Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin 118

Friday 6th December 2019

Message from Mrs Hall

I do hope that you will be able to join us for our Christmas Fair on Saturday 7^th December at 11.30 am. There will be many exciting stalls to visit and the children have made a plethora of crafts to sell.  Thank you for all the wonderful chocolates and gifts that were donated on Wednesday, this was really appreciated by everyone. I know the children were pleased to have a non-uniform day too. We still have 9 school days until the end of term and lots of learning and events to fit in. Please check the school diary carefully for dates and times. Thank you for your continued support.

Attendance for the previous week

Classes with the Best Punctuality – Lemurs, Pandas and Chameleons

Classes that need to improve their Attendance – Rabbits & Tigers (91.10%)

Classes that need to improve their Punctuality – Frogs, Hedgehogs and Tigers

Well done to Pandas class who had the best attendance in October and to Toucans who had the best attendance in November.  Both classes will have a non-uniform day on Monday 9^th December.

Christmas Fair

Do not forget we have our Christmas Fair on this Saturday from 11.30am to 2.30pm.  We look forward to seeing you there!   There will be many fun activities including visiting Father Christmas, a chocolate and sweet tombola and face painting as well as lots of stalls to visit and games to play.  A big thank you to our PFA (Parents and Friends Association) for all their hard work in organising what will be a fantastic day.

Assemblies

The theme of our assemblies for next week will be: Why do people volunteer?  What difference does it make to our lives? 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.

EYFS:

Key Stage 1:

Lower Key Stage 2:

Upper Key Stage 2:

Attendance Update

We currently have a number of classes who are falling below our high expectations for attendance.  We would ask for your support in ensuring your child is at school each day wherever possible. If you have any concerns about your child’s attendance or there is something preventing them attending school, please speak to Mr Williams.  

Post box

As you will be aware, the School Office is a very busy place and parents/carers often have to queue to pay in money or speak to a member of the team, especially at the start and end of school.  If you are paying money into the office, can we please ask wherever possible for the money to be put in an envelope with your child’s name and what the money is for and placed in the red post box in the reception area.   There are always envelopes on top of the box for you to use and pens so you can write the details on them.  If you need change, please note we will send this home with your child.  Please note permission slips can also be placed in the box.  This box is emptied by the office team every day so please be assured your money will be dealt with quickly.  Thank you for your assistance in this matter.

Christmas Plays

Well done to our Nursery and Reception classes for their wonderful Nativities, which parents/carers all enjoyed this week.  A reminder that the children in Key Stage 1 will be performing their Christmas Plays for parents/carers on the dates shown below:

Year 1 – Tuesday 10^th December – 9.45am and 2.15pm

Year 2 – Thursday 12^th December – 9.45am and 2.15pm

Please note you do not need to have a ticket, but we would ask you to please only attend one performance to ensure that everyone has a chance to come along.  Thank you for your support. Photographs are not permitted during the performances.

Parking

Unfortunately, we are having some issues with parking around the school.  Can we please ask all parents/carers to be courteous to the local neighbours when parking their cars near the school site.  We have also noted an increasing number of parents/carers driving into the school car park.  Can we please remind you that the car park is for members of staff only both during school time and also when dropping off at breakfast club or collecting from an after-school club.  This is to ensure the safety of everyone who uses the school entrance.  Thank you for your support.

Christmas Jumper Day

We are excited to let you know that we will be holding a Christmas Jumper Day on Friday 13^th December.  Donations of £1.00 to wear your jumper will all be donated to St Elizabeths Hospice as part of their ‘Woolly Pully Week’. 

Year 4 Music Sessions

Our Year 4 children have been busy learning to play the flute and violins this term.  A reminder that Parents/Carers are invited into school on the following dates to hear what the children have been learning:

Wednesday 11^th December – Owls Class – 2.30pm

Thursday 12^th December – Rabbits Class – 2.15pm

Church Visit

Our Year 2 children had a lovely visit to St Thomas’ Church on Wednesday where they were able to search for objects around the church and learn what they were each for.  The children were also able to hear and learn about the Christmas Story and finished by singing a Christmas Carol. Thank you to our volunteers for helping to walk the children to this event.

Christmas Craft Afternoon – Year 6       

A big thank you and well done to the 53 parents/carers who attended our Craft Afternoon on Wednesday.  The Magical Winter Wonderland snow globes and Christmas Cards look wonderful!

Breakfast Clubs

As many of you will be aware, as a school we offer two Breakfast Clubs.  The choices are an active club where children play sport/games and a quiet club where children can sit and colour, both of which offer a chance to have toast and a drink.  These clubs cost £1.00 a day per child, they start at 8.00am and are a huge help to parents/carers especially when they need to drop children earlier so they can get to work.  The clubs are becoming more and more popular.  Can we please remind parents/carers that all spaces in Breakfast Clubs MUST be booked and paid for a week in advance.  We understand that emergencies will arise and we do our best to assist, however this is only in exceptional circumstances.  The booking form for the new term will be available from the office from Monday 9^th December.  Please mark on the forms, which club your child, will be attending. Due to their popularity, there will no longer be an option to change from the club which has been booked.  If you have any questions, please speak to a member of the office team.

Football Success

A big well done to Talia who was recently scouted by Ipswich Town Football Club whilst playing for her football club.  As a result, Talia will now be part of the Under 11’s ITFC Elite Girls team.  We wish Talia all the very best with this amazing achievement!

