We have had a lovely few days during this short week with lots of hard work, learning and fun, and all much easier  because of the lovely sunny and dry weather!

Yesterday, we all took part in assemblies about VE Day -80 Year anniversary. I learnt so much about all of your families and all the family members who were involved in the war with lots of different countries. The children were so engaged and we all observed a 2 minute silence to show our respect for those who lost their lives, and of course to share the celebration that took place 80 years ago at the end of the war in Europe.

As we are now approaching the time of year when the weather is warmer and the sun is shining, please make sure that your child is wearing appropriate clothing and shoes, and that they wear a hat/cap if needed and have sun- screen on in the morning. If you would like your child to put sunscreen on at school, please send a labelled bottle with them each day. I will be emailing out the school Sun Safety Policy for you to read as well, so look out for it in your emails.

The Y6 children have worked very hard all year but especially in the last few weeks, doing practice SATS papers, as they have the real tests next week. We always invite all of Year 6 to come to the Breakfast Club free of charge every morning during the SATS week. We have found in the past that starting the day together with a good breakfast really helps to settle the children ready for their exams. So even if they normally have a great breakfast at home we would encourage you to send your children into the school Breakfast Club during that week so they can start their day with their friends -please send your Y6 child in from 7:45am onwards.

I am extremely proud of the hard work and effort made by all the Y6 children this year - working so hard at school and home! I always reassure the children, by saying that we expect them to do their best, and as long as they have tried hard and know they have done their very best, then we will be proud of them no matter what the result. Please reinforce this with your child at home.

A massive 'well done' to all the Y4 an d Y5 cyclists who took part in the latest Hackney Cycling league event yesterday on Hackney Downs. The children did so well completing 4 events each. Thanks to Nishie and to parents who came to support during the races! Well done to Ezra, William, Dexter, Robin, Margot, Artemis, Vincent, Otto, Gabriel, Joely, Noav and Tova B!We are waiting to find out the final results but I think we have quite a few first place finishes!

Today we were treated to 2 brilliant Class Sharing Assemblies! Thank you to Ganges class and Mekong Class who shared all their learning from this term and some from last term! The costumes and enthusiasm were second to none! The staff and children worked really hard, so thank you to them and for all the many parents who came to watch and support their child.

One of our favourite weeks at Millfields is coming up - it is Parents & Families Week! The week before half term, the week 19th-23rd May, we will be having our usual week of fun, inviting parents and carers to take part in lots of activities, coffee mornings, class and workshop visits etc, including the ever-popular 'bring your pet' to school, and this year our first Big 'Community Picnic' on Wednesday 21st! Look out for more details on all activities via email. You will need to sign up via Google Form. We are looking forward to welcoming you (and your pets) into school!

Thank you to Y1 and Y2 parents who came in today to read with their child/child's class -this happens every Friday, so please come along next time!

Also a reminder that we are looking for a parent who could give up some time to help with the memorial wall for Steve -if you can help, please email me directly, and we are also looking for any sporty parents who could offer a session/s of any sport or activity as part of Sports Fortnight (7th -17th July) or, if you think you can help in any other way, please email Ashrafamohi@millfields.hackney.sch.uk

Finally, have a lovely weekend in the sun. Take care, Jane

It’s been another busy week at Millfields with lots of trips, and lots more brilliant Shake-
speare work in classes. Also the Y6 children have been doing mock SATS in preparation for the real tests that are taking place between 12th May -15th May.

The Millfields Prime Ministers and members of the Millfields' Cabinet were in school very early on Monday morning as they had a trip to the Houses of Parliament. They had a tour of the parliament rooms and took part in a workshop that included an interactive film. They had a great learning experience and I am sure that at least one of them will be there as an MP in the future! Watch out!

Y2 visited Hampstead Heath to learn more about reading maps and orienteering as part of their geography work. Luckily the weather was perfect and the children enjoyed their learning and a picnic lunch outdoors.

Y1 and Reception classes went out on their weekly Forest School trip and as always, enjoyed the hot chocolate and cookies as well as the wonderful play opportunities.

Also, the Y4 boys football team took part in a Hackney tournament for the first time -they played so welle, winning all their games to get to the final only to be cruelly beaten into runner up on penalties!! A brilliant effort and bad luck. Thanks to Adele and parents, Melissa and John for taking them, and for other parents who came to support!

