Welcome Back!
We are delighted to welcome all our pupils, families, and staff back for the start of a brand new school year. The corridors are once again filled with energy as we begin what promises to be a busy and exciting year ahead. Whether you are returning or joining us for the first time, we look forward to working together to make this year a successful one for the children. Please take the time to look through our newsletter; it is filled with useful information to help you support your children and to keep up to date with the many things that happen at West Leigh.
I look forward to seeing you all soon,
Mr Aggus
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Correct cardigan - Autumn 1 Diary Dates - Year 3 - Year 4 - Year 5 - Year 6 - Dinner Menu
Healthy Schools - Attendance - Sports Awards - House Points - Parent Council
Community - Autumn 2 Diary Dates
Uniform
We have noticed that a few children have returned to school wearing the incorrect cardigan. Please note that the Junior School cardigan should be the KNITTED style with yellow edging, as shown below. The sweatshirt-style cardigan is part of the Infant School uniform only and is not permitted in the Juniors.
Autumn 1 Diary Dates
September
- Monday 8th - Swimming restarts
- Year 3/4 Cross Country Trials
- Repeating History Workshops (5F & 5N)
- Tuesday 9th - Repeating History Workshops (5A and 5G)
- Monday 15th - Year 5/6 Cross Country Trials
- Tuesday 16th - Year 3/4 Boys' Football match V Chalkwell
- Wednesday 17th - Friday 19th - Year 5 Residential
- Wednesday 17th - Year 6 Height & Weight Check
- Year 6 Boys' Table Tennis Competition AM
- Year 6 Girls' Table Tennis Competition PM
- Monday 22nd - Cross Country Squad Training
- Tuesday 23rd - Wednesday 24th - Year 5 Walk It training
- Wednesday 24th - Coastal Schools (4E)
- Friday 26th - Southend Cross Country Competition
- Tuesday 30th - Coastal Schools (4SW)
October
- Thursday 2nd - Friday 3rd - Show Racism the Red Card workshops
- Monday 6th - Year 6 Curriculum meeting
- Tuesday 7th - Coastal Schools (4C)
- Year 4 Curriculum meeting
- Wednesday 8th - Year 6 TAG Rugby Competition
- Year 5 Curriculum meeting
- Thursday 9th - Coastal Schools (4B)
- Year 3 Curriculum meeting
- Monday 13th - Individual and Sibling Photos
- Tuesday 14th - Individual and Sibling Photos
- Wednesday 15th - Cross Country Competition
- Friday 17th - Food Collection for Southend Foodbank
- Year 5/6 Girls Football Competition
- Monday 20th - Coastal Schools (4E)
- Tuesday 21st - Learning Conferences
- Tuesday 22nd - Year 3 Visit to Barleylands
- Thursday 23rd - Learning Conferences
- Monday 27th - Friday 31st - Half Term
Salt and Ice Online Challenge
We have been made aware of a challenge circulating online that poses a potential risk to children.
This challenge is called the 'salt and ice challenge'. It is an online trend where young people place salt on their skin and press ice on top for as long as possible.
This causes serious cold burns (like frostbite).
👉 Injuries can need hospital treatment and even skin grafts.
👉 Children may not realise the damage until it’s too late.
✅ First Aid: Cool with lukewarm running water for 10+ minutes, cover with clean cling film, and seek medical help.
❌ Do NOT use ice, creams, or fluffy dressings.
Please listen out for children talking about this challenge and ensure that they know the dangers. Taking part in this challenge can lead to permanent scarring.
Year 3
We have had a very successful start to Year 3. The children have come back refreshed and eager to learn. They are all starting to understand the expectations of the Junior School and have shown mature and responsible attitudes. The children very much enjoyed their hook day on Wednesday when they were immersed into Stone Age activities, from jewellery making to tool carving. A highlight was creating some cave paintings in the dark, crouched in their 'caves' and understanding some of the struggles of the Stone Age civilisation.
In maths lessons, we have been learning about place value and looking at reading and writing numbers up to 1000. All the children have now had an opportunity to log into Times Tables Rock Stars and many have completed 10 rounds in the studio session, giving them their current rock status. Thank you for your support at home with this. We ask the children spend approximately 20 minutes per week practising their times tables to improve their fluency and speed.
