Calendar
New and improved!
We've improved the layout of the calendar and it also includes dates for two school years, taking us up to the end of the 2007/2008 school year. Hopefully this'll be helpful in planning your holidays!
Please note that at this stage, some of the later dates are subject to change so please check with us if you're planning something important.
If you've got some dates that you think we need to know about then let us know so we can add them here.
Go to the calendar either by clicking here or by clicking the picture on the left.
TEACHER OF THE YEAR AWARD
As you may know our very own Mrs Gibbins has reached the final three in this regions search to find primary teacher of the year!
We were visited this week by a panel of judges who gave Mrs Gibbins her very own mini ofsted. The judges thoroughly enjoyed the visit and think our school is a wonderful place - we totally agree!
Mrs Gibbins will now have to wait until June 20th to find out if she's won!
We wish her luck and fingers crossed!
Fairtrade status
Can you help us achieve Fairtrade school status?
Penistone is a Fairtrade town, so it's only right that it should have Fairtrade schools in it. We have already started to work towards the 5 goals needed to achieve the status.
If you would like to help, or would like to find out more, please contact Mrs Gibbins.
Visit the Fairtrade Foundation website to find out more:
The Fairtrade Foundation | Fairtrade
THEME WEEK 2008 - PIRATES!
Pirates week was a great success - actually it was more like a fortnight because we had so many exciting ideas and activites to complete.
Pop into school and have a look at the display outside Mrs Webb's office!
We had a great time at Hartlepool despite the high winds! and the children's behaviour was excellent!
Here's some photos.
The cannon was soooooo loud! |
The wax figures were so life like! |
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They gave us all a realistic impression of what life was like on board. |
The quay side provided plenty of opportunities for amusement!! (ha, ha teachers revenge!!) |
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The children were guided round the cannon room inside the ship! |
Most impressive!! |
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The displays were impressive too! |
We had a go at 'old style' rope making. |
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Unfortunately for me the rope came in rather handy later on!! |
Strange couple of fellas! |
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The children had a great time on the play ship |
'Ahoy there me shivering sea-dogs. Aharrrr!' |
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' Well that was a cracking trip, eh me ol' landlubber?' |
The children enjoyed playing some 18th century games. |
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Captain Jack visited the school and the children helped him prepare for a voyage of plunder!
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This is our special visitor Captain Black "I'm Captain Jack Sparrows younger and better looking brother", said he. |
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RUGBY TRAINING
Class four have just completed a 4 week course of training with Mitch. The children will be took part in a touch rugby match at the end of the course. We had the best turn out of any of the local primary school and although we didn't win, we all played well and demonstrated excellent sportspersonship!
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| The kids had great fun. | Their team work was impressive! |
STUDYWIZ
Is now available for all class four children. They all have their log in details and user names and have received enough training to get going.
So kids, get going! There are always games, activities and discussions to join in with and very often there are important bulletins for you to read too!
Here's a link to the site!
DOCTORS AND NURSES DAY up-date
We raised £167! We're really proud of Thomas Raine for organising this event! We took the money to the Baby Care Unit and they were thrilled and very grateful.
They have decided to spend the money on breast pumps.
KINGSWOOD 2007
Well, yet again a great time had by all! ( I got more sleep this time too!!) The children were a credit to the school, in fact teachers from other schools commented on what a delight our children are!!
The kids had a action packed programme of activities and were exhausted on our return to school!
Here's what we did!
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| We set off in high spirits - and stayed that way!! | "Can't wait to get busy" |
Doesn't look it, but it was a long way up! |
Brave kids! |
Team work and trust - Nightline |
The children had to complete an obstacle course - blindfolded. |
Eat your heart out Lara Croft!! |
Zipwire- extreme excitement! |
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Dressed to kill! Actually, dressed to splash around in the water! |
Get ready for a soaking! |
Club Kingswood and some VERY cool dudes! |
Not to mention, these cool dudettes! |
...and this one! |
The excitement was punctuated with moments of peace in the form of ARTBEAT. |
Then back into action with Jungle Vines. Well they are little monkeys! |
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Well that went quick! Time to go home!! |
Back at school - tired and smelly! Lovely! |
Like I said... tired! |
But a great time was had by all and next years visit has already been booked!!!! |
There will be many more photos coming soon! We'll be printing them off and putting them in a scrap book too, so please come in and have a look! |
What's happening this term?
