Fantastic Christmas Fair!
The Christmas Fair was once again a great success this year. Lots of people attended and the atmosphere was very festive. From temporary tattoos to the tombola, Santa to the raffle, each and every attraction was a great success.
The fair raised an amazing £1,720 which will go towards even more exciting outdoor play equipment for all the children to use.
Thanks to all of the local companies and everyone who donated prizes and items to sell.
A big thank you to Ann Wilson and all of the “Friends of Bessacarr Primary” who organised the event. Your time and effort is very much appreciated. Thank you too to all the staff, parents and children who gave up their time to help out.
Well done everyone!
Party Season
The children have enjoyed their Christmas parties and celebrations this week. They demonstrated some wonderful dance moves as well as joining in with party games.
F2 and KS1 visited the Civic Theatre to watch the pantomime “Cinderella”. We all had lots of fun, especially Mrs Ewen, who skipped up and down the aisle with Buttons! Layla and Lucy went up on the stage to sing ‘Old McDonald’ too. We were all really proud to watch Emma dancing on stage. Well done Emma and Georgia on your starring roles this year.
Key Stage 2 enjoyed a visit to the Cinema to watch the new animated version of “A Christmas Carol”, followed by a wonderful disco and party food.
Many children enjoyed a lovely Christmas dinner too. Mrs Rushby and her staff really excelled themselves.
Tripping the Light Fantastic!
Children in the F1 celebrated Bonfire Night with a wonderful firework display. No… we didn’t have real explosives in school! The display was a brilliant PowerPoint presentation of the children’s firework ICT work set to some explosive music. It was lovely to watch. Thank you F1.
So proud!
I am sure you will agree that the Christmas concerts this year were wonderful.
F1 presented “Round the Back”, the story of nativity from the inn keeper’s point of view. F2 and Key Stage 1 performed “The Nativity”, the traditional Christmas story told in rhyme and written by our own Miss Pearson! Key Stage 2 presented a medley of Christmas performances including poetry, festive songs and even Silent Night in Spanish! To watch the children’s effort, enjoyment and enthusiasm made me very proud. So thank you to all the children and the staff for their hard work.
How the Victorians lived.
Year 5 enjoyed a wonderful trip to Cannon Hall in Barnsley. Dressed in their finest Victorian clothes, they were employed by Mrs Spencer-Stanhope to be servants for the day. They learnt to cook, clean and do the washing. At lunch time they ate leak and potato soup, bread and butter and apple crumble and custard – which the groups had made throughout the day. A wonderful day!
Sporting Success
Doncaster Knights have been teaching children in Year 5 and 6 rugby skills this term. A group of year 5 and 6 children braved the winter weather to play in a tournament at Castle Park. Throughout the tournament they demonstrated sportsmanship and team work. Their efforts were rewarded with 3rd place. Well done!
Year 5 have taken part in an exciting cycling course lead by Kim, an Olympic team coach! The children thoroughly enjoyed the experience and developed lots of new skills.
Thanks to the staff that organised and attended these events. Without you our children would miss out on some wonderful opportunities.
A Journey into the Deep!
F2 and Year 1 thoroughly enjoyed their trip to the Deep recently. The children were mesmerised by the jellyfish, sharks and rays. Their topic work was inspired by their visit when they returned to school.
Sing Your Heart Out!
A choir of children from Key Stage 2 travelled to Sheffield Arena to take part in the ‘Young Voices’ arena tour at the beginning of December. The choir (trained by Mrs Bright and Mrs Muskett) joined 4500 other children from schools all over Yorkshire to sing with a professional conductor and band, as well as some professional artists. It was a fantastic day. The singing was breath taking. I’m sure that all of the parents who attended will agree.
Some of the choir then went on to perform at the Salvation Army’s Christmas Carol Concert and at the Willow Community Centre with the Community Wardens. A big thank you to the staff for all their hard work and for giving up their time to make these events possible. And well done children. Your beautiful singing and exemplary behaviour made us very proud.
September 2009
Hola!
This year the children will begin to learn Spanish in school. This is part of our commitment to Modern Foreign Languages.
As part of this exciting endeavour we will be having “Spanish around the World” week straight after Christmas. We will also be welcoming a Spanish Language Assistant to the school in October.
