This is the latest school news! Also check on your year group page and parents letters

• Open morning/afternoon for New Parents to Reception 2024

  Fri 06 Oct 2023

  We are a unique setting where we deliver a creative curriculum this includes forest school, woodwork, sewing and cookery sessions. If you would like to come and see us please book onto one of our open days.

   

  Friday 20th October 10.30am and 2pm

  Tuesday 7th November 2pm

  Wednesday 8th November 10.30am

  Tuesday 14th November 5pm

  Friday 17th November 10.30am and 2pm

   

  contact us via the school office 01543 278620 to book onto a tour. 

   

  

• Sports Event at Burntwood Leisure Centre

  Wed 04 Oct 2023

  Last weeks sports event at Burntwood Leisure Centre called "Target Run". The children loved working together as a team hitting various targets using Nerf darts and archery arrows. Great fun was had by all. Well Done to all the children who were a credit to Holly Grove. 

  

• Halloween Orders

  Wed 04 Oct 2023

  Thursday 5th October is the last day to send in Halloween orders please. If they can be in by the morning register - either hand to staff on gates or remind children to give to their teacher at registration. Thank you.

• Children travelling in cars - SEATBELTS

  Tue 04 Jul 2023

  Although the majority of motorists wear a seat belt for every trip, more than 800 people were found not to be wearing one in Staffordshire in 2022.

  Some of these offences related to children, so we’re reaching out to schools and parents as it’s the legal responsibility of the driver to make sure any child travelling in their vehicle is suitably restrained in a child seat or using a seat belt.

  Children must use a child car seat and applicable restraint until they’re 12-years-old or 135 centimetres tall, whichever comes first. They must then wear a seat belt.

   

  You can learn more about which child seat to use for the height, weight and age of a child here: https://www.staffordshire.police.uk/SysSiteAssets/media/downloads/staffordshire/campaigns/op-lightning/child-car-seat-leaflet.pdf

• No Rules Day!

  Fri 26 May 2023

  We had a super no rules day today! We had 2 dancing dinosaurs, lots of children with coloured hair and tattoos! Even the staff were included in the fun with a special assembly where the staff were given Torch awards!! Thank you to everyone who took part. 

   

   

  

• British Science Week

  Mon 24 Apr 2023

  British Science Week

  Last half term we have celebrated British Science week and the theme for this year was 'Connections'.
  
  We advertised a poster competition from the British Science Association where children could be creative as they wanted to convey the theme ‘connections’.

  Corey in Year 5 and 6 has created a detailed and thoughtful poster about the life cycle of a butterfly!

  Molly in Year 1/2 has created a beautiful poster about an Ocean food chain which fits perfectly with our Ocean topic in Year 1 and 2. She has used lots of different types of resources to create a bright, bold and colourful poster.

  To kickstart the week, we sent a Science challenge for everyone to try at home!
  
  The activity is called ‘ Racing Rockets’ and you will need to design a rocket that will travel the furthest by investigating different rocket shapes!

  Thank you to Shenae Knox, Joseph Hibberd and Evie Marson for taking part in this Science challenge!

   

   

  Nursery and Reception

  As part of Science week Nursery and Reception went bug hunting as well as making porridge last week as part of our Three Bears Topic.

  Year 1/2

  Why do some materials float and others sink? We made a  bottle with a straw driver using a straw and paper clip.

  We squeezed the bottle to observe what happened to our diver. The diver sank when the bottle was squeezed as there was more pressure in the bottle.

   

  Year 3 and 4

  Year 3 and 4 have been looking at the patterns in fingerprints and also, they made and tested parachutes to see which materials was the best.

   

  Year 5 and 6

  Year 5 have been investigating forces as part of their Science week. They have been dropping different weights of balls into the sand to observe the force that they create. Also, they made and tested parachutes to see which materials was the best.

  

• KS2 Survey Online Habits Report

  Tue 07 Mar 2023

  The KS2 Online Digital Trend Report on the habits of the children in KS2 when they are online. This has been emailed to all parents/carers in the school. It can also be found on the Online Safety page of the website. 

   

  Please note: there are links to free online training for parents from Kidscape which can help to educate parents more on keeping children safe on line. 

   

  thank you 

• Staying Safe online when broadcasting to an audience

  Mon 27 Feb 2023

  Livestreaming is when an individual or a group of people broadcast themselves or others to an audience online in real-time. Many social media platforms offer a livestreaming feature that is available to anyone but often used by gamers, celebrities or influencers to communicate with a chosen audience. Livestreaming can be an enjoyable way to share content with followers but can also present risks around privacy and coercion as well as potential harm towards those watching.

