Week Ending 5th May 2017

It's been a very busy hard-working few days for many of us this week.  Our Year Six children have had their heads down and their concentration fully engaged, as they finalise preparations for their SATs tests, which take place next week.  They have completed practice papers in test conditions, and familiarised themselves with all that they can expect when they open their first SATs papers on Monday...

Now we are urging them to have a happy, relaxed weekend, plenty of fun and plenty of rest, so that they are in good spirits and feeling positive for whatever next week may bring!

Good luck Deer Class - we're very proud of you!

It's also been an eventful week for our Key Stage 2 sporting superstars, who took part in a football tournament against other local schools.  On Friday, our Year 3 and 4 team made it through to the finals for their age group, where they eventually finished second, losing out to Hadrian Academy 1-0 in a close match.

Our Year 5 and 6 team also qualified for their group finals, which took place on Tuesday.  Competition was tough, but we managed to finish a very respectable third on the leaderboard, with Lancot School and St Christopher's taking first and second place.  Well played to all our footballers!

There was more sport on Thursday, when some of the Year Three children went off to Dunstable Leisure Centre for swimming lessons.  Each week this month, half of Rabbits Class will be going swimming on a Thursday afternoon, while the other half enjoy Forest School activities.

This week, the Forest School children made shelters and learnt how to keep themselves warm and dry whilst out in the wilderness.

 

Badgers Class presented an assembly on Thursday, on our value for this half term, which is "Thoughtfulness".  The children talked about how being thoughtful and considerate towards others improves the lives of everyone.

One way that everyone at EBA can show thoughtfulness at the moment, is by being extra quiet and sensible as we move around the school while SATs tests are taking place.

Otters Class have been learning about the classification of animals in their Science lessons.  They found out about the characteristics of various reptiles and amphibians, and then used clay to make their own creatures.  Their creations were very impressive!

On Friday, the children were asked to bring in something "special" to them, to talk about to the rest of the class.  They had to explain what their item was, and why it was important to them.  There was quite a range of treasured objects, including cuddly toys, favourite story books, photographs and certificates.

 

Rabbits Class meanwhile, have been finding out about law and order.  On Friday, they staged a trial, to determine whether the Giant in Jack and the Beanstalk was guilty or innocent of being an evil rogue who chased Jack and threatened to eat him!  

The children took the roles of judge, jurors and witnesses, debating the matter in depth, before finally declaring a verdict of "Not Guilty!"  The Court of Rabbits decided that the Giant was innocent of all charges, and that Jack should be the one in the dock, for his crimes of breaking and entering, and theft!  

The children thoroughly enjoyed this exercise, and learnt a lot about debating, evaluating a situation and using their judgement.  And it was all very entertaining for the adults in the class as well!

We have a very busy week in store next week... but are looking forward to Friday, when we will celebrate the completion of another round of assessments!

Week Ending 28th April 2017

The week started on a patriotic note, as we celebrated St George's Day with a traditional English breakfast!  The kitchen staff were up bright and early on Monday to cook for parents, children and staff.  As usual on this occasion, the hall was bedecked with St George flags and bunting, and there was a happy party atmosphere as everyone tucked into their bacon and eggs.

When they had finished eating, the children went out onto the field to work off their breakfasts with a game of that most traditional of English sports - cricket.  And even the weather was typically English for us - somewhat cold and drizzly!

On Tuesday, Badgers Class were visited by their friends from The Meads Primary School In Luton.  This visit was organised as part of the Schools Linking Network Programme, which encourages friendship and links between partner schools in different locations.

The children spent the day together, enjoying activities and team games, and finding out more about one another.  They shared a picnic lunch in the classroom, and spent some time in the playpark in the afternoon, where everyone had tremendous fun!

Squirrels Class also enjoyed a little trip out on Tuesday.  They went for a history walk around the village, to find out more about the carnation growing nurseries, owned by the Wallace family, that Eaton Bray was once famous for.  They went to look at the old greenhouses, which are just about still standing, and discovered that the history of the village lives on in some of the road names - Wallace Drive, The Nurseries and so on.

When they returned to school, Mrs Warby visited the class to share with the children some of her memories from when she was a child, when her mother worked for Mr Wallace at his nurseries.

Wednesday was EBA Enterprise day for the Year Five children, and they were very excited about their "Masterchef" task, which was to design, create and name a confectionary bar.  Some very exciting ingredients were produced, including chocolate, sweets, honeycomb, Rice Krispies and popping candy!  The children had a lovely time mixing and melting, and produced some delicious looking snacks, with exciting names such as "Muddy Fun", "Marshmallow Mess" and "Brilliant Breakfast Bar".

The lucky person who got to judge the results was Mr Potton, who tasted each concoction, and pronounced them all delicious - luckily he has a sweet tooth...!  The winner was the "Martian Explosion", which featured chocolate, marshmallows and strawberries.  Yummy!

  

On Thursday it was Hedgehogs Class Assembly.  The children shared with parents and the rest of the school some of the work they have been doing this year, and demonstrated their skills in phonics and numeracy.  They talked about how much fun they had during Book Week when they explored the adventures of the "Naughty Bus", sharing photos and their Naughty Bus Diaries.

They also acted out the story of the Penguinpig, which is a tale that teaches young children about e-safety, and the importance of not believing everything we read or see online - a very important message in this day and age!

On Friday, we were visited by the Headteachers from two local secondary schools, who came in to have lunch with Year Six children who will be moving on next year.  It was a lovely relaxed opportunity for our children to find out more about what to expect when they go to secondary school, which we hope will help with the transition.

