Dear Parents and Carers,

We are all getting ready for our Christmas Fair next Friday and the children have been very busy making Christmas decorations for their stalls. Some of the decorations will be chosen to decorate our RDS Christmas tree at the Christmas tree festival in St Deiniol’s Church which opens on Thursday 8^th December.  Please remember that next Thursday (1^st December) is a non-uniform day.  We are also asking the children to bring the following items for the tombola stalls: Year 3 / 4 selection boxes or Christmas tree decorations. 

Year 5 / 6 bottles of wine etc. 

We would also be very grateful for donations for the cake stall and bathroom toiletries stall.

 Christmas Fair Posters.

Please send your completed posters to the school office by Monday 28^th November at the latest so they can be judged and displayed.

 Parking

The governors have asked me to mention once again about dangerous and illegal parking on the ‘D’. Several governors have observed the dangers first hand and we had a lengthy discussion at our last meeting. Double and even triple parking seems to be common practice once again which is threatening the safety of pupils and parents.  I have been asked by the governors to make a note of regular offenders and approach those parents directly to ask them to park safely.   I have also been asked to contact out local police officers to monitor the situation closely.

 Carol Service change of date and time

Due to unforeseen circumstances the Tuesday afternoon Carol Service has been cancelled and will now take place on Monday 12^th December at 6 p.m. The Tuesday evening Carol Service will take place as planned on 13^th at 6 p.m.  We hope that all pupils will be able to attend both services at this special time of year, and kindly forego any other activities they usually attend on those evenings.

 Christingle

The Christingle service will be held at St Deiniol’s Church on Sunday 4^th December.  The usual service time is 10 a.m. The Rector is away at the moment so I will confirm the time with you as soon as I can.  We hope you will be able to join us for this special service.  Our Year 5 pupils enjoy making the Christingles as part of their R.E. topic work.

 Church School Visit

Ms. Lewis (our previous Deputy Head) brought Year 5 and 6 pupils from her Church School, Nannerch, to work with our Year 6 pupils.  The children worked together on what it means to be part of a church school. It was a lovely morning and the activities produced some striking posters to reflect what is special about a church school and our strong Christian links.  I’m sure Mrs. J. Williams who organised the event with Ms. Lewis was really pleased with both the outcome and the very favourable comments from the visiting curate of Nannerch, and Mrs. Anne Suter our Diocesan Education Officer.

 School dinners.

Please ensure that all dinners are pre-ordered as 15 children forgot to order a dinner on Monday this week.  This put Mrs. Allen and her catering team in a very difficult situation as she is only allowed to prepare enough food to balance the dinners ordered.  Food waste is monitored so she cannot over prepare by this amount.

 Netball,Football and Hockey

There will be no more football, netball or hockey practices until next term as it is getting too dark after school.

 Fox and Grapes

Christmas Card competition

All entries will be displayed in the Fox and Grapes until Sunday evening this weekend.

 Morrisons vouchers

If you have any Let’s Grow vouchers please will you send them in by Monday 28^th November.  We have 525 so far and Gardening club have been busy looking at the catalogue in eager anticipation

 Ski Meeting

Just a quick reminder about the Year 6 ski meeting at school at 6 p.m. on Monday 28^th November.

Dear Parents and Carers,

Thank you for returning your reply slips for the Governors’ Annual report to Parents meeting on Monday 21^st November.  Please note that the meeting commences at 6 p.m. in the school hall.  Apologies for the error on the tear off slip as the date and time had not been changed from last year.

Christmas Card competition

The Fox and Grapes are holding a Christmas Card competition this year and are keen to involve local schools.  Entry forms with specific competition details are available for all children who wish to enter. There will be two winners selected from Years 3 / 4 and Years 5 / 6.  The winners will receive a £25 gift voucher for Toys R Us. The overall winner will have their entry printed as the official Fox and Grapes Christmas card. Entries should be returned to school or the Fox and Grapes by Wednesday 23^rd November.

