Every Child Matters, Every Moment Counts Auckland College ... · particularly enjoyed reading Spike...

Auckland College Newsletter

December 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,

I wanted to thank you all for

another wonderful half term.

The Winter Gala—Snowel la

performance was such a huge

success for all involved. I must

s i n ce re l y th ank ou r ve ry

hardworking pupils and dedicated

teachers, who put so much effort

into making it a wonderful show.

Each year it gets better and better!

The newly formed PTA committee

did a fantastic job of organising the

extremely enjoyable and successful

event and I thank them for all of

their efforts in organising our first

event of the year. I am sure you will

all agree that it was a brilliant night

and I look forward to our next

event!

The performance of Snowella was

filmed on the evening and this will

be available to purchase on DVD in

the new term.

As you are aware, we have recently

undergone our Ofsted Inspection

and the new report has been

forwarded on to all parents. We are

very proud of the outcomes and the

recognition from Ofsted that our

school is ’Good’ with an ‘Outstanding’

feature.

I would like to thank all parents who

took the time to share their

comments on the Ofsted parent

view section, all comments where

taken into account and helped the

Inspectors’ decision process.

In the next academic term we will

be introducing two new systems.

The first will be Letter-Join, a

whole school handwriting scheme

and the second is Learning Ladders.

Learning Ladders is an online

assessment and tracking tool, which

will give the school and parents of

children in Prep assessment and

tracking information all year round

and enable us to build a more

detailed picture of each child’s

progress.

I am sure you will agree these will

be of great benefit to the school

and I am excited to put these in

place.

I will also be introducing exciting

new writing ventures to boost the

writing levels from Key Stage 1-4.

The first of these will be a monthly

writing competition known as,

‘Amazing Authors’, for each Key

Stage. The monthly theme will be

advertised, entries will be collated,

winners will be decided, prizes will

be given and the writing pieces will

be displayed in school for all to see!

We will also hold a dedicated

weekly writing opportunity for all

pupils, known as ‘Pen to Paper’. They

will be given time to prepare and

plan their piece of writing as part of

their homework each Friday and

then each Monday morning, they will

have 40 minutes to complete their

piece of writing to the best of their

ability. Marking and feedback will

provide pupils with guidance for how

to improve their writing for the

next occasion.

This term we say goodbye to two

members of staff who have been a

fantastic addition to Auckland

during their time here. PE teacher,

Mr Webb and Reception Yellow

Teacher, Mrs Richards are both

relocating and we would like to wish

them well for the future.

We welcome new PE teacher Mr

Wellington and Reception Teacher

Miss Scholfield in their place.

Another two new additions to the

Pre-Prep 1 team is our teacher Mrs

Collins and Teaching Assistant Miss

Megan. I hope you all will join me in

welcoming them to the Auckland

College team.

I would like to wish all our parents

and pupils a very happy Christmas

and a joyous New Year and wish you

all a relaxing winter break. I look

forward to seeing you in the new

year.

Best wishes for 2017, Miss Boyd.

A Message from Miss Boyd, Head Teacher

Contents:

Welcome

Important infor-

mation

Achievements

School performances

Pre-Prep and Prep

Class information

Secondary News

Photographs this

term

Every Child Matters, Every Moment Counts

INSET Training day for teachers on Wednesday

4th January, therefore school term begins 5th

January 2017.

Holiday club will be closed on Friday 23rd

December and re-opens on 4th January 2017.

PTA meetings to commence again on 16th January

2017 at 6.30pm in the school hall.

Please can you make sure you check all items of

uniform at home and return any items that do not

belong to your child.

Please also take time during the break to

carefully label all of your child’s items of

clothing.

Our next Parent Focus Group meeting will be held

at 9am on 25th January 2017—parents will be

invited to join this group this term via e-mail.

Impo

rtant

Mess

age

s


December 2016


December 2016

Achievements

What has Pre-Prep 2 been up to? - Miss Smith This half term Pre-Prep 2 has been very busy learning about the Post Office, Arctic animals, Christmas celebrations and, of course, practising for their Christmas performance, which I hope everyone enjoyed.

The children have written their letters to Santa and we went on a short walk to post them in the post box. They were delighted to receive a quick response from Santa, who praised the children for all their hard work so far this year. We have had lots of fun learning Christmas songs, making decorations and talking about our own family traditions at Christmas.

The children have been learning about Arctic animals and had great fun predicting and experimenting with different techniques to free the animals from the blocks of ice. They had lots of wonderful ideas about how to make the ice melt and everybody managed to free their animal eventually!

In Literacy, the children have been working on their pencil control and formation of letters. They have also been looking at the different characters in a story and the setting, which produced some fantastic ideas and questions about what qualifies as a character.

In Maths, the children have been looking at the difference between solid and flat shapes and have continued to develop their number recognition and counting skills.

We have also introduced a voting system for some minor class decisions and the children have really enjoyed taking part in this. They often ask if they can vote when they are given a choice and they understand that this is a fair system, even if they are in the minority.

We look forward to keeping busy and making fantastic progress next term and wish everyone a wonderful Christmas holiday.

