Year 1 Spring 2 Newsletter…

Firstly, we would like to say thank you for your support recently. We have had several very successful events including listening to your children read their stories, sharing books with your children and making and naming aliens whilst finding out about phonics in our school.

Our topic this term is ‘Damsels in distress’. We will be learning all about castles, who lives in a castle and visit Porchester castle on the 2^nd of March. Please ensure you have returned your child’s permission slip.

In phonics, we will be continuing to learn alternative ways to spell sounds that we already know. For example ‘or’ as in ‘for’ can be spelled ‘aw’ as in ‘saw’. The children will be coming home with their alien word homework packs very soon. Please support your child to add sound buttons to the words and listen to them read the words.

In English, we will use non-fiction texts to find out about knights and talk about the differences between fiction and non-fiction texts. We shall become knights for the morning and experience some exciting knight activities including jousting, using a bow and arrow, dancing and fighting dragons. We will then write a non-fiction page about knights and castles. We will be reading the story ‘That rabbit belongs to Emily Brown’ and thinking about using a range of adjectives to describe settings in stories.

In Maths,  Year 1 will be  helping the white rabbit to tell the time to half past. They will be timing themselves doing various  activities to help them understand  time in minutes. They will then  solve one step problems with multiplication and division , using the theme of castles . Finally, they will solve problems involving weight and measures  and understand the vocabulary of heavier and lighter.

In Topic, we will look explore castles. Children will be finding out about the history of castles ,  the structure of castles and who lives in castles . We will look at the defences and have an experience of visiting  a real castle on our trip to Portchester. In Science,  they will  investigate what  materials are used to build castles.   In Art, the children will build their own 3D  model castles.

Please check that your child’s clothes are labeled clearly. PE days this half term are on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Dates for you diary….

Friday 2^nd March – School trip to Porchester castle.

Friday 9^th March at 9pm -Angelfish class assembly. We look forward to sharing some of the wonderful work that we have been doing this half term.

 

 

 

Year R Spring Term 2 Newsletter…

Dear Parents and carers,

Welcome back to school after a soggy half term. I am looking forward to the first signs of spring and some nicer weather.

Last half term was very busy after the Christmas break. Year 4 children were amazing ambassadors for the school on their residential at Fairthorne Manor, they were adventurous and keen to try lots of new things whether it was abseiling or carrot and coriander soup! Year 6 wowed their parents with some excellent monster dance and their gruesome Frankenstein writing. Year 2 showed their charitable nature and held a sale for an African Charity following their work looking at life in Kenya. Year 3 were exploring life at Hogwarts and producing some excellent newspaper articles and diary entries written as either a witch or wizard. Some even tried to write as Draco Malfoy. Meanwhile, Year 5 have been exploring what it is like in Space and writing some haikus about getting old! They are well worth a read. Year 1 have been busy learning about African animals and enjoying the drum workshops along with the Year 1 classes at Bedenham. Finally, Year R have been celebrating Chinese New Year and enjoying ordering meals at their in class Chinese take away. They have been practising their chop sticks skills too!

This half term promises to be just as busy! Please enjoy the newsletters blogs to read more about what your child has been getting up to and what is coming up for them this half term.

I look forward to seeing lots of you in school again this half term, your support is very important to your children.

Mrs Zoë Dudley

Head of School.

 

 

Dear Parents and carers,

The children have settled well after the excitement of February half term and have had an amazing first week back – book week! Thank you if you joined us for a successful breakfast book snuggle. We also saw lots of lovely book characters for dress up day.

We have lots to look forward to during this half of spring term. Mothers day is fast approaching and children are getting gifts and performances prepared ready for a Mother’s Day afternoon tea (Friday 9th March, 2:15pm). Following on from the children’s interests we are excited about visits from Mrs Messem and Miss Birks, they are kindly bringing in their babies. The children have been writing questions to ask, ready for their visit.

Easter is approaching quickly, the children will be looking at this in more detail and having fun with some craft activities.

Mrs Pringle and Miss Coleman

 

Book Week

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Wow! What a week it has been. We have spent the week celebrating books and exploring new authors. Each class has based their learning around a wordless book, exploring the illustrations to find the meaning of the story.

We have bought new books, dressed up as book characters and even met authors. This week we really have all put a lot of effort into reading for enjoyment and long may it last!

We would like to thank our parents who joined Ks1 for a book and breakfast and Ks2 for an afternoon tea and read. It was lovely seeing the children share a good book over a cup of juice and a biscuit. Here is what some of our lovely visitors said:

“It was lovely to come into the classroom and hear my child read. Nice opportunity to see inside Alice’s classroom. Good idea!”

“It was lovely to be able to enjoy some time in school with the children. Great to interact with the teacher and the children – 5 star!”

“Very welcoming. Nice to spend time with the kids. Great biscuits and squash .”

Our book challenge this year was to build a book in a box and by Friday, our hall was filled with them. A lot of thought, time and creativity clearly went into showing favourite characters and settings from the children’s chosen books. Well done to our winners: Indi, Oscar, Georgie, Jessica, Leon, Jazzmine, Donna, Alisha, Ella-May, Ollie and Xander!

