Last week was busy for all of us. Children came over from Membury to spend a day with our year 6 class so that they could get to know each other before the residential to Boswinger in Cornwall.

The photographer came to take the end of year class and the various sports club photographs. The latter is usually quite manic to organise due to the shortage of kit by this part of the year and of course the number of clubs we have on offer. The Perseverance Award goes to Mrs Muglestone who just 'gets on with it'.

The year 6 cricket team attended the East Devon Kwik Cricket Tournament and came a respectable 4th.

Children who have been receiving keyboard and piano lessons this year invited the school and their parents to an afternoon assembly. It was great to see what they had accomplished so far and we were all very proud of them.

The year 5 children went to Crealy on Thursday followed by shelter building and cycling at Haldon Hill on the Friday (photo above). If that wasn't tiring enough they then had a 'sleepover' in the school. The year 6 children joined them for the Haldon Hill activities. The weather was glorious and a good time had by all.

The year 3 children had a Roman day which included a full blown re-enactment of a battle between the Romans and the Britons. They had a fantastic time and the rest of the school, staff and parents (Britons) enjoyed the opportunity to bombard them with plastic and sponge balls. Not very authentic I know but satisfying nevertheless.

I spent a lovely evening meeting the parents of the children who will be starting in September. Mrs Ainsworth led the meeting starting with a tour of the school and grounds. These evenings are an opportunity for parents to ask questions regarding the induction process and find out about the curriculum and what Kentisbeare School has to offer.

I know this is sad but one of my highlights of the week was the delivery of new chairs for the classrooms but they do look great!

Have a good half term break.

Tracey Hailey

Lots more sunshine this week giving more opportunities to take the learning outside. It's great when everyone can get outside and enjoy our beautiful environment. The Foundation stage and year 1 children have been busily growing things to eat in their Garden Centre area set up outside and throughout the week the classes have been working in the Glade.

The year 5 children went to visit Uffculme Senior School to experience ' Life after Primary School', returning very excited and eager to start despite having another full year left at KPS.

A year 5 team was entered in the East Devon Kwik Cricket Tournament this year. Twenty one teams took part and they finished a commendable fourth. The year 6 tournament is this coming Wednesday. Cricket club is run all year round at Kentisbeare and is always well attended. Many thanks go to the school staff and volunteers who run it. New photographs will be available on the website soon.

Personally most of my week was spent buried under paperwork and dealing with issues totally away from the world of children. Thursday lunch time I escaped from a meeting to arrive back in time to welcome the children who were visiting from London.

Miss Dudley's Years 4 children have been communicating with children from Shaftesbury School in Newham for some time and we were honoured by their visit on Thursday and Friday. The children and staff involved from both schools had a big 'sleepover', visited a local farm, enjoyed the grounds incuding cooking in the Glade and eating alfresco, joining the KS2 Assembly for singing and sharing their experiences. Some good friendships were made during their visit and children and staff look forward to our London visit after half term. Thank you to eveyone who helped make our visitors welcome and their stay such a success.

After school on Friday the 'Bike Doctors' set up outside the school to service and repair bikes in preparation for Saturday's Family Bike Ride and future events. This was very successful and monies raised from the Surgery will go to Kentisbeare Family Cycle Group. For more information about Cycling events see the website.

The sun is shining and the garden awaits.

Tracey Hailey

The last SATs paper was taken on Thursday so Friday was quite chilled. Most of the year 6 children attended breakfast club which was a good start to the day and helped to calm the nerves.

The Foundation stage and year 1 children went on a visit to Bicton and had a brilliant time and the weather was good too. Meanwhile I was supporting our partner school Membury, in the Axe Valley. They had a two day visit from Ofsted. It was quite a positive experience and the report will be available in about 2 weeks.

This Sunday I will be going to support our children who are competing in the Tiverton Imps Swimming Gala. Everyone is welcome to come along so hope to see you there.

Next week I am looking forward to seeing the children who are visiting us from London. Everyone is quite excited and making preparations to give them a big welcome and an enjoyable time with us.