Miss Black and Miss Browne will be participating in a professional development visit to Spain this term.
We are sure that they will have a wonderful time visiting Spanish schools and making valuable links.
Creative Curriculum!
This year we are working on developing cross-curricular links through topic work. We are developing the “Areas of Learning” from the Foundation Stage throughout school.
This means that the children will be learning about lots of new and exciting topics as well as some old favourites.
We are also having a whole school curricular week each half term, where all of the children in school will learn about a different aspect of the same topic. This half term we are having a book week.
During each whole school event, we are planning to provide an opportunity for parents to participate.
Watch this space for more information.
Brilliant Bees!
Each Monday the children in school will be taking part in a ‘celebration’ assembly. During this assembly one child from each class will receive a ‘Brilliant Bee’ award. This is given to a child nominated by the class or the class teacher for doing something brilliant. It could be for doing something kind, producing something wonderful or trying really hard. Or for just being brilliant!
This assembly is also a chance for your children to share their successes out of school. If they have received a certificate, medal or trophy for an activity they participate in out of school, they may bring them in to celebrate their success with the other children and all of the staff in school.
Summer 2009
Inter-school Sports.
A group of Year 5 and 6 children recently took part in a Rounders Tournament with the other primaries from the Hall Cross Family of Schools. The children demonstrated fantastic team work and sportsmanship and came second. Well done!
A team of Year 6 boys and girls took part in the Doncaster Knights’ Tag Rugby festival at Castle Park on 3rd July. They won a group trophy in the morning and reached the quarter final of the knock-out tournament in the afternoon. They played very well despite dodging the heavy showers of rain!
Supporting the RSPCA.
The School Council have been raising money for the RSPCA this year. In total they have raised £286.42. Well done!
Bessacarr in Bloom.
The front of the school is looking absolutely beautiful thanks to the Busy Bee Gardening Club. The children have been working hard with Mr and Mrs Smith and are even growing their own vegetables in a small allotment on the school field. If you know anyone who would like to help develop our grounds please speak to Mrs Smith in the school Office.
Go, Go, Go Joseph.
We were all really proud of the children in Key Stage 2 as they presented their version of “Joseph and the Technicolor Dream Coat”.
The hard work and dedication of the children and staff shone through as laughter and emotion filled the Hall. Well done everyone. We will look forward to seeing some of our new found shining stars on the stage.
Disco Fever.
The children in Key Stage 2 enjoyed the ‘Leaver’s Disco’ this week. As well as being lots of fun this disco raised some more money for the playground fund.
K-nex Success.
Year 5 took part in the k-nex challenge in school, designing and making a model aerodynamic racing car. Noah Atkinson and Matthew Burke won the challenge and went through to the South Yorkshire Championship in Sheffield. By designing a car carrying aeroplane they qualified to take part in the north of England final in Leeds. Despite designing a wonderful building to house the car and its crew in the dessert, the boys were knocked out. Well done boys for getting so far in the K-nex Challenge Championship.
Eco-Challenge.
Year 6 have taken part in Technology Challenge again this year. Their challenge this year was to design an eco-friendly village, build a model of it and promote it. Two teams were put forward to represent the school at the final at Hall Cross. One of the teams came 3rd, winning £100 to spend on technology equipment in school.
End of Term Celebrations.
The children enjoyed a visit this week from the Story Box Theatre Group.
Children in F1 thoroughly enjoyed their time with the ‘Music Bugs’. Much laughter could be heard throughout school, which was lovely.
The Vikings have invaded!
Year 4 recently became Vikings for the day at the Viking village in York. Dressed up as Vikings, they farmed the land and scared off the Saxon guard before enjoying a Viking banquet served to them by the staff.
Farming Fun!
Year 2 thoroughly enjoyed a visit to the Pink Pig Farm last week. They met the animals, fed the chickens and played on the adventure playground.
Pottering at Potteric Carr.
Year 5 enjoyed a very warm day at Potteric Carr where they studied the environment and enjoyed finding out about the wildlife.
Raring to Go on the Residential.
Many of the Year 6 pupils took part in our annual residential to Boreatton Park in June.
The children were able to experience many adventurous activities, as well as the thrill of camping. A great time was had by all.
