Headmaster's Welcome
Headmaster's News, Friday 4th October, 2019
Oct 4, 2019
Friday 4th October, 2019
School News
5M Harvest Assembly
Thank you 5M for your excellent Harvest Assembly this morning and Miss Macklam for arranging it. We learnt about the history of the harvest and the harvest festival and how important it is to the country. You also explained how it is celebrated in other countries. I loved listening to your harvest songs as well as the Infant harvest song. Thank you also to all the families who contributed gifts and donated money to Water Aid.
4S Assembly
4S delighted us with a super Assembly last Friday which was all about their first four weeks of term. They have been so busy! They told us all about how they have been working hard to improve their descriptions of setting and character in their creative writing. They even immersed themselves in nature in Highfield Haven to improve their forest descriptions. In History, they have been exploring Prehistory and looking at the techniques archaeologists use to discover more about this time. In PSHEE, they discussed behaviour and expectation and drew up a Class Charter and in Maths they have been extending their numerical skill and becoming proficient with five digit numbers. They also told us about the weeks ahead. Year 4 sounds like a very interesting place to be. Well done, 4S!
Out and About with Year 3 in HPSED
Year 3 are just starting their HPSED lessons this year and their focus this term is on presenting themselves. So far, they have looked at presenting themselves through the way they dress, the way they speak, the way they stand and their table manners. This week, they took this a step further and presented themselves on the stage of ‘Highfield’s Got Talent!’ They were only going to have to talk about their talent so Mrs Duke said they could make up whatever person and whatever talent they wanted! They walked onto the stage with confidence: good posture, straight back, head held high and immediate eye contact with their judges. All the children spoke confidently and eloquently, with many of the children already knowing their answers by heart. Zaidan said his name was M.C. Zai, and he was a rapper from Jamaica. He started rapping when he was seven in front of his mirror in the bathroom with his toothbrush as a microphone. He spoken confidently and even with a bit of a swagger! Pranav said he was twenty and a magician from India and he could do his tricks blindfolded. He had real presence and certainly convinced me that he could do anything! Heba Noor bounced onto the stage with confidence and her talent was telling jokes. She said she had been practising her jokes since she was 5. She then delivered her joke with a big smile and a laugh at the end. ‘What do you call a sheep with no legs and no head? A fluffy cloud!’ I was really impressed with the confidence of the whole class. I will be watching their progress with interest throughout the year.
Year 5 visit Speke Hall
Since our history topic is all about the Tudor era, on Thursday 26 September 5H and 5M visited an old Tudor mansion called Speke Hall. At eight thirty sharp, we all boarded the bus as excited as children in a candy shop. The huge mansion was in Liverpool and took nearly a full hour to get there; except it was worth the exceptionally long wait. By Reya, 5H
When we got off the coach our guide took us to the courtyard where they kept pigeons for food. They also took us to the front entrance where there was a moat. After that we went upstairs to a bedroom where the priest could hide and see if priest hunters were coming. By Arianna, 5M
When we first arrived at Speke Hall, I was amazed by how gigantic the house was. The house, on the outside, had a black and white pattern which was hypnotising. The white walls were made of daub, this is wet soil, clay and animal dung and straw. The black stripes were paint. There was also a lot of greenery around the house and two trees named Adam and Eve which are 500 years old. By Umar, 5M
We learnt that Tudors did not smell nice! To solve this they would have made a pomander. It is a small satsuma or tangerine and, with the help of cocktail sticks, they would have poked some cloves in to it. This would smell nice. To finish the day Megan and Hasan wore some Tudor clothes – although Hasan’s were better as boys were much more important. By Isa, 5H
Nursery News
Following the Nursery practitioners’ woodwork training course, this week the Nursery children enjoyed their first woodwork session with Miss Travis. They have made some beautiful creations with nails and colourful beads to take home (see images on our Nursery Facebook page).
