Merry Christmas one and all!

We had a very exciting last day at school, the children enjoyed playing, working on their christmas books and making mincemeat.

We hope you enjoy all of the hand made crafts that your child has bought home.

And finally we hope that you all have a MERRY CHRISTMAS and we will see you in 2013.

Party food and carols tomorrow

The children have been so brilliant this week during the play. Just a quick reminder that tomorrow we will be having our party and so we are asking for a contribution for the children's lunch. If you havent had a chance to sign up for anything then we still could do with: sandwiches, fruit/ cucumber / carrots and crisps etc.

Last day of our play tomorrow and then carols in the school hall at 3pm, we look forward to seeing you there.

Lovely costumes, great acting and singing

Well done Year 1 on your performance today in The Sleepy Shepherd! We hope to see more parents who haven't seen the nativity play on either Wednesday or Thursday!

Indian homes

On Thursday, Mr Farrington showed us some of his photos of homes in the village of Silvepura in India. The children learnt about how our homes might be the same or different as those in India. The children were very good at spotting the water tanks on top of many of the houses.

 

Poundbury pictures as promised!

Sorry about not posting these sooner but we had a few technological issues...

Here are a few pictures from the garden centre and the building site.

Vardo week

Year 1 were involved in a wide range of activities during our Vardo week. They loved exploring the Vardo, built a bender shelter and did lots of craft activities whilst learning about traveller culture.

Right to a safe home

On Thursday Mr Farrington will be showing some photos of his trip to India and teaching the children about every child's right to a safe home. The children will be finding out that there are many different types of houses in India, just as there are in Britain.

Reminder for instrumentalists

 

Children who learn musical instruments are performing in Monday’s assembly beginning at 10am. They need to remember their instrument and music and bring this into assembly with them.

If you would like to come and watch then please enter the school via the school office, you’re more than welcome! Please remember though it is a normal school assembly and not a polished performance!

 

Mrs Mewett

Vardo day tomorrow

On monday we were lucky enough to have a Vardo placed on our school play ground. Year 1 will be having a special Vardo day where we learn about how Gypsy's used to live, what they would eat, how they would live in a vardo. Everyone will get the chance to make and do lots of exciting things. 

As well as vardo we will also be practising for the play, the children now know their parts. We try to practice our songs most days. 

It is extremely cold outside at the moment and on wednesday we will be outside quite a lot so please make sure that the children wear lots of layers and have a thick coat (not just a rain coat) and wellingtons please as it will get muddy!

Many thanks 

POWSA Christmas Fair this Friday!

We are desperate for volunteers to help at the fair this Friday! Please let us know if you can help at any time during the afternoon to help setup or after school for running a stall. There is a form on the white board by the school office or you could email us to let us know - powsa@hotmail.co.uk

Thanks - Jon

Nice to be back!

I’ve had a lovely first week back after my maternity leave. The children have actually remembered me (!?) and I’ve enjoyed visiting all classes, getting to know children who have since joined the school.

 Up to Christmas you will see me in school everyday (apart from Tuesday) and I will be working with all classes getting ready for The Prince of Wales School two Christmas performances!

 We are also holding Christmas Carols in the School Hall on Thursday 20^th December at 3pm, all are welcome. If you do play a musical instrument please bring along and join the parent/ staff group for the occasion!

 My office is in the foyer so if you do wish to come and see me, please do!

 

Mrs Mewett (Deputy Head)

 

Poundbury trip

Today we have been to Poundbury. We have been lucky enough to have a look around the lovely Christmas display at the garden centre. It was magical walking through different realms and seeing the sparkling lights and trees. Whilst at the garden centre we all had a chance to plant some bulbs.

After a quick snack provided by the kind staff at the garden centre we stopped for lunch and then headed over to the building site. We split into two groups, one group had a look around a show home, whilst the other got the chance to build their own wall. This was brilliant for the children to see first hand what houses are made from.

Thank you to all those adults involved. Pictures of our day will follow....

Plea to parents!

A plea to parents!

 

 

On Thursday 20^th December at 3pm in the school hall the children invite you to join them to celebrate Christmas and sing carols. Last year it was very successful, particularly as the music was performed by our talented parents!

A couple of parents have offered their musical skills so far for this year; we have a pianist and a recorder player but would LOVE to have more parents playing. PLEASE share your talents and let Mrs Mewett know if you can come and play.

 

Thank you!

W/B 26/11/12 learning

This week in literacy we are going to be looking at



The children have been making lists of the familiar characters in the story.

In maths this week we are going to be counting in 2's, 5's and 10's, there are new pupil links in the maths folder that relates with this weeks work.

We are also beginning to learn some christmas songs for our performance. We will tell the children at the end of the week who they will be in the performance. Please don't worry about costumes, we have a large stock in school. We will let you know if your child needs to wear a particular colour.

Regarding the current newsletter, please note that your child is now being encouraged to choose an individual reading book from the next colour level.

Should you have any questions or concerns regarding this, please feel free to come in and speak to us.

Thank you for your continued support.

The importance of Water

To keep our minds and bodies fighting fit
we need to drink plenty of water.

Please remember to send your child to school with

a full water bottle to drink throughout the day!

Fantastic Assembly Yr 1

Well done everyone for a fantastic assembly today!
You all did a fantastic job with your talking, singing and acting.  We hope you all enjoyed it!

