CRY Heart of London Bridges Walk

Staff and former colleagues of Oliver Thompson will be taking part in the 9th annual CRY Heart of London Bridges Walk on 28th June 2015 . This event offers the opportunity to show support for CRY, raise awareness of young sudden cardiac death and raise funds in memory or in support of a young person. In 2014, over 1,100 people took part in the Walk, including a team from Cliftonville Primary School, helping to raise over £46,000.  If you would like to support this excellent charity, please make a donation via the school office. 

Children's Author - Jack Trelawny

We were very excited to have the children's author Jack Trelawny visit our school on 20th May. Jack had his first book published in 2005 and has published a series of very popular books as part of the Kernowland series. 

He gave a terrific presentation to the children in a special sessions in the hall, reading extracts from his books and explaining how he comes up with the ideas for his characters, locations etc. We also had a fantastic question and answer session. The children enjoyed his visit which will help to inspire them to use their imagination and creativity in their own reading and writing. The afternoon ended with a very successful book signing event.

Congratulations to the winning writers!

After lots of deliberation, the winners of the Term 5 writing competitions were Sapphire 5MB, Evie 1D, Alexis 4A, George RBA and Calum 3L.  The theme was based on the library's author of the term: Julia Donaldson.  Entrants had to devise their own witches spell!

Congratulations to all the winners and to everyone who took part.  Watch this space for the Term 6 author and competition!

Year 1 children have been learning all about dinosaurs.  They followed footprints across the playground, made dinosaur eggs, created some shared books on dinosaur facts and made the most enormous dinosaur which is hanging in the Year 1 area!  The topic...and the children's enthusiasm... has supported work across the curriculum from key skills in writing, reading and mathematics as well as art and science.  They have learnt such a lot this term!

Online Child Sexual Exploitation

Dear Parents and Carers,

I am writing to you because of a recent increase in reports to Kent police of children talking to and exchanging pictures with strangers online. Videochat websites and apps like Skype, Instagram, Omegle, Oovoo, Kik, and others, allow children to talk and exchange pictures on tablets and Smartphones or via a webcam.  Whilst talking on webcam with known and trusted friends and family can be fun and exciting, children can be at risk of bullying and also abuse.

Children and young people sharing pictures and videos online are vulnerable to exploitation. This can happen in the following way:

• An offender makes contact with a young person online through an app, chatroom or game.

• The offender begins a conversation and tricks the young person into sending them an indecent picture, appearing naked or performing sexual acts on webcam. They can trick them by pretending to be of the same age, someone the child knows, flirting with them or sending them sexual pictures or videos.

• The offender records or captures the picture. They then threaten to show it to others including family members if they do not perform more sexual acts. Some young people have been threatened for money or have been told to hurt themselves.

This has happened to young people and is being reported in Kent and beyond with children of both Primary and Secondary school age. This is sexual abuse.

What to do if this happens

When a child tells a parent they have experienced on or offline sexual abuse parents should react calmly and always:

• Believe their child and tell them that they believe them.

• Not blame them, it is not their fault, the person responsible is the offender.

• Keep calm and talk to their child about how they feel and let them know that they’re here to listen.

• Report the concern to Kent Police via 101 or use 999 if there is immediate risk to someone’s safety. www.kent.police.uk/internetsafety

• You can also report to CEOP, a national agency that tackle exploitation of children and young people. For information, advice and to report concerns directly to CEOP, visit www.ceop.police.uk

• Be aware that offenders may sometimes be targeting and abusing multiple children online. Your child may possibly be one of many victims and reporting online suspicious activity may help protect many children.

   

  How to stop it happening

• Set appropriate parental controls and use filters for home computers and devices (such as games consoles, tablets and Smart Phones)

• Talk to your child about what they are doing online and ask them to show you the apps and sites they use.

• Ensure your child understands how anyone can copy and share images or messages posted online and the importance of keeping their personal information and images safe

• Ensure that privacy settings and age restrictions are discussed and in place for the websites and apps that your child uses.

• Ensure that you and your child know how to block and report unwanted images and messages

• Ensure you know how to report sexual abuse online.

If you are worried that your child is at risk of harm or a criminal offence has been committed then you can report your concerns to Kent Police or Children’s Social Care www.kent.gov.uk  For further advice visit www.nspcc.org.uk/onlinesafety, www.childnet.com, www.internetmatters.org.uk or www.thinkuknow.co.uk , our school website or talk to our e-Safety Officer, Mr Clayson.

Congratulations to Amy Joseph who has passed her Grade 3 Piano exam with Distinction.  The mark required for a pass is 100 out of 150.  Amy gained a distinction with 136 marks - a very rare feat and testament to her talent and hard work and the great teaching from Mrs Deacon, one of our specialist music tutors.

Year 5 had an immersion morning based around their text Stig Of The Dump where the children worked co-operatively in groups to select and use rubbish to build a den, like Stig's, on the school field.  Their dens were amazing and it was great to see them working collaboratively, solving problems and having fun. 

Every term there will be a new author of the term whose books will be available in the LRC and their stories read around the school. Each term there will be a challenge to undertake relating to one of the author's books. http://www.juliadonaldson.co.uk/

Have a look at Julia Donaldson's website for more about her books and her life!

Thank you to everyone who supported the recent Book Fair.  Your generosity meant that we received £1161 in commission to spend across the year groups, including the nursery.  This demonstrates our shared commitment to reading and literacy skills at Cliftonville Primary School.