JUNIOR DEPARTMENT NEWS

This Week in Reception

Of course the highlight of this week was the Reception Prize Giving Ceremony on Thursday Morning.  It was wonderful to see so many of you in the Performance Hall for this very special event, and, we are sure you will agree, ALL the Reception children were simply fantastic.  It takes lots of courage to perform in front of a live audience and under the “spotlight”, and the children all acquitted themselves perfectly.  They have all come such a long way since those first days in Reception, and we all know they are well and truly ready for the adventure that awaits them in Year 1 – you will doubtless hear all about that after their Transition Morning next week.  In the meantime, do enjoy some photos from yesterday’s very special event!

This Week in Year 1

In PSHE, in line with our Beechwood values, we have been learning how to collaborate. We enjoyed working in teams to pass a hoop around a circle without letting go of hands and made tangrams, taking turns and listening to each other’s suggestions. We learnt that when we work together we can achieve great things and also that it is fun!

This week in Year 2

This week our Year 2 pupils enjoyed an immersive two day journey back in time to the days of the Great Fire of London.

On Wednesday, we were delighted to welcome ‘History Off The Page’ back to Beechwood to deliver a fascinating insight into life in London in 1666; as a fire burns in Pudding Lane bakery, our children started their morning becoming apprentices on the streets of London, learning skills common for workers of the era: leather working, metal working, sewing, etc. The bakers and the barber surgeons were particular favourites;  staff were relieved to see any pulled teeth or severed limbs had grown back by Thursday!  Thank you to the parents who joined us – and for making such an effort with your costumes!

Fast forward to Thursday morning, and the much anticipated fire!  The houses the children had created were laid out in front of the Junior Department to replicate the higgledy-piggledy streets of seventeenth century London; with the assistance of a “fire starter” (our friendly Estates Team), the children then watched on – from a safe distance – as the fire took hold, and jumped from house to house, in the end, leaving nothing but ash.

In the afternoon, the children tried their hands at some “fire-fighting” – although the weather tried to put a dampener on this!  We used chains of firemen and firewomen to work collaboratively to pass buckets of water across Orchard Green and put out the “burning” trees.

Thank you to everyone involved!  We hope you enjoy our photos below:

From the Junior Library

Never Grow Up, by Roald Dahl

Inspired by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake, this new book is a riot of rhyme and colour.

It is a joyful celebration of the great Roald Dahl’s playful spirit and his belief that childhood with all its ‘marvellousness’ and mischievousness is a time to relish.

Quentin Blake’s fabulous illustrations join Dahl’s encouraging phases into a book that abound with appeal to young and old.

Teacher’s Book of the Week

This week, Mrs Le Bas shares her favourite book with us – The Owl who was afraid of the Dark, by Jill Tomlinson.

She loves it because it is set in the woods (we know this is one of Mrs Le Bas’s favourite places!) and has a great message about overcoming your fears.

Head’s Commendations

Congratulations to this weeks recipients of Mr Balfour’s commendations: