What a cosy and cheerful day it’s been here at Rockliffe! Many of our children embraced the spirit of BBC Children in Need by wearing their pyjamas or spotty attire to school. Thank you so much for your incredible support and generous donations. We’ll share the total amount raised in next week’s newsletter—stay tuned! During our final assembly this week, we reflected on the importance of supporting charities and the many ways we can make a difference, whether through donations or by raising awareness. Jamie shared a thoughtful observation: “We are showing cooperation because people in our community might need the support from Children in Need. By working together to raise money and awareness, we are also showing teamwork.” Thank you for helping us show that, together, we can make a meaningful impact in our community. 

We certainly have ended the week with a bang, as on Thursday we held our annual world cafe celebrations.The children looked wonderful coming into school dressed in their own clothing that linked to their community and identity and it fostered great conversations about culture and community. It was so lovely to welcome you all into the hall to taste the amazing food each class made as well as the food that was so kindly donated by our families. Thank you to all of those who donated and helped support celebrating the diversity of the communities at Rockliffe Manor. 

If we were not busy enough – our rehearsals for the Nativity and Carol Concert have begun and it has been wonderful to hear all the beautiful singing filling up the classrooms, as the children from Nursery up to Year six prepare for the Christmas festivities. The children have been very busy practising the words to their songs and learning their lines for the Christmas performances. We hope that many of you will be able to join us for these celebrations in the coming weeks. These dates have all been shared with you today in our Rockliffe Winter Calendar, more information will be shared shortly regarding these. So for now, please save the dates! 

At Rockliffe Manor, assessment is at the heart of our learning process as it provides our children with the opportunity to demonstrate, celebrate and review their learning over the year. Next week will see the start of our schools summative assessment period which will be over the next 2 weeks. While the results of these assessments will not be shared they will help teachers formulate future teaching and learning. A letter was sent out to families detailing further information so please do take a look for more clarification and If you have any questions or concerns regarding the assessment period or your child's progress please do speak to your child’s class teacher who will be happy to support. 

And just like that, another week of learning, events, trips and experiences has flown by, there is only so much we can capture within the newsletter, so please do look at our Twitter page to see all the other wonderful things that have happened this week and beyond. Your likes, comments and retweets really do make a difference in spreading the joy and celebrating the fantastic achievements of our children and staff. It’s a wonderful way to stay connected and share in the vibrant life of our Rockliffe community.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support and engagement. Have a restful and happy weekend—we look forward to seeing you all next week for more learning, laughter, and festive preparations!

With very best wishes, Mrs Cook and the Rockliffe Manor team