Western Community Primary School

As 2023 draws to a close, we reflect on how much we have all achieved across this first busy term of the school year at Western. A huge well done to all of our children for all of their hard work and kindness. The children have spread Western kindness far and wide through their Community Projects this half term and have brought festive cheer to many organisations including RNLI, the RVI, the Fire Service and the North East Ambulance Service. We are all immensely proud of them. We hope you enjoy reading about the learning that has been going on across school this half term.

It has been brilliant to see so many families in school joining us to enjoy performances and Christmas Crafts. We feel privileged to work with you and your children and truly appreciate the messages and festive cards that have been shared with us. May we take this opportunity to wish all of our Western families a very Happy Christmas, and health and happiness in 2024. We hope you have the opportunity to enjoy quality time with your superstar children over the break. We will be very excited to see everyone back in school on Tuesday 9th January.

Nursery have been really busy in the run up to Christmas. One lucky Friday, we had a surprise day where we had lots of fun exploring the snow and sledging with our friends.

We have been enjoying a fire after our forest walks. We have had to learn the rules of the fire to ensure we keep safe. We always assess the risks before lighting the fire - are we all sitting in the fire circle and do we have water available? We have been enjoying the experience of watching the flames and we get really excited by the steam rising when we put the fire out. We have had fun learning some campfire songs and have also made smores by toasting marshmallows.

Our Christmas preparations have kept us very busy... We have been making cards and calendars for our families. We learnt our own version of the Nativity story - Round the back - to deliver to our families. We were very brave when performing in front of so many people. We have also especially enjoyed role playing as Santa and his elves; keeping quiet when we deliver the presents!

As always at Western, this half term has been a very busy one with Diwali, Remembrance, Children in Need and of course Christmas. In Reception, we have had lots of fun learning about celebrations and traditions. It has been so lovely to hear the children talk about their family traditions. We had lots of fun getting our Nativity ready and loved being able to perform it for our grown ups. We also worked hard on our Community Project for Wallsend Fire Station. It was very exciting when Steve the Fire Fighter came for a visit with his colleagues and his fire engine.

What a busy half term we have had in Year 1!

As part of our learning in Science, we visited Kirkley Hall Zoo. We were lucky enough to have the chance to get up close to some of the animals. This visit also really helped with our writing, as we were able to write knowledgeably about ‘Marvellous Meerkats’, ‘Kooky Kookaburras’ and ‘Brilliant Bearded Dragons’. We used these alliterative phrases as sub-headings for a non-chronological report.

We also enjoyed a visit from Gareth, a retired Guide Dog, and his owner John who volunteers for Guide Dogs. Gareth is now an Ambassador Dog. John talked to us about how a guide dog is trained and the clever things they are able to do to help the blind people they work with. After the talk, we were able to pet Gareth the dog (because he is no longer a working guide dog).

We visited Wallsend Methodist Church as part of our learning in RE. Deacon Gail met us there and we were able to see many of the features of the church we had been learning about, including the organ, pews and candle.

As part of our learning in History about toys from the past, we had lots of fun bringing in our own favourite toy from home. We also learned about toys from the past from some very special ‘primary sources’, including Miss Dixon, Mrs Taylor, Mr Craven and Mr Southern. Did you know that Mr Southern’s favourite toy was a Power Ranger? Mr Craven remembered getting an Action Man, and Mrs Taylor told us about her teddy called ‘Lonely’. Miss Dixon showed us a picture of a Playmobil hospital that she loved playing with when she was little.

We enjoyed learning all the songs for our Nativity performance of ‘Born in a Barn’. It took a lot of hard work to learn all the actions! After our performance, we used our own photographs as a prompt to write a recount all about the Christmas show.

Our Community Project this year has linked with our learning in Design Technology (DT). Deacon Gail explained to us that the church supports lots of different people, some of whom don’t have warm clothes in the winter. This was the perfect challenge; we have been designing and creating warm hats which can be given out by the church to anyone who needs them.

Anti-bullying Assembly

Silhouette Soldiers

As part of Remembrance Week, we created our own silhouette artwork. We used chalk and different colours to make the poppies stand out. There were lots of different designs and we drew which one we liked the most. They turned out brilliant and we're a fitting tribute to the soldiers (and animals) who fought during the wars.

Party Central

In Year 2, we have been excited about the Christmas party which took place on Wednesday. We all came into school with our beautiful party clothes on and danced our socks off at our disco. We even got choc-ices and some party food, as well as played party games, such as corners and Christmas guess who. All of us had lots and lots of fun and it is always one of the highlights of the festive season in our school!

This half term has been an extremely busy time for Year 3! Throughout the term, the children have enjoyed all of their learning across the curriculum and have also been busy as can be with all of our preparations for Christmas. Here's a reminder of some of the brilliant experiences we have enjoyed this half term...

