First of all, thank you to all the Class 2 families for making time to come into class this morning to share in the amazing writing the children have been doing this term. It was really lovely to see you all first thing in the morning to celebrate the progress that each child in Class 2 has made in the past year.

Class 2 have had another full week of amazing learning adventures - so many new facts discovered, so many new skills learned and so many more memories made. In Literacy, we have finished writing the neat copies of our setting description. We have had some awesome sentences and imaginative use of words. On the left is an image of one such writing. We have now started a new unit on writing a diary entry.  In Maths, we have completed our unit on Fractions and have just completed our Cold Task for the next unit on telling time.

In Science, we used all our knowledge of mini-beasts and their microhabitats to help us design our own microhabitats for our outside area. In Computing, we have begun experimenting with the Stop Motion app to make our own stop motion animations. In History, we learned about motte-and-bailey castles and stone keeps. In RE, we have begun exploring how Christians bring Jesus' good news to others.

In Art, we have finally assessed our structures and explored different ways to make the structures more stable before using our creativity to decorate them. We have had some very creative structures. Please check below for a photo illustration of the process we followed to get to the end result. You will also be able to see a photo of your child's creation if you check their Showbie portfolio.

Finally, a very well done to:

> Jimmy for getting the Ready Award for the amazing progress he has been making in Maths.
> Jane for getting the Respectful Award for taking really good care of her equipment.
> Harriet for getting the Safe Award for being an amazing team player.
> Isabella for getting her London Achievement Award.

This week, the class have been busy exploring our science topic on habitats through an exciting practical activity, grafting willow. Although our attempts did not work out quite as we had hoped, it provided a valuable learning opportunity and sparked lots of thoughtful discussion about what plants need to survive and grow. During our time outdoors, we also made a lovely discovery of a stray caterpillar, which quickly became a focus of interest. Josh, in particular, has been making some fantastic observations about the caterpillar and has linked his ideas brilliantly to our learning about the life cycles of mammals, well done Josh! Year 6 have also shown incredible perseverance this week as they tackled their SATs with determination and maturity, and they should feel extremely proud of all their hard work. To celebrate the end of a busy week, we enjoyed a well-deserved class picnic together. We would also like to invite parents to come into the classroom tomorrow from 8:40am to take a look at the wonderful writing the children have been producing, we look forward to sharing it with you!

Playtimes are always enhanced when we have access to the field and this year we have introduced additional equipment to make the playtime experience even more positive. Here are a few photos of the children enjoying the opportunities they have for socialising and positive play.


Well done to our Year 6 pupils who completed their SATs this week. However we try to reduce the pressure, inevitably, some children will always feel anxious about doing these tests. They all did incredibly well and can look forward to finishing the term without the shadow of SATs hanging over them. Next half term, the Year 6 pupils will have the opportunity to attend transition sessions in preparation for secondary school. Parents and carers can access guidance on how to support their children with transition to secondary school by accessing this workshop:



Congratulations to Lesley Connell who got married at the weekend. Lesley will now be known as Mrs Sammels, but is very understanding of anyone who forgets and calls her Mrs Connell - she still forgets herself!

A free half term opportunity for children:

These sessions are open to children aged 5-12, each session will be approximately 2 hours long. 

Sign up will close one week before the session date, or when the session reaches capacity, whichever comes first.

If your child is into drama, why not sign up to this free opportunity at an amazing setting. It is a long way to travel but well worth it and it could be combined with a family day out in the beautiful west of our county:

 

We have a lot to celebrate this week here in Class 2!

First, our Mrs Connell is getting married this Saturday and she will come back to school next week as Mrs Sammels. Next, we have all finished writing and editing our draft setting descriptions, and I am absolutely amazed by the awesome pieces of writing the class has produced this term! Finally, everyone in the class has done extremely well in their Around the World Challenge with 4 moving up to multiplication challenges while most of us are on the brink of mastering our number bonds. Hurray!

In Maths, we learned the difference between unit and non-unit fractions. Then we learned the most magical property of fractions  - the equivalence of a half and three quarters! As mentioned earlier, in Literacy, we completed writing our setting descriptions, edited it and have begun writing our neat copies.

