SATS Superstars

We are incredibly proud of our year six pupils who have had their SATS results this week. We have worked extremely hard in school and in after school club. Each pupil was set their own targets and they put their all into achieving it. The process of setting high expectations and working hard towards it - with all the ups and downs - will set them up perfectly for the next stage of their learning journey. It is an absolute pleasure to see them succeed and all of us at Blisland Primary are extremely proud of each one them.

Storytellers have made the most of the weather this week and enjoyed adventuring outside. Mud pie making, setting sail with pirates and driving to the shops were just a few of the adventures they have been on! We have also been practising for sports day, and everyone is getting rather good at the egg and spoon race ….

Sports Day 2024.

Despite the weather's best efforts yesterday, we all had an exhilarating afternoon in the sunshine. The unexpected weather challenges only brought us closer, making Sports Day 2024 a testament to our community's resilience. We couldn't be prouder of the children, who showed remarkable teamwork, encouraged each other, and took care of their younger peers. It was a joy to witness!

The Duck race provided the usual year six mayhem as 400 ducks were released down the river to be caught by a very brave Mr Smith, who proceeded to get slightly wet! Hopefully, our duck catchers have all dried off!

We had some delighted prize winners! Thanks to the PTFA and everyone who supported them by donating food, setting up, clearing away, serving ice cream, and running the Tombola. We appreciate everything you all do, and it’s an integral part of our little community school!

As a school community, you raised a fantastic £700 with the PTFA, which goes towards providing enrichment opportunities over the coming year … That is one of the highest amounts ever raised on sports day.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who sponsored us: Tesco, Asda Bodmin, Morrison’s, The Old Inn, The Westberry Hotel, Bodmin Nursery, Rowes, Dole Fruit, Lappa Valley, The National Trust, Bodmin Wenford Railway, Bowood Golf Club, Trelawney Garden Center, and all our parents. Your support has made a significant difference to our school community.

Summer term 2

Well the fine weather is finally here! What a packed Summer Term we have.

PGL

Nessa class have recently returned from a hugely successful trip to Barton Hall. The residential was packed with activities: high ropes, climbing, archery, rifle shooting, aeroball and raft building to name a few. We were blessed with perfect weather and the children had a trip to remember!

Awful Auntie

On Friday we are off to the theater to see Awful Auntie - what an end to the week. 

Aquarium

Kensa class visited Plymouth Aquarium last week. They came back full of facts and ideas about the underwater world.

Cricket

Next week we are visiting Summerset Cricket Ground to watch a county game.

Mountain bike club

This half term we have been running an mountain bike club at Lanhydrock. We began by shredding the green family trails before progressing to the technical blue trails. All the pupils have made fantastic progress. We have even attacked the skill track where there are drops and jumps. A huge thank you to the parent helpers who have transported the bikes and children as well as joining us on the trails.

War Hammer club

Mr Coates has been running a War Hammer club this term. Pupils have been making and painting models as well as learning how to play the game. Thank you Mr Coates for volunteering your time to give our pupils this unique opportunity.

Insect topic

In Kensa class pupils have been studying insects. As part of this topic pupils have: been on a bug hunt, created bug environments and made bug art. In the classroom there are live caterpillars who are moving through there life-cycle. Our young scientists are observing the changes daily.

Ancient Greece




SATS

Throughout the year, several trips and experiences are planned into the seven areas of learning to help the children broaden their knowledge by exposing them to things they may not encounter. These experiences enhance the children’s awareness by seeing real-life examples of what they have been learning; the children gain a deeper understanding of the topic, increasing their motivation to learn and retain the information. We focus heavily on our local environment, with trips and walks around the local community, which is why our visit to the Lost Gardens of Heligan was a fantastic experience for the Storytellers as they were able to see lots of the things they have been learning about on a far grander scale: beehives, sculptures, conservation, unique colours within the world of plants and lots of rare breed animals. This language-rich experience is essential and also fun which is always at the heart of everything we do. It is our role as a setting to help the children experience the awe and wonder of the world in which they live, and what a pleasure it is to be able to do that with these fantastic little people 

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At Storytellers, we have been outside enjoying the sunshine while learning about various habitats for the minibeasts that we have been looking at resonantly. The children each picked a mini beast and set to work, making it a house. This involved lots of fine motor skills as they assembled their little homes.

Through our dedicated efforts in caring for minibeasts and other animals, we are instilling in the children a deep sense of respect and care for all creatures. This hands-on exploration of the natural world they inhabit is a testament to our commitment to their holistic development.

