Amazing learning!
At the end of the first term in Year 1, it seems appropriate to say well done to all of the children for the fantastic start to Key Stage 1 they have had. We have been regularly surprised by contributions to learning and have said “wow” several times when we have seen what children are achieving. We could mention everyone separately so would just like to say well done to everyone and wish you and your family best wishes for the approaching holiday.
Here are some brilliant examples of homework from last week which show how much support parents are giving. Thank you – it makes our job easier when we know learning is continuing at home.
Cross country
Recently some pupils from Key Stage 2 took part in the Leeds North East School Sports Partnership KS2 cross-country festival at Cardinal Heenan. Here is a report from the event.
‘On Monday, I was really excited to go to the cross country. It was time for my race. My friend stood next to me. Just then, the whistle blew. I ran as fast as my legs could take me! I slowed down but didn’t stand still. I was near the back but that didn’t stop me. Nothing could get in my way and I caught up with some others. I sprinted to the end and passed a few people as I crossed the finish line. My smile was from ear to ear. I wasn’t near the front but I wasn’t the last. Everyone cheered and patted me on the back. I felt like I was first.’
Well done to all the children who took part.
Merry Christmas!
We’re reaching the end of your child’s first term in Reception. We’ve loved seeing all the children gain confidence and make progress in their learning…
- Well done, Sakina and Leo, for your terrific handwriting.
- We’re really happy to see the increased confidence of Ethan, Jasraj and Rayn.
- Well done, Pollyanna: we’ve enjoyed watching you design and create amazing models and drawings.
- We’ve all enjoyed Noah’s enthusiasm for learning.
- Well done, Henka and Kashif, for making wise choices.
- Will and Albie have kept us amused with their great sense of humour.
- Hifza, Musa, Jessica and Olivia have shown concern and care for their friends.
- We’re all impressed with Taha for eating healthier foods at lunchtime.
- Well done to Felix, Harris, Raima and Jemima for great learning in maths and to Phoebe, Liam, Emma, Emily and Sami for their progress in reading.
- Thank you, Safiya-Mishal and Yusayrah, for helping everyone in the class.
- Everyone has been impressed with Maya and Georgie for their great manners and Isabella for always trying her best.
Have a great holiday and happy new year from everyone in Reception!
Christmas Party
It’s that time of year again when we get our party dresses out and our posh trousers on and dance the afternoon away at the Christmas party!
KS1 and Reception will be having their Christmas party on Thursday 18 December in the afternoon. Your child can bring their party dresses and/or posh trousers (and anything else they want to wear) in a named bag so that they can get changed at lunchtime. Please make sure that all children come to school in their uniform as normal. You may think that they will not be able to get ready themselves – believe me, they can. However, there will be help at hand for zips, tights and any other difficult item!
Please do not send any food – there will be a party snack provided.
Thank you.
Great homeworks!
Lots of super homeworks this week. Here are a few:
This is Shahban’s mosque
This is Ethan’s review of Walking with Dinosaurs
This is Jennifer’s letter to an author
This is Simran’s book about Divali.
These pictures are of Rayhaan’s Minecraft mosque
KS2 tuck shop free portion
As an incentive for selecting the pre-pay option, we’re able to offer you one week free. Therefore, the cost for one portion of fruit from 06 January to 31 March 2015 inclusive (12 weeks) is £2.20 (11 x 20p) and the cost for two portions is £4.40 (11 x 40p). Please note that if you choose to pay in advance, your payment is non-refundable and must be made in cash with the exact money.
If you prefer your child to continue paying in cash on a weekly basis, that’s fine – we’ll continue to operate this system.
If you would like to pay in advance for your child to visit the tuck shop, please return the slip and money to the office by Monday 15 December 2014.
KS2 fruit tuck shop takes place every Tuesday morning playtime.
Phonics
We’re coming to the end of Phase 2 of our phonics programme, ‘Letters and Sounds’. Next week, your child will begin Phase 3 with the last of the single letter phonemes. The purpose of this phase is to:
- teach more graphemes, most of which are made of two letters, for example: ‘oa’ as in boat
- practise blending and segmenting a wider set of CVC words, for example: fizz, chip, sheep, light
- learn all letter names and begin to form them correctly (so please help your child to learn these: talk about letters using their correct name as well as the sounds they make)
- read more tricky words and begin to spell some of them
- read and write words in phrases and sentences.
CVC words containing graphemes made of two or more letters
Here are some examples of words your child will be reading: tail, week, right, soap, food, park, burn, cord, town, soil.
During Phase 3, your child will learn more ‘Tricky Words’. These are the words we’ll learn in Phase 3: he, she, we, me, be, was, my, you, her, they, all, said.
Keeping our teeth healthy
Year 1 and Reception have been visiting Year 2 to learn about how to keep their teeth healthy. The children had great knowledge on what they needed to do to have healthy teeth and we tested just how well they were brushing their teeth by using a plaque disclosure tablet. We found the parts of our teeth that we needed to brush most and then brushed for two minutes until they were squeaky clean. We did look a little odd with our purple mouths though!
We are resilient
This week’s Rs for learning are…
- I can be resilient.
- I take safe risks.
To see how resilient we could be, Year 2 took on the Marshmallow Tower Challenge. Each team of three were given half a packet of spaghetti and a whole load of mini marshmallows. Our towers were very difficult to make sturdy and kept falling down! Everybody did a great job staying positive and trying and trying and trying again if their tower fell down.
Great teamwork!
And the prize for tallest tower goes to….
Several times on purpose
Alongside our Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds themed week it has been national anti-bullying week.
Our school definition has been discussed by the School Council and has been amended, 10.11.14, to incorporate the stop message.
‘Bullying is when you hurt someone, physically or emotionally, several times on purpose.’
Following a whole school assembly, Leeds Anti-Social Behaviour Team have delivered Show Racism the Red Card workshops across school and in class children have discussed these aspects of bullying:
- Our revised definition of bullying (above)
- Types of bullying – cyber-bullying and prejudice-based bullying related to gender, sexual orientation, race, religion and belief, special educational need and disability
- What to do if children experience bullying. The key message is to tell someone (start telling other people)
Bullying resources can be found at…
- http://www.childline.org.uk/explore/bullying/pages/bullying.aspx
- http://www.bullying.co.uk/advice-for-parents/
- http://www.youngminds.org.uk/for_parents/worried_about_your_child/bullying
Children tell us what they would do if they were bullied ‘…I would tell an adult, teacher or someone I trust.’
All classes have access to their class SEAL box or a whole school worry box where they can tell an adult any concerns about bullying or any other issues.
