News

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

• Our Lending Library Opens

  Sun 29 Dec 2013

  From January 2014 the fiction section of the library will be open for children to borrow books to take home on loan for a set period. It will be open from 3.15-4.00pm on Monday and Thursday after school.
  Our librarians, Mrs Hunt and Mrs Smith, are looking forward to seeing you there, stamping your books, and putting your recommendations up for other pupils to read and enjoy. At the bottom of the page is an example of a book cover for you to use if you wish to enter the cover design competition, to create a wonderful book display - there is a prize for the best one from each year. On the right hand side simply draw the front cover of a book you have enjoyed (either the original illustration or your own artwork) with the title of the book and name of the author and on the left hand side write a blurb about the book, remembering to make it sound exciting but not giving the ending away. Using rhetorical questions is a good idea eg. 'Will they get away with it?' There is also an exemplar book review for Key Stage 2 children to share their thoughts about the books they have read in order to recommend them to other people.
  
  
  
  

  So - get reading and designing. Entries should be handed in by Jan 13th.

  

• Congratulations Mr McMahon

  Sun 22 Dec 2013
  Over the Christmas Holidays Mr McMahon will be extremely busy as he is starting 2014 by getting married on 3rd January. We wish him and his fiancee a wonderful wedding day and a happy and long life together and look forward to seeing Mr and Mrs McMahon next term.

• It's Snow Joke

  Fri 20 Dec 2013
  We have been fortunate so far this year with the weather and we hope this continues. However, if there is inclement weather and the snow does fall please remember to check the snow closure line which allows parents to subscribe via a text message rather than filling out a hefty form on the internet. The new system only takes 30 seconds to sign up to via text and will automatically send out a closure alert once a school has notified us via the emergency closure line. To subscribe Text ‘Schclosures 9373216 ON’ to 07950 081082 or to unsubscribe text ‘Schclosures 9373216 OFF’. We will also update the scrolling banner on the school website early on the mornings of any forecasted adverse weather conditions.

• From the Governors

  Fri 20 Dec 2013
  ‘The Dassett School Governors would like to wish both the children and families of the Dassett school pupils a very ‘Merry Christmas and a Happy 2014’.
  It has been a busy year behind the scenes at the Dassett, particularly with a visit from the OFSTED inspectors back in April. Plenty of questions have been asked (and responded to!), classes observed, the data scrutinized and as a governing body we now eagerly await our next inspection so that we can showcase all of our improvements. As governors we meet several times a term to address and act as a ‘critical friend’ to the school. We are delighted to say that all of the improvements that have been put in place both pre and post this visit have really borne fruit and the summer 2013 SATS exam results for both Key Stage 1 and Key stage 2 make very pleasant reading indeed. Looking around the school the children are now working in a much improved environment. The Christian distinctiveness of the school is being celebrated and the children have had a chance to meet new and interesting people, try out new sports, have character school days and the opportunity of try out lots of new after school clubs. The enthusiasm is infectious. With your continued parental support we hope to make 2014 even better than 2013. A full list of the School Governors is on the website.

• Times Table App

  Thu 19 Dec 2013

  One of our Parent Governors has developed a 'Times Table Challenge' which is now available on AppStore and Google Play. There are 30 levels in the free version. This version follows the school's Cracking Times Tables scheme closely, but with additional levels. There are also some simple, timed practice screens for all times tables up to 20. The app should come up with a search for 'Times Table Challenges'.
  I hope it proves useful for your children. It is a great way to practise this crucial mathematical knowledge in order to crack those tables.

• The Dassett's Got Talent

  Thu 19 Dec 2013
  We had a wonderful afternoon being entertained on Wednesday afternoon by dancers, singers and instrumentalists, including pianists, drummers, violinists, guitarists, recorder players and flautists. There were jokes told and a magician wowed us with her card tricks – she even read Mrs Brice’s mind and made her find particular cards in the pack! We saw some great gymnasts and super skippers and there were even some Ghostbusters. The children enjoyed sharing their talents and the audience was suitably generous with their applause. Well done everyone.

