ARCHIVED Shephalbury Blog 2023-2024

Friday 19th July 2024

Shephalbury Park has officially broken up for the summer holidays!

Our Year 6 learners have left for the final time today and we wish them good luck as they journey on to their chosen secondary school. They will always be a Shephalbury Learner and we hope they are as successful at secondary school as they were here. For all our other learners we will see them back in September ready to continue to be the best that they can be.

The team here at Shephalbury are aware that the school summer holidays are often seen as being all about beaches, children’s laughter, splashing in the sea or the pool and barbeques. The holidays are perceived as an idyllic scene of love, laughter and relaxation and nothing but an amazing time. However, this is not true for many families here in Stevenage and the UK.  School holidays can create extra pressure for already busy families. It can be a time for many parents and children to be out of a regular routine. The school holidays can create an extra financial burden with parents and carers having to find extra childcare and extra food costs and trips out. We do not have the answers or a magic wand to make sure that the 6 weeks runs smoothly but we do know that parents and carers in this school look out for one another. So, over the summer do spend time checking in on one another, find a little time for yourself and we will see all our families both new and old, back here on Wednesday 4th September.

Headteacher’s Awards

Mrs Dean and Mrs Cropley only had one child visit them this week and that was Charlie in Year 3. Charlie was able to talk about his maths and demonstrated his learning by being able to tell the time using both an analogue and a digital clock. We are very proud of you Charlie!

Bucket Fillers
This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some delicious cakes in an ice cream cone from Mrs Spiller. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

House Points
The house captains have completed their last job of the year, counting this week’s house points. The final scores are as follows:

Blue Buzzards – 1385

Red Kites – 1554

Purple Sparrowhawks – 1558

Green Kestrels - 1866

Congratulations to all the children and adults in Kestrels. It will be the newly elected school council’s job in September to decide on your reward.

Wishing everyone a happy holiday.

The Shephalbury Park Team

Friday 12th July 2024

We have come to the penultimate week of the school year and what a week! The Year 6 learners both entertained and enthralled the school as they performed their dress rehearsal of, ‘Jill and Fred’s Historical, Hysterical Adventure’. The school were a fabulous audience and gave the Year 6 advice for their following day’s evening performance to their families. The advice was taken on board and the evening performance the following day was one to remember!

Transition morning was a success for all learners. All children got to spend time with their new teacher and teaching assistant in their new classrooms. The morning was filled with lots of new learning, lots of smiles and lots of chatter about next year. The children were also visited by Mrs Finch as she spent the day here in school.

Our Year 2 have finished our cycle of Class assemblies by presenting to parents and carers today. The children showcased their learning with enthusiasm and in so many ways. Well Done Year 2 and thank you to Mrs Lewis and Mrs Oustayiannis for facilitating this. Both the adults and children thoroughly enjoyed watching and learning.

Headteacher’s Awards.

With two weeks before the end of the school year, there are still lots of children working hard and aiming high both in and outside of the school day.

Roco in Reception came at the end of last week to share how he is beginning to use his phonic knowledge to help him write. As part of drawing club, he drew a magnificent dinosaur and then used his phonics to write underneath.

Phoebe in Year 2 has been working hard outside of the school day. She took part in a charity Mud Run last weekend. Despite the rain, the wind, the cold and the mud, she completed the course and raised an amazing £300 for her chosen charity! We are very proud of you and your determination and kindness towards others.

Roma in Year 5 has been working hard outside of school too as she is taking her passion for writing and wrote a time lapse story. Mrs Dean and Mrs Cropley were lucky enough to read her typed manuscript, Roma was keen to say that the story still is not finished as she still needs to edit and amend but was happy for them to read the first draft. Both adults were gripped and had vivid images created in their minds due to Roma’s word choices.

Finally, Kane in Reception came to share his extra work that he completed outside of school at the weekend. He shared with Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean a short video of him presenting his learning to parent and carers and shared a song that he had learnt. Whilst in Reception earlier on in the week, Kane had also shared with Mrs Cropley how to say and write numbers to 20 in Chinese!

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed an ice pop. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Final Week

As it is the final week, there are no clubs running other than Porridge Pot and Tea Pot.

Monday 15^th July

Lost Property will be placed on the playground at the end of the school day. Any items of clothing or equipment not claimed will then be allocated to our spare clothing cupboard or will be sent off to be recycled.

Tuesday 16^th July

Following on from your child’s school report, if there is something that you wish to clarify then teachers will be available from 3:30pm – 5:00pm. Prior contact and agreed time needs to have been made before the day.

Wednesday 17^th July

FOSP will be on the playground at the end of the school day to sell items from their ‘Tuck Shop’ that have short dates on and therefore will not be able to be sold in our September School Fair.

