A Note from Our Head
These days our lives can feel increasingly busy and hectic. As a mum to two teenage boys, I know just how frantic life can be at times juggling work commitments with school pick-ups and the boys’ busy schedule of extracurricular activities. It is all too easy to rush from one activity to the next with a head-full of that to do list and not really notice what is going on around you. Harvest is therefore a welcome reminder to us all to pause, look around us and appreciate all that we have.
If I am ever feeling overwhelmed during my day, I visit Pre-Prep as seeing the world through the eyes of a young child is a great thing to do. Despite their boundless energy, they never fail to stop and notice the most wonderful things – that funny shaped twig, the insect scurrying through the leaves or that puddle just waiting for the splash of welly boots! In my assembly this week, I challenged the children to take the time to pause and notice the wonder of creation; it's a challenge I believe we would all benefit from as the world, despite its challenges, is certainly an amazing place.
It was lovely this morning to come together as a whole school to celebrate Harvest. I was so incredibly proud of all the children, but especially the senior pupils who played a key part in leading this service and Pre-Prep for their wonderful singing of ‘Big Red Combine Harvester’ and ‘Good Things’; it was simply joyous. I wanted to thank you for all your generous donations of food which we will be giving to the Corfe Mullen Food Bank. I know that these items will be greatly appreciated by local families and will make a huge difference.
I also wanted to thank you for giving so generously to our Coffee Morning raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support. I am delighted to share that we raised just under £1000 for this fantastic cause. A huge thank you to Chef Mike and his catering team for all the delicious cakes.
Next week, we will be holding our Open Day on Thursday 10th October. It will be a great opportunity to showcase all that I believe makes Castle Court so special. Do continue to spread the word if you know any families who may be interested in attending.
Wishing you a lovely weekend which I hope includes plenty of time to pause and wonder too.
Mrs Katie Johnson Head
Head’s Awards are given out every Friday morning in assembly to children nominated by their class teacher or form tutor; the reasons for these are many and varied, including outstanding effort, overcoming difficulty, or helping a friend in need.
Huge congratulations this week go to:
RECB
P1D P1Z P2A P2G 3D 3M 4D
This week, we all enjoyed the Harvest Festival. The Head’s Awards will be back next week!
Harvest Festival & Macmillan Coffee Morning
It was lovely this morning to come together as a whole school for our annual Harvest service and Macmillan Coffee Morning. Thank you to all those parents and grandparents who were able to attend: there was certainly a wonderful atmosphere. A huge thank you also to our guest speaker, Rob from St Mary’s in Longfleet, who gave us an inspirational Harvest message.
Character & Values Education (CAVE)
This week in CAVE, Year 5 enjoyed a trip to Poole Food Bank ahead of Harvest Festival. They learnt about how a Food Bank works and where our donations will go.
CAVE is built on the triple well-being strands of self-care, people care and Earth care; this visit looked at people care.
What better way to spend a Friday evening than in our gorgeous grounds?
Meanwhile, Year 6 were busy working towards a Lego competition to design a play space of the future. We can’t say too much, but the design is progressing well and shows great consideration for the needs of others.
The lucky attendees of Castle Club learnt how to whittle sticks this week; a great skill and vital for self-care when camping!
Parent Notices Save the Dates
Vision Screening
All parents in Reception will have received an email about the upcoming vision screening to be held in school on Thursday 10th October. Registration closes on Tuesday 8th October. If you have any questions, please contact Nurse Caroline in the medical centre.
Mobile Phones and Smart Watches
Please can we kindly remind parents that mobile phones and smart watches (those with camera and video recording capabilities) are not to be brought into school nor used at any time on the school minibuses to and from the site. ProBooks are also not to be used on the buses due to the potential for damage to occur to these devices. If there is a need for your child to bring a mobile phone into school, please email the school office (office@castlecourt.com) outlining the reasons for this. Permission will then be sought from the school's safeguarding lead. Thank you for your support with this.
Mr Mills is running Karate & Self-Defence classes for children and adults aged 7 and up (Y3+) on Saturday mornings 9am–10:20am at Castle Court School Sports Hall. For more information or to book a free try-out session, please contact him on bdemills@yahoo.co.uk or bmills@castlecourt.com.
