A somewhat belated Happy New Year to you all from me, I hope that in spite of the recent cold and dreary spell this finds you and your family in good health and spirits.

A Special Invitation - Save the Date - Tuesday 28 January 2025 - 6.30pm to 7.15pm 

As mentioned in my last newsletter communication on Tuesday 28 January 2025 I will be hosting a special Foundation Parents’ Online Forum, along with all three Heads. I will be outlining a key new initiative that we will be launching to help prepare for the future and explaining how you can play a key role in supporting our schools’ continued growth and success. 

We would like as many Foundation parents as possible to attend and to give us feedback, so I would encourage you to add the event to your calendars. Of course there will be a recording should you be unable to attend on the evening and this will be sent out shortly afterwards.

I will reveal full details of this project at the Online Forum and explain how you can get involved.  The link for the Forum can be found here and it will be emailed to you nearer the date. We look forward to sharing this exciting new chapter with you! 

With all best wishes,

Ed Hester
Foundation Principal

Dear Parents and Friends of the School

I hope your weeks have gone well at home and at work. The sub-zero temperatures of last weekend have given way to some mild and sunny stuff in the last few days, which has been a rather lovely relief. 

The week in school has gone smoothly, with lots of hard work and endeavour in the classrooms, as always. On Wednesday, we celebrated our school Founder’s Day with a special assembly and the opening of our new heritage area. This new area is based in what we have previously called the breakout space, along the main corridor. There are old photos and memorabilia from the school archive displayed, which the children found fascinating to look at and explore. Around the top of the space there is a timeline showing the key events in the school’s development. The children have all had a chance to come up with their form teachers during the week to have a closer look and familiarise themselves with this new school space. A very fascinating PowerPoint slideshow of photographs from days gone by has proved particularly mesmerising for the children. 

One special marker was recognised in our assembly, and that was the passing of former head teacher Mrs Christine Barrett. Mrs Barrett succeeded the original head Mrs Mortimer in 1971 and remained in place until her retirement in 1992. In fact, for the first 45 years of the school's history, only two head teachers were at the reins. We were delighted to welcome to the assembly Mrs Barrett's daughter, Isabel Barnes, who herself was a former pupil here at the school. I think Isabel enjoyed hearing all the memories of Mrs Barrett's days and also seeing how the site here has developed in recent years. 

A sense of history is actually a really important way to make our modern day lives enriched and meaningful, and I hope the children felt the same way following our celebrations. We drive past the old school in Horton Crescent on our way to swimming lessons each week and I think the children took a special interest in their journey following our assembly, looking out for the landmarks that we mentioned. 

School fixtures got up and running again this week as well, although I am getting a little worried about the playing field which looks a little bit like a mud-bath at the moment. I learnt from my research for the Founder's Day assembly that the field on which the school was originally built was called Parson’s Field. I wondered if there was some way of bringing that name back to life, although just now it looks more like a farmer's field than anything else. 

Briefly, before I finish, I would also like to draw your attention to an important online Parents’ Forum meeting that is in the calendar for 28 January at 6.30pm. You will be receiving all the information you need on this in due course, but I do hope many of you will be able to find the time to attend and hear an important message from Ed Hester, our Foundation Principal.  

I hope you all enjoy a peaceful weekend.

Joe Thackway
Headmaster

As we've said before, we absolutely love using Seesaw here at Crescent! Its primary strength lies in its ability for pupils to easily and speedily upload and share their classroom work with others, instantly sharing our fabulous learning with you wherever you are, making you feel like you're in the classroom with us! This obviously has a number of key benefits for both parents and pupils, as it will provide a great insight into your child's learning, give you the chance to add your own positive comments and feedback to their work, and hopefully avoid that inevitable "can't remember..." response you get when you ask them what they did at school today! It also gives your children an enormous amount of pride in their work, knowing that what they produce can be digitally shared with their parents at work or home in seconds.

