Autumn 1 Newsletter
Head teacher's Messages
Dear Families,
Welcome back! We hope you had a wonderful half term, whether you were celebrating Diwali, Halloween, enjoying early fireworks, or simply relaxing.
We ended last term on a high note with our Pupil Progress meetings, where senior and teaching teams discussed each child's development. I was impressed with how well the teams already know the students and their focus on progress. Following this, we held our parent/carer evenings to share updates and next steps. If you couldn’t attend, your child’s teacher will reach out this week.
We have an exciting term ahead! Please check the dates below for upcoming events. We’re also looking forward to seeing many of you at the Spooky Disco tonight—thank you to the staff and families volunteering their Friday evening to make it happen.
Best regards,
Miss Marriott
Staffing News
Welcome to Charlotte Dennaford who has started in Squirrel class, supporting Miss Francis. Charlotte is an experienced teaching assistant and we are pleased to welcome her to our team.
Welcome to Purvi Shah who has recently started as our Welfare Officer. Mrs Shah is the person to contact if your child has any welfare/medical needs- she is at Pinner Wood from 10am-4.30pm every day and she can be contacted at welfare@pinnerwood.co.uk
Mrs. Bennett, our Pastoral Leader (and Dennis her dog!) have made the significant decision to leave Pinner Wood and Harrow at the end of this term. Lisa will be retiring and relocating to enjoy life by the sea. This news marks a major change for Pinner Wood, as Lisa’s contributions to countless children and families have been invaluable. We will celebrate her many achievements and wish her the very best for her new chapter. Both staff and children were informed today.
Value of the Month - Choose Kind
This week, we wrapped up our Spotlight on the value "Step Up." Well done to all the children who earned their Step Up Badge! If your child hasn't completed the challenge yet, there's still time—just send the form to their teacher.
This term, we'll focus on Barney Badger's message to "Choose Kind." Our assemblies and class meetings will highlight stories of kindness and consideration for others
School Notices - A few reminders
INSET DAY | REMINDER – we have an INSET day on Monday 25th November. The school will be closed to pupils as staff undertake training so there will be no external clubs, After School Club or Breakfast Club on this day. |
Lost Property | Lost property has moved to the year 5/6 playground in the two boxes outside Fir Class (we hope this makes it easier to access) Please ensure all clothing is labelled so it does not get as far as the box. |
Reporting Absence | Thank you for your support with reporting absence. Our system is becoming much more efficient and most absence is recorded by 9am. To remind you – if you child is off please contact- attendance@pinnerwood.co.uk or phone 0208 868 2468 by 9am |
Reasons for Absence | When reporting absences, please ensure you're providing the accurate reason. Recently, we've had a few instances where children were reported as sick but were actually on holiday, which creates a difficult situation for everyone. We kindly ask for your honesty in this, though we recognise this only applies to a small minority. |
After School Club Survey | We are reviewing our After School Club provision and looking at what current needs are. Please tell us your views by filling in our survey. We welcome your views If your child does NOT attend ASC, please fill this in. If your child DOES attend ASC, please fill this in. |
Illness | Hand, foot and mouth We currently have confirmed cases of hand, foot and mouth in the school. The guidelines are to please let the school know. It's important for school staff and other parents to know so they can watch for symptoms. Symptoms include: · Fever. · Sore throat. · Feeling sick. · Painful, blister-like lesions on the tongue, gums and inside of the cheeks. · A rash on the palms, soles and sometimes the buttocks. The rash is not itchy, but sometimes it has blisters. ... · Fussiness in infants and toddlers. · Loss of appetite. Keep your child home from school or childcare until they have gone 24 hours without a fever and the mouth sores and open blisters have healed. ( usually around 5 days). Recommended treatment:
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Nursery Spaces | There is 1 space available in afternoon Nursery, please let friends and families know. |
Reporting Attendance | Just a reminder that if your child/children are absent. Please either:- Report it on the attendance line option 1 – If the attendance officer is at her desk she will pick up Or By email to attendance@pinnerwood.co.uk Please refrain from calling the school office as it is extremely busy when everyone is arriving first thing in the morning. |
Phone Lines | We have a new phone system at school, please use the following numbers: Press 1 - Report your child absence (Attendance) Press 2 - Admissions Press 3 - Welfare Press 4 - Finance/ASC enquires Press 5 - School Office Out of Hours message will tell you the school is closed and to Press 1 for After School Club, if needed. |
Request for Fidget Toys | We are on the hunt for some small, fidget type toys to support the needs of our pupils. We are looking for fidget poppits and small hand held teddies. Please bring any donations of these to the office. |
Bonnie Bird - Good News Corner
Pinner Wood is Awarded Art Mark Silver
We are excited to celebrate achieving the Silver Award for our contributions to the Arts, Dance, Music, and Drama. We're proud to offer our children a well-rounded education. A big well done to Miss Francis, Miss Sapio Miss Hazlewood and Miss Reeves! Read more about the journey here.
