Topic: compass language
A distressing message appeared in Year 4 this week informing us that someone had abducted Miss Rushbrooke’s highland cattle!
We had to use our knowledge of compass directions to find the correct envelopes that would lead us to the location of the cow before the end of the day.
Year 4 worked incredibly hard to ensure they redeemed the cow and I am happy to inform that he is now safely back in Miss Rushbrooke’s house.
22 November 2019
This week’s spelling activity focuses on adding the suffixes er and est and is due in school on Thursday 28 November.
When we add er to a word like nice, it creates the meaning of more. So, nicer means more nice. Adding er to a word like build, creates the meaning of someone who. So builder means someone who builds.
When we add est to a word like nice, it creates the meaning of most. So, nicest means the most nice.
Think of 8 words which you can add the suffix er to and use three in a sentence. Then, think of 8 words you can add the suffix est to and use three in a sentence.
Writing: taking on a character
We’re going to write a character description of a pirate this week so, to get us in the mood, we got ourselves into character through some drama.
After a few warm-up games, we started to move around the room slowly, with big strides, like a clown and then we posed as different characters we read about last week.
We were Peter Pan.
We were The Evil Stepmother
We were Fantastic Mr Fox
We were Cinderella.
To get us into a piratey mood, we then thought about what our pirate was like and created scenes as a group of our piratey adventures.
We sailed across the seven seas.
We attacked any boats that got in our way.
Some fab drama from Year 4 who are now very much looking forward to writing their pirate character descriptions. Watch this space.
Living and Learning: My Community
We’re looking forward to lots of learning about identity, diversity and our community in our next whole school themed week, My Community.
Here are some key events taking place next week.
Christmas themed menu
Catering Agency, our school meal provider, will be running a special themed menu on Thursday 12 December. Please contact the office, before 28 November, if your child would like a school dinner on this day (no action needed if your child normally has a school meal on this day).
Living and Learning: My Community themed week
Themed week – My Community
Our next whole school themed week, based around identity, diversity and community, will be taking place from Monday 25 November 2019. A variety of events and visitors are planned to help us deliver this key aspect of education.
Events and learning during the week will include looking at our own identity including belonging and self-esteem, diversity of people around us including race, age, religion, disability and gender. Classes will also be getting out into the community working with local organisations and taking pride in the local area for example by litter picking.
Active travel
We encourage children to get out in the community in an active way on their way to and from school, with prizes available as part of the themed week. By walking/scooting/biking to school, families will be keeping our community safer and healthier by reducing congestion at the school gate. Maybe even pick up a piece of litter on the way. Even by parking further away from school your child could then to do the final part of their journey by foot, bike or scooter. Bike and scooter storage facilities are available beside the Year 3 and 4 classrooms.
Email us ([email protected]) a picture of your active travel, maybe by a landmark on your route to school, for the chance to win one of five £10 shopping vouchers. Entries to be submitted by Friday 29 November 2019.
New school charity
During the themed week, children will be researching local, national and international charities and a new school charity will be chosen at the end of the week to replace our current charity, WWF. Children will have chance to consider and suggest charities in the upcoming whole school homework (Friday 22 November 2019).
Identity day
Friday 29 November 2019 will be a non-uniform identity day. Children are invited to dress in clothing that represents part of their identity, for example uniform from a club they attend, a team they are part of or support or traditional dress to represent their heritage. We invite a donation for the PTA Christmas fair.
SAVE THE DATE Community coffee morning Monday 25 November 2019 9-10am
As part of the week, we welcome parents and carers to an informal coffee morning to meet other members of our school community including representatives from the PTA, our governing body, Moortown Community Group and Friends of Moortown Park. There will be chance to hear about proposed plans for the new land to the rear of school. A whole school community Wake up Shake up will follow at 10am in the main playground.
Can you help?
Pupil feedback from our previous My Community themed week was to ‘learn more languages that other people speak’. Do you speak another language and would you be happy to speak to children about this? If so, please contact the office to pass on your details. Also, do you have any local community links that may support our week?