POWSA Christmas Fair

It's that time of year already. Here at POWSA HQ we are busy planning and organising this years annual festive family fun evening. So get out your diaries and calenders and put a BIG RED CIRCLE around Friday 7th December, after school onwards. There will be many an opportunity to play games, have your face painted, win at a tombola and buy those last minute gifts, along with your chance to win some amazing raffle prizes (more details to follow). Bring your friends and family for a fantastically fun afternoon, the chance to get in the festive mood and help raise money for our fantastic school.

Class Visitor

Today in Year 1 we had a visitor.  Mr Hallett came in to talk to us about buildings in different countries.

We found out that The Gherkin in London is the equivalent height of 49 double decker buses and the Petronas Tower in Kuala Lumpur is the equivalent height of 120 double decker buses.

Class Assembly

Don't forget it is our class assembly tomorrow morning, and all those who need to bring in your costume...please remember!!  Thank you.

The children are really trying hard with their reading, speaking and acting in preparation for the class assembly.  Fingers crossed it all goes as well tomorrow! I am sure it will but please accecpt us as we are - just two rehearsals - so not a polished performance!  Thank you to those who have sent in the costumes, so those for the North Pole penguins are all under preparation here so please don't worry if your child did not bring home a note.

I am on a course this morning so will not be in until after lunch.

Hope to see you all here at 9.20 tomorrow - Friday 23rd

Making a house

Today in topic the spring group made this brilliant house out of bricks. They had to work as part of a team to build a house big enough for a child to lay in.

Maths- pupil links update

This week in maths we are going to be looking at odd and even and number sequences. Please see the pupil links for this weeks websites.  

 

Don't forget to wear something spotty tomorrow!

Fire safety talk

Today we had a fire safety man who came into year 1. He spoke to the children about smoke alarms, the importance of wearing a seatbelt, not touching hot pans and what to do if there is a fire in your house.

He told us that fire needs three things to start

We should always keep doors shut at night as it will slow fires down.


We learnt that if there is a fire the smoke alarm will make a loud beeping sound then you must shout fire! Next you must get out of the house quickly and you must not go back for ANYTHING! Once you are out you must stay out and call 999.

The fire engines will arrive very quickly. Did you know that firemen only have 4 minutes to get to the firestation and 30 seconds to get changed. In year 1 we practised getting dressed in firemen outfits, it was very hard to get dressed so fast.

Another important thing we learnt was that you must never touch matches or lighters.

The fire safety man taught us this saying:
"Matches, lighters never touch, they can hurt you very much"

Music

Today in music we have been listening to music and recording down how we feel in a picture. The music we listened to was by Myles Davis -Quintet. The great jazz group.

Children in Need this Friday

Just a quick reminder that this friday (16th) is Children in Need day and so we are asking the children to come into school wearing spotty clothes. Donations can be given in on the day.

Maths- pupil links update

This week in maths we are counting using money. The children have been buying two items and adding them together to get a total amount in pennies. We have added onto our maths pupil links the websites that the children have been using in class.

Topic this week

In our topic session this afternoon some groups were looking at a picture of one of the tallest buildings in the world. The children looked at its construction and how many windows it has. One of the other groups used the purple mash software to draw their own picture of a house. The final group worked as a team using the big bricks to build a large house.

Marshmallow experiment

Today we have been doing an experiment with marshmallows. First of all the children had a feel and a smell of them

"feels squidgy" "rough" "sticky" "you can twist it" "you can stretch it"

We decided to turn it from a solid to a liquid. To do this we put it in the microwave for 10 seconds.

After 10 seconds they started to melt, we decided to put them back in....

It then turned into a liquid and became very stretchy.

A question: We wonder how long it would take for it to turn back into a solid?

wb 12/11/12

This week in literacy we will be looking at the book penguin small and focussing on punctuation. In numeracy we have started to work on halving numbers and subtraction as difference.

There has been some brilliant home learning recently. Please feel free to bring in any numeracy/literacy work to show us.

Huish Farm trip

Great day in the lovely Dorset countryside today! We saw ravens, pheasants, partridges, buzzards, roe deer, hare, badger setts and lots more!! We climbed a hill (some of us fell over coming down!), hid in trees, dodged the sheep poo and had a lovely ride in a trailer with Farmer John! We made friends with Pickle and laughed when Mr F got splashed by the big tractor!!!

Fire safety and Huish farm trip.

Welcome back, we hope that you ll had a fun filled half term.

Today we have been talking about fire safety. The children have ordered some pictures of what to do if there is a fire.

Also this week we will be visiting Huish Farm (thursday). Please bring your child in warm, old play clothes with wellington boots and trainers in a named plastic bag so that we can change into them before we get into the coach. They will also need a packed lunch and a named water bottle. A warm raincoat is also a must. Due to the large amount of adults in the class we will not have enough room for any other adults but thank you to all that have offered.

We hope that you have a exciting and safe bonfire night and look forward to hearing about the fireworks children have seen tomorrow.

Apologies- No photos on weds

Apologies, we are not able to show the pictures tomorrow morning as it is 'NON ICT DAY' so I will make sure that it is on the board for thursday am.

Sports skills

Thank you to all of the parents and families that were able to come and watch our sports skills. We all had a fantastic time! If you were unable to make it the children had five activities to try out. These were: skipping, bats and balls, football, bean bags and hockey.

A big thank you to those parents who took some brilliant photos, they will be on the interactive whiteboard when the children come in tomorrow morning.  

Jelly experiment: Question at the bottom of the page!

In science we have been doing an experiment with jelly. We have been looking at turning a solid jelly into a liquid and then back to a solid. Below are some pictures and describing words.

First of all we had a feel and a smell of the solid jelly.

