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Headteacher Message

Good afternoon all,

I hope you are all well. If you had told me this morning that before eating my lunch I would be handling a live snake then ….. Actually, to be honest, this job is so varied i probably would have believed you. As you can see below, it went ok. I would like to say a big thank you to Felisa for bringing in the snake to show to our younger children. I have to say the snake charmer (handler) was also excellent and really put me at ease.

It is sometimes important to be brave and on Thursday I took 13 brave pupils to a debate mate competition in Finchley, North London. We won two debates and lost two debates. I was extremely proud of both of our teams. They debated respectfully and thoughtfully. I mention braveness as it was the first time many of these children had taken part in a debate, and it was really impressive to see them stand in front of an audience, in a competition and speak confidently and coherently. Right the weekend begins here, so all that is left to say is have a lovely two days with your precious children.

Joe Porter

Office Updates

Communications Sent Home

KS2 Choir - Rose Theatre Trip
Y1 - Y6 - Friday Night Fives Football info
Y4 - Thames Young Mariners Residential Trip Meeting
Selected pupils - Debate Mate Cup Trip

Diary Dates

Year 3 & 4 Swimming

9:00am – 11:00am

From 17 Jan and on Friday each week until 05 Apr except for between 17 Feb and 21 Feb

14
March

Darell Playgroup

9:00am – 11:00am

From 13 Jan and on Monday each week except for between 17 Feb and 21 Feb, between 07 Apr and 21 Apr, and for between 26 May and 01 Jun

17
March

Y1 - Orleans House Gallery Trip

From 15 Jan and on Wednesday each week except for between 17 Feb and 21 Feb, between 07 Apr and 21 Apr, and for between 26 May and 01 Jun

19
March

Y5 - Science Museum Trip

From 17 Jan and on Friday each week until 05 Apr except for between 17 Feb and 21 Feb

21
March

Darell Playgroup

9:00am – 11:00am

From 13 Jan and on Monday each week except for between 17 Feb and 21 Feb, between 07 Apr and 21 Apr, and for between 26 May and 01 Jun

24
March

Darell Playgroup

1:15pm – 3:15pm

From 15 Jan and on Wednesday each week except for between 17 Feb and 21 Feb, between 07 Apr and 21 Apr, and for between 26 May and 01 Jun

26
March

Easter Scavenger Hunt - PS Event

3:20pm – 4:30pm

26
March

The Reading Corner

Welcome to our weekly section of the newsletter all about reading. Every week, we will share a question (or two) with you about the book your child is reading in school. Please use these questions to help you find out a little more about what your child has been reading in school and continue to develop their love of reading.

Reception - In this week's story, Bee, why does the bee go to different flowers? (to drink the nectar) What brushes off onto the bee's body? (pollen) What is the pollen for? (making seeds that grow into more plants and flowers)

Year 1 - Now that you have listened to, Lulu and Meets the Bees, can you explain why bees are so important? (bees make honey, bees help to make food such as fruit and vegetables by flying around and pollinating plants) What can we do to help them? What other interesting facts can you remember about bees?

Year 2 - Can you retell the story of The Fox and the Star from Star’s perspective?

Year 3 - What do you think we can learn from the story of Daedalus and Icarus?

Year 4 - What kind of books do you like best and why? Chapter Books, Graphic Novels or Picture books?

Year 5 - What did we find out about Tutankhamun from the various sources we read this week?

Year 6 - Orangutan fact file – why are orangutan endangered in the wild?

Attendance

Overall, school attendance this week was 95%. Our target is 97%.

Well done to Nursery for the highest attendance of 100% this week.

Let's do our best for next week!

Early Years Star of the Week

Reception

Maraki - for showing aspiration at school. Maraki has very good concentration, whether making something with her hands or balancing a beanbag on her back in PE!

Year 1

Juliet - for expressing her creativity and imagination to build a magnificent dragon house using magnetic tiles and working well as a team. Juliet has also shown excellent focus in phonics this week. Well done, Juliet!

Year 2

Katie - for your aspirational commitment to learning across all subjects. You ask for help when you need it and you try your best. You are also a kind and generous friend. Thank you Katie!

KS1 SRP

Zion - for fantastic maths skills, you always work hard with Mrs. Blunden during number time and you use your maths skills when it is play and learn time in class. Well done, Zion!

Sporting Star

Reed - for being the youngest member of the Darell Running Club and keeping up with his peers and running his own race. Well done, Reed!

KS2 Star of the Week

KS2 SRP

Olly - for his excellent transition to Newton class. We are so proud of you!

Year 3

Benjamin - for being a fantastic role model to your peers! Thank you for your thoughtful contributions, excellent learning behaviors and aspirational attitude! Well done, Benjamin!

Year 4

Andrei - for being brave, making positive choices and contributing to music class.

Year 5

Freya - for her incredibly beautifully written Shadow Moth narrative.

Year 6

Jacob - for Jacob shows great enthusiasm for and enjoyment of his learning in science. He always has lots of interesting knowledge to share with the class.

Nurture Star

Leon - for his resilience with his timetables this half-term and improving his score significantly. Well done Leon!

Kindness Star

Tipene - for being a very kind friend and helping them every step of the way while walking on their weekly trip. Well done Tipene!

Useful Links

darell.school

darell.richmond.sch.uk

Arbor Parent Portal - darell-primary.uk.arbor

School Uniform Shop - The Shoe Station

Newsletters

Newsletter 22 – Friday, 14th March 2025