Pinner Wood celebrates being an Outstandingly Happy School
It is official we are an ‘Outstandingly Happy School’ awarded by the Art of Brilliance for the work completed by last year’s year 5 through the Happy Harrow Project. You can see our reflections on this project here.
Pinner Wood Oracy Hub
On Thursday, 14th November, we are excited to welcome 35 leaders from across the UK to observe oracy in action at Pinner Wood. We will be hosting our first-ever Voice 21 information session as a leading school in Oracy. The children will participate in lessons, and the School Council will showcase their work. This is an incredible opportunity to highlight our achievements. We were delighted to hear that tickets for the event sold out in under 24 hours, with a substantial waiting list, reaffirming that Pinner Wood is truly the place to be.
Step Up - Recruitment
There are no current vacancies at Pinner Wood
Enjoy Learning - Classroom Notices
Showcasing Excellence at Pinner Wood | Exciting News! In recent months, Pinner Wood has been showcasing its work on the national stage. Five of our teachers presented at The Next Generation School Conference in London, covering:
Meanwhile, four teachers attended the Great Oracy Exhibition in Birmingham, where they shared our approach to Action Research projects aimed at enhancing Oracy. Later this month, 35 schools from across the country will visit Pinner Wood to see our Oracy developments in action. We’re proud to be leading and sharing innovative practices! |
Sporting News | PE at Pinner Wood has got off to a flying start this half term, with all children learning a variety of skills, from the fundamentals of running in Year 1 to mastering a successful tennis serve in Year 5. We have multiple clubs running at Pinner Wood, and when speaking to the children about these clubs, they all express how much fun they are having. This half term, we have seen our Year 5 girls represent the school fantastically well, demonstrating great attitude and effort during a girls' football tournament hosted at The Hive. Meanwhile, our Year 6 boys' football team performed exceptionally well in their recent tournament, where they made it all the way to the final but sadly fell at the last hurdle. Next half term looks just as exciting and productive as this one. We are thrilled about the introduction of our new lunchtime club, 'Change for Life', which gives the children opportunities to work as a team, learn about the fundamentals of staying healthy, and more importantly, have fun playing games. We are also excited to introduce IntraGames, where the children will represent their houses in the final PE lessons of the half term, showcasing the skills they have learned in a more competitive environment. |
Space Week | During Space Week, each class embarked on an exciting journey into our Solar System! Inside the planetarium, they uncovered astonishing secrets of each planet with the extremely knowledgeable presenter, Matt. Back in class, the children unleashed their creativity, diving into a galaxy of engaging activities that made their space exploration week truly unforgettable! |
Trip and Experiences | Last half term saw many trips and experiences take place at Pinner these included: · Reception/ Year 1 Autumn Walks · Year 3 – Stone Age Day · Year 4 – British Museum and Thorpe Park SEAM Trip · Year 6 – Imperial War Museum Trip. · Planetarium visit for Science Week · Drama workshops for Year 1 and Year 2 linked to their topic learning · Parent speakers linked to RE learning · Harrow Recycling Team visiting the Earth Friends There is lots more coming up this term so keep an eye out for the dates. |
Sustainability News | This year, our Earth Friends and Eco Team are working towards a number of exciting goals including:
We are also excited to introduce our new TfL Explorers Ambassadors - Kabir, Riya, Saanvi, Mossy, Anika and Milli. They are going to support our journey to reach the Gold Travel for London accreditation. Some of the things they have planned:
We have already enjoyed a visit from Harrow Council to talk to us about recycling, have litter picked our school grounds and have explored biodiversity in our garden area. |
Cooking Club | We are excited to be starting a KS1 Cooking Club which will begin on Tuesday 19th November from 3.30 - 4.30 pm. This will be available to book on Arbor from today and will cost £10 for a 4 week session. The club will involve cooking yummy dishes while also working on fine motor skills. For more information please contact Mrs Imeri or Miss Sharpling. |
Our Eco Shop is opening - Reduce, Reuse, Refill
We would like to make a big different to plastic waste by opening a Refill Shop that we run at school. Please help us to help our planet by refilling for your household whenever you can.
Welcome to....Reduce, Reuse, Refill!
Our Refill Shop will be opening on Friday 15th November, after school from 3.20pm in the Year 5 - 6 playground. It will be open for around 30 minutes.
The Eco Team have worked hard planning and preparing what products they want to sell, looking at costings and marketing.
