The Chronicle

Dear Parents

Welcome to this week’s Chronicle, the last edition for this term.  You will probably agree that this has been another full week encompassing the spiritual life of the school, along with learning, music and drama, sport and testing.  The unusual weather has also been a topic of discussion in classes this week, as children took part in ‘cold’ cross-country races and played outside in the snow flurries.

Father Kevin has visited school three times this week: on Monday for the Junior 3, 4, 5 and 6 Reconciliation, on Wednesday for the Junior 5 Easter production and yesterday, when Junior 6 took part in the Stations of the Cross.  I am incredibly grateful to Father Kevin for giving his time to school and guiding our pupils on their spiritual journey.  My thanks are also extended to Mrs Simmonds and Mrs Horan who have helped on both of these occasions.  My thanks are also extended to Father David, who was also here for Reconciliation on Monday.

Wednesday was the busiest of days, with an inter-school cross country challenge on our school field and Junior 5 performing ‘Three Trees’ to families at the end of the school day.  Children from local primary schools were invited to take part in the cross country and, despite the cold weather, the afternoon was thoroughly enjoyed and well supported.  Staff and children work incredibly hard preparing, rehearsing and training for events such as these and I would like to thank everyone involved, particularly the sports, music and drama departments.  There are some wonderful photographs of both events which were captured by Mrs Stephenson from Princethorpe College which you will be able see later in this edition.

During assembly this morning we were able to enjoy a super performance from Lily in Junior 6 and celebrate handing out certificates to our Stars of the Week: Sebastian, Ciara, Ted, Xanthe, Remy, Thea, Charlotte, Daiya, Sara, Jenson, Sebastian, Andrew, Rosie, Theo, Leo and Jack.  There was a ‘bumper collection’ of Junior Da Vinci’s today, acknowledging the exceptional work of our Reception, Junior 1 and Junior 2 pupils.  Silver Merit Awards were presented to Ciara, Ella, Grace, Ted, Oscar and Jovan; all of J2B, Katie and Elliot achieved their Bronze Award today too.  Congratulations to everyone who has received a certificate or award and I look forward to seeing your continued efforts next term.

I was delighted to see so many families in school this morning for our Celebration Assembly and that parents had also used the school field for parking which, in turn, alleviates congestion in the residential area.  If you are visiting school for a performance, assembly or a meeting, may I respectfully ask that you either report to the main reception area and register your attendance or stay within the Hall and Gables area.  This is to ensure we can maintain our health and safety policies.

Term will end on Tuesday, 5 April and holiday club will then open on Wednesday between 8.30am and 5.00pm.  At present, there has not been sufficient take up from families to operate on every day and will therefore need to cancel any bookings made for Monday 11 to Thursday 14 April.  If you have made a booking for this day, you will be emailed on Monday to confirm the cancellation.  Holiday club will operate between 19 and 22 April.

Next week will be a short week for the children and we will be starting the week with a non-uniform day on Monday.  There will not be a theme or cost attached to this day.  On Tuesday we will celebrate Holy Mass for Key Stage 2 and children will also be able to have their end of term assemblies and class celebrations during the afternoon.  Sadly, on Tuesday, we will be saying farewell and good luck to Mrs Chauhan (Miss Anupa) who works in Little Crackers Nursery.  Mrs Chauhan has worked in Little Crackers for 10 years and will be greatly missed by staff and children alike.  We wish her the very best in her new role.  We also say farewell well to Mrs Rai who has worked on a part-time basis in Junior 4 for a few months and we wish her well for the future.

We keep our Muslim families in our thoughts and prayers as they begin their Ramadan journey this weekend and think of one particular family who have just begun their pilgrimage to the Holy City of Mecca.

As we prepare for the most important week in the Christian calendar, Holy Week, we continue to consider others in prayer and financial giving, as well as reflect on our own lives and spiritual journeys as we look to ‘say sorry’ to God and to continue to strive to be better human beings. Following Holy Week, we celebrate Easter and I would like to wish you all a wonderful Easter, when it arrives.  I hope that you are all able to have some relaxing family time together over the holiday period.

Thank you to all our families for their support over a busy term, well done to the pupils for their hard work and involvement in school life, and a big ‘thank you’ to all my super staff for their tremendous efforts over the term. Pupils and staff all certainly deserve a very well-earned rest.

