Filter Content
- Message from Mrs Jones
- Term 5 Dates
- News from the PTA
- Reception - air transport and tadpoles
- Year 1 - From such a seed
- Year 2 - Minibeast Hotel
- Year 2 - Really Big Portrait
- Year 3 - Riotous Royalty and Minibeast restaurant
- Year 4 at Beggar Bush
- Year 5 - Pop Art and Go Green
- Year 6 - Diptych, Digits and Lifeskills
- Unicorn
- Netball County Finals
- Agency Update
- Earth Day
Welcome back to everyone for term 5. Term 5 is always a shorter term depending upon where Easter falls and it is especially short this year due to the additional bank holiday for the coronation of King Charles and two planned days of industrial action. However, the weeks ahead are full of learning, trips and activities. Please see the dates below for the known dates for term 5 and see the curriculum newsletters for each year group to find out about the learning themes to be covered.
It is also the term that the Department for Education national statutory assessments must be undertaken. Parents/carers are invited to information meetings to explain the content and format of these. If you are unable to attend the meetings the presentation will be available to view after the meeting. Our staff are very skilled and experienced in preparing the children for these assessments and they are always delivered in a very nurturing and supportive manner.
Year 6 SATs parents/carers information meeting held in term 4- presentation is on Google Classroom
Year 2 SATs parents/carers information meeting 9am Wednesday 3rd May and the presentation will be on Google classroom after the meeting.
Year 1 Phonics screening parents/carers information meeting 9am Thursday 18th May and the presentation will be on Google classroom after the meeting.
Reception - parents/carers information meeting regarding end of year assessment and reporting, 9am Wednesday 17th May and the presentation will be on Google classroom after the meeting.
Reception September 2023
Parents/carers with children due to start school in September 2023 should have received an email from Bristol City Council on 17th April, 2023. Action is required by 2nd May, 2023. If you were seeking a place for your child at Christ Church and you were not offered a place, please contact Becky Herbert our admissions officer [email protected] or telephone 0117 3772830.
Start of term reminders
Parent/Carer contact details and medical information for your child(ren).
The start of term is a good time to consider if the information we hold for your child at the school office has changed.
Please update your details of the three named contacts that you have provided for your child should be need to contact you during the school day if you changed your telephone number during the Easter period. Also, if you have new medical/allergy information for your child.
Industrial action
Proposed strike days Thursday 27th April and Tuesday 2nd May. It is highly likely that school will be closed. Parents/carers are advised to organise child care for these days. Shine are offering a provision please see their website.
Further details in letter sent via email and Szapp feed on 18th April.
Government emergency alert system test
The government’s new emergency alerts system is live and will enable people to be contacted via their mobile phone when lives are in danger. The system will be tested nationally on Sunday 23 April 2023 at 3pm.
An emergency alert is a loud, siren-like sound with a message on
your mobile phone or tablet screen.
To check an alert is genuine, visit GOV.UK.
May | Monday 22nd | Year 6 to Beggar Bush |
Thursday 25th |
Class photographs Year 6 cake sale |
|
Friday 26th |
Inset day-school closed End for term 5 |
PTA meeting/social | 27th April 19.30 – Save the date
Meeting will take place at the Alma tavern pub
Upcoming PTA events: click here to find out more: https://forms.gle/DjwbMmdbYoVpyDDx8
PTA meeting – 27th April
King's coronation Tea afternoon – 4th May
Campfest - 7-9th July : if you would like to know what Campfest is, see last year’s video! https://youtu.be/hiPMHFj_lnY
Reception - air transport and tadpoles
Reception have had a busy week this week finishing off their transport topic. This week they have focused their learning on air transport, learning about suspended transport, air transport and exploring the different things air transport can be used for. We started the week learning about Amelia Earhart. We asked thoughtful questions to help understand what happened to her and what she was famous for. We used our fine motor skills to draw and make our own aeroplanes. Some of us tried flying them in the outdoor area and seeing how far they would travel.
In maths we have started learning about numbers from 11-20. We have been making teens numbers using tens frames and counters.
We were very excited on Tuesday when Georgie kindly bought in some tadpoles for us to have in school. We have enjoyed observing them and will continue to observe them as they change into frogs.
We continued using our sounds to write and impressed our teachers drawing and writing about our holidays.
Year 1 have had a busy first week back exploring our new book for this term Orion and the Dark. The book follows the story of a boy called Orion who learns to conquer his fear of the dark. In response to the book, we shared some of our own fears as well as writing Orion a comforting letter with some tips on how to deal with overcoming his fear. Year 1 had some considerate words of wisdom including mindful breathing, reading a bed time story and counting to ten.
In maths we have been learning about comparing and taking measurements. We compared our own heights by getting into height order as well as measured classroom objects using cubes – Year 1 were scrupulous and very patient when counting all the cubes that spanned the length of the table!
Finally, in Science we have been closely observing seeds and bulbs and came up with some great questions for what we’d like to know more about with regard to plants. Some questions include what do bulbs start off as? and do all seeds grow into something? We look forward to finding the answers to these questions as the term progresses. Well done on an excellent first week back Year 1!
Year 2 had an exciting start to the term by going on a trip to the Downs on the first day. We walked up to the zoo where we met Anna and Katie from Avon Gorge and Downs Wildlife Project. They led us onto the Downs where Anna taught us about minibeasts. She was really impressed with our minibeast knowledge and taught us more about conservation and how to look after these little creatures. We started by following a trail with information about how minibeasts survive in our gardens, or what causes them not to. We ended out trip with a very successful minibeast hunt. We had a brilliant time and the mud and drizzle couldn’t dampen our enjoyment! This super start to our term continued when Vanessa, another member of the Wildlife project, came to school on Wednesday to help us build our minibeast hotel. All this excitement has provided us with an excellent opportunity for some really descriptive recount writing in our literacy lessons this week.
