New apps for 2-5 year olds to help families kick start learning at home

As part of the governments drive to help parents create positive learning environments at home through the use of technology, Hungry Little Minds has published an approved list of six apps to improve reading, writing and speaking.

It is widely recognised that phones and tablets are now a big part of everyday life for families but it can be hard for parents to know which apps and games can benefit their child's learning as there are so many out there. 

Which is why Hungry Little Minds asked an independent panel of experts to review a host of different apps to determine which have the best educational value. 

The six apps, published on the Hungry Little Minds website, cover activities ranging from interactive story books, handwriting exercises using Artificial Intelligence and educational video games. There are some excellent apps that can be used to support phonics already being taught to school-aged children in the classroom, however it is advised that parents check with the class teacher that the approaches align with the school's teaching methods before using the app at home. 

Hungry Little Minds has also come up with a helpful checklist called the 'FEED test' for parents to use so they can reassure themselves that any apps their child uses are educational. 

Visit the Hungry Little Minds Website for more information

Outstanding result for Ettington Pre-School in Stratford

Congratulations to all the staff at Ettington Preschool Ltd Stratford-upon-Avon who recently received ‘Outstanding’ judgements across all the four inspection areas - quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development and leadership and management.

Ofsted stated:

The whole environment has been thoroughly thought through to provide children with stimulating and challenging hands-on experiences. A rich curriculum tailored to children's individual interests supports them in making outstanding progress.

Outdoor learning is given extremely high priority for all children. Many children choose to spend the majority of their time outside. Older children expertly create 'honey making machines' from a variety of construction materials, such as planks of wood and pipes. They take great pleasure in explaining the honey making process, convincingly sharing that they have to make sure 'it is not poisonous'.

The manager, her deputy and the trustees share the same vision in the pursuit of excellence. The manager leads her team with enthusiasm and is passionate about providing children and their families with the highest possible outcomes. Following the previous outstanding judgement, continuous improvements in the provision remain a high priority. These include extensive time being applied to monitoring and the recent completion of a new outdoor learning area.

The highly motivated team is well qualified. The leadership team extensively supports staff to access training and experiences in their personal areas of interest, such as forest schools and special educational needs. All staff are included in a targeted plan of professional development. The manager closely monitors the staff's individual strengths and areas for improvement and utilises their qualities and personal attributes extremely well.

Transitions on to school are superbly managed. Children are extensively supported through this big change in their lives at a pace that is right for them. Staff create role-play experiences to ease this transition and spend time with the children in their new school.

Inclusion is a key feature in this outstanding provision. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and those who are less settled, are fully supported. The arrangements for partnership working with parents are exemplary.

You can read the full report on Ofsted's website here.

Coronavirus update: How to help yourself

We can all take steps to help protect ourselves and others against viruses, including COVID-19. Whilst it is important to feel reassured that the UK is very well prepared for more cases of COVID-19, we can all be taking action and following steps as outlined in Public Health England’s (PHE) helpful guide to help reduce the spread of germs, which you can view here: ‘5 things you can do to protect yourself and your community’. The first of these is to “wash your hands regularly and catch coughs and sneezes in a tissue”. 

Public Health England guidance recommends that you:

• wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds
• always wash your hands when you get home or into work
• use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
• cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
• put used tissues in the bin straight away and wash your hands afterwards
• try to avoid close contact with people who are unwell

If you have recently been to one of the affected areas and are feeling unwell, you should use the NHS 111 online coronavirus service or call NHS 111 for further advice straight away – please don’t go to your doctor or a hospital. Please see the gov.uk website for up to date information for the public.

The NHS 111 service continue to take many calls around COVID-19 concerns, but please note there is also a helpful and easy to use online advice service too.

There’s lots of advice on how people can protect themselves online at www.nhs.uk/coronavirus.

Public Health posters

A series of posters with information and tips are available from PHE which you can use and display and are available to download from here:

Catch It Bin It Kill It

Generic Coronavirus advice

Advice for places of education

Feedback to help improve the support for Religious Education in schools

Warwickshire Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE) would like to understand how they can better support schools to deliver an effective RE curriculum.

