What an unforgettable week it has been for Tregantle class! We took part in our very first nativity performance, joining children from Years 1, 2 and 3 to bring this year's show, "Fleece Force," to life.

This wonderfully creative performance told the Christmas story from a brand-new angle - through the eyes of the sheep, who just so happened to be.. police officers! With flashing badges, important missions, and plenty of woolly humour, it was a show to remember.

Tregantle's role was to bring the angels to the stage, and they certainly did not disappoint. Dressed in halos, wings, and just the right amount of sparkle, the children looked heavenly as they took their places. Their performance of the song "Good News, Great News" was absolutely brilliant - sung with confidence, energy, and huge smiles that lit up the hall. Their dance moves were perfectly in time too, showing just how hard they had worked in rehearsals.

Every single child shone brightly, and we could not be more proud of how they handled their first performance. From their enthusiasm to their teamwork, Tregantle proved they are true stars.

Well done, Tregantle class-you were amazing!

Our Children Celebrate the Festive Season at the Christmas Tree Festival

This week, our school community had the joy of visiting the Christmas Tree Festival at St Nicholas and Faith Church.

It was a wonderful opportunity for our children to experience the festive spirit in a beautiful and meaningful setting. The festival was a feast for the senses, with each tree uniquely decorated and brimming with creativity.

Our children were fascinated by the imaginative designs and the care that had gone into each display. The children reflected on themes of kindness, creativity and excellence linking beautifully with our school values. 

We are grateful to St Nicholas and Faith Church for hosting this event and for welcoming our children so warmly. Experiences like these enrich our curriculum, bringing learning to life and helping our children make connections between their classroom experiences and the wider world. As we move closer to the holiday season, this visit has reminded us all of the joy of community, creativity and the simple magic of Christmas.

Brunel shines at Lantern Parade

Tonight, Brunel proudly took our place in the annual Lantern Parade in Saltash - a wonderful tradition that brings our community together to celebrate the start of the festive season.

This year's route led us all the way down to the beautiful Saltash Waterside, where the parade came to a spectacular end with an incredible firework display lighting up the river. It was a magical moment for everyone involved!

A huge thank you to all the children, families, and members of our school community who joined us and represented Brunel with such enthusiasm. Your creativity, lanterns and festive spirit made the evening truly special. We would also like to express our sincere thanks to Saltash Town Council for organising this much-loved annual event - it's a highlight of the year and a wonderful way to bring the town together. Christmas is certainly on the horizon.. and what a brilliant way to begin the celebrations!

"Christmas Tree oh Christmas Tree!"

The Christmas countdown has begun and the advent calendar has a few windows open. Here are some photos of the class solving the treasure hunt at the Christmas Tree Festival. We were lucky enough to walk down to St. Nicholas and Faith Church yesterday to see them all. It was incredibly festive and it put us in a Christmassy mood. 

In English, we have been writing our Jack and the Beanstalk stories. So far we have started out story by introducing and describing Jack. Here are some of my favourite extracts from their work:

"...his emerald-green eyes, bright and wide with curiosity."
"Jack was a young , adventurous boy with hopes and dreams."
"He was as scrawny as a plucked chicken with hair like liquid copper."

In maths, we have continued our work on shape by finding missing angles in quadrilaterals and polygons. Next week, we will look at circles and drawing shapes accurately. 

I hope to see you all at Hunt the Issy tonight and the lantern parade tomorrow. 

Have a great weekend!

Miss Burton

It has been a busy week at Team Brunel and we still have Hunt the Issy this evening and the Lantern Parade tomorrow evening on Saltash Fore Street. The children attending will be able to collect their lanterns from Drill Hall HQ from 5:30pm tomorrow evening. In the meantime, sit back, relax and enjoy this week's edition of The Brunel Bulletin.

It has been a wonderfully festive and hardworking week in Year 2/3 as we move closer to the end of term. The children have embraced every challenge and activity with enthusiasm, and we are incredibly proud of them.

