Headteacher Newsletter Issue 19
FORTNIGHTLY NEWSLETTER ISSUE 19: 19.7.19
This is the final letter of the term and once again I would like to thank all members of the school community for their support and hard work, which has culminated in another successful year for Clavering Primary School. The Year 6 are to be congratulated on their SATs results (details below). After reading all the reports, it would appear that all the children have progressed well across the school and have enjoyed their learning.
We wish year 6 well as they leave to attend their secondary schools in September. We thoroughly enjoyed watching their play, which was to be part of their Leavers’ Assembly. We wish them all every success for the future.
Sadly we will be saying goodbye to Mrs Nicholson who has been working in the office for many years after her work as a Nursery Nurse in Reception Class. She will be exploring a new venture. We wish her well and look forward to her visiting us on a relief basis.
We will also be saying farewell to Mrs Perry, Mrs Sullivan and Mrs Lawless who have been invaluable Learning Support Assistants. Mrs Perry and Mrs Sullivan have been in this role for many years and will be retiring at the end of this academic year. We are very grateful for all the support they have given to the school over the years and we wish them all well and look forward to seeing them visit on a relief basis.
Mrs Carline will also be leaving us at the end of term. Her role will be covered by Mrs Perry, Mrs Sullivan and Mrs Nicholson until we recruit early next term. We wish her well in her new venture and thank her for all her support.
Mrs Pemberton has joined the Learning Support Team on a more regular basis from September. She has been relief staff until now.
We are delighted to welcome a new member to the office team, Mrs Smith, who will be introduced to you all in the Autumn term.
Clavering Primary School achieve the Gold Sportsmark for another year.
We are delighted to announce that we, Clavering Primary School, have achieved the School Games Gold Mark Award for the 2018/19 academic year.
The School Games Mark is a Government led award scheme launched in 2012, facilitated by the Youth Sport Trust to reward schools for their commitment to the development of competition across their school and into the community, and we are delighted to have been recognised for our success for the sixth year running. We are extremely proud of our pupils for their dedication to all aspects of school sport, including those young volunteers, leaders and officials who made our competitions possible.
As part of our application, we were asked to fulfil criteria in the areas of participation, competition, workforce and clubs, and we are pleased that the hard work of everyone at our school has been rewarded this year.
A special thanks to Mrs Lipscomb for leading this.
Years 1 and 2 visit Kentwell Hall
On Friday 28th June it was a lovely sunny day and classes One and Two went to Kentwell Hall. We all dressed up as Tudors and were so excited. We changed our money up for Tudor coins to spend at the Tudor market. We walked through a time tunnel and went back to 1558. We learnt a lot about Tudor life, we especially enjoyed learning about their food. We had lots of fun.
Cooper and Oscar
Year 5 visit Harlow Outdoor Centre
Year 5 had a wonderful day at the Outdoor Centre in Harlow. They got thoroughly wet enjoying the bumble run (sliding down the weir and jumping into rubber rings in the river), kayaking and raft building and racing. The children did the school proud with their enthusiasm and team work and have loved writing poems, reviews and producing pictures of the day, which will be sent to the centre as a thank you.
Sports Day
Last week we had a very successful sports day. The children did very well and were great sportsman. It was a pleasure to see the children support each other throughout the event, especially the year 6 children who helped to organise the events. Thank you to the staff, especially, Mrs Lipscomb for all their efforts.
Road Safety
Reception and Year 5 had a useful road safety talk from the Essex Road Safety team. The Reception class parents were invited to the talk. The children watched some slides and proved they were knowledgeable about road safety. They were reminded about the importance of staying with their adult on the pavement and not running ahead. We also talked in class about the importance of wearing a seatbelt.
Mrs Balaam visiting Year 2
Mrs Balaam visited Class 2 to show the class the crops they grow on their farm as part of our Science topic on food chains and where our food comes from. Mrs Balaam brought in some examples of rape seed, oats, barley and wheat. Everyone had a chance to grind some wheat to make flour and some rape seeds to try to make rape seed oil. Thank you to Mrs Balaam for coming and talking to the class, it helped us all understand better where our food comes from.
Reception to Year 1 Transition
Reception and Year 1 class had a fabulous morning of free-flow activities to support the children with moving up to year 1. Then the Reception parents were invited after sports day for a session in class 1 with their children. They met Miss Hagger and joined the children with their activities in their new classroom.
