The Chronicle

As part of their journey to ready themselves for secondary school, Junior 6 have been cementing their knowledge about road safety. As lots of the children will be taking new journeys in September, such as travelling by bus or walking themselves, the representative from the local authority talked to the students about how to be aware and sensible around roads. We all learnt a lot about not just road awareness, but how to be mindful of our impulses. For example, we thought about how we could plan our journeys into school to avoid any unneeded stress. It is such a delight to see the children develop as they prepare themselves for the new challenges and opportunities that await them in September. Keep up the hard work Junior 6!

Junior 5W have loved learning about the Tudors, and their final lesson saw them making their own timeline of Elizabeth I’s reign. The children had an array of information, including pictures and captions of information at their disposal, and they had to work together to organise them into a historical timeline. It challenged their collaborative skills as well as the need to apply their previous learning to a different way of presenting information. Junior 5W are certainly going to miss the Tudors, and some of the children are even continuing their learning outside of the classroom to find out even more about this fascinating royal family!

Junior 4 have been busy in Science this week learning a lot and exploring their new topic, 'Electricity.' They have identified the symbols used when drawing circuits and began the topic making a simple circuit, and then they skilfully added more components, such as a range of switches, progressing to adding a buzzer and a motor. In addition, we have a range of 'Snap Science' resources, used as an extension activity, which groups have also explored with enthusiasm.

We had lots of excitement this week as our intrepid scientists explored and investigated different types of soils. We turned the classroom into a full-on laboratory as we used our magnifying glasses to identify different types of soils from all over the county. We looked at rock-types, insect life, decaying matter and plant and animal life within our sample. What do you know? The soils were teeming with tiny life – we learnt there are more living creatures in a handful of soil than people in the world...amazing!

Miss Smith, our resident placement student psychologist, was on hand to support the pupils as they ‘ooohed and aaahed’ happily, budding scientists each one of them. Miss Smith was a pupil at Crackley Hall who recalled the soil's lesson when she was here, so the children loved telling her all about their findings with enthusiasm. We found minuscule snails, microscopic pieces of sedimentary rock, roots, a little seedling 3mm long and a bevy of ladybird eggs. Great fun.

This week we were also treated to a very special visit from a very new and percious person. Mrs Wheatley came to introduce us to little Luca who was born 10 days ago on the 24 April. We were so delighted to finally get to see him, and we had lots of questions such as: will his eyes stay blue, and what will his first foods be? We couldn’t believe how tiny his feet and toes were and how peacefully he slept through all our excitement and questions. He must be familiar with our voices.

Thank you to Mr and Mrs Wheatley for bringing Luca in and making the time to share your joy with us. We are so happy for you. Happy Coronation weekend everyone!

After a long Bank Holiday weekend, the children returned to school ready to learn. In Maths, children have been working hard on fractions. We have been writing character descriptions of the old man in the book we are studying and loved thinking about how he would make a good friend for someone of a similar age based on his characteristics. In Science, we have started our new gardening topic, and children have begun growing beans so that we can look at germination and how the plants' form. Junior 2 are extending their knowledge of a rainforest, looking at the layers and animals that would live within the rainforest. The children have worked hard rehearsing for the Coronation celebration and were excited to perform.

Junior 1 have enjoyed combining their Science and English lessons this week, by beginning the factual writing element of the English curriculum. We have been learning about wildlife in the UK, labelling insects and writing about their habitats. In Geography we have been further afield, discovering different climates around the equator and beyond. Our Maths lessons have been lots of practical fun, with plenty of opportunity to explore halving and sharing equally with shapes and amounts. We have even managed to fit in some practice for our poem for our Coronation Day performance. The children have worked so hard to learn all of the words and actions for Buckingham Palace by A.A Milne. We hope you have a lovely long weekend celebrating such a historic event!

This week Reception have been busy preparing for the King’s Coronation.  They have been learning all about King Charles III and have written their own fact files on him. They have been making crowns to wear at the picnic on the field on Friday. Reception had a go at doing some close observational drawing of the new King using photos and they have painted some incredible portraits of him. They have also been learning a poem to perform to the rest of the school.

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