Visit from a Feathered Friend

This Wednesday we were joined by a very special visitor from Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, Rascal. We learnt all about the great work that is done to look after owls there and some amazing facts. Did you know, for example, that there are an estimated 100,000 breeding pairs of tawny owls in Britain, compared to just 4,000 pairs of barn owls, yet we hardly ever see them. The barn owl which is crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk) is much more likely to be spotted than its nocturnal relatives.

Thank you to Suffolk Owl Sanctuary for taking the time to come and visit us. 

Living and Working in Antarctica

On Monday morning the children were treated to a visit from a very special guest, Flo Barrow. 

Suffolk based Flow saw a job advert which read ‘Are you the person we are looking for? Have you got what it takes?’ She headed off competition from over 160 applicants to become ‘Postmistress’ for the United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust to work on a base that was built in top secret during WWII –  she still thinks she landed a dream job.  Just back from working the Antarctic season at Port Lockroy 11,000 miles from home with only three other employees and 4,000 penguins for company, Flo shared some of her amazing experiences. In an illustrated talk, she explained what it is like to work in an environment that not only looks incredibly beautiful, but is such an important place politically, scientifically and historically.

Flo's visit (funded by the Antarctic Heritage Trust) really captured the imagination of the children who were amazed at how cold it was, interested in the penguins 'stealing' each others' rocks and not having a shower for a month! 

Dictionaries For Life

On Tuesday morning, Year 5 children were all presented with a personalised dictionary courtesy of the Rotary Club of High Suffolk. Earl Soham are one of three primary schools in this part of Suffolk who have benefited from the 'Dictionary 4 Life' project.

In the past the school has supported the Rotary Club during their fantastic appeals, such as 'Shelter Box', which make such a difference to so many people throughout the world.

Susan Webber - Double Olympian

On Thursday 14th June, we were delighted to welcome Mrs Susan Webber to our school. Mrs Webber, Senior Deputy Headteacher at Framlingham College, represented her country (South Africa) at the 2000 (Sydney) and 2004 (Athens) Olympic Games at hockey. She was capped an incredible 153 times for South Africa and captained her country at the 2004 Olympics.

Susan Webber during her final appearance for South Africa against Spain in the 2004 Olympics

Her presentation to the school included the history of the games, going back to Ancient Greece, and the re-introduction of the 'modern' games in 1896 following the efforts of Baron Pierre de Coubertin. Mrs Webber then talked about her personal experiences of life in the Olympic Village, the opening ceremony, partaking in hockey matches and her fond memories.
What was amazing was when she spoke about her introduction to hockey which she played from the age of 6. Mrs Webber explained that she simply 'loved' playing hockey with her friends and that she had an inspirational coach which made her want to play even more.


Mrs Webber, herself, is an inspirational person as well as an athlete. She stressed the importance of playing sport for 'fun' and as a great way of making friends. Her proudest moment was when she was in the South African team which defeated the subsequent gold medallists (Germany) 3 - 0 during the 2004 Olympics.
Her best friend, Pietie Coetzee, will be representing South African in the hockey tournament in the London 2012 Olympics.

Recordings of our morning performance

In case you missed it, here are some recordings of this morning's performance.

Chinese New Year - Kung Hei Fat Choy!

This morning we waved goodbye to the Rabbit and welcomed the Year of the Dragon! During a whole school assembly, the story behind Chinese New Year was told and then re-created in Red Class.

Chinese New Year is the most important of the Chinese holidays, and is a time of feasting, celebration, fireworks and gift-giving. It is a 15-day holiday, beginning on the first day of a new moon and ending with the full moon on the day of the Lantern Festival.

The Chinese calendar is based on the lunar year, so the date of Chinese New Year changes every year. The Chinese calendar follows a 12-year pattern with each year named after an animal. There are various stories which explain this. The simplest is that Buddha (or the Jade Emperor) invited all of the animals to join him for a New Year celebration, but only 12 animals turned up. To reward the animals that did come, Buddha named a year after each of them in the order that they arrived, starting with the Rat, followed by the Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat (or Sheep), Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig.

Another version is...

A very long time ago, the Jade Emperor, who ruled the heavens of China, sent a message to all the animals asking them to come together so that he could give each of them a year, which would make it easier for the people of China to keep track of time. The cat and the rat were good friends and decided to travel to meet the Jade Emperor together.

When it came time to leave, however, the cat was taking a nap. The rat, realising that he would have to use all his cunning to be noticed by the Jade Emperor, left his friend sleeping, and set off on his own. This is why there is no year named after the cat, and also why cats have hated rats ever since.

When the rat arrived, the Jade Emperor welcomed him and the other animals and told them that they should all take part in a swimming race. Once again, the rat realised that he would have to be very clever if he wanted to win the race. He found the largest, strongest animal, which was the ox, and pleaded with him to let him ride on its head. The ox was kind and strong, and agreed that they would swim across together. The rat travelled safely across the river on the ox’s back, but, just before they reached the other side, climbed over the ox's head, jumped onto land, and reached the finish line first. The rat had proved its cunning, and the
Jade Emperor named the first year after the rat and the second year after the ox.

Depending on the year you are born, you are believed to have the various character traits of that year's animal. Mr Pearce was born in the Year of the Ox! Can you find out what year you were born in?

