Latest News
Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
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23rd February 2024
Fri 23 Feb 2024Good evening,
I hope you are well and have had a good week. In school the week has flown by. There has definitely been a Spring buzz in the air despite all the rain and wet playtimes!
We began the week with a focus on Ash Wednesday and Lent and with reflection on saying sorry. Through Lent we encourage the children to be a Gus (give up something) or a Tom (take on more). The children have had act of kindness treasure hunts, surprise book giveaways for the staff and lots more. It is an exciting term to reflect on what we are proud of, what we are less proud of and how we might be able to achieve a little bit more either personally or for and with others.
On Tuesday, I attended a governor meeting and whilst we are always looking at how we can progress and move forwards, there was so much to celebrate.
We explored our personal development offer for our pupils . Mrs Gan updated governors on our Music curriculum and the extensive enrichment that goes alongside it. We also discussed many exciting development projects coming up. We are delighted to be supported by Cala homes and we are currently working with them to plan the redecorate of both School House and Bullfinch over Easter. We have more exciting projects in the pipeline but I won't share them until we secure funding!
On Tuesday evening 7 children from Goldfinch represented the school in a hockey tournament. The children played well, losing and winning 1 match and drawing the rest. The team were complimented for their team work and for how much they improved throughout the tournament, Eli getting a special mention. Well done to all of them.
I would like to congratulate Evie for being successful in an audition for a Wasma solo. This is a wonderful achievement and opportunity. We had three pupils audition and we are proud of each of them; a brave thing to do!
Next week we have our learning review meetings. Books will be available in classrooms to look at. We will have some information out in the hall and we will be asking parents to sign the Home School Agreement. We find it beneficial for children in Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 to join parents at the meeting and be part of the discussion around their learning and progress.
I would like to thank you for your continued support.
I wish you a lovely weekend
Jacquie Vanstone
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9th February 2024
Fri 09 Feb 2024Good evening,
I wanted to write a short newsletter to wish you a happy half term.
We have had a wonderful week. Our School Council have delivered positive messages of love and joy to houses within the community. It's great for the children to see what happiness they can get from showing kindness.
I began the week with a lovely email from the staff at The Living Rainforest saying that the children last week were polite, interested and knowledgeable. They said that they have school groups all the time and our children were special. Well done Goldfinch.
It has been a successful week for the gymnasts who represented the school at Pinewood gym. The Chaffinch children came 4th and Goldfinch 3rd. We are proud of them all.
Unfortunately, we have had quite a few children and staff unwell this week. I hope the half term rest helps. Holiday club will be running through the week which you can book online.
After the holiday we will release appointments for Learning Reviews. I will also send out the Home School Agreement for you to read. We will then ask parents to sign it at the Learning Reviews.
With kind regards
Jacquie Vanstone
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2nd February 2024
Fri 02 Feb 2024Good afternoon,
What a busy week we have had! We started our Monday by meeting our new guinea pig. The children have had the chance to suggest a name today (apart from Goldfinch). On Monday I will share the new name and we will be putting the guinea pigs together. Some of Rosefinch have suggested their own name, some the name of their sibling which I thought was lovely.
Our school council have created a display about love and care which the whole school can contribute towards. These messages are lovely and so important to share within our school. We have plans to communicate some similar messages to our local community too.
Many of you are aware that Wokingham Borough Council is set to initiate a public highway improvement initiative, commencing on February 12, 2024, and anticipated to conclude by September 2024. This initiative will primarily focus on the Nine Mile Ride/Finchampstead Road roundabout and is likely to cause disruptions in the local area, leading to extended travel times and increased challenges for commuting to school for some families. I have added the link here to the Parish newsletter on our website which gives further information. I would urge you to visit the Wokingham website if you still require further information.
https://www.finchampsteadschool.org/office-updates-1/
In our staff meeting this week, the teachers were looking at English books across the school. It is always such a wonderful opportunity to look at the progress the children are making over time. One key take away from looking at progress in writing was the impact quality reading has on it. The control, creativity and use of punctuation and language can be strongly impacted by the children having a love for reading. It is a reminder to us all to share books, read in front of each other and to each other and share the experiences, journeys and emotions we can go through, all in a quality book.
We always hold great pride in our enrichment and this week has not disappointed!
A small group of Year 1 and 2 children represented the school at a non-competitive Gymnastic event at Pinewood Gymnastics Club. They had a fantastic experience.
Mrs Martinez took 4 children from Goldfinch to an Eagle House Maths Challenge. They had a great time competing with over 50 other schools and again, showing a love for each Maths challenge that came their way.
Today Mrs Pasha led Goldfinch on their Living Rainforest trip. Lots of the children were commended for their behaviour and they all came back having had a wonderful, enriching day of learning.
Goldfinch had only been back by about 15 minutes and when the football boys started their match. They were losing 1-0 at half term but the half time talk worked and they ended the match winning 6-1. We are so excited to have both our boy and girl football teams in the quarter finals. Well done Mr O'Reilly, an amazing achievement.
I feel so fortunate to work with the team of staff and governors I do and this is all enhanced by the wonderful work of FOFSA. The discos were great. The DJ does a brilliant job, all the helpers make a massive difference and the children loved it. Thank you to all involved, the children love a disco!
We have achieved so much in a week and I am pleased to wish staff and parents a lovely, restful weekend
With kind regards
Jacquie Vanstone
