Moyles Court School Week 5 Summer Term 2020 "There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm." Willa Cather Message from the Headmaster And so we reach the end of the most extraordinary half term anyone will have ever experienced. It has been five weeks since our Easter break, and what an incredible five weeks it has been. Nobody knew then, or really knows now, how long this will last for, but what is true, is that we have learnt a great deal during this time. Yes, we have continued to ‘learn’ in the academic sense – the teachers have been wonderful in their remote teaching and support, but we have also learnt so much more about ourselves. For all of us, there have been some incredibly difficult times, times when it felt like you simply couldn’t cope and didn’t know what to do next, but with the kindness and support of others and a mindset of trying to take small manageable steps, we have all come to find a greater resilience and strength that we probably never realised we possessed. This week’s quote of the week illustrates just that. Sometimes it takes a storm for us to learn something new, something different, and our children, in particular, have found themselves in the midst of an almighty squall. Yet, as this bulletin once again illustrates, they have been incredible in their response and their attitude in battling through this storm. To every single one of them – a huge well done and enjoy a very well deserved half term break. After half term, we welcome back our Pre-School, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 pupils to the Moyles Court site. Our need to adhere to strict government guidelines and procedures has created a very different ‘normal’ for now, but I am sure the Moyles Court ‘feel’ will still be there. After all, buildings and desks are one thing, but it is the people and the wonderful relationships that really make any place special. Helping our children readjust to these new conditions is our absolute priority on their return. Much has been written in the media about academic progress and the fear that children have somehow ‘fallen behind’. As we know at Moyles, solid academic progress will only be achieved when a child is happy, confident and secure and they will need time and support on their return for that to be the case once again. It is so important that we get this right first and not panic about work that ‘might’ have been missed. That will come. I am afraid that at this point in time I have no idea when we might see the rest of our pupils returning to school. We may see some before the end of term, it may be more likely that we see them in September. Who knows? What we do know, is that we will continue to prioritise the well-being of each and every child and together, not only will we navigate our way through this storm, but we will be better and stronger and wiser for it. I wish you all a very safe and restful half term break. A chance, I hope, to move away from the screen and enjoy some fabulous family fun and beautiful sunshine. I look forward to seeing you all again soon, Richard Milner-Smith
Transcript
Moyles Court School
Week 5 Summer Term 2020
"There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm."
Willa Cather
Message from the Headmaster
And so we reach the end of the most extraordinary half term anyone will have ever
experienced. It has been five weeks since our Easter break, and what an incredible five
weeks it has been. Nobody knew then, or really knows now, how long this will last for, but
what is true, is that we have learnt a great deal during this time. Yes, we have continued to
‘learn’ in the academic sense – the teachers have been wonderful in their remote teaching
and support, but we have also learnt so much more about ourselves. For all of us, there
have been some incredibly difficult times, times when it felt like you simply couldn’t cope and
didn’t know what to do next, but with the kindness and support of others and a mindset of
trying to take small manageable steps, we have all come to find a greater resilience and
strength that we probably never realised we possessed. This week’s quote of the week
illustrates just that. Sometimes it takes a storm for us to learn something new, something
different, and our children, in particular, have found themselves in the midst of an almighty
squall. Yet, as this bulletin once again illustrates, they have been incredible in their response
and their attitude in battling through this storm. To every single one of them – a huge well
done and enjoy a very well deserved half term break.
After half term, we welcome back our Pre-School, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 pupils to
the Moyles Court site. Our need to adhere to strict government guidelines and procedures
has created a very different ‘normal’ for now, but I am sure the Moyles Court ‘feel’ will still be
there. After all, buildings and desks are one thing, but it is the people and the wonderful
relationships that really make any place special.
Helping our children readjust to these new conditions is our absolute priority on their return.
Much has been written in the media about academic progress and the fear that children
have somehow ‘fallen behind’. As we know at Moyles, solid academic progress will only be
achieved when a child is happy, confident and secure and they will need time and support
on their return for that to be the case once again. It is so important that we get this right first
and not panic about work that ‘might’ have been missed. That will come.
I am afraid that at this point in time I have no idea when we might see the rest of our pupils
returning to school. We may see some before the end of term, it may be more likely that we
see them in September. Who knows? What we do know, is that we will continue to prioritise
the well-being of each and every child and together, not only will we navigate our way
through this storm, but we will be better and stronger and wiser for it.
I wish you all a very safe and restful half term break. A chance, I hope, to move away from
the screen and enjoy some fabulous family fun and beautiful sunshine.