At the beginning of the term, we hosted 'That History Bloke' - also known as Richard - who visited us to give an excellent workshop about Ancient Egypt. This linked to our learning about the Ancient Egyptians in History and we had a fantastic time helping to 'mummify' a pharaoh and learning all about the beliefs that Ancient Egyptians had.

We have also been hard at work writing our own fantastic narratives in Literacy based on the text The Flood by Alvaro F Villa. We used our knowledge of natural disasters from our Autumn 1 unit on Earthquakes to support us in writing a superb narrative on a natural disaster of our choice.

Finally, we have been preparing for Christmas in lots of exciting ways and the children have worked tirelessly to produce special Christmas door hangers which we donated to the RVI Children's Unit as part of our community project. The hospital were very grateful to receive such a heartfelt gift and we feel proud that we have helped support others in our community. We also hugely enjoyed our Christmas performance and our Year 3 children put a lot of hard work into learning the songs along with the rest of Key Stage 2. If you were able to come and watch us, thank you and we hope you enjoyed it. On behalf of all of Year 3, we wish you a relaxing holiday and we will see you in the new year.

Year 4 have had a very exciting lead up to the Christmas period and we have lots of news to share. First of all, both classes took part in their Skipping School workshops a couple of weeks ago as we have entered into a skipping competition which will take place at The Parks Leisure Centre in early March. The children learned lots of new skipping techniques and we will be practising these skills next term to prepare all the pupils for this exciting competition. We also had loads of fun making our paintings and artwork for the RNLI - this was our way of spreading the joy of Christmas by doing something nice to show our appreciation for all the hard work that the volunteers that work throughout the festive season to help save lives on our coast. Finally we wanted to share a silly photo from our Christmas parties this week... It's safe to say that the children had lots of fun in the build up to Christmas with a visit from one of Santa's cheeky elves... AKA Mr Middis! Merry Christmas to one and all and thanks for all your support throughout the year! From the Year 4 Team

Year 5 have been writing poems and decorating Christmas cards for the North East Ambulance Service to thank them for all of their hard work in the local community. The cards have been shared far and wide across the service and will surely bring a smile to the faces of these vital key workers.

Thanks to all of you that supported us during the Christmas performances. Year 5 worked really hard on their version of Boney M's classic 'Mary's Boy Child' and raised the roof with their final performance where they sang in groups to provide a modern twist on a classic song.

In science, children have been learning about forces and involved in lots of practical investigations. We have been investigating friction using cars and ramps, shoe tread using forcemeters, building parachutes to investigate air resistance and timing how long it took plasticine to sink to research water resistance.

Excellent Electricity

This half-term, we have been learning about electrical circuits and have carried out a range of scientific investigations testing different variables such as: how changing the number of bulbs in a series circuit may affect the brightness and the difference between parallel and series circuits. We have also expanded our vocabulary looking at the difference between current and voltage.

Career Workshop

A huge thank you to Sally Slater for carrying out a careers workshop with Year 6. She talked about her role as a nurse and demonstrated how to apply bandages. We all had great fun!

That History Bloke

Year 6 had the pleasure of welcoming Richard, 'That History Bloke' into school to do a workshop about World War II. We were immersed in what the war was like for a variety of people involved. We looked at the different types of planes used and were able to handle and explore a wide range of original artefacts from the time period including an air raid siren. It was a fantastic experience!

Community Choir

Our talented Year 6 choir sang at Hadrian House this month, bringing music, joy and a bit of Christmas spirit to all of the residents. They enjoyed joining in with the well-known songs and we loved sharing some of our Christmas show songs with them too.

Design and Technology Project

Linking with our visit to Hadrian House, Year 6 have also been doing a DT project this half-term to design and make a sustainable, reusable bag for members of the community. They had to meet a design brief, work in pairs to choose colours and designs, and create a Computer-Aided-Design to go on the front of the bag. We rehearsed and honed our stitching skills of running stitch and back stitch, as well as becoming more confident in tying knots, threading needles and doing start and end stitches. Some of these bags were then gifted to the staff at Hadrian House and others were given to members of the local community. Well done Year 6!

Online Safety at Christmas

Give The Gift of Safety This Christmas

Before gifting your child's first or fifth device, let's make sure it's not just a present but an opportunity to provide a safe and secure digital experience for your little ones.

Visit Ineque Safety Centre, where, you'll discover information on setting up parental controls, privacy settings, and safety measures. https://oursafetycentre.co.uk/safetysettings/

Please also see the following websites for handy hints and tips on keeping your child safe online:

https://www.childnet.com/

https://www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/bullying-abuse-safety/online-mobile-safety/staying-safe-online/

Wellbeing ambassadors

This term, our wonderful wellbeing ambassadors created wellbeing boxes for every class to spread some positivity and happiness around school.

