Latest information and news!

• We are looking for a parent/carer representative for our governing body, are you interested?

  Wed 10 Mar 2021 Mr Petts

  February Newsletter!

  Is on it's way today, apologies its a bit late :)

   

  Articles on:

  • Safer Internet Day
  • Holocaust Memorial Day
  • Children's Mental Health Week
  • Friends of Ty Gwyn parent and friend association

   

  We are also looking for a parent/carer representative on our governing body (known as a Management Committee) to join our meetings 3 times a year. A voice from the parent/carer group is really important as your feedback is of great value and interest as Ty Gwyn develops and improves.

  Please get in touch via phone (to school or Mr Petts) or the contact page of the website: 01685 652525 or 07706 656 926 

   

• Return to school for Y9 and Y10

  Tue 09 Mar 2021 Mrs Cox-Wall

  Dear parent/carer, if your child has not been attending school, a letter will be delivered (Wednesday 10th March) with an invitation to return to school on the following days:

   

  Y9 Monday and Tuesday 15th and 16th March
  Monday and Tuesday 22nd and 23rd March

   

  Y10 Wednesday and Thursday 17th and 18th March

  Wednesday and Thursday 24th and 25th March

   

  The days will be a mixture of classroom work, well-being activities and project activities.

  Please remember mobile phones are not allowed in school and usual standards of behaviour and effort are expected. 

  
  If you would like your child to return, please contact school by the end of Thursday 11th March or transport will not be arranged. We may also contact you by phone to check if you are joining us. 

   

  Hope to see many more of you next week! 

• Help and support for parents and carers from the Education Psychology Service

  Sat 06 Mar 2021 EPS

  Educational Psychology Service in RCT and 
  Merthyr Tydfil  
  Support Line Service for parents

  
  The EPS Support Line will be running 3 afternoons per week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) and offers parents the opportunity to  discuss any concerns they may have  regarding the wellbeing and/or learning needs of children.  
  This service will enable parents to access psychological support without having to wait for a school visit . 
   
  To access the EPS Support Line contact us via email at EPS@rctcbc.gov.uk providing  a telephone contact and brief overview of the advice/support required. Once a request has been received you will be contacted by a member of our team to arrange a 30 minute consultation slot at a convenient time. 

  
  Issues we can help with: 

  • Supporting children with additional learning needs
  • Supporting children’s mental health and wellbeing 

  

• Returning to school from 15th March

  Wed 03 Mar 2021 Mrs Cox-Wall

  Following on from the Government announcement about the return to school, we are sharing our plans here on the website and a letter from the Director of Education will follow. 
  Specifically: 

  Y11 are currently attending in small groups to complete specified tasks/days and this will continue to facilitate further teaching, non examination assessments and evidence gathering for Centre Determined Grades. 
  Y9 and 10 (who are not currently attending) will be requested to attend (by letter and text) for specified days from 15th March.

  As Ty Gwyn has been open and continues to be so, with all Covid-19 precautions in place, many learners are already attending (from other year groups) and the request to attend applies to those who are learning at home and those who need to re-engage in learning! 

  Many thanks for your support in these unusual times, any questions, please contact school and regularly check our website. 
  Mrs Cox-Wall

• Letter from NHS Wales re continued Covid-19 precautions

  Wed 03 Mar 2021 NHS Wales
  Please see attached letter.

  

• New smoke free school grounds legislation has come into force 01.03.21

  Tue 02 Mar 2021
  As well as being St David's Day, March 1st saw the introduction of new smoke free school grounds legislation. This means the Headteacher has to ensure that there is no smoking on school grounds:

  •  It will be an offence to smoke in school grounds
  • The manager or person responsible for the school grounds must take reasonable steps to stop smoking there
  • Displaying ‘No smoking’ signs will be required
  • The parts of the legislation that sets out the details are section 10 of the 2017 Act and regulations 10 and 12 of the 2020 Regulations. 

   

  Children at Ty Gwyn are not permitted to smoke

  Children who may try to smoke will be asked to stop and hand over the smoking material, if a child will not comply, a parent/carer will be called to support the situation.

  Please do not allow your child to bring smoking materials to school, this includes vapes and e-cigarettes.

