The Chronicle

Dear Parents 
 
With this being the last full week of the Trinity Term, it has again been full of activities. The warm weather decided to surface as we kicked the week off nicely with our KS2 Sports day on Monday. It was wonderful to see the children put their efforts into practice on the field. Many thanks to our staff, especially Mrs Vaughan for organising the event and Mr Vaughan for ably assisting her, as well as all other staff who supported and helped the event run smoothly despite the heat. Thank you, also, to our PTA Chair Maria Gordon for assisting with logistics and refreshments. Well done to all who took part and a special congratulations to Saturn House for winning the event. 
  
We have had numerous music exams taking place in school this week. Well done to the children who sang and played their instrument of choice - thanks to Mrs Olden for facilitating this for our musicians and performers. I am incredibly grateful to all our wonderful music teachers and wish to make special mention of two who are leaving at the end of the year. Mr Wagstaff has taught drums here for longer than I have been at Crackley Hall and Mrs Lomas has taught cello for several years at Crackley Hall. They are excellent musicians and have been an inspiration to so many Crackley Hall pupils over the years. Thank you, so much, Simon and Claire! 
  
On Tuesday, Junior 4 played in the Under 9’s ISA Midlands Kwik Cricket tournament in Derbyshire. The boys had a fantastic day playing cricket in the sun, working their way through the tournament, and ended up bringing home a bronze medal. Thank you to the coaches, Mr Ashley, and Mr Cottrill. Well done to the team. 
 
On Tuesday evening, we met our new Reception parents, whose children will be joining us in September. They were also able to see their child’s new learning environment and talk to the key staff who were on hand to answer any queries they had. It was a lovely evening, and I am looking forward to a wonderful cohort of pupils and some lovely families joining the school community in September. Thank you so much to staff, especially Mrs Glen-Roots and the Reception teachers for welcoming our new families. Thank you, also, to our current mums and dads, with children in Reception next year, who were so warm and welcoming to the new families.  
  
We welcomed new pupils with their families to school on Wednesday at our annual Moving Up Morning. They were able to see what school life has to offer. Whether it be a new Reception pupil or an older pupil, we welcome you all to Crackley Hall. With that, some of our Junior 6 pupils also enjoyed an induction day at their Secondary School this week. We do hope you all were excited to see your new classrooms and meet new friends and teachers alike.  
  
Wednesday also saw our Nursery Graduation Ceremony take place. It was a real delight watching the children prepare, to congratulate them, to welcome parents and family members and to capture an incredibly special moment in time when the children were presented with a graduation scroll. Parents were also spoiled with some songs, and everyone enjoyed a slice of cake to celebrate - what a wonderful afternoon! Thank you to Miss Emma Birch and her team for arranging a lovely celebration. 
  
Crackley Hall Dads played against The Croft Dads - all in aid of raising awareness and funds for the remarkable charity called Oscar`s Paediatric Brain Tumour Charity, which supports children and families who are suffering with these conditions, from very early diagnosis right through to treatment and care not just in the short term, but longer term too. Our special thanks go to Adam Ward and Ian Houghton who organised the two football matches, and everyone who participated! I am pleased to say our Crackley Dads won. We enjoy the balance of friendly, but a little competitive nature coming through. Thank you to all those who gave up their time for this extremely rewarding cause. 
 
In our whole school celebration assembly this morning we congratulated our stars of the week who were from Nursery William and Stephanie; Reception M - the whole class; Reception O  - Parker and Sophie; J1G – Edison; J1H - the whole class; J2B - the whole class; J2R - the whole class;  J3V - the whole class; J3W - the whole class; J4A - Jessica and Nieve; J4R - the whole class; J5L - the whole class; J5S - the whole class; J6H -  the whole class and J6V - the whole class. Laura performed her gold medal dance routine for the school and showed just why she won her recent dancing competition. She was simply outstanding and is a real talent indeed.   
 
As you are aware, we are saying some goodbyes to staff who are for one reason, or another are moving on. Mrs Roberts, Mr Cottrill, Mrs Rogers (who is going on maternity leave), Mrs Brew (our chef), Mr Pike and Mrs Steeples. We thank you sincerely for everything you have done for us during your time at Crackley Hall. I know you will be missed by all of us; however, we wish you all the best for your future endeavours. 
 
