18.11.22

 Dear Parents/Carers

Happpy Friday folks!

I forgot to add this to last week's blog.

On Thursday 10th November, some of our Year 6 children were invited to take part in a very special VIP table event at lunchtime.

Since the start of the school year, some of our children have been volunteering to help our Midday Supervisors at lunchtimes, supporting the Early Years children to get used to our lunchtime routine.

As a thank you, the Midday Supervisors and the Early Years children hosted a lunchtime party for all of the children who helped.  They made thank you cards, gave little gifts of toy puzzles and set a rather fancy table!

YOUTH SPORT BOARD

Congratulations to Ollie, Lexie, Amelie, Violet, Darcie, Tim, Zeni, Isabelle and Isla, who were all selected by Mr Bish from Deanes to be part of the Youth Sport Board this year.  Their first virtual meeting will take place in December.  I am sure they are all looking forward to having some input into the kids of sporting events Deanes will look to provide in the future.

THE DEANES COMMUNITY BIKE LOAN SCHEME

Through the work of the School Sport Partnership in partnership with schools across Castle Point and Rochford, The Deanes is pleased to be able to offer a bike loan scheme for families.

We will be offering a ‘free of charge’ bike loan scheme with a stock of bikes securely and safely stored at the cycle hub within The Deanes Sports Centre.

In stock, there will be adult bikes and a range of sizes for junior bikes.

Bookings must be made through the scheme coordinator (Ellie Turner-Powell) on email

deanesfamilycycle@yahoo.com

Families will be able to borrow bikes to enjoy recreational riding for adults and children via bike collection/return on either a Monday or Thursday between 4.30-5.30pm. It will be possible to borrow the bikes for a maximum of 7 days.

We will also provide bike accessories as required including: helmets, bike locks and boot racks all free of charge but a fee will be payable if any of these are lost/not returned).

PYJAMA DAY FOR CHILDREN IN NEED!

Today, we all came to school dressed in our pyjamas to raise money for Children In Need.  Thank you for your kind and generous donations.  Please see next week's newsletter to find out how much money was raised for such a worthy cause.

BIKEABILITY

Don't forget that Bikeability starts next week for some of the children in Year 6.  If your child has signed up for the course, they will need to bring their bikes into school from Monday.  Please take some time this weekend making sure that they are roadworthy.

Children need to wear sensible footwear (trainers will be fine) and girls can bring a pair of jogging trousers or leggings to change into if they usually wear skirts to school.  Please also remember a helmet.

Homework pages have been uploaded to Google Classroom.

Have a lovely weekend.

Miss Sharman, Mrs Devlin and Mrs Witherall

11.11.22

Dear Parents/Carers

Happy Friday everyone!

This morning, children took part in a Remembrance Day assembly.  We were fortunate enough to have Mrs Morgan join us for this event to play The Last Post on her bugle. 

The children showed great respect to the theme of the assembly and we thank Ollie from Sapphire Class for his wonderful reading of the poem In Flanders Fields.

Next Friday is Children In Need.

We will be supporting this by coming to school wearing our pyjamas.  Children are permitted to come into class in pyjamas and sensible footwear such as trainers (no slippers, flip flops or sliders please).  Please also consider the weather on that day, as they will still need coats for break and lunchtime.

Tag Ruby

Next Wednesday, some of the Year 5 and 6 children will be taking part in a Tag Rugby tournament against other local schools.  If your child has been selected for the team, please make sure that their permission letter is returned to Miss Sharman as soon as possible.

Bikeability

If your child is in Year 6 and has returned their form to take part in Bikeability, they will be bringing home a letter with their training dates on today.

Please make sure that their bikes are in good working order, with tyres pumped up and brakes which have been checked.  If the trainers feel that the children's bikes are not roadworthy or that the children are not competent enough riders, they will not be allowed to take the course.

Girls may bring leggings or jogging trousers to change into on Bikeability days and all children will need to bring/wear suitable footwear.

Homework has been uploaded to Google Classroom.  Please remind your child to bring their homework books into school by Wednesday.  

Have a lovely weekend.

Miss Sharman, Mrs Devlin and Mrs Witherall

01.11.21

Dear Parents and Carers

It was lovely to welcome the children back for the second half of the Autumn Term this week.  We hope that you all had a restful break.

Thank you to everyone who returned Christmas card designs.  If you placed an order online, it will be delivered in time for the end of term and will be given to you child when it arrives in school.