Our website and Twitter continue to keep you up to date with key community events as well as our community noticeboard with lots of information about the themed week too. It’s going to be a busy week!
Living and Learning: STOP bullying
This week, all classes have been learning about different aspects of bullying during national Anti-Bullying Week.
Thank you to those families who supported our Odd Socks Day on Tuesday, celebrating that we are all unique.
Classes have been considering the following during this week.
- Our school definition of bullying.
‘Bullying is when you hurt someone, physically or emotionally, several times on purpose.’
- 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 or witness bullying. The key message is to tell someone (start telling other people)
STOP can stand for two key messages: the definition (Several Times On Purpose) and the solution (Start Telling Other People).
Our new child friendly anti-bullying policy has been launched this week and this was shared, by the four Year 6 authors, in assembly.
All classes have access to their class Living and Learning box or the whole school worry box where they can tell an adult any concerns about bullying or any other issues.
Please discuss this important learning at home (our whole school homework this week).
For further support, here are some resources and advice that can be found at…
- https://www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/tools-information/advice-parents
- https://www.kidscape.org.uk/resources/
- http://www.bullying.co.uk/advice-for-parents/
- https://www.internetmatters.org/hub/news-blogs/get-involved-in-anti-bullying-week-2019-change-starts-with-us/
- https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/child-abuse-and-neglect/bullying-and-cyberbullying/keeping-children-safe/
- https://www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/bullying-abuse-safety/types-bullying/
- https://youngminds.org.uk/find-help/feelings-and-symptoms/bullying/
- https://esafetyoffice.co.uk/resources/
Living and Learning: Anti-bullying Week
This week is anti-bullying week so hopefully, given our homework, you’ve had the opportunity to discuss bullying at home. In class, we’re making sure that everybody understands what STOP means:
Several Times On Purpose
This helps us to understand what bullying is and therefore ensures we can all recognise what is and what isn’t bullying.
Start Telling Other People
This helps us to know what to do if we think we’re being bullied or if we think somebody else is being bullied.
We’ve also been discussing the different types of bullying so see if you’re child can give you an example of:
- emotional bullying
- physical bullying
- cyber bullying
Creating Characters
This half term, our focus in writing is description. This week and next, we’re learning about character descriptions. Today, we read some character descriptions and we even designed our own character to describe to someone else and see whether they could recreate it.
We realised that we had to:
- use comparisons
- use adjectives
- describe bit by bit
- go in a sensible order
Talk about your favourite characters at home and see whether you can take on the character description challenge too.
It’s Anti-Bullying Week
This week, it’s anti-bullying week and the theme for this year is ‘Change starts with us’.
Don’t forget – we are also taking part in Odd Socks Day on Tuesday 12th November.
Recently, some of our Year 6 pupils have created a child friendly anti-bullying policy which will be shared with the rest of the school during this week.
Child friendly anti-bullying policy
Written by: Evie, Zidaan, Omar and Eve (Year 6)
What is bullying?
In our school, this is what bullying means:
Bullying is where you hurt someone, physically or emotionally, several times on purpose.
What might bullying look like?
If any of these things happen several (lots of) times, it is bullying.
- Hurting peoples’ feelings, for example, name calling, teasing, threatening, ignoring or spreading rumours
- Hurting peoples’ bodies, for example, hitting, punching or kicking
This could be in person or online (cyber bullying) and could be because of someone’s race, disability, gender or appearance.
What could you do if you are being bullied?
Start
Telling
Other
People
Who could you tell?
- Mrs Weekes/Mrs Freeman/Mrs Russell/Mrs Small (they are child protection staff)
- Mrs Taylor (Health Leader)
- Any other members of staff
- Friends
- Someone in your family
- Childline (0800 1111)
- Write a worry slip and put it in your Living and Learning box or the whole school worry box
- Email [email protected]
Our views on bullying
STOP bullying – bullying is wrong!
We’re a happy and healthy school.