I was delighted to be able to welcome Mrs Marie Holt back to Crackley Hall as Headmaster’s PA and Office Manager. Mrs Holt previously worked as part of our front office team before a stint in the Admissions Office at Princethorpe College. Everyone at Crackley Hall was incredibly happy to have Mrs Holt back as part of the friendly and very busy office team. I would like to thank Mrs Anna Bond for returning to her previous role, albeit in an interim capacity, to keep us organised until Mrs Holt was able to start. Mrs Bond will be staying on for a little longer to help with office reorganisation and support for Mrs Holt and her team. 
 
We have some exciting sport to look forward to this weekend, with England still in the Euros. South Africa and India are playing in the final of the T20 Cricket World Cup. Although South Africa have done well to get to the final, I do not feel that they can match India’s strength in depth and recent, relevant experience in these situations. 
 
I hope that you are able to have a relaxing and happy weekend. 
 
God bless, 

Robert Duigan

"More important than the curriculum is the question of the methods of teaching and the spirit in which teaching is given." - Bertrand Russell

If you wish to order a copy of the production, please return the completed order form and place it together with £20 cash in a sealed envelope, and hand in to the school office.

Ordering Form

Please remind your children that they will need to hand in their locker keys in at the end of term. Any lost keys will be charged at £10 which will be added to their next school bill. 
 
We still have two unclaimed keys in the office. 

• One which has ‘Chiropractic Essentials’ lanyard 
• The Other with Liverpool FC lanyard 

 Thank You 

Please can you send into school next week, if you haven't already done so, any library books  that you may have at home. 

Thank you

Please see attached the Crackley Hall Summer Holiday Club Sign Up Sheet and Programme

To book onto Holiday Club please complete and return the Sign Up Sheet or email holidayclub@crackleyhall.co.uk

Summer 24 Holiday Club Sign Up Sheet

Please note the following events that will be taking place on the last week of term:

Tuesday 2 July

Leavers Mass - 9:00am to 10:00am

Parents of Leavers have been invited to attend

Prizegiving for Reception to Junior 4 - 2:00pm to 3:00pm

Parents of prize winners have been invited to attend 

Prizegiving for Junior 5 and 6 - 5.00pm - 7.00pm

Parents of Junior 5 and 6 have been invited to attend

Wednesday 3 July

Junior 6 Leavers' Assembly

Parents of Junior 6 leavers have been invited to attend

Last Day

The last day of term will be Wednesday 3 July, please note the details for this day:

• Normal school uniform for all children.
• The day will finish at normal school time.
• Aftercare will run as usual, please book in the usual way if required.

In light our our sustainability focus, Ms Holmes will be collecting all kinds of bottle tops during the next few terms for a summer project in Trinity 2025.  Please could you collect all your bottle tops and bring them into school as and when you have a bag of them.

Please see detailed below events for week begininng Monday 1 July 2024.  

This term, nine Junior 6 pupils have taken part in an exciting initiative designed to challenge some of our top attainers. To stretch their independent learning skills, pupils undertook their own research into a topic of their choice and then created innovative and exciting presentations. Each pupil used their own time and initiative, with guidance and support provided by Mrs Cowlishaw. 

Yesterday, the projects were presented to Mr Duigan. The pupils and their research projects were:

• Fergus C - Oblique Wing Aircraft
• Darcey W-Sh - Will we be able to ski in the future? The impact of global warming.
• Elora H - Mental Blocks In Gymnasts
• Elizabeth E - Vampires
• Ding F - How to make money from YouTube.
• Beatrice P - Art Movements Of The 20th Century
• Sara A - Spies And Codebreaking
• Arthur C - Green Energy
• Molly H - The History Of Flight

Mr Duigan was impressed by them all and said that he could clearly see the time and effort that had gone into each project.

As a final challenge, pupils will be presenting their projects to their parents tonight.

Good luck and well done to all!

Phonics is taught from the early years at Crackley Hall, starting in Nursery and Reception. When pupils move into Key Stage 1 it remains a key part of our traditional teaching approach. Both Junior 1 and Junior 2 enjoy 30 minutes of systematic phonics at the start of every school day.

Phonics is the precursor to reading, writing and spelling. It provides the foundation for children to develop crucial literacy skills that will carry them throughout life. High quality phonics teaching supports younger children to master the basics of reading and develops their communication skills.

