Dear Parent/Carer   As your child has attended Choir sessions, they have been invited to sing at Eldon Square, in Newcastle City Centre, on Wednesday 4th December.    The Choir will begin their rendition of some popular Charismas songs and traditional Carols, at around 1pm until around 2pm.   We will use our school minibuses to transport pupils to and from Eldon Square. They will return to school before the end of the usual school day.   Please ensure that your child has a warm coat. Christmas hats, hairbands and tinsel are optional but are very welcome!   If you are able to - you would be most welcome to come and see us sing. We will be based at the Community Quarter in upper Grey's Quarter (opposite Chatime)     Please contact the school office if you require any further information.   Many Thanks

Dear Parents/Carers We are excited to announce that the wonderful traveling theatre company, M&M Theatrical Productions are coming to English Martyrs' school, on Monday 9th December to perform their amazing pantomime, Aladdin These fun, colourful and dynamic productions actively encourage audience participation, expertly combining the tradition of theatre pantomime with up to date and age appropriate humour, music and themes. Wonderful costumes, superb scenery and magical special effects all combine to deliver an electric atmosphere and guarantee audiences a truly imaginative, enthralling journey into the enchanting world that is Pantomime. We are sure that our pupils will love this unique experience of having the magic of theatre brought into our very own school. In order to support school in being able to provide such memorable and unique experiences for our pupils, we are suggesting a £3 voluntary contribution towards the cost of this event.  Parents/carers will be able to make this contribution though iPayimpact accounts. Thank you for your continued support.

Dear Parents/Carers of Year 5 and 6 Pupils, We are excited to share the news that we have arranged for our Year 5 and 6 pupils to visit the Northern Stage Theatre, on Tuesday 10th December to watch a performance of Charles Dickens, 'A Christmas Carol'. Ding, dong, ding, dong, the bells are ringing because Scrooge is coming to Newcastle – and he’s meaner and greedier than ever. Bah Humbug! Is it too late for Scrooge to change his miserly ways? Can a magical midnight visit to Christmases past, present and future help him to discover the true meaning of Christmas? Charles Dickens’ classic story of ghosts, greed and goodwill will fill our stage with festive magic, music and merriment. Northern Stage’s A Christmas Carol is the story you know and love (complete with all the trimmings). In order to support school in being able to provide such memorable and unique experiences for our pupils, we are suggesting a £5 voluntary contribution towards the cost of the transport and ticket cost for this event. Parents/carers will be able to make this contribution though iPayimpact accounts. Thank you for your continued support.

With digital content ever more accessible to our pupils, school will sending regular online safety advice to parents to help them understand digital risks, guide children in responsible internet use, and address issues like cyberbullying, privacy concerns, and inappropriate content. We hope that this will ensure students are protected, foster open communication, and empower parents to support their child's online well-being. As well as sending out a link to our website's blog page, we will also post the information on our school Facebook site. This week, the focus is screen time addiction: I t can be challenging for parents and carers to know whether children are spending too much time on their digital devices. It’s even more of a conundrum to decide whether a child is just deeply engaged with the internet and social media, or genuinely addicted to it. As technology becomes more pervasive in all of our lives, many children and young people in particular are beginning to experience tech-related dependencies. As trusted adults, do we have the right knowledge to identify and support children and young people who might be developing an addiction to their devices? In this guide, you'll find tips on avoiding potential risks such as damage to health and wellbeing, app addiction and a lack of sleep.