"squishy"  "sticky" "red" "stretchy" "smells like strawberries"

Then we had to add boiling water



"The kettle water is hot/boiling then it melts the jelly"
"When the water is boiling there are bubbles"

Then we had to stir the jelly. "the jelly disappears"
"steam is coming off" "the water has turned red"

"the jelly is getting smaller"

The jelly has now turned into a liquid.

Next we have to put the jelly into the fridge where it turns into a solid.

QUESTION: What would happen if you put boiling water onto the set jelly.

Would it turn into a liquid again? How many times could you change it back?



Literacy and Numeracy this week.

This week in Literacy we will be looking at the book 'Window' by Jeannie Baker. It shows the changing landscape out of a window. It is a fantastic book for encouraging talk and discussion within a group as well as boosting creative thinking.

In numeracy this week we are looking at time and some groups are still doing measuring using hand span.

Thank you for the home learning that is being bought in. It is fantastic to see how enthusiastic the children have become towards learning.

Please remember that it is our sports morning tomorrow from 11am. We are hoping to be outside but if it is raining we will be in the hall.

SCHOOL NURSE TOMORROW

The School Nurse will be running a drop in from 8:45am tomorrow morning (Monday 22nd October). Want to know more about what the School Nurse does please see this useful web link from Dorset HealthCare University NHS Trust: http://www.dorsethealthcare.nhs.uk/services/children-and-families/school-nursing-dorset.htm

Miss Jolliffe's last day

Sadly for us it is Miss Jolliffe's last day with us as she has now got a new job as a Speech and Language Therapist. We would like to wish her good luck with the future and a big thank you from everyone at Prince of Wales School.

Sports skills/ New resources

Thank you to those parents who attended the parents evenings this week. If you were unable to come please contact us and we can arrange a suitable date.

We have been able to purchase some brilliant new resources for our phonics.

These bricks are fantastic for the children to use themselves to make different sounds

On Tuesday morning we will be having a Sports skills session. The children get a chance to show off their sports skills. This was due to happen last year but was cancelled due to the brilliant British weather. If you would like to come and watch and cheer on your child it will be happening at 11-12.30. Hope to see you there.

POWSA Blog - Non ICT Day

I have this little sister Lola, she is small and very funny.  Next Wednesday (the 24^th of October) will be a non-ICT day.  That means all the children, including Lola and all the teachers cannot use computers or other technology in school! There will be no blogging, no typing, no googling, no surfing. There will certainly be no interactive white boarding, no tweeting, no ipadding, no videoing and certainly no tomatoes! Lola is looking forward to catching out her teachers, if they use some ICT, they have to pay a 50p fine!  Hopefully all the children will help Lola and raise funds for the school. Thank you - Charlie (and the POWSA Committee) - PS donations to POWSA for school equipment will be welcomed (as always!!)

POWSA Blog - Book Fair!

Just a quick reminder that the scholastic book fair starts today.  The books are available to browse by both children and parents after school Wed-Mon and at the parents evening tonight. Why not stock up on a few Christmas presents, or introduce your kids to another fantastic author? Once our target has been reached, the school receive 60% of the profit back to spend on books for school.  This has proven a very profitable venture in the past and we hope to replicate the success again this year!

I'm sorry but forgot to tell the children that I won't be in on Monday as I am on a course.  They will have Mr. Gibson in to work with them in the afternoon.  He has been in Yearn 4 for 2 days so they may recognise him.

Next week in maths we are continuing with measuring - length, height and mass.  In Literacy we are using a picture of a busy street scene to talk about and then the writing activities will also be based on this.

The work from "The Year 1 Estate Agents" has been very interesting and I will enjoy looking at the different homes which the child have for "Sale".

I look forward to sharing the children's progress in English and Maths with you all on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Have a good weekend, I hope this nice weather remains for the next few days.

Wednesday

This week we are thinking about buying new homes.  Today the children did some role play about buying and selling homes then had to describe the types of home they would like to have. 

We have a number who fancy living in a castle and others who think a country estate would make a good home.  Some children like the idea of many rooms, I just hope they realise how much cleaning these big houses would take!

The Year One Estate Agents would be a good place to buy your next property as the prices range from 19p to £385.

Thank you to all those who have already signed up for a Parent's Consultation time.  If you still have to do so please pop in this week as there still a few gaps left.

I would like to award a big star to those parents who have found some of the useful ways to mark which week it is,  in the Home - School Diary.  So far we have a ribbon, a small sticky note and a smart paper clip as a "book mark".  I apologise if other ideas have not yet been noted.  Any other ideas will be shared, so see how ingenious you can be.  They do save time when hunting for the correct pages to write on.  So Thank You once again.

Wild Life Club

For those children in Year 1 who are part of Mr Farrington's WildLife Club, I have put the RSPB website onto your Pupil Links. Why not try it out?

Pupil Links

We now have some fantastic links on our year 1 pupil links page. It is a working progress that will change depending on the websites that the children will be using during lessons in the week.

It would be great if you could have a go on them and feedback to us.

Wednesday

Today some more children have been baking for the Harvest Cafe whilst others printed some apple and pear pictures for the Harvest Art display. 

I hope the art work from last week - leaf pictures and material rubbings will continue next week as the rain has not help with outdoor activities so far this week.

Tomorrow we will continue with our writing about the different types of homes which the farm animals live in and thinking about the differences to their own homes.

In maths the children are working on 1 or 10 more and 1 or 10 fewer/less than numbers and sorting shapes  using given criteria such as shapes which are red and shapes which have 4 sides.

