We have had a busy week with plenty to celebrate in our Friday celebration assembly today, not least our visit from Mrs Dennison of the Plymouth and Cornwall Cancer Fund who came to thank our year 5 and 6 children for thier amazing efforts in the summer term where they cycled, scooted and ran a marathon between them, raising over £450 for the charity.

George Orwell Polperro Project Exhibition Last year, Polperro Primary Academy was proud to receive the 2024/25 Orwell Society School Award. The award funded a nature-based project for last year's Y4-Y6 pupils, inspired by George Orwell's deep appreciation for the natural world - a passion he developed during childhood visits to Polperro. A special exhibition showcasing the work, is taking place at the school on Friday 3rd October at 7:00pm and parents/carers and pupils are invited to attend. The event will also be attended by members of the Orwell Society, including George Orwell's son, Richard Blair, who the children had the opportunity to meet during the project. The exhibition forms part of the Society's annual conference, which is being held in Polperro this year.

Polperro Arts Foundation Postcard Competition Last year, our pupils took part in an exciting competition to design a postcard inspired by Polperro. The competition was judged by the Polperro Arts Foundation, and we're delighted to announce that six of our talented pupils were selected as winners - congratulations to Leo, Flora, Callum, Arnie, Jemima and Imogen. A limited edition of just 50 copies of each winning design has now been professionally printed and is available to purchase at the Arts Foundation Gallery for £1 each. As recognition for their creativity, each winner has received a gift token funded through a share of the postcard sales. The remaining proceeds will contribute to the Foundation's annual donation to our school - a generous, much-needed and valued support that we deeply appreciate.

National Fitness Day Thank you for ensuring your child came to school in their sportswear on Wednesday for National Fitness Day. All the children enthusiastically took part in a variety of fitness challenges and engaged in thoughtful discussions about the importance of staying active. Each child also made a personal pledge on how they plan to keep fit moving forward.

Meet the Teacher It was a pleasure to welcome so many of you to our 'Meet the Teacher' sessions on Wednesday. If you were unable to attend but would like to speak with your child's teacher, please don't hesitate to contact the school office to arrange a convenient time. Parent consultations will also be taking place later this half term (dates to be confirmed).

Choir We're excited to announce that we have received funding from the Radford Trust to run a choir. Initially open to pupils in Years 2-6, the choir will begin next week and take place during Thursday lunchtimes. To encourage maximum participation, all eligible children will be invited to attend the first session. If your child chooses to join, we kindly ask for a regular weekly commitment going forward. The choir will be led by our music teacher, Mrs Butlin.

Looe Festival of Words Please find attached, information about this year's Looe Festival of Words which runs from 1st to 5th October. There are some exciting free events for children planned.

Have a good weekend.

Anthea Hillman

Meet the Teacher and art
We started the week with our Meet the Teacher Day. It was lovely to welcome so many parents into school and share what learning will look like this year, along with the expectations for each class. If you could not attend, please don't worry - just speak to your child's teacher who will be happy to talk you through the information. During the afternoon, families also had the chance to take part in art activities, creating some beautiful autumn-themed work together. Thank you for joining us - we hope you enjoyed the experience as much as we did.

Showbie
We also briefly introduced our new digital learning platform, Showbie, during Monday's meeting. Showbie is a classroom tool bringing teaching and learning together by supporting teachers in delivering lessons and providing children a variety of ways to record their learning, helping every child to succeed in a way that suits them. More information, including parental access, will be shared in the coming weeks.

National Fitness Day
On Wednesday we celebrated National Fitness Day. At 10am, the whole school got active together for 10 minutes, followed by little bursts of movement and activity throughout the rest of the day. Staying active is such an important part of supporting children's health and wellbeing, both physically and mentally, something we value and foster daily by including regular active breaks between learning sessions.

