They think it's all over..... it is now !

It's the last few minutes of the autumn term and almost the Christmas holiday . I'd like to say a big thank you to all who supported our seasonal events. It was great to see so many parents and visitors at the Reading Cafes held by every class. I have put the photos on the display screen in the new entrance so do take a look.
I hope that you all have a great Christmas break and  we will see you all again in January.

The last show

Thanks to all of our visitors who came to see the Christmas Performances. Today was the last showing for this year. I did notice that some of you came to see it more than once, so you must have enjoyed it.  I'm sure you'll agree that the children were brilliant. Thanks to all of the parents who helped with the refreshments and to those who helped to put the chairs away after too. Same time next year !

Getting in the Christmas mood

This afternoon we held our first Christmas performance this year. The children were spectacular as always and their singing was amazing. There are still a few tickets left so if you get a chance do come along. There are two more performances to go Tuesday 5th and Monday 12th both at 2.00 pm.

Deck the Halls !

Well the time has come, November is nearly over and Mrs Manning has the office decorations up in time for the 1st December tomorrow. No doubt the classes will soon be putting up their decorations too and getting the glitter out ! We hope you are looking forward to coming along to the Christmas performances next week , I'm sure that you'll enjoy the singing too.
I had interesting debates with Oak class and Willow class today, you may be interested to know that most of them believe in Father Christmas.

It's official !

This afternoon we held the opening ceremony for our new classrooms, the afternoon was attended by many people including Henry Bellingham our local MP , Shelagh Hutson - the Chairman of Norfolk County Council and many other guests including staff from the past and friends of the school ! The children were really pleased to see our site manager Paul again too. Thank you to all the parents who came along  to have a look round our new rooms. The children were total stars and sang beautifully as always - well done everyone !

It's Started !

As I sit here typing away this afternoon, I can hear ' Little Donkey' and ' Away in a Manger ' coming from the hall. The first sign that Christmas in school has started , this strangely coincides with me seeing the Cocoa Cola advert on television last night. I still can't believe how fast this term has whizzed past, it will be the new year before we know it.

Thank you !

I wanted to thank all of our parents who came along to parents evening tonight and last night, it was good to see so many of you too. If however , you were unable to come along, do remember that I am around most of the time and that your child's class teacher is available one night after school every week as well as additional times as required.
We look forward to seeing you all again soon and hope that you all make it to our opening ceremony for the new classrooms and the Christmas performance, which doesn't seem that far away now !

Party Time

The school and Buttercups are currently planning a Christmas family  disco for the afternoon of Sunday 18th December - look out for more information coming home on the December newsletter.

Week One Done

The children have been in their new classes for a week now and all seem very settled. Today we said good bye to Paul the site manager who oversaw the building project by Kier . It will be very strange not having Paul around, he has become part of our school family over the past few months. He will be coming back for our opening ceremony on 18th November. All of our parents are invited to come along on this day for the ribbon cutting to mark the official opening of the new rooms. More detailed information will be sent home soon. If you've not had a chance to have a look at the new rooms do call in for a look around.

And we're in !

It's been a very busy week but I'm pleased to say we are now moved into the new classrooms. Thursday was a busy day of moving furniture and all the resources to their new homes. We started at 8.00 and finished about 4.30 - furniture got heavier and heavier as the day went on ! Miss Tubby and Mrs Sims are very pleased with their rooms and Miss Waling is pleased to be back in her original room too . Some of the governors pained the mobile which will become the library and we expect our new library furniture to arrive the week after the holiday . Our next plans are to improve Mrs Steel's room and also the main entrance lobby next summer holiday. The children are all very impressed with the new rooms and parents, if you're in school, do have a look at the improvements we've made. I hope you all have a good half term break and we will see you all again on Monday 31st October. 

Nearly There....

