Nash Mills CofE Primary School

School News

Friday 21st November 2025

Year 2 Sports Event

This afternoon, our Year 2 class represented Nash Mills CofE Primary School at an exciting sports event held at Hemel Hempstead Sports Centre. The children enthusiastically took part in a variety of fitness and agility challenges, competing alongside pupils from several local schools.

We were incredibly proud of their focus, determination, and the exemplary behaviour they displayed throughout the event. Well done, Year 2—you were fantastic ambassadors for our school!

Christmas Lunch Orders

As per Mr Maher's Christmas events letter emailed out this week, a gentle reminder to please order a Christmas lunch for your child by Thursday, 27th November. All parents/carers need to complete this link to let us know if your child(ren) will having a Christmas lunch option, or bringing a packed lunch from home.

Please ensure that your child's meal account is credited on Arbor if they are having a Christmas lunch. Thank you.

https://forms.gle/PfxMVyuxkmp5MZzcA

Best Bedtime Reads!

As you know, reading regularly at home with your children is incredibly important. A good bedtime story is not only helpful in maintaining a strong routine in the evening, it also helps children to develop their imagination and vocabulary.

Each week, we will ask our staff what their current recommendations are for the best bedtime reads. We hope that it provides you with some ideas!

Mr Maher is currently reading..

Impossible Creatures; the Poisoned King by Katherine Rundell

At bedtime at the moment, we are reading Katherine Rundell’s Impossible Creatures series. If you enjoy magical adventures filled with mythical creatures, then these are a must-read! We are currently reading the second book in the series, the Poisoned King, a vocabulary-rich stories that transports readers to a hidden world called The Archipelago.

In this world, you’ll meet sphinxes, mermaids, krakens, and many more extraordinary beings. The hero of the story, Christopher, is responsible for guarding the portal between Earth and the Archipelago. His adventure begins in a rather unusual way—he is woken by a small, semi-friendly dragon nibbling at his nose! The dragon warns him of a terrible mystery: dragons are being poisoned, and Christopher must return to the Archipelago to uncover who is behind it.

What follows is a thrilling journey across new lands, where Christopher encounters incredible beasts and faces dangerous challenges. Rundell’s storytelling is full of imagination, making this book perfect for readers who love fantasy, mystery, and mythical creatures.

Recommended for those who enjoy magical adventures and want to be swept away into another world!

Curriculum information

At Nash Mills, we are proud to offer a broad curriculum to our pupils, with plenty of opportunities for them to develop specific skills whilst learning all about the world around them. Each subject area has a clear pathway, in which we know what each child should learn as they move through the school. More information can be found within the curriculum pages of our website, however we have spotlighted a few of our subjects below.

Maths at Nash Mills

Maths is one of our core subjects here at Nash Mills and we want to create confident mathematicians. As a school we follow Herts for Learnings essentials which is a progressive scheme that starts in Nursery and develops through each year up into Year 6. Children will learn a range of mathematical concepts from counting, place value of number, adding, subtracting, multiplication, division, shape, data, time, fractions, decimals and money with a varying amount of focus depending on the year group. We also encourage the use of CPA (Concrete, Pictoral, Abstract) in lessons, children are encouraged to use concrete objects to help them, or pictures before moving on to abstract concepts of numbers.

Through learning Maths at Nash Mills, we want our children to be fluent mathematicians who can recall number bonds to 10 or 100. count confidently, subatise (instantly recognise) numbers and then develop that foundational knowledge into knowing their times tables (up to 12 x 12) by the end of Year 4 so that in Year 5 and 6 they can start to develop the necessary skills for mastery. Research shows that children who can do this are much more likely to be successful in Maths at GCSE. We use a range of techniques and strategies to support our learners both inside and outside the classroom. In class, Herts for Learning provide a robust and consistent scheme that allows learners to deepen their understanding in the various strands of mathematics with consistent models that become recognisable to the children as they move through the school.

All children also have access to Numbots or Times Tables Rockstars, this platform is designed to galvanise those foundation maths skills in numbots and then move them onto Times Table Rockstars to develop the knowledge in their times tables. Once children have secured those fundamental skills and knowledge, they are then ready to apply the knowledge and skills they have learnt through reasoning and problem solving to really enhance their mastery in the subject.

Ensuring that children are accessing either Numbots or Times Tables Rockstars for 5 minutes a day will really help them become confident mathematicians and see their fluency really improve.

Attendance

After a slightly shaky start to the week, we’re delighted to see attendance improve across the school—thank you for your continued support in making this happen!

Year 2 lead the way with an excellent 97.8%.
Year 3 follow with a strong 96.7%.
Both Year 6 and Reception show great consistency at 95.8%.
Year 5 maintain a solid 95%, while Year 4 are close behind at 94.8%.
Year 1 record 91.3%, and Nursery continue to show commitment at 90.6%.

Alongside attendance, we have noticed a large number of pupils arriving late to school this week. Good punctuality is vital—arriving on time ensures children do not miss important learning at the start of the day and helps them settle quickly into their routines.

We hope this positive trend in attendance continues into next week, and we encourage everyone to make punctuality a priority. Every day and every minute really does count!

Times Tables Rockstars and Numbots!

This week's TTRS leader board is for the most correct answers over the last 7 days, our top 4 had a combined total of 5,913 correct answers! That's an average of 845 correct answers per day! Fantastic work.

Our Numbots leader board is also the most correct answers over the last 7 days in story mode, our top 4 amassed a total of 3,142 correct answers! That's 449 correct answers a day! Well done to our leaders.

