THEECHO ECHO ECHO
Christmas 2012 Edition
A Term Full of Achievements! Much is written about academic achievement at school, and quite rightly so. But at St Margaret’s we are equally proud of the vast range of things that the children accomplish, confirming our culture of high expectation for all. In November alone, we enjoyed seeing pupils between the ages of six and eleven perform fearlessly on the stage in the Devizes Eisteddfod. Listening to our children talk intelligently about sustainability and biodiversity clearly impressed the assessor from Eco Schools, who re-accredited our Green Flag award this term. Furthermore, the children in Year 6 visited a local residential home for the elderly, in support of this year’s LEGOleague competition, which also sees them programming robots via a computer, to carry out a series of intricate
actions in a timed situation. What is particularly impressive is that, not only do our children have the skills to contribute to such activities, but they also have life skills - the self-confidence, personal ambition and drive to be able to conduct themselves appropriately, in what are sometimes highly competitive situations. This philosophy of expectation starts in the Kindergarten, where even our very youngest children learn to be independent and play a full part in all that school has to offer. So that when children represent St Margaret’s, and more importantly themselves, on the wider stage, they do so with ease and an immense sense of pride in all that they have to offer. Congratulations to everyone involved in our successes this term, with hard work and determination you can achieve so much!
Welcome to the Christmas Edition of The Echo As I write, I am sitting in my office looking out on one of those miserable November days; the wind is howling, the rain is falling purposefully and the leaves are swirling madly, trying desperately to get in through our front door! Yet, there is a feeling of pure joy as I can hear the sound of children all around the school, engaged in their many different activities. Back in September we welcomed a number of new pupils and staff to St Margaret’s, all of whom have settled quickly into this special community and are contributing fully to every aspect of school life. Work in the classrooms continues apace, with a significant amount having been covered in the past twelve weeks. The sports players have had an extraordinary season, with some teams having been unbeaten this term. All of the children have enjoyed a range of different
performance opportunities and a wide variety of external competitions have been keenly fought. Additionally, there has still been time to support such wonderful causes as The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal, Operation Christmas Child, Children in Need and the Young Carers. So, despite the greyness of this November day, I cannot help but smile with eager anticipation as I prepare to wrap up warmly and go outside to support the children in this afternoon’s match! As always at this time of year, I would like to take this opportunity to wish the children in Year 6 every success in their forthcoming 11+ examinations and, in the meantime, I send you and your families my good wishes for a blessed and joyous Christmas, and a peaceful and happy 2013.
www.stmargaretsprep.org.uk Kindergarten Open House In October, the Kindergarten children had their autumn term Open House. It was an opportunity for them to show Mums, Dads, Brothers, Sisters, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, cousins and friends around Kindergarten and to look at some of the things that they have been doing in school. The afternoon began by the children greeting their guests at the door and taking them to see their Learning Journeys - a beautiful book all about themselves and what they have been doing in Kindergarten. They had made personal invitations for their visitors and so the first job was to stick the handmade invite into their books together. After visitors had shared in the children’s Learning Journeys, they then took the opportunity to look around the classroom at their artwork, favourite toys, and finally everyone enjoyed playing together. It was an amazing afternoon, and a great time was had by all.
Autumn Falls in Reception HC Children in Reception HC have been enjoying their outdoor learning in the Wildlife Garden. They put on their coats and wellies and went on a walk to spot the signs of autumn. Everyone took colour cards with them and tried to find different natural objects that matched the autumn colours. The children also collected different coloured leaves to take back to the classroom for creative activities. It was great fun exploring colour mixing in small groups. The class experimented with mixing paint to create the shades of autumn and used a variety of tools to mark, make and create patterns.
Self Portraits in Year 1 In Art, the children in Year 1 have been having lots of fun creating self portraits. They sketched themselves using sketching pencils and charcoal, looking at their features and where they are on the face carefully in a mirror. They then painted a self portrait and had to think of the correct colours and tones by mixing the paints carefully. It was tricky to mix skin tone, but it was discovered that by mixing white, red and a little bit of yellow, it worked! Finally, the children had great fun creating their own portrait in clay. They had to work carefully to create the shape of the tile and not press too hard with the clay tools when adding the features. The portraits were then painted to finish off the masterpieces!
Talking Pegs in Reception KC The Reception KC children have been learning how to use some new ICT equipment called ‘Talking Pegs’. Everyone had so much fun recording and listening to sounds in the school environment, including their own voices! The children have already used ‘Talking Pegs’ in lots of different ways - to record phonemes for Phonics, to set questions about shapes, to record observations about senses activities and to develop communication skills during their play. They have been used in the role-play area, on the display boards, in the courtyard - ’Talking Pegs’ are here, there and everywhere...
Year 2 Step Back in Time Year 2 had an anxious start to their day when they visited Sevington Victorian School earlier in the term. A stern Victorian Ma’am had them lined up and filed into class in silence! The desks creaked and the slate pencils squeaked as the children worked. Everyone was surprised that the boys and girls were kept apart, not just in lessons but at playtime too - sewing and polishing lessons for the girls and bee keeping and gardening for the boys! Although the frugal lunch of bread hunks, cheese chunks and an apple was very old fashioned, it was enjoyed by most. Finally the Victorian punishments were explained and a dunce’s hat, finger stocks and back boards were demonstrated to the children. Everyone learnt so much having experienced an authentic Victorian School Day.
