The Chronicle

‘Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts.’    Albert Einstein

Dear Parents 

This the last Chronicle of this term and of 2022. The days and weeks seemed to pass quicker than ever at the moment, but we should all take time to recognise how fortunate we are particularly when there are others locally, and further afield, who might be struggling emotionally, mentally or financially.  I was delighted to see that our Minnie Vinnie’s have been thinking about the local retired and housebound parishioners when they made their own Christmas cards and brought gifts which have now been distributed.  Mrs Jackson-Mayne has co-ordinated a reverse advent calendar and the whole school has been able to contribute towards 11 wonderful hampers which will be presented to the Leamington and Warwick Food Bank Team.   I know that both of these kind gestures will be gratefully received and be remembered fondly.

The final week of school consisted of a trip Warwick Arts Centre, nativities, class award presentations, swimming certificate presentations, the pantomime, Mass and a farewell to a member staff.  On Monday, the Nursery, Reception and Junior 1 children visited the Warwick Arts Centre to watch The Stickman and I knew that they had a lovely time by the excited voices as they returned to school!   My thanks to Mrs Allen for organising this visit and to the other staff who accompanied the children.  Also on Monday, Mme Westerman organised a live Teams link for Junior 5 children so that they could ‘meet’ their French pen pals at Ecole Saint Pierre in Nantes.  Junior 5 enjoyed interacting with their pen pals and developing some of their language skills at the same time and I am sure that there will be future link ups next term and friendships strengthened.

On Tuesday morning we hosted the Nursery and Reception nativities.  These nativities are always a joy to attend bringing smiles to the faces of everyone and creating memories of important milestones.  The Junior 1 and 2 nativity was held on Wednesday afternoon and I was also fortunate to be able to watch the whole performance.  I'm pleased to say that Mrs Stephenson, from Princethorpe College, was able to capture some stunning photographs of the children during the performances and these have been sent to parents. May I remind families that if you have received a link to the Flickr account, these images must not be shared on social media.

On Thursday the whole school watched the Robin Hood pantomime organised as a Christmas treat by the PTA.  This has become an annual event and something that the pupils thoroughly enjoy.  By supporting the PTA at various fundraising events and initiatives, you are in turn helping provide extra treats and resources for the children.  They are always looking for new volunteers, so please do get in touch if you think you can offer some help.

Mr Vaughan presented our Junior 3 and 4 children with their swimming awards this week and I was very pleased to hear about the progress made in their lessons at the Excel Centre.  I would like to remind parents in Junior 3 and Junior 4 that swimming lessons will not take place in the Lent term, but this will resume in Trinity term. 

This morning I hosted a whole school assembly celebration assembly which has not happened for some time.   Reception to Junior 6 were present and there were many awards certificates and announcements to be made.  Our Stars of the Week were presented to all of Nursery, Tobias, Ola, Jessica, Katie, Lily-Rose, the whole of Junior 3H, George, Joseph, Antony, Joshua, Alexa, Jack, Emily.   There was an impressive selection of bronze awards for the children who have completed their first Crackley Compass and several da Vinci's awarded for exemplary work in various subjects. Congratulations to you all for your super hard work this year and I look forward to this continuing next term.   Music performed by the guitar ensemble and the orchestra was, indeed, fantastic. We really enjoyed their super performances.

After assembly, I welcomed Father Kevin into school to perform the end of term Mass.  My thanks to Father Kevin, Mrs Jackson-Mayne, Mrs Simmonds, Ms McAloon and Mrs Olden for helping to prepare Mass. Later during the morning children received their end of term class prizes.  For those parents new to Crackley Hall, a certificate and small prize is awarded to every student throughout the course of the school year which recognises, not just academic qualities, but personal attributes such as kindness, manners and loyalty to friends which could easily overlooked but are very important. 

As I wished a blessed and happy Christmas and said goodbye to children today, I also had to say farewell to Mr Kefalas who will be leaving Crackley Hall to start a new job in January.  He has been a terrific member of staff over the past six years and I am sure you will join me in wishing him well in his new career.

The school will be open from Monday to Thursday next week for holiday club and Nursery, between the hours of 9.00am and 4.00pm, should you need to make contact with the office staff.  The school will then be closed until Tuesday, 3 January, when we open for staff training and the school term starts on Wednesday 4 January.  Apart from the support staff in the office, kitchen and maintenance sections, and working in the Nursery and holiday club, all staff will be having a deserved two-week rest.

Thank you for your support, for your children and the school, over the past term. Thank you also for the many kind wishes, card and gifts given to various staff.  I do hope that you will all be able to enjoy a most restful and blessed Christmas and a happy New Year.

