News

It's been a wonderful week at Darite. Class 1 had a great trip to the Maritime Museum in Falmouth yesterday. They blew the expert away with their knowledge of geography and the continents and were a credit to themselves and the school. Class 2 worked hard with the experts from Sterts in the first session of their project. They explored movement and journeys linking to the topic of belonging. These opportunities are one of the things that make Darite so special. There where so many different book characters in school today that we couldn't name them all. Even though it was a day later than the rest of the country, the children loved dressing up and sharing their love of reading. 2026 is also the National Year of Reading so it was great to celebrate with the children today. Thank-you for your help with the costumes and, more importantly, reading at home with the children. We are also aware that some children in school are a little concerned about some of the events taking place in the world at the moment. We are, as always, able to support in school with questions but the following link https://www.unicef.org/parenting/child-care/how-talk-your-children-about-conflict-and-war is from the UNICEF website with guidance on how questions at home could be answered. Obviously, you know your children best, but the advice is here if you would like to look. Good luck to those children running in the cross-country race this afternoon. You will be amazing! 

Welcome back after a very soggy half term! The children have been continuing to work hard this week with Class 2 finishing the mummification of their apples and Class 1 starting an interesting topic on explorers! The children have loved these activities and have learned a lot from them - well done! This is another shorter half term but we have lots planned for the school and children. Please make sure you are checking the newsletter and website for up-to-date calendars. Next week sees Class 1's trip to the Maritime Museum in Falmouth and World Book Day. A reminder that children can dress up as a book character on Friday next week due to the trip. We will still be taking part in lots of reading related activities and fun! Also starting next week is the project that Class 2 are doing with Sterts. It is a term-long project on "Belonging" during which experts in music, dance, drama, design and other areas will come into school to work with the children once a week on a performance that will take place in May. It promises to be really exciting and we are looking forward to it. Have a wonderful weekend and thank-you for your continued support of our school.

We are very nearly at the middle of the school year! Next week is the final week of this half term and it has flown by. Still to come next week we have the Valentine's disco on Tuesday and school finishes for pupils on Thursday as the staff have INSET training on Friday 13th Feb. 

We were really lucky to have a visit yesterday from author Jane Griffiths. She came in to talk to us about her new book (and read it to us) and talk about conservation. We are grateful to her for giving up her time to visit us and share her passion. 

Parent Survey: You said, we did!

Thank-you so much for your replies to the parent survey. You have made some fantastic suggestions and comments and we have already started to look at them. Thank-you also to the parents and carers who have volunteered to be part of the steering committee. There is still time to be part of this if you would like. Please let Mrs Norris know. 

Our first piece of work will be looking at communication between school and home and will shortly be sending out a communications charter that will underpin how school and home communicate. It is an exciting piece of work that children will be part of too. 

Finally, an we please ask all parents and carers to park responsibly outside of school. The markings at the front are to keep the children safe and should not be used to park. Also, please can we ask that you too remind children to use the pavements to walk on as we have had some reports of children running out into traffic. 

Thank-you again for your support of the school. Have a wonderful weekend. 

Mr Whipps

It's been another busy week at Darite with some wonderful learning going on across the school. It is always makes me smile to see what the children have been learning and for them to show me their work. There are a few exciting events happening over the final two weeks of this half term. Next Thursday we are welcoming Jane Griffiths - an author - to school to share her latest book and talk about how she gets her ideas. On the 10th of February, the PTFA are hosting their Valentine's Disco! I know a lot of children have signed up for this but if they haven't put their names down yet and would like to come, please let Mrs Norris know. Finally, a reminder that the 13th of February is an INSET day. School will be closed to pupils on that day. Safeguarding I am the designated safeguarding lead (DSL) for Darite Academy. All staff take safeguarding very seriously in school and will report any worries that they have or that are passed to them to me. Should I be unavailable, both Mrs Lake and Mrs Norris are trained to act as Deputy Designated Safeguard Leads (DDSL). They will be able to listen to you should I be unavailable.

It has been another busy week at Darite despite the best efforts of the rain! Class 1 have been working hard in all their learning - it was wonderful to see some of their writing this week. The standard of handwriting and presentation is going from strength to strength. Class 2 have been learning about electricity and using it to solve problems in their science lessons. Wider curriculum in both classes is a time to see all children shine. Parental Engagement project We are lucky enough to have been selected to take part in this program this year and moving forward. It is aimed at making sure that school and parents work together for the best of the children and whole school community. We are lucky at Darite to have a close-knit community around the school and a strong community in the school but there is always room to grow. To help with this, your children will have come home today with a parent survey. This is very similar to ones you've had before but with an emphasis on communication. I would be really grateful if you were able to complete this and send it back to school via the office or teachers. The results of this will help us steer the project moving forward. In addition, I am looking to form a group including myself and other members of the school including parents. This will entail meeting once a term to discuss the plan and how school can continue to improve. If you would like to be included in this group, please let Mrs Norris know and I will send invitations out shortly. Many thanks for your support of the school.