Dear Parents/Carers, We are pleased to confirm that we will be hosting our popular ‘family breakfast’ this term on Friday 13th December. This term, we will have a few extra Christmas themed breakfast items for you to enjoy as well as a special visitor (who we hear is fond of a bacon sandwich!) The family breakfast mornings are very popular among our school community and we enjoy serving delicious hot breakfasts to children, parents, carers, grandparents, and other family members as well as some of our staff! The family breakfast event is open to all pupils and their families. This will take place in the school dining hall and will run from 7.50am until around 8.45am (last orders taken at 8.30am) . Gates to the lower Netherby Drive (KS2) entrance will be opened at 7.50am. There will be no access via the school office. We take cash payment only and small change is much appreciated Children must have an adult with them to join the family breakfast, however pupils in Y6 who walk to school on their own may attend without an adult. Please note – if your child currently attends our own school-based breakfast provision, they can attend as normal on this day. A sample menu is provided below. We aim to keep costs as low as possible, ensuring our breakfasts are not only delicious but also affordable too. ·         Cooked Breakfasts ·         Breakfast Sandwiches: Bacon, Sausage, Egg (Vegetarian options available) ·         Scrambled egg on toast ·         Beans on toast ·         Cheese Toasties ·         Cereals ·         Toast / Bagels (With butter/Jam) ·         Tea/Coffee (adults) ·         Juice/Water/Milk ·         Selection of Fruit   All funds raised at family breakfast events, are used to fund school council projects, improving the school grounds and resources for our pupils.   The KS2 hall will again feature our £1 uniform shop where you can purchase items of pre-loved school uniform for just £1. We have a wide selection of uniform, including jumpers, cardigans, hoodies, trousers, skirts and PE kit. Each item of uniform is only £1 but please bring change along. We will also be accepting donations of any good quality uniform that you would like to pass on. Children’s North East will be in the hall from 08:30am to talk to you about their exciting Ways to Wellbeing Sessions which will be held in school. These are informative sessions about a range of topics which will help you to support your children. We are also hoping to welcome Lyndsey who is our new Welfare Rights partner, available to parents/carers in school who need advice and support around benefits. Please drop in to the hall, where Miss Moran can guide you to the different services and is available to chat.  Maybe add, if you are interested in either of these services but cannot attend family breakfast, please email laura.moran@emcps.co.uk  for more information.   If you have any further questions, please contact the school office. Regards, Senior Leadership Team

We hope all of our pupils had a fantastic time yesterday and are left feeling inspired and invigorated by the visit from a top athlete!  There's 1 week to collect any sponsorship money for yesterday’s visit from Antony Cotterill, here’s a reminder of the great prizes you’ll get for your fundraising efforts in this short video: https://vimeo.com/1000798545     Remember that the money raised will go towards new sports equipment to improve levels of physical activity in our school!  If you’ve not sponsored your child yet, now is a great time to reward them for their hard work. You can sponsor them online here: https://sportal.greatathletes.org/events/landing , or bring the cash in with your sponsorship form. Thank you for all the sponsor money that has been returned to school so far, your Support is much appreciated.

You are invited to our first Reception “Cuppa and Chat” session for parents and carers which will take place on Wednesday, 4th December 2024 at 2.15pm. This will be an opportunity to meet and talk to fellow parents. Mrs Foster and Miss Phelan will also be available to talk to and answer any questions you might have about your child’s time in school so far. Our Family Support Officer, Miss Moran will also be around for a chat. We hope this will support you as you begin your journey with English Martyrs’ Family. This will take place in our Key Stage 2 dining room and entrance to the building will be from the bottom gates on Netherby Drive. You can then enter school via the Y5/Y6 entrance/exit. We look forward to you joining us.

