More gruel please...

Today we dressed like Victorians and learnt what life was like in a Victorian school.

We started by singing the National Anthem in the hall and then we learned how rules were different in Victorian times. For example, children stand every time an adult enters the classroom and they must not count on their fingers during maths lessons.

Throughout the day, they took part in workshops where they found out about Victorian life. They learned about Victorian Christmas and made a decoration, they created a sampler by experimenting with embroidery, they played some Victorian playground games and even chanted their times tables!

I think the highlight was trying the gruel that Jane made - it had mixed reviews.

What a fantastic and educational day!

More gruel please...

Today we dressed like Victorians and learnt what life was like in a Victorian school. 

We started by singing the National Anthem in the hall and then we learned how rules were different in Victorian times. For example, children stand every time an adult enters the classroom and they must not count on their fingers during maths lessons. 

Throughout the day, they took part in workshops where they found out about Victorian life. They learned about Victorian Christmas and made a decoration, they created a sampler by experimenting with embroidery, they played some Victorian playground games and even chanted their times tables!

I think the highlight was trying the gruel that Jane made - it had mixed reviews. 
What a fantastic and educational day!

Antibullying Week, Maths Week England, Local Visits and Violin Concerts!

My goodness, what an action-packed week Talland have had!

In English, we have been learning to recite and analyse 'From a Railway Carriage'; a Victorian poem penned by Robert Louis Stevenson.

To inspire our writing, as well as further our learning about the Industrial Revolution we visited the 'Bridging the Tamar' exhibit and workshop on Thursday. We found out the history of both the Royal Albert Bridge and Tamar Bridge, and details of how they were created, as well as what the area looked like before either were built. In addition, we learned about the cause and effects of the Industrial Revolution, and how our school's namesake was at the heart of this.

Rounding off the week, we held a violin concert to demonstrate what we had been learning with Sally Bartholomew from Asone music hub. I'm sure those parents, who were able to attend, would agree that the progress that they have made in playing the violin, as well as musical concepts like rhythm, reading music and notation, was astounding. If your child would like to continue learning to play the violin, we are very lucky to have Mr Jane who provides lessons. For those children who are in receipt of free school meals, there is often a subsidy available to help with the cost.

Finally, in addition to all of this, we carried out many activities based around Anti-bullying Week and Maths Week England, including a maths treasure hunt where each answer led them to the next clue.

Robots!

This morning, Seaton class took part in a STEM workshop. 

They learned how to build a robot from Lego by following instructions and then they were able to design and personalise their robots. Once it was finished, they used their coding skills to guide the robot across a maze. 

It was a fun-packed morning and all the children were all successful in getting their robots to follow their coding. There was some fantastic team work. Excellent work Seaton class. 

We ended our unit on forces today by looking at gears. 

We discussed the different types of gears and what they might be used for. The children were surprised to find out how many things contain gear mechanisms, especially children's toys. 

Then the class were able to explore and experiment with gears by using plastic models and online programmes. They wanted to find out the direction that gears turn and how the number of teeth impacts the speed at which a gear will rotate. They were able to adjust the size, shape, speed and style of different gears. 

Concert time!

Over the last 10 weeks, we have been learning to play the violin with Mrs Bartholomew. 

She has taught us how to hold the violin properly and even follow sheet music. We learned about pulse, rhythm, crescendos and listening for a beat. 

The children have really enjoyed learning a new instrument and some of them were surprised by how quickly they picked it up.

On Friday afternoon, the class put on a concert to their parents to show them everything they have learned. It was a great success. Thank you to all the parents that came to watch.

Industrial Revolution

This week, we went on a visit to the museum at the Tamar Bridge Office.

We walked from school over the bridge first which will help us write our poems next week. We really enjoyed the amazing views.

We learnt all about the industrial revolution and how the bridge was made. It was really interesting to find out how they would have dug under the water. 

Then we got to explore in the interactive part and build our own bridges. Another fun part was looking at the cameras and watching different parts of the bridge in action. 



