Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin 242
Friday 15th September 2023
Message from Miss Siddall
It has been a fantastic week in school and I have been very impressed with how well the children have settled back into the routine. I have seen the children working hard in their lessons and using the ‘Whitehouse Way’ to be successful learners. If you would like the chance to see any of the work your child has already completed, there will be an opportunity next week during the ‘Meet the teacher’ sessions which take place straight after school.
A reminder that there is a slight change in the timings at school this year: KS2: 8.40am to 3.10pm. KS1: 8:45am to 3.15pm. Reception: 8.50am to 3.20pm.
Children who arrive at school after 8.55am will need to enter via the office as the gates will be closed promptly to allow teachers to begin lessons.
Attendance for the previous week:
Class with the best attendance: Owls (99.1%)
Assemblies
The theme of our assemblies for the week after half term will be: What is the importance of Yom Kippur in the Jewish religion? (UNRC Link: Article 30: If I come from a minority group, because of my race, religion or language, I have the right to enjoy my own culture, practise my own religion, and use my own religion). 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.
School Photos
A reminder that we have the school photographer in on Monday 18th September to take individual photos of our children. Please remember to send your child in wearing their full uniform and looking their best. If your child was due to have PE that day, please ensure they come into school in their school uniform instead. PE lessons will go ahead in their school uniform instead.
Payment Reminders
Can we please remind parents/carers that payments for dinner money and for breakfast club should be made in advance so that no debt is incurred. Where there is a debt please ensure this is paid urgently. Any child who is owing over £10.00 will not be allowed to have a school dinner until the debt is cleared so will need to bring a packed lunch each day. We understand that it can be a challenge to pay off a debt so would encourage you to make even a small payment of a few pounds each week to bring the debt down. Please speak to our Business Manager, Miss Sara McCullum, if you wish to set up a payment plan.
Awards
As you may be aware the children are encouraged to follow ‘The Whitehouse Way’ in school to help them in their learning and in becoming good citizens. Our ‘Wonderful Week’ awards this year will be given as a recognition that the children have worked very hard in one of these areas: Courage, Perseverance, Reflection or Responsibility. This will be shown in the colour coded lists below. We are so proud of our children at Whitehouse and their wonderful achievements. Well done to you all.
Key Stage 1:
Class | Wonderful Week | Wonderful Week | Handwriting Award |
Elephants | Caitlyn | Shain | Kira |
Giraffes | Carmen |
|
|
Lions | David-Harvey | Isla | Elijah |
Cobras | Mirabel | Kai’ron | Henley |
Dragons | Kyah-Rose | Maia |
|
Frogs | Henry | Nova-Rose | Whitney |
Lower Key Stage 2:
Class | Wonderful Week | Wonderful Week | Handwriting Award |
Badgers | Aro | Danny |
|
Owls | Maya-Selena | Charlie | William |
Rabbits | Brooklyn | Effie |
|
Foxes | Hunter | Ellie | Millie |
Hedgehogs | Marcus | Iddanu | Blake |
Squirrels | Alexis | Hazel | Blake |
Upper Key Stage 2:
Class | Wonderful Week | Wonderful Week | Handwriting Award |
Jaguars | Sakura | Carter | Ali |
Lizards | Tilly | Isla | Vina |
Macaws | Callum | Saira | Remi |
Red Pandas | Zachary | Ella-Mai | Amelia |
Chameleons | Summer | Kyzer | Liyoh |
Tigers | Oscar | Sophie | Oreoluwa |
Toucans | Mohammed | Sophia | Oliver |
Meet the Teacher sessions
We are very excited to have our Meet the Teacher sessions coming up next week. These take place after school and give parents/carers the opportunity to come into the classroom and have a chance to speak to the teachers. Please collect all of your children and then attend the session as detailed below:
EYFS: Monday 18th September 2023
Key Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2): Tuesday 19th September 2023 (Lions and Giraffes only. We will advise a date for Elephants class shortly)
Lower Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4): Wednesday 20th September 2023
Upper Key Stage 2 (Years 5 and 6): Thursday 21st September 2023
Celebrating our Children
We love to celebrate the achievements of our children and this week want to share about Jessica in Year 6. She loves to play golf and over the summer she achieved her England Golf official handicap, which means she can now compete officially. Jessica has worked so hard to achieve this and plays golf at least twice a week! This is amazing, Jessica we know you are going to go on and become a real superstar!
Year 6 Open Evenings
If you have a child in Year 6, please be aware that you need to apply for a High School place for your child by the deadline of 31st October 2023. To assist you in choosing the right school for your child most schools hold open evenings where you can go along to visit the school, find out more and ask any questions you may have. Please see below for the timings we have been made aware of so far:
Ipswich School (Private School) – Saturday 30th September 2023 from 9.15am.
