🌱 Dig for Victory Project with Gardener Jim – WW2 Garden Experience

We are excited to share that on Monday 29th September and Monday 6th October, the children will be taking part in our “Dig for Victory” project with Gardener Jim in the WW2 garden.

The class will be split into two groups and will take part in a range of hands-on activities linked to wartime life and the “Dig for Victory” campaign.

To make the day even more memorable, children have the optional choice to come dressed as an evacuee.

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👕 What to Wear

Boys: shorts, shirt, jumper or cardigan, long socks, sturdy shoes, cap or flat cap

Girls: skirt or dress, blouse, cardigan, knee socks/tights, sensible shoes, hair ribbon or scarf

Colours: dark or muted tones (navy, grey, brown, green) – please avoid bright, modern patterns

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🎒 What to Bring

• Small suitcase, satchel, or bag (an old bag, lunchbox, or decorated shoebox works well)

• Gas mask box (a cardboard box with string/strap – homemade is fine)

• Name label or luggage tag tied to coat (card with string or brown paper)

• A small personal item (e.g. teddy, book, or handkerchief)

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Dressing up is not compulsory, and all children will be taking part regardless. If you do choose to dress up, please use clothes and items that you already have at home.

This will be a fantastic opportunity for the children to step back in time, experience history in a hands-on way, and develop a deeper understanding of life during World War II.

Please share this on any groups chats you may have to ensure all families know about this opportunity.

Please note that children need to come into school in their school uniform as it's photo day. However, they will get changed into their evacuee outfits in the afternoon.

Year 4 team

Receiving our letters from our partnership school in Ukraine

We’re so excited to share an update about our school’s wonderful partnership with our friends in Ukraine!

Earlier this term, our children wrote beautiful letters to students at our partner school, sharing stories about their lives, families, and favourite activities. These letters made a very special journey, all the way to Poland with me during my recent visit!

It was incredibly moving to deliver the letters in person to Anastasia (the teacher from our partner school). The children at the partner school were thrilled to receive them today. 

I brought back letters from the children there, and it was a delight to watch our children read them. They were full of curiosity, excitement, and pride as they shared their letters with each other. 

As a small token of friendship, each child also received a fridge magnet and a piece of chocolate from the visit. It was a lovely surprise and helped make the experience feel even more special.

This partnership continues to be a meaningful and enriching experience for everyone involved. It’s helping our children understand the value of kindness, empathy, and global friendship. It is also showing how small gestures, like a handwritten letter, can make a big impact.

We look forward to continuing our journey together!

Miss White 

Year Four ROAR 2025 Presentations

Today was the big day — and Year Four absolutely SMASHED IT! 🎉

Every single pupil rose to the challenge, showcasing their ideas with confidence, teamwork and creativity. The quality of the presentations left our judges with an incredibly tough job on their hands.

We couldn’t be prouder of the way our young entrepreneurs presented themselves and their world-changing ideas. 🌍✨

The winners will be revealed in our whole-school assembly on Friday morning… watch this space! 👀

Mr Spracklen – Headteacher

RE - A1 - Christian - Salvation

In RE this half term, Year Four have begun their new RE topic all about Salvation. 

Our big question is:

“How does believing Jesus is their saviour inspire Christians to save and serve others?”

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Being Rescued -

We started today by thinking about what it means to be rescued. The children shared brilliant ideas about people who save others — from firefighters and lifeguards to superheroes in films! We discussed how being rescued makes us feel safe, cared for and thankful.

The children then created their own drawings to show times when people might be rescued, adding words like brave, thankful, happy and relieved. This helped us to begin thinking about how Christians believe Jesus is their rescuer.

Jesus and Zacchaeus -

Next, we explored the Bible story of Zacchaeus the tax collector. The children enjoyed watching the story and then reflecting on what changed for Zacchaeus after he met Jesus.

We thought about what Zacchaeus was like before — greedy, selfish and disliked by many — and what he was like after— forgiven, generous and ready to make things right. The children captured this in comic strips, before-and-after drawings and speech bubbles showing what Zacchaeus might have said.

The children have made a fantastic start to this unit, showing curiosity, creativity and deep thinking. 

