Headteacher
Welcome to our Catholic school community which is glad to serve the richly diverse community of Milton Keynes.
Our Mission Statement is ‘Let Trust, Respect and Love live here’ and we aim to live out our faith in that mission each day. We work in close partnership with our families, our Parish and the wider community to provide opportunities for our children to enjoy themselves and succeed.
We are a friendly, caring school with high aspirations for all our pupils spiritually, academically, socially and in sport. We aim to provide a calm yet purposeful environment where consideration for others is shown by all, where everyone is valued and where success is celebrated.
We currently have spaces available in all year groups, including our Nursery, so please get in touch if you are looking for a school place.
I hope you enjoy finding out more about our school community from this website. If you would like any further information on us, please do not hesitate to call us and arrange a visit to the school.
In the meantime, you may wish to look at our most recent newsletters at https://st-monicas.co.uk/news-and-events/parent-newsletters/
For general enquiries, please contact me on stmonicas@st-monicas.co.uk and, for any queries around Special Educational Needs, please contact Natalie Shanahan on stmonicas@st-monicas.co.uk
Kind regards,
Robert O’Malley
Headteacher
Remote education teaching at St Monica’s: Information for parents and families
This information is about what to expect from remote education from our school if national or local restrictions require entire year groups (or bubbles) to remain at home.
For details of what to expect where individual pupils are self-isolating, please see the final section of this document.
Much of our remote learning for children in Year 1 and above will be accessed by your children via Google Classroom, including Google Meet, a live online video meeting function.
For general information on the school’s use of Google Classroom, please see https://st-monicas.co.uk/information/google-classroom/
For a video of how to log onto Google Classroom, please see https://youtu.be/_oSUN_2MVnw
For a video of how to use Google Classroom, please see https://youtu.be/uQEQr6IZd7I
If you have any questions on your child’s learning, please email their teacher or email our school email address at stmonicas@st-monicas.co.uk
Will my child be taught broadly the same curriculum as they would if they were in school?
We teach the same curriculum remotely as we do in school wherever possible and appropriate.
However, we have needed to make some adaptations in some subjects and for some ages of children. For example, in Nursery and Reception, where work would have been done ‘hands on’ in school, we try to adapt this to remote education where we can. For example, in Maths, we encourage the youngest children to use objects such as food and toys from home to assist their learning when using the videos and completing tasks.
While we will follow the curriculum that would be taught in school as closely as possible, changes and considerations will be made based on the access children may have to particular resources at home. For example, Science lessons may be based more on modelling online rather than children completing experiments and, in History, there may be less use of real artefacts for children to investigate.
Children will be able to access IT programs they would usually use in school besides Google Classroom e.g. Purple Mash (our IT curriculum program), Times Table Rockstars, Numbots (for younger children) and, for Year 2 upwards, Accelerated Reader and MyON (our online library).
We will supply the children and adults with as much information as we can to help them understand the curriculum at home.
Remote teaching and study time each day
How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?
Nursery – We expect the remote learning for Nursery aged children to be completed at their own pace and at their own level of interest and engagement.
Reception and Year 1 – Children will receive am English and Maths lesson every day. The lesson inputs from the teachers are around 10-15 minutes long and model the learning which the children will then do themselves. In some of the videos, the children will be required to work alongside the teacher, and in other videos there will be a task set at the end of the video for the children to complete. The children also have a handwriting session which is around 10-15 minutes a day. Reception and Year 1’s video YouTube channel is at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfp8xKH5kgTx7JOTpsfuVSw/featured
For other year groups, we expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) will take pupils broadly the following number of hours each day:
Key Stage 1 (Year 2) should aim to spend at least 3 hours a day doing school work
Key Stage 2 (Years 3 to 6) should aim to spend 4 hours a day on their school work.
Specific information on those year groups includes:-
Year 1 – children should complete a morning check in, Phonics, English, Maths and one other lesson each day.
Year 2 – children will have Phonics, English, Maths and one other lesson each day. Year 2’s video YouTube channel is at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnJ9wVVBuIEhtG8ahgZVzcw
Year 3 – children will have English, Maths and one other lesson set each day. There will also be essential work around spelling, handwriting, reading practice and times tables which will often include the use of interactive websites.
Year 4 – children are allocated a minimum of three subjects a day and there are open ended extension activities, including around independent research.
