DRUMBEAT SCHOOL Weekly Newsletter Dear Parents and Carers Please take note of the calendar for next year and the two weeks at October half term. Also note that we are closing next Friday, 31st March at 1pm. I hope you enjoy the nicer weather that is forecast over the weekend and have a relaxing and pampered Mother s Day. Have a good weekend. Dates for the Diary. Wednesday, 29 March Downham Parents Evening from 5pm 7pm Friday, 31 March Last day of term school closes at 1pm Wednesday, 19 April Students back at school Marie Neave Executive Headteacher Drumbeat School & ASD Service 1
The Schools Forum have agreed that from the 1st May 2017, the cost of a school lunch will go up from 2.00 to 2.10 per day. This works out to 10.50 per week. At 2.10 Lewisham meals will continue to provide all of the Government nutritional requirements and compare favourably with other local authorities. We believe the meal price continues to provide good value for money. Our two course daily menus vary throughout a three weekly cycle and the Council is constantly striving to improve the quality of the ingredients. Over 80% of the meals offered use fresh, quality products from sustainable sources. Thanks Seán Richings School Business Director Autism-friendly Performance Disney s ALADDIN will present its first dedicated Autism-friendly performance on Tuesday 29th August at 1.30pm at the Prince Edward Theatre, London. Drumbeat School & ASD Service 2
SCHOOL TERM AND HOLIDAY DATES 2017/2018 AUTUMN TERM 2017 AUTUMN TERM 1 HALF TERM HOLIDAY AUTUMN TERM 2 CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY MONDAY 4 SEPTEMBER - Students back at school FRIDAY 20 OCTOBER - Students last day of half term MONDAY 23 OCTOBER FRIDAY 3 NOVEMBER* MONDAY 6 NOVEMBER Students back at school WEDNESDAY 20 DECEMBER - Students last day of term** THURSDAY 21 DECEMBER MONDAY 1 JANUARY SPRING TERM 2018 SPRING TERM 1 HALF TERM HOLIDAY SPRING TERM 2 EASTER HOLIDAY TUESDAY 2 JANUARY Students back at school FRIDAY 9 FEBRUARY Students last day of half term MONDAY 12 FEBRUARY FRIDAY 16 FEBRUARY MONDAY 19 FEBRUARY Students back at school THURSDAY 29 MARCH - Students last day of term** FRIDAY 30 MARCH FRIDAY 13 APRIL SUMMER TERM 2018 SUMMER TERM 1 HALF TERM HOLIDAY SUMMER TERM 2 MONDAY 16 APRIL Students back at school FRIDAY 25 MAY Students last day of half term (MAY DAY PUBLIC HOLIDAY WILL BE TAKEN ON 7 MAY) MONDAY 28 MAY FRIDAY 1 JUNE MONDAY 4 JUNE Students back at school FRIDAY 20 JULY Students last day of term** *The half term holiday in October will be 2 weeks **The school will close at 1pm on the last day of the term Drumbeat School & ASD Service 3
PE Events coming up Date & Time Event & Venue Students Football 20 April South London Special League of TBC 18 May South London Special League of TBC 15 June South London Special League of their own TBC Parents/Carers are welcome to come to the football games but the other events are for students/staff only. EYFS & Primary Annual Reviews Annual Reviews and EHCP meetings have started. Thank you to all parents/carers who have attended the meetings. When you receive your letter of appointment, please complete the form and return it to the school as soon as possible. We encourage parents/carers to please try and attend on the allocated dates & times due to teaching staff availability. If, however, you are unable to attend the meeting please let Hendrina Smith know so the meeting can be rescheduled for later in the summer term. Drumbeat School & ASD Service 4
National Junior Rowing Competition Lee Valley Athletics Centre Drumbeat students have been training hard in preparation for the National Youth Rowing Competition which took place on Friday, 17 March. They have been receiving training from staff and outside providers. Students competed against other schools and rowed flat out for 2 minutes, which resulted in many of them being very out of breath by the end. There were lots of other fun activities to do at the event and students really enjoyed the day out. Drumbeat School & ASD Service 5
Jubilee Class Jubilee Class have had a fantastic week. Everyone has been working hard on our space, shape and measure topic in Maths and we had a look at some rhyming words in our English lesson. The class had a lovely trip last Wednesday, it was a beautiful spring day and we were able to visit Coolings Garden Centre in Knockholt. We went behind the scenes and saw how the plants started as seeds and then seedlings. We also saw the huge reservoir they had that catches all the rain to recycle it by watering the thousands of plants they have. We then got the chance to plant our own edible flower seeds and we look forward to watching these grow (and then trying them!). Drumbeat School & ASD Service 6
Key Stage 5 World Book Day At Brockley we decided not to dress up but instead to take part in the Where s Wally search. This was introduced in a special assembly just before World Book Day. So for three days staff from 6F2 hid Wally around the campus. There were 30 Wallies altogether. Each student who found at least one Wally was given a certificate and the students who found the most were awarded special books as prizes. The top three winners in reverse order were: In 3 rd place Ghulam who found 9 Wallies; 2 nd place Joel who found 11 Wallies and in 1 st place Triavonne who found any amazing 13 Wallies. Triavonne received a special 30 th anniversary edition of Where s Wally as his prize along with a book chosen by his class team. Students were awarded their certificates and prizes in assembly last week. In addition to this classes visited the local library and local bookshop to spend their free tokens from World Book Day and staff read stories to them each day. We hope that this renewed interest in books and reading will continue. Drumbeat School & ASD Service 7
6F1 Class The class fish tank needed cleaning again. As no one likes cleaning it because of the time it takes, students take turns to do this. As it happened, it was Hayden and Ibukun s turn this time. They both followed visual instructions on how to, and with some occasional prompts from staff, they completed the task. In the end, it wasn t only the fish that were happy of their cleaner home but all in 6F1 and especially Hayden and Ibukun who were particularly proud of what they achieved. Now our fish tank looks much cleaner thanks to Hayden and Ibukun. Drumbeat School & ASD Service 8
Dear parents, We re taking part in Sainsbury s Active Kids 2017. This means that from 25 January 2 May you can collect vouchers at Sainsbury s and donate them to the school. We can then exchange these vouchers for new cooking and sports equipment, and experiences for our kids. The closing date for this is 30 June. How to collect vouchers: 25 January 2 May You will get one voucher for every 5 you spend at any Sainsbury s Local Store. Every time you shop at a Sainsbury s Supermarket, you ll be given one voucher for every 10 you spend. If you shop online at sainsburys.co.uk, you will receive the equivalent of one voucher for every 10 you spend, but they will be printed on one piece of paper up to the value of 50 vouchers so make sure you keep it safe. How to donate vouchers Simply bring your vouchers into school and drop them in our collection box in reception. We will need all your voucher donations by 30 June. Spread the word Active Kids is a great way for our community to join together to help our kids eat well, move well and live well. Please ask all of your neighbours, friends and family to help collect vouchers too. Let s get more kids active. Kind regards, Richard Gillings 6F3 Class Teacher & Brockley PE lead. Drumbeat School & ASD Service 9