Issue 12 - 29th November 2024
Dear Families,
Next week sees the start of our Christmas events. We are kicking off with the fantastic Year 3 play. We are delighted so many parents are able to join us to watch what promises to be a wonderful, festive production. Please can I ask that parents ensure their children attend both evening performances even if you were unable to secure tickets for both as they will be missed during the show! For the evening performances, children will need to be dropped back to the year 3 classroom doors at 5.40pm and collected from the classroom doors at the end of the performance which is due to finish at 7.00pm. Please note, there is no charge for tickets for the play. However, we will be raising funds for the school by offering light refreshments on the evening performances so please bring some cash along. We will also be asking for donations on the way out too. Please refer back to the email sent on Wednesday for more details.
I hope children are looking forward to their Christmas dinner and class party days! This will start w/c 9th December with each year group having their own day! Children can wear Christmas jumpers and/or Christmas accessories on their year group’s day if they would like to. Please don’t feel you need to buy anything for this! If you don’t have anything Christmassy at home (or your child doesn’t want to dress up) non uniform or school clothes is absolutely fine! Please do help our cook to prepare for this very popular event by pre ordering your child’s lunch in advance via SchoolGrid.
Our FOAH present room will open its doors on Tuesday 10th December. Gifts can be purchased in advance on School Gateway until 3rd December or cash will be accepted on the day. All gifts cost £2.50 and there is no limit to the number of gifts purchased. A big thank you to FOAH for organising this event.
Families of children in Years 4 and 5 are invited to join us for Christmas Carols on the evening of Tuesday 10th December starting at 6.00pm. We will be selling mulled wine and mince pies so please bring along some cash. Some of you may remember we hosted this a few years ago and it was a lovely, festive event enjoyed by everyone. This will take place outside in the quadrant with Mrs Cleaves leading the vocals. As this is outside, there is no need to book a place just turn up, wrap up warm, enjoy a festive treat and sing some carols. A bucket for volunteer donations will be present.
Year 6 children and our school choir will go to St Nicholas’ church on Tuesday 17th December for their carol service which is one of our favourite Almond Hill traditions. It is always a lovely service and a real pleasure to be a part of. If you are attending, please remember, space in the church only allows for two parents per child. Please don’t arrive until 1.30pm to allow children to arrive and get organised. We would also ask, to ensure all children are kept safe, that you allow children and staff to leave first and return to school and collect them from the school in the usual way. They will need to be signed out but may be collected slightly earlier depending on the finish time.
We are pleased to offer many of our events free of charge such as our Christmas activities, after school clubs, writing days. The cost of many of these events are covered by the school and those we do charge for are often subsidised. However, we will be raising funds at our Christmas events for Year 3, 4 and 5 and would appreciate any support in doing so.
We end the final week with another Almond Hill tradition – our talent shows will take place during the school day on Wednesday 18th December. Teachers will be running auditions for children who want to take part and they will be informed by their class teacher if they have been successful. They may bring special props or chosen outfits for their performance. Children in the upper school will perform in the morning and the lower school in the afternoon.
That brings us to our final day on Thursday 19th December. School will finish at 12.30pm on this day. As with the end of the summer term, we understand Letchmore do not finish until Friday. I do not want to put unnecessary pressure on families with children in both schools so we will finish early as planned on Thursday (12.30pm) but for those parents who really need it, school will remain open until 3.15pm. Children will be invited to watch a film in the hall and will be supervised by support staff.
Please note, this is not expected to be a ‘staggered finish’. We would expect children to either be collected at 12.30pm or 3.15pm.
We have requested consent to leave early on Arbor. Please log in to the parent portal and let us know if your child is allowed to leave early on Thursday 19th December. If you decline or do not respond, your child will be expected to stay until 3.15pm unless they are collected by a parent. Please use the guardian note section to let us know if your child (Yr 5 and 6) is allowed to leave independently. Please be reminded, our cook is preparing cold options only.
Have a good weekend.
Emma Fordham
Headteacher
Key Messages
Parent Survey
A big thank you to everyone who completed the parent feedback survey. We will take some time to go through the responses and will feedback via the newsletter over the coming weeks.
Reminder - Reporting on the day absence, requesting time off and changes to collection.
In October, we communicated that we had changed the way we would like parents to report absences. Previously, we asked parents to phone the school office on the day or to email.
Now, you can report on the day absence in the following ways:
by phone (01438 233660 option 1)
by completing the form on our website
by submitting on to the Arbor Parent Portal (How to Guide)
Please do not use the year group emails for this or admin@almondhill.herts.sch.uk. The year group emails are not regularly monitored and there are so many emails coming into admin and with only one person managing this box, they may be missed. You will still be contacted by the office team to check absence if you have emailed one of these as it may not have been passed on and we have a duty to check children’s attendance.
