Claires Court Bulletin
JUNIOR BOYS
Bulletin 10 | Lent Term 2017
Email: dsp@clairescourt.com
Website: http://www.clairescourt.com/news-and-media/bulletins
Location: SL6 3QE for sat nav SL6 4QQ
Phone: 01628 411490
Facebook: facebook.com/clairescourt
Twitter: @clairescourt
FROM THE HEAD'S DESK
For those of you who were lucky enough to attend our music concert on Tuesday evening, I am sure you will agree it was a wonderful event where our Key Stage 2 pupils had the opportunity to express themselves through a variety of different genres of music relating to the theme of ‘Sport’. I must commend the boys for their skill and their attitude - personally, it has been the highlight of my academic year so far. Many thanks to Mr Rowan, our Director of Music for his endless inspiration and to Mrs Stevenson, our new music teacher, who has done a super job with the choir in such a short space of time. My favourite song of the evening was the African themed ‘Mayebu iAfrica’ by Vusi Mahlasela which was sung by all of Year 5 and 6 - an absolute gem. It was also lovely to see our Year 2 and 3 boys take part in a slightly less formal but equally impressive concert on Thursday afternoon where the boys had the chance to perform some lovely songs in front of their parents. It has been a very musical week!
Mrs Vine has been working hard with our Young Writers’ and some of our Year 5 and 6 boys are competing to enter their work into the ISA National Creative Writing Awards. As I have mentioned before, we try to teach a great deal of our English through the medium of Creative Writing as it provides a platform for boys to think critically as well as develop expressive skills, and a wonderful opportunity to develop proofreading of grammar and punctuation….something boys are not always known to excel at!! I hope to give you further news of our Young Writers next week. Also boys in Year 5 will have the opportunity, in English, to produce a piece of writing to be submitted to a more local competition, organised by Maidenhead Rotary Club.
As you will see from our gallery, the sunshine has brought the classroom outside! Many teachers took the opportunity for some practical lessons in the sun. We are very lucky with the varied environment we have on our site, and boys are able to experience a ‘hands on’ approach to learning.
I was extremely proud to hear last Monday about the exploits of our Karate stars at a tournament held at Windsor Boys School. The boys from Claires Court literally stole the show and lots of silverware - do take a look at our pictures in the gallery. Many congratulations go to all the competitors and results can be seen below.
Under 7 Individual Kata ("form") -
1st Place - Moksha Suriarachchi
3rd Place - Jack Cairns
Age 8 Individual Kata ("form") -
1st Place - Aaran Hitschmann
2nd Place - Edward Look
3rd Place - Kida Zhou
Under 8 Group Kata ("form") -
2nd Place - Team "The Japanese Warriors" (Junwen Liew, Moksha Suriarachchi and Aaran Hitschmann)
Age 8 Kumite (Sparring) -
1st Place - Sander Andreasen
2nd Place - Kida Zhou
3rd Place - Aaran Hitschmann
Special Mention -Three 5 yr olds , Adam Cairns, Ethan Cairns and Kanishka Suriarachchi who also competed in the Under 7 Individual Kata category and were awarded Participation Medals - they performed brilliantly for their age.
Last weekend I was lucky enough to be part of the Under 9 Football tour which saw our A and B teams travel down to Bournemouth and take on some of the schools and clubs down on the south coast. The boys had a brilliant time and the staff were very impressed with their attitude and their skill level, especially on the Saturday morning when they played some very tough games on slightly less sleep than they are used to at home! Between them they played 4 games, won 2, drew 1 and lost 1. Our Year 4 Bushcrafters enjoyed their expedition day and are now to be considered as proper ‘Bushman!’ They also played a football tournament on the Saturday morning at school and had a wonderful time.
The kitchen staff have been excited this week as we have bought new tables and chairs for the boys to sit on at lunchtime. They were slightly bigger than I anticipated but we have managed to squeezed them in!
As I write this Year 2 have just returned from the National Archives where they had a brilliant time doing lots of research!! By all accounts, every member of staff who met the group commented on how well behaved they were, how animated, and how polite - well done chaps.
There is a very busy weekend ahead with the Under 8, 9 and 11 boys playing in Football and Rugby Tournaments, along with the small matter of our Easter Egg Hunt!! I hope to see many of you there for the fun and games (and the chocolate!), and we are praying for some nice weather! On the matter of parking for this event, please note that parking will be on the school sports fields (please wear the right sort of shoes for this!) and disabled parking will be at the front of the school (where Kiss and Drop usually takes place). It promises to be lots of fun. On the matter of chocolate, I was delighted to be awarded with a huge cake this morning in assembly by some of the Year 3 boys who had conducted their 3-4-3 charity cake sale on Wednesday. So what prize did I win? First place for the person who ate the most cookies…...I was filled with both pride and embarrassment!!!
Just a reminder that our whole school Workshare is on Thursday next week - please ensure that you have filled in the relevant forms. It is a great chance for you to come and see how hard your son has been working.
Have a great weekend
Justin Spanswick
IMPORTANT NOTES
SUMMER TERM ACTIVITIES
ONLINE BOOKING OPENS MONDAY 20 MARCH
Summer term activities will be open for online registration via the Activities Hub from Monday 20 March until 5pm on Wednesday 29 March (last day of term).
You can preview the activity options online this weekend.
Any pupil travelling home on the 5pm bus must be signed up for an activity, study or pre-prep after school care. Pupils not staying after school should register as “No Activity”, helping us to ensure that our “after-hours” fire lists are correct.
An email with more details will come home early next week. If you have any queries, please email our activities co-ordinator rather than calling the school offices as this will avoid any delay.
NOTES AND TO DO
- We are collecting 'Active Kids' Sainsburys vouchers up to the end of June 2017. Please donate any vouchers you have from your shopping and post them in the box on the fireplace in the entrance hall. Thank you.