Bushido Wado-Ryu Karate Club | https://bushidokarate. martialartsuk.org | Find him on Facebook/Instagram/YouTube using: @dorsetkarate
Senior Dance Clubs
Years 5 and 6 is on Monday lunch time, and Years 7 and 8 is on Friday lunch time (in the Studio). All boys and girls are welcome – bring your friends and embrace creativity and collaboration at Castle Court! We are working on a routine to perform at the Performing Arts Evening. Girls in Years 7 and 8 may find wearing sports skort/shorts useful for floor work. If you have any questions, please email Miss Tomblin.
Recycling of Tracksuits, Puddle Suits and Wellies
If you have any unwanted old-style tracksuits, puddle suits or wellies at home, please do drop them into the school office. We are hoping to build a collection of spares in the outdoor classroom to enable all children to take part, even if they have forgotten kit, or to facilitate a quick change!
Use of Phones in Pre-Prep
Football Clinic
Paul Manning will be running a 2-day Football camp during October half-term, on Tuesday 29 and Wednesday 30.
Bonfire Party
Please save the date for our Bonfire Party, to be held on Friday 8 November from 6pm on the MW Field. Further details will be sent out to all families closer to the time but you may now book tickets using this link.
Biathlon Events
The local upcoming qualifiers for the regionals are 10November at Leweston and 24November at Millfield. If your child wishes to attend, please sign up and pay a membership using this link.
Performing Arts Presentation
This term's Performing Arts Presentation will be on Monday 2December at 4.30 pm in the school hall. The presentation will involve pupils from Years 5 to 8 and will include performances by both senior dance groups as well as performances by pupils who take private dance and drama lessons. You will be contacted by email nearer the time to confirm that your child will be performing. In the meantime, please save the date!
When dropping off children to Pre-Prep, please note that the use of phones is not permitted. This includes when walking from the gate to the playground, and in the classrooms. Thank you.
Wreath-Making Workshop
A wreath-making workshop for parents will be held on Thursday 5th December at 8.45am. Foliage will be provided from the grounds, alongside mince pies and coffee! To book, please use this link HERE.
Christmas Pottery Painting
This will take place on Thursday 28 November from 8.45am – come along, do some painting and nibble on mince pies with coffee! Book here.
Academic and Pastoral News
Please find below details of upcoming scholarship deadlines and the corresponding assessment dates.
Deadline Assessment
Sport – 27th January 2025
Music – 28/29th January 2025
Bryanston 22 November
Art/IT/DT – 29th January 2025
Performing Arts – 30th January 2025
All Rounder – 30th January 2025
Academic – 31st January 2025
Academic – 10/11th February 2025
Art – 12th February 2025
Design – 6th February 2025
Canford 1 December
Drama – 5th February 2025
Music – 27/28th January 2025
Sport (boys) – 31st January 2025
Sport (girls) – 3rd February 2025
Clayesmore 22 November Week beginning 27th January 2025
We are proud of our pastoral care here; this morning, boys and girls of different ages spent time together in different activities, chatting and building friendships.
What a great way to start the day!
Thursday marked National Poetry Day, and pupils in Year 8 were tasked with creating their own poem on the theme of ‘prejudice’, following their work on ‘A Boy in The Striped Pyjamas’. Elodie’s work below is particularly powerful.
Year 8 Geography scholars have enjoyed the addition of jelly babies to our PSBinspired curriculum!
The PSB approach to the curriculum is fundamental in giving us the freedom to bring concepts to life in this practical, hands-on way.
This approach even extends to our Badgers class, who were able to conduct a survey to find out which of a series of smells was their favourite, then visited their equine neighbours to see if their opinion was the same!
We are delighted to be hosting two PSB Meetings next week - for History and for English - giving our teachers a chance to develop their practice as well as make connections with other colleagues around the country.
On Thursday 17 October, Years 1 and 2 are doing a Sponsored Walk to raise money for Waggy Tails, Listening Ear and Will Does. These charities have been chosen and debated by Year 8 children in their Leadership roles.
Parents are invited to the Old Library for 2pm for teas and coffees, before the walk starts at 2:30pm. Next week, the Year 8 children will visit Years 1 and 2 to talk about the different charities and the Pre-Prep children will be able to vote on how the money raised is divided.
