www.arundelchurchofenglandschool.org.uk, 01903 883149, reception@arundel.w-sussex.sch.uk

Dear Parents and Guardians Some of the highlights of last week were the marvellous cake sale we had and our ‘Ace Has Got Talent’. We also had headteachers visit us from other schools who were impressed with our children’s outstanding behaviour.

"We have to be united. I accept every different opinion but the modern world produces little groups of opinion. The little communities need to live together for the common strength, for our school, for the good of Arundel C of E Primary School."

Anonymous

For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.

Audrey Hepburn

Volume 1, Issue 1

www.arundelchurchofenglandschool.org.uk, 01903 883149, reception@arundel.w-sussex.sch.uk

Volume 1, Issue 11

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PLEASE, PLEASE EXPLORE

Some help - PURPLE MASH CAN HELP LEARNING AT HOME including times tables:

Step 1 – click on below

https://www.purplemash.com/sch/arundel-bn18

Step 2 – Type in username and password. The username and password are the year group your child is in. e.g. Year5

Username : Year5

Password : Year5

Photos

Oscar and his fabulous times tables

As a school we are trying really hard to encourage the children to work on their times tables and we feel it is definitely an area in which you can help with at home. As I have shared in previous emails there are lots of times tables games online which you can access at home.

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Future Dates

30th November Non-school uniform day for tombola prizes for the Christmas fair

1st December FACES Christmas Fair

2nd December ACE Choir sing at Arundel by Candlelight

9th December ACE Choir sing at Morrisons

11th–13th December

Key Stage 1 and EYFS Nativity Play

14th December Key Stage 2 Traditional Carol Concert at St Nicholas’ Church

16th December ACE Choir at Arundel Cathedral

20th December School Christmas Lunch (remember to order via Chartwells by 1st December)

21st December–3rd January

Christmas Holidays

4th January Back to school

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What is Christmas about?

Lovely Jasmine in Year 1 drew this beautiful image to ensure we draw our attention to the real meaning of Christmas. It's that time of year again. December is nearly here and with it all the joys of Christmas. But what is the real meaning of Christmas? Is it the gifts under the tree, the lights in the windows, the cards in the mail, turkey dinners with family and friends, snow in the garden, stockings hanging in the living room, and shouts of "Merry Christmas" to those who pass us in the streets? Is this really Christmas?

For many people, Christmas is a time of sorrow. They don't have the extra money to buy presents for their children, family, and friends. Many are saddened at Christmas time when they think of their loved ones who will not be able to come home for various reasons. Turkey dinners may be only a wish and not a reality for some.

Yet, Christmas can be a season of great joy. It is a time of God showing His great love for us. It can be a time of healing and renewed strength. You see, Christmas is when we celebrate the birth of the Christ child. God sent His Son, Jesus, into the world to be born. His birth brought great joy to the world. Shepherds, wise men, and angels all shared in the excitement of knowing about this great event. They knew this was no ordinary baby. The prophets had told of His coming hundreds of years before. The star stopped over Bethlehem just to mark the way for those who were looking for this special child.

Well done to Jasmine for drawing such a delightful picture.

Kind and considerate Jenson

It is always nice when children think about others. Jenson in Year 2 has been really doing this and last week he made a lovely cake to help us all remember the power of the poppy. Great work, Jenson, and thank you for thinking of others.

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Children in Need at ACE, including ACE Has Got Talent and a cake sale!

Last Friday was such a joyous day at ACE and I am certain every single member of our school community had some fun. The school hall was full of laughter and tears of joy. Thank you to all the families who were able to support the day and it was lovely to see all the children in their wonderful Pudsey accessories.