God bless,

Mr Duigan

Holiday club will run from Wednesday 6 until Friday 22 April 2022. It will be closed Friday 15, and Monday 18 for the Easter weekend.

It will be open from 8.30am to 5.00pm each day, and will cost £30 per child. Hot lunch will be included.

Holiday club will only operate on the days where there are sufficient numbers to open, therefore it is important for you to book early as we may not be able to accommodate last minute bookings, due to staff ratios. If you have booked a day and the numbers attending are not high enough, you will be contacted to either cancel or rearrange the day booked.

Please book through the Parent Portal and send any queries to holidayclub@crackleyhall.co.uk

Thank you.

Want to become a fluency superstar?

Introducing a new maths app which we are starting to use in school to build greater mental number confidence and fluency. 1-Minute Maths offers children engaging and easily accessible practice in key number skills and is fully aligned to our maths scheme.

As well as using the app in school, it may be beneficial for you to download it onto a device at home. At the moment, it is designed primarily for school years Reception through to Year 3, but additional multiplication and division materials will be coming soon, making it suitable for all.

The link below gives further details, including how to install it:

whiterosemaths.com/latest-news/introducing-our-brand-new-app-1-minute-maths 

We hope you will take a look!

Please click on the link for next weeks menu.

Our Stars of the Week this week are:

Congratulations to them all!

Crackley’s Junior 5 pupils took to the stage on Wednesday 30 March to perform a simple but dramatic mini-musical that portrayed the intrigue and mixed emotions of the Easter story.

The Tale of 3 Trees follows three little trees growing up on a mountain top who have big dreams of what they want to become, one by one their hopes are dashed as they are chopped down and turned into seemingly insignificant things. As the story unfolds, though, they find out that God has an amazing plan for them – a plan that goes beyond their wildest dreams. They find themselves at the heart of the story of Jesus.

Junior 5 carried the narrative with great passion, and it was lovely to see them bringing the musical to life. It was a moving production, full of expectation, disappointment and ultimately joy, messages well worth reflecting on as we approach the Easter break.

Concluding the service, Mr Duigan congratulated all on their brilliant performances and thanked the staff for all their hard work putting the show together.

Crackley Hall was excited to welcome Year 5 and Year 6 pupils from Crescent School, Priors Field Primary School and Balsall Common Primary School for a Junior Schools' cross-country challenge.

The event took place on a freezing cold and wet Wednesday 30 March out on the sports field at Crackley Hall. The children were all keen to compete and get warm on the winding course around the school field. They set off with plenty of energy and enthusiasm and demonstrated great determination and perseverance to complete the race.

The Year 5 girls race was the first to get going and it was a close matched affair. Esme ran well and was just pipped at the post to finish in second place. She was followed over the line by Matilda in 9th, Suzie 12th and Julia 14th.

The Year 5 boys were next, with pupils giving their all and showing a fabulous work ethic and team spirit. Strong competition from Balsall Common and Priors Field meant that Crackley’s first finisher was Jack in 9th, with Seb in 11th, Ralph 12th, Rayane 13th and Carter 16th.

The Year 6 girls showed grit, determination, and maturity. Fantastic running from Elle saw her lead from the front against a strong Crescent team. She came home first closely followed by Issey in 2nd place and Agnes in 6th.

The final race was the Year 6 boys and it did not disappoint. The Crackley boys set a fast pace with the competition following on. It was incredibly close with George determined to stay in the lead, fighting off Dexter in 2nd, Leonardo 3rd and Sid in 5th.

The individual races were followed by relays, with teams of four competitors running a shorter course.

Fantastic performances by all of Crackley's pupils of which we are very proud, not only whilst running but also for their support of one another cheering and encouraging all the runners along. Well done to all and we hope you have warmed up now!

Blue skies and sunshine greeted this year’s Junior 4 adventurers on their residential trip to Kingswood Activity Centre in Staffordshire last week.

For three days, pupils took up the challenge of working together as a team taking part in a wide range of activities, including zipwiring, problem solving, night-line and, perhaps the most challenging of all, bed making!

All of the pupils showed a wonderful willingness to try new experiences and to celebrate each others' successes.

It really was wonderful to see them building memories, that will last a lifetime. Way to go, Junior 4! 

We shared some photos last week but here are a few more.

Please follow the link for more information. 

The deadline for entries is 7pm on Sunday 17 April 2022.