Culture Week Extravaganza! Culture week was a definite highlight of Year 2H’s term. The children loved taking part in all of the interesting activities and demonstrations that St Margaret’s Culture Week had to offer. The week was kicked off in style by the gruesome Jonathan’s Jungle Roadshow. A group of terrifying creepy crawlies and reptiles were the stars of the show and those that were brave enough were even able to hold ‘Goldie’ the gigantic Taiwanese Beauty Snake. Although, not everyone agreed on how beautiful she was! ‘Fluffy’ the Chaco Golden Knee Tarantula was a firm favourite, including all of her eight eyes and eight wriggly legs. Next was the turn of the Happy Puzzle Company, which had the children well and truly absorbed in solving a range of fun hands-on puzzles and activities. Balancing the penguins on top of the wobbly iceberg was far trickier than many first thought! On Thursday the children were treated to a dance workshop delivered by the talented Wilkes Academy. This was a popular activity amongst the class, especially the ‘Thriller’ dance routine. Culture Week was brought to a musical finale with the arrival of Dawkes Roadshow, which gave the children the opportunity to explore a number of familiar and new musical instruments. What a week of first experiences!
3B’s Clever Calligrams The Year 3 children have been learning all about calligrams this term. A calligram is a word which looks like the actual word, through font, size, colour and shape. In ICT, they began by typing a word like Rainbow and then changing each letter to reflect the different colours of the rainbow. They also experimented with WordArt, making text larger, taller and applying different shapes. In Literacy, the class looked at different examples of calligrams and then Mr Browne gave 3B a list of words to turn into calligrams. The children planned and then tried out their designs, finally producing their words on A4 paper, using colour to reflect the word being described. There was a definite Halloween theme with many spooky and ghostly words amongst more general words such as bubble and water. The work represents each child’s unique approach to combining elements of Art, ICT and Literacy.
THEECHO ECHO ECHO
CHRISTMAS 2012 EDITION
Poetry Please Year 4B
Thunder Crashes in 3R! This term the children in 3R have studied the effects of extreme weather. Everyone did lots of research and made their own leaflets informing others all about different extreme weather. They then used this research to write their class assembly, which included news reporters from all over the world. Finally, the class shared a story that they loved called ‘Thunder Cake’ - now everyone has to wait patiently for a thunderstorm so that they can all try and bake thunder cake themselves!
In Year 4B the children have been looking at the rhyming structure of poems. As the class read poems, everyone thought about the different patterns of rhymes that are used and how words with different spelling patterns can rhyme when said aloud. The children then wrote their own nonsense poems using an AABB structure. Everyone also looked at the use of similes in poetry and tried writing poems about monsters, using similes to add description and enhance their writing. Finally, the class typed up their poems using the word processing skills that they had learnt last term; changing the font size and colour to make it interesting for the reader and adding images from the Clip Art menu.
Viking Feasts in 4NC The Year 4 children have been looking into the kinds of food that they might have eaten in Viking times, with some shocking results! Thank goodness that nowadays they don’t have horse on the menu for school lunches! Some of the class were thrilled to hear that vegetables were few and far between and the thought of poor looking white carrots and coarse-leaved cabbages didn’t make anyone feel very hungry. Many of the things the children take for granted, like potatoes, tomatoes and sweetcorn, did not arrive in Europe until after the 15th century and there was no transport for tropical fruits. Even rabbits were not available until the 11th century. The Vikings made the best of what they had using herbs and spices and every part of the animal was used to make needles, to stuff pillows and even make toggles for clothes. Most children were surprised to hear that the Vikings only had two meals a day; breakfast and supper and didn’t have forks to eat with. Some of the roasts were similar to what we eat today but overall the food was rather monotonous - imagine having hare stew every day! Year 5
Year 5 Detectives at CSI Day The children in Year 5 were promoted to detectives to solve the puzzle of ‘Who had stolen the silver salt dish from the manor house?’ on their St Mary’s CSI Day. A number of suspects were presented along with two witnesses who gave evidence on what had happened. Then, using their Science skills the children were able to eliminate some of the suspects from their enquiries! Chromatography was used to discover which ink had been used to write the note left at the scene of the crime. Copper wires were placed in water samples to see which had traces of silver. If the silver was present, the wire eventually started to grow tiny crystals, that looked like iron filings. This allowed the detectives to plot the route the thief took through the manor house. Traces of salt had been left behind at the crime scene, so the substances were separated using filtration and evaporation to discover what the salt was. Finally, different elements were placed into the Bunsen burner flame to observe the colour created. A great deal of fun was had and the children learnt new experimental techniques.
www.stmargaretsprep.org.uk 5W Have Character! In Year 5, the children have been trying to create detailed characters to help them in their story writing. The class selected clothing and props to really bring their stories to life and the ‘people’ they brought into existence went on to star in both their own stories and in the class assembly. By actually becoming these characters in class, the children are now better equipped to imagine how other people might think and act when they write about them, and everyone agreed that they had lots of fun doing it!