Kindness Challenge
Looking ahead, next week is Kindness Challenge Week. The children will be encouraged to carry out different acts of kindness, both at school and at home. They will bring home a list of challenges to complete across the week, and we would appreciate your support in helping them achieve these. We look forward to sharing the outcomes during next Friday's achievement assembly.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

 Jane Wills

Year 6 Macmillan Coffee Morning
Wow - what a fantastic time we had at our Macmillan Coffee Morning. From delicious cakes and sweet treats to fun-filled quizzes, beautiful handmade bracelets, and even a few songs. The morning was packed with joy and community spirit. It was truly heartwarming to see so many of you come together to support such a meaningful cause. There was such a lovely atmosphere as we all shared a cuppa, enjoyed some great conversations, and took the time to reconnect. The smiles, laughter, and generosity on display were a real reminder of the strength and warmth of our school community. The children especially said how much they enjoyed spending time with everyone. They were excited to take part, proud to help raise money, and thrilled to contribute in their own special ways - whether by baking, singing, helping to set up, or simply being part of the day. It was a valuable learning experience for them about compassion, teamwork, and giving back. We are incredibly grateful to everyone who joined us, donated, and helped make the event such a success. Your kindness and support mean so much - not just to us, but to the many people Macmillan helps every day. Together, we made a difference raising an impressive £525. Thank you!
From Year 6

Year 5 Life Skills Visit - Bodmin
At the Year 5 Life Skills trip, there were eight interesting stands that we really enjoyed. The first stall had very advisable reasons not to smoke or vape. This was the Healthy Cornwall stall. On the second stall (Cornwall Council) we were informed about parking and dog poo/litter fines. The best part was when we got to wear high-visibility jackets and put parking tickets on the windscreen of the van. The third stand was about choking hazards and how to check and then deal with them. Soon after that we learnt D.R. ABC, a helpful method of how to perform CPR. Then the group moved on to learn about the dangers of electricity and the amount of amps that can be put into an extension socket. Did you know, the maximum amount of amps in a four plug extension socket is thirteen?! Please bear that in mind! Next, we all watched some lifelike 3D simulations from G.W.R. about the dangers of railways. We were then informed about priority seats and tickets on buses. Last but not least, we heard about cyber choices and how to choose random passwords. It was an exciting, informative and fun trip.
From Sydney and Lily, Year 5

Foodbank Collection for Harvest
For Harvest this year, we will once again be collecting for Wadebridge Foodbank. Please send your child in with any donations from next Monday 29th September to Friday 3rd October. Donations such as tins and jars of food, rice, pasta, general toiletries and long life juice are most welcomed. Thank you for your support.

Year 4, 5 & 6 Open Evening at Wadebridge School - Tuesday 30th September 4:00-6:00pm
Wadebridge School extends a warm welcome to parents and carers of children currently in Year 4, 5 and 6 to their open evening next Tuesday 30th September.

Early Reading Workshop
Thank you for coming to our Early Reading Workshop with Mrs Hill. If you weren't able to attend in person or online, we will be sharing the presentation as soon as possible via our website.

The 'Bookie Shed'
Our 'Bookie Shed' will be open every Wednesday (weather permitting) after school. All children and parents are welcome to visit the 'Bookie Shed' (next to the Nursery/KS1 green gates) and help yourself to a free book!

Parent Teacher Consultations (PTCs) - Tuesday 21st & Wednesday 22nd October
The teachers look forward to meeting with you to share how your child has settled in and the progress they are making. We hope everyone will take this opportunity to meet with their child's teacher.

For parents/carers with children in Big Nursery, please note all appointments will be on Tuesday 21st October only.

The booking system on Arbor to make your 10 minute appointment opens next Friday 3rd October at 18:00.

How to book your PTC appointment
1. Click on the Arbor App
2. Select your child
3. Click on Guardian Consultations

The system works on a first come, first served basis, however there are enough slots for each child's parents.

Where to go
If you arrive earlier than your appointment, please come to the Hall, where there will be refreshments kindly provided by Caterlink. A few minutes before your appointment, please make your way to your child's classroom, waiting outside on the seats until called in. We need everyone's support in keeping to time. Unfortunately if you arrive late, we will still need to finish the appointment on time, given other parents will be waiting. It's also important for our staff, so they can get home after a longer day than usual. Thank you for your support.

Children's books
Teachers will be sharing with you some of your children's work/books. Following the meeting, you are welcome to take these to the Hall to look through (and have some refreshments). Once finished, there will be boxes in the Hall to drop them off before leaving.

