Week Ending 7th November 2014

Hopefully everyone enjoyed a lovely half term break... now a countdown to Christmas!  The children can already be heard humming familiar festive tunes, as they move around the School, ready for their Christmas performances in just a few short weeks!

Great excitement this week because... OUR NEW MINI BUS HAS ARRIVED!!!  It has already been used for an outing to Totternhoe Knolls - needless to say the children (and staff) all love it, and we have so many plans for its use!

Our Forest School is proving to be a great success and another exciting addition will be our outdoor classroom, which is being designed and built by our Science Co-ordinator, using a bamboo frame, living willow walls, and reclaimed wooden railway sleepers as seats.

Next week will be another busy week, as Key Stage Two children will be visiting the Tower of London on Wednesday, and are looking forward to viewing the famous poppies. Thursday evening is "Movie Night" in the School Hall, where the children will be treated to a cinema experience complete with a film, popcorn and a drink - younger children from 3.30pm, and older ones coming back at 6.00pm. They are sure to have a great time!

Week Ending 23rd October 2014

This week Squirrels Class and Badgers Class have been "over the moon" because there is now a brand new  interactive white board in each classroom... it's as if Christmas has come early!  A big thank you goes to our Home School Association, who helped fund the purchase, and to all the parents whose contributions to fundraising made it possible.

On Thursday, our friends from Cafe Masala came to talk to our older children about food preparation, and demonstrated how to cook pilau rice. Lots of useful cooking tips were picked up by some of the adults as well!  Last week, the children made their own trays of colourful pasta - for more pictures of our cooking activities, please visit the EBA Enterprise page of our website

Also on Thursday, children helped to fill shoe boxes with gifts for children less fortunate than themselves.

Otters Class have been making pieces of stained glass, using techniques they found out about from the stained glass artist's visit.

Squirrels Class have been investigating the artists Lowry and Georgia O'Keeffe, and created fabulous reproductions of some famous pieces of artwork.

On Friday it was a non-uniform day, when children brought in items for the Christmas Fair, which is on Saturday 29th November. Please keep this date in your diary free... the more the merrier!

Enjoy a restful half term week.

Week Ending 17th October 2014

Parent consultation evenings were held this week, on Tuesday and Thursday, and many parents attended to find out all about the progress of their children. It is always amazing to see how much is accomplished within the first half term of a new School year.

Also on Tuesday and Thursday (the busiest days of the week?!) Art Club children were able to take home their creations. The children were very excited, and were heard making plans about where they would display their work.

Our ukulele players are progressing well, and can be heard strumming away happily, as they learn new chords and pieces of music. The joy of making music seems to have really taken off with our young musicians, who have been enjoying impromptu "busking" sessions in the library at lunchtime this week, involving a variety of instruments - trombone, violin, percussion... it lovely to see - and hear!

Younger children have been considering Harvest, and some re-enacted the story of "The Little Red Hen."  Next week, older children are looking forward to a visit from our friends at the Cafe Masala, who will be coming in to talk to them about spices and give instruction on how to make pilau rice. Meanwhile, some of the younger children will be food tasting, linked to the story of "Feeding the Five Thousand"

Don't forget, next week, School breaks up for a week for the half term holiday! Friday 24th October will be a non-uniform day, in return for a donation of sweets or a bottle for the Christmas Fair tombola.

Week Ending 10th October 2014

This week, it was Squirrels Class' turn to enjoy the Forest School. They made mini "shelters" using recycled  items and natural objects.

On Monday, Otters Class walked down to St Mary's Church (in the pouring rain) to look at the beautiful stained glass window they have there.  The vicar was able to tell them lots of information about all of the windows, some of which are very old, and some much newer.  Otters children now have lots of ideas and inspiration for creating their own stained glass windows!

Older children have been delving into the works of Rudyard Kipling and have studied "The Jungle Book", especially the antics of the cheeky mongoose Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. They have also been learning about World War 1, and created an array of 3D models. Do have a look at the "Poppy" board in the corridor next time a visit to School is called for... many names from the past!

The real highlight of the week though, for Foxes and Deer children, was on Thursday afternoon, when as part of their EBA Enterprise work, they had the opportunity to visit a real working restaurant. The Cafe Masala in Eaton Bray kindly welcomed us, and treated our children like VIP guests, laying a table beautifully and serving a selection of their delicious curries, rice and poppadums for the children to taste and enjoy!  The children learned such a lot about running a successful business, and came back buzzing with ideas that they hope to turn into reality when they establish their own restaurant.  We would like to extend our huge thanks to the Cafe Masala, and would encourage anyone to visit, if you want a fabulous Indian meal!

Week Ending 3rd October 2014

Wednesday was a bright, sunny day, which was perfect for our KS2 Sports Day in the afternoon. The children were full of enthusiasm and put lots of effort into all the activities.  Keep your eye on the Sports and PE page of our school website for more photos and results, which will be appearing soon!
   

 

Pre-School children in Hamsters Class have been enjoying Forest School this week, and have been using a saw to cut wood, and making jewellery from natural materials.

EBA Enterprise children in Years 5 and 6 have been busy expanding their culinary knowledge and expertise! This week they have made "fruit cheese", using quince and damsons collected by the children from trees in our school grounds, and Spansih manchego cheese. Mr Wallis showed them how to cook, pulp and sieve the fruit. It was left to set, and then everyone had a taste - opinions varied - some enjoyed it more than others...!

Week Ending 26th September 2014

Last week, our Foxes and Deer children had a marvellous time learning how to make bread!  Our school chef, Mr Wallis showed them how to knead the dough and explained about leaving it to prove and allow the yeast to work.  All the children went home with a selection of lovely loaves, which they cooked at home and shared with their families.  This was all part of their EBA Enterprise work, where the cooking skills learnt in the classroom will be put towards opening their EBA restaurant later this year.

The highlight of this week was on Friday, when the School celebrated "Dahlicious Day!"  Adults and children came to school dressed as a character from one of Roald Dahl's books, or came as an imaginary figure, yet to be written about!

Dates for your diary:

KS2 Sports Day - Wednesday 1st October
Sharing Assembly - Thursday 9th October
Parents Consultation Evening - Tuesday 14th October and Thursday 16th October
Half Term Week - Monday 27th October

Our Hall board is changing, so look out for our Lowry "Through the Window" extravaganza!  All the classes contribute, through work covering the foundation and core areas of the curriculum.