Dear parents

As we come to the end of another busy and enriching half term, it's been wonderful to reflect on all the fantastic experiences our children have enjoyed.  

Yesterday, we welcomed parents into the school for our learning conversations and hosted our Book Fair.  It was great to receive such positive feedback from families, we truly appreciate your support.  I’m sure it was insightful to discuss your child’s progress and celebrate their achievements.

Our Book Fair was a huge success, with so many children excited to explore and choose new books.  Our school will receive £795.35 worth of books to add to our Reading Hub, helping to foster a lifelong love of reading! If you’d still like to purchase books online—and continue supporting our school with free books—you can click here. The Book Fair will return in early March, so stay tuned for more exciting reading opportunities!

This half term has been packed with enriching experiences for our children, bringing learning to life in so many ways. From VR headsets immersing children in stories, under the sea experiences and history, to Year 2’s D&T project in designing and making ambulances, hands-on learning has been at the heart of our curriculum. Forest School continues to be a big hit, and workshops such as the Indigenous American workshop in Year 6 have sparked curiosity and engagement.

Year 3 and 4 have now completed their swimming lessons, and what a journey it has been! The children absolutely loved the experience, and speaking to the swimming teachers, it was clear just how much progress they had made. Having the pool on-site was a real treat, especially as it was warmer than local pools! While everyone is sad to see it go, we are excited that it will return in two years’ time for the next Year 3 and 4 cohorts. Hopefully, this experience has inspired many children to continue swimming—such an important life skill. 

As we head into the half-term break, we want to thank everyone—children, staff, and parents—for making this such a brilliant half term. Have a wonderful break, and we look forward to seeing you all on Monday 24 February. 

With my very best wishes

Tijen Hassan

Headteacher 

Please click here to view term dates for 2025 - 2026

Please click here to view term dates for 2024 - 2025

At Grange Park we aim to develop the skills and knowledge of all our pupils and encourage a lifelong love of learning. To achieve this, and for children to reach their full potential, excellent attendance and punctuality is crucial. The aim of this article is to promote good attendance for the children in our school and as parents we need your help and support to ensure your child reaches their full potential.

There are 365 days in a calendar year, 175 days of that calendar year are spent on holiday (out of school). Our school calendar consists of 190 days where we cram the most in for your child!

Celebrating our family’s attendance

Our attendance percentages have really dropped in the Spring term, we hope that this will improve as the weather gets better in the second half of Spring. The tables have turned! From fourth place last half term… Oakwood is now in the lead! Keep up the great work Oakwood family!

Our school community recently celebrated Safer Internet Day, focusing on two themes: embracing technology's positive uses and learning to avoid online scams. We started with a themed assembly where the children explored technology's benefits, like connecting with others and improving our education. We also addressed online scams through interactive scenarios, teaching practical tips for identifying and avoiding them. Let's keep the conversation going about online safety at home. Watch the safety videos posted on Google Classroom to join us in creating a safer online environment. 

Last week, we marked Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week with a special assembly and a range of activities to help our children develop a greater understanding of their emotions and wellbeing.

Our whole-school assembly provided an opportunity for our second 'Brain School' session. This time, children learned about the amygdala and the hand-brain model, helping them to understand what happens in their brains when they feel big emotions. We explored the concept of 'flipping our lid' when we enter the yellow or red zones, and how we can use strategies to bring ourselves back to a calm and regulated state.

Throughout the week, children engaged in dedicated early morning work, focusing on mindfulness and calming techniques to start their day in a positive and balanced way and on Friday, our Anti-Bullying Ambassadors led ‘Friendly Friday,’ a day filled with activities designed to promote kindness, connection, and friendship. 

Thank you to everyone who took part and helped to make Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week such a success. By continuing to develop our understanding of mental health, we empower our children with the tools they need to navigate their emotions and support their own wellbeing.

Grange Park would like to welcome you into school for our Spring Term Come Learn With Me event.  This is an exciting opportunity for you to come into your child's classroom and join in with their activities! Please see the dates below:

Feelings in Focus: Supporting Children’s Emotional Wellbeing

We recently held a Feelings in Focus workshop for parents led by My Young Minds Enfield (MYME), exploring how we can help children understand and manage their emotions. The session considered:

• What Are Emotions and Why Do We Have Them?

• Helping Your Child Recognise and Label Emotions

• General Emotional Regulation Tips

• Regulating Anger and Anxiety

• Signposting for Further Support

These topics helped parents gain insight into how emotions develop, why they matter, and practical strategies to support children in managing their feelings effectively. By recognising and labeling emotions, children can build self-awareness and resilience, enabling them to express themselves in healthy ways.

