Headmaster's Welcome
Headmaster's News, Friday 26th May, 2023
May 26, 2023
26th May 2023
Dear Parents
6P Assembly
Fresh from their SATs success, Year 6 presented a special school assembly last week.
The children talked about the many opportunities they have had during their time at Highfield and how they have been able to develop their talents. It was lovely to hear how all the pupils have progressed in all sorts of different ways during their school journey with us. Well done to Mrs Prince and 6P!
Pre-School Creepy Crawly Roadshow
We have had a very exciting week in Pre-School as we enjoyed a special visit from the Creepy Crawly Roadshow North West! It was fascinating examining all the different types of insects that Tracy had brought in for us to look at and we enjoyed being able to feel all the different insects and talk about their features and habitats. Tracy also explained lots of interesting facts to us - for example, did you know that a spider has ears all over its body and can hear a pin drop on the floor? One of the highlights of the experience was getting to see a real-life tarantula but, before we could meet it, we had to use our best singing voices to wake it up!
Year 3 Science Trip
On Friday 3D visited the Lancashire Science Festival at UCLan. The day was packed with lectures and activities. We began with a lecture on ghost hunting and how we can use science to disprove and explain spooky phenomenon. We then attended a science fayre with lots of activities to participate in from all science disciplines. The children particularly enjoyed the forensic science display where they learnt how to take fingerprints and DNA. They also got to experience virtual reality technology and puzzle solving from the maths and computer students and enjoyed learning about space and the telescopes from the astronomy department. The pharmacology students used technology to show us the invisible germs on our hands. Our final lecture was titled Thrills, Theme parks and Maths. Dr Kevin Bowman showed us how engineers and mathematicians use maths to enable us to loop the loop safely and create rollercoaster and bobsleigh tracks. It was a great experience for the children to explore and be taught on a university campus.
Year 4 trip to Brockholes
Year 4 enjoyed a fun school trip to Brockholes Nature Reserve last week. In the morning, the class focused on fire-lighting and den-building which links to their history topic on the Stone Age. The children enjoyed talking about what they had already learnt and how all the parts of an animal would have been used in some way back then - for example, fur for clothes and blankets, and teeth for jewellery. After learning about fire-safety, the pupils then took turns at lighting their own little fires using cotton wool and were amazed how quickly it burnt! They then had a chance to make their own den and we had a range of fabulous designs - one with its own en-suite and one that included a kitchen with utensils!
After a lunch break with a beautiful view over the water, the pupils had an orienteering task. Despite it not being a race it became quite competitive and included some excellent examples of teamwork. The children even spotted a deer and its baby in one of the fields. There was also time for a little play and everyone enjoyed the swings and zip-lines! With great weather and an action-packed agenda, they were all beautifully tired-out on their return to school!
Year 5 visit Jodrell Bank
A very excited group of Year 5 children boarded a coach to take them to Jodrell Bank for a day of discovering all about the Earth, the Sun and the planets. The pupils had a fantastic time exploring the interactive galleries which were brilliant for demonstrating how gravity works, how the planets move in comparison to one another and how radio waves are used to take images deeper into space. They were also astounded by the sight of the Lovell telescope and enjoyed experimenting with the 'whispering dishes' and other outside experiments. The highlight of the day though was the visit to the Planetarium where the class blasted into space on a rocket and were guided through a tour of the Milky Way. Well done to all the children on the trip. All the guides complimented them on their behaviour and inquisitive natures. A truly fascinating and educational day was enjoyed by all!
Under 11s Cricket at Scarisbrick Hall
Congratulations to the large group of children who travelled to Scarisbrick Hall last week to play cricket. One team experienced their first hardball game of cricket and the other team experienced a very exciting softball game that went down to the last over. Thank you to Scarisbrick for hosting us.
ISA Athletics
Well done to the 34 pupils who represented Highfield Priory School at the ISA Athletics Championships on Tuesday at the Manchester Regional Arena. The children performed really well with the boys’ and girls’ under 11 relay teams and the girls’ under 12 relay team making the afternoon finals. Congratulations to Aibhlin and Grace who both qualified for Nationals in long jump and the 80m sprint. All the children did incredibly well with 27 schools from across the north taking part. Thank you to all the parents who came to support this event.
Infant Sports Day
Wednesday morning was Infant Sports Day. The children have been practicing since the start of term and were very excited about competing in front of their parents. The children’s level of effort and skill was very high as they offered each other support throughout the morning. They took part in a range of traditional events from the sack race through to throwing events. Parents were also given an opportunity to show their sporting prowess in the much anticipated parents’ race at the end! It was a great event and lovely to see the whole Infant and Reception community coming together. Thank you to Mrs Botton and Mrs Parsons for organising this day and to Mr Best for his support.
Junior Snacks
Please could all children bring to school either a piece of fruit or a simple healthy snack that can be eaten in ten minutes. Please choose from the healthy snack list below:
- Vegetable pieces
- Crackers
- Breadsticks
- Wholemeal bread roll
- Rice cakes
- Cheese e.g. babybel, cheese string
- Yoghurts (pouch style)
- Plain cereal bar or ones with fruit
Water bottles
All children should only use a Highfield water bottle. The school issues a new bottle in Reception and in Year 3. Water bottles are available to buy from the office for £3. Please name the water bottles with a permanent marker. We have had a number of accidents in class recently with water bottles of various designs which have not been bought from school.
Sunhats
School children should only use school sunhats. These hats can be purchased from F R Monkhouse.
Suncream
Children should have a named bottle of suncream at school.
Merit Awards 19.5.23
RB: Kevin 1W: Evie 2E: The Whole Class
3D: Aadam 4J: Adam 4M: Aisha 5H: Shreya 5M: Aamir 6P: The Whole Class
Merit Awards 26.5.23
RB: Eva 1W: Freya 2E: Veda
3D: Lana 4J: Aryana 4M: Yousef 5H: Johnny 5M: Grace 6P: Luca
Yours sincerely
J M Duke
Headmaster
