Oldcastle Weekly Newsletter

Welcome to week 12 of the school year.

STEM Week

Wow! What a week we have had. Its safe to say that every pupil and staff member thoroughly enjoyed our STEM Week. We are so grateful to the visitors we have had in school this week bringing to life much of the learning the children have completed. As a school, we thanked our STEM lead teacher - Miss James - in assembly for all the hard she has put in to organising and making the week such a success. The theme of the week was based around 'Houses of the World'.

The week culminated in a fantastic display throughout the corridors in school - we called the display 'The Streets of Oldcastle' and this allowed all year groups to show off what they had been doing in class. All children were able to visit the display and it was lovely to hear the children chattering about the amazing houses they had seen! PLease read on to find out how to view videos of our displays.

In assembly, every class told us a fantastic fact they had learnt during STEM week- here's a taster -

• Nursery read the book 'Three Little Pigs' and tried out a lot of experiments to find out the best material to make houses. They discovered that bricks are the best material. Lots of fun was had building dens and learning about wildflower bombs!

• Reception made stick and clay houses and these looked amazing. Reception teachers are so proud of the children as they went on their first trip this week. All the children were so well behaved and followed all the rules from the grown ups.

• Year 1 learnt about South American houses. The children told us in assembly that the houses are made of clay and straw and are decorated with patterns which tell a story. They are painted with the use of chicken feathers!

• Year 2 informed us that they had learnt about solar energy and had been making electric circuits!! Very impressive. This year group learnt about houses in Chile built by fishermen. These houses are built on sticks and the children did a fantastic job of recreating them for their display.

• Year 3 found that teamwork was needed when building houses!! They learnt about Dog Trott houses and did lots of experiments to test how waterproof the houses were.

• Year 4 built houses out of foil as this is the material that the children found was most likely to float. The children worked in groups and cooperated well to create their houses. They found out that the weight of the material used in houses is important. On Friday afternoon the children tested the houses to see if they floated! And they did!

• Year 5 took part in lots of group work this week when learning about eco friendly houses. Year 5 also found about about solar panels and how they work to make electricity.

• Year 6 were fortunate to visit Cenin Renewables in Parc Stormy and saw just how big the wind turbines are up close! The children told us in assembly that they found out that the wind turbines move by magnets and the wind makes them go faster!

Please view our video displays on our website. STEM VIDEO's

Below is a selection of photos showing what the children have been doing this week.

Super Ambassador Project

Our junior leaders recently took part in the Super Ambassador Project with the Children's Commissioner for Wales.

They had to complete a mission to share how our school supports well-being. We love the video - well done junior leaders!

We hope you enjoy

Super Ambassador Video

Reward Scheme

Next week, our house captains will be starting the huge task of counting all the tokens in our coin collector! The collection box in main reception are very full this term and we can't wait to find out the position for each house colour. Junior leaders have decided on the the rewards for our children and we look forward to sharing these with parents and children next week.

Carols on the Yard

We are also pleased to be able to offer parents the opportunity to join us and their children for Carols on the Yard. In previous years we have arranged this lovely event and we hope that parents will be able to join us in the run up to the Christmas period. The PTA have kindly offered to provide refreshments for sale at the events.

• Nursery and Reception - Monday 6th December 2pm to 3pm

• Years 1 and 2 - Wednesday 8th December 5.30pm to 6.30pm

• Years 3 and 4 - Thursday 9th December 5.30pm to 6.30pm

• Years 5 and 6 - Tuesday 7th December 6pm to 7pm

To keep everyone safe we will be operating strict Covid guidelines for the Carols on the Yard performances. We ask that only 2 adults per child attend. If siblings are pupils of Oldcastle they may also attend, but they must be supervised by parents and stay in the family group at all times. Families must socially distance and all adults will be required to wear a mask. We thank you for your help and support with this. Children may wear Christmas jumpers if they wish.

We will also be asking parents to wear a face mask.

The PTA will be selling hot drinks and mince pies, and these will be available from the canteen. The PTA will be asking for donations for drinks, sweets and cakes during the concert to avoid the handling of cash.

Years 1 to 6 - Please can you and the children arrive at school no earlier than 20 minutes before the concert starts. We will have to be strict with the timings to ensure that we are adhering to our risk assessment. With all the latest information related to Covid in the news we fully understand if you would prefer your child not to take part in the concert. Entrance to the concerts will be through the main gate at South Street. We will be closing the gate from St Marie Street as this entrance is very dark during the evenings.