A big thank you to all of the staff who went with the children and made the visit possible.
An Eye for Art.
A group of children visited the National Gallery in London in June. The children had a wonderful time and were able to see the master pieces they had studied in Arts Week. Again a big thank you to the staff who went with them.
Get Active!
Get active week was a great success this year with the children taking part in a wide variety of activities, including football, tennis, aerobics, rounders and athletics. A big thank you to all of the volunteers who gave up their time to work with the children.
Spring 2009
Comic Relief … “Do Something Funny For Money”
The staff and children came to school in their pyjamas or with ‘daft hair’ to raise money for Comic Relief. We raised £131.31, having lots of fun in the process.
Tree Planting Ceremony
The Safer Communities Team invited us to support them in their efforts to improve Haslam Park. 20 children, 2 from each class, were selected by their class teachers for their good attitudes and efforts in their work.
The children were joined by the Civic Mayor and the Neighbourhood team, planting lots of trees. Look out for them in the Bessacarr and Cantley Times.
Walk like an Egyptian!
Year 4 experienced life as an Ancient Egyptian recently. They were joined by 2 Egyptians for the day, helping to prepare the burial chamber for the Pharaoh. They created artefacts and prepared dances to celebrate the Nile. It was a great chance for the children to learn through first hand experiences. They really enjoyed their day.
Maths Goes POP!
A team of our Year 6 children took part in a Maths pop quiz at Sheffield Hallam University recently. The questions were very tricky but the team worked really well together and achieved a very respectable score.
Well done team!
Drumming with excitement!
The ‘Get Sorted’ Music Centre visited the school this week to work with the children in Year 5 and 6. The day was organised to reinforce the children’s scientific understanding of sound.
The children had lots of fun and gave a wonderful presentation of their new found skills.
World Book Day.
Thursday 5th March 2009 was World Book Day.
Bessacarr Primary School has celebrated this event in a number of ways.
The Scholastic Book Fair was in school. Many children attended the fair with their £1 vouchers. We raised lots of money to buy books for the school library. Thank you.
On Thursday 5th March, many of the children came to school dressed as a character from a book. The school was invaded by princesses, pirates and ‘very hungry caterpillars’, as well as many other colourful characters. The costumes were fantastic. Thank you for all your efforts.
Football Success
A team of children played in an inter-school football tournament at The Keepmoat Stadium recently. The Team did really well, loosing in the Final on penalties. Well done team and thanks to Mrs Burton, Mrs Humphries and Mrs Turnbull for attending.
Visit by the Countryside Ranger.
The children in Key Stage 2 met our neighbourhood Countryside Ranger recently. Chris Allott came in to school to talk to the children about his job and show them some of the tools he uses. He taught the children how to protect the countryside and some of our native species, including badgers. They thought about how to enjoy the countryside whilst also preserving it for the future. The children enjoyed their time with the ranger and we hope to work with him again soon.
And Speaking of Nature…
Have you noticed that the front of the school is beginning to look a little different? Mr Smith, our Site Manager, had been busy digging and planting. This is the beginning of our “Busy Bee Gardening Club”. Mr Smith will be running the club for children after Easter. We have great plans for transforming the school grounds and even growing some of our own food!
If you think you can help in any way – by donating plants, equipment, sheds, or by giving us a hand to establish and maintain our gardens – please contact Mr Smith, Mrs Smith, Mrs Bright or Mrs Davies.
Easter Events
The Salvation Army joined us on Monday to teach the children in Years 1-6 about Easter. They enjoyed participating in lots of different activities.
Our wonderful School Cook, Mrs Rushby, has donated a large Easter Egg which has been raffled off to raise money for playground equipment. Thank you Mrs Rushby.
Friends of Bessacarr Primary have donated a chocolate egg per class as prizes for our ‘Decorated Egg’ competition. Thanks to you too!
OFSTED Success.
As you will know we were visited by an OFSTED Inspection team before half term.
The team were very impressed by the school and the children.
OFSTED said that Bessacarr Primary is a “good and improving school”.
The Inspection Report, along with a letter for the children from the lead inspector is being sent home with this newsletter.
Well done everyone!
Thank You Mrs Rushby.