Mr Shane

Leader board this week

1st - Eren (Y1)

2nd - Edith (Y2)

3rd - Mia K (Y2)

Leader board this week

1st - Emine (Y4)

2nd - Zachary (Y4)

3rd - Emel (Y5)

Star of the Week!

Nursery

Evie

For being a kind friend using her social skills to more effectively solve any conflicts. Well done Evie!

Reception

Dylan

For showing better listening skills on the carpet and increasing independence in the classroom. Your progress is wonderful to see. Keep up the great work Dylan!

Year 1

Yaseen

For joining in more during phonics, especially when writing the split digraph in the word ‘like’. Keep up the great work Yaseen!

Year 2

Roman

For working really hard to present his work neatly and to a high standard. Keep it up Roman!

Year 3

Tristan

For his commitment to his learning, his faithfulness in everyone and always willing to help. Keep up the hard work Tristan!

Year 4

Noah

For his excellent thirst for learning and brilliant commitment to working super hard in every lesson. Keep it up Noah!

Year 5

Esme

For her inspiring attitude to all her learning, being a great role model to everyone. Well done Esme!

Year 6

Reyansh

For being a positive role model both inside and outside the classroom, and for always approaching every task with enthusiasm and determination. Well done Reyansh!

Uniform Reminders

Now that the weather is colder, a reminder to please ensure your child has a named warm coat, scarf, hat and gloves in school every day.

Also, please be reminded that dangly earrings are not suitable for school - only small stud earrings should be worn. Thank you.

Local SEND Survey

The office of David Taylor, our local MP, has asked us to share the link below with you in order for them to gain a better understanding of the local support system for children who have special educational needs and disabillities. They are keen to understand:

The biggest challenges faced with the local SEND system.
Whether EHCP support meets children's needs.
The key messages about SEND that need to be understood by local and central government.

➡️ Please complete the Hemel SEND Survey now: https://forms.gle/gMrW7Pg7exZ98wc57

Upcoming Dates

25th November - Y3 Class Worship

26th November - PTA Christmas Jumper sale after school

27th November - Y5 trip to The British Museum

28th November - INSET Day - no school

1st December - Christmas Jumpers allowed in school!

2nd December - Y4 Class Worship

3rd December - Reception Coffee Morning

5th December - Nursery Coffee Morning

5th December - PTA Non Uniform Day in exchange for fayre donations

5th December - All pupils bring an orange to school for Christingle

9th December - Y5 Class Worship

11th December - Last clubs this term

12th December - Y6 Carol singing

12th December - PTA Christmas Fayre

15th December - start of Art week

15th December - Christmas Grandparents' Afternoon

16th&17th December - EYFS Nativity

16th&17th December - KS1 Nativity

18th December - Christmas Lunch

18th December - Christmas Jumper Day

18th December - Christmas Church Service

19th December - Whole School Carol Service (9am)

19th December - End of term at 1.30pm for Christmas Holidays

Good Shepherd Booking

Good Shepherd Club—to book spaces at Breakfast or After School Club, please visit

http://www.goodshepherdclubs.co.uk/

Logging Absences

Thank you to those who have now managed to log child absences on Arbor. It has really helped the office, meaning that we know where all of the children are more quickly in the morning. If The instructions on how to do this are set out below.

If your child is unwell, Hertfordshire Attendance team require that the nature of the illness is recorded, so please include this in your message (cough, cold, temperature, vomiting etc.). Please note that any absence requests for future dates will still need to made through the school office. In line with our attendance and safeguarding policies, a reminder to report your child's absence every morning, by 8.30am, until your child is well enough to return to school.

Step 1 -Click on Quick Actions button and then click Attendance followed by the green Log Absence button (top right).

Step 2 - Enter the absence details. If your child will be absent all day, there is no need to edit the start and end times that will automatically appear. If your child is ill, please ensure that you enter the nature of the illness and then press the green Log Absence button.

Step 3 - Once you have logged the absence, the school office will 'accept' it. Approved absences then appear in the Attendance tab of the Arbor App. It is not possible to edit an absence once it has been approved, so if you have any queries, please email the school office who will be able to help.

Pupil Premium

Did you know that your child may be able to receive additional support in school in addition to free school meals, if you qualify for certain benefits?

If you receive any of the following, your child may well be eligible for the Pupil Premium. This provides them with free school meals throughout their time at school, but also a range of additional things in school to help with their learning and engagement. If your child might be eligible, please visit the following site (https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ufs/HCWH.eb?ebd=0&ebz=1_1717745705707) or speak to the school office who will be happy to help.

Income Support
Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
The guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit (as long as you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and you don't get more than £16,190 a year)
Working Tax Credit run-on (paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)
Universal Credit (with annual earned income of no more than £7,400 after tax and not including any benefits you get).

The application process only takes a few minutes and we are more than happy to provide support if it is needed.

Clothing Bank

Thank you for your donations towards our clothing bank. If you have any old clothes following clear-outs, please drop things in. The clothing bank is emptied regularly so should be ready for more donations.

The school carpark is open between 7am and 6pm on weekdays. Members of the local community are more than welcome to use it too so please spread the word!

Final Thought

This week in worship, we spent some time thinking about the parable of the mustard seed and the idea that even the smallest thing can grow into something much bigger that has a real impact. We also thought about how sometimes we need faith to know that our small actions are appreciated and will make a difference.

What are the small things that you do which make a difference to someone else?

Think about the small acts of kindness, the supportive words or the friendly smiles that you give to others and the impact that these will have. I wonder what you can do this weekend...

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