On Tuesday, Year 6 started their first day as the head of the school and made a brilliant start settling in for the year ahead. With a focus on building our crew, the children have engaged in activities to bring individuals together, and to learn each other’s strengths; Wednesdays group challenge was to complete a long distance walk to Brockadale Nature Reserve , and back, a route of just over 8 miles (12 km). Enthusiastic, positive and very supportive of one another, the children completed their first challenge of year six with vigour. We now look forward to some interesting, unorthodox athletics challenges on Thursday before beginning of the hook week for our first expedition of the year. Looking forward to a fantastic year ahead with 6CC 2023/2024!

Years five and six had the honour of learning from Askern & Hatfield’s Brass Band and listening to their pleasant colliery tunes this afternoon. Between the songs, the musicians gave an insight into the origin of brass bands in the UK as well as talking about the impact being in a brass band has had on their own lives, from performing in prestigious, world-renowned venues to making lifelong friends and even supporting their mental health. Thank you very much to the group for coming to our school to share their music and their stories with us!

Norton’s own theme park opening soon!

This morning, year six gathered themselves into groups to begin drafting business proposals for a new theme park in Norton. With £5 million to spare, the class started to budget their theme park and create a map of their park, including thrill-seeking rides, children’s rides and water flumes galore. Their understanding of the four operations were definitely put to the test as they checked their balance sheet to ensure they could afford their new ventures. Good luck, entrepreneurs! 👍🏼

This week, year six began their gymnastics journey. Studying balance, the class first took time creating as many different balances as they could in small groups before looking at a mixture of solo and paired balances. Point balances included balances which were support by hands and/or feet whilst patch balances used broader areas of the body such as the back or torso.

The children were asked to create a four balance sequence including two point balances and two patch balances. However, each balance must represent a different fruit or vegetable. Imagination came to the forefront the class created some brilliant sequences, demonstrating control, composure and, of course, balance!

On Thursday morning, the school nursing team visited years 5/6 to talk to the children about the importance of sleep. The children learned about the amount of sleep they should be getting 9-11 hours per night. 

The team also discussed how a regular team could benefit children in their efforts to get to sleep at a reasonable time each night. Refraining from using electronic devices an hour before bed (a suitable cut off time) was also mentioned as a solution to help the brain prepare for sleep. 

Reading in bed, listening to calming music, drawing and colouring were highlighted as activities children can use to reduce cognitive activity in the brain before bed.