We have had a week focusing on our counting skills and mathematical language through play. We have been counting conkers and measuring quantity in different sized tubes; we have also measured and weighed the conkers and pinecones.
The Baby and Toddler Nursery enjoyed a visit to the Sensory Room at Preston East Children's Centre today.
We are enjoying the season of Autumn and the learning opportunities it provides.
News From The Sports Field
Netball Report by Nandini
On Wednesday, the Year 5 and 6 Netball teams all drove to Stonyhurst to play in the Netball Festival. We all started off really well with good marking and attacking and soon we started scoring some goals. We had amazing passing from Lucie and Sienna and great defending from Tia and Khadija. We won 2 and lost 1. Year 5 played extremely well and Diya and Sasha scored lots of goals. We all played really well and we all had a great time.
St. Mary’s Hall Football
All the boys in Year 5 and 6 took part in a mini football tournament against St. Mary’s Hall, Stonyhurst on Wednesday on our all-weather pitch. It was great to see all the boys in action playing as a team and giving 100%. I was impressed by the boys’ competitive attitude and I could see aspects of play they had taken from their training. I think honours were about even between Highfield and St. Mary’s Hall from the games played. We now need to work on our organisation and man-marking in defence in preparation for our next game.
Congratulations Rohan!
Well done to Rohan from 5M who has won the following Lancashire Tennis titles: Under 9 Singles, Under 10 Singles and Under 10 Doubles 2019.
Merits and Awards
Week ending 27.9.19
RB: Mohamad 1D: Nathan 1W: Amelie 2E: Wei Ann 2J: Joshua
3M: Zaidan 4D: Joseph 4S: The Whole Class 5H: Nadia 5M: Hasan 6P: Hashbala
Monitor of the week: Inas
Week ending 4.10.19
RB: Sienna 1D: William 1W: Alfie 2E: Haniyah 2J: Omer
3M: Hanna 4D: Haya 4S: Hollie 5H: Anshi 5M: The Whole Class 6P: Brooke
Monitors of the Week: Inas and Hiba
High 5 Award: Stephen
Reminders
Winter Clothes
The cold weather has returned to Highfield this week. Please could children always have their school coat in school. All school hats and scarves can be purchased from Monkhouse. Please do not send your children into school in clothes that are not school uniform. Gloves should be plain maroon or navy and these can also be bought from Monkhouse.
Open Morning
We will be opening the school next Thursday from 9am-12noon to visitors and prospective parents. I am looking forward to celebrating the school and the children’s successes and achievements on our Open Morning. Please pass the details on to anyone who might be interested and please share our adverts from our Facebook pages to any of your contacts. The majority of our new parents come to Highfield on the recommendation from our current and past parents. Thank you for your support.
Preston Traffic
The traffic congestion caused by the roadworks in the surrounding area is going to cause problems for the foreseeable future. I understand how frustrating Preston traffic is and how hard it is to predict your journey time. Please take advantage of an early drop-off if this helps you to beat the worst of the traffic. We have a Breakfast Club running from 7:15am and children can be dropped off, from 8am, without charge. Please contact the school office if you would like your child to join the Breakfast Club.
Aldi Kit for Schools
We are collecting ‘kit for schools’ stickers from Aldi. We need 300 stickers to be in with a chance of winning £20,000 to spend on sports equipment. If you shop at Aldi, please will you collect the stickers and bring them to the Office. Thank you! Mrs Botton
Data Protection
Attached to the newsletter is a copy of the privacy notice we are required to send out each year under the General Data Protection Act Regulation.
Dates for the Diary
Tuesday 8 October - Family and Individual Photographs - Please ensure children come to school smartly dressed and in their correct uniform.
Thursday 10 October - Open Morning 9am -12noon
Fact of the Fortnight
As well as celebrating the Harvest, Britain also celebrates the bounty of the sea. Whitstable, in Kent, holds a ceremony to bless the sea during the town’s annual July Oyster Festival.