In every wellbeing box, there are messages of happiness to brighten up everyone’s day. The wellbeing ambassadors worked very hard to create the wellbeing boxes adding their own unique words of positivity and art work to each box.

The wellbeing ambassadors also introduced the wellbeing boxes to their classes during celebration assembly. They were all very brave in standing up and talking about the boxes during assembly and we would like to say well done and thank you to our 12 wonderful wellbeing ambassadors.

Support at Christmas time:

Newcastle City Council residents:

Household Support Fund 2023/24 UK Government's Household Support Fund.

This funding will be used to support residents in the following ways over the course of the next year:

Free School Meal Vouchers for School Holidays

Cost of Living Scheme "Top Up"

Hardship payments for residents in significant financial difficulty.

Support of localised Cost of Living and discretionary schemes.

For further information on the above please visit :

https://www.newcastle.gov.uk/services/public-health-wellbeing-and-leisure/public-health-services/coronavirus-covid-19/citylife

https://www.gov.uk/cost-of-living

North Tyneside Council residents:

How the Household Support Fund grant will be used to support vulnerable households throughout 2023/24:

Those entitled to income related Free School Meals will receive £15 supermarket vouchers for each week of the school holidays per child.

Increase support through Crisis Support for those who are in a crisis or who need immediate support.

For further information on the above please visit:

https://my.northtyneside.gov.uk/page/31871/household-support-fund

There are also several ‘social supermarkets’ in the borough, offering low-cost or free food. Please find more information below.

That Bread and Butter Thing. North Tyneside , where residents can access roughly £35 worth of food each week for just £7.50. https://www.breadandbutterthing.org/news/tbbt-launches-first-north-tyneside-hub-in-howdon

Mindstars, in partnership with Feeding Families, are providing Emergency Food Boxes from the Star Hub in North Shields. Email info@mindstars.co.uk or visit the Hub any Friday from 10am – 2pm. https://www.mindstars.co.uk/

Cedarwood Trust’s Community Membership Store has been created to offer a quality shopping experience via a weekly membership system to support those on low incomes to reduce food costs and food waste. Members simply pay £4 to get at least £15 worth of shopping, which includes fresh fruit and veg, chilled and frozen foods as well as toiletries and cleaning goods. The store runs alongside existing services at Cedarwood Trust, so anyone using the store can access everything else on offer, including debt advice, budgeting, family and pastoral support, training and volunteer experiences and so much more. To join the subscription supermarket, pop into the Cedarwood Trust with proof of address and £1 to join. https://www.cedarwoodtrust.com/nourish.html

Wallsend Food Pantry is located at The Allen Centre (formally the Allen Memorial Methodist Church), The Green, NE28 7NP. The pantry operates Wednesday mornings, 10am to 12pm, where residents can save up to 50 percent on their food shopping. Pop along to register. You can find out more and contact the service via its Facebook page. https://www.popup-pantry.uk/

Wallsend-based Walking With, which supports refugees or people seeking asylum in the UK, runs a food pantry for those they work with. No appointment is necessary, and you can find out more information on its website: Walking With. https://walkingwith.co.uk/services

Online and Telephone support for families during the festive break

Family Lives - National Charity

Family Lives offers a confidential and free helpline service for families in England and Wales (previously known as Parentline). Please call us on 0808 800 2222 for emotional support, information, advice and guidance on any aspect of parenting and family life.

Helpline opening hours:

Monday to Friday 9am to 9pm

Online chat

The online chat service is open on Monday to Friday between 10.30am to 9pm (excluding bank holidays).

See Website for further information: https://www.familylives.org.uk/

Action for Children - National Charity

Find parenting advice and support in a way that works for you - online or in person

Action for Children offers online support for parents who need a little support from time to time.

See Website for further information:

https://parents.actionforchildren.org.uk/

Young Minds: National Charity

Parents Helpline for detailed advice, emotional support and signposting about a child or young person up to the age of 25 who may be experiencing difficulties with their mental health.

You can call the Parents Helpline on 0808 802 5544, Monday - Friday 9:30am - 4:00pm.

Parents webchat is open 9:30am - 4pm, Monday - Friday.

See website for further information: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/parent/parents-helpline-and-webchat/#UsingourParentsHelplineservices

General mental health and wellbeing support: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/blogs/tips-looking-after-your-mental-health-christmas

https://www.mind.org.uk/

https://www.samaritans.org/

Local mental health and wellbeing support:

https://www.anxiousminds.co.uk/

https://www.northumbria.nhs.uk/our-services/talkingtherapies#bf4365a2

https://www.everyturn.org/community-wellbeing/community-mental-health-support/