Dear parents, 

The start of the summer term here at Grange Park Primary has been nothing short of action-packed, with our children diving into a variety of enriching experiences.

One of the highlights of the term so far has been our youngest learners in Reception having an unforgettable day visiting the enchanting animals at Hertfordshire Zoo. Meanwhile, our adventurous Year 5 children embarked on an overnight adventure at Cuffley Camp, creating memories to last a lifetime.

We're also thrilled to announce the newest additions to our school community – our very own chickens! Be sure to drop by and say hello to our feathered friends; they're already settling in nicely and adding an extra dose of charm to our school! 

I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to all the parents who have already made voluntary contributions towards supporting our school. Your generosity has been truly appreciated and has helped us immensely. So far, we've received contributions totaling £891, which has enabled us to plan for the purchase of 3 Chromebooks for the next academic year. However, we still have a ways to go to reach our goal.  For those who wish to contribute or are considering doing so, you can easily make a donation through Parentmail.  Simply log on, navigate to Shop, and select Voluntary Donations to School. Please ensure that you select an amount before you select 'checkout'. Every donation, regardless of size, makes a meaningful difference and is sincerely appreciated.

And finally, I'm thrilled to announce that today marks the exciting launch of our school's Instagram page! Follow us at @grangeparkprimary for a glimpse into the life at Grange Park Primary School, along with exciting updates, events, and more.

Thank you for your ongoing support and partnership in your child's education. Together, we can make this summer term a truly memorable and enriching experience for all our children.  Enjoy the long weekend and see you back in school on Tuesday 7 May 2024.  

With my very best wishes

Tijen Hassan

Headteacher

Please click to view term dates for 2023 - 2024 

Please click here to view term dates for 2024 - 2025

At Grange Park Primary School, we are dedicated not only to academic excellence but also nurturing well-rounded individuals equipped with the essential character traits for successful, flourishing lives. One of these crucial character traits we instil in our children is environmental awareness. In today’s rapidly changing world, understanding the importance of taking care of our environment is more critical than ever before.

Teaching our children about environmental awareness goes beyond simply recognising the beauty of nature; it instils in them a sense of responsibility towards the planets and future generations. As the children embark on a sustainability whole school art project this term, we felt it was the right time to make ‘Environmental Awareness’ our charter trait focus for this half term.

To introduce this half term’s character focus, Tijen read the children the story of ‘The Secret Sky Garden’ by Linda Sarah. The book tells the story of girl named Funni, who loves the old, discussed car park near her home. She spend most of her time there flying her kite and playing her recorder, but something is missing. Definitely. So Funni decided to create a garden in the neglected space. So after weeks of careful nurture, her garden in the sky takes shape and with it a beautiful friendship blossoms too. A wonderful story sharing the impact that small actions can make on a community and ourselves and one that encourages children to value and consider how to improve their own environment.

During the assembly, we discussed what the word ‘awareness’, mean and how we show environmental awareness. We thought about what environmental things we are concerned about and why we should show environmental awareness. Together we agreed that environmental awareness involves understanding and appreciating the natural world and the challenges we face in protecting it.

How Parents Can Help at Home:

As partners in your child’s education, we encourage you to support and reinforce the development of environmental awareness at home. Here are some tips on how you can do this:

1. Lead by Example: Children learn by example, so demonstrate environmentally friendly behaviours in your daily life. Practice recycling, conserve energy and water, and minimise waste whenever possible.

2. Explore Nature Together: Spend time outdoors with your child and explore the wonders of nature. Whether it’s a hike in the woods, a trip to the beach, or simply gardening. These experiences, help foster a deep appreciation for the natural world.

3. Educational Resources: Provide age-appropriate books (see below), documentaries, and online resources that educate your child about environmental issues and inspire them to take action.

4. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Encourage your child to practice the three Rs - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Teach them the importance of reducing consumption, reusing items whenever possible, and recycling materials to minimise waste.

5. Get Involved in Community Initiatives: Look for opportunities to participate in local environmental initiatives as a family. Whether it’s volunteering for a beach cleanup or joining a community garden project, getting involved helps children understand the real-world impact of their actions.

A massive well done to our ‘Always Stars’. ‘Always Star’ children are children who ALWAYS show that they follow the Big 3, they are ALWAYS respectful, resilient and show responsibility and they ALWAYS try their very best, taking on new challenges with a growth mindset and never giving  up. 

Here are the Always Stars’ for the last half term.

Eco Ambassadors work to provide important habitat at  Firs Farm Wetlands Centre

This month, we sent a team of pupils to plant a hedgerow at the Firs Farm Wetland Centre. Hedgerows are one of our most important wildlife habitats. They line roads, railways and footpaths and also border fields and gardens. Hedges provide song posts, shelter and nesting opportunities for birds such as yellowhammer, whitethroat, blue tit and great tit, while nectar, berries, nuts and leaves provide food for an assortment of invertebrates, mammals and birds. In addition to providing an excellent wildlife habitat, hedges can help reduce soil erosion and water run-off on land. In this project, the Eco Ambassadors team from Grange Park planted over 30 Rowan and Hazel plants on the edges of the tennis courts to offer vital wildlife protection in the area and extend the wildlife corridor on the site. Firs Farm Wetlands is a nature haven featuring a series of natural and engineered interconnected watercourses and lakes, plus an ancient hedgerow. It is designed to mitigate downstream flooding, improve biodiversity and create a new amenity for people in the local area. The Friends of Firs Farm volunteer group welcomed the involvement of the school children. 