BBC Children in Need

Once again we are supporting BBC Children in Need.  Each class or year group has chosen their own fundraising activity. We hope you will support our fundraising and send in a minimum donation of £1 which will also include a Pudsey cake, kindly made by Mrs. Allen our cook.

Possible Industrial Action

It is likely that school will be closed on Wednesday 30^th November due to strike action proposed by Unison and most of the teaching unions.  We have not yet had confirmation from all the represented unions and I will keep you informed as soon as I know any final details. I understand that this will cause problems for many of you but I will have to make the final decision based on the Health and Safety of the children on that day.

Operation Christmas Child

We have had a few shoe boxes in now and hope that by collection day on Monday 21^st November the foyer will be full.

 Remembrance Day 2011

Thank you for supporting our Poppy appeal again this year.

Mrs. Wallace and 4PW led a class assembly about Armistice Day today which reminded us all, of the very important message which is still

so relevant today.  I would like to thank Mrs Wallace and her class for all their hard work in preparing such a thoughtful assembly which was very well attended by 4PW family members. We observed a 2 minute silence at 11 a.m.

On Sunday four Year 6 pupils will be representing the school at the Remembrance Sunday Parade.  Craig Evans, Hannah Chellingworth (6LH) and Lottie Carr, Sam Rolfe (6JW) have been chosen to march with the parade from Gladstone Playing fields and lay the RDS wreath at the Cenotaph.

World War 2 day.

Year 6 had a fantastic look back in time with their WW2 Day this week.  Tony Cope provided a large array of artefacts and costumes for the children to experience what life would have been like during the war.  A big thank you to Mr. Benham, Mrs. Elmer, Mrs Hughes, Mr. Jones, Mrs. Kemp and Mrs. Martin for helping out on the day.  Mr Cope commended the pupils for their superb attitude and behaviour.

Menu addition

Next Tuesday, 14^th November, meatballs will also be available as an option on our school dinner menu. 

Christmas Fair

If you can spare some time to help us at our Christmas Fair on Friday 2^nd December please send in a helpers slip or a note telling us if you can help setting up stalls during the afternoon or help with a stall from 3.30p.m. – 4.30p.m. or 4.30p.m. – 5.30p.m. Please include your preferred daytime contact number. We would be so grateful for any time you can spare.

Dear Parents and Carers,

We welcome our new Rector, David Lewis, who visited us yesterday for a tour of the school and to meet the pupils.  He came to lead our Collective Worship today and we are really looking forward to his weekly visits, and also to strengthen our links with St Deiniol’s Church. Year 6 pupils Tom Williams, Gemma Millar and Lucy Harrison took part in the Rector’s Induction Service last week at St Deiniol’s by reading part of the formal intercessions during the service. They read very confidently and were a credit to the school.

Individual and family photos

Photographs will be taken on Friday 4^th November during the afternoon.  The family photos are for RDS pupils only.  Hawarden Infants are having their photos taken on Tuesday 2^nd November and anyone who has a brother or sister in Hawarden Infants usually have their family photo taken there. We arrange for the pupils to go up to the Infants School.

 Operation Christmas Child (O.C.C.)

Once again this year we are supporting the  O.C.C. fill a shoe box for Christmas charity appeal.  The children will be bringing home their leaflets explaining what to do.  Last year we filled 108 boxes and hope this year we will fill even more! The boxes will be collected from school on Monday 14^th November.

 Friends of Rector Drew School (FORDS)

You are all invited to join us for a meeting on Wednesday 2^nd November at 8 p.m. at The Fox and Grapes.  We hope we can recruit some new members and welcome back our existing members who have supported us so well.  We would really welcome your ideas and support, and look forward to another successful year of fundraising.  We are now able to fund our additional ICT equipment and Mr. Prytherch will share the options we have with you at the meeting. We will also be planning our Christmas Fair and discussing ideas for other events during the year.