Well we're back! Hope you all had a super holiday!
As usual there's lots to look forward to:
- Whole school Pirates theme week and visit to Hartlepool!
- Playground developments - seating for the garden area has been ordered and we are in the process of ordering a trim trail.
- Open lessons
- Pirates disco
...and much much more!!!
Don't forget to check your child's school bags and folders for letters!
Modern Foreign Languages
In line with government recommendations and following the success of last years Spanish theme week, we are launching our Spanish curriculum. All children now have one spanish lesson a week. and may be asked to complete some simple spanish homework. We have a regular spanish specialist, Mrs Kate Taylor, who spends half a day each week working with children and staff.
If you'd like to know more please don't hesitate to ask Mrs Gibbins (Modern foreign languages coordinator).
ENTERPRISE 2007 - PLAYGROUND PARTNERSHIPS
We are VERY proud to announce that we won £5000 and everyone is buzzing with excitement about it!
The judges were extremely impressed with our bid and praised the children on their hard work and commitment to the project. So now all we have to do is spend it!
We shall be starting work soon, so watch this space...and the one outside too!
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Ray from Cot-age loved the designs and has given us quotes for some wooden seating and tables. |
Mr Mitchell measured up for a natural pond. |
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Children being very silly indeed! They are posing for a photo comic book which was be part of our bid portfolio. |
Some of our younger friends with their playground survey results. |
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| Some more examples of playground related work | Class 2 children hard at work designing. |
HERE'S SOME EXTRACTS FROM THE PLAYGROUND PARTNERSHIP WEBSITE.
About the scheme
Playground Partnerships encourages:
- A pupil-led approach
- Involvement of the whole school
- Input from the wider school community
- High-quality teaching and learning across the curriculum
- Inclusion of pupils with special educational needs
Playground Partnerships supports the 'Every Child Matters' initiative and the Scottish 'Curriculum for Excellence' by encouraging children to make an effective contribution to their community, promoting a healthy lifestyle linked to play and, most importantly, making the scheme enjoyable and child-led.
To find out more about the scheme, have a look at the website by clicking on the link below.
ENTERPRISE GARDEN PARTY
The weather behaved very well for us - amazingly so actually! The event was a huge success and all who attended thoroughly enjoyed themselves as well a supported our 'Improve the Playground' fundraising.
The band was great - they really added to the garden party atmosphere. The food was amazing - many thanks to Chrissy, Glyn and Michelle for providing such great nosh. Also to the Singh family for their fab asian food.
The auction went down well - many thanks to those of you supported it.
A huge thank you to the pupils who helped run the stalls, in particular Kerrie- Leigh Anderson and Thomas Raine who worked tirelessly throughout the whole event - YOU ARE STARS!
A massive thanks to all the parents and friends of the school who helped to set up before the event and tidy away at the end. WE COULDN'T HAVE DONE ANY OF IT WITHOUT YOUR SUPPORT! YOU ARE TOTALLY ACE!
Check out the photos!
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| How revolting! Mind you I made a mess when I had one of those kebabs! | The donation for the auction were fantastic! |
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| The fancy dress was a great success! | The band were great and really added to the garden party atmosphere! |
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What are the Environment Group up to now?
Take a look at this! Amazing things are afoot in the Thurlstone playground!
AND WITH THE PROFITS FROM THE GARDEN PARTY, EVEN MORE GREAT THINGS CAN BE DEVELOPED!
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These two dedicated parent are sorting us out a fantastic SANDPIT! with a bit of help from some Y6 pupils! |
The children were a great help and really enjoyed themselves too! |
OPEN BIG WRITING LESSON
It was a great success! There were 10 parents who attended and the feed back confirms that they all had a great time and went away with ideas about they can support their childs learning at home as well as increased personal confidence. They were also very impressed with the quality of the childrens work.
Thank you for attending and I'll let you know when another Open Lesson is to be held!