We also reinstated the online form for requests for time off in term time. If you are requesting time off in term time for holidays, a religious festival or other events, please submit the form on our website. You will also find a form here to inform us of medical appointments. Please be advised that the government does not consider holidays to be an exceptional circumstance. These are highly unlikely to be authorised and may incur a fine.
Changes to collection – on the day
As previously requested, please do not email these changes in. As you can imagine, the school email address gets lots of email daily and it is monitored by one person. This means that some requests/emails may not be seen straight away so it is important that if there is a change to collection, you call the school office. These changes need to be called through by 2.45pm to ensure they are delivered to your child’s class teacher in time for the end of the school day. We cannot guarantee messages will get through to the class teacher before the end of the day otherwise.
Year Group Emails
The year group email addresses are a way to communicate with the class teachers for non-urgent queries. They should not be used to report absence or for anything that requires an immediate response as they are not regularly monitored.
Opportunities to Join our Parent Forum
The benefits of the strong partnership we hold with you cannot be underestimated and it is with this in mind that I would like to extend an invitation for parents to join an Almond Hill ‘Parent Forum’ which is led by Miss Simmons. The aim of the group is to share and discuss important educational issues affecting the school and to get parents even more involved in decision making that directly affects your children. It is an opportunity to provide feedback, discuss future initiatives and national news related to education and has resulted in some really good partnership work resulting in changes to the newsletter, increased accessibility to bike ability, return to world book day dressing up to name but a few!
Each and every one of you is an expert in what it is like to be a parent at our school and would be welcome. Children thrive best when school and home work together.
Miss Simmons plans half termly meetings to discuss an agenda jointly formed between the school leadership team and parent volunteers.
The most important thing is that parents get involved. We would love approximately three parents per year group and with so many new families joining, we wanted to remind you of this opportunity.
Our next meeting will take place in January. Please complete the form below if you are interested in joining one of our meetings or would like to find out more. This is a really exciting opportunity to further develop the home school partnership.
Diary Dates
Did you know, you can subscribe to our calendar to keep up to date with the events going on within the school?
Follow the link below, select 'subscribe' and follow the instructions for your device.
Upcoming Events
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04/12/2024 - 1:30pm – 2:30pm50p Book Sale
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04/12/2024 - 6:00pm – 7:00pmYear 3 - Christmas Performance
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05/12/2024 - 1:30pm – 2:30pmYear 3 - Christmas Performance
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05/12/2024 - 3:00pm – 3:30pmUniform Sale (hall)
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05/12/2024 - 6:00pm – 7:00pmYear 3 - Christmas Performance
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06/12/2024 - 1:00pm – 2:30pmFlu Vaccinations
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09/12/2024 - 12:30pm – 3:15pmYear 3 Christmas Dinner and Class Parties
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10/12/2024 - All DayFOAH Christmas Present Room
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10/12/2024 - 12:30pm – 3:15pmYear 4 Christmas Dinner and Class Parties
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10/12/2024 - 6:00pm – 7:00pmYear 4 and 5 Christmas Carols and Mince Pies
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11/12/2024 - 12:30pm – 3:15pmYear 5 Christmas Dinner and Class Parties
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11/12/2024 - 2:15pm – 3:15pmRocksteady Concert
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12/12/2024 - 12:30pm – 3:15pmYear 6 Christmas Dinner and Class Parties
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17/12/2024 - 1:30pm – 2:30pmYear 6 carol concert at church (tbc)
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18/12/2024 - 9:00am – 3:15pmTalent Shows
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18/12/2024 - 3:15pm – 3:30pmYear 3 Enterprise Sale
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18/12/2024 - 4:00pm – 4:15pmDance Club - Performance to Parents
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19/12/2024 - 12:30pmLast day of term finish at 12.30pm
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20/12/2024 - All DayINSET Day
Club end dates and collection points
If you are viewing this on a mobile device, you may need to turn your phone to view the table correctly.
