Frosterley Primary Thank you to all the parents and carers who joined us for our End of Year Celebration Assembly. It was wonderful to come together and celebrate everything the children have achieved this year – they have so much to be proud of!

Woodland Primary A huge thank you to all of our parents and carers who joined us for our End of Year Celebration Assembly on Monday. It was wonderful to come together to celebrate the hard work, achievements and special memories made throughout the year.

St John's Chapel Primary Water Activity Afternoon Fun! Today we had our Water Activity Afternoon, and what a fantastic time we all had! The children thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the different water activities, with lots of laughter, smiles, and splashing throughout the afternoon. It was wonderful to see everyone having so much fun, staying active, and making special memories together. A huge thank you to all the staff who helped make the afternoon such a success. Here are a few snapshots from our fun-filled day!

Wearhead and St.John's Chapel The children had a wonderful time on their trip to Tynemouth Aquarium on Thursday. Once we arrived, we dropped our bags off and then headed straight to the beach. Everyone had lots of fun playing in the sand, and some children even enjoyed a paddle in the sea. During our time on the beach, we looked for some of the features and items we have been learning about in our on the Beach and Coastline topics. After our beach activities, we returned to the aquarium for lunch and to watch the seal show, which everyone enjoyed. We even had the opportunity to sing Happy Birthday to one of the seals! Next, we attended an exciting workshop where we learned about the different animals that live in our rock pools around our coastline. The children were fascinated by the creatures they discovered and even had the opportunity to look at and touch some of them. Those who wished to take part were able to touch a starfish, a sea urchin and hold an empty mermaid's purse. The children thoroughly enjoyed the workshop and impressed the staff with their knowledge and their excellent answers to questions about rock pools. After washing our hands, we explored the aquarium and saw a wide variety of sea creatures. We even spotted some tiny monkeys! The children had an amazing day and made lots of wonderful memories. A huge thank you to everyone who came along and helped with the trip.

St. John's Chapel and Wearhead Primary The beach and aquarium adventures continue in EYFS! Following our amazing trip to Tynemouth, the classroom has been buzzing with excitement today as the children couldn't wait to share their favourite memories. Here is how we followed up on our big coastal adventure: Reliving the Magic We started our day with a fantastic group discussion. The children were bursting with enthusiasm, eagerly telling us all about the sights, sounds, and splashes from our day out at the beach and the aquarium! Masterpieces of the Deep To capture those memories, our little artists got to work drawing pictures of their favourite sea creatures. From graceful stingrays to colourful fish, the creative area was filled with wonderful, detailed designs inspired by what they saw. Super Sentences in Reception A huge shout-out to our Reception children, who took their learning a step further! They wrote some absolutely amazing sentences to go alongside their sea creature drawings, showing off their fantastic phonics and writing skills. We are so proud of how much the children learned and how beautifully they recalled their Tynemouth adventures.

St. John's Chapel Primary What a wonderfully busy and imaginative start to the week we had in EYFS! Our little learners have been dive-bombing into new adventures, exploring sensory play, and testing their skills with some brilliant activities. Here is a look at what we have been up to: Splish, Splash in the Water Area! We turned our water tray into a busy bath station this week! The children had the absolute best fun bathing the dolls, practicing their washing and scrubbing skills, and developing their fine motor movements while splashing around. Journeying with 'The Snail and the Whale' Our sand tray was transformed into an ocean adventure inspired by Julia Donaldson's classic story. The children loved acting out and retelling the spectacular tale, and they blew us away with their creativity by making up entirely new versions of the story! Brilliant Builders in the Creative Area The creative sparks were flying as the children designed and built their very own lighthouses. They selected materials carefully, worked on their structures, and added fantastic details to guide our sea travelers safely home. The Great Nugget Race! We put our lung power and focus to the test with a hilarious "nugget race." The children had to blow through straws to race their nuggets across the line. It turned out to be much trickier than it looked, but it brought so many giggles and a lot of determination! Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! Tell us in the comments which activity your little one enjoyed the most!