  Children in Ty Gwyn have been made aware of this and discuss the issue in School Council.

• Dydd Gwyl Dewi Sant 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

  Tue 02 Mar 2021

  A busy week here in Ty Gwyn to start off March and the official beginning of spring. 
  We have had a great 1st March and St David’s Day with lots of activities to celebrate Wales, our culture and heritage - check Google classroom if you are learning at home.
  Pictures of our fabulous “mini Eisteddfod” with Welsh cakes, writing competition and our other activities will be in the gallery in the children’s section of the website as the week goes on! 
  St David was known for the saying “do the little things” and that is something we can use today. What small things can you do to help someone who needs it? A kindness, a smile or a thankyou go a long way 😊 

  Dydd Gwyl Dewi Sant! 

  

• Safer Internet Day 2021

  Mon 08 Feb 2021 Mrs Cox-Wall

  The 9th of February is Safer Internet Day and we will be having classroom assemblies and looking at the UNCRC RRS website and article 17 (the right to fair and honest information from the media including tv, newspapers, the internet and individual speech). This is very relevant at this time with so much mis-information swirling around about the pandemic, vaccines and world issues. 

  This leaflet about being a good digital parent is in the parent section of our website dedicated to on-line safety:

   

  7 tips for being a good digital parent

   

  1. Talk With Your Kids. Talk early and often. Be open and direct. Stay calm.
  2. Educate Yourself. Search online for anything you don’t understand. Try out the apps, games, and sites yourself. Explore FOSI’s parenting tips and resources
  3. Use Parental Controls. Set content and time limits on your kids’ devices. Routinely check privacy settings on social media. Monitor your kids’ use and their screen time.
  4. Set Ground Rules and enforce consequences. Discuss and sign a family safety agreement. Restrict where and when devices can be used. Remove tech privileges when rules are broken.
  5. Friend and Follow but don’t stalk. Follow your kids on social media. Respect their online space and freedom. Don’t flood their accounts with comments.
  6. Explore, Share, and Celebrate. Go online with your kids and
  explore their digital world. Share your own online experiences. Learn from each other and have fun.
  7. Be a Good Digital Role Model. Curb your own bad digital habits. Know when and where to unplug. Show your kids how to collaborate and be kind online.

  

• Guidance for parents and carers on blended and distance learning

  Thu 04 Feb 2021 RCT

  *Please be aware we have had to change the format of the document to display on the website.
   

  We are all learning and learners...
  Distance learning presents incredible challenges and opportunities for teachers, parents and pupils. This year’s changing circumstances call for great flexibility and resilience as learning moves from home to school and back again.
  Everyone’s circumstances are different. More focused and independent learning from home is easier for some pupils and families than others. Even very digitally-competent children and young people may struggle with educational technology. While some aspects of education may not transfer easily to online environments, pupils can successfully learn new skills and develop important personal and academic competencies in distance learning environments.
  Teachers have been working hard throughout the year to develop comprehensive distance learning plans. They are mastering new and complex demands for supporting pupils in the classroom and at home. All schools in the local authority continue to grow professionally and develop, strengthening our collective efficacy for:
  •    prioritising learning standards
  •    signposting parents, carers to learning resources and tools
  •    consistently communicating expectations
  •    creating effective strategies for setting and achieving learning goals.

  What is remote learning? 

  Remote learning allows pupils to continue accessing the curriculum beyond the classroom by tasks set online. This allows them to learn through a guided study programme set by their teachers. A remote learning task could be a combination of what is listed below: 

  •    An extended task over a series of lessons 
  •    Worksheet and questions 
  •    Background reading or supporting materials 
  •    Assessment opportunities 
  •  Completing past papers and providing model answers and solutions 
  •    ‘Live Lessons’ via a digital platform of the schools’ choice

  Here are some explanations to help parents and carers understand the different forms learning that can be provided for pupils during this lockdown period.  Not one method is better than another and schools will choose the best fit according to your child’s age and learning need.  It is recommended that a balance of on-screen and off-screen activities are undertaken where possible.

  Teachers present carefully planned video and/or audio explanations as live lessons (synchronous) or recorded sessions (asynchronous) to explain concepts and new learning. 