Hopefully there will be some photos of the farm on the whiteboard tomorrow.

Thank you to all those who helped on our trip to Maiden Castle Farm.  The children were a real credit to you all and everyone moved 2 steps up the Rocket Wall for their very good behaviour and attitude, I am most impressed!
The rain cleared up for most of the trip around the farm which was great.  Hazel showed us the different types of homes which the various animals live in and also explained the reasons for the different designs.  I'm sure the children will be able to recall these details when we come to discuss and write about the trip later in the week.

Harvest - Friday 5th October 2012
This week the children will be cooking muffins to sell at the Harvest Cafe on Friday afternoon. 
You are all welcome from 3.00 and if you wish to collect your child to take them into the hall and then go straight home please remember to let one of the Year 1 team know so that their name maybe written on the white board. 

Our Harvest Celebration will be at 9.20 and we look forward to seeing you there, and remember that the produce donated is sold off afterwards. 
There will also be an art display with a harvest theme.  Year 1 has already painted some pictures of fruit trees, many have abundant crops of rosy red apples!

Health Care Plans

If you were given a Health Care Plan for your child, please could you hand the completed form into the Office. Thank You.
Mrs Hibberd

Farm Trip - This Monday!

Don't forget that Year 1 will be visiting Maiden Castle Farm on Monday 1st October.  Please can the children bring clothing suitable for ALL weathers. They are to wear school t-shirts and jumpers with jeans or old trousers and wellies or suitable footwear. Please bring school trousers/uniform to change into when we return. We will be leaving just after 9am and will be back in school for lunch.

If you would like to accompany us on this trip please see one of the year one team.

We value your views!

Please let us know what you think about the school. Follow the link to Ofsted's Parent View questionnaire from the Home Page of our website. The questionnaire will only take a few minutes!

FANTASTIC NEWS!

I am delighted to confirm that our school film 'Running Blind' has been
selected to be screened at the Co-operative Film Festival 2012.
Congratulations! The organisers of the Film Festival are currently in the
process of creating a programme for the festival and a letter confirming the
date and time of our screening (Thursday 1st November or Friday 2nd November)
will follow in due course. For more information about the Co-operative Film
Festival 2012 please visit: http://www.co-operative.coop/filmfestival/About-the-Festival/.
For more information about 'Running Blind' see our previous Blog post at: http://pow-office.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/film-premiere-big-success.html
and to watch the film click here: http://pow-office.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/our-paralympic-inspired-film-watch-it.html

Listen back to our pupils on Wessex FM!

Every morning this week Wessex FM are playing clips from pupils at the Prince of Wales First School as part of their Breakfast Show feature 'School Report'. This is currently going out each morning on Wessex FM at 6.30am and 8.30am (after the news). If you have missed the first two days, you can now listen back at: http://www.wessexfm.com/school-report.php. For more information about the pupils visit to Wessex FM, check out the Digital Leader Blog at: http://www.dl-pow.blogspot.co.uk/

WE LOVE A GOOD COMMENT!

We love it when we log in and see that a comment has been made on our blogs! It shows you are reading them and encourages all of us to write more! All comments made on the class blogs, through the school website, can also be read out to the classes during carpet time...which the children love! To make a comment simply click the blog title on the school website and scroll down to the bottom of the page. Fill in the comment box with your comment and sign in with one of several account options or just add your comment as a guest by selecting ‘name/url’. To publish your comment, click ‘publish’. Any questions, please see Mr. Spracklen.

'Running Blind' to be shown in ICCI 360 Cinema

We are excited to announce that our Paralympic inspired film 'Running Blind' will be shown tomorrow (05/09/12) from 3-4.30pm as well as on Saturday (08/09/12) and Sunday (09/09/12) in the ICCI 360 Cinema in Weymouth. The ICCI 360 Cinema is part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad and more information about the cinema can be found at this link - http://www.plymouth.ac.uk/icci360.

Further information about our film can be seen below:

We have made our own animated film to celebrate a year of Paralympic activities in our school and we are now really proud to share it with the world! Inspired by blind footballer David Clark and ex-pupil and former Paralympic medallist Mark Newton, we have created Running Blind a Paralympic story with an agricultural twist featuring an angry bull, a Dorset farmer and the Team GB Paralympic training camp at Maiden Castle. Children across the school worked with a team of artists to write, draw, animate, voice and direct the three minute film which is being screened during London 2012 Paralympic Games. Blind goalscorer David Clarke faces the challenge of his life as he prepares for the Games. Players are baffled when a lost match ball is mysteriously heard moving around the pre-games venue at Maiden Castle.

With the help of other Paralympians, sharp-eyed schoolchildren help solve the riddle but getting that ball back takes all of the blind striker’s extraordinary skills. Project producer and drama therapist Sharon Hayden said the children had come up with some wonderful story ideas. “Through drama sessions and working with our scriptwriting mentor, they have produced a great story - and done it justice with some lovely drawing and animation. “We are incredibly grateful to funders First Light and West Dorset District Council who have given these children the opportunity to make something which will be seen by thousands of people.”

Assistant head Gary Spracklen said the experience had been one that would live with the children forever. “The team of artists from our production partner Nisbet Media have done a wonderful job and involved the whole school in this project. It has been extraordinary to see the different elements of the film come together.”

Running Blind is funded by the Lottery through the BFI's First Light initiative.

Film:

Making of film:  

FILM PREMIERE TONIGHT!

