Pre-School pupils were very excited to welcome their parents into school to see what a typical day looks like for them. It was wonderful to see the excitement on their little faces as they raced from the garden to each classroom, proudly explaining the many learning and play activities that they get involved in on a daily basis. From the happy noises coming from the garden I think some parents were having just as much fun as the children! How can you teach a lesson on verbs with Year 1 without getting very active in the process? Well, of course the answer is that you simply can’t and so each classroom I visited was getting increasingly more creative and dynamic as the week progressed. Year 2 are learning how to retrieve facts from a text and conduct their own research and this week they have been studying the life and work of Mary Anning, a fossil collector and palaeontologist who was famous for her discoveries in the early 1800s. The pupils were clearly enjoying their research, but were enthralled by the real artefacts that our Head of English Mrs Broadis was able to share with them in class. I wonder if any of our pupils have been inspired to be intrepid explorers in the future?
Year 3 - This week, Year 3 have continued their learning about fractions and used their knowledge of multiplication and division to find equivalent fractions. We have since moved on to comparing fractions.
In English, we are in the final stages of preparing for our non-chronological reports on the rainforest; our discussions have been greatly supported by our learning in science and topic. The children worked in pairs to produce presentations on different animal groups and have extended this understanding to investigate habitats. We were inspired by David Attenborough to ask and answer some thoughtful questions about how we can best support animal habitats that are being polluted such as ‘Is it more important to have forests or farm cattle?’ and ‘What can we do about the plastic that ends up in the ocean?’
Year 4 - In Maths, we have continued learning about the relationship between fractions and decimals. We have developed our mastery skills by applying decimals into monetary form. The children have enjoyed using money in the classrooms and have a sound grasp of the value of coins and notes. Children have tackled word problems successfully and it is clear that they are able to take the relative steps to answering this style of questions.
In Science, the children have enjoyed sharing their own knowledge of plants and our ecosystem. We have been thrilled to see the depth of their existing knowledge and we are excited to build on this. The children are now caring for their own plants and are racing to grow the largest sunflower. We have also used our observational skills by taking our learning outside to sketch different parts of flowering plants.
In English we have had an action packed week as newspaper reporters. The children have investigated the suspicious arrival of a key character in the Varjak Paw novel and in some cases have gone further to investigate mysterious vanishings of Mesopotamian Blue’s in the novel. They have done so by interviewing key witnesses in the form of hot seating. Will the children uncover the truth behind the arrival of this mysterious figure and his suspicious felines? Are the Cat’s lives in danger? We will report more as the story progresses.
Year 5 & 6 - It has been wonderful seeing the children in cricket whites this week. It is a sure sign that Summer is on its way! Once again the pupils of Lower Prep were kept busy this week with assemblies, assessments, exciting lessons and sports fixtures. In English this week the Year 5 have been busy completing their rising stars assessments. It has been wonderful seeing just how far they have come since September. We will be carrying on with our new unit next week, looking at the classic text ‘Black Beauty’. In year 6 the children started to look at David Almond’s ‘Skellig’. They discussed the introduction to this text and started to imagine what they envisioned the character of Skellig to look like. In maths lessons the year 5 were thrilled to be learning algebra. They astounded their teachers by solving some very complicated algebra equations. See if your child can teach you how to solve some of the trickier problems! Year 6 were converting between metric and imperial units in maths this week. They completed investigations looking into volume and capacity. You might want to test their knowledge at home by asking the children to convert measurements using household items. The children were looking at solubility in science. They were excited to complete lots of different experiments to identify which liquid sugar dissolves in the quickest. In history lessons year 5 have been looking at Mediaeval villages and their layout. The children were getting ready for their summer holidays in geography as they looked into tourism. See if you can name the top 10 travel destinations! On Friday a few year 5 pupils were selected to attend a science challenge at Merchant Taylors’ School. Well done to all who attended for representing Edge Grove beautifully.
Year 8 have started their research for this year's Baccalaureate Conference Presentations. We have been delighted to see the pupils generate some very thought provoking research questions. Some of the questions so far include:
We are very excited about seeing the Year 8s start their written essays. They'll also start planning their spoken presentations and visual display boards. Parents make sure you save the date: Thursday 16th June!
Well done to everyone who took part in our first cricket fixtures of the year. Match reports can be found here.
Music - The inter-house music competition is now underway as we started with our first class performances last week. Pupils are already gaining invaluable expertise on improving their performance craft which will undoubtedly manifest itself in many transferable ways including: live performances, public speaking and presentations. Pupils have been discovering fundamental strategies to manage nerves whilst performing and are exploring ways to improve their stagecraft and audience etiquette. It has been a delight to watch them perform their instrument to their peers.
Pupils are getting a full week's notice before their performance in class. Please can they be reminded to bring their instrument (if necessary), music book and, if required, piano accompaniment on the day.
Preparation and rehearsals are well underway for performances at the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in a few weeks time and we look forward to sharing what the Chamber Choir and Prep Chorus have been rehearsing.
Photography - Photography module have been sketching out their Art Photography plans this week which they will begin to sew next week. I am pleased to see an array of styles and colours being used and I am sure that you will agree that they certainly have thought outside the box with their ideas.
Elective are continuing with making up their own assignments. We have a range of editing the sun behind bars, adding a face onto other objects and finding shapes in everyday items.
The 2022 Edge Grove Golf Day will be held on Friday 20th May 2022 at Aldenham Golf and Country Club. We would like to encourage golfers of all standards to join us. The day includes tea/coffee and a breakfast roll before you start, 18 holes of golf followed by a 2 course sit down lunch. The cost of the day is £65 per person. If you would like to secure your place on a team or submit a four ball, please click here to book your place. If you have any questions please email Sue Maughan on smaughan@edgegrove.com.