It's good to develop children’s knowledge of the natural world they live in.

Over time, the children will develop the skills to talk about what plants and insects need to grow and how they change.

We have been learning to take care of small creatures, hold them without damaging them, and know that we must always place them back where they found them.

We feel it’s really important to encourage our children’s curiosity about the natural world, for they will be the next generation safeguarding the future of our planet. Minibeasts, in particular, play a vital role in nature, and our children love to learn about how bees pollinate our plants, ladybirds eat the pests on our crops, and worms help to keep our soil healthy.

Lifecycles form an important part of this project, and we have our own class caterpillars. This gives the children a chance to watch their very own hungry caterpillars grow and turn into beautiful butterflies, which we’ll release in the nursery grounds.

The world of mini-beasts is amazing. There is always something new to learn, so we’ll be putting on our sunhats and sun cream, packing our binoculars and magnifying glasses, and setting off to explore the incredible tiny world that’s all around us over the coming weeks!

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Life Cycle of a Butterfly.

This half term, we are delving into the fascinating world of animal life cycles. The children were overjoyed when a small box arrived in the nursery today. Inside were five tiny caterpillars! We dove into some nonfiction books that revealed intriguing facts about caterpillars and butterflies. 

 We talked about the life cycle of our caterpillars and what we may see next. The children thoroughly enjoyed exploring the process and used some wonderful new vocabulary that we had been learning. The children made their own wonderful pictures of the butterflies' life cycle and decided where to place them in class so they could watch and wait patiently for the changes to happen.

  Watching the caterpillars change into chrysalises and then emerge as butterflies in the coming weeks is a fantastic opportunity for our children to learn more about the natural world around them.

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Storytellers made the most of their surroundings while visiting Restormel Castle, immersing themselves in magical tales of princesses and knights fighting off naughty dragons within the spectacular castle's grounds. 

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Storytellers have been learning about castles this week alongside their topic of ‘Traditional Tales’. They thoroughly enjoyed today's trip to Restormel Castle and saw all the different features we have been learning about. We climbed up the steep steps to see the view that soldiers had when looking for enemies. We found out about the worn armour, and we went into the kitchen and dressing room area to see how the king and his family lived. The children loved to see the features of a castle in real life!

Some children had never been to a castle before, and they were impressed by its sheer size. They enjoyed feeling the cold, hard stone and uneven walls and could relate the castle to the different pictures they had seen in the books we had been reading. They looked at specific features, such as the enormous windows, fireplaces, and drawbridge area over the moat, which proved very exciting as they checked for baddies. They all enjoyed exploring the grounds and looking at the information boards.

Storytellers had great fun searching for Easter treats and then happily sharing them in class so everyone had the same amount. Watching them help each other find the eggs and happily share is a pure joy and an essential aspect of their early education, which they are all flourishing in.
Happy Easter from everyone at Storytellers.

 During the last week of the Spring term, Storytellers read “Poppy and Sam’s Easter Egg Hunt” by Sam Taplin. The story explored the fun themes of hidden Easter egg shapes and encountering various springtime animals. Storytellers then began to explore the real meaning of celebrating Easter, learning that Easter Sunday is not just the day we all enjoy chocolate eggs but is traditionally part of the Easter Story. The children visited Blisland Church to place the Easter garden they had made; they were greeted by The Revd Robin Thwaites, who kindly took the time to speak with the children, starting by explaining when Jesus died, his body was put in a tomb, and a big stone was placed over the entrance so nobody could get in. Two days later, Jesus's friend Mary went to the tomb and discovered that the stone had been rolled away and Jesus's body was gone. At first, Mary was sad, who had taken her friend? But then she heard a voice, she turned around and saw Jesus, he was alive! Mary ran off to tell Jesus's friends he'd come back to life. The children grappled with the child-friendly version of the story and explored the various traditions surrounding Holy Week.

We couldn’t have been prouder of them as they listened intently and were keen to ask questions and contribute to the conversation.  

Within our EYFS curriculum, the children learn about special times for family and friends and special times of year for other people.  Therefore, throughout the year in Storytellers, we learn how people of different faiths celebrate their special festivals. 

Alternative Sports

Blisland sent 6 of our finest athletes over to Looe for an alternative sports day. The children competed in: ultimate frizbee, seqway races, fencing and street surfing. Our pupils showed fantastic attitudes and team work. We are delighted with our 2nd place overall. 

A huge thank you to Looe for hosting and organising the event. 

