Dear Parents and Carers, 

I hope you all enjoyed the summer half-term break and are feeling well rested for what promises to be a very busy final half term of the academic year. 

It has been a lively and productive first week back, and the school calendar continues in the same vein. We hope you find the updated list of dates helpful when planning for the remaining weeks of term. 

On Monday, our Eco Team were invited to attend an education day at the Albury Estate, organised by Countryside Learning. While exploring this beautiful setting, the children learned how the estate manages its woodland, how gun dogs are trained, and had the opportunity to get up close with a range of amphibians and reptiles found in the UK. They also learned all about owls from a falconer and were fascinated to discover how a trout farm operates. The children represented the school brilliantly throughout the day, listening attentively and asking thoughtful, insightful questions. 

The Year 3 children had a fantastic time on their class trips to Henley Fort, where they journeyed back in time and fully immersed themselves in their World War II learning. Dressed as Air Raid Wardens and Home Guard officers, they explored a variety of authentic bomb shelters, gaining a vivid and memorable insight into life on the Home Front. 

Year 6 had a fantastic trip to the Junior Citizens event at the Spectrum. The event focused on a range of important real-life issues, including: the dangers and consequences of criminal damage (such as trespass and graffiti), anti-social behaviour, wildfire awareness in the countryside, including what to do if a fire is encountered, how to make a 999 call, health and wellbeing, including the importance of physical activity and making healthy sugar swaps, railway safety, including safe crossing points, the dangers of electricity and platform safety, basic first aid, including CPR, water safety, including understanding flags, signs, floating techniques and what to do in an emergency. The children were impeccably behaved and learned many valuable messages about staying safe in society. Unfortunately, due to unforeseen coach difficulties, class 6N was unable to attend on the day, but they will have the opportunity to take part on Monday. 

Year 5 thoroughly enjoyed their recent Tormead masterclass. On Tuesday, the Geography department visited HTPD to deliver a lesson on different types of biomes, and then thought about top survival tips for their favourite biome. This learning ties in beautifully with the geography curriculum the children will enjoy when they move up to Year 6. Then on Thursday a fortunate group of children visited the Tormead science labs. The children were fascinated as they examined their own cheek cells under microscopes, before comparing them with the vibrant cells found in plant leaves. They also took part in a creative art session, producing striking insect prints using oil pastels and mono-printing techniques. 

We are once again incredibly grateful to the staff at Tormead for delivering such engaging and inspiring workshops, and we feel very fortunate to benefit from such strong and enriching partnerships with our local schools. 

As you are aware, a key focus this year has been improving playtimes and expanding the range of play opportunities available to children. With the wetter months hopefully behind us, we would love to introduce more role play and dressing-up resources. We are particularly looking for items such as hats, scarves, bags and accessories, rather than full costumes or onesies. If you are having a clear-out and have any suitable items to donate, we would be very grateful. Donations can be left at the school office at either the Infants or Juniors site. 

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. 

Have a wonderful weekend. 

Best wishes, 

Vicky  

Thought of the week: True Worth - What do you need in life? How can you be less greedy and materialistic?