Weekly Newsletter Five-
w/c 12th October
HSE inspector says St Stephen's standards are 'gold plated'
The Healthy and Safety Executive paid us a visit this week and were impressed by our efforts and systems to keep our children and staff as safe as possible in these unusual times, indeed we were dubbed 'gold-plated.'
"We had a fantastic inspection from the Health and Safety Executive this week. This is the result of huge effort and commitment from our staff, under very difficult circumstances. My over arching aim is to protect our children, staff and the community. I am so proud of our staff - they are doing a fantastic job," says Mrs Bachour.
REMINDERS
Our new Scholastic Book Club is up and running! Go to http://schools.scholastic.co.uk/st-stephens/digital-book-club to browse the latest books and order online. For every £1 you spend on this month’s Book Club, our school will earn 20p in Scholastic Rewards.
Please place your order online by October 30th, 2020
Parents' Evening - Tuesday 20th October - 5-8pm
Parents' Evening - Wednesday 21st October - 5-8pm
Flu Vaccinations - Wednesday 21st October
Deadline for FOSS Christmas cards - Wednesday 21st October
Half term - 26th - 30th October
Inset Day - 2nd November - school closed to pupils
Pupils return to school - 3rd November
End of term - 18th December - school closes at 2.15pm
Please wrap up warm when you come into school
In order to keep our community as safe as possible we are keeping windows and doors open, so that rooms are fully ventilated. As the weather becomes cooler, we would highly recommend that everyone in school has layers of clothes under their uniform. During this period, we will allow children to wear polo neck jumpers/similar under their shirts .
As the rates of infection are rising, please may we also ask if, at drop off and pick up, adults and children try to stay as socially distanced as possible and continue to wear a mask.
Thank you again for your co-operation and patience during this difficult period.
Hello Yellow Day
Bedecked in yellow, we had the mellowest of times last Friday. The sunshiny get ups were all part of 'Hello Yellow Day,' a Young Minds initiative to recognise World Mental Health Day. Joint PHSE Co-ordinator and Year One teacher, Nicola Collins, shone a light on the day for us, "The children were able to reflect on the importance of looking after their mental health and wellbeing through a fun, bright and thoughtful day! They dressed to impress with their super yellow outfits and spent time learning about feelings and emotions, as well as healthy techniques for self care (mindfulness). They were even set challenges throughout Friday to bring brightness to other peoples' days. This included smiling at a friend, reminding someone of something they did that was kind, asking others if they needed help and making a classmate laugh." By equipping our children with a few simple techniques to keep them smiling, we hope we can take small steps to help protect their mental health. Keep smiling ...
BLACK HISTORY MONTH
We caught up with our Year One children to check out some of the lovely work they are producing during Black History Month
When it comes to inspirational heroes, local boy, Sir Mo Farah, tops many a list. Working on their text, 'Ready, Steady, Mo,' Year One has learned the time and effort the legendary runner put in to achieve his dreams. And, judging by the picture, they do a pretty mean Mobot too.
KIND BOOK DONATION FROM ELLOUISE
WE WOULD LOVE TO SAY A BIG 'THANK YOU' TO ELLOUISE WHO HAS DONATED FIVE WONDERFUL BOOKS TO 3DT'S BOOK CORNER, IN RECOGNITION OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH. THE LOVELY VOLUMES TEACH US, THROUGH STORIES, HOW TO TREAT EVERYONE WITH KINDNESS AND RESPECT. THANK YOU ELLOUISE!
Year Three bones up on the Bronze Age
Year Three has been taking a trip back to the Stone Age each week in their History lessons. Whether it is the Paleolithic, the Mesolithic or the new age Neolithic era, our young paleontologists are very taken with their studies of all things stone. They have studied the evolution of early man, from homo erectus (our first ancestor to walk on two legs), through to his Neanderthal neighbour and right up to homo sapiens. Tools, weapons, living accommodation, diet and cave paintings, they have left no stone unturned in their bid to get to the rock bottom of this most interesting of historical periods. Skills learned in the course of their studies came in handy when they moved on a little to the shinier Bronze Age for a fun workshop last week.
Year Three teacher, Sian MacKenzie gives us the backbone of the session, "Year Three had a wonderful time becoming archaeologists - and they were great at it too! We investigated a ‘Bronze Age murder mystery’ and used our historical inquiry skills to determine just who our skeletal guest was. The children examined different artefacts to help with their task and had some fantastic hypothesises to what each one was. We discovered through our artefacts that our skeleton was likely a very important person who was also an adept fisherman! There were really interesting links to our learning in science around the skeleton and, of course, our learning in history around the Stone Age."
