Open days for Year R 2024:
Thursday 2nd November 9.30am and 2pm
Monday 6th November 9.30am
It has been wonderful to see all our children returning to school; eager to learn and happy to be back with their friends after such a long time away from the classroom. As we approach the half term break, we can reflect upon a very successful start to this new, albeit rather different, academic year.
I would firstly like to take this opportunity to welcome all our new families to the school. Not only do we welcome our new families in Year R, but another four pupils have joined us across other year groups and we extend a very warm welcome to those families as well.
Our new Year R pupils have all settled into school life very well and Miss Croft has been particularly impressed with their positive approach to learning and making friends and how quickly they have adapted to all their new routines.
We are delighted to also welcome our newest member of staff, Rebecca Benstead, who joins us working part-time in Willows (Years 3 and 4) alongside Miss Jones.
Despite all the new restrictions in place around the school; including regular hand sanitising, class bubbles, separate playtimes and most children eating lunch at their desks, this certainly hasn’t quelled the children’s enthusiasm, as there is still an unmistakeable buzz of learning throughout the school.
We are very grateful to Matthew who continues to lead Collective Worship for all classes within their individual bubbles. He is kept busy every Wednesday, with four separate visits to the school throughout the day. In line with our Christian values, he has been exploring the themes of Friendship and Responsibility with the children, through bible stories, reflection and plenty of lively discussion.
Another way we have had to adapt during these unprecedented times, is how we welcome prospective parents to our school. There has been a lot of work behind the scenes this term, to produce a ‘virtual tour’, which I am very pleased to say is now live on our website. Please do take a look, as it provides an excellent insight into all aspects of school life here at Amport. We hope that, whilst parents are unable to visit us in person, this short film will give them a good flavour of the happy, nurturing and welcoming school community we have.
The window for applications for YR 2021 for children born between 1st September 2016 and 31st August 2017 is from 1st November 2020 to 15th January 2021.
As we look ahead to the second half of the Autumn term, we are mindful that we will not be able to celebrate the festive season in the usual way. However, just as we have adopted new daily routines, so too will we adapt our traditional celebrations to ensure that all the children enjoy this very special time.
There was much excitement this week as our Year 4 pupils became the first to test out our brand new tablets, which arrived in school earlier this month. The set of 12 tablets, with detachable keyboards, was purchased for the school by the PTA, following a very successful appeal in January’s edition.
Times tables were first on the agenda, with the children accessing a popular app to help improve their own scores in timed tests. Learning times tables can be a huge challenge for some children, but this imaginative and interactive approach has really appealed them.
Over the coming weeks and months, we will be introducing the tablets into daily classroom use across other year groups. EYFS (Reception) and Key Stage 1, for instance, are looking forward to using them to help develop their counting, letter formation and phonics skills, as well exploring other subjects, such as science.
The children will also be encouraged to use them for taking photographs and making short videos, to support their work as historians and geographers.
As we get used to having them in school, we are sure that the teachers and pupils will find other ways to use them, both in the classroom and outdoors. The possibilities are endless!
The PTA is very grateful to all parents, residents and local businesses who contributed so generously, enabling us to buy them for our school.
I am delighted to let you know that we have recently received a letter from Rt. Hon Nick Gibb, Minister of State for School Standards, celebrating the fact that all our year 6 children reached or exceeded the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics at Key Stage 2 assessments last year. This means that we are, once again, ranked in the top 1% of primary schools in the country. This is an outstanding achievement by the children and one which would not have been possible without the hard work and commitment of all our staff, not to mention the on-going support from our parents and governors.
Monday 27th January marked the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and like many other primary schools across the country, we held a special Collective Worship service to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day. As well as talking to the children about discrimination and reflecting on lessons learnt, we also touched on what life was like for Jews, under the Nazi regime. At the end of the service, the children were invited to each light a candle, to remember the millions of people who were killed or whose lives were affected by the Holocaust.
On Tuesday 11th February, the children took part in a range of classroom-based activities, to mark Safer Internet Day 2020. This important global event helps raise awareness of ever-growing issues such as cyber bullying and helps to teach the children to use technology responsibly and respectfully.
Finally, I would like to thank parents and members of the community who so generously supported our appeal to purchase IT hardware for the school. In a time of budget cuts, this is really appreciated. I am touched that so many people felt they could support the school in this way. I would also like to thank the members of the PTA for running yet another fantastic (and hotly contested!) quiz night and raffle last week, which raised about £1800 for the school. Thank you to all the parents, staff and members of the wider community who attended and for making it such a successful and profitable evening!
As we welcome the children back after their Christmas break, refreshed and re-energised for the term ahead, we can look back on a very positive end to 2019. We were delighted to have been ranked third Best Small Primary School in England in the Sunday Times’ Schools Guide. Hot on the heels of this news, came the announcement that we have once again been named top state primary school in Hampshire, with 100% of pupils meeting the expected standards. My thanks to all the staff, governors, parents and children for their ongoing support and hard work, which make these amazing achievements possible.
December also saw a packed programme of festive activities, including our ever popular nativity and Senior Citizens Christmas tea party. We were delighted to welcome so many local residents, who came to watch the nativity play, “Everyone Loves a Baby”, brilliantly performed by our key stage one pupils. As the story unfolded, the audience was treated to some wonderful singing, dancing and acting.
For many of our children, this was their first time in front of an adult audience, so we were extremely proud of them as they all rose to the occasion amazingly well.
Following the performance, the parishioners were invited to stay for a delicious afternoon tea, which the children in Years 5 and 6 helped to prepare and serve. The afternoon concluded with all of Key Stage Two children performing a number of rousing Christmas songs and carols.
Just two days into spring term, the children were treated to an educational visit from The Open Box Theatre Company, which delivered three excellent live-theatre workshops for Oaks, Beech and Willow classes.
Oak Class, who have just started their topic of Traditional Tales, were enthralled by an exciting and energetic re-enactment of Cinderella, leaving some convinced their teacher, Mrs Allnutt, was really a princess in disguise!
Meanwhile, Beech Class’ new topic of The Great Fire of London was launched in style, with an action-packed re-telling of this historic event. The class was magically transported back to London, 1665, with tales of spots, rats, sneezes and fleas, as the Great Plague took hold. As the long, hot summer of 1666 unfolded, the children learnt how The Great Fire of London started. The children met key figures, such as the famous baker, Thomas Farriner, Samual Pepys and the Mayor of London, all brilliantly brought to life by the actors. There was great excitement at the end, when the children formed human chains to extinguish the fire!
In an equally active and inspiring workshop, the children of Willow class became Roman soldiers for the afternoon; training, marching and conquering Britannia, as well as preparing for the arrival of their Emperor.
These drama workshops were an invaluable opportunity for the children to ‘live and breathe’ their topics and will really help enhance their understanding, enjoyment and overall learning experience.
Later this month, Rowans will be taking part in Bikeability, the cycle training programme which teaches children the necessary skills to ride confidently on today’s roads. Meanwhile, singing rehearsals continue apace, for the much anticipated Voice in a Million at the SSE Arena in March. Amport School is thrilled to be taking part in this exciting event, which sees up to 6,000 school children of all ages, performing together, in what has been described as ‘the world’s most spectacular school concert’.