The children all now have a reading book and this has been recorded in their reading record found in the Communication Book. Please sign these each week and check the targets to support your child with their reading. Reading books are changed regularly so please bear with us whilst the children are learning this new system.
Thank you again for your support in preparing your children for starting the Juniors and for your patience during this time of settling in. Wishing you a restful and enjoyable weekend with your families.
PE Days
3T
- Indoor PE - Tuesday
- Outdoor PE - Friday
3H
- Indoor PE - Wednesday
- Outdoor PE - Thursday
3L
- Indoor PE - Monday
- Outdoor PE - Friday
3M
- Indoor PE - Tuesday
- Outdoor PE - Thursday
Swimming
- 3H - Monday
- 3L – Tuesday
- 3T – Wednesday
- 3M – Wednesday
Letters sent home this week
Curriculum Meeting
We would like to invite you to attend a curriculum meeting to learn more about what will be covered this year in your child’s year group. This will also be an opportunity to ask any questions you may have regarding the curriculum. A recording of the meeting will be available once it has taken place.
Following feedback from our Parent Council, we are holding the meetings via Teams this year. Hopefully, this will enable more parents to attend.
Thursday 9th October @ 2pm
Year 4
It has been great to welcome the Year 4 children back after the summer holidays. We look forward to a hard-working, fun-filled year.
We began the week with a Growth Mindset lesson where we studied a variety of famous people. The children expressed how successful they thought the people were based on their achievements. Further discussions led to the conclusion that failure can occur and that perseverance and resilience can achieve success in the end.
English lessons began with looking at sentences containing clauses and phrases. Using their knowledge of word classes, the children created their own sentences and improved them by adding extra information. In addition, children used a visual stimulus to examine the structure of a story and identified the key features.
In maths, there has been a focus on number, where children have identified the value of each digit within a larger number. Some children have also answered questions involving counting on and back in steps of 1000. Other groups have practised rounding numbers to the nearest 10, 100 and 1000.
Science has been messy but great fun this week!! The children have looked closely at the human digestive system and have labelled parts of the human body and their functions. The practical activity involved using tights, cream crackers, bananas, orange juice, water and paper cups to represent the process.
This week’s Connected Curriculum involved launching our new topic of Tomb Raiders with our ‘Hook Day’, where the children became Egyptologists. In groups, they used their problem-solving skills, such as code-breaking, to work through a range of tasks. They did this diligently and enthusiastically.
Reminders:
- 4SW and 4E will be going to fields every Thursday, starting on Thursday 11th September until Thursday 23rd October. If you are able to assist us during any of these afternoons, please let your child's class teacher or the school office know The timings are 1:45pm-3:00pm. Many thanks.
PE Days
4B
- Indoor PE - Friday
- Outdoor PE - Tuesday
4E
- Indoor PE - Monday
- Outdoor PE - Thursday
4SW
- Indoor PE - Wednesday
- Outdoor PE - Thursday
4C
- Indoor PE - Monday
- Outdoor PE - Tuesday
Swimming
- 4B - Monday
- 4SW - Monday
- 4C - Wednesday
- 4E - Friday
Letters sent home this week
Curriculum Meeting
We would like to invite you to attend a curriculum meeting to learn more about what will be covered this year in your child’s year group. This will also be an opportunity to ask any questions you may have regarding the curriculum. A recording of the meeting will be available once it has taken place.
Following feedback from our Parent Council, we are holding the meetings via Teams this year. Hopefully this will enable more parents to attend.
Year 4 – Tuesday 7th October 2pm
Year 5
Our first week of the new school year (weather-wise), has been a bit of a mixed bag; however, the excitement and warm smiles on Tuesday lifted our spirits and set the scene for what we hope will be the best year yet!
In maths, we have begun by reviewing the children’s knowledge of place value up to and including millions. Using their knowledge, they have been practising ordering numbers and recognising where numbers have been increased or decreased and by how much. Rounding to 10 and 100 has also been practised.