I have just been thinking - next week this time the children will be in their new classrooms ! It's been an interesting and exciting time which seemed so far away when the building started in April this year , but the time seems to have passed quickly and the moving day is nearly here !  I've been in to the new rooms quite a lot recently to see various things, the outdoor area and indoor toilets in the new reception room look great. It's going be be a fantastic environment for our children. Miss Tubby is already thinking about where the furniture will all go !

A chill in the air

Well after a few glorious days it feels as though the weather is turning autumnal again. I suppose we have had it quite good really. The children have been able to eat outdoors again too.
The October newsletter should have reached you today so if yours didn't arrive, do let us know or view this months issue on the school website.

O2 Arena, here we come.

The children in Oak Class and Willow Class have been signed up to form a choir that will sing at the O2 Arena in March - it's going to be fabulous and what an experience , something to talk about in the future for sure. We are all looking forward to learning the songs and dance moves of course !

September , September, calling September ......???

Where on earth did September go? I can hardly believe that October will soon be here. The children enjoyed a performance from BJ Puppets in collective worship today, they all laughed alot ! Thank you to Brian and Josephine for the show ! This Friday is our Harvest Festival at the church and we are all busy with the preparations, the children's singing is sounding great, do come along if you can make it. It is at St Mary's at 2.00pm .

Welcome

A warm welcome to all of our new children who have joined us in reception and throughout the school. The children all look happy to be here and have settled very well.

What a week !

It's Friday !!!! It's been a busy week here at Middleton. On Monday and Tuesday the staff were busy both days preparing the school ready for Wednesday . I really should have taken photos throughout the two days , it's hard to believe there was a mountain of resources in the hall which nearly touched the ceiling.
We have now put everything back in it's rightful place and teachers have moved into their rooms.
The building work has progressed well and I am sure we are all looking forward to making that final move into the new building.

Leaver's Evening

last night we held the annual leaver's evening for all of our year 6 pupils who are movning onto high school this year. The children and staff did a great job and put on a fine performance. Thank you to all the parents and visitors who came to support and also for all your support during the children's time at Middleton. I am sure we will continue to see many of you over the forthcoming years.

A Perfect Performance !

Well done to Miss Waling's class for a perfect performance on Friday. Their assembly was full of songs and dances and many facts. Should you wish to grow anything, they are the people to ask !
They had a great day at Church Farm yesterday and the weather held out , they were all full of smiles when they returned !

Progress

I've just added some new pictures to the school website. The pictures are of the building work and show the roof trusses on. The two classrooms are really taking shape now and look well on the way to being real classes ! I have shown several new parents and children around the school recently and have to think very carefully which classroom they will be in and who their teacher will be !
Over the summer holiday some changes will also happen inside the existing school building.A corridor will be built through the end of Miss Waling's room to reach the new extension. The library will become the staff room and the existing staff room will become my office, the main school office will be modernised next summer ( 2012) . All change !

BeWILDerwood

What  a great day ! I went to BeWILDerwood with Miss Tubby's and Mrs Sims classes today. We took a ride on the boat and the children tried everything going ! All were very well behaved and Miss Tubby did a great job of organising the whole event. Well done to all of the children and also to all of the adults who came along. I think the children will all sleep well tonight,

And the rain, rain ,rain came down, down ,down.

Well done to all of our Year 6 who took their cycling proficiency test yesterday afternoon. They got caught outside in the thunder storm and were rather soggy when they returned. They were all praised for being so sensible by the road safety officer and were made a hot chocolate on return to school.
Well done to the staff too who took them out too. Poor Mrs Steel has endured all weathers recently !

A Royal Arrival

Miss Waling's class are feeling very special at the moment , Kate and William are in residence. 'Hmmmm ' I hear you say, ' This sounds a bit fishy ' , indeed you're right, Kate and William are the class fish ! Both are gold fish but different shades of gold so we can tell them apart, of course I've already forgotten which is which ! If you are passing Miss Waling's room , do call in to say hello to the new arrivals.

Brick Work

If you haven't had a close look at the building work recently, then look again. I noticed today that there is now a fair amount of real bricks ! ( I dare say there is a technical term somewhere ). You may have also noticed posters from the safety poster competition on display. I really must get out with the camera and add some new photos to the website.