   

  Lots of information on this link to help you understand and keep your children safe online 

  https://saferinternet.org.uk/online-issue/livestreaming-2

   

  Also some great social media checklists available - to guide you how to make sure safeguarding settings are on your/your child's accounts 

   

  https://swgfl.org.uk/resources/checklists/

   

   

• Outcome of the EDA admissions consultation

  Fri 17 Feb 2023

  OVERVIEW SUMMARY OF CONSULTATION RESPONSES
   

  In Favour of the Proposed Changes
  
  We had emails and face-to-face conversations from parents and local residents who agreed with the proposed changes. The main reasons for their agreement are summarised below:

  • The named primary schools are now, in law, part of the same educational organisation as Erasmus Darwin Academy; Primitas Learning Partnership. This means that the pupils and staff of all these schools will work together in increasingly close and collaborative ways, in order to improve educational provision. Therefore, pupils of the named primary schools will increasingly feel that they are part of a close-knit family of schools which includes Erasmus Darwin Academy. When all this is considered, it seems morally wrong and educationally irrational if pupils were denied access to a secondary school which is part of the same educational organisation as their primary school and which has worked closely with them in their formative years.

   

  Those in favour of the proposed changes also had a clear awareness of the fact that this kind of reasoned selective arrangement is a common feature of Multi Academy Trusts and other educational institutions; it is nothing unusual, unprecedented, or inherently unfair.

   

  In Opposition to the Proposed Changes
  
  Numerically, there were more responses which were not in agreement to the proposed changes.  However, in every single case, the responses (summarised in bold below) were based on misconceptions and inaccuracies which are addressed underneath the responses:
   

  • “Only pupils from the three named primary schools will be admitted to EDA.”
    This is incorrect. EDA will continue to admit pupils from 30+ primary schools. Indeed, in the last five years, EDA has admitted pupils from over 50 primary schools and this broad range of feeder-schools will remain.

  • “The proposed change will turn EDA into a selective school. “
    This is incorrect. Even with these changes applied, EDA will still continue to be an overtly inclusive school i.e Up to its PAN, anyone from any school who wants a place at EDA will still be given a place, no questions asked. It is only when EDA is oversubscribed that the proposed changes would be applied, thus introducing a small element of selection into the admissions process.
  • “It is ridiculous that pupils from the closest school to EDA will be affected.”
    This is a misconception. The distance of a child’s primary school to EDA has no bearing on the chances of that child gaining a place at EDA. The home address of the pupil’s usual place of residence is the key factor. 
  • “The proposed change will cause a disproportionate number of pupils from the three named primary schools to be admitted every year.”

  Based on the most current data that we have, this does not appear to be factual; From the three named primary schools, only 7 additional pupils, who named EDA as their first choice for September 2022, did not gain a place.

  • “The proposed change will block the admission of pupils from St. Joseph and Theresa’s.”

  Based on the most current data that we have, no pupils from St. Joseph and St. Theresa’s would have been displaced/blocked by the 7 additional pupils from the three named primary schools gaining a place.

  • “Pupils who live half-a-mile-away from EDA will not get in, which goes against EDA’s claim of being a school for the local community.”

  Based on 2022 admissions figures, none of the pupils that would have been displaced by these incoming 7 pupils lived half a mile away from the school. They lived at least 1.25miles away.

  • “More pupils from out of the area will be admitted, thus increasing the number of pupils who travel by car and causing congestion and parking problems. “

  There is little or no evidence, based on 2022 data, that there will be a huge influx of pupils from out of the area, who will travel to EDA via car, thus increasing congestion and parking problems. In fact, it is more likely, on the balance of probabilities, that the proposed changes may reduce such problems. This assertion is made for two reasons:

  1. Any pupils from the named schools who gain a place due to the proposed changes are likely to live in the geographically-defined area of Burntwood. Consequently, there is a good chance that they will be able to walk to school and/or share lifts with friends.
  2. There is also a strong likelihood that many of the displaced pupils would be those living in Walsall, travel to school by car via busy main roads like the A5 and who would be very unlikely to walk.

• Online Safety Week

  Mon 06 Feb 2023

  As part of our Online safety week we have sent all parents and carers a leaflet about talking to their children about their online behaviours. 

   

  https://www.internetmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Internet-Matters-Create-Environment-for-Kids-to-Talk-Jan-2023-2.pdf

   

  thank you