Autumn Term Newsletter #2

19th September 2025

Dear Parents and Carers,

It was really encouraging to see so many of you in school for 'Meet the Teacher' on Wednesday. The connection between home and school is so important and it was pleasing to get these new relationships off to a positive start. We value open and honest communication which is why the teachers are always available at the end of the day for quick messages and you can book via the office, if you need longer to discuss any concerns. This week also saw the launch of another new relationship with Watford Football Club. Members of their team will be working with Year 6 covering PSHE and Maths topics throughout the autumn term. We are in a fortunate position in town with so many amazing connections on our doorstep.

Values: This week has seen us focus on ambition as we ensure we are ready to learn. In assembly on Monday, we talked about a boy called George who battled significant physical challenges to achieve his footballing ambition. Our values champions this week were praised for their ambitious approach to learning taking on challenges and helping others to succeed as well. Next week, our value is kindness as we turn our focus towards another of our core values, respect.

Votes for Schools: We explored the question: 'Do you feel proud of living in the UK?' The topic explored British values and the cultural institutions the UK is known for. Year 5 and 6 children also explored the many uses of national flags, including some links to recent news articles.

PTA AGM: The PTA do an incredible job planning and leading events for the children and raising funds to enrich our provision. Their AGM, on Thu 16th Oct at 7pm, is an opportunity to join them and further enhance the learning opportunities for children at Lanchester Primary School. A small amount of your time can have a big impact in school. It would be great to see you at the PTA AGM next month.

Arbor App: A further reminder that you will need access to this app to book parents' evening slots in October. Simply click the link here and click Forgot your password? to set up your account. Getting started with the app can also be found here.

Flu Vaccinations: A letter has been sent to you all today about the flu vaccinations happening in school on Thu 9th Oct. Parents must respond to say if they want their child vaccinated or not. For families in Year 2/3: last year's Y1 put Y2, last year's Y2 put Y3.

When the weather changes, it can be tempting to stay indoors, but time outside is so important for your wellbeing. Grab an umbrella, get a coat on and go explore! Watford has lots of great outdoor spaces for families to enjoy: Cassiobury Park leading into Whippendell Wood, the mini town at the Watford Cycle Hub (my kids love it here!) and Harwoods Adventure Playground are a few suggestions. Have a great weekend!

Best wishes,

Mr. Matt Morey - Headteacher

Upcoming Dates...

Thu 25th Sep - Ryan Crawford Visit

Books purchased here will be signed and handed to you by the author when he visits!

Mon 6th Oct - Harvest Festival Collection

A chance to help those less fortunate as we collect food items to share with the local foodbank.

Thu 9th Oct - Flu Vaccinations

The nursing team will be in school - parents must respond to the letter.

Fri 10th Oct - Y1 Cassiobury Park Trip

The children will be participating in a science workshop at the learning hub

Fri 17th Oct - Y2/3 Stone Age Workshop

Children will be sent back in time to engage in this hands-on workshop

School calendar

Attendance

Attendance has risen to a really positive 96.6% which is great to see. Congratulations to Cusco who claimed top spot with a superb 99.1%! Learning is cumulative and each lesson builds on the last. Excellent attendance is vital for successful learning.

Class Attendance Summary:

1. Cusco 99.1%

2. London 98.7%

3. Rio 97.8%

4. Tokyo 97.7%

5. Rome 97.7%

6. Kingston 97.0%

7. Kampala 96.6%

8. Jakarta 96.4%

9. Cairo 94.7%

10. Colombo 94.6%

11. New York 90.8%

Values Champions

This week has been full of children making excellent choices and working on our school values. The children listed below were recognised in assembly for their outstanding efforts! They were ready to learn, respectful of the environment and their peers and they were resilient and worked hard throughout. Well done, everyone!

Reception:

London - Oona

Year 1:

Rome - Victor

Year 2/3:

Colombo - Elsie

Jakarta - Aiden

Tokyo - Mehdi

Year 4:

Cairo - Eric

Kampala - Avy

Year 5:

Rio - Muhammed J

Cusco - Bhavya

Year 6:

New York - Inaaya

Kingston - Ajri

House Points

Children’s attitude to learning has been recognised through the collection of dojo points, which are then totalled as house points across the school. Every child continues to show their commitment to being Ready, Respectful and Resilient, earning points for their house. Each half term the points are reset and a new competition begins. This week Curie have jumped to the top of the table and lead by 9 points. Congratulations to everyone involved. Every point represents a moment of success this term.

