Dear Parents and Carers,
Harvest Festival Collective Worship
What a fantastic turnout it was for our Harvest Festival on Wednesday afternoon. I can't remember having quite so many families in church for this service in a long time. I hope you enjoyed hearing the children sing, read their beautiful poems, act out a Harvest play and read about harvest. It was lovely to hear the prayers that the children had written too. Many thanks to Rev Tracey for reminding us that even the smallest act of help or kindness can make a big difference. We certainly hope that your very generous gifts of food will go to help those who need an extra boost this autumn.
Royal Ballet and Opera
Children in KS1 and KS2 were given the opportunity to work with the Royal Ballet in an on-line workshop on Thursday. This was the first part of a year-long project that High Bickington are engaged in alongside Swimbridge School. Despite a few technical hitches, the children engaged brilliantly in learning about how an opera is put on.
A couple of recent studies
There has been a bit in the news recently about how much sleep humans need in the winter months. In addition, this week there have been stories on the BBC about screen time and the impact on long-term health. These focus particularly on the amount of screen time children have in school. One report stated that, "Many children now spend longer on screens in the classroom than is recommended in a 24-hour period ..." This seems hard to pin down. Primary school aged children (over 5 years old) have a recommended maximum of 2 hours per day plus educational use. Children at High Bick do not have anything like the 2 hours plus in school on a normal day. However, it is something that we will monitor closely across TEAM and aim to strike the right balance - especially in light of any government directives that may arise from current consultation. I have included links to both here incase you wanted to find out more.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/feb/17/humans-may-need-more-sleep-in-winter-study-finds
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq4g18prn4l4o
Funny Friday
It has been a bit strange having three teachers out on one day today! We are fortunate to have Mrs Rowden and Mrs Scowen, both of whom are qualified teachers; know the children well and are able to step in at short notice. We are also fortunate to have a small pool of regular supply teachers who we can call upon to cover classes: today it was Mrs Cork in Class One. Many thanks to all three for ensuring that learning went on in the same excellent manner in each class.
Next Week
School Review
On Thursday, it will be High Bick's turn to undergo a TEAM school review. Mrs Poland (TEAM School Improvement Lead) will be heading up the review into phonics, reading and maths. These reviews are important as they give myself and our Governors another perspective on how we are doing. I will give you a summary of the report after half term.
Torridge Mental Health Support Team
TMHST will be in to run workshops with KS1 and KS2 on Monday, looking at 10 things you can do each day to maintain good mental health.
Class One Stay & Play
On Wednesday morning, Mrs Game will be running her next Stay & Play - this one being focused on early maths. If you have a child in Class One, please do come along and see how we teach maths in the class.
Have a lovely weekend,
Rob Norton
Head of School