God bless,

Rob Duigan

Our Stars of the Week this week are:

Congratulations to them all!

Many congratulations to Junior 2, Olivia Edkins, and Junior 3, Jess Greevy, who have been awarded first and second place respectively in the 2022 Catholic Independent Schools Conference (CISC) Christmas card competition. Olivia and Jess were presented with their certificates in celebration Assembly today.

The theme for the competition this year was ‘Walking in the Light’ and the girls produced beautiful drawings of the nativity scene and of Mary holding baby Jesus. A huge well done to them both.

You can see Olivia's design on the CISC website here: https://www.catholicindependentschools.com/

Huge thanks to Crackley’s PTA for organising a festive treat for all the children on the penultimate day of the Michaelmas term.

Outside The Box Productions brought the magic of theatre into school as they performed the classic tale of Robin Hood. The nasty Sheriff is up to no good, but our brave hero, Robin, his Merry Man, Little John and the beautiful Maid Marion are able to foil his plans to steal money from the poor, marry Maid Marion and take over the entire town!

The traditional story, told with much slapstick comedy, silly songs, quick changes and a liberal sprinkling of traditional panto magic, was a hilarious show much enjoyed by all the children and was a super treat at the end of a busy term.

And an extra special award for Mr Kefalas who stoically endured the attentions of the cast!

Thirty-three pupils from Crackley Hall's Minnie Vinnies have been busy thinking about the retired and housebound parishioners of the Parish of St Francis. The children made their own Christmas cards and brought in gifts to be distributed by the Senior SVP - Saint Vincent de Paul Society - to the parishioners in the community. Said a delighted Mrs Dolores Simmonds, who is co-ordinator of the Minnie Vinnies at Crackley Hall, "I am so proud that these children have taken the time to think about others who are less fortunate and to make cards to help others to feel cared for."

Juniors 1 and 2 performed their nativity to a packed school hall of parents on Wednesday 14 December. The biting chill of the freeing weather seen off by the cosy warmth of the festive celebration of community and song.

The action unfolded around the comfort of a campfire and combined the present day with the nativity story. The happy campers reflecting under the stars and retelling the simplicity and wonder of the traditional nativity.

It was a fabulous performance from all the children who delivered their lines with panache and sang exuberantly and enthusiastically. Headmaster, Rob Duigan, congratulated them all commenting, “Children you were absolutely fantastic.”  He thanked the staff involved in putting together the show and thanked the parents for coming.

Well done Juniors 1 and 2, what a wonderful and uplifting nativity that was, it really was magical for us all at Christmas time!

For their nativity, Reception performed Baarmy Bethlehem, a story about the ‘party sheep’ who love to ‘Baa Baa Boogie’!

Cheeky, Rascal, Tinker and Scamp the sheep are real party animals! So, when they see Bethlehem filling up for Caesar’s census, they assume it’s for a big celebration and they do not want to miss out. They escape from the flock and make their way into town, but although they find lots of things they love, like noise and crowds of people, there can’t find any party.

As they continue their search, they come across the angels, the shepherds and the three kings and eventually, in a peaceful, quiet stable they find Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus, the real reason why we celebrate.

After all their hard work rehearsing, learning the songs, and memorising lines, and despite a few costume mishaps, what a spectacle it proved to be. The children all sang and danced baa-utifully, and we hope you all enjoyed the performance.

Our very youngest children took to the stage on Tuesday morning to tell the story of the nativity. With smiles on their faces, they performed their lines confidently and clearly. The super catchy songs were sung beautifully, if a bit enthusiastically at times.

Performing on stage to a large audience of excited parents takes more than a little courage, but our Nursery animals, innkeepers, stars, shepherds, wise men and Mary and Joseph were all magnificent.

There were certainly some stars of the future on show. Well done nursery - you were all amazing!

There were big smiles and plenty of ‘Bonjours’ all round, when Junior 5 had the opportunity to meet their French pen pals face to face this lunchtime through Teams.

Crackley Hall’s specialist language teacher, Madame Westerman, has developed a partnership with Ecole Saint Pierre in Nantes for the pupils in her Junior 5 classes. The children have been writing letters and really enjoying getting to know a little bit about each other, they have also sent Christmas cards.

The children were delighted to have the chance to see and speak to their new friends and enjoyed introducing themselves. After the weekend's football our Crackley pupils showed very good sportsmanship by saying Félicitations and Allez les Bleus! 

It was a great opportunity for them to listen to and speak French to native speakers.

It was a super session for them all.

During Advent, Crackley Hall have been preparing for Christmas in many different ways. Each class has taken part in a Reverse Advent Calendar activity and the results have been amazing! On the final day of term 11 hampers were collected by the Leamington and Warwick Food Bank Team, to be distributed to people in need this Christmas.