Off to York

This morning we waved goodbye to Mrs Steel's class who are currently on their way to York.There were a few tears but lots of happy faces too, a huge pile of cases outside and excited children ready for the journey.
 They have a busy week ahead and I am sure they will all sleep well when they return - including the accompanying adults ! We hope to receive regular updates and all hope that they have a great time.

Looking Forward

It was good to see some of our new parents  this evening for our new intake meeting. The tour guides ( year 5/6 ) did an excellent job as expected. If you came tonight as a new parent and are reading this, then well done !
All at school are looking forward to working with you all in the new school year.

1,2,3 it's good to be me .......

Well done to Miss Tubby's class for a great class assembly today. Thank you so much to all our visitors who came to watch too. We all heard about keeping healthy , teeth and how our body works. The class sang two songs which were very good with very clear singing. I hope all who came enjoyed the pastry treats too ! Well done to the children and adults who made it such a success.

Going Up and In The News

I've just been to look at how the building work is progressing and was amazed that the block work and window frames are now taking shape. You can really see what the new rooms will look like now . I heard that according to the schedule, the work is now a third of the way through, however the completion date of November still seems a long way off.
If you bought a copy of the Lynn News this Tuesday ( yesterday ) you will have seen some of the children. Our new reception children were featured in the schools photos and the children who buried the time capsule were also featured on page four.
We certainly have a lot happening in school at the present time !

Broom Broom

Today we have Gordon Phillips and his assistant Nicky in school , they are teaching the children local traditional dances with brooms ( you have to see it really !) . Miss Waling's and Miss Tubby's classes have both had a turn and the older children will have a turn this afternoon.
Multicultural week has been very busy and lots of fun, I think half term will bring a timely break for everyone !

Don't blink you'll miss it !

There is so much happening in school at the moment that if you were to blink , you could well miss something !
This morning when I arrived at school there was a huge crane and lorry in the grounds. The lorry was carrying the concrete flooring beams and the crane was of course there to lift them in place. Have a look at the school website to see the photographs.
As I type we have Indian music playing in the hall. As part of our Multicultural Week we have Tina Vallance , a local Bollywood dancer in school all day working with each class. By the end of the day I'll be singing in my sleep. The Lynn News are coming to school this morning to take photos of some of the children taking part in the dancing and also to photograph the reception children for the First Days at School feature.
Yesterday we buried the time capsule which will be under the floor of the new classrooms, all of the children have their names entered as well as other bits and pieces about our school , which may , one day be unearthed.

What a start !

Today was the start of our Multicultural Week. The children are working in their team groups trying out different African activities. Today we have an artist in school, Kojo Darko who is working with the children to learn the techniques of tie die and clay mask making. We have lots more exciting activities planned for the rest of the week so do come back soon for the latest update !

This calls for an Aquarium !

A big thank you to all parents and children who supported Miss Waling's class cake stall yesterday morning. Together you rasied well over £100. Miss waling will use the money to buy the fish tank and equipment , and of course the fish. The money will also be used to feed the fish for some time to come, don't worry we will continue to feed it after the money runs out !

Foundations and Fish

The foundations are down and I noticed the first blocks where being layed this morning. Paul the site manager came into assembly on Friday and showed us the safety gear the builders have to wear. Oliver was dressed in the high vis jacket, hat, goggles and glasses. Paul gave us a concrete cube which was made from the same concrete as the foundations of our new rooms.

Miss Waling's class are saving up to buy a class fish, after much debate about the suitability of various pets ! They are having a cake stall in their classroom this Wednesday ( 18th ) before school to raise enough to buy the tank and a fish. The fish is hoping they raise enough to buy some food too!, do come along or send your children with a small amount of money to buy a cake for snack time.

News Flash !!!!!

I am pleased to tell you that the school has been awarded a grant from the Big Lottery Fund to support our extended activities which include breakfast and after school clubs. The grant is £9080 and will enable us to provide more clubs from external providers. Look out for more information coming home before the end of this term !