Afterwards, the children certainly felt very excited about their next step, and could talk of nothing else on Friday afternoon.  We are very grateful to Mr Sturgeon from Aylesbury Grammar School and Mr Button from Queensbury Academy for giving their time to talk to our children.  Thanks are also due to Mr McBurnie from Cottesloe who visited on Wednesday, and Mr Parker from Manshead who is coming to see us next week.

Week Ending 21st April 2017

The children were very happy to return to school after the Easter Holiday and find that the playground has been transformed with bright colourful new markings.  There is hop-scotch, an alphabet caterpillar, a large compass/clock and lots of other fun designs, as well as an enlarged netball court.  This has all been possible as a result of the fundraising that was done over Christmas and last term, so thank you to all who have contributed.

We are pleased to welcome some new families to our school this term.  We hope your children will be happy here, and enjoy their time at Eaton Bray Academy.

It has been a short week for the children with Bank Holiday Monday and an inset day on Tuesday, but lots of hard work has already been taking place in the classrooms.  Otters children have imagined going on a bus journey, and have built Lego models of the things they might see through the window.

Hedgehogs have been enjoying "Helicopter Stories".  Not, as you might think, stories about helicopters, but a method of storytelling that sparks the children's creativity and lets their imaginations fly!  The children dictate stories from their imagination, which are written down by the teacher, exactly as they are told.  The children then act out the stories as a group, which they have thoroughly enjoyed.

Foxes Class have done some excellent scientific investigation this week.  Their task was to separate out a mixture of different materials - pasta, salt, sand and paperclips!  This involved using magnets, a sieve, filtration and evaporation.  They were then given some muddy water, and had to use filtration to try and make it as clean as water straight from the tap.  They found the work very interesting and are keen to do lots more of this kind of practical science.

Deer Class looked at the human heart in their Science lessons, and spent some time drawing detailed diagrams to show how the heart works.  They used ipads to create their own video tutorials of their findings to share with the rest of the class.

On Thursday evening there was a meeting for the parents of the Year Five children who are going on the PGL residential trip to Caythorpe Court, Lincolnshire in May.  Everyone is looking forward to this immensely and can't wait to take part in the activities that will be on offer.

The Year Five children are also very excited about their future plans for EBA Enterprise.  They are pleased to announce that late in the autumn term, they will be opening the "Best of British" EBA Restaurant for parents and staff.  Menus are already being created and roles assigned, and we expect the event will take place shortly before Christmas.  Watch this space...!

Week Ending 31st March 2017

We have reached the end of what has felt like a very busy term!  It has been a lovely final week, with all sorts of Easter activities taking place, fun events for the children and plenty of chocolate eggs in evidence!

In Hamsters Class, the children made chocolate nests and chocolate flavoured drinks - they enjoyed both the making and the consuming part of the activity!  They have also made Easter cards, Easter pictures and Easter bonnets and have had a daily Easter egg hunt on the playground and field.

On Wednesday, everyone in the Main School enjoyed an assembly presented by Deer Class, on the theme of "Respect".  The children performed some short drama sketches, gave a presentation about why it is important to respect yourself and others, and then entertained us all with a word perfect rendition of the Respect Rap.

After school, we held another of our popular sale stalls, this time selling a selection of yummy Easter treats.  This was organised by Mrs Cooney and Mrs Healy, who worked hard to produce a lovely array of cakes, biscuits and chocolate goodies for parents and children to buy.  There was also a raffle, with chocolate hampers to win, made up from items that had been generously donated.

Wednesday evening was Bingo Night!  This was a fun event for children in Deer, Foxes and Badgers Class, and was greatly enjoyed by all.  The children were treated to a delicious buffet supper, and there were prizes of Easter Eggs for the lucky winners.

On Thursday morning, it was Otters Class Assembly.  The children talked about the work that they have done over the course of this term, including all that was covered during Book Week, Maths week and Science Day.  They shared some of the things that they have learnt during our food topic, and showed photos of their Tudor banquet.  They finished off with a wonderful Chicken Song - just right for Easter!

Thursday was an exciting day for all the children, as it was Talent Show Day!  Organised and hosted by the School council, this is an end of term event that many of our children look forward to for weeks.  The performers spend hours rehearsing and perfecting their skills, which include singing, dancing, football skills, magic tricks and much more.  Among the highlights this time were an impressive performance of "diablo" tricks, a short demonstration of how to play music with empty wine bottles, and a very funny all male performance of that old favourite "Let it Go!"

The acts are all appraised by a panel of judges made up of School Council members, and prizes awarded to the winners.  These were presented in assembly on Friday morning.
 

After school on Thursday, children in Hedgehogs, Otters, Squirrels and Rabbits Class took part in an Easter Egg Hunt.  There were clues that they had to follow and puzzles to solve.  These took the children on a quest throughout the building and into the school grounds, with an Easter egg for everyone at the end.  It was a beautiful warm spring day, just right for egg hunting!

Friday, as usual for the last day of term, was Games and Non-uniform Day.  In assembly the Easter raffle was drawn, with the numbers being picked by the children.  Well done to the lucky winners!

 As the term draws to a close, please can we take this opportunity to sincerely thank all our parents for the wonderful ongoing support you have shown us over the past weeks and months.  We really do appreciate every gesture of thanks we receive, all your efforts to work with the school and engage with the school community, and every penny that you spend buying cakes, craft items, raffle tickets and so on.  Your contributions help in so many ways.

Happy Easter from everyone at Eaton Bray Academy - we will see you back at school on Wednesday 19th April.