Haltwhistle Academy Newsletter

We're back in and what a relief to have all our children back in the main building again!   After our first day back on Tuesday when some year groups finally moved into their new classroom for the academic year, life has started to feel a little more normal again.  Mrs Hawkin is so pleased to be able to have all her art resources on hand and to be back in the art / DT studio with it's huge windows and great light, Mrs Round's class are just through the door to the rest of Year 2, allowing the classes to work more closely together, Miss Thompson and the Y5/6 team are getting used to stairs again and are delighted to be reunited with a photocopier!  

I'd like to thank again our staff team who have handled the disruption and classroom moves with great spirit and a determination to make things as normal as possible for the children.  We've been well looked after by the construction teams who have worked so hard to reinstate the classrooms to ensure they are clean, safe and ready for the children.  Works will continue, mostly at weekends and holidays and we expect all work to be completed in January.     

Nursery - Learning about bonfire night

This week our nursery children have been learning about the history behind Guy Fawkes and why we celebrate bonfire night each year. We also talked about how we could keep safe if we were going to watch a bonfire and fireworks display.  In the Early Years garden, we built our own bonfire. We had to work together to move the big logs. Then, we pretended to cook our apples around the fire, making sure we didn't get too close. Later in the week, we created our own firework pictures using icing sugar, watery paint and a tiny sprinkling of glitter.

Y3/4 Line drawings

Class BA had an amazing art lesson this week! We have started a new project based around cave paintings, to link to our class text Stig of the Dump. The first stage was to work in our sketchbooks to make line drawings of British wildlife. Not only were our outcomes fantastic, but the behaviour for learning was exemplary. Well done class BA - worthy first winners of our new art/DT class of the week award.  

Y1 map work skills

Bramble Class Forest School

In our forest school session this week Bramble class collected lots of different sized and shaped leaves. We then discussed which trees they may be from,  before making a leaf caterpillar using pipe cleaners to push the leaves onto. It was a bit tricky for little hands but the children showed great perseverance. 

Reception - Bonfire night

Bramble class have been learning all about why and how we celebrate bonfire night. We also discussed being safe around a fire and how to safely hold sparklers. 

Musical Truth

Musical Truth - Years 5 and 6 joined a virtual author visit today to explore a musical journey through the history of modern black Britain by author and teacher Jeffrey Boakye. His book, Musical Truth, is a history book you can dance to which is structured around a playlist of 28 songs; each song tracks key moments in black history and the emotional impact of both the songs and the artists who performed them.  

Year 2 Beebots

This week year 2 have been using their problem solving skills when using the Beebots in class.  They have discussed how to make the Beebot move forwards and backwards, as well as left and right.  Working together they have programmed the Beebot to move around the classroom tables. It was great fun! 

Skills builder at home

Attendance Matters

As we continue to recover from the disruption to children’s education caused by the pandemic, it is now more important than ever that children’s attendance is good or better.  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

Our school designated safeguarding leads are Susie Drake, Tony Irvine, Michelle Brewster and Bethan Alsopp