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Another Busy Week

What a lot we've had on this week! 

We started the week with our Remembrance service which took place on the playground. The children were so respectful and displayed the poppy wreath that they had made.
On Tuesday we all wore odd socks to school to show our support for national anti bullying week. We shared stories about respecting our similarities and differences. 
On Wednesday we had a wonderful time joining with some other local schools to take part in 'The Princess and the Pea' singing workshop. Tregantle Class were so enthusiastic at singing the songs - they really did us proud!
On Thursday we became wonderful writers. It is so amazing to see our EYFS children start to put all of their phonics learning together and write simple words by themselves. Our Year 1 children have impressed us all with their writing about our new focus story 'Hansel and Gretel.' After school, lots of children attended the 'escape room' maths games event for national maths week which was so much fun!
We ended the week on Friday by dressing in blue to show that Brunel are against bullying. We learnt about what bullying is and what we should do if it happens to us or our friends. What a fantastic week! 

The children looked fabulous in their blue for anti-bullying week today!  They've enjoyed lots of activities during the week.  The theme this year was 'Choose Respect' so we've been working on respect all week.

In English we have been learning about our story 'Hansel and Gretel' and finding out that it has a 'defeating a monster' theme... we also read some other books with the same theme - The Mousehole Cat, The Three Billy Goats Gruff and The Three Little Pigs - Perhaps you could ask your child what these books all had in common?

It has also been Math's week so on Tuesday we played lots of Math's games and the Year 2's on Friday had a Maths Challenge to solve - it was very tricky so we may have to go back to it!

This week in science we were investigating which materials are waterproof - we were helping 'Incy Wincy Spider' to stop him being washed out of the spout!
 

The Nursery children have finished their half term learning based around their focus story Owl Babies.


They have been busy drawing, painting and creating their own owls with various medium and have enjoyed sharing the story with each other.

We have seen them retelling the story to their friends, and acting out parts of the story, too.

We've learnt that a baby owl is called an owlet, and that a group of owls is called a parliament.

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This week has been such a busy week back!

In gymnastics we have been learning how to travel and land from jumps safely.  The children were really good at travelling in different ways before freezing in a different shape.

During Science, the children were investigating which materials would be the strong and stretchy enough to be used as a tether for an astronaut - we discovered that nylon tights were the best (sadly, Rolo's are not good for tethers!)

In History, we looked at how London has changed since the 1666 Great Fire and became architects, drawing what the new city should look like.  We also wrote and discussed why the changes needed to happen.

Last week, Hindu's around the world celebrated Diwali - the festival of light.  So this week the children learnt about the festival and made diya lamps, diya lamps are traditionally oil lamps with a cotton wick dipped in ghee to symbolise prosperity for the new year.

Peaceful poppies

Tregantle Class have had a wonderful first week back at school. We have been learning about Remembrance day and preparing for our special service on Monday. The children have been making some poppies to display on our school bank - we are all looking forward to seeing them on Monday. It's the time of year when we learn about lots of different celebrations and the year 1 children have made some wonderful Diva Lamps this week. Diva lamps are used during the Hindu festival Diwali to remember the story of Rama and Sita. The Diva Lamps helped to guide them home after their banishment. On Tuesday we learnt all about how to keep safe during bonfire night and made some very colourful pictures using collage techniques.
It was wonderful to welcome parents into school this week to learn more about how we teach phonics. Reception and Year 1 children were absolute super stars during the demonstration lessons - all of the parents were extremely impressed! 

**Welcome Back After the Break!**

We hope everyone had a restful and enjoyable break and are ready for another busy and exciting term at school!

This week has been full of engaging events and opportunities for both pupils and parents alike, and we’re thrilled to share some highlights.

We kicked things off with a fantastic Parent Phonics Workshop, where families were able to learn new strategies to support their children's literacy development. In addition, our Anton Home Learning Workshops gave parents and children alike a chance to explore ways to make home learning even more effective and enjoyable.