Friday 19^th July

Year 6 Leaver’s Assembly at 9:00am and school finishes for Summer at 1:30pm

Have a lovely weekend and for those that will be watching on Sunday, enjoy the football.

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 5th July 2024

Despite the lack of sunshine this week and the postponement of the summer fair, learning continues here at Shephalbury Park, both in the classroom and other areas of the community.

We know learning doesn’t all take place in the classroom and the children continue to access learning from external providers as well as visits.  The Y5 children have come to the end of their work with the mini police programme, the EYFS children have been out to 360 Play in Stevenage and the Y6 have visited Barnwell to be an audience for their summer production, Matilda.

EYFS 360 Play

Nursery and Reception were very lucky to be offered a free visit to 360 Play in Stevenage Leisure Park. The children had lots of fun (and the adults too). We climbed, drove cars, made pizzas and even treated poorly animals. The children were so well behaved, they listened to one another, played nicely alongside younger children and were polite throughout the trip. A member of the public commented on how lovely all the children were and what a credit they were to the school. A big thank you to 360 Play for the opportunity to visit and have lots of fun. We must also say a big thank you to all the volunteers who made the trip possible.

Year 5 Mini Police

Over the past 8 weeks, the children in Year 5 have been taking part in a community scheme called the Mini Police. A local PCSO has been working with the children on several different areas, including anti-bullying, age restrictions and road safety. We have also been lucky to have had a visit from Stevenage Police, with one of their vehicles, who explained different aspects of the vehicle and how they use them. In one of their final sessions, the children were able to try on a range of police uniform, of which you will see some pictures below.

Year 6 Barnwell

Year 6 visited Barnwell on Wednesday afternoon to act as an audience for the dress rehearsal of Barnwell’s School summer production – Matilda. The performance was so professional and it was so lovely to see so many ex-pupils taking their first steps onto the big stage.

Year 6 Maths Challenge

This week, 4 members of the Year 6 class took part in the Hertfordshire maths challenge. ‘This friendly, online, inter-school competition gives teams of Year 6 children the opportunity to apply their mathematics knowledge and teamwork skills to solve problems and answer challenging questions, putting their reasoning skills to the test.’ Any school from Hertfordshire could take part. The hour-long heats will comprise of a set of 4 equally-weighted rounds. These rounds will include:

• questions with multiple parts
• problems in context
• visual estimation

Our children did a brilliant job, although they missed out on a place in the final by a few marks. They should be proud of the score they achieved, as we are. Well done to Ben, Kyrillos, Riley and Viktor!

Headteacher’s Awards.

Once again, Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean have had the pleasure of children visiting them for achievements that go above and beyond. 

Henry F impressed Miss Maggs with his work on safe and unsafe behaviours during his PSHE lessons. He added some super illustrations to his work to demonstrate his understanding.

Miss Maggs continued to be impressed as Finley and Henry G were both awarded a Headteacher’s Award for their English. Both boys read a piece of work aloud and when asked why they have achieved such an award both were able to articulate that their work contained the correct use of capital letters, full stops, inverted commas and fronted adverbials – Well done boys!

Ralph in Y2 provided Mrs Cropley with a very detailed computing lesson where he was able to explain how to use the programme Scratch to begin to code. He not only provided a super explanation he modelled how to insert a new slide, avatar, movement and speech bubble – impressive!

Freddie in Y4 was awarded his Headteacher Award for his resilience. He found a new concept in maths a little tricky so he chose to practice it again in his own time and the following day was able to achieve 3-star challenge. What a fantastic Shephalbury Learner – never give up!

The last visit of the week was Skylar who brought her English down to show and read. The presentation and care of her work was very impressive, but her story writing was astounding. Skylar was able to use appropriate punctuation and vocabulary to engage the reader.

Next Thursday is transition day where all the children will spend time in their new classroom with their new teacher. Drop off is a little different on this day, as the teachers will be out on the playground/field. Please take your child to their new teacher. The new class lists will be emailed early next week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some delicious chocolate nests provided by Mrs Bond. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

Phil’s Question of the Week: How can you keep yourself feeling OK when it is very hot?  Explain...

Alfie (Y1) "Eat an ice-lolly and drinking a cold drink to keep you hydrated."

Harvey (Y3) "Go in the shade and drink lots of water."

Emilia (Y5) "Drink a lot and make sure you have sunscreen.  Also maybe go swimming to cool down.  Have a sunhat and sunglasses too."

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Dates for your diary

Have a lovely weekend and for those that will be watching on Saturday, enjoy the football.

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 28th June 2024

We have had a glorious week of sunshine and the children have spent the week back in their school uniform following our very successful sports week last week.

