The Chronicle

Dear Parents

Today will be a brief contribution from me due to the fact that I will be accompanying J4 and J5 on the Young Voices visit to Genting Arena.  I have been fortunate to join this trip for several years now and enjoy it immensely.  The energy and enthusiasm of all the children is almost palpable and I hope those of you that are also attending enjoy the evening too.  Keep a look out on the Young Voices webcams and you may just see the Crackley Hall contingent singing and dancing.  I know this will be a late night for all of those involved but I am sure that it will be another memorable occasion.  My thanks to Mrs Olden and the Office team for co-ordinating the arrangements.

Congratulations to all of our Stars of the Week and everyone else who received an award this morning. They are all well-deserved.

Well done to to Elsie Roots for being an excellent assistant to Father David when he visited the school this week. She very ably helped demonstrate the different signs and symbols used in the Sacrament of the Sick. 

Yiyang Pan and Willow Rochford performed beautifully this morning - such promise for two so young! Equally excellent was our super choral group who work so hard with Mrs Olden. It’s always a joy listening to them.

I was very proud to be able to cheer on Lily Carroll and Eva Plevin on Sunday.  They both swam exceptionally well and achieved personal bests at the Olympic pool in London when they took part in the ISA National Swimming  Gala.  There can’t be many people who can say they’ve swam in that pool and I’m sure they probably experienced some nerves as they prepared to compete - well done to both young ladies! Thanks you very much to Mrs Vaughan for managing the Midlands team.

Unfortunately the weather interfered with some sports matches this week but the girls netball teams created their own storm on the court and confidently won all 3 matches against Kingsley. Caitlin Horan, Amisha Modi and Eva Plevin were all named as player of the match in their respective games.

I hope that you all have a restful weekend and may see some of you, from a distance, whilst performing as part of the Young Voices choir.

God Bless

Robert Duigan

We have a number of trips coming up over the next few weeks. Please see the relevant letters below. 

J2 Great Fire of London Costume letter - Tuesday 30 January

Our Stars of the Week this week are:

Well done to all!

On Wednesday 7 February all children at Crackley Hall School will have the chance to take part in a sponsored Skipathon for Mary's Meals. Each child will be hopping, skipping or jumping for 5 minutes during lunchtime. 

Organised by Minnie Vinnies, the children will be sent home with a sponsorship form for you to help them raise funds for this worthy charity.

To find out more about Mary's Meals and the work that they do, please visit: www.marysmeals.org.uk

A proud Mr Duigan was delighted to impart an eyewitness report of our pupils' exploits from the ISA National Swimming Gala at the Olympic Pool in London last Sunday 21 January.

He told the attentive audience at this morning's Celebration Assembly of his pride at seeing Lily Carroll (J4H) and Eva Plevin (J6H) take to the blocks resplendant in their ISA Midlands swimming caps.

Mr Duigan and Mrs Vaughan (Crackley Director of Sport and J5V Class Teacher) reflected on the huge achievement the girls had made; a day made more special still by the knowledge that both had achieved a personal best in their separate disciplines. 

Well done girls!

Our House Point Competition is really hotting up and yet there's still lots to come! 

Good luck one and all. Please see this weeks results: 

1st: Jupiter - 266 points

2nd: Venus - 238 points

3rd: Mars - 223 points

4th: Saturn - 152 points

We seek to appoint a well-qualified, dynamic and lively graduate to teach Business Studies and/or Economics to GCSE and A-level, working in a flourishing and successful department.  Starting in September 2018, or sooner depending on the successful candidate’s availability, the role will be offered on a full-time or significant part-time basis. 

Enthusiasm to become involved with the extra-curricular life of the school is essential. Candidates should be able to demonstrate success in the classroom and be effective team players.

This is an excellent opportunity to join the fast growing Foundation that values its staff and offers a rewarding benefits package including discounted places for staff, a pension scheme, child care vouchers and a cycle to work scheme.

Application: To apply for this vacancy applicants must submit a Princethorpe College application form, together with a CV and covering letter detailing your personal qualities, experience and how you meet the person specification for the role. Applicants must ensure the application form is fully completed, including a detailed career history with specific dates.

Closing date: Monday 29 January 2018, at 9.00am, although candidates are advised to apply immediately. Interviews are likely to be held on Friday 2 February at Princethorpe.

Further details and an application form are available from the College website www.princethorpe.co.uk/employment-opportunities

The Foundation is offering an exciting opportunity for an experienced Grounds person to develop their career further in grounds keeping and to build on their existing leadership skills.

As the Assistant Grounds Manager, you will be joining a busy, close-knit Grounds Team where you will play a key role in managing the grounds of the three schools within the Foundation.

The successful candidate will be NVQ Level 3 Sports Turf Maintenance qualified or equivalent and will offer significant grounds maintenance experience. The ability to remain calm in a busy and demanding environment, excellent communication skills, strong leadership skills and a flexible attitude to working hours are all essential. An interest in conservation and wildlife will be advantageous.

This is a varied and ‘hands-on’, predominately outdoors role working 37.5 hours a week, on a 7 days’ contract and requires the post holder to be open to change and adapt to changing priorities.

The initial working pattern will be Monday to Friday 8.00am – 4.30pm plus a Saturday rota for sports and events.  This is a Foundation wide role, based at Princethorpe College with duties at The Crescent and Crackley Hall Schools.