 Football and Netball

Congratulations to our teams who both won their matches against Queensferry C.P. School on Monday.

 Chess

Our Chess team played a friendly challenge tournament against Sandycroft this week and a record 15 members of our club took part. 

We wish all our teams luck for the coming season.

 Winter uniform

Please note that winter uniform should be worn from Monday 31^st October. We encourage our children to take a pride in their school and would appreciate your support in maintaining the current whole-school response to school uniform.

 Boys:   

White or blue shirt

Grey or black trousers

Blue school sweatshirt

Grey, black or white socks,

School tie

Black shoes (not trainers)

 Girls:   

White or blue blouses

Grey or black skirt or trousers

Blue cardigan or school sweatshirt

Grey, black or white socks

School tie 

Black shoes (not trainers).

 We hope you all have a wonderful half term break and look forward to the next half term commencing Monday 31^st October.  Please ensure that now the weather is much colder and often damp that the children wear a suitable coat every day.  We only keep them inside if we have heavy rain, as they need fresh air at break and dinner time.

Dear Parents and Carers,

 Thank you all so much for your generosity with the Harvest Produce donated at our school and church services; we know that the families who benefit from all the things you sent will be very grateful.  The singing on Friday afternoon was wonderful and the children’s voices filled the church.  A special thank you to everyone who came to the service on Sunday.  Miss Hughes and I were delighted with the response and we received some lovely comments after the service.

 Dinner Debt Payments

 We have had the following useful information from county:-

Facilities Services can now receive payments for Dinner Money Debts over the telephone with a current credit or debit card.  Unfortunately, they are not able to take payments for day-to-day meals using this method, as they do not have the resources to manage this volume of transactions at this time.  However, should a parent accrue a dinner debt, and wish to pay with their credit or debit card, then please contact either Carol Barlow (01352 704191) or Joy Wilson (01352 704049).  Alternatively Karen Craine (01352 704046), or Anne Trevor (01352 704044) can help if Joy or Carol are unavailable.

Parents’ Evening

I hope you have all received your invitations to our first Parents’ Evening of the year on Tuesday 18^th October from 3.30 – 6.p.m.  We do not operate an appointments system for this first one, but you will be able to sign in as you arrive so that the teachers can see you as soon as they are available.  As we stated in the parents’ evening letter, if you would like a 1:1 private conversation with your child’s class teacher you will be able to make an alternative appointment.  We do hope, however, if you have any concerns, they have already been communicated to us, as we always urge you to contact school straight away if you are worried or concerned about anything. 

Year 6 Ski Trip money

Please remember that the remaining balance is due by 17^th October.

Attendance

We monitor attendance regularly throughout the year and our Inclusion Welfare Officer, Anne Griffin, also visits regularly to check attendance and monitor pupils who have repeated absence.  This includes pupils who take term time holidays.  The Welsh Assembly government guidelines on attendance advise schools not to authorise any holidays taken during term time which exceed 10 school days during one academic year. Any holidays in excess of this amount are marked as unauthorised absence.

 Punctuality

There are a few children who regularly arrive at school after the 8.50 a.m. bell has been rung for the start of the school day.  If pupils are late, they must use the main reception door and sign in as we are required to monitor punctuality.  Please note also that all pupils coming into school after a medical, dental appointment etc must be signed into the special book in the foyer.  Similarly all pupils leaving during the school day must be signed out.  This is so we can always account for who is in the building as part of our fire risk procedures.

 Early arrivals

Please note that two teachers go out on duty on the yard at 8.40 a.m. before school starts. Any pupils arriving before that time are not supervised on the yard. Please remember that 7-2-11 run a breakfast club from 7.45 a.m. to 8.45 a.m. and are only responsible for pupils registered and booked into the club.

Dear Parents and Carers,

 May I wish you all a very warm welcome to the start of another new school year. I hope everyone had a wonderful summer break and that the children are already enjoying their new classes and new experiences. Welcome to all our new Year 3 pupils and parents and to the new families that have joined other year groups across the school.

