8th November 2024
With the first of our open mornings this week, our Year 6 children shone brightly showing the school to our visitors. It always serves as a wonderful reminder of how amazing our children are and of the fabulous progress they make whilst at Alveston. I have watched these children grow in every way from Reception to Year 6 and I am so proud of their skills and of the parent compliments they generated. A wonderful advert for all the work each and every one of us, including the children themselves, puts in to their development.
I reminded our hope-filled, potential new parents that teamwork makes the dreamwork and how working together we can achieve so much more for our children. We know we couldn't do lots that we do without the kind support, generous time and thoughtful donations from our families directly or indirectly, through the Friends of Alveston's events.
This newsletter is full of calls for support from our community. The support we are seeking is either to allow us to help others in need, or to help the school directly. If you can help with donations for our Harvest Collection or the Shoe Box appeal, we would be so very grateful. If you know anyone who can help support us with wood for Forest School, or to furnish an entire computer suite, we will be eternally grateful. We never take your support and charity for granted and know how lucky we are to have such an fabulous community, who do all they can to help us shine. If you think you can help, please do scroll on for more information.
We send this newsletter filled with hope and wish you a very peaceful weekend.
Anne Clewley
Head Teacher
Stars of the Week!
Reception ~ Harvey
Year 1 ~ Harry
Year 2 ~ Pascale
Year 3 ~ Immy
Year 4 ~ Annabelle
Year 5 ~ Thomas
Year 6 ~ Jack
Congratulations to all of our Stars!
Team Cup Winners
Congratulations to this week's Team Point winners, Avon Blues! Well done to everyone who earned a team point this week.
Happy Diwali!
This week children in Reception have learnt all about the celebration of Diwali. This is a Hindu celebration of light. The children have been exploring this celebration by creating Rangoli patterns with chalk on the ground outside. They have created mehndi patterns on hands as part of the celebration. They learnt all about the story of Rama and Sita. Children acted this out together as a class and enjoyed pretending to be the different characters. In the creative workshop, children made diya lamps out of clay. They experimented with the clay to mould into the shape of a little lamp. The children are now waiting for them to dry so they can then be decorated. This has been a thoroughly enjoyable week with lots of exciting learning!
Finding Their Way
In art this week, the children in Year 2 looked at key features on their route to school and then drew a map. The whole art topic this term is around mapping. We will create maps using different medias and methods.
Etch-a-Sketch
Year 4 have been focusing on sketching this week, considering tone and proportion when copying a still life. They used charcoal and rubbers to create these masterpieces!
Bell Boating Regatta
After their bell boating trip, some of Year 5 were selected to complete in the Primary Schools Regatta on Thursday 24th October! The selected children showed determination, team work and amazing sportsmanship when taking part. They worked incredibly hard and ensured to clap for each team. Their hard work paid off and after a great few heats, they managed to come first in the C final! Each child was given a certificate and we are so proud of them.
Click here to see the children in action!
Forest School
On the last Friday of term, Year 6 finished the afternoon with a BANG! Well, a spark actually! The children had a go at fire striking, alongside having nice toasty cups of hot chocolate. They also used the Forest School orienteering markers for the first time to complete a mathematical inspired circuit and began painting some spooky ghost leaves in preparation for Halloween!
Learning Together Time
This week we welcomed our families into school to join their children for a Bible Stories session. It was wonderful to see so many parents and grandparents in school and so many smiling faces at the end of the day. We really appreciate the support you provide in these sessions as well as being able to show you a little of what learning at Alveston is like. This link will take you to photos from the sessions and a little run down of the learning that took place in each class.
Calling all Computers for 2025
We are extremely lucky to continue to have a fully equipped Computing Suite at Alveston. A room dedicated to teaching computing, programming, keyboard skills and mouse control, as well as our iPads which go out to the classrooms for cross curricular work.
Over 7 years ago, a company was replacing all their computers which were just two years old. They donated sixteen of these computers to Alveston, which enabled us to bring the suite right up to date. Sadly, next year due to Windows 10 and our local authority security system, the computers will no longer be useable.
We know lots of large companies have policies to renew their IT after just a couple of years of use. We would like to ask our community if anyone knows of any companies looking to upgrade in the coming months, to consider donating this equipment to Alveston. It is a huge ask we know, but if you don't ask...!
We have also asked the Friends of Alveston to support us with the required upgrade, but every penny spared through a generous company donation, the more we will have to spend on extras for our children.
Please do speak to Mrs Clewley if you know any company who may be able to help. Thank you!
