The Chronicle

Dear Parents, 

I am sure you will be pleased to have reached the end of this half term and are looking forward to spending a week with your families, whether it be relaxing at home or on the ski slopes or some other ‘far away place’.  Whatever you are doing, I hope that you are able to spend some quality time together.

I am sorry to have missed the Key Stage 2 Mass on Wednesday through being on a training course.  I am grateful, as always, to Father Kevin for celebrating Mass and to Mrs Jackson-Mayne, Mrs Simmonds and Mors Olden for their organisation and support.  Thank you, also, to our Junior 6’s who led the Mass.

The children enjoyed their last day of this half term at school which ended with a disco organised by the PTA.  My thanks to the PTA and Mrs and Mrs Vaughan for arranging the afternoon.  The money raised today from non-uniform will go directly to the PTA and will benefit all the children.

This week we welcomed back Unicef who spoke to our Junior 5 classes about education around the world.  On Tuesday you may have caught a glimpse of the Junior 2 classes who looked fabulous as they prepared for their history day discovering the Great Fire of London.  Occasions such as this are a valuable experience to the children as it helps bring lessons to life and ensures that everyone benefits from a hands-on experience.  Many thanks to the parents and staff who helped - they enjoyed it as much as the pupils!

Some of our Junior 6 children visited the Space Centre on Tuesday.  This is an annual visit organised by Mrs Pascoe-Williams from Princethorpe College and aims to inspire and stretch certain pupils.  Mrs Spillane accompanied the visit and commented on how excited the Crackley Hall students were when they discovered a comet.  Thank you to all who made this visit possible.

On Wednesday Mrs Simmonds organised the Skipathon and, as always, this has been a huge success with vital funds being raised for a worthy cause.  Although the total amount raised is yet to be confirmed, I would like to thank all the children who participated and Mrs Simmonds for co-ordinating the huge task. 

I am grateful to Mr Cottrill for hosting assembly this morning and I would like to congratulate all the Stars of the Week: Josh, Elizabeth, William, Mairen, Hannah, William, Harry, Adelaide, Thomas, Teddy, Oliver, Oscar, Toby and Poppy.  All were well-deserved and I hope to congratulate each of you in person before the end of the day.  I was delighted to learn that this week’s RE Book of the Week was awarded to Lily and Jorja - well done on your wonderful work.

Your child’s report will be sent electronically next week and can be retrieved via the Parent Portal.  Following these reports, there will be parent consultation evenings held on Tuesday 5 and Thursday 7 March.  As explained in the letter sent earlier today, these appointments are to be booked using the online (PES) system. 

I hope that you and your family have a relaxing half term break.  There are still places available in holiday club should you wish to book your child a place.  I look forward to welcoming everyone back on Monday 25 February for a busy week of visits marking the start of One World Week.

God bless,

Robert Duigan

Gym Club will be cancelled on Wednesday 27 February due to the KS1 Performing Arts Evening.

Please see information below:

Common Lane

Burton Green

Monday 18 February - Friday 22 February 2019

Final few places remaining!

If you struggle for child care during the holidays, look no further. The Crackley Hall Holiday Club will be taking place during the February half-term holiday.

It will commence on Monday 18 February and run until Friday 22 February 2019.

There will be exciting crafts, games and activities taking place at school between the hours of 8.00am and 6.00pm.

Please be aware that places are limited (due to staff ratios), and are allocated on a first come first served basis.

Over Christmas we were fully booked on a number of days and even had to start a waiting list.

Children were kept busy with baking, arts and crafts, films, team building activities and festive party games. There's always lots of fun to be had!

Please follow the link to book a place https://princethorpecollege.parentseveningsystem.co.uk/

Holiday Club Information Sheet

We have a number of trips, events and activities coming up over the next few weeks. Please see the relevant letters below:  

Parent Consultation Evenings

Please find attached the termly curriculum sheet for your child's year group:

Reception

Junior 1

Junior 2

Junior 3

Junior 4

Junior 5

Junior 6

We thought you might be interested to hear of an upcoming event in Coventry that is intended for families or individuals with autism or might have some underlying traits of a high functioning autism spectrum condition.

