Newsletter: January 2026 | Colston Bassett School

Head Teacher's Welcome

Happy New Year! I hope you all had an enjoyable break and are looking forward to the year ahead. Thank you to you all for our lovely Christmas gifts. You are all very kind.

We hope this term will be full of fun and great learning activities!

Visits and Visitors

We are currently in the process of arranging some exciting visitors and activities to complement our upcoming topic week on America. Further details regarding these visits will be shared after half term, once all arrangements have been finalised.

Additionally, we are continuing to explore other potential activities.

Parent Appointments

Parents appointments will be available around the February half term. Further information regarding scheduling and specific dates will be sent out closer to the time. We hope to be able to offer times that are mutually convenient for these meetings. Please note that attendance at these appointments is not compulsory, but they do offer an opportunity to discuss your child’s progress should you wish to do so. We also want to reiterate that we maintain an ‘open door’ policy for meetings if you have a specific issue that you need to discuss at any time.

Nativity and Carol Concert

We would like to extend our sincere congratulations to the children for all their hard work preparing for the Nativity and Carol Concert last term. The Nativity performance, ‘The True Meaning of Christmas', was a traditional telling of the Nativity story. The children looked amazing in their fabulous costumes and sang beautifully. The Carol Concert was a lovely way to end the term, as always. The children performed a range of traditional carols and readings beautifully to a packed congregation in St John the Divine Church. A big well done to everyone involved for two wonderful productions!

World Book Day

World Book Day is taking place on Thursday 5th March this year. This is an opportunity to promote a love of books and reading and have some fun! We will be holding our annual Non-Uniform/Dressing-Up Day with the theme 'your child’s favourite character from a book'. Please encourage your child to dress up as a character they love! More details on the schedule and activities will be provided in our next newsletter.

America Week

For parents newer to the school, we wish to inform you about an exciting annual event that we hold each Spring Term – our 'Topic Week'. This is a dedicated week where we move off the standard timetable to focus entirely on learning about a specific country or continent. These weeks consistently prove to be valuable educational experiences for the children due to the many and varied activities involved. This year, we have chosen to dedicate our Topic Week to studying America, and we look forward to bringing the children a wealth of cultural experiences. The week will be held the week commencing Monday 9th March 2026. Further information regarding the week’s activities will be provided after half term.

Show and Tell

For your information, please see below for all the ‘Show and Tell’ assembly dates for the coming term. Please note these are now taking place in assembly on Tuesday afternoons, rather than Thursdays.

Tuesday 6th January	Year 2
Tuesday 13th January	Year 3
Tuesday 20th January	Year 4/5/6
Tuesday 27th January	Reception/Year 1
Tuesday 3rd February	Year 2
Tuesday 10th February	Year 3
Tuesday 24th February	Year 4/5/6
Tuesday 3rd March	Reception/Year 1
Tuesday 10th March	Year 2
Tuesday 17th March	Year 3
Tuesday 24th March	Year 4/5/6
Tuesday 31st March	Reception/Year

Adverse Weather

Just a reminder that during spells of snow/icy/rainy weather, we always try to ensure that school remains open if possible. However, if the weather turns particularly severe during the operational school day, we may at our discretion contact parents and suggest an earlier pick-up time to ensure that everyone can travel home safely. We may also consider a later opening time if need be.

As an isolated village, we always have to rely on our local authority (Rushcliffe Borough Council) making the roads in the area as safe as possible, but if you have any concerns about the access roads during periods of bad weather, you are more than welcome to keep your child at home or collect earlier – just let us know.

Smartwatches

We wish to inform you of an update regarding the use of smartwatches in school. In line with the ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ document published by the Department of Education, we request that children do not wear smartwatches to school. This guidance is based on the potential safeguarding risk these devices present. The advanced capabilities of current smart technology allow outside parties to communicate directly with these watches, a connection over which the school has no control.

Thank you for your co-operation in supporting our commitment to the children’s safety.

Language Day

We are pleased to announce that on Wednesday 28th January 2026, we will be hosting a special ‘Language Day’ to celebrate the wonderful diversity of languages spoken around the world. This promises to be an engaging and educational day for the children. We encourage your child to participate by selecting a country and dressing in the colours of that country's flag. Furthermore, we would like the children to practise saying "hello" and other simple phrases in the language of the country they choose to represent. The day's activities will also include a language-themed assembly and a food tasting session related to the celebrated cultures.

We look forward to a vibrant and enriching Language Day.

