Newsletters

George Spicer newsletter - 9th December 2022

Attendance - As a school we do not authorise absence for family holidays during the school term, Parents / Carers who choose to take their child out of school for holidays should be aware that their child’s absence will be recorded as ‘unauthorised’ and a penalty notice will be issued.  A Penalty Notice costs £60 per parent and per child, if payment is made within 21 days. £120 if paid after the 21 days but within 28 days.

Punctuality - The school gates open at 8.45am for a soft start to support a calm arrival to school. All our pupils are expected to be in class for registration by 09:00 am. The school gates are then locked at this point.  Pupils need to be in school by 09:00 am for registration. If your child arrives after 09:00 am, they will receive a late mark (L). If your child arrives after 09:10 am, they will receive a 'U' code (missed session) on their registration certificate which will impact on their overall attendance percentage.

Absences - must be reported in writing by email or by phone by 9am daily. Please leave a brief message with your child's name, class and the reason for their absence.  It will be recorded as unauthorised if you do not leave a reason or say your child is 'unwell'. 

Appointments - You must provide an appointment card / letter for your child’s absence to be classed as medical, otherwise it will be marked as an unauthorised absence.  Please note we expect your child to attend school either side of their appointment where possible.

Reception School Admissions - If you have a child born between 1 September 2018 and 31 August 2019, you will need to apply for a primary school place by 15 January 2023.

You can register and apply online at www.eadmissions.org.uk .  Further information can be found at Admissions

New Reception Tours (2023-2024) at Kimberley Gardens

Tuesday 10th January at 9.15am

One of the best ways to get to know a school is to request a visit.  Please call or click below to register your interest and for any further information.        RECEPTION TOURS REGISTRATION

Breakfast and Afterschool Club - Any enquiries about BASC please email basc@georgespicer.enfield.sch.uk

School Dinner – If you have any outstanding debts please login to PARENTPAY and pay up asap.

Donations for welfare - Please may we have donations of wipes, boxes of tissues, plastic bags and plasters for our welfare.  

Year 5 - Hampton Court trip - 18th January 2023 - Please consent and pay £23 on ParentPay for the trip, if we do not have enough responses we will be unable to go ahead with the trip. 

Important dates for your diary

Wednesday 14th December - Christmas Jumper Day and Lunch

Friday 16th December - Last Day of Term - Normal pick up time, SR @ 3.15pm and KG 3.30pm.  Please note there will be ASC as normal.

Food Support in Enfield

Food Pantries - If you are finding your money does not stretch far enough and you are struggling to afford the cost of food, a food pantry can provide you with a heavily discounted food shop. To receive support from a food pantry you will pay a weekly membership fee (between £3.50 and £4.50), which will allow you to shop at the pantry each week. Pantries look similar to shops and you are able to select a certain amount of food based on your own food preferences.  Please click on the link below for the locations of the food pantries in Enfield:

Food Pantries Enfield

Warmer Homes Scheme

Under the Mayor’s Warmer Homes scheme grants of between £5,000 and £25,000 are available to eligible low income homeowners and private tenants.

Find out if you qualify or refer friends and family to apply at Warmer Homes | London City Hall

Also some info (forwarded to me by Enfield Council) to get parents views on Enfield’s Climate Action Plan:

Enfield Climate Action Plan Consultation

Enfield Council are holding an open event on their Climate Action Plan on Thursday 8 December 6:30pm - 8:30pm at Fore St Living Room Library, N18 2XF to show recent progress and issues that they’d like feedback on.

There’s also surveys to collect feedback - please click on Questionnaires in this link:  https://www.enfield.gov.uk/consultations/climate-action

Can’t attend, but would like to come to speak to Enfield Council in person?

See list below:

• Drop-in session - Friday 9 December from 1:3
• 0pm to 5:30pm at Ordnance Unity Centre Library, EN3 6ND
• Stand/stall - Sunday 11 December from 10am to 12pm at Forty Hall Farmers Market, EN2 9HA
• Online open-invite event - Monday 12 December from 12:30pm to 1:30pm
• Drop-in session - Tuesday 13 December from 1pm to 7pm at Enfield Town Library, EN2 6AX
• Drop-in session - Thursday 15 December from 2pm to 8pm at the Palmers Green Library, N13 4EY
• More events to be announced

Please email climate.emergency@enfield.gov.uk for more details.

The questionnaires will close on 8 January 2023 (5.00pm).

Social Media

More information is also on social media:

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Attendance week ending 9/12/2022

Overall school = 83.22%  Lates = 80

Best attendance: 1st Theseus 95.63% 2nd Osiris 92.49% 3rd Spitfire 91.84%

Punctuality: Well done Ash with 99.71% for punctuality

Reception Class

This week was our Nativity Shows! We have worked extremely hard over the last few weeks to get ourselves ready, we have been singing songs, practising lines and doing dress rehearsals. This week we invited our adults to come and watch our show. We put on our fabulous costumes and performed to lots of people. They were very proud of us and congratulated us on how well we had done. Thank you to all of our adults who helped us to put on our amazing shows and well done to the children for being so sensible, kind and for trying their best! Reception would like to say a special thank you to Elizabeth Sturges from Dorset who handmade us some beautiful costumes, the children were really excited to wear them; Benjamin said 'I look like a real king!'. 

Year 1

This week in Year 1 we are writing a biography about the life of Walter Tull. Did you know that he was the first black officer in the British army? He was also a professional football player. He played for Tottenham and Northampton. He stopped playing football to fight in World War I. 

