The Echo Spring 2018

THEECHO ECHO ECHO

Spring 2018 Edition

YEAR 6 TRIUMPH AGAIN! Children in Year 6 have produced a bumper crop of examination results once again this year, with talents across the board being recognised.

Triumphs included not only academic success, but recognition in Music, Sport, Drama and Art. The children’s achievements come as the result of their endeavours, positive attitudes to learning and genuine desire to be the best that they can be. Additionally, they once again responded Alfie​​​ Dauntsey’s *​​​​ Academic Scholarship ​​​ Warminster ​​​ Academic Scholarship Amelia​​​ Dauntsey’s ​​​ Day Leo ​​​ Dauntsey’s ​​​ Music Exhibition Ruby ​​​ Dauntsey’s Sport Scholarship Samuel ​​ Dauntsey’s Sport Scholarship Taylor ​​​ Dauntsey’s Music Exhibition Thomas ​​ Dauntsey’s Day​​ Alistair ​​ King Edward’s, Bath​​​ Day Charlotte ​​ King Edward’s, Bath ​​​Day Hannah ​​ King Edward’s, Bath​​​ Academic Scholarship Dylan​​​ Prior Park College​​​ Day​​ Joshua​​​ Prior Park College​​​ Day Rufus​​​ Prior Park College ​​​ Music Exhibition

​​​Warminster* ​​​ Music Scholarship ​​​​​Theo​​​ St Augustine’s Catholic College Maintained

extremely well to the guidance and support that they received, both at school and at home. Feedback from many sources confirms the very mature way in which Year 6 conducted themselves throughout the examination process; they should be extremely proud of their achievements and are all well placed to make a positive start at their respective senior schools in September – congratulations!

Araminta ​​ St Mary’s, Calne ​​​ Claire​​​ St Mary’s Calne​​​ Evie​​​ St Mary’s, Calne​​​

Isabel​​​ St Mary’s, Calne​​​ Mia​​​ St Mary’s, Calne​​​ Sophie​​​ St Mary’s, Calne ​​​ Zina​​​ St Mary’s, Calne​​​

Ben ​​​ Warminster Conrad​​​ Warminster Elliott ​​​ Warminster Jessica ​​Warminster Ruby​​​ Warminster ​​​ Warminster ​​​ Toby​​​ Sasha​​​ Westonbirt ​​ * denotes chosen school

Welcome to the Spring 2018 Edition of The Echo What an extraordinary few weeks this has been.

With the focus of 11+ examinations behind us, we all looked forward to a vibrant and busy second half of term; but then the weather scuppered our plans! Matches and competitions suffered as a result of the extreme cold, whilst assemblies and film nights had to be rescheduled due to the snow. However, nonplussed by it all, the children have undoubtedly achieved great things in their classrooms, performed on the

stage and in the wider community, and competed in the sporting, technological and quiz arenas.

Our pride in their achievements is immense and we look forward to the balmy days of the summer term, during which I know that they will continue to go from strength to strength.

I hope you enjoy reading this edition of The Echo and I send children, staff, parents and friends my good wishes for a peaceful Easter holiday.

Day Academic Exhibition Academic, Music & Drama Exhibitions Day Art Exhibition Day Academic Scholarship & Drama Exhibition Day Sport Scholarship Day​​​ Day Day Day Day

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Some Right Characters in 5GM! Children in 5GM had great fun during Book Week. Their laughter rang out as Damian Harvey, a charismatic children’s author, led a workshop on how books were made and read snippets from his wonderful creations. In turn, the children impressed him by asking thought provoking, challenging questions, after which they themselves delighted in his amusing anecdotes and tales.

Following on from learning about some of the historical figures Damian has written about in his series of books, ‘The History Heroes,’ the class assembled a Tudor Time Capsule, which they filled with facts they had learnt, drawings of prominent figures, models, time lines and famous quotes. This supported and consolidated their study of this period and they were able to demonstrate high levels of knowledge.