So that you are not overloaded with information, we send out newsletters and dinner lists on Fridays on alternate weeks.    Occasionally, in addition to our fortnightly newsletter, additional information letters will be sent out for specific events. You can also find our newsletters on the Office Page of our school Blog site – rectordrew.net

 Dinner lists 

Please ensure your child’s dinner list is sent in each fortnight for Mrs. Taylor, our dinner cashier.  Lists should be placed in a clearly named envelope with cash or cheques made payable to FLINTSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL. The lists are placed in a box in the classroom and collected by Mrs. Taylor. School meals are £1.90 per day. One-off meals can be ordered, but please send the order and payment in a named envelope and not as loose cash. Please note due to a change in delivery dates, next week’s Monday and Tuesday’s menus have been swapped around.

 Coffee Morning

We are organising a coffee morning on Friday 23^rd September at 10.30 a.m. in the school hall for parents and family members of year 3 pupils and our other new pupils across the school.  We hope you will join us so that you can find out more about the school and have the opportunity for an informal chat.  We will also share examples of our learning support programme for maths and reading.  Grandparents, Aunties, Uncles etc are most welcome too – especially if they sometimes do the ‘school run’.  It helps if they know our faces too! An invitation letter with a reply slip will be sent out soon to give us an idea of the numbers to cater for.

 Communication

Please do not hesitate to contact school during this very important settling in period if you have any concerns.  There will be a parents’ evening in October. (Please see Autumn Term dates overleaf)

 Rugby World Cup

The Rugby World Cup 2011 is the third largest sporting event in the world and is the biggest event ever to be held in New Zealand.  Rector Drew School is joining in the enthusiasm being shown for the Rugby World Cup, and we are incorporating this into our ‘Geography in the News’ wall display.  Each child will be given their own Rugby World Cup activities booklet, where they will adopt a country taking part in the tournament.  The children can complete their booklets during wet playtimes, during ‘Golden Time’ and at home to gain more information about their given country and to have fun!  The children may bring in pieces of their work, newspaper cuttings, or any other information or pictures about the World Cup to be placed on our wall display.  The children can bring in their work for the display straight away, and up until the tournament finishes around October half term.

 Healthy Snacks

Please remember that as part of our commitment to the Healthy Schools Scheme, we only allow healthy snacks during morning break.  This must be a fruit or vegetable snack, or a healthy ‘cereal-type’ bar.  We do not allow the children to eat crisps, chocolate or biscuits on the yard at morning break.  Thank you for your cooperation.

governors-annual-report-for-2006-2007.doc

RECTOR DREW SCHOOL HAWARDEN

Re: Photographic and Video Images

Dear Parents,

In school we sometimes find it useful to take photographs or videos of children during various curricular activities.  We use these for display purposes in school and to help the children evaluate their own work.   We now have our “blog site” up and running and feel it would be nice to have photos of friendly faces, children working, special projects, match photos, sports day etc, on display on the site to further celebrate their achievements.  As we feel that internet safety is a priority we will endeavour to use only group photographs on our site in order that individual children cannot be recognised, and children in photographs will not be named.

We would like you to return the proforma below indicating if you agree to this or not, to your child’s class teacher by Monday 8^th October.

Yours sincerely

Mrs. E.P. Andrews

Headteacher

___________________________

PHOTOGRAPH & VIDEO CONSENT

Please sign one of the statements below to confirm whether you are happy for your child to be photographed / videoed for school use.

Child’s Name:……………………….  Class:…………

I agree to my child to being photographed or videoed for school use.

Signed:………………………………….Parent/Guardian

_______________________________________

Child’s Name:…………………………..  Class:…………

I do not agree to my child to being photographed or videoed for school use.

Signed:………………………………..  Parent/Guardian

If you would like to download a form in WORD format please click on the link below.

photo-and-video-consent.doc