Children in Early Years will be taking part in World Nursery Rhyme Week this month. We will be challenging children to participate in the ‘Rhyme a Day Challenge’ by singing nursery rhymes and taking part in supporting activities. 

Nursery rhymes are excellent teaching tools and can help to develop:  

• Language and literacy skills 
• Numeracy skills 
• Social skills
• Physical skills
• Emotional skills – they are so much fun 

All children in Nursery and Reception are asked to dress up on Monday 22nd November 2021 as their favourite Nursery Rhyme character. Please do not feel obliged to spend money on a costume. Home-made outfits are often the best. To help prepare your child for this experience you could sing the official rhymes of 2021 at home:

• Incy Wincy Spider 
• Sleeping Bunnies 
• Wind the Bobbin 
• Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes 
• Down In the Jungle 

Or, use this link to watch the nursery rhyme videos. https://bit.ly/3Ezl87W 

If you would like to explore a wide range of rhymes please visit Piccolo Music by using this link https://bit.ly/2ZJJ9tI

Friday was Miss Machin’s last day at Bloxwich Academy for a while as she is taking maternity leave to welcome the birth of her son. The staff at Bloxwich Academy wish the best of luck on the arrival of your baby and we can’t wait to hear all about it. Good luck!

Jump Rope for Heart Event

On Friday 15th October, Bloxwich Academy Primary supported the British Heart Foundation by participating in the Jump Rope for Heart event. Children had great fun participating in a range of skipping activities with their class. Some children skipped on their own and tried a range of skipping tricks and skills. Some children skipped as a group using the large skipping ropes, which was a lot of fun to watch.

Schools and Academies up and down the country participated In the Jump Rope for Heart event to raise money for the British Heart Foundation. Before the British Heart Foundation existed, most babies with major or complex heart problems did not survive to their first birthday. However, research has helped change this, and now in the UK nine out of ten babies born with heart problems get to go to school.  The Jump Rope for Heart event help the British Heart Foundation continue to fund lifesaving research. Research that will help improve the lives of the estimated 50,000 children currently living with congenital heart disease.

We hope you will enjoy reading out what we have planned for the children of Bloxwich Academy Primary and will be inspired to get involved yourself.

Currently, the elected members are:

Chair: Rebecca Williams

Joint Secretary: Amy Williams & Sarah Gooch

Treasurer: Stephanie Millard

Friends of Bloxwich, or FOB for short, are a group of parents and carers from the local community who meet throughout the academic year to organise various events to support an enhanced curriculum for the pupils. As well as raising money, FOB brings together parents, family members, staff and friends in support of our school and is an opportunity for family members to become involved in our children’s education. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer and getting involved, please drop us an email: Friendsofbloxwichacademy@outlook.com

Halloween Disco

We are excited to see the return of the annual Halloween Disco to be held in the upper hall at Bloxwich Academy Primary. There will be two events held on Friday 22nd October; a session for Keystage 1 children (Years 1 & 2) from 3.30pm-4.15pm, and another for Keystage 2 children (Years 3-6) from 4.30pm-5.30pm. Tickets will be on sale within the academy grounds during week commencing 11th October and are priced at £1.00 each. We know how much the children love dressing up and having fun with their friends, and we cannot wait to see their amazing outfits! There will be a prize during each session for the spookiest outfit, and all children will also receive a small bag of sweets to take home with them.

Christmas Fayre

Although we are still in the process of finalising the specific details, we are thrilled to confirm that we will be holding a Christmas Fayre at Bloxwich Academy Primary on Friday 17th December. Please keep an eye out for further details after half term!

Good to be green was back with a bang and all of the young people were able to take part in fun activities such as archery and fencing.  

There is now a board outside Miss Northalls office with all of the activities going on around the school displayed for everyone to see.

Bloxwich Academy have celebrated the love of reading in many ways.

Firstly, we have introduced a new reading scheme called ‘Accelerated Reading’. Your child brings home a reading book every day and they take a test after every book, which checks your child’s understanding of different vocabulary and their book. This has been a fantastic success. The children have loved to celebrate changing their books, they have loved choosing a new book and they have loved reading at home with their parent/guardian.

We are so pleased that our parents/ guardians have supported their children to develop their love of reading. You have listened to your children read, you have offered encouragement and positivity when your child has read well, and you have challenged your child and checked their understanding of certain vocabulary throughout their book.

Thank you to all our pupils for their amazing reading this term.

We have to provide information to the Department for Education (DfE), which dictates how much funding the school receives. As you know, the more funding we receive, the better provision we can provide for your children.

One of the key funding categories is how many children take up Universal Free School Meals (UFSM) on census day. All children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are entitled to a free meal (hot dinner or sandwich) every day. Some parents choose not to take this offer and supply their children with a packed lunch.  We always try to ensure that on census day one of the more popular meal choices is available. On this day, we have a themed dinner day the ‘American Diner’ and as a result our menu has changed to hot dogs, burgers (vegetarian option available), fries and donuts, but remember there is also the school sandwich option you can order which is also very popular for many children.

We would like your help to try and encourage your child to take up the UFSM offer and if at all possible, test it out next Thursday.

First and foremost, welcome back! I must say, for the first time in a long while, life felt somewhat normal during the summer holidays, and it was lovely being able to meet up with friends and family. I was lucky enough to spend some time on the beach in Wales, and probably enjoyed a few too many ice-creams in the process! It has been wonderful coming back into school and hearing about all the fun and exciting things the children have been up to over the holidays; it sounds like you have made the most of the summer break.

Secondly, I need to tell you how incredible impressed I am with how brilliantly the children have been upon returning to school. Honestly, they have come back to school with such a fantastic attitude and so well behaved; it is wonderful to see that they have such high expectations for themselves, and a determination to be the best they can be. As parents, you really should be proud.

As you are aware, this year we have decided to name our classes after peaks and mountains starting at Roseberry, a distinctive hill in North Yorkshire, and ending at Snowdon and Ben Nevis, the two tallest peaks in the UK. The idea behind this was to symbolise to children how they achieve greater feats as they grow through the school, and that although the challenges become harder, the rewards become so much richer. We want children to believe in their own abilities; every mountain top is within reach if you just keep climbing, and the best view comes after the hardest climb.

This year we have been fortunate enough to employ an additional teacher for each year group, allowing us to take children into smaller groups for more focused teaching. Children have been so warm and welcoming to our new staff members, and have taken to this new way of learning brilliantly.

Something else that is new for this academic year is our Jobs Board. At Bloxwich Academy Primary, we want to offer children the opportunity to not only develop educationally, but also socially. We want to instil a sense of responsibility and purpose, helping our older children to become well rounded citizens as they grow in maturity. The Jobs Board contains roles within the school community that they can apply for such as lunchtime monitor, librarian or playground buddy. The response from children has been unprecedented, and it is great to see such enthusiasm.

Most of you will have now received letters advising of the extra-curricular clubs and activities we have planned for this term for our different year groups. Places are limited therefore we ask that you return consent slips as soon as possible. We also have an array of Good to be Green events taking place over the coming weeks; please make sure you have returned your child’s consent slip so that they can take part.

During this first week back, children have been participating in a range of memorable experiences linked to the topics they will be learning about this term. Teachers have really enjoyed creating these activities for your children, and have taken plenty of pictures which can be found further along in the newsletter. I hope you enjoy reading about their experiences as much as the children enjoyed taking part.

Thank you for your continued support and your hard work over the holidays, ensuring the children returned with such positive enthusiasm. Take care and enjoy your weekend!

Ms. S. Shepherd