Times | Dates | Collection Point | ||
Reading Fluency Y4 | Monday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 04 Nov 2024 - 27 Jan 2025 | 4W | |
Reading Fluency Y5 | Monday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 04 Nov 2024 - 27 Jan 2025 | 5W | |
WB Football Club 3/4 | Monday 3:15 -4:15pm | 04 Nov 2024 - 16 Dec 2024 | Year 5 gate (St Nicks church) | |
Y6 Booster Classes - Maths | Mondays 3:15 - 4:30pm | 04 Nov 2024 - 31 Mar 2025 | Acorn House | |
French Club | Tuesday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 17 Sep 2024 - 26 Nov 2024 | 4W | Finished |
Netball Club | Tuesday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 17 Sep 2024 - 26 Nov 2024 | Year 5 gate (St Nicks church) | Finished |
Cooking Club | Tuesday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 24 Sep 2024 - 19 Nov 2024 | The Computing Room | Finished |
WB Football Club 5/6 | Tuesdays 3:15 - 4:15pm | 05 Nov 2024 - 17 Dec 2024 | Year 5 gate (St Nicks church) | |
Y6 Booster Classes- Reading | Tuesdays 3:15 - 4:30pm | 13 Nov 2024 - 11 Dec 2024 | Acorn House | |
Stop Frame Animation | Wednesday 3:!5 - 4:15pm | 25 Sep 2024 - 20 Nov 2024 | 3L | Finished |
Dance Club | Wednesday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 18 Sep 2024 - 18 Dec 2024 | The Hall | |
Mad Science Club | Wednesday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 18 Sep 2024 - 27 Nov 2024 | 3W | Finished |
Y6 Football Club (squad only) | Wednesdays 3:15 - 4:15pm | 13 Nov 2024 - 11 Dec 2024 | Year 5 gate (St Nicks church) | |
Y6 Booster Classes - SPaG | Wednesdays 3:15 - 4:30pm | 06 Nov 2024 - 02 Apr 2025 | Acorn House | |
Gymnastic Club 5/6 | Thursday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 24 Oct 2024 - 28 Nov 2024 | The Hall | Finished |
Outdoor Activities Club 3/4 | Thursday 3:15-4:15pm | 19 Sep 2024 - 28 Nov 2024 | Year 5 classroom | Finished |
Outdoor Activities Club 5/6 | Friday 3:15 - 4:15pm | 20 Sept 2024 - 29 Nov 2024 | Year 5 classroom | Finished |
Gymnastic Club 3/4 | Friday 3:15-4:15pm | 25 Oct 2024 - 29 Nov 2024 | The Hall | Finished |
Please visit the website below if your child is interested in joining the dance club after Christmas. This is ran by an external provider and has been very popular this term.
Pre-Loved Uniform Sale
Pre-loved uniform sales take place monthly in the hall 3.00-3.30pm.
Thursday 5th December
50p Book Sale
If your child would like to purchase a book, please can they bring their money to school with them (exact money is preferred where possible). Books cost just 50p each! Wednesday 4th December
Attendance Matters
Year 3 95.13%
Year 4 96.27%
Year 5 97.35%
Year 6 93.26%
All Students: 95.49%
Class Winners: 4A 100% & 5P 99.3%
Almond Hill Achievements
Click the button below to see all the wonderful things our children have achieved outside of school.
House Points
FOAH News...
Next Meeting: Monday 20th January at 6.00pm
Microsoft Teams
Join the meeting now
Meeting ID: 391 946 184 938
Passcode: oz24TE9V
Christmas Present Room – 10th December
The Friends of Almond Hill Elves have been busy getting everything ready for the Christmas present room and have a lovely selection of gifts for everyone on the nice list this year. The Present Room will be taking place on Tuesday 10th December during the school day and we have gifts for everyone on your shopping list, from siblings to grandparents and pets!
- Gifts can be purchased in advance on School Gateway until 3rd December or cash will be accepted on the day.
- All gifts are £2.50 should your child wish to shop with us.
In Other News...
Year 6 Writing Day - A Christmas Carol
On Monday, Year 6 were lucky enough to watch a dramatised reading of A Christmas Carol. It was a wonderful production and is sure to help inspire the children in their writing. The children loved it too... Nathan 6C : The play was a great experience for us because the acting was amazing and it was a huge help with our…
Year 5 Space Centre Trip
On Wednesday the 27th November year 5 went on a trip to The National Space Centre. There we got split into groups. I was in Miss Porter’s group. First, we went to the rocket tower and there were all sorts of rocket themed games and facts. We got to see a real-size rocket which was 43m tall! Next we went into lots of different rooms where we learnt about The Sun, The Universe and Earth. After lunch, we went to The Planetarium which in my opinion was the best part! There we watched a video about how to become an astronaut and learnt how difficult this job is! Last but not least we went to the gift shop. People bought posters, chocolate, sweets, pens, keyrings, crystals and more! Each pupil could bring £7.50 to spend in the gift shop. A big thank you to our parent helpers!
Written by Ava 5P (and Miss Porter)
Year 3 Cinema Trip
Year 3 enjoyed their trip to the cinema to see Garfield. All of the children were fantastic representatives for the school; they were very well behaved and polite. The children enjoyed the film and there was lots of excited chatter about it on the walk back. This was the first trip to the cinema for some of the children and we are thrilled that they had such a good time. The staff would like to thank the brilliant parent helpers who volunteered to come with us. Your support is appreciated by us all. Thank you to Miss Simmons for organising the tickets! What a fab trip!
French Club with Mrs Pridmore
French Club with Madame Pridmore Week 1 – Introduction French club expectations and rules. Everyone has their own scrap book that they will be allowed to take home when the club finishes. We talked about anything anyone might like to learn. We made a collage into the shape of the French map. Week 2 &…
Netball Club with Mrs Small and Miss Wase
Miss Wase and Mrs Small have loved running this club for an enthusiastic and passionate set of netballers. The development we have seen across the weeks has shown how well they have listened and applied everything they have learnt. It has been particularly great to have our first set of boys attend (and see some play their first comp…