30th September

Dear all,

Autumn is truly here! I had a great walk along the Capital Ring to Highgate this Saturday and it was delightful to see the leaves turning and to marvel at the spread of fallen conkers. Dodging the rain was less fun but it is all part of our lovely seasonal shift. I hope you all had a chance to get out and about this weekend.

Last week at school saw myriad trips and exciting activities for the children. Our commitment to enriching and developing the children's curriculum was showcased through the Countryside Live visit for years two and five, the start of the English Speakers Union debate club in year five and the exciting opportunity to visit the British Museum for year three.

This Monday saw the start of our weekly visits to Dalston library which will allow all children from year one to six to visit the library across the term. This is perfectly timed as next week is National Libraries Week. School will be running a series of events across the week to celebrate both our local libraries and our own school library. We are looking for volunteers to come and share stories with the children in our school library next week so if you would like to come in and share a favourite story with the children then please contact me via the school office.

Before we get to National Libraries Week however, Shacklewell is going to be celebrating this week's National Poetry Day, which is on Thursday 3rd October. Children will be invited to share poetry with their classmates, hear poems from their teachers and to create entries in their reading albums, celebrating their favourite poems.

Congratulations are in order this week as we can proudly confirm that all of the school councillors have been elected. This prestigious role in school is one of great responsibility and the children are eager to get started. This year their key aims include continuing the legacy of the sustainability project, ensuring that our school playground is exciting and developing strong links between the parent council and school council.

If you have any questions about the bulletin or anything else, do not hesitate to contact me at school.

Have a great week,

Rory

We have been so busy this week enriching our curriculum with experiences both in and out of the classroom. All year groups are now studying a history topic within their curriculum lessons, which will be our whole-school focus for the rest of the half term.

Year 3 visited the British Museum on Friday to investigate artefacts from the Stone Age and Iron Age collections. The children used their historical inquiry skills to discover what the objects were used for and found that the tools and weapons of the time became increasingly sophisticated and effective. It was an excellent opportunity for the children to see first hand the objects they will be studying in their history lessons this term, and help to deepen their understanding of the period.

Year 2 will be visiting Sutton House this week to support their history topic, People of the Past. They will be finding out about significant historical figures related to Black History Month.

There are a wealth of museums and historical places of interest in Hackney and wider London. You can support your child in history by visiting museums and galleries that link to their learning. You could visit the library and borrow non-fiction texts related to the topic and encourage them to create something from their maker mat.

Speaking to your child about changes over time is really beneficial, for example how their childhood differs from their grandparents or how the local area has changed in your living memory. This discussion will give your child a clearer understanding of chronology and how things change and develop over time.