National Santa Dash
On Friday, all children took part in the National Santa Dash. This event was all about having some fun whilst being active.
We’ve decided to extend this event: we’ll be holding an Easter and Summer Dash, too! Our goal is to allow pupils to set some targets and improve on their personal bests through the year.
Here are some photos – enjoy!
Reading records
Just a reminder to hear your child read throughout the week – ideally 3 times a week for 10 minutes.
Please also encourage your child to complete activities set in their reading records on a weekly basis. I will collect reading records in on a Friday to read, mark and enjoy the work the children have produced.
As you know, there are so many benefits to reading so let’s have a big push as we head into the new year!
https://www.booktrust.org.uk/what-we-do/impact-and-research/Research/the-benefits-of-reading/
Any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you for all continued support,
Mr Kilner
PE – Gymnastics
We have been working hard in Year 5 and Year 6 developing our gymnastic skills. We have been performing many jumps and balances and putting together short routines – all whilst maintaing control.
Today we used more of our gymnastic equipment and transferred our skills. We explored, experimented and created ways of moving around the space available.
Help at home – We have some amazing gymnasts in our class. If your child is keen to join a club outside of school, we have many gymnastic clubs in and around Wetherby. Why not give them a go?
Topic – Art
LO – I can use visual and tactile elements to achieve my intentions
In topic this week, we have been looking at artwork by Orla Kiely. We have been annotating her work highlighting visual and tactile elements, such as colour, line, repeated patterns, symmetry and shape.
We then created our own mono prints using a leaf design. The children really enjoyed the activity and showed off their creative sides. The work produced was superb (much better than Mr Kilner’s).
Help at home – Look at designs by Orla Kiely. Ask your child to highlight any repeated patterns or lines of symmetry. Which designs do they prefer, why? How do the designs make them feel?
Online safety
We talk a lot about online safety in Year 5 and Year 6. It is crucial that the children are aware of how to stay safe, how websites keep us logged in and the role that cookies play.
Below are links to explain pop-ups and cookies in some detail:
When online, here are some key principles to keep safe:
If something seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Limit your screen time.
Avoid clicking on ads.
Clear your cookies frequently.
If you want to spend money, set a reasonable limit but ask yourself – is this really worth it? Will I want this in a year’s time? Can I use the money for something else?
Science
We are really enjoying our science lessons in Year 5 and 6. This term we are studying electricity. Today we tested whether the number of bulbs effected the brightness. The children worked well independently and in groups whilst always maintaining that they worked safely.
Help at home – Ask your child about their findings. Did adding more bulbs effects the brightness. How did they keep themselves safe? How did they maintain a fair test? What did they enjoy about today’s lesson?
Hockey at Wetherby High School
Our Year 5 children attended at hockey event last Thursday at Wetherby High School.
They took part in an array of activities and were able to demonstrate their fantastic skills and understanding from recent PE lessons. It was mentioned on multiple occasions how well behaved our children were and how talented they are too. Mrs Senior and I were so proud of the children and it is clear that we have some future hockey stars in our class!
Anti-bullying Week
At St James Primary, we define bullying as:
‘Where you hurt someone, physically or emotionally,
Several Times On Purpose.
If we do experience bullying, we all should:
Start
Telling
Other
People
During Anti-bullying week ,we discussed the importance of being an upstander and standing up and supporting others. We looked at various scenarios and talked about the best ways to deal with often difficult situations.
We also celebrated our differences on Odd-sock Day.
Help at home – What is an upstander? How can you help someone who is being bullied? Where can you go if you feel you are being bullied?
Tempo FM visit
As part of Me and My Community week, Year 5 were invited along to visit Wetherby’s Tempo FM. The gentlemen who run the station made us feel very welcome and the children enjoyed reading some of their work, local weather and making song requests.
It was a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon and some of our children were naturals behind the microphone. I’m sure the Wetherby community thought so too as they tuned in to listen.
Here are some of our radio highlights:
Migration – The Red Cross
Olivia, from the Red Cross, came in to visit us as part of Me and My Community Week. She taught us about the PUSH and PULL reasons why people migrate to other countries. Sometimes, people are pushed away from their country due to war, racism and poverty. On the other hand, people may be pulled away from their country due to better jobs, climate or improved healthcare.
Olivia read about a boy named Tesfay, who travelled from Eritrea to the UK. She spoke about the struggles and difficulties he faced. Individually, we then wrote a letter to someone who was new to our community to welcome them. Children mentioned places they love to visit like Ask Italian, The Wetherby Whaler, Leeds United and the local parks and green spaces.
Finally, we spoke about how we will treat people within our community and who are new to our community.
Help at home – Ask your child about how we should treat people, especially those who are new to our community. Write a message to someone within our community – this could be someone you know well or someone who is new to the area.