Year 5 – There will be Maths and English every day and also the following subjects each week:- Monday- Music, Tuesday – RE, Wednesday – Science, Thursday – Computing, Friday – Art. In addition, there will be 30 minutes independent reading as well as spelling practice, PE and French. Please can children complete their Reading logs.
Year 6 – A minimum of three lessons a day (two of which will be English and Maths).
We are also MyOn which is a virtual library of 6,000 books linked to Accelerated Reader. We have provided log on details to your child and please email your child’s class teacher if you need a reminder.
Accessing remote education
How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?
Nursery – Children will receive their remote learning via email. There will be links to Youtube videos, suggested useful websites, Powerpoints, shared stories and songs and Tapestry, the online sharing platform.
Reception and Year 1– All videos will be uploaded onto our Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfp8xKH5kgTx7JOTpsfuVSw/featured – the link for each will be sent home to parents via email. All tasks that are set are also attached to the email, as well as being set on Google Classroom so the parents have a choice of how to access the material. Tapestry is also available as usual to parents to load pictures/videos of the children. Every week, the children will have a weekly circle time via Google Meet.
Years 2 to 6 – Google Classroom is the main platform we will use.
Work may be set there from a variety of points, including:-
Oxford Owl Reading for younger children.
Purple Mash for Computing, Accelerate Reader and MyOn for Reading, TT RockStars for times tables (please contact your child’s teachers if you do not have passwords for these platforms for your child).
Videos using Google Drive, Loom, White Rose Hub (for Maths), BBC Bitesize and others.
We recommend the use of https://www.thenational.academy/, a national learning resource with excellent lessons for children of all school ages.
If my child does not have digital or online access at home, how will you support them to access remote education?
We recognise that some pupils may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those pupils to access remote education:
We have a number of devices (e.g. laptops) which we are lending to families where children do not have access to a suitable device to access their work. We respond to requests from parents and also contact families where there has been limited communication from their child via a device.
If you need any support with this, please email stmonicas@st-monicas.co.uk
We provide paper copies of work and other physical resources to children whom we believe will benefit from that, including due to their learning needs or due to access to the internet issues. If your child would benefit from that, please email your child’s class teacher. This can include delivery to home of these resources and telephone support from teaching staff.
How will my child be taught remotely?
We use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely:
Some examples of remote teaching approaches are:
Specific additional information on those year groups includes:-
Nursery – Online teaching approaches include live teaching (online lessons), recorded teaching (e.g., video/audio recordings made by teachers), textbooks and reading books pupils have at home and commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips or sequences.
Reception and Year 1– Children receive Literacy and Maths work as set for their group as usual.
Each day, a Literacy and Maths video will be set along with a handwriting video for the children to complete. In the video, the learning and activity are modelled and demonstrated to the children. The children are encouraged to work alongside the videos and then there will often be a task for the children to complete after the video.
Each day, the children will receive a targeted Phonics lesson. A different video is sent, ensuring the children are making the relevant progress. In Literacy lessons, learning will also be linked as closely to Phonics as possible.
The handwriting video will be delivered in the same format as it would be in school and encourages ‘my turn, your turn.’
Children will be invited to a small group session where they take part in a circle time with some of their peers.
The children also have an activity learning grid set, which includes a variety of different learning activities the children can be completing when they have finished their tasks for the day. The activities set aim to get the children moving and outside, and are on the whole practical or creative tasks.
Years 2 to 6 – Teaching approaches include:-
Live lessons and sessions to check in and for children can speak to their teacher/ peers.
Recorded lessons including teacher recorded, White Rose Hub, BBC Bitesize, Oak Academy, YouTube, Purple Mash, Hit the Button (Maths), Powerpoint, Loom, MyON (once available)
Printed paper packs produced by teachers (for those children who need support in accessing learning online and have been spoken to by the class teacher).
Engagement and feedback
What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?
Nursery – Parents are encouraged to share any progress and completed activities via email or Tapestry.
Reception and Year 1 – Children should access the videos and complete their tasks at each day. Parents have three different ways of communicating with the teacher which are emails, Google Classroom and, for Reception children, Tapestry. We encourage communication with the teacher on a regular basis.
Years 2 to 6 –
Children are expected to access Google classroom each day.
Children can submit their work in the following ways:-
Parents should communicate with teachers regarding how your child is coping with tasks set so that support can be given as necessary.
In order for Google Meet lessons to be successful, we ask:
How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?