The shop will be selling refills of body wash, bubble bath, fabric conditioner and washing up liquid. Prices range from £1.75 - £3.00 per 500 ml. Please bring your own 500ml container or bottle to fill up, as the shop hopes to reduce plastic waste and pollution. We will have some bottles available to use. You are welcome to pay in cash or by card.
Reusing and refilling containers reduces waste and prevents all the emissions that go into making more and more plastic containers.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Reading at Pinner Wood
Read Around the World
Don't forget there are a huge number of books and stories from around the world you can find on our website. Let us know if you have any other suggestions!
It has been an exciting week for Reading at Pinner Wood! We had a visit by local author Cliff Martin who shared his inspiration behind his story 'Help, Children Have Taken Over the World!'.
Our Year 6 Librarians also visited Pinner Library to get some ideas for new stories and books they want to have at Pinner Wood. We look forward to sharing these with Year 6.
Our Bounce Back to Reading event is continuing until the end of the November. We love seeing more children reading - anything and everything - at home and in school.
Betty Bee Community News
School Information Sessions
RWI Workshops
We are looking forward to welcoming you to our upcoming RWI workshops. Please use this link if you would like to attend.
The sessions will look at the structure of a RWI lesson, the writing and comprehension elements, preparing your child for RWI accross the year groups and the Phonics Screening Check.
Please let Miss Reeves know if you have any questions.
Community Events
Making the life of the wonderful Emma Quirke | Thank you to everyone who joined us in September to remember Emma. You can read more about the wonderful Emma here. |
Community Evening | It was lovely to see so many of you at our Community evening in September. A sunny afternoon of food and socialising. |
The Garba | Our very first event of its kind at Pinner Wood was a great success and a lovely experience. Many families commented on how happy and inclusive it felt. An added bonus was it raised over £1500 for the school. Thank you to our friends for making it possible. |
Friends of Pinner Wood | The friends are working hard to raise important funds for the school. This year money raised will be going to introduce Chrome Books in year 5 and to continue to develop our lunch play provision. There plans can be found here. We would love you to get involved in their work. They can be contacted via friends@pinnerwood.co.uk |
Spooky Disco | The disco is taking place tonight. EYFS/ Year 1 – 4-5pm Years 2,3,4 -5.15-6:15pm Year 5&6- 6.30-7:40pm Please drop off via the main office and collected in the year5/6 playground after the event. The children will not need to bring in coats/bags There are few spaces left to pay on the door if you have forgotten to get a ticket. |
Christmas Fair | Our fair will talk place on Friday 6th December from 3.30 - 6.30 pm. We will hold non uniform days on 29th November and 6th December. We really want donations of teddies, chocolate, bottles for the tombolas, cakes (cakes on 6th December) If you can give a bit of your time to volunteer please sign up here - https://signup.com/go/NNDyyux |
We are continuing to share updates on our Instagram pages @pinnerwoodsch and @pwgreenerygallery. Please do follow our pages, like and comment on what we have been up to! | |
Deck the Halls with our Christmas Trees | There will be the opportunity to buy your Christmas Tree from GDN, who have partnered with Pinner Wood. A percentage of every tree sold will go towards our school. Trees will be showcased in the playground on Friday 15th, 22nd and 29th November. Please see further information below. |
Christmas Lights Switch on Performance | On Wednesday 27th November at 5pm, we have been invited to perform carols as part of the Christmas Light Switch On by the Mayor in Pinner. Further details will be shared inviting your children to perform but please Save the Date if you would like to come! |
Dates for your Diary
Tuesday 12th November 9am-9:45am | Year 4 Diwali Assembly |
Wednesday 13th November | School Council Trip to Houses of Parliament |
Friday 15th November | Year 5 trip to Science Museum |
Friday 22nd November | Super Hero dress up day and lockdown practice |
Monday 25th November | INSET DAY – School Closed |
Tuesday 26th November (1 week) | Travelling Book Fair |
Wednesday 27th November from 5 pm | Christmas Light Switch on Choir Performance in Pinner with Mayor |
W.B. 9th December | Reception and Key Stage 1 show weeks (times to be sent nearer time) |
Friday 13th December | Birthday Bunch 1st September- 31st December |
Friday 13th December | Year 4,5,6 – Church Visit |
W.B 16th December | Nursery Show |
Tuesday 17th December | Year 2 and 3 Watford Palace Theatre Panto |
Tuesday 17th December | Mr Marvel in school for year 1 and EYFS |