Message from Mr Smith (SENDCo)
Teachers will be reviewing all SEND pupils' previous Assess Plan Do Review (APDRs) targets that were in place from summer term 2025. Our first set of APDR targets for 2025/26 will be written and communicated with parents at the PTCs. If more time is required to further discuss your child's need, you will be able to catch-up with teachers after half-term (please contact them directly if more discussion time is needed). If there is anything you would like built into your child's targets please contact your class teacher and they can build this into your child's APDR. As mentioned previously, class teachers are your first port of call around SEND and following conversations with them and/or a meeting, I will be involved as and when required.

Extra-Curricular Activities (ECAs)
A reminder that there are no teacher-led ECAs w/b Monday 20th October. Pro20 will be running as normal. There is no Dance on Friday 24th October, as school is closed for INSET. All ECAs will be running again after half term from Monday 3rd November until Friday 5th December.

If you have any questions or queries about making your PTC appointment, please contact the school office.

House Points
Congratulations to this week's winners, Swans. Overall, Choughs maintain the lead but it's narrowing:

Choughs - 948
Swans - 829
Cormorants - 686
Puffins - 671

Best wishes,
Chris Wathern

This week, we have been writing our poems in English. They are based on the book 'The Final Year' by Matt Goodfellow and are focused on coming back to school in September for the final year. We have been including figurative language, informal words and phrases, noun phrases and carefully chosen adjectives. The fun part has been thinking about the layout. We then did some peer editing to improve the poems as a class. 

We were lucky to have Jonathan Dart visit us on Tuesday afternoon to share his thoughts and belies about Humanism. The children enjoyed it and asked some fantastic questions. 

We have started a new class story called 'The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind' by William Kamkwamba which is set in Malawi and is based on a true story. We are enjoying it so far. 

In PSHE, we have been learning about positive body language and the difference between helpful and unhelpful talk. Next week, we are going to focus on giving compliments. 

Have a brilliant weekend!

Miss Burton

We've had a truly wonderful week enjoying the sunshine, which has brought a lovely energy to all our activities. The children particularly loved their PE session yesterday, where we practiced our dribbling skills - it was fantastic to see everyone so enthusiastic and giving it their best effort. Reception continue to thoroughly enjoy their weekly sessions with Coach James.

In Maths, we have been focusing on ordering numbers from smallest to largest and practicing how to compare them using mathematical language such as "more than," "less than," and "equal to." Reception have also been learning to represent numbers up to three using objects, pictures, and their fingers, helping them build strong foundations in early number sense. We've also begun exploring the concept of sharing equally - an important first step towards understanding division - using practical resources and play-based activities.

In English, we have been working on sequencing the story of Little Red Riding Hood. The children have enjoyed retelling the tale in their own words, using pictures and prompts to help them put the events in the correct order. This has been a great way to develop their understanding of story structure, and it has sparked lots of interesting conversations about characters, setting, and plot.

Reception have also been busy developing their fine motor skills through activities such as cutting and sticking, threading, and mark-making. These tasks support their hand strength, coordination, and early writing skills. In addition, the children have had lots of fun dressing up as different characters and engaging in imaginative role play. It's been lovely to see them using their creativity and storytelling skills to bring their favourite characters and scenarios to life.

Overall, it's been a joyful, active, and creative week full of learning through play!

Friday 26th September

Some of this weeks wonderful exploration has included:

Learning phonemes g/o/c/k. The children have learnt these sounds and then have worked really hard to used these sounds and previously learnt ones to orally blend.

For instance K-i-t   kit. They are amazing the adults with how well they are all doing.

Please use the weekly phonics sheets sent home to allow your children to share their reading knowledge with you!

The children decorated our season tree in class this week by learning about deciduous trees and exploring the colour changes in the tress on our school grounds. The children then worked in teams to collect fallen leaves and use autumnal colours to complete leaf rubbings. Mrs. Phillips then cut them out and placed them on our season tree- it looks amazing!

We have started formal mats this week and the children have been exploring matching, sets , and sorting. For one of our activities we went outside, collected some natural materials and sorted them into groups that the children suggested. You may have seen this when walking into class.

In English this week have continued to explore the story We're Going on a Bear Hunt. The children have been individually using their oracy skills to retell the story and sequence the story in their books.

In our Forest school time with Kelly this week , we explored the forest area and loved the rope swing , the trees to climb, the woodland to explore and so much more!

