October/November 2023 Newsletter
Dear Parents/Carers, Welcome to the Autumnal edition of the Chadwell Newsletter. It has been another eventful period with exciting happenings throughout the school. The official re-opening of the Key Stage One building took place in October. We were pleased that that councillors, governors, Longley (contractors) and school staff were present for this memorable event. Longley, who were contracted to complete the works also organised the event—thank you. Thank you to all concerned with this project for your patience, support and understanding. As well as the grand opening, we continue to provide learning opportunities outside the classroom. This term has seen many exciting educational visits taking place that enrich the pupils’ learning as well as broadening their knowledge and understanding of the world. Year Three were able to handle artefacts from the Stone Age when they visited Valence House; Year Four had an amazing trip to Colchester Castle which is a typical Norman Castle, built in the second half of the eleventh century with part of the original walls still intact; despite a charged workload, Year Six were able to attend a Junior Citizens Workshop where they learnt about life skills in preparation for their secondary school transition; all the pupils learnt about Remembrance Day and what the poppy symbolises; Miss Parvu organised speakers to take a Diwali assembly across the school and Mrs Peugniez arranged for Redbridge Brass Ensemble to perform to the key stage two classes. In addition to these fantastic visits and events, Year Three are also working on an environmental project with Longley – growing herbs and vegetables in our little garden. Mr Paul received a letter from King Charles III that acknowledged the congratulation letters that the pupils had sent for his coronation. We look forward to welcoming you all at the upcoming Christmas festivities – see the calendar for important dates. . Kiind regards,
Mr Walker
Dates to Remember: Chadwell Christmas Fair Date: Friday 8th December 2023 Time: 4pm-6pm Venue: Chadwell Primary School, Main Hall Christmas Dinner Day and Christmas Jumper Day Thursday 7th December 2023 School closes on Wednesday 20th December 2023 at 1.30pm School re-opens on Thursday 4th January 2024 at 8.50am
After the King’s Coronation celebrations last year, Mr. Paul and Andreae class (now Cousteau Class) decided to write and send letters of congratulations to the King and the Queen Consort along with other pieces of work they had completed for the celebrations. This month, they were lucky enough to receive a reply from Buckingham Palace and The King and Queen Consort. Mr Paul shared the news with the class and they were very happy and pleased with the reply.
The official re-opening of the Key Stage One building took place in October. Local dignitaries were present: Mr Jas Atwal (Local Councillor), Colin Stewart (Operational Director of Children and Families), John Hickman (Chair of Chadwell Governing Body), representatives from Longley, who were contracted to complete the works and who also organised the event (thank you). We were also fortunate that governors were present for this occasion. I would like to personally thank all the staff for their commitment and hard work in ensuring that all of the classrooms were ready for the children to learn in, as soon as we returned after the holidays – thank you all for your patience, support and understanding.
In September, Longley came to Chadwell Primary School to help the Year 3 pupils begin to plant vegetables in the new flower beds behind the Key Stage One building. Longley helped each class plant two types of vegetables, while giving an introduction to gardening and discussing how to care for the plants. Each class was looking forward to beginning planting in their own flower bed and taking the responsibility of caring for the vegetables. This session links to our Science as well as Design and Technology units which we will explore in the Spring term, which examines parts of a flower and how certain vegetables and herbs grow. Students were very excited about the hands-on learning opportunity, and are always eager to water and care for their plants and see their growth.
Year 3 went on an educational visit to Valence house. This educational day turns the clock back four and a half thousand years to look at life during the time of the Dagenham Idol (pictured). The children learnt about the challenges the prehistoric residents of Dagenham faced and how their technology and beliefs adapted to meet them. Object Handling: The children looked at the tools that prehistoric people used to build fires, shelter, keep warm and feed themselves. We learnt how stone gave way to bronze, skins to textiles and hunting to farming. Craft Session: In this session, the children learnt about the importance of pottery, how it is made and make their own Bronze-Age pots. Museum Trail: The children went on a trail around the museum galleries focusing on the Dagenham Idol. They also explored a replica of a Bronze Age child’s grave. We learnt the role that archaeology and archaeologists play in finding out about the past.
