Latest News
Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
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HMS Musical Concert at GBP
Tue 28 Feb 2017This morning we had a real treat as the Hampshire Music Service came to our school to deliver a String Concert for the whole of KS2. Phil White and Brenda de Souza played their instruments and our children were so engrossed in what they were doing. Our children also really enjoyed singing some traditional songs and learning some new ones too. Watching them all tapping and nodding to the beat was so lovely.
We are so grateful for these experiences as music brings out out our emotions. Today's concert brought out lots of happy emotions but it helped us to sharpen our listening skills too. Music is fantastic for developing our pupil's understanding in other subjects as well and we hope that by listening to people who have a passion for playing, that our children will think that they would like to take up an instrument.
Not only that, this morning Mr White and Mrs De Souza talked about needing to develop the skills of perseverance, making an effort and practice. This backs up our work on Growth Mindset in school beautifully.
Thank you both for coming in and thank you to the Hampshire Music Service.
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Year One Tea Party
Fri 17 Feb 2017On Thursday, the Year One children hosted a Grandparents Tea Party. Oak Class had theirs in the morning and Chestnut in the afternoon. Both classes put in lots of hard work leading up to the event; they wrote invitations to let their guest know about the party, they wrote instructions on how to teach their guest how to play their games, they created art work to decorate the hall in the style of Andy Warhol and of course they made some sandwiches and biscuits to share with their guests. As part of our reading and writing week, the children completed some research about a relative and used this to write a biography which they were able to give to their Grandparent as a gift.
It was lovely to see the children so confident to talk about their learning with their families and to see them enjoying sharing games and toys. It was also a great opportunity for Grandparents to share with the children what toys and games they used to play when they were younger.
Thank you to all of the guests that were able to make it. We hope you enjoy looking at the photos to see what we got up to!
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Staff Autobiography Challenge
Fri 17 Feb 2017Thank you to all the children who entered the Staff Autobiography Challenge - there were 65 entries in total. Out of the 65 entries, only one child (Kieran from Hazel Class) managed to get them all correct. He received a £10 Waterstones voucher in assembly today. Well done Kieran!
Two runners up were then selected at random from the children who managed to get 8 out of the 10 autobiographies correct - these were Finley from Hazel Class and Jamie from Oak Class. They both received a £5 Waterstones voucher. Well done Finley and Jamie!
The correct answers were:
Miss Rogers 8
Miss Corcoran 6
Mrs Irons 1
Miss Lemar 7
Mrs Worgan 9
Miss Jackson 2
Miss Crossley 4
Miss Hanafin 5
Mrs Lee 3
Miss Lyddon 10
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Art week theme
Mon 13 Feb 2017Thank you to all of you who took the time to discuss the possible themes with your family and then vote for your favourite choice. We like to get your views and give you choices whenever we can as that makes the learning process even more fun! We had approximately 160 votes, some of which were whole family votes. Miss Finnimore has collated them all and this year our theme is going to be ‘The Seaside’. Our staff team are now working hard to plan and resource the week in May alongside their classes. We are sure that it will be just as good if not better than our two previous Art festival weeks we have had at GBP. Watch this space!
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Pip O'Sullivan - Making a dream a reality!
Mon 13 Feb 2017Today we had a visit from Pip O'Sullivan, a young woman who grew up and was taught in Basingstoke. She is going on a remarkable journey around the world this summer and came into school to inspire our children to believe that anything is possible. She has managed to secure a place on the 'Around the World Clipper Race' where she will sail 40,000 miles over a gruelling period of 11 months. An ordinary person doing something extraordinary.
I taught Pip 18 years ago when she was in Year 6 and back then she showed real determination, courage, wasn't afraid to be a little different, was aspirational and always tried her best. It is clear that she has continued to practice these values throughout her life as she is just about to embark on a journey that is really going to test her emotionally as well as physically. We will follow her adventurous story and plot her travels as she goes. Check out this link with your parents' permission as it is the short clip we shared today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Spug15k_fjY
This visit really compliments our whole school learning this week as we are studying biographies and autobiographies as part of our reading and writing week. Thank you Pip for taking the time out to come and visit our school. We feel incredibly proud of you and can't wait to be a very small part of your huge adventure!
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Love of Music Day
Thu 09 Feb 2017Yesterday we had the most amazing day celebrating the power of music throughout our whole school. It was one our termly 'Love of... Days' and this time we were learning about the social, emotional and cultural aspects within the over arching theme of music.
We were all very lucky to have many of Mrs Iron's orchestra group of friends to come into our school to share their musical instruments with the classes so the children got to hear many different instruments being played live throughout the day. A drummer, a harpist, a flutist, a saxophonist, a trombonist to name but a few. Our children were inspired and many have said they would love to start learning - let's hope so!