In English lessons, we introduced The Firework Maker's Daughter - our first Layered Reading text of the year. This story of courage, resilience and friendship is an inspiring tale, and we are certain the children will love taking a journey alongside the main character, Lila. In other English lessons, the children have been building upon learning from Year 4 by planning a biography. After reading a text about the explorations of Christopher Columbus and his failed attempt to find the Spice Islands (instead accidentally discovering the Americas), the children were provided with a structure to support good biography writing. They were then introduced to the famous Antarctic explorer, Ernest Shackleton. Researching his life, achievements, challenges and his legacy, they produced detailed notes which they will use when writing about this inspirational figure from history.
In science lessons, we have introduced the topic of forces. The children have applied previous learning to expand their understanding of why forces are necessary and were also introduced to the concept of balanced and unbalanced forces. They went on to measuring Newtons by hanging or dragging various objects on a force meter.
The children demonstrated their chronological knowledge during our Maths Mission, when they were expected to correctly sort and order the reigns of all of the Kings of England up to 1066. They also considered the length of each reign and why some only held the throne for a short time, leading to some very interesting discussions about warfare and disease. In another lesson, a mysterious bag of rubbish appeared in the classroom. The children made predictions about the people who might have discarded this bag, including where they had come from and why certain items might have been thrown away. This lead onto them looking at some Saxon artefacts and making predictions about what they might have been used for and what type of people might have owned them.
Reminders:
- Next week, we will be visited by the Repeating History group as an exciting introduction to our new Connected Curriculum topic. As part of the experience, the children are welcomed to dress as a Saxon. If they would rather not dress up, they should come to school wearing their normal school uniform. 5F and 5N's workshop is on Monday 8th September; 5G and 5A's will take place on Tuesday 9th September.
PE Days
5G
- Indoor PE - Tuesday
- Outdoor PE - Wednesday
5A
- Indoor PE - Friday
- Outdoor PE - Monday
5N
- Indoor PE - Friday
- Outdoor PE - Monday
5F
- Indoor PE - Thursday
- Outdoor PE - Wednesday
Swimming
- 5N – Tuesday
- 5F – Tuesday
- 5G – Thursday
- 5A – Thursday
Letters sent home this week
Curriculum meeting
We would like to invite you to attend a curriculum meeting to learn more about what will be covered this year in your child’s year group. This will also be an opportunity to ask any questions you may have regarding the curriculum. A recording of the meeting will be available once it has taken place.
Following feedback from our Parent Council, we are holding the meetings via Teams this year. Hopefully this will enable more parents to attend.
Year 5 – Wednesday 8th October 2pm
Year 6
It has been a positive start to the new term.
The Year 6 pupils have settled extremely well, making an excellent first impression and approaching their learning with maturity and enthusiasm. It has been a busy and purposeful start, with the children already engaging fully across a wide range of subjects.
In maths, pupils have been delving deeper into their understanding of place value and the number system. This foundational work will provide them with the confidence and accuracy needed for the more complex concepts to come.
In English, the focus has been on developing a varied sentence structure to improve fluency and style in writing. We have also introduced Letters from the Lighthouse as our Layered Reading text, which ties seamlessly into our Connected Curriculum topic as it is set during the Second World War.
In science, the children have begun exploring the question “What is electricity?” They have also discussed important aspects of electrical safety, building the groundwork for deeper learning in the coming weeks.
We have greatly enjoyed getting to know the pupils during these first few days and look forward to the exciting weeks and months ahead as we continue our Year 6 journey together.
PE Days
6D
- Indoor - Wednesday
- Outdoor - Tuesday
6K
- Indoor - Thursday
- Outdoor - Monday
6W
- Indoor - Thursday
- Outdoor - Monday
6S
- Indoor - Thursday
- Outdoor - Tuesday
Swimming
- 6D - Thursday
- 6S - Friday
- 6K - Friday
- 6W - Friday
Letters sent home this week
Curriculum Meeting
We would like to invite you to attend a curriculum meeting to learn more about what will be covered this year in your child’s year group. This will also be an opportunity to ask any questions you may have regarding the curriculum. A recording of the meeting will be available once it has taken place.
Following feedback from our Parent Council, we are holding the meetings via Teams this year. Hopefully this will enable more parents to attend.
