The Courier

Dear Parents,

I now know that a number of you do read my piece each week as quite a few people have come up to ask me about my son and his first week in university that I mentioned in our last newsletter. Well, the news is good, he seems to have been going out with his new flatmates and he has even ventured into town (Nottingham). At some point I am hoping he finds some time for studying as well, although that will come I am sure. As for us, it seems strange in the house with an empty bedroom and an extra place at the dinner table but we are already planning our first visit up to see him, assuming James can fit us into his now busy social schedule of course.

Earlier this week I ran an assembly on the theme of teamwork and it has formed a discussion point around the school over the following few days. We had two excellent flautists play for us in assembly and we heard about the good work of the different music groups in the school. The corridors have been resonating with the sound of our practising orchestra and choir as we prepare for next week's Harvest Service. Most of our sports teams are now underway with lots of fixtures and events still to look forward to. I also sat on my first Trustees meeting on Monday evening and talked to the wider Crescent/Princethorpe team about the start of term here and some ideas for the future. I know one thing that has been frustrating has been communication and the hand over to iSAMs, which will be the medium through which all future communications to you as parents will go. This is the new school management system and has a proven track record for excellence in a number of similar schools up and down the country. I apologise for any early issues this handover has caused but I am entirely confident that we will get this right soon. It is without doubt a priority for me.

In a busy and sometimes hectic work schedule we all need to make time for our families and pursuits. My youngest son had his twelfth birthday this week and with a bit of careful planning I was able to get back earlier from school that day and we went out together for a family meal. These occasions only come around once of course so I hope you will all be able to find some extra time to spend with your children this weekend. They have been working hard; they deserve it.

Kind regards

Joe Thackway

It was a great pleasure last week to announce this year’s positions of responsibility in Year 6. We spoke in assembly about the qualities a successful leader needs, such as courage, judgement and fairness. We all joined together in wishing the children the very best of luck in their new roles. On a similar note, we will be announcing the first Prefects in Year 6 soon after the half term break and I am looking to introduce some new positions of responsibility as well in due course.

Head Boy - Christopher Gibson
Head Girl - Olivia Sarkies
Girls' Games Captain - Georgia Dowling
Boys' Games Captain - Oliver Bell
Red House Captain - Roman Thearia
Yellow House Captain - Clara Woolf
Blue House Captain - Alex Reynolds 

Joe Thackway

The first edition of the Crescent School's Admissions Update e-newsletter has just been published. The newsletter is full of articles that help give prospective parents a feel for school life, information on forthcoming events and helpful advice about the admissions process, particularly for those who are looking at entry in September 2018.

The newsletter reminds parents that our Open Day takes place on Friday 6 October and our Reception Open Evening on Tuesday 21 November between 7.00pm and 8.00pm.

The newsletter will be issued twice a year to coincide with key admissions periods, so the next edition will be available in spring 2018.

Please do help us spread the word.

Click here to go to the Admissions Update newsletter.

If you have any queries relating to admissions please feel free to email the team at admissions@crescentschool.co.uk.

Please take a look at the competitions board by the pupil entrance and FOC board.  On there you will find a number of different competitions that the children can enter and extend their learning in a fun way - and may be even win a prize. 

I always like to know if any of the children enter, so please be in touch. 

Mrs Lowe

Golden Pom-Pom Certificates for showing good conduct, good manners and respect for other children and adults have been awarded to Sophie Causer and Thomas Brinklow. Well done.

Lunchtime supervisor awards

St George's House - 37

St David's House - 25

St Andrew's Hoiuse - 35

Monday 2 October 2017 9.15am

On Monday 2 October we will be holding our Harvest Festival service in the school hall, starting at 9.15am. This is our first shared service of the year and it would be lovely to see lots of parents there, although of course I know this is not possible for everyone with your busy work schedules.

Before the service the staff and children will be busy getting things ready in the hall and I would ask parents to please wait outside the school until we have everything ready for you. Following the service there will be tea, coffee and some light refreshments served. This will be a good opportunity to come in and have a chat with me and some other parents in an informal setting.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Joe Thackway

Wednesday 4 October 2017 4.00pm

As your child is now using Accelerated Reading and Spellzone, we thought you may appreciate the opportunity to learn more about it. We would like to invite you in for an information session on Accelerated Reading and Spellzone on Wednesday 4 October at 4.00pm in the Class VI form room. This will give you an insight into what the children do in school and how you can help at home.

If you wish to attend, please email Mrs Lowe to confirm slowe@crescentschool.co.uk.

Your child is welcome to attend with you.

I look forward to speaking with you.

S Lowe

Wednesday 4 October 2017 3.45pm

Parents of Years 4 & 5 should have received the offer for their child to attend Rock UK, April 30 - May 2 2018. Please return the forms by Friday 6 October or sooner; there is space for everyone it is not first come first served. Mrs Olner and myself will be available for any last minute questions before making a decision on Wednesday 4 October in Class V/Music room at 3.45pm. This is the same night as the Accelerated Reading and Spellzone drop in, please feel free to combine the two if necessary. Please note that this is not the formal preparation meeting about kit etc, that will be held nearer to the trip date.

B Forth - Trip Coordinator

Friday 6 October - 10.00am to 3.00pm

We will be opening our doors for an Open Day on Friday 6 October from 10.00am to 3.00pm.

This is an opportunity to look around the school and to meet staff and pupils on a normal working day. All are welcome, no need to book, so please do spread the word amongst family and friends.

Those who can't make the Open Day but would like to visit the school, should call our Registrar, Mrs Helen Morley, on 01788 523851 and come on a day to suit them, we welcome visitors on most days.

For more information visit www.crescentschool.co.uk.

Thursday 2 November 2017 - 10.30am - 12.30pm

The College is holding an Open Morning on Thursday 2 November from 10.30am to 12.30pm.  Pupil tour guides will be available to show visitors around the school. 

Please do spread the word amongst friends and family, all are very welcome.

For further information please visit www.princethorpe.co.uk

Tuesday 24 October 10.00am - 1.00pm

On Tuesday 24 October Mrs Lowe and Mr Thackway will be available in school to discuss the 11+ results and placings between 10am and 1pm. If you are unable to make it, Mrs Lowe will be available during the second week of half term via email, if that is more convenient.

Even if you do not wish to discuss it, we ask that you send us your child's score and placing for our own records.

S Lowe

The following children have received Junior da Vinci Awards this week. Congratulations to all.

The following children have been awarded Accelerated Reader Awards this week. Congratulations to all.

Reading Eggs Certificates have been awarded this week to Olivia Cooke, Archie Monteith, James Ashton, Grace Mercer and Bryson Taylor-Jackson.

Congratulations to all.

Mr Webb

On Friday, the under 11 boys played in The Princethorpe Tournament. All teams seemed very well matched ability-wise. Crescent managed to beat their fellow Foundation school Crackley in the first game thanks to the power of Matthew Browne. The midfielders again showed energy and commitment and the defenders were solid. However, small mistakes were punished clinically and Crescent ended up winning one, drawing one and losing two.

Tuesday saw the under 11 A and B visit Provost Williams. The home side were exceptional and both A and B sides had to dig deep to find character to stay in the game. The first half saw the A team a little shell shocked. Half time saw them revitalised with Dylan Hopkins doing a good job in defence. Matthew Browne was sending delightful long balls from midfield and Ethan Capelett was twisting and turning up front. Oliver Bell's two goals made the score respectable. Daniel Pinks showed a really determined attitude and Jamie Capelett and Chris Gibson prevented Provost scoring too many. However, they won comfortably.

The B team match followed a similar pattern- they soon found themselves 3-0 down through a lack of aggression when tackling. Roman Thearia marshalled the defence well, though, and made great decisions in goal to keep the score down. Hard work and team spirit got Crescent back into the match. Tom Brinklow and Samuel Lau caused problems with their passing. Gabriel White was strong up front as usual and was supported well by the attacking runs of Fin Calder. In the second half, Connor Smith was an impenetrable wall at the back and Alex Reynolds worked tirelessly up and down the pitch. White grabbed a goal before Calder found his form again, scoring four (taking him to nine in two games!). It was a nail-biting finish but the match ended 6-5 to Provost Williams. Reynolds was voted by the hosts as Crescent's man of the match.

M Phillips

The Year VI cake and sweet sale raised £126 for the class. Thank you to everyone for purchasing cakes and sweets from us and to all the FoC helpers involved. Our next market day sale will be for Year V on Friday 13th October.

Going forward we will be selling pre-loved uniform at all the cake sales/Christmas and Summer Fetes. We will be putting a plastic container under the FoC table for any donations of unwanted/grown out of clothes. Please could we ask that these are all washed and ready to sell.

Quiz night is all set for Friday 13th October. We're looking to order fish and chips for the half time interval if anyone is interested. Please let your year group representative know if you would like to be part of a team and require fish and chips and we can get it sorted. 

The Christmas Parents night out date has changed to Friday 8th December at Rugby's newest bar/restaurant The Pharmasea. This will be an informal evening of cocktails and tapas. Costs and timings TBC but make sure the new dates are in your diary. 

We have now raised over £600 from the Draycote Water sponsored walk. We have almost purchased half a puppy! If there are any further sponsorship forms to hand in please place them in the FoC green box as soon as possible.