We’re also excited to announce the opening of our brand new Sensory Room, which will provide a calm and welcoming space for pupils to relax and refocus throughout the school day. It’s been wonderful to see how this space has already begun to benefit our children.

This week, our STEM Workshops have been a big hit with the children, allowing them to dive into hands-on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics activities. We're so proud to see the curiosity and creativity our Year 5 children have shown in these sessions. In two weeks time, the whole school will be engaging in further STEM workshops. 

 Additionally, we welcomed the School Improvement Team for a visit, and we look forward to their continued support as we work together to make our school an even better place for all of our children.

Today, our BFA (Brunel Friends Association) has hosted two fantastic events: the **Dress Bright for Bonfire Night** and the **Family Quiz Night**. A huge thank you to the BFA for all their hard work in organising these events, as well as for their ongoing efforts to raise money for our school. Their support truly makes a difference, and we appreciate everything they do to enhance our school community.

Looking ahead, we have some important events next week.

On Monday, we’ll be holding our Remembrance Service on the school playground. The gate by the library will be open at 10:40am for parents to join us for this poignant occasion as we remember and honour those who have served in our country’s armed forces. We hope you will be able to join us for this very special moment.

Next week is also Anti-Bullying Week, with activities throughout the week to promote kindness, respect, and inclusion. On Tuesday, the children are invited to wear odd socks to celebrate individuality, and on Friday, we will be hosting **Brunel Against Bullying Blue Day**, where the children can wear blue to show their support for the anti-bullying message. This year, we are not asking for donations for Children in Need, but children are welcome to accessorise their blue outfits with **Pudsey ears** or other fun items.

As always, we thank you for your continued support. It’s been a busy week, and we’re excited for all the activities coming up. Wishing you all a very happy weekend, and we look forward to seeing you next week!  In the meantime, please sit back and enjoy the Brunel Bulletin. 

Swimming, STEM and more...

This week has seen a super busy week for Talland! The class demonstrated excellent resilience, determination and enthusiasm during their swimming sessions at Saltash Leisure Centre. Huge progress was made by all children - whether this was honing their technique, learning a new stroke or even overcoming their fears to get in the water and simply float. Thank you to all the staff at Saltash Leisure Centre in providing this excellent tuition for our children.

We also were really lucky to have Jorden and Sean from SDS Sustainability and Engineering Consultants visit us on Thursday for a workshop. We learned about the role of an engineer and how their company designs buildings and building solutions which are more energy efficient and 'green'. The children then had a go at trying to solve an engineering problem: creating a ductwork system in a house, using the least possible pieces of pipes. It was an inspiring session, with lots of children showing an interest in an engineering career by the end.

Marazion class have settled back into school so well after half term. 
We have enjoyed progressing with our learning about non-chronological reports, addition and subtraction and our topic 'How active is our planet?'. We have started to look at earthquakes and how they are formed.
In PE, we have enjoyed our first session in gymnastics looking at using symmetrical shapes. 

Today, we finished our RE topic of Hinduism and the children  had fun with colour learning about 'How vibrant is Hindu life in Britain?' by using bright colours.


Next week is Anti-bullying week and maths week.

Maths Roundup

Next week (Mon 11^th  - Fri 15^th Nov), sees the return of Maths Week England! As such, children will be taking part in lots of fun maths puzzles and games in lessons, as well as finding out about maths in real life careers during a Newsday Tuesday special.

To celebrate, we also have some school-wide events taking place:

• Thursday 14^th November - Family Games Night: Maths Escape Room Edition! 

There'll be lots of online and paper-based maths escape rooms to try as families. All are welcome. For every escape room completed, you will gain an entry to a prize draw! As usual, this half term's KIRFs and resources will be available to take away too.

• Crazy KIRFs photo competition!

Open to all ages. Take a photo of your child learning their KIRFs in an unusual way or place and submit them to Mrs Swabey by Fri 15^th Nov. There are some fabulous prizes to be won! Please print and hand in to your child's teacher or email them to lswabey@brunelprimary.co.uk

Please find this half term's KIRFs attached to this blog post.