It is extremely important for our children to realise that not everyone is so lucky and that we can all use our gifts to find ways to help.

A huge thank you to all our Crackley Community!

Pupils have also been involved in two House events in the last week of term. Decorating the foyer of the school are cribs of all shapes and sizes – made from an assortment of materials: Lego, playdough, wood, felt, cardboard and even gingerbread! Each child was awarded a Full da Vinci when they brought their creations to Mrs Jackson-Mayne and explained how it was made and the different characters.

Then our final House event of the year was a ‘Sing Off’. Led by Mr Vaughan and Mrs Jackson-Mayne, each House was given the Carol, Awake Awake, which is sung during Advent and asked to add actions and perform it as a whole group. The ‘Sing Off’ could be heard as far as the school fields! Well done to all.

Christmas Holiday Club will run from Monday 19 to Thursday 22 December. It will also be open on Tuesday 3 January 2023. Bookings are now open for days that are jam packed full of activites and trips. The trips will incur additional charges. Places are filling fast, so if you require a place please book early!

Friday 23 December Holiday Club will not be open due to all schools within the Foundation being closed. 

Monday 19 December - Jam Jam Boomerang £7.50 NOW FULL!

Tuesday 20 December - Christmas Cookery NOW FULL! 

Wednesday 21 December - Vue Cinema Leamington £5 (entrance fee, popcorn and a drink) 2 SPACES LEFT!

Thursday 22 December - Jump In, Warwick £10 (entrance fee and socks) 1 SPACE LEFT!

Tuesday 3 January 2023 - Magical Land at Studio Megastar £8.50 (exclusive use of this venue) THIS DATE IS FULLY BOOKED - if you wish to be placed on a waiting list please email holidayclub@crackleyhall.co.uk

Daily rates are as follows;

9am-5pm which includes hot lunch £30 per child 

Breakfast Club 8am-9am which includes breakfast £5 per child 

Teatime Club 5pm-6pm which includes hot tea £5 per child 

Due to adult/child ratios early booking is advised. 

Please book via the Holiday Club email address - holidayclub@crackleyhall.co.uk

We accept childcare vouchers or holiday club fees can be added to your termly bill. Thank you.

Scroll through the gallery to see photos from our Celebration Assembly.

This week in English, Junior 6 have brought our unit of work to completion by comparing the novel Northern Lights with the movie adaptation The Golden Compass and considering the similarities and differences in the characters, setting and plot. We had fun watching the movie and seeing whether our thoughts and predictions regarding what was going to happen were accurate or not. Hopefully some will be inspired now to read the whole novel and the other novels in Philip Pullman’s trilogy. In RE we looked at the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Bridesmaids and considered what Jesus was trying to teach us when he told the story. We thought about the metaphors in the parable and what we could do in our own lives during Advent to be as prepared as possible for when Jesus comes again. We are now really looking forward to Christmas and some fun times out of school with our family and friends!

Junior 5W have been trying to find ways to remember the 50 states of the USA in Geography this week. The children decided that singing them was by far the best way, particularly when repeated and sung faster and faster every time! The song also served as a challenging tongue twister which certainly put our vocal and diction skills to the test – timely practise for our LAMDA exams next half-term too!

Junior 4 ventured off to amazing India in their Geography lessons this week. They excitedly popped on their VR headsets and were transported to an array of Indian cities, bazaars and festivals and felt like they were actually there. They have also made sparkly Christmas cards, wrapped their Secret Santa gifts, and have thought of others less fortunate, by bringing in reverse Advent calendar donations. What a wonderful end to a term where all of Junior 4 have worked so hard and with enthusiasm. Merry Christmas to all!

This week Junior 3 have completed their investigation into which nappy is the most absorbent. After closely examining the structure and properties of disposable nappies last week, we set about planning a way to fairly test which one was the most absorbent. We felt this was a particularly useful investigation for Mrs Wheatley as she eagerly awaits the arrival of her new baby. We had to be very careful measuring our liquids and repeating our testing to ensure that every element of our test was rigorous and fair. The results gathered and recorded; we could proudly announce that the Naty Eco Nappy was the most absorbent which delighted us as it is also very environmentally friendly. Between all the investigating we have also been finishing our wonderful stories about The Secret of Sun and have enjoyed sharing a lot of festive jokes in class. Our class elf, Will, has also been keeping us entertained with his daily mischief. It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas …

Have a wonderful holiday everyone – keep warm and we will see you in 2023.

