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Important dates for your diary

8th February - Apache class assembly - 2.30pm

8th/9th February - Tanzii TV Fitness Sessions

10th February - Last day of term

13th-17th February - Half Term

Educational visits/workshops

Please visit ParentPay  to consent and make payments

• Year 3 - Whipsnade Zoo 13^th June 2023 £25.50
• Year 3 - Anglo Saxon Workshop 14^th March 2023 - £7.50
• Year 5 - Egyptian Artefact Workshop 2^nd May 2023 £7.50
• Year 6 - Dharma Mandir Temple 24^th Feb 2023 Defiants & Spitfires £1
• Year 6 - Battle of the Atlantic and Codebreaking 13^th March 2023 £7.50
• Year 6 - WW2 Trip to RAF Duxford 20^th March 2023 £13.75
• Year 6 - WW2 Cheryl Moskowitz Summer 2023 - £3.50

Attendance week ending 03/02/2023

Overall school = 93.54%  Lates = 60

Best attendance: 1st Robin 98.53%, 2nd Ash 97.14%, 3rd Achilles 96.84%

Punctuality: Well Done to Odysseus, Apache, Osiris and Thoth with 100% for punctuality this week.

As the half term draws to a close we looked at our value of Determination through the lens of learning from mistakes and how practice improves our skills and outcomes.  At KG we read ‘The Most Magnificent Thing’ and learned that perfect doesn’t exist and at SR Ed Sheeran taught us that natural talent is really a myth, it is practice that makes you perform better and improve.  Learning from mistakes and failures is a key building block in leading a successful life, talk to your children about some of your epic failures and what you learned from them.  Did you know that WD40 is so named because it was the 40^th mixture of chemicals that gave the best water displacement.

Rainbow Class

In Rainbow Class this week we have been making and decorating bowls from clay. Why we were doing this you may well ask?   Over the last few weeks, we have been looking at how people in the Neolithic Age ( Stone Age People) lived. What their houses looked like, what tools they used, what clothes they wore, what food they ate and how they cooked it?

As a group we decided we would have a go at making our own bowls out of clay. We learnt that bowls were used to store food and also for cooking by placing the clay bowl over hot ashes.

Working with clay helps us to develop our fine and gross motor skills getting us to strengthen the muscles in our arms and shoulders (Gross Motor) while our fingers and hands mould, roll and pinch (Fine Motor) the clay into shape. These skills are important as we need them for all sorts of tasks like feeding ourselves, writing, drawing, playing games and picking things up, these are just a few of the things that we do throughout our day. It also improves our hand eye co-ordination which controls our hand movements based on visual cues that we receive from our brains allowing us to complete a task. This activity provided opportunities for conversation whilst working on the clay, also freedom to express their own creativity and the confidence to pursue their ideas, as each bowl is unique in its own shape and choice of colour that was used to decorate it.

Reception Class

Reception Crime Scene

Reception had a shock this week when they entered the classroom, as it looked like they had a visit from another surprise intruder! The children investigated the evidence to understand what was going on and came up with lots of fantastic ideas for what might have happened to Stickman! "I know who did it, it was Stickman, where has he gone?" said E. "I think he has run away out of the door into the mud kitchen," remarked A. The children wrote some sentences to describe what had happened and listed the evidence they discovered in all the classrooms. They loved dressing up in the hi visibility jackets and searching both the inside and outside environment with the magnifying glasses. Can you spot Stickman anywhere near where you live?

Reception Stickman Story Maps

We have been reading the story ‘Stickman’ by Julia Donaldson and this week we created our own creative story maps! We worked as a team to recall and retell the story, recapping prior knowledge and vocabulary related to the text. We listened to each other as we took turns describing the story settings, mapping out Stickmans journey along the way! A said “Stickmans journey begins in the family tree with his stick lady love and his stick children three!” J said “I’m going to draw flowers and a slide in the park because that’s where he goes next”. We enjoyed using our phonics skills to add captions to our drawings to label the places Stickman had been. Where do you think his journey will take him next? 

Year 1

As part of their Science learning, Year 1 have been exploring natural materials. They worked together to discover which material would be best for the Three Little Pigs house - stone, stick or straw. Grayson said, "stone is best because it is more durable".

They have also been looking at cave paintings from the Stone Age. They used their painting skills to copy an original print. They took their time to analyze and observe the details of the paintings closely so that they could replicate it.

Year 2

This week in Year 2 we have begun to learn about what homes in London were like during the Tudor period (at the time of the Great Fire of London).  Classes had the chance to start designing their own Tudor home and some have begun to build their own using the same features (wooden beams, the pitch/tar, thatched roofs and tile for the rich).  We look forward to seeing them being completed next week!