On Tuesday 31st October 2023 the school council had a trip to Parliament. We took the train to Westminster Station. When we arrived at Parliament, we met a tour guide, and he gave us a pass to wear. We had to go through a security check, like at the airport, to get in. We were all given radio headsets so that when our guide spoke to us, we could hear him clearly. It was fun wearing these. We learnt that there is a House of Commons and a House of Lords. We couldn’t visit the House of Lords as they were getting it ready for the King to open Parliament on 7th November. We went into the House of Commons, but we weren’t allowed to sit on the seats. The guide told us about the ‘I’ and ‘No’ rooms where the members of parliament go when they are voting. They are counted as they walk through a door, they go one side to vote no and the other side to vote yes. He also told us about Guy Fawkes and his plot to kill the King and blow up the Houses of Parliament. They still check now that there is no gunpower in Parliament before the King visits. The guide told us that the king has no power, it’s the Houses of Parliament that makes all the rules and decisions and they tell the King what to do. There are several parties in Parliament. They are groups of people who agree with an idea, and they work together. Some of the parties are Conservative, labour and the Independents. There are 650 members of parliament. There were lots of statues of past kings and queens and past prime ministers. We also saw a golden plaque on floor that showed us that was where the Queen laid in rest before her funeral. There were other plaques as well. You are allowed to go and watch the member of parliament when they are doing a debate. There is a viewing gallery for the public to sit in. We would like to thank Mrs Ubhi (School Governor) and Riya Ubhi (former student of Chadwell Primary School) for attending the trip with us and supporting us.
As part of our history topic, Year 4 travelled back to Roman times on Wednesday 18th October with a visit to Colchester Castle. In small groups they explored the wide range of Roman artefacts in the museum galleries and enjoyed the interactive displays.
The children took a journey back to 2000 years ago, as they descended into the Roman vaults under the castle. Once under the castle, they took part in an interactive story tour exploring the Roman invasion and Boudica’s revolt.
Adeena (Turing) – “The story time was so fun because we got to go under the castle from 2000 years ago. If people are thinking that Boudica died from poisoning herself, then you’re wrong because the story teller told us that this was just a Roman tale.” The children took on the role of archaeologists. They constructed a large model of a Roman Villa and an Iron Age Round House, as well as handling and identifying archaeologists’ finds. They had such great fun doing this!
Zayaan (Turing) – “The trip was so fun and it was so interesting to learn new things. We learnt about Romans at school and then when we got to Colchester Castle, we learnt how to build a round house and a Roman Villa. We had to work in two teams which was so fun.” Mia-Rose (Hawking) – ‘The trip was a good educational visit. My favourite part was when we were building the Roman house. On one half, we built the villa and the other we built the roundhouse. I really enjoyed this because it was a lot of fun to see the finished product where everyone was proud of themselves.’ Mariah (Franklin) – ‘It was amazing. I had an awesome time. I really wished I could stay there. It was a long journey. I just wished Colchester was much further so I could sleep. People kept on saying Romans, Romans, Romans. When we arrived, there were poppies. It was very loud at first. We watched activity videos. Guess what we did next? We did the activities. We didn't get to finish the house. We moved on to paperwork. We looked at the structures. The houses were amazing, we felt the fur. We played with the blocks, also costumes. After that, we had lunch. After lunch, we went to the prison. It showed some videos. Then we did more paperwork. After we went back to school. Everyone had gone home and we were the only ones left in Chadwell Primary School zzzzz.’
During Autumn 1, Year 2 learnt about a significant historical event – The Great Fire of London. They learnt that when the fire took place (1666) there wasn’t a fire service so people had to volunteer to help. To help them fight fires, they used:
leather buckets
They were used to collect water from the River Thames. They were no good as they were too small.
Ilyas, Bell class
water squirts They used water squirts to soak up water from the River Thames, to put out the fire. The water ran out very quickly.
Arsh, Dyson class
fire hooks
Emily in Jackson
Luckily, after The Great Fire of London, a fire brigade was created
This was used in the past to pull down houses to make gaps between houses so that the fire couldn’t spread.
On the 31st of October, the Year 2 children learnt about how fire fighters fight fires in the present day and had the opportunity to see inside a fire engine.
On Wednesday 8th November, Year 6 had a great time visiting the Ilford Army Centre to take part in the Junior Citizens workshop. The purpose of this visit was to prepare the children to be junior citizens and how to stay safe whilst in public. The children got to experience 6 different interactive workshops. These included how to stay safe on public transport and what to do in case of an emergency. How to stay safe online and set appropriate boundaries. What to do if there is a fire in your house. What to and not to flush down the toilet and finally what to do if someone tries to take your phone in public.
On Wednesday the 15th November, the Brass Quartet from the Redbridge Music Service came in to perform a short concert to years 3,4,5 & 6. They performed a variety of pieces for the children including a Bass Dance and The Simpsons. They then introduced the children more closely to the instruments. There was a chance for questions at the end. We are very lucky in Redbridge to have such a valuable resource as the Redbridge Music service who offer us performance opportunities.
