Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.

• Healthy Packed Lunches - a reminder

  Fri 23 Nov 2018 Mr J Howe

   Most days, you can find me on the salad bar during school dinner time, but that doesn't stop me from walking around, paying attention to what children are enjoying eating, their table manners and politeness. As a school which prides itself on supporting healthy lifestyles - I am also keen to see what children or parents are opting for in packed lunches.

   As a parent, who moved from packed lunches to school dinners, I can understand the constant struggle to find something my children would eat, which was both healthy and nutricious.

   Now, across the UK it's pretty straightforward - there are no official rules as it's down to individual schools in England, the Department for Education says, to decide what their policy is on food brought in from home.

   At Seaburn Dene Primary School, we don't have a policy on what makes a healthy packed lunch, I like to rely on parents using their common sense. However, from my observations this week, particularly on the amount of chocolate I seemed to have seen, I may need to review this. It was alarming the amount of food which children were eating: high in sugar, fat and salt.

    It is worth reminding, that for parents making up packed lunches, the Children's Food Trust recommends they include a piece of food from each of the following categories:

  • starchy foods like bread, pasta or potatoes
  • fruit and veg, so sticks of cucumber, celery or carrot, alongside a piece of fruit
  • meat, fish, eggs and beans - strips of chicken or bean dips, it suggests
  • dairy food such as cheese in a sandwich or a yoghurt or fromage frais
  • a drink - milk or water are the best choices for children's teeth, the trust says, and if you want to pack fruit juice, stick to a 150ml portion

   Foods and drinks high in saturated fat, sugar and/or salt, like crisps and chocolate biscuits, should be avoided, the trust has said.

   Chocolate bars are not a suitable part of a balanced packed lunch in our school. The sugar content alone - a Wispa bar has five teaspoons of sugar in and high in fat - just points to how unhealthy they are, particularly as children would happily discard their sandwiches to get to their sweet treat.  I will be reminding parents by letter this week as we have an obligation to ensure our children have access to a balanced, healthy packed lunch - the same as our children on school dinners. We need to continue to promote healthy choices for our children. This means making sure our children's packed lunches don't fall short of food standards designed to give them the very best start in life.

   

   

• EveryDay Heroes

  Fri 16 Nov 2018 Mr J Howe

  Everyday Hero Day

  What a treat it was to join the children in our Foundation Stage Unit today as they celebrated their Everyday Hero/heroes. We had mams and dads (of course), firefighters, physiotherapists, doctors and my personal favourites: a Mrs Wilson look-a-like and a Newcastle Falcons' rugby player. It is important that our children recognise that heroes often come in different shapes and sizes.

   

  Anti Bullying Week

  This week was national Anti Bullying Week. Classes have been explore bullying and strategies for dealing with bullies whether face to face or online, around the simple word: respect. Our School Council have told us that, as a school, we seem to be dealing with children's behaviour very well, with our councillors reporting that bullying is rare at SDPS and that teachers deal with any incidents that may eventually spiral into bullying. Of course, we don't believe any school can be complacent so must keep on promoting respect, kindness and good social skills. On Monday, our school councillors will be heading over to Monkwearmouth Academy for an Anti-Bullying Conference.

   

  Golden Book nominees

  This week our school value is: "Aspiration". The children nominated for the Golden Book were:

  Y1: Max - Aspiring to become a better scientist.

  Y2: Esme - Aspiring to be her very best.

  Y3: Kieran - Aspiring to be a better writer.

  Y4: James - Aspiring to be a better writer.

  Y5: Lacey - Show aspirational qualities in her class to all work.

  Y6: Sarah - Trying to be the best she can be.

   

  Well done!

   

   

   

  

• Remembrance

  Fri 09 Nov 2018 Mr J Howe

  GET WRAPPED UP

  Even though Autumn is, without a doubt, my favourite season, with its vibrant colours which carpet the quad as I look out of the office window, you can feel the chill creeping into each morning. The school is welcoming and warm, but children love being out in the fresh air. There's so little time to play out in the evenings before darkness falls that we take every opportunity to play outside and have lessons such as PE outside - as often as we can. Please make sure children have coats, hats and gloves for playtimes and layers for outdoor PE lessons. Our Seaburn Dene PE hoodies are available to buy for just £9.75 from Total Sport in Hendon. Please see the school office fore more details.

