​​DCPS Matters

10th May 2019
Issue 49

Message from the Acting Head

It is hard to believe that we are in the month of May and the final term of this academic year.

We had a record number of people attending the full English family breakfast last week, with one person eating at least 9 hash browns – not that I was counting!  Our new chef is extremely good so please come along to the next breakfast and taste and see for yourself.

We have an action packed week ahead starting on Monday 13th with our Dovedale Walk for Year 3,4,5 and 6.  Year 4 will then go on to their residential visit to Ilam Hall.

On Wednesday Year 5 travel to PGL in Shropshire, and I’m sure a good time will be had by all.

Just a gentle reminder about our Activities Morning/Open Day on Saturday 18th May, we would like all pupils to attend if at all possible. This is then followed by our Spring Fair when we can enjoy being together as a school family.

I am delighted to say that Jerry should be back on a phased return to school within the next week or so, we are just waiting to hear back from Occupational Health (standard practice for someone who has had a head injury).

Kind regards

Jill Stone
Acting Head of School

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Derby Arts Festival

Well done to the Chapel Choir who took part in the Derby Arts Festival last week. They won the Voices Advanced Class singing 'Just a Single Voice' and 'Chariots Coming'. For this class they were awarded the Ronald Jenkins Memorial Trophy. They also took part in the Hymn Singing Class in which they came joint 2nd out of 4 entrants.

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PTFA Help needed!

The PTFA are looking for volunteers to help at the Spring Fair on Saturday 18th May. There is a sign up sheet with 30 minute time slots in the reception area of the Main Prep. If you are able to help please can you sign up ASAP.

Thank you in advance.

London Moonwalk 2019

So the time has come! Training has gone very well and tomorrow night I really hope to complete The London Moonwalk 2019. Whilst you sleep in your beds, I will walk a marathon, 26.2 miles, through the night to complete the challenge whilst raising as much money as I can for research into Breast Cancer. If you are able to support this charity, I would be so grateful and motivated by your contribution. Thank you Melanie Gear.

https://moonwalklondon2019.everydayhero.com/uk/melanie-22

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Getting to know you…

We have a new feature for our newsletter as we have had some new staff members over the last few terms. We thought it would be useful to get to know them a bit better. This week it is the turn of Elaine Wheat, our PE coach and Main Prep teacher.

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What is your favourite sport and why?

I love a lot of sports, both playing and watching them, but I think my favourite would have to be cricket. I have played cricket since the age of 11. I was the only girl in the school cricket team, and I played for Ashbourne Ladies and Wirksworth ladies. I went onto play for Derbyshire until my early 20’s. I grew up with cricket and I loved being part of a team, and being the youngest in the ladies teams, I learned a lot from them.

What is your proudest sporting achievement/moment?

One of the most exciting moments was when I scored my first ‘180’ in darts. I play for The Blythe in the winter league, and I have been playing for them since I was 16.

How did you get into being a Sports teacher?

I have always loved participating in sport and I went on my first coaching course at the age of 15. From then, I have coached a variety of sports to a variety of ages and abilities and I found it to be a very rewarding experience. It was this reason why I became a Sports teacher.

What do you like to do to relax?

I like spending time with my family and friends.

What are your qualifications…

I have a wide range of qualifications including First Aid:-

  • PGCE in PE
  • Bachelor of Arts degree in Sports Studies
  • Higher National Diploma in Sports Studies
  • National Pool Lifeguard Qualification
  • Cricket level 1 Coaching award (in the process of getting my Level 2 at the moment)
  • Level 1 Swimming assistant (teaching)
  • STA Level 2 Award in Aquatic Teaching – Baby and Pre-School
  • STA Level 2 Award in Teaching Swimming
  • Hockey level 1 Coaching award
  • Athletics level 1 Coaching award
  • Badminton level 1 Coaching award
  • Netball assistant Coaching award
  • Rounders level 1 Coaching award
  • Gold Duke of Edinburgh award
  • Rugby ready

What is your favourite film?

I like a huge mix of films. I love the ‘Die Hard’ films for a bit of action, but I think ‘The Goonies’ is absolutely brilliant!

What type of music do you like?

I like listening to a wide range of music, but I absolutely love classic rock. I grew up listening to Bon Jovi, Meatloaf, Gun and Roses, Aerosmith and many more. My absolute favourite is Bon Jovi. I have seen them 10 times in concert, and I’m going again this year!

Pre-School News

Squirrels News

The Squirrels are enjoying the summer term playing in the garden and using the dressing up clothes to encourage imaginative play. 

Ted shared his 3rd Birthday with everyone on Friday. We all had fun playing party games and eating Birthday cake. 

The children have also been busy learning how to build towers and building with blocks and bricks and learning about caring for our pets.  

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Owls News

The Owls class have been learning about Animals. We have made animal masks and some delightful jungle animal pictures.