World Book day 2007
We have celebrated this special day by dressing up as characters from our fave Fairy Tales - and what a fantastic array of costumes there have been! The children have been engaged in book or reading related activities all day and have produced some super work. The older children have also enjoyed teaming up with younger children in order to share their favourite book and stories.
Your child will have bought home with them a World Book day token, which entitles them to £1 off a book from any book shop. So get spending!
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Such beauty!! |
Oh my goodness! |
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THEME WEEK 2007 - SPAIN
Hola!
Spanish week was such as success! We all had a great time and learnt such a lot about Spain and spanish culture all around the world!
The highlights of the week were the visit from Son Para Toddos and the Salsa Night. That was a huge hit with those who attended! Check out the pictures below!
The children took part in Spanish dance workshops! Miranda Henson from PAD( performing arts development) led each class through a workshop of authentic dance moves, which the children will be developing during the following weeks.
All the children enjoyed the sessions and these pictures prove it!!
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SALSA NIGHT
What a great success! We had a ball and we hope you did too! The food was fantastic, the band was fantastic, the dancing was fantastic and the costumes were fantastic! So over all it was FANTASTIC!
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THANKS YOU SOOOOOOO MUCH FOR ALL THE SUPPORT AND PLANNING WHICH WENT IN TO THE EVENT!
WITHOUT YOU THE EVENT COULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED!
In particular:
- Mr Dan Hennessy for the FANTASIC food! He worked with all the classes so hard and produced such amazing grub! THANK YOU.
- T.A.G -(Thurlstone Action Group) for organising the bar, raffle and general house keeping.
- The Band - Armando, Rodrigues, Chris, Kevin and Jim. They were amazing!
- Helen Neil for leading the dancing
If you have any ideas for future community events, please let us know!
Spanish Music Workshop
The fantastic latino band thrilled the school with their amazing music in a morning performance. Then each class enjoyed a workshop, which ended in a whole school performance. The children had a great time learnt so much!
The panpipes were really hard to play! |
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Armando worked with the children teaching them how to play the panpipes. |
All the children were involved. |
The children used some really amazing instruments. |
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Such concentration! |
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The teachers had a ball! |
No it's not a weapon, it's a Rain Maker! |
How Armando played the panpipes and the drums at the same time - I'll never know! |
The instruments were facinating! |
Young Voices
Here's some pictures of the FAB Young Voices experience! Check out the red tops!!
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| We had such a good time! | Even though we were the ONLY ones wearing red!!! |
Thanks Mrs Penistone!
Have you seen our fantastic Space rocket quilted wall hangings?
If not, then come on in and have a look - there's one hanging near the staff room, and another in the hall. The children made a silk batiq square during space week last year and Mrs Penistone kindly offered to make a quilt out of them - so I'm sure you'll all agree that she's done above and beyond!!!
Many thanks Mrs Penistone! You're out of this world!
Here's the one outside the staff room!
THANK YOU HUNTSMAN!
Once again the Huntsman have been extremely generous by donating the contents of their big glass jar, which sits on the bar excepting money from the patrons of the pub. The contents added up to £351!
Thank you to everyone who put money in the jar! It will be spent by our environmental group who are currently developing our ourdoor area.They are planning a sandpit and sensory garden.
Making Lanterns
Class three and four have been lucky enough to work with Sarah Jone-Morris, local artist and mum of Chloe! She has been leading paper lantern making workshops at a number of local schools. The children have had a fantastic and rather messy time creating the lanterns which are to be used in a moon lit church procession - they are sure to look stunning!
A HUGE thanks to Sarah!
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| Sarah showing the kiddies how to make the willow frames. | The base is complete! |
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The sides are strengthened. |
| These children made a HUGE lantern! |
Here's some of the finished ones!
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| They look beautiful when lit. | We used them at the Christmas concert at the church. |
Thurlstone Action Group - T.A.G
There have been a few changes with the structure and management of the Weavers. Infact the name has changed too!(SEE ABOVE!) Sharon Stone is now the chairperson, Elaine Padgett is the treasurer and Debbie Webb is secretary.
