A HUGE thank you to the pond volunteers (Reggie, Stanley, Jon, Cassie and Lucy) who came in this weekend to continue with the renovation of the pond. This week the area was cleared and the base built for the pond dipping platform.

We welcome Hannah Walters as our new manager for our out of hours club (AOOSC). Miss Davies, a qualified teacher known to our current Turtles and Dolphins in her current role as teaching assistant, will be half of a job share in the nursery element of our Foundation Stage Unit with Miss Olliffe who is reducing her hours from September.

Whilst all of their unions have called for strike action, once again, and despite the likelihood of them agreeing with the reasons for the strike action, all our teachers have taken the decision not to strike. I thank the teachers for putting the immediate needs of the children first to ensure our school remains open so there is no disruption to any child’s learning.

End of year reports for Turtles and Dolphins have been distributed for all children. If you have not received your report please let the school office know on admin@appledoreprimary.co.uk. Reports for Years 1 -6 were made available in your child’s Google Classroom. Please click here for a guide on how to access it if your child does not remember how to access their Google Classroom. If you have specific questions about your child’s report please email admin@appledoreprimary.co.uk to arrange a conversation with their class teacher.

The recording of the online safety workshop for parents by Devon CC safeguarding team is available to view by clicking here. It is a very helpful guide to support parents with ensuring their child’s activity online is safe and is available to view until 5pm on Friday 21^st July.

This summer, ARC (Atlantic Racquets Centre, Bideford) are offering a brand new Multi Sport Holiday Camp. This will be running Monday-Friday every week of the school holidays. The Camp will run 9am-4pm, with a late pick up option 4pm-6pm. There will be a variety of sports and games played throughout the day. To book, please visit www.atlanticracquetcentre.co.uk/holidaycamp

Mrs McMorine, deputy headteacher and attendance lead, has produced this month’s attendance bulletin that is available here. please do all you can to ensure your child attends school – even one day missed has an impact on your child’s learning due to the sequential nature of a school’s curriculum.

For current year 4 and 5 pupils Park School are holding an Open Evening on Thursday 21st September and their Open Days run from 25th September to 29th September. Parents can book on their website here –The Park Community School Open Events 2023.

Thank you to Friends of Appledore School (FOAS) for organising today’s summer fair.

Wishing you all a good weekend

From Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff (more…)

We have booked a live online safety parent workshop on Monday 3rd July at 5pm delivered by Devon County Council Safeguarding Team. You can log in from your own device by clicking here or view it in our school hall on a big screen. It will last for approximately one and a half hours and we have deliberately scheduled it just before the summer holidays when children typically spend more time online.

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We continue to strive for our attendance target of at least 96% that would keep us in line with national averages and government expectations. Please click here to find out about our current attendance levels and please do all you can to ensure your child only misses school for exceptional circumstances or if they are too ill to come to school.  Because of the sequential nature of every unit of learning in each subject missing even one day immediately disadvantages the children.

Police and online safeguarding bodies are advising parents to be wary of the Y99 communication app that is being used as a tool for grooming young children. This week the Designated Safeguarding Lead (headteacher) and Learning Mentor attended the termly local authority safeguarding forum for updates and all staff safeguarding training this week was correct LGBTQ+ terminology.

Staff news – AOOSC manager Becky is leaving on Monday 26th June and we wish her every success with her new venture. From September Reception (Dolphins) – 6 class teachers and class teaching assistants is as follows: Reception: Mrs Bannister and Mrs Ley; Year 1 Mrs Wilkins and Mrs Monroe; Year 2 Mrs Stanbury, Mrs Stephens  and Mrs Halloway; Year 3 Miss Wetz and Mrs Hughes-Whiffing; Year 4 Miss Ellis and Miss Child; Year 5 Mrs McMorine and Mrs L Evans and Mrs S Evans and Year 6 Mrs Mitchell, Mrs Evans and Mrs Carstairs.  We are currently finalising staffing for Nursery/Turtles and will communicate this to you asap.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend

From Jeremy Cooper and all of the children and staff (more…)

A super week full of activities the children have embraced with their typically exuberance, even in this heat!  Please read this posting in full to find out what has been happening in and around all the classes, including: looking after a dragon egg; drawing pictograms; composing music using the pentatonic scale; tag rugby; Northam Burrows visit; a walk to The Lookout to support writing; play rehearsals and much, much more…

This week we returned to our pre Covid restrictions drop off and pick up routines and thank you for supporting us with this.