You can see lots of photos of all the wonderful acts we had at school. Well done to all those children who got to the final and all those who took part in the auditions too. Thank you to our wonderful judges - the legend that is Mr Hawke, the grandmaster, and Lee “Simon Cowell” (from Freedom Leisure), Father David, Ian Buss and for Mrs Ferrier for organising. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of the parents and governors who were able to attend the event and a special thank you must go to the staff who performed their wonderful dance to the Bee Gees classic ‘Staying Alive’! I was so impressed by all the teachers and staff who turned up even if they weren’t meant to be in on that day. We really do have a wonderful staff who are totally committed to your children and the fact that every single member who was there took part says a lot about how lucky we are to have such dedicated people.

I would also like to thank Mrs Jones and Mrs Ferrier and all our lovely parents who made cakes, which we sold last Friday. We were totally sold out and thank you to all those who supported this important cause.

Thank you also to Mr Buss and his team who helped ensure we sold a few items to raise money for such a fabulous cause. We raised an incredible £471!

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Well done to Annie, Finley and Ella

Again I would like reiterate how proud I was of these children and all the other children who represented us on Remembrance Sunday. Annie wrote this beautiful poem for Remembrance Sunday and wanted to share it with everyone. “What a touching message” stated the Littlehampton Gazette.

Pals

Harry, George, Leonard and me,

We were all great friends.

We lived on the same road and we went to the same school.

When the war began, we all signed up,

Seemed right somehow, all four of us,

Fighting together, doing our bit for our country.

It was tough at first,

But we had fun too.

Harry, George, Leonard and me helped each other get by

We sang songs, out of tune but always enjoyed.

I can recall George singing to Leonard

Songs about girls until Leonard thumped him.

Laughter was the way we kept our spirits up

And all we had to look forward to

Was dirt, blood, bandages and bullets.

I have no idea why I lived when my pals didn’t.

Guess I was one of the lucky ones,

Kept my head down and the bullets passed me by.

I’ve lived in my house all my life,

And each and every year I stand with my wife on Remembrance Day

And say a prayer for my pals.

Feeling sad when I feel their names

Etched in stone.

At what cost were their lives lost?

By Annie Kingshott

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Troy and his fabulous letter and Edward and his Travel Agency

It is lovely when as teachers we find books that can truly inspire children. Troy in Year 6 has been inspired by a number of books this term and he has loved the opportunity to study and read the sequel to the Watertower. As a result of his love for this book he wrote a persuasive letter to the author asking him to think about writing a possible further book in the series. Great work, Troy, and I hope you get a reply from the author.

Edward, like Troy, also had the chance to present his ideas to one of our governors, Mrs Howlett, who is an ex-headteacher, and she was very impressed with his story-setting travel brochure. I love some of the sentences he has included such as “Many people try to avoid Preston”. Well done, Edward, for your hard work and for producing such high quality pieces of writing on a regular basis.

Open morning presentations

Ella, Fleur and Finley have prepared some very good speeches ready for the Open Mornings (which will have taken place by the time you have read this!). I hope the children do as well as I know that they can. I am confident that they will do brilliantly!

Jasmine in Year 1 and her beautiful butterfly

I think it is important as a school community that when we focus on the basics of reading, writing and mathematics we must never forget the importance of the creativity arts including art. It is lovely to see Jasmine doing this.

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James in Year 1 and his lovely writing

I feel we all have a joint responsibility to encourage our children to work both at home and at school. Well done to James who has completed some lovely writing at home.

A little poem for a friend

An ACE Butterfly

I was sitting on the bench in the park one day, And saw an ACE butterfly coming my way. I opened my hand, and to my surprise, the butterfly landed; consumed in cries. I asked the little one, "What is wrong?" and then the little one began to sing me a song, "The sky is dark and my days are grey, and there's nobody here to lift the clouds away." I sat there quietly for a moment or two and then I had decided what to do. I looked at that butterfly that was consumed in cries, and told her promptly, "I tell no lies. Your skies are dark and days are grey because you have no love to light your way." The butterfly finally stopped her crying, opened her wings and went off flying, I sat on that bench until it was dark, and then I finally left the park. day after day had long since passed, I thought I'd seen that butterfly for the last, and then on a nice and sunny day, I heard a little voice say to me, "Hey." I turned around, and to my surprise, there she was with her 3 little butterflies. I stared in awe as she spoke to me. She said to me, "You've set me free, you've lifted the dark from the skies, and now I see no grey through my eyes, I want to thank you for all you've done, and to let you know that you're our number 1." And after that she flew away, and I haven't seen her since that day, but now that I know her troubles are done, I continue walk in the warm summer sun.

