WEEKLY BLOG – Friday 13th March

March 13, 2026

Weekly Update 

We had lots of families joining us on Wednesday night when our choir took part in The Legacy Learning Trust Music Festival at Middlesbrough Town Hall. We were so proud of all the children who performed their individual song “Something Inside so Strong” perfectly. It was lovely to be part of a Trust event and our choir enjoyed singing to a wonderful audience.

British Science Week has brought lots of activities based on the theme Curiosity – what’s your question? On Monday, Year 2 and Year 3 had workshops, led by Rebecca from Energy Futures Education. There were lots of amazing entries to the competition where children were asked to consider what makes a positive childhood. Thank you to everyone who entered; Miss Edwards celebrated the posters in assembly to round off the week.

Reception loved welcoming their adults into school on Tuesday to make their very popular Cuddle Pets. The children came dressed for the event in their pyjamas and had a very enjoyable day.

This week, enjoyable Music workshops were led TVMS; Year 1 had a theme linked to their history unit of work on George Stephenson and Reception focused on Spring.

Finally, we were sad to say goodbye to Mrs Tribe today. Mrs Tribe has worked at Acklam Whin for 8 years and she has supported so many children in her time here. We want to send a huge thank you to Mrs Tribe and wish her lots of luck in her new job. She will be missed by staff and children alike at Acklam Whin.

We hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

Class Round Up

Read on to find out what our EYFS classes have been doing in their learning:

Nursery

Nursery started the week with a very exciting activity to recognise British Science Week! We joined a very special webinar to explain our experiment and then we completed our Science investigation in small groups. We shared the story ‘The Rainbow Fish’ by Marcus Pfister and then used felt tips to draw dots onto kitchen roll. The children concentrated and used their fine motor skills to fill their pipettes and drop water onto the dots of coloured ink. We shared questions such as “what do you notice is happening to the colour?” and “which colours do you see now?” It was fascinating to explore the colours moving and changing! Once our designs were dry, we cut them into fish shapes inspired by The Rainbow Fish story. Our impressive designs are now displayed in our classroom Floor Books/cloakroom!
This week our story in Nursery has been ‘Sharing a Shell’ by one of our favourite authors, Julia Donaldson. As a class we have recapped our classroom rules and discussed why it is important to share and be kind. The children did a super job with this learning and demonstrated a deep understanding of our school rules and classroom expectations. We have recorded some of the children’s lovely ideas and key vocabulary into our Floor Books. This week our tuff tray turned into a beach to follow our story theme. The children had lots of fun using the sea creatures alongside scooping, filling and pouring the sand into different shaped shells.
Across the week the children have also enjoyed lots of creative opportunities, such as using large paper and paints to mark make! Next week we are so excited for the arrival of our real-life ducklings, which follows on from Science week beautifully!

Attendance Matters

It is so important that we see your children in school every day as any missed days means missed learning.

There are our attendance figures for this week:

Overall 95.7%

A big well done to Class 512 for getting 99.4% and winning the attendance trophy as well as Nursery am, Class RO1, Class RO2, Class 103, Class 205, Class 206, Class 308, Class 511 who all got over 96%.

Let’s keep this up and aim for even more children getting 100% this term.

Reminders

Reminders

  • Please can we remind you that children should be wearing black school shoes with their uniform on non-PE days. On PE days, only black or white trainers should be worn with their PE kit.
  • Thank you to everyone who has named their child’s uniform; this really helps us to return any lost property to its rightful owner, and we would encourage all parents to make sure that uniform is named please.

Links to support our parents and children….

Headstart

🎤 Young People’s Voices: What Belonging Means to Them

Hear directly from our pupils as they share their thoughts on belonginginclusivity, and why feeling part of a school community matters so much. Their reflections highlight the importance of supportive relationships, positive environments, and being valued for who they are.

🌬️ Fortnightly Wellbeing Focus: Breathing & the Nervous System

In this issue, we explore the power of breathing techniques and how they help regulate the sympathetic nervous system — supporting calm, focus, and emotional wellbeing.

🍽️ Half‑Term Ahead! Bring It On – Holiday Activity & Food Programme

With half term just around the corner, the Bring It On HAF Programme booking form is now live. Be sure to book your place early!

🥊 “Knock Out Depression” – Boxing Programme for Schools

We’re excited to share an inspiring opportunity for schools: a physical and wellbeing‑focused boxing programme designed to build discipline, confidence, emotional regulation, and resilience.
Knock Out Depression – taking the fight to improve mental health into schools and youth groups is an amazing way for pupils to boost both their physical health and emotional wellbeing.

📚 Training, Resources & More

As always, we’ve included a wide range of fantastic training opportunities and wellbeing resources for staff, school and community teams.

HeadStart Newsletter 9th February 2026

Lunch Menu Y1 – Y6

Lunch Menu EYFS

Action for Happiness

Wellbeing is so important in our day-to-day life. Use the ideas on the calendar to pause, breathe and notice, so we can respond more mindfully.

 

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