Reception and Year 6 visit Jubilee Fields
Last week Year 6 and their reception buddies walked to Jubilee Fields for a morning out. This has become a traditional way to celebrate the end of a very successful year of partnership between the youngest and oldest children in the school. They had great fun playing together and enjoyed very welcome ice lollies in the sunshine before returning to school.
Public Speaking Competition
This morning we held our first public speaking competition. All of the children in years 3 to 6 have been presenting talks of 2-3 minutes on a subject of their choice to their classes over the last few weeks. Two children from each year group were chosen to go forward to the final competition today, Year 6 organised and hosted the event with three of our governors forming the judging panel alongside Miss Allsop.
The finalists were:
Year 3
Alex – Pokemon
Martha – crabbing
Year 4
Darragh – The Battle of Britain
Rose – vegetarianism
Year 5
Tom – lizards
Isabelle – plastics
Year 6
Ben – Our Solar System
Phoebe – eco bricks
The judges were very impressed with the standard of speaking and the interesting range of subjects of the talks.
The overall winner was judged to be Phoebe with Isabelle as runner up. Each was awarded a special cup. The governors also gave a trophy to be kept in school to be engraved each year with the winner’s name.
A huge well done to all of the children in Key Stage 2 who took part in this new initiative and congratulations to all of the finalists.
Parent Consultations and Tray Day
Thank you to all the parents who attended Parent Consultations and Tray Day this week. We hope you found the sessions informative and that you enjoyed looking at the work your child has produced this year. Thank you to the year 6 parents who attended Afternoon Tea with their children and looked through their work.
Parent Forum
Our Parent Forum met recently to review the year, thank our representatives and view the progress of our Outside Area.
I would like to thank our representatives for this year (listed below) for their support and time:
- Year R Elizabeth Warr and Bryony Kay
- Year 1 Victoria Moore and Charissa Upton
- Year 2 Davinia Skinner and Nienke Van de Sande
- Year 3 Fiona Philip and Katherine Elphick
- Year 4 Sarah Birch and Laura Donlon
- Year 5 Lucy Hill and Emma Waldock
- Year 6 Sonja Phipps and Sam Lawton
If anyone is interested in joining the Parent Forum for next year we could be looking for representatives, two for Reception, and one in year 6. Please contact the office if you are interested.
Friends of Clavering – Thank you
A huge thank you to Rachel Betts and Andrea Vaughan, along with their team for all their hard work this year raising money for the school. It is greatly appreciated as it makes a considerable difference to what we can provide for the pupils. The Friends of Clavering contribute a large proportion of the funds that are needed to support the teaching and learning within the school. Thank you to all the parents who have supported the events throughout the year. We are extremely fortunate to have such an active and supportive team. A special thank you to Rachel, who will be standing down as Chair. She has been a tremendous support over the years and we are very grateful to her for all her hard work.
Questionnaires
Thank you to all the parents, staff and pupils for filling out our annual questionnaires. We are in the process of collating and analysing the findings which, as before, will inform our School Improvement Plan for next year. We will share these with you next term.
Reports
Your child’s annual school report was distributed this week. This is in addition to the new Interim Report that was circulated earlier in the year. I hope you found them useful and an informative summary of your child’s progress during the current academic year, as well as information as to how they are performing against the national expectations.
2019 KS2 SATs Results
Congratulations to Year 6 for their SATs results. We are pleased with the results. We have exceeded national and Essex expectations for another year.
Progress measures are to be released in due course, by the government and we are yet to hear what the higher achievement threshold is. Outlined below are the test results taken during SATs week and the Teacher Assessment grade for the whole year.
In summary (1 child equates to approximately 4%.) –
Mathematics: Test 91% (79% national).
Reading: Test 87 % (national 73%).
Grammar Punctuation and Spelling: GPS test 96% (national 78%).
Writing (teacher assessment) 91% (national 78%) There isn’t a test for writing.
We are particularly pleased with our potential Greater Depth scores. Greater Depth is a much higher level than the National Expected. If the Threshold is the same as last year, we attained: Reading 36%, Writing 23%, GPS 36 % and Mathematics 36%.