Christmas Show Rehearsals:
Our main focus this week has been preparing for our Christmas show. The children have been practising their lines, learning songs, rehearsing movements and supporting one another beautifully. Their confidence is growing by the day, and they are very excited to perform for you next week. Thank you for all the support you have given at home with practising lines - it really shows.

English:
We have begun a brand-new English topic this week: animal survival fact texts. The children have started exploring the features of non-fiction texts, identifying headings, subheadings, technical vocabulary and key information. They have enjoyed discovering new words and learning how writers help readers understand how animals survive in their habitats.

Maths:
Our maths learning has continued in two exciting directions:

·       Year 3 have moved on with addition and subtraction using formal column methods, including calculations that cross a ten or a hundred. They have been working hard to line up digits correctly and explain their reasoning.

·       Year 2 have been focusing on shape, naming 2D and 3D shapes, talking about their properties and beginning to sort them using different criteria.
It has been lovely to see both year groups growing in confidence and independence.

Christmas Tree Festival Visit:
On Thursday, we visited the Christmas Tree Festival, and the children were an absolute credit to the school. They showed respect, curiosity and lovely manners throughout our visit. They also had great fun taking part in the festive treasure hunt, searching the decorated trees for items on their list. It was a joyful, sparkly morning and we were so proud of how beautifully they represented the school.

Sewing Stockings:
Our stocking sewing has continued this week, and the children are becoming more confident with threading, stitching and tying knots. A huge thank you to all the parents, grandparents and helpers who supported the children with their sewing - your help makes such a difference and is greatly appreciated.

Tregantle Class Blog - What an Exciting Week!

This week has been full of festive fun and magical moments for Tregantle Class!

On Tuesday, we went on our class trip to Plymouth Theatre Royal to watch the 'Father Christmas' show. We travelled by train from Saltash to Plymouth, which was an adventure in itself! The children had a wonderful time-enjoying the journey, the enchanting performance, and even a special picnic inside the theatre.

On Thursday, we visited St Nicholas and Faith Church to explore the Christmas Tree Festival. The children loved taking part in a treasure hunt around the church and were thrilled to spot our very own Brunel Christmas tree on display!

To add to the excitement, we also had our first school disco this week. There was plenty of dancing, popcorn, and Christmas cheer to go around.

We've also been busy practicing our singing for our upcoming performance of 'Fleece Force,' which will take place next week. The children are working hard and sounding fantastic!

What a wonderful and exciting week it has been for Tregantle Class!

Welcome to this week's edition of The Brunel Bulletin. This is your weekly update of all the latest news and events from our wonderful school. We hope you enjoy browsing through the 50th edition of our newsletter. It has been a busy week where we started the week with Mousehole's class assembly, embraced National Cinema Week and our Year 5 children have enjoyed their Lantern Workshops this week with special visits from the Mayor and Deputy Mayor.

This week has been jam-packed with learning and icy fun. 

We have been planning our Jack and the Beanstalk stories in English. We will be rewriting them with a Christmas theme and I am pleased and amused by some of the children's ideas:
Instead of selling a cow at market, Jack will be selling a micro-pig in a blanket. 
Jack will get magic sprouts instead of magic beans which will grow into a giant sprout stalk. 
At the top, he will find a gingerbread house with an evil elf inside and he will steal a golden advent calendar. 

In maths, we have been learning about angles and how we can use our knowledge of triangles, straight lines and angle properties to find missing angles. 

In science, we investigated with voltage and the effect this has on a series circuit. We tried different amounts of cells, motors, wires and bulbs to see what would happen. We also discovered that a circuit with a 1.5v cell and one bulb would still work even with 27 wires - it was a very dim light though. 

Have a great weekend!

Miss Burton

The children in Treyarnon class got to experience life as an evacuee child today. They came to school with their wonderful outfits ready to learn all about World War Two. 

We started off by creating pictures about the The Blitz using silhouettes and shadows. We couldn't resist adding a bit of glitter!

Then, we found out all about rations and how people had to be very creative with their recipes. With that in mind, we made some carrot biscuits using a recipe from the war. Despite being dubious at first, the children  all agreed that they were delicious. 

