Dear Families
Friday again and I do hope that you have all had a lovely week – we certainly have at EHPS HQ!
Born to Perform!
What a start to the week! We had the AMAZING Born to Perform (yes the David Walliams Golden Buzzer dance group) lead a whole school assembly. We are incredibly proud of all of them but especially Jessica and Caitlyn who are ex-pupils of ours and are now part of our Alumni! Many more former and current pupils belong to Born to Perform. It was simply inspirational, and we all had a brilliant time!
Bringing Learning Alive
Last week, Year 3 had a fantastic trip (although a little rainy) to Chester House where they cemented their learning on the Romans. They were brilliantly behaved and it was wonderful to see their learning come to life.
Blue Butterfly project
On Tuesday, our Year 3 and Year 4 children took part in the Blue Butterfly project led by Northants Police. It is a workshop aimed at helping children recognise that butterfly feeling that is often in their tummy – sometimes is it nerves or excitement but sometimes it is a clue that something isn’t quite right. They were taught to listen to this feeling and what to do if they feel they need to share it with someone.
Parking Support
Did you notice on Wednesday and Thursday last week several PCSOs and traffic enforcement officers patrolling the car park and surrounding roads? As a school, we are working really closely with the authorities to improve our parking situation as it remains a time consuming and serious issue for us. As a PCSO said to me: ‘Cars don’t park themselves,’ so please, park and drive responsibly, safely and respectfully – the solution to our issues lies in your hands.
Read, read, read
As you are aware, reading is such an important life skill and something we take very seriously here at East Hunsbury Primary School with our RED (Red Every Day) October, 100 Reads and fantastic curriculum.
Reading is the gateway into other worlds, a chance to grow the imagination and an opportunity to grasp new knowledge. It is also the foundation of accessing so many other subjects. No matter what age your child is, how often do you read with them?
According to researchers in the US, here is how many words children would have heard by the time they are 5 years old:
Never read to, 4,662 words
1-2 times a week, 63, 570 words
3-5 times a week 169,520 words
Daily 296, 660 words
5 books a day 1,483,300 words!
I am pleased to share with you that our Reception children have been working very hard on a special reading challenge. The aim of the challenge is to read at least 5 times during the week (ideally every day/night) – if they do, they will receive an extra-special medal!
I really encourage every family to hear their child read daily whether that this is reading their school reading book or simply reading and sharing a book together. Make reading time a protected, snuggly time.
Could your company, or one you know, buy/sponsor a bookcase for our library?
Sadly, we have experienced some water damage in our library. Therefore, I am seeking companies who may be able to support/sponsor our library by buying a bookcase… if you do know someone or a company who might be interested in this, please can you ask them to contact myself or our librarian Mrs Ruth de Chastelain. We will have a little plaque mounted on the side of the bookcase for them!
World Book Day – 7th March 2024
We are very excited about World Book Day which is coming up soon and we are planning lots of fabulous things. However, I wanted to give you advance notice that we will not be asking the children to dress up – it will be a normal school uniform day (we dressed up in October as part of our RED October). Watch this space though for more information about what we have planned!
Northampton Town Football Club Partnership
Whilst music is very important to us, so is sport and we are proud of our partnership with NTFC. On Thursday, we were presented with our plaque and a visit from Crawleys who are helping to fund some activities and resources we have in place at school. They were amazed at the great work going on and the wonderful behaviour of our children. Did you know that on Saturday many of our families benefitted from the free tickets we offered out to watch the Northampton Town Football Club vs Wigan Athletic game – did you go?
Saints Foundation Green Match Game
Did you know that on Saturday many of our families benefitted from the free tickets we offered out to watch the Saints vs Newcastle game – did you go? A special well done to Freya, Aiden and Oscar who represented East Hunsbury Primary at Saints Sustainability Match last Saturday. They went onto the pitch at half time and were chosen because of their brilliant and commitment to taking care of our world. Thank you to Mrs Linnell for overseeing it all as well. Team work makes the dream work!
Farewells and Hellos
This week, we said goodbye to our wonderful Mrs Hayhurst who has now left us to start her new adventure in Scotland. I cannot thank Mrs Hayhurst enough for all that she has done for our school, including the support she has given the FEHPS. We had a lovely surprise assembly on Tuesday to say ‘Goodbye,’ and I hope to update you soon on how she is getting on. Also, Mrs Rachel Parris, who works in the SU has left us to return to her previous school. We have loved having Mrs Parris with her and wish her the very best.
This has meant that this week we have welcomed Miss Alice McIntyre to our teaching team. She has been in over the past few weeks getting to know the children and it feels like she has always been a part of our family. Welcome Miss McIntyre – we are really pleased to welcome you officially to the East Hunsbury Primary School!
Change Makers Sale TONIGHT!
Finally, a huge thank you in advance to everyone who is planning to attend our Change Maker’s Bring and Buy sale this afternoon 3.30pm - 4.30pm in the music room and to those who have donated their unwanted bric-a-brac. Miss Welch, and her team of Change Makers, have been working very hard planning a quiet space on the playground and your donations will help support this and our other playground projects we have underway.
Enjoy your weekend everyone and I will see you on Monday.
Ms Pennington