Bolton School Junior Boys' Weekly Newsletter - 30 Nov 2022

Bolton School Primary Division Junior Boys

School

Winter is certainly closing in and, when welcoming the boys to school in the mornings, I have noticed a number of them without suitable coats, some with no coat at all. Often, when they arrive, the boys will play football to warm up, but when Winter rain hits or children are walking outside, a warm coat is a must. As the nights grow longer, it is also worth reminding your boys, as we have, to take extra care on the roads. Reflective coats or bands are very useful to drivers, particularly when we are on the receiving end of such inclement weather.

Last weekend, we held a taster day for boys in Years 2 to 5. The boys who attended were incredibly enthusiastic about their experience and we have had many sign ups for entrance exams as a result. I’d like to give special thanks to Mr Hough and Mr Winstanley for providing these boys with a taste of Park Road. Our boys are very lucky!

This will be the last November newsletter of the year as we head into December, which is a time when school life is packed with events, fun activities and fundraising.

First and foremost, is our Carol Service, taking place next Wednesday (7th December) at 7pm in the Girls’ Division Great Hall. All boys are expected to attend this event and I would also strongly encourage parents, friends and family to come and watch. The stunning singing which has emanated from practices is a testament to the hard work the boys and their teachers have put in over the term.

Next Wednesday afternoon (7th December), after a full morning of rehearsing for the Carol Service, it will be House Afternoon, where we decorate Park Road in House colours and start to get into the festive spirit of the season. Boys (and staff!) are invited to come to school in a Christmas jumper with a big smile on their face!

Next Friday (9th December), we will have a Christmas Breakfast Club, run by our Parents’ Association. Our PA provide further depth to all that we offer in school and raise funds for a range of projects and activities which take place over the course of the school year. It is a fantastic opportunity to give to the school community and have a voice in school developments. We are still seeking class representatives to help with communications and be a part of the team. Please contact us if you are interested in getting involved.

Please do continue to send in donations for your son’s class hampers and selection boxes for our Urban Outreach appeal. Thank you for all the generous donations which have been so kindly donated.

I hope many of you enjoy opening the first door on your advent calendars tomorrow!

Contacting the School Office

longer monitored.

If your son is going to be absent from School, whether he be off sick or attending dental, medical or any other appointment, please email parkroad@boltonschool.org so that the registers may be marked accordingly. Please use this email address for all day-to-day enquiries relating to school matters to ensure that your enquiry may be dealt with in a timely manner.

For all coach / transport enquiries: Logistics Co-ordinator: Mr B. Gould, t: (01204) 434711, e: bdmgould@boltonschool.org.uk

November Geography Mission

World Cup Challenge!

Choose your favourite football player or team playing in the Qatar World Cup 2022.

Provide a fact-file about their country of origin, which gives an excellent insight into the country. You could include famous cities, their favourite foods, landmarks and tourist hotspots, holidays, physical features e.g. mountains, rivers and other famous people who were born in the country.

How to submit your World Cup fact-file:

Upload it to the Showbie Whole School / Geography Competitions / November folder by 4pm today !

THERE WILL BE PRIZES FOR THE WINNERS! WHO CAN CREATE THE MOST INTERESTING AND GEOGRAPHICAL WORLD CUP FACT-FILE?

GOOD LUCK ! LJG

Headphones / Earphones in School

Headphones/earphones are an essential piece of kit for school and are required every day.

They should not be an expensive brand and ideally should not be battery powered or have a Bluetooth connection to the school iPad.

More and more boys are turning up at school without them and , as a result, are unable to take part in the audio/visual element of lessons using the iPad. CDH

Carol Service

Wednesday 7th December

Our annual Carol Service will take place next week, on Wednesday 7th December in the Great Hall of the Girls’ Division Senior School at 7:00pm

If you have been emailed regarding reserved seats (only for parents of readers, soloist and volunteers), please note that tickets will be sent home with the boys on Tuesday 6th December.

Parking will be available on Senior Girls’ Quad, with overflow directed to Upper Tudor Avenue, if this car park is full.

Entry to the Senior School is through the Riley Centre or the corner of the Girls’ Quad.

We hope many of you will be able to join us for what is always a wonderful evening.

Lost Property

All unnamed lost property left at the end of last half term was recycled locally. All named items were returned to their owners. It is essential that all children’s belongings are named so that lost property can be returned easily.

Unnamed clothes, bags etc which are found around school are placed in the lost property bin in the cloakroom area. Named items are returned to classes. Every half term we will empty out the lost property bin, displaying items on the small yard –giving parents a chance to claim back their items. Any unclaimed items left at the end of each half term are recycled locally. CDH

DT Recycled Art Project

If you have an old, wooden skateboard at home (broken or otherwise!), please bring it to the School Office, to be passed on to Mr Winstanley, who will be undertaking an upcycling project this half term.

More details about the project can be found linked here. AW

Rainbow Christmas Hamper

Raffles

Christmas hamper raffle tickets can now be purchased via the raffle form linked here. Tickets are £1 each for a chance to win a fabulously festive Christmas hamper and £2 each to win a £250 Amazon voucher. Please send in donations suitable for a hamper in your son’s class colour chocolates, toiletries, bottles of wine, candles, gift sets, festive treats - anything you would like to receive in a Christmas hamper !

