Dear Glebe Families
It has been another busy and exciting week in school, with many wonderful opportunities for our children to learn, perform and take part in memorable experiences.
On Monday afternoon, our Key Stage 2 children enjoyed a special matinee performance of Beauty and the Beast at Sweyne Park School. The children represented the school beautifully and thoroughly enjoyed the experience of live theatre.
On Wednesday, our Year 2 pupils took part in an inspiring African drumming workshop. The children spent the morning learning rhythms, techniques and the cultural background of African drumming before proudly performing for their parents at the end of the session. It was wonderful to see their confidence grow and to hear the hall filled with such vibrant music.
Today we enjoyed the FOGP Mother’s Day event. Thank you to the FOGP team for organising such a thoughtful event for our families.
Looking ahead to next week, we have several exciting events planned. On Monday we will be holding our Musical Monday afternoon, where children will have the opportunity to celebrate and share their musical talents with the Greater Essex Music hub.
On Wednesday, we will hold our parents’ evening, which will take place online from 1.20pm-6.30pm. This is an important opportunity to discuss your child’s progress and celebrate their achievements.
On Thursday, our older Resource Base pupils will be visiting Colchester Zoo for a special trip, which promises to be a fantastic learning experience.
Finally, on Friday we will be supporting Red Nose Day, raising money for Comic Relief while enjoying some fun activities together in school.
I would also like to share some positive developments regarding our Resource Base. Our working party continues to meet as we align our provision with the wider Essex model for enhanced provisions and the direction outlined in the government’s SEND reforms and White Paper. This work will help ensure that we continue to provide the highest quality support for pupils with additional needs.
As always, we value strong and positive communication between home and school. A gentle reminder that communication through Class Dojo and conversations with staff should always remain respectful and courteous. I have, unfortunately, received a small number of reports of messages and conversations that have been abrupt or discourteous. Our staff are here to support and help our families, but this can only happen within a culture of mutual respect. I have shared a copy of our Home-School Agreement as a reminder of the expectations we ask all members of our community to uphold. As adults, we are the most powerful role models our children have.
We are also very excited to share plans to expand our age range to include two-year-olds. From September, we hope to welcome the youngest members of our community into our Nursery provision. Please take a moment to read the consultation information below.
Have a lovely weekend ahead, and a very happy Mother’s Day to all those celebrating.
Warm regards
Mr Clarke
Headteacher
Certificates
A huge well done this week to:
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RBC: Amelia H & Evelyn N |
RS: Eden T & Alicia B |
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1D: Kane S & Bella H |
1P: Henry B & Albie B |
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2A: Annie M & Abdullah S |
2N: Cameron B & Stanley B |
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3MH: Henrietta G-U & Logan B |
3VB: Rafferty T & Riley H |
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4A: Aleyna D & Darcy B |
4L: Avedha A & Blossom F |
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5R: Daisie-Beau D & Jack T |
6/5P: Priya N & Oliver P |
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6CH: Finley T-B & Henry S |
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Attendance: Our school target is 97%
Year to date 94%
We expect pupils to be in school everyday.
We will not authorise term time absence except in exceptional circumstances and where appropriate, Essex County Council will issue fines.
Classes:
| RBC: 95.4% | 3VB: 98.6% |
| RS: 98.4% | 4A: 91.8% |
| 1D: 98.2% | 4L: 97.6% |
| 1P: 95.7% | 5R: 94.1% |
| 2A: 98.5% | 5/6P: 96.3% |
| 2N: 90% | 6CH: 96.2% |
| 3MH: 93.4% |
This week, the class with the highest attendance was 3VB with 98.6%. Well done! The attendance reward will be coming your way.
Illness
Should your child not be feeling 100% when they come to school, please do not promise them that they can go to the school office to ask to be sent home.
School staff will only contact parents or send a child home if they are clearly unwell. This includes having a high temperature, vomiting, diarrhoea, or appearing visibly unwell. Our priority is always the welfare of the children, so please rest assured that we will use our professional judgement to ensure parents are contacted if their child is too unwell to remain in school.
Thank you for your support in helping us manage illness in school and minimise disruption to learning.
Group of Teenagers in the Rayleigh Area
We are aware of a group of older children who have recently been causing issues in the Rayleigh area. We kindly ask that you remain vigilant and avoid leaving your children on their own in the local community after school. Please take a moment to remind your children about staying safe, being aware of their surroundings, and informing a trusted adult if they feel uncomfortable at any time. Thank you for your continued support in helping us keep all of our children safe.
News from EYFS
This week in Reception has been full of exciting learning experiences!
We enjoyed a lovely Spring nature walk where the children looked carefully for the early signs of Spring. They worked with a partner to spot what they could see and then came back to write about their favourite sign of Spring. We found lots of wonderful things including sunshine, ladybirds, new buds, blossom and even a bird’s nest!
Back in the classroom, the children created their own beautiful Spring trees. They carefully cut out flowers and animals that we might see during Spring and used them to decorate their trees.
We also have some very special visitors in our classroom! As part of our learning, we are exploring the lifecycle of a caterpillar. The children are very excited to watch our caterpillars grow, form their cocoons and eventually metamorphose into beautiful butterflies.
