will contact those families directly about what support we will be offering.
Chris Cooper (Deputy Headteacher) and Amy Fowler (Assistant Headteacher, with responsibility for Family Support) will organise the support we give to families during this time.
Jean Grimes and Claire Barker work within our family support team. Many of you will already know them well and they may contact you to see if you need any further support.
If your child is not in school for an extended length of time then we will assign a person who will support you with the home learning. This person will be available to discuss any challenges you are finding with the learning and provide support for specific tasks. I will let you know who the person supporting your child is next week.
Your child's teacher will be providing the English and Maths work.
What to do if you have concerns regarding home learning or support at home
If you have any concerns regarding home learning or support at home then please contact (in the first instance) either your child's teacher or your key support person.
If you feel you need to discuss issues with home learning further then please either contact the key person for your key stage (shown above) or our home learning lead, Natalie Haslam.
If you have any further concerns about the support you receive at home then please contact either Chris Cooper or Amy Fowler.
As always, you are always welcome to contact Alastair Sutherland regarding anything you need.
Please remember that if you have any concerns or if you feel you need someone to talk through any issues you are having that we have a network of people at school who can do their best to help.
We have also put together a plan of how we will provide further support to families regarding other issues you may be facing. Further details of the support we will provide can be found below.
What home learning will look like
If your child is only due to work at home for a short time or if they are isolating due to having Covid-19 the teacher or a member of the class team will be in touch with you to discuss the work that will be sent home. Work will be provided to complete with your child at an appropriate level. If you child is able to access any online, face to face learning then this will be arranged.
If a whole class has to work at home we will send home a curriculum activities sheet. This will be similar to the weekly activities sheet that we sent out during the first lockdown. These will be class specific sheets and they will relate specifically to the topics your child would be following in school and the learning activities that would be taking place if they were at school. Your child's work will be supplemented with specific English (communication) and Maths (cognition) activities that your child can complete at home.
We will offer a blend of online activities, remote teaching and we can provide work packs that we can send home. Some of the online activities may include recommended online activities on websites or activities on Busy Things (this is a learning platform that we subscribe too). In some cases teachers will recommend that your child accesses online lessons on the Oak National Academy Website or the BBC Bitesize Website.
What other elements of home support will look like
We recognise that having your child at home for an extended length of time may be challenging and we have a system to support families. Class teams will contact parents of children who are not in school at least once a week. We also have a number of other members of staff who are supporting families at home.
If you are having any specific challenges or you feel you need someone to talk to then please do not hesitate to get in touch with school and we can get someone to speak with you.
Key Personnel
Natalie Haslam is our online learning lead. Natalie is the Assistant Headteacher (with responsibility for the Curriculum).
Kay Chappell is the school's communication lead and will support with any communication needs you have whilst your child is at home.
Amy Fowler is an Assistant Headteacher and our EYFS Lead. She will support children and families in the Early Years if they have to work from home.
Pippa Jones (Assistant Headteacher) and Emma Sylvester (Physical and Sensory Lead) will provide work for children in the purple group and they will contact those families directly about what support we will be offering.
Chris Cooper (Deputy Headteacher) and Amy Fowler (Assistant Headteacher, with responsibility for Family Support) will organise the support we give to families during this time.
Jean Grimes and Claire Barker work within our family support team. Many of you will already know them well and they may contact you to see if you need any further support.
If your child is not in school for an extended length of time then we will assign a person who will support you with the home learning. This person will be available to discuss any challenges you are finding with the learning and provide support for specific tasks. I will let you know who the person supporting your child is next week.
Your child's teacher will be providing the English and Maths work.
What to do if you have concerns regarding home learning or support at home
If you have any concerns regarding home learning or support at home then please contact (in the first instance) either your child's teacher or your key support person.
If you feel you need to discuss issues with home learning further then please either contact the key person for your key stage (shown above) or our home learning lead, Natalie Haslam.
If you have any further concerns about the support you receive at home then please contact either Chris Cooper or Amy Fowler.
As always, you are always welcome to contact Alastair Sutherland regarding anything you need.
Please remember that if you have any concerns or if you feel you need someone to talk through any issues you are having that we have a network of people at school who can do their best to help.