Book Week climaxed in much merriment as the children and Mrs Gilmore dressed up as famous figures from history. Mrs Gilmore decided upon Queen Elizabeth 1 and surprised parents at the meet and greet with an unusual set of work attire! The children were extremely creative in their choices and characters ranged from more traditional historic figures such as Winston Churchill and Cleopatra to Tim Peake.

Moving Animals in 1H In Design Technology, the children in 1H learnt about the need to make a detailed plan for their projects. Making cross-curricular links with History and Geography, they chose their own creature to make into a moving animal, with levers. They created their animals using a variety of materials to ensure they were so real to life, that as soon as they started moving with levers, we wouldn’t be able to tell the difference! Building on their previous knowledge of joining techniques, 1H demonstrated a lot of perseverance and enthusiasm.

Magistrate and Police Visit Year 6 A visit from a Magistrate and a Police Inspector (a.k.a. St. Margaret’s parents Ms Boyd and Mr Armstrong) recently had Year 6 children buzzing. The visitors came in to teach the children about the roles of Magistrates and the Police. The session began with an introduction to rules, and why they are created. Within school, the children understand that rules are made to keep them safe, and so that everyone can live together in harmony. Thinking about the wider world, the presentation moved on to the age of criminal responsibility – which everyone was surprised to learn is 10 years old – and the consequences of breaking the law. Plenty of amusement was had when the children were able to try on the different police uniforms, and handle various pieces of equipment.

Amongst all the fun of dressing up, an important message about law and order, and its importance in today’s society was shared with everyone.

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Year 3 Can ‘Feel It’ in Their Bones!

Chinese New Year Celebrations in Kindergarten Kindergarten children enjoyed celebrating Chinese New Year! They set up a Chinese restaurant in their role play area where they were able to dress up, take orders, cook food and serve each other as waiters and waitresses. To help them learn about some of the different foods that are eaten in China, they not only created their own plate of Chinese food during craft activities, but also explored the different textures of the foods in the discovery tray. They also had a real Chinese banquet where they were able to try lots of Chinese food including rice, noodles, sweet and sour and black bean sauces, spring rolls and prawn crackers! One of the children’s favourite activities was the challenge of trying to write the initial letter of their name using the Chinese script.

Did you know that the adult human skeleton has 206 bones?

Did you know your femur is your longest bone? These are just some of the many facts that Year 3 learnt this term in their ‘Animals including Humans’ science unit. The exploration was bone-jangling and muscle stretching. The children conducted a school-wide investigation in order to test the relationship between a person’s forearm and their age. The results gave everyone a few surprises and allowed them the opportunity to suggest reasons for why these may have occurred. Highlights were learning the names of the bones, singing a skeleton song and acting as muscles in pairs to show how they relax and contract. Children demonstrated excellent teamwork when building a life size puzzle of the human skeleton; this took super problem solving from all and a little patience. Year 3 clearly know their humerus from their radius!

Vegetables on the Menu for 4NC Year 4 children spent this term learning to love vegetables! As part of their DT lessons, they have been studying ‘Food and Nutrition’ which links nicely to their Science unit where they learnt about ‘the Digestive System’. The class started off with most of the children complaining that they were not prepared to eat many of the vegetables available, but having made their own Middle Eastern Fattoush salad and lamb koftas, they changed their minds, leaving absolutely nothing for Mrs NC’s supper!!

They then branched out and made vegetable curry served with their favourite mango chutney, as well as designing their own vegetable pasta sauce and thinking about the different ways vegetables are prepared and cooked. A highlight of the term was using a spiralizer to make carrot mug cakes in the microwave.

Many of the children enjoyed this so much they are now cooking for their families at home and the vegetable consumption at lunch has definitely gone up!

4B are Rising Stars!