We do have a large number of parents who are already linked up to their children's Seesaw accounts and sharing in and commenting on their super achievements, but we would really love to get everyone involved. If you haven't already received your unique Seesaw family login sheet via your child in September, just drop their form tutor or myself a quick email and we will be able to email you back a digital copy. Just download the Seesaw App on to any device, select 'family member' then scan the QR code on the sheet. This should then give you access to all of your child's Seesaw classes, enabling you to see and comment (we love positive comments from parents, especially in real time!) on any work your child has posted. 

If you've previously signed up for Seesaw you shouldn't have to do anything at all, when you log back in you should see all of your child's classes, updated for the new year. If you are having any problems downloading or using Seesaw, they have a great help section that can be found here: Families – Seesaw Help Centre or please do not hesitate to get in touch with me.

Mr Adkins
Head of Digital Learning

It is always good to see that Year 6 are becoming more independent in readiness for their senior schools. Please can you let Mrs Tucker and me know what days your child is getting to or from school independently and if they will have a phone with them. The mobile phone will need to be handed in to Mrs Tucker and will be looked after until the end of the day.  

In addition to this, from Monday, we will not be allowing Year 6 to call home for things they have forgotten, we have found this helps them gain greater responsibility for when they move on to senior school.

Thank you for your support with this.

Mrs Webb
Class 6W Form Teacher

Co-Curricular Clubs started on Monday and it has been great to see pupils engaging with all the clubs that are being held here.  I would recommend you sync your phone calendar with SOCS as it will update with the latest information.

Please note the following:

Uniform Expectations

The uniform expectation for all sporting clubs is school PE kit. The only exceptions are leotards for yoga and gymnastics and pupils who wearing TaeKwonDo uniform.

Most children do before school clubs in their uniform to save changing after. 

Early Collection

We are unable to accommodate early collections from clubs, due to the logistics of not having staff to safely hand over your child to their adult. Most clubs have one adult running them.

If you wish to remove a child from a club due to this protocol then please let Mrs Tucker know and she will update our records.

Thank you for understanding.

Mrs Webb
Assistant Head

Weekly Calendar 

Weekly Calendar 20 January 2025

After School

Provision can be booked through My School Portal selecting the sessions you require. If you require your child to have tea, please ensure bookings are made by 10.00am each day.  

MySchoolPortal

Crescent School

Please click below to view the lunch menu for next school week, children are able to have either the Main or Vegetarian option. 

Lunch Menu - 20 January 2025

Crescent School

Please see below to view the music lesson timetable:

Music lessons - January 20

The music lesson timetable will be published in the Courier every Friday. Please note the following:

• The timetable changes every week. Lessons are rotated as we try to avoid children missing the same lesson each week, though sometimes this is unavoidable if there are trips, matches and events to work around. If a teacher teaches on more than one day, your child's lesson could be on any of those days. Lessons in bold type are in fixed slots and therefore do not rotate, though, again, on occasions we may have to swap them around to avoid clashes with events.
• The music staff will always try to reschedule lessons missed because of a school event, however lessons missed because of illness or not having an instrument in school cannot be made up.
• If you know your child is not going to be in school for their lesson for any reason, please do let me know as early as possible and I will try to work around it, though this cannot be guaranteed.
• Lessons before school and during lunchtime are prioritised to Year 5 pupils now and Year 6 lessons have moved to being during class time.
• Half a term's (ie five lessons) notice is required to stop having lessons, or payment of half a term's fees in lieu of notice.

Please send all enquiries about music lessons to me juliebarnes@crescentschool.co.uk rather than the individual music teachers.

Mrs Barnes
Director of Music

Please find below a link to view this term’s Crescent School calendar. We hope that you will find it a useful aide memoir when planning school events and activities into your busy schedules. There is plenty to look forward to, including lots of fixtures, the Foundation orchestral performance, Spring Concert and LAMDA Showcase.

Where possible, we will try to avoid making alterations or additions to this published calendar but if we do find this is necessary due to unavoidable changes to arrangements, you will be informed of these by electronic communication or in the weekly Courier. 

You can also keep track of everything going on via My School Portal and the school website www.crescentschool.co.uk, where you can also add events and reminders to your own electronic calendars by clicking on the relevant links.