The Curly hair Project was founded by autistic author and entrepreneur Alis Rowe. The event is really good value for parents and indeed there is a family ticket if you take along your young person. You might not be interested in all the sessions, so it’s possible to just attend those you are most interested in.

Further details are available through the following websiete address: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/autism-mental-health-day-coventry-tickets-49643247289

Our Stars of the Week this week are:

On Wednesday 13 February Crackley Hall’s pupils took it in turn to hop, skip or jump in a charity skipathon, an annual fund raising event organised by Crackley’s Mini Vinnies. 

Mini Vinnies’ Co-ordinator, Mrs Dolores Simmonds explains, “This year the children are skipping to support the Sister Mary Aloysius College of Mercy in Nigeria.  It is a school funded completely by donations named in thanks after one of the Sisters of Mercy.  Our school also has links with the Sisters of Mercy as Sister Philomena, who is now in charge of the Sisters of Mercy order, was once Headmistress here at Crackley Hall when the school was a convent.”

The children at Crackley Hall pledged to raise as much money as possible for the charity and have been collecting sponsors over the last two weeks.  In the skipathon the children took it in turns, one form at a time, to skip, hop or jump for one minute each.  Supervised by Mrs Simmonds and Mrs Hutton from the school’s PTA , wave after wave of eager skippers jumped across the hall.

The underlying purpose of the Mini Vinnies, the junior arm of the St Vincent de Paul organisation, is to make a difference to underprivileged people’s lives. Crackley Hall’s bouncing beans have done exactly that. The money raised will be donated to the College to help with an urgent repair to the roof, which will enable more children in Nigeria to benefit from an education.

Well done to all the skippers who took part and a big thank you to those who generously donated to the skipathon. We'll keep you updated as to the amount raised as it rolls in. 

Please can any outstanding money be brought into school by Tuesday 26 February.

15 lucky Crackley pupils, along with pupils from the Crescent School and Princethorpe College, swapped last Tuesday’s lessons for a memorable voyage into space, courtesy of the National Space Centre, Leicester.

The ‘space scientists’ were briefed by Commanders Rob and Matt about their scientifically important tasks on board the Space Station and at Mission Control. Then it was time to launch the Space Station crew into space and into their well-equipped laboratory whilst their partners manned Mission Control on the earth below.

Time critical tasks challenged our scientists to the full, working in roles including Navigation, Communication and Data and Life Support.  During their arduous mission, pupils from Year 6 and 7 had to work under pressure to complete a list of tasks as well as deal with emergency situations that challenged the life of the crew and the success of the whole mission.

We are happy to report that the whole team rallied to the cause and showed great team co-operation and communication. They completed their mission tasks with skill and great enthusiasm.

The culmination of the day was the discovery of a new comet, the successful launch of a probe to confirm that it was an as yet undiscovered comet and the opportunity to name it the ‘CCP Comet’ (Crackley, Crescent, Princethorpe).

After celebrating their achievement with a crew photo, the pupils enjoyed a hearty lunch, picked up a few souvenirs and headed for the centre's 3D planetarium where they viewed an amazing journey into life as an astronaut.

Mrs Spillane, commented, “It was an amazing mission – I was impressed with how well the pupils from our three schools worked together. The atmosphere was fantastic and the enthusiasm boundless, all in all it was a great opportunity for cross-curricular learning. We all agreed that it was an ‘out of this world’ experience!"  

Picture the scene... It is 1666 and London is a thriving capital city. Narrow streets of closely built timber frame buildings tower over you as you walk within the city's walls. Surely, life after a recent bubonic plague outbreak can only get better? Then, the faint whiff of burning that filled your nose quickly transforms into a raging fireball of thick acrid smoke and red hot sparks. For London is alight! A fire that respects no boundaries has left its darkened birth at a bakery on Pudding Lane and is on the march, consuming everything in its path.

