Antarctica News

1 year, 213 days ago
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Hoo Zoo visit for Reception class – packed lunch orders needed

Dear parents,

If you haven’t yet paid for your child’s visit to Hoo Zoo on the new Weduc app, you will not yet have indicated their packed lunch choices for their trip (which is part of the payment process).
The kitchen staff need their orders by tomorrow (Tuesday 28th February) at the latest please so they can place the food order and get it delivered in time for next week’s visit.

Thank you!

 

1 year, 223 days ago
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Things to ask me 17.02.23 Happy Half Term!

  • We have been reading a book called Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers this week. Can you remember what animal was lost? (Penguin) 
  • Where did the penguin come from? (South Pole / Antarctica) 
  • Can you remember how the boy and the penguin travelled back to the South Pole? (by boat) 
  • We wrote a list of items that the boy and the penguin might need to take with them on their journey. Can you think of anything that you wrote in your list? 
  • In Forest School, we went on a hunt for signs of Spring. Can you think of anything that we found? (blossom, nests, birds, lambs, daffodils, crocuses, leaves starting to grow on trees) 
  • We found lots of daffodils, but what was the problem with them? (the yellow flower heads hadn’t started to come out yet!) 
  • In maths we’ve been looking at those terrible teens! What number is always written first in a teen number? 
  • How many is the 1 in teen numbers worth? (eg. 16 – the 1 means one lot of 10) 
  • What instruments did we explore in music? (chatterbox, claves, symbols, maraca) 
  • We have learnt ‘oa’ ‘oo’ (like book) ‘oo’ like moon this week. Can you spot any of these digraphs in your books? 
  • Can you write any of our new sounds? 
  • Can you think of any words with these sounds in? 

A reminder that, after half term, we ask that your child brings in their PE kit so they can get changed independently. This is an important skill we’re really keen for them to master. PE days will be Wednesday as usual and Friday.  

Next half term our topic is ‘Animals!’

Finally, Antarctica have had a brilliant week this week and definitely deserve a nice break. Have a lovely half term and please feel free to share any photos on tapestry so we can show the class when they get back. 

1 year, 225 days ago
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Hoo Zoo packed lunch orders for Reception children

Please can all Reception parents order your child’s free school packed lunch on Weduc as soon as possible, as the kitchen staff need to order food ready for delivery in time for the class visit.

If you will be providing your child with a home packed lunch on their Hoo Zoo visit day (Wednesday 8th March) please either indicate that on the Weduc app, or let the school office know.

Thank you!

Hoo Zoo & Dinosaur World

1 year, 226 days ago
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PE after Half Term

Dear Parents,

After half term, Reception will be having a second PE session on a Friday. This means that their PE days will now be Wednesday and Friday. We ask that after half term, children can start bringing in PE kits on a Monday, to be sent home on a Friday so that children can get changed for PE in school. We are aware that no other classes get changed for PE in school, however getting dressed independently is a vital skill which we need to assess and develop as part of the children’s early years education.  It will also mean that every child has a change of clothes in school in case of any toileting accidents.

It is our expectation that by the end of the year, all children in Reception should be able to dress and undress themselves independently. We are always happy to help with buttons, zips and laces though! If your child isn’t yet able to dress themselves independently, you could help us by encouraging this skill a little bit more at home. I know that we are all rushed in the morning, so just by getting them to independently dress themselves in a couple of items, then the skill will start to develop really quickly.

Please make sure that ALL items of clothing are labelled, as items are much more likely to end up with the wrong owner if children are getting changed.

Many thanks,

Miss Roberts and Mrs Davies

1 year, 230 days ago
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Things to ask me 10.02.23

  • This week we did some art in our sketch books. We looked at JMW Turner’s ‘Temeraire.’ What kind scene did we create? (A seascape)

  • What did we use to make the art? (watercolours)
  • We’ve been doing some independent writing. Can you remember what you wrote about? (Our walk around Pontesbury and the places/vehicles we saw)
  • We’ve learnt the ‘ee’ and ‘igh’ sounds this week. Can you write them down? Can you think of any words with them in?
  • In forest school, we had a number bond challenge to do. What was it? (Finding numbered tubes and posting sticks through)
  • In PE we have been doing dance. What has your favourite dance been? (air, earth, fire, water)
  • We have been looking at money in maths. What do we use money for? How do we get money? What does it look like?
  • We’ve thought about trying new things. What is something new that you would like to try?
  • This week was children’s mental health week. What can we do to help our mental health?
  • Each group took part in a teamwork game. What did you have to do with a hoop? (Pass the hoop down the line of children)
  • Why was it tricky? (Had to hold hands and not let go.)