I look forward to seeing you all again soon,
Richard Milner-Smith
House Points
Week Ending: 22.05.20
House Strikes Merits Total House
Points
Dockens 21 2597 2576
Latchmore 30 2975 2945
Linford 30 2142 2112
Latchmore are storming ahead with 2945 house points. Well done Latchmore!
The Moyles Court School ‘Word of the Week’
This week’s ‘Word of the Week’ is the noun: ‘Reconstruction’
Meaning ‘The action or process of reconstructing or being reconstructed’. For example “the economic reconstruction of Russia”.
We would be very grateful if you could use the word ‘reconstruction’ as much as possible in your conversations at home over the coming week to try and familiarise your children with the meaning and spelling of our ‘Word of the Week’.
First News
Your online edition of First News for 22nd – 28th May can be found by using the link below:
Well done to all of our Junior School pupils for their fantastic work over this half of term! I have been incredibly proud with how they have adapted to these challenging times, and I have also been thoroughly delighted to see and hear about their brilliant efforts. I hope that you all have the opportunity to have some rest over the half term break and I eagerly look forward to seeing you all again really soon. As many of you will know, this past week was "Mental Health Awareness Week". It is important that we look after our minds just as much as we look after our own bodies. It was a joy to spend time with my Year 6 class this week and look at all of the things that help us to feel calmer, especially when we encounter difficult or more stressful situations. By beginning to feel a lot calmer, it helps our minds to untangle and we are then able to focus better, think more clearly and, importantly, feel a lot better in ourselves. Remember, your teachers and parents are always there to help you. I would like us to think over the half term break of all of the things that help us to feel calm, and let's think about doing those things. Well done to all of you and a very happy half term!
Mr. Babur
Junior School Assembly
Mr. Babur has recorded a Junior School Assembly for those pupils to watch. Please use the link below to take you to the page:
Stars of the Week Year 1 - Jacob Mr. Legg has been so impressed with your effort and determination! He has really shown perseverance with his writing this week. He then produced the most amazing story about Handa’s animals, which we have been studying and reading this week in our literacy. Jacob used amazing adjectives, beautiful handwriting and produced some really, really lovely sentences. Well done! Year 2 - Jamie Mrs. Cheal is thrilled with Jamie this week! The class were asked to write a story about a pet that had become wild at night. Jamie really impressed me, as not only did he write a great story, but he turned it into an illustrated mini storybook and videoed himself reading it as a storyteller to send to Mrs. Cheal! Really impressive work and 100% effort - well done Jamie! Year 3 - All of Year 3! Wow! This was too close to call. Year 3 are all stars this week, which is very fitting for the last week of this half of term. They are all working very hard and doing so well that Mrs. Garvey really couldn't choose just one of them. Well done to you all for being brilliant and keep up the amazing work, Year 3! Year 4 - Harry Mr. Hutchings is thrilled with Harry's work over this week. Tons of hard work and super effort, particularly in completing his English tasks. Mr. Hutchings is also delighted with your perseverance this week with your handwriting and presentation. Keep up the very good work, Harry! Year 5 - Rory and Sienna Mrs. Walbrin has many wonderful things to say about Rory and Sienna this week. They have consistently completed their work to a good standard, are always positive and friendly on Teams and have been excellent friends to others in the class. Wow! What a wonderful week and well done to you both for being excellent Year 5 pupils! Year 6 - Neo and Brooke Year 6 have been sublime over this half of term, but I have been super impressed by the noticeable improvement of both Neo and Brooke. They have both worked their absolute socks off in recent weeks and have been reaping the rewards! I have been impressed with Brooke's attitude in her English lessons, as well as Neo's enthusiasm when completing his Maths tasks. In truth, both pupils have been stunning and have simply gone from strength to strength this term. Well done, you completely deserve this!
Pre-School News
Last week we were on top of the world, this week we dived down into the deep blue ocean to investigate what kind of creatures we would find under the sea. On this under water adventure, the children created their own snapshots of the ocean using a variety of materials as well as their brilliant imagination. We had fun writing and playing with paintbrushes and water to develop our gross motor skills and even encountered famous fish, such as Flounder and Nemo! The children had a really good go at drawing their own fish while exploring 2D shapes at the same time. Once again, we are incredibly proud of our Pre-school children who have been demonstrating great enthusiasm for learning, as well as focus and stamina. Take a look!
Reception Class 2020
Reception class have had a busy term learning about Habitats as part of their Home Learning Projects and have been writing very impressive stories!
Year One News This week in Year One we have been looking at ‘Handas Hen’, looking at adjectives to describe a selection of animals. We have learnt how to use a range of connectives like ‘and’, ‘because’ and ‘then’ to extend and join sentences. We then planned and wrote our own version of the story using some of our favourite animals and some super adjectives to describe them. I think you’ll agree we have some young Julia Donaldson writers in our midst. Check out Jacob’s and Oliva’s super stories. Well done Year One!
