Coming up in this edition of the newsletter...
- Key Stage 2 Borough Sports
- PTA Father's Day Sale report
- Inflatable Fun on the Field
It’s Friday! What a week it has been... A lot has happened since Monday with many in-school and out-of-school events, including the PTA's Father's Day sale. They raised lots of money for the school so a big thank you to them and to you for supporting.
We started the week with a learning walk with two trustees linked to our school. Mr. Murkin and Mrs. Packer came to look at our wider school curriculum and the adaptations we make to ensure all children are successful in their learning. As usual, these visits are very useful to us. They allow us to show our good practice and to identity any areas for further development. Also on Monday it was the Junior Music Festival. What a great evening! Mrs. Astrella and Mrs. Dyer did a superb job of preparing the children and their performance was fantastic. It is always a great experience to perform on stage - especially somewhere as grand as the Cliffs Pavilion.
Tuesday was the Key Stage 2 Borough Sports over at Garons. All of the children who took part did themselves proud with their performances. A number of the children won medals and a full report will follow. Thank you to those family and friends who were there to support.
Wednesday saw most of our Year 5 children travel to Brentwood for the Thriftwood residential. Two nights under the stars… Across the three days, the children participated in archery, climbing, caving and water activities amongst others. A great time was had by all - thank you to all of the adults who supported the trip and a mention to those who gave up their evenings and sleep to stay over… Mrs. Axelson, Mrs. Shuttleworth, Mr. Latham, Mrs. Lynch, Miss Gibbons, Mrs. Brady, Mr. Brady and Ms. Taylor-Brown. Without our staff's commitment these opportunities just wouldn't happen.
The Year 5 children who stayed behind had a lovely time too with Miss Johnson and Mr. Lynes. Their activities including making pizzas, sport and a beach visit.
After a very full week we’re off to have a good rest.
Have a very lovely weekend! If you're cheering on England on Sunday against Serbia... Come on England! See you all on Monday.
Mr. McClay, Principal
Missing clothing and the importance of naming items
If you didn't have the chance last week, please do check school clothes/coats for names of other children. It would be great if we could reunite missing items with their owners.
Diary Dates
June
- Monday 17th - Year 3 Education Visit to Colchester Castle
- Nursery Stay & Play: Sports Day
- Tuesday 18th - Nursery Beach Visit
- Wednesday 19th - PTA Inflatable event (see the posters later in the newsletter)
- Thursday 20th - Clean Air Day
- Friday 21st - World Music Day
- KS1 3 Tees Cricket
- Tuesday 25th - Nursery Beach Visit
- Wednesday 26th - KS1 Sports Day and Picnic
- KS2 Picnic and Sports Day
- Thursday 27th - Year 2 Call of the Wild Visit
- Friday 28th - KS1 Borough Sports
July
- Monday 1st - Veolia Visiting Year 1
- Tuesday 2nd - Nursery Beach Visit 12:30pm-3:15pm
- Wednesday 3rd - Friday 5th - Art and D&T Festival at Friars
- Wednesday 3rd - Parents Open Evening
- Thursday 4th - Nursery Stay & Play
- Friday 5th - Year 6-7 Transition Day
- Monday 8th - Friday 12th - Career Week
- Monday 8th - Little City Visit EYFS & KS1
- Tuesday 9th - School Nurse presentation to parents
- Little City Visit EYFS & KS1
- Nursery Beach Visit 12:30pm-3:15pm
- Wednesday 10th - Year 3 & 4 YMCA Songwriting workshop
- Thursday 11th - Final swimming lesson for 1MV
- Friday 12th - PTA Summer Fayre 2:15pm to 4:30pm
- Monday 15th - Nursery Stay & Play
- Tuesday 16th - Year 6 Pizza & Film afternoon
- Wednesday 17th - Year 6 Water Fight
- Thursday 18th - Y6 Leavers Assembly 9:15am-10:00 (KS2 Hall)
- Friday 19th - Last Day of Term
- Monday 22nd - INSET DAY
REMAINING 2023/24 INSET DAYS
- Monday 22nd July 2024
Nursery
Nursery have been celebrating the marvellous men in their lives this week, talking about what they do that is special and how they help us. It was so nice to hear all the lovely comments about the wonderful dads, grandads, uncles and big brothers in their lives. They are very lucky to have them.
Our morning children enjoyed their first beach trip. They spent time making sandcastles, walking across the mud searching for crabs and carrying out a beach themed treasure hunt.
REMINDER: Nurseries rescheduled sports day – Monday 17th June. KS1 gate will be open at 10.20am for 10minutes only. Event to start at 10.30am.
