English as an Additional Language (EAL)

English as an Additional language (EAL)

 

Introduction:

In England parents and carers have a lot more involvement in school life than you may be used to and we may ask you to fund things like trips and activities, which may be different to what you are used to.

Newsletters are sent out regularly via email and are extremely important as they contain up to date information that you will need and any changes to the normal school routine, along with any dates for your diary.  These newsletters can be printed and a paper copy given to you if this is easier for you, please just let the school office know if this is something that would benefit you.

When your child or children start at Reedings Junior School they will complete a two week ‘New to English’ Course based on Coordinating Group Publications (CGP) English as an Additional Language (EAL) Workbooks 1-3  and will be given a buddy to support them with settling into school.  

Dual language labels will be used where appropriate around the class and texts will be purchased to support their transition.  

After the first two weeks, they will be assessed and put into the appropriate phonics or reading fluency group depending on what is needed.  

On our website https://reedings.herts.sch.uk/ there is a button that can be pressed to translate into a variety of different languages from the dropdown menu.

Please also take advantage of google translate to support translating if needed: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=google+translate . 

Or Reverso, which can be found here: https://www.reverso.net/text-translation 

Also,  https://chat.openai.com/auth/login is also a really good resource to look at.

Abbreviations:

Abbreviation	What it stands for	What it means
PTA	Parent/Teacher Association	A group of volunteer parents and teachers who work together to make their school a better environment for children to learn. They raise extra funds through a wide range of fun and creative initiatives, events, and more.
SENCO	Special Educational Needs CoOrdinator	A teacher who coordinates the provision for children with special educational needs or disabilities in schools.
SEND	Special Educational Needs and or Disabilities	The education of children who require different education provision to the mainstream system.
OPP	One Page Profile	A way of monitoring and setting targets for children with SEND.
PP	Pupil Premium	A grant given by the government to schools in England to decrease the attainment gap for the most disadvantaged children, whether by income or by family upheaval.
TA	Teaching Assistant	A person who assists the teacher in the classroom or supporting small groups of children or individual children.
LEA	Local Education Authority	The local councils responsible for education within their area.
SALT	Speech And Language Therapist	A trained person who gives support for speech and language concerns.
EXS or ARE	EXpected Standard or Age Related Expectations	The level that we hope a child would be working at in a subject.
WTS	Working Towards Standard	Working just below the level we would hope a child would be working at in a subject.
PRE	Working PRE standard	Working a year or more below the level we would hope a child would be working at in a subject.
GDS	Greater Depth Standard	Working above the level we would hope a child would be working at in a subject.
GP	General Practitioner	Doctor, to support medical issues and concerns.

 

Information about school

The school prospectus gives detailed information about school life should you need it a copy can be found on our website here: https://reedings.herts.sch.uk/Prospectus/ 

 

Arbor: Is an online Management Information System which lets you order and pay for your child’s school meals, book parents evening slots, register your child for a club or trip, and manage payments all from one place. You can also use it to check in on your child's attendance and academic progress. 

You need to register for Arbor so the office will send you details of how to do this when your child starts. 

 

Houses:  Each child will be placed in a house when they start school. Siblings will be in the same houses.  The houses are:

 

• Mallards- Green
• Herons - Blue
• Swans - Yellow/white
• Moorhens  Red

 

Terms:  There are 3 Terms in school:

Term 1 runs from the start of September to the end of December and is called Autumn Term.

Term 2 runs from the start of January to April (Easter) and is called Spring Term.

Term 3 runs from April to July and is called Summer Term.

 

Children have 1 week off school in October, 1 week off in February and 1 week off in May - these are called half terms.

Children have 2 weeks off for Christmas, 2 weeks off at Easter and around 6 weeks off for summer.

 

Books and stationary: The school will provide all the books and stationary that the children will need, until year 6 when they can bring in their own choice of pencil case and stationary.

 

Uniform: Children wear uniform to school everyday, unless told otherwise. On PE days, children come to school in their PE kit and wear it all day.

 

Uniform for every day:

 

• White blouse or white shirt 
• Grey skirt, pinafore dress, summer dress, trousers or shorts 
• Royal blue cardigan, sweatshirt or jumper 
• Royal blue fleece (optional – outdoor wear only) 
• Black, grey or white socks 
• Black shoes (completely black trainers are allowed) 

 

Uniform for PE days:

 

• Navy blue or black PE shorts (in winter navy or black tracksuit trousers) 
• A coloured T-shirt representing a house team (red, blue, green, yellow/white) 
• Plimsolls or trainers for PE 
• Long hair should be tied back 
• A school hoodie or school jumper.

 

You can buy uniform from:

 

• Top Form Uniform – www.top-form.co.uk  – 90-91 The Stow, Harlow, Essex, 01279 434813 School Uniform 
• Alternatively, we have second hand uniform available and unclaimed lost property which we wash and donate if required. Please contact the school office for more information, or if you require any support. 

 

For health and safety reasons, children are not allowed to wear any jewellery at school other than watches or small plain stud earrings – which must be removed for PE or covered with a plaster/tape from home.: Please ensure that ALL property belonging to your child is clearly labelled with their name. 

 

Parent’s Evenings or OPP meetings

 

If your child is on the SEND register, the school will inform you. You then will have 3 OPP meetings a year - 1 in the Autumn term, 1 in the Spring term and 1 in the Summer term.  These are 20 minute meetings with the teacher, that you can book through Arbor.

 

If your child does not have SEND, then you will have 2 parents evenings - 1 in the Autumn term and 1 in the Spring term, of 10 minutes with the teacher. You can book a time through Arbor.

 

You are welcome to bring someone with you to these meetings to help you to translate.

 

Every child will also have a written school report emailed home by the end of the school year. 

Special days:

 

Mother’s day: In England Mother’s day is celebrated in March on the fourth Sunday of the Christian festival of Lent.

 

Father’s Day: In England Father’s day is celebrated on the third Sunday in June.

 

Non Uniform days: On these days the children can wear their own clothes to school, usually for a donation to raise money for something.

 

General information:

 

• English people tend to overuse the words ‘please’, ‘sorry’ and ‘thank you,’ so you will hear these a lot.
• English people tend to smile a lot as a way of positive communication. 
• You have to register with a GP in England.
• GP appointments in England are only for around10 minutes at  time, so you may need to book more than 1 appointment if you have a lot to discuss.
• You have to register with a dentist and sometimes the national health service dentists are full and you may need to wait to become registered.