The children have also, used their funky fingers to cut out items in a house and make their houses, explored the Harvest table, used shaving foam to mark make, and sooooo much more!

Next week we move away from our sub theme of All About Me and we start to explore Superheroes/ People Who Help us!  Eventually this will include a walk down to Looe Town to explore people that help us so please ensure your consents are complete on arbor! We are so excited!

What a great week!

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend

The Foundation Team 

It's been a busy week at Darite again. The trip to the Cornwall Museum yesterday was brilliant. The children had a great time learning about childhood in Cornwall and the toys that were played with. They have come back with some amazing knowledge that will be really helpful in their learning. The sponsored triathlon is also taking part today. The children are really excited to take part and the number of bikes and scooters is testament to their fitness. Thank-you to everyone who has managed to sponsor the children. Every penny raised will be used to support the learning and providing experiences for the children at Darite. Stay tuned for the final total. Thank-you to the PTFA for their support in running the event too. It has been a wonderful start to the term and we are always looking for ways to make Darite even better. We are again looking at interest for extending wraparound care at Darite. There will be a message going home in the near future asking for your feedback including if you would use it, how often and then when you would need it for. Once we compile the responses, we can look at how we can support moving forward. Finally, can I politely remind you that children should not be using the trim train before or after school. This is a safety and insurance issue and, like you, we want to keep the children safe during the school day.

This week Matt Windle - the poet with punch was with us in KS2. Matt is a former Olympic athlete and poet laureate in Birmingham. He explored the theme 'What I want to be'..in all senses of the phrase and helped create poetry with the children and staff around this theme. PTFA - thank you for funding this experience for our children!

Today, at 3.20pm, Melissa Pinfield will be running the Scholastic book fair for the final day. If you haven't already done so, please drop by and browse the books available; there are books for all age groups. The book fair is in Class 4 and Melissa will be on hand to help provide information about payments and ordering online.
We are passionate about children having access to high quality texts through reading and being read to. Having access to books and reading outside of school is something we strongly encourage. Our reading provision is at the heart of our curriculum offer, with children having a healthy daily diet of reading, being read to and using a variety of texts across the curriculum. During their first week at school, our new reception children are partnered with a Year 6 'reading buddy', who share a book with them every Friday. Across the infants, children are taught phonics and early readings skills daily and junior children have access to a broad range of real books banded to match their ability. Unfortunately, this year we have been unable to sign up for Accelerated Reader, a programme that allows children to read a real book and then compete a short online quiz to determine how much of the book they have understood. We have used Accelerated Reader for many years but the cost has become prohibitive. The children still have access to the full range of Accelerated Reader books and we will still be assessing them to determine when they are ready to progress, but we are no longer able to provide online quizzes. Apologies to those children who enjoyed the quizzing, but hopefully there may be a time when we can afford Accelerated Reader again. In the meantime, please read to your children, hear them read, visit the local library to borrow books and visit the book fair later today to buy some great reads if you haven't already done so.

Next week, our music lead Abi Flashman has arranged for a group called Rocksteady to run infant and junior music workshops. This should be an exciting introduction to music beyond our usual curriculum provision. The following week, on Thursday 9th October, school photos will be taken at the village hall. Further details will be provided by the school office. 

Hello,
We have had a busy week here at nursery. We have been finishing off our learning where the children have been talking about themselves, describing different features and talking about who lives with them. We have also been talking about different people that help us including firefighters, police and the ambulance service.
The children have been busy drawing and creating pictures of their family and who lives in their house in order to make a mobile.  They have made paper cup houses and played in the firefighter themed tuft tray. We have enjoyed using play dough to make different faces.

At story time we have enjoyed reading "We are all different" and " Charlie the firefighter".

During phonics, the children have been listening to sounds and then trying to remember them in a game of "What do you hear?". They have been making different voice sounds with their mouths and playing instruments to match different sounds heard.

In maths, we have been exploring shape by making arrangements with them, completing inset puzzles and building with shaped blocks.

Have a lovely weekend

Julie and Sarah 

Making pinch pots and some orienteering!

We have had another great week in our class.