The School Council would like to say a big thank you to Mrs Rushby, our wonderful school cook. Mrs Rushby made beautiful handmade heart-shaped biscuits which were sold before half term. The sale raised £69 for the RSPCA.
Invaded by Romans
The school was invaded by Romans (well, a Roman soldier) before half term. Year 3 enjoyed a whole day of Roman experiences, including looking at artefacts and even wearing the armour! It was a great chance for the children to learn through first hand experiences.
Team Work.
A team of 20 Year 5 and 6 boys and girls participated in an indoor athletic tournament at Hall Cross School recently. The team worked well together, demonstrating some natural ability as well as outstanding sportsmanship. Although they did not win, a fantastic time was had by all.
World Book Day.
Thursday 5th March 2009 is World Book Day.
Bessacarr Primary School will be celebrating this event in a number of ways:
£1 book tokens will be distributed to all children. These can be used at participating book shops and the School Book Fair.
The Scholastic Book Fair will be open in school from Wednesday 4th March until Monday 9th March in the school hall straight after school. Special arrangements have been made for morning nursery. See Mrs Axelby or Mrs Turnbull.
- On Thursday 5th March, children may come to school dressed as a character from a book. There will be no charge for this event.
Comic Relief …
“Do Something Funny For Money”.
Friday 13th March 2009 is Red Nose Day. The School Council would like the school to support this national event by having a pyjama day. We would like everyone (including the adults in school) to come to school in their pyjamas or with a “funny” hair style… or both! (No hair dye).
A donation of 50p for participation in the event would be greatly appreciated and would help us raise money for this worthwhile cause.
Valentine Disco.
The children in Key Stage 2 enjoyed a good old boogie at the Valentine Disco before half term. Valentines cards were sent with love while some fantastic moves were seen on the dance floor.
A big thank you to the ‘Friends of Bessacarr Primary’ who organised the event and the staff who came to offer their support.
The disco raised over £200 which will go towards improving the school environment.
From Monday 5th to Friday 9th January
all of the children at Bessacarr Primary School
took part in…Art Week.
Our aim was to learn as much about artists and their work as we could and to be creative!
Each Class looked at one amazing artist. We had lots of fun and found out so much…
Take a look!
Mrs Briddick’s and Mrs Patterson’s Classes – Year 6
Year 6 found out about the Spanish artist Salvador Dali. They used different media to recreate some of Dali’s work, including powder paint, watercolours, pencil, charcoal and pastel. The quality of the work was amazing, with many pieces just as striking as the originals.
The children completed research into the life and work of Dali, producing some interesting illustrated reports.
Each class worked on a replica of Dali’s “Tiger/Puma face”, with each child completing a small section in different media. Each section was pieced together to recreate the original with great effect. 6B used clay tiles to replicate the tiger/puma too, while 6P had lots of fun creating ‘bendy’ clocks in clay.
Mr Manning’s Class – Year 5
Mr Manning’s class looked at the work Yorkshire based artist, Andrew Goldsworthy. Goldsworthy uses natural materials to create pictures and sculptures outdoors. Not much of his work remains as it decays naturally in the environment.
Mr Manning’s class had lots of fun using natural materials to create art. Just like Goldsworthy, they sorted their materials by colour, shape, size and texture. First they used leaves to make 2D patterns on paper. Then they used pine cones to create amazing 3D sculptures. They moved on to using pebbles to design patterns and pictures. Next they created creatures from natural materials found in the school grounds. And finally they made a huge class sculpture on the school field.
The effect was wonderful. Many photos were taken because, just like Goldsworthy, their art will disappear over time.
Miss Ball’s Class – Year 5
Miss Ball’s class looked at the work of Andy Warhol, the American artist famous for ‘pop art’.
Warhol’s most recognisable work is his picture of Marilyn Monroe, where her face is painted with bright and unusual colours. Miss Ball’s class looked carefully at this picture and recreated it in pastel, powder paint and pencil crayons, choosing their own unique colour scheme. Some of the pictures are displayed as one piece, just like Warhol’s, which is very effective.
The children then produced their own self portraits in different media, including press printing. They even reproduced Warhol’s style in clay!