The Prince of Wales First School invites you to a film premiere: Running Blind at Dorchester Middle School on Thursday July 19th 2012 at 6pm. Please let the school office know if you are able to attend - phone 01305 257121 or email: office@princeofwales.dorset.sch.uk. Light refreshments will be served by POWSA. Dress: smart or smart casual. (No school uniform)

Film Premiere this Thursday

The Prince of Wales First School invites you to a film premiere: Running Blind
at Dorchester Middle School on Thursday July 19th 2012 at 6pm. Please let the
school office know if you are able to attend - phone 01305 257121 or email:
office@princeofwales.dorset.sch.uk. Light refreshments will be served by POWSA.
Dress: smart or smart casual.

Olympic Torchbearer Visits

We had a special visit from Olympic Torchbearer - Wendy Pittendrigh on Tuesday 10th July. Wendy ran with the torch on the first day of the torch procession in Penzance, Cornwall. Some classes have been collecting donations for the photos taken with Wendy and the Olympic Torch. Apologies for telling some of you that the charity Wendy raises money for is Breast Cancer Care when it is actually Cancer Research UK/Race for Life. The link for Wendy's JustGiving page where donations can be made is https://www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/wendypittendrigh You can read all about why Wendy was nominated to carry the torch by clicking this link: http://www.london2012.com/torch-relay/torchbearers/torchbearers=wendy-pittendrigh-7622/. Mr. Spracklen

Circus!

Come to the Circus on SATURDAY 21ST JULY 2012 at Frome Valley First School, Crossways. The performance starts at 2pm until 4pm, but the fun starts at 12 noon for FOR BOUNCY CASTLE, FACE PAINTING, REFRESHMENTS, BBQ, JUGGLER, CIRCUS SKILLS & SILENT AUCTION TICKETS ONLY £7 (AGE 2 AND UNDER FREE) Available from the Prince of Wales School Office or from Fiona Staddon.

Olympic Rings Video

Many thanks for supporting our Olympics Colours Day! Despite a bit of drizzle, we made a great film of all the classes making the Olympic Rings. To watch this video, click the blog title on the school website and press the play button.

Internet again!

Sorry for the break in Blogs, we haven't had the Internet in class for several days. 
The blueberry smoothie was a big success with nearly all the children at least tasting it and out of these the majority drank all of theirs with others even having extra!
So far this week everyone is enjoying the extra activities despite the awful weather at the beginning of the week.

Tomorrow Year 1 are dressing in Blue for the Olympic Rings photo. 

On Monday please remember to send the children in with their scooters or bikes and their helmets ready for the "Ride" weather permitting.

FINAL Reminder - School Competition

Just a quick reminder that Mr. Farrington, Miss. Johnson and Mr. Spracklen would like to see some fantastic examples of ‘Home Learning’ captured in a photograph. We are thinking art projects, work on Mathletics, spelling practice, visits to museums, reading, having a discussion on SWGfL Merlin, doing some research and much more! The opportunities are endless and special attention will be given to those entries that think creatively. As a prize we hope to feature the best images on a newly designed home learning booklet that all pupils will be using in September. Therefore, by submitting your photographs to the competition you are agreeing that they can be used for this purpose. All competition entries should be sent by email to the school office (office@princeofwales.dorset.sch.uk) no later than 3.30pm on Friday 6^th July, 2012. Any questions please see Mr. Spracklen or Miss. Johnson. Thank you for your continued support, Mr. Spracklen

Well the Phonic "Check" is now complete and although there were no surprises I am very pleased with the results. So Well Done to all the children in Year 1 and I do hope that none of them were aware that they were being "checked".

Another type of check has been brought to my attention this week - the need for regular checks of the children's hair as there has been other cases of "Nits" in class. So please do comb through your child's hair and if necessary treat the offending little creatures, thank you.

As it rained heavily today the children spent lunch playtime inside.
I hope tomorrow is dry for those on Mr. Farrington's trip to Arne, still whatever the weather they will have a good time.

Reminder - Home Learning Competition!

Just a quick reminder that Mr. Farrington, Miss. Johnson and Mr. Spracklen would like to see some fantastic examples of ‘Home Learning’ captured in a photograph. We are thinking art projects, work on Mathletics, spelling practice, visits to museums, reading, having a discussion on SWGfL Merlin, doing some research and much more! The opportunities are endless and special attention will be given to those entries that think creatively. As a prize we hope to feature the best images on a newly designed home learning booklet that all pupils will be using in September. Therefore, by submitting your photographs to the competition you are agreeing that they can be used for this purpose. All competition entries should be sent by email to the school office (office@princeofwales.dorset.sch.uk) no later than 3.30pm on Friday 6^th July, 2012. Any questions please see Mr. Spracklen or Miss. Johnson. Thank you for your continued support, Mr. Spracklen

I hope this sunny weather will continue over the weekend as everyone could do with a little less rain!
The phonics "check" will begin on Monday. Even I have to wait until Monday morning to take the documents out of the safe as they are "top secret".
I am also trying to hear as many children as possible read their individual reading books over the next few weeks, to ensure they are on the correct level. Many have made such a lot of progress that they are moving through the colour bands quickly.

Good Luck to those of you taking part in the carnival, I hope the wind drops or some children may take to the sky with their banners!

The children have brought home the recent class photograph sample. There is a large copy of it in class which you will see on Monday.

Have a good weekend

What did you think of our Soirée?