Please return the completed form and payment to school in a sealed envelope indicating "Christmas Raffle". If enclosing cash, please include the correct amount as unfortunately, we cannot give change.

Cheques should be made payable to Bolton School Junior Boys PA.

Last day for donations will be Friday 9th December The colours for each form are:

Anti-Bullying

Following on from their training in October, our antibullying ambassadors led a fantastic assembly on Tuesday morning, introducing themselves to the school.

The boys have been working really hard developing their ideas and we are extremely pleased to announce the introduction of our Anti-Bullying Box, where boys can write down any worries or bullying behaviours they experience or see.

We have also set up a separate email address which boys can use to report any concerns they have to staff: AntiBullying@boltonschool.org.uk

We hope that these discrete methods of alerting our anti-bullying ambassadors and staff will encourage all of our boys to speak up if they are feeling worried about anything. RL

Congratulations go to Dhruv Patel, (right) in Year 6,who achieved Grade 1 with Distinction in his recent piano exam. Dhruv was also been awarded Coaches’ “Player of the Year 2022” by his cricket club.

Well done, Dhruv !

Achievements

Congratulations to Aaron Naginni, (left) in Year 5, who has been awarded a medal for “Most Improved” student at his latest Jujitsu Grading Ceremony. Aaron was double graded and went up two belts, at this event and is now a Purple Belt.

Well done !

Huge congratulations to Syed Mehdi in Year 5, who entered the “FUN IN THE SUN” poetry competition last month and was picked as a winner in his age category. Over 1,000 entries from around the World were received, so this is a tremendous achievement.

Syed’s poem is linked here on the Winners' page of the publication’s website please do take a look at it.

Syed also received a certificate. His poem and all of the other winners’ poems will be celebrated in a special podcast that has been released this week . Syed’s poem will also be listed as a Winner in their Poem-A-Week email that goes to poetry lovers in over 20 countries.

Well done on this wonderful achievement.

Very well done to our very own footballing superstar, Benji Houghton, in Year 6, who was recently chosen as one of seven Most Valuable Players at the Legia Football Cup held in Warsaw. He was playing with Manchester United's Academy and, although they did not win, he was chosen for the ‘Dream Team’ of the Tournament. The event saw 150 players taking part in academy teams from across Europe. Benji played 11 games, scoring five goals himself and setting up another nine. He also finished in the top 10 goal scorers! Needless to say, we are all extremely proud of him - his coaches said he was a delight to have on the tour and that he behaved so well.’

Absolutely amazing, Benji!

Flynn Humphreys in Year 5 is currently performing ‘Into the Spotlight’ at the Theatre Royal St Helens.

He has danced tap, ballet and modern jazz, as well as dancing with the whole company in the show company in the Christmas finale. How fantastic what a wonderful experience !

Senior

Well done to Aash Govindu, who recently took part in Greater Manchester Junior chess trials for Under 11s on Sunday, 27th November.

He played very well by winning 4 out of 5 matches.

Well done, Aash.

School Joint Production 2022 : The Great Gatsby

This December, pupils in Years 10 to 13 will present an adaptation of The Great Gatsby in the Boys' Division Great Hall. It is 100 years since F. Scott Fitzgerald's character, Jay Gatsby, threw his lavish parties and we will be marking the occasion with a cabaret style show.

Set in post-war Paris and Jazz Age New York, the show provides The Lost Generation context of the novel's genesis and tells the tragic story of Gatsby, a self-made millionaire, focussing upon his pursuit of Daisy Buchanan, a wealthy young woman whom he loved in his youth. Nick Caraway, a Yale University graduate from the Midwest, is our guide through the show. Nick recounts the events of the fateful summer of 1922. The show runs from Wednesday 7th December to Saturday 10th December with a 7.30pm start each evening. The Great Hall will be transformed into the Roaring '20s. Guests are invited to dress to impress; era specific attire is encouraged.

Tickets are priced at £10 each and tables seat up to 10 guests. It is not necessary to fill a table; individual, small group and table bookings are all welcome. To make a booking please go to Shopfront: As you make your booking, please use 'Gatsby' as the reference and include the date you wish to attend + number of tickets you wish to reserve in the reason for payment box. If you have any questions about the processing of your booking, there is an enquiry button on the Shopfront page. Tickets should be collected on the door on the evening you come along to watch the show. All other enquires should be directed to Miss Lord at nrl@boltonschool.org. Show updates can be enjoyed via Twitter @_NaomiLord.

Year 4 Creative Writing

Year 4 boys have been working on the painting style of Van Gogh and have started producing their own portraits this week. I have been so impressed with the confident use of colour and careful thought and patience the boys have shown with this tricky technique.

There were so many great examples but the work of Vivaan, Imran and Jack all stood out.

Well done, boys. I think these three images together would make the perfect album cover, now you just need to start a band! JM

Forgotten Kit

Just a reminder that if your son forgets any books, homework, sport, PE or swimming kit, etc., please do not make the journey to school to drop it off for him.