Please note the following addition this term:

• Thursday 20 March - Year 2 Spring Performance to Parents

CS Lent Term Calendar 2025

Crescent School

Crescent School celebrated the life of former headmistress, Mrs Christine Barrett, at its Founder’s Day Assembly on Wednesday 15 January. Mrs Barrett, who passed away recently, began teaching at the school in 1965 and was headmistress from 1971 until her retirement in 1992.  

The school was pleased to welcome Mrs Barrett’s daughter, Isabel Barnes, a former pupil at the school, to the assembly, as well as Foundation Principal, Ed Hester, Clerk to the Trustees, and former Crescent School pupil, Eddie Tolcher, and Foundation Trustee, Sally Rosser.

During the assembly, Headmaster, Joe Thackway, reflected on the long history of the school, which marked its 77th birthday this week, the incredible contribution that Mrs Barrett made, including overseeing the school’s pivotal move from its original site on Horton Crescent in Rugby to its current Bawnmore Road location in Bilton.

Year 6 pupils shared extracts from Mrs Barrett’s memories of the school’s early history. Dressed in original school uniform, they spoke about the experiences of the early pupils when the school was situated in Rugby town centre, on Horton Crescent adjacent to Rugby School.

Current staff member, and former pupil, Sally Dowling, spoke of her memories of Mrs Barrett, commenting, “I remember her as firm but very fair. She was a lovely lady that everyone really respected.”  

After the assembly, Mrs Barnes was invited to officially open the new heritage area that has just been created at the school. The space includes a timeline of key milestones and the headteachers, as well as old photos, paintings and memorabilia which is all proving fascinating for the current generation of pupils at the school.

Our thanks also go to current parent, Mrs Lorimer, who kindly framed some of the pictures that have gone on display in the heritage area.

Copies of the second edition of A History of Crescent School  which was produced last year are available to download for free on the school website here. 

All 37 Crescent pupils who took the London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art (LAMDA) examinations in December have passed with every pupil achieving a distinction.

At Crescent School, children from Years 3-6 study for the examinations in their Drama lessons as part of the school’s curriculum. After excellent results last year, Drama teacher, Lizzie Woolfenden, challenged Year 3 by entering them for the Introductory level, Stage Two examination. Pupils worked hard in their lessons and at home and enjoyed showcasing their skills to their parents just before they sat their exams in December.

In their examinations, they were judged on interpretation, technique and knowledge. They had to consider their diction, expression and movement and they had to discuss a photo of their family or favourite place, event or animal and then tell the examiner about their favourite activity. The results were received this week and they were outstanding.

Lizzie Woolfenden, comments, “I am delighted with the children’s results, congratulations to them all. They worked really hard and clearly impressed the examiner. What’s great about the LAMDA exams is that they equip the children with communication skills which will serve them throughout life. They also promote an appreciation of literature and poetry and help unlock imagination and creative thinking. I am very proud of all our pupils."
 

We are delighted to welcome John Fisher as our new Chair of Trustees at The Princethorpe Foundation. John joined the Trustees back in 2020 bringing with him extensive experience, having spent his career in the housing and construction sectors, firstly in London and then in the Midlands. John is a director of a housing consultancy business working across the UK and chief executive of a procurement consortium. He also chairs a small rural charity.

John, who has played an active role in supporting and guiding The Princethorpe Foundation, most recently as Chair of the Finance Committee, took over from retiring Chair of Trustees, Liz Griffin, in December.

John is also a former Princethorpe parent whose three children were all educated at Princethorpe College, where they benefited from a great academic education as well positive support and guidance to pursue a range of extra-curricular activities. The ethos of the school helping to shape them, as it has so many others, for later success.

John comments, “I am honoured to take on the role of Chair of Trustees and look forward to working with my fellow Trustees, Foundation Principal, Ed Hester, the Heads and their management teams to continue the excellent work of The Princethorpe Foundation in delivering an outstanding education for all our pupils. I am also very grateful to Sally Rosser and Richard Harcourt, who have agreed to take on roles as deputy chairs; the three of us will be working closely together to support the foundation.” 

Princethorpe has received its second review by the prestigious Good Schools Guide. The Guide, which selects schools to be included on merit alone, is famous for its unbiased and candid reviews of state and private schools and is trusted by families worldwide. Princethorpe is now one of just 1,300 schools currently reviewed by the Guide, out of over 30,000 schools in the UK.