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Nate and his act of kindness

Wikipedia says that a random act of kindness is: “...a selfless act performed by a person or persons wishing to either assist or cheer up an individual... There will generally be no reason other than to make people smile, or be happier.” Perhaps the use of the word random is misleading, and that it would be more appropriate if we used the word spontaneous or impulsive instead. Spontaneity means we are acting on an impulse, in the moment, freely; particularly, that we are moved to do something for someone without any thought of receiving something in return. Such behaviour is surely the ground of a healthy and joyful society, where we happily give of ourselves to help another and such an act is happily received. It was lovely to see Nate show such love towards his other classes by donating advent calendars to every class in the school. Thank you for this, Nate. It is so lovely to see a part of our vision statement ‘love of neighbour’ in action!

Florence shows an act of kindness too

If you are reading this you may be seeing a theme present throughout it… Acts of kindness are very important if you consider that some aspects of today’s society promotes self-importance. Lovely Florence in Rainbow Class, who had a fabulous party a few weekends ago, decided she would also think about others and make sure she gave a piece of cake to others too. Lovely ACE values, Florence. Thank you.

Great work from Jack S

Jack S produced some lovely writing last week and even made a larger booklet to show it. Great work Jack and thank you for working so hard on developing your writing in class.

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Callum, Jenson, Clara, Lars, Jude and James produce some lovely work and share it with a governor

Mrs Hine, a governor (and fortunately for our school another former headteacher) was in school this week to help further develop some of the aspects of school life. She was very lucky to meet a number of children from Year 1, Dove Class, and talked about some of the lovely work which they had completed.

Callum – produced a lovely piece of work on love. It was really interesting to see what he felt love actually meant. I wonder what love means to you… What is true love and how do you know you really love someone?

Jenson – drew a lovely lighthouse and spoke to me about the importance of us all needing a lighthouse in our lives to help us go in the right direction. I wonder who your lighthouse is…

Clara – as you can see from her work, like Callum above, Clara has been looking at the idea of love and it was lovely to see her produce some really nice writing about the things she loves.

Jude, James and Lars all produced some beautiful writing on a range of themes and it is so fabulous to see these boys produce such a lot of writing still relatively early on in the year.

Annie and her lovely biscuits

Annie in Rainbow Class is such a delightful and caring young lady. This was demonstrated in such a thoughtful way when she brought in some biscuits for two members of staff last week. The biscuits were lovely…. Thank you, Annie, for being so thoughtful and caring towards others.

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Maths Champions in Year 2

These boys have been previously mentioned in the HT blog and I think we often see success as something instant rather than over a long period. I believe that we need to encourage children to understand that to be awesome you need to maintain a high level of performance over a period of time. These two boys show this and I would like to say well done to Thomas and Max for their hard work.

Logan, Ellie and Isabel

As a school we try and encourage children to develop their ideas through such strategies as story maps and mind maps. It is so nice seeing this in action and these lovely ACE children have produced some lovely work about their book Owl Babies. Great work, guys!

Thank you for those who brought in cakes, including Jack S in Dove Class

I would like to thank all those lovely people who brought in cakes last Friday and as you can see from the photo of Jack those cakes were lovely. In fact the cakes were so nice we were sold out by the end of the day!

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Thank you to a visitor

I just wanted to share with you a lovely letter we received from one of the visitors we had a few weeks ago who came into our school to talk about Remembrance and take part in our service.