Do let us know if you decide to take part.

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

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

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

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

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Holmes' class is Jessie

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

mathlete of the week for Mrs Roberts class is Elora 

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Wildey group is Joseph

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Lammas' group is Georgie R

Well done all!

Thursday 12 May

Our Junior 4s will be travelling over to Princethorpe College on the morning of Thursday 12 May to take part in a special Music Technology Workshop.

Under the guidance of Princethorpe Director of Music, Gil Cowlishaw and Music Teacher, Alison Wakeley, the children will be introduced to computer music production concepts such as sequencing and arrangement and will use special software to make their own composition, which they will be able to share with their families after the event.

It promises to be a fun and engaging session for them all.

Thursday 19 May 2022 - 5.00pm to 7.30pm

Please share news of our Open Evening for prospective pupils.

Prospective pupils and their parents are warmly invited to Crackley Hall and Little Cracker's Open Evening on Thursday 19 May from 5.00pm.

Come and find out more about what a Crackley education can do for your child. This is a great opportunity for prospective families to get a feel for the school and to meet Mr Duigan, Headmaster, and speak to key members of staff.

To book your place, please click here.

For more information on admission to Crackley Hall School and Little Crackers Nursery please email Jenny Vaughan at admissions@crackleyhall.co.uk or call 01926 514410.

Wednesday 8 June 2022 - 6.30pm to 9.00pm

The College's Summer Open Evening is a great opportunity for prospective families, for Year 7 to 10 September 2023 entry, to look around the school and to meet members of staff and pupils. There will be two opportunities to hear from Ed Hester, Headmaster, at 6.45pm or 7.30pm, allowing families to explore the College before and after. So families do not miss out, we are encouraging visitors to book their place and time slot.

Click here to book your place.

If you have any questions please contact the Admissions Team on 01926 643201/262/297 or email admissions@princethorpe.co.uk.

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

This week in History, Junior 6 have been looking at the passengers who were on board the Titanic. We looked at the differences between the first, second and third-class passengers and where they were allowed on the ship. It really was a floating palace in first class! We studied the passenger list as a piece of primary evidence and were able to see whether each person survived or not and which lifeboat they got into. It is no surprise that there were more first-class survivors than any other. In RE we have continued to think about the denial of Peter, when Jesus was taken from the Garden of Gethsemane to the courtyard of Caiphas’ house and Peter pretended he did not know him three times. We discussed the courage shown by Jesus and how Peter might have felt when he realised his betrayal.

Junior 5 have been immersed in storytelling using their exciting core text, Kensuke’s Kingdom by Michael Morpurgo, as inspiration. The children have been imagining, drawing and describing their own desert islands which they have imagined themselves stranded upon. Then they created an ‘islander’ character, like Kensuke, who befriends them. Next, they discussed and wrote about the problems they might encounter on their islands from having no fresh water, to being attacked by an orang-utan! Luckily the children soon finished their stories with appropriate resolutions which resulted in happy endings. Phew! What exciting adventures Junior 5 have had!

Junior 4 have worked hard, skilfully planning and writing their assessed writing pieces this week. Their exciting theme was Beowulf as this is a story they have read and studied for the last few weeks. Junior 4 impressively included a range of ambitious words, embedded clauses and examples of figurative language. Well done Junior 4 - there’s some budding and future authors amongst us!

This week we have enjoyed completing and writing up our wonderful Storm Cat poems, inspired by our core text The Mousehole Cat. Through our use of our senses, alliteration, and personification, along with some powerful descriptive vocabulary, we really captured the essence of a stormy sea. In Geography, we have learned more about the coast and had a great time explaining the process of beach formation using digestive biscuits. We have also been super scientists, investigating different types of soils and how easily water filters through them. In French lessons, Junior 3 have enjoyed learning about how April Fool’s Day is celebrated in France. They learnt that on 1st April, as a practical joke, children in France sometimes put a paper fish on someone’s back and call out ‘Poisson d’avril’! The children decided their favourite French joke ‘What do you call a French man wearing sandals?’, (Answer: Philippe Phillop).

Alongside our Cornish cornucopia, the children have been creating little 3D lighthouses which we think are fab. We have used shells, sand and grit to create a textured, rocky surface and within the next few days they will be turned into beautiful little night-lites. Your children are shining brightly!

