The Chronicle

Dear Parents

Although it was only a few days ago that you will have received a written piece from me, this brief communication is primarily to wish you all a very happy Easter and a relaxing break.  I know that there have been plenty of Easter activities taking place across the school today and I have seen (and heard) the children having lots of fun.

The school office will be open during the Easter break daily between 11.00am and 3.00pm with Holiday Club running from 29 March until 6 April and Little Crackers operating throughout, Good Friday and Easter Monday excepted.

I have been alerted to the fact that a little clarity is possibly required surrounding early morning arrangements at school.   Children in J1 and above who use the Early Birds facility should be signed in with the member of staff on duty before being left at school; parents would usually use their discretion as to when their child is deemed old enough to make their own way to the staff member tasked with signing pupils into Early Birds.  (Please note that this is not for the official daily register but solely for the purposes of managing Early Birds).  Early Birds ceases between 8:20am and 8:25am and pupils then proceed to their classes.

Children arriving after the close of Early Birds, between 08:25 and 08:40, must make their way to their classrooms for registration period.  All those at Early Birds will be registered again on arrival in class by their class teacher, along with those pupils who arrive during the registration period (8:25am to 8:40am).  Any children arriving after the close of registration, at 8:40am are required to sign in as late at the front office.  The Gables doors are closed at 8:25am so all pupils arriving after this time are expected to come through the main school reception.

Pupils in Reception may be taken into their classroom by their parents.  It is expected that they will enter school via the main reception area and not through the Gables doors.  This assists the school with security and control of pupil whereabouts.  Those children who have an early music session and miss registration, should sign in at the school office.  If you would like further clarification regarding these details, please do not hesitate to contact the school office.

I am sure that you will not be thinking about the Trinity term just yet, but it will be upon us very soon and it will be one of the busiest terms yet with the J6 visit to France, moving-up morning, prize giving, sports days and the summer production to name but a few calendar dates.  Swimming for our J3 class will resume on the first day back to school, Wednesday 18 April, and I will be hosting an information meeting for J5 parents on Thursday 19 April to discuss secondary school choices.  I am sure that you will have received the Trinity Term Calendar Card by now listing these dates and other important events taking place and I know that the school office will do their best to keep you updated on any additional information.

All that remains for me to say is, I hope you and your family enjoy celebrating Easter together and I look forward to welcoming children back to school in April.

God bless,

Robert Duigan

Please see the information below for any upcoming trip(s) which are planned. 

J3V Visit to Stoneleigh Village

From Wednesday 14 to Friday 16 March, Junior 5 enjoyed a wonderful trip to Alton Castle in Staffordshire where they took part in a residential retreat. The short trip was muddy, exhausting and memorable but above all, it was a lot of fun!

Alton Castle is a residential youth centre run by the Archdiocese of Birmingham. The centre promotes the personal, spiritual and social development of the children who visit through retreats based around a variety of outdoor activities, that make the most of the beautiful location.

The theme of Crackley Hall ’s retreat was ‘Discipleship’ and as well as being packed full of fun activities, pupils were also encouraged to join in with evening reflections and prayers and to help prepare for and experience Mass.

The fabulous residential experience was shared with St Augustine’s School, coincidentally also from Kenilworth, and it was wonderful to see both schools mix so well and forge some lasting friendships.

There were plenty of exciting activities to be experienced, from bucket ball to trekking, bike riding to night line and archery to survival. The activities all provided challenges that developed the children’s confidence and teamwork skills. The climbing wall and adventure course proved particularly big hits, working up formidable appetites for the delicious food that was provided throughout the stay.

On the second evening the children took part in a beautiful Mass. It was a wonderful service and some of our Junior 5’s enthusiastically assisted with the readings and helped with the altar serving. After the calmness of the Mass came the excitement of the evening Talent Show and Disco, which featured a range of different acts from both schools, which were very entertaining. The highlights included: India’s super singing (whilst pot tapping) and Martha’s fabulous singing and Ukulele playing.

And before everyone knew it, the time had come for the return journey to Crackley Hall. Weary children were met by their welcoming parents who, no doubt, delighted in listening to their many tales of this exciting and memorable trip.

Thank you to all the staff who gave up their time to support the trip: Mrs Roberts, Mr Cottrill, Mrs Vaughan, Mrs Geran, Miss Jones and Mr Kefalas.

This month, Kiran Dhillon (J4H) and Rocco George (J6L), two of Crackley's leading performers trod the boards of the Stratford Arthouse in Stratford Musical Theatre Company's staging of Les Misérables (the School Edition). 

This was the company's (and our rising stars') first venture into this exciting and popular musical. Consisting of 75 children aged between 8 and 18 years, the cast bonded brilliantly to produce a show of outstanding quality that was performed to sell out audiences over four days.

Rocco and Kiran featured within the super strong chorus, coming together to perform classics such as 'Do You Hear the People Sing?' and the 'First Attack'. We are certain here at the Chronicle that when musical heights such as these are acheived, then these children are likely destined for great things!

We can hardly hold our breath until our own school's summer production, as with talent such as this it promises to be a spectacular.    

We at the Chronicle are delighted to report that the Easter Bunny got word of how well behaved our children have been this term. For this reason, with the help of our ever industrious and generous PTA, the Easter Bunny paid a covert visit and sprinkled chocolate treats across our loverly school.

Let's just say every child from each class had an extra special chocolate suprise courtesy of Mr Whisker's himself. 

We hope everyone has a most wonderful Easter break - you all deserve it! 