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The Brief History of ACE A child and a parent asked me if I could include some history about ACE so here we go…. In 1269,The Priory of St Nicholas granted Master William of Wedon – in return for various gifts – board and lodging and a room in the priory in which he might conduct a school. In the 15th century, the college which succeeded the priory paid for choristers to be taught both singing and grammar; a schoolmaster was mentioned in 1459–60. A school, sometimes called the ‘free school’, was founded in School Lane by the Duke of Norfolk in 1814, to accommodate 150 children of each sex; it was supported by voluntary contributions. In 1818 there were 135 girls and 150 boys on the roll. School pence were payable in 1833 and later, in 1846–7, the school was open to children of all denominations. The buildings were enlarged in 1848 at the Duke's expense, and in 1853 the school became a National School with an endowment of £3,600; its catchment area was then defined as the parish and a four-mile radius of the castle. By 1858 the school was known as Arundel Church of England School. Average attendance in 1851 was 130 boys and 85 girls, rising to 286 in 1884–5; in 1913–14 it was 249. Part of the master's house was converted into an infants' schoolroom in 1859 at the expense of the dowager Duchess of Norfolk, and there was an infants' mistress by 1874. Between the 1870s and the 1890s the school's capacity was regularly returned as far in excess of the average attendance, evidently to prevent the setting up of a school board. New buildings on the same site as the old were opened in 1900. In 1970 it was proposed to amalgamate the school with St. Philip’s R.C. Primary School, a move supported by both managers and parents, but eventually turned down. In 1973, work began on a new school site on the Torton Hill area, due to the general overcrowding of the original site, and the danger in walking the children along a busy road to reach the dining hall. The new school opened in April 1974. Finally a poem

I have been reflecting a lot this weekend and, sadly for some of you, I have had to include two poems so he is the final one….

Invictus

By William Ernest Henley

Out of the night that covers me, Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.

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News from around the country

UC switch could boost free school meal numbers In order to cope with the Government’s Universal Credit rollout, the DfE has announced a plan to switch to means-testing for free school meals, meaning around 50,000 more children in England should benefit. While the move was welcomed by the National Association of Head Teachers, the union said it regretted the department has not chosen to allow automatic enrolment for disadvantaged children, forcing schools and councils to instead prompt families to sign up for free meals and pupil premium payments. More than one million children receive free school meals in England, but a substantial proportion of households that are eligible fail to sign up. The changes will not affect the universal entitlement to free meals for pupils in reception, year one and year two.

Heads forced to become caretakers Headteachers have been forced to resort to carrying out the work of caretakers and support staff to cut costs. Clem Coady, head of Stoneraise Primary School in Cumbria, spent the half-term painting the school’s corridors because he had to make his caretaker redundant; Sam Offord, headteacher at Birchfields Primary School in Manchester, has had to become the school's site manager. The NAHT is calling on Chancellor Philip Hammond to announce fresh funding for schools in his Budget. General secretary Paul Whiteman said: "The school funding crisis is real. Parents know it. Governors know it and school staff know it.”

School leaders under strain over cuts A headteacher has told how school leaders are bearing an "unmanageable strain" caused by cuts and lack of staff. In a speech to the annual conference of School Leaders Scotland, president Stephen Miller welcomed the concept of a Headteachers' Charter that sees more power devolved to heads. But he said: "At local level we are often working with our directors to find savings that lead to a reduction in staff and devolved budgets.” He added: "We cannot close the poverty-related attainment gap without securing the essential materials with which to achieve that ambition."

Second school in PM’s constituency requests money from parents Following news that Robert Piggott infant and junior schools in Wargrave, Berks – Theresa May's constituency – asked parents for money due to "national school funding changes", the Mirror reports that another school in the area has also done the same. Polehampton infants, in nearby Twyford, has asked for a £90 voluntary payment a year per pupil, to pay for basic stationery and books due to "growing pressures on our school budget".

