Heartsease Primary Academy Newsletter - 25th October 2024

Office update

Diarrhoea/Vomiting

Please be reminded that if you child has an episode of diarrhoea / vomiting they need to be at least 48 hours clear from the last episode before returning to school.

After School Activity Clubs

New after school activity clubs will start the week commencing Monday 11th November, these are available on MCAS to enrol your child.

The Running club on a Monday will continue each term up until the Summer holidays.

Recorder Club - Monday 11th November

Unfortunately the club will not be going ahead on Monday 11th November however will commence on Monday 18th November.

Lost Property

This week we have been sorting through the large volumes of lost property. Any named items have been returned to the child's class. Any unclaimed items which are not named we will be washing and adding to our preloved rail.

Please could we request that children's belongings are clearly named so if found we can return them to the child.

Preloved Uniform

We will continue after the October half term break to invite Parents/Carers in at the end of the school day to view the donated/Preloved uniform. A message will be sent out via MCAS to let you know when this will be held.

Woods - Bottom playground

Please could we remind you that children should not be playing in the woods situated within the school grounds at the end of the school day, thank you.

Fortnightly class updates and achievements

Nursery

W/C 14th October

This week our learning has been based around the book Oliver's Vegetables by Vivian French. The children have learned what a plant is and to name some of the main parts. They looked closely at a variety of vegetables talking about their colour, shape and smell. Some children tried vegetable printing, while others made observational drawings of vegetables using pastels. We have been talking about different sizes and sorting items into big and small or little sets. We played a game where an adult described a vegetable and the children had to guess which one it was.

W/C 21st October

This week we have been thinking about the seasons, especially autumn. We read the book The Leaf Thief by Alice Hemming. The children have loved hearing about the squirrel who is very anxious because the leaves from his tree are going missing! We have talked about what we might see in autumn - different coloured leaves, leaves falling off the trees, conkers, acorns, and much more. On our visits to the woods in Forest School we collected leaves and stood and watched the leaves falling from the trees when the wind blew. The children have made leaf prints and collaged with leaves. Perhaps in the holiday you could have a look for other signs of autumn.

Ruby Class

Week commencing 14th October

In English, Ruby class began reading and writing about life in London in the present and the past, making comparisons. In Maths, we learnt positional and directional language, particularly focussing on behind vs in front of. In computing, we used an on-screen keyboard to type our names. Outdoors, we made pictures using Autumn leaves. In DT / Science, we answered the question 'how do ducks stay dry?' We experimented with different materials to see which 'feathers' were waterproof and which were absorbent.

Week commencing 21st October

In English, we continued reading and writing about life in London in the present and the past, making comparisons. In Maths, we read temperatures from thermometers. Science and DT continued to overlap: we designed bridges and waterproof hats, considering the appropriate choice of materials. We also designed bridges in outdoor learning. Computing overlapped with PSHE as we considered how to use technology responsibly.

Attitudes to Learning Award

 Week commencing - Monday 14th October

Evie

For achievement, using her speech sounds and contributing in discussions.

 Week commencing - Monday 21st October

Alfie S

For achievement in all areas of learning.

Year 1 (Jasper / Jade Classes)

Week commencing 14th October

We have been exploring trees and what makes them different to other plants; we even went on a tree hunt. In Art we have finished the end of the painting unit by doing a painting inspired by Piet Mondrain. We are starting a new core text after half term called the Storm Whale in which we will continue to develop writing skills such as using verbs and adjectives in.  All chn have now received Rainbow words, please practice reading these by sight at home so they can be a rainbow reader! 



Week commencing 21st October

Reception have been reading the book Pumpkin Soup, exploring pumpkins and tasting their own pumpkin soup whilst having a spooky story as an early Halloween treat. We have also made some fantastic Autumn art this term exploring the colours of Red, yellow, Orange and brown. Can we take this opportunity to wish you all a restful half term. Reception team :)

Year 1 (Onyx/Opal Classes)

We have been exploring trees and what makes them different to other plants; we even went on a tree hunt. In Art we have finished the end of the painting unit by doing a painting inspired by Piet Mondrain. We are starting a new core text after half term called the Storm Whale in which we will continue to develop writing skills such as using verbs and adjectives in.  All chn have now received Rainbow words, please practice reading these by sight at home so they can be a rainbow reader! 

Attitudes to Learning Award

 Week commencing - Monday 14th October

Onyx Class

Isla

For her amazing achievement in writing this week.

Opal Class

Anya

For always helping others and takes turns during partner practice or working partners.

 Week commencing - Monday 21st October

Onyx Class

Chinedu

For his achievement within his writing, completing his writing independently and thinking hard.

Opal Class

Halima

For showing kindness this week; helping others when they didn't ask!