Transition

This time of year, teachers, children and parents alike all begin to look back over the school year and the successes and achievements had. We also begin to think about next year too. Transition to the next class or next key stage is both exciting but can cause some anxiety too.

Transition at Shephalbury Park has already started with the Year 2 children having the opportunity to spend lunch times, if they so wish, on the Key Stage 2 playground ready for September. Year 6 children have met their Head of Year and some have already had transition meetings at their new school. Children new to our Reception and Nursery classes in September have had and will have time spent in their new classrooms over the next few weeks and our current Reception children have already visited the Y1 classroom as part of their transition to Year1.

We also have Mrs McKenzie who will be working with individual children to support their transition and of course all children will spend time on Thursday 11th July with their new class teacher.

Netball

Our Year 5 and Year 6 netball teams participated in the Stevenage Tournament on a very hot afternoon this week. Both teams played extremely well, and Mrs McKenzie and Mrs Dean said that despite the heat the girls gave their very best.  The girls played some very hard-fought games; our Y5 team finished second in their tournament and our Year 6 team finished fourth in theirs.

At the end of the tournament both teams’ final positions within the school league was announced; Year 5 finished second in their league and won the fair play award. The Year 6 team came seventh in their league. Both teams throughout the tournament and throughout the season have played in the spirit that sport should be played – with skill, persistence, sportsmanship and a smile on their face! Well done! We are very proud of you!

Headteacher’s Awards.

The first visitor to Mrs Dean and Mrs Cropley came from Lexi. Lexi had demonstrated to Mrs Spiller during WRE her ability to listen and then create and articulate questions associated with what she had listened to.

The visitors kept on coming as Hiba, Esme and Linda from Reception visited Mrs Dean and Mrs Cropley. Hiba received her Headteacher Award by demonstrating her use of phonics to write a list of fruit and vegetables. Esme and Linda also received their awards for using their phonic skills to read and write words given to them by an adult.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some delicious cakes provided by Mrs McKenzie. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates. 

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

Phil’s Question of the Week: How can you keep yourself safe at the beach?

You can swim between the yellow and red flag and don't swim towards the tide and don't climb on the rocks.  Wear a band that says your parents phone number, wear suncream and a hat.   Tommy Year 4

At the beach it is very hot so you will need sun cream.  Ice water really helps and a cold shower once in a while won't do any harm.  Mina Year 5

Wear sun cream when you go to the beach.  Emily Year 1

Look out for the flags or ask a lifeguard if it is safe.  TJ Year 2

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

FOSP

Don’t forget to visit the school fair next Friday after school. Please see flyers that FOSP have already sent regarding our Summer Fair next week. They will be selling tokens/passes for pre-sale between 1 – 4 July. They will be on sale before and after school.

Dates for your diary

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 21st June 2024

We started the week by welcoming back our Year 6 children from their 3-night residential. The children came back ‘buzzing’ about their long weekend. They also came back more independent, confident, resilient and tired! If you would like to see what the children, Mrs Cropley, Mrs Grizzell and Mrs McKenzie got up to, then the photos can be found on the school website or click the link. https://www.shephalburypark.herts.sch.uk/bawdsey-manor-2024

Sports Week

Sports Week is now officially over for another year but what a week! The children and the staff all have had time to learn and participate in a variety of sports including Judo, skipping, athletics and duck hunting! The week culminated in another successful sports day. We want to say a big thank you to all the parents and family members who came to cheer the children on and give support but also a big thank you to Mr Klein and Mr Wilkins who organised the event.

The slide show below shows just how much fun the children (and adults) have had this week.

The winners of the 2024 Sports Day were the Purple Sparrowhawks! Well done to all the children in Sparrowhawks! All the children this whole week have demonstrated sportsmanship, resilience, determination and most of all friendship. The photos below are evidence of this.

Y2

The children in Year 2 have been learning about ‘charity’ in WRE this term. Through their class discussions, they wished to support the charity PaNDR (Paediatric and Neonatal Decision Support and Retrieval Service. This charity provides critical care retrieval for neonates and children up to the age of 16 years of age as well as offer clinical advice to health professionals caring for children.

Early Years Foundation Stage Team

On Thursday, we welcomed Parents and Carers who will have children starting Reception Class this September. We do hope they found the meeting informative and that if it is the beginning of their journey with Shephalbury Park they will feel supported by both the school and our community. Later this term we will also hold a meeting for Parents and Carers who will have children starting Nursery this September.

For many Parents and Carers, it can be a very daunting and emotional time.  Our Early Years Team have a wealth of experience and are there to support with individual questions and queries but also give ideas and signpost to other help.

Headteacher’s Awards.

Again, Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean have had a constant stream of children visiting them for going above and beyond with their work, behaviour or approach to learning. We are proud of the following children and their ability to talk about their learning.