The class rounded off their creative (and very messy) week by making prints in the style of Warhol’s other most recognisable work – ‘the Soup can’.
Mrs Clarkson’s Class – Year 4
Year 4 decided to look at the work of Matisse. This French artist was famous for 2D and 3D art and used many different styles throughout his life, which gave them lots of opportunity to experiment!
They used Matisse’s ‘drawing with scissors’ technique to recreate his picture of goldfish, writing instructions of how to complete the piece. They used ‘pointinism’ to create paint and pen pictures made entirely of dots. They experimented with colour using ‘cut out’, in the style of ‘the snail’ and recreated their work using ICT. The effect was very interesting. And they created weird and wonderful flowers in paint and crayon. Internet research was used to complete a timeline of the artist’s life.
Year 4 had a very busy week!
Miss Browne’s Class – Year 3
The Bradford artist, David Hockney was the inspiration for Miss Browne’s class. This artist also used many styles in his work which gave Year 3 lots to explore.
They created Hockney style landscapes in paint, watercolour and watercolour pencils. Then they recreated ‘The Bigger Splash’, one of Hockney’s most famous pieces.
Hockney used photographs in many pieces and so did Year 3. They elongated magazine pictures, infilling them with bright colours and bold patterns. They used the digital camera to take photographs and make them into jigsaw pictures. Groups worked collaboratively too. Pictures of the same subject were taken from different angles and cut up to create new and exciting images. And finally the children created abstract art in different media.
Their art work was supported by research into the history of the camera and an imaginary journey to Salt Air using Google Earth.
Miss Pearson’s Class – Year 2
Year 2 looked at the work of American born artist Mary Cassatt. This artist painted people, focusing on families and especially mothers and children in everyday life.
The children had a very difficult task in producing portraits, having to concentrate on colour, shapes and spatial awareness.
They reproduced Cassatt’s portraits in pencil and then created their own work in paint, pencil and pastels with great effect. The class really enjoyed creating portraits using the computer too.
Mrs Norval’s Class – Year 1
Year 1 focused on the work of Van Gogh. They looked carefully at the tiny brush stokes which he used to create his paintings and recreated some of his most famous pieces.
They used paint and crepe paper to make some striking sunflowers, and paint and tissue paper to create effective blossom trees. In ICT they used a swirl effect to recreate some of his pictures, which were wonderful. The class enjoyed Art Week so much they will be carrying on looking at Van Gogh. They are currently completing ‘The Starry Night’ using thick paint to give texture and will be using press print to create some more sunflowers.
Mrs Bright’s and Mrs Braund’s Classes – F2
F2 enjoyed looking at the work of Russian artist, Kandinsky. His bright abstract pictures really captured the attention of the children.
They recreated his concentric circles in coloured pencil and by cutting and sticking brightly coloured paper. They made clay tiles and abstract computer prints. The children worked in black and white to create patterns in pen and very effective sticky paper shapes and lines.
Huge pieces of art were created when the children worked together. They created some Kandinsky style doodles, a huge picture using paint and various objects to print (created outside) and a magnificent painting on fabric. The children really enjoyed splodging on bright colours and dribbling on black.
Mrs Axelby’s Class – F1
F1 looked at the American artist Jackson Pollock, who was famous for his swirling lines and squiggles. The Nursery children had lots of fun getting really messy with paint. They created huge brightly coloured splat paintings and magnificent sand and paint art together.
They used a marble covered in paint to roll around paper in a tray and made their own personal splatter plates. Their work was completed with some abstract ICT art.
Thank You!
A big thank you to all of the parents and carers who came into school during the week to help out. We really appreciate your help and hope you enjoyed it.
“Come and Create” Evening
On Wednesday we held our first “Come and Create” event for families. We had 3 classrooms full of children and their families, as well as the ICT corridor and the Library! They were able to get ‘arty’ together making cards, collages, ‘Goldsworthy style’ patterns and models, sewing frogs and butterflies or painting and drawing.
It was lovely to see so many families enjoying being creative together. It was a fantastic evening. Thank you to all who got involved! We hope you enjoyed it.
A big thank you too to the staff who helped make it happen, and some wonderful people who helped to tidy up!
We all had a fantastic week and the work produced was wonderful.
.gif)