Year 2 (Amber/Aqua Classes)

Year 2 classes have both had great weeks of learning leading up to this half term break. In math our focus has been adding and subtracting using concrete objects, pictorial representations and mentally including a 2 digit number and 1s. We have been building upon number bonds to 10.We have been working with numbers as 10s and 1s and understanding the counting patterns. In English our core book has been Paddington with our focus on retrieval of information and summarising skills. We practised the skills needed to write a narrative in the past tense using third person pronouns which then culminated in a piece of writing based upon Aesop's Fable about the Hare and the Tortoise. We have finished our Geography block looking at the physical and human features in the environment, which included a local area study.

The classes have enjoyed learning more about The Great Fire of London, where it spread to.We also started our music block which introduced the children to samba music, playing percussion instruments, making body percussion samba and joining in call and response ostinato,(a rhythmic pattern repeated throughout a composition). Our Sewing Bee has been replaced with learning about abstract art and painting in the style of Kandinsky. 

Attitudes to Learning Award

Week commencing - Monday 14th October

Amber Class

Esila

For showing fantastic teamwork all week. She has been sharing her ideas and listening carefully to others. An active and supportive learning partner. Well done Esila. 

Aqua Class

DJ

His sentences this week included perfect spellings and punctuation, keep it up DJ!

Week commencing - Monday 21st October

Amber Class

Liz

Well done to Liz who has settled so well into Amber class. She listens carefully and always strives to do her best . A great role model , she has made a positive impact upon the class. Well done Liz.

Aqua Class

Isla-Rose

For being very empathetic. Isla-Rose knows that being helpful and looking after classmates is how we should be. 

Year 3 (Coral / Crystal Classes)

Year Three had an excellent Art cafe this week and we were delighted how many parents and family members joined us. We hope the children's monsters work well in decorating your homes for Halloween. We completed our fossil writing and have used several different subheadings - we can explain how fossils are formed, tell you where to find them and describe the different types. In history, we learnt about the iron age and how society moved on during this period.Shockingly, we found out that druid priests were happy to make sacrifices to their gods. Why not look online with us at Maiden Castle - a surviving Hill Fort. We were fascinated to see how much was still here.... two thousand years later! We've sent some activities home for the holidays - all free - how many can you get done?

Attitudes to Learning Award

Week commencing - Monday 14th October

Coral Class

Daniel

Coral Class are proud of Daniel for his achievements in working throughout the day. He has been using translation to communicate his writing and thoughts and was able to complete sentences on fossils.

Coral Class пишається Даніелем за його досягнення в роботі протягом дня. Він використовував переклад, щоб передати свої твори та думки, і зміг завершити речення на скам’янілостях.

Crystal Class

Jack

For showing kindness to both children and adults during play and lunchtime. You have demonstrated a willingness to help others through acts of kindness. 

Week commencing - Monday 21st October

Coral Class

Alexander

For his independent achievements during the Art and Reading Café. Alexander had a clear vision of what his monster would look like and proceeded to work independently to achieve a great monster! He worked quietly and with purpose throughout the session – well done, Alexander!

Crystal Class

Georgia

For demonstrating her achievement in maths this week. Georgia has been working hard on adding two three-digit numbers using column method.

Year 4 (Garnet/Topaz Classes)

It's been an exciting two weeks for year 4 in this last fortnight of term time. Last week was test week, so the bulk of our time was spent completing all of our maths, reading and grammar papers. These help us teachers to understand where our classes are in these areas and therefore how can help going forward in the future. 

This week has been back to normal, with year 4 starting a brand new book in our reading - The Girl Who Stole An Elephant. In art we have continued our painting block, exploring the technique of overpainting and wet-on-wet. 

Attitudes to Learning Award

Week commencing - Monday 14th October

Garnet Class

Jack

He has been working really hard to improve his reading this year and has already started to make some fantastic progress!

Topaz Class

Niyah

Niyah always enters the classroom quietly and gets herself organised for every lesson. She continually shows great respect in class with her attentive listening skills, and she is always focussed on the teacher's explanations.

Wonderful!

Week commencing - Monday 21st October

Garnet Class

Marley

For consistently trying his absolute hardest no matter the subject and no matter the difficulty of the task.

Topaz Class

Noan

Noan has demonstrated excellent teamwork this week particularly in maths when solving multi step word problems. He has impressed me with his continued active listening during lessons. Noan communicates efficiently with his peers and he has a positive attitude to learning.  Brilliant!

Year 5 (Emerald/Sapphire Classes)

Week commencing - Monday 14th October

In Year 5, this week has been Assessment Week and the children have been striving to prove how much they know. The assessments help us as teachers to plan for next term so that we can reinforce any of the areas that the children are struggling with. Also this week, the children have continued their exploration of flat file databases by seeing how they can retrieve information from charts and diagrams. In PSHE, they wrote a recipe for a friendship cake. This helped the children to think about what makes a fantastic friend. Finally in mathematics, we have been seeing how using the inverse of a calculation can help you to check that your answer is correct. 

