Dear Parents and Friends of the School

In many ways it has been a really beautiful week of weather in school but the temperatures have presented their own challenges. I have very much enjoyed driving to work each morning and seeing the orange glow appear on the eastern horizon and the crystal clear dark blue skies above. Thursday morning was particularly bracing, with a minus 7.5 registered in my car. There was an unofficial competition amongst the staff here to see who could get the lowest temperature on their car thermometers and I think at least one or two people pipped me.

In school, the children's work and fun have not been affected I am pleased to say and there had been some highlights to enjoy along the way. We had the LAMDA showcase to parents after school on Monday, where it was great to see the children performing their pieces in front of an audience. We have had some results back from the younger children's exams from last term and I can promise you they are unbelievably good. I am sure we will be sharing more details with you very soon on these.

We celebrated the School's Founder's Day in assembly on Tuesday and it was great to have a very special lady come along with her husband to watch. This was Mrs Flick Furber, the daughter of the very first head teacher of the school, and also a pupil back when we first opened in 1946. In those days the school was a room in a private house, before formally moving to Horton Crescent in 1948. We then had a follow up session with the school council asking questions all about life back in those days and it was a fascinating insight into the origins of the school. Again, there will be plenty to read about on our social media channels and in the Courier if you want to find out more.

On Wednesday evening, I drove down to Terminal 4 at Heathrow airport with my daughter Lorna to see her off on her backpacking adventures in Australia and potentially the Far East. We just about navigated the travails and challenges of the M25 and airport multi-storey car park, to see her off safely. She has now safely arrived in Sydney and is staying with my sister and we all hope she has a brilliant time over there.

I hope you all have a great weekend.

Joe Thackway
Headmaster

As part of our key aim to prepare our pupils as much as possible for the next stage in their educational journey, children in Years 4 and 5 receive weekly Thinking Skills lessons as part of their learning provision. This is delivered in a pressure-free, stress-free manner, with a real emphasis on fun puzzle solving and detective work, rather than keeping scores and meeting boundaries. We feel that this gives them the greatest possible chance to achieve their very best in transitioning to Secondary school, whether this be through the 11+, independent school entrance exams, or just in developing life-long transferrable skills.

Please see below for the key points:

• All pupils in Year 4 and Year 5 receive 30 mins Verbal Reason and 30 mins Non-Verbal Reasoning per week, hitting two out of the 3 key areas of most assessments (Maths covered by curriculum lessons, with an extra focus in NVR lessons on problem solving and application) 

• Small class sizes of 12 pupils for enhanced feedback and guidance

• Explicit and differentiated teaching tailored directly to the current Warwickshire 11+ GL exam, regularly updated with feedback from pupils who have recently sat the exams

• Key preparation for Warwickshire 11+ and Independent school entrance exams such as Princethorpe College

• Focus on key areas not covered in National Curriculum – such as pattern spotting, problem solving etc.

• Builds familiarity with expected question types from test

• Explicit teaching of exam technique such as time management, pace, double checking answers etc.

• Delivered by Mr Adkins and Ms Clark, two fully qualified teachers with experience in private 11+ tuition

• Pressure free with emphasis on fun puzzle solving and detective work

• Fully transferrable skills – problem solving, time management, checking answers, process of elimination, trial and error, exam technique etc.

• Includes full mock exam experience in hall at start of Year 6 prior to 11+ and Independent school entrance exams

Dear Year 5 and 6 Parents 

With only a week to go until your child's LAMDA exam, please make sure they are practising their pieces. The examiner will be looking for volume appropriate to space, clarity of diction, accurate recall, expression and understanding of their pieces.

For Entry Level and Grade One, the children will have a short conversation about the mood and content of each piece and will then be asked the meaning of four words taken from their poems - the examiner's choice. The children must explain the word, then use it in a sentence e.g. doleful means sorrowful, mournful, melancholy - extremely sad. For example; The doleful lady mourned her husband. 

For Grade 3, the children will have a conversation about two characters from their book, the mood and content of each piece and will need to explain the fundamental differences between verse and prose. This is all in their booklets and they can learn their answers in advance. 

Thank you for your continued support and 'break a leg' to all the pupils taking their exams. 