To do this, they would be grateful if schools could take the time to answer some questions about the current Agreed Syllabus and, for secondaries only, to provide information about the exam entries for Religious Education in 2020. The information that schools provide will help SACRE to plan future support for RE teachers in Warwickshire. 

Please follow the links below to access the surveys:

RE Exam Entries Survey - for secondary only

Respond to the Exam Entries survey here

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RE Agreed Syllabus Half Way Review - for all schools

Respond to the Agreed Syllabus survey here

You can find more information about SACRE and the support they provide to schools on the SACRE website.

CPD opportunities for teachers of Religious Education

Warwickshire Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE) would like to highlight the following national CPD opportunities for teachers of RE/subject leaders:

Understanding Humanism Primary Teacher Training 2020 | London

26 March 2020, 9.30am - 12.30pm

The Commission on RE recommends that all young people should have the entitlement to learn about non-religious worldviews as part of a rigorous and academic education about religion and worldviews. This course offers an opportunity to develop your subject knowledge of humanism as an example of a non-religious worldview and be provided with ideas for how to teach about it.

Read more>>

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Arts and RE Symposium | Cambridge

8 July 2020

This free national symposium will bring RE teachers, creatives and police makers together, providing a platform for discussion on how best to provide pupils with an academically rigorous and critically aware understanding of religion and worldviews.

Deadline for booking is 27 March 2020.

Read more>>

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RE XChange 2020 | Birmingham

3 October 2020, 9.30am - 4pm

The aim of this event, as well as being an excellent networking opportunity, aims to provide a forum for an exchange of ideas and knowledge between teachers and researchers to support teaching and learning. The conference is sponsored by Culham St Gabriel’s Trust and the Templeton World Charity Foundation so the cost for delegates is only £30 per person. 

Read more>>

Opportunity to find out more about the new parent carer support pathway

Thank you for all of the contributions received to the recent Parent Carer Support Pathway consultation.

The responses will help the Council to re-shape and improve the support offered to parent carers of a child (under the age of 18) with a disability.

There will be an opportunity to gain feedback on the results of the survey and to put forward questions relating to the proposed pathway at some additional drop-in sessions at Exhall Grange School on 26 March.

Different time-slots are available between 10am and 2pm and anyone who would like to attend is advised to book onto a time slot using the online form below:

Parent carer feedback booking form

Please Note: Due to Coronavirus, this event is subject to cancellation should guidance from Public Health change and public gatherings be banned. If a cancellation is unavoidable, updates will be provided on Ask Warwickshire and Warwickshire's Facebook and Twitter feeds:

Twitter: @warwickshire_cc

Facebook: @WarwickshireCountyCouncil

Fully-funded training for senior leaders - leading a mentally healthy school

Click the image below for a PDF version of the flyer.

Register to attend here

New folk opera depicting history of Nuneaton

The Undoing of Polly Button

A Folk Opera by Katherine Fear

Local English and History teachers may be interested in this new work by a Nuneaton-educated songwriter, based upon a true story which shocked the town in 1832.

The brand new folk opera will premiere at Nuneaton's Abbey Theatre on Easter Saturday, 11 April. Links with George Eliot and with events in the town such as the decline of the ribbon industry, the election riots and the only outbreak of cholera are narrated and sung in this unique production. The show could act as an introduction to George Eliot and a depiction of local history which schools might wish to buy into during next academic year.  

Plot

Polly Button, a weaver with five children, was murdered in 1832 by her married lover while she was heavily pregnant with his child. John Danks was convicted and executed for this infamous crime which horrified the whole country. However, the newspapers saw Polly as “victim of her own gross immorality”, considering her at least partly responsible for her own demise.

At the heart of this story which has been worked into a poignant musical retelling, there is a battle for women’s rights, a mystery which may never be fully solved, and a lesson of resilience and unbelievable courage in the face of adversity. Watch and listen as the ghost of Polly teaches a young writer to “weave another world”.