1 George – for his work in coding during his computing lessons.

2 Finley B – for his understanding and interpreting of bar charts in maths

3 Charlotte S – for independent writing

4 Sofia G for a fantastic piece of work explaining how our food is grown, harvested, packed and then placed on our supermarket shelves.

5 Darcey-Rose for her use of full stops, capital letters and fronted adverbials in her story

Now onto our celebrations for the week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some delicious cupcakes provided by Mrs Ashby. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

Phil’s Question of the Week: Is it better to work as a team or on your own?  Explain.

Lilly Y5: It's up to you but I think working as a team because then if you are stuck then they can help you and you can take in other's ideas.

Harry Y1: As a team because you might earn more things.

Kyla M Y4: It depends because sometimes you'll rather work on your own but in a team you can get more support and ideas.

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Bike Shed

The children are fortunate to be able to live in an area where there are so many cycle lanes and safe places to cycle or scoot to school. Mr Haslett will be locking the bike shed at 8:50am each day. He will open it again at 3:00pm. Please remind your children to place their bikes and scooters inside the shed each day.

Dates for your diary

Have a good week and we will see you on Monday! 

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 14th June 2024

Another busy week here at school. It was so lovely to see so many male role models in school this week. The Early Years Team chose to celebrate forthcoming Father’s Day, if you have forgotten, it is this Sunday with the children sharing music, games and breakfast with a male care giver in their lives.

We also have seen lots of classes this week out creating memories. On Monday, the children in Y1 and Y2 spent the day at Knebworth House and Gardens. The children had a fabulous day despite the inclement weather. Here are some pupil comments from their day!

Going on the wavey slide was my favourite part of the day. Oliver

I liked learning how old the trees were and learning the dinosaur names. Jaiden

I loved learning what the different trees were called and playing on the equipment. Phoebe

I loved everything. Daniel

I enjoyed the slide, the park and the fort because they were all very fun. Felicity B

I liked exploring Fort Knebworth. Isabelle

I really enjoyed learning about the dinosaurs and learning about the castle. Ethan

My favourite part was going on the swings. William

The dinosaurs were amazing and the bird calls were outstanding. Alfie

I enjoyed going down the slide next to Mrs Lewis. Melissa M

I liked seeing the deer. TJ

On Thursday, our youngest learners spent the day at Standalone Farm. The children in Nursery and Reception came back ‘buzzing’ about the animals and experiences they had. Outside the classroom learning experiences are important and for lots of children a keyway of learning. They take many adults including office staff time to plan, so thank you to all the adults who facilitated these worthwhile learning experiences. 

Finally, as you read this, our oldest learners, Year 6, are currently spending the weekend away at Bawdsey Manor, Ipswich. They left first thing this morning to participate in an outward bound 4 day/3-night adventure experience. I am sure they will all have a memorable time and one that will stay with them throughout their journey through life. I am sure as an adult reading this; you may not have always remembered the planned and prepped lessons delivered by your teachers, but you still have memories of day visits or residentials. Day visits bring the classroom learning to life and residentials are an invaluable way of providing new activities, adventure and challenges while being away from the normal routines of home and school. They help develop a child’s confidence, resilience, social skills and encourage personal development and independence.

Headteacher’s Awards.

This week Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean saw a glut of children from Year 3. The children are obviously making a big impression on Miss Maggs this week.

First to arrive were Florence and Elijah. Both impressed Miss Maggs, Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean with their writing. Both children brought a piece of independent writing from last September to now. The quantity, content and handwriting has improved without question. Both children were able to articulate their progress.

Next from Year 3, came Henry G for his independent work in Maths (3D shapes) and then Elliot for his Geography. Elliot was able to articulate how he had misunderstood a piece of work and that by trying again he was able to succeed.

From Year 4, Lenny B spent time with Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean talking about his learning in WRE. He was able to turn to any page in his book and talk about the learning that had taken place. The presentation of his work and the various ways he has chosen to show his learning blew both the adults away.

Then, from Year 1, we had Lola and John-Boy visit us, with their English books. They were excited to share their fantastic story writing with us, based on the story of Aladdin. They told us their stories and we were happy to see their progress!

Now onto our celebrations for the week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some delicious cupcakes provided by Mr Klein. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

Phil’s Question of the Week: How could you show your appreciation of someone? Explain…

Hiba YR- Tell them they did a good job.

Richard Y5- You can tell them how much you love them or give them a hug.

Olivia Y6- Being kind and show respect. You don’t have to spend money- DIY things and make homemade things.

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Finally, please don’t forget next week is Sports Week. Children should come to school in their PE kit, ready for each day’s activities. Sports Day is on Friday 21^st June. We are having a picnic lunch as normal at the conclusion of Sports Day. It goes without saying that this is weather dependent!

