Weekly Newsletter 15.05.26

School News

Dear Parents, Carers and Friends,

Welcome to this week’s newsletter, where we celebrate the fantastic learning, achievements, and acts of kindness taking place across our school community.

Development of our ASPIRE Curriculum
It has been wonderful to see our ASPIRE Curriculum continuing to develop so positively across the school, particularly with the huge push in our STEM work this term. Children have been given a wide range of exciting opportunities to explore Science both in and out of the classroom, helping to deepen their curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. One highlight has been the fantastic stick and pea construction work taking place across classrooms. These activities have encouraged children to think creatively while developing important STEM skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, teamwork, resilience, and spatial awareness. Through designing and building structures, pupils are learning how to test ideas, adapt their approaches, and understand key engineering and scientific concepts in a practical and engaging way. It has been lovely to see the confidence, collaboration, and knowledge growing throughout these activities.

Thank you
We would also like to celebrate three pupils who greatly impressed one of our parents this week. After finding something that their child would have been lost without, they kindly made sure it was safely returned. We are always incredibly proud of our pupils, but it is especially lovely to see them demonstrating our school values of kindness, responsibility, and thoughtfulness in everyday situations. A big thank you to Jessica, Imaani, and Ava for showing such care and consideration towards others. You deserve your Hot Chocolate Award.

Spain Trip
We are also incredibly excited for the 19 children who are about to embark on their exciting trip to Spain. This will be a fantastic opportunity for them to experience a different school system, explore a new culture, and create lasting memories with their friends. We would also like to say a huge thank you to the staff who are giving up time away from their own families to attend and support the trip. Your dedication and commitment mean a great deal to all of the families involved, and we are very grateful for the experiences you are helping to provide for our pupils.

Trips and ParentPay Reminders
We are excited about the range of educational visits and special experiences planned for the coming weeks. Please keep an eye out for letters, emails, and updates regarding upcoming school trips and activities. Payments and permissions should be completed promptly using ParentPay to help us organise events smoothly and securely. If you have any difficulties accessing ParentPay, please contact the school office who will be happy to help.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support.
Kind regards,
Mr Lloyd, Mrs Lloyd and the Derwendeg team

Important Dates

Key Dates for 2025-26 – Term Dates

Spring Term: Monday 5 January – Friday 27 March 2026
Half Term: Monday 16 February – Friday 20 February 2026
Summer Term: Monday 13 April – Monday 20 July 2026
Half Term: Monday 25 May – Friday 29 May 2026

Please remember these are the dates of the school year, but below are the dates for the Insets to reflect when the children are in school.

INSET Dates
Monday 5^th January
Friday 13^th February
Monday 13^th April
Monday 20^th July

May
Monday 18^th May – Spain trip
Friday 22^nd May – break up for half term

June
Thursday 4^th June – 1.30pm Reception-Year 2 Sports Day
Friday 5^th June – 9.15am Nursery Sports Day
Friday 5^th June – 1.30pm Year 3-Year 6 Sports Day
Monday 8^th June – Year 6 leavers photos
Thurs 11^th June – Dosbarth Gwyrdd Class Trip
Wednesday 17^th June – Dosbarth Glas Ystrad Mynach Library visit
Thursday 18^th June – Dosbarth Porffor Ystrad Mynach Library visit
Friday 19^th June – Dosbarth Enfys Ystrad Mynach Library visit
Monday 22^nd June – Year 6 swimming sessions start (3 week block)
Tuesday 23^rd June – Bible exhibition Bethel Chapel – Gwyrdd
Wednesday 24^th June – Bible exhibition Bethel Chapel – Glas, Porffor, & Enfys

July
Wednesday 1^st July/Thursday 2^nd July – Lewis school Transition days
Wednesday 1^st July – Dosbarth Coch, Oren & Melyn Class trip
Monday 6^th July – Spain visit to our school
Wednesday 8^th July – Dosbarth Glas class trip
Friday 17^th July – break up for Summer holidays

School Menu
Click here to see the school menu.
Week beginning Mon 18th May will be Week 2

Attendance Matters
The United Nation Article 28 states ‘every child has the right to have a primary education’. We are linking our attendance performance to this article.

We want our children to have the best possible education to give them the best chance in life. If your children aren’t in school we can’t give them this opportunity and can’t give them the opportunity to ‘be the best they can be.’

School target: 93%
Annual % to date: 92%

Weekly total
(Week ending 8th May): 88%

Dosbarth Oren: 96%
Dosbarth Melyn: 90%
Dosbarth Gwyrdd: 82%
Dosbarth Glas: 91%
Dosbarth Porffor: 86%
Dosbarth Enfys: 88%

Congratulations to the classes who surpassed our school target of 93%. It is important all of the children are in school every day to ensure they aren’t missing out on important learning.

Heroes of the Week

Dosbarth Coch: Raya J & Isa-Rose P
Dosbarth Oren: Evie B & Riley T
Dosbarth Melyn: Shevon A & Emily M
Dosbarth Gwyrdd Arlie S & Teddy H
Dosbarth Glas: Oliver W & Elsie C
Dosbarth Porffor: Summer I & Robyn-Lynne R
Dosbarth Enfys: Harper T & Bear C