St Mark's Primary School

St Mark's follows the London Borough of Merton admissions policy and Merton co-ordinates admissions for all year groups. Children start St Mark’s Nursery in the January or September following their third birthday.Nursery has 39 children in September and is then full from January, with 52 children. Each year there is a single application and offer process for Nursery places. Applications for admission to Nursery can be made on paper forms or online via the link below. Offers are sent out to parents/carers in May.Once a place has been accepted parents/carers are invited to visit the school and meet the Nursery staff who will explain the settling in process. Children are admitted to Reception in the September following their fourth birthday. Applications may be made online via the Merton .Offers are sent out to parents in the April prior to entry. Once parents/carers have confirmed to the London Borough of Merton that they are accepting a place, contact details are forwarded to the school. Parents/carers are then invited to visit the school and informed of the settling in process.

Much of the learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage is done through playing and exploring and being active and creative, both indoors and outside. There is a mix of adult-led and child-led and child-initiated activity. As children go through into reception class the balance will gradually shift towards more activities led by adults.

Children and young people spend lots of time on the internet. They may go online to research information for homework or to play games.The internet holds a massive amount of useful information and can also be a really good way of learning about new things and keeping in contact with friends and family. It can also be an incredibly dangerous place so it is important that children are protected and monitored when they are online.

St Mark’s Primary School is fully committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all its pupils.Every member of staff recognises that safeguarding against radicalisation and extremism is no different to safeguarding against any other vulnerability in today’s society.As part of our safeguarding ethos we encourage pupils to respect the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. At our school we are committed to contributing to community cohesion and reducing the likelihood that our children may become radicalised.

Parents are strongly advised by the Government and Local Authority to avoid taking children out of school in term time because of the disruption it causes to their education.Authorised absence will only be granted during term time in exceptional circumstances and only then if past attendance has been excellent.

At St Mark's we believe that it is essential for home and school to work together in order to help all of our children succeed and reach their full potential. Therefore all families are asked to sign a 'home school agreement' when they join the school.

If your child needs to have a prescribed (by a doctor) medicine administered at school you must complete a form which is available from the school office.We ask you to bring in medicine in the prescribed container/packet to the school office where we will ask you to fill in a form.

If your child is sick at home we ask that you do not bring them to school until at least 24 hours has elapsed, to avoid the risk of infecting other children.

It is a primary aim of our school that every member of the school community feels valued and respected, and that each person is treated fairly and well. We are a caring community, the values of which are built on mutual trust and respect for all. The school's behaviour policy is therefore designed to support the way in which all members of the school can live and work togehter in a supportive way. It aims to promote an environment in which everyone feels happy, safe and secure. The school has a number of rules, but our behaviour policy is not primarily concerned with rule enforcement. It is a means of promoting good relationships, so that people can work together with the common purpose of helping everyone to learn. This policy supports the school community in aiming to allow everyone to work together in an effective and considerate way.

AR is a computer program that helps teachers manage and monitor children’s independent reading practice. At St Mark’s the children in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 use AR. Your
child picks a book at his/her own level and reads it at his/her own pace. When finished, your child takes a short quiz on the computer - passing the quiz is an indication that your child has understood what has been read.

STAR Reading is used to determine your child’s reading level. It is a computer based reading assessment program that uses computer- adaptive technology. Questions continually adjust to your child’s responses. If the child’s response is correct, the difficulty level is increased. If the child cannot answer a question or answers incorrectly, the difficulty level is reduced. The test uses multiple-choice questions and takes approximately 10 minutes.

At St Mark’s we believe that healthy and active children are more successful and happier learners. That is why we invest time and money into ensuring we offer a broad P.E. (Physical Education) experience for our pupils both in and out of their timetabled lessons. We give all the children the opportunity to enjoy a wide variety of physical activities. At least two hours of P.E. lessons are timetables each week for every class (for pupils in Years 1-6). In addition to curriculum P.E. and competitive sports fixtures we offer a wide range of after school sports clubs as well as lunchtime sports throughout the week.