Have a good week and we hope to see you next Friday!

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 7th June 2024

Welcome back to summer term 2! It is going to be a very busy term with Sports Week, Transition sessions and days, trips out, the school summer Fete, Y2 Sharing Assembly and the Y6 End of year production.

Colour Day

Today we have supported FOSP and our forthcoming school fete by coming to school in our house colours. Look at our colourful school today!

EYFS

In EYFS we were lucky to have an author called Su Murley visit us to tell us all about her book Shirley Murley. The children learnt all about how Su created the characters and decided on the words she had selected for rhyming. The children enjoyed listening to the story and hearing all the different words. In reception the children continued with rhyming and performed their poems and funny rhyming lines to Nursery.

School Effectiveness Visit

This week we also have had a visit from Mrs Hinstridge who is the school effective adviser. She spent the morning with Mrs Lewis discussing and observing Maths across the school. She was very impressed with the quality of maths being taught but most importantly the children’s ability to articulate their learning and to reflect where to improve.

Y5 Netball

Our Y5 netballers were in action on Monday. The girls showed real Shephalbury resilience as they came back to draw 4-4 in the final quarter. Well done girls, we are very proud of you!

Dates for your diary

Monday 10th June – Y1/Y2 trip to Knebworth House

Thursday 13th June – EYFS trip to Standalone Farm

Friday 14th – Monday 17th June - Y6 away on a 4-day residential to Bawdsey Manor

Monday 17th – Friday 21st June – Sports Week. Children come to school in PE kit all week

Friday 21st June – Whole School Sports Day followed by family picnic on the field (weather permitting)

Headteacher’s Awards.

This week Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean have been visited by children in the younger years. First thing Monday they were greeted by Maison in Y1. He has been working at home and taking his maths even further. He had completed with some help from Mum a whole maths work book.

Following quickly on, Leo and Theo from Reception came knocking on the door. Leo came for some independent writing about Leopards, a book that he had been reading and Theo for designing and then making a ‘T Buggy’. He used the technique of split pins to enable the wheels to turn fully.

Finally, Louie from Y1 came to talk about the work he had completed in Geography. He was able to talk about the different seasons and when certain fruit and vegetables can be grown and harvested.

Now onto our celebrations for the week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some delicious cupcakes provided by Mr Klein. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

Phil’s Question of the Week: What comes to mind when you hear the word ‘pride’? Explain…

Ephraim Y5- When I hear the word pride, it means that you feel proud when you achieve challenges meaning you have a growth mindset.

Lola Y1- A pack of lions.

Amelia Y5- When I think of the word pride, I think of 2 things. 1. Having pride in yourself or others. 2. LGBTQ which stands for L=Lesbian, G= Gay, B= Bisexual, T= Transgender and Q=Queer.

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 24th May 2024

The final week before half term and a very, very busy week here at Shephalbury Park Primary School.

Stevenage Football Club

The week kicked off with some of our Y6 learners visiting the Lamex Stadium which is the home to Stevenage Town Football Club. The children, along with Mrs McKenzie and Mrs Cropley, took part in a variety of workshops at the football ground. The children explored and discussed topics such as the importance of a healthy body and a healthy mind, anxiety and transition from primary to secondary school. The children also had a tour of the football stadium including the dugout, away and home changing rooms and the trophy cabinet.

Woodhall Estate Visit

The second trip of the week saw our Y5 and Y6 learners spending a fantastic if rather wet day at Woodhall Estate which is near Watton-on Stone. The theme of the day was, ‘Countryside Learning.’ The children had a great day participating in activities such as ecology, sustainable farming, apples and orchards, falconry, arable farming and sheep.

Here are some of our learners’ thoughts and photos about the day:

“I learnt that the first apples originated on the border between China and Kazakhstan and then spread across the world.” Amelia

“Vultures only eat dead animals. They can eat the dead animals from 2 weeks after it died or was killed but red kites will only eat dead animals up to 2 weeks after its death but no longer.” - Ben

“Owls are the second least intelligent bird due to the size of their eyes. Their eyes take up so much space in their head that their brain is very small.” - Phoebe

 “Owls have different eye colour dependent on what time of day they hunt. If an owl has yellow eyes it hunts at dawn/dusk, if an owl has dark eyes they hunt at night and if an owl has orange eyes it hunts during the day.”- Jamila

“I learnt about a new animal called a stoat. It is a mammal, and its fur can be brown with a white bib “– Leanna

“My favourite part of the day was when we got to feed the sheep. I kept dropping the pellet because I thought it might bite me. I learnt that sheep do not have teeth at the top of their mouth, just gums and they have flat teeth at the bottom.” Kyrillos

Year 1 Sharing Assembly

Thank you to all the parents and carers who attended Year 1’s assembly today. We were treated to a fantastic selection of learning from the children. It can be very daunting to speak aloud to a large audience, but the children did not disappoint. Well done to each and every one of them and a very big thank you to Mrs Cargill and Miss Stringer for facilitating this.

