17th April 2015 - ARK Franklin Primary Academy

ARK Franklin Primary@ARK_FranklinPrimary
NEWSLETTER
17th April 2015
Dear Parents / Carers,
Happy Playgrounds in School!
Our first week back has been a busy one, with a visit
from the Happy Playgrounds Company. As you can see
from the photographs our children thoroughly enjoyed
trialling new pastimes in the bright sunshine; we hope
to adopt the most popular on a long term basis.
We are thrilled to welcome our new Deputy
Headteacher, Caroline Field, who joins us this week.
You may have noticed that work has begun in a small
way over Easter tidying up our ‘garden’ area, a small
beginning to our outdoor classroom project. On the
back of the newsletter is an invitation to all of you, to
support us in our efforts, by joining in with our big
fundraising extravaganza: The Franklin Fork to Fork
Festival in June.
Our cross curricular focus this term is history, all
classes have been busy this week immersing
themselves in their new topic, every class will go on a
trip linked to their area of study; further details will
follow early next week from class teachers.
Please help us meet our attendance target of 96%, by
being here on time and every day. Year 6 will sit their
SATs examinations in three weeks’ time, it is crucial
that they attend every day to ensure they have the
best possible chance of reaching their potential.
Thank you for your continued support.
Warmest regards
Janine Ryan
Interim Headteacher
Headteacher’s thought for the week!
The value of an idea lies in the using of it.
On Tuesday we were joined by Steve from The Happy
Lunchtime Awards Company. Working with the staff
and children, new games and other playground
activities were developed, ensuring that break times
are even more positive and enjoyable times for all!
The children enjoyed covering the playground in
beautiful chalk drawings, playing new games, such as,
'Stack the Buttons' and dancing to well-known songs.
Gangnam Style was a favourite for the boys and girls!
Attendance
The whole school attendance for this week is 94.6%;
we will need to improve our efforts given that our
target is 96%! Classes with the best attendance for the
week are as follows below:
Reception Cambridge 93.7%
Key Stage One (years 1 & 2) Leeds 97.9%
Key Stage Two (years 3, 4, 5 & 6) Exeter 98.2%
School Council
The school councillors were back in full swing on
Wednesday, feeding back on issues raised by the
classes they represent. The main topic of discussion
was the school playground; councillors worked in
groups to draft and design how they would like the
playgrounds to look. Some inspiring and interesting
ideas have been put forward: watch this space!
On Monday we announced the second winner of our
very special 100% attendance raffle draw:
Congratulations
Saleem Abdela (3 Durham)!!
Saleem will be able to choose a gift worth up to £50!
Transition Trophy
Transition trophies were awarded to the classes who
have shown great behaviour when moving round the
school this week:
Reception Goldsmiths
Key Stage One (years 1 & 2) York
Key Stage Two (years 3, 4, 5 & 6) Exeter
PE Class and Superstar of the Week
Will return next week…
The Summer Uniform
As the weather gets warmer, it is lovely to see some
girls wearing their new summer dresses. If you placed
an order for your daughter’s summer dress before the
Easter break, please come and collect your order from
the office, if you have not already done so.
Children in year 5 and 6 do not need to wear both a
jumper and blazer during the hot weather. Girls
wearing a summer dress can just wear their cardigan
and boys should just wear their blazers. Ties must be
worn by all pupils except for girls wearing summer
dresses. Boys can wear grey shorts and short sleeved
shirts during the summer term. Children will be
allowed to remove their jumper/cardigans and blazers
at school if it is very warm. All children must wear
their school shoes, sandals are not permitted.
Summer caps with the school logo are available from
ACE clothing and parents must ensure that all uniform
is clearly labelled.
Important Dates
Please note that there will be limited, or no access, to
school on the following dates:
Monday 4th
May
Thursday
7th May
May Day Bank Holiday
Polling Day – Only staff and Year
6 pupils must attend school
Easter Playscheme
Ms Martin would like to say a big thank you to all the
children who attended the Easter Playscheme:
‘We had a fun Easter taking part in an Easter Egg Hunt
and doing lots of fun arts and crafts. We also had a
lovely day out at Hyde Park and Queens Park.
Huge thanks to Tomas Touray’s mum, Pia, for
accompanying us to Hyde Park!’
All pupils are encouraged to bring a bottle of water to
school which can be topped up during the day. Thank
you.
Enrichment Clubs:
All of the enrichment clubs are up and running. If your
child is not attending a club, but would like to join one,
please come to the office reception area to put your
child’s name on the waiting list.
Children who are on the waiting lists will be offered
spaces as soon as spaces become available.
Dinner Money and Club Payments
Please ensure that you keep up with your dinner
money payments. The cost for school meals from
Tuesday 14th April to Friday 22nd May inclusive is
£59.40 per child. If your child is attending one of the
Enrichment Clubs please remember that all payments
must be made by Monday 20th April. Our preferred
method of payment is via Wisepay. If you have
misplaced your username and password for Wisepay,
please email Deanna Jones at
D.jones@arkfranklinprimary.org , including your child’s
name and class. All clubs are £5.00 for the term except
for Ballet and Capoeira which cost £60.00.
Calling all parents, we are running a
free English course for beginners…
Ark Franklin and Brent council have teamed up to
provide the above provision for parents who are
wanting to develop their English speaking skills and
learn more about their child’s school. Please see below
for further information:
Tuesday,
21st April
Thursday
28th April
Information and Assessment –
at 2.00pm
Please just turn up!
Course Starts
1.15-3.15pm for 10 weeks
Saturday 13th June 2015
12.00 noon – 6.00pm
The Franklin Fork to Fork Festival will take place for the first time on Saturday 13th June 2015. All parents
and children are invited to join us in celebrating the diverse cultural backgrounds of all our pupils and local
community. Please ensure you put this special date in your diary.
This event will bring together talented and creative chefs, restaurateurs and producers celebrating healthy
food and traditional recipes from all over the world. It will feature food and produce stalls, chef
demonstrations, talks and tastings, a picnic garden, children’s activities and much more.
WE NEED YOUR HELP
We are looking for parents to help and contribute to the World Fete Area of the Food Festival. If you are
interested in volunteering to support in any way, please complete the slip at the bottom of this page and
return it to the school office on Monday 20th April. We will then organise a meeting with all the
volunteers. For more information please visit our website franklinforktofork.com.
Examples of ways in which you could support are as follows:
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Do you or a member of your family attend a traditional dance or music class outside of school and
would be happy to perform on the day?
Would you be interested in setting up a stall to represent your country?
Could you donate a prepared dish / cakes or sweets which are traditional from your country?
Are you able to help in setting up and/or clearing up on the day
Are you creative and enjoy face painting and are able to donate your time on the day?
We welcome your ideas and your help and support is essential to make this event a success
The festival is being run to raise money so that we can create an open air classroom in our amazing garden
and playground space. We plan to have raised beds where we can grow our own produce, wildflower
areas to attract butterflies, a solar powered oven, a recycling area, a bike blender, music installations, a
pond and even an amphitheatre!
Volunteer for the World Fete Area of the Franklin Fork to Fork Food Festival
Name: ___________________________________
Mobile number: ___________________
Email: ____________________________
Your Child’s Name ________________________ Child’s Class _________________
How could you help or what could you contribute?