Reception
This week we have been talking about what the men in our lives do for us. We shared some lovely thoughts and memories about our Dads, Grandads and Uncles. We discussed how different families look and how some of us will spend our time with our Grandads or Uncles instead of our Fathers. We also talked about our trip last week to Hyde Hall, beginning to form sentences and starting to attempt to write them. In maths we have been looking at teen numbers, how they are composed (10 and some more) and how they are represented, learning to recognise the numerals and count objects out.
Year 1
This week the children in Year 1 have completed the national Phonics Screening Test. We are really proud of the progress that they have made throughout the year. Results of the test will go home with your child’s report. The children have written stories based on The Storm Whale this week, using a range of punctuation and adventurous vocabulary. In maths we have been comparing numbers using the terms greater than and less than, as well as making 2 digit numbers by using tens and ones.
Our science lesson focused on investigating materials to see which ones are water proof. The children worked really hard to map out the Christian creation story.
REMINDER: Please ensure that children do not wear earrings on PE and swimming days (Mondays and Thursdays).
As the weather is getting warmer it would be helpful if every child had a water bottle in school.
Letters sent home this week (via ParentPay)
Year 2
Year 2 have continued to learn about Oceania. We used Google Earth, globes and atlases to locate this amazing continent which is made up of lots of different countries. We labelled some of these on our own map and carried out some research about one of them.
In maths we have started a topic about statistics and collecting data. We have used a table of results and a tally chart using tally marks.
During our food DT lesson, we investigated different types of wraps and decided which ones were healthy and unhealthy to eat.
REMINDER: Our trip to Call of the Wild is fast approaching. Please make sure you have visited ParentPay to give permission for your child to take part and pay for the trip.
Letters sent home this week (via ParentPay)
Year 3
This week we have started our final Year 3 assessments. We always try really hard with our assessments and are never phased by them.
In English, this week we have recapped on some grammar skills and written our very own stories. In maths we have continued with our topic of shape and have been looking at parallel and perpendicular lines along with recognising and describing 2D and 3D shapes.
In geography we have researched Italy, looked for it on maps and atlases and found out the capital city is Rome, as well as what seas and countries surround it. In French we learnt some names of snacks we would eat; it made us feel quite hungry!
REMINDER: It is our class trip on Monday, so PE will be swapped to Tuesday instead, for one week only.
Letters sent home this week (via ParentPay)
Year 4
This week, the children have been focusing on time in maths – how many seconds in a minute, how many minutes in an hour etc. There are lots of facts that the children need to embed and then apply to a variety of different questions. We have also completed the Year 4 National Multiplication test this week. They wouldn’t admit it, but lots of them have enjoyed the different challenges that they have completed whilst learning the times tables!
Thank you to all those who have brought boxes in. The children this week practised making a moveable switch that triggers an alarm. This is going to be included in their D&T project this half-term.
Science has moved on to states of matter where the children will be learning about solids, liquids and gases. This week, they were identifying a variety of different objects and labelling them as one of the three states. Toothpaste always causes an interesting discussion!
Just a heads up….Year 4 will be going to Shoebury Park for their geography lesson on Thursday 20th June (depending on reasonable weather). Please be on the look out for an email giving a few more details and Year 4 will have outdoor learning the first two weeks of July. We will let you know nearer the time which class is going first.
REMINDER: PE will be on Monday instead of Tuesday for one week only.
Letters sent home this week (via ParentPay)
Year 5
A very busy week for Year 5. You will have seen the posts on Facebook and on email about what the Thriftwood children got up to. A full write-up and lots of photos will follow soon. There will also be a report about the non-Thriftwood children's week too. Watch this space...
Letters sent home this week (via ParentPay)
Year 6
This week, we have focused our writing on ‘Holes’ by Louis Sachar. Children have been writing letters, diaries, News articles and a survival guide. In maths, children have been looking at budgets and expenses with a view to enterprise and fund-raising opportunities.
In science, we have started to look at the difference between temperature and climate. We observed our school environment and noted some of the wonders of nature.
As part of our geography, children have been working out their route to secondary school on Ipads; identifying safe crossing points and looking to familiarise themselves with the area.
REMINDER: 6B will be at Outdoor Learning next week - Please come dressed and ready for fun on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday! (Not Monday or Wednesday)
Letters sent home this week (via ParentPay)
Earth Day 2024
The theme of this year’s Earth Day is Planet Vs Plastic. The Eco-Committee asked the classes to make a class pledge and to think about how the can 'change the world in 5 minutes'. The children were also set a homework task and Renae from class 4S make this amazing art project to showcase this year's theme.
Computing
Year 1 this week have started on their Scratch Junior journey and learnt how to move their Sprite using the arrow block commands. Some children also worked out how to change their background, showing their curiosity in finding out how a program works.