Week commencing 21st October

The final week in the Autumn term and Year 5 are still working hard. They have been revising some of their writing skill in English as well as finishing their study of Shackleton’s Journey in reading. This was an amazing story about determination and teamwork. In mathematics, we have been revising some of the areas that the assessments identified as the children not being secure on. 

Science was exciting as we showed irreversible changes by burning different materials. Geography saw the children comparing the continents of North America and Europe. 

We are all looking forward to seeing what Autumn 2 brings. Happy Half Term, Year 5.,

Attitudes to Learning Award

Week commencing - Monday 14th October

Emerald Class 

Evelyn

Throughout the week we have been testing and Evelyn has given it 100% in each and every test showing us she really wants to achieve!

Keep it going!

Sapphire Class

Chloe I

We are very proud of Chloe I this week for the respect she shows towards others when she is in class. During lessons, Chloe is always polite towards those around her and allows them to focus by concentrating on her own work. Well done Chloe. 

Week commencing - Monday 21st October

Emerald Class 

Avyaan

Throughout this week and every week Avyaan has shown 100% commitment to achieving the best that he can. He is an engaged, active member of the class who is determined to be the best that he can be.

Sapphire Class

Skylar

Skylar has shown her determination this week to achieve in her mathematics. She was especially focused when answering her arithmetic questions on addition and subtraction. Well done Skylar.

Year 6 (Diamond/Quartz Classes)

Week commencing 14th October

Year 6 will be finishing our first class text of the year, Rooftoppers. Both classes have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and following Sophie's determination to find her mother.

We have been learning about division, both short and long division in maths. Our focus for our weekly arithmetic drill this week has been on supporting children in understanding how to do long division.

In Science, we have continued our work on Electricity and focusing more specifically on circuits.

Both Quartz and Diamond have enjoyed making pitta bread and hummus as part of our DT, where we are exploring healthy snacks from around the globe. 

A reminder that there is a meeting in Quartz class on Monday 21st October to discuss the Y6 Residential trip to X Adventure at 16:00.

Week commencing - Monday 21st October

We will begin our new class text, Pig Heart Boy, which I'm sure the children will enjoy.

In Writing, we will be planning our own First Person Story with a moral. This is based on The Boy Who Cried Wolf.

We will be making Samosas in DT this week, children will cook the fillings and fold the pastry, read to be taken home to fry.

A reminder for Quartz class that we will still be swimming this Friday, so they will need to bring their swimming kit, including a swim hat.

Attitudes to Learning Award

Week commencing - Monday 14th October

Diamond Class

Charlie

For his amazing Teamwork, Respect, Achievement and kindness this week.

Charlie always does his best in every lesson, can be relied upon to remember his responsibilities, works politely with all his peers and will support anyone who needs help, Well done!

Quartz Class

Zoe

For showing kindness to others. Zoe is always kind and respectful to both her peers and adults in class. She will help her friends feel supported by talking to them and playing with them at break and lunch. Zoe is always polite and follows all of the core values in class and around the school.

Attitudes to Learning Award

Week commencing - Monday 21st October

Diamond Class

Samuel

For his amazing teamwork this week. In cookery Samuel saw what needed doing and did it, without being asked. He cleared up responsibly and safely.

Quartz Class

Ameena

For her achievements in Writing this week. Ameena has written a fabulous dilemma in her narrative, fantastic description, action and dialogue to make her narrative exciting. She also used a wide range of high-quality vocabulary to keep the reader engaged.

PE Star

Week commencing Monday 14th October

Alex - Sapphire Class

Alex outshone his peers this week for his attitude to learning, his applying the skills to the game and his determination was impressive during the football tournament in PE.

Well done Alex!

Chase - Amber Class

For his brilliant listening to the technique instructions for dribbling a ball with his hands. Because of this, he managed to improve his skills and did and excellent demonstration to the year group. Good job Chase!

Improved Attendance Awards

Well done to the following children for improving their attendance within the last 3 weeks:-

Sienna -Mae, Amiya, Freddie L, Shyla, Avery-Rose, Scott, Lola-Mae, Tyler B, Sasha, Chase W, Darcy W, Annah, Reggiei, Freddie A,  Mia B, Jack B, Theo C, Braxton, River-Mae, Jordan, Minnie, Phoebe K, Mia O, Poppy, Ruby A, Terry, Sasha-Marie, Chase W.H, Moh, Peter, Harvey, Aurora, Lyssia-Chelsey, Kiana, Tia, Briella, Cali-Rose.

Additional Forthcoming events / Dates for the diary

A list of useful term dates were sent home with the children last week along with a term dates calendar for 2024/2025/2026. If you did not receive this please do let the office know, thank you.

Friday 25th October

Last day of the term.

Monday 28th October - Friday 8th November

School closed - Half term break.

Monday 11th November

School reopens.