This week, we have been thinking about transitions.  We recognised that we will all have a mixture of feelings about moving on to a new year group and new class – we might be feeling excited and nervous, all at the same time.  We talked about strategies that we can use to manage those emotions.

I  shared one of my favourite books with the children, The Owl Who is Afraid of the Dark. We talked about the ideas, support and guidance of others had helped Plop to be a confident night bird and who we can talk to about our thoughts and feelings, too.

What a week!  Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to our children who have been incredibly resilient during a very uncomfortable week, in school.  Thank you also, for your patience and support.  It is very much appreciated. Huge thanks to our HSA for their quick thinking and action to get us more fans before there was a national shortage.  The ice pops supplied by the HSA have also been a very welcome relief – thank you!

Along with the rest of the nation, we are very much hoping that next week will be considerably cooler.  We kindly request that usual uniform expectations, including footwear,  resume from Monday, please.

As you will know from our previous communication, we have had to move both KS1 and KS2 sports days.  Weather permitting, Key Stage 1 sports day is now on Tuesday 7th July and Key Stage 2 will be on Monday 13th July.  We will aim to start as quickly as we can, following the start of the school day, at approximately 0930. We are very grateful for your understanding.

Due to ongoing issues with emailing, we will be moving over to a new system in September where all communication will be sent out via Arbor. We will also be moving over to Arbor for purchasing uniform and paying for school visits.  I will be writing to you next week, regarding actions that you will need to take over the summer to ensure that we are all fully set up for September. Please keep an eye out for further communication, next week.

We were able to fit in one act of worship this week, before the hot weather meant that we couldn’t congregate for the rest of the week.

Lindsey Brown delivered one of her awe inspiring, painting assemblies.  While painting us a picture, Lindsey retold Jesus’s parable of the lost coin (Luke 15: 8 – 10) and the joy that finding the lost coin had brought.  We then reflected on what brings us joy – time with family and friends was top of the list for most of us.

Year 6 enjoyed a visit to church this week for the Moving On programme.  As always, our year 6 children represented the school brilliantly and made thoughtful observations and sensible responses.  Thank you year 6 for your maturity.

This week, very much enjoyed meeting with the parents of our new reception cohort who will be joining us in September. We look forward to meeting the children at our stay and play sessions planned for later in the term.

In Praise Assembly this morning, we shared some excellent writing from 1/2 B who have written their own non-fiction texts about penguins.  They were very informative and we really enjoyed reading them. It was also great to see so many children receiving Accelerated Reader certificates, too.

I have delivered our entries to Bishop Hugh’s art competition today.  I am sure that you will agree that our paintings are very attractive and I hope that Bishop Hugh will agree and put them in pride of place in his office.

In line with new guidance, we have updated our PSHE policy.  Please do take a look to see what your children are covering in each year group.  If you have any questions or would like to view any of the resources used in these lessons, please do not hesitate to contact school.

Thank you very much to Father Adam, who led our termly eucharist service.  Along with singing some of our favourite hymns, we also considered the hardship that Noah endured and the perseverance that he displayed.  I was very impressed by how well so many of our children could recall the story of Noah and his ark.

It was lovely to welcome members of our church and school community, to share communion together.  Children were as always, very thoughtful and sensible throughout the service.

I have been incredibly impressed by some of the crazy and colourful hair, face paint and hats for today’s New Rules day.  We have had a lovely day and I can announce that the fundraising winners who will be earning additional playtime next week are …..4C! Thank you all for your support with this event and with our continuing fundraising efforts.  It is very much appreciated.

Father Chris led his final act of worship with us, on Monday.  He will now be relocating to St Marks in Pensnett.  Father Chris’s last church service will take place at 10am on Sunday – all are very welcome to join us.

Our termly Eucharist service will take place at 9am on Monday 15th June, at school.  You are very welcome to join us, should you wish to share communion with us.

Next week, we will be celebrating our Praise Assembly on Thursday, as opposed to Friday.  As always, we look forward to sharing best work, certificates and trophies.

Thank you to Father Chris who led collective worship for us, this week.  We are extremely grateful to Father Chris for agreeing to lead the assembly when we had no access to IT!  Due to his relocation, this was Father Chris’s last assembly with us, at Church of the Ascension.

Father Chris led us in song, with his electric guitar, which we really enjoyed.  We then explored our core value of perseverance and learnt about Daniel in the lion’s den.  We learnt about how Daniel had found strength in his faith.

We wish Father Chris all the very best as he starts his new position, at St Marks and thank him for all of the care and support that he has shown us, in his time with us.

We have had a great first week back at school.  It was lovely to welcome the children back, on Tuesday and hear all about the exciting things that they have been up to over half term.

Very well done to our gymnastics teams who competed in the Dudley finals!  6 teams competed from our school, which is a great representation.  Thank you to all those involved.

I am so grateful for all of the support that we have had from our school community, in improving our school environment. Huge thanks to My Property Pros, Kingswinford for cleaning the outside of our building, including the canopies.

Thank you also to all of those who have helped with the weeding and planting.  I am sure you will agree how lovely the front of school is looking with the flowers and tidy flower beds.  We are very grateful for all of the help and support that we have received to help keep our school looking and feeling so great.

As explained in a previous letter, we will not have access to our email accounts from 10am on Friday until Tuesday 9th June.  If there are any issues during that time, please call the school office on 01384 818760.

We have had a very busy week!  Thank you to the parents who attended our half termly praise assembly to see their child receive a mention certificate.

We have had an amazing afternoon sharing talents and interests for our annual Ascension Day celebrations. We have enjoyed magic tricks, ballroom dancing, football demonstrations, remote vehicle operation and much, much more.  Ascension Day is one of our favourite days of the year and this year certainly did not disappoint. What a talented bunch our children are!

Thank you very much to all of those who attended our Family Festival, last week.  It was lovely to see so many of you, despite the cold weather. We are extremely grateful to our HSA members who worked so hard to organise and host the event. We are very grateful for all of the funds raised.  I have just about warmed up after the “splat the head teacher” session!

I wish you all a lovely half term holiday and look forward to seeing you on Tuesday 2nd June, when children return to school on Tuesday 2nd June – a reminder that Monday 1st June is an INSET day.