During Art lessons this week Year 2 took part in the Royally Big Portrait. The Royally Big Portrait is a giant digital portrait of King Charles III that will feature thousands of individual portraits of the King drawn by a record-breaking number of pupils and students from across the UK. Each child’s picture will be combined to make one giant portrait of the King. The final piece will be placed on public display both online and at various exhibition spaces. In our photos, you can see Artist Sam Barnett as he talked through how he would like each pupil to draw their version of King Charles III.
Year 3 - Riotous Royalty and Minibeast restaurant
The first week back has zoomed by in a flurry of activity! We kicked off term 5 with our new History topic ‘Riotous Royalty’. This has been a roaring success and the children have been fascinated by the battles, laws and strange goings on of our British royals. We have looked at William the Conqueror and King John so far. The children were outraged by some of their shenanigans which lead to us creating our own class Magna Carta that we all agreed to sign. We cannot wait to continue finding out about our Royal history next week.
The start of term 5 has also brought some beautiful weather and we were lucky enough to go on a science mini beast quest to the downs in the sunshine. We managed to find all sorts of creatures including millipedes, centipedes and spiders! This inspired us to create our own insect restaurant back at school and came up with some insect friendly dishes.
After a wonderful Easter break, year 4 were looking forward to a calm and leisurely start to term 5 but instead we got quite the opposite. First thing on Monday morning we squeezed onto the coach and made our way to Beggar Bush where the staff were ready and waiting to lead us through an action packed series of activities. From archery to axe throwing; to whittling stakes in the forest to building a giant trebuchet, year 4 were truly put through their paces! They showed wonderful resilience, team work and ultimately had a fantastic day out!
In Year 5 we have a busy and exciting start to our new term. Highlights of the week have been in Music, Geography, Maths, and Art.
In music, we used body percussion to create repeating loops.
Our Geography topic is ‘Go Green’ and focuses on the importance of green breathing spaces; this week we have used atlases to identify the UK’s fifteen National Parks.
In maths lessons, we learned more about perimeter and area.
In Art, in preparation for a printing unit, we studied the work of artist Andy Warhol and the Pop Art movement and used our sketchbooks.
We cannot wait till camp at Kilve Court next week and have been counting down the days till our departure!
Year 6 - Diptych, Digits and Lifeskills
Year 6 started their new music unit this week. It is based on the idea of Pop Art so the children started by looking at Andy Warhol's "Marilyn Diptych" and discussed how there was one theme but many variations. They thought about colour, background and what the focus of each piece was. Through this, they were able to see how music might have one theme but many variations. They clapped a simple rhythm and then discussed how to vary it, such as by performing it at a different tempo, reading it backwards or using a different instrument to play it on. The task for the afternoon was to use one rhythm (the theme) and perform it with many variations. The children composed amazingly and performed with whispers, stamps, claps demonstrating creativity and lots of careful thought.
Year 6 also learnt to play a new game this week, which really helped them to use and develop their mental maths. They played a game called "Digits" which is available on the New York Times website. There were 5 puzzles in total. Each time the children had a target number and six different numbers they were allowed to use...but only once (if at all). They could add, subtract, multiply or divide the numbers as often as they wished, as long as they reached the target number. It was a great 30 minutes of problem solving, collaborative working and mental maths. Well done Year 6!
Year 6 have had a fantastic time learning about all aspects of fire and water safety with the Avon Fire and Rescue service. They talked through various scenarios and circumstances, such as fires in the home or hoax calls, in order to build on the knowledge gained during their Lifeskills trip last year. They’re ready for anything now!
This week two of our Art Ambassadors received the delivery of a unicorn foal. This exciting project is part of Unicornfest for which schools, artists, businesses, and community groups all over Bristol are raising funds for Leukaemia Care. The Unicornfest trail starts on the 1st of July and officially ends on the 3rd of September. By placing unicorns all over the city, people may experience the love, joy, and magic of seeing one. Our unicorn foal will celebrate our love of Bristol and the community in which we live. The Art Team will together create a design for it, this design will then be painted onto the unicorn by a member of our staff team. Once finished it will be collected and placed in situ for visitors to see - watch this space.
On Wednesday morning, 5 members of our Year 6 girls’ netball team took park in the county finals held at Bristol Grammar School. The girls performed fantastically well and secured 5th spot out of the 10 schools which took part: an incredible achievement when considering that all of the schools taking part were there as they had won their own local tournaments. Great work girls!
Our Super Agents introduced Mission Grow in Tuesday's Agency assembly, by planting some dried peas, which will hopefully blossom into some tasty and healthy pea shoots for salad. Stay tuned for updates on the seeds' growth.
The Agents also reminded everyone about the importance of safe school streets. Our partners from Avon and Somerset Police will be out soon to encourage our community, to park elsewhere and walk the rest of the way.
Earth Day 2023 is taking place on Saturday 22 April with the theme 'invest in our planet'.
With so many species of insects in the UK under threat, The Tree Council have developed a fun activity to help you to 'invest in our planet' by creating an insect home. It's also a great way to enhance the biodiversity of the trees and hedgerows.
You can download the activity instructions here.