The Howard Primary School, Elford
We hope you all had a wonderfully restful half-term break and managed to enjoy some of the glorious sunshine. As we enter the final half-term of the academic year, the calendar is packed, but we are by no means slowing down! We are utterly committed to keeping the energy high, the learning deep, and the opportunities plentiful for every child at The Howard right up until the final bell of the summer term.
Our Year 4 children have been working incredibly hard securing vital multiplication skills and have now successfully completed their national Multiplication Tables Check. Meanwhile, our Year 1 pupils have also officially finished their statutory Phonics Screening Checks. Every single child has done themselves exceptionally proud with their focus and effort, and we are waiting with real excitement to hear of their many successes.
Our Year 5 pupils have just returned from a truly memorable residential trip to our twin village of Awoingt in the North of France. Accompanied by Mr Wynn, Madame Stevens and Mrs Billingham, the children were fantastic ambassadors for our school. During their jam-packed itinerary, the children truly immersed themselves in local life by touring the beautiful village, playing traditional games and joining in with lessons alongside their French peers. There were plenty of smiles and excellent communication as they finally met their pen pals in person, sampled authentic delicacies and even enjoyed a private concert by a local musician. A particular highlight was a visit to a local tank museum, where the group was treated to a fascinating personal tour by the museum's founder. Amidst all these wonderful experiences, a special mention must go to the entire group for their impressive language skills; they absolutely blew the staff away by confidently ordering and paying for their own souvenirs entirely in French! A huge thank you to the staff who made this trip possible and well done to Year 5 for making us so proud.
Our Nursery and Reception children, aged just 3 to 5 years old, had a wonderfully fun visit to the Arboretum, where they successfully tackled the Stick Man trail. After exploring the classic story in class, being able to bring the characters to life in such gorgeous grounds was a truly magical experience for them all. While exploring the trail, our littlest learners showed impeccable manners, prompting multiple passers-by to stop and compliment them on their exemplary behaviour. We are always incredibly proud of our children, but even more so when our wider community notices their kindness and respect. A huge thank you to one of our school governors, Mrs Gavin, who kindly volunteered her time to support Mrs Powles and Mrs Blakeman on this memorable day out.
A massive well done to our Year 3/4 cricket team, who recently competed in our Multi-Academy Trust (MAT) competition! The children put in a fantastic effort on the pitch, but most importantly, they demonstrated outstanding sportsmanship throughout the tournament. As always, they were a credit to The Howard and represented our school community wonderfully. Unfortunately, the 5/6 competition has had to be postponed for now due to the weather.
Our Class 2 children enjoyed a fantastic collaborative trip to Twycross Zoo alongside three of our partner MAT schools, perfectly bringing their Science learning to life. The children took part in an interactive workshop focusing on animals and their diets, and they eagerly showcased their impressive knowledge as they explored the enclosures and discovered more about the different species. We were incredibly proud of our pupils throughout the day; their sensible behaviour and positive attitudes made them absolute credits to The Howard.
Finally, the excitement is building for our Class 4 children as their Greenpower race day quickly approaches. They have been incredibly busy putting the finishing touches to their two fantastic car designs: Pacman and Summer Vibes. After completing the creative bodywork, the team faced the tricky task of fixing the designs onto the car frames. This required outstanding teamwork to ensure everything was fitted securely and the wheels could still rotate perfectly. With safety testing successfully passed, it was time for driver training! Once suited up in their official overalls, the children took turns navigating a custom course set up on the playground. They did a brilliant job and are now counting down the days until they can put their cars through their paces at Curborough Race Track on Wednesday 17th June.
There are many more photographs of our wonderful experiences, both in and out of school, on our school blogs so please do take a look!
Due to the recent unpredictable weather, our traditional village May walk has been rescheduled and will now take place on Wednesday 24th June from 9am. We will be embarking on our traditional route around the village, stopping to sing songs to our community. This remains a wonderful opportunity for the children to connect with our local neighbors, and we truly hope to see many of you waving from your doorsteps or joining us along the route!
Following this, that very same evening, we will be hosting our lovely May Queen Celebrations from 5:00pm to 6:00pm. This special event features the crowning of our year 6 girls as May Queens, the ringing of the church bells by our wonderful year 6 boys, beautiful traditional singing and spectacular maypole dancing from our wonderful children. It is always a highlight of the school year and we would like to warmly welcome all members of our community to attend and share in the festivities with us.
From everyone at The Howard Primary