From the Heads
As we draw closer to the end of this very busy term, the children are embracing every opportunity to shine. Years 1 and 2 did a marvellous job of presenting during their class assemblies last week. Despite being amongst some of the youngest children in the school, they spoke with eloquence and confidence beyond their ages. We thoroughly enjoyed listening to their informative talks on ‘celebrations’ and ‘teamwork’.
We are very proud of our choir who performed for the Broadstairs community at the annual Christmas Fair. We thought their stunning delivery of songs was the perfect accompaniment for a festive afternoon. Thank you to all who joined us.
This week, many of our older pupils will be sitting their end of term exams and assessments. We wish them all the very best of luck and we will share the outcome of these within their end of term reports.
Finally, we met with student leaders in Year 6 and Year 8 this week to decide on a logo to represent each of our four houses. After much discussion, deliberation and debate, we have selected four icons, all created by the children themselves. We look forward to sharing these with you soon.
Mr Gavin Franklin and Mrs Jo Parpworth
School Last Week
Mark Reading
The second marks of term have been given and the standings are as follows:
1st – Stone
2nd – Joss
3rd – Viking
4th – Kingsgate
Special mention goes to the following pupils who have achieved the highest set of marks for their year: Pearl Dunbar-Brunton, Clara Montgomery, Bertie Telford, Olivia Dilkes, Freya Ralph, and Grace Flowers.
The highest scoring tutor group was 6.2, very well done.
Reports are now available for parents to view on the portal.
Year 1 Assembly
On Tuesday, Year 1 gave a heartwarming assembly about different festivals and occasions around the world which are cause for celebration. The children spoke and in some cases, sang with clarity and confidence. Well done to Year 1, you are all future stars.
Year 2 Assembly
On Wednesday, Year 2 gave an assembly on one of our school values: Teamwork. We were all very impressed with the confidence displayed by the children and how engaging their speeches were. They gave examples of teamwork from the animal kingdom and illustrated many lessons we can learn from creatures working together. Well done to everyone involved for setting such a high standard.
Year 6 – Discovery Planet, Ramsgate
On Thursday 24th November, Year 6 enjoyed a trip to the Discovery Planet centre in Ramsgate. They took part in a workshop on electricity to tie in with their science topic this half term. Research students from the University of Kent shared their expertise on electricity whilst supporting the children during a range of fun activities. They created human circuits to demonstrate how current flows, built actual circuits with components and explored electric charge in plasma balls and a Van de Graaff generator. Year 6 were excellent ambassadors for the school; sharing their clever observations and asking thought provoking questions.
Christmas Choir
On Saturday afternoon the choir were invited to perform at the Broadstairs Christmas Fair in Pierremont Park. Sporting some festive hats and tinsel, the choristers wowed the crowd with some Christmas carols including renditions of Winter Wonderland and Ding Dong Merrily on High. Following their performance the children enjoyed a delicious hot chocolate with cream and marshmallows and a wander through the Christmas markets with their families before heading home. We were so proud of how brilliantly our singers performed and we look forward to joining this event again next year!
Wild Club
Wild club had a fabulous visit from Mr Nik Mitchell,from Wildlife Conservation in Thanet, last week to talk to them about swifts. Swifts are incredible, critically endangered birds that breed in the UK after spending the winter in Africa.
One of the reasons that they are endangered is from loss of nesting habitats (as roofs are now well sealed for energy efficiency).
The wild group took Mr Mitchell on a tour around our school site to see if there would be a suitable place for us to put up swift nesting boxes. They found out that the field side of the science block would be ideal for these incredibly aerobatic flyers.
Swift boxes cost approximately £40 so the wild club have decided to do some fundraising to purchase some boxes for WHD before the spring. Look out for updates soon!
School This Week
Rugby
Please ensure to remember a mouthguard for Rugby. If possible, a rugby headguard/scrum cap should also be worn. Metal studded boots are also highly recommended with a minimum 10mm stud length.
Pre-Prep Values Awards
Reception Leika Weymouth for fabulous effort and participation in nativity practice. Elliot Palmer for super resilience in phonics and writing.
Year 1 (CK) Remy Watson for his incredible progress in reading and writing. Indigo Gaspa for her hard work, focus and determination in Maths everyday!
Year 1 (BK) Roly Hulme: Roly has continued to show fantastic manners, behaviour and kindness throughout every day. He is an excellent role model for his peers and always tries his best at everything. Felicity O’Dell: Felicity has shown great improvement in her reading and writing in recent weeks. She is respectful to everyone and has a fantastic attitude to learning.
Year 2 Elena Roberts for her resilience, working hard to improve her learning across all areas. Lara Davies for her impressive work where she always tries hard and perseveres when faced with new challenges.
Year 3 Lucio Corbani for working hard across all subjects and showing resilience when faced with tougher challenges. Sabrina Abbott for striving to work out more complicated word problems in maths and being resilient in her attitude.
Values Awards
Year 4 – for being a fantastic role model to his peers and always trying his best, Hector Halton.