MANY THANKS TO THE PREVIOUS CHAIR, SECRETARY AND TREASURER, ALISON BOOTH, TRACY DEAKIN AND LYNNE HARRIS FOR ALL YOU HAVE DONE FOR WEAVERS OVER THE PREVIOUS MONTHS AND YEARS!
It's here - the Pal Perch!
It's fab! Many thanks to Malc Poskitt from Cot-age who designed and made it for us! Please click this link to visit Cot-age's web site.
Some of the money needed for the Pal Perch was raised by our sponsored Science Quiz - we raised £368!!!
And a huge thank-you to The Huntsman! They contributed £250 - that's just amazingly generous!
Below are some photos we took when it first arrived.
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Our Pal Perch beautifully modeled by Malc and Steve from Cot-age and the lovely school council reps! |
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Class four's open maths lesson
What a successful event!
Parents who attended enjoyed themselves and felt confident about being able to support their children more effectively with future work!The children also enjoyed the opportunity to show off their skill in front of their mums and dads, grans and granddads!
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| Everyone was very well behaved! EVEN THAT LOT AT THE BACK!!! | As we warmed up, some of the older class members earnt stickers! | Everyone enjoyed writing on their underpants and vests!(!!??) |
There will be further opportunities to join in maths lessons so watch this space!!
WE'RE LOOKING GOOD!
The building work is all finished and we think the school looks great! The outdoor learning area is bright and colourful and the kids love it!
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| The school logo looks great set into the bright blue soft surface! | The black posts are now BLUE! | Come in and have a look! |
ENTERPRISE WEEK 2006
Well, what a week!! The children, (and staff!) have all worked really, really hard during this week of last term. And I hope you'll all agree that is was worth it.
The Barn Dance was a great success - loads of people attended, everyone looked happy and there was lots of dancing going on. Swing Yer Granny were brilliant and the weather was FANTASTIC! (Must have been all the sun worship dancing I was doing!!)
All the stalls were a success and raised plenty of money (thanks to you!)
Thanks to all of the people who were involved with the organisation of the event, as well as those of you who mucked in on the night- from bars and stall volunteers to chair and table luggers...THANK YOU SO MUCH!!
We would like to thank the following in particular:
- Mr Dan Hennessy and Mr John Crowther for supplying the bar drink and working the stall all night long!
- Chrissy and Glynn for the fab food
- The Weavers for the cocktail bar ingredients and time spent sorting the raffles.
- The various people who put up the gazebos
- Mrs Barden and Mrs Lord who did so much to help when it was tidy up time.
- Mr Doherty for supervising the children's cocktail stall.
- Mel and Cheryl Skelton for running the chocolate tombola stall
- Mrs Ward and Mrs Wartigg for the pony rides.
- The Wartigg family for supplying the straw and hay bales.
The auction was a great success also - the auctioneers were AMAZING! Thank you for parting with your cash!
Check out the pics - YEE-HAA!!
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What's going on in the garden area?
...We hear you cry!
Well, a bit of an overhaul it seems!
Thanks to Elaine Padgett, Joanne Hunt, Richard Drewery - to name but a few - the garden is getting a face lift.
The environment project, coordinated by Elaine, aims to make much better use of our garden. We are currently in the process of applying for B&Q funding so that the following improvements can be made:
- level the area so that it is accessible and safe for all
- create a water feature
- build a gazebo
- have planting areas which will provide habitats for many insects, mini-beasts and plants
- new seating
Should be wonderful when it's finished!
Many thanks to Elaine and co for all you are doing.
Anyone else who would like to join in this project, please get in touch with Elaine.
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The Oakies!
Last term we were lucky enough to be visited by this lot.
Wild eh? They were fantastic and got everyone jiggling in their seats!
They played music from Elvis Presley to Queen and lots of others... they were great and for some the first live band they'd heard.
The kids loved it!
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Big Writing Evening
A big thank you for attending!
We hope you all feel enlightened about Big Writing and Posh lessons!
The event was well attended and the class 4 children who contributed did a great job!
Thanks to Hope Doherty, Chloe Goddard, Adam Dolan, Robbie Bailey and Marysia Pozorski.
If you would like to find out more about Big Writing, click this link to visit our new General Info page or come and visit us at school. There are displays in each class - so please feel free to have a look!