Our new Reception children have a great full day transition. They had a busy day, working on numbers, writing and lots and lots of play.

Key Stage Two have enjoyed their World War Two project. They have had some great artefacts brought in from home and they have had a fantastic evacuee workshop where they experienced what it might have been like to be evacuated during the war.

As part of our learning about WW1 and WW2 we had a workshop run by Beamish Museum about being an evacuee. The children had to be historians and use their detective skills to work out who the evacuee was and then answer a set of questions. The children learnt what they would have had to do in an air raid and how to put on a gas mask.

Hamsterley Primary School Today has been Transition Day. The children in Class One have had a lovely day taking part in a range of engaging activities. They enjoyed phonics and maths sessions, completed capacity challenges in the sand and water areas, and spent time writing and drawing about themselves

St John's Chapel Transition Day Fun! Yesterday, the children had a fantastic time during their transition day, enjoying the opportunity to spend time in their new classes and get to know their new learning environments. Class 1 had lots of fun exploring our outdoor area, investigating how to make a boat float, creating delicious mud kitchen recipes, and designing their very own obstacle courses! It was wonderful to see so much enthusiasm, teamwork, creativity, and curiosity as the children embraced new challenges and experiences. We are so proud of how confidently they approached the day and can't wait for all the exciting learning adventures ahead!

Hamsterley Primary School Yesterday was Sports Day, and the children had a fantastic time. They enthusiastically took part in a carousel of activities before finishing the afternoon with a series of exciting races. The fun wasn't just for the children – parents also joined in and took part in a race of their own! It was a wonderful afternoon filled with laughter, teamwork and sporting spirit, and a great time was had by all.

Hamsterley Primary School On Monday afternoon, Class 2 took part in an exciting Viking workshop. The children travelled back in time as they learned about the history of Britain from AD 450 to AD 1066, discovering how the Vikings arrived in Britain and how the struggle for the throne became increasingly complicated over the years. They also learned about the Battle of Hastings and its significance in shaping England's history. During the workshop, the children explored the differences between Viking and Saxon armour, learned about battle formations and watched an impressive bow and arrow demonstration. One of the highlights of the afternoon was the opportunity to handle a range of replica weapons and artefacts, bringing their learning to life and helping them gain a deeper understanding of what life may have been like during the Viking and Anglo-Saxon period.

Butterknowle Primary School Our Key Stage 1 children had a fantastic time visiting Staindrop Academy for an exciting Orienteering Festival! Throughout the afternoon, the children enthusiastically took part in a range of fun team games, including Duck, Duck, Goose, Stuck in the Mud, and Fish and Sharks. They demonstrated excellent listening skills, teamwork and sportsmanship while enjoying lots of active play. The festival also included a variety of engaging outdoor activities. The children loved working together on a treasure hunt, completing exciting action stations, and using their creativity to make a beautiful collage using wild flowers they found around the site. It was wonderful to see everyone challenging themselves and enjoying learning outdoors. The children represented our school brilliantly with their positive attitudes and excellent behaviour throughout the day. A huge thank you to Staindrop Academy for hosting such a memorable event!

St John's Chapel Primary School End of Year Celebration Assembly A huge thank you to all the parents, carers, family members and friends who joined us for our End of Year Celebration Assembly. It was a wonderful opportunity to come together and celebrate the many achievements, successes and special moments our pupils have enjoyed throughout the year. The assembly was also a chance to say goodbye and wish the very best of luck to the pupils who are leaving us to begin their next adventures. We know they will continue to shine and we look forward to hearing about all they achieve in the future. We also said a very special farewell to Mrs Hodgkinson, who is retiring after an incredible 35 years of teaching. Her dedication, care and commitment have touched the lives of countless children and families, and she will be greatly missed by our school community. We thank her for everything she has done and wish her a long, happy and well-deserved retirement.