In-Focus
Principal: Stuart Williams
Vice Principal: Kelly Jackson
catmoseprimary.com
facebook.com/catmoseprimary
21 JUNE 2013
New Arrivals
Letter From The Queen
Kingswood
School Instead Of Kingswood
Focus On: Willow Class
Singing At Oakham
Planetarium Trip
Diary Dates
GOODBYE TO MR WALLACE AND MISS DIXON
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We are very sorry to say goodbye to Mr Wallace and Miss Dixon.
MR WALLACE: I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Catmose Primary and it has been a privilege working with the team of
staff who are all committed on creating a positive learning environment. My experiences here have enabled me to embark
on a new challenge as a Deputy Head at Leighfield Academy. My most enjoyable memory has to be the Maypole dance – I
was so proud of the children and knew that they would be superb when it was time to perform. Also, my proudest moment
was when the pupils and parents’ generosity was really showcased when we raised so much money for the Claire Lomas
challenge. I want to thank all of the pupils for making me feel so welcome and to all the parents for their support over the
last year. I will continue to follow Makewaves and look forward to seeing some of the children at the various sport events.
MISS DIXON: I would just like to say a huge thank you to everyone at Catmose Primary for the support and encouragement
they have offered me during my Newly Qualified Teaching year. It has been a pleasure to share the teaching in Ash and
Beech class, working with two fantastic teachers and getting to know two classes of brilliant children. I will be very sad to
leave Oakham and Catmose, but have been given the once in a lifetime opportunity to live and work on the East coast of
China, in Ningbo. I will be teaching children of a similar age in an International school and hope to maintain a link with
Catmose Primary and stay in touch with you all.
Thanks to you all for your friendship and kindness.
We wish both of these talented and special teachers all the best in their next steps and hope that they keep in touch.
NEW ARRIVALS
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We were recently took delivery of some
fertilised eggs from the Happy Chick
Company. The chicks have now hatched
and children and staff have named them
Suzi, Roly, Fluffy, Lily, Blossom, Colin,
Frank, Jeff, Carlos, Rosie and Shelly.
The chicks were at the School until
Thursday when they were collected by
a member of the Happy Chick Company
and will be rehoused at quality assured
farms.
The chicks were at school to support
our ‘Movement and Change’ topic. The
children are learning about transition
and how we move from one stage of our
lives to the next. All the children have
been very excited about the new arrivals
and were very intrigued by the chicks
and regularly checked on them.
Drawing by Amber Hill, Beech Class
You can view a diary kept by Beech class and a video of the chicks hatching by
following this link: www.catmoseprimary.com/news/chicks
PUPIL ACCOUNTS
On Monday, the lady gave us an incubator with eleven eggs. On Tuesday, six
of the eggs hatched. On Wednesday, all of the eggs hatched. On Thursday, the
chicks got fluffier and bigger.
Maisie Haines, Beech Class
Ash Class have had some new arrivals. They were from a mum chicken. The baby
chicks have grown. They have been eating and drinking. They are little fluffy
things. They drink, eat and roll. They are called Rosie, Roly, Suzi and Carlos. They
are really cute. Thank you Miss Dixon.
Charlie Newman, Ash Class
LETTER FROM THE QUEEN
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Recently, the pupils from Ash Class were very excited to receive a letter from
Her Majesty the Queen. The letter, which had been written by Her Lady-InWaiting had been specially sent to the class thanking them for letters they
had posted to her, which included many questions about the Royal family.
The Queen had found the questions very thoughtful and sent the class some
colourful flyers answering their questions, which also included photos of
herself during her role as Queen.
Ash Class had been learning about royalty as a class topic and the
information which they had been sent will be very useful in helping them to
learn more.
The letter can be read by following this link:
www.catmoseprimary.com/news/queen
KINGSWOOD
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Year 5/6 children enjoyed a three day residential trip to Kingswood last
week. Activities included the zip wire, indoor climbing, archery, quad
biking, abseiling and a trip to the beach. All children pushed themselves
and showed real teamwork.
SCHOOL INSTEAD OF KINGSWOOD
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Pupils who didn’t go on the Kingswood trip took part in fun activities at School, this is a flavour of what they did.
MONDAY
On the first day we started a project about Native Americans. We made a book to go with it, which was the story of the
dream catcher. We also coloured in a map to highlight the different tribes in Native America.
TUESDAY
We went up to Catmose College to see the star dome, to study the stars. We had to organise the different planets, and
then we learned about the stories for the different constellations. In the afternoon we worked with Mrs James from Catmose
College. We chose a country in Geography. We looked at famous landmarks, food, different cultures and the languages
used in that country.
WEDNESDAY
During literacy we wrote a diary entry about an English explorer who thought he had discovered India, but in fact it was
America. We also made a Totem pole book mark in the morning and laminated them.
Lucy Dilkes, Year 6
FOCUS ON WILLOW CLASS
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This term Willow Class have enjoyed a busy time with our residential
and preparing for the end of year production. We have begun our
topic on movement, studying the migration of different animals. We
have also been studying moving parts of toys in Design and Technology
using the facilities at the College. Alongside this we have started an
independent Research topic studying an area of interest to each of us.
m
a
e
SINGING
AT OAKHAM
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On Thursday 13 June, Silver Birch took part in a singing day at Oakham
School with other local schools. The children had been practising hard
in preparation for the day, which turned out to be a resounding success,
ending in a performance to parents in Oakham School Chapel. The theme
of the day was the Rutland Water ospreys and the children impressed
the event organisers with their knowledge of the birds. Well done Silver
Birch for representing our school so superbly and thank you to our parent
helpers.
PLANETARIUM
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On Tuesday 11 June, pupils from Oak, Silver Birch and Willow walked to
Catmose College for a visit to a planetarium. They were greeted by Josh
who began the session by talking about our solar system. The children were
challenged to order the planets in relation to how far they are from the sun.
Secondly, they had to match up some interesting facts to each planet. Did
you know that Venus is the hottest planet? Did you know that Jupiter is the
largest planet? Did you know that Neptune is the windiest planet? After this,
the children were then invited inside the planetarium. This was a dome which,
when inside, is pitch black with the only light being provided by the ‘night
sky’. The children learned about different constellations and the history of
astronomy. The children thoroughly enjoyed the experience and a huge thank
you must go to all the parents who helped walk the children to and from the
college.
DIARY DATES
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SPORTS DAY - Thursday 11 July, 1.45pm
LEAVERS DISCO - Friday 12 July, 6 - 7.30pm
All Catmose Primary children are invited to the last disco of the year, dedicated
to our Year 6 leavers.
ACHIEVEMENT ASSEMBLY - Friday 19 July, 9.15am
Presentation of end of year achievement.
LEAVERS ASSEMBLY - Friday 19 July, 2pm
We say farewell to our year 6 children.
TIME LORDS – KS2 PRODUCTION - 8 & 11 JULY
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Imagine what it would be like to travel back in time; to be able to visit any historical figure you like from any era……
Unbelievable? This school production will do just that, taking the actors through an imaginary time warp where they discover
an old board game called ‘Time Lord’ which leads them to meet a real Time Lord and go on an incredible journey into the
past.
The Key Stage 2 production will take place on Monday 8 and Thursday 11 July at 5.30pm. It is a free, ticketed event. You
will be able to collect tickets from the School reception as soon as they become available.