Newsletters

George Spicer Newsletter - 2nd February 2024

ARBOR PARENT APP - Thank you to all parents/carers who have logged in to the ARBOR App. Currently, 86% have now logged on and for those who have not yet logged on please check your email subject “ Welcome to ARBOR” and follow the instructions.  ARBOR App allows you to receive the latest messages from your child’s school, track attendance and update the information we hold about you and your child. IMPORTANT: Please allow notifications when installing the app. The notifications will alert you when you receive a message from the school.

Messages will no longer be sent via Marvellous Me - only via Arbor.

Please ensure you communicate with the school via office@georgespicer.enfield.sch.uk and do not reply to ARBOR messages.  Please see at the bottom for help with setting up your app.

Attendance – you are now able to view your child’s attendance by logging into the Arbor App.  Please note that if your child’s attendance is below 90%, we will not authorise any absence without medical evidence (e.g., doctor’s certificate or letter, hospital appointment card, prescription or the prescribed medication, or text message appointment).

Reporting Absences - You must call in every day if your child is absent. Please, when reporting absences, leave a message with your child's name, class and the reason for absence.

Lateness - The number of children arriving late in the mornings is high. Unfortunately, it is the same children repeatedly.  Gates close at 9am and learning starts promptly at this time.  If your child is 5 minutes late every day, this equates to nearly 3 whole days of missed learning, plus it’s disruptive for other children.  Please try to drop your child/children at least 5/10 minutes early to avoid this continuous lateness.

Be prepared - Please can you make sure you are sending your child in with all their belongings in the morning to prevent disruptions in class during the school day.

Breakfast and After-School club queries - Please note that all communication with basc is via their email basc@georgespicer.enfield.sch.uk NOT the office email.  

Y6 Residential Trip (current Y5)  – We are delighted to offer your child a place on the Year 6 residential at Kingswood Activity Centre, Kent.  The trip will take place from Monday 14^th October to Friday 18^th October 2024.

To secure your child’s place a £50 NON-REFUNDABLE deposit will need to be paid by Tuesday 20th February 2024. All deposits will go through ParentPay https://www.parentpay.com/.  For more information about Kingswood Activity Centre please visit the school website https://www.georgespicer.enfield.sch.uk/page/?title=Kingswood+Activity+Centre&pid=163

Headlice - There have been cases of headlice across our sites. We would like to advise you to check your child's/children's hair to avoid a spread. Please can we reinforce that it is important to keep your child's hair up if it is shoulder length or longer.

Playleaders - We are currently looking for lunchtime playleaders. For more information please visit our website. 

https://www.georgespicer.enfield.sch.uk/page/?title=Lunchtime+Playleader&pid=164

Sickness - If your child is unwell due to vomiting/diarrhoea, please ensure you do not send them to school for at least 24 hours since their last spell of sickness.

Important Dates for Diary

Boreattan Park – final payment 16^th Feb 2024 £100

Thursday 8th February - Cheyenne class assembly 2:45pm

Friday 9th February - Non-uniform day

Monday 12th-Friday 16th February - Half Term

Monday 19th February - First day back after half term

Thursday 14th March - Parent Consultation day (school is closed to pupils).

FoGS Dates - please see below in FOGS section for more info 

9th February - Non-Uniform Day Fundraiser 

23rd March - Reception, Year 1 + 2 Glow Discos

7th June - Non-Uniform Day & Donations for Summer Fun Day

6th July - Summer Fun Day

Attendance week ending 2/2/2024

Overall school = 93.62% Lates = 110

Best attendance: 1st Theseus 98.12% 2nd Cheyenne 97.88% 3rd Thoth 97.07%

Punctuality: Well done to Hurricanes with 100% for punctuality.

Assemblies this week

During our assemblies, Mr Spong likes to share some philosophical questions or ‘Thunks’ for the children to think about, ask your children what question he posed them this week, if any parent can correctly guess then they may win a prize.  This week, he continued to share inspiring stories to instil a sense of determination in our children.  He had the pleasure of introducing Emmanuel Ofosu-Yeboah, a Ghanaian athlete and disability rights activist, to our Children. Emmanuel was born with a severely deformed right leg, yet he managed to ride 400 miles (644 kilometers) across Ghana in 2001, with the aim of drawing attention to the challenges faced by disabled individuals in his country.  He is now an advocate for disability rights and is currently trying to fund schools and equipment to improve the lives of disadvantaged young people.

Emmanuel's story serves as a powerful reminder that nothing is impossible. We want our children to understand that the word "impossible" should be banned from their vocabulary, and instead, they should adopt the mindset of "not possible yet." By embracing this attitude, our children will be encouraged to face challenges head-on, never give up in the face of adversity, and ultimately achieve their goals.

Furthermore, we took the opportunity to explore and challenge stereotypes about Africa as a continent. It is important for our children to recognise and appreciate the rich diversity that exists within Africa. By providing this perspective, we aim to broaden our children’s horizons, foster cultural understanding, and promote inclusivity.

Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to remind our school community about the importance of kindness and respect. I urge you to instil and model these values in, and to your children, both within the school setting and in our wider local community. By treating others with kindness and respect, we can create a harmonious and inclusive environment where everyone feels safe, valued and supported.  Thank you for your continued support in our mission to provide a nurturing and empowering educational experience for your children.

Reception

Reception: Storytelling Week

This week has been all about story telling. The Reception children have looked at what makes a story; a beginning, a middle and an end. They explored different characters and settings to start a story. They had fun discussing what the main character does in the middle of the story, and they mainly ended their story with how their character feels because of this. It was great seeing the children make up their own stories and sharing their creative ideas with each other. Each class in Reception made their own class story and learnt the story off by heart so that they can recite it to the other classes.

The stories and ideas have been absolutely amazing and it was great to hear them using such lovely story language!

Year 1

This week in Year 1, we have been exploring different materials in Science. The children discussed the names of materials and their properties. We then worked together to group objects by their material.  

Year 2

This week,  Year 2 have had some fun and engaging Science sessions, continuing their work on plants.  They have learned all about seed germination and now know how scientists work to find out what the best conditions are to ensure seeds grow healthily.  The children then set up their own scientific experiments to test what will help cress seeds to germinate.  They are all looking forward to finding out the results!   As part of their Religion and World View sessions, pupils have been learning about Sikhism.  This week they learned how Sikhs show commitment to their faith by wearing the Five Ks, and the significance of each of them. 

Year 3 

Year 3 have been developing their knowledge of fractions and have been ordering fractions in ascending and descending order on a number line.

They have also really enjoyed their art lessons where they produced observational drawings of Roman artefacts. They also learnt about the importance of shading and the different types of graded pencils to create different shades. Have a look at some of their artwork below.

Year 5 

This week, the children have been reading the book Flight for Freedom, the true story about a family who escaped East Germany in a hot-air balloon. The children wrote diary entries as Peter, thinking about what his life would have been like. 

In Science, the children were learning about day and night. They used torches and globes to explain how the Earth rotates and thought about what time of day it would be at different points on the globe.