Thanks to History Off the Page, this was the scene that the J2H and J2M apprentices discovered on Tuesday 12 February. Fresh from learning skills common for workers of the era, our keen firefighters had to try and stop the devastation. Pupils turned rat catchers, leather workers, chandlers, metal workers and seamstresses formed fire lines to move buckets of water to the raging inferno... and all before lunch!

In the afternoon, the children faced their next challenge and set about excavating what was left of the charred city. They became central to the process of rebuilding, piecing together singed legal documents and returning personal belongings.

Today a rainbow of colours made their way through the school gates as Crackley's uniform was swapped out for the latest fashions to celebrate the coming of half term and help to raise valuable funds for the school and good causes. 

As you no doubt already know, Crackley likes to work and play hard; so our ever resourceful and hard working PTA had organised a disco for each year group, thanks to Mr and Mrs Vaughan, to strut their funky stuff. Shapes were made and fun was definitely had by all.

One things for sure, with over £150 raised it definitely was big smiles all round. We'll let you know the actual figure just as soon as the last few pounds roll in. 

Foundation parents, staff, past pupils and friends are all cordially invited to attend Princethorpe - A Vision For The Future, a presentation by Ed Hester, Head of the Foundation on Thursday 14 March at 7.30pm in the College's Clarkson theatre.

The presentation will outline the Foundation's vision for the next five to ten years, and provide more detailed information on the College's new Science Building and campus improvements, including an interactive walk through of the Science facility.  Mr Hester will also feedback highlights from the College's parental questionnaire, unveil the Foundation's new website and outline plans for a new, improved Foundation parent portal.

Refreshments will be served after the presentation in the Sixth Form Centre.

The event is aimed at adults, although pupils are welcome to attend if accompanied by an adult.

Please click on this link to let us know if you would like to attend by Monday 4 March 2019.

A pdf copy of the Lent Term 2019 Calendar can be found below.

Please be aware that events are added as the term progresses, so remember to keep an eye on the Chronicle for any additions/changes.

Lent Term Calendar

Saturday 9 March - 10.30am to 12.30pm

Join us for our Spring Open Morning, a great opportunity to look around the school and nursery at the weekend and to chat to staff and pupils.

Junior 5 and 6 pupils will act as tour guides and there will be music and sport activities on display. Light refreshments will be available.

All are welcome to look round the school, and to meet staff and pupils. No need to book.

Please email Mrs Jenny Vaughan, Admissions Secretary at admissions@crackleyhall.co.uk or call her on 01926 514410 for more information on the Open Morning and admissions process.

Please click on 'View Gallery' to scroll through a few photos from this week's events.

RE Book of the Week has been awarded to Jorja (J5R) and Lily (J5R).

We are very grateful to Mr McCullough, Foundation Director of Ethos and father of Joe (J6L), for his insightful and inspirational assembly relating to World Day of Prayer for the Sick. 

A simple message well told, will as we all know have a lasting affect on young minds. For this reason, it was pleasing to see Mr McCullough's multi-layered approach that included Lourdes, St Bernadette, Britain's Got Talent and a poorly teddy, in the story of how we should pray for the sick and for those who work very hard to alleviate the sufferings of the sick on this day. We thank Mr McCullough for his time and spiritual guidance. 

On Wednesday 13 February, Father Kevin celebrated Mass. The theme for the Mass, as outlined by Cecilia, Hattie and Freddie, was love. On the day we remembered the love Jesus showed us and the sacrifice he made for us.

We also considered the different kinds of ways we show love and asked God during the Mass to help us, when we make sacrifices for those we love. As we know, love will break down barriers, as the act of showing love to people who we find difficult or who have hurt us in the past, as well as our friends, will ultimately bring all of God's children together.

Our thanks as ever go to Father Kevin for helping us celebrate Mass. 