Year 6 - Monday 6th October 2pm
Dinner Menu
Week 2
Monday - Homemade Tomato and Vegetable Wholemeal Pasta Bake with Garlic Bread - Jacket Potato (with Baked Beans, Cheese or Tuna Mayonnaise) - Granary Baguette with Cheese - Coleslaw and Salad Bar - Fresh Fruit, Yoghurt or Fruit Doughnuts
Tuesday - All Day Breakfast (Sausage, Beans and Hash Brown) - Vegetarian All Day Breakfast (Vegetarian Sausage, Beans and Hasg Brown) Jacket Potato (with Baked Beans, Cheese or Tuna Mayonnaise) - Mushrooms, Tomatoes, Scrambled Egg and Salad Bar - Fresh Fruit, Yoghurt or Jelly
Wednesday - Traditional Roast Chicken in Gravy - Quorn in Vegetable Gravy - Granary Baguette with Egg Mayonnaise - Roast Potatoes, Yorkshire Pudding, Carrots and Peas and Salad Bar - Fresh Fruit, Yoghurt or Chocolate Prune Cake
Thursday - Homemade Lasagne - Homemade Vegetables and 5 Bean Lasagne - Jacket Potato (with Baked Beans, Cheese or Tuna Mayonnaise) - Garlic Bread and Salad Bar - Fresh Fruit, Yoghurt or Fruit Biscuit
Friday - 100% Fish Fingers - Vegetable and Cheese Bake - Granary Baguette with Salmon and Sweetcorn - Chips, Sweetcorn, Peas and Salad Bar - Fresh fruit, Yoghurt or Ice Cream Sponge
Healthy Schools
Please visit the Healthy Schools section of our website.
Don't forget to check out our new online bookshop here.
Parent Council
Information Coming Soon
Community News
We've created a dedicated space on our website to share flyers for local events and community support. Click the link below to explore what's happening in our area.
Autumn 2 Term Diary Dates
November
- Wednesday 5th - Year 6 Basketball Competition
- Year 6 Book Look 3.30 - 3.45pm
- Friday 7th - Team Challenge
- Monday 10th - Resilience Workshop (select Year 6 children)
- Tuesday 11th - Flu Immunisations
- General Knowledge Quiz Club Area Heat
- Wednesday 12th - Year 5 Book Look 3.30 - 3.45pm
- Year 4 Dodgeball Competition
- Thursday 13th - Coastal Schools(4SW)
- Friday 14th - Children in Need
- Year 5/6 Boys' Football
- Monday 17th - Friday 21st - Year 6 Test Week
- Tuesday 18th - Year 5 Performance to Parents @ 2.15pm - 5N and 5A
- Wednesday 19th - Year 6 - Young Shakespeare Macbeth
- Year 4 Book Look 3.30 - 3.45pm
- Year 6 Dodgeball Competition
- Thursday 20th - Year 5 Performance to Parents @ 2.15pm - 5G and 5F
- Monday 24th - Wednesday 3rd - Assessment Weeks for Years 3 - 5
- Monday 24th - Friday 28th - Book Fair
- Coastal Schools (4C)
- Wednesday 26th - Year 3 Book Look 3.30 - 3.45pm
- Goalball Competition
December
- Tuesday 2nd - Flu Immunisation mop-up
- Year 3 Presentation to Parents @ 2.15pm - 3M and 3H
- Wednesday 3rd - Year 3 Christmas Decoration Morning
- Thursday 4th - Year 5 Christmas Decoration Morning
- Year 3 Presentation to Parents @ 2.15pm - 3T and 3S
- Friday 5th - Christmas Decorations Years 4 and 6 - times TBC
- Monday 8th - Rehearsal at St Margaret's AM
- Tuesday 9th - Coastal Schools (4B)
- Christmas Carol Service @ 7pm
- Wednesday 10th - Handball Competition (Year 6)
- Friday 19th - INSET DAY
- Monday 22nd - Friday 2nd January - Christmas Break
Credits:
Created with images by Christy Thompson - "make a date" • Danicha - "Open textbook laid on a cluttered wooden desk surrounded by pencils, paper clips, and a calculator, with a" • Atmospheric stock - "Female educator writing curriculum on chalkboard in classroom" • vegefox.com - "bildung" • smolaw11 - "Back to School Concept, People Sign wood with Graduation celebrating cap blur pencil box, show alternative studying. Graduate or Education knowledge learning study abroad international Ideas." • Win Nondakowit - "Kid hand with trophy cup" • Brian Jackson - "Calendar appointment"