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Dear North Tawton Families and Friends, Thank you to all who came to our Harvest Celebration at St Peter’s yesterday. Year Six led the service telling us all about Harvest. They explained why we collect food at this time of year and led thanks to our farmers. They performed Ted Hughes poem There Came A Day and shared their own poems about Autumn. Autumn Leaves falling on the ground The sun gone behind the clouds Summer time ended Autumn has started The bitter cold is coming It is the sign of winter The death of summer. Autumn is the killer A henchman for winter. By Ralph I was particularly struck by Ralph’s poem as has used personification and captured the mood of the Ted Hughes poem. The whole school sang our school favourite Harvest Samba, Autumn Days (those lyrics!) and a very emotive rendition of Through the Tears. Thank you for all of your contributions to our harvest collection. They are at the church and will be taken to Merry Go Round so they can be distributed to local families in need. Families in Grief You will remember that a team of our staff completed ‘The Barney to Beach’ sponsored walk to raise money for Families in Grief. The whole walk raised £15000 for this very worthy charity. I am delighted to say that Team NT raised £1490 of that total! We are so proud of them for doing this and hugely grateful to everyone who sponsored them. Times Table Rock Stars Times table Rock Stars is a computer programme our older pupils use to learn and embed times table facts. It is very popular and competitive! Today we had a wonderful time dressed up as rock stars and invited our families in to take part in mathematical challenges. Thank you to our wonderful catering staff Mandy and Nichola, for making a themed menu especially!  To find out what else we have been learning, please click on the links to our latest class blogs: Sycamore Class Hazel Class Willow Class Beech Class Chestnut Class Acorn Class Parents can also access Dojo for photos of children dressed up. Year Six Residential We were so disappointed that the residential to France was cancelled due to lack of available funding. I have been working on an alternative for our Foundry Year Sixes. I am working on a trip to a city, for four days / three nights in June, with a budget of asking parents for no more than £300 per child. We will have more details after half term, watch this space! Children in Need Friday 15th November This year we are raising money for Children in Need by wearing our pyjamas to school for the day. If possible please bring in a donation of £1 for wearing our pyjamas to school. This is an incredible charity and as a school we would love to raise money to help them in their work. Thank you 😊 Attendance to date  Well done to Hazel and Sycamore for creeping back up.
Parent consultations Please make sure you book in an appointment to meet your child’s teacher and discuss their progress and targets. Teachers will send an invite via Dojo for a convenient day and time during the week beginning 11th November. Halloween If you celebrate Halloween, I hope you have a fun time. If you allow your children to take part in Trick or Treat please make sure that are safe! Appreciate that not everyone takes part in Halloween celebrations. Some children, and adults, find Halloween quite scary and knocking on doors is not welcomed by all community members. Fonts have organised a scarecrow trail – so do look out for them as you walk around the town next week. Maps available at Eco Mojo. I hope everyone has a wonderful half term week, Tara Penny Principal Dear North Tawton Families and Friends, October is Black History Month in the UK. It’s a time when we specifically focus on learning about Black history as it is a part of our history which has been underrepresented. By learning about the contributions and achievements of Black individuals and communities, our pupils gain a broader perspective of history that goes beyond a Eurocentric narrative. It helps them appreciate the diversity that has shaped societies, cultures, and nations throughout history, fostering empathy and a sense of justice. Teaching Black history empowers students of all backgrounds, particularly Black students, by ensuring that their heritage and cultural contributions are represented and celebrated. This can help build self-esteem and a sense of belonging, as children see themselves reflected in the stories of historical figures who made significant contributions to society. For all students, learning about Black history creates a foundation for critical thinking, encouraging them to question injustices and take pride in the diverse fabric of the UK.  Most people will know the story of Rosa Parks in USA, but do you know that in Bristol a group of men also boycotted buses due to racist segregation? We will be learning about this important movement this week.  We have worked hard as a Trust to develop or curriculum to make sure our children learn about a diverse range of people, countries and cultures throughout the year. Book amnesty Do you have any school books lurking under beds at home? Please bring them to school! We seem to be missing a lot of our free readers in particular. No judgement! We will jus be happy to get them back in to reading circulation again! Collection Pease let us know if your child is being collected by someone else. It is time consuming, and also very embarrassing for the person collecting, if we have to ring you to check.  Merry Go Round Do you have any good quality toys your children are no longer using? Don’t wait until after Christmas to donate preloved toys and clothes. Please support our local community by donating before. Merry Go Round is a wonderful community asset and they will be delighted to have lots of preloved toys to sell in the run up to Christmas. Class News To find out what we have been leaning in each class, please click on the links to our latest class blogs: Sycamore Class Hazel Class Willow Class Beech Class Chestnut Class Acorn Class
Upcoming meetings:
Volunteers Induction Friday 18th October 9.30am A safeguarding and health and safety induction for our new and current volunteers . Parent Forum Friday 8th November 9am after dropping off the children. I will share with you the aims for the year, and how we are progressing so far. I'll ask you about your views on breakfast club and after school clubs and I'll aim to answer questions. Please let me know if there is anything in particular you would like me to address. Juice and biscuits provided! Parent Consultations These will take place during the week of 11th November. Please see Dojo for appointments times to meet teachers and discuss your child's progress to date. Please see Dojo for details and reminders of our upcoming events, Wishing all of our community the very best, Tara Penny Principal |
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