More shopping ?

Year 6 are now in their second day of SATs and they are all working really hard. They have been invited to breakfast club all of this week and are so far eating us out of house and home ! I made a pit stop at Tescos last night on the way home and may well have to do it again tonight.The amount of mascots is slowly increasing and teddys have appeared in all different shapes and sizes. Emily made a huge card saying ' Happy SATs Week ' too, which sports the logo ' Keep Calm and Carry One '  - I think every room needs to be issued with one of these !
Year 5 are also working hard with their tests. I dare say they will all need a good rest after this week and will all then be planning their week to York in June.

Exciting Finds !

We are all really intrigued to see what will be found next ! The builders are currently digging the foundations for the new classrooms and have so far unearthed some small glass bottles, presumably medicine bottles and a ceramic hot water bottle. It's fascinating for the children to see what was buried underneath where they have been walking and playing . I wonder whether they will find anything else ?

Progress Report

I have just had a walk around the back of the school and taken some more photos to add to the website. There is certainly a great deal of digging going on and lots of soil being removed. Have a look at the website  http://www.middleton.norfolk.sch.uk/ to see what's going on. There is a link to the page on the website titled ' Our Building Project '
It's a blustery day and the children are playing outside, hopefully the wind will die down so so they can have their lunch outdoors some time soon .

A Right Royal Affair

The children and staff have come to school today dressed in red , white and blue to celebrate the royal wedding. We did rather hope to eat our street party lunch outside on the playground. The children enjoy eating outside all weathers but due to the rather windy weather today , it was best to eat indoors. I don't think that any of the staff were particularly keen on the A47 duty  of retrieving packed lunches being blown on their way to Norwich !
I know that some of the classes have been making decorations this morning and as I type Mrs Rust is hanging the bunting up in the hall. Mrs Brittain is keeping her Union Jack socks hidden under her trousers, despite Mrs Manning telling her to tuck her trousers in her socks :-0

Going Going ..... Almost gone !

Well we returned to school yesterday amongst the start of our building project. It's taken a couple of days to remember how to get to various locations around the school when your usual route is fenced off.
It reminds me of when I first started at Middleton, standing in the middle of the hall and not having a clue how to get back outside ! I have stumbled across a couple of children who at breaktime, couldn't remember how to get to the playground.The outside of the building is quite different now that the kitchen has gone, it's hard to think that it was that big. Everytime I go outside something else has been taken down , the wall around the old oil tank, actually the oil tank too come to mention it...... the fence from Miss Waling's playground, the bike shed , ( which no doubt would have blown down with the force of a  medium sized sneeze ).... soon all traces of what once stood in that area will be gone. I must get out there with the camera.
It's certainly going to be an interesting time for us all , especially Miss Tubby's class who have full view of everything that's going on !

And Breathe.......

What a busy end to the spring term ! The day started as usual with Mrs Sim's class heading into town to go swimming, after break we all gathered in the hall for our end of term assembly. There were attendance certificates, birthdays to celebrate and the moment all the children had been waiting for..... the Easter Raffle.
Rev Ryan helped to draw the raffle of 38 prizes which had been donated by local businesses and staff. The raffle raised £274 for the Governors Discretionary fund.
This afternoon Mrs Sim's class and Miss Tubby's class took part in some games with the community coach from NCFC while some helpers moved the furniture out of their classes ready for the start of the building work.
Also this afternoon Mrs Steel's class held their first reading cafe which went very well, here's to many more !
Hopefully the sun will carry on shining throughout the Easter holiday , I hope that you all have a good break and enjoy spending time together.

Chilly Tuesday

What a chilly day  - hopefully the sun will show its face again soon . It was good to see so many parents come for parents evening after school today. I hope you got a chance to see our new uniform range, something for every occasion ! The display of raffle prizes will be completed tomorow morning so please do come back and have a look at what you could win . The raffle will be drawn on Friday morning so make sure all sold tickets are returned by the end of Thursday  - good luck !