An editor from the Guide visited the College in December 2024, interviewed the Headmaster, Grove du Toit, toured the campus, observed lessons and spoke to pupils, staff and parents.

The nearly 3,000-word review, which appears on the Good Schools Guide’s website and will be included in the next hard copy edition, includes a pen portrait of the Headmaster, plus insights into exam results, teaching and learning, co-curricular life, pastoral care and the College’s ethos and heritage.

Comments Grove du Toit, Headmaster, “After two years in post I was excited to welcome the Good Schools Guide back to Princethorpe to update their review. I am delighted with their findings, especially their recognition of our exceptionally strong pastoral care. Our ‘Spirit of Family’ approach shines through, along with the fact that while we are proud of our Catholic ethos and heritage, we are an inclusive community that welcomes all faiths and none. I am also heartened by the parental feedback on our positive and encouraging approach to teaching and learning, that engages creatively, sets high expectations and gently pushes pupils to achieve.” He continues, “It’s good to have our wonderful rural location and facilities highlighted, including our new Science Centre, and our commitment to developing our campus further, particularly in relation to improving and expanding our sporting facilities – we have very exciting projects planned. All in all, to me it feels a very fair picture of the school and I would encourage current and prospective families to read it.”

The very comprehensive and positive review concludes with a Last Word, which sums up the Guide’s findings:

"Scratch beneath the surface of Princethorpe’s majestic façade and landscaped beauty, and you’ll find pastoral care is its beating heart. Imbuing all disciplines and endeavours, it pumps pupils with confidence as they develop and learn. A picture-perfect pastoral idyll."

Thank you to all the parents, pupils and members of staff who kindly spoke to the Guide's editor about their experience of the school.

To read the Good School Guide’s review in full click here. 

On Monday afternoon after school, pupils from Year 4 enjoyed showcasing their fabulous performance skills. The pupils have been preparing for their upcoming LAMDA exams and their LAMDA Showcase was a fantastic opportunity for them to share their much practised and perfected poetry. 
In their Drama lessons, pupils have been building confidence, developing character, learning how to project and developing the use of gestures, emphasis and emotion. In the Showcase, they relished performing to an audience, rising to the occasion in style and the watching parents were all amazed by the children's ability and confidence.
Drama teacher, Mrs Woolfenden was extremely proud of everyone who took part and would like to thank all the children, staff and parents for their hard work and dedication.
Well done to everyone and fingers crossed it all went well in your LAMDA exams!

This morning, we were thrilled to welcome Becky from Rugby Central Vets4Pets into school. Becky spoke to Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 about the work of a vet and how to care for your small animal friends. The visit supported Reception’s topic of 'People Who Help Us‘ and Year 1 and Year 2’s Science studies.

The children listened intently to Becky’s talk, actively engaging, answering questions and sharing their knowledge. They were fascinated by the different animals she works with and had plenty of good ideas on how to care for animals correctly. Becky showed the youngsters some x-rays and the children were surprised by some of the things animals can eat. They now all understand how important it is to tidy their toys away! They also loved trying out some bandaging techniques on some furry friends.

Thank you so much to Becky for visiting us today.

Sarima (3LS) was a runner up in a national competition run by British Glass called 'Glass Guardians'. 

In October half-term I offered the opportunity for pupils to recycle and adapt glass from their recycling and their entries were submitted.

Sarima created a fantastic table centrepiece out of recycled pudding pots.  The judges thought the added touch of having the photos to show the creative process was a brilliant touch! 

Sarima was awarded a Waterstones Voucher.

Well done Sarima.

Mrs Johnson
Head of Science and DT

Mrs Fisher has for many years organised Bilton Silver Mini Brass and Bilton Silver Training Band on Monday evenings at Bilton Silver Band Hall, Winwick Place, Bilton.

Pupils are welcome to attend, please see the poster for full details. The sessions are free of charge and instruments can be provided for members. 

Many children who have become members have gone on to achieve membership of the National Children’s Band and the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain.