In History, we learned the story of how William of Normandy became king by exploring the Bayeux Tapestry. In Computing, we have begun a new unit of work on stop motion animation. This week, we explored animation by making our own flipbooks. In RE, we continued our enquiry into the good news that Jesus brings Christians by looking at how following Jesus brings peace to Christians. In Music, we continued exploring pulse and rhythm with Mrs Clavier through the use of djembes. In Art, we have continued our journey as architects by designing a house and beginning to build a model using our sketches.

Finally, a very well done to:
> Sophia for getting the Ready Award for an amazing piece of writing in Literacy.
> Darcey for getting the Respectful Award for always being ready to help in the classroom.
> Lilly R for getting the Safe Award for being a kind and helpful friend to everyone in class.
> Roma, William, Jane and Emily for getting their London Achievement Award.

This week, our Year 3, 4 and 5 pupils visited the Porthpean Outdoor Education Centre for three days of adventurous activity. A highlight of their primary education, the children use this opportunity to develop confidence, and team building skills, undertake new and exciting challenges and learn to problem solve. Often, for the youngest participants, the greatest challenge is being away from home for the first time. Thank you to Sam Watts, Sarah Marley and Brendan Thomas, who gave their time to ensure the children had a fabulous trip. They reported that the children were brilliant and engaged fully in the opportunities open to them. Here are a few photos to show what an amazing experience this was.




May Day
Well done or our May Day performers who danced around the maypole for our community on Monday. Despite the odd tangle, which is all part of the experience, they did a great job. Thank you to Melissa Pinfield for coaching the children and supporting them on the day.


Music Lessons
Class 4 children had the opportunity to try playing ukuleles this week. They also continued their music tech lessons using Garageband.


Half Term Holiday Opportunity

Please note, there is a session at the Callington College 3G pitches on Tuesday 26th May.



Diary Dates
- Friday 15th May at 8.40am: Open session for parents and carers to look at their children's writing
- Friday 22nd May: School closed to pupils for staff training
- Monday 25th to Friday 29th May: Half term week
- Wednesday 3rd June: Class 3 trip to Carnglaze Caverns
- Wednesday 3rd June: Visiting history workshop in Class 4
- Friday 5th June: School closed to pupils for staff training

 

Lorem Well done to all of the girls who took part in the May Day dancing - you performed beautifully and made us all very proud! A big thank you as well to Talan's dad, grandad and uncle for helping to stabilise the pole and supporting us on the day; we are very grateful for your help. In English, we have been exploring our text based on Dickens' Oliver Twist, thinking carefully about how speech can reveal a character's feelings and personality. In music, we enjoyed a ukulele taster session and were thrilled to be able to strum along to a song together. In Maths, Year 5 have been working hard on understanding thousandths, while Year 6 have been developing their skills by looking at how all 4 quadrants work and translating shapes -well done everyone for your fantastic effort this week!

Turning paper into feathers

In art this week, Class 1 were inspired by the work of Andrea Butler to create feather like textures on paper.

They used oil pastel to add feather like markings and then created a wash with Brusho to paint over them.
Next week, we will be turning this paper into 3D feathers to stick onto our model birds. 

Please don't forget to come and see all of this wonderful artwork during our art exhibition directly after school on Wednesday 17th June!

This week in Class 2, it has been mostly about houses, homes and habitats.

In Maths, we have continued to dig deeper into Fractions. This week, we have learned to find a quarter and a third of not just shapes, but also amounts. We ended the week by using our knowledge of fractions to help us find a whole. In Literacy, we have continued to edit and polish the details of our setting description by adding adverbials of manner and expanded noun phrases.

In Science, we looked at different micro-habitats and where we might find them. Then we went on a glorious bug hunt in our forest school area. We wrapped up our learning with a very interesting discussion around why some of our mini bests prefer their micro-habitats. In History, we learned the details of the coronation ceremony in the UK. In RE, we learned about the Christian's view of forgiveness through stories from the Bible. We have also completed our block coding and this week, in our Computing lessons, we have all downloaded our codes into our micro:bits.

Finally, we ended the week with a really colourful Art lesson where we explored the art and architecture of Hundertwasser, the Austrian visual artist and architect. After learning about some of his fabulous buildings, we responded to some of his works in our sketchbooks. Please find below a selection of some of our sketchbook responses.

Finally, a very well done to:
> Ella for getting the Ready Award for coming back into the classroom with such a cheerful and ready to learn attitude.
> Finley for getting the Respectful Award for always remembering our class rules.
> William for getting nominated by the Positive Potato Police for the Safe Award for letting other people join in his game during lunch break.