Back by popular demand at this year’s Family Fun Day (held on Saturday 12 May), the annual Crackley’s Got Talent show is an opportunity for anyone in the school community to show off their wonderful entertaining talents. 

In previous years the bill has been diverse as jugglers, rock guitarists, gymnasts, mermaids, comedians and magicians – so we’re looking to create a rich smorgasbord of talent coming together to entertain the crowds at this year’s main Trinity Term event.

Entry forms will be available shortly and lunchtime rehearsal times will be organised during the weeks leading up to the event.

The Easter holidays provide an ideal opportunity to put an act together and practise – it’s always lovely when children group together and create something between themselves and particularly wonderful to see whole classes perform at the Talent Show. 

So, it's time for our children to get their thinking caps on, get the creative juices flowing and get ready to wow the hugely supportive audience. Don't forget Crackley - it’s your time to shine!

There is a tennis camp being held at Kenilworth Tennis Club from Tuesday 3 to Friday 6 April 2018 and Monday 9 to Friday 13 April 2018.

Please click here for more information.

Kenilworth Cricket Club is looking to recruit new players (both girls and boys) for the 2018 season.

Interested pupils are welcome to sign up for a free taster coaching session on Tuesday 10 April - no experience of cricket is needed. For further information, please view this flyer.

Tuesday 24 April - 1.30pm to 3.00pm

On Tuesday 24 April, Crackley Hall will be hosting a very special Cream Tea event in the school hall for grandparents of children in school, retired and housebound parishioners.

If this event is of interest, please contact the school office via email: receptionist@crackleyhall.co.uk or telephone 01926 514444 with your details.

Tuesday 8 May - 5.00pm to 7.30pm

Please do spread the word that Crackley Hall and Little Crackers Nursery are opening their doors for an Open Evening on Tuesday 8 May from 5.00pm to 7.30pm.

This is a fantastic opportunity to look around the school and to meet staff and pupils during the evening. All are welcome, no need to book.

Those that can't make the Open Evening but would like to look around the school, should call our Admissions and Marketing Secretary, Mrs Jenny Vaughan on 01926 514410, or email admissions@crackleyhall.co.uk - we welcome visitors on most days.

For more information visit www.crackleyhall.co.uk

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

This morning J4 assisted by Mrs Jackson-Mayne (J4J Class Teacher) led the whole school in a most insightful Easter Reflection.

Five volunteers were chosen and their task was to find five eggs that had been previously concealed within the hall. Once found, the hidden meaning of each egg was decoded to reveal the mission of the assembly. Beginning with the cross and moving onto silver coins, a treat, a piece of purple cloth and the egg itself, the children were asked questions to reveal the meaning of Easter with their answers.

The assembly's mission, which was to put others first, was given real poignancy for the children being told about Lieutenant Colonel Arnaud Beltrame. This brave man put himself in place of a hostage in the recent attack in France and subsequently lost his life.

Thank you J4 and your class teachers for such a thoughtful and reflective Easter assembly.

Art Club is cancelled on Wednesday 18 April as staff are required at another function.

Please find detailed below forms for externally provided clubs:

Karate Club

Irish Dancing

Chess Club

Guitar Ensemble

Ballet Dancing

Complete Cricket

Bayleaf Cookery Club

RugbyTots

Flute Ensemble

Just a short note this week to say a very Happy Easter to everyone! We’ve really enjoyed our Easter crafts and Easter stories in Nursery this week and we hope you all enjoy the Easter Weekend. If you are off for longer, then we are looking forward to hearing all about your adventures when we get back together again after the holiday, and if you are still wondering what to do then we have put a couple of website links into the newsletter for the local area. Have fun and don’t forget to bring in a photo for our Wow wall!

Please make sure you check your relevant details in this week's newsletter.

Friday 11 May 2018

There will be a non uniform day for all Crackley Hall pupils on Friday 11 May 2018. In return, all children in Nursery, Reception, J1 and J2 are kindly asked to donate a box of chocolates or sweets and all children in J3, J4, J5 and J6 to donate a bottle ahead of our Family Fun Day on Saturday 12 May.

We are also requesting any unwanted books that you have for our second hand book stall and new unused gifts for a separate stall. Both books and gifts can be left in the boxes in the foyer from Monday 8 May.

Many thanks for your continued support.

Saturday 12 May - 1.00pm - 4.30pm

Tickets for this year's Family Fun Day can be purchased by clicking on this link. Please look at the attached flyer and posters around school as these will tell you all about the event (including activities, stalls and Crackley's Got Talent!) that will make the day a firm favourite in everyone's calendar.

As usual, entry can only be made with tickets purchased in advance so that our lovely PTA can plan catering numbers accordingly for the BBQ. Early bird tickets are on sale until noon on Tuesday 8 May priced at £5 per adult and £3 per child. After which time, standard price tickets are available until Friday 11 May at 7.00pm priced at £7.50 per adult and £5 per child.

We are able to accommodate a few external stalls so if anyone is interested please email Gill Blenkinsop. We are also always on the look out for extra helpers, so if you can help on the day or in anyway beforehand and haven’t yet let us know then please do - thank you! 

Oliver Ferguson J3 has lost his black sports glasses in black (named) case with karabina (glasses look like small ski goggles).

Harry Turvey J3 has lost his football boots and named school coat (last Thursday).

India Ferguson J5 has lost her named skort (missing 2 weeks).

Sebastian Owen J5 has lost his black rectangular glasses.

Jamie Philips J6 has lost his named school coat (3-4 weeks ago).

Benedek Kordas J6 has lost his named winter coat.

Mairen Steel J1 has lost her named school hat.