Celebrating Black History Month: A School-Wide Journey of Learning and Inspiration
In the last week of term, our school came together to honor Black History Month in a meaningful and engaging way. Each class explored the life of a significant individual, discovering the contributions and achievements of remarkable Black figures, from the past to the present day. From Olympians and singers to activists and vicars, the children had the chance to learn how these individuals have shaped our world.
For our final assembly, each child was given a unique opportunity: to select another influential person from Black history who has made a lasting impact. They then joined a different class to hear more about that person’s life and legacy. As each child listened intently, the school fell silent, with every classroom filled with the captivating stories of these inspiring figures.
The energy and enthusiasm were felt throughout the school as children absorbed the powerful stories and lessons of resilience, creativity, and courage. We’re proud to share a glimpse of the incredible work the children created and the profound learning experiences that unfolded in every corner of our school. Take a look here to see some highlights from this unforgettable celebration!
Last Call for Harvest!
Thank you to all those who have donated to our Harvest Festival Collection so far. Please may we remind all our families about this collection. We take all items donated by our families to the Stratford Food Bank.
Our children are always so proud to know they are contributing to our wider community and helping those less fortunate than ourselves. Two of our children will take the donations to the food bank with Mrs Clewley next week and it would be lovely to take a Mini full, as we have done in previous years. We are extending our deadline to Friday 15th November, so if you have anything to donate we would be so very grateful.
Please follow this link for the most wanted items.
Christmas at Alveston
As we start the last half term of 2024, we wanted to share all the lovely activities we have planned to celebrate Christmas ... and we LOVE Christmas at Alveston! Event Information Sheets for all these activities will be sent out together next week.
Christmas Performances
We start with our Christmas performances in week six. Reception, Year 1 and Year 2, Year 3 and Year 4 deliver a Christmas play for their families to enjoy. The performances are for adults only. Those families with younger siblings are very welcome to attend our dress rehearsal, please speak to the school office for more information.
Tuesday 10th December 2024
9.00 Year 1 and Year 2 Performance
10.30 Year 3 and Year 4 Performance
14.00 Reception Performance
Wednesday 11th December 2024
9.00 Reception Performance
10.30 Year 1 and Year 2 Performance
14.00 Year 3 and Year 4 Performance
Christmas Week
Monday 16th December Whole School Theatre Trip - Sleeping Beauty
Wednesday 18th December Christmas Lunch
Thursday 19th December Christingle Service at St James at 2.15 pm
Year 5 and Year 6 will deliver a short Christmas performance.
Friday 20th December Christmas Celebration giving all our children a wonderful Christmas send off!
Crazy Hair Day
We saw some spectacularly wacky hair do's at school on the last day of term - it was brilliant! The children (with expert help from their "glam teams" at home!) were so creative. But it's not just the children that love a crazy hair day. Many of our staff got into the spirit of the day and donned wigs, tied plaits and fashioned cute mini-buns to join in with the fun! (Although we couldn't capture everyone on camera!).
Friends have confirmed that this lovely day raised the school a wonderful £122! This will help to pay for the new recorders for Reception class. Our fundraising days bring such benefits to the school and we are very grateful to the Friends for their hard work and enthusiasm and to our families for their support.
Thank you to everyone that supported this day!
Friends Events - coming soon!
Mark your calendars with these important dates:
Tuesday, 12th November: Odd Socks Day!
Time to dig out those mismatched socks that seem to go missing (where do they disappear to?). We kindly ask for a donation of chocolate or sweets, which will be used for our ever-popular Chocolate/Sweet Tombola at the Christmas Fair!
Thursday, 21st November: Wreath Making Evening!
Kick off the festive season with a fun night of wreath making with Flowers by Cara of Tiddington. Enjoy mulled wine, mince pies, and lots of holiday cheer! Tickets are limited so book now on PTA Events to avoid missing out. Tell your friends and family, too!
Friday, 6th December: Christmas Fair & Bake Off!
More details coming soon, but get ready to dive into the holiday spirit! This festive event will be one to remember.
Forest School Plea!
Mrs McFeely and Mrs Newitt are keen to replace some of the wood around our Forest School. Does anyone have a tree coming down or access to wooden stumps (for seats) or coppiced poles (for shelter building)? Sadly ours are all quite rotten now after many years of use. We have been lucky in the past to acquire these things free of charge and would love it if we can do this again! If anyone knows a tree surgeon or gardener or anyone who could help, please contact us through the office. Huge thanks!