• Tinsel and Turkey

  Wed 18 Dec 2013
  We had a fabulous time on Wednesday lunchtime as the Traditional Christmas lunch of turkey and stuffing, potatoes, vegetables and gravy was served to many of our pupils. There was Christmas music to accompany the diners and the children all looked magnificent in their homemade Christmas hats and crowns that they had made during the morning.
  An absolutely enormous thank you to Pam and her terrific team for the totally amazing job
  they did in preparing and serving the Christmas meal. Even more impressive was the fact that this was accomplished with just half a working oven, as the new one which was meant to arrive this week did not materialise. Quite how they did it against all the odds I do not know – and they still had smiles on their faces as they served the children! There were so many comments about how delicious it was and we are very lucky to have such a friendly and talented group of people in our kitchen. The children gave them a thoroughly deserved three cheers to show their appreciation.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

• Reception's Shining Stars

  Wed 18 Dec 2013

  
  What a stunning end to the term our Reception children gave us. They were superb as they retold the Nativity Story with song and rhyme. They looked wonderful in their costumes and had learned their words incredibly well. The Over 60s, Governors and whole school watched the dress rehearsal on Monday and thoroughly enjoyed the performance by our youngest pupils and then on Tuesday they wowed the Parents, Grandparents, Brothers and sisters at the evening performance. The children sang loudly enough for Mrs Pounds to hear them from home and Mrs Harris was extremely proud of the children. Their confidence was so impressive that you almost forgot that the children are only 4 and 5 years of age. Fabulous!
  
  
  
  

  

• Christmas Angel's Delight

  Wed 11 Dec 2013
  A massive 'Well Done' to all of our Year 1 and 2 pupils who amazed us with their wonderful singing and acting skills on Tuesday and Wednesday night. The roof was raised with enthusiastic voices and the audience even joined in with the groovy moves to the finale. Each and every child looked superb in their costumes and performed with such confidence and skill that you forgot that they are only 5, 6 or 7 years old! Unbelievable! Thank you to the fabulous staff team who helped to put this together and to the parents for helping practise lines and lyrics. It certainly all came together as a special production of a very special story. Our last thanks must go, of course, to the stars of the show - the children - for reminding us, in such an enjoyable way, of the true meaning of Christmas.
  Photographs of the performance will be added to the website shortly and larger copies of the 'Cast' photograph are available upon request for a small donation.
  
  
  
  

  

• December Maths Challenge

  Fri 06 Dec 2013
  Years 3 & 4
   
  Read the Christmas Song – The Twelve days of Christmas and then answer the following questions:
   
  1) How many presents were given by my true love all together?
  2) How many birds were sent by my true love?
  3) How many people did my true love send to entertain me?
  4) How many wings are there in the song?
  5) How many legs are there in the song?
  6) If I have to share all of my presents with one other person, how many presents would we each have?
   
   
   
   
   
  Years 5 & 6
   
  Read the Christmas Song – The Twelve days of Christmas and then answer the following questions:
   

  1. What fraction of the gifts lay eggs?
  2. What fraction of the gifts are human?
  3. What fraction of the gifts are not living?
  4. What fraction of the gifts may be found in a farmyard?
  5. What fraction of the gifts are carrying musical instruments?
  6. What fraction of the gifts are dancing?
  7. What fraction of the gifts are swimming?
  8. What fraction of the gifts are women?

   
   
  Extension:
  Express your answers in their most simplified form.
  Express your answers as a decimal number.
  Express your answers as a percentage.
   
   
  
  
  
   
  Key Stage 1
   
  Read the Christmas Song – The Twelve days of Christmas and then answer the following questions:
   
  1. What gifts were given on the odd numbered days?
  2. What gifts were given on the even numbered days?
  3. How many presents were received altogether during the first 5 days?
  4. How many birds were given altogether?