Junior School Newsletter – Lent Term 2021 – Week 9

This week’s newsletter for Rossall Junior School and Nursery.

YEAR 6

The reopening of the School has created a real sense of excitement for both the teachers and children in Year 6. We quickly got back into the routine of things, completing lots of work but also making sure we took the opportunity to get involved in all those activities we missed out on during lockdown.

This week, we have been down to the beach to complete some Mathematics work on area and perimeter. We have also visited the Rossall Kitchens to bake some Victoria sponges in line with our topic, and we even got the opportunity to take part in a variety of team challenges during our games sessions.

All these activities and the after school clubs have given the children the opportunity to make up for lost time, but don’t worry, Mr Condon and I have been scheming lots more fun in the weeks leading up to the Easter holidays.

YEAR 5

What a wonderful first week back!

It was fabulous to welcome the children back into Year 5 on Monday.

Happy, smiling faces and excited chattering filled the classroom. We spent some time telling stories about our experiences over the last few months. We also talked through any concerns that we had about returning to school. I was proud of the children, they responded to each other with compassion and understanding and it was not long before normal service was resumed.

We have had a busy week learning all about adverbials in English and solving complex word problems involving fractions in Mathematics.

The children have enjoyed researching the evolution of the hot air balloon; from the very first flight on November 21, 1783 in Paris, in a hot air balloon made of paper and silk made by the Montgolfier brothers, to the extraordinary feat of circumnavigating the earth. This was achieved on 20th March 1999 when the Breitling Orbiter 3 (piloted Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones) crossed the last meridian and landed in Mauritania, North Africa the following day. Both pilots had made history, covering a groundbreaking distance of 42,810 KM – the greatest hot air balloon challenge in the world had been achieved!

We have paid tribute to the beauty and majesty of the hot air balloon in our art, creating 3D balloons from coloured paper.

What a busy and productive week we have had!

Have a good rest this weekend Year 5, lots more to come next week!

YEAR 4

What a difference a week makes!

The Year 4 classroom has gone from a very quiet, lifeless place to one full of life and vibrancy as once again it is filled with the Year 4 pupils!

A school is just a building without the children who really bring it to life, and it has been wonderful to welcome Year 4 back this week!

The children have done some brilliant work over the ‘lockdown’ period but what they have missed out on is the opportunity to work with their peers and develop those very important social skills. Over the next few weeks, the emphasis will really be on this Year 4.

The children worked in groups this week to create some lovely pieces of drama inspired by our book ‘When the Giant Stirred’. I was most impressed by the way the children shared their ideas, negotiated with each other and worked with a common purpose.

The children’s teamwork skills were also put to the test when we visited Rossall Kitchen – baking butterfly cakes was a great way to end our first week back in school!

YEAR 3

What a fabulous first week back Year 3 have had!

It has been wonderful to be back in school altogether and enjoying learning with each other. We have continued reading Big Blue Whale, this week, developing our non-fiction writing and using the conjunction ‘therefore’.

We have continued to learn about global warming and climate change, using role-play to physically represent how this is happening (see the photos).

In Maths, we are continuing to learn about measuring length, this week starting to learn about the perimeters of shapes.

In Science, we finished our investigation into what plants need, and our next goal is to resurrect the three little plants that were nearly ruined in the process!

Fantastic to be back learning together, well done for a great return to school Year 3.

YEAR 2

Year 2 have had such a lovely first week back in the classroom.

On Monday, we read the book ‘The Dot’ and discussed the quote ‘just make a mark and see where it takes you’. We all created our own unique dots which all different shapes, sizes and colours!

We have continued reading Major Glad, Major Dizzy. The soldiers are now stuck in the floorboards. We have role-played what that might feel like and described the experience through our senses. In Maths, we have been recognising 2D and 3D shapes and have been learning to draw shapes accurately using a ruler!

YEAR 1

It has been so lovely to be back at school, all learning and playing
together again. It is just a shame that the beautiful Spring sunshine seems to have disappeared, for now, however, the rain has not dampened our spirits in Year 1.

This week has been British Science week. We have talked about what we think a scientist does and came up with lots of ideas including making medicine to stop the coronavirus. We have completed investigations, been making predictions, observing and asking questions.

In Maths, we have practising counting in 5’s and finding missing numbers in a sequence.

In Language, we have continued to think about our class book ‘The Lion inside’. We have thought about the animals in the story and used speech bubbles to show what the animals might say about the Lion’s character.