The children in the school playground have also been enjoying having more space to play lots of new games including cricket, handball, basketball, rounders and hockey instead of football!!

We are also getting lots of resources prepared for the Creation Station that will be open very soon. There are lots of sticks, poles, nets and  wooden planks and blocks that will be used for a variety of building and creative play games.

You will receive the termly overview for your child’s year group and the termly homework project this weekend. Please check your emails.

Finally, please can you check that we have a working phone number for you, and please also make sure that we have at least 2 more contacts in case of an emergency. Please email info@millfields.hackney.sch.uk with your child’s full name and the phone numbers. Thanks for your help here.

Fingers crossed for continued sunshine over the long weekend.

Have a good one, stay safe and well.

Welcome back to everyone! All the children seem very happy to be back in school, they look well-rested and ready for the busy summer term!

It has been a very calm and relatively quiet week (by Millfields standards!) and all the classes seem to be settled, and have adjusted to the few new adults in class and around school. Hopefully you will have noticed that the scaffolding on Hilsea Street side has been removed, so the front of the building and the playground look and feel so much bigger -this is a great relief to us all! The final scaffolding that is around the Nursery will be removed at half term, so we are nearly there! And thankfully, the new roof did not let any rain in after the heavy rainfall on Wednesday either!

This week, teachers have been introducing the new learning for this term and there is a real buzz around the school about William Shakespeare! Each year-group is studying a different
Shakespeare play or poem, and there has been a lot of great role play, brilliant orating, puppet making and fantastic character and setting descriptions. Some of the plays being read are Julius Caesar, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet, Midsummer Night's Dream and The Winter's Tale. The children in Y2 know lots of facts about Shakespeare too. He was born in Stratford upon Avon, he died on 23rd April in 1616, his plays were on stage at The Globe Theatre and lots more. There have already been some brilliant acting and drama sessions around the class play, so the children are really immersing themselves in the world of Shakespeare. I am looking forward to reading some of the children's rewrites of the plays and scripts in the next few weeks!

Thank you to all the parents who attended the 'Childhood Anxiety' workshop this morning. This was very well-attended and I believe that the parents who came along found it useful to support their child at home and school. We are hoping to run another one this term and will keep you posted.

I cannot believe that we are at the end of the Spring term already and that means that as part of the restructure, we are sadly saying 'GOODBYE' and 'GOOD LUCK' to many of our staff today who have been a big, big part of the Millfields' community for so many collective years that I cannot start to add them up! Today has been marked with sadness, but also celebration as we mark the staff's individual and collective contributions to Millfields life, the children's learning, care, support and experiences. They have been huge.

We will of course miss you all, but know that for some of you, this is an opportunity for early retirement, for others, a chance to have a rest and spend more time with family and friends, for some, just the time to re-set and then move on to new adventures - I cannot thank you all enough, and wish each and every one of you all the very best for the future. I hope our paths will cross again, and I know that some of you will stay connected through friendships made whilst at Millfields.

We will, of course, maintain and further develop your individual and collective legacies going forward. Thank you, Roz for the brilliant music provision and experiences, and love for music that you have created; thanks to Belen, we will continue to be excellent Spanish speakers and linguists; thank you for the expertise and skills of the staff who support our children with additional needs, and those who support groups of children in class to become independent, confident learners; thank you for the care, nurture and confidence that our Nursery Officers give our children at the beginning of their school journey; thank you to Sharon for her enthusiasm and passion for sports; thank you to Chris for his mentoring and support of so many children over the years. It feels like the end of an era, for me personally and for the school. I think I probably interviewed and appointed all of the staff leaving today, lots of them saw my son grow up from a toddler in the Nursery, and they have been here to support me, and the school through the many ups and a few downs, and a part of me will go with them today.

It has been STEAM Week and all classes have thoroughly enjoyed STEAM - the 'World of Work' Week. We started the week with a special assembly. Nursery children learnt about different jobs including being a builder, a doctor, a shop-keeper, a postal worker and a police officer. They en-joyed dressing up and learning about what all the different people do in these jobs. Reception clas-ses also learnt about jobs with nature and animals - being a vet, a zoo-keeper, and enjoyed a visit from the Cats Protection Association to learn how to care for your pet. Year 1 learnt about being a fire-fighter, and really enjoyed their trip to Homerton Fire Station; Year 2 learnt about jobs in the building world and had a visit from Higgins workers to talk about the different roles and jobs.

Year 3 got involved in the world of architecture and engineering and visited the national London Archi-tecture Association to learn more about these jobs. Year 4 enjoyed a visit to the National Centre for Circus Arts and loved learning some new skills and tricks! Year 5 learnt about ethical businesses and visited KPMG and Kessler's to learn more about how they operate and to present their work. Finally, Y6 also spent the week in the 'Dragon's Den' world - designing and presenting a new product that they created, to staff at the Financial Conduct Authority dedicated campus for innovators, disruptors and visionaries! Look out world for our future business successes! It is always an amazing week for the children to think about what they might like to be in the future!

I am sure that your children will have been talking to you about the week, so please ask them lots of questions! Thank you to staff at Inspire and Lucy and Naomi who organised and managed the whole week seamlessly!

A massive 'THANK YOU' to everyone for dressing up in your party clothes, bringing in lots of lovelyfood and joining in our celebration of Eid across the whole school. I hope that all our Muslim families enjoyed their Eid celebrations earlier this week as they marked the end of Ramadan, and I know that all of the children have enjoyed their Eid parties in class today, and Y6 earlier this week.

Finally, I hope that you all have a restful break with family and friends. Enjoy the sunshine! And please be assured that even though the Millfields family may be getting a bit smaller today, we will remain strong and steadfast in our core values going forward, and continue to do our very best for each and every child.

Take care and stay well. Jane

We have had another busy week at Millfields, not sure if there is ever a week that is not busy here, and I cannot believe that there is only one week left before the Easter break!

Firstly, thank you to all the many parents who met their child/ren's teacher during Parents Evenings this week. We hope that you found the meetings useful and that your children made you feel proud of all the progress they are making. Thank you to the parents who spoke with our Governors, and also to the family Coaching Service who were able to signpost and help lots of parents too. The information was shared in last week's Mag if you would like more information.Thank you also to the parents leading the 'Smartphone Free Childhood' campaign. They were gathering more information and signing more of you up to the pact. Millfields is the top school in East London when it comes to parents signing this pact (of 206 schools!). So if you haven't already and are interested, CLICK HERE TO SIGN

It seems like a very busy and very long week, and I cannot believe that there are only two weeks left before the Easter break!

Today, the school playground and corridors were filled with chatter and laughter as the whole school celebrated Comic Relief - Red Nose Day! The children and staff were dressed in red, and some in green, and and there were lots of red noses on show! We have sold more than 500 red noses, and have found only one rare ruby nose at Millfields  and also raised lots of money from on-the-gate donations. Thank you, as always, to the Millfields community - all the money will be going towards Comic Relief charities!

Also around school today, Y1 children dressed up as their favourite Nursery Rhyme characters - they all looked great and could tell me all about the characters that they were dressed up as. Olympus Class Sharing Assembly was also about all the Nursery Rhymes that they have been learning about and doing lots writing, reading and performing! Thank you to all the parents who came to support their children.

Yesterday some of our Cycling Team from Y5 and Y6 took part in the 6th Hackney Cycling League event at the Olympic Velodrome. The whole team did so well, and all clocked high finish times -a couple of first, second and third and all placed in the top 8, that means everyone contributed to the overall total points that keeps us at the top of the league! Well-done to all the children who took part and continue to make cycling so successful at Millfields. Thank you to Nishie and also to Tom's mum, Saga, who helped out on the day!

On another note, please make sure you get your empty containers ready for our next 'Eco Fill Up Friday' next week - Friday 28th March! Lots of products including washing up liquid, handwash, soaps, fabric wash and body wash!

We are also looking into another eco-opportunity - a Millfields school 'Bike Bus'.  The primary aim of a Bike Bus is to provide an active travel (cycling) alternative to the motorised school run. It helps cut pollution while promoting physical and mental health in pupils.  Pupils get to cycle to school in the safety of a marshalled group, with appeal to those who already cycle to school as well as to many others who don’t. Look out for more information in the coming weeks.

We also celebrated St Patrick's Day in assemblies this week -it seems that there are lots of leprechauns in Hackney causing a lot of mischief! Happy belated St Patrick's Day to all of the Millfields Irish community.

Reminder that the last day of the Spring term is Friday 4th April at the usual times -3:20pm/3:30pm. There are also after-school clubs as usual.

Have a lovely weekend! Take care, keep well, and stay safe.

Jane

This week has flown by, and as always lots has been happening at Millfields!