This has
been far from a regular week in school!! With Mexican visitors Pilar and Tere,
an astonishing International Cookridge Week complete with fashion show,
Cultural Cabaret and World Cafe AND artist Lee Threadgold in school for three
days working with the Year 4, 5 and 6 pupils to
make the MOST ENORMOUS puppets I have ever seen – we certainly have not
been bored! My thanks to Mrs Thorpe, Mrs Speak and Mr El Sayed for the
preparation and organisation which has gone on behind the scenes to organise
these aspects for our children, and to the many parents who have worked hard to
make International Cookridge Week so unique. Next week, we have two days
orchestra workshop and an author in school working with young writers drawn
from our and local schools. Life is not dull at Cookridge!
Class Organisation 2012-13
You should,
this week, have received a letter informing you which class your child will be
in next year. It is important that the transition work begins now and that you
talk to your child about their new classmates and teaching teams – this is an
exciting time and one which should be talked about! Remember that your child
will be spending the morning in their new class base on Monday morning and I am
confident they will have a lot to tell you about at the end of the day. There
is also the opportunity for your child to show you to their new classroom at
the end of the school day so that you, too, can meet and chat with the class
teacher and find out some useful housekeeping information. Please come into
school and find out who’s who and what’s what!
Training Days 2012-13
Next year’s
training days have been agreed and I would like to give you advance notice of
all five dates for the year ahead. School will be closed for staff training on:
Monday 3rd
September 2012
Tuesday 4th
September 2012
Friday 26th
October 2012
Monday 15th
April 2013
Friday 5th
July 2013
Children should therefore return to
school on Wednesday 5th September 2012 and will break up for the Summer next
year on Tuesday 23rd July 2013. The full school calendar is available to view
via the website or via the Leeds City Council website on http://www.educationleeds.co.uk/DisplayText.aspx?pageNo=104 . Please support our city wide aim to
improve attendance by taking note of the holiday dates and additional training
days and plan holidays within these dates.
Sports News
Thank you for the fantastic response to the after school sports clubs
for the next school year. Many clubs are full or nearly full and some have a
waiting list! However, there are still spaces available for some clubs and an
extra club has been added to cater for demand. The children who this affects
have taken home a further letter today which provides details of these clubs
and the spaces available. It is not too late to sign up - see Mrs Hyde or Mr
Gamble for details.
On Tuesday, 9 enthusiastic rounders players from Year 6 travelled to
Ireland Wood for the AWSSA Rounders Competition. Despite some good batting from
Georgia Thompson and some great catches from Parsa Sahree, we lost in the
semi-final to Ireland Wood.
July
Monday 2nd July - Year 3/4 Football Competition, Leo Jones Trophy @ Queensway Primary, Yeadon.
Saturday 7th July - Year 5/6 Athletics Competition @ Leeds Met. Monday 2nd July - Year 3/4 Football Competition, Leo Jones Trophy @ Queensway Primary, Yeadon.
Tuesday 10th July- Year 5/6 Football Quarter-Final vs Yeadon Westfield @ Cookridge Primary.
Donkey Sanctuary Summer Fair Swan Lane Blackhill Lane Leeds LS16 8AZ
Several of
our children are lucky enough to visit the Donkey Sanctuary in Eccup each
month, and – as you can imagine - it is a very popular part of their
curriculum. The sanctuary do not charge for donkey
riding therapy and rely entirely on charitable donations to allow them to run
the centre. They are holding
their biggest fundraising event of the year - the Summer Fair - on Sunday 8th July from 11am to 4pm. The
event is a great day out for the whole family with arena displays, children’s
entertainment, craft stands, delicious food and drinks and of course 18
gorgeous donkeys to meet. This year, Peppa Pig and Ronnie the Rhino are making
guest appearances on the day. If you are able to go along and support this
excellent facility which serves children right across
Attendance
This week’s attendance is thankfully an improvement on last week’s at
93.5% and our year to date %age remains 95.4% The benchmark for a ‘satisfactory’
(or ‘requires improvement’) Ofsted judgement is 94% and so our figure this week
is once again disappointing. Our Local Authority agreed target this year of 95%
is one which would see us into a ‘good’ judgement for the first time in many
years. I remain optimistic that we can exceed this target in the three
remaining weeks of term and would ask you to please continue to support us in
our endeavour. Next week, our 100% attendees will receive their certificate for
the year and their letter inviting them to attend the 100% attendance trip in
the penultimate week of term. 10 lucky pupils who have achieved the 95%
benchmark will also be entered into a ‘chancer’ draw and will also be invited
to celebrate this achievement with us.
Governors News
After 20 years of service and many years as Chair of Governors, Mr
Gathercole has taken the decision to retire from the Governing Body. This does
not mean that he is retiring from his other, paid roles – indeed additional
work commitments have actually led to his decision. On behalf of the school
community, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Gathercole for his
many years of dedicated service. Pete has been a champion of the school through
the years and has voluntarily attended the Y6 Buckden Residential, forming
strong relationships with countless pupils as they embarked upon – for many -
their biggest adventure. Mr Vijay Sharma has been elected Chair of Governors
during the Summer term, a position which will be formalised in September when
the new Governing Body are convened. There is likely to be an opportunity for
new Parent Governors to join the Governing Body in the new school year and I
would strongly recommend anyone who might be interested and able to support the
school through this vital role to get in touch - I would be happy to provide
additional information.
Sports Day 2012
Sports Day will take place on Thursday 12th July 2012. Reception and KS1
parents who are able to spectate should make their way to the school field for
a 10am start. KS2 parents should arrive from 1.00pm and will be treated to an
Olympics style opening ceremony complete with these GINORMOUS puppets!!
Summer Fayre
Don’t forget – tomorrow is the Summer Fayre and we are really hoping
that the weather stays fair and that we see you there. We are collecting money
for the playground installation this year – selected by the children. This
‘pick up sticks’ climbing apparatus costs £6, 500 to install, so we really need
to make it a great Summer Fayre if we are able to meet the children’s demands!
Please come along and have some fun with your family whilst supporting your
child’s school. Parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles – everyone is welcome
and no contribution is too small! See you there....
Mrs Bailey