Schools ask parents for money in PM’s backyard The Prime Minister was accused of making empty promises to properly fund schools after two in her own constituency sent out letters asking for basic equipment. Leaders at Robert Piggott infant and junior schools in Wargrave, Berks, told parents they were so cash-strapped due to "national changes to school funding" they had no choice but to ask for £190 a year donations for "glue, pens, pencils, exercise books, paper, tape, paint". School Standards Minister Nick Gibb said: "Robert Piggott schools are set to gain around £10,000 a year in total."

Yours sincerely,

ASimpson Andrew Simpson Headteacher

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Tax-free childcare delay Plans for the full rollout of tax-free childcare in the UK have been delayed until March 2018 - five years after it was first announced. The decision follows problems faced by parents attempting to use the official website, launched in April. In a written statement, ministers said they would be staggering applications by the age of child between now and March.

Corbyn to call for investment in education In a keynote speech to the Association of Colleges in Birmingham this week, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn will call on the Government to halt cuts to education and end decades of under-investment which has led to a “productivity crisis” in the UK economy. Mr Corbyn will say the education system is in a “perilous state” while the prospect of a bad Brexit deal threatens to exacerbate existing weaknesses in the economy.

‘Mothers’ and ‘fathers’ ruled discriminatory language A Catholic school has been ordered to drop references to mothers and fathers from its admission forms after a parent claimed it discriminated against gay couples. The Holy Ghost Primary School, in Wandsworth, south London, also came under fire for being “discriminatory” against separated parents and stepparents, by leaving just one space on the school's Supplementary Information Form for their place of worship. Schools adjudicator Peter Goringe found it to be in breach of the code, which prohibits admission authorities from seeking unnecessary information.

Girlguiding puts women in their place Girlguiding has started a national recruitment campaign with the movement telling women that their place is "wherever they want it to be". The campaign will use the hashtag #KnowYourPlace - in a riff on a phrase often used to put down women. Sally Illsley, deputy chief Guide, said: "The spirit of the campaign is to turn the old-fashioned idea that a woman should know her place on its head."

Could teachers see a Budget boost? BBC News’ economics editor Kamal Ahmed considers the case for the Chancellor using his Budget to deliver a pay boost for teachers. He cites Nicky Morgan, the former education secretary and now chairwoman of the Treasury Select Committee, who says that while she didn’t back a "blanket" lifting of public sector caps, the case for teachers is a powerful one. She suggests the Budget will focus on the concept of productivity, and comments: “One of the ways to increase productivity is to make sure people are getting the best education.” Mr Ahmed also points to a report by the independent teacher's pay review body that highlights the pressures schools face in regard to teacher recruitment and retention, arguing that a pay boost could play a part in easing the strain. Separately, a Guardian editorial says the Budget is a chance for the Chancellor to create greater fairness in education, saying “every child should be taught in a school that is decently resourced so that it can meet the needs of the pupils who attend it.”

NI schools in 'budget crisis' warning A joint statement from principals, governors and school finance managers at 80 of Northern Ireland's largest schools has warned of a “budget crisis.” They say many schools are in a "critical situation," and are facing budget deficits of as much as £1m. This, they add, could see fewer subjects offered and school hours shortened. The statement, from the ASCL, the Governing Bodies Association, the Catholic Heads Association, the Association of Controlled Grammar Schools and the Voluntary Bursars Association, says schools have explored "all reasonable cost reducing steps" and are now forecasting “major and unrecoverable deficits over the next three years.” It adds that funding pressures are “having a direct and significant detrimental effect on the quality of education currently offered to pupils."

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CofE defends advice

The Church of England has defended its advice for teachers in church schools which said that primary school-age boys and girls should be allowed to dress up in whatever they chose, regardless of their gender. This followed criticism from some conservative Christians who said there is an "agenda" to subvert traditional teaching that God created humans as a man or a woman. Nigel Genders, chief education officer for the Church, said: “Our guidance is practical. It says that children should be able to explore their identities as they grow up.” Archbishop of Canterbury Rev Justin Welby added: “This is about prevention of bullying, not sexual ethics". Separately, LGBT rights group Stonewall congratulated the church for sending a signal that "homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying must never be tolerated".