This activity is supported by the Bilton Silver (Rugby) Band for young people in the local community.

If you would like your child to attend or would like more information please contact Mrs Fisher: difi2@hotmail.co.uk

Monday 27 January 2025 - 4.00pm to 5.00pm

I am delighted to invite you to the LAMDA showcase on Monday 27 January from 4.00pm to 5.00pm.  As you know, this is a great opportunity for you to see what your child has been working on in class and for your child to perform in an informal setting before their upcoming exam. It gives me a further opportunity to give you more information about the exams and what is expected. There is no pressure to perform, however, this usually gives children the confidence boost they need leading up to the exam. 

Tickets can be booked below, three per family, by Wednesday 22 January:

Year 5 and 6 - LAMDA Showcase to Parents in the School Hall

If your child is in this performance they will remain in school for the show. Parents are to enter via the front doors at 3.50pm for light refreshments before taking their seats. Please do not queue outside the front doors as children have to be dismissed.

Parents can take their children home after the show which should be finished by 5.00pm. If you wish your child to go into After School then please book them in through the normal channel.

Mrs Woolfenden
Drama Teacher

Wednesday 29 January 2025 - 3.45pm to 4.15pm

We would very much like to welcome you to look around the school corridors on Wednesday 29 January.

The playground will be open for parking from 3.40pm. Year 5 and 6 will be dismissed through the pupil door, all other classes are to be dismissed through their usual door(s).

Please collect your child(ren) then come round to the front door where you will be welcomed in from 3.45pm to look at all the great work in school. Entry and exit is via the main school entrance only and last entry is at 3.55pm.

If your child is in a co-curricular club they will be expected to attend their club as normal unless you arrange otherwise.

Please be aware that this is not a time to talk to the teachers concerning your child, please email them separately if you have concerns.

Mrs Webb
Assistant Head

Monday 3 and Tuesday 4 February

LAMDA exams will be held on the above dates for those children who have registered.  

All exams will take place during the school day.

Mrs Woolfenden
Drama Teacher

Following the resounding success of last year's gathering, we're thrilled to announce the return of our popular Farmers' Networking Supper. Join us on Friday 14 February for an evening of good food, great company and valuable insights into the future of farming.

Our Farmers’ Networking Supper celebrates the accomplishments and endeavours of the agricultural community, while exploring innovative solutions for the challenges ahead. The event takes place at Princethorpe College, includes a guest speaker and provides an excellent opportunity for you to connect with fellow farmers and those working in agriculture.

Secure your spot here by Friday 7 February 2025.
 

Friday 14 February 2025

We will be holding a non-uniform day on Friday 14 February with all proceeds going to this term's chosen charity, Bwengu Projects. 

Please send a £1 donation with your child to be given to their form teacher.

Thank you.

Ms Forth
Deputy Head

Dear Parents

We were thrilled to support the OurJay charity last term and many of you will have noticed the defibrillator outside of school.  Alongside this public access, we recognise the importance of rapid and informed response of CPR/AED action. 

As such we are delighted to be able to offer to Crescent parents and families a resuscitation training session led by the OurJay team in the school hall on Friday 14 February from 2.00pm - 3.30pm.  We know many of you will wish to join in this potentially life saving opportunity, please sign up via the link below, numbers are limited to 20:

OurJay Foundation - Resuscitation training for Parents in the School hall

Mr Webb
Assistant Head

Team Super Sports are back at Princethorpe College this February half-term with an action-packed week for children aged 5 to 16 years. From Monday 17 February to Friday 21 February, the Holiday Camps will run from 8.00am to 5.00pm.

Children aged 7 to 16 can choose from a variety of sports to create their own personalised sports camp! For our younger campers (ages 5 to 7), along with sport we’ve got arts, crafts, and dance activities to keep them engaged and having a blast!

Why Team Super Sports? They’re experts in sport and multi-activity holiday camps, providing top-level coaching for all abilities.

Click here to visit the Team Super Sports website to secure your child’s spot.

Camps are priced at £38 per day. Book before Sunday 2 February to receive an extra 10% off for early booking!

Sibling discounts and flexible booking options available!

