As Jimmy Durante famously said ‘You gotta start each day with a song…’ and we certainly did that today with the help of the wonderful brass musicians from Freman entertained us in assembly.

This week my curricular focus has been on History: The Year 8’s have been looking at Women through the ages as they move onto their main focus of the Suffragettes; Year 7 have been looking at life in Britain in the 16th century; the Year 6’s are moving forward from the Second World War and seeing how life changed post war; and the Year 5’s have been continuing their topic on Ancient Egypt by researching facts about the Pharaoh’s ready to write a report.

Next week’s focus will be ICT and Mr Palman had spent a lot of time on Safer Internet Day before half-term and hopes that you found the leaflets useful.

Sportingwise we had football and netball matches this week: Year 7 boys played Edwinstree; Year 7 girls played two matches against St Edmund’s, narrowly losing each.  The Year 7 girls then went to a District Football tournament where they came second.  The Year 8 girls rounded off the week with a very spirited, but soggy, second round of matches in the House Leagues whilst the boys honed their crab football skills.  All parents who like football, keep your eyes posted for details of an ‘exciting’ new school tournament  – for all those who ‘had trials when they were younger’ or could have made it if it wasn’t for an ‘injury’.

Finally as ‘Stars’ is only a week away now, the air is thick with excitement and all available space is being used to practice – and that is just in the Staff Room!! I am certain it will be a wonderful evening, tickets are still available from the School Office – but hurry as they are running out fast!!

I shall leave you with a quote from Albert Einstein – Everybody is a genius, but if you judged a fish by its ability to climb, then it would go through life thinking it was stupid.  Have a good weekend.

It’s finally here – half term!! I can’t believe that I am now half way through my first year at Ralph Sadleir, I still haven’t mastered all the routines as the staff will tell you after I blew the whistle early for the umpteenth time this morning!!

It does seem to be a bit repetitious, but this has been another action-packed week.  Despite the weather we have managed to get some sports fixtures done.  The Year 6 boys and girls both came second in the District Sportshall Champs and the Key Stage 3 girls played 4 matches against Herts & Essex – winning 1 and coming second in the others.

Today has seen the whole of Key Stage 2 participating in a Reading Role Models afternoon where members of the school’s wider community and Literacy Leaders from Freman College came in to talk about their love of reading and where people have to use reading in their everyday jobs.  Mrs McIver, who organised the whole event, was really pleased with how well it went and how enthused the children were.

To follow on from this event I am challenging all the children to catch a parent/carer/grandparent reading, take a photo and then either send it to school or show me.  There are house points on offer for all evidence (Please make sure you write your name and House on any pictures sent).

Congratulations to Emma L. in Year 7 for being the first child in the school to collect their Platinum Merit Certificate, I know there are plenty of children who need to collect their Merit Certificates (You know who you are – you’ve earned them, you deserve them!!)

Finally, may I wish everyone a happy and enjoyable half term holiday.