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It was great to welcome everyone back on Monday, after the half-term break, particularly with the re-introduction of reading mornings. It's been a long time since we've had these! Whilst we know it won't be possible for all of you, it is a nice opportunity to read with your child/ren in school every Monday morning from 8.45am up 9.00am. Please join us if you can.
As always, the week has been a very busy one amidst the launch of new topics, welcoming in four student teachers from Northampton University, getting ready for assessment week next week (all year groups but Year 6), and recognising Outdoor Learning Day yesterday.
The final 'icing on the cake' from our week, was presenting the first Sunflower Award of the school year. This award is a very special one to us as it is in memory of Mrs. Annette Robson.
Annette was a very special lady and a highly valued member of staff. She is sorely missed at Deanshanger Primary School. As the sunflower was her favourite flower, we created this termly Sunflower Award to recognise and celebrate children that show the attributes that she showed daily - kindness, caring, positivity, strength and loyalty.
Huge congratulations to the following recipients:
Reception - Carter Langhan
Year 1 - Bella Jarvis
Year 2- Thomas Poulter
Year 3 Sofia Drinkwater
Year 4 Olvia-Rose Arthur
Year 5 Ciaran Dunne
Year 6 Fleur Westwood
A sunflower newsletter will be created next week and shared with you. Previous newsletters can be found here.
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Homework Club
Please note that although the club on a Tuesday is open to Year 1 children, they do not have any set homework as such and, as a result, the time will be given for them to read independently - a great opportunity for them to develop their skills and fluency - they will not be accessing Reading Eggs (but you can of course access this at home). Please let your Year 1 child know this information so that they have their books with them ready. Many thanks
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On Thursday 20th October, we were very fortunate to welcome an experienced school improvement partner into the school to dive into our reading curriculum. The visit was invaluable and recognised the extensive reading offer at the school. The summary evaluation states that -
Leaders and all staff are passionate about reading and the difference it makes to pupils’ lives and long-term learning. They have worked hard to prioritise early reading and have successfully ensured that phonics and early reading are taught well. The impact of this can be seen in the 2022 Phonic Screening Check outcomes. Leaders are reflective and keen to drive meaningful and sustainable change.
Huge thanks to Mia, Izzie, Euan and Harry for meeting our visitor and talking so knowledgeably as they toured her around the school focusing on reading.
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Thank you very much to everyone that was able to join us online for the maths and English curriculum meeting on Wednesday evening. If you have any questions about our curriculum at any time, please always make contact us. Once the PowerPoint is uploaded onto the school website, we will share the link with you.
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Deanshanger Village Heritage Society presents
Inventive Deanshanger on Saturday, November 5th at the Community Centre between 12 pm and 5 pm Discover astounding innovations of Deanshanger's people, past and present.
What's on display ?
We have discovered that there have been a lot of unusual inventions. Do you know how we are connected with coal mining or why you would have a silent metronome? See an early dishwasher. Try your hand at painting with oxide pigments, hear about an incredible cycling achievement; see a sewing machine made in the village and learn about the most hair-raising home lighting scheme amongst many things
Come and support us and learn about your Village and Community
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Over the last couple of months, we have held a series of open mornings to give prospective families the opportunity to find out about school life at DPS. Although we haven't got any more open days planned at the moment, we are always keen to meet new prospective families and show them around the school. If you have a younger child or know of a family with a school aged child for September 2023, please encourage them to give us a call.
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New staff @DPS
We would like to give a warm Deanshanger Primary School welcome to Mr Luke Webb, our new music teacher, and Mr Theo Ward a new HLTA (Higher Level Teaching Assistant).
Mr Luke Webb
I am a qualified music teacher who has been teaching music in secondary and primary schools since 2007 and an experienced multi-instrumentalist who has played guitar in a number of different touring and recording bands, performing in many countries for nearly 20 years.
We are thrilled that Mr Webb has joined us and is inspiring and supporting all children the school in class music lessons and in singing assemblies. Additionally, with Mr Larcombe, he runs a great lunchtime choir and a wonderful after school drumming club.
Mr Theo Ward
Hi, my name is Theo Ward and I am a qualified teacher and a new HLTA here at Deanshanger Primary School. I primarily spend my time in reception, year one and also in year six. However, I have also spent time teaching in all year groups across the school.
In my spare time I like to play a lot of golf as it is a nice way to decompress after a day at school. A lot of my weekends are taken up watching my local football team that I have supported since I was a young lad.
I love working here at Deanshanger Primary School as it has provided with lots of experience and I get to work with such supportive staff. All parents and staff have been so welcoming since I arrived. This has helped me settle into my new role, which I am very grateful for.
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Christmas Movie Night (above)
Bookings are open from Monday 7th November on Arbor
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Being in school as much as possible, makes a big difference to your child's progress and how settled they feel in school.
Now that challenging covid days are almost behind us, it is wonderful for us all to be able to get back in to good routines and being in school every day (if we are not unwell). With some inevitable gaps in learning, particularly for slightly older children, we are keen to provide all children with the very best opportunities to make the strongest progress possible.
My role, alongside our attendance lead, Mrs Hannah Hodge, is to monitor and support the highest possible attendance and to work with you if support plans are needed. Please be reminded that holiday in term time is rarely authorised and should be avoided wherever possible, Additionally, we would love to see even our youngest learners in Reception in school daily, even if they are under five as learning always builds upon previous learning, so absence can make it hard to catch up.
If your child is unwell, please ensure that you let us know in the school office each day, or send a message to the class teacher. In line with our first day response, we always make contact with you if we don't know about an absence.
Thank you very much for your ongoing support in this area.
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Outdoor Classroom Day is a global movement to make time outdoors part of every child's day. On two days of action each year, teachers take children outdoors to play and learn. All year round, the Outdoor Classroom Day community campaigns for more time outdoors every day.
