Headmaster's Welcome
Headmaster's News - 19th May 2017
May 19, 2017
19 May 2017
Dear Parents
1W Assembly
Thank you Year 1 for your assembly this morning about the exciting subject you are studying in class; Castles! You have learnt so many facts which you delivered with clear understanding to the rest of the school. I loved your costumes which highlighted the different people who would have lived and worked in a castle. I know that a lot of your knowledge has come from your trip to Skipton Castle which you all thoroughly enjoyed and which is where you witnessed and learnt more about the design of, and life in, a castle. Thank you 1W and Mrs Wilson for arranging this assembly.
Out and About in our Baby Nursery
I visited the Baby Nursery on Thursday and, having had a busy morning, I enjoyed immersing myself in the wonderful, calming atmosphere upstairs in our Baby Nursery. With the light music in the background, the children were exploring all the activities and toys and interacting with each other, the staff and even, quite quickly, with me. Although I was out of place at 6ft 2”, size eleven shoes and wearing a suit, they soon warmed to my presence as I sat down and started playing with me. Cian, after an initial wave walked over and started stacking hoops with me, being sure to take it in turns and pass me hoops so I didn’t miss my go. Gabriella and Evalyn were in the sensory area playing with different types of rings, passing them between each other and Mrs Johnston. Arthur was very busy crawling around the room and chattering away with everyone and dancing in front of the mirror. Mrs Johnston then started to blow bubbles much to the children’s delight; they tried to catch each bubble as it came near to them. The children then went outside to the playground. I watched Gabriella and Evalyn enjoying their snack on a blanket in the shade and Arthur was exploring the bridges and taking his turn to crawl across them. It was an idyllic setting with children enjoying the early morning sunshine, the sun glistening through the trees and bushes. I am sure that this was just the start of a lovely day in front of them. I was reluctant to return to my office!
Staff News
Mr Murray has accepted a position as Director of Junior Music at Oldham Grammar which will start in September. I would like to congratulate him on this promotion. I know that his strengths as a musician, musical director and teacher will be a great asset to Oldham Grammar School. I would like to thank him for his contribution to Highfield over the last three years where he has made a great impact across the school but especially in the Infants. I would also like to thank him for his two PTA Cabaret Evenings which raised funds for the school.
Baby News
I am delighted to announce that Mr and Mrs Mohamed, our Year 2 Class Assistant, are expecting a baby which is due in October.
Scholarship Boards
The current Scholarship Board will be full at the end of this Academic year and we have decided to make it our last one. From now on we wish to capture all the destinations and achievements of our Year Six children by displaying a photograph of them which will state their Secondary Schools (including any scholarships). This will be positioned in the hallway, where the current board resides, and move further into school as the years progress.
Open Morning
We are opening the doors of the school to current parents and prospective parents, family and friends on Thursday 15 June. This is a lovely time to visit the school, when the grounds are at their best and the children are able to celebrate their work and their achievements with you. If you would like to invite anyone who may be interested, please do pass on the date.
Leighton Hall recount by Isabelle and Katie
On Tuesday 16th May, both Year 6 classes went to Leighton Hall in Carnforth to expand our knowledge of our history topic about crime and punishment throughout the ages. When we arrived, we met our very friendly tour guide, Pam. She told us all about the history of Leighton Hall which is a building that looks part castle and part church.
We went into different rooms and found out about the weird and wonderful things the Victorians used. In the afternoon, we watched a bird of prey display outside. Before the display, we saw three ducklings and three falcon chicks, then we watched a falcon, called Neo, fly around and land on his trainer’s hand. Finally, we went into the gift shop and then travelled back to school. It was a fun and memorable trip and we would like to go back in the future.
Cricket v Rossall
Twenty boys travelled to Rossall on Wednesday to play cricket. In the hard ball game the boys batted competently, dispatching inaccurate deliveries for four. They also only lost two wickets which allowed them to amass a total of 99 off 16 overs. Rossall started well, defending the good bowling, however, this kept the run-rate down. The final four overs saw Matthew, Aditya and Alfie really increase the pace and quality of their bowling reducing Rossall to 28 runs off 16 overs. In the other two Kwik Cricket games, the boys competed well in all departments with the bat, ball and in the field. They won both games with notable performances from Zain, Ziyad, Nathanial and Henry. Congratulations to all the boys who took part and made it four wins out of four in the first two block fixtures of the season.
Rounders v Windermere by Grace T and Apala
All the Year 5 girls, who attend Rounders’ Practice, played in this match v Windermere School. The A team played on the astro-turf and the B team on the field. Both teams tried their hardest in the games, taking risks. Both our teams fielded first and we caught a couple of people out and stumped others by making sure we stumped our bases before passing the ball to the bowler. When we batted, we shared our lucky bats as we believed we could all make rounders or half-rounders using them. Everyone concentrated as we batted, making sure our aim was perfect and accurate and our stance was balanced. Unfortunately, Sophie fell but she coped very well and scored a rounder with her injury! In the final innings we were down to 6 batters, we tried very hard not to take risks and we achieved this. Our batters were nervous but they did very well. The final scores were: A team 10-12 and a half to Windermere and the B team 15-17 to Windermere. It was a very enjoyable match!
Merit Awards
RD: Avni 1D: Hugo 1W: The Whole Class 2F: Isa 2M: Sasha
3M: Edie 4H: Olivia 4S: Zainab 5D: Alexandra 5M: Abigail 6H: Holly 6J: Jacob
Monitors of the Week: Mohamed and Fatimah
Thought for the Week
Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine. Anthony J D’Angelo
Yours sincerely
J M Duke
Headmaster