Our assembly was quite extraordinary on Friday with a hall packed with princesses, superheroes, wizards, villains and even our very own dictionary! The teachers took their time to have a good look at the characters and choose a winner from each phase. Well done to our winners Tyler, Katie and Holly!

Magical Stories with Mythical Creatures

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On Thursday 22nd February, Year 4,5 and 6 took part in a mythical afternoon. Holbrook Primary School was lucky enough to have been chosen by the National Literacy Trust to promote reading for pleasure and so the children took part in celebrating authors and stories about magic! The children guessed the mythical creature using their inference skills and created their own creatures and poems about unicorns in the afternoon. Each child chose their very own book to take home and read – the smiles on their faces was the best part of the day!

 

Year 5 and 6 Visit to Bedenham to see the one and only …………. GUY BASS!

On Tuesday afternoon, Year 5 and 6 were invited to Bedenham to meet Guy Bass, who is the author of the popular StitchHead and Spynosaur series. The children were eager to meet Guy and in the morning we prepared questions that we could ask him.

 From the minute we arrived, the children were mesmerized by Guy Bass as he talked about how he became a writer and there were many comedy moments as he shared with the children pictures of his youth and explained that he always wanted to be a dinosaur when he grew up. Guy was an incredible comedian and actor and had the whole audience roaring with laughter as he told jokes, shared stories and acted out his childhood.  

If this wasn’t enough, we then listened to Guy reading an extract from Spynosaur. Again, we were fascinated by his fantastic storytelling as he was joined by a volunteer from Bedenham, who dressed up as a dinosaur and the children sat back and enjoyed a performance of his work. The acting was amazing and I am sure the children will enjoy telling you all about the impressive roaring, acting and singing by Guy and the volunteer from Bedenham. 

Finally, the children were provided with an opportunity to ask Guy questions. The children asked some very thought provoking questions and made the most of this experience. Before we headed back to school, the children were able to buy a book and Guy signed the books. We hope the children enjoyed their experience with Guy and they continue to read and enjoy his books for years to come. We hope the children are inspired and continue to read for pleasure!

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Miss Price and Miss Ruchat

 

Famous author visits Holbrook!

Yesterday, award-winning author Guy Bass, visited both Holbrook and Bedenham schools. Guy, who is famous for writing children’s books, has also been an illustrator, a theatre producer and has written plays for adults and children. His visit was an important part of Book Week which will culminate in a character dress up day on Friday. (Watch out for Mr Burt’s wondrous wig!)

Children and staff alike were captivated by his hilarious tall tales and bonkers book reading. His book titles include Stitch Head, Spynosaur, The Legend of the Frog and Dinkin Dogs. Guy told us about his lifelong desire to become a dinosaur and his shame at being a tea-pot in his school play. His dad tricked him into his starring role by playing heads and tails but cunningly used a double tailed coin. Guy said that one day he will get his revenge!

After his talk, the children were able to buy a book from his extensive collection and more importantly, get it signed by the author himself.
We would all like to thank Guy for his time and commitment during this exciting week and wish him well on his next book adventure.
Written by Miss Brenton.

Year 6 Spring 2 Newsletter…

Dear Parents and carers,

Welcome back to school after a soggy half term. I am looking forward to the first signs of spring and some nicer weather.

Last half term was very busy after the Christmas break. Year 4 children were amazing ambassadors for the school on their residential at Fairthorne Manor, they were adventurous and keen to try lots of new things whether it was abseiling or carrot and coriander soup! Year 6 wowed their parents with some excellent monster dance and their gruesome Frankenstein writing. Year 2 showed their charitable nature and held a sale for ??? following their work looking at life in Kenya raising £nnnn. Year 3 were exploring life at Hogwarts and producing some excellent newspaper articles and diary entries written as either a witch or wizard. Some even tried to write as Draco Malfoy. Meanwhile, Year 5 have been exploring what it is like in Space and writing some haikus about getting old! They are well worth a read. Year 1 have been busy learning about African animals and enjoying the drum workshops along with the Year 1 classes at Bedenham. Finally, Year R have been celebrating Chinese New Year and enjoying ordering meals at their in class Chinese take away. They have been practising their chop sticks skills too!

This half term promises to be just as busy! Please enjoy the newsletters blogs to read more about what your child has been getting up to and what is coming up for them this half term.

I look forward to seeing lots of you in school again this half term, your support is very important to your children.

Mrs Zoë Dudley

Head of School.

Welcome back after our half term holiday where I hope everyone enjoyed the rest from all the hard work we have completed so far in a very busy start to 2018.

We ended the half term with our ‘Monster afternoon’ which despite the cold, we all enjoyed. As one parent wrote, “It’s nice to see them smiling and enjoying themselves. Always a pleasure to be invited into school.”

We start this half term with Book week during which we hope that you will be able to join us for the ‘Tea and Read’ on Wednesday afternoon at 2.30pm. This will give you (and the children) time  to share favourite stories whilst having a cuppa! Another exciting event during Book week was our visit to Bedenham school to meet the author, Guy Bass. This gave the children the opportunity to discuss how he creates his books and where he receives his ideas.