Our strong phonics provision accelerates pupils’ learning delivering above national attainment and enables our children to independently access other areas of the curriculum. Phonics makes them better readers and writers and helps to engage them in their learning. It's lots of fun too!

Our Little Crackers Nursery team organised a very special ‘Graduation Ceremony’ to celebrate the pre-school group ‘moving on’ to big school. The ceremony took place on Wednesday afternoon, in front of their families, and the children were each presented with a little scroll by Mrs Bird and Miss Birch.

The children had practised special songs for the occasion and sung them perfectly, they also performed an amusing short sketch, helpfully reminding us all what they need to take to school.

Miss Birch said, “It was wonderful to mark this important moment for our little ones. We are all sorry to see this fantastic group of children move on, but we wave goodbye with a smile, and plenty of good wishes for exciting times ahead.”

Sports Day on Monday was a great day of sport out on the school fields. So much determination in both the track and field events. Well done to everyone in Juniors 3 to 6 for taking part so enthusiastically and showing such fabulous house spirit. Race after race, event after event our outstanding young athletes leapt, threw and sprinted their hearts out. The school made a full day of it; every child ran in a sprint and every child took part in an individual event and, most importantly, every child had fun.

Huge thanks to Mrs Vaughan and to all the staff for making Sports Day such a super event. Even the weather was kind to us, this year we had gorgeous sunshine. Our Key Stage 2 Sports Day was a fantastic fun-filled day enjoyed by all!

The House results were:

• 1st Saturn (249 points)
• 2nd Mars (243 points)
• 3rd Venus (229 points)
• 4th Jupiter (210 points)

Here are just a few photos. 

On Tuesday 25 June, Junior 4 played in the U9 ISA Kwik Cricket tournament in Derbyshire.

The boys had a fantastic day playing cricket in the sun, working their way through the tournament, and ended up bringing home a bronze medal - well done to you all, great team effort, you represented Crackley Hall wonderfully!

On Monday we welcomed Kate and Vicki from the Warwickshire Library Service, who spoke to the children about The Reading Agency's Summer Reading Challenge - The Marvellous Makers. Organised in conjunction with public libraries, the challenge aims to fire up children’s imaginations and unleash storytelling and creativity through the power of reading.  

The challenge runs from Monday 8 July to Saturday 7 September and to take part, a pupil needs to be a library member - this can be done by either joining online or at any library.

Pop down to your local library to find.

Crackley Hall Dads played The Croft School Dads in two exciting charity football matches for OSCAR’s Paediatric Brain Tumour Charity.

The thrilling games were organised by Adam Ward and Ian Houghton, and held at Kenilworth School, on Saturday 8 June and then Home Guard Club, Tiddington, on Sunday 23rd June.

OSCAR's exists to support and care for children facing brain tumours and their families, to raise awareness of children’s brain tumours and to fund new research to drive down diagnosis time, increase survival rate and improve children’s quality of life during and after treatment.

After their first successful outing against Crescent School last year, Crackley Hall’s Dads put in another strong performance in what were fantastic, friendly but competitive games, winning both matches with a comfortable margin, 5-1 in the first and 7-0 in the second.

Their donations page remains open and you can find it here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/adam-ward-1717261747668

Many thanks to all who organised and supported the games.

Our Stars of the Week this week are:

Congratulations to them all!

We love to celebrate our pupils' talents, so every week in Celebration Assembly, we hear of the children's successes and achievements and we watch performances by some of our pupils.  Here are some photos from this morning.

A huge well done to all!

This week, Junior 6 have been doing a little bit of everything! We were delighted to hear how well the children got on in their new schools, it's so inspiring to hear them talk so positively about all their new schools and all the new people that they met. We also spent some time planning our Leavers' Mass and Leavers' Assembly, it was so fun to share all our wonderful memories from our time at Crackley. We can’t wait to share them with you next week! Well done J6, over the course of the year you have been such great role models to the rest of the school and we wish you all the best in your future adventures.

Junior 5 have had an exciting week! It began with Sports Day where the children challenged themselves to do their best in all the track and field events. They worked collaboratively in their Houses - supporting and cheering for their fellow teammates. On Wednesday (Move Up Morning), Junior 5 received a taste of Junior 6, getting to know their new teachers. In French, Junior 5L have been revising colours and sports. They have designed and labelled their own sports kit using key vocabulary. Bravo Junior 5!