Kind regards

As we continue to celebrate the diversity of our school we are planning to arrange a World Culture Day plus workshops during the week of Monday 5 to Friday 9 February 2024. 

This is an open invite to all our families who may like to share their rich heritage from another nationality, religion or culture. Please respond via the attached form to show an interest in being part of this week.  

So, if you would like to come in and share a traditional story, deliver a cultural workshop on food, music, or art for example, or to share information on celebrations that your families take part in, please contact me:

samstapleton@crescentschool.co.uk

Thank you 

I know it seems a long way off, but just so that the date can be put on your calendars and in your diaries, the school's annual Open Morning is going to be held on Saturday 16 March between 10.00am and 12.00pm.

This will be a slightly different format to how we have done it in previous years, but some children will be required to attend to give prospective parents an insight into some of the great aspects of our school. 

Further details and information will be sent out nearer the time.

Due to the lighter evenings, Team Sports (Tues) and Dodgeball (Fri) have reverted back to 4.45pm dismissal time.

Sport

Year 5 and 6 Swimming - pupils will need shorts, t-shirt and carrier bag with their swimming kit this week.

• Girls will be playing Football - they will need boots, shin pads, long green socks 
• Boys will be playing Hockey  - they will need sticks, shin pads, gum shields, green long socks 

MySchoolPortal

Crescent School

Crescent School warmly welcomed former pupil and teacher, Felicity Furber, and former governor, Mark Furber, back to school on Tuesday 16 January to help celebrate Founder’s Day. The school was marking its 76th birthday and also the publication of its updated A History Of Crescent School.

Mr and Mrs Furber took part in a Founder’s Day Assembly, then answered questions posed by the School Council before enjoying a tour of the school.

During the assembly, six Year 6 pupils shared extracts from 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.

Mrs Furber is the daughter of the school’s first headmistress, Mrs Eve Mortimer, and has a long and close association with Crescent School. Mr and Mrs Furber were delighted to be able to share new information and anecdotes about the school’s early years, bringing the Founder’s Day celebrations vividly to life for pupils.

During the visit, Crescent School discovered that Mr Furber has his own strong connection to the school’s current Bawnmore Road site. Mr Furber was one of the first pupils to attend the former, St Mark’s School when it opened on the Bilton site back in 1950, prior to its acquisition in 1988 by Crescent School.

Headmaster, Joe Thackway, said: “We were delighted to welcome Mr and Mrs Furber into school. The children had so many questions for them, and it really helped them understand what the school was like in its early years and to appreciate that while many aspects of the school have changed, there is much that remains the same.”

Mrs Furber commented, "It meant a lot to me to see how the school is thriving in every way.”

Copies of the second edition of A History of Crescent School have been shared with parents and contributors and a digital version is available to download for free on the school website here: https://www.theprincethorpefoundation.co.uk/publications-crescent. Printed copies are also freely available for all Old Crescentians and local residents. They can be requested here: https://connect.princethorpe.co.uk/shop (there is a small £2 charge to cover UK postage).

On Monday 15 January, pupils from Years 5 and 6 enjoyed showcasing their fabulous performance skills. 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 and prose.  Pupils in Year 5 will be taking Entry level exams, while those in Year 6 will take Grade 1 or Grade 3.

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, Miss Bowdige 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 good luck in your LAMDA exams!

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 from Year 3 and above 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 and National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain.

This activity is supported by the Bilton Silver (Rugby) Band for young people in the local community and last year Crescent's Brass Group performed in a Christmas Concert with the Bilton Silver Evolution Band.

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

This term, we have a new co-curricular activity for pupils in Years 1, 2 and 3. Edith Huang is leading a Mandarin club giving pupils the chance to learn the Chinese language and explore Chinese culture. The club takes place on Thursdays after school.

Yesterday, the children were enjoying learning how to count, practising how to say and write the symbols for the numbers 1 to 7. They played a simple spotting games with dominoes to help them memorise the new sounds.

There are still places available in the club, please contact the Office for more information.

Next weekend it is the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch. The children will learn all about this in our assemblies next week and it's a wonderful opportunity to get out into the garden and observe the wildlife on your very doorstep. It also plays a big part in building an understanding of changing bird populations and it's great for children to be aware and involved in nature conservation.

