Issue 413: 3rd February 2023

Dear Parents and Carers,

Another very busy week at Orton Wistow but a productive one also. We had our 4^th honours award assembly of the year, recognising some individual pupils who have demonstrated an impressive amount of responsibility in school. Listening to the reasons they had been chosen made me feel very proud of them all and reiterated the importance of the five learning tools we have in our school that we support the children to develop over time; Resilience, Teamwork, Concentration, Responsibility and Perseverance. 

A sad goodbye at Easter

On Friday 31^st March we will say a very sad goodbye to Mrs. McIntosh who is moving on to a new job within the Rutland Trust. Mrs.McIntosh has been a teacher at OWPS for nearly thirteen years and has taught across Key Stage One and Foundation Stage. When she first began her teaching career here she taught the Hummingbirds class as she was then Miss. Hinchliffe but after getting married and changing her name, her class became The Magpies. She has landed the perfect job for her as she will be heavily involved in developing arts and culture across several settings, something she has done here since joining the school. I know she is feeling very sad about saying goodbye to us, but I know you will join me in wishing her the best of luck in her new adventure. 

Parents Evening

Great to see that so many of you have already booked an appointment to see your child's teacher next week on Tuesday or Thursday. Please log in to School Cloud (https://ortonwistow.schoolcloud.co.uk/) in the usual way to book a time as soon as you can if you haven't done so already. There is no report being shared with you prior to the meeting, but there will be one uploaded to the parent portal next half-term after we have completed our Spring term assessments. 

Mental Health Week

Although it is national children's mental health week next week, we decided to focus on this important subject in school over the past five days instead due to other things happening in the final week of the half-term. My assembly on Monday focussed on the theme of 'Let's Connect' and we talked about the importance of knowing who we can talk to when we have worries or concerns and the idea of setting ourselves an emotional goal. There have been lots of tweets this week related to things the children have been doing in class. 

Have a great weekend everyone, maybe there is someone you haven't connected with in a while that you could contact? 

Mr. Marks

Headteacher 

^{Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash}

Each week, we publish the latest achievements of the children at Orton Wistow Primary School.

Year 6 2 Can Learn 26.01.23

By Miss Tansley, Year 6 Class Teacher and English Subject Lead

On Thursday 26^th February, parents and carers of Year 6 pupils came into OWPS to join us for a 'Make Do and Mend' textile and sewing session. This session links to the current topic of Peterborough through the World Wars and how rationing impacted not only food items but clothing too.

Prior to the session, the Year 6 pupils had researched different clothing designs from the 1940s, they had all practised four different stitching techniques (running, blanket, whip and back) and then designed the item they would like to make. These items ranged from soft toys, to bags, mobile phone cases and hair scrunchies. 

The morning was a real success, and it was great to have so many visitors join us.

We had some lovely feedback from parents about the event:

"Always engaging and well-organised. Most importantly, the children enjoyed it and, aside from my lack of sewing skills, so did I."

"The 'make do and mend' session was really enjoyable.  It was great to see the creativity and thought process which had gone in to the design and bringing it to life.  Very creative and lots of fun had by both myself and my son."

Thank you to all that came.

FOWS Update 03.02.23

By Jo Watson, Friends of Orton Wistow Chair

We hope your children enjoyed last night's disco.  Thank you to all the volunteers, teachers and of course the children for making last night a fantastic event.  As always without the support of parents, parent volunteers, teachers and the FOWS committee we couldn’t provide these memorable events for the children and also raise much needed money for the school.

Here are 10 reason why we hope you'll consider joining FOWS:

Eco Update 03.02.23

By Ms Porter, Eco Lead

The children enjoyed the Assembly from Sustrans last week about ensuring we keep safe when cycling in the dark.  Lots of children took advantage of the free bike lights too.  The weather hasn't been kind for cycling, hopefully once the ice has gone we can all get back on our bikes.  Please look out for more information about the Big Walk and Wheel that runs from Monday 20 March to Friday 31 March 2023.

The Eco warriors are busy helping their classes to follow our Eco code.  We now have new class compost bins that are emptied into the school bin ready to be collected.  This avoids unnecessary waste going into landfill.  

However, there are still snacks coming into school at breaktime that are in wrappers.  Please send a healthy snack in a recyclable pot. We have noticed more 'less healthy' treats coming into school for breaktime, including sweet lollies.  As well as not being part of our Healthy Eating/Eco code, lollies are dangerous for children to have in their mouths when running around in the playground.  

Thank you for helping us to promote a healthy lifestyle for the children.

World Book Day 2nd March 2023

By Mrs Campling, Librarian

Throughout the week of World Book Day there will be a whole host of bookish activities taking place in school, culminating of course in World Book Day itself on Thursday 2nd March.

We would love to see as many children in costume as possible, ready to take part in a day full of activities.

We would also like to suggest that children create a ‘shoebox scene’ from a book (or a jar of items representing their favourite book) that they can make at home and bring in and share with their class. Perhaps you could show each of the three little pigs’ houses, recreate Hogwarts School or make an underwater scene from The Snail and the Whale – the choice is yours! Classes will be voting on their top two, which will be sent down to the library and displayed, with an overall winner and runner-up announced from FS/KS1, LKS2 and UKS2.

Here are some photos of some finished shoeboxes to help inspire you and your child with your creation:

It is up to you and your children whether they dress up, create something, do both, or neither - but it would be fantastic to have as many children involved as possible in one way or another. 

Please note, if your child is not dressing up they will need to be in uniform.

Honours Awards 31.01.23

Congratulations to those children who received an Honours Award on Tuesday 31st January for Responsibility.

Safer Internet Day 07.02.23

By Mrs Morris, Joint Online Safety Lead

‘Safer Internet Day is a great opportunity to focus on online safety with your child, whatever their age.  It is celebrated on 7th February 2023, with thousands of people across the UK working together to champion youth voice and engage in conversations about how we can all work together to make the internet a great and safe place.’

Below I have attached a couple of useful links that offer advice and share top tips.  If you also have a spare couple of minutes there’s a short film too.

https://saferinternet.org.uk/safer-internet-day/safer-internet-day-2023/parents-and-carers

Thank you for your support in keeping children safe online.

Travelling To School - A message from the Headteacher Mr Marks

It is always great to see so many of our families walking, biking and scooting to school each day. Orton Wistow is set up well to allow for this to happen safely, with the pathways that go through the area and around Wistow Way. Although some of the markings have worn out over time, these paths are dual-purpose and are wide enough for our families and members of the public to walk, cycle or scooter along them. This also means those cycling to and from school can avoid travelling on the Wistow Way road which is very busy at the start and end of each school day. 

Discover what is coming up in the OWPS Dining Car.

Read about what is happening in the local community.

^{Disclaimer: Orton Wistow Primary School does not endorse any products, services or activities that appear in the Community section of this newsletter, and is not responsible for any contract entered into by either party. Given the current circumstances, we would recommend all parents check with any providers regarding the status of these services, activities and clubs}