This week marked an exciting transition for Junior 4 as they took their first steps into their future Junior 5 classrooms, meeting their new teachers for next year. They all enjoyed a few welcome games and then created a wonderful colourful silhouette of themselves, which was filled with all the things that they love most in life. Both Mrs Lammas and Mr Stedeford enjoyed getting to know their new classes and were really impressed by their excellent attitudes and how well they adapted to their new environments, whilst making a brilliant first impression. Well done, Junior 4 - you had a wonderful introduction into Junior 5!

This week in Junior 3W, our English lessons have been focused on the art of persuasive writing. We explored nine key features of persuasive texts, equipping the children with the skills needed to craft a compelling letter. Our goal was to persuade a logging company to cease cutting down trees in the rainforest. The children learnt how to write a formal letter, including the appropriate layout and structure. Using the nine persuasive features, they planned their letters and brainstormed effective arguments. Finally, the children wrote their persuasive letters, ready to send off in the hope of making a real impact. It has been an exciting and meaningful week of learning!

Junior 2 were so excited about Moving Up Morning on Wednesday, with all of its wonderful opportunities and challenges. Listening to the children talk so happily about their new year and class was heartwarming and we wish them all the very best for Junior 3.

During History, we have been learning about Florence Nightingale and the amazing ways she helped make hospitals for sick people. She cared for soldiers and worked very hard to keep them clean and healthy, and the children were keen to learn that she was known as the ‘Lady with the Lamp’. Her work saved many lives and changed nursing forever.

We have also explored worry dolls. These small handmade dolls provide comfort as children share their worries and place the dolls under their pillow as they sleep. Children truly enjoyed this creative activity which has allowed them to express themselves positively.

Junior 1 will be working to the very last minute this school year and there isn't a moment to waste! Our daily phonics lessons continue and we have finally reached the very last 'sound' that we need to know. Poetry has also been the order of the day as we got to grips with Christina Rossetti's poem What is Pink? which painted some beautiful pictures in our minds. We then wrote our own colour poems, trying hard to use our best descriptive skills. On Wednesday, we visited our new classrooms which was very exciting. Junior 1, your teachers are all so proud of everything you have achieved this year and we know you are ready for your next step!

This week, Reception have been completing their final learning tasks for the year! They have come so far, learnt so much, and had buckets of fun along the way! They spent the morning with their Junior 1 class teacher on Wednesday and the teachers were so impressed with how grown-up and ready for Junior 1 that they are. We have been making the most of the beautiful weather and have spent lots of our learning time outside.

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

Weekly Mission

Please find information below:

Children's Liturgy

Ss Peter and Paul (Year B)
Saint Peter and Saint Paul were two very special disciples of Jesus. Today we find out how Jesus gave Saint Peter his name.

Activity Sheet 

In Lego Club this week we reflected on all the models we had made this past year. From summer gardens drenched with palm trees, to wildlife explorers in the jungle. We had the super-cool strengths of the mighty Superheroes, to princesses with a difference and Ninjas making the odd appearance. We investigated the oceans with turtles and played daring sea rescue adventures. We pretended we were astronauts and invented the most awesome space rockets. We went to infinity and beyond with Star Wars and the impressive Marvel heroes. We problem-solved, created and experimented together as a team; we persevered when we thought we couldn’t finish our model, managing our frustration in the process and celebrating in the happiness when we did. But most of all, we had fun firing our imaginations with new ways of learning. Enjoy the summer everyone. 

Dormice children have been making the most of the lovely summer weather this week, which has finally arrived! We are fortunate to have a wonderful canopy of shade over the Nursery play area to keep the children cool.

Meanwhile, Badgers and Hedgehogs have been sprinkled with fairy dust, as we all took a trip to Enchanted Lands.

This week’s topic was ‘Magical Creatures’ so during Literacy we worked in small groups to create a potion for a magical spell.

The groups each thought carefully about suitable ingredients to add to the great big cauldron, then we acted out mixing the recipe and reciting a hearty ‘Abracadabra’, before drinking the magic potion, and then imagining that the spell had taken effect. The spells enabled the children to fly like a fairy; to breathe fire like a dragon; to dig for treasure like a gnome; and to transform themselves into unicorns.