Nursery – Teachers will check and respond to evidence of children’s learning and will ‘check in’ with children during the Gmeet. A weekly phone call will be made, particularly to those with whom we have had little contact over the week.
Reception and Year 1 – Each day, any work submitted will be checked and marked. Feedback will be given through the method of communication chosen by the parents If there are concerns about a child’s lack of engagement or progress, the teacher will contact the parent directly to offer further support and advice.
Years 2 to 6 – We are monitoring Google Classroom daily to see who is accessing work as we mark and feedback to work daily. Please can children check their ‘turned in’ (submitted) work for that marking? We are also monitoring attendance at Google Meets.
If engagement becomes a concern, the class teacher will contact parents via an email and then a phone call to discuss barriers and what support can be offered.
We will have weekly contact with those parents whose children are working from printed/physical resources.
Where engagement remains a concern, the Deputy Headteacher and Headteacher will contact the child’s family regarding any barriers to work being completed.
How will you assess my child’s work and progress?
Feedback can take many forms and may not always mean extensive written comments for individual children. For example, whole-class feedback or quizzes marked automatically via digital platforms are also valid and effective methods, amongst many others. Our approach to feeding back on pupil work is as follows:
Nursery – Teachers will respond to emails and provide feedback via Tapestry.
Reception and Year 1 – Pupils will receive feedback on their work by the end of each working day.
Year 2 to Year 6 – We will use a variety of means of feedback, including:
Children who have submitted work by Google Classroom will be given feedback via private comments. The children can access these comments by clicking back on that particular piece of work.
Google Classroom live stream and/or Google Meets will be used to offer feedback to the whole class and/or smaller groups, including to address misconceptions/errors.
Emails will be sent to parents with additional feedback if necessary. This may include supportive advice or positive feedback.
A grade / score may be given for each pieces of work where applicable and this can include the awarding of Dojo points.
Additional support for pupils with particular needs
How will you work with me to help my child who needs additional support from adults at home to access remote education?
We recognise that some pupils, for example some pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), may not be able to access remote education without support from adults at home. We acknowledge the difficulties this may place on families, and we will work with parents and families to support those pupils in the following ways:
Nursery – Children with SEND will be offered an ‘at home pack’ of resources if they wish to have one.
Reception and Year 1 – Home learning packs are provided to children who are unable to access the remote learning provision. The learning within these packs relate to the tasks the children are working on in school and any targets they may be working on as part of a support plan.
Personalised meetings using Gmeet are also set up on a weekly basis to ensure constant communication and familiarity with staff for the children.
Year 2 to Year 6 – Measures of provision will include:-
Work is differentiated (planned for the needs of individual children) as it would be in school.
Videos will be sent to explain learning activities and model work expectations. This enables them to be played for the child more than once to help build their confidence with new skills and knowledge, including in Phonics.
We have small group and 1:1 meetings with teachers as well as teaching assistants.
We will phone families to discuss progress.
We will send home personalised work packs and supply resources to ensure they are able to access this.
We will do socially distanced door step visits, including to drop off work for some children.
If you need any help with this, please email your child’s class teacher or contact the school at stmonicas@st-monicas.co.uk
Remote education for self-isolating pupils
Where individual pupils need to self-isolate but the majority of their peer group remains in school, how remote education is provided will likely differ from the approach for whole groups. This is due to the challenges of teaching pupils both at home and in school. If my child is not in school because they are self-isolating, how will their remote education differ from the approaches described above?
Nursery – Any child self- isolating will receive the same amount of input and a range of suggested activities that they would have received for remote learning. Communication with parents will remain open via email, we can liaise with parents and try to provide resources that would be beneficial to the child.
Reception and Year 1 – The children will receive the same work that is being given to the children in school, with detailed instructions for parents on how to complete.
They will be sent the same lessons that the children are completing in school and will be following the same curriculum.
Years 2 to 6 – Provision and remote learning will be as set out in the rest of this document above for children who have to isolate while the rest of the school is open.
Thanks for your interest in our school. Please see the virtual tour attached at this link and please feel free to contact us on 01908 606966 or smonicas@st-monicas.co.uk to organise a visit to the school.
We have collated a range of educational websites for your children to use during school closures. There is no expectation for children to use any of these but you may find some of them useful.
Milton Keynes have collated an information pack that includes details of services available to parents and families within Milton Keynes who may be struggling with the effects of Covid-19 or any other aspects of family life.
