JUNIOR DEPARTMENT NEWS

T.E.A.M.   – Together Everyone Achieves More 

This week has been all about teamwork. I am always in awe of the wonderful way that people pull together when the chips are down. As I am sure you can appreciate, an ISI inspection naturally makes people a little nervous, no one likes the thought of judgement, but the staff and children here have made the two days better by working together, smiling and showing the best of Beechwood and for that I am grateful.  

Last Friday we had the chance to celebrate a very important part of our Junior Department Team, our amazing TAs. It was National Teaching Assistant Day so I organised a proper Tea Party for them to say thank you. Teaching Assistants are the embodiment of multi-tasking. They simultaneously support the children with their work, mark books, put up displays, prepare resources, listen to teachers, cuddle upset children (and adults!), act as first aider and the list could go on. You can appreciate why they deserved to be spoilt with half an hour to sit down and have a cup of tea and some cake.  Take a look at our photos below.

Fortuitously the value of the fortnight is trust. Mr Bullock told the children in our Wednesday assembly that trust translates to being brave enough to do what you have been asked to do even when it is difficult. It can also mean believing that things will work out in the end. That seems like a comforting sentiment at the end of a week where we said goodbye to The Queen and where we wait to see if our ‘special visitors’ find our school to be as good as we know it is! 

Next Week: 

Parents’ Consultation Evenings  

These will be face to face in the Junior Department classrooms on Tuesday and Thursday. The class teachers will let you know your appointment time by placing a sticker in your child’s Reading Diary. Please make your way to the Junior Hall where there will be refreshments and I can direct you to the right classroom. 

September Birthday Party 

If your child has their birthday in September, they will shortly be receiving an invitation by post to a celebration with me during the school day on Friday 30th September.  

Best wishes

Mrs McIntosh  

This Week in Reception

Having completed a third week at school, Reception are becoming more accustomed to their surroundings and teachers. They have met the school nurses, visited the library and enjoyed a range of specialist lessons such as Drama, Music, PE and French. We are delighted by their growing confidence and independence.

See them in action below.

This Week in Year 1

Our pupils have had another great week in Year 1 and are continuing to impress us!

In Science, we have been learning all about our senses, and have discovered all five of them! We focussed on our sense of taste and enjoying trying a range of fruits.  We all thought carefully about the taste and texture of each one, and then discussed our favourites – apple and watermelon were the clear winners across the year group!

Have a look at the photos below!

This Week in Year 2

This week we have been learning all about the Queen’s life as part of our ‘Celebrate Britain’ topic. We’ve ordered major events in her life on a giant timeline taking great care to ensure each event was placed correctly. We’ve realised what a busy and exciting life the Queen had.

Year 3’s have also been practising their cutting in art. Children had to work very carefully to draw, cut and stick, creating their very own works of abstract art. The results were fantastic, with each finished piece being different but equally striking.

Take a look at their masterpieces here…

From the Junior Library

Goldilocks and the Three Crocodiles by Michael Rosen

Goldilocks and the Three Crocodiles comes from two legends of the children’s literature world;  author and poet Michael Rosen  (We’re going on a Bear Hunt) and illustrator David Melling (Hugless Douglas). This snappy twist on the traditional fairy tale follows Goldilocks and her dog, Tiddles, as they seek to refind the house with the chairs, the porridge and the bears.  The pair do find a house however hilariously it’s not that of the bears; this one has slimy chairs and noisy beds! 

We are aware of a couple of websites which reward schools with free books after parents have purchased.  We thought we would share details below in case this was of interest to you.

https://www.lovereading4kids.co.uk/our-purpose

https://shop.scholastic.co.uk/