Our new Grange Park residents have arrived! Please meet Attenborough, Denny and Bellamy.  They are all settled into their new home and are already very much part of our Grange Park family. We feel so lucky to have them here at our school! They are housed just outside Cedar Class, so please do say hello to them when passing by. 

We are pleased to inform you about the range of parent events coming up this summer term, to which you are, as always, very warmly invited: You will find the list of parent workshops taking place this term, along with the date, time, location and a brief description here. We always put a copy of the slides onto our website in case parents are unable to attend and would like to view them at a later date. The presentations are in PDF format so that they can be viewed on almost any device. Please contact the school if you have any further questions about any of our parent workshops. 

Thank you also for your recent feedback regarding your preferences over the time and day of our parent workshops. We were pleased to see that the majority of parents are happy with the times currently offered. However, a third of the parents that responded requested evening workshops, with an online option being available. You will  see that our upcoming ‘Anti Racism in School Parent Masterclass’ will be available online at 7:30pm. Moving forward this will also be something that we will try to incorporate further. As well as this, Fridays appear to be popular so next year, we will incorporate Friday parent workshops into the schedule.

Thank you to everyone who supported the 2024 Easter cookie fundraisers, we are waiting for the Pantry to let us know how much we raised and we will pass that on as soon as possible.  

It is also DISCO Time!  The tickets go on sale this week so please look out for the flyers in your reps groups and please do pass on as tickets sell out fast!  Dates are as follows:  10 May for Years 1 and 2 - 3.25-4.30pm and on the 17 May for Years 3-6. Years 3 /4 - 3.25 to 4.45 and Years 5/6 - 5.15 to 6.30pm.

Looking ahead to the Summer term -  the Summer Fayre will be on Sunday 7th July and we really do need as many volunteers as possible.  Please do let your class reps know that you can help.  All we do is for the children so we need as many hands on deck please!

In addition Alexia and Sarah will be stepping down from their positions as Co-Chairs at the AGM in October 2024 and we will be looking to recruit their replacements and new members of the GPPSA in order to continue with our successful fundraising. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you would like to know more about the committee. Our email is gppsa@hotmail.co.uk.

Thank you for your continued support.

GPPSA

Thank you to the GPPSA and to all your support  for helping to raise money to purchase our school tannoy, chickens, loose parts for the playground and so much more!

Please also bare in mind the initiatives that are available year round:

• School lotto:  www.yourschoollottery.co.uk/lottery/school/grange-park-primary-school-association 

• Donate page - http://easydonate.org/HTDT007

The children in Acorn Nursery have been learning about ‘The World Around us’. Many of the children worked really hard to create their very own ‘World in a box’ with their families. This could be anything they wanted it to be.  

We learnt all about the artist Vincent Van Gogh and particularly looked at his paintings of sunflowers. The children learnt about the different parts of a flower and what they need in order to grow and stay healthy. They then planted their very own sunflower seeds which we will continue to look after and watch them grow.

Reception have been learning all about the habitats of animals. To celebrate this they visited Hertfordshire Zoo. We saw a range of animals including emus, zebras, snow leopards and tigers. We discovered what the animals like to eat and what their habitats are like in the wild. The children enjoyed mini meets with Sun Bears, Lions, Penguins and Camels.

This week in maths, we have been learning about money. We learnt how to recognise coins and notes, calculate pounds and pence and made different amounts using different coins. We understood that different coins/notes have different values and we can sometimes use fewer coins to make amounts. 

The children in Year 4 have been learning about living things and their habitats in science. They have shown great enthusiasm in researching different animals, discovering where they live and what they eat. So far, they have explored why organisms live in different habitats and how they have adapted to those environments. For example, animals like owls, tree squirrels and birds tend to live in trees because it provides them with shelter and food. The children invented their own riddles to describe animals in certain habitats. They have also grouped organisms by their characteristics using a Carroll diagram. Take a look at their fabulous findings!

The Year 5 students embarked on an unforgettable adventure during their residential trip to Cuffley Camp. Amidst the tranquil wilderness, they delved into a myriad of exhilarating activities that sparked both thrill and camaraderie. Scaling towering heights through climbing challenges, they honed their agility and courage. Engaging in the ancient art of archery, they aimed for precision while immersing themselves in the rich history of the sport. Axe throwing sessions added an element of rugged excitement, as they learned the finesse required to hit their targets with accuracy. Through intricate problem-solving tasks, they showcased their teamwork and critical thinking skills, navigating obstacles with determination and creativity. As dusk descended, the campfire became the heart of their evening, where laughter and stories intermingled with games, forging bonds that would last a lifetime. The children huddled closely around the crackling campfire, their faces illuminated by its warm glow as they joyfully toasted marshmallows on sticks, laughter echoing into the night. At Cuffley Camp, amidst the embrace of nature, they discovered not only adventure but also the strength of unity and the joy of shared experiences.

Microorganisms 

In science, Year 6 we have been studying microorganisms. We learnt that microorganisms are very tiny living things and are so small that they are not visible to the naked eye, so a microscope is needed to see them. We created an experiment to see which conditions mould grows best in. Most classes put 3 slices of bread in food bags and placed them in 3 different locations (by the window, on the bookcase and in a cupboard) to see how temperature affects the rate of mould growth.

Children’s predictions

Helin- ‘ I predict that the bread in the cupboard will grow the most mould due to it being warm in that location.’  Josh - ‘I predict that the bread near the window will grow the most mould as it is in a sunny place.’