Art competition

We need to congratulate some more children this week too. Children who attend Tea Pots (After School Club) entered a Monster Madness competition. The children were asked to draw, paint and create a monster. The competition was open to all clubs and schools in the UK. The children relished the challenge. The following children now have the possibility of having their artwork published in a book called, Monster Madness. The children also received a certificate and sticker.

Charlie – Reception

Matthew, Yasmina and Isla K – Year 1

Bella, TJ and Katalea – Year 2

Eleanor – Year 3

Emily and Steffen – Year 4

Sereny – Year 5

KS2 Adventure Area

Please can we remind parents that if younger children are playing on the play equipment by the main gate, it is your responsibility to be vigilant. Children are playing on the equipment unsupervised where accidents could easily happen.  

Phil’s Golden Moment

Children who have received a golden ticket for an answer to one of Phil’s thought provoking questions this half term were treated to Smores.

Sports News

Netball matches are coming thick and fast at the moment. Our Y5 and Y6 girls were again in action last Friday with a double header at St Nicholas school. The games were played with a true competitive edge. The Y5 girls played two games ending in a win and a draw and the Y6 girls played one game but, on this occasion, lost their game. We are always proud of how the girls represent, not only our school, but how they carry themselves throughout the game and the camaraderie they demonstrate towards one another.

Now onto our celebrations for the week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some wonderful fairy cakes provided by Mrs Dean. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Cropley! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Here is the photo of last week’s Bucket Fillers!

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Phil’s question of the week- What would you ask our new headteacher?

We had so many answers from across the school. It was very hard to choose any winners this week. What super questions that we will use!

Headteacher’s Awards

Following a drought of head teacher awards last week, Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean were inundated with children this week.

The first child to come through their door on Monday morning was Albert in Y2. He demonstrated he is able to apply himself in lots of areas of the curriculum. He shared a super story where he is using full stops, capital letters and adjectives and then a piece of Geography where he was able to talk about the difference between the town and countryside.

Hot on Albert’s heels came a group of children from Year 4. They have been studying the water cycle in science and have worked independently or in a pair to design and create posters to demonstrate their understanding. The children had a choice of medium. Lenny B chose fabric whilst Joy and Eliannah created texture by using varied papers and card.

The door continued to open to more children extending their learning. Next Archie in Y1 visited, showing off how his progress in reading. He read a passage out aloud fluently and with intonation and with pauses in the correct place. Well done!

Next, came Seth in Year 6. He astounded both Mrs Cropley and Mrs Dean with how he extended his understanding of his computing unit in class by going home and using the programme Tinkercad to design, write a program and then print a 3D model. What do you think?

Rae in Y3 also like Seth had her curiosity ignited in class by Mrs Grizzell. During the science lesson, the children were learning about pollination and the importance of bees. Rae went home and continued her learning.

Other News

The Shephalbury Park Team wish you all a restful half term and we will see you Monday 3rd June. The school gate will be open at 8:35am and registers will be taken at 8:50am. See you then!

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 17th May 2024

Superstars

Our oldest children have taken their end of Key Stage 2 SATs this week. We are very proud of how they applied themselves to the task and remained focussed throughout. Also a big thank you to all the support staff who, during the week, have supported the children by serving breakfast to the cohort, sitting with groups during the test and being a listening ear and familiar face in an unfamiliar experience. You are all superstars!

Have your Say!

We saw an interesting piece of news in the Comet online this week- “A new multi-use games area (MUGA) will be created in Stevenage, if a bid for funding is successful.” There are three playing fields which have been identified as possible sites, including Shephalbury Park. There is a survey, which you can complete online using the link below. The council will use this to establish the community need. We think it would be a fantastic addition to the local park, Shephalbury Park. They are also offering a chance to win one of three £50 Amazon vouchers if you complete the survey and provide your name and email!

To complete the survey, visit stevenage.gov.uk/news-and-events/news/play-zones and click on the link. The survey closes on May 19.

Welcome

Next, we would like to share with you our newest member of the school, a fox cub! Some staff and children were lucky enough on Wednesday after school to observe a fox cub in our school grounds. He spent time relaxing, sunning himself and snoozing in the afternoon sun before darting off into the undergrowth. After school club are now on a daily fox watch.

Thank You

We would like to say a big thank you to Mollie’s family in Reception. They have kindly donated to the school a composter and a water butt. Mr Haslett has already got plans for these.