The children were so responsive to all of the sessions on offer. The children produced animation to go alongside pieces of music, created art in response to feelings the children felt when they heard certain pieces and they shared their favourite music and that of their families too. We had children showcasing their music playing as well as sharing their instruments with others at playtimes and at lunchtime which was fabulous. We also had some of our staff playing their instruments to the children at various points throughout the day too. The children had opportunities to compose pieces of music using tuned and untuned instruments and one year group used everyday kitchen objects as well!
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YouMe.Community.co.uk Voucher Scheme
Wed 08 Feb 2017We have received details of a new scheme which has been launched by YouMe.Community.co.uk.
It is similar to the Sainsbury's voucher scheme, in that they have produced vouchers and it will enable our school to save money on coach travel. These vouchers can be collected from participating small independent retailers and businesses.
If you see any of these vouchers on your travels, please collect them for our school. Obviously the more vouchers we can collect, the more money we can save.
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Safer Internet Day and Some Useful Links
Tue 07 Feb 2017Some of you may have seen an item on Breakfast News this morning about Safer Internet Day. Over the next week or so your children will be made aware of how to keep safe when using the internet and what to do if they should ever feel unsure about something.
The following information below is from Mrs Barnhouse to give you a bit more information about this:
Tuesday 7th February is Safer Internet Day, with the theme ‘Be the change: unite for a better internet’. Staying safe is something we all need to be aware of at any age, whether it’s crossing the road, driving a car or using the internet. The Internet is an amazing tool that impacts on our daily life so it’s important that we educate our children to be aware of both the benefits and the dangers of the World Wide Web. It is important our children build an awareness of how to deal with situations when they arise, especially if it is something that makes them feel uncomfortable. It is important children feel they can talk freely and communicate about what they do online to ensure any problems aren’t hidden away. This might be something from opening a pop-up and worrying about causing a software virus to seeing hurtful comments being made in a group chat or on a social networking site.
What can you do this Safer Internet Day?
At some point over the next two weeks your child will be learning about online safety. This will be differentiated to their year group. Please encourage your child to talk about what they have learnt so we can all share the message about how to stay safe online. We also have a dedicated section on our website in ‘Children’ called ‘Keeping Safe Online’.
Below you will find links to the resources used by each year group. These resources have either come from https://www.saferinternet.org.uk or https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk and are age-appropriate.
Enjoy Safer Internet Day!
Mrs Barnhouse
Helpful Information for Parents and Carers
- What apps and games does your child use? Find out more about them and their safety settings here: https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/online-safety
- Being pestered about buying the latest computer game? Not sure what it’s all about? Use http://www.pegi.info/en/index/ to find out about the Pegi ratings and what to expect in the game with clear, easy to follow symbols
- Find out more information for yourself and for your children at https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk
- Look for this symbol if you need to make a report about something that makes you feel worried or unsafe online.
Resources for children
EYFS – Lee and Kim Animal Magic booklet – Staying Safe Online https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/Global/parents/5/Lee_and_Kim_Storybook.pdf
Year 1 - Staying safe online - sharing what you're doing online with a parent/carer.
Smartie the penguin Year 1 Story. Read along and ask questions with children http://www.childnet.com/resources/smartie-the-penguin
Year 2 - Staying safe online - Digiduck's Big Decision (book). What would you do to help Digiduck?
Year 3/4 – What is cyberbullying? What would you say in the real world v the online world?
Years 5/6 - desensitisation - comparing the real world to the online world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_o8auwnJtqE
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This Wednesday is Love of Music Day!
Mon 06 Feb 2017This Wednesday we will be having a...
Love of Music Day
During the day the children will have opportunities to:
Listen to live music performed by visiting musicians
Perform on our outdoor stage at breaktime & lunchtime
Respond to famous pieces of music through art, drama, music and dance
Perform their musical instrument to their peers
Share & talk about their favourite piece of music
Hear & learn about pieces of music loved by staff at the school
Please could you remind your children that, if they wish, on Wednesday they may
bring in:
Their instrument
Any music they might need
A CD of their favourite music – named please
Could you help? If you are a musician and would like to share your love of music
with our children please contact the school office and we would love see you.
Thank you,
Mrs Irons
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The Children's Fair
Fri 03 Feb 2017Thank you Key Stage 2 stall holders for hosting the Children's Fayre 2017. There were 17 stalls for the children to enjoy, explore and have some fun! And lots to eat too!! Please check out the photographs to see what happened this afternoon....