Have a lovely May Bank Holiday weekend Class 2 families and see you all again bright and ready to learn on Tuesday 5 May 2026.

This week in Science, we have been learning about the different parts of plants and discussing the important jobs they do, as well as exploring the fascinating ways seeds are dispersed, including by wind, water and animals. The children have enjoyed making links between what plants need to grow and how seed dispersal helps plants survive and spread. In English, we have been focusing on writing speech, thinking carefully about how dialogue is punctuated and how it can be used to show character and move a story forward. In Maths, Year 6 pupils have been developing their skills with co‑ordinates, plotting and reading positions accurately, while Year 5 have been working hard to match fractions with their equivalent percentages and explaining their thinking clearly. We would also like to remind families that May Day dancing will take place on Bank Holiday Monday at the village hall just after midday, and we hope you can come along to support our fantastic dancers and enjoy the celebrations.

This week we held final rehearsals for the annual May Day celebrations. Starting at 12pm on Monday 4th at Harrowbarrow Village Hall, there will be music from Callington Brass Band, food, games and our very own maypole dancers. Hopefully, the weather will be better than the forecast currently indicates. 



This week, we also welcomed Sarah Parker-Clavier from the Cornwall Music Service. As music lead, Abi Fashman successfully applied for funding for each class to have music lessons to complement our music curriculum. The first lesson for the junior classes was about music tech; using GarageBand to compose music. Next week, Class 3 will be learning to play the ukulele and will be learning to play this instrument for the duration of the term. Perhaps, before the summer holidays, there will be an opportunity for 29 Year 3 and 4 ukulele players to perform to parents and carers!

Welcome back to everyone after the Easter break. We have a busy term ahead and will be sharing many of the children's wonderful learning experiences as they happen. This week, an invited group of Year 4 & 5 pupils participated in an art and sustainability workshop at the University of Plymouth. Well done to Joey, Harriet, Anoud, Elodie and Thomas, who worked brilliantly alongside children from two other Bridge schools. The headteacher from Brunel was in attendance and emailed me with the following message: 

We know how brilliant our children are but it is always nice to hear it from someone else.

Art
This week, I had the pleasure of working with Class 4 at the start of their summer art unit. This unit explores the work of designers and craftspeople. The point of our lesson was to make something from a fairly abstract prompt card. For example, they could make something that looked introverted, something that was shy, something that balanced etc. This allowed the children to design as they worked, so they didn't become fixated on trying to make something recognisable. This freedom, led to some very creative outcomes:



Reading
As we progress towards the annual summer reading challenge within our local libraries, there is an opportunity for children to meet local author Tom Palmer:


Sun Safety
In our assembly today, I reminded children of the need to keep themselves sun safe. I am sure we have all enjoyed the sun this week but we need to make sure we protect ourselves in the correct way. Please send your child to school wearing sun screen, with a sun hat and a bottle of water to ensure they are sun safe. Thank you in anticipation of your support.

I look forward to sharing more as we progress through the term.

It's been wonderful to see all the children this week and my how they have all grown over the 2 weeks! 

Class 2 have had a brilliant week back after the Easter break. As usual, we dove right into learning beginning with a new unit in Maths (one that we have all been eagerly waiting to learn) - Fractions. This week, we explored equal parts and learned how to find halves of shapes and numbers. In Literacy, we continued the unit on setting description. This week, we planned our piece and have begun writing our setting descriptions using our plans. We will continue writing our original pieces next week and learn how writers improve their writing by editing their original piece.

In Science, we have started a brand new unit this term - Living things and their habitats. This week, we learned the key features that defines a living thing, and learned how to use these key features to differentiate between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive. In PSHE, we reminded ourselves about the Green Cross Code and used the dry weather outside to practice it on our school grounds. 

We have also started a new unit in RE with Miss Walker. This week, we listened to the story of Matthew from the Bible and looked at how Jesus was a friend to the friendless. In History, we learned about King Charles III and explored what kind of role he plays in our country and in the world.

We ended our week with an exciting Art session. This term, we are all becoming architects. We begun our unit by looking at what architects really do and the kind of amazing buildings that we have around the word because of the ingenuity and creativity of architects. Then, we took a walk around the school to identify some features and had an interesting discussion around why some of these features have been designed in our building. One of the key theme that came out of our discussion was around accessibility and why ramps are needed in a building like ours but not so much in our houses. Finally, we ended our lesson with a calm sketchbook session where we responded to visual architectural prompts.

