Caring Curious Courageous

Enabling all children to learn and grow

Dear Families,

I hope you had a wonderful break and, for those who celebrated, enjoyed all the festivities that this time of year brings.

As always, the children have returned to school with great enthusiasm, and we have jumped straight back into the curriculum from day one. We also held our first family workshop of 2025 on "How we use assessment at The Vineyard," which was well attended. Please refer to the significant dates document here for upcoming events.

Next Week:

• 20.01.2025 - Rainbow Monday (aka 'Yes' Day) – See the PTA section for more details
• 22.01.2025 at 2:45 PM – Reading Workshop (All families are invited)
• 22.01.2025 at 3:15 PM – Open Classrooms (All families are invited to view their children's books)

Please find the slides from the Online Safety workshop that was held in December here. I recommend everyone takes some time to look through them as they have a lot of information about how you can support your children at home.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Warm regards,
Frances

Frances Bracegirdle

Headteacher - headteacher@vineyard.richmond.sch.uk

International Day – afternoon of Friday 31^st of January – we need your support!

International Day at The Vineyard will take place on Friday, January 31st, in the afternoon from 1-3pm. This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the diversity within our community, and it’s made even more special by the involvement of our parents and carers. We are open to any ideas you may have, and if you’re unable to come in person but would still like to contribute, we also welcome slide shows, special objects, posters, and more to share with the children. To help make the day a success, we encourage all families to contact their parent rep and let them know if they can participate. The event thrives on the support and effort of our community, and the children absolutely love when parents come into school to share their knowledge and experiences. In the afternoon, we’ll have a carousel of activities run by parent volunteers, such as learning a special song, cooking, dancing, and creating art. Your involvement will help make this day truly memorable for the children! Please contact your parent rep with the activity you would like to run by Monday 20^th at the latest.

Many thanks,

Steph Sanchez – Racial Justice Lead

Smartphone Free Childhood

Smartphone Free Childhood (SFC) is a grassroots movement of parents that's sprung up across the UK around the shared belief that childhood’s too short to be spent on a smartphone.

The Vineyard's own SFC group is delighted to invite you to a Parent Presentation taking place in the hall after drop-off on Thursday 30th January (09:00-10:00). Our guest speakers will deliver an engaging and thought-provoking presentation, followed by an interactive discussion. Everyone wants to do the best for their children and the aim of this session is to empower parents through talking not telling.

A change of norm is required so that parents/carers don't feel pressured to hand their children smartphones just because everyone else does. Technology is an integral part of the world now and children need to learn how to use it. However, a growing number of parents/carers feel that young children aren’t well equipped to have a healthy relationship with technology that's addictive by design. It’s hard enough for us adults!

Photography Competition For Our Young Geographers!

We would like to invite our children to take part in a local area photography competition! The children can take a picture of their favourite place, thing or feature of Richmond (they can also be in their pictures!) and the best ones will be put on our local area display board in school. The children can bring in printed pictures or email them to eyfs@vineyard.richmond.sch.uk. I can't wait to see your amazing and interesting photos. The deadline for entries is Friday 14th February. 

Yvette Gibson, Geography Lead 

Reminder: The Vineyard SEND Coffee Morning on Wednesday 29^th January at 9am

On Wednesday 29^th January at 9.00-9.30am, Mrs Qualter and Miss Jackson, our school SENcos, are hosting a coffee morning in the library at The Vineyard School. This is a great opportunity to meet the Inclusion Team and find out how you can access their support as well as to meet other parents. We look forward to seeing you there!

School Uniform Updates

• PE/Club Days: Only sports trainers are to be worn (below ankle height)
• Hair: All hair longer than shoulder length must be tied up for both boys and girls.
• Jewellery, Makeup, and Nail Varnish: Only small stud earrings are permitted. Makeup and nail varnish are not allowed.
• Shoes: Black, well-fitted ankle-height boots are now allowed. Please note that black Uggs and fashion boots are NOT allowed. See these examples for what is suitable:

On PE or club days, the children should wear sports trainers only.

Thank you for your support in helping ensure all students look smart and are prepared for their school day.

Y6 Writer Shortlisted for Richmond Young Writers' Competition 

There was one email in the new year flurry of messages to the school office that contained very exciting news for a Year 6 pupil: Alex Bamber in Y6 has had his poetry submission shortlisted for a prize from 736 entries! 

Alex will hear the judges' final verdict at a gala celebration of the work on 23rd March where all finalists' pieces will be bought to life by actors. 

The winners will be announced by author Anthony Horowitz and Richmond's mayor. Best of luck to Alex! Well done and thank you to all who submitted entries from The Vineyard. 

Here is an extract from Alex's fantastic poem: 

A message from Lazer Lions

Bookings for February half-term Lion Pack holiday club are now open and can be accessed using this link

We will have special guests visiting us every day.