Classes for September 2019 (updated)
Please see below information regarding the classes for the next academic year:
| Year group | Class teacher | Learning Support Assistant |
| Reception | Mrs Course | Mrs Berrett |
| Class One (Year One) | Miss Hagger | Mrs Martin and Mrs Thomas |
| Class Two (Year Two) | Miss Morton | Mrs Abusham and Mrs Pemberton
Mrs Barker and Mrs Abrahams |
| Class Three (Year Three) | Miss Turner | Mrs Sullivan and Mrs Nicholson |
| Class Four (Year Four) | Mrs Hall | Mrs Perry and Mrs Elliston |
| Class Five (Year Five) | Mrs Rudkin and Miss Sabin | Mrs Abusham and Mrs Abrahams
Mrs Elliston, Mrs Abrahams and Mr Snelling |
| Class Six (Year Six) | Mrs Lipscomb | Mrs Martin |
The children spent time with their new teacher on Monday 15th July as part of ‘Class Swap’.
Secondary Schools
The year 6 children are starting a variety of schools in September: JFAN x 12 children, SWCHS x 5 children, Perse x 1 child, Hockerill x 1 child, Herts and Essex x 1 child and Birchwood x 1 child. We wish them all well in their new schools.
Online Payments
As previously communicated from September 2019 the school will accept payment for school dinners by online payment only.
All children received a letter and joining instructions at the end of last term for online dinner payments. If you require a further copy, which will have a replacement code, please request this from the School Office. There is also a link on the dinner money section of the school website with instructions for payment.
Sun Protection
Please can you ensure that on sunny days your child brings a hat to wear at break times and lunch times. Wide-brimmed or legionnaires hats, which have a cloth attached on the back to give additional protection to the neck, are perfectly acceptable. Sunglasses are not allowed and sun lotion (long lasting waterproof sunscreen with a high protection factor and high UVA protection) should be applied just before the children come to school. This should last until after school and overcomes the need for pupils to bring in lotion.
Lateness
School starts at 8.50 a.m. We have noticed several children who are consistently arriving late for school – ‘late’ is defined by not being within the school gates by 8.50 a.m. Please make every effort to be at school on time and if you know that your journey will be disrupted by road works, do allow time for this.
Please note that lateness is recorded on a per pupil basis.
Thank you.
Lost Property
Lost property will be on display in the main entrance next week. Please have a look to see if you own any of the items. At the end of term unnamed and unclaimed items will be re-cycled.
Thank you
Notice for Parents of Children in Year 3 from September 2019
Free School Meals
Automatic entitlement to a free school meal finishes at the end of Year 2 and only children from low income families are eligible from Year 3.
If your household income is less than £16,190 per year, or you receive Income Support or an equivalent benefit, you will need to make an application in August if you want your child to receive a free school meal from September.
Applications can be made from 1 August 2018 online at www.essex.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals or by calling 0345 603 2200.
SWIMMING
Swimming for Year 3 (Autumn Term) and Year 2 Spring Term will commence the week beginning 9th September.
CLUBS
Clubs will commence the week beginning 9th September unless otherwise stated and a full programme is outlined below:
| MONDAY | ||
| Sting | 3.15 – 4.15 | Years 1 – 6 |
| Tennis | 3.15 – 4.15 | All year groups |
| Football | 3.15 – 4.15 | Years 5 – 6 |
| TUESDAY | ||
| Football | 3.15 – 4.15 | Years 1 & 2 |
| WEDNESDAY | ||
| Running Club | 3.15 – 4.15 | Years 3 – 6 |
| Cooking Club | 3.15 – 4.15 | Year 6 |
| THURSDAY | ||
| Football league | TBC | |
| Relax Kids | 3.15 – 4.15 | Years 1 & 2 |
| FRIDAY | ||
| Hockey | 3.30 – 4.45 at JFAN start date TBC | Year 6 |
| Football | 3.15 – 4.15 | Years 3 & 4 |
MUSIC TUITION
Music lessons will commence week beginning 9th September. Children will be notified by the music teacher when their lesson will commence as we are still waiting for the tutors to contact us with their timetables.