As I do every year, I will be out in my garden observing the birds and I'm encouraging the children to do the same. Please follow the links below to find out more from the RSPB website.

Big Garden Birdwatch - The RSPB

If you do take part, we would love to see photos of you and the children doing your bit. Please send them into the Courier and we'll put together a gallery of the best ones.

If your child is in one of the following groups and you would like to purchase a Music Badge for them to wear on their uniform please complete the form below.

• Choir
• Orchestra
• Brass Group
• String Group (Violin)

Music Badges Order Form

It feels like childhood in the UK has changed significantly over recent years, making parenting and teaching more complex and challenging than ever before.

Here at school, we have invested significant time and training with all of our staff to develop consistent language and adult-led behaviours, which supports and values all children.  Much of this has been based on the latest thinking in this important area, and in particular the work of author Paul Dix. Paul has now written similarly on the subject of parenting and so we thought there may be some value in pulling this all together with you as parents, to enable us to develop our shared thoughts and consistencies as educators and guardians, to the benefit of the children.

Therefore we are offering a presentation, for parents only, on the changing world of raising children on either Monday 22 January 2024 from 4.00pm to 4.45pm or Thursday 1 February from 5.00pm to 5.45pm. Both presentations are identical, so please only book one session should you wish to attend via the links below.

Monday 22 January 2024 (booking closed contact Mrs Tucker)

Thursday 2 February 2024

Friday 2 February 2024 - 3.45pm to 4.15pm

On Friday 2 February, after school, we will have our Open Corridors event where we will share with you all the great work that we have been doing in school.

Please collect your child before entering through the front door where you will be welcomed in to look at all the great work in school from 3.45pm. Entry and exit will only be through the front doors. Last entry is at 3.55pm. On this day, Years 5 and 6 will be dismissed through the pupil door. 

If your child is in a Co-curricular club then they will be expected to attend unless you arrange otherwise. They are unable to attend both.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Friday 9 February 2024

We will be holding a non-uniform day on Friday 9 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.

This week these children have been awarded full Junior da Vinci awards:

• Roisin in 5F for Science and DT
• Kian, Kiran and Gloria in 4C for English
• Harry in 6W for Art, along with Mithun in 4C
• Oliver and Penelope in 3SS earn theirs in Maths and Beau in 3SS achieved hers in PSHE
• Hazel in 2W receives her for Geography and Aria in 4C gains hers in Computing

Well done all.

Mrs Symons
JdV Lead

This weeks Word Wizards and Top Quizzers are:

Word Wizards, achieving the highest word count from successfully quizzing this week, are:

• 3LS  Elliott
• 3SS  Klara
• 4C    Ava
• 5F    Zac
• 6W   Harry

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

• 3LS  Gwen
• 3SS  Finn
• 4C   Theo Mc
• 5F    Harry
• 6W   Oliver

Great work all.

Mrs Nelson
Teaching Assistant

Year 3, 100k Word Superstar this week is Ria in 3LS.

Well done.

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

Pupils who have reached landmark % on automatic training mode in the Garage and Gigs and therefore are awarded JDVs for Maths Practice this week.

• Jahnavi 3LS has completed 48% and then 72% of the training course.
• Lilah 4C has completed 48%, 72% and then 100% of the training course.

Results for Battle 11-18 January- all classes against each other- average score per class member.

• 1st 3LS 51
• 2nd 4C 40
• 3rd 3SS 21

Most valuable players in the whole competition:

• 1st Alfie 4C
• 2nd Kiki 3LS
• 3rd Jahnavi 3LS

Well done, 3LS! 🏆Most improved speedsters in the studio are:

Battle between 3LS, 3SS and 4C- 18-25 January 2024. 

TT Rock stars will block 2x, 5x, 10x and 11x on jamming if you are efficient at them, so you cannot pick easy ones just to score more points in the competition! 

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

Reading certificates have, this week, been awarded to:

• Eve (RP)
• Max (RP)
• Evie (1Q)
• Sofia (1Q)
• Marcie (2W)
• Vihaan (2W)
• Juliette (2E)
• Lara (2E)

Well done to you all.