We have also been learning about different punctuation marks and when we should use a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark.

RECEPTION

Reception has had a week of science & innovation!

For our first week back in school, we have taken part in British Science Week 2021 – a 10-day celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths, with the theme Innovating for the Future.

We strive to inspire our scientists of the future. So every day we have done new science activities to keep our young scientists inspired throughout the whole week.

This week, we have looked at colour mixing, filtered water, discussed the water cycle, experimented with objects that float and sink, made parachutes, amongst other activities and most of all, had lots of fun!

We have used British Science Week as an opportunity to link STEAM to other curriculum subjects and to the children’s own backgrounds, lives and interests, we now have some budding scientists in the class!

STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, art and maths. STEAM learning during the early years helps children develop vital skills like critical thinking, curiosity, collaboration and creativity, and this week we have seen these in abundance!

To support our learning, we have also watched Messy as he goes on his magical adventures to OKIDO! This science comedy series available on BBC iPlayer answers the questions on every young child’s mind, like “What makes living things grow?” and “What powers the gadgets we use?”

Once British Science Week is over, this doesn’t mean the exploration and curiosity have to stop in Reception! The children will continue to take part in weekly Science experiments and investigations, based on the topic we are studying.

NURSERY

The children in Preschool have been busy planting this week. We finally thought spring was here but how wrong were we!

Firstly we planted cress and watched it grow daily and my goodness it was quick. We will use our maths skills to guess how tall we think it is, then use the ruler for the correct measurement.

Next, we went on to bigger things…Potatoes. We talked about how the potatoes have eyes which got many giggles from the children. However, they learnt that it’s simply the growing point on the tubers, each with a little bud winking at you. These have been placed at the front of the nursery so you can all see the growth (fingers crossed).

Hanging on our entrance windows are runner beans or magic beans as the children wanted to grow their own beanstalk. Having the plastic window will allow the children to see what they normally cannot as it’s usually buried under the soil.

The budding pre-school biologists continue as they experimented with chlorophyll painting. They collected leaves around the grounds and brought them back to the nursery where they used a pestle and mortar to release the green pigment chlorophyll.

Sandpipers have enjoyed squashing and squeezing playdough between their little hands. It is important for them to build up the muscles in their hands for them to be able to have the strength to write later on.

Shark in the Park is being enjoyed by the children and they are starting to repeat single words form the story.

Sanderlings have been creative this week as they are all busy for Mothers’ surprise on Sunday. They have enjoyed the wet, slippery sensory experience that the paint gave them when they placed the hand in the paint. The wet windy weather has not abled them to play out this week in the garden but they have still been out in the prams exploring the grounds, sitting up and taking in the world around them.  

AWARD WINNERS

RECEPTION – This week’s certificates go to two budding Scientists: Darius and Alicia. This week we have taken part in various experiments and investigations as part of British Science Week. Darius and Alicia have demonstrated superb critical thinking, curiosity, collaboration and creativity skills throughout the week. Well done to both!

YEAR 1 – This week’s certificates are awarded to Ryan for fantastic counting work in Maths, and Larry for excellent independent writing.

YEAR 2 – This week’s certificates go to Aaron for amazing progress in reading and Eryn for super independence and effort in Maths. 

YEAR 3 – This week’s Year 3 certificates go to: Karanjot for his never-ending enthusiasm for Maths, and Ahill for the determined care and detail he puts in his writing.

YEAR 4 – This week’s Year 4 certificates are awarded to Oskar for cooperating well in group activities and Michael for motivating and encouraging his team in group activities.

YEAR 5 – This week’s Year 5 certificates are awarded to: Aliyah for super work in English, and Ava for trying hard during Mathematics.  

YEAR 6 – This week’s Year 6 certificates are awarded to: Shamini for outstanding effort, Ethan for outstanding progress, Woody for outstanding progress in Mathematics, and Edward for outstanding effort.


Well done to all!

Well done to the following Year 5 pupils for their certificates of achievement: Joshua, Ruby, Amiee, Kameron, Betsy, Isabelle, Alicia, Harry, Vivian, Maya, Charlie, Aran and Jasmine.

A huge congratulations must also go to Isabelle, Alicia and Ruby for also achieving their pen licences (a very big deal in Year 5, indeed!)

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PICTURES FROM THIS WEEK