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
18th July Leavers’ Assembly 1.45pm
19th July FOC Summer Fair
22nd July Play Leader Celebration Day out
23rd July Church Service am
23rd July Break up for the summer 3.15 pm
24th July INSET Day
ACHIEVEMENTS
STAR OF THE WEEK
Week ending June 28th
Reception Rosie – for her great progress in writing
Year One at Kentwell
Year Two at Kentwell
Year Three Chloe S – for creative dialogue in English
Year Four Joshua – for being helpful and kind to other members of the class
Year Five Frederick – for excellent Maths work this week
Year Six Jake – for very careful art work – almond blossom in the style of Van Gogh
Week ending July 5th
Reception Ethan – for super sharing
Jemima – for always helping others
Year One Luna – for being kind and supportive
Year Two Toby – for his excellent recount of our trip to Kentwell Hall
Year Three Olivia M – for showing positivity and enthusiasm in everything she does.
Year Four Amber – for being a supportive friend and being kind to others
Year Five Cameron – for his great dedication
Year Six Oscar – for embracing the challenges and fun of his part in the play and doing so well in rehearsals
Week ending July 12th
Reception All of Reception Class – for being so careful around the log fire and for a super last Forest School.
Year One George K – for adapting well to the change this week
Year Two Aaron – for being so helpful in all our computing sessions this year.
Year Three Harry – for great attention to detail in Art
Year Four Harrison – for listening and working hard in Maths (decimals and fractions).
Year Five Toby – for great focus and a quietly confident approach to learning
Year Six Hannah – for outstanding buddying caring for Reception children at the park.
HEADTEACHER’S AWARD
For children who have achieved their personal best:
Reception:
Claudia – for excellent progress in name writing and knowing her sounds
Greta – for outstanding progress in reading
Year One:
Elliot – for improvement in creative writing
Rio – for improvement in Maths
Year Two:
Matilda S – for her excellent stories and Maths this year
Isaac – for his excellent Mental Maths
Year Three:
Olivia A – for great effort and improvement in Maths
Pheonix – for participating in lessons and working hard , especially in Maths
Year Four:
Abigail – for excellent writing
James F – for participating in Sports Day
Year Five:
Luca – for improvement in focus and quality of writing
Mia D – for consistently listening to and applying key learning to improve her work
Year Six:
Hannah – for consistent effort and hard work throughout the year. Excellent achievements in SATs
Maya – for consistent effort and hard work throughout the year, her writing is always a pleasure to
read and for progress in Maths.
THE TIDIEST CLASSROOM OF THE WEEK!
Our cleaners are judging the tidiest classroom each week. The winners are announced in assembly on a Friday. The class that has won the most times at the end of a term will be awarded an afternoon with an activity of their choice or an extra playtime.
Winners:
Week beginning:
6.5.19 Year Reception
20.5.19 Year Three
10.6.19 Year Three
17.6.19 Year One
1.7.19 Year Two
15.7.19 Year Six
IT DIDN’T GO UNNOTICED’ AWARD
From Pam, one of the bus escorts, would like to say thank you to year 6 –
Jake – for leading the children on to the bus
Bella, Grace, Maya, for getting off the bus last and checking that nothing has been left behind
Cartoon Attitude Learning Awards
We have now introduced our super hero learning behaviours, which the children created in their house groups during friendship week. Last half term the children worked hard on being independent, championed by “Indi-Panda”. Two children from each class were nominated for a special award and enjoyed a hot chocolate treat with Miss Allsop. This half term we have been working on engagement through the hero “Engage-monk” –
Reception: Alexa and Tristan
Class 1: Ernie and William
Class 2: Hadley and Emma
Class 3: Nathan and Will
Class 4: Ted B and Olly
Class 5: Rebecca and Abigail
Class 6: Phoebe and Millie
REMINDERS:
- Dinner money – Cheques should be made payable to Clavering Primary School. Please ensure you have settled your accounts up to the end of the summer term, in particular, those parents of children in Year 6. Thank you.
- Healthy and Safety notice regarding the wearing of earrings during PE
We have been informed by Essex that The Primary Code states that all jewellery is to be removed for PE lessons and taping over earrings is not allowed. This means that if pupils cannot take their earrings out they will have to sit out of PE until a time that they can be removed. Schools have to comply with this guidance.
If your child is about to have their ears pierced it is advisable for it to take place over the summer so that the earrings can be removed for PE ready for the start of the Autumn term.
If you have any questions at any time then please feel free to make an appointment
Have a great Summer and thank you for your support
Rosalind Allsop
Headteacher