A big well done to all our performers who did the school proud last night in our annual Summer Musical Soirée! If you missed it, we had Recorders, Guitars, Violins, Drums, a Cello, a Saxophone, a Mystery Guest plus so much more! We also had a group of World Famous Performers (also known as the Prince of Wales School Staff Choir). We would love to know what you thought of the Summer Musical Soirée and welcome your comments using this blog. Simply click the blog title (on the school website) - scroll to the bottom of the page and add text in the field which says: 'Post a comment'. Choose your account type or alternatively click name/url. To publish your post click 'Publish'.

 

I would like to say a thank-you to everyone who helped to make the evening such a success. Special thanks must go to: Miss. Broodle, Mrs. Staddon, Mrs. Webb, Mrs. Bernard, Mr. Creee, Mr. Thornton, Mrs. Hopkins and Dorchester Middle School for hosting. Mr. Spracklen

welcome back to everyone and hope you all had a good holiday.

Here we are in the last 6 weeks of Year 1! It hardly seems any time since the children started last September.

Next week we will be having the Yr 1 Phonics Check. This week I have been working with the children 1 to 1 to do a small assessment of my own and have been pleased with the results so next week should not be any different for them. You will be informed of your own child's result during the annual report which is due out at the end of term.
We will not be making a fuss about the "check" and as the children are quite used to working in the quiet room I am sure they will not notice anything very different to normal.
Their usual work will be taking place in class and I will withdraw each child for just a few minutes each to read the words which we have been sent. The children won't miss much as it is anticipated that each will only spend a short time away from their activities.

Today Jonathan Langtree came into class to help. He did a child care work placement here last year and is coming back on Wednesdays until the end of term for more experience.

Reminder - Musical Soirèe

A quick reminder that the Prince of Wales Musical Soirèe is going to be taking place on Tuesday 12th June at 6pm in the Dorchester Middle School hall. Doors open at 5.45pm for a Drinks Reception that will include canapés created by each class as part of our Food for Life work. The purpose of the celebration is for all children to gain experience in performing in front of an audience and see the progress our children are making musically as they progress through the school and beyond. If you would like to join us for the celebration please speak to a member of the Office Team. Mr. Spracklen

Spare Bunting?

As the Diamond Jubilee celebrations officially come to an end, we would love to accept your spare bunting that you may now be taking down. We hope to use the bunting as part of our Musical Soiree at Dorchester Middle School on Tuesday 12th June, 2012. Any spare bunting can be given to Mr. Spracklen or Mrs. Webb a.s.a.p.

Friday's Party

Please remember to dress up in any combination of red, white and blue, ready for our Diamond Jubilee Street Party.

Also if you are a recorder player please bring in your recorder tomorrow.

And please remember to bring in your chosen food for our Jubilee Feast.

Then after an exciting day we will all be ready for our holiday. 

Let's just hope for good weather and

WE HOPE EVERYONE HAS A REALLY GREAT HALF TERM BREAK.

Wednesday

Today Mr. Spracklen came into class and gave the children a challenge. To work as teams each with a special job to do within the group and the task was to make a crown for the Queen!  Some very interesting conversations were overheard and lots of cutting and sticking has produced 6 very different  crowns.
The children are learning facts about the Royal Family and colouring Flags and pictures.  So
preparations are well under way for Friday's Jubilee party.  The children are getting very excited. I do hope the weather stays dry!

Monday

Today the children have been using Espresso on the computers to find out some information about The Queen.  They will continue to investigate and record their findings in the form of a newspaper report on Purple Mash during the next few days.

This week in maths they are working on Data Handling and have been collecting and recording data in different ways.

This afternoon the children sketched a portrait of The Queen.  These will be displayed in the school hall, along with those from the other classes, at the end of the week. 

The class will also be making Shrewsbury biscuits in the shape of crowns for our Jubilee Street Party.

Thank you to the many parents who have already signed up on the "Party Food List".  If you have not yet done so please add your name to the bottom of the paper as I have just noted that there are only 24 spaces and we have 33 children in Year 1. Thank You. 

Diamond Jubilee Week

Next week will be our Jubilee week.  At the moment we are making plans for different activities linked to this theme. I will be talking to the children about the Queen's reign and showing them some of my own memorabilia.  We will be baking biscuits to eat at our "street party", colouring crowns to wear, painting pictures and making place mats.  In literacy the children will be recording some of the facts which they have found out about The Queen and also painting a portrait of the Queen, which will be displayed in school.
The class have be learning a Dorset Ring dance which we will be performing at the "street party".

If anyone would like to bring in anything linked to the Coronation we would love to see it.

POWSA biggest Raffle ever!

POWSA biggest Raffle ever - prizes are as follows (and more to follow!!!)  Make sure you buy some raffle tickets, ready for the Summer Fair this Saturday 11am - 2pm: A set of Golf Clubs, Sunday lunch for 2 adults and up to 3 children at Moonfleet Manor Hotel, Poundbury Cycles - complimentary bike service, Bonjour! Cafe - £10 voucher, Dorset Wine - £5 Voucher, Cafe on the Green - Cream Tea voucher, Olives et al - voucher, 2 x Miniature Clocks, A Treasure Trail, Brand New Shoulder Bag from Peacocks, 4x complimentary tickets Weymouth Sealife Park, 1x complimentary family ticket Abbotsbury Swannery, 2x complimentary family ticket Lulworth Castle and Park, 1x complimentary family ticket Pecorama, Jordan & Jordan collapsible camping colander, On the Table £10 gift voucher

Dodgesons - Pair of tough Gardening gloves, Wise Owl Toys - Colour your own Puzzles, Pure - Back, Neck & Shoulder massage, Tesco - Liquor Chocolates, Step toes - bag, Seven Springs Studio – Family Portrait Voucher and makeover Photography Voucher.

