Weekly Update-Friday 2nd October
As another busy and exciting week draws to a close, it has been wonderful to see so much fantastic learning taking place across the school.
Our Year 1 children have enjoyed a very special experience this week, taking part in Heartstart training led by one of our former parents, Kath Bell. The children thoroughly enjoyed learning these important life skills and discovering more about how their amazing bodies work. They have shown great enthusiasm throughout the project and are incredibly proud of what they have learned. We know they cannot wait to share their Healthy Heroes Learning Outcome with their families next week.
Meanwhile, Year 2 have had a completely different adventure as they stepped back in time with their visit to Little Woodham. The excitement has continued long after the trip, with children talking non-stop about the characters they met, the fascinating history they experienced and, of course, the smoky fires that made such a lasting impression! A huge thank you to all the parents who gave up their time to help. Your support makes these valuable learning opportunities possible, and we are very grateful.
As a reminder, due to changes in Keeping Children Safe in Education 2026, only parents and grandparents who have completed a returned DBS check will be able to accompany school trips. The process is free and only takes a short time to complete. If you are thinking about helping on a future trip, please pop into the school office and we will be happy to help you arrange this.
At our school, we are fortunate to have three members of staff trained in Mental Health First Aid. During recent training, they were introduced to the Hub of Hope app, which helps people find local mental health and wellbeing support services. We wanted to share this excellent resource with families. You can find out more by visiting: https://hubofhope.co.uk/
This week, we had very few entries in our Reading Raffle during Celebration Assembly. We know how much our children love sharing books with the important adults in their lives. They beam with pride when they successfully decode new words and are always eager to talk about the stories they are reading. We ask that children read at least three times a week, although a little reading every day is even better.
We completely understand that family life is busy, but we are encouraging all families to make reading a priority wherever possible. Reading is one of the greatest gifts we can give our children. It opens doors to new worlds, builds confidence, develops independence and supports learning across every area of the curriculum. Most importantly, reading for pleasure can become a lifelong habit that enriches children's lives for years to come.
As the author Dr Seuss famously said:
"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go."
Finally, a reminder that our PTA Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) will take place next Wednesday at 6.00pm in school. We are very hopeful that we can continue the wonderful tradition of having a parent and school fundraising group supporting our community. The PTA makes a real difference to the experiences and opportunities we can provide for our children, and we would love to see as many families as possible there.
Have a lovely weekend, and thank you for your continued support. We look forward to welcoming everyone back on Monday for another week of learning and fun. 😊
Best wishes,
Mrs Riches
Headteacher
