Newsletter Issue 8
Ferncumbe Friday
Friday 17th January 2025
Head’s Message
Happy New Year to our wonderful Ferncumbe community! It's hard to believe we're already three weeks into 2025 - time certainly flies when you're having fun and learning!
I'm thrilled to share some of the exciting happenings at our school. This term, we've got a fantastic lineup of sporting events that are sure to get our pupils' hearts racing and skills sharpening. It's always a joy to see our young athletes giving their all and representing Ferncumbe with such enthusiasm.
This week, we embarked on a whirlwind journey with our 'Dance Around the World' day. The school was buzzing with energy as our pupils twirled, leapt, and grooved to rhythms from across the globe. I couldn't help but feel like I was watching my favourite programme, Strictly Come Dancing, right here in our very own halls! Do take a moment to peruse the photos - I'm sure you'll be as impressed as I was by our budding dancers.
Speaking of impressive performances, I'm over the moon to announce that our Year 3 pupils have made it through to the next round of the Speed Cup finals in stacking. Their nimble fingers have certainly paid off, and we're all rooting for them in the upcoming competition.
As we settle into the new year, I'm delighted to report that our teachers have been singing the praises of our pupils. They've noted how enthusiastic and ready to learn everyone is - it's heartening to see such a positive start to 2025.
Now, I have some news to share about an upcoming adventure of my own. I'm thrilled to be heading off on an educational exchange to our sister school in Sierra Leone. This incredible opportunity will allow us to support educational practises and further develop the links between our schools. I'm excited to bring back new insights and experiences to enrich our own community here at Ferncumbe.
As always, I'm immensely proud of our school and the wonderful things we achieve together. Here's to another fantastic year of learning, growing, and celebrating at Ferncumbe!
Sally Morris
Headteacher
Eco Schools Assembly
This week, four of our Eco Team in Wroxall Class, held an assembly for the school, explaining all that we have done so far this year. From litter picking and donating money, to analysing our electricity and water use. They also introduced our new competition! More details below.
Mrs Grier.
Guess Who!
As part of our Eco-Schools work this year, we would like to do more fundraising, and with one of our key areas of improvement being water use/education, we have decided to ‘twin’ our toilet with one in a developing country. This will contribute towards a community without good sanitation, being able to build their own toilet block for their community. More information can be found here: https://toilettwinning.org/
This term, we will hold a baby photo competition, whereby all the children can try to guess to whom the 12 baby photos displayed in school belong. They will pay 50p to enter, which will also include entry into a raffle for a brilliant prize!
Please keep an eye on e-mails for reminders of when to send in 50p with your child – most of us need warning for small change nowadays! Children can, of course donate more to the cause should they wish. Many thanks in advance for your support and we hope the children have fun guessing!
Mrs Grier
Dance around the world
On Monday 13th January, we had the fantastic opportunity to learn some dances from around the world led by Stephen, a professional dancer. Stephen was a great role model to us all and shared such enthusiasm with each class. We started with a fantastic warm up to great music and then the learning began. We learned dances from Cuba, Ukraine, France, Scotland, India and Kenya, flying from one place to the next. The freestyle part at the end allowed for some creative juices to get flowing too! All of the children worked so hard to pick up the short routines in such a short space of time, putting some children really out of their comfort zone. Overall, so much fun was had, so many smiling faces and a great session to get our bodies moving. Well done team Ferncumbe!
Lowsonford Class
Shrewley CLass
Honiley Class
Rowington Class
Haseley Class
LowsonFord CLass
Over the last couple of weeks, Year 6 have been thinking about courage. This is the value we are learning about in worship. I am really pleased with how well they have thought about words that are related to, or mean the same as courage. They have also written fantastic acrostic poems using the vocabulary and they have set themselves personal challenges! One of my favourite phrases was “Having the guts to have a go!”
Poetry Corner!
A lovely poem from a pupil in Year 6, sums up how many of our pupils feel about the world…
The Sound Of Nature
The sound of nature, ringing in my ear,
What a delightful noise to hear.
Chirruping birds, soaring high,
Pattering rain, falling from the sky,
The sound of nature, ringing in my ear,
What a wonderful thing to hear.
Squeaky squirrels climbing trees,
Whooshing, lovely, gentle breeze.
These mesmerising sounds and many more too,
Listen to them now and see them through.
The sound of nature we must protect,
But sure enough, so far, we reject.
Forest School
As the winter chill settled in, our Year 2 pupils embraced the great outdoors with their first Forest School session of the year. It's been wonderful to see their enthusiasm and resilience as they braved the cold temperatures, demonstrating their adaptability and love for learning in nature. These sessions provide invaluable opportunities for them to develop their independence, problem-solving skills and appreciation for the environment. The smiles on their faces and the rosy cheeks upon their return to the classroom were testament to the joy and engagement these experiences bring.
Mr Byrom
Online Safety
Please find details of an Online Safety Information Session which will be incredibly useful. The link for the session will follow next week.
Our School Vision
With very best wishes for a lovely weekend,
Sally Morris, Head Teacher