In PSHE, we have been looking at wants and needs. We discussed what things we want in life, and what things we need to survive. We looked at some items and sorted them into two groups. Freya said, "I might want a holiday, but it's not something that I need in order to survive. I need food, water, and shelter to stay safe and healthy".

In Art, we used a variety of materials to make our own robins. We used a template and selected resources that we needed. We thought about our colour choice and placement.  We learnt how to use and walk with a pair of scissors safely and developed our cutting skills by cutting out shapes.  We then assembled the pieces to make a beautiful 3D robin. 

Year 2

This week in Year 2 we have continued to learn about the conditions Matthew Henson would have had to endure in 1909 on his journey to the North Pole. We had the chance to make some ship’s biscuits to experience what the food would have been like - the children had some mixed reactions to the taste! They then went on to write some amazing recipes based on this, including imperative (bossy) verbs and some excellent top tips to make them even tastier!

Year 3 

This week in English, Year 3 have been writing a third person narrative about The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. We have focused on the part where Lucy first discovers the dark, dusty wardrobe. Curiosity then gets the better of the young, inquisitive girl as she enters it, finding herself in a magical land. We began the week by acting out the first part of the story. Our writing then focused on describing the story with detail by using a range of noun phrases and where adverbials. We also used the five senses to describe how Lucy felt, what she saw, smelt, tasted and heard. Some fantastic examples of our third person narratives are shown below. 

Year 5 

Cheryl Moskowitz visiting Year 5 - Genghis Khan cinquain

This week, we had the pleasure of welcoming poet Cheryl Moskowitz back to George Spicer, as she visited Year 5 to support them with writing poetry. Each of the classes took part in a poetry workshop, where they each wrote cinquains about the life and legacy of Genghis Khan, as part of our unit, 'The Realm of the Khan.'

We began by discussing the legacy of Genghis Khan and discussed four key themes we have learnt about in our unit. In Anubis class, they focused on tolerance of religion, Thoth class focused on the written language, in Ra class they focused on the legal code (yassa) and In Osiris, they focused on the trade routes used by the Mongolian warriors and the importance of trade.  

At the end of the day, we performed our epic poem in the hall, which each class sharing their theme. We combined all four class poems together as one, following the cinquain format. Read below and tell us what you think! Thank you again to Cheryl Moskowitz for joining us and continuing to encourage our love of poetry! 

Supreme by Year 5

The Khan

Gruesome Warlord

Dweller, bringer of life

Cast his shadow upon the world

Genghis

I rule over you

But your religion is yours to keep

I cannot control your thoughts or your beliefs

You can have your religion of choice

But remember, I am your ruling voice

No one’s god is greater or inferior

But over every God, I am superior

We need our differences

We must learn to tolerate

 

Thoth’s Khan.

Brutal tyrant.

Destruction in his path,

Fireworks bursting from within,

Spirit!

So that we can remember,

Preserve and hold on to,

Look back at and pass on,

What we know.

Genghis Khan commissioned a language,

To be written and shared long ago,

Today we all know how to do it.

 

Vicious

Great overlord

Built links between nations

The ground beneath him quakes and alters

Wind strikes

The life of a nomad is everchanging and hard

From desert to grassland

From woodland to yard

I wove an invisible thread through the land

And brought people and cultures together

I brought bright coloured silk

And soft fur and hard leather

Porcelain from China

And gold brocade

Great One

Ferocious One,

Conqueror of all nations

Even the blood moon bows to him,

Tyrant.

Follow your leader,

Follow your master,

All MUST OBEY,

This is my Yassa!

Only believe in one god,

Be loyal.

No one should be slave, servant, or royal!

One rule for all - I insist on law and order.

Do not cross the line or you will be sent across the border!

Slaughter for those that are disobedient,

I am a hard ruler - I am NOT lenient.

Because.. I am the Great One

I am the ferocious One,

Conqueror of all nations

Even the blood moon bows down to me,

I am the wolf, warrior, leader, SUPREME.

Year 6 

Confidently coding

This week, Year 6 finished their latest computing unit, where we worked on our coding skills. To develop on our coding skills from years previous, Year 6 actually began to use real coding language: python. 

We began the unit by "tinkering". This is where we used a software called "logo" and began looking at a text-based version of python coding. With this, we had to be really careful with our accuracy in typing as something as simple as forgetting to enter a space could stop our whole code from successfully running. 

To progress from this, we began to use Python to create art work based on the work of Mondrian. Whilst using this coding language, we were introduced to what symbols are used frequently during coding. We had the chance to decompose code as well as de-bug when we had made a mistake. We made our own art using the coding:

 

GSPS Ambassadors

The GSPS Ambassadors created personalised Christmas cards for the residents of Elmhurst Residential Home. They wanted every elderly person to receive at least 1 Christmas card this year. They hand-delivered them and the residents were overjoyed. Well done GSPS Ambassadors for spreading some well needed Christmas Joy across Enfield. 

Community Council

Last week the Community Council met and spent time tidying and clearing the community herb garden. There are a variety of herbs thriving in these troughs as well as blackberries, raspberries and currents.  They noticed some bulbs are already poking through the soil and although some plants may appear dead, in the Spring they will once again grow. 

The troughs are next to the railings along Sketty Road. Feel free to take a snip of mint, sage and rosemary to liven up your cooking at home.