Monday 25 February - Friday 1 March - One World Week  

This is a special week where the children learn about different faiths and beliefs in more depths. This is an ideal way for pupils to develop an understanding and respect of the different ways people express their faith.

Help Wanted: We would like volunteers from all faiths to come and talk to the children about their faith and beliefs. 

Please contact Mrs Jackson-Mayne on sjacksonmayne@crackleyhall.co.uk or speak to your class teacher if you are happy to come and talk to a class about how you live out your faith.

Please see details below:

Tennis Camp at Kenilworth Tennis Club

There will be a new series of Mini Tennis classes for children from J1 and J2 after half term.

If you would like your child to attend please complete the attached form and also sign-up on SOCS.

Mini Tennis Form 

This week we have been chatting about St Valentine, and how much he loved the people around him.  He wrote notes to those he loved and we have been doing the same. 

Miss Anupa has been organising the creative station in the big room and the children have been able to make as many St Valentine’s Day cards as they wanted!  Glue, glitter and hearts have been very much the order of the day, we hope you like the cards you receive! 

We also hope those of you who are off next week have a great time, and those of us staying over the half term enjoy exploring and having adventures in the quiet school.  Fingers crossed these sunny days continue, we have started to spot signs of spring in our outdoor area. 

Let me know what you spot over the coming week and maybe we will start a photo collection to start our Spring theme when we all get back together.  Have fun!

Newsletter

On behalf of the PTA and everyone who was there on Saturday, thank you for making the Winter Ball such a huge success. Mr & Mrs Vaughan, as ever entertained the crowd and we all danced the night away. Thank you again to them for giving up their Saturday evening and making it such a wonderful night!

We hope the children all enjoyed non-school uniform day and bopped their way towards the end of a busy half term.

Quiz Night - Friday 22 March 2019 at 7:30pm

You are all cordially invited to join our ever popular quiz night hosted by our very special quiz master for the evening, Mr Duigan, on Friday 22 March 2019 at 7.30pm.

Teams of up to eight people are invited to battle it out against other year groups and our reigning champions from last year, the Crackley Hall teachers and staff, to take this year's winner's title.

Tickets are on sale now and are limited to a maximum of 12 teams only, so please don’t miss out.

The tickets are priced at £7.50 each and include a shared cheeseboard. You are welcome to form your own teams or book individually and we will allocate you to a team of parents from your child’s year group. A licensed bar will be available on the evening to purchase refreshments and you are encouraged to bring any additional nibbles to enjoy. We regret that this event is for grown-ups only but there will be lots more family events to look forward to throughout the year.

We hope you can join us for what promises to be a fun and sociable evening. If you have any questions regarding the event you may email Melissa Fox mfox1401@gmail.com who will be happy to help.

To purchase your tickets please click here.   

Mitchell (J2H) - has lost his named school cap

Blythe (J1G) - has lost his named school shirt, winter hat and jumper

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Parents, please ensure that all school uniform and sports kits are named.

Could you please check all uniform and sports kits at home – if any of it is not yours, please let the School Office know, and return it to us as soon as possible.

Please find a link below to the current vacancies available across the Foundation:

• Head of Physics – Princethorpe College

Full details of the roles and how to apply are available via the following link: https://www.princethorpe.co.uk/employment-opportunities

Grasscrete area – please be aware that this area is reserved for staff parking and that parents are asked to use the lower playground or street parking if they choose to walk their child into School.  

Please ensure that when using the car park directly outside the entrance, you park considerately and move all the way around the roundabout to drop off.   

Please do not park next to the roundabout on the entrance to Littleton Close.

Any medicines brought into school must be handed in at the office. They must also be clearly labelled with the child’s name, and dosage instructions, accompanied by an authorisation form (see below). We need a new authorisation slip for each new batch of medicine. Medicine to be returned home must be collected from the office by an adult and cannot be handed to a child.

If your child needs regular medication, such as an inhaler, please ensure there is one in the school office.

All medicines should be collected from the office at the end of the academic year; we cannot store medication over the summer period.

Authorisation Form