Dear Parents and Carers,

As we say goodbye to February and look forward to some improving weather to come I am happy to report that the children have returned to Term 4 with renewed energy and enthusiasm.

This week has seen the creative side of learning for many of our children with Yr2 attending a fantastic dance festival at Ashton Park Secondary School where they performed with many other schools across Bristol.

Our budding artists in Yr6 have been working hard to create several stunning shared paintings based on the artist Gustav Klimt, that have been submitted into the Victoria Methodist Church competition.

Just before half term, Yr5 spent some time cooking up an authentic Spaghetti Bolognese from scratch and tasting their own recipes. This led to their focus on writing some excellent recipes and instructions this week, connecting their writing to a clear experience and purpose. These are just a few examples of the ways in which we hope to immerse children in their learning.

Parent Volunteers

Thank you to all of our wonderful parents for the continued support that you give to the school. From the PTA events, cake sales, reading support, trips & visits and much more, we are very grateful for your help. The life and learning beyond the classroom could not happen without you all. This week, as well as our weekly cake sales we have been supported by a number of parents who kindly gave up their time to help the year two dance trip and our brilliant PTA providing some disco-fever for the whole school this evening – thank you all.

Safeguarding - Safer Internet Day 

This week we held our assemblies to help the children to understand how to stay safe online with the theme of ‘Too Good to be True’. As adults we are all aware of the wider complexities of safe internet use, especially in a rapidly evolving era of AI. Clearly, our children may be increasingly vulnerable online and it has become an expectation for schools to support children in learning to both use the internet as a tool but also to protect themselves from the potential dangers involved. The key messages are focused on children being able to spot, respond to and report all types of scams online and to know who their trusted adults are to go to for help and advice.

As parents I know that you will agree that this is a vital part of every child’s education both at school and at home. You may wish to use some of the Government recommended resources below to continue some of this learning at home:

• Thinkuknow by the National Crime Agency - Child Exploitation and Online Protection command (NCA-CEOP) - resources for parents and carers and children of all ages to help keep children safe online
• Childnet has developed guidance for parents and carers to begin a conversation about online safety, as well as guidance on keeping under-fives safe online
• Parent Info is a collaboration between Parent Zone and NCA-CEOP - support and guidance for parents and carers related to the digital world from leading experts and organisations
• National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) - guidance for parents and carers to help keep children safe online
• UK Safer Internet Centre- tips and advice for parents and carers to keep children safe online - you can also report any harmful content found online through the UK Safer Internet Centre
• Inclusive Digital Safety Hub and Online Safety Hub, created by South West Grid for Learning in partnership with Internet Matters - support and tailored advice for young people with additional learning needs and their parents or carers
• Parents’ Guide to Age Ratings explains how the British Board of Film Classification rates content, and gives parents advice on choosing online content well
• The Children’s Commissioner has published advice for parents on talking to your child about online sexual harassment specifically, based on input from children themselves

Resources taken from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-keeping-children-safe-online/coronavirus-covid-19-support-for-parents-and-carers-to-keep-children-safe-online

Uniform

I would politely remind you to please label and name all school uniform so that it can be returned when left/lost around the school. Thank you for ensuring that your children come to school correctly attired every day. Unfortunately, we currently have far too many children choosing to wear trainers on non-PE days and I would again ask for your support in keeping uniform standards high; school shoes are expected. Thank you.

Wising you all a wonderful weekend ahead.

Kind regards

Mark Oldfield

Headteacher

Inset and Academy days for the rest of the year (training for school staff - children are not in school on these days):

• Friday 23rd May - Academy day
• Monday 21st July - Inset day
• Tuesday 22nd July - Inset day

This week we eagerly shared our holiday news. We drew a picture and used our sounds to write about what we had done, whether it was relaxing at home with our family or visiting somewhere nice it seems like we all had a great week!

On Monday we enjoyed the story ‘What the Ladybird Heard’ by Julia Donaldson and had a go at drawing a map based on the directions in the story or using our own imagination.

Linking with our learning about farms and food we learnt how butter was made and had a go at making some ourselves by shaking the cream in a jar! We had a taste and discussed what had happened.

On Tuesday it was Safer Internet Day. We read PenguinPig by Amy Bradley and Chicken Clicking by Jeanne Willis and we discussed how to remain safe while online – our golden rule was to always check with a trusted adult!

In maths we revisited combining two numbers to make a whole and we also consolidated our learning on doubling up to 8. We continued our phonics journey by learning to read and write compounds words like sun/set and lap/top.

A busy first week back, well done all! We can’t wait for all the learning opportunities and fun planned for next week!

Reception Team

What a fantaSTICK first week back after the holidays! We have started our new book for the term called Stanley’s Stick by John Hegley. It follows the story of a boy named Stanley who has a stick and a limitless imagination. The children had a go at listing all the wild and wonderful things they’d want their stick to be including a boomerang, a scepter, and even a surfboard! To explore the main character Stanley further, we wrote thought bubbles for his character in key events throughout the story. The children effortlessly displayed empathy through their brilliant and thoughtful ideas.