Trip

On Tuesday it is our trip to the Watercress Farm, so please remember the children will need their packed lunch in a backpack and to wear play clothes. As we will be sitting on grass, weather permitting, for snack and lunch it is advisable that they wear long trousers, to avoid any irritation and reduce the chance of insect bites.  With the weather so unreliable at the moment please ensure that you send in a suitable waterproof coat, sunhat and cream to cover all eventualities.

Hope you all have a good weekend with some sunny and warmer weather.

Yesterday

Yesterday we all took a journey on our magic beds in Drama. Everyone used their imaginations to go to the city, beach and jungle. We then all had lots of fun in the Life Education van, where we learnt lots about healthy food and our bodies.
In rainbow time everyone had the opportunity to share what they learnt about healthy food during a group discussion. They all know lots about what is healthy food and what we should eat as treats. Well done Year 1- a really good day of learning.

Yesterday

We had a super day with lots of learning taking place. The sunshine was a welcome change and the children were able to enjoy their playtimes outside. We have begun a new round of Topic jobs and the "Mango, apple and cheese salad" was a great success. Lots of the group were reluctant to go home as they wanted to have extra helpings of this delicious recipe.
I took advantage of the good weather and was able to take a group outside into our wild flower meadow to sketch a selection of the flowers which are already in bloom. The results are amazing and the children were very enthusiastic. We will be displaying their sketches as we have taken photocopies from their sketch books so please look out for these pencil drawings.

Facebook

It has come to my attention that some pupils in school have Facebook accounts. May I take this opportunity to remind you that the terms and conditions of using Facebook state that the user must be 13 years or over (Article 4.5). If your child does have an account then they have already broken the terms of the site and have lied about their age. As a school we will be contacting Facebook to get your child's account removed. Although we now have a school Facebook account for parental communication, we want to make it very clear that this is an adult site that is not suitable for children. Mr. Farrington

What a lovely day so the children had good playtimes, well, apart from the mud and were also able to be outside for Let's Explore.

Next week in Literacy the work is based on the John Burningham story The Magic Bed and Miss Brown has planned the work and will be teaching this aspect of the children's learning. She will also be working from my plans for phonics and maths working with different groups. During the following weeks she will take on more planning and teaching allowing me to concentrate on individuals and group work within the class. 

Have a good weekend.


  

Class Photographs on Friday

Just a reminder that tomorrow the photographer will be in to take pictures of the class.

What a very gloomy day and we were kept in by the rain again at lunchtime.  Fingers crossed for better weather tomorrow and the weekend.

Next week we are hoping to prepare a salad with a difference in cooking.  The recipe looks and sounds delicious.

I am hoping that Thursday will be warm and sunny as the children really need outside playtimes with having been inside for both break and lunch on Wednesday.

In Rainbowtime we had a very good session discussing the correct way to cope when our feelings have been hurt so that the situation doesn't become worse by reacting in the wrong way.

The second 2 groups have made their symmetrical paintings and some very interesting results are now drying on the rack before a selection will be hung up on the line.

Tomorrow Miss Brown will be back, she had to return to university for one day and in dance the children will begin to learn the Dorset Ring dance.
  

Dorchester Carnival

This years carnival has no theme, so we have chosen a theme for the Prince of Wales School as the Olympics!  A great chance to dress up as an Olympic athlete!  The carnival is on Saturday the 16th June.  If you would like to be involved, to help or further information, please contact Mrs Bernard or Mrs Scott.

At least yesterday's lovely sunshine gave us a break in the dismal rain and we were able to get out for playtimes and one group looked at the wild flowers in the meadow. 

This week we are revisiting the sounds i, i-e, ie and igh, ch and tch, ph and gh both as f , er, ar, or and ur and ow and ou.

We hope you all enjoyed the weekend.  Well done to those who did the Fun Run.   We are very proud of Miss Bates who ran the 10k on behalf of our Special Needs Funds.

This week we are continuing with Multiplication and divison in maths and are writing about another of John Burningham's stories - Aldo.

The last 2 groups will be cooking Bruschetta this week.

REMINDER - Tesco Vouchers

Our school needs your help to collect Tesco schools vouchers! Vouchers collected in previous years have exceeded 20,000 and have helped us to obtain some exciting resources. This year we are looking to set a school record and collect more vouchers than ever before! Please try to collect as many vouchers as you can and do not be afraid to ask your friends, neighbours, work colleagues for their vouchers as well. Many people who do not have children simply discard these vouchers and we could make valuable use of them. Collecting boxes are by the school office. Please bring in your vouchers on or before 01/06/12.

Mr. Butcher's Off Today!

FROM MR. BUTCHER'S BLOG - Today we set off. Meeting up at Heathrow later for the flight to Dheli in India, then onto Khatmandu Nepal arriving Friday. Saturday we fly to Pakhara and start the trek after a long drive. READ MORE NOW - Simply follow the link on the school homepage or follow @powsiteman on Twitter.

POWSA FAIR DATE

A NOTE FROM THE POWSA BLOG - This years Summer Fair will be on the 26th May between 11am and 2pm.  Please come and join in!  If you would like to help, there is a form on the POWSA noticeboard (opposite the Office).

Did you miss this morning?

