What do Cafés at Drake look like?

Cafés take place a year-group at a time, approximately once each term throughout the school year. Dates and times for these are shared with parents in advance via the Parent Hub app.

EYFS - Reception

Cafés are held in the afternoon and tend to last 45 minutes.  The Café starts with a short presentation in the hall to all the adults and then we move into the Reception classrooms where activities. linked to the Café, have been set up to explore with your child.  

Year 1

Cafés are held in the Hall in afternoon and tend to last 1 hour.  Once you are seated in the hall, the teachers  introduce the learning focus for the session – this could include sharing a book, a video or a presentation. They will then introduce the activities for the session and model these if needed, before you have time to complete the activities with your child. 

Year 2 upwards

Cafés are typically held in the mornings and tend to last around 1-1.5 hours. Once you are seated in the hall, the teachers or pupils introduce the learning focus for the session – this could include sharing a book, a video or a presentation. They will then introduce the activities for the session and model these if needed, before you have time to complete the activities with your child.

For all our Cafés, we try to choose activities which are easily replicable in a home environment and give you ideas for how to learn with your child outside of school. 

There are always biscuits provided to enjoy during the session and there is time to chat to other parents and school staff whilst you enjoy learning with your child.

What might I find out from a Café?

• Examples of the resources we use in school and when they might be used.
• The children’s  learning journey for the year.
• Suggestions of useful, age appropriate websites.
• End of year expectations for your child’s year group. 
• Examples of the  strategies the children will be using during the year.
• The chance to see some assessment style questions e.g. end of KS2 SATs.
• Key vocabulary, with definitions, for your child’s year group.
• Common misconceptions. 
• Some top tips to take home to support your child with learning at home.
• Some useful websites to use at home.