The Chronicle

Dear Parents

It has been a particularly cold, but beautiful, week in school.  The school buildings and grounds looked stunning in the crisp, clear air and I was able to make the most of the opportunity to support some of our sports teams in their matches on Wednesday.

This week we have, unfortunately, seen a slight increase in Covid cases in school, mostly contained in one particular year group.  As parents, you will continue to receive any notifications in accordance with the guidance we have received.  It may be that you are contacted several times during the course of a week if your child is a close contact for each case.  Please continue to be extremely vigilant of the usual symptoms and conduct daily lateral flow tests if you have been notified if your child is a close contact.  Increased cleaning procedures at school will be maintained and children will not be sharing equipment.

Please do not send your children in if they have any of the Covid symptoms.  PCR tests should be booked as per government guidance.  As a school, we are requesting that regular lateral flow testing is carried out, as part of our current procedures; this should continue even if your child is not displaying any symptoms of Covid.  Any positive lateral flow tests will necessitate taking a PCR test and pupils should remain at home until a negative result is obtained from this or until the isolation period is complete (please refer to latest school and government guidance on this).    Our current experience is that if one family member has the virus, it is highly likely that other family members will also contact Covid.  I expect this trend to manifest itself at school as well.

Some of our sports fixtures have been affected by positive Covid cases in both our school and our opponents so please check the school calendar and your emails for the latest updates.  I was delighted with our football results against Croft and netball against Bilton Grange, where almost all of our teams won.

During this morning’s assembly I welcomed our Junior 5 parents and grandparents into school and I presented Stars of the Week to: Avni, Katie, Reuven, Cleo, Patrick, Angelica, Sophia-Rose, Malachi, Amelia, Finley, Josh, James, Rayane, Leonardo and Summer.  I also presented certificates to children who achieved their Bronze Award, Junior da Vinci and the Music Examinations.  There was certainly much to celebrate this morning.  Junior 4 parents will be invited into school next week and I look forward to hearing more about achievements outside of school too.  May I please request that if you are staying in school for assembly, please park respectfully on the approach roads to school so that parents dropping off their children on the lower playground can do so safely.  It may be that we open the car park on the playing fields for assembly parking next week as we experienced some congestion at drop-off time this morning. Please look out for further information on this next week.

I am sure that you will have seen a communication from the School Office on behalf of the PTA which invites families to purchase their own Jubilee Tree from the Queen’s Canopy Trust.  This is something that I am very keen to support and Crackley Hall School will be purchasing trees for each class which will be planted in the grounds and will hopefully be a lasting reminder of this year’s cohort for years to come.  It will also be supporting the PTA in their quest to raise money to develop our sports facilities on the school playing fields.  This is a project which I hope to share in more detail with you as the year progresses.

I would like to wish everyone a happy and relaxing weekend.

God bless,

Mr Duigan

Part of the A429 Kenilworth Road will be closed between January 17 and 22 between 9.30am and 3.30pm from Monday to Friday and 9.30am and 1.30pm on Saturday

Please follow the link below for more details:

https://www.warwickshireworld.com/news/people/six-days-of-lane-closures-on-main-road-in-kenilworth-due-to-hs2-works-next-week-3521324

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

Our Stars of the Week this week are:

Congratulations to them all!

On Friday 7 January, a number of children and their parents were given an amazing opportunity to go and see the National Youth Orchestra perform at Warwick University.

The children invited were those from Junior 5 and Junior 6 who take part in Choral and Orchestral activities in school. The Crackley Hall contingent were all seated on the first two rows, so they felt as if they were all actually in the performance itself.

Director of Music, Susan Olden, said, "The programme was imaginative and was full of colourful sounds and hopefully inspired the children who were lucky enough to be there.  Some of the children performing were as young as 15-years-old and it was great to see them all having such a fantastic time.  Many of them I'm sure will go on to play in professional orchestras but the magic that they exhibited on Friday will stay with us for a long time to come."

Mrs Olden, continued, "Many thanks to Amanda at the Arts Centre for letting us be part of the instrumental programme and giving us the complimentary tickets."

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Hardwick's class is Jai

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Burley's class is Thomas

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Glen-Roots's class is Aaryan

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Van Zyl's class is Harrison 

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Holmes class is Gwen 

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Robert's class is Arthur

Mathlete of the week for Mr Stedeford's class is Adreena

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Wildey's group is Esme

Well done all!