Thank you to Mr Noakes, Joshua’s dad in Year 5, who has helped our Breakfast and After School Clubs secure a large donation of food from the Sainsbury’s charity, Helping Everyone Eat Better. The purpose of the initiative can be found by clicking on this link. https://www.neighbourly.com/2023-24/HEEBCommunityGrants

Crazy Hair Day

Our final thank you must go to all the children who participated in Crazy Hair Day today. Your contributions towards our Summer Fete are gratefully received, whether that was your £1 or your donation towards a stall. You all made our school a more colourful place to be in today.

Now onto our celebrations for the week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some lovely cakes provided by Mrs Ashby! The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

The photo will follow next week!

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Phil’s question of the week- What do you try to avoid and why?

We had a huge range of things that children try to avoid; strangers, fights, cleaning their teeth!  However this week’s Golden Ticket winner are;

Olive, Y2: "cars because you could get run over."

Teddy Y2:  "slugs and snails because there slimy and weird."

Kyla M Y4:  "I try to avoid upsetting people and spiders because if you be rude to someone you will dip that bucket, and I really don't like spiders!"

Darcie Y1: "bugs because they are scary but I be brave."

Other News

•             Wednesday 22nd May - Y5 and Y6 are out on a learning experience at Woodhall Estate

•             Friday 24th May - Y1 Sharing Assembly at 9:00am to the school and to the Y1 parents

•             Friday 24th May - 3:20pm Half term begins

Bookcase Wanted- If anyone has an unwanted bookcase that we could use for our community library initiative, please could you let the office or Mrs Dean know.

Have a good weekend and enjoy the weekend!

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 10th May 2024

The start of the week may have been one they we may want to forget weather wise, but what a lovely sunny end to another busy week here at Shephalbury Park.
 

SkipBeatz

The visit today by SkipBeatz was both energetic, heart pumping, fun and loud! Do please look at the photo gallery below of the children having fun, exercising and learning more about choosing a healthy lifestyle.

End of Key Stage 2 Statutory Assessment Tests (SATS)

All children in Year 6 and across the country will take their end of Key Stage 2 Statutory Assessment Tests next week. The children will sit tests in Grammar and Punctuation, Spelling, Reading, Mental Arithmetic and Problem Solving and Reasoning. The tests will run from Monday to Thursday.

Currently, these tests are compulsory for all schools to complete. Results along with Teacher Assessment will be shared in your child’s Annual Report. Please remember SATS aren’t about passing or failing but are used to reflect the level your child is working at independently.

We, at Shephalbury Park, are very proud of our children and we know they will demonstrate all the attributes of the Shephalbury Learner next week. Do please ensure that your child gets lots of rest and sleep to help them perform to the best of their ability. The children will meet each morning after registration to have breakfast together before returning to class to take their test for that day.

Suncream, hats and water bottles

As we have had a few days of sunshine and hopefully a few more, can we remind you of keeping our children sun protected. Please do ensure your child has suncream applied before the start of the school day and that they have a sun hat or cap in school. If you wish your child to self-reapply suncream during the day, please do note the ingredients of the cream. As a nut free school, do check that the sun cream does not contain almond oil. Your child will also need a water bottle each day in school to ensure they also stay hydrated.

KidFest tickets

Thank you to all who emailed into the school office to show an interest in the two tickets that we have had kindly donated. Congratulations to Aryan De-Roses! Your name was chosen randomly. We hope you enjoy the day. We look forward to hearing all about it.

Crazy Hair Day

Just a reminder about the FOSP led event next Friday 17th May.

Sports News

The Year 6 netball team have once again had a fixture this week. They played against Longmeadow, with perfect conditions for netball. The girls were brilliant and this reflected in the score, which resulted in a 10-1 victory.

They have also played this afternoon against Bedwell. It was an exciting game, with Shephalbury winning a close encounter 10-9.

Well done to all the girls involved!

Now onto our celebrations for the week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some lovely Mini Rolls provided by Mrs Mutch. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As well as Bucket Fillers, we have handed out our Shephalbury LEARNER certificates.

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Phil’s question of the week- Why is it important to rest, spend time outdoors and have hobbies and interests?  Explain...

Melisa- Y6: It’s important to rest and have fresh air outside and not to be bored every day.  We can also learn things and new interests making our life better. 

Roma- Y5: It’s important to rest so you get enough sleep and be energised and ready for the morning.  It’s good to get time outdoors so you get fresh air and it good for your mental health.  Finally it’s good to have hobbies and interests so that you stay active and don’t sit around watching TV all the time. 

Connie- Y3: So you can grow your brain and get energy.

Kane- Reception: Exercise helps with hugging their Mummy. 

Headteacher’s Awards

Some of our learners have been noted for their brilliant work this week, receiving a headteacher’s award. They are:

Spencer B Y5 – fabulous independent work in WRE using the chrome book.

