Welcome to The Chronicle, Crackley Hall School's e-newsletter.

The children have been working hard with plenty of exciting Maths, Science and English activities keeping them engaged in their lessons.

Next week we will be taking part in the NSPCC’s Number Day, so get thinking about your costumes as we are planning plenty of number fun.

Our cover photo this week is of the nursery children enjoying printing fabulous fruit shapes on a gloriously grand scale. 

Do read on to find out what else has been happening in school this week.

Preview

Headmaster's Message

Headmaster's Welcome

Dear Parents

Another week has just flown by.  Pupils and staff have been incredibly busy and I am delighted to see how happy and engaged our pupils are.  I am also most grateful to my staff for their commitment and willingness and ability to adapt to the necessary changes that we are currently facing.

We have, unfortunately, continued to record a high number of absences across the year groups this week and there has been a need to operate hybrid learning in certain year groups.  The pupils have adapted very well, yet again, and I hope the level of absence has now peaked and children will start to return to school feeling fully recovered.  If your child has any symptoms such as headache, stomach ache, cough, temperature, or any other known Covid symptoms, I would urge you to err on the side of caution and take regular lateral flow tests.  Quite often, a negative test can be recording during the morning and by the evening, another test will show positive.  Many people are probably passing on the virus before their lateral flow tests register a positive result.  Symptoms are key – and they are not always very strong symptoms.

Staff will continue to wear masks in school, test regularly and remind children to sanitise hands.  Good ventilation is maintained and monitored in school, with windows open in each classroom.  I do hope that your families remain safe and are not adversely affected by the spread of Covid.

Due to the number of positive cases in Crackley Hall and other local schools, some fixtures have been affected this week and this, most likely, will continue next week.  Please monitor SOCs and your emails for further updates from the sports staff.

Our Celebration Assembly took place this morning with Junior 4 attending in person.  Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties with the equipment, we are unable to send parents a recording of the assembly.  I know this will be a disappointment for some parents but I hope that after half term, we may be able to extend the invitation to more parents thus the need for recording will no longer be necessary.  I apologise for this and will be consulting the Foundation’s IT team with the intention of ensuring a better quality recording for our families.

Our stars of the week this week were: May, Thomas, Harriet, Tristan, Hector, Shuvan, Charlie, Olivia, Elsie, Grace, Theo, Harry and Merryn.  We were also able to award Jia her star of the week, carried over from last week.  Well done to all our ‘stars’!  I was also able to congratulate our Junior 4 da Vinci recipients and everyone in Junior 4 who passed their recent LAMDA examinations and music examinations.  Congratulations to all!

All year groups have been enjoying the new library space which revamped recently.  This has been a joint effort between Mrs Horan, Mrs Steeples and the Estates team who came together to ensure that the children have a more welcoming and well-stocked school library.  The PTA have also contributed to the new reading material in the library to ensure that there is something for everyone – many thanks to Dr Card and her super team!

I am sure that you will have received notification of Numbers Day which will take place next Friday.  Mrs van Zyl will be sending more information to families and I look forward to seeing the variety of outfits in school, whilst raising money for charity.

Wishing you a happy and relaxing weekend with your families.

God bless,

 

 

Mr Duigan

 

 

 

 

Important Information

Club Cancellation

Just to confirm that Move it, Shake it will not be running w/c 31 January.                    

Half-Term Holiday Club

Holiday club will run from Monday 21 until Friday 25 February 2022.

More details to follow in the next couple of weeks.

 

 

 

 

News

Stars Of The Week

Our Stars of the Week this week are:

Reception A  May
Reception M  Thomas
J1H  Harriet
J2G  Tristan
J2B  Hector
J3H  Shuvan
J3V  Charlie
J4R  Olivia
J4S  Elsie
J5L  Grace
J5W  Theo
J6H  Harry
J6V  Merryn 


Congratulations to them all!

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Number Day News

Friday 4 February – We are celebrating Number Day!

On Friday 4 February, all Crackley pupils will be taking part in a fun day of maths activities, as we engage with maths across the curriculum and take part in Dress up for Digits.  All pupils are requested to think creatively about wearing a costume with a mathematical theme or with numbers, shapes, or patterns on. To help raise money for the NSPCC, we are asking for a suggested donation of £2. Please put the date in your diaries and put your thinking hats on!

