The Courier

Dear Parents

The children deserve great credit this week for the way they have carried on in school despite every class being affected by Covid cases at some stage. They have remained cheerful and matter-of-fact about everything and got on as best they can. At the same time of course we realise that children sometimes harbour unspoken worries and we have all been mindful of that during the week.

We are all hoping that we have now passed the high point in terms of cases and that next week will see the curve dropping back down with more and more children returning to school.

Providing home learning at the same time as teaching in person is quite a challenge for all the teachers. I know they have been going above and beyond in what they have provided for the children over recent days. I am sure you will join me in thanking them for everything that they have done.

The spike in cases has meant we have not been able to fulfil our sports fixtures this week and next week’s are in some doubt, but still on, at least for now. At least the weather has perked up in recent days with some welcome sunshine and warmer temperatures, which has made everyone feel a little brighter.

In the children’s Science lessons this week they have been learning about the Big Garden Birdwatch organised by the RSPB taking place over this weekend. This is a great opportunity to dust down your binoculars and spend some time with the children observing the wildlife in the garden. It would be lovely to see pictures of the children taking part in the event, so if you take any good snaps please send them into the Courier.

I hope you all have a good weekend.

Best wishes

Joe Thackway
Headmaster

Below is the link for next week's school calendar.    Please note:

• Flute Group moves to Friday morning next week

• As the evenings are lighter all outdoor clubs for Years 3-6 will return to the dismissal time of 4.45pm. Do check the calendar and SOCS for any updates.

Weekly Calendar - 31 January 2022

MySchoolPortal

Crescent School

Pupils from Years 1 up to Year 6 have enjoyed taking part in the RSPB's Big Schools' Bird Watch this week. Our school's new Ornithology club had already pre-prepared bird feeders and bird spotter sheets and a special camouflage net had been erected for the children to hide behind down by the Forest School area.

Yesterday and today, Mrs Johnson has taken the classes outside in turn to carry out the observations. Everyone started by getting to grips with binoculars, learning how to use them safely and focus them. The children then took turns spotting and recording the birds they could see, in the unseasonably warm sunshine. Plenty of different birds were seen ranging from robins to rooks and even common gulls. The children were all fascinated and excited, although at times they struggled to stay quiet! Everyone enjoyed taking part and even Mr Thackway popped out when he could to join in.

Mrs Johnson, explained, "The Birdwatch has given the children a wonderful opportunity to get outside, and experience and learn about the wildlife local to them. They recorded genuine scientific data that will contribute to a national citizen science project. It has been a fantastic educational activity.” 

Why not have a go as a family as well? Simply spend one hour in your garden, on your balcony or in the park this weekend recording the birds you see. You can register for the RSPG Big Garden Bird Watch and record your results here.

This is a great competition that many of you may be interested in, if you are interested in writing and illustrating:

https://www.readingzone.com/creative-projects/how-to-make-a-picture-book/

Our next 'Learning Mentoring Meetings' are scheduled for Friday 4 February. Children will meet with the same member of staff they met with earlier in the year to review the academic targets they set for themselves back in September. While the children have been reviewing their targets throughout the year this meeting provides a good opportunity for them to reflect on their progress. They have their targets on a postcard and will record their self-assessment on those too; some children may set new targets until the end of the year.

This initiative is to give responsibility for their learning to the children from Year 1 up to Year 6. Staff will not be telling them if they feel they have achieved their targets, but will guide pupils through their books, feedback, comments, and last reports for the children to decide themselves.  We are pleased to give the children this empowerment and responsibility to strive to achieve their own set goals. 

Thursday 10 and Thursday 17 February 2022

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

The timetable will be circulated in due course.

Monday 14 February 2022

As part of our studies on World War II, Year 3 and Year 4 will be taking part in a morning of activities linked to this on Monday 14 February.

To help get into the spirit of the day, we would like the children to come to school dressed as evacuees for the day. 

We are holding an off-timetabled day to focus on our whole school target of exploring and developing a Growth Mindset in both children and staff. Every child will participate in a carousel of activities that will challenge their throught process and their participation.

Alongside the activities we are lucky enough to have some professional life coaches and teamwork experts visiting who will deliver some dynamic and thought provoking workshops.

We can’t wait to share with you the creativity that the children will develop throughout the day and news of how they overcome the things which might challenge them. 

Friday 18 February 2022

We will be holding a non-uniform day on Friday 18 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.

Mrs Monteith and Mrs Stapleton
Class 3Y and 4M Form Teachers

This week’s Junior Da Vinci students are Rohan in Class 6W for his excellent work in Mathematics, and Isabella in Class 2W for her hard work in English. Congratulations to you both.

Mrs Symons
Junior da Vinci Lead

Congratulations to the following Accelerated Reader achievements this week:

Double Millionaires: 

• Alex G and Drew

Well done both.

This week's Accelerated Reader Superstars are:

Top Quizzers are:

• 3Y   Barnaby
• 4M  Alex T
• 5F   Zahra
• 6W  Sophie

Word Wizards are:

• 3Y  Edward W
• 4M Shayla
• 5F  Harry
• 6W Abigail

Pre-Prep reading certificates have this week been awarded to:

• Alice
• Ava
• Esme
• Hazel
• Jed
• Rachel
• Sarima
• Theo

Well done to you all.

Garage level is the most important for learning.

Results for last week's class battle - well done 4M:

• 1st place - Class 4M with 3,303 points
• 2nd place - Class 2W with 3,141 points
• 3rd place - Class 3Y with  2,613 points

Most valuable players in the whole competition:

• 1st Tomisin 2W
• 2nd Theo 2W
• 3rd Timi 4M

Last week most improved speedsters are:

• 3Y Barnaby - Wannabe!
• 3Y Edward W - Wannabe!
• 5F Annalise - Wannabe!

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

Stay Calm and Rock On!!

Please click on the link below to read all about what the Reception classes have been learning this week.  Photos are attached to this article to scroll through.

Reception Round Up - 28 January 2022 

Another week! Another nocturnal animal to research in English and to create in Art. We used the 'pointillism' technique made famous by the artist Seurat to paint these striking creatures and to create our own badger sett in our classroom. We hope you like the bold patterns and wobbly eyes we have used to create their characteristics!

In RE, Year 2 children have been exploring the Jewish obligation of Tzedekah which is to do what is right and just, especially in terms of giving to those less fortunate.  The children considered who may benefit from their charity and the kind of donations that would be beneficial.

As part of the children’s cross curricular learning we have been studying the Rainforests in Geography and Art. Each week we have been choosing an animal each to learn facts about and then creating work displaying their features. This week it was the marvellous Toucan who have amazing coloured beaks and rarely fly, choosing to bounce from tree to tree in the canopy high above the rainforest floor.

We hope you like the way we’ve used a delicate material of foil, permanent pens and wax crayons to create our Toucans. 

In Craft Club we have been exploring using chalks in different ways to create animal pictures. The children did a fabulous job.

This week, the Class 4M craft club explored different effects that they can make using chalk. The theme was 'landscapes' and I think they did a fabulous job!

Year 5 were very pleased to welcome members of the Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service to school today for a Junior Fire Safety talk. 

The firefighters led an hour’s informative and fun fire safety session that explored the different fire hazards within the home, looking at the ways the children could ensure both they, and their families, remained safe in the event of a fire. They were encouraged to make a fire evacuation plan for their homes.

The talk concluded with a Q&A session where the children had the chance to ask questions.

Next week the Fire and Rescue Service will be back to run a session for Year 1.

Many thanks to them all for all they do to keep us all safe!

Year 5 have been studying forces, friction and gravity in their Science lessons with Mrs Johnson. Last week the children investigated parachutes and air resistance. They built two different sizes of parachute for their investigation. The children carefully measured and cut up bin liners, creating a 25cm and 45cm square, they attached strings, and then a fearless cuddly toy parachutist. They conducted fair scientific tests, launching their parachutes from a consistent height and timing their dissent. What excellent work Year 5!

In Forest School this week, the children’s den building has become more elaborate as they experimented with new ways to build a shelter. There was lots of team work going on, with children finding the right sized sticks and others making mallets to secure them into the ground. Heavy logs were also moved to the tent to act as furniture, one was so heavy that three children needed to carry it together.

