Lyonsdown News - 14th June 2019

From the Headmaster’s Desk

On one of the many tours of Lyonsdown I have had the privilege of carrying out this week I overheard Miss Davies asking the Nursery children: “what season is it today?” This is an excellent question to stretch and challenge our youngest pupils, even more so in a week when I think it is summer, but with a post-modern twist of April showers. Our children (and their parents) have needed to be adaptable with clothing for school and I was delighted that everyone collaborated to ensure wet play went smoothly. I can assure you that the children were sent out whenever possible; Year 2 will attest to that fact – bravo for your perseverance at the Barnet Environmental Centre!

There has certainly not been a damp atmosphere at Lyonsdown, with a very exciting visit from The Good Schools Guide. We will let parents know how to find our review when it is published, but our visitor’s comment that “your pupils and school are both lovely” is one that has kept us smiling all week. In my interview, I was asked about the School’s plans for next year: alongside giving details of our summer holiday facilities work, we also discussed Lyonsdown’s plans for next year, including refreshing our curriculum, changes to English and the fact that all pupils (including Nursery and Reception) will be provided with school lunches.

Finally, there has been a parental request for a regular Liverpool column in these pages. As much as I would love to indulge my passion, sometimes other sports sum up the growth mindset we cherish at Lyonsdown far better. This week, the Toronto Raptors won the NBA Championship for the first time. Impressive stuff for a team that did not exist until 1995 and lacks their opponent’s “star players” such as Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. The Raptors’ victory is testimony to the fact that collaboration and reaching for a common goal as a community is the key to success. I am very much hoping that the Lionesses of England will continue to prove this point in their World Cup match against Argentina.

All the best for a relaxing weekend.

Mr Hammond

1

Little Lyonsdown’s Stay and Play

Come and join us for our next Stay and Play session for girls aged 0-3 years old. You and your daughter will get the chance to meet our teachers and take part in fun activities, as well as being able to explore our outdoor space and developing Forest School. To reserve your place, please contact Mrs Brodie on 020 8449 0225 or email: admin@lyonsdownschool.co.uk.

2

Year 1

Year 1 have been reading and exploring a variety of Julia Donaldson books. The children have enjoyed talking about their favourite stories and giving their reasons why. The girls have been inspired by Julia Donaldson and her stories. The Year 1 Team

Reception meet Rogers Removals! Moving home means that toys and trikes as well as furniture, need to arrive safely at their new destination. Mr Rogers kindly explained the process to excited and interested children. Reception learned how to wrap crockery carefully and were delighted to be wrapping a mug that they were able to take home. Our huge thanks to Mr Rogers. The Reception Team

Year 1 1A performed their class assembly about plants to the school this week. They all spoke in clear, loud voices and delivered their lines brilliantly.

The girls worked really hard in their Science lessons and were able to share their learning about plants with the rest of the school.

Well done, 1A! Mrs Arlow

3

Year 2

On a very wet Thursday, Year 2 went to Barnet Environmental Centre. The purpose of the trip was to support the children in their work in Science. The children began the day, looking at different habitats and identifying the animals that live there. After our session indoors, we braved the weather and went outside to explore the animals and fungi found under logs. We ended our day with ‘indoor pond dipping’ where we identified many different creatures including pond snails, newts and blood worms. The children were all amazed by the abilities of a flat worm. A big thank you to our parent helpers and Caroline.

The Year 2

Year 2

Yesterday Year 2 had a visit from a Guide Dog, Ava, together with her owner obviously! We had a lovely time learning about what it can be like to be blind and how a guide dog is trained. To cap it all, we all got to give her a stroke. Thank you Guide Dogs for the Blind.

You can see some pictures of Ava and find out about her training on the Guide Dogs web site on https://www.guidedogs.org.uk/sponsor-a-puppy-today/ava/

Mrs Smith

4

Year 5

Year 5 have been reading two books about faraway places, Cloud Tea Monkeys and Mysterious Traveller by Mal Peet and Elspeth Graham. Both books are beautifully illustrated, containing rich and beautiful language. The girls worked in pairs to brainstorm vocabulary, metaphors and similes to go with pictures from the books, then went on to write their own descriptive paragraphs about the setting of one of the pages. Here are three for you to enjoy. Mrs Young

Sunset in the Mountains

We watched the sun fade into the horizon as

the blanket of night fell upon the village. As

we looked up into the sky it was dotted with

fluffy clouds like a knitted blanket. I saw

lush green leaves blocking some of my view.

The forest was bursting with colour. The

mountains were cracked and sloped towards

the ground. I sat on the log, it was as smooth

as glass. It was

humid as we drank up the soothing tea. The

dusty mountain sat there, like a giant fixed

to the ground.

By Ella

CAMELS

The click of the camels’ feet, running along to-wards the mysterious oasis, tap as they go along. As they travel along the vast desert …… the mist eats them up. As the men fight against the fierce winds, the shouts of the men

become as deafening as a war cry . As they moved along the desert, over ridged rocks, the sand flies, creating a horrendous sand storm, lots of little bits of sand blowing in their eyes.