REMINDER A reminder of our upcoming event with David Almond. If you would like to purchase a signed book from David (no obligation to buy a book) then please see information below about payment. Payment must be made by this Friday (22nd November) so we can place orders. Dear Parent/Carer We are very excited to be able to welcome international best-selling author, David Almond, into school on Tuesday 26th November. David will be working with our Year 5 and 6 pupils, as part of the 41st annual Northern Children’s Book Festival. David will run interactive assemblies to develop writing skills, as well as sharing his experiences as a writer and what it takes to become a top-selling author. David is the author of Skellig, Bone Music, The Dam, The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas, Kit’s Wilderness, Island, My Name is Mina,   The Tightrope Walkers, The Savage, A Song for Ella Grey, Half a Creature from the Sea, and many more novels, stories, picture books, plays, radio programmes, songs and opera libretti. His work is translated into over 40 languages and has won a string of major awards around the world. In 2021 I was awarded an OBE for services to literature. You can find out more about David here Pupils will also have the opportunity to buy signed copies of his book Skellig: 25th Anniversary Edition! Skellig, an unusual and captivating novel, won both the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Children's Book Award. A contemporary classic, it has the power to captivate both adults and children alike. There is no obligation to buy books as part of this event , but we do want to alert you to this opportunity in order to avoid disappointment. Often pupils are very inspired to read the author’s book after such a visit and this is a unique opportunity for them to have books signed. Books are priced at £8 and you will find an option to pay for the book via the online payment system (iPayimpact). If you do not wish to purchase a book, the £8 will be removed from your account after the event. If you wish to purchase a book, please do so by Friday 22nd November so we can ensure there are enough copies in school.

*REMINDER * We are very excited to welcome our Great British Athlete, Antony Cotterill into school on Wednesday for our sponsored event. Please can all pupils wear their PE kit on Wednesday (Pupils in Y1-6 this is our usual PE kit, no bright colours or football kits) Reception pupils can come into school in comfortable clothes and trainers suitable for exercising in. If pupils have used the paper sponsorship forms, then all sponsor money should be returned to school, with the form, no later than Friday 29th November For those parents who wish to do this electronically, there are instructions as to how to set up your sponsorship page, below. If you’ve already got yours set up, don’t forget to share it with your friends and family!   If you need help with setting up your sponsorship page, watch this short video on how to set one up: https://vimeo.com/1000802304 Dear Parent/Carer    We’re very excited to be welcoming  Great   Athletes  to the school soon!    Top GB athlete, Atony Cotterill will be visiting us, and leading a  sponsored fitness circuit  with all pupils, followed by  a motivational assembly , and  Q&A  session. The aim of the event is to  inspire every child  to be more physically active, but just as importantly, encourage them to discover and pursue their  passion in life .    The event will both connect the pupils to an extraordinary athlete role model and  raise money for new sports equipment  to improve physical activity in the school, as well as supporting both  athletes  and para- athletes , so that they can continue to inspire the next generation.     This week, your child will take home a sponsorship form to use to help raise money for the event. You can also sponsor your child by visiting:  greatathletes.org   and clicking on the button “ Set up a Fundraising Page ”. Alternatively, you can scan the QR code to go directly to the online sponsorship page. As a thank you, pupils will receive the following thank-you gifts for meeting these milestones:   Raise anything: A5 sheet of motivational stickers  Raise £5 or more: sheet of stickers, plus a blue Great Athletes wristband  Raise £15 or more: all of the above, plus a red wristband with the athlete’s signature Raise £30 or more: all of the above, plus a signed athlete poster    Please ensure that the sponsorship form and money are returned to the school office  1 week  after the event has taken place.    Please also make sure that your children come to school on the event day with their PE Kits!  (We will send a reminder nearer to the event)   Thank you in anticipation of creating a terrific and memorable event.

Our Parents meetings will take place on the following days/times for pupils in the Oscar Romero Centre:- Tuesday 19th November and/or Thursday 21st November 2024 We have a system which will allow you to book your appointment for the date and time that is convenient to you which will be sent to the primary contact we have named for your child. Please note meetings will be held face to face in the Oscar Romero Centre, and you can access the school building via the entrance on Harnham Gardens. We look forward to meeting you .

Our Parents meetings will take place on the following days/times for pupils in Years 1 through to Year 6:- Key Stage 2 (Years 3, 4, 5 and 6) Tuesday 19th November and/or Thursday 21st November 2024 Key Stage 1 (Year 1 and Year 2) Tuesday 26th November and/or Thursday 28th November 2024 We have a system which will allow you to book your appointment for the date and time that is convenient to you which will be sent to the primary contact we have named for your child. Please note meetings will be held face to face in your child's classroom, and you can access the school building via the gates on Netherby Drive. We look forward to meeting with you and discussing your child's progress.