Newsletter
Friday 3rd November 2023
DIARY DATES
AUTUMN TERM
Monday 6th November
Year 6 Trip - Imperial War Museum
Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th November
Parent Consultation & SEN Review
Tuesday 7th and Thursday 9th November
New to reception school tour - 9.30 am
Tuesday 14th November
Nasal Flu Immunisation
Friday 17th November
Play and Stay Session - Reception 2024 families - 9.30 am to 10.30 am
Monday 20th to Friday 24th November
Book Fair
Thursday 23rd November
Year 2 Christmas Journey - King Centre
Friday 8th December
Christmas Performance pm (R to Y6)
Wednesday 13th December
Early Years and KS1 Christmas performance am
Wednesday 20th December
ABM Christmas Lunch
Christmas Jumper Day
Thursday 21st December
Last day of term (early finish)
Friday 22nd December to Friday 5th January
Christmas Holidays
Monday 8th January
INSET day
Tuesday 9th January
Children return
Tuesday 16th January
Year 6 Trip - Natural History Museum
Friday 9th February
Last day of half-term
Monday 12th to Friday 16th February
Half-Term
Monday 19th February
Children Return
REMINDERS
School Photos
Friday 3rd November
The cut off date to order individual and sibling photos with free delivery back to the school is midnight on Friday 3rd November.
Year 6 trip to Imperial War Museum
Monday 6th November
Remember packed lunch and waterproof coat please.
Parent/Carer Consultations - Deadline Approaching
Tuesday, 7th November – 15:40 pm to 18:00 pm
Wednesday, 8th November – 15:40 pm to 19:00 pm
Please book your appointment for your child if they are in Reception to Year 6 using the Arbor app. Bookings close at 9am on Monday 6th November.
Change of PE days
This half-term, there will be a change to the PE day for Year 4 and Year 6 classes. Children should come to school in PE kit:
Year 4 PE day - Thursday
Year 6 PE day - Friday
Remembrance Day
We will be marking Remembrance Day in school on Friday 10th November. The school is collecting for the Poppy Appeal so if you would like to donate and pick up a poppy for your child, they will be available after school in playground and at Harrow Close in the morning.
Xmas4Schools Deadline Extended
GREAT NEWS...if your child still wants to complete their Xmas4Schools Christmas artwork, then there is more time to do so! We have arranged an extension with the company but please be aware that it must be returned to school no later than THURSDAY 9th NOVEMBER. Friends of Ellingham cannot accept any artwork later than this date as we have to collect it all together and send it back to the company in one box. There are spare copies in the office should you need one.
ELLINGHAM SCHOOL NEWS
EXCELLENT START TO THE HALF-TERM
We started the term focused on our value of Excellence and the children have been keen to demonstrate their excellent learning and excellent behaviour in class and around the school. They have made us all very proud with their positive attitudes.
In keeping with this value of Excellence is the announcement of a visit in two weeks time of Paralympian Kylie Grimes. She won a Gold medal in Tokyo 2020 as part of the Team GB wheelchair rugby team. Children will have the opportunity to take part in a fitness circuit with Kylie after the assembly on Thursday 16th November so need to come in their PE kits.
We will be raising funds that will contribute to the costs sports event and sports equipment for the school. Children will receive thank you gifts for the money that they raise.
Raise £5 or more: a sheet of stickers, plus a blue Sports for Schools wristband
Raise £15 or more: all of the above, plus a red wristband with Kylie Grimes’s signature
Raise £30 or more: all of the above, plus a signed Kylie Grimes poster
Please complete the sponsorship form so that your child can be eligible for these but please make your contribution via the QR code or the “Fundraiser Page” online. You can find all the information on this letter.
SPORTING EXCELLENCE
On Thursday 16th November, Kylie Grimes will be visiting to deliver an exciting sponsored fitness challenge to raise money for Sports for Schools. This week we learnt about her inspiring story and reflected on the different ways she lives out our values. You can learn all about Kylie here. https://sportsforschools.org/athletes/kylie-grimes/
Friends of Ellingham Uniform Sale - Request for volunteers
Next Tuesday and Wednesday, during the parental consultations, the Friends of Ellingham will be holding a second-hand uniform sale in the main reception area. It will be a good opportunity to stock up on extra items, saving you money and adding to the amazing work of the Friends of Ellingham by raising funds to benefit our children.
We only have volunteers to run it from 4.30 onwards so, in order for as many parents as possible to take advantage of it, they need helpers to run it from 3.30 – 4.30. If you are able to offer even 20 – 30 minutes, perhaps fitting it around your own consultation time, please let the school office know as soon as possible. office@elp.rbksch.org
LEARNING TOGETHER
Reception - Phonics Workshops
All Reception parents and carers were invited to take part in a phonics session in class with their children. There was a marvellous turn-out and there were lots of positive comments about Mrs Peter's lessons. Several parents commented on how much the children had learnt in the lesson and since joining school.
A Sparkling Time in Reception
Reception have been learning about Guy Fawkes and why we have firework displays. We made our own rockets to light up the sky!
Scholastic Book Fair
The Book Fair will be taking place afterschool from Tuesday 21st to Friday 24th November just in time for the Christmas season. The children are very engaged in our Reading for Pleasure focus and this is a great opportunity to capitalise on their enthusiasm. Last year, we raised Over £700 to spend on new books.
SAFEGUARDING, HEALTH AND SUPPORT
Ask Your Child About Zones of Regulations
Across the school, in all classes, we use Zones of Regulation as our approach to talking about and managing our emotions.
The Zones of Regulation provides an easy way to think and talk about how we feel on the inside and sorts emotions into four coloured zones, all of which are expected in life or even during the course of a day. We talk about there being no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ zones or emotions.
In our Wellbeing Assemblies, all children use the zones to ‘check in’ with their partners and are given space to talk about strategies used within each zone. Here are some of their great ideas.
Margot - Year 3
“When you are in the red zone, you can use calm breathing to help you”.
Tyler - Year 5
“Over-excited? You can think about the work you need to focus on”.
Anna - Oak class
“When you are in the Green zone, you can stay with your friends”.
Nancy - Willow Class
“When I am feeling tired, I go into the fresh air”.
Please look at our Wellbeing Page on our school website for more exciting information.
Flu Vaccination for Reception to Year 6 Please complete form -yes or no
The school health nurses will be carrying out flu vaccinations on Tuesday, 14th November 2023 at Ellingham Primary School. Please use the link provided to access the electronic consent form. Please complete one consent form for each child to ensure your child receives their vaccination. The school heath team have requested parent/carers to complete the consent form even if you decide you do not want to vaccinate your child against flu this year.
https://sav.hrch.nhs.uk/flu/2023/kingston
Notice to Reception Parents from School Health Service
Now your child has started school, the School Health Team takes over from the Health Visiting Service in providing support for your child’s health and well-being. The service is available to support you and your child throughout their school-age years. You can find more information about the team at https://yourhealthcare.org/services/school-health/
All parents/carers of reception children are invited to complete a health survey which includes useful information about child health and where you can get help and advice to meet your child’s health needs during this next step in their journey.
To access the survey, please click here. The survey will be available until 10th November 2023.
Completing the survey also helps us to understand what children and families need so that services can be planned to meet the needs of local families.
The survey is anonymous, so you or your child cannot be identified. If completing the survey raises any concerns or questions, you can contact the School Health Team for advice and support team at KU19-SchoolHealth@yourhealthcare.org or 0208 549 6323 or by clicking the ‘request for a contact’ link at the end of the survey.
This is the full safeguarding team in school. They are all trained to Level 3 and everyone in the school received the annual update of Safeguarding Level 2 training at INSET.
Contact details: 020 8397 3864 or email: office@elp.rbksch.org to request a safeguarding call back. For pupil support, contact 020 8397 3864 or email: pupilsupport@elp.rbksch.org