4B children had lots of fun learning techniques for spelling words, as part of the new Rising Stars spelling scheme. This gave everyone a chance to explore what method works best for them. For example, some have found that composing a mnemonic helps, such as ‘rhythm has your two hips moving’ for rhythm. Others have enjoyed spotting words inside words, for example ‘rat’ in separate. Another popular method has been to write each letter one by one in a pyramid, or to colour code the spelling pattern in each word. But perhaps the most popular method was when 4B got into partners with a beanbag, chose one of their spellings and then had to throw the beanbag to a partner every time they spelt a letter! The Rising Star method seems to be working well – everyone is having fun and the spelling test scores are going up too!!

Year 2 Embrace Japan This term in Year 2, the children learnt about Japan, which supported their Geography unit of looking at a different culture.

They began by comparing Japanese homes and schools with their own; but the best bit was undoubtedly learning how to write their names in Japanese, which was very tricky! Everyone had great fun looking at the special Japanese Girls’ Day – March 3rd and learnt about Japanese dolls and Boys’ Day - May 5th when children fly carp kites. The children made their own carp kites using their DT skills.

In Art, 2J and 2T looked at shape and texture through printing.

They studied the Japanese artist Hokusai’s ‘The Great Wave’ and created texture by printing with a variety of objects. To further their printing skills, they looked at lots of traditional Japanese patterns to help them make their own Japanese inspired printing block, which they then used to print on fans and kites.

Both classes were incredibly lucky to have a visit from some Japanese ladies from Honda. They brought Kimonos for everyone to dress up in, they taught the children some origami and they even showed them how to use chopsticks! The programme of study would not have been complete without a Japanese rice and sushi tasting session. Oishii!

Increased Responsibilities in Year 3 PSHEE has seen Year 3 exploring their journey of growth, from a baby right through to becoming an adult. Children are aware that one day they will stop getting taller, but all agree that they can continue to grow as learners and develop who they are as people. Everyone soon realised that along with this growth comes greater responsibility; as we mature we are able to do more for ourselves. The children have tackled the challenges of Year 3 admirably and know that as they continue to grow, so will their responsibility. This led to them creating some visual and fun displays where they have committed to trying to increase their responsibilities both at school and home.

A range of ideas came from all involved and tidy bedrooms will undoubtedly soon become the norm!

THEECHO ECHO ECHO SPRING 2018 EDITION

Brilliant Bridge-building in 6G 6G children enjoyed investigating how different shapes are important in bridge design. After having researched different bridges around the world and the different parts of bridges, they experimented with some shapes to create a span that would hold weight. They were given a sheet of paper to shape into a span – they were not very strong. Next they were shown how to roll newspaper around a dowel to create tubes. Each tube had strength because of its shape but was also not hugely strong.

However, when all the tubes were put together they became very strong indeed. Using a structure of all the tubes they had created, the children tested the strength of their bridge. They were amazed at how much weight the tubes were able to hold.

The children were then challenged to build a tall structure using spaghetti and marshmallows. This relies on creating triangles to create strong shapes that cannot fold. The three sides of the triangle push against each other rather than allow the shape to fail. All the information gained from their investigations will help them when they come to design their own bridges that will hold a 1kg weight!

1P Explore Scott In History this term, the children in 1P have been learning all about the explorer Robert Falcon Scott. They have been excited to learn new facts about his expedition to the South Pole and all of the class can now recall and share their new knowledge with their peers. Try them out; ask them if they know the name of Scott’s ship or if he was the first person to reach the South Pole. They have also written informative letters home as Scott, using adjectives to add interest to their writing. Finally, to finish off their learning they all had a turn at ‘Hot Seating’ in the role of Scott and shared their expedition experience!

Postal Power in Reception C This term, children in Reception C have been focusing on developing their love of writing. To support this, and to help develop their understanding of the world, they have been engaging in activities linked to the story of ‘The Jolly Postman’. A visit to the Post Office Counter came at the end of a technical walk, which included a visit to Calne Library and the local branch of Lloyds Bank. One of the highlights of the trip was learning about the cycle of a letter. The children wrote letters at school and then took turns to post their own messages, addressed to themselves, which were then subsequently delivered to their home addresses before being returned to school!