More information for Parents

Items For Forest School

Please can parents check if they have any children's plastic bowls, plates, cups and cutlery that they no longer need as they would be gratefully received at Forest School for when the children cook outside.

Thank you 

Young Authors Competition World Book Day

Why not get involved with this competition to create a picture book for World Book Day!

The ReadingZone Picture Book Competition 2022, in partnership with World Book Day, is challenging those aged four to 18 years to make their own picture book. You can work on your own, or with partners or in a group to create a picture book.

Judging the entries will be acclaimed author and illustrator Sarah McIntyre (Grumpycorn, The New Neighbours and Pugs of the Frozen North).

The competition closes on Friday 22 April 2022, and the winners will be announced in June. Prizes include £100 of books for each winner's school or library, plus a free online author event for the overall winner.

Mini Grey provides tips and guidance in the resources, below, to help children to get started with their picture book projects.

External Link www.readingzone.com/creative-projects/how-to-make-a-picture-book/

Mathlete Of The Week

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

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

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

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

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Holmes class is Gwen and Anthony

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

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

Mathlete of the week for Mrs Lammas group is Penny 

Well done all!

Calendar and Events

Events - Week Beginning Monday 31 January

 

Tuesday 1 February    All Day  ISA U11 Hockey, London 
    All Day   ISA Midlands U11 Netball (A)
Wednesday 2 February   All Day  ISA Midlands Cross Country (A)
    9:30-10:45  Little Crackers Stay 'n' Play 
    14.45  U10 Hockey v Crescent (A)
    14.45  U10 A&B Netball v Crescent &   Spratton Hall (A)
    14.45  U11 A Football v St.Wystan's (A)
Thursday 3 February   14.45  U8 A Netball v Crescent (A)
    14.45   U8 A&B Hockey v Crescent (A)
Friday 4 February    All Day   NSPCC Numbers Day
   08:40-09:30   Celebration Assembly
   14.00-15.00  Mass led by J5 

 

Learning In Action

Junior 6

Junior 6 have been exploring ‘First World War Gas Masks’ with Ms Holmes. Following on from a world-wide mask-wear through Covid, it proved a fascinating look into how easy we have it these days. Pupils have been creating a double page sketch book exploration on the types of masks used and who used them. Mr Luis, our caretaker was in the Falkland Islands towards the end of the 1982 war and brought in his own ‘chemical warfare’ mask and kit to show the students. Oddly, no one wanted to try it on.

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Junior 5

Over the past two weeks in English, the children have been dreaming up, designing and writing about their own Flanimals (fantastical and ridiculous made-up creatures!) Using their curious critters and a glossary of their own made-up words, Junior 5 went on to inspire us by writing up a non-chronological report. In this report, they told us all about where we might find their imaginary animals and what they eat for their dinner. This week, the children have written sets of instruction for how to look after their Flanimals. The creative writing ability on show in J5 never fails to impress us; keep working hard children!

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Junior 4

This week in J4R (and next week in J4S) the children have been studying 'States of Matter' in Science and as part of this, have been excitedly predicting which type of chocolate will melt the fastest - either white, milk, or dark. We have looked at all the variables and after planning a fair test, we finally got to do the testing - and it was scrumptious too!

 

 

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Junior 3

This week Junior 3 have been busy perfecting their division skills. We have looked at many ways to divide 2-digit numbers, including partitioning and numbers that involve a place value exchange. We have used place value counters to support our conceptual understanding, before moving onto more formal written methods. We loved thinking up our own scenarios for an alternative name to ‘bus stop method’ including a ‘chocolate box method’ and ‘treasures in a pyramid method’. We have also explored the division of numbers that give rise to a remainder and found our double-sided counters were perfect for the job.

In History we have been ‘cruising’ up and down the River Nile, considering what role it played in the development of one of the world’s most famous ancient civilisations. We found out that the Nile provided so much for the Ancient Egyptians; it is probably fair to say that it was their most valuable treasure. We would love to go and visit it ourselves one day.

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Junior 2

Junior 2 have had another jam-packed week of immersive learning. In Maths we have finished our topic on multiplication and division, and will be moving onto statistics next week. In English, we are focusing on using subordination in our sentences and remembering to use full stops and capital letters. Our teachers were so impressed with the writing of our own version of The Magic Paintbrush -  everyone is making super progress. In Geography, we have been comparing our school with schools in China, writing letters to imaginary pen friends and following webcams around in various parts of China. The webcam attached to the front of a tram in Hong Kong was highly amusing. Our Science lessons this week, saw us becoming Master Chefs! We thoroughly enjoyed making and tasting our own pizzas. Junior 2, you are working so hard, have a restful weekend ready for another week of exciting learning next week. 

