We're well into our final half term of the year with the Summer holidays fast approaching. For some children, the excitement of a well deserved break will be building up and for some, nervousness at transitioning to a new class or new school will be at the back of their minds. Rest assured, we will as always, try to ensure that the transition is as smooth and well supported as possible. Sometimes, children (and parents!) may need a little extra reassurance or support in this and we're only a phone call or email away and will do our best to support in this.

The weeks ahead promise a great deal of fun and enjoyment for everyone across school. Sports days, class assemblies, leavers assemblies, residential trips, visits and visitors to name but a few are on the horizon. Further down this newsletter we've added in some of the key dates to put in your diary.

As well as looking ahead, I always enjoy looking back at the previous half term and all of the successes and excitement we've enjoyed.

Each class began their new topics and have enjoyed some fabulous learning. Year 1/2 made some fantastic bread but returned back from break time to find their room full of smoke after Miss Clarkson 'left the oven on!' (This was the Wow moment to begin their Great Fire of London topic with the smoke machine used to great effect- no ovens were left on!) As part of their topic, Year 1/2 also made their own houses from 1666 which were then set on fire to create the Great Fire (under the watchful gaze of Mr Froud!)

Year 3/4 have also made use of the Forest school area and spent the afternoon cooking up some delicious Viking bread and porridge! They were also amazed to receive personal replies to their questions from Leif Eriksson who they are learning about in class.

Year 6 had a slightly trickier time, studying hard for and then completing their SAT's. The children were fantastic all week and gave it their all which is all we can ask for. You may have seen the news reports regarding the tests and how many believe they were the trickiest set of papers for many years. Despite this, the class showed tremendous resilience to tackle them head on. Year 5/6 have a residential to look forward to in the coming weeks to let out some pent up energy!

Early Years have also had a fantastic half term and thoroughly enjoyed watching the eggs that Mrs Williams brought in hatch into beautiful baby chicks! They also spent some time planting seeds and watering them which are beginning to grow into strong and healthy plants now!

Across school, we were also delighted to partner up with Ashington Rugby club and the Newcastle Eagles to offer rugby and basketball sessions both in enrichment time and also as after school clubs. This supplemented our continued partnership with Bike4Health who have been amazed by the progress in our Year 1/2 cyclists! Year 3/4 have begun to develop our forest school area too and Year 1/2 are busy tidying up their garden area and planting lots which they can't wait to see grow!

We also had some brilliant visits from some members of the Wessex Archaeology team who shared some of their 'finds' with KS2 along with some hands on practical activities including a VR experience.

All children across school have also accessed some workshops on road safety and online safety which were well received and thought provoking.

A parents online safety workshop was also offered which will be offered once again in the new academic year. We hope that more of you can attend it as it offers some real practical guidance on how to keep your loved ones safer online.

Over the next few weeks, we also hope to begin using our fantastic VR headsets to support learning. We'll look to book in a parents session with these too for you all to experience and enjoy yourselves!

We hope that you enjoy the upcoming term as much as we plan to!

Thanks for your continued support.

Mr Smith

We had some fabulous entries with the winning names being.....

Coal and Digger!

It's always sad to see treasured staff moving on to pastures new, and this year, we have had to say farewell to a number of faces.

This half term will be Miss Harrison, Mrs Myerscough and Miss Menzies' final weeks here at Choppington. It goes without saying that we will be sad to see them leave but they move on with our best wishes and heartfelt thanks for their contributions since arriving.

Whilst it is sad, it is also exciting to be welcoming new faces to the team who we are sure will pick up the baton and continue the good work from this year. We are delighted to announce that Mr Donaghy will be joining us in Year 5/6 and also as Assistant Head and Miss Clark will be joining us in Year 3/4.

July will also see the return of a familiar face, Miss Railton, who will be returning after her maternity leave and teaching in Year 1/2 alongside Mrs Lumsden.