Allowance assessment unfair on dyslexic students Lord Addington, president of the British Dyslexia Association, says it is unfair dyslexic students must pay up to £600 to have their condition reassessed to claim the disabled students' allowance at university. Education Minister Lord Agnew noted many universities offer hardship funds to help cover the costs of assessments but agreed that a review of the system was “overdue.”

Heads: System leaves schools short-changed The Guardian details a letter endorsed by 5,000 headteachers that calls on Chancellor Philip Hammond to deliver greater school funding in his Budget. The letter warns that the new national funding formula has left schools having to cut back on all but basic provision, arguing that pupils “are being unfairly penalised by a system that is being short-changed.” It adds that schools, parents and stakeholders “are simply asking for the money that is being taken out of the system to be returned.” Catharine Darnton, head at Gillotts School in Oxfordshire, says budget pressures have driven her school to narrow its curriculum and increase some class sizes. Jules White, head at Tanbridge House School in West Sussex, who coordinated the letter, said schools were promised that “decades of substandard and iniquitous school funding” would be addressed, yet “all we have is a sham formula stuffed full of caps and small print.”

CofE issues transgender bullying rules Teachers are to be told that pupils in Church of England schools should be able to dress in clothes traditionally designed for another gender without attracting any comment, observation or bullying, saying youngsters should be free to try out “the many cloaks of identity”. The policy is part of new anti-bullying rules for the CofE’s 4,700 schools, with the new guidelines telling schools that youngsters should not be required to wear uniforms that “create difficulty for trans pupils”. The CofE says the rules, which are endorsed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, are designed to “challenge homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.” The guidance adds that any school that does not teach the importance of gay or transgender rights will be “failing in their duty to prepare their pupils to live in modern Britain”.

Failed trust still runs schools The Times reports that the Education Fellowship Trust is still running 12 schools it agreed to give up in March due to poor standards and an "unsustainable" financial position as an alternative sponsor is yet to be found. The DfE said: "We are working closely with the Education Fellowship Trust to ensure that disruption for pupils is kept to a minimum."

Parental support key in tackling mental health Matt Buttery, CEO of parent support business Triple P UK, says the Government’s Green Paper on children and young people's mental health must give parents as much focus as schools, colleges and universities. He says parental support is key to tackling the mental health challenges faced by young people as it can increase prevention and early intervention.

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Schools can split after segregation ruling

The DfE says faith schools can split in two to avoid a new law banning gender segregation. This comes after the Court of Appeal ruled that such a policy at Al-Hijrah in Birmingham was detrimental to youngsters and breached equality laws. The Independent reports that Andrew McClusky, head of Jewish Orthodox school Hasmonean High in Barnet, sought clarification on how the ruling would affect his school and has told parents that the DfE will require it to de-amalgamate into two separate schools, adding that “there will be no further implications for the school.” Humanists UK education campaigns manager Jay Harman has urged the DfE to be “very careful” about allowing segregated religious schools to convert to separate single-sex schools “without assessment of what the pupils in those schools will be taught”. A DfE spokesperson said all schools are held to account by Ofsted “to ensure they are delivering a broad and balanced curriculum,” with Ofsted noting that schools must comply with the Equality Act 2010.

Notices

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To enjoy our festive-inspired day, pleaseorder at www.mealselector.co.uk

by Sunday 10th December

Choose a main meal...Roast Turkey

with Stuffing Ball, Chipolata & Gravyor

Quorn Filletwith Stuffing Ball & Gravy

Roast PotatoesPeas and Carrots

Shortbread Christmas Tree

Fruit SquashMilk

Water

Wednesday 20th December £2.30

on the side...

for dessert...

for a drink...