In Music, we have been learning about instruments. We practised using feathers to get the right amount of power to play a flute. We quickly realised if we blew too hard the feather would blow away. If we do the same with a flute it doesn't make a very nice sound! We have also started practising our Harvest songs for our Harvest assembly in a few weeks time.

In Art, we have been experimenting with clay. Last week we explored how we can shape clay and this week we used our skills to make pinch pots. We then learnt about slip and how to attach pieces of clay together.

We have also begun some outdoor learning this week! Looe primary have been very lucky to have an orienteering course set out on our playgrounds. We had a go at a 'five a day dash' course and practised our map reading. The children really enjoyed trying to find the right checkpoints and gather all the clues.

In Miss Bolger's Drawing and Craft club this week, we have been focusing on leaf rubbings. We gathered our leaves outside and then made beautiful collages using different colours! They look wonderful. If any children would like to join our club there is still space. Just pop me an email.

Well done Year 1 and 2, another great week.

Miss Bolger

Thank you everyone for making time to join us for the Reading Together session in Class 2. It was lovely to see all the parents and carers, and to share some of our amazing adventures with reading in our class. 

In Literacy, we have completed writing our draft copy of our report on lions. We spend this afternoon editing it using our toolkit. In Maths, we have been comparing numbers. We have also been having fun counting in 2s, 5s and 10s. We used a series of very amusing songs to help us remember the tips on counting up in 2s, 5s and 10. You can also share in the fun by following the links below and singing along to the video.
Counting up in 2s: https://youtu.be/GvTcpfSnOMQ?feature=shared
Counting up in 5s: https://youtu.be/EemjeA2Djjw?feature=shared
Counting up in 10s: https://youtu.be/Ftati8iGQcs?feature=shared

In Science, we discussed the importance of a balanced diet by looking at a food pyramid. We learned a lot of new vocabulary - carbohydrates, protein, vitamins and calcium being some of them. We also had another amazing PE multiskill session with Liam from Pro20 on Thursday alongside our regular Tuesday PE with Miss Walker where we developed our skills for dodging and changing directions.

As you all know, in History we are learning about how schools have changed over the years. We have been looking at a lot of different artifacts relating to our schools history. We had oodles of questions about how our school was like in the 1990s. One of our parents who studied here in the 1990s very kindly joined us on Wednesday to answer some of our questions. We had an awesome afternoon with Mrs Blatchford who answered so many of our questions and help us identify some of the things in the pho0to album from her time at Harrowbarrow. We will now be going further back in time to the 1800s to see how our school was like. Exciting!
 

Finally, a very well done to:

• Jane for getting the Ready Award for the amazing care she took to make sure all her numbers were formed correctly.
• Lilly T for getting the Respectful Award for always taking time to keep her table and workstation clean and tidy.
• Ivy for getting the Safe Award always taking time to help everyone in the classroom.

Fab Fitness and Sock Puppet Designs

On Wednesday, we celebrated National Fitness Day by participating in a range of fitness activities throughout the day. We had so much fun doing this and enjoyed moving our bodies! 

During Wider Curriculum lessons this week, we have continued to explore 'Who Rules the Animal Kingdom?' in Science, by exploring world habitats. We explored a range of big habitats and then chose our own to research. In Music, we have been composing eight beat patterns using body percussion. In DT this half term, we will be making our very own animal sock puppets. Today we had a go at creating some designs. Over the next few weeks, we will explore joining materials and sewing, before creating our sock puppets. 

In English, we have spent the week working hard on writing our postcards inspired by Meerkat Mail. Today, we began writing up our neat copies, which we hope to finish early next week. 

In Maths, we have been working hard on Place Value, recognised hundreds, tens and ones and counting on a number line to 1,000. As we near the end of this unit, we will be moving on to Addition and Subtraction.

Congratulations to Ida and Tommy for being chosen as Landaviddy's People of the Week, and a big well done to Sonny for achieving his 55 club badge this week. 

Some wonderful news, Jemima was chosen as one of the winners of the Polperro Arts Foundation Postcard Competition. She produced a wonderful postcard, which has been printed and can be purchased in the village. Well done Jemima! 

Reminder - We have our class trip on Wednesday 1st October to Dartmoor Zoo. 

We hope you have a super weekend and look forward to seeing you next week. 

Mrs Wilkie, Mrs Lister and Miss Colton

w/e 26/9/25

What a lovely week in Duckpool class!