Dates for the diary:

• We have booked a live online safety parent workshop on Monday 3rd July at 5pm delivered by Devon County Council Safeguarding Team. You can log in from your own device by clicking here or joining us in our school hall on a big screen. It will last for approximately one and a half hours and we have deliberately scheduled it just before the summer holidays when children typically spend more time online.

Please click here for dates of free family fun activities with the Northam Burrows rangers on and around the beach and burrows over the summer holiday

Have a great weekend

From Jeremy Cooper and all of the children and staff (more…)

To all parents and carers

Due to a couple of minor accidents and near misses on school premises and disruption to children’s learning and teachers preparing for lessons, please can those responsible for before school drop off and after school collection be familiar with the small changes made and follow the arrangements detailed below.

Drop Off

All pupils from nursery (Turtles) to year 6 wait on the bottom playground until the bell rings at 8.50am.  Please ensure your children do not climb on or under the pirate ship or run around the playground or other areas of the school – the reason for the accidents and near misses.

If your child is old enough to wait unsupervised by you, please ensure they are aware of their responsibility to behave safely and how to do so. If they are unable to wait safely, or are being dropped off too early, please be aware that we will contact you asking that you supervise them or book them into our breakfast club. Please note that from September access to the school site, other than those attending ASOOC, is not to be before 8.40am.

All children are the responsibility of their parents or carers until school opens at 8.50am.

When the bell rings:

• years 1 and 2 children and adults please continue to enter the school building up the steps from the playground and, to ease congestion, exit out of the main school door at reception
• years 3 to 6 children go their classrooms independently, unless you need to speak to their class teacher
• nursery and reception age children and parents please wait on the bottom When the bell rings, please wait until the older children have left the play ground and then proceed to wait outside the Foundation Stage Unit. Please keep your children close to you and ensure they do not run around or climb the banks when queuing to drop off

Pick Up

• if your child is nursery or reception, please wait on the bottom playground to until 3.25pm before proceeding to wait outside the Foundation Stage Unit
• year 1 children are collected at 3.30pm from the front door alongside the school office
• if your child is in years 2 to 6, please wait on the bottom playground and they will meet you there. Access to the bottom playground will be from around 3.20pm

As with before school, please ensure your children do not play on the pirate ship and the gym equipment outside the huts or in the woodland.

Thank you for helping us with the safety and smooth running of the school.

Yours faithfully

Jeremy Cooper

Welcome back everybody and what a half term of weather it was!

Previous drop off and pick up routines had to change due to Covid. It is now time to make small changes to return to those routines to minimise disruption and to ensure safety. Please click here for a letter detailing routines to resume on Monday. Please ensure that all of those involved in the dropping of and picking up of your children are aware the routines. Due to children being dropped off at school too early and left unsupervised too early, we are giving notice now, to enable you to plan accordingly, that entry to the school site will not be permitted before 8.40am from September.

A zebra crossing to make a safer connection between Anchor Park and Appledore School has been proposed and consultation is underway. To have your say on improving the safety of our children and residents please add your comments to the Devon County Council consultation available by clicking here

For details of a summer holiday football club running throughout the summer in Barnstaple please click here

This week staff have received updated safeguarding training on harmful sexual behaviours.

Date for the diary: We have booked a live online safety parent workshop on Monday 3rd July at 5pm delivered by Devon County Council Safeguarding Team. You can log in from your own device by clicking here or joining us in our school hall on a big screen. It will last for approximately one and a half hours and we have deliberately scheduled it just before the summer holidays when children typically spend more time online.

Wishing you all a super weekend

From Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff

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Th weather was neither too hot or too cold, nor too wet or too dry, for a thoroughly enjoyable sports day. Thank you for your attendance and support, Friends of Appledore for the refreshments, staff for organising it so well and the children for being such good sports. Well done to Arctic for winning on the day!

And well done James for winning a Pupil Nature Award at the North Devon Biosphere Pledge for Nature awards night on Monday. James’s prize was a bat box.

This week staff have relieved safeguarding training on online safety.  We are aware our pupils are speaking more frequently about online influencers – please click here for a short online guide for parents on influencers – and some promote inappropriate views and material for young children.

Dates for the diary

• Carnival queen disco is Friday 25th May 6-8pm at the social club and entry is free
• Please remember that term starts again on Tuesday 6th June
• Live virtual parent workshop on online safety scheduled for you all on Monday 3rd July at 5pm with login details to follow nearer the time

Have a lovely half term everybody

From Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff (more…)

The lines are marked on the field, equipment all checked and ready to go and the sound of race practice rings out – it’s time again for sports day. Please click here for the arrangements and we hope to see as many of you as possible.

