This week’s newsletter for Rossall Junior School and Nursery.
YEAR 6
| It has been a very positive return to school for Year 6. We have especially enjoyed PE sessions in the sunshine and getting back in to the Dining Hall and enjoying the fare offered by Heather and the Team. We have also been discussing all the opportunities ahead. Talk of fixtures, swimming, outdoor activities, class trips and parties have got all the children rather excited and we feel, as we are sure you do, it is the least they deserve after the last few months. |
YEAR 5
| F Scott Fitzgerald wrote in The Great Gatsby, “And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” Add to that the excited chatter of children who are delighted to be back, and Rossall resplendent in sunshine, that is how our Summer term has begun. We have already dipped our toes into the fabulous book, The Paperbag Prince and have enjoyed thinking about the amazing world that we live in. Our brains have been buzzing with decimals and problem-solving in Mathematics. However, if you ask your children what has excited them most about the start of term, I rather think they would answer, “ Lunch in the Dining Hall!” |
YEAR 4
| What a lovely sunny start to the Summer Term! It has been great to welcome Year 4 back! Before the Easter break, Year 4 were finding out about ‘natural disasters’ and were investigating ‘strong shapes’ in order to create an earthquake-proof structure. This week, they had the chance to build them – using only cocktail sticks and blu-tac and this is no mean feat! It was wonderful to see the communication skills as the children discussed their ideas, the resilience when things didn’t go to plan and curiosity shown as the children tried to create their structures! It was then time to test them on Miss Clapp’s invention – ‘The Shaker Table’! We definitely have some budding architects, as all the buildings were deemed successful, offering some level of protection during the 30-second ‘quake’! We have lots more to look forward to during the Summer Term and fingers crossed that sun keeps shining! |
YEAR 3
| What a great start to the Summer Term we have had in Year 3! In Maths, we are continuing with fractions and this week the children made Fractions Caterpillars. We are also continuing our Science unit on plants, with our radishes growing healthily. We have started our new books for English – Journey and Tilly Mint Tales. Our new topic takes us back in time to visit Ancient Civilisations. All very exciting! Well done for a great first week back, Year 3. |
YEAR 2
| What a fantastic start to the Summer Term! We have had a wonderful three days of learning. Our new ‘Digging for Dinosaurs’ topic has captured our interests and we have been looking for signs that dinosaurs have visited our playground. In our first Topic lesson, we found out that a Diplodocus had an 8-metre long neck. To put it into some context, we wanted to check if the whole of Year 2 would be taller than 8-metres combined. We measured ourselves with a metre stick on the playground and discovered we are 4 metres longer than a Diplodocus’ neck. |
YEAR 1
| In Year 1 we are looking forward to all the exciting things coming up this term. In class, we have been finishing off our ‘Down in the Jungle’ topic by writing our own story based on our class book The Lion Inside. The children have created a new animal character instead of the mouse to write about. We have also made animal masks as part of our topic work and thought about how we can add 3D features to our masks. |
RECEPTION
| You may have noticed that some of the activities we do in Reception are not always planned and very different from what you may expect us to be doing, this is because we have a strong belief in child-initiated play, which is where we allow the children to take the lead. Child Initiated play is defined as play that is instigated, led and controlled by the child rather than the adult. A child-led play scenario should allow a child to control the direction and narrative of their play experiences. It has benefits for the child including enhanced initiative, confidence, creativity and innovation. This week, we have introduced a post box and uniform, as the children are thoroughly enjoying writing letters to each other. We also love worms so we are taking part in a worm hunt next week and are really enjoying learning all about worms and how good they are for the earth. Some children just love cutting, anything and everything so this week they have been cutting up herbs to make very exotic dishes in our outside kitchen. These are just some of the child-initiated activities that are set up each and every week for all the children to enjoy and benefit from … as Freidrich Froebel said “play is the highest form of learning”. |
NURSERY
| The sun is shining and the school grounds look amazing, giving the children a great opportunity to explore. The Preschool children have been reading the story Super Worm. The story of the superhero who saves all his insect friends but has no one to save him. On an adventure outside, the children found an egg. Being real-life superheroes, they wanted to protect it from the lions so they made a nest to keep it safe. They have been busy collecting worms (wholemeal pasta) from the soil and placing them safely in the little buckets to keep them safe from the lizards. This is a great way to master their fine motor skills. Sandpipers have enjoyed the ‘what’s in the box’ segment of circle time. The children get to choose their own song and we sing it as a group. They have learnt new words, new actions and also how to sit for a short period of time. The good weather has also allowed the children to spend every morning outside. They have been taking part in large scale art, emptying and filling the plant pots and fixing the cars. On an adventure across the fields, the children found a large stone and one of the children said it was broken. They began to find stones to fix it and kept patting it saying ‘Fix it! Fix it!’ Sanderlings have been listening to the story of Spot the Dog. This is an interactive story that allows the staff to teach the children the different parts of their bodies. They have also begun singing ‘head, shoulders, knees and toes’. |
INSTRUMENTAL LESSONS
| At Rossall Preparatory School, all pupils have the opportunity to receive one-to-one instrumental tuition. Whether students wish to learn purely for fun or to achieve ABRSM/Trinity/Rock School qualifications, we have a dedicated team of expert teachers to support and guide them along the way. Lessons take place before, during and after the school day (subject to availability). Students who take instrumental lessons will have the opportunity to participate in co-curricular clubs and perform in school concerts and external events. We offer tuition in: Piano, Organ, Singing, Guitar, Trumpet, Trombone, French Horn, Flute, Bassoon, Oboe, Saxophone, Clarinet, Drums, Violin and Cello. Lesson packages of 10 one-to-one sessions (30 minutes each) cost £210. In the Summer Term, we are launching shared 30-minute violin lesson packages for students who are interested in playing the instrument. The loan of a violin, equipment and music is all included in the cost of the package, which is £105 per child for 10 sessions. Please click here to apply for instrumental lessons. All fees are subject to periodic increase in accordance with Rossall School’s Terms and Conditions. Please note that a half-term’s notice is required to cancel lessons. If you have any questions regarding instrumental lessons at Rossall Preparatory School, please contact Mr Adam Dobson on [email protected]. |
AWARD WINNERS
| RECEPTION – This weeks certificate of achievements go to Harry and Darius. Harry has been very kind to the Nursery children in the playground this week. He has returned equipment to them and held doors open for the Nursery children to come out to play. Darius is trying so hard with his reading and phonics and has made fantastic progress as a result.  YEAR 1 – Zach and Emma for their fantastic effort in Topic to make an animal mask.  YEAR 2 – Jude and Archie for being really enthusiastic and determined in our Topic lessons.  YEAR 3 – This week’s certificates go to Eleanor for making a real effort to be kind to others, and to Poppy for trying her very best with her joined-up handwriting.  YEAR 4 – Kieran and Dawood for working as a team and showing great cooperation and communication skills. YEAR 5 – Charlotte and Aliyah – both girls have made an outstanding start to the Summer Term.   YEAR 6 – Lucas for independent work and progression, Joe for knowledge and enthusiastic approach to learning, and Evie and Sinminoluwa for independent research and presentation of work.   Well done to all! |
