Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin 244

Friday 29th September 2023

Message from Miss Siddall

This week I've been visiting lots of classes around the school and talking to the children about their learning.  It's been wonderful to see some of the children learning outside of school as well, with year 4 having been on a local area walk as part of their geography and year 5 having visited the Gurdwara as part of their RE. 

In school I've been lucky enough to see the EYFS children learning about shape, the year 1 children learning about human and physical geographical features and year 5 children learning about factors in maths.  I've also enjoyed reading some year 4 poems about mountain rescue.  Keep up the good work everyone. 

Attendance for the previous week:

Class with the best attendance: Giraffes (100%)

Readers’ Cup

Well done to the following classes who won the Readers’ Cup last week:

Did you know…

Reading at home is so important for your child’s learning.  Statistics for our school (July 2023) showed that children who regularly read at home achieved better in the national tests that those who don’t regularly read at home.

Well done to all those children who did regularly read at home and a huge thanks to parents and carers for continuing to support this.

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:

Lower Key Stage 2:

Upper Key Stage 2:

Sibling Photos

We are pleased to inform you that we have arranged for Kittle, our School Photographer, to come into school on Thursday 12^th October to take sibling photos for any family that would like this done.  It will take place BEFORE school and parents will need to go to either the Waterford Hall (via the car park) or Marlow Hall (via the KS1 playground) between 8.00am to 8.45am.  Photos will be taken on a first come, first served basis and you may have to queue for a short time.

Unfortunately, we can only include children who are currently enrolled at Whitehouse CP School, so older and younger siblings will not be able to be included.

Assemblies

The theme of our assemblies for next week will be: Why do we have Black History month and why is it important? (UNRC Link: Article 2: I have the right to protection against discrimination. This means that nobody can treat me badly because of my colour, sex or religion, if I speak another language, have a disability or if I am rich or poor).  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.

Special Menu: Census Day

On Thursday 5^th October 2023, we have our School Census Day.  As you will be aware this term we have had new caterers in school providing the school dinners and the feedback from the children and staff has been great! 

To encourage your child to try a school dinner, if they have not done so yet, we are having a special ‘Out of this World’ menu on that day.  It has lots of the children’s favourites and is the perfect day to try a school meal.  Dinner is free for all those in Year R, 1 and 2 and for those who are confirmed as eligible for free school meals.  For all other children it is £2.43.  Please note we will also have pick and mix available on that day, as usual.

Year 5 Gurdwara Visit

This week our Year 5 classes went on a visit to the Gurdwara in Ipswich.  Whilst there the children learned about the Sikh religion and were able to see their place of worship.  Everyone washed their hands-on arrival, took off their shoes and each wore a head covering of some sort as a sign of respect.  The children enjoyed a turban tying workshop and had a lovely day.  A big thank you to all those at the Gurdwara who welcomed our children and allowed them such an informative and enjoyable experience.

Families Suffolk Magazine

Please see below the link to view the Families Suffolk Magazine which is full of articles and activities to do with your children.  Included are ideas for outdoor fun for Half Term and spooky Halloween excitement!  https://bit.ly/FamiliesSuffolk_Sept_Oct23_Digital

Free School Meal Vouchers

We have received confirmation that those families whose children are eligible for Free School Meals (due to receiving certain benefits) will again receive a free school meal voucher over the October Half Term holiday.  A voucher of £15.00 per child will be sent to parents/carers by email, so please do ensure that we have your correct email address.  If you think you may be eligible for Free School Meals please do apply at the following link: https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/children-families-and-learning/schools/school-meals-uniforms-and-trips/apply-for-free-school-meals.  Even if your child is currently in Years R, 1 or 2 so do not pay for the meals, it is still worth applying as they would then receive free meals for the whole time they are at Primary School.

Eco-News

Last year our Eco-Committee was so impressed with the whole school effort in recycling.  We managed to recycle over 3,000 crisp packets and hundreds of glue sticks and pens.  We would love to continue our recycling efforts this year by recycling our glue sticks and pens within the classrooms and crisp packets in the lunch halls.  Look out for the recycling boxes appearing around the school!

Earrings

Just a quick reminder that we do not allow any jewellery, including earrings, to be worn during PE lessons.  If your child is wearing earrings on the day of their PE lessons, please note they must be able to remove these by themselves or they will not be allowed to take part in the lesson.  We appreciate your cooperation in this matter.

The Big Ambition

Dame Rachel de Souza, who is the Children’s Commissioner for England, has recently launched ‘The Big Ambition’ which includes a survey for all children aged 6-18 to complete and for parents/carers to complete on behalf of their children who are aged 0-5.  Dame de Souza is very keen to hear from every child in England about their school, community, family life and the wider world as well as the dreams, hopes and aspirations they have for the future.   The survey can be accessed on the following link:  www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/thebigambition.  As a Rights Respecting School we would encourage you all to join in and share what is important to you and your child.

Dates for the Diary

Monday 23^rd October 2023 to Friday 27^th October 2023 – Half Term Holiday

Wednesday 4^th October 2023 – Year 1 Local Walk

Wednesday 4^th October 2023 – Year 2 Christchurch Park Trip

Thursday 5^th October 2023 – Census Day: Special Lunchtime Menu

Thursday 5^th October 2023 – SATs Parent/Carer Information Sessions – 9.00am and 5.00pm

Tuesday 10^th October 2023 – Year 4 Parent/Carer Session - 2.00pm

Thursday 12^th October – Sibling Photo Sessions – 8.00am to 8.45am

Friday 3^rd November 2023 – Whole School SMSC Day: Healthy Eating

Tuesday 7^th November – Year 6 Martlesham RAF Tower Museum visit

Wednesday 29^th November 2023 – Autumn Term Reports home to parents/carers

Thursday 30^th November 2023 – Online Parents/Carers Evening

Friday 1^st December 2023 – Travelling Book Fair

Wednesday 6^th December 2023 – Online Parents/Carers Evening

Thursday 7^th December 2023 – Flu Immunisations follow up session

Friday 8^th December 2023 – Nursery Nativity Play

Monday 11^th December 2023 – Reception Nativity Play

Thursday 21^st December 2023 to Wednesday 3^rd January 2024 – Christmas Holiday

Thursday 4^th January 2024 – PD Day (Children not in school)