Please click here for information on football trials for girls in years 4, 5 & 6 for Plymouth Argyle or email Joshua.chalk@pafc.co.uk

For safeguarding reasons we ask all visitors to our school site, inside and outside, to either hand in or turn off and store away their mobile phones. When you are on school site waiting at drop off or to collect your child please do not use your mobile phone or have it visible to comply with safeguarding requirements. Thank you.

Fingers crossed please for the weather on Tuesday and we hope you all have a lovely weekend!

From Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff (more…)

We are looking forward to Sports Day on Tuesday 23rd May. These are plans for the day and please be aware changes may be required before the day or during the day in response to unforeseen circumstances. Please note the change to previous correspondence is the shortening of the lunchbreak by fifteen minutes.

School will open at the normal time and parents can take their places on the field once their child has gone into their classroom.

Latest news – Friend of Appledore School (formerly known as the PTA) will be selling bacon rolls (+ vegetarian option currently under discussion) in the morning for parents and cream teas in the afternoons. Hot and cold drinks also available.

9.30am -11.30am: races for children in Years 1-6 will take place and parents and carers of children in these year groups are very welcome to attend. Please sit behind the roped off area. After these races all children will then go back to class for a short period of time.

12pm-12.45pm Parents and carers are invited to stay to picnic with their children from reception and years 1-6 on the field. Children in years 1&2 can be collected from their classrooms, children in Reception from the Foundation Stage Unit and children in years 3-6 will come out to meet their parents.

Please stay on the field and do not enter the wooded area.

Children in Reception and years 1&2 that do not have parents attending will eat a school dinner in the hall as per usual. Children in years 3-6 who do not have parents attending will eat their packed lunch on the playground.

12.45pm: the children are called back to class for the register

1.15pm the activities for all children from Reception to year 6 will start. Children will be placed into house teams and will take part in a number of different activities. You are welcome to move around with your child’s team and support them in their activities.

Please can children in years 1-6 come to school wearing their PE kit. If possible they can wear a t-shirt in the colour of their house instead of their usual white PE shirt. Children in Reception to wear a house colour t-shirt if possible (please see notice board outside FSU for which house/colour) and trainers. Children will also need sun hats, sun cream applied and a named water bottle.

When the afternoon activities have finished (no later than 2.30pm) all children will return to their classroom and parents and carers can collect them to take home.

Best wishes
Appledore School

A busy week that included year 6 pupils taking their Key Stage 2 SATs tests. They demonstrated resilience – fuelled by a bacon bap each morning – and showcased all their hard work to prepare themselves. Well done year 6 and a big thank you to the governors and past and present staff who volunteered their time this week to support the children.

Telegram app is proving to be a popular alternative to the likes of WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger; indeed, in some countries, it’s overtaken that pair to become the most-used instant messaging app. Telegram’s encryption, sadly, all too often encourages the app’s use as a conduit for extremist political material and illegal sexual content. Please click ask your children which messaging apps they use and if Telegram is one (it has a 17+ age advisory) and click here for a guide with tips on a number of potential Telegram risks including a lack of age verification, inappropriate content and cyber-bullying.

DIARY DATES

• Sports Day is Tuesday 23rd May (weather permitting!). Please click here for the details and here for a poster by the children. Please be aware that changes to this plan could be required and potentially at short notice – hopefully not though!
• We have booked a live online safety parent workshop on Monday 3rd July at 5pm delivered by Devon County Council Safeguarding Team. You can log in from your own device by clicking here or joining us in our school hall on a big screen. It will last for approximately one and a half hours and we have deliberately scheduled it just before the summer holidays when children typically spend more time online.

AROUND THE CLASSES

Wishing you all super weekend

From Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff (more…)

A sea of red, white and blue and many crowns and tiaras too!  A super day to bring in the coronation bank holiday weekend.

Please take a look at the diary dates, including an online safety workshop we have booked for parents, and what has been going on in each class by scrolling down or clicking ‘more’.