Friday 7 February 2024 - 4.00pm

Crescent School is hosting its annual Orchestra Workshop in conjunction with Crackley Hall on Friday 7 February. There will be a concert for the parents of those playing at 4.00pm on that day.

Further details to follow.

Mrs Barnes
Director of Music

Congratulations to Elin and Max in 4C who have been awarded their full JDV badges in Computing, along with Zoe in 4W. Sophia in 4W is awarded hers in Science. 

Well done!

Mrs Symons 
JDV Lead

Congratulations to:

• Triple Millionaire - Nora (6W)
• Word Millionaire – Alex W (6W)

Keep up the excellent reading.

Mrs Nelson
Teaching Assistant

Word Wizards

The pupils achieving the highest word count from successfully quizzing this week, are:

• 3LS Hazel
• 3SS Oore
• 4C  Alice
• 4W Isabella
• 5F  Aria
• 6W Alex W

Top Quizzers 

The pupils who have quizzed on the most books successfully or made a noticeable improvement in quizzing scores this week are:

• 3LS Sophie D
• 3SS Josiah
• 4C Felicity
• 4W Feranmi
• 5F Lilah
• 6W Sophie

Mrs Nelson
Teaching Assistant

100K Word Superstars this week are Alex (3LS), Ashleen, Ava and Niamh (3SS)

Well done.

Mrs Nelson
Teaching Assistant

A really important part of life in Pre-Prep is building a love of reading. We are developing the children's phonics skills, reading fluency, expression, style and comprehension. Each week we select two readers from each class who have stood out to us as demonstrating one or more of these skills or who have made really great progress over the previous few weeks. It's a lovely way for the children to know that we recognise and celebrate their success.

This week's reading superstars are:

• Reception - Annabelle and Reya
• Year 1 - Clementine and Isabella
• Year 2 - Alex and Sofia

Mrs Emery
Head of KS1 and Class 2E Form Teacher

Winners - Crescent Bake Off 2024

The winning team showed great collaboration; listening to each other’s ideas, assessing which person was best for each task and harnessing all of their effort and skills to produce a super winning design.  

• Herbie – 6W

• Roisin – 6W

• Edward W – 6W

Mrs Johnson
Head of Science and DT

Garage and Gigs are the most important games to show your progress. 

Pupils  reaching landmark % for JDVs for Maths Practice this week.

• Emily 3LS completed 48% of the training course.

Results For Battle 8-15 January 2025 between: Y1-6 are:- average score per class member.

• 1st 1Q 172
• 2nd 3LS 123
• 3rd 3SS 97

Most valuable players in the whole competition:

• 1st Sanvika 1Q
• 2nd Eve 1Q
• 3rd Niamh 3SS

Well done, 1Q! 🏆

Most improved speedsters in the studio are:

4W

• Walter - Unsigned Act!

New battle between all classes 15-22 January 2025.

Please note only the children should play on their account or it influences the level appropriate to them.

Art Frizzmeister 
Deputy Head

The children in 3LS have been learning the vocabulary for clothes in French. Here they are practising their writing skills. They also completed an activity on Seesaw where they had to drag the correct items of clothing onto a stick person according to a short text in French. I was very impressed by their level of understanding.

Mrs Day
Year 3 MFL Teacher

In Maths we have been working out division with remainders using our times-table knowledge and pieces of pasta to help create visual sets and shapes to work out how many are left over.

Mrs Stapleton
Class 3SS Maths Teacher

It has been a busy start to the year as 3SS have been considering how we approach new challenges by developing a 'colourful brain' (a growth mindset) rather than showing a fixed mindset ('grey brain'). Our display is a reminder to us of how we can encourage each other in our learning when things aren't as easy and mistakes are made.

Just before the end of term, 3SS identified how we are similar to our friends and in other ways very different. Our new display reinforces how we continually celebrate our differences and respect each other, as in our School Promise.

Mrs Stapleton
Year 3 Teacher

We welcomed Josh into school this week to start a new Lego Club with Year 3. The children created their own models using inspiration from books and using the BrickIt App which scans the Lego and produces step-by-step instructions to build models. The children loved the space to build and can’t wait for next week!

