Team Lapal were the winners of the Times Tables Rock Stars Battle, with Year 4 and 5 beating 6 other schools to be crowned overall champions. As a reward, children were invited to wear their own clothes or dress like a rock star. Our children showed amazing teamwork and we are very proud of them.

We will regularly share free online safety guides provided by National Online Safety (NOS) as this is part of our commitment to keeping all children and families safe online. 

This week the focus of our #WakeupWednesday is - What Parents Need to Know About Omegle. Whilst this is blocked at school, we have been notified that some primary aged children in the local Dudley area have viewed inappropriate material on this site at home, so we thought it important to share information.  These sites also offer further information about Omegle:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/technology-56105482 

https://www.internetmatters.org/hub/news-blogs/what-is-omegle-what-parents-need-to-know/ 

Helpful advice for families:

• Ask your child what websites they are accessing 
• Check your child’s device history  
• Ask your child if they are using any live chat apps 
• Don’t mention Omegle directly as we don’t want to signpost it to the children if they are not aware of it. 
• If your child tells you that they have been on Omegle – please ask them about it to find out more
• Check for apps and their age restriction 
• Look for apps that allow any sort of live chat and remove them from their phone
• Block Omegle in your security settings on your child’s device

Reception have been working hard in their Maths lessons this week! We have been counting using magic wands and careful counting fingers.  We are even mastering the skill of subitising where we see the number of objects with eyes like magic!

We will regularly share free online safety guides provided by National Online Safety (NOS) as this is part of our commitment to keeping all children and families safe online. 

This week the focus of our #WakeupWednesday is - What Parents Need to Know About YouTube

YouTube is a popular social media platform that allows users to share media, allowing billions of people around the world to watch. Parents need to be particularly aware of the trends and challenges that form an ever-increasing amount of the content. Some challenges can be seen as safe, however many can leave children vulnerable. For example, one particular trend is the 'Get ready with me' or #GRWM trend, in which users share an outfit/style of dressing, whilst getting dressed in front of the camera. We would encourage all parents to engage in a conversation with their child about their use of technology and monitor their usage. YouTube has an age limit of 13+ as much of the content can be harmful, upsetting or inappropriate. We have also attached a guide to using YouTube Kids and advice for parent to keep their child safe if accessing.