Today at Forest School we went on a minibeast hunt and then made our own mini beasts using natural items for the features.

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​Smallwood Explorers is running holiday club from 28th – 31st May 2019

To book please click here to go to the online Booking Form.

Pre-Prep News

Reception have enjoyed their first swimming lessons.  They were all confident in the water and worked hard .

We have also been learning about animals. We have talked about caring for our pets.  We have enjoyed playing in our Pet Shop and the Small World play.

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Pre-Prep 1 have been reading 'Dear Greenpeace' by Simon James in English for the last two weeks.  They have been writing letters, finding out facts about different animals and using a range of punctuation throughout their writing.  They have been very enthusiastic and produced some great pieces of work.  Well done PP1.

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Super Swimmer!

Many congratulations to our PP2 pupil Thomas C who has swum 400 metres and raised over £300 for Marie Curie and Cancer Research in a local Swimathon. Well done Thomas!

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PP2 Trip to Shark Bait Reef

Pre-Prep 2 had a totally amazing pirate time at Shark Bait Reef by Sea Life at Alton Towers.

The children were extremely lucky to have the whole Sea Life Centre to themselves to explore. On our arrival we were eagerly met by our trusty Sea Life companions for the day Laura, Dean and Amy. We started our journey by posing for a class photograph outside of Shark Bait Reef, before quickly entering the depths of the ocean; where we found ourselves meeting the long lost pirate skeletons and many marine creatures.  The children enjoyed learning about the different types of marine animals that the aquarium has on show and were then able to be 'hands on' with some of the more friendlier creatures of the deep. After this we were given a talk by Laura our trusty Sea Life guide and shark enthusiast. We found out about the different sharks in the larger tank and what they liked to eat and how big they will eventually grow. The children were very eager to ask lots of questions and Laura was fantastic at answering them.

After visiting the mystifying jellyfish we went to eat our lunch in the shark tunnel, which was indeed quite magical. After lunch the children were able to revisit their favourite sea creatures before returning back to school, full of pirate excitement. 

If you are thinking of visiting the Shark Bait Reef by Sea Life at Alton Towers with your children over the Summer holidays it is definitely an adventure that Pre-Prep 2 recommend. I am sure Pre-Prep 2 children are now experts in all things Sea Life!

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Main Prep News

Year 3 - Rocks & Soils

Our science topic for this term is ‘Rocks and Soils’. Year 3 thoroughly enjoyed sorting our school rock collection out this week. The children were asked to sort the rocks whichever way they would like to. Lots of fabulous discussion was had with regard to colours, textures, permeability, firmness etc. We then learnt about how the rocks were formed and about the 3 rock types: sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic. Next lesson we are going to be ‘Rock Detectives’ and are going on a rock hunt around the school.

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Year 4 - Photography Project

Recently Year 4 have been looking at using ICT in photography and editing.  The children's task was to take (or make) a picture which represented Denstone Prep.​ Here are a selection of some of the results.

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Music & LAMDA News

Congratulations to all pupils who took their ABRSM and LAMDA exams last term. There was a 100% pass rate in the music exams, whilst everyone who took a LAMDA exam achieved a merit or a distinction. This is an amazing achievement. 

Year 5 Life Cycles

This term year 5 are learning about life cycles in science. We started the subject by looking at plant structure and which parts of a plant we eat. Most children were surprised to learn that vegetables are in fact different parts of a plant; root, stem, leaves or flower. We surprised the children further by explaining that many of the foods we call ‘vegetables’ are in fact fruit! The children got to examine closely a variety of fruits, searching for where the seeds are. The children were then able to taste a variety of fruits. Everyone was very brave and tried something new and most discovered many new fruits that they liked.

We have planted some seeds and are waiting to find out which conditions are needed for germination, again, this always leads to surprise when the children discover what is actually needed. Today we have spent a delightful morning walking around the school grounds looking at the structure of a flower. The children have been able to identify the female and male parts in many different species and recognised flowers that are becoming fruits.

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Year 6 Lego Workshop

Year 6 had a fun and exciting morning last term learning to programme "Lego creations robots."

The children followed instructions to build a hungry alligator.  They then programmed the ‘Gator’ to open and close its mouth using their own algorithms. The children were then challenged to use a motion sensor to control the alligator.  The children had great fun adapting their lego creations.

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Year 6 - Shakespeare Projects

The Year 6 Shakespeare projects have once again astounded us with the quality, hard work and creativity. We are sure you have enjoyed looking at them in our display in The School Room. In Year 6 we study Macbeth and have written some fantastic character descriptions and a class comic. The homework project gives the pupils a chance to explore other areas connected with Shakespeare. From researching The Globe Theatre; Shakespeare’s lifeline; to looking at other plays such as Romeo and Juliet or Hamlet; or indeed visiting Stratford; we believe it is a fantastic way to start their journey into the wonderful world of Shakespeare. We sincerely thank the Y6 pupils for all their hard work.

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