* Shoebox Appeal Reminder *
We hope you have enjoyed filling up your shoeboxes with gifts over the half-term holiday? Please can these be sent into school as soon as possible but no later than Friday 15th November 2024.
If you would like to bring joy to a child this Christmas by sending a gift-filled shoebox, there's still time! Please follow the instructions provided in the Teams4u leaflet that has been sent home with your child. Extra leaflets can be found by the school office and extra labels can be downloaded from the Teams4u webpages: http://teams4u.com
Shoeboxes can be made as a family or with a friend and it doesn’t need to be expensive. Toys grown out of at home (as long as they are clean) or charity shop finds are perfect.
Last year we sent 100 boxes to children in Ukraine. Our personal best was in 2022 when we sent 118 boxes. We hope to send as many as possible, will you help us to achieve our record this year too?! Many thanks for your support with this worthwhile cause.
Support Network Coffee Morning: Child Anxiety
On 26th November at 9.00 am, we will be holding a coffee morning for parents whose children suffer with anxiety. We are hoping this will build a support network in our community, with an opportunity for parents to share, listen, support or just to 'be' with others dealing with similar experiences.
If you would like to join us, please do! There will be coffee, tea and biscuits and Mrs Rogers too!
If you would like to find out more, please speak to Mrs Clewley or Mrs Newitt or email them via parents3002@welearn365.com.
Community Interest
We post all community events and projects on our website under 'Our Community'. For more information about activities open to you, your family and your local community, please do check the pages regularly:
Last but not least, you can also find a list of Stratford Food Bank's "MOST WANTED" items right here. Please do take a look and help to support those in need in our local community.
General Reminders
Parking at Drop-Off and Pick-Up
We are so lucky at Alveston that the Football Club allow all our parents who drive to school to use their car park for drop-off and pick-up. This makes it safer for all our children. Please continue to use the Football Club car park. Please do not park on Knights Lane, Oak Road or any double-yellow lines for pick-up or drop-offs. Please also ensure that you do not stop or park within the zig-zag "Keep Clear" markings. This area is marked to keep the flow of traffic moving and to ensure the safety of all pedestrians.
Sickness and Absence
Please let the school office know each day your child is absent from school by calling 01789 293412, option 1, and leaving a message. You may also email parents3002@welearn365.com. You do not need to contact us daily if your child is sick/vomits. Absences for sickness/vomiting will be recorded 48 hours from the end of the day your child was last sick (i.e. if sick on Sunday, come back on Wednesday; if Tuesday come back on Friday) nor for COVID absences.
Medicines in School
We cannot accept medicines in school without a prescription label and a medical form completed by a parent or carer. Please ask the school office for more information and/or a form via:
Important Dates to Remember
Key dates for the Autumn term are HERE! You can find information relating to term dates here and teacher-led clubs here:
** Please note that our Christingle date has changed to 19th December (as per the email sent on 1st October via the eSchools app). As advanced warning, please note that our Easter service will be on Monday 7th April 2025 at 2.15pm in church.
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Autumn Term (1) |
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HALF-TERM 28th October – 1st November |
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Autumn Term (2) |
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Celebration / Star of the Week Assemblies |
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8/11, 15/11, 22/11, 29/11, 6/12, 13/12 |
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Teacher-Led Clubs – 4 weeks |
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18th November to 13th December |
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5/11 |
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Learning Time Together – Bible Stories (2:30pm) |
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7/11 |
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Open Morning 9:30-11 |
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11/11 |
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Remembrance Service: Y2 & Y6 to visit War Memorial |
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12/11 |
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Odd Socks Day |
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18/11 |
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Open Morning 9:30-11 |
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6/12 |
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FOA Christmas Fayre/ Bake Off & Sale |
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10/12 |
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Christmas Performances KS1 9-10am, KS2 10:30-11:30, Rec 2-3pm |
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11/12 |
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Christmas Performances Rec 9-10am, KS1 10:30-11:30, KS2 2-3pm |
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16/12 |
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Whole School Theatre Trip |
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17/12 |
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Half-Term Cup Assembly |
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18/12 |
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Christmas Lunch |
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19/12 |
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**Christingle 2:15pm |
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20/12 |
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Last day of term. Morning only - school closes at midday. |
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20/12 (pm) |
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INSET Afternoon (children not in school from midday) |
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Christmas Holidays: 23rd December 2024 - 6th January 2025 |
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06/01/25 07/01/25 |
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Teacher Training Day All children return to school on Tuesday 7th January 2025 |