Year 3 

For the past two weeks in PSHE, Year 3 were tasked with creating a model Viking longship. Last week the children thought about the design of the ship and materials they would require. They were assigned groups and used a planning sheet to agree who was going to be making each individual part. We then discussed as a class how working as a team would help them to achieve their goal of making their longships. 

Year 3 began to make a prototype of their Viking longship. After reviewing their plan, they carefully cut out the pieces they were in charge of. Next, they worked as a team to follow the instructions they were given in correctly securing the pieces together. 

Their prototypes look amazing! 

This week, the children begun making their final Viking longboats. They incorporated the skills they had learnt in making their prototypes to work as a group and cut out their individual parts again, this time using the cardboard and card provided. It was lovely to see them helping each other out if they required assistance. 

In the next session, Year 3 will be putting their cut-out pieces together to create their final Viking longships. They are very excited to see the final result! 

Year 5 

This half term in PSHE, we have been investigating different careers.  The children began by exploring a range of inspiring short films about ambition and work that encouraged them to think about what they might do and who they might become.  The people in these video’s shared the challenges they faced in their lives and how they overcame these challenges to achieve their goals. 

“Maggie did not let her dyslexia get in the way of her dream to become a Space Scientist.  It was a good choice for her because she always really inquisitive. She was also determined and hardworking because she spent so long in university studying (7 years)!”

“Ho-Yin didn’t enjoy and wasn’t very good at things like English and Maths at school but he loved Art.  Going on work experience to an Architects helped him to believe in himself and to choose a career, doing what he loves.” 

During the next session, they examined a list of different professions – giving their opinion on which they felt were the most and least important.  This lead, as you can imagine, to some passionate debates!    We also discussed the value some of these roles have in society and if they thought the salary was fair based on the job. 

This week, they children researched their dream job for the future.  We discussed what their reasons were for choosing their particular career path.

“My uncle in a mechanic and has a garage.  I could do an apprenticeship with him and learn on the job.” Freddie Osiris

“My dream is to become a teacher because I enjoy helping others to overcome challenges.” Reem Osiris

“I hope to become a 5-star Michelin pasta chef.  I only know one recipe at the minute, so I better get practising.” Oliver Osiris

We have no doubt that this brilliant bunch will go on to achieve their dreams!

These past two weeks in our Christian Values unit of work in RE, we have been discussing resource injustices in the world.  The children have written poems and raps about persuading local shopkeeper to stock more Fairtrade goods. 

 

Year 6 

As part of our study of Hinduism, we have been creating art based on the Hindu god, Krishna. We built on from our sketching skills to focus on proportion. We also had control of what medium we used to complete our art. Some of us chose to use sketching pencil whilst others used pastels. We will be finishing these later in the week. 

As well as this, Lancasters and Hurricanes loved their trip to the Dharma Mandir. The experience was enriching and the children were excellent role models for the school. 

Unfortunately, Defiants and Spitfires class will have to wait a little longer to experience the fun as their planned trip has had to be postponed until after the half term.

George Spicer Foodbank

George Spicer has been awarded the Gold award for safer travel initiatives!

Bullying in Focus - NSPCC

Bullying is a social phenomena which exists across all of society. Be it at work, within families or in public spaces. Yet it has always been especially prevalent in schools. The intense pressure to fit within a certain box, or to be liked or adored by your peers is the overriding drive of many pupils. Even to the point that it takes precedent over their education. But simply because it’s been prevalent throughout all human societies, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do what we can to ameliorate the situation. From an educational perspective, thousands of days of teaching time are lost to bullying, through child absences. The toll such group behaviour can take on a child’s mental health will almost certainly lead to them missing out on schooling, with the predictable consequences of diminished life chances. However, simply because it is prevalent does not mean it’s easy to detect or eliminate. Children who are bullied will often hide it from parents and teachers, concerned with feeling weak or helpless, at a time in their lives when they’re increasingly being encouraged to stand on their own two feet. As such they’ll shy away from those who can help. The NSPCC has published a page on their site dedicated to helping you detect those warning signs which can be so vital when dealing with these issues. To find out more please follow the link below: 

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/what-is-child-abuse/types-of-abuse/bullying-and-cyberbullying/

Tanzii TV Fitness

Legends of Football Competition - Elms

Please see below a football competition which is open for Years 3-6 (KS2).

Netball Club

This week's player of the match goes to Davina, who displayed excellent defence throughout the match as well as excellent perseverance when shooting.