Junior 2 have finished this term with a flourish. This week has been all about reflecting on what we have all learnt during the Lent term. In our Maths lessons, we have been assessing what we know about fractions as this topic now comes to an end. Our theme of 'The Great Fire of London' is now complete and we showed all we have learnt by writing descriptions using adjectives, verbs and adverbs. Our teachers tasked us with writing an opening paragraph of quality writing and we all rose to the challenge with enthusiasm. Our last History lesson saw us looking at the buildings which arose after the fire, which fitted in wonderfully with the Easter message of new life. We would like to wish everyone a fabulous Easter and we look forward to seeing you all next term.

Junior 1 have learnt more about Holy week this week in their RE and English lessons. After hearing the story of what happened to Jesus during Holy Week, Junior 1 have taken time to sequence the events to help them remember the occasion in the right order and then discussed why these things happened to Jesus. We have used this week to gain a better understanding of how Jesus felt during Holy Week and why He was ready to die on the cross for us. In Maths we have looked at time. Not only telling the time to o’clock and half past on an analogue clock, but also how long a minute lasts. They were challenged to see what they could do in one minute, like how many times they could write their name, or do star jumps, or write numbers etc… with some funny results!

This week in Reception we decided to make some carrot and coriander soup after reading the story of The Enormous Turnip in Literacy. This proved to be very tasty with lots of children asking for second helpings! This helped the children to then produce some fantastic independent writing. The children all managed to produce some very clear instructions on how to make soup. We have also started watering our beans, so we can see how roots develop and plants grow.

Easter

This week we have two Weekly Missions, one of which will cover Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week. We have also included the Children’s Liturgies for this coming Sunday - the Fifth Sunday of Lent - Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, together with the relevant activity sheets.

Lent Family

We have also attached some Lent family conversation card questions. We hope these cards will help your family have some meaningful conversations over Lent, and perhaps find out some new and surprising things. Simply print and cut out the cards. There are also some blank cards for you to add your own questions. You can allow people to read the questions and choose one that resonates with them or pick them at random – whatever will work best for your gathering.

Conversation Card Questions Link 

Easter Cards

Junior 2 have been busy making Easter cards and they have loved sharing the joy of God’s love and focusing on the message of Holy Week and the scene on Mount Calvary with Jesus on the cross. We are sure you will agree that the colours they have used are very powerful indeed.

Please find information below:

3 April

Children's Liturgy

Activity Sheet

10 April

Children's Liturgy

Activity Sheet

Easter Sunday 

Children's Liturgy

Activity Sheet

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

4 April

Weekly Mission

Palm Sunday 

Weekly Mission

Please see flyer for more information.

Please follow the link for more information. 

There’s no doubt that the Junior 4 trip to Kingswood has made a lasting impression on pupils from the J4 Lego Club, creating unforgettable experiences and special memories. With this in mind, this week in Lego Club we decided to travel, not by coach, but by stepping aboard the iconic Hogwarts express train to the outdoor adventure centre ready to re-enact the variety of activity sessions, from aerial adventures to fun problem-solving initiatives in Lego form!  We swung into action in the meadow, scanning the area for potential Easter bunnies. With magical bunnies running cheerily through the assault course, we looked for the Easter treats which were hopefully hiding in the undergrowth. “Make sure the Easter bunnies don’t step on any Lego bricks!” we cried. With all this egg-citement, we were egg-hausted!  Happy Easter everybody!

Please click on the link for this week's newsletter.

Saturday 21 May

Please see flyer for more details.

Crackley's Got Talent is back by popular demand and will take place on Saturday 21 May 2022 between 2:00pm and 4:00pm.

The PTA have organised the annual talent show for the past decade, latterly held as part of the Family Fun Day.  It has always been hugely popular, from the number of children performing to Mr Cottrill's memorable joke-telling in his role as host.  The performers will be asked to perform at the Talent Show during the Family Fun Day on Saturday 21 May.

Further details are contained in the attached entry pack, which includes the entry form.  A hard copy will be coming home before the end of term. The entry form should be returned to class teachers by Tuesday 3 May.  We encourage entries from all year groups and welcome variety.

Remember to practise, practise, practise - perhaps use time during the holidays and have lots of FUN!

Please follow the link for more information. 

