The Courier

Pupils from Princethorpe visited Crescent School on Friday 1 March to complete a biodiversity survey with our Green Team. The visit was part of a project to collect biodiversity data at all three of the Foundation school sites to support our commitment to improve sustainability.

The visitors included members of the Princethorpe Planet team as well as Sixth Form Biology students. They worked with Green Team pupils using square frame quadrats to record species. They surveyed a number of different areas within the school grounds and recorded the data. The plan is for the survey to be repeated at regular intervals to allow the schools to understand and track biodiversity.

It was particularly lovely to be able to welcome back some former Crescent pupils!

Our Year 3s visited Oxford University Museum of Natural History on Tuesday 27 February to take part in a Rock Stars Geology Workshop. The children discovered the difference between rocks and minerals and how essential they are in our everyday lives. They took a hands-on journey through the rock cycle to explore the three types of rock that make up our planet and became geologists as they sorted and identified rocks. After their interactive workshop, they also had time for a tour of the museum. Fabulous enrichment for their learning in school.

Crescent's newly appointed School Council members met for the first time on Monday to find out more about their roles and responsibilities. We talked about 'pupil voice' and the different ways they can collect and share ideas and feedback from their classmates to share in School Council meetings.

The first job on our agenda was naming our Children's Air Ambulance paramedic bear - Ted! 

The photo is of the outgoing and new School Councils.

Take a look at our new traverse wall that children will be able to hone their climbing skills on here at Crescent School. It’s been installed adjacent to the playing fields on the outside wall of Mrs Stapleton’s classroom and caters for mixed abilities providing different coloured horizontal routes.

Funded generously by our amazing Friends of Crescent and sourced from The School Playground Company, the traverse wall allows pupils to develop their agility, co-ordination and strength, and all while having great fun too. The wall will feature in the school’s Outdoor Learning programme that takes place in the Trinity Term.

It proved very popular with Ria, Oliver, Klara, Amber and Alfie who happily tried it out when they posed for a photo with Headmaster, Joe Thackway and FoC Secretary Laura O’Connell this afternoon.

Year 5 took part in a ‘Best Will in the World Workshop’ at Mary Arden’s Farm on Tuesday 27 February, the birthplace of William Shakespeare providing an atmospheric setting against which to bring his glorious texts alive.

In the workshop, pupils explored the major themes of A Midsummer Night’s Dream in a fun and interactive way. It was wonderful for the children to be immersed in the social and historical context of the play. During the day, pupils even found time to look round the farm and to see some of the rare breeds that were common in Shakespeare’s time.

Their visit was a fantastic experience for them all, helping to bring Shakespeare’s language to life. The story telling really aiding pupils’ understanding. The children came away enthused and excited and having learned lots about both the Tudor times and William Shakespeare!

It was St David's Day today and Yellow House marked the name day of their House Saint by wearing something yellow. It certainly helped to brighten up what started as a bit of a dreary grey day.

It's always lovely to see the pride the children have in their School House.

Year 2 are really enjoying studying 'The Titanic' in History. There is an exhibition on at the NEC that we can't run as a school trip as it's not in term time but I thought I'd let you know in case it's something you would like to do yourself with your children over the Summer Holidays. It is at the NEC from 27 July to 25 August. Link below.

Titanic Exhibition

Some of the days are already sold out so you might want to book early if you are interested.

Kind Regards

So many of you are interested in reading, so this may be a great way to share how much you enjoy it. 

National Book Tokens are running a competition to design a Book Token.  The following link provides further information and the template you can dowload:

Design a Book Token

All entries to be handed into Mrs Calder by Friday 19 March who will submit the entries.

Mrs Webb and Mrs Calder