27th September 2024
Today we held our Autumn Open Morning which, on this occasion, was opened up to current family members, alumni and the wider community as part of our ongoing centenary celebrations.
In addition to prospective parents were current grandparents, past pupils and previous members of staff - all of whom were delighted to look around. The Year 6 pupils made very professional tour guides and, in doing so, were fantastic ambassadors of the school.
The Open Morning was an exciting end to a busy week which began with the individual school photos and flu vaccinations. On Tuesday, Year 6 visited Reading Blue Coat School where they took part in an inspiring poetry workshop, met author and poet, Matt Goodfellow, and were each very grateful to take home a signed book. The Year 5 pupils were also treated to a visit from James, a 102 year old retired engineer who gave them a fascinating talk about space and planet Earth. The children were engaged throughout and enjoyed asking him lots of questions afterwards. You can read more about it here.
Despite the torrential rain that appeared to join us for most of the week, we managed to take part in two hockey tournaments, a football fixture, a hockey fixture and the pupils in Nursery to Year 1 braved the outdoor classroom. Year 1 spent their afternoon on Thursday building thrones fit for kings and queens, followed by mud pie making and puddle splashing!
National Teaching Assistant Day
Today, 27th September, we are expressing a special thank you to our much valued Teaching Assistants on National Teaching Assistants Day. They are an integral part of the school and each one of them does a fantastic job supporting their year groups on a daily basis. I hope they enjoyed their lunch today as a celebration and in recognition of the work that they do.
School lunches
We would like to invite parents to join us for lunch in the hall with Barry, our Head Chef and myself. This has been very popular on previous occasions and a good opportunity for you to sample the school menu and talk with us about the provision for the children. There are 2 dates to choose from: Tuesday 15th October or Wednesday 6th November. If you would like to come along, please complete this short form so that we can cater accordingly.
World Mental Health Day
World Mental Health Day is celebrated every year on 10th October. This year we will be raising money for Riverside Counselling - a local charity providing affordable counselling and psychotherapy to adults and young people. We invite children to come into school on 10th October wearing a green accessory on top of their school uniform in exchange for a £1 coin which will be collected at morning drop off at the front door and Courtneys gate.
I hope you have a restful weekend.
Best wishes,
Nick Armitage