Anti-Bullying Week

We feel that it is important to keep the children informed on what bullying is, and how to deal with it so that it doesn't become an issue at our school. So, anti-bullying week was an opportunity to remind the children of ways to deal with difficult situations and dilemmas.
During the week, we looked at a number of dilemmas relating to bullying, both in assembly and PSHE lessons. Yellow and Blue classes watched the film 'Ant Bully' and then produced storyboards for the key events.
Blue Class took part in a poster competition, the winning entrants shown below.

Diwali

This morning in assembly we looked at the Hindu festival, Diwali - also known as 'The Festival of Lights'.

Light shining in the darkness.
Light takes away the darkness.
Light brings hope.

Having lit a number of 'diwas' the story of Rama and Sita was told.

Diwali celebrates the return of Rama and Sita, in the story from the Ramayana. The story shows how good wins over evil...

Prince Rama and his wife, Sita, are banished from their home in Ayodhya by their father the King. Rama's brother, Lakshmana, goes with them to live in a forest. They are banished for fourteen years.

After many happy years, Sita is kidnapped by the ten-headed demon Ravana. He takes Sita to his island of Lanka. With the help of the monkey warrior, Hanuman, Rama rescues his wife.

The people of Ayodhya light divas (oil lamps) in rows to guide Rama and Sita back from the forest to Ayodhya. On their return Rama is crowned king.

People light hundreds of small oil lamps (called diwas) They place them around the home, in courtyards and in gardens, as well as on roof-tops and outer walls. This is to commemorate the part of the story that describes oil lamps being placed outside people’s homes to light the way for Rama and Sitas triumphant homecoming to Ayodhya.

The more lamps they light, the more likely it is that Lakshmi (the Hindu goddess of ealth and prosperity) will be tempted to visit them. Hindus believe that the goddess brings wealth with her when she visits.

What happens during Diwali?

Gifts are exchanged - often sweets or candles. Cards are sent, homes are decorated and oil lamps are lit. Fireworks are another big part of the celebrations.

In the evening, many people hold a small prayer (puja) in their homes. They honour Ganesh, the god of wisdom and good luck, the one who removes all obstacles from life. They worship Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and good fortune.

Lights are left burning all night, so that Lakshmi may feel welcomed and enter.

Sukkot

Today in assembly we looked at the Jewish festival of Sukkot. Sukkot commemorates the years that the Jews spent in the desert after their escape from Egypt. Some lived in tents whilst others built huts out of leaves and branches. These huts were called sukkot (plural).

During the festival, some Jews build their own sukkah (singular) in the garden or at the synagogue. Jews eat their meals in the sukkah for the eight or nine days of the festival. They will also talk, sing, tell stories and even sleep in the sukkah. The sukkah can be nicely decorated with candles and fruit and some people even hang pictures and decorations on the walls.

There are rules to making the sukkah. Each sukkah must have at least three walls. The roof of the sukkah must be made of material referred to as sekhakh, which means "covering." The 'covering' must be something that grew from the ground and was cut off, such as tree branches, corn stalks, bamboo reeds or sticks. Sekhakh (the roof covering) should be sparse and left loose enough so that the stars can be seen.

There is a special Sukkot service in the synagogue. Everyone holds branches from three trees in their hands and a citron fruit in their right. They walk around the synagogue seven times, waving the branches.Sukkot is similar to the Christian festival of Harvest, where people thank God for looking after them.

During break and lunch time, some children decided to make their own sukkah...

Black History Month - Sporting Heroes

This morning in assembly, we looked at the achievements of three 'sporting heroes' - one who the children were able to instantly recognise, the other two not so easily recognisable.
First was Lewis Hamilton. Lewis was the first person with black heritage to become a Formula 1 racing driver. In 2008, aged just 23, Lewis Hamilton became the sport's youngest ever world champion - a fantastic achievement for the only F1 driver with black heritage.
Second was Tessa Sanderson, international javelin thrower. When she won the gold medal in the 1984 Olympic Games, she became the first British black woman to stand at the very top of the podium. She is also only the 2nd female athlete to compete in six Olympics. For her Olympic gold, charity work and services to Sport England; Tessa Sanderson has received an MBE. OBE and CBE.

Finally, came Viv Anderson. None of the children had heard of him, but I do remember watching him play football during a distinguished career where he played for Nottingham Forest, Arsenal and Manchester United. Famously, in 1979, he was the first black person to represent England in a full international. He paved the way for many other black players such as John Barnes, Des Walker, Rio Ferdinand and Darren Bent.The inspirational commitment and efforts of these three sports' stars, along with many others, have shown that barriers which were once in place can be overcome and that everyone can achieve their potential.

Yom Kippur - The Day of Atonement

This morning in assembly, we looked at the Jewish festival of Yom Kippur, which took place on October 7th and 8th. This is a very special festiva; for Jews all around the world. It is a day of atonement when Jews ask for forgiveness from God for any bad things that they might have done in the year gone by. It is a fasting day which lasts from sunset to sunset.
In the days leading up to Yom Kippur, Jews will apologise to people they might have upset or hurt. Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the year for Jews, during which they will fast for 25 hours. Jews do not touch water or food and some will not wear symbols of luxury to remember those who are suffering in the world. Jews will also send friends and family greeting cards.The children gave suggestions of what they could 'give up' for 25 hours, including: playing on computers, watching television and washing. Interestingly, what they felt that they couldn't give up were: eating, drinking, talking and playing with their toys.
During Yom Kippur, the Ark and reading desk in a synnagogue are covered in a white cloth to symbolise purity and cleanliness.
At the end of the final service, a single blast from the shofar shows that the fasting is over and forgiveness has come.