The Nutshell w/e 26th April

Dear Parents,

A warm welcome back after the Easter holidays. I hope you had a wonderful and restful break. It was lovely to see the children back at school again last week for what promises to be a busy and exciting Summer term. I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone for taking the time either to attend the presentation I gave at the end of last term or to watch the video of the presentation that was sent to all parents, explaining the plans surrounding the Hazelwood site reshuffle for September and the reasons behind them. I am so excited about how our site continues to develop, and this latest improvement to move Reception children to the Hazelwood site has been a personal goal of mine for many years. Being also able to use this opportunity to simultaneously improve facilities for our older children ensures all pupils will benefit from even more stimulating, innovative learning environments and outstanding facilities. We are so lucky at Hazelwood to have the space, support and means to make these plans a reality.

We started this term with a staff training day, which included a guest speaker from the ADHD Foundation, The Neurodiversity Charity. All our teaching staff were involved in this valuable session, which helped further build staff understanding, skill, and knowledge in how to support all children here at Hazelwood so that they are able to succeed in and outside of school. Our commitment to staff training ensures we are continually at the forefront of the latest research and development in order to support our pupils.

Other exciting activities this week have included the celebration of Numeracy Across the Curriculum week. Pupils have been encouraged to spot instances of maths and numeracy occurring in all their lessons and activities, in and out of the classroom. Yesterday, Hazelwood took part in the UKMT Junior Maths Challenge 2024, alongside 2000 other pupils worldwide! More than 80 pupils in Years 5-8 took part in the challenge, and we were proud of their focus and participation – well done to everyone who took part!

Our wonderful HPA is busy planning the next fundraising event, which is one not to be missed! On Wednesday, 17th May, at 8pm there will be a wine tasting event in the Hazelwood Dining Room – everyone is welcome! To book tickets, please speak to your Class Rep. On the subject of fundraising, I am delighted to inform you that our wonderful Charity Music Concert, held at the end of last term, raised a staggering £3,500 for the Orpheus Centre. Thank you to everyone who generously donated.

Following the presentation of site plans for September, there are a number of opportunities for parents to visit the School and join me for a tour around the proposed classrooms, play areas, and new learning zones in early May. I’d be delighted to walk you through our plans and provide you with a glimpse of what is to come. Please book a tour via MSP or email [email protected]. In addition, we plan to have an open house just before the start of the new academic year, which will allow you to see all the new rooms and spaces completed.

And finally, a huge thank you to everyone for your support during a potentially difficult pickup on Wednesday afternoon. With a large coach stuck directly outside our entrance to the school, it could have caused huge disruption, but instead we had one of the smoothest pickups I’ve seen! Thank you for walking, carpooling and looking at different pick up times to lighten the traffic.

Have a lovely weekend,

Lindie

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