Celebration Time .... wooo hoooo

It was great to see what the children have been learning this week when I gave out certificates in assembly this afternoon. Miss Waling's class have been making their Mother's Day cards, Miss Tubby's class have been painting aboriginal style pictures, Mrs Sims class have been working hard on solving maths problems and Mrs Steel's class have been making their own musical instruments. Circus Skills club performed to their parents at the end of the club - didn't hear any new jokes though  :-(   

Fun and Games

It's the last week of clubs for this term before we break for Easter. It's good to see all the children having fun and enjoying the time. There are lots more exciting clubs for the summer term so get your booking forms back fast ! I've started thinking ahead to September now and clubs ready for the autumn term , it seems far far away at the moment especially as summer hasn't even arrived yet and I'm already thinking of autumn. I'm looking forward to Friday and seeing what Circus Skills club has been up to , I'm also looking forward to seeing if Sally has any more jokes. I loved the one about the duck, ' Got any bread ?' lol . It really made me laugh ! If you want to hear it , it would be best to ask Sally, I'm not very good at telling jokes, I always foget the order and tell the punchline before I reach the end  - maybe I should sign up for Circus Skills next term !

This Morning

I have spent this morning with Mrs Sims class who have been busy making some lovely creations, I can't say exactly what as it may well spoil the surprise for some of you , but let's just say you are in for a treat !
It's a bright sunny day and as I type, the children are eating their packed lunches outside in the spring air.

Picnic Time

The weather has been so lovely the past few days , just warm enough for the children to be able to eat outside. The flowers around Maddie's Memorial are in full bloom, making us think that spring is really here and that summer could be closer than we think . Let's all keep out fingers crossed for more days like this to come.

Longer Wellies Required !!

This morning I went with Mrs Steel's class to the river in Castle Acre. Mrs Steel had planned activities for the class and other adults to do from measuring depth to the speed of flow. It was a lovely peaceful area and the children were all engaged in collecting their data and as much water as they could fit in their wellies ! The river bed of course varied in depth and so did the length of the  wellies. You'll be pleased to know we didn't bring it all back to school with us.

Didn't they do well !

Well done to the quiz team who took part in a general knowledge quiz at Fakenham Junior school this afternoon. Alex, Saffron, Zack and Oscar did us proud, finishing in fourth place from the twelve teams there, only missing third place by ten points. Well done all of you and thank you to the parents and family members who came to support ( and transport !)  the team and to Mrs Brittain for coming along too.  . 

It's quiz time !

Good Luck to the Middleton Quiz team for this afternoon !

Red Nose Day

We all had a great day taking part in Red Nose Day. We held a Bring and Buy sale in the school hall in the morning, selling various items, cakes, refreshments and games. Buttercups playgroup came along too and parents helped to run the sale. Some of Mrs Steel's class helped to run the games too. Together we raised £258.55 - well done everyone and thank you to everyone who helped and came along.
I wonder whether Zack will be dressed as a girl over the weekend ?

Fair Trade

Today in Circle Meetings the children have been talking about Fair Trade. They were especially keen to listen carefully when they heard chocolate was involved ! They discussed the paying of a fair price to famers of cocoa beans and also bananas. Farmers need to get a fair price for their crop to feed their family, access medication and to buy vital equipment needed to farm their crop. Paying a fair price gives them a better quality of life.

Tuesday 15th March

The children were treated to a performance of The Lady of Shalott this morning. Mrs Steeel's class were just as brilliant as they where when they performed to parents on Friday - very professional !
After school ,cooking club made soup which smelt delicious, just what you need to warm you up on a chilly day. They will be taking is home tomorrow as it hadn't quite finished cooking, let's hope Mrs Steel doesn't eat it all :-)

Monday 14th March

Could today be the first sign the warmer weather is here ? It's the first time this year the children have been able to use the school field at lunchtime break. It's still a but muddy in patches but it's as good as it's going to get for a while !