Year 6 Sample Shakespeare During Culture Week, the Year 6 children were royally entertained by ‘Finding the Will’, a touring company who bring Shakespeare to life. His plays were written to be performed, so they introduced ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ characters in an imaginative way and recreated the scenes of Athens using minimal props. The children played some of the main parts, including the star-crossed lovers and The Mechanicals. Much amusement, as always, was had by all when Titania, Queen of the Fairies, fell in love with Bottom who had become a donkey – a fate which neither child knew when they volunteered! The Shakespearian experience continued in class as they discovered the tragedy of ‘Macbeth’. Plotting the acts of the main character, it was evident that he had a tragic flaw which was in stark contrast to the comedy of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. Through acting and interpretation, Year 6 brought Shakespeare to life.
Year 6 at STEAM Year 6 thoroughly enjoyed their visit to the STEAM Museum in Swindon this term. The day started with a fantastic session led by the museum staff, which investigated famous Victorians. Using artefacts and other source materials, children took on the roles of Victorian ‘celebrities’ including Lord Shaftesbury, Robert Stephenson, Elizabeth Fry, Mary Secole, Alexander Graham Bell and, of course, Brunel. The session culminated in a large-scale role play with the children (now dressed in costumes and hats) discussing the changes, developments and inventions of the Victorian era. After lunch it was time to tour the museum. Everyone was fascinated by the effect that industrialisation had on this area and, in particular, the changes that occurred in Swindon when Brunel decided to build the Great Western Railway through the town. Back in the classroom, the visit was used as a prompt for extensive work in History (where the children have been studying the Victorians), English and ICT. Everyone subsequently researched a famous Victorian of their own choice, and then produced a Power Point biography of this individual for presentation to the rest of the class. In the words of Adam Hart-Davis, everyone has been amazed by just how much the Victorians did for us!
www.stmargaretsprep.org.uk Fun with Modern Languages The Year 3 children have been developing their reading skills in French this term. They now know that ‘qu’est-ce que c’est?’ is much easier to say than it looks! Knowing whether to answer with ‘un’ or ‘une’ continues to puzzle, but they all know a song inside out about colours. The children in Year 5 have been on a Tour de France this term and they have discovered a lot of interesting facts about Marseille: did you know that Marseille is the oldest city in France, founded over 2,600 years ago and that it is the 2nd largest city in France after Paris. Est-ce que tu aimes le Français? Year 6 know all about each others’ pet hates.
They have conquered questions and enjoyed a lively ‘question time’ finding out exactly what they all love and hate! At the end of term, Year 4 switched their language learning over to Germany and discovered what happens on 6th December, when St Nikolaus came up to St Margaret’s…his visit with songs and chocolate was received with great acclaim. Frohe Weihnachten et Joyeux Noël!
Sending out a LEGOLeague SOS! This term, the Year 6 pupils were busy preparing for the 2012 First Lego League (FLL) competition that took place on 26th November at the Hewlett Packard Laboratories in Bristol. The 2012 challenge was ‘to improve the quality of life for the elderly by helping them continue to be independent, engaged and connected in their communities’. To investigate possible issues that would benefit from solutions, both classes visited The Firs Care Home for the elderly in Calne. The group presented their idea for an electronic door system to help the elderly answer the doorbell wherever they are in their home. In addition, the team programmed a newly designed Lego NXT robot to carry out a wide range of missions on a senior-citizen themed competition mat. They chose the team name SOS, ‘Save our Seniors’ and wore the T-shirts they designed on the day.
And the results… The team were awarded with a Runners Up trophy for the Robot Design category. The judges liked the fact that the design integrated all the attachments needed to complete each challenge, so the team saved time as they didn’t have to reconfigure the robot for each mission. Congratulations to all involved!
St Margaret’s Win Football Trophy In October, the Year 3 boys attended an U8 Football Festival at Summer Fields School in Oxford. Both the ‘A’ and the ‘B’ teams had to play qualifying matches in the group stage of the competition. The A team played New College School, Cheam B, Magdalen College School B and Eaton House the Manner; they were then advised that they had progressed through to the Knock Out phase of the Plate Competition. Mr Dury made the boys fully aware that if they wanted to play more matches that day, beating their opposition was now the only way to achieve this! The first match of the Knock Out phase was against Cheam A and St Margaret’s secured a 1-0 victory. This result then allowed the team
through to the semi- final, where they were drawn to play Knightsbridge A. St Margaret’s were fantastic defensively and secured another 1-0 victory to take them onto the final of the competition, where they faced Magdalen College School A. The final got off to a very worrying start with Magdalen finding a goal within the first minute! However, the St Margaret’s boys lifted up their heads and took the ball forward from the re-start and eventually turned the game around to a winning score line of 2-1. The boys were quite rightly overjoyed with their trophy and their sportsmanship was exemplary.
St Margaret’s Preparatory School, Calne, Wiltshire, SN11 0DF Tel: 01249 857220 Fax: 01249 857227 Email: office@stmargaretsprep.org.uk Website: www.stmargaretsprep.org.uk