Year 5 – for improved resilience in Maths lessons, Olivia Ross; for teamwork and kindness in and out of the classroom, Suri Lear.
Year 6 – for always being kind and considerate towards his peers, Asa Foster-Troy; for representing the form so well at both Harvest and Remembrance services, Raksiga Rajakumar.
Year 7 – for his courage and resilience in adapting so well to a new school, Aidan Howard.
Year 8 – for preparing well for his exams and working hard on the games field and in the classroom, Henry Obee.
School Exams
This week is exam week for pupils. Exams for children in Year 7 and 8 will be held in the Old Hall. Children in Year 6 and below will complete assessments in their classrooms, with the younger pupils completing their assessments in a more informal manner. The children’s results will be shared with parents in the pupils’ reports at the end of the term.
WHD Honey
This term all students from year 3 upwards have had the opportunity, as part of their Art lessons, to design a label for our very own Wellesley Haddon Dene raw honey. A winner was chosen from each year group and an overall winner selected from these talented designers. It was an incredibly tough decision, but the results are as follows:
Year 3 winner – Florence Smith
Year 4 winner – Fraser Manning
Year 5 winner – Olivia Ross
Year 6 winner – Hudson Redwood
Year 7 winner – Felix Butterfill
Year 8 winner – Mirabel Poulson
After much discussion it was decided that it was impossible to pick one overall winner and so we chose two. Congratulations to Felix and Mirabel your designs are now on the jars!
You can purchase a jar of this very rare and delicious honey, created by our resident bees from Reception for £10. All proceeds are used to continue and develop this fantastic initiative.
Team of the Week
Each week, a group of pupils is invited to meet with Mr and Mrs Franklin in the library at break time to enjoy some squash and snacks prepared by the catering team.
Future Events
PFA Coffee Morning
We warmly welcome you to our PFA coffee morning at 8.45am on Wednesday 7th December in the dining hall. This will be a wonderful opportunity to learn more about the important work the PFA does and how to get involved. Please do come along and join us for refreshments, pastries, mince pies and a chance to catch up with one another.
Children’s Christmas Fair
We are very excited to be holding our Children’s Christmas Fair on Friday 9th December. Classes will be running their stalls for each other to play. To help with the smooth running of the event each child will be given 25 tokens to the value of 20 pence. Please do let the school office know if you do not wish to be charged £5 on school money for this event. If for any reason your child is absent on the day you will not be charged.
Tombola items
Tombola items needed for Children’s Christmas Fair – any donations for this will be gratefully received throughout November. They can be left with the school office/given to form teachers. Items in the past have included toys, craft activities, games, books, stationery, soft toys, chocolate and sweets or anything that you can think of that the children might like to win!
Building a Resilient Family
On 29th November, at 7.30pm a 45 minute webinar and Q&A session on ‘Building a Resilient Family’ is being held. Ideas shared are relevant for parents of children of all ages.
Areas covered:
- Why resilience is such an important skill to foster in your family in 2022.
- What it means to be resilient.
- Ways to develop resilience.
- How embedding resilience can support your family.
To register in advance for this free 45 minute webinar and Q&A session, please click here.
School Calendar
Please click here and scroll through for the most up to date calendar of events for the term.
Matches This Week
2.15pm start unless otherwise stated
Wednesday, 30th November
Football v Dover College: U11 A Boys (a)
Hockey v St Edmund’s: U13 A Girls (Polo Farm)
Hockey v St Edmund’s: U13 B Girls (Polo Farm)
Rugby v Junior King’s: U13 A Boys (h)
Thursday 1st December
Hockey v St Lawrence: U9 A Girls (a)
Hockey v St Lawrence: U9 B Girls (a)
Saturday 3rd December
Football v Kent College: U13 A Boys (a)
Football v Kent College: U13 B Boys (a)
Please always refer to the website calendar as it is the most up-to-date place to check for fixture changes and locations.
If your child has been selected for a fixture, we will communicate with you prior to the fixture with information regarding the recommended pick up time from Wellesley HD.
Matches Last Week
Fixture | Result |
Football v Kent College: U11 A Boys | Lost 6-2 |
Football v Kent College: U11 B Boys | Lost 9-0 |
Football v St Edmund’s: U13 A Boys
| Lost 6-0 |
Football v St Edmund’s: U13 B Boys | Lost 4-1 |
Hockey v Junior King’s: U11 A Girls | Lost 3-2 |
Hockey v Junior King’s: U11 B Girls | Lost 7-0 |
Hockey v Northbourne Park: U13 A Girls | Lost 3-2 |
Hockey v Northbourne Park: U13 B Girls | Won 2-1 |
Hockey v St Edmund’s: U11 A Girls | Lost 7-0 |
Hockey v St Edmund’s: U11 B Girls | Lost 2-0 |
Hockey v Kent College: Girls U13 A | Lost 4-0 |
Hockey v Kent College: Girls U13 | Lost 4-1 |
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