Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin 143

Friday 4th December 2020

Message from Mrs Hall

The behaviour of the children has been fantastic this term. So far, 4022 silvers and 550 golds have been awarded. This is an amazing achievement and indicates how well the children are following the golden rules: ‘we listen, we work hard, we are honest and we are kind and respectful’. It also highlights how well the children are engaged in their learning and demonstrating the Whitehouse Way of courage, perseverance, reflection and responsibility. Well done everyone – super work.

Attendance for Previous Week

Class with the Best Attendance – Giraffes (99%)

Class with the Best Attendance in November – Lemurs (97.2%)

Assemblies

The theme of our assembly next week will be focussed on diversity: Why and how do Jewish people celebrate Chanukah?  (UNRC Link: Article 14. I have the right to think what I like and be whatever religion I want to be, with my parents’ guidance).  Resources related to this assembly will soon be available on our website.  To access them, simply go to Learning and click on our Enquiry Based Assemblies.

Reception School Place

If your child was born between 1 September 2016 and 31 August 2017, please note you need to have applied for a full-time school place by 15^th January 2021.  Even if your child is already attending the Whitehouse School Nursery, you still need to ensure you apply for a place as this is not automatically given to them.  To apply, please go to www.suffolk.gov.uk/admissions or call the Admissions Team at Suffolk County Council on 0345 600 0981.

Christmas Jumper Day

We will be having our annual Christmas Jumper Day on Friday 18^th December.  Children can wear their jumper for a small donation, 50% of which will be for our PFA (Parents and Friends Association) and the other 50% will be donated to the St Elizabeth Hospice as part of their ‘Be a Star this Christmas’ campaign.  We look forward to seeing lots of brightly coloured jumpers around school! 

Behaviour on the School Site

We have recently had reports of parents/carers spitting on the pavements on the school site.  Can we please ask all on site to please ensure they are following Covid guidance and respiratory hygiene guidance to enable us to keep everyone safe.  Thank you for your support.

Key Stage 1:

Lower Key Stage 2:

Upper Key Stage 2:

Bringing Items to School

Can we just remind parents/carers that children should only be bringing items in to school that are needed, such as one bag and their packed lunch.  We have had a number of children bringing toys into school recently.  This not only can disrupt learning but also adds further complication to keeping the school site as clear and Covid-free as possible.  Thank you for your support in this matter.

Park and Stride

Some of you may have noticed the new Suffolk County Council signs which have appeared outside the school recently, encouraging us to think about the way we travel to school, other than using our cars.  Popular ideas are to walk, cycle or scoot, but have you thought about ‘Park and Stride.’  Some of us live too far away to walk however, Park and Stride suggests that we drive some of the way to school, park a few streets away and then walk the remaining way.  This not only helps to keep the streets around the school much quieter and safer at school times, but reduces the air pollution and helps us get some exercise.  Why not give it a try?

Free School Meal Vouchers

As you will have heard in the media, the Government will be providing support for those families whose children are entitled to Free School Meals.  A voucher will be provided for each child worth £30 to cover the Christmas period.  These will be sent out to parents/carers the week commencing Monday 14^th December. We have contacted all parents who are eligible, by email, and would ask if you have not responded to the email to do so as soon as possible, as we need to confirm we have the correct email address.  Thank you for your assistance. 

Reading News

Well done to the winners of the Purple Man award this week: Chameleons and Foxes.  Also, well done to our first Word Millionaire for this year!  Congratulations to Hermione who has currently read 1,028,336 words.  To put that into context, an average size book, such as Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone, has just over 77,000 words.  So, Hermione has read the equivalent of 14 Harry Potter books in just 11 weeks.  What a wonderful achievement!

Winter Mini Reading Challenge

The Winter Mini Reading Challenge has now started.  Log on to www.wintermini.org.uk to start reading and earning rewards.

Year 4 Viking Art

Over the past few weeks our Year 4 children have been designing and creating a Viking face sculpture.  They began by drawing a Viking face from their imagination and using the learning they have done in English and enquiry.  Then they built on those designs using layers of card.  Finally, they used clay to make the sculptures.  They are very proud of their work, they look great!

Art and Baking Competitions

A reminder that we have two competitions running in school at the moment.  For all of you budding cooks we have The Great Whitehouse Bake Off.  This is a chance to show off your creative skills in the kitchen and bake a festive treat!  Don’t forget to send a photo of your entry together with the recipe addressed to Mr Donowa on parents@whcps.org.  The top 5 entries will each receive 5 house points!

In addition, we have our Autumnal Art competition.  Children are invited to create a piece of artwork (drawing, painting, sculpture, collage etc) to represent the changing of the seasons and the beautiful colours of autumn.  These should be on A3 or A4 paper, and should be accompanied by a short piece of writing explaining about their creation.  Winners will be given a prize and entries will be displayed in school.

Dates for the Diary

Monday 7^th December – Flu Immunisations

Tuesday 15^th December – UKS2 Christmas Dinner

Wednesday 16^th December – LKS2 Christmas Dinner

Thursday 17^th December – KS1 Christmas Dinner

Friday 18^th December – Reception Christmas Dinner

Friday 18^th December – Christmas Jumper Day

Monday 21^st December – Friday 1^st January – Christmas Holiday

Monday 4^th January – PD Day (No school for children)

Friday 12^th February – PD Day (No school for children)

Monday 15^th February – Friday 19^th February – Half Term Holiday

Thursday 4^th March – Parent/Carer Evening

Wednesday 10^th March – Parent/Carer Evening

Friday 19^th March – Whole School SMSC Event

Monday 29^th March – Friday 9^th April – Easter Holiday