Ethan J Y2 – demonstrating independent maths strategies to solve a 3-digit number multiplied by a 1-digit number.

Ethan D Y3- produced some brilliant persuasive writing, based on the book ‘The Day the Crayons Quit.’

Olivia T- Y3- produced some brilliant persuasive writing, based on the book ‘The Day the Crayons Quit.’

Other News

• A reminder that Year 5 and 6 are going on a trip to Woodhall Estate in a couple of weeks. Please ensure you’ve ordered your packed lunch, if you require one.
   

Have a good weekend and enjoy the sunshine!

The Shephalbury Team

Friday 3rd May 2024

Happy Friday! This is the start of our long bank holiday weekend. Just a reminder that school is not open on Monday, due to the bank holiday. We will return to school on Tuesday 7^th May at 8:35am as usual.

KidFest

As a school, we have had 2 tickets, which have been donated, for the forthcoming KidsFest event held here in Stevenage at the Show Ground, Broadhall Way.

The tickets are for Saturday 18^th May. If this is an event you feel you would like to go to please email into the school office your child’s name and class by Thursday 9^th May. We will choose a name from random on Friday 10^th May to receive the 2 tickets.

Punctuality

We would like to remind parents and carers of the importance of children having a punctual start to the school day.

All registers are taken at 8:50am with the class then settled to start lessons. Teachers and the school office are noticing individual children and families consistently coming into school late. Children coming in after 8:50am can miss the camaraderie that their peers have experienced from each other coming into school, they may feel anxious, rushed, or unsettled or may miss part of the key teaching of the morning.

All teachers will always greet children who are late with a smile and a quick check in, but consistent lateness is not conducive to a good start to a child’s day.

Spring term House Points

Kestrels were the winners of last term’s competition – Well done! The school council have met and have decided that all Kestrels can come to school, if they choose, in their Pyjamas. The day of this will be Tuesday 7th May.

Dogs

We are extremely fortunate to live in an area that is both green and accessible for all. If you combine school drop off or pick up with walking the family dog, we kindly ask that you wait on the grassed area outside the school gate. We have children and adults who are anxious around dogs and are walking into the road to ensure there is a distance between themselves and the animal.

Class news

Reception Trip to Post Office

We received a postcard from Dylan who moved away to Wales. We wrote our letters back to Dylan and we went to post them. We went into the post office, where we had to weigh our letters. We were then given a stamp which we had to stick on the right-hand corner and then afterwards we posted our three big envelopes. A big thank you to all the parents who helped us out and walked with us to the shops.

Year 2

In Computing, we are making music using Chrome Music Lab. We have been learning about rhythm and patterns in music.

In Maths, we were learning about mass. We have been comparing the mass of objects we could find in our classroom, using the language of heavier and lighter.

Sports News

Last week, Year 5 and 6 football team played their final league fixture of the season against Lodge Farm. It was a tight affair, with Shephalbury making the most of the chances they had, to come away 4-2 winners. Well done to everyone who has taken part in our training sessions and matches this season. We should finish mid-table, which is respectable considering we have played in Division 2, against some much larger schools than ourselves!

Alongside the footballers, our Year 6 netball team also played last Friday against Trotts Hill. The girls were incredible and won 20-0. Trotts Hill deserve lots of credit for their hard work and determination, especially as this is a new netball team, with a mixture of Year 5 and 6 girls. Well done to all those who took part!

Year 3 and 4 played a friendly fixture against Aston this week. As this is a friendly fixture, we will not be posting the full-time result. We are proud of the children as they battled hard and didn’t give up! Well done to all of those involved!

Now onto our celebrations for the week.

Bucket Fillers

This week’s Bucket Fillers enjoyed some lovely Mini Rolls provided by Mrs Mutch. The children enjoyed their time with Mrs Dean! A huge well done to the following children for being nominated by their teachers this week:

Shephalbury LEARNER

As always, our staff have been on the lookout for pupils from around the school, working hard to demonstrate the 7 attributes that make up a Shephalbury LEARNER. These are refLect, solvE, creAte, gRow, thiNk, strEtch and Risk. The children listed below have been nominated by their teachers for being Shephalbury LEARNERS this week, a huge well done to every one of them:

House Points

Here are this week’s house points.

This is how the overall totals look now.

Phil’s question of the week- Can you trust anything that you read on the internet?

Lilly Y5 "No you as there can be scammers and creepy people that could try to lure you to give personal details (phone number, address etc.)

George Y3 "No because most videos are edited and fake but if its research then yes"

Leanna Y6, "No because something can be a lie without you realising it, so you would need to check 3 websites to make sure it is true."

Louis Y3, "No, look at the author and judge and compare."

Headteacher’s Awards