Mrs Stapleton
Year 3 Teacher

Class 4C enjoyed some drama in an English lesson last week, bringing the animals of The Great Kapok Tree to life through a short, informal performance to the rest of the class. Snakes hissed, toucans squawked, monkeys chattered and bees buzzed to persuade the woodcutter not to cut down their home – the Kapok tree. The children are working towards publishing writing that retells The Great Kapok Tree story in their own words, over the coming weeks. 

Ms Clark
Year 4 English Teacher

In Maths this week we have mastered subtraction and multiplying a 2 or 3 digit number by a 1 digit number. Many breakthroughs have been made and we are feeling very confident. We have moved onto fractions and are trying to link our multiplication knowledge with division facts. Some of us are finding it tricky.  We think about pizza and cake and it makes us feel better! How much cake would you prefer - two fifths or two sixths?

Mrs Woolfenden
Class 4W Maths Teacher

Year 4 were investigating how sounds becomes fainter when the distance increases from the original sound. The pupils found out that this was because the vibrations become weaker as they vibrate further thought the air.

Mrs Johnson
Year 4 Science & DT Teacher

Year 5 have been looking at Reference texts in their English lesson. They have enjoyed exploring the text and finding the answers to key questions within it.

Mrs Webb
Year 5 English Teacher

5F have been working on one and two decimal place numbers. They created their own number lines to help them allocate numbers to the correctly estimated areas and to practise the key skill of rounding to the nearest whole number. Visual apparatus helps to consolidate the number system in your mind and is always useful to refer to until confident.

Ms Forth
Year 5 Maths Teacher

In Years 5 and 6, we are encouraging the reading of a range of book genres.

In order to encourage this, we are playing Book Bingo!

The children can complete a row or a line. They should be reading books within their Zones of Development (ZPD) and achieve at least 80% in their quiz.

Please support your child with this, as it is a great way to broaden the genre breadth.

Mrs Webb
Year 5 English Teacher

The children in Year 6 have been working hard in their Geography lessons with Mr Thackway, preparing for a debate on sustainable energy. Working in six groups, pupils researched the main renewable energy sources, including geothermal, biofuels, wind, wave and tidal, hydro and solar.

Last week, Year 6 delivered their presentations to Year 5, explaining their sustainable energy solutions and discussing the advantages and disadvantages. They put forward their points coherently aided by super visual slide shows and motivating arguments, and then answered questions from the audience. At the end of the debate, Year 5 voted for their top three teams.

The 'Hydro' team (Nora, Alex W, Sophie and Alex B) were the clear winners, but all the children performed really well and showed understanding and awareness of the importance of different renewable energy sources.

The Green Team were busy last term, carrying out an environmental review of ten areas in the school. The pupils have evaluated the evidence and from this have selected three key focus areas for the next part of academic year. These are 'litter', 'marine' and 'energy'. 

They have now created an Action Plan  of activities/events for the next year. Please take a look at the Action Plan and do let us know if you have a particular interest in any of the areas, we would love to hear from anyone who thinks they can help us. 

The Action Plan involves all different classes across the school. Our next event is a school assembly and workshops for Year 4 with Severn Trent Water.

Thank you for reading, 

From the Green Team

On Friday 10 January, Years 4, 5 and 6 travelled to Rugby School Sports Centre to compete in the eagerly awaited House Swimming Gala. As always it was a fabulous event and the atmosphere was electric, with pupils really supporting, encouraging and getting behind their teammates.

The gala included a mixture of individual races, fun team races and a super canon relay to finish. All the children participated with great enthusiasm and we had lots of close races with superb times and two new school records were set.

Congratulations to everyone who took part and especially to our two new record holders:

• Year 6 Backstroke - Zac J finished in 17.56 seconds beating Sam M's previous time of 18.22
• Year 5 Front Crawl - Thomas B finished in 16.15 seconds beating Lewis C's previous time of 16.78

In terms of the results, Blue House scored the most points in the Backstroke, Red House took the Breaststroke, while Yellow House claimed the Freestyle and Butterfly. The Yellows also came top in the fun relays. However, Red House stormed home to victory in the Super Canon Relay which secured them the overall gala win.