Making the most of the beautiful September sunshine, PE for this half term has been all about orienteering and we've enjoyed following maps and directions to collect clues to solve puzzles. Huge thanks to Mrs Williamson for organising the fun sessions, which have shown our fantastic grounds at their best. Also, as you can see, we've been having  great fun in the builder's yard.

Art has been a revelation too as we're working on drawing self portraits using our own poetry from the very first week of term..yes, it's hard to imagine we know. As soon as they're finished, we'll be super keen to share them with you.

In computing, we're learning all about systems and networks, as always knowing how to use technology both safely and respectfully is central to this. We're also using Showbie our new Trust program across the curriculum and becoming quite proficient already.

This half term term's RE focuses upon what it means to be a Humanist in Britain Today, whilst PSHE is based on Being Me and particularly on facing new challenges positively and setting personal goals. French is also Being Me this half term, so we've been practising introducing ourselves and having brief conversations.

Last but certainly not least, in music we're learning about musical terms such as dynamics, pitch, ostinato and timbre, then putting them into action. Our Y4 children are also having weekly violin lessons, so please ask them how it's going.

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

What a busy and inspiring week it has been in Year 5/6KN!

We began the week with a fantastic visit from poet Matt Windle, who brought poetry to life in such an exciting and memorable way. His energy and creativity inspired us to write and perform our own class poem all about our aspirations, goals, and how we will achieve them. Working together, we produced a brilliant piece called Kite's Kind Kebabios, which we performed with confidence and pride.

Here is our poem:

Kite's Kind Kebabios

Have the courage to be yourself;
Work hard for the trophy on your shelf.
You'll be proud that you've done the right thing:
That single spark is inspiring.

It's OK to make mistakes,
Be determined and do what it takes.
Be confident and never back down,
Step right up and stand your ground.

We're Kite's kind kebabios, these are our bars.
If you work hard, you can be a star!
So chase your dreams and never give in,
Even a loss can lead to a win!

Alongside our poetry, we have been working hard across the curriculum:

• Maths - We have focused on rounding numbers, comparing and ordering numbers, and placing numbers accurately on a number line.

• Science - Our topic has led us to explore life cycles and gestation periods in different animals, which sparked some very interesting discussions.

• Online Learning - A reminder that we use an online platform called Atom Learning to support the children's learning. Each week, we set 'assignments' linked to what we have been covering in class. Please do encourage your child to check in regularly.

As part of our rewards and celebrations, we have been linking our learning with Forest School sessions. This week, the children enjoyed lighting fires and toasting marshmallows - a perfect opportunity to work together, celebrate achievements and build skills for life. Have a look at some of our photos to see the fun we had!

It has been a week full of creativity, challenge and teamwork. We are very proud of the effort Year 5 and 6 have put into their learning - well done, everyone!

Tregantle Class - Enjoying the Sunshine!

What a wonderful week we've had in Tregantle! The sunshine has given us lots of opportunities to take our learning outside, and the children have loved making the most of our garden space. From digging and building in the giant sandpit, to splashing and pouring in the water area, and getting creative in the mud kitchen - there has been so much fun and discovery happening outdoors.

This week also marked our very first Wild Tribe session! The children went on a leaf hunt, collecting and comparing the many different shapes, sizes, and colours they found. Using their leaves, they created fantastic face shapes, showing amazing imagination and teamwork. We ended the session by pretending we were leaves blowing gently in the wind - such a lovely way to finish our outdoor adventure.

Back in class, our learning is moving full steam ahead.
In phonics, the children have now learned all 10 of our first sounds - what an incredible achievement! In maths, we've been practising our counting skills and are working hard to count and order numbers to 5. Tregantle are quickly becoming expert counters!

It has been a wonderful week of sunshine, learning, and creativity - we can't wait to see what next week brings!

The children at Storytellers have been making the most of the autumn sunshine today by harvesting their very own potatoes!

With big smiles and muddy hands, they loved digging through the soil to find the hidden treasures beneath. Along the way, they discovered some of the amazing creatures that help the soil stay healthy - from wriggly worms to busy beetles - and even came across a tiny baby frog! The children carefully returned it to the pond area, learning more about how all these creatures play an important part in nature.