May Day Morris Dancing

This morning we were joined on the school playground by the East Suffolk Morris Men, who had had a very early morning celebrating the dawn of May Day at Felixstowe Beacon. They were kind enough to stop in at the school before going home to give a performance to the children, staff and pre-school group. The dances were fantastic fun and everyone got into the spirit, clapping, cheering and some even joining in one of the dances.

Go Mr Pearce!

Watch more May Day Morris Dancing on our YouTube channel

A Feast of East Anglian Folk Music

This afternoon Green Class was joined by Mary Humphreys and David Dolby of Suffolk Folk, who entertained and educated us with a selection of folk songs and music.

We began by learning about the different types of folk song: songs that tell a story; songs with a refrain; and songs with a chorus. The children listened beautifully and joined in with the refrains and choruses.

After a short break, we were taught an OXO reel. This 32-bar dance got everyone up and moving and, despite some of us finding it tricky to coordinate our limbs, we all had a fantastic time trying, as can be seen in the photographs below.

What's the Buzz?

This week we were lucky to have a visit from some bee-keepers, who brought in some of their bees and gave a very informative and interesting talk about taking care of them, and the many products made from honey and beeswax.

The children (and adults) found the subject fascinating and the visit inspired some excellent pieces of writing.

The 'Storyteller' Visits

This morning, all classes were treated to the wonderful story-telling talents of John Row.

Blue Class were treated to some fantastic tales from Ancient Rome, Yellow Class were entertained by marvellous stories from Ancient Greece, whilst Red Class were enthralled by a journey to space. Hopefully, this visit will continue to bring our topics to life...

Sheep!

Yesterday, we were joined by Helen Evans, producer of fantastic children's television show 'Art Attack'. In preparation of a screening of 'Shaun the Sheep' at Wingfield Barns, she is visiting local primary schools to engage the children in various 'sheep making' activities to use as props and background for the event on 28th October.The children had a great time and were able to produce some wonderfully creative sheep!

Bassistry Arts Workshop

This afternoon the children were treated to an excellent music workshop from the very talented duo of Marcel and Phillipe from Bassistry Arts.

The children had a great time learning different rhythm patterns and performing alongside the drums and bass guitar. They learnt some fantastic songs and great dance moves as can be seen in the video!

It's a part of our history,
It's deep down inside of me.
May not speak the same,
May not look the same,
May not know your name,
But we all want to DANCE!

We hope you enjoy looking through some of the photographs below. As always, the full collection of images can be found in our Picasa Webalbum.

Boat Building - Day 3

This morning started with ensuring that all hulls were 'watertight' and that the motor was securely attached. Then, the process of decoration began with the children deciding on various designs. After this, the creation of the 'super structure' commenced as both a finishing touch and also as protection from water entering the hull.
In the afternoon, we welcomed Mr Nick Hayward who gave a fantastic presentation on the building of his own boat, which went on the water for the first time yesterday. Mr Hayward shared a wealth of knowledge with the children and had a number of items of interest with him including a propeller, an anchor, various different types of wood, compasses and a map of the sea off our coastline.

Opposites Attract in an Afternoon of Magnetism in Yellow Class

Yellow class welcomed Mr Speight, one of our grandparents, into school this afternoon for a fascinating talk and demonstration of the use of magnets. This followed on from their current science topic of 'FORCES'.
Children watched and listened attentively as a range of magnets were produced and then demonstrated. The children had a great time experimenting with different magnets and physically seeing the effects that they had.
Thank you Mr Speight!

Harvest Lunch

Over 70 people took part in our 'Harvest Lunch' yesterday, including over 30 parents and grandparents. After a hearty lunch of Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding with all the trimmings (followed by Syrup Sponge and Custard) many of our guests joined the children on the playground, setting up a variety of games and activities. The children had a great time and it looked like all our guests did too!

Veteran Visit

Blue Class had the honour today of being visited by World War II veteran, Captain Albert Pond, tank commander with the Desert Rats. He spoke to the children about his experiences of war, fighting in the battle of El Alamein as a tank commander and taking part in the invasion of Italy. He talked of the blistering desert heat that he and his men had to endure, and explained why water is such a precious resource when you have so little available. He recounted the injuries he had sustained in duty and the problems they faced with flies, scorpions and dung beetles! He shared the story of how he came to possess a Hitler-Youth knife, given as a gift of thanks by a German Officer for an act of kindness towards his two young children.

His stories were both moving and interesting and the children were gripped by what he had to say. Through his words, the children were able to glimpse the stark realities of war and what it must have been like for those on the front line. We offer our most heart-felt thanks to Captain Pond for offering to share his memories with us, and for the difficulties he had to endure that we might be free from tyranny.

An Author in our School

On Tuesday 12th January, Laura Watson (a scriptwriter) spent the day working with all children. She started off working with Yellow Class, beginning with a warm up which had the children 'drawing' a door and 'stepping through' - what could they see?

Then the children worked in groups, mapping out the beginning, middle and end of their fairy tale.


After some group planning, they created three freeze frames from their ideas.
Then it was back to class to plan their own stories, in three parts, in greater detail. This has given the children a great deal of work to do over the next few weeks...
Many thanks to Laura for giving the children so many ideas to get the children writing.

Presentation of Books

In assembly this morning the school was presented with a set of books by the National Association of Decorative & Fine Art Societies, represented by Mrs Pamela Pinner.

The books are all written by James Mayhew and tell of the adventures that a little girl named Katie has when she visits an art gallery and has many adventures INSIDE famous paintings whilst her Grandma sleeps!


We look forward to reading them and maybe writing our own versions...