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Junior 1

We started our week off by carrying out an investigation in Science to see which material will keep us the warmest for the longest. We tested cotton wool, cotton material, wool, fleece and bubble wrap to see which would keep water the hottest for the longest. We found out that the best material to keep us warm was the fleece, or cotton wool, but we thought cotton wool might not be the best to make clothes out of! In History we managed to finish our models of a Viking Longboat, ensuring that each one had a large sail and some shields on the side for protection. In Computing we have been learning how to write algorithms and can now give Daisy the dinosaur a set of instructions to follow using a programme on the ipad.

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Reception

This week Reception have applied their new-found measuring skills to make their own play dough. They have then used this to create their own jungle animals. No need to buy play-dough at the shops for Reception anymore! Reception have also continued to develop their descriptive language in literacy and have been learning to write about the animals that they might find in the jungle.

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Week in Pictures

A Photographic 'Walk-Through' The Week's Events

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

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Spiritual

Weekly Mission

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

Weekly Mission

 

 

Learning In RE

The next Mass is on Friday 4 February at 2.15pm and it will be led by Junior 5. The theme of the Mass is how we can be beacons of light, leading others and reflecting God’s love by our actions.

Junior 3 had fun playing a game outside in their RE lessons this week to remember the Gospel writers. They then returned to the little Chapel and found readings from Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

 

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Clubs

Lego Club News

Due to the high number of pupils absent as a result of Covid in J4 and with restrictions in place to avoid contact with both classes being in the same room, we have decided to halt Lego Club until further notice. So sorry. But please do send any snapshots or photos of your Lego creations to me at clarehill@crackleyhall.co.uk and we will include them on the Chronicle!

Little Crackers

Nursery News

This week we read Handa’s Surprise. It’s a lovely book that gives us plenty of opportunity to talk about fruit, as well as the cheeky animals that pinched it all! The children all enjoyed the story, and especially had fun trying to balance a basket of real fruit on their heads, before we chopped the pineapple, orange, passion fruit, banana, orange and mango up to get printing! We used a very long piece of paper, and after talking about patterns, colours and the shapes we could see in the fruit we got very messy, making our own patterns. Can I just remind everyone about Number Day next Friday – we would like to encourage everyone to dress up if possible, ready for a day of exploring numbers in nursery.  Have a great weekend everyone!

Newsletter

 

PTA

PTA Appeal For Volunteers

We are looking for new volunteers! Whether it is for occasional help like running stalls at the Summer Fair or to be part of the organising committee, we welcome all!

Please send an email to cardtara@gmail.com

 

Easyfundraising

Whilst we’re unable to do our usual fundraising, we have a brilliant way to raise free donations for the school.  All you have to do is sign up to support us with easyfundraising and then when you do your normal online shopping, go via the easyfundraising website or app and you’ll raise free donations for Crackley Hall.

There are over 4,100 retailers to choose from including Just Eat, eBay, John Lewis & Partners, Amazon and many more. Signing up is quick and easy:

https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/crackleyhall/?utm_campaign=raise-more&utm_content=s-w1

Pre- Loved Valentine's Day Book Sale

The preloved book sale is back by popular demand! The children enjoyed the chance last year to purchase up to three books at £1 each. This year our book sale is on Valentines Day.  We are kindly asking for book donations from your children’s outgrown books. The sale is open to all years but in particular we are in need of chapter books for Juniors 4, 5 and 6. We would appreciate any donations you may have, to be put in the front porch next week. We aim to have about three books for each child which means we are in need of over 700 to sell. As always thank you for your donations. All proceeds will be used towards our goal of improving the sports fields by June 2022! 

Pre-loved Uniform Sale

We are happy to announce the PTA second hand uniform shop is back to face to face sales!

It takes place on Fridays between 8.15am and 8.45am (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 in 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.

Dates For Your Diary

Easter Activities - Monday 4 April

Themed Non-Uniform days - Monday 4 April and Friday 20 May (Jubilee theme)

Jubilee events/Summer Fair - Saturday 21 May 

 

 

 

Housekeeping

Lost Property

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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Issey (J6H) lost her fleece at Moorfields last Wednesday after netball club.

Foundation Job Vacancies

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

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