Wednesday 18th December | Christmas Lunch |
Friday 20th December | Term Ends at 1.30pm |
Monday 6th January | Term Begins all children |
Tuesday 11th February – 9am-9:45am | Year 5 Assembly |
Monday 17th – Friday 21st Feb | Half Term |
Thursday 6th March | World Book Day |
Thursday 13th March | Possible date for IFTAR dinner |
Monday 24th March 3.30-4.30pm | Year 4 Speech evening |
Wednesday 26th and Thursday 27th March | Parent/ Carer evenings |
Friday 28th March | Birthday Bunch 1st January – 21st April |
Friday 4th April | Term Ends at 1:30pm |
Tuesday 22nd April | Term Starts for all |
Monday 12th – Thursday 15th May | Year 6 SATS – ALL YEAR 6 IN SCHOOL |
Wednesday 21st – Friday 23rd May | Year 5 Phasels Wood Trip |
Monday 26th – Friday 30th May | Half Term |
Monday 2nd June | INSET DAY – SCHOOL CLOSED |
W.B. 3rd June (2 week window) | Year 4 Multiplication Check |
W.B 9th June (2 week window) | Year 1 Phonic Check |
W.B 9th June | Year 6 Company Week |
W.B. 9th June | Oracy Week |
W.B. 16th June | STEAM Week |
W.B 16th June | Year 6 Change Speeches |
Tuesday 1st July | Sports day and family picnic |
Wednesday 2nd July | ‘Move up’ morning |
Wednesday 2nd July (Evening) and Thursday 3rd July (Afternoon) | Year 6 Show |
Friday 4th July | Birthday Bunch 22nd April – 31st August |
Friday 4th July | PW Summer Carnival in school |
Monday 7th July – Friday 11th July | Year 6 Isle of Wight Trip |
Monday 14th July | Dream Big Open Evening |
Tuesday 15th July | Music Concert for performers |
Friday 18th July | 8-10am Year 6 Leavers breakfast and assembly (Year 6families invited) |
Friday 18th July | Term Ends for All 1.30pm |
Monday 21st and Tuesday 22nd July | INSET DAY – SCHOOL CLOSED TO PUPILS |
Heart of the Community - News from Pinner Wood Friends
As we approach the half-term break, we’re excited to start preparations for our upcoming Christmas Fair! To make this event extra special, we’re reaching out for some donations from our fantastic school community, and the school will be happy to receive these items throughout November.
We would be grateful if families could consider donating:
Gently-used teddy bears – Please ensure they’re in good, clean condition.
Christmas lights – Kindly check that they are working.
Christmas decorations – Any spare festive decorations are welcome.
Additionally, if your family has a gazebo you’d be willing to lend for the event, it would be immensely helpful! Gazebos provide much-needed shelter for stalls and activities and are always appreciated.
All contributions will help make the fair a memorable and magical experience for everyone. Thank you so much for your support, and we wish you a restful half-term break!
News from Head Squad
During the last half term at Pinner Wood, many exciting things happened throughout the school. In Reception, they went on their peaceful Autumn walk when the ground was beautifully decorated with leaves and Year 1 accompanied the Reception children as they also went on their thrilling Geography trip to Montesole Park. Later on, Year 2 had their stunning Great Fire of London workshop and they burnt down their makeshift houses! It was great fun and they loved it. In Key Stage 2, Year 3 went on a walk to Montesole Park to learn all about their wonderful topic of Forces and Friction, they had a really fun time. In Year 4, the students went on one of a lifetime trip to Thorpe park. The students went on some rides and they completed their trip with a fabulous STEAM workshop. Year 5 went into a Wonder Dome to learn all about space and in DT, they made Maya wells out of clay. It was very authentic and was great fun. Finally in Year 6, we went to the Imperial War Museum and in our fabulous Art topic, we created Anime drawings and replicated artists such as Dr. Seuss and Quentin Blake. We also entered the Remembrance Poetry Competition. Very happily, we have had a winner from our year group. This rounds up last half term and the fabulous things Pinner Wood students have experienced.
Next half term, many exciting things will happen. Reception will have their Darkness Day, and Year 1 will carry on the fun with their Christmas Play. In addition to this, Year 2 will make beautiful bags in DT and later on, watch the marvellous Aladdin show in the pantomime. Moving up the school, Year 3 will make travel pillows and join Year 2 to watch Aladdin as well as taking part in a Road Safety workshop. Year 4 will host their magnificent Diwali assembly in the upstairs hall and have their Sound & Hearing science topic, which will be very exciting. Year 5 will visit the Science Museum and have their great Art topic: Graffiti! Finally, in Year 6 we will have our tasty South American Fiesta and a brilliant VR workshop. Also, we will be entered into the PMC (Primary Maths Challenge)
There are so many amazing events and experiences happening at Pinner Wood this half term!
Written by Idris Khan, Priyana Shah, Riya Holmes & Veer Chana, Year 6
Autumn Term 1 in photos
