Stanmore Post - 15 November 2019

Dear Parents,

The whole school was able to use our Key for Success ‘Respect’ in observing the two minutes silence on Monday for Remembrance Day. The children have been learning about why we have Remembrance Day in lessons, and during assembly, and we were all proud of the respectful way in which they concentrated their thoughts.

https://www.stanmore.hants.sch.sch.uk/news/2019/11/15/remembering-and-respect

https://www.stanmore.hants.sch.uk/news/2019/11/11/ready-to-learn-remembering

We are looking forward to seeing you for Parents Evening on Tuesday November 26th and Thursday November 28th. If you haven’t signed up yet, then please go to www.scopay.com. It should be straight forward to book an appointment on line, but if you experience any problems then ask Mrs Eagle in the office, as she will be able to help you. As part of our school improvement strategy, we have set ourselves a target of 100% of parents attending Parents’ Evening. Your support in helping us achieve this target is greatly appreciated. It is one of the most important ways in which you can find out about what your child will learn during the year. The books that you can see prior to the appointment show the range of subjects that your child is covering. We would expect to discuss:

· The high expectations that we have for your child

· How well your child is doing

· Their attendance and punctuality at school

· Whether your child participates in any clubs and activities

· Any other ways that you believe that the school can support your child’s wider personal development.

In order to continue to track your child’s progress and be able to give you increasingly accurate information about whether your child is currently on track to meet age related expectations (ARE) we are adding English and Maths testing in the Autumn Term to our school assessment calendar. Your child’s class teacher will be able to share more information with you about this.

Best Wishes

Sharon Taylor

Why did they try and kill King James?

Year 6 had a visit from ‘John Johnson’, who told us all about the story of Guy Fawkes and how The Plotters conspired to kill King James. 

With name tags and clues, we were able to bring the story to life and understand how Guy Fawkes was caught in the act! Listening to how they were punished was rather gruesome.

To add to our knowledge, we were then able to discover real-artefacts from the 1600’s, ones which Guy Fawkes himself may have used. We sketched the objects, described them and made links to different time periods. Our favourites were: the croft keys, the pottery purse and the table urinal. 

Ready to Learn - Den Building

Every week, the R2L team try really hard to make good choices and follow the school rules. For each good choice, the children put a marble in the jar hoping that by Friday, the marble jar will be full. A full marble jar of good choices equals a marble jar treat.

This week, the team made SO many good choices, that we had an extra special marble jar treat – den building outside!

The team had to use all of their keys to success to work together to build a den. This was achieved in spite of the rain.

Well done Team R2L

By Mrs Mason, Miss Shuff and team R2L

Remembering and Respect

Having written stories, poems and created some fantastic art work, the whole school was able to use our Key for Success ‘Respect’ in observing the two minutes silence on Monday for Remembrance Day. The children have been learning about why we have Remembrance Day in lessons and during assembly and we were all proud of the respectful way in which they concentrated their thoughts.

Ready to Learn - Remembering

In R2L this morning, our activities were all based around the meaning and the significance of wearing a poppy at this time of year.

First of all, we listened to a story by Hilary Robinson and Martin Impey entitled “Where the poppies now grow.” This is a beautifully illustrated story, told in rhyme, which tells the tale of two best friends who go from small boys in the countryside to men at war.

We then used the story as the inspiration for our paintings to commemorate the bravery of the fallen soldiers from the First World War.

We hope that you like them!

By Mrs Mason, Miss Shuff, Mrs Petts and R2L

A regal visit to Year 1 & 2

We have had a very regal visitor to KS1 this week; on Wednesday, we were visited by none other than Queen Elizabeth II (artistic licence!), who came to talk to use about her role as the head of the Royal family and the Commonwealth. She told the children a little about her life, and challenged them to write about what they would do in her position. This forms the foundations for our work this half term of ‘What would you do if you were royal for the day?’ The children have been given wax sealed parchment to write their ideas down, ready to share at the end of the topic. 

In maths, as have been exploring multiplication and division, which has lead us neatly into fractions work. We have been learning how to recognise and calculate halves, quarters and thirds of shapes, objects and amounts. The children have very much enjoyed being introduced to Times Table Rock Stars, where they can practise their 2, 5 and 10 times tables (2 and 10 for Year 1). We will be moving on to comparing and describing measure next week, including height and length, as well as comparing time (earlier, later, before, after, during, morning, afternoon and evening). 

We continue with our RWI phonics, reading and writing daily. It is pleasing to see so many children making progress; we love hearing how much they (and you) are enjoying the ‘Book Bag Books, which are closely matched to the sounds that the children are currently working on, thereby developing, accuracy, fluency and confidence in reading. The children also have an additional guided reading lesson daily, introducing end exploring a high quality and exciting text.