This week's Scientists of the week are:

Year 6 pupils chose an area in electricity to research for homework.  Then they created their own poster to show their findings.

This week's Artists of the week are:

• Maggie 6W - Excellent understanding of tone to add depth to a sketch

• Hattie 6W - A bold and expressive landscape sketch

• Albert 6W - Sensitive use of tone in his landscape sketch

• Harry 6W - A well-planned landscape sketch

• Ella 4C - A fun and expressive portrait

• Mithun 4C - Excellent use of contrast to give depth to his self-portrait

• Taran 4C - An excellent expressive self-portrait

• Esme 4C - Lovely tone and expression in her self-portrait

• Feranmi 3LS - Effective use of tone and mark making

• David 3LS - Creative use of mark making

• Nellie 3LS - Excellent tonal portrait

• Uma 3LS - Sensitive use of tone in her portrait

Mrs Thackway
Head of Art 

Monday 5 to Friday 9 February 2024

During this time we will be supporting and engaging with this important week as we look at promoting positive mental health in us all. 

Alongside our PSHE lesson, we shall be engaging with different activities supported by the Place2Be charity to highlight the importance of connection and its benefits to our mental health and wellbeing.

Their theme this year is 'My Voice Matters' and this gives a chance for our Wellbeing Champions to be out and about in the playground during the week, promoting ways in which we can express ourselves and talk about things that really matter to us.

Our in-class igloo has provided great opportunity for imaginative role play. We have looked at videos of arctic animals and started to talk about how they survive in the extreme cold. We’re working on a class display of penguins chilling in the Arctic and watched how baby penguins are looked after by their parents.

In Maths we have been identifying missing numbers in sequences to 10 and have revisited number bonds to 5.

We have talked about our dreams and goals for the new year and discussed ways to overcome daily challenges.

Our focus texts in Literacy will be A Little Bit of Winter and Ridiculous! We will be learning about animals that hibernate. We will be going on an observational winter walk and using simple adjectives to describe what winter looks like.

In phonics we have Introduced blends;

st   ft   mp   nd   sk   nk   nt

How to help your child at home…

• Reinforce digraphs/trigraphs and blends introduced at school.
• Practise cursive letters in name writing – reinforce capital letters at the start of first and last names.
• Practise saying the days of the week and months of the year in order.
• Look for signs of winter and talk about how the seasons change.
• Practise identifying numbers in real life contexts.
• Practise simple addition

It's been a cold start back to Forest School so far, but it has given us the opportunity to explore the effects of cold weather! We tried to catch snowflakes and study them using a magnifying glass, we discovered the sounds that different materials make, and we marvelled at the beautiful ice decorations that nature craft club had made. We also recycled one of the school Christmas trees into a fabulous den. Each child used the loppers to cut off the branches, then we made a frame from the trunk and other sticks on site. Lastly we covered the frame with all of the tree branches and had great fun playing in the new den that we'd made. 

Reception have been trying out different percussion instruments. They have learned the name of each instrument, how to play it, and what kind of sound it makes.

In Maths this week, we have been learning about money. We started by recognising the different coins and then we used this knowledge to buy and sell different items in our class to each other which was lots of fun. 

We have linked our art to our writing topic this term 'Nocturnal animals'. We made beautiful painted pictures of owls during the nightime sky which we were very proud of. 

Year 2 have been exploring how we care for ourselves including exercise, hygiene and diet. The pupils used 'glitter germs' to show how germs can travel and investigated the best methods for keeping their hands clean. 

As part of their gymnastics topic with an under the sea theme, 2E were working hard on their matching partner balances this week. Doing a variety of different types of matched balances, they were concentrating on the 3 S's...

Still, Stretch and Stay!

Class 2E have been learning about sculpture and the importance of observing objects from different angles. They have tried hard to look carefully at the shape, colour and texture of the sculptural forms.

In History we have started our new topic, The Great Fire of London. We set the scene by looking at life in London in 2024 vs 1666. It was different! We discussed differences in transport, clothing, jobs, wealth, availability of food and buildings.