If you still need to return the yellow data sheets which were sent home, could you please do so as soon as possible, so that the office can update their records.

If your child is in Year 6 and brought home a Bikeability letter and would like to take the course, please return it to Miss Sharman.  The first group will take the course at the end of November.  Another letter will be given to the children with more details soon.  

Have a lovely weekend.

Miss Sharman, Mrs Devlin and Mrs Witherall.

20.10.22

Dear Parents/Carers

Happy Fr..... oops!  Happy Thursday everyone!

Our blog is a day early this week, as we have an INSET day tomorrow.

NASA

Well, what a week we have had!  The children have been lucky enough to take part in three lessons, this week, hosted by engineers from the Armstrong Research Centre in California.

Click the link below to find out more about them.

Armstrong Research Centre

Today, the children made Mars helicopters out of marshmallows and cocktail sticks.  It was fiddly work, but great fun!

During the course of the week, we have had opportunities to ask questions, find out about friction, forces and how aircraft stay in the air.  

We have all thoroughly enjoyed the experience and thank our new friends at NASA for getting up at 2am to work with us.

A huge thank you also goes to Mrs Witherall for all her hard work in organising the sessions, preparing the resources and liaising with NASA.  

THE BOOK FAIR IS BACK!

After half term, the book fair returns to Down Hall.  Please see this week's newsletter for more information.

At the end of school today, your child will bring home a blank book cover for them to design over half term.  The winning cover will be awarded a £5 voucher to spend at the fair.

HOMEWORK

Homework pages have been published to Google Classroom.  

DATA SHEETS

Some of you may have received a yellow data sheet this week.  If so, please check that details are correct, sign the form and return it to your child's class teacher or the office after half term.

CHRISTMAS CARD DESIGNS

Your child should have brought home their Christmas card designs this week.  Please read the letter carefully and return the design to school, after half term, if you would like to place an order.

Finally, we would like to thank you all for your continued support this half term.  The children have settled into their classes brilliantly, worked hard and made their teachers proud.

We look forward to welcoming them back after a well earned week off.

Have a fabulous half term.

Miss Sharman, Mrs Devlin and Mrs Witherall

October 14th, 2022

 Dear Parents/ Carers,

We are at the end of our sixth week of this half term and hope that you have had another good week.

It has been a tough week of assessments, but the children have worked exceptionally hard to show their progress so far this year. 

Parent/Teacher Consultations

Thank you to those of you who have booked an appointment with us for next week's Parent/Teacher Consultations. The letter was available as a link in last week's newsletter. We are very much looking forward to seeing you either by Zoom on Monday or in the school hall on Tuesday between 3.30pm and 6pm. Links will have been emailed to you - please send us an email to notify us if you have not received this.

SCHOOL COUNCIL

On Wednesday 19th October Year 5/6 will be electing their representative for the School Council! Any child who was not a councillor last year is eligible to stand so we have asked the children to have a good think as to whether they can be a wonderful and inspiring representative for their class.

Over the weekend, if your child is thinking about standing for election, maybe they would like to make a poster and create a short speech that might help them convey their suitability to be a Class Councillor. Be creative - what might make people vote for you?

The new School Councillors will be announced in assembly on Thursday 20th October. Good luck!

Rayleigh Lights

The children have been invited to participate in this annual event. They have been informed that they are welcome to take part in the performance at Rayleigh High Street, singing songs to represent our school. There are still spaces available, so if you would like your child to take part, please encourage them to come along to the choir practices after half term. 

We hope that you have a lovely weekend and look forward to seeing the children on Monday

Mrs Witherall, Mrs Devlin and Miss Sharman

 Dear Parents/Carers

Happy Friday! We hope that you have all had a good week. As we move into October, the weather is becoming more autumnal so please ensure that your child has a coat with them every day. 

Parent/Teacher Consultations

On Monday 17th October & Tuesday 18th October between 3:30-6:00pm we will be holding our Parent/Teacher Consultations. This will be an opportunity to meet and discuss how your child has settled into their new Year group. This meeting can be either via Zoom or an in person meeting. 

Please note, in the first instance if you wish this to be a Zoom meeting please book for the Monday and if you wish it to be in person please book for the Tuesday.

Bookings can be made from Monday 10th October from 9:00am and is via Scopay. If you are unsure of your Scopay login, please go and see the office as they will be able to issue you with your details. It is important to have these details as they will be used to book trips, dinner money and meetings throughout your child's time at Down Hall.