Spring Term 2

Cross country
Our athletes have been training hard this term - building up to the 5k Landrake run. We have trained for the distance and braved the wind and rain to complete the distance at Sibley Back Lake. A huge thank you to Mr Jones for organising and supporting our pupils.  

Bike club
After the Easter holidays we will be starting a bike club a Lanhydrock. The club will run for 5 weeks and start at 3:45pm. If you are interested please contact the secretary showing your interest. 

Mrs Chalkley
Last week we said goodbye to the fabulous Mrs Chalkley. After a decade at the school, it is impossible to quantify her impact. We will greatly miss her but are very excited for her next adventure in Yorkshire. We gave her a fitting send off: flowers, cake and a wonderful painting to remember us by. Mrs Chalkley gifted us a fabulous poetry book with one poem for every day of the year.

Trumpet
We have finished 11 weeks of trumpet lessons in KS2. Mr Jones has done an incredible job of teaching with all pupils able to read music and play along to a Mexican Samba. Keep you eyes peeled for the video on BridgeTube.

Easter Fayre
This Thursday is our Easter Fayre. We are extremely grateful to the PTA for organising this. Please come along and show your support. 

Farm and Country Day
Last week KS2 attended the farm and country day at Wadebridge Showground. We had a wonderful day making pasties, eggy bread and tacos whilst learning about food production in the local area.

The morning didn't go as planned as the fire station crew was called out, so we could not visit. This meant we could spend longer visiting Cardinham Woods exploring the interactive Gruffalo trail with party-themed activities and games, as well as fun facts along the way to learn about life in the forest for the Gruffalo and other creatures. The children followed the trail to help find the missing party items to give the Gruffalo a birthday to remember. They searched for balloons, pinecones, apples, and the Gruffalo himself! The sun shone as the children enjoyed the activity park and tested their balancing skills! All this exercise built up an appetite, so we enjoyed a picnic lunch and well-earned ice cream before heading home. 

Storytellers had a wonderful morning visit to the Hugs Foundation. We have been learning how the charity supports animals that have been neglected or abandoned and how they do this. The children explored the area and met some fantastic characters along the way. The pigs were very popular, and helping to throw the food in was great fun, as well as watching the pigs forage around in the mud. Meeting the cheeky goats and giving them a fantastic scratch ensured they enjoyed walking with the children. The children investigated various foods that the animals enjoyed and looked at some wonderful treasures, from horses' teeth to antlers. Meeting the ponies and learning how and why they were rescued was a definite highlight. Thanks to Hazel for showing the children around, providing many learning opportunities and fantastic enrichment for our class topic.

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Today, the Storytellers had fun learning all about the role of a nurse, which supports this term's topic, 'People who help us'. Sally explained her role and showed the children various equipment she might use; they had fun bandaging their hands and arms and asking questions. 

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Why do we send home Reading Pets? It goes without saying that reading to your young child on a regular basis can help you forge a stronger relationship with them. When it comes to children, one of the most important things you can do to influence their development positively is to spend time with them. Reading to your child provides a great opportunity to set up a regular, shared event where you can look forward to spending time together. With shared reading, your child will trust and expect you to be there for them. The importance of trust to small children cannot be overstated.

Reading a favourite book to your child helps you bond with them and gives them a sense of intimacy and well-being. This feeling of intimacy helps your child feel close to you, and the feelings of love and attention encourage positive growth and development.

Reading aloud together and having a shared activity gives you and your child something to talk about, which supports the development of reading and writing skills. A children’s book can provide springboards to meaningful discussions about many different topics, which can further develop a child’s critical thinking skills.

At its core, literature is one of the best ways to help children understand something without necessarily having to experience it for themselves. Reading to your child helps to expose them to all types of subjects and concepts, building our children’s understanding of humanity and the world around them.

If you read just one book daily to your child, they will have read 1825 books by their 5^th birthday! 

As we do every day, we have been sharing much-loved stories with the children. For World Book Day this year, we read ‘Elmer and Wilbur’ and created some beautiful pictures depicting a very colourful Elmer. Elmer the Elephant teaches us that everyone is unique and has something that sets them apart and that there's no point in trying to hide or disguise this. We should embrace our differences and always be true to who we are.

Learning to love books, listen to stories, and share ideas is a fantastic way to develop your child’s imagination. Reading to children is an essential part of their education.

We know how many books you have at home – read until they fall apart, maybe, and others that have been read and enjoyed are now collecting dust.

We want our children to share their love of books by swapping one or more with their friends.

We encourage our children to bring the books they no longer want and put them in the “book swap cupboard" outside the nursery. The children can then swap or choose a different book to take home and enjoy.