What has Pre-Prep 1 been up to? This term in Pre Prep 1 we have been very busy. We have been learning all about winter and how different countries celebrate Christmas. We have also been turning our classroom into a gingerbread house for ‘Gingie’ and ‘Buddy’, our special elves, to visit us and leave treats. In Literacy, we have been learning the letters I, N, M, D, G and O. The children have been finding lots of words beginning with these letters

and have been learning to draw them with their ‘magic’ fingers. In Numeracy, the children have been continuing to count and order objects up to number 7. We can also draw numbers 4 5 6 and 7 in the correct order with our teachers. The children had so much fun rehearsing and performing our winter performance. They were very impressive on the stage and we are all very proud. We hope all of our parents enjoyed the performance as

much as we did. Next term we are looking forward to continuing our learning journey with our new teacher Mrs Collins, Miss Mary and our new teaching assistant, Miss Megan.

Pre Prep 1 would like to wish all our parents a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Secondary Merits Secondary Attendance Prep Merits Prep Attendance

Gold

George Ke

Gold

Ikeoluwapo Olatunji

Gold

Jessica Ke

Gold

Holly Haime

Silver

Olivia Lally

Silver

Lewis Klieve

Silver

Lucas Beck

Silver

Eric Bao

Bronze

Hazem Soliman

Bronze

Brenden Manyathela

Bronze

Kanzy Soliman

Bronze

Jaya Jones

This half term Reception have been learning about how we celebrate Festivals. They have learnt how people celebrate Diwali and made their own lanterns and why we celebrate Christmas. We enjoyed 'acting out' the Nativity Story in the roleplay area too! We are grateful that we could also take the

children along to visit a Mosque in Liverpool. It was a brilliant trip and we got learn all about how and where Muslim's pray. We have been very busy rehearsing for the Winter Performance, 'Snowman at Sunset,' which was a great success with parents and children this December.

On the last day of term Reception were very excited, as we had a very special visitor all the way from the North Pole! Santa came and gave out gifts to all our pupils! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Reception.

What has Reception been up to? - Miss Richards and Miss Quinn

School Performances

What has Year 3 been up to? - Miss Holland

What has year 1 been up to? - Miss Kelly & Miss Crowley

What has Year 2 been up to? - Mrs Mukankusi

Year 1 have thoroughly enjoyed the Autumn term and have produced some wonderful work across the curriculum.

In Numeracy, this term the children have covered many new topics. The children have explored solving word problems using addition and subtraction. They have begun to divide by two and identify even and odd numbers. They have also been using a 100 square and a variety of number lines to help them when working with larger numbers.

In Literacy, the children have explored various poems on the theme of ‘animals’. Pupils particularly enjoyed reading Spike Milligan and Michael Rosen’s tongue twister poems. Year 1 planned and wrote their own poems based on the theme of animals.

This term, Year 1 pupils took part in Auckland’s winter performance of ‘Snowella’. Year 1 thoroughly enjoyed this experience and we are very proud of all pupils who took part. We would like to take

this opportunity to thank all parents for their time and support in helping us make the performance a success!

We look forward to the challenges of next term and are sure all pupils will continue to make excellent progress across the

curriculum.

This term, in Literacy, Year 2 children have discussed the sequence of events in books and how items of information are related. They have also worked on becoming increasingly familiar with and retelling a wider range of stories. This gave them confidence to recognise that non-fiction books can be structured in different ways. They have discussed and clarified the meaning of root words and have

applied their growing knowledge of root words, prefixes and suffixes to their writing.

In Numeracy, we have had a really busy half term. We have covered lots of topics. The children have learned how to tell and write the time on digital and analogue clocks for half past, quarter past and quarter to the hour. They have begun to tell and write the time on the analogue clocks to the nearest 5 minutes. They

worked on understanding ½, ¼ and 1/3 as fractions of quantities in a practical context and also to solve problems involving these. The children have learned how to double and halve numbers up to 20 and multiples of 5 to 50.

We look forward to another busy term in the new year. We hope you have a lovely Christmas and New Year.

This half term, year 3, has been

working extremely hard in school.

They have learned column

multi-plication and working out

multiples.

Year 3 have also produced some

really good character descriptions

based on Miss Truchball.

They have been working so hard dur-

ing rehearsals and I think we all agree

the show was a delight to watch, and

I am so proud of each and every one

on them.

We have been working closely with

Wirral Metropolitan College, who

came in on Tuesday to run an activity

morning with the children, which

they all thoroughly enjoyed. They

have participated in different craft

activities such as, reindeer making,

card making and cake decorating.


December 2016

This half term has been busy, but

enjoyable!

In Literacy, we have been looking

at narrative poems, in particular,

‘The Highwayman’ by Alfred

Noyes. Pupils enjoyed

performing this poem in groups,

as well as analysing the key

themes and language used.

In Numeracy, we have covered a

range of topics, including telling

the time using both analogue and

digital clocks, as well as

presenting data in a number of

formats, including line graphs,

bar charts and pictograms.

In topic, we were looking at our

local area, attempting to draw

and label our own maps, as well

as questioning which lifestyle is

better: urban living or a rural

one?