   

  REMEMBRANCE

  This week we have been remembering the fallen, as part of the Armistice 100 commemorations. Every year, we mark Remembrance and this year, inspired by the project Pages of the Sea, classes have been exploring loss and sacrifice in their own way. We hope many of the children are able to head down to Roker beach on Sunday to see the Pages of the Sea project close up. There, sand artists will be creating a large-scale portrait of a casualty from the First World War which will be washed away as the tide comes in. Around school, Year 5 have bee selling poppies this week so all donations are gratefully received. 

   

  PARENTS EVENING REMINDER

  This week most classes are holding parents' evening on Tuesday and Thursday. It's the perfect time to discuss how well your child is doing at school and how you can support them at home. The Foundation Stage are holding their events in the classrooms but all other class teachers are in the main hall. We look forward to seeing you there.

   If you haven't yet secured an appointment, please see Mrs Baker in the school office for an appointment letter.

   

  ANTI BULLYING WEEK

  Next week is Anti Bullying Week, a week in which the School Council plays an important part. Several Councillors will be attending an Anti Bullying Conference with Mrs Smith. They will then tell the rest of the school the outcome of the conference in assembly.

   

• Back to School

  Sat 03 Nov 2018 Mr J Howe

  It really is noticeable how much darker it is both before school and particularly in the evenings. Although we are having mild days, Winter is definitely stealing a march on us. While we have installed lights on the main yard to help when we dismiss clubs,  this is a good time to buy reflective strips for coats and bags so that children are visible to motorists on the walk to and from school. Quite a number of children at the top end of the school walk home alone after school activities but, if you wish to change that arrangement during the Winter, please let the office know.

   

   

  This weekend and on Monday, we have the excitement of Bonfire Night. I know that most of you go along to organised events, which is a great way to see the best displays. We have welcomed Northumbria Police into school to speak to our Y6 children about the dangers associated with fireworks. In Monday's assembly, we will be reiterating that message as well as preparing children for events to mark Remembrance and the Centenary of the end of World War 1. Next week, we will be selling poppies in school to raise money for the British Legion.

   

  Fundraising - in the current climate - is something all schools need to be more proactive about. At Seaburn Dene, we are fortunate that our Friends group do an awful amount of work to generate much needed funds for school. Mr Ashton has already spoken to them about using money raised in events to mark out the main school yard with a new surface and lines for football, netball and running. Watch this space. On Monday, our non-uniform day will support the bottle tombola in our Christmas fayre and last week the Halloween hunt was also used to raise vital funds for all children in our school. The money, in the past, has been used to support whole-school needs such as "reading stations", ICT and sports equipment. Every penny is reinvested for the benefit of the school, so your support is vital to raise funds for school, for all the children. Without this fundraising, the simple fact is, we wouldn't be able to support some extras and enhancements. School trips - which we pride ourselves on offering to add to all the children's education - come at a considerable cost. The school bears much of the cost (transport, activities), but we ask parents for a contribution towards it. The sad reality, in the challenging circumstances that schools like us face, is that unless all parents make a contribution -as requested - some trips may not be possible in the future. For many children these are precious opportunities to bring learning to life and create lifelong memories. Without parental support contributions, we may be limited in what we can offer in the future.

   

  Dick Whittington

  On Friday we welcomed back M & M Productions with their interpretation of Dick Whittington. We have been so impressed with this highly professional company as their performance is lively, imaginative and energetic and, in my experience of pantomimes, is equal to or better than any I have seen. It's a wonderful experience for the children without paying for expensive theatre seats. This year, the school paid for the cost of the performance, but for future performances scheduled in next March and September we will be asking if parents can support us by offering a donation of £1.50, which would be much appreciated.

   

  In the week ahead...

  Even as I write this, I can reflect on one of the busiest week's this term at school. 90 children received their Everybody, Every Night certificates on Thursday, Street Dance returned alongside the English Speaking Union's Discover Debating programme. We held parent showcases for our STEAM car building project, Y6 were out swimming, while the NSPCC popped into thank the children for raising more than £1100 in their Buddy's Big Workout.

  Next week, (on Monday) we have our first Christmas Fair non uniform day when you are invited to send in bottles for our very popular bottle stall, with a Remembrance Assembly on Thursday. Year 6 are also preparing to draft their Christmas Lunch invites. It won't be long now...