Tuesday 18 January 2022 - 10.00am to 3.00pm

Please share news of our January Open Day. It is an opportunity to look around Crackley Hall School and Little Crackers Nursery and to meet staff and pupils on a normal working day.

This will give prospective families an insight into the many aspects of school life at Crackley Hall and Little Crackers and the firm foundation we give children for their future learning.

The day will be split into three sessions. The visit will start with a talk from Mr Duigan, followed by a tour of the school. To book your place please click here.

For more information please contact the Admissions Secretary, Mrs Jenny Vaughan on 01926 514410 or by email admissions@crackleyhall.co.uk.

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

This week, Junior 6 had the topic of 'Journeys': they have started to study Europe in Geography, looking at the continent from both from a geographical and cultural perspective. Tied in with this, in PSHE, the children have started to look specifically at England and its political democracy, studying how the country selects its political leaders. In contrast, in English they ahave been studying the topic of journeys beginning with an area that lies just across the Mediterranean Sea in the continent of Asia: Lebanon. The children are examining the beautiful country of Lebanon as well as the stunning cityscapes including Beirut and further developing their descriptive writing skills, focusing on painting pictures for their reader of these incredible areas.

This week, the pupils in 5L have all been given a guided reading book while we trial guided reading sessions in the mornings. All the children are happy with their books and have been busy reading each night, so they are ready for their next session with one of the teachers. In PSHE, we have all been looking at ‘identities’ and what makes us who we are. 5L have managed to begin creating their very own coat of arms, which represents their identity. We look forward to seeing 5W’s next week!

We have all been so impressed with how Junior 4 have returned to school after Christmas, all with such a wonderful attitude towards their learning. This term in PSHE, we will be focussing on the Collaboration section of the Crackley Compass and Archimedes the Ant was proud of everyone’s efforts on Tuesday, when the children worked as a team to solve a problem in the hall. The children developed their communication skills and also learned the importance of listening, when trying to collaborate. In Science, the children were excited about their ice cube experiment and it was wonderful to see such ingenuity when creating containers to try and sustain their ice for as long as possible. Keep up the excellent work, Junior 4!  

In our Science lessons this week we have been looking at the types of questions that scientists ask. How they gather their information and use this to move the world of science and technology along. We are all really excited about our new topic ‘The Great Nappy Challenge’; in which we are going to be finding out, testing and coming to our own conclusions about disposable nappies. We are looking forward to finding out which nappies are the most absorbent, which are the stretchiest and which are the most popular with parents. Watch out - we are the scientists of the future!

Year 2 have had another fabulous week. They have been making books all about China, creating hats for a chef and thinking about what we need to survive. In English we are using our core text to help us identify when adjectives are used in sentences. Year 2 are becoming proficient at making sure our sentences are written and demarcated with the correct punctuation perfectly. We have had a fun week learning to count in 2's, 5's and 10's before we use our knowledge to help us divide next week.

In PSHE we discussed why we have rules at school, home and in our communities. We read a story that explored what would happen if we did not have rules and there were lots of lightbulb moments as to why we do need rules. The children made up their own rules for a game and had great fun playing them.

Year 2 continue to impress us with their maturing approach to their learning and how much they are able to retain. Well done, Year 2. 

What a great week we have had starting off some new and interesting topics in Science, History, Geography and English, which has kept us all keen and eager to learn. We were off to the Antarctic this week in Science, beginning to find out about polar regions in the world and what life is like there. We discovered that only penguins and seals live on Antarctica and we learnt a lot of interesting facts about penguins, which we recorded and displayed on our new ‘Polar Places’ display. In History we have begun to look at old and new types of transport and created a timeline of some vehicles to show which have been around for a very long time and which are brand new. Mrs Armitage On Wheels is our new focus in English and we are looking forward to getting stuck into that more next week.

This week Reception have been looking at the story The Selfish Crocodile by Faustin Charles. They have pretended to be the crocodile/animals in the story and to explore their feelings have asked/answered some very thought-provoking, self-generated questions. Reception have also been thinking about pets this week and have brought in pictures of pets they have or would like. After telling their class about their animals, they have been learning about how to look after them and what they need to stay healthy.