We have been learning about electricity in science and we have become experts at building circuits. We were able to use that knowledge to learn Morse Code and send messages and codes to each other. 

It has been a fantastic day full of learning and creativity!

We celebrated World Kindness Day by giving compliments to each other. We learnt what makes a good compliment first and why it is so important to be kind. Each child now gets to keep a list of shooting stars which are filled with all the lovely things people like about them. 

Embracing Nature

What a wonderful week we've had in Tregantle Class!

At Forest School, we embraced the beauty of autumn by making our own nature necklaces. The children carefully selected colourful leaves and threaded them to create unique pieces of natural art. This activity was fantastic for strengthening fine motor skills and encouraging creativity in an outdoor setting. It was lovely to see everyone so absorbed in the magic of nature.

Back in the classroom, we got into the festive spirit by making gingerbread ready for the Christmas season. The children practised weighing and mixing the ingredients, using all their senses to explore the spices and textures. The room was filled with excitement-and the delicious smell of ginger!

We've also been getting stuck into books! Tregantle Class have shown a real enthusiasm for reading this week, spending time in our cosy book corner and enjoying story times with both old favourites and brand-new reads. Their love of books is truly shining.

One of the highlights of our week was our trip to Saltash Cinema-our very first trip out of school together! The children walked beautifully to our local cinema and were thrilled to watch The Wild Robot as part of National Cinema Week. It was a memorable and exciting experience for everyone.

Well done for another fantastic week, Tregantle Class! Your curiosity, enthusiasm, and teamwork continue to make us proud.

Class Blog: Weekly Learning Update (Year 2/3)

We've had another wonderful week in Year 2/3, full of rich learning experiences and exciting events. The children have continued to impress us with their enthusiasm, resilience and growing confidence across the curriculum.

Class Assembly:
A huge well done to all the children for their brilliant class assembly this week! They made us incredibly proud as they shared everything they have been learning about 'What Was Important to Ancient Egypt?' From mummification to hieroglyphics, gods and goddesses to daily life, their knowledge shone through. Most importantly, they spoke clearly, remembered their parts, and supported one another beautifully throughout the performance.

Cinema Trip:
We also enjoyed a fantastic visit to Saltash Studios to watch Dogman. The children behaved impeccably on the walk to and from the cinema and were a credit to the school. They thoroughly enjoyed the film and happily chatted afterwards about their favourite moments - a lovely treat during a busy term!

Christmas Show:
Exciting news - lines for the Christmas performance have now been handed out and rehearsals have officially begun! Thank you in advance for practising lines at home. The children are already singing enthusiastically and we can't wait to see the show come together.

Topic - Antarctica:
Our learning about Antarctica was brought to life this week with a fascinating visit from Jay Gates, who has worked on a ship supporting scientists travelling to Antarctica. The children were captivated as Jay shared photographs, stories and real-life insights.
They learned about:

• The extreme climate and what it's like living in such freezing conditions

• The remarkable wildlife, including penguins, seals and whales

• Local scientists and explorers who have contributed to Antarctic research

• The different research bases found across the continent

• And even the meanings behind the colours of icebergs - something that truly amazed them!

The children asked thoughtful questions and came away inspired, ready to continue exploring this incredible part of the world.

Continuing Classroom Learning:
Alongside all these special events, we have continued our formal learning:

• Maths: Ongoing work on addition and subtraction, using place value to help solve calculations efficiently.

• English: Continued study of Jack and the Beanstalk, by writing their own versions of the story.

• Science: Further investigations into forces and magnets, beginning to explore how different materials respond to magnetic force.

It has been a packed and memorable week - well done, Year 2/3!

Thank You, Brunel Community!

A huge thank you to our whole school community for coming together to support Children in Need 2025.

Thanks to your kindness, enthusiasm and generosity, we raised an amazing £130!

From our pupils and families to our staff team, everyone played a part in making this a success.

Your support truly makes a difference, and we are incredibly proud of what we achieved together.

Well done, Brunel! 

#ChildrenInNeed2025 #BrunelPrimaryAcademy #SchoolCommunity #ProudToBeBrunel #TogetherWeCan #FundraisingSuccess