Principal's Welcome

Dear Parents/Carers

The academy is such a wonderful place to be as the build up to Christmas begins. The staff and pupils work so hard to prepare a nativity/show for their friends and family to enjoy. We hope you enjoyed the performance you were able to join us for this week. There have been many other experiences within the academy to help the children have wonderful memories ranging from the Year R and KS1 Christingle, the PTA events such as the Christmas shop to the Christmas lunch where the whole school academy enjoy lunch in the hall together for one day of the year whilst wearing Christmas hats and dancing along to the Christmas tunes!

I would like to take the opportunity to remind you of the importance of ensuring your child is fully prepared for school each day when they return in January. Having the correct uniform is very important. Please make sure your child is wearing a logoed jumper/cardigan, black school shoes/boots, an academy logoed bag or bookbag, a school water bottle and a tie. Grey skirts, dresses, trousers and school shirts can be purchased from any shop that sells uniform to help keep costs down. All items should be named so they can be returned as soon as possible please. There is a selection of uniform, including coats, in the office area of the academy should you need to top up your child’s uniform. Uniform Base in Chatham and Brigade can also provide new items. 

Wishing you all a wonderful festive break. We look forward to welcoming the pupils back to the academy on Tuesday 7th January 2025.

Mrs G Stangroom

Principal

Ladybird Class

This module has just flown by!  We have, as always, been very busy and I have been very impressed with how hard all the pupils have been working. We have been thinking about a different culture and have studied Ghana and the differences and similarities to the UK.  We have used maps and photographs to look at the human and physical features of both.

In science we have been learning about animals and their habitats and really enjoyed exploring the different microhabitats that we could find in our school environment.

In art we have explored African patterns used in Kente cloth and the art work of Richard Symonds. We used our sketching skills to sketch a piece of artwork by Richard Symonds and thought about how we could create different shades using our pencils for effect.

We worked really hard on our Christmas Nativity and I was so proud of how confident all the pupils were when they said their lines.  We also celebrated Christingle this year and the service was beautiful and really gave us all the Christmas spirit!

I hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas with your families and I look forward to welcoming the pupils back in 2025!

Spider Class

Module 2 has been a bit of a pick and mix for all the best possible reasons!

Spider Class learnt about the Celts, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings, and explored different ways that they expressed themselves. We made Anglo-Saxon inspired badges, practised sewing skills in order to make a Viking pouch and wrote our names in runes! The knowledge that we had gained from learning about these three historical groups then meant we were able to write non-chronological reports, after completing some extra research.

This module has been all about ‘How We Express Ourselves’ which we explored through singing and dancing but also by looking at different festivals from different religions. We also visited Rochester Cathedral which was a fantastic opportunity to explore and learn in a fun way - one lucky member of Spider Class even got to sit on the Cathedra (an honour usually only the Bishop gets)!

Finally, Module 2 has been the start of the Christmas magic! The cheeky elf made an appearance and has been causing chaos but fun each morning. We made decorations for our Christmas hoops and learned the songs, actions and lines for the KS2 Christmas production, ‘A Hint of Snow White’.  

Cricket Class 

As we reflect back on the learning in Module 2 it becomes clear just how much we have managed to learn, in what seems like such a busy period!  We have been learning all about ‘The Arts’ and how we use different art forms to express ourselves.  We kick started our module by exploring different types of artists and musicians. It was very interesting to see how paintings and music have changed through time.  We then focused on the pop art movement and created our own pop art, gathering inspiration from Andy Warhol and his range of artistic techniques.  These are proudly on display throughout the main corridor so please do take time to admire them.  We have particularly enjoyed publishing our English work in this module, where we delved deeper into musicians through time and decided to focus on Justin Beiber, Michael Jackson and Ziggy Marley. We created detailed biographies on these famous artists and enjoyed listening to their music and discovering how interesting their lives are/were. 