This is an excellent opportunity to join the fast growing Foundation that values its staff and offers a rewarding benefits package including discounted places for staff, a pension scheme, child care vouchers and a cycle to work scheme.

Application: To apply for this vacancy applicants must submit a Princethorpe College application form, together with a CV and covering letter detailing your personal qualities, experience and how you meet the person specification for the role. Applicants must ensure the application form is fully completed, including a detailed career history with specific dates.

Closing date: Monday 5 February 2018, at 9.00am and interviews are likely to be held on Thursday 8 February at Princethorpe.

Further details and an application form are available from the College website www.princethorpe.co.uk/employment-opportunities.

Please click the image to scroll through a few of the images from this week's events. 

RE Book of the Week goes to Elsie Roots in J2M for being an excellent assistant to Fr David when he visited the school this week. She helped to demonstrate the different signs and symbols used in the Sacrament of the Sick. 

Well done Elsie!

Our first ever ‘One World Week’ is fast approaching and will take place on Monday 12 to Friday 16 February. Pupils will have the opportunity to explore different faiths, cultures and beliefs during the week. In a time where there is a lot of conflict in the world in the name of religion and misunderstanding about different cultures, it is important that we teach our children about other faiths so that we can celebrate our differences and reach out to others, to help make our world a better place.

During the week, all pupils will find out about a different religion, in Key Stage 2 pupils are visiting places of worship.  Students from Warwick University will be visiting the school to lead workshops on Sanitation with Junior 4 and Refugees with Junior 5. The PTA have provided funding for a specialist Indian Dancer to lead workshops in each year group. On Friday, during a special extended assembly, pupils will share what they have learned.

If any parents would like to come into school and talk to a class or group of children about their faith, please contact Mrs Jackson-Mayne sjacksonmayne@crackleyhall.co.uk. 

Junior 2M learned all about the Sacrament of the Sick with Father David this week. He visited their RE lesson with Mrs Hill and showed the pupils the different symbols and the oils that are used in the Sacrament.

Our thanks as ever to Father David for his time. 

U11 'A' Netball v Kingsley 15 - 0 (Win)

Player of the Match - Eva Plevin

U10 'A' Netball v Kingsley 3 - 0 (Win)

Player of the Match - Caitlin Horan

U10 'B' Netball v Kingsley 10 - 0 (Win)

Player of the Match - Amisha Modi

Monday 29 January - J5/6 Hockey club is cancelled as staff are at other fixtures.

Wednesday 31 January - J5/6 Netball will be held at Crackley Hall. Please collect at 5.00pm.

Please find below the registration forms for the clubs run by outside providers.  You will need to complete these forms and return them with payment to the school office.  You will also need to register for the club on SOCS. You can access SOCS here: www.crackleyhallsport.co.uk

Irish Dancing

Rugby Tots registration

ATMA Karate

Chess

Ballet

Rock band

Our subject in RE this half term is Baptism and over the last couple of weeks the children have been finding out all about this celebration. 

We have looked at pictures of babies in church, the important baptism shawl, the certificate and the candle given to the family.  This week we conducted our own short service, and the children were able to experience holding the baby doll, pouring water and then making the sign of the cross on its head. 

We have also been telling stories to each other, and this week we had fun with the Three Little Pigs.  Everyone is getting really good at recalling the story, talking about the characters and remembering the repeated phrases – it feels lovely to be able to tell a story to someone else, without worrying about those pesky written words! 

Just a quick reminder about Rugby Tots on a Wednesday afternoon, ask one of us if you are interested – it’s a whole lot of fun!  Have a great weekend.

For further details of the 'fun and goings-on' with Nursery please click on the attached link.

We are delighted to announce that this year's online Auction of Promises is now LIVE! It's already created a great buzz and there is a huge amount of interest in our different lots.

We have a fantastic array of prizes so far which have been donated by local businesses but we are asking each family to come up with a 'lot' that you, or people you know, may be able to donate.  This can be anything from a home-baked cake to use of a holiday home or a service (babysitting, gardening, tuition, sharing a skill you have etc.). 

Please take a look at the Auction of Promises website, which will be live until 4 February, to see what is on offer.  Prizes will continue to be added whilst the website is live so keep checking in to see the new lots. Please visit: https://auctionofpromises.com/auctionread.aspx?a=3125

If you have any queries, please speak to Julie Hutton or email ptafundraising@crackleyhall.co.uk.

Saturday 3 February

If you have expressed an interest in the Winter Ball on 3 February, you should have received an email with details of how to pay and select your menu choices. If you haven't paid yet please make sure you do so promptly as we have now paid the venue. 

There will be a raffle at the ball and we have received some great prizes from generous local businesses so far and we would be grateful for any further contributions (maybe unwanted Christmas gifts?).  There is a box in the school foyer where you can leave any donations.

If you have any questions regarding the ball, please contact ptafundraising@crackleyhall.co.uk. 

Little Crackers are after some aged 4-5 all-in-one waterproofs and some sturdy tricycles.

Before the PTA looks into funding, if anyone has any of these items at home that their children have outgrown then please consider donating them to the nursery - they would be very grateful and they would be put to good use. 

If you have items to donate, please contact the PTA at ptafundraising@crackleyhall.co.uk. 

Saturday 3 March 2018, 1.00pm - 3.00pm

A firm favourite in the Crackley Hall calendar is the PTA Family Bingo event! Be sure to save the date for now and more details will follow shortly. 

 Martha Harris (J5R) has lost her named school hat.