Happy Friday to you all. It’s been another lovely week with lots of exciting learning at Rockliffe Manor. And the sun is shining! The beautiful weather along with the wonderful plants and flowers that have been planted across the school grounds has certainly brought lots of smiles to the children and adults alike. Thank you to the Friends of Rockliffe members for your ongoing support and commitment to making the Rockliffe Manor school grounds vibrant and engaging place for our children to learn and play.

This morning Year 5 left to go on a trip to the Imperial War Museum as part of their History learning on World War 2. The children were so excited to go and explore the artefacts and exhibitions on display. The learning this half term has certainly captured the interest of the children and this trip will provide further immersion into  the events that occurred during the war, deepening their understanding and supporting future learning. 

This week has seen the return of our learning showcases, and what a showcase it was! The children in Year 1 spoke with confidence as they recounted their learning experiences, they sang beautifully and stood with pride as they presented to their captive audience. It was amazing to see how the children have learnt their 2’s, 5’s and 10’s and the audience really enjoyed hearing their rolling numbers song to support them. We look forward to seeing the Year 2 showcase next Friday. 

Last week we shared with you that we would be having a very special delivery this week, and we can confirm the chicks have arrived! 9 eggs were delivered, and as we share this newsletter 3 have already hatched! The children are captivated already, as are the staff, and we have some rather unique names being suggested! As the chicks get a little older we look forward to being able to handle our new fluffy friends!

As we approach the Year 6 SATS assessments, I want to take a moment to say how very proud we are of the children’s hard work, dedication and resilience through the preparations. These assessments are designed to test the knowledge and skills that the children have developed throughout their primary education, an opportunity for them to show off all that they have learned. I have no doubt that our Year 6 children will do amazingly. These assessments are just one part of their academic journey, and we will continue to support and nurture their growth beyond them.

So many amazing things happened this week, and so much more to come next week - I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and we look forward to seeing you back on Monday.

With very best wishes, Mrs Cook and the Rockliffe Manor team 

Let’s look at the learning from this week … 

Nursery this week have been exploring shapes around the learning environment. The children began the week by identifying 2D shapes and having discussions around the properties of shapes. They enjoyed comparing shapes and learning the different properties each shape has. To consolidate their learning this week the Nursery had a shape hunt in the Nursery garden which they all enjoyed very much.

George said “A square and rectangle are similar because they both have four sides, but the rectangle is different because it has two long sides and two short sides”. 

Children in Reception this week have been focusing on improving their PSE development. The children discussed with their peers and explained concepts such as consequences and choices. We discussed what are good choices, what are wrong choices and that we have the power to make these choices. We finished the week by exploring what consequences we could experience from the types of choices we make.   

Year 1 children  have shown great effort in their maths this week where they have been learning about multiplication and division. The children tried really hard to understand that multiplication is the same as repeated addition and they used a range of resources to support their understanding. In geography, the children have been learning about human and physical features. They have also been discussing the effects that humans are having on the environment and the harmful effect on marine life. 

Year 2 had a fantastic science lesson this week in which the children investigated a variety of seeds and bulbs. The children cut a range of fruit and vegetables and described what their seeds look like by looking at the size, shape, colour and texture. They also classified the seeds and bulbs to further enhance their understanding. The children discussed if the size of the seed determines the size of the plant. 

Year 3 has worked really hard in science this week. The children experimented with reflections and shadows and Anayah shared ‘I know it is reflected when the light bounces off of an object's surface and into my eye’. The children have also been enjoying English where they have built on their skills of arguing and debating, giving reasons for and against a topic of discussion. Should mobile phones be allowed in class? Speak to the children about your reasons for and against! 

Year 4 have had a lovely collaborative PE lesson with Year 3 this week where they showed the skill of leadership and sportsmanship. The children have been working hard in their grammar lessons and have been carefully practising their implementation of apostrophes for possession and contractions, Elaina shared ‘a contraction is when you have two words that you put together, for example he is becomes he’s’.

In Year 5 this week, they had a great, active learning experience by having to hide under their tables during an air raid as part of World War 2. They then produced a great illustrated task that showed their learning of the Blitz. And in maths, they have flown through their angles and most moved on to reasoning questions to consolidate. 

In Year 6 this week, the children showed amazing resilience and effort on Thursday whilst working in booster groups with the teachers around the school. Not only was the feedback from teachers positive but the children also enjoyed having all 6 teachers and the school to themselves. Jonny asked if this could happen again because it was nice working in smaller groups and having the playground to themselves.

Here are some of the tweets that can be found on our Rockliffe Manor Twitter page this week

• Monday 13th May 2024 - Friday 17th May 2024 - KS2 SATS week

• Thursday 16th May 2024 - Reception Library Visit

• Monday 20th May 2024 - Year 6 Library Visit

• Tuesday 21st May 2024 - Year 3 & 4 Rugby Tournament

• Wednesday 22nd May 2024 - Year 5 Rugby Tournament

• Wednesday 22nd May 2024 - Year 6 visit to Foxfield

• Thursday 23rd May 2024 - Year 3 Library Visit

• Thursday 23rd May 2024 - Nursery & Reception Trip to Maryon Wilson Park

• Monday 27th May - Friday 31st May 2024 - School Closed Half Term

We would like to increase our resources and maybe have a Lego/Duplo station at playtime. If any of our parents have Lego or Duplo that your child no longer plays with we would appreciate any donations. 

Every Tuesday morning from 8:50am, Rockliffe will be holding a Coffee morning in the Music Room. Please feel free to pop along and join us. Friends of Rockllife joining to start the planning for events. All welcome

PE Kits - can we please remind you that all children should bring their PE Kits in to School. The children will need a pair of shorts, T-shirt and socks.

Due to incidents in playground with scooters, can parents please ensure that your child does not ride on the playground and other areas of the school. Children to not to be riding passed the school gates, Many thanks.

School Uniform - can we please remind you that all children are requested to wear school colours - Not Hoodies. Also now that the colder weather has begun your child should come dressed accordingly - Coats, Jumpers or Cardigans and appropriate footwear.