We are really looking forward to having the opportunity to come together as a community next week, and we have everything crossed that the weather will stay dry!

Christmas Cards and Decorations

Do you want to spread some festive cheer? Do you want to spread some happiness within our community?

We would like the children of Oldcastle to create homemade Christmas cards and Christmas tree decorations to gift to the residents of Heathfields Care Home in Merthyr Mawr Road.

Your decorations should be small enough to hang on a Christmas tree and you could include well wishes and information about yourself inside the cards - maybe a joke or a funny story!

On the 16th December the School Choir will be singing carols for the residents in the garden of the care home and sharing cards and decorations for their Christmas tree will make their day!

Please hand Christmas cards and decorations in to the office. The deadline for receiving cards and decorations will be 14th December.

We can’t wait to see your creations and we’re sure the residents will love them too!

Christmas Jumper Day - Friday 10th December

The junior leaders would like to invite children to wear Christmas jumpers on Friday 10th December to support the Save the Children charity. As we have recently supported the 'Children in Need' fundraiser we will not be expecting children and parents to donate money via the school. If you would like to donate to the charity you may do so by visiting the charities websites. Save the Children Charity

Family Engagement - Mrs Lisa Diehl

Last week, myself and Miss Hodgson visited the East Hub at Brynteg School to find out more about the services that they provide and to look at ways we can work together to better support our families. Please see the posters below for information on the Nurture and NVR groups that will be run in Oldcastle early in the new year. We will also be holding two coffee mornings in the new year where you can come along and find out more details. In the meantime, please feel free to contact myself or Miss Hodgson at the school or catch us in the yard.

Schools Cross Country

Well done to the children who attended the schools cross country competition last Saturday. The weather wasn't great so Mrs Evans was pleased to see some children turn up!

School Savings Club - Message from Bridgend School Savings

As we approach Christmas, I wanted to say how proud I am of all the schools in Bridgend that run hugely successful savings clubs. It’s been lovely to see so many children saving their pennies and pounds and to meet all our new members. I also want to thank all the staff, children and families that support the savings clubs each week.

Our last Savings Club of the year will be Wednesday 8^th December. With that in mind, we would like to offer the chance for children to withdraw from their savings. Your child does not have to withdraw any of their savings as we will be welcoming back all our savings clubs in January but the easiest way to withdraw is by arranging an online Bank Transfer. This can be done at any time, including over the school holidays and normally takes no longer than 48hrs.

To make a withdrawal the trustee/guardian can follow this link to complete an online request: https://bridgendschoolsavings.com/download-forms/school-withdrawal-form/. If you are unsure about any details, including Balance, please enter “Don’t Know”. To withdraw the full balance, please enter “Full”.

For any queries or more information please visit our website www.bridgendschoolsavings.com. On the website you will find an extensive FAQ section, a ‘contact us’ page and all our forms, available to fill in online.

Mr Damian Faulkner

If you would prefer to download a withdrawal form please check our website for more information. School Savings.

Christmas Wreath Making Workshop

We understand that the Christmas Wreath making workshop was a huge success - thank you to everyone that supported the event.

Christmas Elf Day

The PTA are arranging an Elf Party Day for our children on Monday 13th December - we are so excited to learn about the event and we hope that Father Christmas will put in an appearance too!! Children will visit our very own grotto land and we hear that the PTA have arranged for it to snow on this day! We also hear that some naughty elves will be visiting and playing tricks on our staff and children and they will have to solve clues throughout the day. We can't wait to see what the PTA have planned on the 13th - we know from the Mad Hatters Tea Party last July that they like to go to town on the decorations when they plan an event!!

Ty Cerrig Christmas Tree Farm

If you happen to be buying a Christmas Tree from Ty Cerrig please mention Oldcastle Primary School when you pay as the PTA will receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Christmas Cards

Please can we ask that children do not bring in Christmas cards for their friends this year. Due to Covid restrictions we are unable to accept Christmas cards and distribute to the rest of the class. Thank you for your support.

Collection arrangements

Please can we ask all parents and siblings to stand clear of the exit doorways when collecting children at the end of the day. This will ensure that class teachers are able to dismiss the children to parents / grandparents.

