Issue 414: 10th February 2023

Dear Parents and Carers,

We have reached the halfway point of this academic year and everyone is ready for and fully deserves a break. I continue to feel very proud to be the Headteacher of Orton Wistow Primary School and the pupils, staff, governors, families and the OWN Trust make working here such a positive experience each day. 

Sporting Fixtures

Since my last newsletter, we have had three more sporting fixtures which have seen the school netball team and football teams in action. Our netballers scored their first goal and continue to improve each time they play. Both the girls' football team and the mixed team won games in the last week and both sit at the top of their leagues. Thank you to Mr. Cowles, Miss. Ellis and Mr. Newton for the time and effort they put into organising the fixtures and getting the teams ready. 

Communications Policy

Last term I spoke to parents at the curriculum evening about a communications policy we were planning to create this year. The first full draft is currently under review and the agreed policy will be shared with parents and published on our website next half-term. 

Year 1 Assembly

I watched the Year One assembly on Monday with the rest of the school, and I was blown away by their knowledge of the United Kingdom. I did not know that St. Davids is the smallest city in the UK with only 1600 residents, and I was also unaware that Edinburgh Castle sat on top of an extinct volcano! Well done to the Year One team! 

Are you smarter than an Orton Wistow pupil?

This week's questions are:

1. Which type of stitching is best for a neat, secure edge on a garment? Year 6 DT

2. What are the national flowers for all four nations of the UK? Year 1 Geography

3. Are the lens on sunglasses an example of a transparent, a translucent or an opaque material? Year 3 Science

Have a wonderful half-term break everyone and I will see you back in school on Monday 20^th February.

Mr. Marks

Headteacher 

^{Photo by Elise Vermeer on Unsplash}

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

OWPS Football News - February 2023

By Mr Cowles, PE Lead and Year 2 Class Teacher

Year 3/4 Girls Football Festival

On Wednesday 8^th February a group of Year 3/4 girls put on the OWPS kit and headed for Hampton Gardens to take part in a football festival.

The girls were a credit to the school and, considering some had never played a match before, worked hard as a team.

Having played 5 games, they managed to win 4 of them and showed some moments of brilliance. This was a fantastic opportunity for the girls, and they all left with beaming smiles of their faces.

Woodston (0) V OWPS (1)

An OWN Trust derby was played on Monday 6th February. Both schools have had mixed results against each other previously and both knew it would be a great game.

The games itself was a brilliant advert for primary school football with both teams giving it their all. There was lots of individual battling took place on the pitch, with some fine saves from OWPS keeper Bradley.

In the dying moments of the game, a piece of individual brilliance from OWPS’s Lucas Jackson saw him weave through the Woodston defence and calmly slot home the winning goal. With 10 seconds left on the clock, the boys and girls were victorious away at Woodston.

The result could’ve gone either way and credit to Woodston for such a competitive game. This leaves the Mixed 5/6 team top of their league with 3 consecutive wins.

Old School Uniform Needed!

Friends of Wistow School now have a rail of second-hand school uniform in the front entrance. Parents can now buy old school uniform for a small donation of £1 directly from the school. 

If you have any unneeded or outgrown school uniform, please consider donating it to the school. We welcome any donations of school uniform, from school sweatshirts, polo shirts, trousers/ skirts/ shorts etc through to PE kits, splash suits, caps, school backpacks and bookbags. Logo only for the sweatshirts, polo shirts, PE T-shirts, PE bags, caps, bookbags and backpacks please. 

This initiative makes school uniforms more affordable to all. 

Year 6 Uniform 

We are also asking if you no longer need any Year 6 logo purple uniform, either now or at the end of your child’s time at the school, to please donate it to the school. 

New Reception Uniform 

If you have any school uniform suitable for Reception children, please can you also send this into school if no longer needed. We will then give our new parents an opportunity at their new parents meeting in June to purchase this second-hand uniform. 

Reducing Waste 

The second-hand uniform initiative will also help us all work towards achieving net-zero carbon emissions. The government stated that in the UK, an estimated 350,000 tonnes of clothes end up in landfill every year. By families using second-hand uniform this can also reduce waste and bring down emissions from manufacturing new garments, while making it cost-effective for our families. 

School Uniform Link 

Information regarding our school uniform requirements can be found following this link to our website 

https://www.owps.org.uk/uniform 

Library Corner - February 2023

By Mrs Campling, Librarian

Author of the Month - Dapo Adeola 

For February, our author of the month board has been taken over by an illustrator! Dapo Adeola is a London based illustrator known for bright, upbeat designs and characters that show diversity in many different ways. Many of the books he’s illustrated have important cultural messages, communicated in ways that children can relate to and engage with. Dapo also runs events to provide opportunities for children to get involved in illustration and graphic design, particularly those for whom those opportunities might not have been easily available. 

Here are just some of the books he’s illustrated: 

Clubs

Story Writing Club has got off to a flying start this term with a real mix of attendees and plenty of creative ideas. We’ve looked at how to condense a plot down to just a few sentences, designed characters both human and otherwise, and made a start on our own stories. We will be starting back to Story Writing a week late after half-term as it will not be on Monday 20th Feb, but I can’t wait to see what ideas they come back with!

Library Club for KS1 also continues to be a lovely calm, joyful time - so much so that last week we completely lost track of the time and were almost late to class! For me, it’s just such a delight to see the children comfortable and enjoying the library space - I’m convinced that simply being surrounded by books is a comforting experience, let alone reading them!

World Book Day

You will have seen the notice about what’s going on for World Book Day this year, and I am VERY excited to say that as well as dressing up or creating scenes to celebrate favourite books, I will be running an escape room in the library! Over two weeks, every class will have the opportunity to come down and solve bookish puzzles to see if they can crack the code to escape. All the puzzles are related to our specific library and the books within it, and there will be prizes on the cards for the quickest, and most cooperative teams. 

On the dressing up front, the World Book Day website has lots of great, simple ideas. You can always go for someone from a non-fiction book too - the Little People Big Dreams series are a great place to start. 

https://www.worldbookday.com/

Recommended Reads

We’ve some lovely new non-fiction going out ready for everyone’s return after half-term, and here are some of my favourites:

Lifesize Dinosaurs by Sophy Henn

Dinosaurs are always popular in the library (and at home) and this book features illustrations of specific dinosaur parts (for example a pteranodon beak) in their actual real-life size! What I like about this book is that it doesn’t feel like a huge information dump, largely due to the vibrant illustrations, and of course, the novelty factor of being asked to compare your nose to a pteranodon beak.

What Do You See When You Look at a Tree? by Emma Carlisle

You won’t know that when I was a little girl, it was my ambition to be a tree when I grew up, so it’s unsurprising that this one has made my recommended reads list! Another one to file under ‘non-fiction that feels like a story’, this book has lovely illustrations and a gentle narrative that explores different kinds of tree, different PARTS of a tree, and how the different things a tree does might be mirrored in our own lives. 

Children who Changed the World by Marcia Williams

Marcia Williams has written lots of graphic novel style fact books about all manner of things, and the style is easy to engage with. Each double page spread features a biography of a child activist who has fought for their rights and the rights of others, and is a brilliant way for children to be inspired to change the world themselves!

^{Photo by Lucas George Wendt on Unsplash}

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}