What is meant by outdoor learning?
Outdoor Learning is active learning in the outdoors. In Outdoor Learning participants learn through what they do, through what they encounter and through what they discover. Participants learn about the outdoors, themselves and each other, while also learning outdoor skills.
In Year 1 The children in Caterpillar class spent the morning in forest school making a Pudsey Bear. They used natural materials found outside to make the picture. The year 4 children were out making fireworks and counting leaves to practise maths. Year 5 have been performing their Space Haiku poetry outside on the stage this morning and then took on a Space Orienteering challenge this afternoon around the school. Lots of map reading involved! Y3 children enjoyed outside play and forest school activities. Our Y6 activity today was from an R.E. lesson based on understanding how Muslims show commitment to Allah. The Year 6 children had studied Muslim prayer, then role-played the ritual of prayer (without saying the words) to understand how the prayer times work.
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You'll have seen that we are hoping to take the whole school to see 'A Christmas Carol' at Planet Ice (Milton Keynes) on December 8th as they present a fun filled version adapted by the Show & Skate class for amateur and professional skaters.
You can sign your child up for this trip via Arbor. The cost is £10.
257 children have signed up so far! WOW
If you need any help with the booking or would like to talk about the cost of the trip, please don't hesitate to make contact.
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We have had a number of cases of head lice in school. Could we please ask you to be extra vigilant when combing or brushing your child’s hair?
Because head lice are passed on through hair-to-hair contact, we would like to remind you that pupils with long hair should have their hair tied back with a band or clip.
If you require any further information please check out the NHS website,
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Safeguarding and child protection
Safeguarding @Deanshanger is taken extremely seriously and is essential for keeping all children and adults safe.
It means having:
- whole-school policies and procedures
- staff and volunteers confident in identifying and raising concerns
- leadership confident in responding to and referring concerns and working with other agencies to protect children
- teaching resources to promote well-being.
Staff training is regular and we meet at least weekly as a safeguarding team to ensure that all and any concerns are rapidly addressed however small they may appear.
Our safeguarding duty includes protecting our children from harm online and accessing materials that are aimed at older children.
Our safeguarding team consists of myself, Mrs Rachel Rice, as the designated safeguarding lead (DSL) and Mrs Sarah Webb, Mrs Lynn Mildren and Mrs Natalie Parsonson as deputy designated safeguarding leads (DDSLs). Our safeguarding lead for governors is Mrs Emma Satchwell-Graham.
Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility - this means that we are all expected to record and report any concerns or incidents. If you see or hear anything that doesn't feel right, please always ensure that you pass it on.
More information about safeguarding can be found here.
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Deanshanger Primary School Parent Teacher Association
We are pleased to announce, Deanshanger Primary School PTA has applied and been chosen, as an official cause through the Co-op local community fund. We have added some information and links below for you to read. The project you would be supporting involves re-landscape an area of the school playground, to increase play opportunities and help give all pupils the best possible school experience.
Do I need to be a member to help this cause?
Yes, and it’s easy to sign up. Please use the link below to join the co-op and our cause to get all the benefits of being a Co-op member. If you are already a member, click the same link and simply join our cause. With community support these projects can go beyond parents and carers in the school, so please see if grandparents or local residents would also like to support us. The more people that sign up, the more money can be raised towards the school playground project,
https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/74710
We are so proud of our PTA at Deanshanger Primary. They are always helping to provide extra things to enrich school life. In the past they have funded interactive whiteboards and provided pupils with opportunities to participate in activities such as first aid courses and author visits. The PTA would like everyone to enjoy school and give all pupils the best experience possible. This cause is yet another brilliant way to bring our community together to support our students.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/257781852694
If you have any further questions please contact us through the school office. Thank you in advance for your support, you are a couple of clicks away from contributing to our school community in a big way:)
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 | 03 Nov 2022 On Friday 21st October, we had our first Top Table lunch and indeed, our first Top Table since lock down! The midday supervisions and Fresh Start team, are always on the lookout for children that consistently show beautiful manners and respect at lunchtime. Once we have 20 names on our chalk bo... |
.jpg) | 02 Nov 2022 It is very important that we have accurate details for you for multiple reasons including being able to make contact with you in an emergency. You are able to amend the contact information that we hold for you on Arbor yourselves, but please feel free to call or email the school office with any chan... |
 | 31 Oct 2022 It was an amazing day at school with the children dressing up in their future job outfits. It was lovely to see all the smiles and fun being had. To see some more picture please Click here |
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As you can see from the calendar below, our film club is open to Year 1 and Year 2 children on Tuesday 8th November. Please book your child's place via Arbor. The cost is £1 and the School's pupil premium voucher can be used. The children will be given a packet of popcorn to enjoy joining the movie. Please collect your children from the courtyard.
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We have been provided with a host of 40% off the cost vouchers for Silverstone interactive Museum. Please pop into the school office if you would like to collect any.
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Congratulations to all the children that have been attending Run a Mile with Mrs. Young on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings from 8.30 am. By keeping fit and making a great start to the day, the children are also accruing house points for their teams - these will be added on to the totals at sports day.
So far...
In KS1, yellow team have accumulated 20 points, blue 17, red 11, and green 1.
In KS2, yellow team have accumulated 28 points, blue 11, red 40, and green 10.
Please be reminded that running a mile before school is free and open to all year groups. Children must be in the front office at 8.30am to take part. They just need to wear their trainers with their regular school uniform.
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Finally, have you had the opportunity to enjoy our harvest singing video yet? See if you can spot your child as you since along to some traditional harvest favourites.
Wishing you all a lovely weekend.
Rachel Rice
head@deanshanger.northants-ecl.gov.uk
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