Mr. Legg
Year Two News
Year 2 have continued to work hard all the way up to half term, which I am incredibly proud of! Last week in Maths, we were looking at 'Weight' and estimating household items that may be of a certain weight - as you can see Robin found some great items to weigh and managed to get his amounts spot on! The whole class have been practising their joined, cursive writing and are all becoming most confident in this - here is some beautiful handwriting from Chloe.
In Literacy the class were asked to create a mini storybook and write a story about a pet that becomes wild at night - Jamie really impressed me with his final version and even performed it via video as a storyteller - fantastic effort Jamie! As we bring our Science Topic of 'Plants' to a close this half term, many have demonstrated that they will continue with their excellent efforts even beyond the lessons - Robin just can't stop growing things which is just lovely! Well done Year 2 for all your efforts these past few weeks - you've definitely all earned yourselves a break!
Mrs. Cheal
Years 3 & 4 Explore The Planets
It has been wonderful to see our younger Key Stage 2 pupils really engaging with the world of classical music this half term. Each week they have explored a different planet and listened to the music written for each by composer Gustav Holst. They have been busy recreating rhythms and melodies from the Orchestral Suite as well as using ideas as creative starting points to compose their own music for Planets such as Mars and Venus. A particular special mention to Eliza-Grace, Sebby, Noah and Isla, who all sent in videos of their wonderful music work – well done!
Mrs Corlett
Getting Arty!
The Junior Boarders and Day pupils felt inspired to make use of the Art room they have been working in. They used everything they could find from paint to clay, beads, wire, coloured powder and hot glue guns. The children had fun exploring different tools, techniques and materials to make their own fantastic creations.
Year Four News
Year Four have continued to work incredibly hard. The children have been reading a new story from the Rainforest, The Shaman’s Apprentice. With this they have made videos to pronounce the names of exotic plants, practised their descriptive writing, mapped the main character’s feelings and for their ‘Big Write’ written an Autobiography for Kamanya.
Our Maths studies also progress and the children have been exploring, symmetry, pictograms, mental division and multiplication, decimals, subtraction with a number line and some rather tricky word problems.
Year 4 have also been looking into how animals are adapted to their rainforest environments in their topic work and suggesting how their gardens could be improved as a habitat for local wildlife. Our other interesting investigation saw the children log their screen time for a week, produce a collaborative document in Purple Mash and then discuss the challenges of balancing screen time with time away from our devices, to exercise, read, play or be creative.
Another very good week’s work Year 4, Well Done. Enjoy your Half Term Break.
Mr. Hutchings
Year Five News
This week Year 5 have continued to work hard, despite the lure of the sunshine! In English we’ve studied famous speeches and protest songs to find persuasive language features. In Maths we’ve been learning about shape. Whilst in PSHE, Year 5 have put together time capsules. We hope they’ll be opened in the future and people can understand what the 2020 lockdown was really like! Lastly, everyone has been working really hard on their French and Spanish, Linguascope and Duolingo are a real hit! Thank you Year 5, you’ve earned your half term!
Mrs. Walbrin
D.T. Home Learning Challenges
We’ve had some great cardboard craft meeting the brief of being made waterproof and able
to support 250g. Here are Eleni’s and Eliza-Grace’s efforts. Eliza-Grace was going to further
experiment with sail and paddle power.
It has been another momentous week for marble runs! Here’s Rita’s great maze – using
movement to guide the marble. Daisy’s marble run was seriously tall!
Sebbie’s began as a marble run, but then became the ‘Super Hot Malteser run’ to test which
rolled quicker, the marble or the Malteser.
Unfortunately, the Malteser lost the race but surprisingly didn’t melt. Here’s where the
Malteser ended up! Great fun!
Isla’s amazing Amazonian marble run ended up taller than her! It accomplished an impressive
run of 45 seconds with a final break out into the garden.
Lucy’s supreme effort included: multiple funnels to get the marble in a spin, bottle runs, a leap at
the baked beans, a roll through a lighthouse to an awaiting carriage at the giraffe’s mouth, a zip
wire run, on into the monster’s mouth, out through his bottom and finally on to the chequered
flag. Amazing!
Maths Problem of the Week
The New Scientist Live festival begins at the Excel centre in London today with 120 talks over 4 days. On average, a talk is 40 minutes long. If you were able to watch every single talk on playback, how many days of 9am to 5pm would it take through the entire set of talks?
The answer is at the bottom of the page.
