Author: Clare Huxley

10 months ago
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Anglo Saxon Art Day

Year 4 had a brilliant Art day, focusing on sculpture, creating our own ‘Anglo Saxon’ themed sculpted shields. We studied famous sculptors, including Salvador Dali, and then looked at the symbolism of animals and shapes in ‘Anglo Saxon’ lore. We designed our own versions and then used paper mache to build our sculptures. Following drying time, we then used muted colours to decorate our sculptures.

10 months ago
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Nursery News

In the Nursery the build up to Christmas is well and truly under way. The delivery of our Christmas tree last week caused much excitement and the children have learned how to make paper chains to adorn it. 
 
Elsewhere we continue with our mathematical exploration of collections. Sorting and matching things helps to develop visual perception along with critical thinking and memory skills. Key skills which are not only needed for maths but also for other subject areas such as Science and History.
 
We have been inspired by the beautiful book ‘Junk DNA’ by Clare Thompson. In the book the author has collected numerous everyday items made of metal and used these to create stunning images.
Miss Killelay’s Grandma was a great collector and just so happened to collect lots of interesting metal objects such as keys and nuts and bolts. The children sorted the items into categories looking at the similarities and differences, asking lots of questions about what the objects are and what they are used for.
We then had a go at making patterns and arrangements and even some pictures just like in the book.
10 months ago
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SMSC award – gold

We are absolutely delighted to inform you that following the recent successful verification visit, Raddlebarn Primary & Nursery School has been awarded gold level of the National SMSC Quality Mark, and this has been confirmed by the Quality Assurance Panel. The assessor said there are many clear SMSC related strengths at Raddlelbarn; the following are a just a few key examples:

• Coverage of SMSC across the curriculum – our provision for SMSC related learning across the curriculum is a big part of the school’s identity, vision, and strategy for improving outcomes for children.
• Cultural and creative opportunities – we have a wonderful, vibrant, and engaging
aspect to both our curriculum and wider enrichment opportunities in school. This
means that pupils are encouraged to try new things, be creative and frequently
experience a genuine sense of awe and excitement during their time at Raddlebarn.
• Pro-active work around diversity and inclusion – this was one of the most impressive
elements of our provision. Our proactive desire to help our children understand
the wider world, and build acceptance and inclusion is commendable.

The fact that we have maintained, and built upon, our previous silver verification in
2020 is further testimony to how highly SMSC is valued in our school. Well done to all!

10 months ago
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Pathway to Podium – Bronze

Pathway to Podium is a programme to recognise and celebrate the commitment of Birmingham schools to PE, school sport and physical activity as part of a more enriched curriculum. We are pleased to announce we have achieved bronze!

10 months ago
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Nursery News

It has been a great week in Nursery (isn’t it always?). We have continued with our exploration of pumpkins left over from Halloween. We used these in our maths sessions to learn about comparative size; using language such as bigger than or smaller than and heavier and lighter. We also cut them open to see what was inside and used the seeds for a spot of subitising!
 
We watched a short video story of ‘Pumpkin Jack’. It is an American book that tells of a little boy who carved a pumpkin lantern for Halloween. He then put it in the garden and over time it began to rot down. Eventually, in the Spring, the seeds left inside began to sprout and new pumpkin plants and fruit grew, ready for the following Halloween.
 
Twenty days ago we put a left over carved pumpkin into a tightly sealed container (to keep us all safe) to watch what happens to the pumpkin over time. You can see by the current state of the pumpkin it is well and truly rotting down. The words used initially to describe the white bits were ‘snow’ and ‘fluffy’. Now the children are beginning to use words such as ‘mould’, ‘rot’ and ‘decompose’ with one child noticing this week that it had started to ‘melt’! 
 
We shall keep you posted – we are curious to see if our ‘Pumpkin Jack’ begins to sprout new shoots! Watch this space.
10 months ago
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Y3 Parent Workshop

Year 3 had a lovely time at the parent workshop last week! We looked at some formal calculation methods and had a go at using Century Tech for maths, English and science. It’s been a real hit! Thanks to all the adults who were able to attend!

10 months ago
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William Morris

This week Year 2 have been learning about the print artist, William Morris.  We observed nature, carried out rubbings then sketched and block printed our designs to create repeated patterns.  Take a look at our William Morris inspired art!