Having to explain to his teachers will help him to problem solve for himself and, we hope, not make the same mistake again!

Rest assured, we shall always lend equipment to him to enable him to participate in his lessons.

Tillotson Lecture 2022

The annual Tillotson Lecture takes place in Boys’ Division Great Hall tonight at 7.00pm

The Tillotson Lecture series is now in its 50th year and the series has attracted eminent speakers over the years who have delivered thought-provoking lectures to the School community. This year, the lecture entitled ‘The Biotechnology Revolution and the Future of Healthcare’ will be given by Old Boy, Robin Ali, who attended Bolton School from 1976 – 1984.

The invitation and RSVP details are linked here.

School Uniform Shop

Please note that the School Uniform shop based on Dobson Road will be closed for the Christmas break from Friday 16th December and will reopen on Thursday 5th January, 2023

Any donations of outgrown uniform are always gratefully received. Such items can be left at reception in a bag marked “Uniform Donations for PA”.

Holocaust Day

The boys had a really interesting and thought-provoking day creating art in response to the Holocaust. Working with Caroline Slifkin, the boys explored poems, photographs and artwork created during the Holocaust before creating their own artistic responses.

The work is generously funded by the Holocaust Educational Trust with support from Bolton ACIS, schools from all across Bolton are taking part.

The artwork from all schools will be on display at Bolton Library in Crompton Place space from 23rd January to 6th February. JM.

KidZone—Christmas Holiday Club

Details

After School Activities

If your son is unable to attend any of the after school activities that he signed up to, please could you ensure that you inform the activity provider in advance, if it is a school-run activity, or Mrs Iddon in the School Office, to let them know that he is unable to attend.

We have spent a lot of time recently chasing non attendees for after school activities which means time is reduced on them for all the other boys involved. Thank you.

Christmas Pudding Orders

If you would like to help raise funds for the GDPA, why not order a delicious luxury plum, sticky toffee or lemon pudding.

Please place your order on the link here Order forms are downloadable on Parent Portal too.

Christmas Dinner on Jesus— Collection of Selection Boxes

News from the Park Road PA

Christmas Hampers - Thank you all for your generous donations so far for the Christmas hampers - they are starting to look amazing! If you haven’t donated yet, don’t forget the last day for donations is Friday 9th December

This festive season, we are once again joining with the whole Bolton School Foundation to support Urban Outreach and their Christmas Dinner on Jesus annual appeal, but we are not asking for money…

Urban Outreach provides hampers to struggling individuals and families containing everything they need to do a traditional Christmas Dinner – right down to mince pies and Christmas crackers!

For the last few years, helped by schools, churches and local businesses Urban Outreach has put together hampers and distributed them a couple of days before Christmas to families in Bolton who are having a hard time, for various reasons. These families are identified by contacts in local churches and other organisations. People from the church or organisation then collect the hampers and take them round to the families who they know are in need.

Urban Outreach asks schools, churches, local businesses and other organisations to pledge and collect Christmas food items to help us make this a reality for hundreds of families in Bolton, giving them a little bit of good news and hope at Christmas.

This year, we will be collecting selection boxes for the campaign. The Junior Boys target is 250 and we must meet our target by Wednesday 7th December. Up to today, we have had 230 donations. We ask that boys drop off selection boxes in the box in the bottom corridor if they are able to help.

If any parent has contacts whereby they can get extra boxes for us through work or other means then all donations will be gratefully received to help the whole Foundation achieve its target.

Thank you again in anticipation of your support. CDH

Christmas Breakfast Club – there will be a Christmas themed breakfast club on Friday 9th December.

Bags2School - Thank you to everyone who brought bags in for our Bags2School collection – we raised £92 just by having a clear out!

PA Meeting 23.11.22 – Thank you to everyone who joined the PA Meeting last week – it was really productive with lots of new ideas – please see the attached minutes. A date for your diaries - the next meeting will be on Wednesday 18th January 2023 at 7pm at Retreat on Chorley New Road A PA Whatsapp Group has been set up - if you are able to help at any events and would like to join the Whatsapp Group please click on the following link: https://chat.whatsapp.com/BRtBl8QwJpS9OxpBm3MHDj

Social Events – If you have any suggestions of social events you would like to see organised by the Parents Association please get in touch – parkroadpa@gmail.com

School Trips – Our fundraising events have allowed us to fund a whole school trip to see Jack and the Beanstalk in December and also a Pop Project workshop with a well-being theme in January so a massive thank you to all parents for all your support.

Easy Funding – Online shopping can also generate funds for the school PA by simply using the easyfundraising app and linking your account: to https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/boltonjbpa

Twitter – Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: @BSPDJnrBoysPA

Christmas Stocking Filler Gifts

The perfect stocking fillers are here: keyring phone stands! In the absence of the Christmas Fair and our normal efforts to sell some branded goodies to raise

money for school, we have decided to design and manufacture some simple but functional keyring phone stands!

We will be selling these items on an pre order basis, and all keyrings will be given out to pupils during the last week of term. Order as many as you need! Only £1 each. AW