Message from Mrs McIntosh

‘And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it!’

Roald Dahl

On Monday morning, the Junior Department children had little choice BUT to believe in magic as we were treated to a card trick from Mr. Pritchard, our new Headmaster, from September. Having first answered lots of questions about himself and the job of being a Headteacher, he then went on to show us that he was true to his word about one of his hobbies. Apparently, he has been fascinated by magic since about the age of 5 and started learning tricks soon after that. It was wonderful to see the children’s reactions as the card that Wilbur had chosen magically ‘appeared’ back in the box when he had seemingly returned it to the pack right in front of our eyes!

I often think teaching is like magic – the children appear to be one thing but then turn out to be something completely different, or they start in one place and end up somewhere else. Much like the master magician, who uses little things like the sleight of hand, some distraction or a change of focus, teachers use a range of strategies and techniques to bring out the best in each and every child and ensure that they do make those huge steps in their learning even when it seems impossible! This is what makes them superheroes in my eyes, and I never tire of watching them work their magic!

All of our year groups have started a new topic this half term: Reception have turned into superheroes; Year 1 have journeyed to the seaside and Year 2 have zoomed into space! There is a lot of excitement around the corridors and classrooms, and whilst I know this will continue in the learning next week we will also be looking forward to Sports Day on Friday.

I wanted to let you know that the format of our Sports Day has changed this year. There is a bigger emphasis on active participation and engagement rather than just sitting and watching races. The children and their supporters (you!) will move around to a variety of ‘field’ events, which showcase what the children have been learning this year, followed by our more traditional races. This means that if you have children in more than one year group you might not get to see everything they do but you will be able to see both or all of them in a few events each. The way we recognise and reward the children has changed somewhat too. There will be some prizes for the winners of races but there will also be prizes recognising children who have displayed Beechwood values in the way they conduct themselves.

It promises to be an exciting morning and I look forward to welcoming you for tea, coffee and pastries after drop-off, before the main event.

Have a lovely weekend,

Mrs McIntosh

Forest School

All of the Junior Department pupils benefit from regular Forest School sessions during the year, and what lovely sessions they are, with lots of learning and fun, physical activity and fresh air. Too much happens to mention it all, but here is a little taster…

We have witnessed the changing seasons from autumn colours to bare trees and snowy days, followed by the first exciting signs of spring including snowdrops, the first tree to unfurl its leaves (elder) and the swaying hazel catkins. We are now enjoying a bit more warmth, lots more green (and plenty of other colours too, especially the vibrant pinks and purples of the rhododendrons) and wildlife galore from cute young bunnies to beetles, butterflies and birdsong!

There have been plenty of opportunities for building friendships, getting creative, problem solving, learning about plants, animals and their habitats and developing important skills such as cooperation, communication and perseverance.

Over the last couple of weeks Reception created some fantastic minibeast land art, Year 1 had to use their fine motor skills and imaginations to make a BFG inspired dream catcher and Year 2 have begun learning to do square lashing to make a wooden frame.

There are many popular activities which appeal to all of the Junior pupils (and even to the Year 6 pupils who came out for a session recently!):

making delicious meals in the mud kitchen,
bug hunting (a cardinal beetle certainly brought about wonder and awe last week),
working together to create dens and
learning to use tools safely to create some amazing things such as the work Year 2 did with mallets and sticks to make beds (they looked more comfortable than they sound!).

We do love going out in all weather from rain to snow to sun, but hopefully it’s time to enjoy some beautiful sunny sessions over the last part of the term and fewer muddy clothes for parents to contend with (thank you for your support in this, we really appreciate it!).

This Week in Reception

What a fabulous Superhero day Reception have had today! Captain America, Supergirl, the Incredible Hulk, Batman and a whole host of heroes in between, came to School and took part in a range of activities across the curriculum, and finished the day with some team superhero games!

We hope you enjoy the photos below:

Have a lovely weekend,

From the Reception Team

This Week in Year 1

Reception and Year 1 were very lucky to have ‘Perform for Schools’ in to bring our topics to life today. This morning, Year 1 immersed themselves in the story of ‘The lighthouse keeper’s lunch’. They enjoyed helping Mrs Grinling make a delicious lunch for her husband (the lighthouse keeper) and pretended to be pesky seagulls too!

In the afternoon, it was Reception’s turn to be Superheroes! They enjoyed practising their superhero poses and saving the world!

From the Year 1 Team

This Week in Year 2

This week Year 2 blasted off into space to discover a world of unknown facts through looking at two very different astronauts, Neil Armstrong and Tim Peake. ‘How do you go to the toilet in zero gravity on the ISS?’ and ‘Why are Neil Armstrong’s footprints still on the moon?’ were just two of the questions that were asked and answered using the iPads. 2B were the first class to carry out the moon crater investigation concluding that large pebbles dropped from a greater height made the deepest, most impressive craters.

Take a look at a few photos below:

From the Year 2 Team

From the Junior Library

The Heart of a Giant by Hollie Hughes

The Heart of a Giant is a heart-warming tale packed with empathy and discovery. It is exquisitely illustrated and beautifully written in absorbing rhyme.

Tom has overwhelming feelings of loneliness following the loss of his mother, and finds solace by walking up the hill where the giant is said to sleep. If Tom puts his ear to the ground he is sure he can hear the giant breathing. It is comforting. When the hill rumbles with a terrible quake, Abram the giant wakes up after a long sleep. Abram’s mother left him sleeping for a long, long time so, like Tom, he knows about loneliness. Tom gains huge strength from meeting Abram, he knows he is not completely alone. Together they embark on an empowering journey of friendship.