It has been a calmer week weather-wise at Darite this week thank-you again for your understanding last week. Thank-you also to those of you who have given us updated contact details for our system. Please remember, if you move house, phone numbers or email addresses, let us know so we can make sure we have details in case of an emergency. Thank-you. The children have really continued their learning well this week. Class 1 have been producing some great written work and I even learned a thing or two in their ICT lessons! Class 2 have all been getting into their DT project, helping Dr Smart at Exeter university by designing a product to safely hold archaeological artefacts in scanners! It is great to see the range of learning that takes place in school. Finally, can I politely remind you that Darite is a non-smoking or vaping site. This is for the safety of all members of the school.

Welcome back after the Christmas break. I hope you all managed to have some time to rest and relax at Christmas, whether it was with friends, family or others. This half term is a short one but we have lots to look forward to. We have a full half term with visitors, events and amazing learning. Watch this space for more details. Lots of our children received a letter from Anna Gelderd (our local MP) thanking them personally for their entry into the Christmas card competition. They should all be proud of themselves for their efforts! What a week for weather it has been from snow and ice at the start of the week, to a storm on Friday, it really has been an interesting start to the term! Thank-you to you all for your understanding in these challenging weather conditions. I know that decisions to close or open the school have a large impact on all of you. The safety of children, families and staff is paramount. Can I please urge you all to ensure that we have at least two contacts for each child including emails. This is to allow us to contact you in case of an emergency. Finally, following interviews this week, I am delighted to let you know that we have appointed Mrs A Colquhoun as a replacement for Miss Bawden. She has been working in the school for a while now and already knows the children and has many years of experience that she will bring to Darite. She will be a welcome addition to the team at Darite.

9th December 2025

Just like that, we have reached the end of the Autumn term! The weather hasn't exactly been Christmassy but the songs and festive cheer have been felt in school! The children have been enjoying their final week with some learning and fun Christmas activities. The Pirate Game is always a hit in KS2 and Class 1 have been making some amazing crafts, Christmas lunch was again superb on Wednesday - Thank you to Anna for putting on such a delicious spread! The children had great fun with their parties yesterday. Thank-you to the PTFA for providing the food - there was so much that we were able to enjoy a snack this morning! Is was a sad day yesterday as we wished Miss Bawden well as she left for the next stage of her journey. We know she will be missed but has promised to come and see us all in the new year. All that is left for me is to wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy new year from everyone at Darite. Whatever you do and wherever you go, we hope you have time to relax with family and friends over the festive period. We are looking forward to welcoming the children back to school on Tuesday the 6th January 2026!

It's beginning to feel a LOT like Christmas in Darite. The school have embraced the festive season and have had a wonderful week baking festive treats, making cards and decorations and loads of other activities and fun. It is hard to believe that we only have one week left before the Christmas break! Our Reindeer Run was featured on the St Luke's Facebook page here. The children loved raising money for the hospice. We raised £267.80 for St Luke's Hospice. The whole school went to sing to the village Christmas dinner on Wednesday. They sang beautifully, clearly and their performance was thoroughly appreciated by the members of the club. It is becoming a tradition at Darite and is part of being part of the community! Thank-you to everyone who joined in celebrating our Nativity yesterday. I'm sure you will all agree that the performances were superb along with the singing. Thank-you to all the children for doing so well and to parents and carers for helping with lines. We raised £52.00, thank you all. Finally, don't forget that there is still time to purchase your tickets for the PTFA Christmas Raffle. Tickets were sent home last week but if you didn't receive them (or need some more) please let teachers know. There are some amazing prizes on offer. Winners will be chosen on Tuesday 16th December and informed by email. The PTFA will be in the playground after school on Tuesday to allow winners to collect their prizes, if you are unable to collect your prize will be left in Reception. The Christmas jumper swap was well received last Friday after school. There are lots of children who are proud of their new threads going into Christmas. Thank-you to Mrs Richardson-Calladine for arranging this. She has also said that the Lighthouse Community Centre have agreed to re-house the jumpers that were not required. They will be shared with those in the community who need help and support. It is with great sadness that we say farewell to Miss Bawden at the end of term. She has been a valuable member of the team at Darite for a number of years, and she will be greatly missed by children and staff alike. I am sure you will join with us all in wishing her the very best for her next adventures and we hope she will keep in touch. Although next week is the last week, we are still very busy. Christmas dinner and Christmas jumper day is on Wednesday. Please make sure that you have booked a school lunch in plenty of time. We are also having class parties on Thursday. We are requesting small donations of party food so that the children have a treat in the afternoon. This party food will not take the place of lunches and children should still bring a packed lunch or order a meal. Finally, next Friday is a half day and children can be collected at 1.30 from the normal place. If you will be unable to collect at this time, please let us know so we can put plans in place.