Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin

Friday 13th June 2025

A Message from Miss Siddall:  It has been another wonderfully busy week in school and many of the children have been enjoying getting about and about in warm weather.  Y6 have been to Crucial Crew, Y4 have been to the Victorian School and Y3 have been visiting different locations along the River Deben.  Thank you to all our families who attended this year’s sports day.  The children really enjoyed taking part in all the events and we look forward to learning which House won overall. Thank you to Mr Jordan for organising the event so successfully.  As I am sure you are aware, this time of the year is always so busy in school, so do check the dates section of this newsletter so that you or your children do not miss out on all the planned activities. Thank you again for your continued support.

Attendance for the previous week:

Class with the best attendance: Cobras (96.21%)

Assemblies

The theme of our assemblies for next week will be National School Sports and Paralympic Week. (UNRC: Article 31: I have the right to play and relax and do things like sports, music and drama).  Why not do something sporty as a family, a run around the park, a bike ride or even a game of rounders.

Attendance: Duck Race Winners

Well done to the winners of our Duck Races the week before half term:

Fancy Dress

Do you have any spare fancy dress costumes or props you no longer need?  Maybe a fireman’s hat or a doctor’s coat?  If you do, we would love to have these to help with our new lunchtime activities.  Please pass them to the office team.  Unfortunately, we cannot accept any items of footwear.  Thank you!

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 is 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.

EYFS:

Key Stage 1:

Lower Key Stage 2:

Upper Key Stage 2:

Summer Fair

A reminder that our Summer Fair is coming up on Friday 4^th July, directly after school.  Please put the note in your diary, it would be lovely to see as many of you as possible come along!

Attendance

We continue to see a number of children experiencing upset stomachs, coughs and colds.  We know how challenging it can be when your child is unwell and we are grateful to the many parents who consistently keep us informed of absences.  However, we have noticed that a few absences are not being reported.  Please remember that you don’t need to speak to someone directly if that is difficult, just leaving a brief message on the absence line is enough.  This helps us keep the registers accurate and allows us to authorise your child’s absence.   If we don’t hear from you, we are unable to authorise the absence, which may lead to difficult conversations about unauthorised absences and their potential consequences.  Thank you for your continued support in keeping us informed.

Celebrating our Children

This week we are very pleased to celebrate Scarlett from Year 6.  Scarlett enjoys playing football and attended her end of season football presentation over the weekend.  She was awarded Manager’s Player of the season, as well as being given the Player of the Match trophy to keep as she had been awarded it the most over the season.  Amazing achievement Scarlett, very well done!  We are all very proud of you.

Special Menu

We know our children love when we have a day with a special menu and we are pleased to let you know we will be celebrating King Charles II’s birthday on 17^th June with the menu shown.  If your child is a little nervous of trying a school dinner for the first time, these days are really good days to give it a go! 

As usual there is no cost to children in Years Reception, 1 and 2 or to those children eligible for free school meals.

Upcoming Vacancy: Parent/Carer Governor

Are you passionate about your child’s education and eager to contribute to the success of our school?  In September we will have a vacancy for a Parent/Carer Governor and would ask you to consider if this would be something you would like to do?   The role would include the following:

• Representing the views of parents/carers in discussions and decisions
• Help set the school’s strategic direction
• Support and challenge school leadership to drive improvement
• Attend regular meetings (typically once or twice a term)
• Receive training and support for the role.

We will advertise the role in September but if you are interested and have any questions before then please speak to a member of the office team who will arrange for you to speak to someone.

Puppets

A big thank you to Mrs Walker’s parents who kindly donated these wonderful puppets to the school.   They will be a fabulous resource to support the children in their learning and personal development.

Year 4 Victorian School

Last week the Year 4 children visited the Victorian School.  The children were not only learning about history, they were able to truly become Victorian school children for the day and make some memories they will have forever!  The building and real artefacts gave the children an excellent opportunity to see what it would have been like in Victorian times, without electricity and modern conveniences.  They even had to use outside toilets and wash their hands with carbolic soap, all adding to the experiences of the day!  Year 4 also experimented with pen and ink calligraphy, singing traditional hymns, chanting arithmetic, playground games and reading extracts from Victorian textbooks.

Year 3: Ducking Down the Deben

This week the Owls class went Ducking Down the Deben for their school trip to help them answer this half term’s enquiry question ‘How does a river get from it’s source to the sea?’  The exploration started in Debenham, looking at the source of the river and taking some measurements.  The group then travelled to Brandeston, where the river began to widen and the children enjoyed pond dipping for wildlife.  They managed to catch lots of bugs including a water scorpion!  After that, Owls ventured to Woodbridge where the river was even bigger and they talked about the river there was tidal because it was so much closer to the sea.  The children were able to spot some seaweed there.  Finally, the trip ended up at the mouth of the river in Bawdsey where the children were able to explore the beach.  Owls enjoyed making their own rivers using spades and water from the sea.  It was a really lovely day and the children had a wonderful time.  They showed respect for the public whilst they were out and about – well done Owls class.