We are putting together a school cookbook ....by the children, for the children, and we need your help with recipes and pictures preferably of your child cooking or eating your delicious food. We are creating this to celebrate this special year of the Queen and her Jubilee. Once published, it will be available to buy. 

Our summer fair will take place on Saturday 21 May and we are hoping the book will be ready to purchase then. The vision is to create a cookbook with a step by step guide to prepare and cook your creations along with a list of ingredients and a photograph. As parents and keen cooks ourselves, we are aiming to produce a sturdy, bound and wipeable cookbook. By submitting a photograph to us you will be consenting to this image appearing in the cookbook and sold by the Crackley Hall PTA. If you prefer not to have a photograph of your child(ren) in the book then you may submit an image of the finished product or none at all and we can use a stock image.

As with all PTA events, we need your support to make this work and we ask that you submit your recipe before Monday 25 April. It would be very special if we could include any recipes that are special to your child, family, culture and heritage. 100% of the funds raised will be directed to improving facilities on the sports fields.

To help entice you there will also be some great prizes:

• Best main dish
• Best pudding
• Best snack/party food
• Best looking dish
• Best picture of our mini chefs

Please send submissions and pictures to: crackleycookbook@gmail.com. Please include your child's name, age and current class. 

Please follow the link for the PTA Newsletter. 

Our next non-uniform day is on Monday 4 April. The children are encouraged to wear something Easter related! 

Reusable Crackley Hall School mugs are now available to purchase through the PTA!

They can be purchased online by clicking on the link below or before each assembly at the PTA coffee and tea stand.

Thank you and enjoy.

Link to order

All families of pupils at our school are members of the PTA. The PTA runs regular fundraising and social events for the whole school community. Our fundraising efforts have enhanced the education and experience of all the children at the school and will continue to do so with your support. We would like to know a little bit about you and the events and activities that interest you. The PTA Committee would appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to complete this questionnaire:

Main Survey

Volunteer Sign-Up

The PTA second-hand uniform would like to offer period costumes and Christmas jumpers to the families when needed throughout the year. We aim to offer a cheaper and environmentally friendly alternative than buying new!

Year 5 has just completed Tudor Day and at this time we are starting to build our collection of costumes and jumpers for the period days throughout the year that Crackley Hall hosts. 

Therefore we are looking for the following donated items please:

• Christmas Jumpers 
• Victorian Day clothing 
• Tudor Day clothing 
• Roman clothing 
• Stone Age clothing  

As always we need your help to make this resale successful for the families of Crackley Hall. All clean clothing can be dropped off at the front porch where the PTA uniform box is. We appreciate all your help. 

The 200 club is open for April! If you join this month you will be placed in a draw each month until July! We were so excited to give our March winners their prize of £50 (Congwei Shi), £75 (Mr Bridge) and £100 (Gavin Card)! We still have a lot of tickets to sell and really need support from our generous school community.  100% of money raised will go to the school fields and changing rooms so children will not be walking back and forth to school wet and cold. Any support is so appreciated and we want to give back to you! Please show your support where you can. All family members (aunts, cousins, uncles, grandparents, etc) are eligible to join.                       

To enter: Please email your details (name, email and phone number) to kategreevy@yahoo.co.uk. Please submit one form for each person's entry. Please pay £20 into the CH PTA sort code: 30-94-93 account: 02023477 Lloyds Bank. Good luck! 

Crackley Hall PTA - Kenilworth needs your help!

Sign up to easyfundraising and raise FREE donations every time you shop online with over 6,000 retailers. John Lewis, Argos, Uswitch, eBay and many more are waiting to give a free donation.

Plus once you’ve signed up and raised £5 in donations, easyfundraising will give us an extra £5 bonus donation!

Sign up to support us here – https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/invite/5UA5P2/

This takes place on Fridays between 8.30-10.00am (before and during the Celebration Assembly) and outside the hall entrance. 

It is important to know 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. 

New to school?  Interested in meeting new parents?  Fancy a lovely cup of coffee and a chat?

Please come along to our next coffee morning on 11 May at 9.00am, Kenilworth Almanack. 

It's been a difficult two years and we are so happy to finally meet again face to face. 

So many of us are new, including current PTA members, so please come along if you can, we welcome everyone.

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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We regularly recruit for a variety of roles, please do share news of the vacancies with interested friends and family.

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

• Lunchtime Supervisor - Crescent School 
• Invigilators - Princethorpe College