Harvest Collection

Just a reminder that this year we will continue to support Rochford Extended Services with our Harvest collection. Donations will be boxed up and distributed by them to the children and families that need them most within our own local community.

As a Gold Level Rights Respecting School, we do our best to advocate for Children's Rights and for sustainability. Articles 24 and 27 state that:

"Every child has the right to the best possible health and a good standard of living."

Massive thank you for those who have already made a donations but there is still plenty of time if you have not yet. If you can send in any non-perishable items before Wednesday 19th October that would be fabulous and you can find a full list of suggested items  here. In school we will celebrate Harvest during the week of 17th October with some learning in class and by singing our favourite Harvest song in assembly. Please enjoy having a go at the Harvest Samba here and thanks for any contributions you feel able to make.

NSPCC Speak Out, Stay Safe

On Tuesday 11th October, Year 5/6 children will have the opportunity to take part in some workshops run by volunteers from the NSPCC.

Homework

Homework pages for this week have been uploaded to Google Classroom. Please ensure that the children only do the pages set as this reinforces skills taught during the week. Homework is due in by Wednesday of the following week, in order for teachers to have time to mark it and return it to them on Fridays.

Have a lovely weekend.

Mrs Devlin, Miss Sharman and Mrs Witherall

30.09.22

Dear Parents/Carers

Happy Friday everyone!

We've had an exciting week in Year 5 and 6, this week. As you may know, we had Happy's Circus on the field earlier in the week. We were fotunate enough to be invited inside the big top for a look around and a talk from the Ring Mistress on Wednesday. Luckily, no one decided to run away and join the circus, although a few children (and staff) seemed quite tempted!

In class, we have been continuing to learn about space. In science we discuss air resistance and the children enjoyed making parachutes as part of an investigation. Ruby and Topaz have already tested theirs out. Sapphire will give theirs a try next week.

In English, we have begun writing a Sci-fi story called 'Holiday In Space'. The children have come up with some lovely ideas for their stories and have worked hard to include a range of sentence types in their writing, as this has been our GPS focus for the past two weeks.

Homework pages for this week have been uploaded to Google Classroom. It has been great to see so many children submitting their homework. If your child has not handed their books in yet, this term, please ask them to do so next week. It is really helpful if they can hand homework in by Wednesday each week, in order for teachers to mark it in time to return it to them on Fridays.

As you can see, we have a jam packed blog this week. Please see the messages below from Mrs Hurley and Mrs Yuille.

Have a lovely weekend.

Miss Sharman, Mrs Devlin and Mrs Witherall

A couple of messages from Mrs Yuille

NSPCC’s Speak Out Stay Safe Programme 

RRS Article 19: Children have the right to be safe

As a Rights Respecting School we are committed to keeping children safe and we are happy to be taking part in the NSPCC’s safeguarding programme in school.  This programme helps children to recognise abuse in a child friendly way and encourages them to speak out to a trusted Duty Bearer.  

In school, children will watch an assembly delivered by Ant and Dec and then take part in follow up discussions in class. Please read the full details on the NSPCC letter here where you will find further links and resources that you can use at home to educate and support your child.  We urge you to take a look at these. 

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to pop in and see us.

Harvest Collection

This year we will continue to support Rochford Extended Services with our Harvest collection.  Donations will be boxed up and distributed by them to the children and families that need them most within our own local community. 

 

As a Gold Level Rights Respecting School, we do our best to advocate for Children’s Rights and for sustainability.  Articles 24 and 27 state that:

“Every child has the right to the best possible health and a good standard of living”

If you can send in any non-perishable items before Wednesday 19th October that would be fabulous and you can find a full list of suggested items here.  In school we will celebrate Harvest during the week of 17th October with some learning in class and by singing our favourite Harvest song in assembly.  Please enjoy having a go at the Harvest Samba here and thanks for any contributions you feel able to make.

And, last but not least...... a message from Mrs Hurley

WHOLE SCHOOL SUMDOG ESSEX COMPETITION

Calling all of you amazing mathematicians! 

You have been entered into the Sumdog Essex Competition. Taking place 30 September - 7 October

I will be monitoring how well each class is doing. The winning class will be announced in the school newsletter.

Let's show our Down Hall community what great mathematicians we are!

Good luck.

Mrs Hurley