Remote Learning at Wymondley

The Department for Education has launched an information site for parents, to support children of all age ranges and abilities catch up on lost learning from the pandemic. The site features advice and support for parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), as well as programmes, resources and activities for children and young people this summer (2021).

Our Remote Learning is delivered mainly through the Google Classroom, or Tapestry if your child is in Reception. We ask that for each day of school closure or self-isolation that your child logs in to the relevant platform to view their remote learning timetable and to access their learning tasks for the day. Your child's remote learning will involve use of Reading Eggs, Doodle Maths, and Spelling Shed appropriate for their year group.

In the event of school closure, weekly Year group Google Meets will once again be hosted by Mr Plunkett every week for every child to attend if they so wish. Timings will again be posted on your child's Google Classroom page. As a school we will once again be in contact with the parents of our vulnerable children and maintain contact on a regular basis. Class teachers will, once again, be contactable through your child's Google Classroom page to assist with any remote learning questions or queries. We will be happy to assist with any other questions you have and will be contactable through the school office at admin@wymondley.herts.sch.uk. 

Reminders about your child's login details for any of these platforms can be obtained by emailing the school office and paper copies of all printable tasks can be requested through emailing the school office as well. Where a task is not printable, we will source an alternative piece of work that can be printed and let you know when it is ready to be collected from the school site.

Further and more generalised home learning resources, in addition to our specific platforms, are also available the Oak National Academy, Invicta National Academy and BBC Bitesize.

Further information on our school remote learning offer can be found in our Remote Learning Policy and further information for parents regarding our remote education offer can be found by clicking here.

World Book Day 2021!

Welcome to the Wymondley Masked Reader!

All of the books below are fantastic books, but which member of staff is reading each one? Are you up to the challenge of finding out? Good luck everyone and happy World Book Day 2021!!

We would like to thank...

• Orchard Books for allowing permission for allowing the readings of The Lion Inside
• Harper Collins Children's Books for allowing permission for the reading of Fing
• Macmilan Children's Books for allowing permission for the reading of Cake and Supertato
• Simon & Schuster Childre's UK for allowing permission for the reading of Dinosaurs Love Underpants
• Meadowside Children's Books for allowing permission for the reading of Munch
• Alison Green Books for allowing permission for the reading of The Highway Rat

Storytime at Wymondley

We hope you all enjoy the staff readings of the books below and that they prove useful to you through this latest school lockdown. These stories are available for all school children to enjoy again and again and can be accessed through their school @wymondley.herts.sch.uk email address.

We would like to thank...

• Collins/Harper-Collins Children's Books for allowing permission for allowing the readings of The Day the Crayons Quit and The Day the Crayons Came Home
• Macmillan Children's Books for allowing permission for the reading of Stickman
• Simon and Schuster UK for allowing permission for the reading of Bear Snores On
• Lerner Publishing Group for allowing permission for the reading of Munch

Further Information to Support Remote Learning

The following information was produced in April 2020 by the Children's Commisioner and will, I am sure, be relevant to you in the event of any further national or local lockdowns or in periods of self-isolation...

Digital 5 a day: practical steps to achieve a healthy and balanced digital diet while socially isolating

With children now staying at home to protect themselves and others from coronavirus, digital technology is playing a bigger role than ever before in helping them to learn, play, and stay connected to each other and family members. Our digital 5 a day guide is a useful framework to help children get the most from their time online and balance digital activity with overall wellbeing. It’s also a tool that parents, carers and others working with young people can use to guide, support and maintain a dialogue about time spent online during social isolation.

Connect: use the internet to stay connected to friends and family members, and to socialise safely online

Phones, tablets and social media can make staying connected to friends and family members an easy, fun and positive experience during this time. It’s important to make sure children are only connecting online with people they already know, in a safe and secure way. We’ve put together a digital safety and wellbeing kit in collaboration with leading privacy law firm Schillings to help children stay safe online, containing advice on video calling, browsers, usernames and passwords, and apps.

Be active: make use of online resources to get moving and boost emotional wellbeing

Activity is very important for mental wellbeing, and it’s essential to balance time spent online with time offline. Encourage children to take regular screen breaks, and to get outside once a day for some exercise or a walk nearby in line with current government guidelines.

Staying at home for most of the day has the obvious disadvantage of not being able to get enough exercise, but right now the internet is providing some fantastic opportunities to get children active and moving. The Body Coach Joe Wicks is streaming daily PE lessons on his YouTube channel, Cosmic Kids Yoga share yoga and mindfulness sessions for children aged three and up, and NHS Change 4 Life has a range of Disney-inspired indoor games and activities designed to get children moving indoors.

Get creative: use digital tools to learn, build new skills, and discover new passions

The internet provides children with unlimited opportunities to learn and to be creative. From learning to code to building complex structures in Minecraft to creating video content, there are endless opportunities for children to build their digital skills. Time spent online doesn’t have to be spent passively consuming content. It can be educational, creative and can provide opportunities to build skills for later life. We’ve put together a list of free educational resources, audiobooks, and e-books to help keep children busy, active, and learning online.

Give to others: stay positive and support others throughout the digital day

Encouraging children to give positive feedback and support to friends and family members as well as report any negative behaviour they come across is a powerful way of demonstrating what a helpful and inclusive place the internet can be, especially during periods of social isolation.

Children can also play a role in helping to make the internet a better place for everyone right now by reporting and not sharing fake news. News about coronavirus changes every day, and it’s really important that children know how to spot fake news, so they stay informed about what is really happening, and don’t become scared or frightened by something which isn’t real. We’ve pulled together some tips for young people on how to spot fake news.

Be mindful

We hear that children often feel pressured by the constantly connected nature of the internet. Being mindful about the increased amount of time that children are spending online at the moment – and encouraging them to be mindful about how this makes them feel – is important. Encourage children to come up with ways of managing their time online, for example downloading an app that helps them manage their notifications. Be ready to listen to any concerns they have and use this guide to maintain a dialogue with them. If they’re feeling worried by coronavirus, we’ve created a children’s guide to the virus to help explain the situation.

Further Optional Remote Learning Resources

The resources below were used in different ways by different classes through school closure in the summer of 2020 and may be of use to you as additional resources through any further school closures or periods of self-isolation...