In RE, ahead of our learning on Jewish weddings, we looked at what a celebration includes, and the children worked in teams to plan their own celebration presenting a collaborative poster to the class. It required teamwork, communication, turn-taking, discussion, decision making, tact, presentation and creative skills. Always good life skills to work on.

Children in 2W have spent time in their phonics lessons investigating the 'l' sound and when it is made by el, il, al or even le.  Here you can see them sorting the different options by making beautiful flower heads.

The children in 2W have been learning the topic of fruit in their French lessons. They played a game where they had to guess the item of fruit written on a sticker on their back. They also practised the vocabulary using plastic models of the relevant fruits. Finally, several pupils were able to write the vocabulary correctly from memory on their whiteboards.

Please can any Crescent Promise Star of The Week badges be returned to school.  Children should return them to their form tutors.

Crescent School

Dear parents

A significant good citizen strand of our school promise centres on taking care and pride in our clothes and our uniform. On Tuesday this week, I led an assembly which encouraged the children to consider the role of uniform in various aspects of life and the sense of belonging and togetherness it can forge. 

Over upcoming weeks, children will be encouraged to increase their responsibility in ensuring they have correct uniform and in wearing it neatly at all times. Staff will be alert to praise and reward this and to remind children of its importance. 

Please do support these messages at home.

With thanks as always 

In the last couple of decades, the volume of online traffic has increased exponentially – and with it has the amount of people trying to take criminal advantage of this. Despite how aware we have become of the concept of online scams, and how topical they are, more and more people globally are falling victim to them every single day.

Criminals continue to find new and devious ways to attempt to hijack our online transactions and harvest our private information. To them, the smart devices that many of us now use as standard at home are simply a convenient back door into our lives – and our networks. This week’s guide is one for the whole family, to make your household as safe and as scam-proof as possible. In the guide you'll find tips on a number of potential risks such as how to use a password manager, how to back up your data and how to check for breaches.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Crescent U9s 'A' vs Crackley Hall U9s 'A'

Although only having had one training session so far this season, the U9s got their rugby off to a flying start with a fantastic 10-7 win against Crackley. Powerful running and good support work opened up an early lead over the home side, and a well organised defence held off a strong second-half comeback. Player of the match was Thomas B for his powerful running, with a special mention for Lucas for his exceptional tackling.

Crescent U8s 'A' vs Crackley Hall U9s 'B'

Crescent U8s showed real skill and determination in what for most of the team was their first ever competitive rugby match. Passing well, running hard and tackling ferociously, they came away with a very well earned 9-7 win against the home Crackley side. Joint players of the match were Max G-H and Feranmi for superb all-round play.

Mrs Dowling 

Mrs Kelsall

Despite the freezing temperatures, the Crescent boys played a fantastic game of tag rugby against Crackley, winning 12-10 in a close game that could have gone either way. Plenty of tries were scored on both sides but Crescent's defense secured the victory in the end. Matthew was the players' man of the match, with special mentions for both Maxi and Sam Y who covered the length of the pitch with try scoring runs on more than one occasion.

In only their second game of the season Crescent once again gave an excellent account of themselves in near sub-zero conditions, coming away with a deserved draw against a very strong Crackley team.

Although initially on the back foot due to some powerful rucking from the home side, Crescent rallied superbly in the second half, working hard on their support play and ball retention.

Super tries from Zac, Alex G and four from Timi saw the game finish 6-6. Timi was voted as player of the match by the opposition, with special mentions from the coaches for Alex G and Albert for their tackling and Zac for his powerful, jinking runs.

Friday 9 February 2024 - 3.30pm to 4.45pm

The Year 3 Bake Sale is on Friday 9 February. As always this will start from 3.30pm and will have a range of yummy cakes and snacks selling at £1 each.

All profits will go to Year 3 to spend on entertainment for Privilege Time.

Please order Uniform via the link below:

Uniform Order Form

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

Please see below for useful school contact information:

Click here to view the term dates for 2023/24 and 2024/25.

Crescent School

The Foundation has the following vacancies:

Princethorpe College

• Sixth Form Administrator
• Digital Transformation Leader
• IT Engineer
• Minibus Driver

Crescent School

• School Registrar and Marketing Secretary

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.