Year 5/6 Boys Football

The Year 5/6 Boys Football Team have recently hosted two league matches against Sidegate and Britannia Primary Schools.  Both teams proved to be the toughest matches so far this year.  As predicted, both the opposition teams started the matches with a high tempo, which paid off as both teams scored before half time.  In spite of this and in true ‘Whitehouse Way’ the boys showed real courage, hard work and perseverance and played a great second half. Unfortunately, both games ended in a win for our opponents.  Nevertheless, Mr Jordan was, as always, extremely proud of the boy’s effort and behaviour throughout.  Special mentions go to Archie and Reese who were playing their first matches representing Whitehouse and to Frankie for scoring yet another well-taken goal against Sidegate Primary.

Under 9’s Boys Futsal Festival

On Tuesday our Year 3/4 boys represented Whitehouse in a Futsal Festival held at Inspire.  Due to the popularity of the event, the festival was split into two leagues in which six schools played against each other in matches that lasted seven minutes.  This was the first time the boys had played as a team and they showed some excellent teamwork and some fantastic footballing skills in both attack and defence.  As a result, the boys won 3, drew 1 and lost just 1 of their games.  Mr Jordan and Mr Bradford were extremely proud of the boy’s effort and their exceptional behaviour throughout. A special mention to our goal scorers Theo and to Hayden who scored an impressive 7 goals!  Well done to Logan who was awarded the ‘Fair Play Award.’  Thank you to all parents/carers who helped to transport the boys and stayed to show their support.

Under 9’s Girls Futsal Festival

On Tuesday, Ms Salmon took six girls to a Suffolk FA 4 versus 4 Football Festival at Ipswich Town Football Club.  The girls competed against six other schools and they all showed excellent teamwork and determination.  Their hard work paid off, winning 2 games, drawing 2 and losing 2.  This was the first time some of the girls had represented the school and Ms Salmon was extremely impressed with their behaviour on and off the pitch.   Well done Ellie, Eleanor, Mariana, Evie, Isla and Sophie.  An extra well done to Ellie who received the Fair Play Award, which is presented to individuals that show the true spirit of the School Games ethos of teamwork, sportsmanship and fair play.

Grandparents Lunch

A reminder that throughout January and February we will be holding Grandparents Lunches where each child may have up to two Grandparents come into school on a specified date to have a school dinner of Fish and Chips.  Letters have gone out this week to our Year 5 and 6 children who will be the first two Year Groups to invite their family in.  Please note the adult dinners MUST be booked by Friday 13^th December to enable us to cater for everyone who would like to attend.  Please refer to the ‘Dates for the Diary’ at the end of the newsletter to see when other year groups will be inviting their Grandparents into school for lunch.  We look forward to seeing you all.

Scarecrow Competition

Our Team Building Day on Thursday 28^th November was a huge success. The children enjoyed the opportunity to make a scarecrow based on a favourite book. Overall, the children learnt about the importance of working together as a team and continued to develop their resilience. We were delighted that so many parents/carers stayed after school to vote for their favourite scarecrow and to see all the hard work the children and staff had put in. Well done everyone for making the day so memorable. 

Overall, there were 348 ballot papers returned (each parent could choose 3 of their favourite scarecrows). The results were counted and verified by three prefects and Mrs Hall – the results were very close with only one point between first and second place. The winning scarecrows were:

1^st – Captain Underpants (Owls)

2^nd – Dobby (Badgers)

3^rd – The BFG (Toucans)

Viking Day – Year 4

Our children in Year 4 have been busy learning about Vikings as their topic this term.  On Monday 16^th December, parents/carers are invited to come into class early, at 2.55pm where they will be able to view the homework the children have completed.  Then on Tuesday 17^th December, the children will be having a Viking Celebration Day where they will get a chance to experience what life would be like as a Viking!  Children are invited to dress as a Viking on this day.  This can be a very simple costume wearing beige, green or brown t-shirt and trousers.  If you have any questions, please speak to your child’s class teacher.

Smoking on Site

A reminder to all that we are a non-smoking site.  We would also please ask if parents/carers are smoking that they please move away from the gates so that children do not have to walk through the smoke.  Thank you for your co-operation.

Dates for the Diary

Monday 9^th December – Non-Uniform Day for Pandas and Toucans classes.

Tuesday 10^th December – Year 1 Christmas Play (9.45 am and 2.15 pm)

Wednesday 11^th December – Owls Music Lesson – Parents/Carers Invited – 2.30pm

Thursday 12^th December – Year 2 Christmas Play (9.45 am and 2.15 pm)

Thursday 12^th December – Rabbits Music Lesson – Parents/Carers Invited – 2.15pm

Friday 13^th December – Christmas Jumper Day (in aid of St Elizabeth Hospice)

Monday 16^th December – Year 4 Viking Homework Museum – Parents/Carers Invited – 2.55pm

Tuesday 17^th December – Year 4 Viking Celebration Day

Tuesday 17^th December – EYFS and KS1 – Christmas Dinner

Wednesday 18^th December – KS2 – Christmas Dinner

Friday 20^th December to Friday 3^rd January – Christmas Holiday

Monday 6^th January – PD Day – School Closed to children

Friday 10^th January – Grandparents Lunch – Year 6

Friday 17^th January – Grandparents Lunch – Year 5

Friday 24^th January – Grandparents Lunch – Year 4

Friday 31^st January – Grandparents Lunch – Year 3

Thursday 6^th February – Young Voices – Choir to the O2

Friday 7^th February – Grandparents Lunch – Year 2

Monday 17^th February to Friday 21^st February – Half Term Holiday

Friday 28^th February – Grandparents Lunch – Year 1

Friday 6^th March – Grandparents Lunch – Year R

Friday 3^rd April to Friday 17^th April – Easter Holidays

Friday 8^th May – May Bank Holiday

Friday 22^nd May – PD Day – School Closed to children

Monday 25^th May to Friday 29^th May – Half Term Holiday

Wednesday 22^nd July – PD Day – School Closed to Children

Thursday 23^rd July – First Day of Summer Holiday