Year 2 are also developing further on Scratch Junior and are looking at how using the different blocks can give the same outcome. They then considered which blocks might be the most efficient to use without unnecessary repetition.
Year 3 are growing in their use of Scratch on the desktop and have been trialling different keys for moving a Sprite up, down, left and right. Many chose the arrow keys, but some also decided w-a-s-d are the best keys to use, sharing their own knowledge of games they play at home.
Year 4 have been using Scratch to create count-controlled loops to make shapes on Scratch. They used their knowledge of Logo to calculate how many degrees turns are needed to make various shapes, showing off their great maths skills. Some then made some exciting shape creations, similar to a Spirograph.
Year 6 have completed their learning on Excel, completing their party plan and calculating the costs of the venue, food etc. then calculating whether this fits with their £15 budget per child. Their skills in creating formula have been excellent, showing they are ready for secondary school computing.
Online Safety
With football’s European Championships about to kick off, it’s likely that young fans will be inspired to take to the pitch themselves – or perhaps they’re naturally sporty already. High-profile tournaments such as this can be a great opportunity to teach children and young people about what constitutes being ‘a good sport’ – not just in terms of technique, but also attitude.
This guide collates our expert’s tips for encouraging fair play and friendly competition between children. It will help you to ensure that they can relish an enjoyable game of football, rugby or something else entirely — without unhealthy approaches to winning and losing polluting what could be an uplifting experience for all.
PE & Sports
This week, a large number of children from KS2 attended Borough Sports at Garon Park. It was a fabulous morning; enjoyed by all those who attended and competed for our school. The children all made us very proud to be wearing the Friars badge!
There were so many standout performances including medal winning performances from; Layla Z (6B), Chris (4D), Tate (3B), Brayden (6L), Cooper (4D), Rocky (6L), Naysa (6B). In addition to these children, our Year 3 boy's relay team (Harley, Oliver, Charlie and Tate) and our Year 4 boy's relay team (Alex, Cooper, George and Chris) also claimed medal positions for their superb team runs. Well done everyone involved!
Outdoor Learning
No outdoor learning this week due to our Yr5 Thriftwood advenures!
Next week it is 6B’s turn to get out into the great outdoors. Please come dressed and ready for fun on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday! (Not Monday or Wednesday)
Dinner Menu
Week 1
Monday - Beef Bolognaise with Spaghetti - Vegan Bolognaise with Spaghetti - Baked Jackets with Grated Cheese - Chicken Mayonnaise Baguette - Cheese Salad Wrap - Pea & Broccoli - Maryland Cookie
Tuesday - Ham & Cheese Pizza with Bakes Wedges - Margherita Pizza with Baked Wedges - Pasta & Tomato Sauce - Ham Sandwich - Cheese & Tomato Bloomer - Carrots & Sweetcorn - Apple Crumble with Custard
Wednesday - Roast Chicken with roast Potatoes & Gravy - Squash & Lentil Lasagna- Baked Jackets with Baked Beans - Tuna Sweetcorn Baguettes - Cheese Sandwich - Seasonal Greens & Cauliflower - Cherry Cornflake Cake
Thursday - Mild Chicken & Vegetable Curry with Steamed Rice - Vegan bEAN Chilli with Steamed Rice - Pasta & Tomato Sauce - Tuna Mayonnaise Sandwich - Cheese Salad Wrap - Broccoli & Carrots - Chocolate & Pear Sponge
Friday - Breaded Fish Fingers with Chips & ketchup - Vegan Goujons with Chips & Ketchup - Baked Jackets with grated Cheese - Ham Sandwich - Egg Mayo Baguette - Peas & Baked Beans - Banana Flapjack
Freshly Baked Bread - Carrot & Beetroot or Wholemeal Bread.
PTA
Thank you everyone for your support with our Fathers’ Day Sale! There will be some very lucky people around this weekend and we hope they all have a lovely day and enjoy their lovingly chosen gifts!
An exciting week next week as we get ready for our inflatable fun day on Wednesday after school. Please see the posters below to find out how to get your wristbands and also how to get involved in our non-uniform day! Children must be supervised by a parent or other responsible adult.
Celebration Assembly
The links for our Celebration Assemblies can be found below.
This week saw the yellow team triumph in Key Stage 1 and the green team in Key Stage 2. With Windsor not being at the top in either key stage, it does mean their overall lead has narrowed a little. 34 points is certainly not insurmountable and one of the other teams could still topple the reds…
Community
In July we are hoping to host some career events for our children. We are looking for parents/carers/family members or friends who would like to come and talk to our children about ut their jobs. Think you can help or know someone who can? Please drop me a line etaylorbrown@fps.porticoacademytrust.co.uk
01702 294837 - office@fps.porticoacademytrust.co.uk