- Please return any team photo orders by the end of school on Monday to enable us to have them printed and returned before we break up for the Easter Holidays.
FORTHCOMING DATES
Saturday 18 March - PTA Easter Egg Hunt and Nearly New Uniform Sale
Saturday 18 March - U8 House Football Tournament
Saturday 18 March - U9A & B OPS Football Tournament
Saturday 18 March - U11A Rugby 7's at Caldicott
Tuesday 21 March - Reception and Year 1 cake sale day
Thursday 23 March - Reception - Year 6 Workshare. A letter went home to parents this week to advise them. There are NO ACTIVITIES on this evening, After School Care will take place in the Sports Hall until 5pm.
Friday 24 March - Red Nose Day and Sponsored Walk. Boys may wear their own clothes on Friday on payment of £1. No need to wear uniform to school , however , PE kits will still be required if sport is on the timetable for your son on a Friday.
Monday 27 March - Y2 - Y6 PTA Chess Tournament 2pm - 6pm.
Wednesday 29 March - Term Ends midday but there will be a staggered pickup. More details will follow in due course.
TRIPS
PTA NEWS
EASTER HUNT
We are looking forward to welcoming you all to the Alice in Wonderland Easter Event tomorrow. Trucks full of chocolate have just been delivered. The giant fluffy bunny is waiting to be won and the tea tent is full of tasty treats. Ticket sales have gone well and we can only sell tickets on the gate now although this does not necessarily include food or a chocolate egg as we have already given numbers for catering purposes.
There will also be a Nearly New Uniform sale, so a good chance to stock up on uniform and sports kits ready for the Summer Term. Don't forget to bring in your entries for the Mad Hatters Hat and Bake Off Competitions by 12.30pm ready for judging.
PTA Ball - 13 May 2017
Please remember payments for reserved tables must be made by 24th March to secure your booking. We are currently at our maximum of 400 guests, so tables will be released to those on the waiting list if payment is not made. If you wish to be added to the waiting list please email pta.ccgs@gmail.com
Anna Taylor-West
CCGS PTA Chair
FROM THE SPORTS MASTER
Last weekend I had the pleasure of travelling down to the South Coast on Football Tour with the U9A & B teams. It was a fantastic couple of days and there was some superb football played. You can find a full report here. The pupils who did not go on tour had a wonderful day of Bushcraft activities on Friday and a Football Tournament on Saturday morning.
The U10A team played in the Berkhamsted Football Tournament last weekend. Mr Goddard reports that the boys played fantastically well to reach the quarter-finals of the main competition where they were knocked out by The Beacon School. The boys conducted themselves admirably throughout the day and were a credit to their school.
The U9s had fixtures on Tuesday against The Beacon. They achieved two wins, two draws and one loss. The result of the day goes to the U9E team who won 3-0.
On Wednesday the U10s hosted Berkhamsted in six matches. We achieved three wins, one draw and two losses. It was a great way for the U10s to finish their last home fixture of the term. The U11s travelled to Long Close. The U11A team achieved their biggest win of the season by beating their opposition 6-0.
Today the U10s played Chesham Prep, see next week's Bulletin for a report. Several teams are in action tomorrow, Year 3 play their House Tournament , the U9A & B teams travel to OPS for a Football Tournament and the U11 Rugby 7s play in a festival at Caldicott.
Nick Butterfield
Head of Sport
FROM THE CHESS MASTER
Berkshire Chess
Congratulations to Moksha Suriarachchi who has been selected to play for the Berkshire U11 squad. He is in Chepstow tomorrow for the EPSCA (English Primary Schools Chess Association) County qualifier. Moksha is currently in Year 3 and will be playing against boys in Year 6. Very well done, Moksha!
Lent Term Tournament Monday 27 March 2-6pm
Thank you to the 33 boys who have entered the tournament so far, helping to raise money for our 3 for 3 charities. It is not too late to enter, but entries close Wednesday 22 March.
Delancey Chess
The last round of the Delancey qualifier will be played next week and it is very close at the top of the leader-board. The nearest Megafinal is on Bank Holiday Monday (1 May) in Newbury. For further information, as well as finding any more "Last Chance" Qualifier tournaments, please click on the link below:
Delancey UK Schools Chess Challenge
Notation
Thank you to our PTA for the chess score books they have bought the chess club.
The boys are now being encouraged to record all their games. This is a vital skill in improving play - learning from mistakes whilst reveling in victory!
Richard Hogg
MUSIC AND DRAMA NEWS
Please note that lessons are subject to times/days altering so it is imperative that you check the timetable regularly thus ensuring boys have their music and/or instrument in school on the correct day.
3for3 Charity Fundraising
Here are the dates for the 3 for 3 cake sale days and sponsored event.
Year 2 Monday 27 March
R and Y1 Tuesday 21 March
Whole School 3 for 3 sponsored walk - Friday 24 March
Please be reminded all unlabelled i.e. home made cakes and biscuits being sold for 3 for 3 week will require an allergen label. We have a strict 'No Nut' policy here at Claires Court therefore please do not bring in anything homemade or manufactured which contains nuts or is processed in an environment which has nuts. The labels can be downloaded from our website or you can collect one from the school office.
Year 3 raised £267.11 at breaktime on Wednesday with their cakes and games .
Thank you for your continued support.
RABBITS
HOLIDAY CLUB
SEE HOW MUCH FUN OUR MINI GROUP HAD IN FEBRUARY HALF-TERM
(Nursery & Transition age)
Click here
Spaces still available for all ages for Easter holidays. Book now to avoid disappointment!
Monday 3 – Thursday 13 April 2017 (Weekdays only)
Go to Claires Court website for details