Our inquiry learning on sound has been truly insightful and interesting! Cricket Class have enjoyed learning about how sound is made and how this travels to our ears so that we can hear. I am sure they will tell you all about our rice and balloon practical… where we saw first hand how vibrations create sound. It is fair to say that the classroom looked a little bit messy after this but it was all in the name of science! 

Without a doubt, the most exciting thing about this module has been discovering our own artistic talents, whether that be through visual art or through performance in our preparation for the Christmas production and the Young Voices concert!  To say we are excited is an understatement! 

Miss Tyler and Mrs Fox would like to end this module by wishing you all a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. 

Ant Class

Year 5 have had another fantastic, busy and fun module! Our inquiries began by us looking into Ancient Greece and whether they had any organised sport. This soon led us to finding out all about the Ancient Olympics, where the class did some fantastic artwork and poetry! We then researched the Modern Olympic Games and thought about the similarities and differences between the two. We had a look at some of the most successful Olympic athletes, and enjoyed writing biographies about them. It was fascinating finding out so much about their lives!

We looked at how diet and exercise contribute to a healthy lifestyle, and we cooked a healthy meal. The class learned some very useful skills, such as chopping onions and other veg, grating cheese and using an electric hob.

I’d also like to say a big well done to the class for the Christmas production this year. Every single member of Year 5 has put 100% effort into making the production a huge success - they have been a joy to work with! We most definitely have some very talented actors and singers amongst us!

Well done Ants for all your hard work. Have a great Christmas break! 

Butterfly Class

Module 2 in Year 6 has been eventful! The start of the module involved the class organising their own bonanza in support of the Medway Hospital Charity. They took part in a medical workshop and organised a dress up day raising £636 in total! 

The children have been following lines of inquiry, linked to our central idea that, ‘people express their beliefs, thoughts, feelings and personality through portraits’. The class started by organising historical events and then looking in more depth at the Tudor period. 

In dance, the children learnt how to dance in the court and joust. The children have been creating their own Picasso style portraits after exploring how people in the past used portraits to form an impression of others. They have learnt in depth about different techniques used by Tudor artists. In English, the children wrote detailed recounts based on the historical figure, Sir Walter Raleigh as well as a biography about Henry VIII. 

The children continue to strive to meet targets and have been learning about the division and multiplication of fractions in depth. Additionally they found equivalent fractions by building a fraction wall. In the lead up to Christmas, Butterfly class supported Years 3, 4, and 5 with the production of ‘A Hint of Snow White’. They have had the opportunity to express themselves musically through song and dance. A promising start to the year!

GOLD PASSES - Module 2

Congratulations to the pupils who were awarded a gold pass in Module 2 for showing exemplary behaviour.

Year 1: Ivy, Eli, Annabelle, Oliver, Sienna and Albie

Year 2: Evie, Rosie, Orla, Jaxon, Paisleigh, Mollie

Year 3: Ellia, Rose, Darcy, Olivia, Arabella, Amelie

Year 4: Rose W, Louie, Connor, Mia, Jensen, Elora

Year 5: Violet, Skyla, Tommy, Leo, Mya, Rory

Year 6: Freya, Charlie, Leighton, Edward, Jack, Chase

House Point Winners - Module 2

As winners of the House Point totals, Lapwings are invited to come into school on Thursday 9th January 2025 wearing their own clothes with the predominant colour being yellow.

Please click here for Christmas Support in Medway

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c7w18t9Tj5-ktzVMFZLP1bLTt-kKFw5B/view?usp=sharing

Dates for your diary

Tuesday 7th January 2025: Pupils return to school

Year R and Year 6 Height and Weight Checks (changed from 8th January 2025)

Wednesday 8th January 2025: Years 5 and 6 Swimming starts - Don't forget swimming kits!

Friday 10th January 2025: Year 3 Stone Age Workshop

Thursday 16th January 2025: MYG Swimming

Wednesday 22nd January 2025: Year 4, Young Voices, 02

Thursday 6th February 2025: MYG Table Tennis

Thursday 13th February 2025: Last day of module 3

Please also see dates for your diary under Important Documents in the MCAS app.  Please check regularly as these dates are subject to change.