14th October 2019
Dear Grazebrook families,
I can't believe it is the last week of this half term already, how the time has flown. We've obviously been enjoying our learning so much!
It was indeed a very active week at Grazebrook last week, with lots of trips, visits, workshops and more, there's much more detail about some of our adventures in learning below. We've also had some amazing home learning bought to school - please make sure any last pieces are in this week.
There is lots to look forward to next half term from Pantomime trips, to Christmas lunches to concerts and much, much more. Keep an eye on this bulletin or the school's website for key dates. Our topics for next half term all have a Science focus so do use the half term to visit the Science Museum, get some science books out of the library or research an important scientist.
School finishes at the usual time of 3.30pm on Friday and we wish you all a fabulous half term break when it comes. At the bottom of this bulletin are some links to half term activities available to our families.
Jess Hutchison
Love of Reading
A huge part of loving reading is being able to do it easily and with confidence, which is why we put such a huge emphasis on phonics and early reading at Grazebrook.
We have been recognised by the DfE as a centre of excellence and share our expertise with other schools and when you look at our work and listen to us read it is easy to see why!
We thoroughly enjoy our daily phonics lessons in EYFS and KS1 and it is really helping us to build up our fluency so we can read a wide range of texts confidently.
Thank you to our parents who attended the RWInc Parent workshop for Reception recently. For more information on how to help your child with their phonics learning please speak to your classteacher, see our weekly newsletters, our website or the RWInc website which is full of helpful parent guides: https://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/find-out-more/parents/
Curriculum
We know how lucky we are to live in one of the best cities in the world and last week at Grazebrook we certainly made the most of it!
Our Year 4 pupils visited the Roman Amphitheatre under the Guildhall in London and got to hold 2000 year old pieces of pottery that had been found there. In Year 5 we visited the British Museum and studied the artwork of the ancient Greeks. Seeing and handling ancient artefacts first-hand has brought our history learning to life .
Our Wings 6 SFA group visited the Globe theatre and enjoyed a workshop while our Year 3 pupils went back in time without leaving the school - from Stone Age to Bronze Age to Iron Age with Freshwater Theatre company.
Sporting Superstars
As well as a busy week for our trips and visits, we have also had a very busy sporting week too!
We are delighted to be taking part in the Young Hackney Schools Cycling League which hit the ground running on Friday with the Uphill Cycle Climb at Springfield Park. Our team were amazing, powering up that huge hill. Well done team! Watch this space for more more competitive cycling news as the league events take place each month.
We also took part in our first School Games Orienteering event over at Wick Woodlands last Thursday. Our super team navigated 15 points around the woodlands using just a topographical map and managed this in a record time of 18 minutes. Go Team GB!
Game, Set and Match and a superb performance by our Year 5 team at the Young Hackney Tennis Serves Doubles Competition. A fab afternoon of Tennis at the Lea Valley Hockey & Tennis Centre over at The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. There will be lots of sports opportunities for all coming up this school year.
A huge thanks to Bev and our fabulous sporting team for all their organisation and dedication as well as all our wonderful competitors who have had such amazing sporting successes.
Grazebrook Citizens
Alongside our history learning and sporting success throughout the week, we have also been spending some time thinking about ourselves and our place in our world.
We were pleased to welcome the NSPCC once again for their informative workshops and assemblies on how to keep ourselves safe and who can help us if we are worried about anything. These serious messages help to equip our pupils with important life skills. Follow the link below to find the NSPCC's guidance on ways to help parents keep their children safe - their brilliant and very child friendly resource: PANTS.
Our fledgling Eco-council were also busy creating some beautiful pots inspired by our indigenous British species that we passionatly believe are worthy of our protection. The ceramics will be displayed in the school reception area to remind us all of the commitment we made last year to creating a more sustainable and environmentally sound future.
There are three PSA events next half term - what a treat!
Things to look forward to:
1st November - a book swap and cake sale as part of our upcoming Festival of Reading.
8th November - our first film night - the big hair, smash hit film, Trolls.
7th December - save the date for our Christmas Fair!
We also have the PSA to thank for supporting our pantomime trips which are coming up next half term.
Lots to be excited about - find out more at the PSA website or twitter feed.
Half Term Opportunities
Cycle Confident with Hackney Council are providing free cycle training at Hackney Downs through the October half term. There are courses for children aged 5 upwards at all levels, from complete beginners to on-road training. Limited bikes are available to borrow or children can bring their own. Information and booking forms can be found on Cycle Confident's website: https://www.cycleconfident.com/sponsors/lb-of-hackney/ or by calling 02030316730.
Hackney Learning trust have a number of local playschemes available, further details of which can be found here: https://www.learningtrust.co.uk/sites/default/files/document/Playschemes.pdf