Haltwhistle Academy Newsletter
Nurture, believe, inspire, achieve
Meet the author: Dr Sheila Kanani, "Can you get rainbows in space?"
Can You Get Rainbows in Space?
Written by: Dr Sheila Kanani
Genre: non-fiction
KS2 had a fun filled author event with astronomer Dr Sheila Kanani, where she shared ideas about some of the weird, wonderful & colourful facts linked to nature. She talked about her love of science and some unusual careers linked to space. She shared ideas linked to a range of scientific phenomena like: Why is blood red? Why are carrots orange? Who invented the lightbulb?Why is the world ‘going green’? Is the sky really blue? What is ultraviolet light?
Dr Kanani shared her knowledge linked to how some animals are able to glow in the dark and how others change their colours to hide from predators. The children were also actively involved during the event when she shared some optical illusions with them.
Exploring materials
This week in Science Year 2 were exploring if materials could change shape. We had to squash, twist, stretch and bend our different materials and lots of fun was had doing this! We found that some materials were able to change shape a lot easier than others and some didn’t change at all!
The Three Bears
Bramble class got a surprise when they came into school on Tuesday. They arrived to their classroom in a terrible mess!! There were chairs knocked over and toys strewn all over the place. We were all very shocked and wondered how this might have happened. The children helped to fix the problem and everyone helped to tidy the classroom before they got on with their busy jobs. Thank you for helping Bramble class!
On Thursday Bramble class received a letter in the post. We read the letter and found out that the mess in our classroom on Tuesday was made by the three Bears. They apologised for making a mess in our classroom and said they thought that they were in Goldilocks house! What a silly mistake to make! The children then decided that they could write letters back to the bears to tell the, they were forgiven and invite them back to school to play nicely.
Busily growing in our polytunnel
This week during our forest school session Bramble class went into the poly tunnel to see how our plants were doing. We decided that our beans needed to be transferred from their small pots into a bigger pot so they can grow larger and get more nutrients from new compost. The children carefully took the plants out of the small pots and put them into a large bucket. We then watered all of our other plants and tidied the poly tunnel before we left.
Which material would be best for a hat to keep us dry?
Year 1 have been investigating their knowledge of materials by testing which material would make the best hat to keep dry. We explored plastic, paper and fabric using cups and pipettes. We then recorded our results in a table and concluded the best hat would be a plastic one.
Bikes and scooters
One of our discussions in assembly this week was 'how we get to school'. We reminded the children that during the summer term, children who are Y4+ and have completed their Bikeability Level 1+ may bring a bike to school if their parents feel they are safe to do so. At the end of school, buses must leave first, then children with bikes are expected to walk their bike to the zebra crossing before cycling home safely.
Other children walking to school with a parent may ride a scooter if their parents feel they are safe to do so and are able to supervise their journey. Please note that priority is given to bikes in the shelter, therefore we ask that scooters are taken home during the school day by parents. Please ensure your child rides their scooter safely, particularly when near other pedestrians.
All children riding a bike or scooter MUST wear a helmet.
Has your child had an eye test?
We are aware that Vision screening due to the pandemic, not all children may have accessed vision screening or an eye test not due to reduced services. It's recommended that every child has an eye test at age 4 or 5, as 'lazy eye' (Amblyopia ) and other issues can be treated most effectively at this age. Around 1 in 4 children nationally need to wear glasses nationally. If your child hasn't accessed a free eye test, please could we ask families to arrange for a test for their child. The nearest opticians are:
Geoff Steven and Son Haltwhistle and Hexham
Specsavers Hexham and Carlisle
Vision Express Carlisle
Coronation Celebrations
Skillsbuilder - building our skills for life
Skills builder at home
Attendance Matters
Every second in school counts, as missing school, whether by being late or taking unnecessary days off, creates more new learning gaps which need to be addressed. The best way you can support your child to recover from the lost school time of recent years is to ensure they are in school and ready to learn every day.
We want every child's attendance to be good or better. This means 96%+
Please check your child's attendance (see our app) against the class and national data. School staff are able to offer support if your child's attendance is of concern.
Please do not take your child out of school during term time as it disrupts your child’s learning and you risk financial penalties. Any term time leave of absence must be applied for more than 2 weeks before the date of leave and can only be authorised by the Headteacher in the case of EXCEPTIONAL circumstances. Please could we urge parents to book holidays during the 13 weeks of annual school holidays which are available each year.
If leave has not been authorised and your child is out of school then you may receive a minimum fine of £60 per child, per parent. If the time out of school makes your child’s attendance drop below 90% then they are known as persistently absent under the governments attendance definitions. This means that you may face prosecution through the courts.
Please help us to help your child catch up by ensuring they are in school and ready to learn every day.
Before and After School club bookings
Please click here to book a place in breakfast club. Please note that bookings must be made at least 48 hours in advance to ensure we have adequate staffing available. Please speak to a member of our office team if you need to make a short notice booking 01434 320467.
Please click here to book a place in after school care. Please note that bookings must be made at least 48 hours in advance to ensure we have adequate staffing available. Please speak to a member of our office team if you need to make a short notice booking 01434 320467.
Calendar of Events - Please scroll to see all dates
If reading this on your phone, please turn your phone sideways to be able to scroll through our planned dates. You can also add our calendar to your own phone calendar to be sure you don't miss a date.
Our Parent Calendar provides LIVE dates several months ahead. This can be accessed on our school website and can be added to your phone calendar to you are always aware of forthcoming events.
School Games Gold
Skills Builder Silver
Reading for Pleasure Award
STEM Ambassador School
Ruth Miskin Award
Our school designated safeguarding leads are Susie Drake, Tony Irvine, Michelle Brewster and Bethan Allsop