We can’t wait to see how their learning develops as we continue to explore how Christians believe salvation inspires them to help others in the world today.

ROAR 2025 Enterprise Challenge

With Miss White away in Poland, representing our school at the British Council’s UK–Ukraine School Partnerships programme, I (Mr Spracklen) had the pleasure of stepping into Year Four today. 

This morning, we immersed ourselves in the ROAR 2025 Enterprise Challenge (supported by 8BillionIdeas and Lions Club International).

Together we explored:

• Module One: Who Creates World Changing Ideas?

• Module Two: Ideas, Ideas, Ideas…

• Module Three: Showcase
  

I was completely blown away by the pupils’ work ethic, creativity and maturity. They demonstrated real teamwork and innovative thinking, tackling each challenge with focus and enthusiasm.

Tomorrow is the big moment — our young entrepreneurs will be presenting their ideas to a panel of judges. I, for one, cannot wait to see their presentations and celebrate everything they’ve achieved so far.

Well done, Year Four — you have made us all incredibly proud today! 👏

Mr Spracklen - Headteacher

First week in Year 4

 A Fantastic Start to Year 4!

What a wonderful first week we've had back in Year 4! It’s been a joy to see the children settle back into school life so smoothly and rise to the expectations with enthusiasm and confidence. Their positive attitude and eagerness to learn have already set the tone for what promises to be a brilliant year ahead.

One of the highlights this week has been seeing the children bonding with their new buddies. They’ve shown great care and responsibility while supporting them through lunchtime, assembly, and shared reading sessions. It’s been heartwarming to witness these new friendships starting to blossom.

In Maths, we’ve jumped straight into exploring place value and 4-digit numbers. The children have been learning how to partition numbers and represent their values in different ways, showing a solid understanding and a real curiosity to explore further.

English has been all about creativity, with a free writing week giving the children a chance to showcase their writing talents. It’s been fantastic to see the variety of ideas and the confidence with which they’ve approached their work.

In Science, we began with a 'cold task' to find out what the children already know about states of matter. This will help us tailor our learning journey as we dive deeper into the topic over the coming weeks.

The children also enjoyed getting creative with their Art shirts—decorating them in preparation for our upcoming art lessons. It was a fun and messy activity, and the shirts are looking amazing!

We also had our first swimming lesson, which was a big hit! The children approached the session with excitement and maturity, and we’re looking forward to seeing their skills develop over the term.

All in all, it’s been a brilliant first week, and we’re so proud of how well the children have started Year 4. We’re looking forward to another great week ahead, filled with learning, creativity, and fun!

See you in the morning,

Miss White, Mrs Bernard and Mrs Thomas

Welcome to Year 4

Hello everyone!

We had a brilliant first day back! The children settled into Year 4 wonderfully and quickly got back into the swing of things. We spent time creating our class charter, thinking carefully about how we want our classroom to be a happy and respectful place for everyone. It was lovely to see how the children rose to the expectations of Year 4, showing great enthusiasm and maturity. All in all, it was a really positive start, and we’re excited for the term ahead!

Just a few reminders to help things run smoothly:

Uniform & Water Bottles

Please make sure all uniform (including PE kits!) is clearly labelled. This really helps us when things go missing. Water bottles should also be named so they don’t get muddled up.

Snacks & Fruit

Children can bring in a healthy snack for break time. Don’t worry if they forget – fruit will be available in school too.

PE & Swimming

• PE will be on Mondays each week, so kits need to be in school.

• Swimming starts on Thursday – please make sure letters are back in by Wednesday so everyone can take part.

  
  

Equipment & Reading

• Pencil cases can come in after Christmas, so no need to bring them yet.

• Children will be taking an AR quiz and bringing it home – these need to come back in every day.

• New reading records have gone home – please return them on Fridays so we can check and celebrate progress.

Walking to School

Later in the year, children will have the option to walk to and from school on their own, but this won’t start until the summer term.

Parent Information Session

We’d love to see you at our Parent Information Session on Friday at 9am in the staff room.

Thanks so much for your continued support – it really makes such a difference!

See you in the morning,

⭐Miss White, Mrs Bernard and Mrs Thomas ⭐