Please find information below:

Childrens Liturgy

Activity Sheet

Please click on the link below for this week's weekly mission:

Weekly Mission

Junior 4 have been exploring miracles in RE and created a table to record their findings about three of these miracles - the feeding of the 5,000, the wedding feast at Cana and when Jesus walked on water.  We discussed what the problem was in each miracle, what Jesus was asked to do and His actions, concluding with the outcome and how people reacted. We also talked about what we think a miracle could be and suggestions came in abundance, including a new-born baby, a flower, and animals, to a tall tree and the sun and rain, with the pupils each taking turns to explain why they thought they were miracles. 

On Wednesday 12 January the Under 10s Girls Netball Team went to Moorefield’s to play Netball against Bilton Grange. For their first competitive match of the year, both the A and the B team played with skill, positivity and enthusiasm.

The B team played first and they led all the way. Olivia played a pivotal role at centre, Julia and Suzie shot well and the rest of the team attacked and defended solidly throughout. The B team were triumphant winners, winning 7 goals to 2!

The A team played against a highly skilful Bilton Grange A team and they all dug deep and played their very best Netball. Esme played solidly at centre and all the girls worked tirelessly to both attack and defend, and to try and get the ball to our super shooters, Lexi and Nell, who had tall and experienced defenders against them. The girls fought hard and only narrowly lost 3 goals to 2!

Players of the match were Georgie (J5W) and Suzie (J5L)!  I was very proud of all the girls and how they represented their school very well. Well done to them all!

Mrs Roberts (Year 5 Sports Coach)

Playing for the A Team:

GK Penny, GD Georgie Rea, WD Georgie S, C Esme, WA Emily, GA Nell, GS Lexi

Playing for the B Team:

GK  Kate, GD Jia, WD Amalia, C Olivia, WA Matilda/Chloe, GA Julia, GS Suzie

MATCH REPORT: Crackley vs Croft Prep - U11A Football vs Croft

On Wednesday 12 January, Crackley Hall played against Croft Prep. It was a good game and both teams played well. We created many positive attacking moments but Croft were dedicated in their defence and kept out many of our shots. Eventually, we managed to win 2-0, with Sid scoring both goals. All-round, it was an excellent team performance. Thank you to Mr Stedeford and Mr Duigan for their support.

Written by Dexter (J6H)

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MATCH REPORT: Crackley vs Croft Prep - U11 B Football vs Croft

On Wednesday 12 January, Crackley Hall’s B team had an exquisite football match against Croft Prep. After battling hard in the first half, we eventually became more fluent in attack and scored two goals in the second half, scored by George K and Joseph M. The team performance was excellent and Harry Riley was chosen as man of the match. The final score was 2-0 to Crackley Hall.

Written by George K  (J6H)

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MATCH REPORT: Crackley vs Croft Prep - U11C on 12th January By George B (J6H)

Firstly, the captains walked to the middle of the pitch to choose who had the first kick. Croft’s captain had to choose which hand Mr Cottrill had the whistle in to decide who would go first. He chose correctly so Croft kicked off to start the match.

Crackley got off to a great start by winning the ball from Croft. Crackley scored the first goal of the match, with Alex (J6V) shooting the ball into the back of the net!

The next goal came from Crackley again! This time it was Aaron (J6V) who got past the keeper.

Aaron and Morton were great at defending, but Croft finally broke through Crackley’s great defense to get a goal through my legs in the last 30 seconds!

They didn’t have time to score any more, so Crackley won the match 2-1.

This was a brilliant team effort by all the boys!

TEAM SHEET:

CAPTAIN: George (J6H)

VICE-CAPTAIN: Kian (J6V)

Morton, Aaron, Alex A, Alex H, Alfred, Mikey, Sebastian (All J6)

Learning is about being curious, experimenting and collaborating – expanding our thinking and doing, helping us develop new insights and new skills. In Lego we learn to put things together, take them apart and put them together again in different ways. Building, un-building, rebuilding, thereby creating new things and developing new ways of thinking about ourselves, and the world.  The world of Lego is amazing and this week in Lego Club was no different – apart from the fact that it wasn’t snowing!

We celebrated the return of Bo the Seal after she went on an expedition around the world through unchartered waters for a couple of months without telling her owner!! But she has thankfully made a jubilant return to safety to a very happy keeper. We discovered that Star Wars have brought out even more new products and we recreated some of these, including a new AT-AT and a BB8. We talked about the new Wizard chess Lego set and with magic in the air, we also made a beautiful rainforest for Belle, Tiana, Cinderella and Ariel – with Bo the seal being on security watch!