They were very pleased when they made a tent tall enough to stand in and they were able to maintain the structure as a team. There was also lots of role play going on through the session, with ‘Robbers’ and ‘Jail’ games making an appearance. Within these games there was lots of co-operative play and story-telling which was lovely to hear.

Meanwhile, as a school, we have started our Big Bird Watch and there were some bird feeders dotted around the Forest School area. Some of the children wanted to watch, and even hand feed, the birds so they found somewhere quiet to sit and waited very patiently. One child attempted to whistle a bird song to call them over. Unfortunately they were unsuccessful on the hand-feeding part this week but there is always next week to try again.

The ID books made an appearance again today as the children were digging and moving logs to see what bugs and treasure they could find. We managed to find worms, an earwig, and even dinosaur bones! The children even marked out the fossil site with a cross so that they could continue digging next week. A lot of fun was had by all of the children today and every child was fully engaged in an activity for the duration of Forest School, it was lovely to see. We are all looking forward to next week.

For a two or three week period this year we will be focusing on one of the sayings in the new School Promise. We will talk about this in assembly and in form period. It would be great if you could discuss this with your children at home and support the messages we are emphasising in school.

This week’s promise is in the category of Good Friends.

'We are  gentle and caring'

Youtube is by far the most famous video-sharing social media platform, and one of the most popular websites/apps in the world. It has a vast range of content, from music, to sports, to gaming, to news, to pointless celebrities and is a great space for creating content as well as just watching it. It is also a one stop shop for learning how to do pretty much anything, from wiring a plug to making cake pops and is hugely entertaining for literally all interests and all age-ranges.

While it is not quite as dangerous as the much maligned TikTok, it does come with a large number of potentially very serious pitfalls for young viewers, including inappropriate content, interacting with strangers and possible scams. Please take a look at the attached guide for the best way to allow your child to use Youtube as safely as possible.

If you have any further questions, about this or anything else computing related, please do get in touch!

Many thanks to Mrs Harrison who popped over from Princethorpe College to lead the Year 4 and Year 3 Girls Games lesson yesterday afternoon. Mrs Harrison is Head of Academic PE at Princethorpe and also coaches the College’s First VII netball team. She put the girls through their paces, working on their footwork and passing skills. They all did so well and it was fantastic to see them out on the playground enjoying themselves in the sunshine. We can't wait for their next fixture!

Due to the current Covid situation in school the FoC discos have been postponed.  We will rearrange in due course.

Below are the details of the FoC Year Group Representatives and group links. 

Please click below to view the lunch menu: 

Lunch Menu - 31 January 2022

Olive Catering Services Limited

Please see below for useful school contact information:

Please find below term dates for 2021/22 and 2022/23:

The following items are stocked in the School Office and can be added to your account:

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

Please do contact admin@crescentschool.co.uk in if you need any of the above items.

Crescent School Office

The Foundation has the following vacancies:

• Gardener/Groundsman - Princethorpe College

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

www.princethorpe.co.uk/join-us

Should you know anyone who might be interested in these posts, please do share this information with them.

Cyber-crime – please be extra vigilant

Parents are asked to be vigilant when reading emails relating to the payment of school fees and any other items to the Foundation. You can protect yourselves by only making payments to us in line with our normal, published methods. Any email offering a large discount on fees for the coming academic year if paid immediately is fraudulent.

There has been no change to the bank details of Princethorpe College, Crackley Hall or Crescent and there is no intention to make any changes in the foreseeable future. Any electronic notification that appears to be from any of the Foundation schools changing these details may be fraudulent.  Our bank details are available on the Parent Bills, the Online Payment Portal and in the Information Booklet for each school, and only those details should be used.

Please do not hesitate to contact me or my colleagues in the Bursary if you are have any doubts about the correct details or indeed if anything appears suspicious.

Eddie Tolcher
Foundation Bursar

One of our measures for controlling the coronavirus spread is keeping classrooms and corridors well ventilated with windows open where possible.  As a result, the children might well find the school colder than they are used to, particularly as we head into winter. For that reason, we would encourage all children to have additional layers available in school. 

School fleeces, hoodies and tracksuit tops are ideal for the job whilst also looking smart.  

I hope the table below will help to clarify for parents expectations for children’s work if they need to self-isolate due to a positive COVID test or due to having COVID symptoms.