Attendance Adds Up

As we move into the second full month of the new academic year we have been reflecting on attendance in the Junior School. Our current target for pupils is 95% attendance throughout the year; anything below this will affect the eligibility for prizes and positions of responsibility.

We are celebrating daily attendance by displaying the classes who have 100% attendance on a display in the Junior School ground floor corridor. For the month of September Class 3C were our Attendance Champs with the most days where everyone was present in school. This was a total of 8 out of 19 school days. When Year group class totals were combined Year 3 and Year 5 were the attendance leaders for September. Who will be the Attendance Champs in October?... Well that’s up to you…

Did you know

* that children who miss 2 days or more per month are five times as likely to fall behind in reading, writing and maths, even if the absences are excused?

* 2 days missed per month = 18 days of school = almost a month of school?

* 2 days missed per month = 36 hours of English and 36 hours of maths learning lost?

When your child misses a day at school it is often difficult for them to catch up on the lessons missed in school and no matter how hard you try and help them catch up on missed work at home, it is not the same as your child learning with their teacher and friends in class.

Encouraging regular school attendance is one of the most powerful ways you can prepare your child for success—both in school and in life. When you make school attendance a priority, you help your child get better grades and develop healthy life habits and these habits need to start in EYFS.

Students who attend school regularly and are on time, feel more connected to their community, develop important social skills and friendships which will help set them up for a strong future.

Whilst we recognise that sometimes some absences may be unavoidable, limiting your child’s absences puts them on a path to future academic success and success in life.