Haltwhistle Academy Newsletter

Autumnal changes in nursery

Autumn is the perfect time of year for our nursery children to notice the seasonal changes as we move into the colder months. At Forest School this week we looked closely at all the different trees we have growing around our school. Our mission was to find and collect as many different leaves as we could. We had to compare the size of the leaves, the colour of the leaves and the shape of the leaves. We took turns carrying the baskets to put our leaves in.  The baskets got quite heavy as we collected more and more leaves. While out on our walk we found some very muddy puddles which we had great fun jumping in, luckily we had our wellies and waterproof suits on. When we got back to Nursery we could not believe how many different types of leaves we had collected. 

Nursery bookshop visit

Our nursery children visited the book fair today. We spent time together looking at and sharing the lovely selection of books.

Evolution in Y6 with Zoolab

Year 5 and 6 have had a brilliant afternoon working with Rob from Zoolab to find out about the work of Charles Darwin during his time aboard HMS Beagle - 4 years, 9 months and 5 days to be exact. The children had the opportunity to hold some of the different species of animals that he encountered while exploring. They asked some very thoughtful questions linked to how these animals have adapted and evolved over time. Well done Year 5 and 6 - you were certainly braver than the grown-ups at times! 

KS1 Clay work

KS1 have been continuing their work looking at buildings in their art lessons. They have observed buildings in our community and then turned them into brilliantly bonkers creations, inspired by the art and architecture of Austrian artist  Friedensreich Hundertwasser. This week the children have moved on to creating their amazing ideas with clay. They first rolled slabs and then used a variety of tools to add texture and interest to their buildings.

Free book awards

BBC 500 words competition

Y2 Science

Year 2 have been learning about why we have night and day. We began by making sure we understood what was meant by day and night then we created our own models of the earth and the sun. We really enjoyed watching how as our 'earth' rotated - it meant we moved from night to day. 

Diwali

Year 2 have been learning about the Hindu festival Diwali in our RE lessons. Last week we learnt about Diwali and listened to the story of Rama and Sita. This week we made our very own diya lamps which are lit during Diwali. First we made the correct shapeby pinching out the dough to make a pinch-pot, and then we decorated them. We were very impressed by their focus and creativity. 

Family Hub Courses for November

Social media reminder

From time to time we receive requests to support with children's social media use at home.  Please note the following age restrictions for social media use.  We recommend parents are included in any chat groups that include children so that you are able to supervise and monitor the content of your child's communication with their friends.  We recommend parents check Common Sense Media before installing a new app for their child.  This website allows parents to enter the age of their child and filter to find appropriate material.  https://www.commonsensemedia.org/

Their Ultimate Guide to Parental Controls explains the measures you can take as a parent to keep your child safe online.  

Skillsbuilder - building our skills for life

Skills builder at home

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.    In line with our attendance policy, we are required to refer all qualifying absences due to holidays during term time to the Education Welfare Officer at Northumberland County Council.  

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

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 school designated safeguarding leads are Susie Drake, Bethan Allsop, Vicki Ridley, Robyn Brockman, Shirley Phillips

Please speak to a member of this team if you are concerned about the safety of a child.