Dear Parents and Carers,

We’ve had a busy couple of weeks here at school, with plenty of activities and opportunities for learning. Here’s a quick roundup:

Highlights from Last Week:

• We welcomed Skills 7 to present awards to our pupils for their fantastic football skills—congratulations to all who participated.

• Year 6 went on a trip to the Hendon RAF Museum to discover what a WW2 classroom would have been like and get up close to some of the WW2 planes that fought in the Battle of Britain. 

• We welcomed some parents join us for our SEND coffee meeting.  Thank you for attending. 

This Week’s Activities:

• Our EYFS pupils took part in a dental screening check.

• Years 5 and 6 participated in a thought-provoking anti-racism workshop.

• To wrap up the week, we enjoyed a wonderful assembly from the Apple Class where they showcased their hard work and creativity.

Key Reminders for Families:
This week, we’ve touched on some important themes in school. Please take a moment to speak with your children about these topics:

• Dental Care: Reinforce the importance of brushing twice a day and attending regular dentist check-ups.

• Anti-Racism: Discuss the importance of respect, inclusivity, and standing against discrimination in all its forms.

Home-School Communication Policy:
We would like to remind parents about our Home-School Communication Procedure to ensure smooth and effective communication:

• If you need to speak to a member of staff, please contact the school office via email or phone.

• The office team will direct you to the most appropriate person based on your concern, whether urgent or non-urgent. This may not always be the person you initially requested, but we aim to ensure you are supported effectively.

• Our goal is for parents to be connected with the relevant staff member within five working days of their request.

We kindly ask parents to avoid arriving at school/phoning school expecting to meet with staff without an appointment as this disrupts the team’s schedules and planned commitments.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support in helping us maintain a positive and collaborative school environment.

Kind regards

Mrs S. Wright

Headteacher

A Week of Exploring, Creating and Discovery!

This week in Year 4, we have been busy exploring new topics across our subjects .

English - Exploring 'Gregory Cool'

In English this week, we have been reading Gregory Cool, a story about a boy adjusting to life in a new place. We explored the characters’ relationships and feelings, thinking about how Gregory changed throughout the story and how he interacted with others. Using the storyline from Gregory Cool as inspiration, we planned and wrote our own stories. We made sure to include key writing features such as: Similes (e.g. "as bright as the sun"), Alliteration (e.g. "cool coconut drinks") and Expanded noun phrases (e.g. "the warm, golden sand beneath his feet").

Maths - Exploring Fractions

This week in maths, we started an exciting new topic—fractions! We began by understanding the whole of a fraction, learning how fractions represent parts of a whole. We then moved on to exploring fractions greater than one. This learning will help us as we move forward with adding, subtracting, and comparing fractions in the coming lessons. 

Art - Sculpture and Wire Art

This week in art, we explored sculpture by taking inspiration from famous artists like Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth. We looked at how they used shape, form, and space to create powerful and expressive sculptures. 

Using wire, we created our own human body sculptures, thinking about how to make them stand and balance properly. We also experimented with making our sculptures look like they were in the middle of a movement—like waving, running, or jumping. This was a challenge because we had to shape the wire carefully to create realistic poses while keeping the sculpture stable.

Science - Circuits and Electricity 

In science this week we explored how to create a complete circuit using wires, a power source (such as a battery), and electrical components like bulbs, buzzers, and switches. 

One of our experiments involved making a buzzer work. We connected the buzzer to a battery using wires, ensuring we had a complete circuit. If the buzzer didn’t work at first, we checked for problems like loose connections or an incomplete circuit. We also experimented by adding switches and other components to see how they affected the circuit. It was a fun and hands-on way to understand how electrical devices function in the real world.

A review of the RAF museum by Edward Clark - Oak Class

I enjoyed the trip to the RAF Museum because we got to look and learn about lots of planes and helicopters from World War 1 and 2, the Cold War up to modern day fighter jets and helicopters. I really enjoyed looking at the the humongous Vulcan - which had the bomb bay doors open - so we could examine the details of the plane. 

What stood out for me was pretending to be a student during World War 2 and we had to go under our desks when an air raid happened. Also, the teacher was really strict and we had to write using an old fashioned pen and ink well. One of the people in my class got ink all over their hands. 

The only part I disliked was the weather as we got quite wet running from hangar to hangar. 

Maple- Oumama

Mulberry - Omalola

Pine- Jerry

Pear- Yousra