Don't forget that on Tuesday 18th May we will be running an information evening on internet safety. I really hope you can come along to this as your child's safety is number one priority to us.

Brief this week because the sun is shining and I need to do some gardening!

Tracey Hailey

Having a long weekend is always great but I spent most of the working week asking what day it was.

The week started on a high when Mrs Thompson took a large squad of children to the Culm Valley Learning Community (CVLC) Cross Country Meet at Killerton. Our children enjoy running and many attend the meets at Uffculme and Stockland but this competition was the first at this venue. Returning as winners the new shiny trophy has pride of place in what has become our 'trophy room'. Well done all.

All lunch time and after-school clubs are now in full swing and well attended by the children. The activities available during the half term holidays have been sent out as a hard copy but if it hasn't got home yet you can access it on the website on the newsletter page.

Kentisbeare Children's Orchestra (KCO) is always looking for new potential so children who have enjoyed learning violin here's your chance. Leaflets for the KCO are available at school.

The holiday clubs are co-ordinated by the CVLC and sometimes events will be held in Kentisbeare itself but a wide range of activities are on offer across the valley. Thanks go to Lisa Battern our 'Extended Schools Co-ordinator.'

We are buzzing with ideas at the moment as we make plans for developing further our Outdoor Learning area. We are planning to replace the garage (where furniture goes to die!) with a purposeful Outdoor Classroom (posh shed) and a poly tunnel to enable us to continue growing produce throughout the year. This will complement our small allotment at the Wyndham Arms which we remain extremely grateful for. On Friday Mrs P, Mr Hardy and myself went to visit Bradley Barton School to see their fabulous grounds and Outdoor Classroom. Thank you to Margaret (who co-ordinates the work there) for giving us a tour, sharing her planning and totally inspiring us to do more. As part of these plans Mrs P has been busily applying for grants to help fund 'our dreams.'

With regard to grant applications we are always looking for extra funding to enrich our curriculum plans. Unfortunately applications take a long time to complete and everyone is so busy already. If there is someone in our community who thinks they may be able to help here we would be very appreciative. Just get in touch.

Still on the theme of supporting the school any parents who would like to offer their time to listen to children read or support art/craft/environmental activities are very welcome. If you can help please talk with the class teacher or contact the office. You don't necessarily have to currently have a child at the school and we would particularly welcome any 'senior citizens' from our community. However any volunteers will be expected to have a police check (CRB)but we can organise this for you.

Lots to think about and a great week. Test next week (SATs) so highlight of the week will probably be breakfast club and Friday 3.30pm!

Tracey Hailey

'You can smile now it's over!'

One of those weeks when I'm glad it's the weekend mainly because of lots of meetings some going on well into the evening. I did however spend an enjoyable evening with my small school head colleagues, celebrating the retirement of Mike Gent. Mike has spent many years co-ordinating our support group which formed some 12 years ago. We have worked collaboratively ever since planning enrichment opportunities for our children and professional development for all our staff. We are sad to lose him but wish him a long and happy retirement.

There are lots of trips planned this term for our children including the year 6 residential to Boswinger in Cornwall. The year 4 children and staff are very excited about a planned visit to a London school coming up after half term but first they are coming to us. The children and teachers are very busy preparing for their arrival and we very much hope they enjoy our wonderful countryside and rural experience.

On Saturday 3 teams took part in the Rotary Exmoor Youth Challenge and I am proud to say they all finished and received their medals. The weather was kind and the support tremendous. Many thanks to my KS2 staff and volunteers fortheir commitment and of course the children. Photographs will be available on the website soon. For more information visit the website www.exmoor-rotary.org.uk/youth_chall.htm

Recently I have had some growing concerns regarding children using the internet at home. Whilst the internet is a wonderful thing we do need to monitor what they are doing particularly if they are using chat rooms which are not moderated. At 7 pm on Tuesday 18th May we are hosting an Internet Safety Information evening entitled 'Where Are Your Kid's Tonight?' It is well worth attending and more information will be sent home nearer the day.

Have a good long weekend

Tracey Hailey