A new term!

This half-term our topic is:

‘What is the Moon Made Of?’

This topic will be linked to all our areas of learning. Over the next few weeks, we will be sharing our love of space and dressing up as astronauts and aliens on Tuesday 6th February. On this day we will be blasting off to the moon!

You can see more detail in our first half-term topic tree here.

The second half-term topic will be ‘What Makes a Good Farmer’ and the topic tree will be shared later in the Spring Term.

We observe the children as they take part in activities and play, and record them on iConnect. The system is at the heart of life in Reception, as it enables our staff to keep track of our observations of the children and share these with you. iConnect’s learning journal enables us to track each child’s progress, reflect on our teaching practices and learning goals, and tailor interventions to areas that we identify the children will most benefit from. If you have any questions regarding iConnect, please do not hesitate to ask one of the Reception team or our Network Manager, Nick Oglieve (noglieve@pennthorpe.com).

This term we have 2 trips planned for our Reception children!

We’re so excited to be able to offer the children some real-world experience of what they are learning in school. Trips are a brilliant way of making learning more tangible and memorable, as they enable the children to engage with the material in a more active and immersive way than can often be possible in the classroom. They are a powerful tool for broadening the children’s horizons, and also a lot of fun; we cannot wait to enjoy these days out over the Spring Term!

• On Thursday 22nd February, the Reception children will enjoy a trip to Kidzania.
• The Reception trip to Bocketts Farm is on Tuesday 12th March.

More information will follow nearer to the dates.

Please ensure your child is well enough to attend school each day. If they’ve required Calpol in the morning, they aren’t well enough for school, so please don’t send them in. If in any doubt, please contact Matron to discuss your concerns.

A reminder that children should be dropped off to the back of the Reception classrooms from 8:20am. Registration is at 8:30am, so please make sure all children are in school by then. Children arriving earlier should please be booked in for breakfast from 7:30am or join our Early Birds in the Pre-Prep Hall from 8:00am.

Collection at the end of the day is at 3.30pm. Please wait to meet your child outside the Reception classrooms at the rear of the Pre-Prep building, and make sure your child has ‘blobbed out’ with their teacher.

Children in Reception, and Years 1 & 2 may remain supervised in class until 4:00pm in ‘Free Fun Club’. If they are going to Supper Club, or a hobby, the children will be taken to that directly from the classroom. 

If you’d like your child to join us for breakfast, or stay beyond 4:00pm, please contact extendedday@pennthorpe.com to arrange this.

As well as your pocket-sized diary, parents can also view the Spring Term calendar via the website and Parent Portal.

Please do have a look through and pop important dates in your diary.  Of course, sometimes plans need to be updated, and so any changes will be updated on our electronic calendar and communicated to you as soon as possible.

The key events for our Reception parents include:

• Parents are invited to come along to our informal ‘Tea & Talk’ session with the Pre-Prep team on Thursday 11th January at 8:30am.
• Parents of children in Beehive & Reception are invited to attend a Read Write Inc. & Phonics Workshop on Monday 22nd January at 9:00am.
• Our Early Years children will enjoy ‘Little Red Riding Hood & Friends’ Theatre Show on Wednesday 24th January.
• Parents are invited to our PSHEE Tea & Talk for Reception to Year 4 on Thursday 1st February.
• On Tuesday 6th February the Reception children will go out of this world with their Space Dress Up Day.
• On Thursday 22nd February, the Reception children will enjoy a trip to Kidzania.
• All our parents are invited into school to Come & See What We Do Afternoon on Friday 1st March.
• We will celebrate World Book Day on Thursday 7th March. The children are invited to dress up as their favourite book character for the day.
• The Reception trip to Bocketts Farm is on Tuesday 12th March.
• On Tuesday 19th March the children have a Farm Dress Up Day, which is linked to their second half-term topic.
• The Pre-Prep Easter Service at Holy Trinity Church will take place on Tuesday 26th March.
• Wednesday 27th March is the end of term with school finishing for Reception at 11:40am.

Our brilliant Friends of Pennthorpe, as always, will be doing lots to support our school and community this term. Key things for you to watch out for include:

• Bags of Support Collections on Friday 12th January and Friday 22nd March.
• Please save the date for the FoP Quiz & Curry Night on Friday 2nd February.
• The Friends of Pennthorpe Mother’s Day Shop will open it’s doors on Tuesday 5th March.
• Pop Up Second Hand Uniform Shop on Tuesday 12th March.
• After-school Tuck Shop on Friday 15th March.

With the continuing cold weather, please can you ensure your child has a named Pennthorpe hat, scarf and gloves in school each day.

The children should also have their play coat, waterproof clothing and wellies in school at all times, as we will get outside in all weathers at break times, as well as for our Forest School session on a Wednesday. If things get particularly muddy, these will be sent home to be washed, but please can they be returned to school on the following Monday.

As per last term, swimming is on a Monday afternoon, and the children will be taken to Billingshurst Leisure Centre by Minibus, and return in time for school pick up time. Billingshurst Leisure Centre ask that ALL children wear a swimming hat as part of their kit.

On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the children have their Games and PE lessons. On these days, we ask that the children come to school wearing their Games Kit to reduce the amount of time spent changing. Normal uniform is not required on these days.

Water bottles will also be sent home on a Friday to allow them to be popped in the dishwasher at home for a thorough clean!

Please ensure that all items of uniform are named, including water bottles, shoes, wellies and trainers.

If you have any uniform requirements, please place an order via our website here. You can also book an appointment at the Uniform Shop by contacting uniform@pennthorpe.com or drop in during the times below:

• Monday 8:30am – 9:30am
• Tuesday 3:30pm – 4:30pm
• Wednesday 3:30pm – 4:30pm
• Thursday CLOSED
• Friday 8:30am – 9:30am

Please do not park in the drop-off lanes at the front of school if you are coming past the gates to drop your child into school, or collect them from the Pre-Prep. These lanes are intended for dropping-off only!

Instead, please park up in the car park, or find a safe place to park on the neighbouring roads (being considerate of our neighbours, especially with regards parking near to junctions or driveways).

Mrs Jackson is available at the start of the day to help children to walk from the front of school down to the Pre-Prep independently of parents. Mrs Jackson always has some ‘Independent Iggy’ stickers to reward children for being grown up and independent 🙂

Our Wellbeing Ambassadors, who are children in Year 8, are also available to support families at the busy drop off time by walking children from Reception to Year 2 down to the Pre-Prep.

Please do use these options if you are in a rush and need to drop your child and leave.