The Badgers practised hard to prepare for the annual Graduation Ceremony, which was the highlight of the week. They sang songs to thank everyone for helping along their Learning Journey; they presented a mini performance to remind parents about which items they will need in school; and most importantly, that absolutely everything needs to be very clearly labelled! We finished with delicious slices of Graduation cake and all the Nursery children were delighted to be able to finish it off at snacktime the following day, most especially the Hedgehogs and Dormice, who had remained inside due to the scorching heat.

What a busy week we had!

If your child is interested in taking music or singing lessons at school, please complete the below Expression of Interest Form and hand in to the school office

Expression of Interest Form

Due to club and activity changes, permanent Aftercare bookings are only valid for the current term. 

If you require either permanent or occasional Aftercare for the Trinity Term, please make a booking by emailing:

aftercare@crackleyhall.co.uk or receptionist@crackleyhall.co.uk

If you need to make a same-day Aftercare booking - please ensure you contact the school office no later than 1:00 pm that day. Any requests made after 1:00 pm will only be authorised at the Headmaster's discretion.

If you have booked an Aftercare session, letting your child know would also be helpful.

Any children not collected from the carline, for example, if parents are stuck in traffic, will be taken to Aftercare at 4:15 pm, when carline finishes and charged accordingly.

Aftercare runs from 3:15 pm until 6:00 pm, with charges being £5.00 per hour or part thereof.

Childcare vouchers can be used as payment or part payment for Aftercare.

The school office closes at 5:00 pm, please call Aftercare directly on 07543 164 779 for collection. 

Please see the attached menus for the Trinity Term. These rotate on a four weekly basis.

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Crackley Hall School Office
01926 514 444
Email: post@crackleyhall.co.uk
Postal address: St Joseph's Park, Kenilworth, Warwickshire, CV8 2FT
SATNAV: Use CV8 2FT

Office Manager/Headmaster’s Personal Assistant - Marie Holt
01926 514 444
Email: receptionist@crackleyhall.co.uk

Little Crackers Nursery; Nursery Manager - Emma Birch
01926 514 456 - Email: post@littlecrackers.co.uk

After Care - David Johnson, Aftercare Manager
Collection contact no; 07543 164 779
Email: aftercare@crackleyhall.co.uk

Bills, Fees and Online Payment
01926 634 273
Email: georginamalin@princethorpe.co.uk

Registrar - Jenny Vaughan
01926 514 410
Email: admissions@crackleyhall.co.uk 
 
Princethorpe College General Office
01926 634 200
Email: post@princethorpe.co.uk
 
website: www.crackleyhall.co.uk
X: @CrackleyHallSch  
facebook: @crackleyhallandlittlecrackersofficial
instagram:@crackleyhall_littlecrackers

For children who require any medication periodically or on a permanent basis, the Office will require a completed Administration of Medication Form. A copy is attached for your convenience. 

Administration of Medication Form

Please ensure that any medication brought into school is in date and labelled with your child's name and form.

Please hand medication into the School Office, please do not give to your child to hand in. 

When dropping off in the morning, if you are using carline, please move round the roundabout before dropping off and do not leave your car unattended. Carline can cause traffic issues on the Kenilworth Road, so please be mindful.

If you are dropping off and wish to walk your child up to the school or are coming into school please use the Lower Playground or the Sports Field. Please remember to park considerately as parking is at a premium.

We would ask that if you use the Lower Playground at morning drop off, that you leave the school site promptly, as parking is at a premium, and it has been causing traffic congestion.

Please do not park on the Grasscrete Parking area or on the left hand side when you enter the school main carline, as these are both staff parking areas.

Where possible, please avoid parking on the local residential roads, and if you do, please park considerately and legally. 

When collecting in the evening, please adhere to the collection times, as if you arrive too early, this causes traffic congestion. If you are early, we would suggest parking on the Sports Field and walking up to school.

If you are unsure or wish to clarify any points, please call the School Office.

Please see below the carline locations and collections for the Michaelmas Term:

Please see below collection locations for after games lessons (but not clubs):

Please ensure that all items of school uniform, equipment and sports kit are named.

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

There is a large amount of non uniform items in lost property, as well as the usual uniform items. 

At the end of term, all unclaimed uniform items will be donated to the PTA or Charity.

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

Princethorpe College

• Sports Coach Hockey
• Sports Coach Rugby

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