The final results were:
1st Place - St George’s
2nd Place - St Andrew's
3rd Place - St David's

Thank you to all of the staff who helped to make the event such a great success.
 

Crescent U11s 'A' vs Crackley Hall U11s 'A'

Crescent's 'A' side learned one of the most valuable lessons in sport in their friendly with Crackley... just how important it is to take your chances and make them count! Despite having 75% of the possession and territory across both halves, as well as 3 times as many shots on target as the opposition, Crescent somehow found themselves on the end of a 3-0 defeat. They passed the ball well throughout, worked cohesively as a team, tackled strongly, but just lacked that killer/golden touch in front of goal on this occasion. Vital lessons learned, and lots of finishing practice beckoning in training! Player of the match was Maxi for his excellent vision and work-rate.

Crescent U11s 'B' vs Crackley Hall U11s 'B'

Crescent 'B' wasted absolutely no time in their friendly with Crackley, scoring immediately from the kick-off and never looking back! They worked fantastically as a team, with every single player moving the ball well, utilising the space, and taking their chances with skill and composure. This all lead to a massive 14-1 victory at the final whistle, with almost every player getting their names on the score sheet. Player of the match went to Max T for his fantastic effort levels and ability to superbly read the game, although massive congratulations go to every single player!

Crescent U11s 'C' vs Crackley Hall U11s 'C'

Crescent 'C' greatly enjoyed their friendly match in a real end to end, high-scoring game. Although eventually finishing on the wrong side of a 10-6 score line, Crescent passed the ball well and defended with increasing resolve, making real improvements in their game. Player of the match was Harry N for his super leadership skills, encouraging and guiding the rest of his team throughout.

Mr Adkins, Mrs Dowling, Mrs Dewes

The Year 4 girls travelled to Kingsley for their first netball matches of the season. 

Pupils worked hard, moved well and applied the skills learnt in Games lessons effectively to a competitive situation. 

Great work from all with lots of goals scored and lots of promising play, with Crescent winning all games. 

Them, Year 5 and 6 hosted Crackley Hall's Year 6 teams on Wednesday night. We had fantastic, fast and competitive games allowing the players to test their skills. 

• U11s played Crackley Hall A team lost 7-14
• U10s played Crackley Hall B team winning 6-5 

Great progress made by all players in the games, highlighting lots of positives and some areas to work on in next week's lesson. 

Mrs McCollin and Ms Clarke, Mrs McCollin, Mrs Dowling, Ms Quirke

U11 and U9 gymnasts travelled to Adcote School in Shrewsbury for the Midlands Gymnastics Competition. 

The girls had to perform a set floor routine and vault. The U11s were up first, making a fabulous start on Vault. A quick warm up allowed the girls time to get accustomed to the equipment before presenting to the judges to start their campaign. All gymnasts performed fantastically gaining some great scores. They then moved on to the floor, where they all showed improved control and balance and solid performances. Great team effort resulting in the team finishing 5th out of 14. 

The U9s also started on Vault, with fantastic landings and great flexibility and power to gain good marks. On floor they worked hard showing great rhythm and control. Fantastic scores from all girls saw the team gain 3rd place and a bronze medal. 

We are super proud of all of the girls for their determination, dedication and progress made. It was a pleasure to spend the day with you. 

Mrs McCollin and Mrs Calder 

Uniform can be ordered here:

Uniform Order Form

Please note the following items are stocked in the School Office and can be added to your account. Do pop in to collect any items.

• Winter hats
• Scarves
• Gloves
• Ties
• Swimming hats
• Sports socks
• Hair bands
• Hair scrunchies
• Hair clips
• Sun hats
• Music group badges - Choir, Orchestra, String and Brass 

School Uniform Shop 
Tel: 01926 634272
Email: uniform@princethorpe.co.uk

Click here to view the term dates for 2024-25 and 2025-26.

Crescent School

Please see below for useful school contact information:

We regularly recruit for a variety of roles, please do share news of the vacancies with interested friends and family. Current vacancies include:

Crescent School

• Head of Music

Full details and information on how to apply are available on the Foundation website here:

www.princethorpe.co.uk/join-us

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