In maths, we have been building on our previous number skills. The children have been exploring one more and one less, as well as number bonds to 10. We used Numicon to build towers and show the different ways numbers can combine to make 10.
We have also been talking about Mother’s Day and how it is a time to celebrate the special people who care for us. This might be a mum, grandma, auntie or another special carer. The children have made lovely cards to take home and give on Sunday.
News from the Resource Base
RBH: This week in English, we have been planning and learning our own version of ‘Handa’s Hen’ using talk for writing. The children chose their own characters who had lost an animal. We used pictures to help us learn our stories. The children then orally rehearsed their stories in preparation for writing their stories independently. They came up with some fantastic ideas. I look forward to reading their creations!
In Maths, the children have been learning about equal and unequal groups. We have also looked at groupings in terms of repeated addition as an introduction to multiplication. For example I have 4 equal groups of 6, is represented as 6+6+6+6 = 24. This would be the same at 4×6 = 24. We have used visual representation to help with our learning.
RBR: This week in Maths, we have continued our work on fractions and have begun multiplying mixed numbers by an integer. This has been a challenging concept, but the children are gradually becoming more confident as they work through the process step by step.
In English, we have focused on adverbials and adverbial phrases. The children can now identify where the adverbial phrase appears in a sentence and recognise the type of adverbial being used, including time, place, frequency, manner, possibility, and reason.
I am also very pleased to announce that Leo M has successfully passed his BSL Unit 102 assessment, bringing him another step closer to achieving his BSL Level 1 qualification. This assessment requires learners to demonstrate both productive and receptive skills in British Sign Language. Leo showed his ability to communicate in a variety of everyday contexts.
A huge well done to Leo for his hard work and commitment to learning BSL!
Influential Figure – William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare is one of the most famous writers in British history. Born in Stratford-upon-Avon over 400 years ago, he wrote many plays and poems that are still enjoyed and studied around the world today. His stories explore themes such as friendship, love, bravery, and making good choices. Shakespeare’s work has had a lasting influence on English language, theatre, and storytelling, helping children see how creativity and imagination can shape culture and inspire people for generations.
Music Moment
Our music moment this week was Vivaldi – Four Seasons.
Fortnightly Focus: School Norms
Over the next two weeks, we will be reinforcing three key norms across the school:
-Behave appropriately
-Communicate politely
-Be compassionate
These expectations apply to all areas of school life: classrooms, corridors, playgrounds, assemblies and interactions with staff and visitors. Consistent modelling and reinforcement from all adults will help ensure pupils clearly understand what these behaviours look like in practice.
18 March – Online parents’ evening from 1.20pm to 6.30pm.
19 March – RBR Colchester Zoo trip.
19 March – Year 6 SATs meeting for parents at 9.00am.
20 March – Red Nose Day.
23 March – Class photographs.
24 March – iRock concert to parents at 9.15am, KS2 hall.
26 March – Year 2 Hyde Hall trip.
27 March – Author visit for RB children.
30 March-10 April – Easter holiday.
15 April – Year 6 residential meeting for parents at 9.00am.
21 April – Year 3 creative workshop (no charge). *new date*
28 April – Year 6 children height and weight screening and Reception children mop-ups.
1 May – Class 4L parent lunch.
6 May – Class 4A parent lunch.
8 May – Class 5R parent lunch.
11-14 May – Year 6 KS2 SATs.
15 May – Year 3 Natural History Museum visit.
22 May – Sports afternoon and picnic.
25-29 May – Half term.
2 June – Class 6/5P parent lunch.
2 June – Reception trip to Barleylands. *new date*
3 June – September 2026 Reception intake welcome meeting at 2.30pm, KS1 hall.
4 June – 6CH parent lunch.
4 June – FOGP summer disco.
7-10 June – Year 6 PGL Bawdsey Manor residential.
12 June – Junior Music Festival.
18 June – Year 6 Aviation WW1 simulator.
19 June – Father’s Day event, KS1 hall.
23 June – Meet the teacher event, 3.30pm-4.30pm.
26 June – Year 6 transition to Sweyne Park School.
26 June – FOGP summer fete.
1 July – Nursery sports morning and picnic.
3 July – District sports at Garon Park.
7 July – Year 6 production to parents at 5.00pm.
9 July – Year 6 production to parents at 2.00pm.
17 July – Year 6 Glebe fest leavers’ event.
20 July – Year 6 leavers’ assembly to parents at 9.00am, KS2 hall.
Please submit your views here: Consultation on Nursery Provision at Glebe Primary School – Fill in form
During assembly this week, the KS2 children explored the work of the famous artist Vincent van Gogh with Mrs Howard. They looked closely at his well-known painting Starry Night and discussed how Van Gogh’s work is about more than simply painting what he could see. Instead, he used thick oil paints and bold brushstrokes to show movement, direction and feeling within his paintings.
Starry Night depicts a small, imagined village beneath a dramatic night sky filled with swirling clouds and bright stars, with a glowing moon shining against the deep blue darkness. Inspired by this artwork, Mrs Howard has invited the children to take part in this week’s home challenge. They may choose to recreate the painting, adapt it – perhaps by turning the scene into a London skyline – or write a short story inspired by the picture. Any completed home learning can be brought to Mrs Howard.
Find the signs in action on Glebe’s social media pages.
