In our assemblies today we talked about what we can do to take care of our local environment and our planet. Year 1 & 2 had great ideas for things we can all do…

• Reusable water bottles and shopping bags
• Don’t drop litter
• Pick up litter (but check with an adult if it looks dirty or dangerous)
• Say no to plastic straws
• Use a compost bin and water butts in gardens
• Don’t waste water
• Save your leftovers at dinner time
• Separate your recycling
• Respect all wildlife

In the KS2 assembly we took things further. We watched the full speech Greta Thunberg gave at the United Nations (UN). Greta became famous at age 15 for protesting in Sweden. Recently she traveled to America and gave a well researched, passionate and persuasive speech to world leaders, demanding they do more to tackle climate change and take care of Earth for future generations.

We were all inspired to talk to our school council representatives about what we think Lawford Mead should do to make change for the better. Almost all school council ‘reps’ have been voted in now. They are ready to listen and discuss your ideas in their first meeting with Miss Abbott.

You can also leave a comment below with more ideas for school council…

This week’s Word of the Week is…exquisite. It means beautiful, detailed and delicate. Can you use it in conversation and your writing next week?

Thank you to the Y6 girls who wrote our Friday assembly reflection time this week. We always like to hear what has been on the mind of our Year 6 role models during the week and what they think is important. Here is what they wrote and read to us all today…

Be respectful to others

Try your best in whatever you are doing and never give up.

We need to take care of one another to make good friendships.

Always listen in class to improve your progress in learning.

Show respect towards all our school values.

We announced our House Captains in assembly today. These proud Year 6 role models were voted in by pupils across the school after they wrote and delivered speeches. arguing why they should represent their house teams (Foxes, Badgers, Hedgehogs and Squirrels) throughout the year. Congratulations to all 8 house captains!

We awarded our new ‘Reader Leaders’ award today for the first time. Our new trophy, a certificate and bonus adventure playground time goes to the class who read the most during the week. Remember to read and use your reading record every day if you want to be ‘Leading in Reading’!

Here is our reflection poem from assembly, written by two Y6 girls who have thinking about our well-being when we feel worried….

You may not think some days are good days but there is always good in every day. Push through those hard days to make good days happen.

Remember you’re not the only one who feels this way. If you have any worries, you’re not alone so talk to someone about it.

Just be you.

Finally, our new Word of the Week is…distraught. Use a dictionary or thesaurus to look it up and see if you can use it in your conversations and writing this week.

Have a great weekend.

Mr Poyton

Thank you to the 109 parents and carers who came to our Year 1-6 ‘Meet the teacher’ mornings this week. Powerpoint slides will be added to our Year Group pages soon.

We revisited my favourite poem in our assemblies in Tuesday’s assemblies. It has something to say say about our values of aspiration and resilience. What does the poem say to you?

It Couldn’t Be Done – by Edgar Guest

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done,
     But he with a chuckle replied
That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one
     Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
     On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
     That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

Somebody scoffed: “Oh, you’ll never do that;
     At least, no one ever has done it”;
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
     And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
     Without any doubting or ‘quit it’,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
     That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
     There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you one by one,
     The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
     Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing
     That “cannot be done,” and you’ll do it.

This week’s WotW (Word of the Week) is… discombobulated ! It has a similar meaning to confused but you can research the word to find out more about it. Can you use it in your writing? In a comment below? Thank you to the Year 4 pupil who gave us this week’s word.

This year we are introducing the Mighty Oak public speaking programme into our curriculum so all our children can learn to speak confidently and fluently to audiences. Year 6 had their first lesson in the hall today. Se the picture above. They were brilliant and did a great job as role models in celebration assembly this afternoon, giving introductions and giving out awards.

Two boys from Year 6 wrote and read out a fantastic acrostic poem about our value of passion for reflection time today. Check it out…

P assion is a vital part of our lives. If we didn’t show it, school could be a waste of time.

A lso, if we did not show it, no progress would be made and we would not get anywhere in our lives.

S ome things we can live without, but passion we need without a doubt.

S haring your passion with your peers can help you face your fears.

I nspiring others is a great thing to do, it costs nothing and is good for you.

O ver time your passion will grow, if you never try you’ll never know.

N ever stop doing what you love, don’t let anything get you down and never go home with a frown.

Thank you for the fantastic example you are setting Year 6!

Mr Poyton

P.S. Don’t forget that Monday is National Teaching Assistant Day so don’t forget to say thank you to an LSA for all the help they give…and why not give them a compliment while you’re at it?

Teachers have hidden more books in the local area for families to find!  Keep an eye on our Twitter feed to see where and visit our highlights gallery for more information.

Everyone was very happy to be back in school this week. We have been learning lots together already, with old friends and new. In assembly on Friday afternoon we reminded ourselves of what our values mean and the rewards we can work for each week.

Keep an eye out on our Highlights page for photos of our new learning environment around the school and the book hunt challenge we are setting families!

We end Friday assemblies with a quiet reflection time, often written by one of our Year 6 role models. This week our role models thought about the exciting school year ahead and all its opportunities…

Going into a new year can be a challenge.

Believe in yourself and refresh your mind.

You can do anything if you put your mind to it.

Have confidence and be yourself.

See you next week for more Lawford Mead adventures.

Mr Poyton

It was a busy day today…

Reflecting

In assembly many of us shared our highlights of the year. Can you leave a comment below telling us your favourite memory of this past school year?

Reading

Well done to our ‘Readers of the Year’. These children really do love books and in assembly today they were awarded with a certificate and a brand new book for reading at home so often. We also welcomed Robert from Essex Libraries to our assembly to talk about the https://summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/. Make sure you get to a library as soon as possible to sign up. You can borrow 14 books at a time on your library card, all for free! And next Monday you can buy a second-hand book for just 20p or 50p at the end of the day. Please donate a children’s book to our shelter at 8:45am and then come back at 3:20pm to buy a different one! All money will go towards new books for the school.

Reporting

Representatives from our brilliant School Council presented to school governors and Mrs Baker today. See the pictures below. They reported to our visitors on the School Council’s important work, highlights of the school year and the findings of their research into two of our school improvement priorities this year; writing and attendance. Thank you to all our School Council representatives and to Miss Dearing who has supported them along the way.

Three more days of the term left with LOTS more fun ahead. See you next week!

Mr Poyton

Bewildered is an adjective that means very confused or puzzled.

Example: The teacher noticed a bewildered look on the boy’s face during the maths lesson, so she went to help him.

Can you leave a comment below with another example sentence?

Mr Poyton

This week’s WOTWC (Word of the Week Challenge!) is…excruciating. This is an adjective that means extremely painful. For example: I broke my toe and the pain was excruciating! Can you use this word in another sentence? Leave a comment below.

In assembly we discussed top tips for keeping cool in this hot, sunny weather. The children had some great ideas including:

• Drink plenty of water.
• Take breaks in the shade.
• Put suncream on in the morning.
• Don’t wear jumpers or coats but do wear a sunhat.

Can you leave a comment with any more top tips below. ..?

Mr Poyton