School Calendar
We have some exciting events lined up over the course of the next two weeks, including trips and Sports fixtures.
Next week, beginning Monday, 7 October:
Day Date Time Details
Mon 7 Oct
8:30 Reception Trip to Moors Valley
14:15 Canford School Geography Quiz (Year 7&8)
Tues 8 Oct PSB English Meeting (at Castle Court)
14:00 Girls’ Hockey & Boys’ Football vs Sunninghill - Years 3&4
Weds 9 Oct 14:00 Girls’ Hockey & Boys’ Football vs Sunninghill - Years 5-8
Thurs 10 Oct Open Day
Fri 11 Oct
8:15 Parent Prayer Meeting in the Boardroom
8:30 U11a Girls Hockey IAPS - Wellington
The following week, beginning Monday, 14 October:
Mon 14 Oct 11:00 Year 8 Model UN with Canford/Bourne
Tues 15 Oct 14:00 Girls’ Hockey & Boys’ Football vs Sherborne - Years 3&4
Weds 16 Oct
Thurs 17 Oct
8:30 U13a Girls’ Hockey IAPS - Taunton
14:00 Girls’ Hockey & Boys’ Football vs Sherborne - Years 5-8
8:35 Class Rep Meeting with Mrs Johnson in Family Lounge
14:00 Year 1 & 2 Sponsored Walk with Parents
Fri 18 Oct 16:30 Year 6 to 8 Music Festival (Hall)
Parents’ Evenings
We are delighted to confirm the dates and times of Parents’ Evenings. Further details will follow in due course, but all the evenings detailed will take place in the Hall.
Nursery Monday 21st October 4:30– 6pm
Reception Tuesday 22nd October 4:40– 6:30pm
Year 1 Tuesday 22nd October 4:40– 7pm
Year 2 Tuesday 22nd October 4:40– 7:30pm
Years 3 and 4
Monday 21st October 4:45– 7:30pm
Year 5 Thursday 21st November 4:45– 7:30pm
Year 6
Year 7
Year 8
Tuesday 12th November 4:45– 7:30pm
Monday 25th November 4:45– 7:30pm
Monday 9th December 4:45– 7:30pm
Points of Contact
Class Teachers / Form Tutors:
Reception Mrs Brewer | Mrs Speer
Year 1 Mrs Dobson | Mrs Zachariades
Year 2 Mr Antell | Mrs Glenn
Your first point of contact for day to day questions and enquiries related to your child(ren) is their tutor or class teacher.
Year 3 Mrs Baugniet | Mr Bambrey
Year 4 Dr Lippiatt/Mrs Deards | Mr Laidler
Year 5 Mr Mills/Mrs Vivian | Mrs Miller/Miss Sinclair-Smith
Year 6 Mrs Rule/Mrs Major | Mr Fermor-Dunman/Mrs Hoey
Year 7 Mr Jordan/Mrs Harmer | Mrs Lea/Mr Cheadle
Year 8 Mr Phillips/Ms Thompson | Mrs Gallop/Mr Smith
Section Leaders:
Pre-Prep Mr Antell
Years 3& 4 Mr Laidler
Years 5&6 Mrs Munns
Years 7&8 Ms Thompson
Heads of Department:
English Ms Thompson
Maths Mrs Miller
Science Mrs Gallop
History Mrs Rule
CAVE Mrs Hoey
Music Mr Smith
Geography Mrs Hoey
To report an absence, please call the School Office on 01202 694438, or send us an email.
Sport Mr Fermor-Dunman
DT Mr Phillips
Art Miss Sinclair-Smith
Nursery:
Badger Cubs Mrs Genge | Mrs Tomblin
Badgers Mrs Bartlett | Mrs Wilson
The Nursery Manager is Miss Hixson
Leadership Team:
Mr Dunsford Assistant Head (Pastoral)
Mr Edmond Assistant Head (Operations)
Mrs Hoey Head of CAVE
Mrs Munns Director of Teaching and Learning
Mr Norris Bursar
Mrs Robson Admissions and Marketing
If you wish to make an appointment to see Mrs Johnson, please email hmsec@castlecourt.com