Easter Bonnet Parade / Easter Service

We are pleased to announce that on Thursday 2nd April 2026 (the last day of the Spring Term), we will be holding our annual Easter Bonnet Parade at the school. The parade will commence at 9:00am in the school building, immediately following morning drop-off. We encourage the children to design their own Easter bonnets at home and there will be a prize awarded for the best entry.

In the afternoon on this day, we will then be holding an Easter Service. This is scheduled to begin at 2:30pm and will take place at St John the Divine Church in the village. We are planning for this observance to be a more intimate and low-key performance, focusing on the spiritual significance of the Easter message. Parents are welcome to attend this service if they wish to join us, but please be aware that attendance is entirely optional and not compulsory for any families.

Curriculum

Class 1
Animals (Science) This half term Class 1 will be identifying and naming a variety of common animals, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. We will also identify and name a variety of common animals that are carnivores, herbivores and omnivores, and describe and compare the structures of various common animals, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals (as well as pets). The children will also identify, name, draw and label the basic parts of the human body and say which part of the body is associated with each sense. What a Wonderful World (Geography) This half term Class 1 will learn about the location of countries, continents and oceans of the world in relation to the position of the United Kingdom and the children’s own locality. The children will look at the position of the seven continents and five oceans of the world, understanding that the world is spherical and creating their own journeys across the world. They will continue to build on their map skills using atlases, world maps and globes, along with using aerial photographs to recognise human and physical features including landmarks. Friendship (RE) This half term Class 1 will explore what it means to be a good friend. The children will consider how they can be a good friend to others and think about what happens when friends disagree and argue, with a focus on resolving conflict. They will then go on to explore stories of friendship from different religions and reflect on how the characters in the stories show their friendship. One World (PSHCE) This half term Class 1 will be learning about people living in different places to us and their ways of life. They will explore their own family life, home and school and compare these to children’s family life, homes and school from around the world which are different from their own. The children will also learn about how people use the earth’s resources and the importance of protecting the earth for ourselves and future generations and how we can work together to do this.
Class 2
Soils (Science) This half term Class 2 are learning all about Soils. They will investigate how soil comes from rocks and organic matter, exploring different types (sandy, clay, loamy) and their properties through investigation, focusing on composition, permeability, and importance for plants. They will use "small steps" like exploring, planning, investigating and evaluating experiments. Stone Age to Iron Age (History) This half term Class 2 are focusing on the Stone Age to the Iron Age. The children will cover prehistory in Britain, focusing on changes in tools (stone, bronze, iron), lifestyle shifts (hunter-gatherer to settled farming), key sites (Stonehenge, Skara Brae), and cultural aspects like the Celts and Druids, using timelines and archaeological evidence to explore how people lived, survived and developed technologically and socially. Buddhism (RE) This half term Class 2 are learning all about Buddhism. The children will cover the life of the Buddha, his core teachings like the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path, key festivals (Vesak), special places (temples) and symbols. One World (PSHCE) This half term Class 2 are exploring how people’s life experiences and opportunities differ throughout the world and that our actions can have both positive and harmful effects on people living in different countries. The children will explore the concepts of inequality and stereotypes and reflect on what they can do to help make the world a fairer place.
Class 3
The Solar System (Science) This half term Class 3 children will learn about the Solar System. The Solar System is made up of the Sun, eight planets and their moons and millions of other smaller celestial bodies. They will study how the Solar System has changed over time. Children will look at the views of different scientists and mathematicians. They will compare these views to current ideas about the Solar System. Marvellous Maps (Geography) This half term Class 3 will study a range of maps and atlases, including digital maps, and compare their features. The children will learn to use the eight compass points to give directions and give grid references to locate places on a map. By comparing maps of the same place, the children will learn about the way that places have changed over time. Buddhism (RE) This half term Class 3 will learn about key aspects of the Buddhist faith. The children will work creatively to enhance their learning experience. They will find out where Buddhism originated, about special places linked to Buddhism and about key festivals in Buddhist life. The children will also learn about symbols in Buddhism, the Buddhist holy book and the main beliefs held by Buddhists. One World (PSHCE) This half term Class 3 will explore the ideas of sustainability, the use of the earth’s natural resources and the harmful effects of global warming. The children will learn about the steps they can take to reduce these harmful effects. They will also learn about biodiversity and its importance and explore what they would like to do to make the world a better place.

Dates for your Diary

Please refer to the ‘Calendar’ on the school website:

www.colstonbassettschool.com/parent.php#parent_calendar

Newsletter

January 2026

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