A Message From Miss Quarmby
Hello everyone, I hope you’ve all had a great week. I’ve been beaming from ear to ear over the past few days. So many children have achieved their reading certificates, I’ve seen some incredible writing from Miss Dougan’s Year 2 class, and I absolutely loved looking through Year 6’s published Geography pieces. There is so much to be proud of. Last weekend, I went to London to see Matilda. I absolutely loved it, but throughout the show I found myself thinking about Whitkirk: about how hard everyone here works each day (how lucky we are to have so many Miss Honeys!), and how many amazing things happen in our classrooms. Our children’s thirst for knowledge and the way they throw themselves into their learning is inspiring, and it really is such a special place to be. We are also significantly oversubscribed this year for Reception 2026 - our highest number of first-choice places ever - and again, it makes us so proud that so many families want to join our wonderful Whitkirk family. You may have seen a lot in the news recently about the importance of reading. One article described reading as the greatest gift you can give a child. Research also shows that children who are read to daily before starting school know significantly more words on average, giving them a strong foundation for learning. We use RWI phonics books to learn to read and Reading Plus in Upper School, but the value of reading real books and reading for pleasure cannot be overstated. Children who read regularly do better in school, develop broader vocabularies, and experience improved wellbeing. We’ve noticed that the number of children reading for pleasure has fallen (this is the same nationally), and we would really love to work together - home and school - to reignite that passion for reading. A quick reminder about school uniform: we are still seeing some variations, particularly with P.E. kit. Our uniform expectations are available on the school website, and we expect all children to follow them. For this year, P.E. kits may be black or navy, but from September it will be navy only. Finally, we currently have lunchtime supervisor vacancies advertised on the Red Kite Learning Trust website. If you know anyone who may be interested, please do share the details. Thank you and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
Attendance
This week, finishing in first place with 99.55% are 1LR. In joint second place are 4AR and 6OS, with 98.44% and in third place are YNAT with 98.4%. A shout out also goes to 1VM, 2KD, 3RD and 5AS who have also finished the week above our school target of 96.5%. The whole school attendance this week is 96.55%: can we beat this next week? The only way to do that is if we all come to school as often as we can. Please remember look at the NHS guide Is my child too ill for school? - NHS (www.nhs.uk) This is used to determine which reasons for absence will be authorised or unauthorised.
let's take a look at what each year group has been up to this week!
EYFS
This week, Pre-school have been reading “How Are You Feeling Today?” by Molly Potter. They have been focusing on recognising and naming emotions, and even acting them out in the mirror! We have trialled lots of different ways to regulate our emotions too, including a wiggly dance if we are feeling silly or excited, finding a cosy blanket if we are feeling sad and doing something kind to spread the joy when we are happy!
This week in Reception, the children have been exploring subitizing and the composition of numbers six to ten. Using die patterns, they have been learning that numbers beyond five are made up of five and a bit more (for example, six is five and one more). The children have impressed us with the many ways they can represent numbers, including identifying number patterns, spotting amounts in the environment and writing numerals. We are very proud of their growing confidence and number knowledge!
LOWER school
Our Year 1 children had a fantastic time on their recent trip to Eureka! They absolutely loved exploring the museum and taking part in an engaging workshop all about the senses. Staff at Eureka! were blown away by the children’s inquisitive nature, wonderful behaviour and thoughtful questions throughout the day. The pupils were a credit to our school and truly demonstrated what it means to be Whitkirk role models.
This week in Year 2, the children have published exceptional stories inspired by Lila and the Secret of Rain. In RE, they have been learning about Ramadan and exploring why it is such an important time for Muslims. In Geography, the class has been identifying human and physical features in Kenya and comparing them to places they know.
We have had a great week in Year 3. We wrote our individual letters to the Dursley's, persuading them to let Harry stay at Hogwarts. The children have really impressed us with how they have learned and used parts of our success criteria, including rhetorical questions and emotive language. In Science, we tested if soils hold water by conducting an experiment. In Dt, we practised the running stitch and began to make our final textile decorations!
UPPER school
In English, we wrote narratives inspired by Coming to England by Floella Benjamin. In Maths, we began our new measurement unit, focusing on equivalent lengths and converting units. In DT, we carefully drew and cut out our templates ready to begin making our decorations. We also enjoyed a visit from Yorkshire Water, where we learned how to keep our sewage system running smoothly, as well as exploring the water cycle, flooding, and water safety. Well done, Year 4, for a great week of learning! 🌟
Year 5 have been super scientists this week as we designed and created our own parachutes varying in sizes. The children used plastic bags, string and wire to create their parachutes in teams. We loved testing our parachutes by dropping them in our stairwell. Well done Year 5!
This week, Year 6 have been learning about the significance of a covenant in our Religion and Worldviews lessons. We explored the story of Abraham and the covenant that was made with God. Then, we produced artwork to represent this covenant. We have been really impressed with the children's explanations of their artwork, showing a deep understanding of the concept.