Year 5/6 Mixed Dynamo Cricket 

Last Thursday morning Mr Jordan took nine of our KS2 pupils to take part in the Ipswich and South Suffolk School Games U11 Dynamo Cricket event which was held at Ransomes Sports Ground.  Having attended Mr Jordan’s after school cricket club, the event provided the perfect opportunity for the team to implement their cricket skills. During the event the team played three matches, playing against Claydon Primary School and two matches against Copdock Primary School. Each match consisted of the teams taking it turns to bat and field. When batting, the pupils worked together in pairs to gain as many runs as possible for the team as each batter faced five bowls per innings. During each match the team performed brilliantly, scoring lots of runs and hitting a number of boundaries (fours and sixes). When fielding the team were equally as good! As a result, the team took

several catches and bowled out a number of the opposition batters. Mr Jordan was extremely proud

of the effort, teamwork and cricketing skills showed by the entire team. Well done!

U8 Girls Football Festival

On Monday, Mr Jordan took six of our Year 3 pupils to Whitton Sports Centre to take part in the Suffolk FA U8 Girls’ Football Festival. As with previous festivals run by the Suffolk FA, the main aim was to provide the girls the opportunity to play a number of fun and enjoyable 4v4 football matches. As a result, each match was played with minimal coaching, refereeing and no goalkeepers! Instead both teams, with help from the young leaders from Claydon High School, worked together to implement the rules of the game and most importantly enjoy playing football! Throughout the festival the girls put in lots of effort and enthusiasm as their confidence grew with each match. As a result, the girls showed some really good team and individual football skills during their four matches against St Pancras, Kyson, Capel St Mary and The Oaks Primary School. In total the girls scored five goals during the festival, managing to win two games, drawing one and lose just one match. Most importantly, the girls played each match with big smiles on their faces! A great effort, well done girls!

National School Sports Week 2025

Next Monday marks the start of ‘National School Sports Week’ (16^th–22^nd June). National School Sports Week is an annual event which aims to bring schools, families and communities together to encourage young people across the UK to be active at school. The initiative also sets out to highlight the importance of getting children to fulfil the recommended minimum time of being physically active for 60 minutes a day.

To acknowledge this event, in addition to our already very active week (lunchtime activities, after school clubs etc.), next week during English and Maths, class teachers will be encouraged to include TeachActive lessons. These lessons will encourage pupils to learn in an active way within English and Maths either within or outside of the classroom. Additionally, during next week’s PE lessons we will be conducting our annual Paralympic Week.  Staff will conduct two inclusive/Paralympic activities to deliver to their class. This includes activities such as Archery, Boccia, Goalball, New Aged Kurling, Seated Volleyball, Goalball and Team Building Activities.

To ensure that children are fulfilling their 60 minutes of physical activity per day, it is recommended

that they should be physically active in and outside of school.

Examples outside of school could include:

- Playing in the garden

- Playing football at the park

- Going for a walk, run or bike ride with a family member

- Being active on the play equipment at the local park

- Attending a sports club, or being active at a club outside of school.

Therefore, we would love to see the different ways in which our pupils are being active away from school during next week’s National School Sports Week. Please feel free to share photos with us by

sending them to parents@whcps.org.

Dates for the Diary

Monday 16^th June 2025 - Family Breakfast 8.00am

Monday 16^th June 2025 – Year 1 Felixstowe Trip (Rescheduled from 5^th June)

Tuesday 17^th June 2025 – Y3 Ducking Down the Deben – Rabbits Class

Thursday 19^th June 2025 – Y2 Duxford Visit

Friday 20^th June 2025 – Non-Uniform Day (bring chocolate or sweets for the Fair tombola)

Monday 23^rd June 2025 - Family Breakfast 8.00am

Monday 23^rd June 2025 -Tuesday 24^th June 2025 – Year 6 Residential (Danbury)

Tuesday 24^th June 2025 – Y3 Ducking Down the Deben – Badgers Class

Wednesday 25^th June 2025 – Transition Day (including those transferring to Westbourne)

Thursday 26^th June 2025 – Transition Day (including those transferring to Westbourne)

Thursday 26^th June 2025 Helping Hands Hub

Friday 27^th June 2025: SMSC Day: British Values

Monday 30^th June 2025 - Family Breakfast 8.00am

Tuesday 1^st July 2025 – Year 4 DT Parent/Carer Session 2.00pm to 3.00pm

Friday 4^th July 2025 – Summer Fair

Monday 7^th July 2025 - Family Breakfast 8.00am

Tuesday 8^th July 2025 – Project Showcase (Years R, 2, 4 and 6)

Thursday 10^th July 2025 - Helping Hands Hub

Thursday 10^th July 2025 – Project Showcase (Years N, 1, 3 and 5)

Friday 11^th July 2025 – Reports Home to Parents/Carers

Monday 14^th July 2025 - Family Breakfast 8.00am

Wednesday 16^th July 2025 – Year 6 Production

Monday 21^st July 2025 – Year 6 Leavers BBQ

Tuesday 22^nd July 2025 – Year 6 Leavers Assembly

Tuesday 22^nd July 2025 – Last day of the Summer Term

Wednesday 23^rd July 2025 – First day of the Summer Holiday

Monday 1^st September 2025 – PD Day (School closed to children)

Tuesday 2^nd September 2025 – PD Day (School closed to children)

Wednesday 3^rd September 2025 – First day of term for the children