I'm sure you will all join us in wishing all of our departing staff the very best and also welcome the new additions to the school with warmth.

Monday - Basketball with Newcastle Eagles (Year 5/6)

Tuesday - Multi-skills with NUFC (Year 1/2)

Wednesday - Drama with AllStar productions (Y1-6)

Given that some staff will be unfamiliar to both yourselves and your children, we will facilitate a meet and greet at the end of the school day where you will be most welcome to come in and say hello.

School Gateway is our communication app available on Android, iOS and the web. It’ll work on phones tablets, laptops and even smart watches.

When you log into the app, each of the services we provide will appear in a list for you to choose from.

We plan to use the app to make it easier to communicate, send messages/reminders, pay for trips and meals, sign up to clubs and much more.

An email will be sent next week with set up details. If you'd prefer a letter with instructions, please call in to the office.

The app is free to download and will become our primary means of communication so please do download and sign up.

The Co-op Local Community Fund supports projects across the UK that members care about. We have been successful in applying to be included as one of their worthwhile causes. You can help us by downloading the Co-op app and selecting Choppington PTFA as a local cause. That means, for every £1 spent in store, 2p is donated to us. Whilst this might seem a small amount, it soon adds up!

Click on this link to become a member.

If your child is feeling unwell, we once again listed below the guidelines we follow:

Sickness and Diarrhoea - If your child has been sick or suffered from diarrhoea, they must be absent for 48 hours since the last case.

COVID - Children must isolate for 3 days after a positive lateral flow test or until they begin to test negative. Lateral flow tests are available from most pharmacies and chemists.

Coughs and colds - It's fine to send your child to school with a minor cough or common cold. But if they have a fever, keep them off school until the fever goes.

Encourage your child to throw away any used tissues and to wash their hands regularly.

High temperature

If your child has a high temperature, keep them off school until it goes away.

Chickenpox

If your child has chickenpox, keep them off school until all the spots have crusted over.

This is usually about 5 days after the spots first appeared.

Cold sores

There's no need to keep your child off school if they have a cold sore.

Encourage them not to touch the blister or kiss anyone while they have the cold sore, or to share things like cups and towels.

Conjunctivitis

You don't need to keep your child away from school if they have conjunctivitis.

Do get advice from your pharmacist. Encourage your child not to rub their eyes and to wash their hands regularly.

If you have any queries or questions, you can visit the Government website or speak to a member of the office staff who will assist you.

Useful links for online safety.

NSPCC

The NSPCC has this page with tools and advice for how to keep families safe.

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/

Thinkuknow for parents and carers

CEOP’s Thinkuknow Parents and Carers site features advice to help keep children safe online, and to deal with any problems that crop up.

https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/

Internet Matters

Internet Matters is an industry backed website with internet safety resources for parents.

https://www.internetmatters.org/

Parent Zone

Parent Zone has lots of articles, videos and advice for parents looking to support their children online.

https://parentzone.org.uk/

YoungMinds

The YoungMinds parents helpline is for anyone who is concerned about the wellbeing of a child or young person.

https://www.youngminds.org.uk/parent/parents-helpline-and-webchat

Click CEOP

If you have been a victim of online abuse or you're worried about somebody else, you can report it to CEOP securely

https://www.ceop.police.uk/Safety-Centre/

Childline

If you are being bullied, or you are not ready to make a report to CEOP, you can talk to Childline anonymously online or on the phone - No worry is too big or too small.

https://www.childline.org.uk/

Be Internet Awesome

The Be Internet Awesome Family Guide gives families the tools and resources to learn about online safety and citizenship at home.

https://beinternetawesome.withgoogle.com/en_us/

Safer Internet Centre

UK Safer Internet Centre is a partnership of three leading charities with a mission to make the internet a better place for children and young people.

https://saferinternet.org.uk/

We also ask you to be mindful of the language used on the playground. We have lots of children on the playgrounds both in the morning and at pick up times.