If you were unable to attend this mornings parent information session you can now view the video of the session online. To view the video please visit the school website and click on the parent tab at the top of the page. Next click the Year 1 button on the right hand side, a link is then given to the video. The video should play on the school website if you have QuickTime installed, alternatively you can download a copy to play in various formats. We would welcome your feedback on this new way of sharing this information. Comments can be made directly to me or through writing a comment on the class blog, simply click the blog title on the school website. Mr. Spracklen

Wednesday

We will have a student teacher, Miss Brown, working in year 1 from next week for most of the term.  She made her first visit today  and met the children and year 1 team.  To begin Miss Brown will be getting to know the children and working with small groups following my planning.  As she is in her final year Miss Brown will gradually take on more of the planning and teaching of different subjects, under my supervision.  This will then give me greater opportunity to work with individuals and small groups, developing their mathematical, reading, writing and phonic skills.

Rainbow Time
Today in Rainbow Time we were thinking about the work the children have done that makes them feel proud. Then thinking about what they would like to be proud of next and what they each need to do to reach this target.  This work has been put into a small book and just before half term we will look at the targets they have set and see how many of the children feel proud for having achieved their goal.

Information Session

Just a reminder that I will be giving the Year 1 information session at 9.00 tomorrow morning.  I look forward to seeing you there.      

Settings Change

Our blog settings have been changed to improve the use of blogs throughout the school. You can now add a comment to a blog post without being required to sign in. Why not have a go at this now by clicking this blog title and navigating and clicking on the text which says, 'comments'. Comments are an excellent way we can have positive feedback on the work we are all doing in school and you are all doing through home learning. Mr. Spracklen

As part of our Minibeast work today the children have been using books to research the minibeast of their choice.  They began yesterday by doing an annotated drawing of it and then today finding out and writing some new facts which they did not know previously.  This is ongoing and I hope that they will be able to recall this information if you ask them!
Next week in ICT the research will continue and I hope more facts will be discovered about minibeasts.

In mental maths we are working out some multiplication facts based on x2, x3, x5, x10.  I used the Spinners which can be found via Topmarks and then selecting the 2 spinners and typing in my own values. I started with some lower numbers and was then ble to increase some to stretch the children.  They are making very good progress and are also beginning to recognise that if the 2 numbers are reversed the answer is the same - 3x10 and 10x3. 
Tomorrow will lead to further challenges x4 and x6! Using selected numbers of course. I don't want to put them off by making the answers too difficult.

Mr. Spracklen’s Digital Leaders

A big THANK YOU to all pupils who applied to become one of Mr. Spracklen’s Digital Leaders! There was a huge response and it was very difficult to pick just one child from each class. I have have now decided who will represent each class and have written to each pupil offering them positions as Digital Leaders and inviting them to our first meeting. May I thank everyone again who applied and encourage those pupils that were not successful this time to apply again in the future and attend one of our I.C.T lunchtime clubs which currently include Augmented Reality Club on a Monday lunchtime with me, Mr. Spracklen and Maths I.C.T Club on a Friday lunchtime with Miss. Johnson.

Week 2

I do hope we don't have too much rain during the day this week as the children really need to be out playing during the breaks.
We are still focusing on being Courteous and will be looking at pictures of real minibeasts this week.

The year 1 information session is at 9.00 on Thursday this week.  I will be going over the terms outline plans and giving you some information about the Governments Phonic assessments for all Year 1 children which will take place in June.  I look forward to seeing you then.

This week we have started to look at the work of the artist Georgia O'Keeffe.  The children have already begun to create their own version of "Blue and Green Music" using paper collage.  There are some great results so far.

In Rainbowtime we are thinking about "Relationships" and on the wall above the class computers we have displayed the children's work showing the different people that they have a relationship with. 

Have a good weekend and we hope there won't be too much rain during the daytime hours which will keep everyone indoors.

Summer Term

It was lovely to see everyone back after the holiday and judging by the news from the children everyone had a good time.  Thank you to everyone who wrote about some of the things they did over the 2 weeks.

This term we are finding out about Minibeasts and this will be our general topic as well.  beginning this week we are first going to make up and name our own minibeast.  There could well be some weird and wonderful creatures with some exciting names!
Next week we will begin to find out about some real creatures and I know that some children are already interested in bugs so am sure it will be a great topic for the class.  

Tarpaulins Needed

Do you have a spare tarpaulin that you could let Year 2 borrow? We will be using them for a large art based project we have planned in the coming weeks. Any large tarpaulin in any colour would be very gratefully received. We promise to look after your tarpaulin and return it to you when we have finished our project. Please pass your named tarpaulin to Mr. Spracklen or Mrs. Webb in Year. 2 if you have one who will take good care of it. Many thanks in advance.

OUR SCHOOL NEEDS YOU!

Our school needs your help to collect Tesco schools vouchers! Vouchers
collected in previous years have exceeded 20,000 and have helped us to obtain
some exciting resources. This year we are looking to set a school record and
collect more vouchers than ever before! Please try to collect as many vouchers
as you can and do not be afraid to ask your friends, neighbours, work
colleagues for their vouchers as well. Many people who do not have children
simply discard these vouchers and we could make valuable use of them.
Collecting boxes are by the school office. Please bring in your vouchers on or
before 01/06/12.

Happy Easter

Today during "Let's Explore" the children had their first play with the new toys.  We have purchased a new go-cart, a Playmobil camper-van and a Safari Station.  They have proved very popular additions to the Year 1 toys.

Please remember to wear pyjamas and bring your teddy and favourite bedtime story.

The children have made an animated film of The Three Little Pigs and we are hoping to show this in the morning.  We will also be transferring it to the school website in the near future.

Wishing you all a Happy Easter from everyone in Year 1.