The Chronicle

Our very best wishes go out to all of the Junior 6 pupils who have taken or are about to take school entrance examinations.

The Princethorpe College Entrance Examination is this weekend and we know that your teachers have prepared you well and that each of you has also worked really hard to be ready. Remember to stay calm and focused and trust in what you have learnt. All of you are in our prayers; and although you might worry, remember to take strength from the Lord.

Crackley Hall welcomed the frighteningly good children’s author, Jennifer Killick, creator of the Dread Wood, Crater Lake and Alex Sparrow series, to school on Tuesday 5 November, to work with pupils in Juniors 4, 5 and 6.

Jennifer first led an assembly where she talked about the incredible power of stories and shared her favourite books. She read a excerpt from her popular comedy horror series Crater Lake, shared her book inspirations and then horrified us all with a fearsome challenge of animal fact or fiction. She even shared news of her exciting new series Serial Chiller, the first book from which will be published next year.

After break, Jennifer ran three writing workshops for the children where they focused on the importance of imagination and planning. Using her series Crater Lake, she encouraged pupils to generate their own ideas for a school trip that goes horribly wrong. She took them through a four-step process, building and developing their story lines and adding in creative details to bring their writing alive. Jennifer clearly ignited the imagination of all the children.

While she was with us, Jennifer also signed copies of her books for her many fans amongst our pupils.

It was wonderful to welcome Jennifer to school, pupils were excited to meet her and really enjoyed working with her. No doubt there will now be plenty of imaginative and inventive stories written, inspired by her visit!

Crackley Hall’s U11s have qualified for the ISA Football Nationals after a super performance at this week’s regional qualifying event. 

The team travelled to Kidderminster on Monday 4 November for the ISA Midlands Tournament. Crackley faced fierce competition with a large field of schools taking part in the event. Their first-round pool included 11 teams with the U11s consequently playing 10 group matches. After one win and one loss, the team became a ruthless winning machine, playing some genuinely brilliant football, that blew the other teams off the pitch. After game two, they won all their remaining eight group games and qualified for the semi-finals as group winners.

In a tough semi-final, they raced into a 3-0 lead, before conceding two late goals and having to fight to stay in the competition. Despite intense pressure, they held on to win the game and earn themselves a place in the final.

There they faced up against Foundation rivals, Crescent. That was another close match, involving two excellent teams. Eventually Crackley’s desire to win earned them a 2-0 victory, making them Champions of the Midlands! As a result, they also qualified for the ISA National Finals, which has the added bonus of being played at England’s national football training centre, St George’s Park.  

It was a truly memorable day and an excellent team performance!

Playing for Crackley Hall were: Scarlett, Leo, Charlie T, Othniel, Theo, Archie, Ryan, Harrison

Crackley Hall took a team of eight girls to the ISA National Hockey Tournament at the Lee Valley Stadium on Tuesday 5 November. It was an early start with the team leaving school at 5.50am and a long but in the end successful day. Taking part were 24 teams from across the country and the tournament provided Crackley’s girls with the opportunity to really develop their ball skills and game play.

The morning pool games were for qualification into the afternoon play-off competitions. Crackley played steadily losing the first game 0-2 to Lingfield Prep but then holding Wycliffe College and Finborough School to 0-0 draws. That put the team into the Trophy competition.

The team had good results in the Plate first round. First beating Thorpe Hall 1-0, then holding Ibstock Place to a 0-0 draw before securing their place in the Trophy final with a win against Alleyn Court 1-0.

The girls then faced Western Green in the final and it was a closely contested match, with both teams having chances and with Crackley having a greater percentage of possession. However, Crackley didn’t manage to convert their opportunities and the opposition scored with just a couple of minutes to go. The girls were awarded the Silver medal in the Plate.

Head of Extended Day, Kat Vaughan, said “The girls were absolutely outstanding on the day. Their behaviour was exceptional and they were a pleasure to spend time with and coach. The development of the team over the seven matches was marked, with confidence, skill, game awareness and determination developing game on game.”

A really huge well done to them all.

Playing for Crackley Hall were Evie (GK), Scarlett (C), Eleanor, Milly, Lexi-Jean (VC), Mahnoor, Grace and Jessie.

Little Crackers Nursery has rolled out Famly, a nursery digital app, to our parents, to allow them to be more involved with their children’s nursery day. The move from Evidence Me to Famly enables us to collaborate more closely, with nursery staff sharing photos, observations and insights in real time to enhance and enrich the children’s education.

The app is super easy to use, both for staff sharing images and messages and for parents accessing their own child’s profile. Parents have been emailed instructions on how to activate their Famly account. Please note we will not be using the Famly app for billing. Nursery parents should speak to a member of the team during drop-off or pick-up if they have any questions or any issues logging in.

The whole school celebrated Mass with Fr Kevin on Thursday for the Feast of All Saints' Day last Friday 1 November. Led by Junior 4, with the help of the Chamber Choir, pupils were encouraged to reflect on the Saints who committed their lives to others. Father Kevin dedicated the Mass to the school and the events leading up to Advent. We thought about those people we know about, who live their lives faithfully, and those we are not aware of, whose work is known only to God. Father Kevin spoke about all of us having the potential to be a Saint and how each of us can be called to do God's will through our care and kindness towards others.