Weekly Update Friday 16th October 2026
13 Oct 2026
Our Vision
We believe that our children should have the aspiration and opportunity to ‘Live life in all its fullness’ and ‘Shine like stars in the sky’.
New this week…
Forest School
The next forest school session will be for Acorn Class on Friday 6th November
To celebrate Bonfire Night, we are having a Bonfire themed lunch on
Thursday 5
th November. This is available to order on Arbor.
Let’s Celebrate!
What a fantastic week of sport we have had this week, with our Intra Tag Rugby Festival and competition!
Our youngest athletes in EYFS and KS1 did amazingly well, showing off incredible progress with their movement and handling skills on the pitch. Meanwhile, the KS2 children were absolutely fantastic, demonstrating brilliant teamwork, speedy running, and excellent passing and handling skills throughout their tournament.
A huge congratulations to Wensleydale, who emerged as the overall winners of this year's Tag Rugby Intra competition! Well done to everyone who took part and showed such wonderful sportsmanship.
Wensleydale therefore lead our overall all Intra Sports Competition with this famous win but it could all change next half term, as we look forward to the Intra Football competition. Still lots to play for! I wonder who will come out on top in the Football competition!
Harvest
We have a hall full of the fantastic things the children want to share in their Harvest Celebration this afternoon, we are all looking forward to sharing this with them.
As part of our Harvest Celebration, we were delighted to welcome volunteers from
Ripon Community Food Bank and Waste Not Wednesday who joined us to share some of the wonderful work they do to support people across our local community.
Harvest is a special time for us to reflect on how we can show kindness, generosity and care for others. Over the coming weeks, we will be collecting donations to support the food bank, and we would be very grateful for your help.
There are two ways you can contribute:
- Make a donation via the Ripon Community House JustGiving page.
- Donate food and household items for the food bank. Please ensure that all items are unopened, in date and comply with our food allergy guidelines.
If you would like to find out more about the valuable work of the food bank or Waste Not Wednesday, please visit:
Thank you for helping us live out our school values through acts of generosity and service. Together, we can make a real difference to families in our community.
Spotlights from Learning…
Acorn Class
We loved the Tag Rugby session this week which has been a highlight of our week. In writing we have been thinking about how the Fox is feeling after all of his disasters on his quest to catch Rosie! In our RE work we have been thinking about our Wonderful World and all of the special things we are surrounded by. We have also been busy exploring the invention of the car in our History work, I wonder if you can share any of your learning at home and perhaps look at a car at home to compare the two!
Oak Class
Oak Class worked so hard this week and were amazing scientists. We started our new Science unit on Materials. We spent the week identifying different materials by looking closely at them and feeling them. We found many objects around our classroom made of wood, metal, plastic, glass and rock. We drew different objects and identified the materials they were made from. We discovered that some objects were even made from four different materials! Can you choose an object with your grown-up and tell them what material it is made from?
Palm Class
In Geography we have been learning to use OS maps to learn about our local area - thinking about compass points and nearby towns and cities. We have also been exploring population sizes, distances for travel and reasons for travel. Do you have any maps or atlases at home, I wonder what you could find out?
Cedar Class
This week, Cedar class explored the interplay of light and shade in Art by studying London's iconic architecture. Using charcoal, the children practiced blending and smudging to capture dramatic, realistic shadows, using the sharp angles of The Shard and the intricate details of Big Ben as their inspiration.
Class Collective Worship
Each week one of our Collective Worship sessions takes place in class with a focus on something in the news. Attached is a take home that you might like to think about and share with your child at home.
-Take Home 16th Oct.pdf-
Messages from the school office:
The final Gardening Club of the term will take place on Wednesday 21 October.
Crochet Club is cancelled on Tuesday 20
th October.
Reminders…
Bus Booking Form
We have started to use Arbor to book the bus. Please continue to use Arbor by logging onto your account and to book your child’s travel by 9.00am each Monday morning for the week ahead (if you use the school bus service). There is an option for each bus and booking can be made for the school year.
Young Voices songs
The children have been enjoying singing some of the Young Voices songs in singing assemblies as well as voluntarily at lunchtimes with Miss Oates this half term. It's been great to see their enthusiasm for the songs and so many of them joining in with the dancing and learning the words. All children are welcome to learn the songs at home too - the playlist is available on Spotify/ Apple Music and even YouTube, simply search for Young Voices 2027.
For those children who are attending the performance we do ask that they spend time learning the song words at home. We can introduce the songs and work on the musical learning in school, but the real work of learning the words is something the children need to do at home. We recommend having the songs playing in the car, at home, just whenever possible and sing along! Additionally, children will be given a copy of the lyrics to learn at home.
They are a really fun collection of songs and I hope you'll enjoy them. The whole Young Voices experience is SO much more enjoyable and worthwhile if the children are confident with the lyrics - and there will be no words allowed on the day.
Annual Update – School Behaviour and Communication Policies
As we settle in to the new academic year, we are writing to share our updated Behaviour Policy and Communication Policy. These updates are shared annually to ensure that our school community continues to be a safe, happy and productive environment for all pupils.
A successful school experience relies on a strong partnership between home and school and we ask that you review these policy updates.
-Communication policy sept 25 KM.pdf-
-Behaviour Policy Sept 2026.pdf-
Friends Gifting Artwork & Tea Towel Project! 🎨
We want to send a quick reminder about the
Friends special gifting artwork. This is a wonderful opportunity to create keepsakes while supporting our school community!
Important Deadline
Please hand your child's completed artwork back to a member of Friends or drop it off at the
school office BEFORE half term.
You and your child can get as creative as you like! Accepted artwork includes:
Handprints and
handwriting
Everyday special drawings designed for gifts to be used
all year round
Christmas cards and festive drawings for Christmas gifting items
🫖 Special Project: Class Tea Towels!
We would love to offer a class group memory item this year in the form of a
tea towel featuring all the children's self-portraits (complete with their names).
No Pressure: There is zero pressure or obligation to purchase the final tea towel.
We want to make sure
no child is left out of the class design for the families who
do wish to order one.
Because of this, we would be so grateful if
every child could hand back a self-portrait so the whole class is included.
Thank you so much in advance for your support, creativity, and help!
KS2 After School Street Dance Club
We have places available for After School Street Dance Club hosted by LA Performance Academy! In each session, students will learn a variety of cool street dance moves and combine them to create fun, high-energy routines. It’s a fantastic way to stay active, build confidence, and enjoy dancing with friends in a relaxed, upbeat environment full of music and good vibes.
Parents book and pay for the After-School Street Dance Club directly through La Performance Academy via their online booking link. The club is charged at £30 per month.
https://la-performance-academy.classforkids.io/info/17
Safeguarding, Health and Wellbeing Updates
Allergens in school, lunches and snacks
Just a reminder we have the following allergens in school and ask that these are not sent in in lunch boxes:
All nuts (including tree nuts), beans, lentils, chickpeas and peas (including pea protein, pea flour and pea fibre). Please support us to keep our school community safe by ensuring these products do not come into school and are not included in your child’s packed lunch or snack.
Please can all small fruit (grapes, strawberries etc) be chopped up into quarters in lunch boxes.