Issue 421: 21st April 2023

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter break. It is always lovely to return to school for the Summer term as the surrounding area always changes so much in those two weeks. I remember Mr Dolby, a teacher who worked here quite a few years ago, spent a good few hours (with the help of some of our pupils at the time) planting the daffodil bulbs that surround the trees on Wistow Way. The sun has been shining for most of this week and the children and staff have returned and hit the ground running, starting their new topics and making the most of every minute we have each day. 

Bikeability

Next week many of our Year Five children will take part in Bikeability if they signed up for this earlier in the year. It was always called The Cycling Proficiency Test when I was in school and it is basically the same course. The children spend a session on the playground with the instructors and then they get to go out onto the surrounding streets to learn how to keep themselves and others safe when they are on their bikes. When your child reaches Year Five, they will have the chance to take part in this. We always hope that it will encourage more of our pupils to cycle to school regularly if they are able to. 

This Term..

We have so much to look forward to this term, it may be my favourite. Year Four and Six children will go on their residential trips, we will be celebrating the King's coronation, sports days, the summer fair and all the transition events we hold preparing children for the next step in their journey at OWPS or at their chosen secondary school. No wonder we need six weeks off at the end of it! I know many of you will have some of these events penciled in on your calendars and I'm looking forward to seeing you attend some of them in the coming weeks. 

Break The Rules Day

What a fun way to end the term! It has been great to see so many children join in with this event and it is yet another way the FOWS work together to raise money for the school. I know we had a good number of parents pop in for the FOWS coffee and cake morning recently and they are hopeful that many of you will be able to join the team or support them with future events. 

Have a lovely weekend everyone,

Mr. Marks

Headteacher 

^{Photo by Kasumi Sasaki on Unsplash}

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

Summer Term Friday Assemblies

By Nick File, Executive Deputy Head Teacher | OWN Trust

Over the Summer term assemblies on Friday will focus on British Values; democracy, rule of law, individual liberty, tolerance and respect for the rules. 

Today we focused on democracy by looking at the leaders in the school; House Captains, STEM leaders and a range of other ambassadors.  The children identified which were voted for and which were chosen in a less democratic way! 

The children also learnt a bit about how just over 100 years ago women did not get to vote and so as a role reversal, only the girls got to vote on a video!

FOWS Update 

By Jo Watson, Chair of FOWS

Break The Rules Day

Thanks to everyone who took part in Break The Rules Day on the last day of term.  We raised £1112.50.  As always, your support is hugely appreciated

Easy fundraising

Whether you are buying a new toaster, or a holiday please consider registering for EASYFUNDRAISING which allows us to earn money when you shop online. Easyfundraising works with over 7,500 online retailers, everyone from Tesco, eBay, Sports Direct, M&S, Boots, Just Eat, Booking.com, and everything in between.

Once signed up all you need to do is start your shopping journey at the easyfundraising website, use the browser extension or app and the retailer you shop with will send us a free donation based on how much you spend.

With the cost of living impacting everyone, this isn’t about asking you to spend more, but to make you aware that if you are making an on-line purchase anyway that by using easyfundraising you can give to us at the same time and at no additional cost to you. 

Discover what is coming up in the OWPS Dining Car, and don't forget, parents and carers are welcome to Join Your Child for Lunch at any time, just call the office on 01733 370646 to book.

^{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. We would recommend all parents check with any providers regarding the status of these services, activities and clubs}