Our first KS1 football match in Marden's recent history was a really enjoyable experience for all the children involved, many who were playing a competitive football match for the first time. Greenfields were a very good side who ran out deserved 9-0 winners, but this was always going to be a learning curve for many. With continual practise and match experience, this team will improve dramatically, and all should be proud of how they played. Player of the match goes to Finley for some fantastic saves and goalkeeping exploits despite the scoreline.

We followed up our Greenfields game with a home game against St Georges the day after, and it was already clear how much the children had learnt from the previous game. It was a much closer game with chances aplenty for both sides. However, St Georges were just more clinical and ended up 3-0 winners. The children should take massive credit though, because they fought from start to finish, looked more dangerous, and had clearly learnt from the day before. It is very exciting to see how we do in our upcoming games in the next module with further improvement. Player of the match goes to Lucia for a superb effort throughout the game, persisting and tackling wherever she could.

While playing imaginatively, Isaac created a storyline and invited his friend to play. He communicated his plans effectively and as a result the two friends played for an extended period of time. It was wonderful to observe such great learning!

Molly has made exceptional progress when writing this half term. She is not afraid to take risks and this is paying off! Molly is using her phonic knowledge and ability to spell tricky words when writing simple sentences. Go Molly!

Archie has been a very reflective learner this week. Whilst playing in the water tray, Archie set himself a challenge to be able to fill up a container with water. Archie tried many different ways to do this and, each time, reflected on why it wasn't working. Archie eventually was able to find a way that filled up the container quickly, without any spillages. Well done Archie. Keep up the inquisitive behaviour!

This week, Ethan has been a fantastic inquirer! In the garden, using the large loose parts, Ethan and some friends create a giant set of balancing scales that they could use to compare weight on. Ethan made, and tested, several predictions regarding weight and was able to draw a conclusion from using the balancing scales. Ethan led his friends through their learning with his excellent inquiry skills. We are very proud of you Ethan!

Mrs Marsden was absent the last day of term, so star pupils will be confirmed after half term.

Mrs Marsden was absent the last day of term, so star pupils will be confirmed after half term.

Amelia has been keen to improve her handwriting. She has been reflective and tried her hardest to listen to feedback and show the results of her hard work.

It is great to see how open-minded Lucas is becoming with his learning. He is trying new things, listening to others and is always a good friend. Great going Lucas!

It has been fantastic to see you be such a reflective learner this week Jesse. Your maths has astounded me with your confidence to exchange in both addition and subtraction and your ability to explain why. I have also really enjoyed reading your personal reflection on which cycles are important to us as humans- you provided some very good reasoning. Very well done!

A superb week Finley! You have clearly been open-minded in your approach to learning by carefully considering your next steps, either independently or from myself, and your work has shown the positive impact so well done. I also need to thank you for your brilliant goalkeeping in our games this week- you clearly have a skill and I look forward to you developing it!

Holly and Molly communicated excellently on their final piece of work for their inquiry this week. They wrote, practiced and performed their own news script and included all the features! Well done girls!

Brody has shown great enthusiasm towards our learning this term. He has been able to communicate his understand of electric circuits with confidence. Well done Brody.

Jack has been a caring and reflective learner this term. He has taken great care with his work and with his communication when working with his peers. Well done Jack.

Lucas was principled during our debate. He put forward some great points to support his argument that living in a city was better than living in a village. Well done, Lucas.

Philip demonstrated some thoughtful and reflective responses and points to support his argument that living in a village was better than living in a city. Fantastic effort, Philip.

William has had a fantastic week which culminated in a good balanced argument, showing off his knowledge of technology. He thought about the structure of his arguments and used some fronted adverbials.

Jesse has worked incredibly hard this term, trying hard to develop and improve his writing. He has showed excellent balance, producing a fantastic balanced argument, considering the pros and cons of technology and its effect on society. Well done, Jesse.

Rosie this week has put in a lot of effort to complete her balanced argument. She was able to edit and read her sentences over to make sure they are written correctly. She identified the different sentence starters she could use and used them in multiple sentences to compare the positives and negatives impact technology has on society. Well done Rosie for being a risk-taker.

Arwen has tried her best in her work throughout the week. She has developed the ability to work independently and has also been able to edit her work. This is an amazing skill to have as she has become a reflective learner and produced a better piece of work. Well done Arwen for the outstanding efforts you have displayed this week.

Samuel has shown he is a reflective learner this week. When writing his persuasive letter, Samuel considered the feedback he was given to edit and improve his writing, considering the audience he was writing for. Well done, Sami!

Logan has shown such great engagement in his persuasive letter writing this week. His attribute as a communicator has really shone through, expressing his knowledge and ideas with confidence and passion. Well done, Logan - you need to be proud of the level of depth you have achieved in your persuasive argument.