In yoga with Carolyn we discussed the feeling of calm. What colour would calm be? What animal would it be? What would calm smell like? We practiced mindfulness by playing a game called ‘push sticks’ that aims to develop focus. The children worked in pairs to hold a stick with one finger from each partner. Year 1 showed excellent focus which helped us to create a calm environment in yoga.

This week year 2 went to Ashton Park for the KS1 dance festival. The theme for the event was ‘Dreams’.

2CB performed their dance to ‘Under the Sea’ and 2HB performed to ‘Daydream Believer’. After all of the rehearsals and time spent on their dances both classes did amazingly well on the day and we are so proud of them. Well done year 2!

We also introduced our new book for this terms Literacy ‘Man on the Moon’ by Simon Bartram. Children made predictions based on pictures from the story and wrote questions which they would like to ask the main character. In History children learned about the Space Race between Nasa (USA) and Roscosmos (Russia). They then made a timeline showing the events which lead to the moon landing.

This week Year 3 have been considering how to stay safe online. They really enjoyed Mr Eades’ assembly which was all about how to spot a scam online. On Friday they revisited some resources and had a circle time to talk further about how to stay safe. Then they produced some amazing posters to highlight their learning.

This week we have also welcomed Mr Cox and Miss Graham from Better Reading Partnership who will be working on supporting reading in our classroom until Easter.

This week, Year 4 have hit the road with their new Literacy book, The Night Bus Hero! They began by exploring stereotypical bullies in other stories, discussing what makes a villain truly mean and memorable. From there, they put their creative pens to work, crafting brilliantly vivid character descriptions that brought their villains to life. With powerful adjectives, striking similes, and some truly heroic efforts, their writing has been nothing short of storytelling supercharged!

Over in Science and D.T., Year 4 have been lighting up their learning with our Electricity topic! They started by building simple series circuits, experimenting with different materials to test which were conductors and which were insulators—some of the results were shockingly surprising! Taking their knowledge a step further, the children then put their design hats on to create plans for their very own torches, carefully considering specific needs and functions. Next week, they’ll spark even more excitement as they bring their designs to life with working models—ready to shine a light on their fantastic learning!

We’ve had a fantastic start to Term 4, with our DT topic “Food and Nutrition”.

On Monday, we did a lesson called “From Farm to Fork”, looking at beef production from cow to plate! Tuesday saw us investigating spaghetti bolognese recipes, considering how they can be adapted to enhance different flavour profiles and nutritional value. This lesson segued in to our Literacy nicely as we used our adapted recipes to help us with our instructional writing.

In Literacy we have identified the key features of instruction texts and we have edited and improved an existing example called “How to create an elf house” Here we are presenting our upgraded versions.

We have been really impressed with how well the children have come back to school after the break; working hard and giving 100% to their learning. Keep up the great work Y5!

This week, Year 6 have completed their art unit on Collage – ‘to use found materials and adhesives to assemble and embellish decoratively’.

We have been exploring the work of Gustav Klimt, the renowned Austrian artist known for his intricate patterns, rich colours, and iconic use of gold leaf. Inspired by his masterpiece ‘The Tree of Life’ and other works from his ‘Golden Phase’ of artwork linked to nature, we learned about his unique artistic style. To bring Klimt’s techniques to life, we have created stunning collages, layering tissue paper, metallic papers, patterned textures, and bold shapes to recreate his artwork. This work has been submitted to the Victoria Methodist Church Art Competition.

Now we are in Term 4, SATs preparation is in full swing, Year 6 are sharpening their skills, tackling past papers, and mastering those all-important test techniques. Well done Year 6, we are proud of your determination and positive mindset!

This week, the whole school took part in Safer Internet Day, exploring the theme: Too good to be true? Protecting yourself and others from scams online. The children loved getting involved in assemblies where we celebrated all the fantastic things the internet has to offer—how it keeps us connected, helps us learn, and, of course, provides plenty of fun! But we also tackled the trickier side, learning how to spot scams and avoid being misled by online tricksters.

Back in the classrooms, the discussions continued with engaging activities, eye-opening facts, and practical strategies to outsmart the scammers. The children asked fantastic questions, shared thoughtful insights, and left feeling empowered to navigate the online world with confidence. With these young digital defenders on the case, the internet just got a whole lot safer!

World Book Day takes place on Thursday 6^th March and to celebrate we will be giving children the option to dress up. Whilst there is no theme this year, we kindly ask that costumes are inspired by a story or character from a book. This could involve a full costume or just a prop / hat (or similar) relating to a favourite book or character. If your child is a non-fiction fan, tabards or t-shirts with top facts or illustrations are a good alternative. If possible please bring the book that relates to your book character to share with your class.

We don’t want our celebrations to be an additional financial burden, therefore we would like to express that there is no expectation to purchase new outfits or props for costumes. Please just ensure that your child is comfortable and practically dressed for the school day.

Each child will be given a £1 book token which they will bring home with them on Wednesday 5th March.