The Force is with Year 5 This term, the Year 5 children have learnt about the famous Scientist Sir Isaac Newton and the importance of forces in the world around us. Forces can be a friend or foe. Air resistance is increased in a parachute to enable it to slowly fall to the ground, while it is decreased in a sports car in order to increase the speed. The children used their understanding of water resistance to increase their speed in swimming lessons, as well as using their understanding of up thrust to make floating in water easier.

The culmination of this term’s work saw Year 5 design and build scrap model boats. The aim was to create a boat that was streamlined and be the fastest and the most stable when blown across water. The competition was set, and the children enthusiastically rose to the challenge. The DT room was full of activity and finally everyone gathered in Kindergarten to race their boats. This practical exercise allowed the children to apply their knowledge and have fun whilst learning about forces.

www.stmargaretsprep.org.uk The Big Outdoor Lesson Earlier in the term, a number of local schools were welcomed to St Margaret’s for ‘The Big Outdoor Lesson’ - a new, multi-school outdoor activity event organised by the Outdoor Learning Cluster Group, led by Mrs Callaway.

Children from Redland Primary School, Cherhill C of E Primary and Springfields worked alongside our children to learn everything from how to light a fire using just flint and steel, to building a shelter using a tarpaulin and natural materials.

Children from Years 2 to 5 gathered in the wildlife area, where two young leaders from Springfields helped set up and lead activities with staff from all the schools. To help solve problems and learn to trust each other, the pupils had to work in pairs, with one of them wearing a blindfold and the other guiding them around barriers on the trail.

The day provided a wonderful opportunity for the children to demonstrate and develop their range of learning styles and effective learning skills outside the classroom and we look forward to the next cluster group activity.

Cake of the Kings At the start of term, as part of their MFL cultural awareness, the children in Years 4 and 5 found out about the tradition of the ‘Épiphanie’ and the way it is celebrated in France. Traditionally, the Epiphany takes place on January 6th and commemorates the visit of the three Wise Men to Baby Jesus, but nowadays, it has become an opportunity for families and friends to meet a few days before and after that date and eat a flat cake called ‘La Galette des Rois’ (Cake of the Kings).

In the purest tradition and to avoid any cheating, the youngest member of each class sat under the table and allocated a slice to all the seated guests. As if eating a French cake was not enough, the excitement was at its peak when our lucky children found the ‘fève’ (bean) that was hidden in the cake and subsequently became the kings or queens of the day. The children enjoyed looking at a variety of plastic, porcelain or ceramic figurines currently made for the occasion and were surprised to hear that originally, a real bean was used.

A very enjoyable, although somewhat paradoxical experience for a Republic, as noted by a few pupils on the day!

NSPCC – Speak Out. Stay Safe Sam Nolan from the NSPCC visited St Margaret’s this term to talk to the children about the ‘Speak out. Stay safe’ programme.

Sam held two assemblies, one for children in Years 1 to 3, and another for the older pupils; these were then followed by workshops for children in Years 5 and 6. The talks were pitched so they were age appropriate and focused upon making sure that everyone knew that they should speak to an adult if there is anything in their lives making them feel uncomfortable or frightened. They were encouraged to speak to a parent, a teacher or another adult with whom they feel comfortable.

Whilst we talk to the children about staying safe as part of school life, it is important that such sensitive matters are discussed by specially trained staff. The NSPCC interactive assemblies and workshops were child-friendly and gave information about how to keep safe from harm. The programme also advised on how to seek help if a child is worried, sensitively discussing issues like bullying and sexual abuse, without using scary words or adult language. The children undoubtedly feel empowered to talk and reassured that they will be believed – knowing how to ‘speak out and stay safe’.

St Margaret’s Preparatory School, Calne, Wiltshire, SN11 0DF Tel: 01249 857220 Email: office@stmargaretsprep.org.uk Website: www.stmargaretsprep.org.uk

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