Ormiston Academy – Wednesday 20th September 2023 5.00pm to 7.00pm.
St Albans Catholic High School – Wednesday 20th September 2023 5.30pm to 7.30pm.
Westbourne Academy – Thursday 5th October 2023 6.00pm to 8.00pm.
Requests for Information
We receive a number of requests for various documents and information, including reports, specific details for DLA forms and requests for confirmation that children attend Whitehouse CP School. Can we please remind parents/carers that although we are always willing to help with these requests, the first step is for parents/carers to complete a Subject Access Request form. This form can be collected from the School office and should be completed to request any information. Please specify on the form exactly what information you require. This is then passed to the Business Manager who will liaise with the relevant members of staff to gather this information. Please be aware that school requires one calendar month to provide the information requested.
**Job Vacancies in School***
We are pleased to let you know we currently have job vacancies for lunchtime assistants.
Full details of the vacancies along with application forms are available on our
website: https://www.whcps.org/vacancies. In addition, application forms can be collected from
the school office.
The closing date for applications is 10.00am on Wednesday 27th September 2023
Duties will involve:
Summer Reading Challenge
Each year the Summer Reading Challenge, taking place in Suffolk Libraries, motivates over 700,000 children to keep reading over the summer holidays. The challenge this year was ‘Ready, Set, Read’ and it aimed to keep children’s minds and bodies active during the summer break. Participating children were given the opportunity to join a superstar team and their marvellous mascots as they navigated a fictional obstacle course brought to life with illustrations by Loretta Schauer. The children were rewarded with a certificate and a collection of free incentives.
In our assembly today, we celebrated six of our children who each completed the challenge. Many congratulations to Henley and Harper in Cobras, Seth in Squirrels, Maddie and Blake in Hedgehogs and Vina in Lizards, we are very proud of your achievements! Seth told us ‘It was great fun and I really want to do it again next summer.’
School Trips and Parent/Carer Sessions
As a school we love to enrich the children’s learning with school trips and sessions where our parents and carers can come into school and work alongside the children. Please do keep an eye on the newsletter ‘Dates for your Diaries’ section as all of these will be included on the list.
The first sessions / trips coming up are:
Friday 29th September – Year 4 Local Walk
Wednesday 4th October – Year 2 Christchurch Park visit
Tuesday 10th October – Year 4 Parent/Carer Session
More will be advertised very soon so please look out for the letters coming home!
Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation: Free Courses
Some free courses are again being offered by the local NHS Foundation for any parent/carer who may be interested in how to better support their child’s mental health. Topics include, Childhood Neurodiversity, Supporting our Young People with Anxiety, Supporting your Child to Regulate their Feelings and Supporting our Young People Manage Big Feelings. If you are interested, please visit www.eventbrite.co.uk and search for Psychology in School Teams – NSFT to view the full list and to book a space.
Let’s Talk Babies
Do you have a baby or a toddler and would enjoy spending time with other parents and their young children? A ‘Let’s Talk Babies’ group is starting each Wednesday from 1.00pm to 3.00pm at Whitehouse Baptist Church on Waterford Road, which is free to anyone from the Whitehouse, Whitton and Castle Hill areas. It is a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, and enjoy sensory play with your child. In addition, there is a Baby Bank available, where clothes, equipment, food and toys can be collected. The group starts on Wednesday 20th September 2023 and if you would like any further information please email info@letstalkreading.org.uk.
Dates for the Diary
Monday 18th September 2023 – School Photos (School uniform to be worn)
Monday 18th September 2023 – Meet the Parents EYFS – 3.20pm
Tuesday 19th September 2023 – Meet the Parents KS1 – 3.15pm
Wednesday 20th September 2023 – Meet the Parents LKS2 – 3.10pm
Thursday 20th September 2023 – Meet the Parents UKS2 – 3.10pm
Thursday 28th September 2023 – Flu Immunisations
Friday 29th September 2023 – Year 4 Local Walk
Monday 23rd October 2023 to Friday 27th October 2023 – Half Term Holiday
Wednesday 4th October 2023 – Year 2 Christchurch Park Trip
Tuesday 10th October 2023 – Year 4 Parent/Carer Session - 2.00pm
Friday 3rd November 2023 – Whole School SMSC Day: Healthy Eating
Wednesday 29th November 2023 – Autumn Term Reports home to parents/carers
Thursday 30th November 2023 – Online Parents/Carers Evening
Friday 1st December 2023 – Travelling Book Fair
Wednesday 6th December 2023 – Online Parents/Carers Evening
Thursday 7th December 2023 – Flu Immunisations follow up session
Friday 8th December 2023 – Nursery Nativity Play
Monday 11th December 2023 – Reception Nativity Play
Thursday 21st December 2023 to Wednesday 3rd January 2024 – Christmas Holiday
Thursday 4th January 2024 – PD Day (Children not in school)