Campsbourne Newsletter

With one week to go until half term the pace of life school continues to gain momentum. Our Black History Month workshops were well received by the children this week. They learnt about the life of the famous black actress, dancer and singer Josephine Baker. Her heyday was in the mid 20th Century and she was the first black woman to star in a major motion picture. The children were given opportunities to role play different parts of her life and explored the challenges that she faced due to the colour of her skin. Further workshops are planned next week for the children to participate in so that they can start to deepen their understanding of the contribution and challenges faced by the Windrush generation. There will be special assembly next Friday where they will showcase the work they have completed during these very important workshops. The school’s annual Harvest Festival assembly takes place on Wednesday and will be led by Mother Clemency and Mrs Baptiste and it promises to be a wonderful celebration. All donations will be sent to the local food bank. The never ending pile of lost property continues to grow each week. This is another reminder to make sure that your child’s name is on all of their items of clothing. It was good to see many parents and carers attend the Reception and Year 1 Open Morning this morning. These important events are a very good way of understanding about your child’s learning and offer an insight in to how we deliver the National Curriculum.  Thank you for your continued support.

ATTENDANCE (second week) – Every week at our Standards Assembly classes are presented with a trophy for having the best attendance from the previous week. It is one of many ways the school uses to promote the impact of  a child’s long term success. Many of you bring your child to school every day and as a result they have a very good attendance records. You can check your child’s attendance at any point using the Arbor app, something I would encourage you to do. The government guidance about attendance is very clear. Every child must have a minimum attendance rate of 96% through the school year. There will of course be times when your child is ill and time off school is unavoidable. The school works hard to reach out to families who may also experience other difficulties which precludes them from bringing their child to school. If attendance is an issues for you as a family please make sure that you contact the Office staff who will support you through a variety of ways which will help get your child in to school.

STRUCTURED PLAY EQUIPMENT FOR KEY STAGE 1 – This is a plea for any unused toys that can be used by the children on our Key Stage 1 playground. Any small animal figures or dressing up costumes would be most gratefully received. We want to offer the children a range of activities to chose from during their leisure time and by giving them access to imaginative play it helps with this important part of their development. Any donation should be left at the school office marked for the attention of the EYFS and KS1 staff. Thank you in advance for your support with this initiative.

LATEST FROM THE HSA – Thanks to everyone who donated at our uniform stampede this morning, the HSA raised £175.90 and hopefully lots of people in the Campsbourne community got hold of some new to you uniform – please remember to wash everything before wearing!

HARVEST CELEBRATION (second week) – Our harvest celebration assembly is October 22nd. Please have a look in your cupboards for any food you can spare (nothing fresh please) for the children to bring into school. We will be collecting donations from Monday 13th October.  A table will be set up in the middle hall for you to drop them off. During half term we will be taking your contributions to the Hornsey Food Bank. Thank you to everyone who has made a contribution this week. They have been gratefully received.

COMPUTER SCIENCE CLUB – We are delighted to announce that we will be starting a new Computer Science Club at Campsbourne. This will begin on Friday 14th November between 3.30 – 4.30. If you are interested in joining, please do let Mr Mattocks know, as we only have 15 available spaces. In the club the children will be doing activities and puzzles that explore computer science without computers. They will be asking questions such as: If computers only know two numbers, how do they count? If you had ten guesses, could you find the prize hidden in one of 1000 boxes? How do secret codes work? Can you decrypt this? URYYB JBEYQ. This is a great opportunity for the children so please do sign up! Speak to Mr Mattocks for further details.

THIS WEEK’S LEARNING –

This week, year 2 had fun adding three 1-digit numbers using a hundred square, counters and deck of cards. They loved playing a fun, risk-free game to consolidate their addition facts!

Year 2 also had a brilliant time in the gym, using the apparatus to practise their poses and balances. They always love when we get out the gymnastics equipment, especially when they get to showcase their own gymnastic skills!

This week, our Year 6 pupils embarked on an exciting adventure to The Castle Climbing Centre, where they were challenged to push themselves. Throughout the day, the children took part in a range of climbing activities, including bouldering across varied surfaces, abseiling down climbing walls, and scaling heights using both traditional belay systems with a partner and the auto-belay system. These experiences allowed them to develop new technical skills while building confidence, resilience, and teamwork.

For many, the trip was an opportunity to step outside their comfort zones — and it was inspiring to see so many pupils show real bravery and determination as they tackled each challenge.

It was a fantastic day of learning, adventure, and personal growth. A huge well done to all of Year 6 for their enthusiasm, perseverance, and support for one another throughout the day.

In RE this week, Year 6 designed a commitment charter. Our key question in RE this half term has been: ‘How do Muslims show commitment to their God?’ In this lesson, the children explored the importance of commitment and considered something in their life that they are committed towards. They came up with a range of different commitments and explained why these are important for them. It was a very insightful lesson!

Year 4 visited the Jamyang Buddhist Centre, where they engaged in an in-depth exploration of the life and teachings of the Buddha. The visit provided valuable insight into the origins and development of Buddhism, including the story of Siddhartha Gautama and the core principles of Buddhist philosophy.

FRIENDLY REMINDERS –  ARBOR – If you haven’t signed up to use the Arbor app please make sure that you do so as soon as possible.

ATTENDANCE – Well done to 2 MOORE   in the Infants and 4 KAPOOR in the Juniors for registering the highest attendance for week ending 10th October 2025.

Have a great weekend.

Kind Regards

Charles Soyka
Headteacher

In the news this week…