By Ruby

The Tea Plantation

By Emilia Greenfield

The crystal blue sea about to fall on me.

The soft silky cloud like candy floss and marshmallow, eating the tops of the upside down ice-cream cones about to swallow me whole.

The vast open space around me.

The crisp, cool and gentle air against my face.

The chilled and calm atmosphere around me.

The luscious green leaves with ends like a sharp knife that could cut skin.

5

Important Reminder When you receive a letter from the office that contains an E-Form, please can you ensure this is completed by the closing date mentioned in the accompanying email. Missing the closing date results in the E-form becoming inaccessible and therefore numbers being inaccurate for upcoming events.

Artist of the Week

Congratulations Hannah (YEAR 3)

Year 3 pupils have been learning about the sculptor and artist,

Giacometti. Hannah made this wonderful sculpture in his style using

pipe cleaners and foil. Her figure looks very energetic doing a

handstand and she thought about the proportions of the body care-

fully. Well done for creating such a beautiful piece of work Hannah.

Mrs Cowie

The week ahead

Tuesday 18th LAMDA exams. Wednesday 19th Little Lyonsdown Stay and Play session, 10am for girls aged 0-3. ISA National Athletics (Miss Doyle to send further information). Friday 21st 2nd Nursery and Reception Induction day. Uniform for Kids Selling uniform in school. 3pm-4pm

Walkers and Rollers Breakfast Today, the children and parents who took part in Walk to School Week attended a Walkers and Rollers breakfast. There was a brilliant turnout and everyone enjoyed a delicious breakfast. Thank you all for coming!

If any adults have ever watched this comedy quiz show that grills celebrity contestants on the week's top stories and news, you may have seen a round where they used to give out a headline from a little known magazine and the requirement was to complete it in as humorous a way as possible. So here are a couple for you to try: Transparent………………………………………………..

Quick-fix wrap prolongs……………………………………………… At the end of London Tech Week https://londontechweek.com/ and with International Women in Engineering Day being celebrated on the 23rd June https://www.wes.org.uk/, it seems like a good time to look at a magazine called “Materials World.” This magazine comes through my door each month due to my brother being a Senior Technical Executive at the Electric Power Research Institute and is from the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. I find many of the articles absolutely fascinating and this month they covered manufacturing and printing in space, building a plastic road, turning recyclable materials into wind turbine blades and much more. Another recent article of particular interest was entitled “Skills for the Future.” This had quotes from the CEO of the Materials Processing Institute. He was outlining the effects of our fast-moving pace of technology meaning that the jobs of the future are hard to predict but that good STEAM expertise including digital skills will give an individual the ability to thrive. In our computing room at school we have displayed posters that say thank you to some of the wide diversity of people who have already played an important role in computer science. https://teachinglondoncomputing.org/diversity/ Annie Easley, whose code in the 1960s was used to fly rockets and laid the foundations for space shuttle launches. Shwetal Shah, who has represented young women in technology with governments and multinationals and championed creativity in computing. Do you know what cat-themed game that teaches programming did Schwetal work on?

The present. We have our computing lessons and have had workshops and visits including with robotics engineers and our school architect. I teach the pupils about the work that is entailed in keeping a busy and growing school network running, including all the coding, installations and upgrading that happen including during the holidays. The future? Pupils (and indeed one and all,) need to embrace computational thinking skills and steel themselves for digital changes! Mrs Everett

Answers:

(1.wood [yes, transparent wood!] and 2.concrete life [a glass fibre wrapping that means concrete can take an additional 80% load or repair cracks.])

7

Lunch Menu: week commencing: 17th June 2019

Yogurts & fresh fruit available daily. HM—Homemade V—Vegetarian MSC - Certified Sustainable Seafood

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

Main Course

Option 1

Meat Free Monday

Sweet Potato and Cheese Slice HM V

Tomato Pasta

Chicken and Leek Pie HM Roast New Potatoes

Tuna Enchilada HM MSC Wedged Jacket Potatoes

Chilli-ConCarne HM Wholegrain

Rice

Cheese and Tomato Pizza

V HM

Vegetarian

Option 2

Quorn Sausage V Baked Potato

Slices

Garlic and Basil Pasta V HM

Cheese and Onion Finger V

Savoury Rice HM

Macaroni Cheese HM V

Veggie Burger in a Bun Oven

Chips

Sides

Broccoli Baked Beans Green Salad

Carrot Batons Green Beans Green Salad

Peas Roast Cauliflower

Green Salad

Rainbow Coleslaw

Cucumber Sticks

Green Salad

Sweetcorn Carrot Batons Green Salad

Dessert Fruit Yoghurts and Fruit Pots

HM

Apricot Coconut Crunch HM

Butterscotch Mousse

Fruit Pots HM Yoghurts

Chocolate Crispy Square

Vegetarian Jelly Pot HM

Melon Wedges HM

Yoghurts