Winston's Wish
On Friday 7th June, the Gosforth Schools’ Trust has decided to support the charity ‘Winston’s Wish.’ Winston’s Wish is a charity that was originally founded to help children who had been bereaved of a parent or sibling. As the charity has grown over the past 30 years, it has gone on to help support children and those working with children who are dealing with all kinds of bereavement and grief.
Winston’s Wish started a fundraising day called ‘Wear Wellies.’ Why Wellies? Children who experience grief often jump from one emotion to a complete opposite one as a way of coping with their grief. This can be described as puddle jumping and this was the inspiration behind wearing wellies to raise money. More information about this wonderful charity can be found via the link below.
As a Trust, we are asking for all staff and children to come to school wearing wellies / boots (or an alternative type of footwear) with their usual school uniform, in exchange for a small donation to the charity. Thank you, in advance, for your support.
Summer Holiday Club With Lee Sterry Coaching
As you know, we work closely with Lee Sterry Coaching and the team have agreed to run Multi-Sports Activity Club during week one and two of the Summer Holidays at Regent Farm First School. (This is open to children who attend our school from Reception to Year 4).
The club will be lots of fun and the children will complete a range of sports, games and activities. They will have access to our school field, halls and toilets so the setting is familiar to all the children. You can either book a full day (9am until 3pm) or a morning only (9am until 12pm). If the children are coming for the full day, they will need a packed lunch with them. The club will cost £60 for a full week, or £30 if you are only attending the mornings.
To book and pay for a place, please use the links below which will direct you to the Lee Sterry Coaching booking page. Children are welcome to attend both weeks if they would like to. Please be aware that school staff will not be supporting these activity weeks therefore if your child has additional needs which usually require adult support, you should get in touch with the coaches via their website. You should also provide any medication that your child may need to the coach on the day.
Sensational Summer Sandcastles
Over the next month, the Gosforth Schools' Trust have a new challenge for you! Can you create an unusual sandcastle? You could visit a local beach or make a creation out of a different material such as Lego, playdough or mud. Send an image of your masterpiece to the admin email; we cannot wait to see your creations!
Curriculum Information
EYFS
Nursery have continued exploring various types of transport. They visited some magical places during the magic train ride week and even found a fairy in nursery garden! It was then time to board Emma Jane's Aeroplane. They travelled to lots of amazing cities; cooking pizza in Venice; building their own Eiffel Tower in Paris; and helping a dragon fix his wings in Beijing. The children rounded off their busy half term by showing their skills on their bikes, making sure they were resilient, just like the character in their story.
This half term, the children in Reception have been using Gizmos and Gadgets to create new recipes in the Fairytale Kitchen. They have made Plumbelina fairy cakes, Rapretzles and 3 pear porridge! The children took a vote and decided their favourite recipe was the Hansel and Gretel cookies. They have also begun to re-tell classic fairytale stories, inspired by You Choose Fairytales. So far, they have told staff stories about mermaids, pirates and even Egyptians!
Key Stage 1
Year 1 have become experts about George Stephenson. They have loved learning about his inventions including the Geordie Lamp, Blucher and of course the Rocket really impressing everyone at the George Stephenson Museum with their knowledge. In Art, they have used nature as William Morris did to create their own printing tile. They have printed multiple times to create a repeating pattern and collaborated with another artist in the classroom to create our final masterpiece. To bring the topic to a close, year 1 worked with GEM Education this week to make and film their own interactive book. This is now in production and will be ready after the holidays to share with you all!
Year 2 have been thinking about Leonardo Da Vinci and how his sketches and ideas have evolved into modern day machines including submarines and aeroplanes. Taking inspiration from his use of mechanics, they have been creating their own moving minibeast. In English, they have been inspired by Roald Dahl's The Twits and they have created and written their own revolting recipe.
Key Stage 2
This half term the children in Year 3 have thoroughly enjoyed the Gizmo and Gadget topic. As part of the topic the children have taken part in a STEM workshop with Nissan and a robotics workshop. They've had the opportunity to design, build and evaluate their products - they also understood the importance of failure when creating and designing new products! In History, the children have been looking at inventions from the past and what impact they have had on the world we live in. They have found out about the British inventor James Dyson and how he has created his own business empire. They also discovered that James Dyson made over 5,000 prototypes before making the final Dyson Hoover.
In Science, the children have been investigating friction and magnetic force. They have carried out several investigations but their favourite was definitely testing friction using the cars. In English, the children have been immersed in the story of the Iron Man by Ted Hughes and they loved reading this story in class. They have produced some fantastic written work and have used elements of this story to write their own sci-fi narratives. As part of their DT, the children had great fun making robotic arms out of wood which they painted to replicate the Iron Man. They also used the ipads to make super Iron Man movie trailers.
In Year 4, the children have been learning about coal mining in the Victorian Times. They had a visit from "That History Bloke" and the children had the opportunity to look at the artefacts to discover more about the past. They have found out what it was like to work down a pit and what life was like as a miner. As part of the DT curriculum, the children have had the opportunity to taste different foods from Victorian times and think about their likes and dislikes. They learnt about the Hartley Pit disaster and the children have been writing a newspaper report in their English work. This half term the children have also been reading the playscript Street Child which they have loved. In Guided Read the children have read ‘The Boy at the Back of the Class’ and they had the opportunity to go to the Newcastle Theatre Royal to see a production of this amazing book. Currently many of our year 4 children are on their residential trip to Hawkhirst and we're sure they've created memories which will stay with them forever!
Dates for Half Term
- Friday 24th May - Break up for May Half Term
- Monday 3rd June - School Closed for Training Day
- Thursday 6th June Year 2 visit to Gosforth Nature Reserve
- Friday 7th June Wear Wellies Day
- Monday 10th June - Class Photos will be taken
- Tuesday 11th June ‘That History Bloke’ in school to work with Year 3
- Tuesday 11th June 2:15pm until 3:15pm Year 4 Outdoor Learning with Parents
- Wednesday 12th June 2:15pm until 3:15pm Year 3 Outdoor Learning with Parents
- Week Commencing 17th June Healthy Inside and Out Week Children need to wear sports clothing and trainers every day this week.
- Thursday 20th June Reception visit to Broxfield Farm
- Friday 21st June Family Fun Sports Day
- Wednesday 26th June 2:15pm until 3:15pm Year 1 Outdoor Learning with Parents
- Thursday 27th June 2:15pm until 3:15pm Year 2 Outdoor Learning with Parents
- Week Commencing 1st July - Book Fair
- Monday 1st July - Nursery visit to Kirkley Hall
- Wednesday 3rd and Thursday 4th July Year 4 Transition Visits to Middle Schools (Great Park Middle School transition is 12 July)
- Wednesday 3rd July Meet New Class Day
- Wednesday 3rd July After School Summer Fayre
- Thursday 4th July End of Year School Report will be sent home
- Monday 8th July - Kenya Day
- Thursday 11th July - Y3 Visit to St Nicholas Nature Park
- Friday 12th July Best Attendance Treat Visit for the class with the highest attendance over the year
- Tuesday 16th July Year 2 and Year 4 Visit to Newcastle Safety Works
- Wednesday 17th July Nursery Garden Party 2:00pm
- Thursday 18th July Year 4 Graduation Event 4:30pm
School Breaks up for Summer on Friday 19th July at 3:15pm
The children return on Tuesday 3rd September 2024 (Monday 2nd September is a Teacher Training Day)