Further Information

For further details, please visit the Polly Button Folk Opera Facebook page or phone Katherine on 07757 483342.

Twitter @pollybuttonfolk

Have your say on the Warwickshire Education Strategy

Schools Forum - agenda and upcoming elections

The next meeting of the Schools Forum will be held next Thursday 19 March, from 1pm at Northgate House in Warwick.

View the agenda and associated papers here

The Schools Forum advises the Chief Executive of the Council on financial matters, including changes to the school funding formula and management of the schools budget.

Schools Forum elections

Schools Forum elections for headteachers (or senior leadership representatives) and governors will soon be underway. This is a great opportunity for you to make a difference in Warwickshire schools.

If you are elected to Schools Forum you will be required to serve for a period of two years.

Elections will take place for representatives from primary schools, secondary schools and special schools (maintained and academies). 

The term of office for successful candidate’s will start in the summer term 2020. Meetings are held in Warwick, usually on a Thursday starting at 1pm and finishing around 3.30pm.

We'll be sharing further details about the nomination process later this month so please look out for this in Heads Up. In the meantime, if you have any questions you can email Neill Butler at schoolfunding@warwickshire.gov.uk.

Future meetings dates: 

4 June 2020

1 October 2020

3 December 2020

14 January 2021

18 March 2021

Latest Ofsted updates

Ofsted guidance on conduct during Ofsted inspections

Ofsted has published guidance on the conduct of Ofsted inspectors and Ofsted's expectations of providers during inspection. This applies to all inspectors carrying out inspections in all four of Ofsted’s remits: early years, schools, further education and skills, and social care.

Read more>>

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Ofsted seeks views on proposals to revise post-inspection arrangements

Ofsted has launched a consultation on its proposals to revise their post-inspection arrangements, including how they handle complaints about their work. Responses will be used to inform the new arrangements that they aim to introduce in September 2020.

The consultation opened on 3 March and will close on 31 March 2020.

Read more>>

New webpages to provide careers advice for all in Warwickshire

In 2019, following a public consultation, Warwickshire County Council approved a five year Careers Strategy; flexible, adaptable and forward-looking, the strategy promotes the key transferable skills that are being increasingly recognised as the foundation for future employment.

The strategy is also inclusive and reflects the County Council’s commitment to ensuring that all residents, whatever their age, or abilities, are supported in fulfilling their potential.

One of the strategy's key benefits is providing a wide range of supporting information and advice in one place.

To enable us to do this, we have created a new careers support web page which has been developed to provide information for anyone wishing to find out how they can progress. Whether they are a young person; a parent; an adult looking to retrain; a care leaver; or a business planning to recruit or develop its existing workforce – they will be directed to the relevant information and support that is available from easily accessible links within the pages of the website.

Information is included about Prospects who can provide careers advice and guidance to young people aged 16-18 and not in employment, education or training. Prospects can also help young people find training and support to find a job or get back into education.

You can view the new webpage which includes the newly published Careers Strategy at: warwickshire.gov.uk/careerssupport

Higher Education taster days for students with disabilities at Coventry University

Coventry University has developed a programme to give students with disabilities the opportunity to learn more about Higher Education.

receive information about higher education and the support available for students with disabilities, including financial support. 

Taster days will run throughout May and June, all of which will include information about Higher Education, the support available for students with disabilities including financial and a student-led tour of the campus. Each one will offer a different masterclass workshop focused on a specific topic, allowing students to choose which one they are most interested in. The workshops will cover topics such as photography, engineering, early childhood studies and policing. 

This bespoke programme aims to support those who may look to access Higher Education and the Disability Student Allowance (DSA) which includes students with learning difficulties, autistic disorders, blind or partial sight, deaf or partial hearing, wheelchair users or those with mobility issues, longstanding illnesses, and mental health related issues.

This opportunity is open to students in Years 10, 11, 12 and 13

Read the full programme for further information