Parking Issues

We have received complaints off local residents regarding parking by parents / grandparents at pick up and drop off times. Please can we ask that you respect local residents and access arrangements to their properties. Thank you for your support.

Safeguarding

In the event that you have a concern regarding a child please follow this procedure:

• During school hours please contact Mrs Ceri Littlewood, safeguarding lead at Oldcastle Primary School.

• Out of school hours please contact the out of hours Emergency Duty Team Tel No 01443849944

School dinner payment

Please note that payment for school dinners should be made via www.bridgend.gov.uk. The payment should be made 24 hours in advance.

Staying Safe Online

The website government 'Hwb' website has some very useful information for parents regarding keeping your child safe online. Please take a look at the information detailed here.

Diary Dates

Monday 6th December - Nursery Carols on the Yard 2pm

Tuesday 7th December - Years 5 and 6 Carols on the Yard 6pm

Wednesday 8th December - Years 1 and 2 Carols on the Yard 5.30pm

Thursday 9th December - Years 3 and 4 Carols on the Yard 5.30pm

Monday 13th December - Elf Party Day

Tuesday 14th December - Nursery and Reception Elf Christmas Performance

Wednesday 15th December - Years 1 to 6 Trip to the Pantomime

Friday 17th December - Last day of term

Tuesday 4th January - Back to school

Nut Free School

We have a number of children in school with a nut allergy and we ask parents to be mindful of this when sending in a packed lunch or snack. We strive to be a nut free and we hope you can support us in this.

P.E. Days

Children should wear P.E. kit to school on the day their class has a P.E. session.

• Nursery - Friday

• Reception - Wednesday

• Year 1 - Monday

• Year 2 - Thursday

• Year 3 - Monday

• Year 4 - Wednesday

• Year 5 - Tuesday

• Year 6 - Thursday

Private Hire - Exercise Class

We have recently hired out our main hall to an exercise class and they have asked us to share the details with our parents in case anyone is interested.

Circuit Class - £5 per class, payable weekly.

No need for equipment everything supplied. Exercises adapted to everyone’s ability.

6pm – 7pm.

Please bring water/drink and towel.

Text/whats App/messenger to book place - Liz Roberts 07875171351 / Tony Poole 07590766084

Facebook page:- Tony Poole – Personal Trainer

At Oldcastle, we are proud of each other and ourselves. We nurture all of our community so that we grow as confident, responsible and happy people. Oldcastle school is more than just learning.

• We try hard for each other

• We act responsibly

• We treat people how we’d like to be treated

• We work as a team

• We trust and respect each other

• We listen and learn together

• We share knowledge and experience

Together we make the difference

Together we shape innovative experiences

More information on our values and visions can be found on our website. Visions and Values

COVID 19 Rules from 1st November

You will be aware that Welsh Government guidance changed last week regarding household self isolation. The details released by Welsh Government are as follows:

Fully vaccinated and children between the ages of 5 to 17 years

• If someone in your household has symptoms or has tested positive for coronavirus and you are fully vaccinated or aged 5 to 17 you should self-isolate and take a PCR test.

• If your test is negative you can stop isolating.

Children under 5 years

• Children aged under 5 do not have to self-isolate or take a test if they have been in contact with a positive case in their household or otherwise.

• Children aged 0 to 4 years old no longer need to take a PCR test, even if they have COVID-19 symptoms. This is unless a doctor advises there is a need for it. Also they can get tested if parents feel that a PCR test is necessary and in the best interests of the child.

• If a child has a PCR test and the test result is positive then the child will need to self-isolate for 10 days.

• For those children under 5 who have COVID-19 symptoms but are not tested for the virus they do not need to complete any formal period of self-isolation. However, we advise that those children should be kept home from school or childcare until they are well enough to return. A simple cough is not a reason to keep them home

Not fully vaccinated

• If someone in your household has tested positive and you are not fully vaccinated you should self-isolate for 10 days. You should take a PCR test on day 2 and day 8. You should self-isolate for 10 days even if your tests are negative.

If the above applies to you or your child please let us know by email ask@oldcastleprimary.co.uk or by telephoning the school or 01656 815790.

Covid Symptoms

• high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)

• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)

• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you've noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

If your child does have a PCR please let us now via our ask@oldcastleprimary.co.uk email address or by telephoning 01656 815790.