In PSHE, the focus has been

British Values, where pupils had

to try to construct their own

definitions of the values of

liberty, law, democracy and

respect and think about how

these relate to our everyday life.

I am very proud of how members

of Year 4 performed in the

pantomime Snowella. They did a

fantastic job and their efforts all

term really paid off.

We would like to wish you a very

Merry Christmas and a Happy

New Year.

Year 9/10 this term have learned

about extremes in climate such

as: tropical storms; extreme rain;

La Nina; El Nino and extreme

winds. We have now moved onto

global warming which will

include learning about the

evidence for it and the students

will each gave a presentation

outlining the impacts of Global

Year 7/8 Geography pupils have

been learning about rivers

including: the different sections

of the river; river basins; how

v-shaped valleys form and how

waterfalls form. Year 7/8 are

now moving on to the impacts of

flooding; what contributes to it

and how to help prevent floods.

Warming. It is quite the heated

topic! Well done year 9/10 for

the work so far!

Geography - Mr Kelly


What has Year 4 been up to? - Mr Matt

In Numeracy, we have mostly been

building our skills in mental

arithmetic and different methods of

multiplication. We are trying hard to

increase the speed of our times –

tables recall.

We have really enjoyed our PE this

term. We have been mastering our

passing skills in Netball and thinking

particularly about moving into spaces

to receive the ball from our team

mates. We have also introduced

gymnastics and been developing our

basic skills and building sequences

with a partner using different

balances and ways of travelling into

and out of our balances.

I look forward to an exciting term

in the new year.

This half term Year 5/6 has been

very busy. The school performance

was a particular success, with many

of our class members taking part.

We really enjoyed Miss Becky’s role

as the Turkey!

In literacy, we have been working on

Slam Poetry and the pupils have

enjoyed performing these in class.

We have also been practicing using

adjectives and verbs to make our

writing more exciting.

What has Year 5 and 6 been up to? - Miss Kinvig

This term Year 11 students have

learned about the structure of the

atom; what the sub-atomic

particles are and how the particles

are arranged. It has been exciting

stuff! Year 11 also took a trip

earlier in the term to Sefton Park

to try their hand at some quadrat

sampling. Overall, it has been a

very productive term indeed!

Year 9/10 students have been

looking at forces involved in object

interactions, ranging from the

forces a parachutist will encounter

to the forces involved in keeping a

book still on a table.

Year 9 and 10 have also been

learning how to improve their exam

technique in preparation for those

who sit their exams next year.

Year 7 and 8 students have also

learned about the structure of the

atom this term, as well as what

particles are contained within the

atom and how it is arranged. They

have now moved on to elements,

compounds and mixtures, with the

new topic of separating mixtures

following on next term. Keep up the

good work!

spoken language.

I mentioned last half-term that

one of the aims of the English

Department is to raise reading and

writing levels throughout the

Upper school. I would like to say

well done to our pupils who are

rapidly moving through the reading

books and experiencing a range of

genre. Also, if anyone has any

books at home that they no longer

want and are suitable for pupils

aged 11-16, then please send them

in and we can increase our library.

There will be many changes in our

approach to writing in the new

year, with a big emphasis on

spelling, punctuation, grammar and

presentation. I look forward to

your continued support for our

pupils to make the necessary

improvements in their

work.

During the Autumn Term pupils

have developed a variety of skills.

Year 7/8 pupils have studied

autobiographical writing and learnt

how to use PEE chains (Point,

Explain, Evidence) to improve their

writing.

Year 9/10 pupils have been

comparing how writers convey

their ideas through language.

Year 11 pupils have been analysing

PE – Mr Webb

Science - Mr Kelly

English - Mr Davies

movements in a different activity

where they have learnt new skills.

The upper school football team were

unfortunate to lose 1-0 to Tower

College earlier this month. Although

we found scoring opportunities hard to

come by, the boys showed great

d i sc ip l i ne and determinat i on

throughout and defensively it was the

most organised the team had been.

After a relatively even first half,

which ended 0-0, Tower College had

the better of the second half, but

with 5 minutes to go it looked like

This half term the prep school classes

have been taught gymnastics, taking

advantage of the facility at IM Marsh.

There, pupils have experienced using a

range of different apparatus to

improve their techniques, including

springboards and balance beams. Year

3 and 4, in particular, have produced

some excellent floor routines, linking

t h e i r m o v e m e n t s t o g e t h e r

imaginatively.

The upper school pupils have been

taught Boxfit; creating sequences of

Auckland would hold out for a draw.

However, a shot from distance, which

was off target, unfortunately struck

our defender’s outstretched leg and

deflected in past Goalkeeper, Jude

Edwards, who had been outstanding all

game. It ended with a result which was

tough to swallow, but the team should

be proud of their efforts.

It has been a pleasure to teach PE to

all of the children here and I hope

they share the same happy memories I

will have during this time.

Mr Webb


December 2016


December 2016

Our Gallery of Stars

Mehak and Amanda showing of their bags that they made in Textiles during

Enhanced Curriculum

Every Child Matters, Every Moment Counts Auckland College ... · particularly enjoyed reading Spike...

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