Here’s how the points stand:

1st: Curie with 898 points (+413 points this week)

2nd: Carver with 889 points (+394 points this week)

3rd: Alhazen with 846 points (+387 points this week)

4th: Sharman with 841 points (+348 points this week)

Let’s keep up the great work and continue to support each other as we aim for the top!

Class News

This week in Reception

Reception have had another great week! This week we started our first talk for writing cycle where we looked at the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. The children have enjoyed describing the characters in the story and have had a go as making their own Goldilocks and the bears. We have also started phonics this week where the children have learned the first 4 sounds. They have done a great job at remembering each sound.

This week in Year 1

This week in Geography, Year 1 have been learning how to measure the weather. The children explored different tools, including a thermometer to measure temperature and a rain gauge to record rainfall. They also used a wind sock to discover that the wind was blowing from the south. It has been a fantastic opportunity for the children to become little weather scientists!

This week in Year 2 / 3

This week in English, our Year 2/3 children have been diving into the wonderful world of characterisation. We’ve been exploring how to step into the shoes of different characters and write in roles. The children have been practising using the voices, feelings, and personalities of the characters to bring their writing to life.

This week in Year 4

In English, Year 4 has been exploring descriptive vocabulary to bring characters and settings to life in their writing. In Geography, we've been learning about the water cycle – the children enjoyed creating their own diagrams to show the main processes such as evaporation and precipitation. In Maths, we used a range of concrete resources to help partition four-digit numbers and deepen our understanding of place value. In PE, the children got creative by choreographing their own dance moves and confidently performing them to the class!

This week in Year 5

This week in Science, Year 5 became ancient investigators, exploring how Aristotle helped prove the Earth is a sphere. We recreated his boat-on-the-horizon observation, watching how a ship disappears hull first as it sails away. We then compared it to a boat on a flat surface, which stayed fully visible but appeared smaller with distance. These hands-on investigations showed how simple observations can reveal big ideas—just like Aristotle discovered over 2,000 years ago!

This week in Year 6

This week Year 6 explored writing their own suspense stories. Teachers used this as a chance to see what the children could achieve independently. Over the coming weeks, pupils will be ready to develop the key skills needed to write suspenseful pieces with greater effect.

This week in Staff Meetings

Staff meeting was a shorter session due to 'Meet the Teacher'. We confirmed the allocation of subject leadership and reviewed the expectations for learning environments. Finally, Mrs Tang revisited our learning sequence for writing.

Friends of Lanchester

AGM

We’d love to see you on Thursday 16th October for our AGM. Join us in the Small Hall at 7pm for a glass of wine, vote in our trustees and help us plan our fundraising for the year.

If you would like to take on one of the roles of Chair or Co-Chair, Treasurer and Secretary, please come along. If you’re unable to attend but are interested in taking on a role, please let us know by emailing friendsoflanchester@gmail.com

Christmas cards

It may seem a bit early but it’ll be here before you know it! Children will be designing their own Christmas cards in school and bringing the designs home for you to buy from a range of products like cards, mugs, keyrings.

It was really popular last year and we’re really excited to see the children’s designs this year! The children will hopefully be doing them in the next couple of weeks and you’ll be able to order from October.

Dates for your diary

Thursday 16th October - PTA AGM, 7pm, Small Hall

Friday 24th October - Non-uniform day and bake sale

Saturday 6th December - Christmas Fair

Thanks for your support!

Don’t forget to follow us on

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/friendsoflanchester or Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/friendsoflanchester/ or contact us by email: friendsoflanchester@gmail.com

Thanks for your support!

Friends of Lanchester committee - Tracey Bravo, Lawrence Brown, Louise Brown, Helen Gibson, Chloé Harper and Laura Robson

On Behalf of 'Friends of Lanchester CFS'

Registered Charity 1161580