Please note that this term, our KIRF focus is the 5-times table and related division. Children should have come home with the KIRF document. However, if you have misplaced it, you can download the PDF document from the link above (Year 2 Sum 1. pdf).

Finally, a very well done to:
> Theo for getting the Ready Award for his awesome writing during Literacy lesson.
> Isla for getting the Safe Award for being a kind and patient learning partner.
> Ivy for Respectful Award for being always kind and helpful around the school.
 

Well done to the group of children who visited the University of Plymouth today to take part in a fantastic art workshop. During the session, the children learned about early photography methods and explored how images were created before modern cameras. Using photo-sensitive paper, they produced their own beautiful pieces of artwork inspired by leaves and flowers. The work created was thoughtful and creative, and we are very proud of the care and focus shown by everyone involved. These artworks will be used alongside poems as part of an exhibition in October, which is very exciting. Above is an example of the work that was produced.

Back in school, learning has continued across all subjects. In Maths, Year 6 have been developing their understanding of graphs and charts, while Year 5 have been finishing their unit on fractions, focusing on finding fractions of amounts using clear and accurate methods.

In English, we have been studying a text inspired by Oliver Twist. The children have been exploring how authors bring characters to life through speech, thinking carefully about how dialogue can reveal personality, mood and relationships between characters.

In History, we have been looking closely at the design of the £5 and £10 notes, discussing why certain historical figures have been chosen. This led to some excellent discussions as the children considered who they think should appear on the £50 note from history, giving thoughtful reasons for their choices. It has been another busy and productive week, with lots of creativity, curiosity and excellent thinking on show. Well done to everyone for their hard work!

Over the past week, our class has been hard at work writing up our non-chronological reports inspired by the incredible creatures of Pandora. Using their imagination and carefully chosen vocabulary, pupils have created fantastical species, describing everything from unusual habitats and diets to fascinating adaptations and behaviours. We have been so impressed with the quality of the writing, and it has been wonderful to see pupils take such pride in refining their work. Some truly fantastic pieces have emerged, and these reports are a real celebration of creativity, detail and descriptive language. We are excited to be able to share this work with parents soon and would love to invite you in to read through the amazing pieces your children have been writing. Please look out for further details coming shortly about how and when you can join us.

Alongside our writing success, we also enjoyed some brilliant Rock Steady performances this week. Pupils impressed us all with their confidence and enthusiasm, particularly showcasing some amazing guitar playing. The performances were full of energy and talent and were thoroughly enjoyed by everyone watching. Well done to the whole class for another fantastic week of learning, creativity and performance!

Aaaannnndddd... that's a wrap!

What a glorious last week of the term it has been this week. We have had a full week of learning and performances and fun in the sunshine.

In Maths, we completed our unit on Statistics. In Literacy, we wrote and edited the introduction to our setting description. We cannot wait to continue planning and writing the rest of our piece next term. In Computing we continued exploring block coding by looking at how our algorithms look like paper chains. In DT, we finally finished our pouches and spent time decorating and personalising them with Miss Walker. This week, we took time to consolidate our Geography learning by celebrating the amazing world we live in. Please look at the larger photo below for a selection of writing from the children about their own world.

Besides all these learning, we also had a special treat from the amazing Rocksteady bands on Thursday. We finally had the chance to listen to the very talented musicians as they performed the music they have been learning as a band. We rounded off the week with an awesome Easter fun in the sunshine. We started the fun with an Easter animal race, which led to much laughter as the tiny animals seemed to have a mind of their own. Then, we headed out into the forest school for a special Easter Egg hunt which also served as a chance for us to recap some key learning from the term.

A very well done to:
> Emily for getting the Ready Award for making an effort to use a range of interesting adjectives in her writing.
> Lilly T for getting the Respectful Award for her amazing effort at improving her presentations.
> Jimmy for being nominated for the Safe Award by the Positive Potato Police for being a very good buddy in the playground.
> Isla for getting the London Achievement Award.

Finally, a very big thank you to the Class 2 family for your amazing support through this term. Have a wonderful Easter break. See you all bright and refreshed on Monday 20 April 2026.