Have a lovely weekend from

Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff

Diary Dates

• Sarah Weston is hosting a meeting Friday 5th May @3.30pm in the hall for anyone who would like to volunteer for the parade dressed as characters in the theme of Matilda and/or for decorating the float.
• Castle Hill Creatives Art & Crafts Spring Fair which will take place on Saturday 13th May 2023 from 10 am until 4 pm at Castle Hill Community Center in Great Torrington, EX38 8AA
• Sports Day is Tuesday 23rd May (weather permitting!). Please click here for the details and here for a poster by the children. Please be aware that changes to this plan could be required and potentially at short notice – hopefully not though!
• We have booked a live online safety parent workshop on Monday 3rd July at 5pm delivered by Devon County Council Safeguarding Team you will be able to access live virtually from your own device or here on a big screen. It will last for approximately one and a half hours and we have deliberately scheduled it just before the summer holidays when children typically spend more time online. You will be able access it remotely on https://devoneducationservices.clickmeeting.com/online-safety-appledore-primary-school-3-7-2023-17-00-18-30/49bf193566f1628d720162006454bcb8 or clicking here We will remind you nearer the time.

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A very busy week for all classes (see below in Around the Classes) that also included two morning visits from Devon County County. One for them to learn more about our curriculum and how we teach it and the other was also requested by us to audit our safeguarding procedures. Both were very positive and those who visited were very impressed by the all the children they met and the quality of our provision.

And significantly, Annemarie Bettis, who many (if not all of you know!), attended her last governors’ meeting this week which brought down the curtain on her 30 years plus service to this school and all its families as she retires. Annemarie has been a driving force in the school and is already greatly missed. We have a started a collection for her and if anyone would like to contribute please contact the office. If you are reading this, thank you so much Annemarie. With love from us all.

Trainers are beginning to appear and please be aware these are not school uniform. If you are unsure of the required uniform, please click here.

Please can pupils in years 3-6 bring a piece of fresh fruit to school each day for their mid morning snack. We are noticing a large number of children are eating from their lunch, eating items that don’t help their concentration and that littering is on the rise. Please can pupils in years 3-6 bring a piece of fresh fruit to school each day for their mid morning snack. We are noticing a large number of children are eating from their lunch, eating items that don’t help their concentration and that littering is on the rise. Teachers have spoken to the children and your support is needed please.No cereal/fruit bars or dried fruit please as a substitute.

Wishing you all a super 3 day weekend and we look forward to seeing you on Tuesday.

From Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff

Diary Dates

• Children can wear red, white and blue clothes on Friday 5th May to mark the coronation.
• Sarah Weston is hosting a meeting Friday 5th May @5pm in the hall – meeting for anyone who would like to volunteer for the parade dressed as characters in the theme of Matilda and/or for decorating the float.
• Castle Hill Creatives Art & Crafts Spring Fair which will take place on Saturday 13th May 2023 from 10 am until 4 pm at Castle Hill Community Center in Great Torrington, EX38 8AA
• Sports Day is Tuesday 23rd May (weather permitting!). Please click here for the details and please be aware that changes to this plan could be required and potentially at short notice – hopefully not though!
• For girls and boys half term football clubs in Barnstaple and Bideford, please click here

OUTDOOR LEARNING NEWS

The children have been helping out with lots of jobs around the microreserve. A donation of trees from Northam Town Council has been planted around the boundary and the new pond. Year 6 have reintroduced the Flag Iris to the pond and some new species to help oxygenate the water, and provide refuge for wildlife. Over 100 Newts were returned back to their habitat along with some leeches, and pond skaters! The group have added a wetland wildflower mix to the pond edge so fingers crossed in a few months the pond will be surrounded by some beautiful and wildlife friendly species. The pond itself has been dug and relined with funding from the ANOB and funding and muscle from The Friends of Appledore has allowed a new pond dipping platform which is waiting to be installed – we are all very excited to be able to use! Hope fully you’ll agree it’s looking more open, accessible and engaging already!

Eco Rangers and ambassadors have been busy in the Polytunnel and WW2 garden getting the ground ready, weed free and planting early crops – we’ve already harvested some winter lettuce, peas carrots and early broadbeans and are looking forward to getting some produce ready to sell again in the last half term of summer.

We fired up the pizza oven at Eco Rangers this week too and enjoyed a successful wild garlic pizza bread – foraged from our own woodland! Thanks for all the help and support from everyone and if anyone has any odd seeds they don’t want anymore or half bags of compost lingering around that won’t get used- we are grateful for any donations.

AROUND THE CLASSES

This week in Turtles and Dolphins we have continued learning about castles. On Tuesday we celebrated St George’s Day. We read the story and we changed our role play areas into castles so that we could act out the story. We also made St George’s cross flag. We have painted pictures of the castles and had a go at making a tall princess hat. We also talked about whether we would like to be a knight and whether we would like to live in a castle.