They also discussed simple but effective emotional regulation techniques, including breathing exercises, grounding strategies, and ways to help children cope with anger and anxiety. Parents were signposted to useful resources and services that can offer further guidance and support.

For a more detailed article discussing the points raised in the workshop, click here.

Thank you to everyone who attended! We hope that the session was supportive and helps to empower you and your child/ren to navigate emotions with confidence. If you have any questions or would like more information, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Thank you to everyone that supported our cake sale by donating and purchasing the lovely, sweet treats.  

We are pleased to let you know, that thanks to your continued support, funds raised from our autumn term GPPSA events have helped the school:

• Pay for new cohort chromebooks

• Continue with the farm and forest school

• Buy welly racks for our reception and nursery classes

Did you know that we are enrolled with ‘Your School Lottery,’ an ethical lottery provider, which helps us raise funds for our school.  For just £1 a week, you get the chance to win amazing cash prizes, including a jackpot prize of £25,000. The draw takes place every Saturday night and winners will be directly notified via email.  Click here to visit our “Your School Lottery” page, and help us meet our goal of 100 tickets.

Wishing everyone a safe and relaxing half-term holidays.

Upcoming GPPSA events to pencil in your diary are:

🌊 Exploring the Underwater World! 🌊

This week, Nursery children have been diving into the wonders of the under the sea world! Using VR headsets, they embarked on an exciting journey through the vibrant waters of Brazil, Egypt, and the Caribbean, encountering incredible marine life such as turtles, colourful fish, coral reefs, and even deep-sea divers!

Inspired by their adventure, the children then used their creative skills to bring their experiences to life through stunning artwork. It’s been a fantastic week of exploration, imagination, and discovery! 

“I saw a turtle! It was wiggling about in the water!” - Max

“It’s like magic! I can see the fish!” - Kayson

We have been having a fantastic time in Reception! For our topic ‘People who help us’ we have been talking about people in our community with jobs who help us. We were visited by a firefighter and police officers. They told us about their responsibilities and let some of the children try on their uniform and even sit in a police car! 

The children were very excited to explore the VR headsets. As we have been looking at the story The Gingerbread Man they had the opportunity to explore the setting of the story. They had to use the VR controller to navigate forward and backward and the children were encouraged to engage deeply with the story by retelling key events and searching for familiar characters. This interactive experience not only supported the children’s storytelling and recall skills but also sparked their imagination, making literacy learning even more memorable. 

In Design & Technology, the children showcased their creativity and engineering skills by designing and building their own vehicles using sliders and levers. Through hands-on exploration, they learned how simple mechanisms create movement, bringing their designs to life. 

This week in Year 2, we have been busy making our own ambulances! We started by painting them bright yellow before learning about how wheels and axles work. Using straws, wooden dowels, and wheels, we carefully put our ambulances together, making sure they could roll smoothly. This links to our Florence Nightingale topic, as she played a key role in improving hospitals and healthcare. Our ambulances remind us of her important work in saving lives and improving medicine!

Our science workshop focused on the fascinating human skeleton. The children discovered some truly amazing facts, including the crucial role the skeleton plays in protecting our vital organs. This sparked a discussion about how to keep our bones strong and healthy. We talked about the importance of a balanced diet, rich in nutrients essential for bone health. Exercise also came up as a key factor in maintaining strong bones and overall well-being. The children learned how these lifestyle choices contribute to a healthy skeletal system. The highlight of the workshop was a hands-on activity where everyone got to build their own skeleton. This involved carefully connecting all the joints in the correct places, giving them a practical understanding of how the skeletal system works. It was a fun and engaging way to reinforce what they had learned.

This week, Year 4 had an exciting opportunity to step back in time and explore Ancient Greece—without leaving the classroom! As part of their history topic, this immersive experience allowed the children to see what life was like in Ancient Greece. Using virtual reality (VR) headsets, the children walked through ancient streets, observed how people lived, and even observed the stunning Greek architecture! The VR session helped bring history to life, making learning both engaging and memorable. The children were fascinated by the stunning details and had plenty of insightful questions. Many were amazed by how different (and sometimes similar) life was thousands of years ago. This hands-on approach has sparked their curiosity and deepened their understanding of the topic.

‘Journey though Indigenous America’ workshop

Year 6 had the incredible opportunity to take part in an engaging and immersive Indigenous American workshop. We explored the rich history and traditions of various tribes, gaining a deeper understanding of their beliefs, ceremonies, and rituals. Working in groups, we recreated some of these cultural practices, bringing history to life in a fun and interactive way. It was a fascinating experience, and we loved learning about Indigenous American culture through this hands-on approach!