Whole school attendance this week: 92.5%

Overall attendance so far this year: 95%

Every day counts! All classes begin learning activities as soon as the children arrive at 8:40am. 

All absences must be reported to the school either by leaving an absence message (Option 1) or emailing Mrs Redman (Pastoral Support/Attendance Lead) via absence@greatgaddesden.herts.sch.uk

Please note: in line with the statutory guidance from the Department for Education which is reflected in our attendance policy, we are unable to authorise term time holiday.

Guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance 

Thank you for your support and understanding.

On Wednesday afternoon, it was our Harvest Service. Thank you to everyone who was able to join us and we hope you enjoyed it. Our Church Services are always a highlight and the children did an excellent job at leading most of the service with a range of contributions. Thank you also to everyone who donated for our offering. DENS collected all donations yesterday and they were very thankful and appreciative of everyone's support and generosity. 

The National Anti-Bullying week is due to take place the second week after half term  (w.c 10th November.) 

To start the week, we are proud to be taking part in Odd Sock Day  🧦.  This provides a wonderful opportunity for our learners

to have fun, express themselves, and celebrate what makes each of us unique! 

Throughout the day, learners will be encouraged to think about how bullying affects others, what to do if they are worried about bullying, and why it’s so important that we celebrate our differences. This day is particularly important at Great Gaddesden as it aligns very closely to our theologically rooted vision:

“Treat others exactly as you would wish to be treated yourself” - Luke 6:31

1) Be observant and thoughtful    2) Be kind and empathetic     3) Be flexible and reflective              

 Our vision provides a beacon of light in navigating our interactions with kindness and understanding. At its core, it is a call to empathy, encouraging us to step into the shoes of others. By treating each other with the respect and kindness we wish for ourselves, we create a culture of mutual respect, where productivity and collaboration soar.  We aim to grow a community that values learning and humanity towards others, guided by the life and teachings of Jesus, our Christian values, our 3Be’s and inspired by the Ubuntu philosophy. We aim to support all to feel valued, included and become flourishing individuals, with a heart for others and the world.

This Monday,  it was Diwali. We spoke about this in collective worship and Rian kindly bought in some gifts for his class. Early Years also enjoyed learning about Diwali and being very creative by making traditional Rangoli patterns and also exploring a range of books about Diwali.

We shared with the children that Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights, is a time for celebrating joy, kindness and the triumph of good over evil. It’s a special occasion where families light divas (lamps), decorate their homes, share delicious sweets, and spend time together. The symbol is light is very significant to many faiths and this is explored through our RE curriculum. 

To those of you who celebrated Diwali, we hope you had enjoyable celebrations and the festival brought you peace and happiness.

House Points

The new picnic benches funded by FOGGS have started to be used this week. When we have nicer weather, the aim of these are to provide a quieter part of our playground for board games.  

A big thank you to the Jeffery family for assembling them for us to all enjoy.

Today, everyone looked very cosy as we enjoyed the first fundraiser day from FOGGS!

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1764971149219?aff=oddtdtcreator