In Year 1 this week the Sea Lions have been using adjectives and conjunctions in their writing to improve their sentences. We are also working really hard on our handwriting at the moment and making sure we are taking the time to form our letters correctly. In Maths we have been looking at volume and capacity and have enjoyed comparing the capacity of different containers. In topic we recapped the names of the 5 oceans and then learnt about the different layers of the ocean. The children remembered so much of this learning from Dolphins, we were so impressed! We then learnt facts about the layers and looked at some animals that might live in each layer. We have been practising some songs that we are learning for the KS1 Music Morning happening on 18th May at The Big Sheep. Miss Carr is finding out if parents can get tickets to come along to this. A letter will be sent home next week to let you know if it is possible to come along.

Year 3 thought about something they enjoy doing in their free time and how they would feel if they had to give it up. This helped them to understand how the disciples felt when they were first called by a Jesus. They also had their first piece of whole class ensemble teaching which was linked to their work in a French. They sang frere Jacques in four parts and then learnt the fingering for the notes on the recorder so they could play the tune. Year 5 considered the meaning of the parable of the wise and foolish builders. They also began some whole class ensemble teaching and began to recognise notes on the stave. Year 6, looked at what kind of king Jesus was and continued with their unit of work on dance by finding different motifs to express the changing mood of the music

Year 2 have been working on fractions this week in Maths and have been finding a half, quarter and third of different amounts. We have been impressed with how well some children have persevered even though they found it tricky – well done! In English, they have been writing stories based on the Dragon Machine using brilliant imagination. For their Geography work, they have been looking at maps of the UK and naming England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as their capital cities. In the Art Studio, they have been very excited to work with clay as part of the sculpture work they are completing this half term.

Seahunter class (year 3) have had a busy week! We have planned and started writing a poem on an imaginary journey, based on the book ‘A River’. In maths, we have been learning all about mass and this week we focused on learning all about grams and kilograms. We learned that there are 1000 g in a 1 kg and used this knowledge to work out equivalent masses and also had a go at comparing different masses. In science, we designed our own experiment to find out a plant’s requirements for life and growth. In geography, we explored the journey of a river from the source to mouth. We learned lots of new vocabulary and made our own glossary of new words. We also created our own river scene out of different materials and then labelled the different features of a river.

This week in HMS Echo (year 4), we have begun our new Science topic of Electricity – it was great to see what the children already know about it and they’re very excited to build their own circuits next week. In Geography, we have looked at what it means by ‘virtual water’, and how much water is used to produce and make things, such as a piece of beef steak, which uses a staggering amount of water! We are continuing with swimming and tennis this week for PE. In English, the children have learnt about using interesting nouns and verbs, a variety of adverbials to show when, where and how and also figurative noun phrases, such as ‘a doorway of destiny’, and the children are going to apply this to writing their own circus setting description. In Maths, we are continuing with decimals, where we will be looking at partitioning decimals in different ways and ordering and comparing decimals with tenths and hundredths.

Year five have continued writing about Shackleton’s journey to the South Pole.  They have been finding out about how The Endurance became stuck on an ice floe, how the men and dogs survived the cold dark days and eventually how the ship was crushed and sunk.  In maths we have continued to measure and draw angles with accuracy, making sure we understand how to use a protractor correctly.  In science we have looked at plant life cycles and planted different beans to see if we can see the stages of growth in the classroom. Half the class have visited the Burton Art Gallery to look at the current exhibition as part of their Arts Award; the other half will visit next week.  Everyone enjoyed the tennis session and we are looking forward to starting cricket coaching very soon.  Outdoor learning will take place next Friday so please remember to send in appropriate clothing for this session.

Another busy week for Year 6. They have been refining skills and revising knowledge in Maths, Grammar, Spelling and Reading. They enjoyed the welcome break from the Brass Band on Thursday and have been earning time outside for working hard too. Dance has been going well, textiles in art is coming together and they have been writing up final copies of about half of their ‘Tempest’ stories. Homework this week has links to resources that they may find useful – sorry in advance for the songs they may burst out singing as they work on retaining knowledge.

Welcome back everyone! It’s great to be back and we’ve even had some sunshine.

Further to our message earlier in the week, it’s Picnic in the Park on Sunday 7th May at Anchor Park, organised by Friends of Appledore School, and all are welcome. Please click here for more information.

This year, with the hope for more suitable weather, we have scheduled sports day for Reception to year 6 pupils for Tuesday 23rd May. We hope to see as many of you there as possible and more details will follow nearer the time.

Have a lovely weekend

From Jeremy Cooper and all the children and staff (more…)