All the children in Junior 2 have been busy getting into the Christmas spirit this week. Mrs Burley, Mrs Bhogal and Mrs Thomas are so proud of Junior 2 for the performance in the Nativity; the children worked hard to learn the lines, and songs and blew us away with how well they delivered all their lines. Secret Santa brought some lovely gifts for all the children too. All the Junior 2 team would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

Junior 1 have really entered into the spirit of Christmas this week. There has been lots of Christmas crafts, baking and cards to write, and our children have been like little elves getting everything ready for the end of term! Everyone is hoping Father Christmas will be visiting them on Christmas Eve. We have also been learning about the true meaning of Christmas and we have read lots of stories about the ‘First Christmas’ before writing about it in our books. It was wonderful to see how the children knew so much of the story from their own Nativity performances. We would like to wish everybody a joyful Christmas and a peaceful New Year.

This week Reception have been enjoying the festive season. They started the week with a visit to the theatre to watch Stick Man. They then made both teachers and parents proud in their Nativity performance. The rest of the week consisted of making Christmas crafts, watching the Panto and finally the class party. What a fun week, now it is time for a rest ready for more Christmas celebrations with family. Well done on completing your first term at Crackley Reception. Merry Christmas!

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

Reception have been enthralled with the Christmas story this week and after acting our their part in the Nativity play on stage and listening to the Christmas story in their RE lessons, they created out of playdough their nativity characters. With lots of shepherds, angels and innkeepers, the children were able to tell each other exactly what the characters in the Nativity scene did, including the special message Angel Gabriel told Mary that she was going to have a baby and she should call Him Jesus. 

During this Advent season we have covered the previous two candles of Advent which were purple.  This week Mr Duigan led Monday’s Assembly as we learnt about the third Advent candle – the pink candle representing Joy. The third Sunday is also known as Gaudete Sunday – Latin for Rejoice - and it reminds us of the joy the world experienced at the birth of Jesus, as well as the joy that we have reached the midpoint of Advent and our hearts are turned to the joy that is to come.

Father Kevin led a whole school Mass today in preparation for Christmas. The Advent mass theme was about love and how We love because He first loved us. He spoke about how we too can love others like God loves each of us equally.

Crackley Hall's next Mass will be the Epiphany Mass on Friday 6 January at 10.30am. Parents are warmly invited to attend.

Please click on the link below for this week's Weekly Mission:

Weekly Mission

Please find information below:

Children's Liturgy

We hear how an angel appeared to Joseph to tell him what a special baby Jesus would be. We think about parents and babies from around the world.

Activity Sheet

Pupils in Junior 3 and Junior 4 celebrated their swimming success on Thursday afternoon, as Mr Vaughan handed out the end of term certificates. Every child achieved Aquarius Level 1, 2 or 3 with seven pupils also achieving a National Curriculum Level 2. Special mentions went to Remy and Othniel for their own personal progress over the course of the term.

Huge well done to everyone!

It was smiles all round in Lego Club this week as we came to the end of our City and Friends Lego Advent calendars with everyone opening their very own window to reveal their unique and special Christmas gifts. We were buzzing with excitement as we created seasonal nostalgia whilst busily decorating Lego Christmas trees and chatting about the many models we could now build with the help of the Lego Advent calendars, including cupcakes, cookies and a chicken leg! Happy Lego Christmas building everyone!

Did you know you can find us on Facebook? Search Crackley Hall PTA to keep up with our events and what we are doing to help enhance your child's experience at Crackley Hall.

The engraved Crackley Hall reusable coffee mugs are back! These are perfect for bringing to assembly or when you are out and about and are £10 each. 

Please use this link:

https://www.pta-events.co.uk/crackleyhall/index.cfm

Calling all pre loved Nativity Costumes!

The PTA would like to offer period costumes, Nativity costumes and Christmas jumpers to families when needed throughout the year, aiming to offer a cheaper and more environmentally friendly alternative to buying new!

As each year group will experience a period day at Crackley Hall, we are starting to build our collection of costumes/jumpers.

We are, therefore, looking for the following donations please:

• Christmas jumpers
• Nativity clothing
• Victorian Day clothing
• Tudor Day clothing
• Roman Day clothing
• Stone Age clothing

As always, we really appreciate your help to make this resale successful for the families at Crackley Hall. All clean clothing can be dropped off at the front porch where the Second Hand PTA uniform box is located. Please email uniform@pta.crackleyhall.co.uk if you have any queries. Thank you.

(Image courtesy of Happy Hounds Coventry)

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

• Head of English - Princethorpe College
• Head of History - Princethorpe College
• Head Librarian - Princethorpe College
• Teacher of Maths (maternity cover) - Princethorpe College
• Sports Coaches - Hockey, Netball, Football and Cricket - Princethorpe College

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