  A live lesson is designed around small learning increments and clearly defined and prescribed teaching tasks. These sessions will complement and enhance activities presented face to face in school.

  Tasks give pupils opportunities to apply knowledge and understanding from face to face and online sessions. Teachers plan opportunities for pupils to work together and collaborate on online group projects. Pupils may work on a document or video presentation together. Teachers also provide pupils with independent activities which may include digital tasks and offline.

  Pupils complete tasks using workbooks, textbooks or paper resources and materials. Work is presented when pupils next attend school, uploaded to the school’s platform of choice or is returned by post.  Tasks are purposeful and worthwhile for example; pupils use scaffolds and models to apply the knowledge and understanding developed in the face to face sessions.

  Teachers may deliver a presentation. Pupils may then submit questions or make observations through a chat facility. Teachers may present carefully planned video and/or audio explanations as live lessons (synchronous) or recorded sessions (asynchronous) to explain concepts and new learning. A live lesson is designed around small learning increments and clearly defined and prescribed teaching tasks. Teachers and pupils may work on an activity/document together.

  Teachers address questions and misconceptions in a live session. This may be recorded to serve as a resource for learning. Individual pupils or groups of pupils could be asked to join with timetabled intervention. Alternately, pupils could opt into this where needed Pupils may be referred to online software or applications as an intervention strategy.    
  Some schools may identify that learners are unable to effectively engage with online learning; this can be particularly true for hard to reach learners. In this instance, during face-to-face time teachers may plan and deliver direct teaching of the experiences, knowledge and skills learners need to complete tasks. Learners then engage with these tasks at home without the need for further online instruction.

  
  Examples of possible shared language:

  Blended learning:     an approach to learning that combines face-to-face, distance, digital and online learning experiences The face-to-face learning that takes place should complement the other aspects by using the strengths of each mode of delivery.

  Distance learning:     allows learning experiences to happen from just about anywhere and may or may not involve a digital device and internet connection. This supports the well-being of all learners, including a choice of learning opportunities for social, physical, emotional development and tasks to promote their resilience. It allows individuals to learn when and where it is more convenient for them. Equitable distance learning does not have to mirror learning as it normally does in school.

  Digital learning:    any instructional practice that effectively uses technology to strengthen a learner’s learning experience.  Additionally, digital learning can be used for professional learning opportunities for teachers and to provide personalised learning experiences for learners.

  Online learning:    education that takes place over the internet. It is often referred to as e- learning among other terms.  However, online learning is just one type of “distance learning”.

  Synchronous learning:    teaching where the teacher is present at the same time as the learner(s). This can take place face to-face or online.

  Asynchronous learning:    where teaching materials are provided and learners work through them in their own time. This could include a variety of media, including audio and video clips. WG have provided guidance on the use of livestreaming.

  
  Further information and guidance can be found at:-

  https://hwb.gov.wales/distance-learning/
  https://hwb.gov.wales/distance-learning/sharing-our-experiences/#plans-for-increasing-operations-in-schools-and-settings
  http://hwb.gov.wales/zones/keeping-safe-online/repository/discovery?catalogs=50f72adb-cdf7-4da9-a01a-d9b5ecafd264&kiosk=1&sort=recent&strict=1
  https://www.s4c.cymru/en/press/post/41359/s4c-releases-80-hours-of-programmes-on-the-welsh-governments-education-platform-hwb/
  https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zvryp4j?utm_source=%2A+SCHOOLS%2A+CSC+Communications+List&utm_campaign=66ff16f85b-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_06_17_11_16_COPY_03&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_693196c4f6-66ff16f85b-128862066 
   

• Children’s Mental Health Week

  Mon 01 Feb 2021 Lois and Naomi

  This week is children’s mental health week and the theme is “express yourself”. If you are learning from home, lots of ideas about how you can do that through art, poetry, video or song and dance will come in our letter and pack via Royal Mail.

  There are also details of free text and call lines if you need someone to talk to. We do also have “I wish my teacher knew” as a link on the website homepage if you want help during school hours. Remember, there is always someone to listen without judgement 🤓

  If you are in school, we will be working with you during the week on lots of individual and small group projects - we’ll share some of our work in the Children/Picture Gallery section.