25 September 2020

Dear Parents 

As we come to the end of our fourth week of school it has been lovely to see how well the children are settled and are enjoying their learning.

In Reception Class the children have completed their first full week altogether in school. They have enjoyed exploring the classroom and outdoor area and have made lots of new friends. Well done Reception we are so happy you have joined St Wulstan’s.

At the end of last week the Year 1 children went out on a “Nature’s Treasures” walk in our beautiful local surroundings. The walk was to launch their topic, “Splendid Skies”. The children went out in search of signs of seasonal change and collect examples of nature at work adapting to the time of year. As the weather has been unseasonably warm, many of the trees were only just beginning to turn their leaves brown. The children had a wonderful time taking digital photographs of dew on the grass, jumping in muddy puddles and collecting “natural treasures” to label at school. The adults that accompanied the children said how inquisitive they were and how wonderful it was to see the learning happening outside of the classroom.  

Year 2 have been learning about life on Beatrix Potter’s farms. As part of their science work, they have been working hard to make butter. It was rather tiring work, so they investigated ways of speeding up the process. They discovered that they can make butter more quickly when using a small jar and a small amount of cream. They celebrated their findings with a buttered pancake!

Year 3 have continued their topic work on Tremors, looking at volcanoes and especially the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Pompeii. They are clearly really enjoying this exciting new topic.

Year 4 are thoroughly enjoying their new topic 'American Roadtrip to USA' and we look forward to seeing the results of their hard work on Native Americans next week,

Year 5's topic this half term is called Mountains. They have been learning how to read OS Maps starting with contour lines. The children then used contour lines to spot mountains in North and South Wales.

This week, the Year 6 children have made their own Águas Frescas (Spanish for 'fresh water'), which consists of a refreshing drink made with fresh fruit, sugar, water and ice. Each region of Mexico has its own version of águas frescas using local fruits. The children have also used maps, globes and atlases to locate the Chihuahuan Desert in Mexico and identify its main features. With all the information collated, the children created a fact file on the Chihuahuan Desert.

Some of our children have also enjoyed taking part in a 'GoNoodle Live' morning as part of celebrations through the Sports Partnership. Over 2000 pupils, 67 classes and 18 schools from Worcestershire took part - well done everyone!

Year 5 also had an exciting day yesterday as Mr Mallinson started his preparations for the Hagley Pyramid Concert. As you will understand we will not be able to celebrate this wonderful occasion in our normal way but everyone involved wanted to ensure the children still had some of this experience. Over the year Year 5 will prepare in the normal way and in the new year will be recorded and filmed in order to produce a Pyramid Concert video for parents. We are very grateful to Hagley High school for the thought and organization that has taken place to ensure the children can enjoy this musical experience albeit different from previous years.As I am sure you agree it has been a very busy few weeks.

Hagley Catholic High School will be holding their annual Open Day on Saturday 10 October from 9.00am to 12.00pm. Our Year 6 children have now received their High School transfer forms.   The vast majority of our children transfer to Hagley at the end of Year 6, so do take this opportunity to take a look at the school. Please see the flyer on our school website which outlines the process for booking a staff led tour. If you have any queries regarding transfer please do not hesitate to speak to us.

Please visit the school website or our school Facebook page to access the link to our latest survey regarding digital devices at home. We would be really grateful to any parents or carers who could spare a few minutes to help us ensure that our plans for any potential Bubble closure or school closure provide the most effective support to our families. Thank you.

Yesterday, parents received NHS Flu immunization consent forms. Please can these be returned to school on Monday so they can be forwarded to the vaccination team. Thank you

We would like to again remind parents and carers to limit the amount of time spent outside the school grounds either before or after dropping off/collecting children. We know that the area outside school can become easily congested and would appreciate your support in helping to keep as much distance as possible between families. We have been made aware that some of our parents are sitting on the low wall near to the school gate - please do not wait in this area. ONLY arrive on the school grounds at your designated arrival/departure - this is ESSENTIAL to the safety of all of our families. You must wait in your car if you arrive early. If you are unsure of the correct arrival/departure time, please contact the school office on 01299 877808.

If you have any queries or concerns regarding your child's academic, social or emotional needs please do not hesitate to contact me or their class teacher. Many thanks for your continued support and enjoy a lovely weekend with your families.

KE Savage

Principal