Antarctica get to keep the Pontesbury Panda until next friday as we had the best attendance in school this week! Good job Antarctica!

Well done for your hard work this week everyone, have a lovely weekend!

 

1 year, 232 days ago
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Can you help???

We are hoping to develop the outside area with some open ended resources. We’re looking for large construction items such as:

  • Milk crates
  • Drain pipes/guttering
  • Small wheels e.g. from trikes, wheelbarrows
  • Long wooden poles e.g. broom handles

If you have, or know anyone that has, any of these items that they no longer want and could be donated then we would be incredibly grateful!

1 year, 237 days ago
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Things to ask me 03.02.23

  • We have been reading a story called Journey this week. We loved it! It’s a story with no words, but you can watch a video of it here if you like. 
  • What was special about the pen that the girl had? (it was a magic pen) 
  • Can you remember any of the vehicles that she drew and travelled in? (boat, hot air balloon, flying carpet, bike) 
  • We also listened to a piece of music called ‘A Short Ride in a Fast Machine’. What sort of machine did you think it was? 
  • Where did you think the machine was going to? 
  • We learnt the tricky word ‘they’ this week. If your grown up writes it down, can you have a go at reading it? 
  • We went on a walk around Pontesbury this week! What vehicles did you see? 
  • There were some vehicles that we didn’t spot any of. What were they? (no bikes, motorbikes or buses) 
  • How did we keep ourselves safe on the walk? (partners, walking away from the pavement, grown ups wore high vis jackets so they could be seen) 
  • Can you think of two numbers that make 5?  
  • We watched The Mixed-Up Chameleon, can you remember what animals the chameleon wanted to be? 
  • Can you remember some of the things that were similar and some of the things that were different about you and your friends in class? (hair colour, likes/dislikes, eye colour etc.) 
  • What is something you are good at? 
  • We listened to different vehicle noises and had to guess what they were. When you’re out and about can you listen for vehicles and guess what they might be before you see them? 
  • We asked each other how they travel to school. Can you remember how many people drove in a car? Walked? Got the bus? Rode a bike? Rode a scooter? 
  • What is our new sound this week? (ai) Can you write it down? Can you write it in a word? 
1 year, 238 days ago
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Children’s Mental Health Week

Next week, it is Children’s Mental Health Week.  We would like to show our support for this by joining in with their ‘Dress to Express’ day next Friday 10th February.  The children can come to school in their own clothes to express their personality.

If your child/children has PE on this day then they can either bring their PE kit to get changed, bring some trainers or do PE in their own clothes if they are already suitable (i.e. trainers and tracksuit bottoms).

The week is run by a charity called Place 2 Be.  We are joining in with the activities and Dress to Express day to raise awareness of children’s mental health, however, if you would like to make a donation to the Place 2 Be Charity you can do so through their website directly.

https://www.place2be.org.uk/support-us/donate/

1 year, 240 days ago
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Walk around Pontesbury

Dear Parents,

Tomorrow we will be going for a walk around the village to see how many different types of vehicles we can spot. Children will already be in their PE kits, so will have sensible footwear on, but please ensure that every child has a coat as well as hat and gloves (depending on the weather).

Miss Roberts

1 year, 244 days ago
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Things to ask me 27.01.23

  • We have been learning all about Chinese New Year this week. Can you remember any of the animals in the story? (rat, cat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, monkey, rooster, goat, dog, pig)
  • Which animal won the race? (the rat)
  • What did the rat do to the cat? (pushed him in the river!)
  • What was the name of the man in the story? (Emperor)
  • What year of the zodiac is it this year? (year of the rabbit)
  • Can you remember why the pig arrived last? (they stopped to eat and then have a sleep!)
  • What is the lucky colour in China? (red)
  • We have been doing some cooking this week and made a stir fry! What ingredients did we use? (pepper, mushroom, onion, carrot, noodles)
  • Can you remember what shape you had to put your hand in when you were chopping?
  • In maths we have been measuring lengths and heights. Can you find an object longer than your foot? Can you find an object shorter than your grown ups/siblings foot?
  • We have been learning a Chinese dragon dance. What actions did we do? (dance and prance, hop hop hop, shake their tail, turn around, go to sleep)
  • We Talked Pants and watched the Pantosaurus song. Can you name someone you trust that you would talk to if you were feeling worried?
  • What flowers did Mrs Roberts bring in this week, that we painted on Friday? (daffodils)
  • We made dragon heads in our house groups. What did we use to decorate them? (red, yellow and orange tissue paper and crayons)
  • We have learnt the digraphs ch, sh, th, ng – can you write these down or think of some words that have these sounds in?