Earlier this month, we had the pleasure to celebrate the festival of Diwali with our students. With this occasion we organised a special RE assembly to learn about the significance of Diwali! We were lucky to have some fantastic visitors from the Ambassadors of Faith and Beliefs (AFaB) scheme, who absolutely rocked the assembly with their confidence and excitement. For those who don't know, the AFaB students are sixth form students from secondary schools in Redbridge. They have been specially trained to deliver presentations and Q&A sessions to primary school students like ours. During the assembly, these amazing AFaB students led an engaging session to help us understand and appreciate the significance of Diwali, which is a major Hindu festival celebrated by millions of people worldwide. They captivated our pupils with a vibrant retelling of the Diwali story, presented artefacts like Diva lamps, and gave us insights into the traditions and customs observed during this auspicious festival.
This year, the children of Chadwell created a poppy wreath per class and also had written a class poem to attach to the wreath. Mr Gadhvi had organised for all the children to participate in a live assembly online on Friday 10th November, which ended with a two-minute silence.
Friday 8th Decemb
ber 2023
Our school uniform is very important to us. We feel it helps us to develop our community identity and adds to the sense of pride belonging to Chadwell Primary School. Below we have explained what our “Perfect School Uniform” Plain white or light blue
Summer: Blue/White gingham dress Any religious head coverings should conform to uniform colours (i.e.: blue, grey and black). Items of clothing worn in school should be clearly marked with your child’s name.
Navy sweatshirt with / without the school logo
Any hair grips or hair accessories should be plain, simple and in the school colours. Plain navy or grey school skirt or Footwear Jewellery
For safety reasons children
Jewellery that has a religious symbol is allowed to be worn; however it must be tucked away at all times. Children with ear piercings are only allowed to wear small
Below we have explained what our “Perfect P.E Uniform consists of and have provided some visual examples.
Perfect P.E Uniform PE bag Black/Navy shorts
Children should always Plain white or blue T-shirt have a change of clothing Plimsolls or trainers at school for PE and outdoor games. (Trainers must be different to those which may be worn as footwear with school uniform)
Please remember that if your child is absent, you must cancel ordered lunches before 9.00am of that morning.
LetsLocalise Chadwell Primary School have partnered with LetsLocalise.
Why LetsLocalise? LetsLocalise provides a solution to the challenge of financial cuts in schools. The platform builds and fosters long-term, meaningful partnerships between members of the community and their local schools. Schools can share details of upcoming events, fundraising drives, selling items on behalf of businesses and requests for volunteers or work experience placements. That way, individuals and companies can see how and where they can offer their help, time and money in ways that are productive, meaningful and enjoyable. The platform is FREE for schools and their parent groups. You can find out more about LetsLocalise at www.letslocalise.co.uk. We would like to ask you to: 1) Sign up with LetsLocalise and follow our school https:// www.letslocalise.co.uk/school/chadwell-primary-school/sch104736/ campaigns/ 2) Did you attend our school yourself? Please identify yourself as an alumnus in the profile.
3) Lookout for our fun online events and join in. 4) Offer support in ways that are convenient for you. 5) Share this platform with friends and family. This is a great way for grandparents and others to feel connected, and to be able to support your children in their education. 6) Share with local businesses and also your employers. Businesses have budgets to support local communities that is often not utilised. Let’s work together and show them how they can benefit our school, our children and their future. We will post all events on our LetsLocalise page,
Absences Immediately Before or After a School Holiday If your child is absent before or after a school holiday you must submit relevant evidence of this. This may be medical evidence if your child is unwell, or evidence of flight delays or circumstances beyond your control. Without the evidence your child/ children’s absence will not be authorised and may incur a Fixed Penalty Notice. Holidays in Term Time Taking holidays in term time will affect your child’s schooling as much as any other absence and we expect parents to help us by not taking children away on holiday in school time. Remember that any savings you think you may make by taking a holiday in school time are outweighed by the cost to your child’s education. There is no automatic entitlement in law to time off in school time to go on holiday. Pupils will not be allowed leave of absence in term time for holidays or any other activities. Parents who go abroad without requesting leave could be fined using the O code; six days of O codes within a 12 week period could generate a penalty notice.
Sanctions for an Unauthorised Leave of Absence without Permission A Fixed Penalty Notice will be issued for unauthorised leave of absence taken without permission after the first day of absence. It will be issued by the Education Welfare Service following discussions with the Headteacher. The school adopts the per parent per child policy; this would apply to couples living together. Therefore, for a family with 3 children, each parent would receive a fixed penalty fine for each child. This means that a family with 3 children would receive in total 6 fixed penalty fines. This will incur a fine of £60.00 per child if paid within 21 days of receipt of the notice, rising to £120.00 per child if not paid within 28 days. The prosecution is for the offence of failing to secure attendance at school and not for non-payment of the fine. · Prosecutions are brought under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996. · There is no statutory right of appeal against the issuing of a Penalty Notice. · Arrangements for payment will be detailed on the penalty notice. It should be noted that Chadwell Primary intends to implement this policy strictly as we believe that short absences severely hamper a child’s education.