Monday 6th May 2013

Happy May Day everyone and welcome to another week at Copthorne.

We finally seem to be having some warm weather which is lovely for the children at playtime and generally seems to make everyone feel happy.

Last week was another busy one at Copthorne full of exciting and interesting learning activities, celebrations and sporting events.

6 Sycamore to Buddha Land

As part of their National Curriculum RE   work, Year 6 have been finding out about Buddhism. As you know, at Copthorne, we believe that it is very important for our pupils to learn about other religions and cultures so that they can develop mutual respect, tolerance and understanding. This helps each child to become a great citizen.

The pupils from 6 Sycamore visited a Buddhist temple called Buddha Land. Everyone enjoyed the visit and learnt a great deal. You will soon be able to read all about the visit in the pupils’ own blog on the subject.

Pod casting training

Last Monday evening all the teachers and our Digital Leaders (pupils trained to lead and develop the use of ICT throughout the school) were trained in the production of Pod casts. These are, basically, radio broadcasts designed and produced by pupils which are then transmitted via the Internet. The staff and children learnt how to create an audio advert, add music and layer sounds. Pod casting will be introduced to all classes and will be a great tool for developing our pupils’ speaking and writing skills as it gives them a real purpose for their work. We are hoping that we will be able to produce half termly pod cast news reports which we will post on our website – this will allow us to keep even more people up to date with what is happening in school.

Everyone enjoyed the training and the opportunity to learn alongside each other – we believe that it is vital for pupils to see their teachers as learners too. James Langley who delivered the training contacted us after the event to comment upon the positive attitude of our pupils and to say what a credit they are to Copthorne. Well done everyone – I am so looking forward to our first radio show.

Exceed Football Tournament

On Wednesday, a team of pupils from Years 5 and 6 took part in a football tournament against the other 6 schools in the Exceed Alliance. I am thrilled to report that Team Copthorne was victorious. The children played brilliantly and, even more importantly, were great team players and supported other teams well. Congratulations!

Copthorne’ Got Talent

Last week saw the first of the year group auditions for Copthorne’s got talent. At this stage the children perform in their classrooms in front of our select judging panel. The top 3 acts from these auditions will be put through to their Key Stage final later this term.  The first year group to audition was Year 1. The judges have told me that the acts were very impressive and lots of fun. Good luck everyone.

Music Concert

Last Friday we were fortunate to have a visit from Bradford Councils’ Music Service. A number of very skilled musicians put on a special concert for Key Stage 2 during which they demonstrated a number of instruments.

The concert was inspiring and enjoyed by all the children and staff. Thank you to the Music Service for taking the time to share their talents and love of music with us.

Off to the farm

On Friday our Nursery Children visited St Leonard’s Farm. I am looking forward to hearing all about it when we return to school on Tuesday as I know that the children were extremely excited before they left for the trip.

Assistant Head Teachers

On Friday, Mr Jacques, Mrs Hussain (our Chair of Governors), Mrs Whalley and I interviewed a very strong field of candidates for the 2 Assistant Head positions that were available. The candidates were put though a very rigorous selection process during which  their teaching was observed, they each had to give a 10 minute presentation and complete some data analysis and an in-tray task and then be formally interviewed by the panel. A particularly positive aspect of the process was that it included the candidates being interviewed by members of our School Council. This is the first time that our School Councillors have been involved in the recruitment process and it was a great success. The children wrote their own questions and then interviewed each candidate in the presence of an adult observer. This really helped us to make the right decisions for our school.

We have selected the 2 candidates we feel will be best for Copthorne and, as soon as references have been collected and all background check s completed to our satisfaction we will let you know who the successful candidates are.

This week at Copthorne

May Day

School is closed today, 6th May, for the May Day Bank Holiday. I hope everyone has a restful day and that the sun shines for us all.

The children have produced a beautiful display  in the hall about the customs associated with May Day. Pleae feel free to have a look at it when you are next in school.

Next Week

It’s SATs week Good luck to all of our pupils in Year 2 and Year6 – we know that you will work really hard and show just how wonderful you are. You can do it!

Tips for the week before SATs:

Get a good night’s sleep every night

Keep practising your Mathletics and Times Tables each day

Read as much as you can and, as you do that, think about the language the writer has used, how it makes you feel and why it has been written in a particular way.

Go over the features of different types of writing and see if you can recognise these in anything you read

Keep calm

Thought for the week

Be thankful for all the struggles you go through in life. They make you stronger, wiser and humble. Don’t let them break you, let them make you.

Have another wonderful week everyone.

Mrs Shepherd