Orchard Primary

The Autumn Term is an exciting one, full of new beginnings. Your child may be joining us for the first time, or moving on to a new phase of their education. Parent Evenings, workshops and PTA events all provide parents with opportunities to engage with the school, and to support and encourage their children. We encourage you to attend these school events, so that you know how your child is doing, and also so that you can support your child’s learning. We are a community of learners, we actively encourage children, staff parents and governors to make the most of all the learning opportunities we provide. This term there will be opportunities for parents to learn more about how to help their children with phonics, reading and maths. Staff are learning about maths mastery, and how best to help children achieve their full potential in maths. There will also be family learning opportunities such as Little Scientist, so look out for these events.

Here at Orchard Primary School we aim for every child to be happy and successful during their time with us and we strive to provide a secure, caring and fun environment in which each child can reach his or her potential. To support their learning the children will enjoy a range of trips including: a residential trip to Norfolk Lakes, The Chocolate Factory, The Ragged School, Florence Nightingale Museum and Tesco. They will also enjoy special days such as the Harry Potter Day, Egyptian Day and Superhero Day. We aim to prepare every child for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life beyond the primary school through a variety of experiences both inside and outside the classroom. All the children will take part in the Careers Aspiration Day, where they will be able to learn about the world of work from a range of visitors – From Police, Scientists, Musicians, to Caterers, and more...
The Orchard PTA organises events for the children and also raises money to support projects in school. This term some exciting events have been planned these include: Skate n Skoot, Christmas photographs and of course the Christmas Disco.

This term we are looking for two Parent Governors. If you would like to be involved with the strategic direction of the school, and you have the time to attend half-termly meetings, please look out for the nomination forms and think about taking part.

We encourage all the children to participate fully in school life, and to this end we are offering over 30 different clubs, the uptake has been excellent and the children are enjoying the variety on offer. Some of our clubs will be showcasing their talents during the term at competitions and events; this includes the Choir, Hockey, Football and Boxing.
We look forward to seeing you at events such as: The Nativity, Carols by Candlelight and our weekly Gold Book assemblies.

We have a twitter account @OrchardSidcup and a Facebook account. The idea is that if we have any alerts or reminders we will use these social media accounts, in addition to the website, so please add or like so that you can keep up to date.
We hope you enjoy looking at our website. If you require any further information, please contact the office.

With very best wishes

Mrs Jo Rowntree
Head Teacher

14 September 2017