In science, we have started a new unit on ‘Animals including humans’ and will be looking forward to some exciting science leading up to Christmas. 

In music, we continue to learn new chords on the ukulele, and have been working hard to learn new music vocabulary to use when describing music that we head (pitch, tempo and dynamics). 

As always, please let us know if you have any questions or comments. We look forward to discussing your child’s progress with at our parents’ evenings on Tuesday 26th and Thursday 28th November. 

Friends of Stanmore - a busy time ahead

Happy weekend everybody!

The Christmas fair is creeping up on us fast! The FoS and Christmas Elves have been working really hard to pull it all together. In preparation, we will be holding a Non-Uniform day on Friday 22nd November to raise prizes for the chocolate and bottle tombolas, KS1 could you please bring in boxed chocolate prizes and KS2 could you please bring in an alcoholic or non alcoholic bottle prize. The FoS will be collecting the donations in the morning from the school hall on the day. Along with these donations if you wish to donate any wrapped tombola prizes, unwanted toys or books we will also be collecting these donations during the week of the fair.

We would like to say a special thank you to Bella Barton’s grandma and Penny Mcclelland who have already made some generous donations to our tombolas.

Class reps have all been hunting down parent helpers for the stalls, if you have not yet been approached or have decided you could offer some help, please approach your class rep or one of ourselves. Your help is vital to making sure that we have enough hands on deck to run a successful fair!

Also, you may have seen your children have been designing some amazing Christmas cards. Proofs and order forms should have found their way into your child’s book bag, orders must be returned by Wednesday 13th November and returned to the school office.

Before I let you free to enjoy your wet weekend, on Thursday 14th November, after school the FoS will be holding a year 3/4 cake sale, books and uniform may also be available to purchase depending on the weather. Could years 3/4 please bring in nut free bakes, clearly labelled with ingredients to the office on the morning of the sale. If you are available to help with the cake sale please let us know, as it will be much appreciated! 

Many Thanks,
Rachel, Hayley, Jen and Amy.

Stanmore Post - 8 November 2019

Dear Parents, 

Throughout school this week there have been examples of ‘purposeful and irresistible’ learning. The children in Year 6 have had a fantastic adventure at Condover Hall in Shrewsbury. By now, Year 6 parents will have heard all about the adventures and brilliant time that children have had. Behaviour was outstanding. Children remembered to thank all the adults involved including the coach driver. I would like to add my thanks to our team of super teachers, Mrs Laver, Miss Kempson and Miss Norris. All of the children demonstrated our Keys for Success, giving every activity a go. They threw themselves into their challenges and took part in a range of team building activities. Parents can look forward to tidy rooms at home – all room inspections were passed with flying colours. 

In Years 3/4, children were visited by a Viking who told exciting tales of raiding and settling. Children had the opportunity to experience a range of artefacts and they built a Viking Village.   In Years 1/2,  children were visited by a Wizard who told stories and gave children the chance to join in with a magical performance. Moments like this are part of our new ‘Stanmore Curriculum’ and they really bring learning to life. Children are given the language they need to appreciate the subject, the opportunity to actively participate, and the chance to take an idea and create something of their own.  

You will have noticed some significant improvements to the way our school grounds look. During half term, a grounds team cut back the overgrown areas and brought the grounds back to a more manageable space. We will continue to work towards making our grounds a place that supports the curriculum so that children have an amazing resource in which to play and to learn. We have also made improvements to our site security, and we have an electronic fob system in place. Please can I ask that when you press the door buzzer you are ready to state your name and if appropriate, who you are here to see.  

Further to my recent letter, Miss Norris, has now returned from the residential visit and is ready to be back in Aspen Class, full time, on Monday. Miss Sanders who has been with the class for the last two weeks will remain in the class for next week to ensure a smooth handover. 

Best wishes 

Sharon Taylor

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Pond dipping in science

One of the things that we will be learning about in science this year is the patterns and trends in the world around us. This has given us the opportunity to get out and about and use the grounds.

We have measured the water temperature of the pond, as well as made observations on what we can find living in the pond.

Some lucky children found pond-skaters and water snails... while some only found leaves and twigs!

It was great to get out and about to use the school grounds to experience some irresistible learning, even if it was a bit chilly on a slightly damp Wednesday morning.

Viking Visit!

On Tuesday, Year 3 and 4 were lucky to be visited by a Viking. He answered all of our questions about life in the Dark Ages, and told us some amazing facts about everything from weapons to crime and punishment.

"The best afternoon ever!"

"The chain outfit was so heavy it nearly squashed me!"

"I held an actual sword."

"I know lots about the Vikings and the Anglo-Saxons now."