Hollesley Primary SchoolNewsletter January 2015

Welcome backIt has been a great start to the term, and to 2015, with several events already having taken place.Following another successful Christmas Fair, raising over £1,100, the Friends contributed to the cost of two whole school events; the puzzle day and the author visit.

Puzzle DayThroughout the day we welcomed children from Bawdsey and Sandlings Primary Schools to share the sessions with us and there was a fantastic buzz as children worked in groups to solve problems that seemed impossible!

The puzzles ranged from balancing penguins on an iceberg to completing complex patterns with the children learning to work as part of a team and that, although it may sometimes seem so, nothing is impossible and they must never give up!

James CampbellThe visit from author James Campbell delighted all the children (and teachers). Although he was prepared to sign books at the end of the afternoon, his focus was not on selling his books but in encouraging the children to write their own stories. James read parts of his stories to the older children talking about characterisation and asking for their views on characters he is planning for the future. His great sense of humour shone through in the way he presented, so much so that he had some children crying with laughter.James was just as entertaining with the younger children as he employed different voices to tell his story and made them laugh about unusual characters such as a tiger with no teeth! Thank you to Friends for funding this inspirational visit for us.

New Wolsey TheatreThis term we have also welcomed a practitioner from the New Wolsey Theatre who led a workshop for the children in Dance and Drama club. The workshop built on the pantomime which the children had been to see the previous week and gave them ideas for developing their own performance.

Golden MileThank you for your continued support for our Golden Mile. As a school we have now clocked up over 1,000 miles walked or run either around our course or on the way to school.And yes we did it! Everyone’s participation during National Obesity Awareness Week have enabled us to be the top school nationally with the greatest distance per pupil travelled during the week. Well done. The news has only just been announced and we hope to hear more about it soon.

Ten piecesA free Ten Pieces Guide to the Orchestra Ebook is available to download (iPad, Android or Kindle) from the ten pieces website. The Ebook is a video-rich interactive guide featuring Barney Harwood from Blue Peter who introduces the families of instruments. Professional musicians explain how their instruments work and make sounds.Children can test their knowledge with fun quizzes and learn some basics about music notation in an interactive game with the motif from Beethoven's 5th Symphony. All text is voiced by Barney so can be listened to as well as read.www.bbctenpieces.co.uk

School UniformWe have seven school jumpers and two cardigans that were left in school at the end of last term and remain unclaimed. Unfortunately as they are not named we cannot match them with their owners. By the end of the summer term we have usually added sports kit, trousers, socks, gloves, hats and even shoes to our collection. Please ensure that your child’s clothing is named and that the name has not washed off so that mislaid items can be easily returned. Thank you.

SafetyWe ask children with long hair to tie it back for safety when they are taking part in sports activities in lesson times, at lunchtime and after-school. It also helps to prevent the spread of head lice which can be an ongoing problem. Please support us by sending your child to school with their hair tied back.Also for safety reasons children who have to wear earrings to school may only wear plain stud-sleepers that must be taped for all physical activities. Written requests for children to wear ear tape must be sent to the school office. Please consider waiting until the summer holidays if you are planning to have your child’s ears pierced and help them to learn to take their earrings out as soon as possible.

Menu changeMrs Beal has asked me to include the following menu change:Mondays in Week 4; Due to supply difficulties macaroni cheese and garlic bread will be served on this day for the rest of the menu cycle.

FriendsThe Friends are planning a working party for Saturday 21st February. Please let a member of the committee know if you are able to help.

Mr MaddockWe were very sad to hear of the death of John Maddock last week. John was a very good and loyal friend to our school and voluntarily maintained our swimming pool for more than 10 years. We owe the fact that we have a pool today to his dedication over the years because it would certainly have been closed at a time when no-one else was prepared to look after it.John’s funeral is to be held at Hollesley church on Monday afternoon and we expect some family and friends to use our school playground for parking. Please be aware that there will be more cars here at the end of the school day and be prepared to come right onto the playground to safely meet your child. It would be preferable if you are able to park in the village and walk through the allotments to avoid congestion. Thank you for your understanding and support with this.

Dates for your diary6th February – Multi skills festival 10th February – Farlingaye performance, Y5/6 11th February – Basketball tournament16th -20th February Half Term holiday23rd February – Eastfeast project Y52nd March – E-safety event for parents working

with their children Y5/64th March – YBYz Y5/65th March – World Book Day10th March – Pyramid Cross Country11th March - “When I grow up” performance

for Y5/6 (re-arranged date)16th March – Parents’ evening