ESOL News
Jiashan Ning (Jason) came to our school less than two years ago and he had very little
English. He has slowly improved. First, his listening and speaking got better and then his
reading. The hardest thing for all foreign students is to write in English. This week Jason
passed a very important milestone which we would like to share with you.
The class were asked to write a formal letter to a headmaster outlining an improvement for a
school. In class, we looked at a model letter and then the class wrote their own letters for
homework. This is Jason’s letter which he worked very hard on for two evenings. He had
some help with the spelling of some words, but the content, ideas, organisation, vocabulary
and phraseology are entirely his own.
Jason is much too shy and modest to say he is proud of his achievement but is happy for Ms
Lloyd-Thomas to say that she is very proud of him. Well done Jason. We hope you enjoy
reading it and appreciate the difficult journey it has been for someone with no English to be
able to produce this in such a short time.
Dear Mr MM, I want to improve how different nationalities of students make friends and I want to make them one unit.
The simplest way to find out about the issue is to look when we are having lunch. We are like a world map. In fact, I don’t know some of the students’ names just like the first day I was in the school.
My idea is to have an international festival like the Chinese dragon boat festival so we will get to know each other and at least we will have something in common.
Here are some ideas for how we can do it. First, is my favourite one ‘international FOOD’ day or we can have an assembly. The student from each city can tell a story about their city and perhaps make some models of the Legendary Characters or have a short film about the story and even some jokes as well.
It would give me so much pleasure if you could accept my ideas. Thank you Yours sincerely
-Jason Ms Lloyd-Thomas
Top Marks for Teem!
Teem, in Year 11, achieved a grade C1 in his English exam. It is incredibly hard for students taking that exam to achieve that level. Many native speakers would struggle with some of the use of English questions. Well done Teem!
Maths Problem answer: 10 days. 120 talks x 2/3 hour per talk = 80 hours 9am to 5pm has 8 hours So 10 days to get through the talks
Year Seven News
Year 7s Spanish Pub Quiz Thanks to some really inventive questions designed by Year 6, we had a Spanish Quiz today to celebrate the end of our first half-term ‘In Lockdown’. The winners of the best questions in Year 6 are Bradley, Samuel, Esmie, Amelie, Eleni and Skye. The winning team in Year 7 was: Toby, Evan & Sophia of Team Barça
Year 7 Fun Year 7s and Mrs. Pragnell gate-crashed Mrs. Stephen’s registration with a surprise tik-tok rendition of “Blinded by the Lights” as a bit of fun this Thursday. Well done to Toby, Jack, Max, Eloise, Poppy, Sophia and Hattie for taking part.
MFL Praise
Sophia, in Y7, has done huge amounts of Spanish Vocab revision independently and this has really shown in her progress. Well done from Mrs. Pragnell. Toby has shown great enthusiasm in taking part in language challenges in the Spanish Team feed at the end of lessons. Hannah, in Year 8, has shown outstanding progress and work ethic in both languages. Lucy, Y9, has consistently completed work to a high standard. Year 11 Spanish pupils have all worked hard to continue gathering evidence for their GCSEs - I would like to say well done to all of them and good luck with the A-level transition work next Half-term.
Mrs. Pragnell
Textiles News
Olivia was inspired by this line drawing and developed the design further to create her own textile piece to represent the different aspects of peoples' personalities. She sourced the materials and spent four hours continuously sewing to achieve her end result, which I think is excellent.
Mariama has been researching ideas based on her Textiles' mock theme of 'Event' and has taken inspiration from festivals and traditional African costumes to create a modern and contemporary bracelet using materials from home.
Harvey has created this wonderful and nostalgic mood-board of artistic album covers as
inspiration for his 'Event' project in Textiles.
Creative Corner
In Art Year 7 were asked to do self portraits and views from their window. Here is some of their wonderful work.
Mariama, Year 10, has been producing some amazing abstract pieces.
Year 9 had to use newspaper as a background for their work. Here are works from Tia (Mask) and Lucy (Butterfly):
Victoria in Year 8 did a cubist Moyles Court
Our Year 10 Photographers have produced some beautiful pieces of work.
Boarders’ News
This weekend the Boarders learnt about knife safety and whittling. We all made Woodland Kazoos out of green hazel wands. Once done we had fun disturbing the peace in our corner of the school grounds.
As a bit of light relief from the knife work, which proved a little harder work than anticipated, we made Bannock Bread on sticks over the fire. A tasty end to the session.
On Thursday night we had a quick session with hot chocolate and sweet Bannock Bread, this time made in a pan on the fire. The results were a little more satisfying this time around!
The boarders even managed to fit in some time for fun in the Sports hall, as well as a new Swedish game, introduced by Mr. Padfield, called ‘Kubb’. It proved to be great fun.
