Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
Happy Eid to all of our lovely families who are celebrating this special festival.
Easter week
1. Pupils will be joining in a version of our Easter bingo in the classrooms as part of our Maths work with chocolate prizes.
2. We will be writing some poems about spring, taking inspiration from the classics such as, ‘I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud’ by William Wordsworth.
3. As a treat, we will be hosting an Easter movie afternoon – Y5/6 on Thursday; Y3/4 on Friday. Pupils may bring a cushion to sit on, with popcorn and drinks being served (free).
4. There will be egg/spring craft activities for pupils to join in on Friday – all resources will be provided by school to prevent the need for anything to brought in from home.
5. We will be running our traditional egg decoration contest. However, due to the shortage of eggs at present, this will be done with a 2D print of an egg to decorate or design into a character . Pupils need to bring any additional resources to decorate their egg or to make scenery, props or a background on Friday 31st March. There will be prizes awarded for the most eye-catching, fun or unusual. All work for this must be done in school but pupils will need to bring any special resources/ accessories for their design e.g. material, boxes, sequins.
6. We will also be judging the competitions to create the best wildlife garden.. Thanks to Miss Killen for arranging this.
7. During this week we will be hosting our Easter raffle with chocolatey and cute prizes for pupils to win. Tickets cost 20p each and will be on sale with Mrs Clarke every break from Wednesday. Raffle prize draw will take place on Friday.
URGENT NOTICE TO READ FULLY.
As you may be aware, there are lots of 'bugs' in the community at the moment, including COVID and stomach issues.
At school, we have had a rising number of pupils who are experiencing sickness and/or diarrhoea, with other symptoms such as stomach cramps, headache, muscle aches, fever/chills. Today I have sought professional advice from Public Health as it seems likely that this 'bug' is Norovirus or something similar. Therefore, it is vital that we ensure we are all doing as much as we can to prevent cross contamination due to the contagious nature of this virus.
Pupils need to have good hygiene routines at home and at school. We will be insisting on all pupils using soap and warm water to wash hands more often and to ensure hands are thoroughly dried. Any pupils feeling unwell, sicky, stomach aches or nauseous should remain at home. Headaches also need to be monitored. Any child who is unwell with vomit or diarrhoea/toilet issues should not come to school. Public Health have advised that we must adhere strictly to the 48-hour rule of absence. This means pupils do not return until 48 hours after the last episode of being unwell. This helps to break the chain of infection.
We have increased the cleaning regime at school, especially at contact points such as door handles and also in toilet areas. To further control the spread of this virus, we are minimising visitors to school this week.
As we approach the Easter break, no-one wants to be ill for the holiday so I would ask all families to support these measures. We hope that we will be back to normal for next week - including being able to complete parent evenings. I will, of course, keep you posted of any further actions required.
As you may be aware, the government have decided that the End of Key Stage 2 tests for Year 6 pupils will continue to take place. This means that all Year 6 pupils in England and Wales who are able to access the tests will sit formal exams each day during the week of 8th May 2023. Due to the coronation, the exams will be set Tue 9th – Fri 12th May inclusive.
This gives us 8 weeks, plus the two weeks of the Easter holidays.
I will be hosting 2 meetings (oneface:face and one virtual) to give you information as to what is required, the work that is currently being done and how you can support your child through this important period. The face:face meeting will take place in the hall, with access from the lower hall doors accessed from the playground and close to the drive.
Please complete the slip on the letter to indicate your choice of meeting so that arrangements can be finalised and confirmed by Friday (3rd March).
Once again we will be using our internal Christmas postal service in order for pupils to send cards to their friends at school. Pupils will be able to post cards in school from Monday 5th December. The post box will be cleared daily and cards distributed during the afternoon.
To keep things safe:
Your co-operation is vital to keep everyone safe – please stick to the procedure as outlined.
Friday 18th November is ‘Children In Need’ Day.
This year, we are asking pupils if they would wish to join in by wearing either:
Clean pyjamas, complete with underwear Or odd socks/ fluffy socks
Each for a donation of 50p.
(Please make sure that Y5 pupils come in uniform to swimming and then they can change into their pyjamas or socks when we come back to school).
All pupils need to wear their shoes to come to school and will need to change for outdoor times. Please also ensure they bring a coat for playtimes and lunchtime.
Pudsey colourings and wordsearches will be available for free and the Harrington kitchen will be selling biscuits for 30p at breaktime.
If pupils do not wish to join in they should attend in their normal school uniform. Non-uniform is NOT permitted.
Welcome back and Happy New Year! I hope you all had a good break.
A few reminders for this term:
1.Please ensure your child has a warm, waterproof coat every day. Perhaps even gloves and a hat this term as the weather can be bitter and unpredictable.
2.Please get your child back in to the routine of school - uniform, reading, homework, good sleep routines and attending every day (health permitting).
3.Update school of any personal changes - parent mobile numbers, address changes, personal circumstances
4.We will be offering the option to move to cashless payment for meals and trips - look out for the letter this week.
5.Snacks need to be healthy and nut-free. To allow pupils to get their snacks quickly at break time, they will be handed in at registration for quick retrieval. This will also prevent children from eating parts of their lunch too early!
6.Please talk to your child about online conduct. Some pupils are becoming involved in inappropriate exchanges online via group chats and this is leading to some unpleasant comments and language. Whilst I am aware all pupils can recite how to behave, both socially and online and this is an out-of-school incident, it doesn't always happen in reality. And no -one wants children upset and distressed due to such chats as this can occur when pupils feel school and parents will not find out. We will continue to work on this theme in school. Your support is appreciated.
Our last day today before we break up for the holiday. The children have been fantastic, despite all the excitements of parties, Christmas lunches and the special events we have arranged this term.
Coming early next term is the latest progress report for your child and details of ParentPay (a cashless system to pay for school lunches and trips) that we wish to activate in January. Details to follow about how to sign up to this if you choose to.
Reminder that we return to school on Monday 9th January 2023.
From all the staff and governors, I wish you all a very happy Christmas and a peaceful 2023.
Well done to some of our Year 5 pupils who have completed their STEM sessions at Trent College. Yesterday, they presented their work to staff and parents - really impressive work!
Due to the additional bank holiday for the coronation of King Charles, the SATs will be taken all week from Tuesday 9th May- Friday 12th May inclusive. Please do not have any leave during this week.