Find out what's happening in school:

• Year 5/6 debating competition

  Tue 27 Feb 2018 Mr. B

  Today we hosted the first heat of the Leeds Debating Competition. The debate proposal was that 'Children should be allowed to use mobile phones in school'. We entered two teams, one for each side of the debate. Each speaker was scored out of 100 for argument (50), presentation (30) and structure (20). 

  Our first team, consisting of Marley, Holly (who stepped in at 15 minutes notice to replace Sam) and Fern won their debate - they were proposing the motion against a team from Micklefield. Our second team - Macy, James (also standing in at 15 minutes notice, this time for Bosco), and Macy-Jo - opposed the motion against Westerton. Unfortunately, Westerton were the winners of this debate. We will now have to wait until next week to find out if we have made the final - the finalists will be the 8 teams with the most points after all three heats have taken place. 

  All of our debaters were fantastic - they put lots of time and commitment into preparing their speeches and listened carefully to advice. They spoke clearly and confidently in front of the judges and an audience of strangers. Finally, thanks to Alex and Erin from Year 5 who acted as timers. You were all wonderful and made us very proud of our school in front of the visiting dignitaries, teachers and students from elsewhere.

  

• Year 3/4 Maths Inspire events

  Tue 13 Feb 2018 Mr. B.

  Last week we held three Inspire events for each of our classes in the Year 3/4 phase. The events were our best attended yet and the feedback received was extremely encouraging and positive. It is clear the events were enjoyed by parents/carers/grandparents in terms of allowing them to spend quality time in school with their children, as well as supporting adults' understanding of how the maths curriculum is delivered at Strawberry Fields. Thank you very much to all those adults who were able to attend.

  A small selection of quotes from the feedback forms is included below - thank you again for being so positive about these events. 

  A number of parents also asked for further help to support their children at home in the form of handouts or weblinks. School leadership and the Maths team will be working on this when we return to school after the half-term holiday and will communicate with you shortly. Thanks to all those adults who made this suggestion - the better able you are to support the children's learning at home, the better progress they will make!

   

  Parent/carer feedback form quotes:

   

  Did you enjoy the event? If so, why?

  “Yes I did because I got to learn what my son is doing and it was very enjoyable. I knew he liked Maths but didn’t realise he loved it!”

  “Excellent session, really useful to understand approach to teaching different ability levels.”

  “It’s lovely to have the opportunity to spend ‘quality time’ with your child at school.”

  “Yes, a chance to join with my daughter and see all the children in action. I’m very impressed/inspired.”

  “I really enjoyed my first Inspire event with my son. It was useful getting an insight into what they are learning in Maths.”

  “Yes, very interactive and gave a good insight into how Maths is taught in school.”

  “Yes. To explain how they do their Maths work helps to see how it works with their homework.”

  “Yes. Good to work with my child, meet other parents and children, talk to staff and get feedback.”

  “Yes. Very informative as to how they structure their Maths in the classroom and the theory behind it.”

  “I learnt a bit more about fractions, denominators, numerators etc…”

  “Nice to see the questions and how they are presented to the kids so as to be support this at home.”

  “It was good to learn about the approaches being taken to Maths and to work with my child. It helps me to help my child at home too.”

   

  If we were to do another Inspire event in the future with a different theme, would you attend again?

  “Absolutely!”

  “Definitely.”

  “Yes – very informative.”

  “Definitely.”

   

  Do you feel that you learned more about your child’s educational experience at Strawberry Fields?

  “I really have. I have realised how hard they work.”

  “Yes I did. I was surprised by what he was able to do!”

  “Yes – particularly the meta-cognition idea which is excellent.”

  “Definitely. New approaches that I was not aware of. My son often says he can’t do something so it’s good that he is challenged and can achieve.”

  “Yes. The theory behind the learning is interesting.”

  “Most definitely.”

  “Yes I do, it’s great to get the opportunity to understand their learning methods.”

   

  Did you find the films at the start informative/interesting?

  “It was information I am already familiar with, but I was pleased to see that you are aware of this and using these ideas in school.”

  “Yes, it showed the theory behind the methods.”

  “Yes, especially around (neuro) plasticity.”

  “Makes you think how negative beliefs limit kids, particularly with Maths as both mine have difficulty getting past ‘trying and not succeeding’.”

  “I was surprised.”

  “Yes. Good examples of how behaviour is learnt.”

  “Yes, especially the fleas in the jar!”

  “Yes. Thought provoking.”

  “Very. I really enjoyed the demonstrations of the fleas in a jar.”

  “They’re very interesting and often apply to adults as well as children.”

   

  Do you feel better able to support your child with their Maths learning as a result of attending the session today?

  “Yes I do. I will take more time with him as it was quite enjoyable.”

  “She knows more than I thought. I’m super proud and impressed.”

  “Yes – it’s good to understand the methods used.”

  “Yes – breaking down the problem is a good idea.”

  “The session made it much easier to understand what we need to do at home.”

  “Yes. I always try to help my son with homework without doing it for him. This reinforces that my actions are correct.”

  “Yes and it has made me want to help further.”

  “Yes, I understand more how they learn and work things out and it makes it easier for me to help with homework.”

   

  Do you have any further comments?

  “I find these events give a helpful insight into the learning structure within the school. Extremely helpful!”

  “Thanks for engaging parents and kids in the way that you do!”

  “The staff were helpful and very friendly and gave some useful tips.”

  “These events are really helpful and engaging.”

  “Good session, nice to see the passion of teachers and child engagement.”

  “Lovely morning. Nice to be part of the children’s learning.”

  “It was nice to chat to the teachers. It’s always nice to get the chance.”

  “Very informative and enjoyable. So different from years ago thank goodness! Excellent teachers!”

  “Really enjoyed the morning. Thank you!”

  “Found the talk on Growth Mindset interesting – very applicable to all stages of life.”

  “Really enjoyed it. Thank you.”

  “Great work! Thank you.”

  “A great idea to hold these events, I would have liked a longer session.”

  “I feel it is good to have Inspire events for both children and adults.”

• Year 6 boys' football

  Thu 08 Feb 2018 Mr B

  Our Y6 boys' football team went out of the cup this afternoon, after a 2-0 defeat against West End Park Primary. It was a very close game, with the scores 0-0 at half-time and West End's second goal arriving very late in the game, as we were pushing forward to try to equalise. The game was played in a good spirit and the teams evenly matched. On another day, the result could easily have gone our way.

  There were lots of fantastic individual performances, making it very difficult to choose a man-of-the-match. However, honourable mentions are definitely due to Alex in defence who made a number of urgent tackles as the last man, and distributed the ball well when in possession, and to Sam in goal, who commanded his area well and made two very good saves before we finally conceded midway through the second half.

  Although we lost, it was a close and exciting game. Well done boys!

• Safer Internet Day

  Tue 06 Feb 2018 Mr B

  Today (February 6th) was Safer Internet Day. All the children have been discussing their use of the internet and mobile technologies, and have had an opportunity to complete a survey exploring what, if anything, they worry about when using the internet and digital communication. As ever, the children have impressed us with their maturity and sensible attitudes. We will be following up some of their responses in the coming weeks. In the meantime, please ask your child(ren) about what they have discussed in school today for Safer Internet Day. 

  This link http://www.strawberryfields.leeds.sch.uk/esafety/ will take you to the eSafety section of our website which includes some links to external websites offering resources and advice. 

  If you have any concerns about eSafety or your child's use of the internet or technology, do not hesitate to contact us at school.