Maths will continue to cover the curriculum and working hard on applying their mathematical knowledge. Please do practise the times tables with your children as it has been proved how important it is for the children to know these fluently. It is not just knowing them in order but also being able to use connected facts eg if I know 3 x 2 = 6, I also know……

Within English, the children will be writing newspaper articles about the amazing tightrope walker Philippe Petit. They will research the aerialist to support their writing and will be amazed by his death-defying stunts. Alongside their English, they will be reading the book Boy in the Tower and linking themes and symbols with other books that they have read.

After a very successful Tag Rugby coaching by Mr Gander last half term, we will now be developing our tennis skills alongside orienteering – so they can find the balls when they have hit them too hard!! PE is on a Monday and Wednesday so please ensure that their PE kit is in school.

On Thursday 1^st March 2018, we’ll be holding a Parent meeting to explain more about the SATs process and what will be expected of the children. You will be able to see some past papers and we can give you some hints of how to make this as a stress-free occasion as possible.

On Thursday 8th March 2018 at 3.30pm, there will be a Sex and Relationship Education meeting for parents. During this time, we will share the resources that we use when presenting this programme so that you can discuss any questions that you may have. This will be held in either Dolphin or Orca Class.

We will also be holding a Wales meeting in the next few weeks.

As the last half term was so short, we will be continuing to cover Mountains in geography, Sound in Science and developing a Kendal Mint Cake style for people to eat while climbing those cold mountains!

Maths and Reading boosters will continue during this half term. They will run from 2.30 until 3.15 on a Wednesday and we would really appreciate it if the children who have been invited, do attend. They have been put in place to boost the children’s confidence ahead of the SATs.

Just a quick reminder:

• Homework is handed out on a Friday, to be handed in on the following Wednesday
• Daily reading for at least 10 minutes. Remember to have your book signed
• Practice your times tables and related facts.

Thank you again for your continued support – we really do appreciate it as I am sure your children do too.

 

Year Six Reading for Pleasure

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As we have been celebrating book week, Year Six have been focussing on reading for pleasure. We have explored our favourite authors, genres and illustrators by sharing our chosen books. We swapped books and swapped again to read a new author and a new style of writing to encourage us to explore a variety of books when reading. We shared our favourite stories with each other and explained the characters, settings and plots and the reasons why these books were our favourites. We know that good readers become good writers, just like Guy Bass!

 

 

Monster Afternoon

Our ‘Monster Afternoon’ got off to a very scary start with Year 6 changing into monster movers. Both classes danced in front of their parents frightening most if not all of them! There are some very talented gymnasts who seem to make back walkovers seem incredibly easy whilst others pulled particularly zombie-like faces. With the decorated masks on the back of their heads, the whole effect would have gone down well in any monster movie. Well done all and many thanks to Mr Plow for choreographing the whole thing.

Once our hearts had returned to normal, the classes split with Dolphins leading their parents off to share the stories that they had written about Frankenstein. Along with the gruesome instructions on how to build their own monsters, the children read with great enthusiasm using the tone of their voices to make it sound even more frightening.

While Dolphins were in the warmth, Orcas were outside in the sun (with a chill factor of at least -30 degrees – or at least it felt like it!), showing off their rugby skills. It is amazing to see how far both classes have come on. Some of the children have shown a particular aptitude to the game and possibly there could be some future England players amongt them?? After a while, both classes swapped much to the delight of the parents! A big thank you to Mr Gander who had given up his free time to come in and coach – he did a brilliant job.

Thank you so much to those parents who were able to join us on yet another very successful afternoon. As one parent said, ” Really enjoyed the show, all the children looked as if they were really enjoying themselves.”

We look forward to seeing you again during Book Week.

Year 5 Spring 2 Newsletter

Welcome back to another fun half term in year 5! It certainly promises to be an exciting one, with our trip to Hampton Court Palace on the 16^th March and Up for it Juniors coming to visit school on 21^st March to discuss university options.

Our lead topic this term is History where we will be focussing on the Tudors and how they came to power through battle and feud.  We will find out what Henry VIII was like as a king and why he had so many wives.  We will explore what life was like for the Tudors and how it is different from our lives today.

The history theme will loosely follow into our English learning where we will be exploring the play Romeo and Juliet.  We will explore the main themes within the play and be writing some balanced arguments about whether Romeo should have been banished for his actions.  In Guided Reading we will also be looking at Macbeth, another Shakespeare play, to be able to compare the stories and see how amazing they are.

In music on a Thursday, we will be practising our singing techniques by exploring the story of The Tempest (another Shakespearian master piece).  We will be reading the story through song and using our voices to express emotion.

PE will also have a Tudor feel.  We will be exploring Tudor dance and using body movements to express a story.  The inspiration for this dance unit is the portraiture of the Tudor era.   We will still be outside on a Thursday though, so please ensure that you have warm clothes and appropriate footwear.

We hope that you are looking forward to this term as much as we are!