We have enjoyed a cold and frosty week in nursery this week, and I can honestly say it has been a joy to watch the sky change colour as I welcome everyone in a morning.  The frost on the grass, the blue and pink sky and the bright sunshine have given us plenty to talk about in nursery too.  On our winter walk this morning we explored the slippery ground and the crunchy frosty grass, we watched our breath make clouds in the air and we listened to the birds calling to each other through the crisp wintery air.  To reflect the winter wonderland outside the children have been creating winter wonderlands inside too – using a variety of materials, tools and techniques to produce some beautiful pictures for our new winter display.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and don’t forget, it’s Open Day next Tuesday, so please contact the school and pop in to see us if you get chance.

Newsletter

Our Christmas Light Trail was a success once again! Fifteen families lit up their homes and hid a letter amongst their light display. The children were all sent home with a map and asked to find all fifteen letters, solve the anagram and return their form to school. All entries were placed in a hat and Patrick Fuchss was randomly selected as the winner by Mr Duigan. All entrants were also asked to identify their favourite light display - the winning house was the O'Hallorans' on Thickthorn Close! Congratulations!! And thank you to all who took part in this magical experience.

Thank you all so much for buying your raffle tickets before Christmas.

This has helped us raise over £500! 

We are happy to announce the PTA second hand uniform shop will be going back to face to face sales!

This will take place on Fridays between 8:30-10:00am (before and during the Celebration Assembly), 
outside the hall entrance.

We can only accommodate one year group at a time, so please continue to use the uniform@pta.crackleyhall.co.uk email to submit your requests if you haven’t been invited to the assembly for your child’s year group.

We are able to take cards, cash or cheque.

We are also always looking for donations of items your child has outgrown, please drop these in the box labelled ‘PTA uniform’, located on the front porch of the school. We are in dire need of any sports track bottoms at the moment.

As always we thank you for your support and couldn’t run the second hand shop without your generous donations.

As part of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations this year, Crackley Hall School are delighted to confirm that we will be taking part in the Queen's Green Canopy initiative which involves planting trees across the United Kingdom and 'pinning' the tree on The Queen's Green Canopy map. Each class, with the help of Mr Robertson from Princethorpe College, will be planting a tree on the school grounds before half term.

The PTA would like to extend the offer to parents so that you may also purchase a family Jubilee tree(s) to plant in celebration of this event. Ordering will be available between 13-19 January in order that the saplings can be delivered in time for the optimum planting period. By purchasing a tree, you will be raising funds for The Woodlands Trust and helping the PTA raise money towards enhancing our sports facilities on the school field. More details regarding this project will be circulated later this term.

Specific trees cannot be chosen but you will be given one of the following native trees, multiple orders are also welcome:

• Crab apple - estimated full grown height 7-9m
• Rowan - estimated full grown height 15-20m
• Field maple - estimated full grown height 8-15m

Each tree will be delivered to school before the end of February with spirals and canes to help you protect your new trees from small mammals. These trees are cell-grown saplings, ranging from approximately 15cm-60cm in height at the purchase time. Each tree will cost £7.50 and added to your next school invoice.

Once your tree is planted, you will be able to pin your tree and also order a commemorative plaque. More details and tips for planting can be found on the website https://queensgreencanopy.org

We hope that you are able to support this initiative.

Wednesday 26 January 7.00pm – now online

The next Ordinary Meeting will be on Wednesday 26 January and the meeting will be online.

If you would like to join in please email ccamilleriwillis@gmail.com and the link will be shared with you on the day, we really look forward to catching up with both current, and, hopefully lots of new members at the meeting.

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

Could you please regularly check all uniform and sports kits at home – if it does not belong to your child, please return it to the School Office as soon as possible.

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 Grace (J6H) has lost her school tracksuit (lost at school before Christmas)

We are recruiting for a variety of roles currently, as you will see below, so please do share with friends and family by word of mouth.

Further information and application forms on all roles are available on the Foundation's website - www.princethorpe.co.uk/join-us

• Gardener/Groundsman - Princethorpe College
• Full Time Caretaker - Crackley Hall School
• Caretaker (Afternoons/Evenings) - Princethorpe College