Friday Headlines
the weekly newsletter from EHS
Nursery to Year Six Highlights
22 November 2024
It has been a wonderful week in Nursery, Kindergarten and Prep, packed with enthusiasm, exploration and enriching experiences. The teachers have shared some of the exciting activities the girls have enjoyed. Don’t forget to take a look at the gallery below for pictures!
Mud Number Splats!
In Nursery, the girls have been exploring the colour brown. They began the week by sharing items from home and discussing what they had brought in with their friends. The learning continued with a variety of fun mathematical activities. The girls played a game where they rolled a dice, counted the spots, and added that number of splats of mud to a pig. They also worked with hedgehogs of different sizes, practising ordering them from smallest to largest. To end the week, they used scales to weigh ingredients and made delicious chocolate crispy cakes.
I Can Sing A Rainbow!
Kindergarten have paid special attention to rainbows with our letter sound focus being ‘r’. The children have excitedly learnt the words to ‘I Can Sing a Rainbow’. They were interested to find out how and why rainbows are made and know to look out for them when the weather is rainy and sunny! Before they painted their very own rainbow, they had to look carefully at the colours and were fascinated to learn how indigo and violet were made using blue and white paints.
Curious Scientists
Reception girls enjoyed learning about floating and sinking. Everyday objects such as plastic bottles, toys, scissors and wooden blocks were used to predict whether they would float or sink. There was a great deal of anticipation and laughter as to what would happen, and pupils were encouraged to ask many questions. Girls began to understand basic scientific principles such as density, material properties and weight. This hands-on way of learning sparked their curiosity about the natural world and promoted their language development. Their scientific learning continued on Tuesday with the arrival of the snow! Girls explored textures and temperatures as well as having a great deal of fun!
Super Scientists
Continuing with their Science topic on materials, Year One have been trying to work out what the best material would be to make a raincoat for their class teddy. Girls had to put on their Science helmets and think carefully about how to set up their experiment. They borrowed real science equipment from the Prep Science Lab to set up their experiment. Girls had to squeeze water into the pipette and then squeeze three drops over a variety of materials to see if the water went through to the other side or not. The Year One Scientists decided that either a plastic or leather raincoat would be best to use for their teddy bear’s new raincoat. Well done, Super Scientists!
Computational Thinking
Year Two have enjoyed exploring cross-curricular links. They have been learning about grid references in both their Geography and Mathematics lessons and have combined this with their ability to programme a floor turtle called a beebot. Pupils worked in groups to solve problems relating to a map of the Isle of Struay, the fiction island home of Katie Morag. They had to programme the beebot to successfully move from one part of the island to another. This also tested the pupils’ understanding of geographical vocabulary such as ‘bay’ and ‘pier’. The pupils showed impressive social, geographic, mathematical and computing skills by completing the challenges. Well done, Year Two!
Origami Patterns
In Art this term, Year Three pupils have been exploring patterns. They began by designing nature-inspired motifs and transformed these into intricate patterns using Colour Magic. This week, they completed their rotational patterns by incorporating three types of origami folds. The girls showed great perseverance in mastering the folding techniques, and they were rightfully proud of their impressive final creations.
Selly Manor Explorers
On Tuesday, Year Four enjoyed a chilly trip to Selly Manor in the heart of Cadbury village. Mr Cadbury is the person who moved the entire house to its current position and made it a museum. The girls had the opportunity to feel and smell the life of a Tudor. They experienced the living room, kitchen and bedrooms. Ammarah especially found the servants bed a little bit prickly!
During the afternoon, the girls played Tudor games with beautiful wooden toys and dressed up as Tudor children. At the end of the day, to the delight of the Selly Manor staff, our girls sang some songs from their own Tudor play. It was wonderful to see the girls making the most of such a fantastic, immersive learning opportunity.
Falkirk Farmer
On Monday afternoon, Year Five were given the opportunity to FaceTime a farmer, in Falkirk, to discuss some previously prepared questions. The girls have been learning about how their food gets from the field to their forks, sustainability, crop rotation and biodiversity and being eco-friendly.
Robin, a dairy farmer, sent us a video of the farm and then, whilst out in the fields, talked to the girls about his animals and crops. Pupils were delighted to see a calf that had been born thirty minutes previously and to see it take its first steps – what a privilege! It was a fantastic session to consolidate the girls’ classroom knowledge. They now know that Robin’s favourite job is hoof trimming, that he works thirteen hours a day, he produces 4000 litres of milk a day for Tesco, and he loves cheese!
They found out how Robin has worked hard to reduce his carbon footprint and the ways in which he is working to improve efficiency and work with the wildlife on the farm. We are extremely grateful that Robin gave up his time to talk to our girls.
Valuable Insights
Year Six have immersed themselves in diary writing, practising their use of adverbial phrases to enhance their work. In English, pupils explored the perspective of Lady Macbeth, crafting reflective diary entries to capture her inner turmoil. Meanwhile, our History lessons brought World War Two to life as students imagined the emotions of being evacuated, writing heartfelt accounts as though they were children sent away from home.
Throughout the term, we have delved into other significant themes, such as the Blitz, rationing and life on the home front. These valuable insights not only deepen historical
understanding but also lay the groundwork for the rich, creative writing we’ll embark on in the spring term.
Nursery to Year Six Highlights
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