On Friday 28th September Year 6 ran our annual giant coffee morning/afternoon in order to raise money for Macmillan, a charity, which does amazing work supporting people with cancer and their families throughout their treatment and beyond.  The Year 6 children did a fabulous job; they all worked really hard and looked after their customers extremely well, even providing entertainment.  The rest of the school enjoyed wearing their ‘beach disco’ clothes for the day, having a little disco in their classrooms and eating buns they bought.  The total money raised was £658.04!  A big thank you to everyone who supported us with this event.

Thank you to all the parents and family members who came along to our Harvest Festival celebrations. A big thank you to everyone who made a food donation; we had a huge amount of food that we divided between two really worthwhile organisations – Leeds West Food Bank based locally and St. George’s Crypt in Leeds. Both organisations asked us to pass on their thanks to all our families for their help and support.

Year 2 children had a fascinating trip to Bradford Grand Mosque.  This trip provided the opportunity for the children to experience first hand what a mosque is like and how Muslims pray which has been part of their RE learning this half term.  They learnt all about how and why Muslims pray and showed a real interest in finding out all about it.  The children asked some really thoughtful questions and their manners and listening skills were excellent throughout the morning.  Thank you to everyone at Bradford Mosque for making our school so welcome.  The children and staff received lovely hospitality and were even treated to a packet of Walkers crisps and a bun after their mornings work.  

Year 6 were invited to attend the Heritage England historical exhibition at Sunnybank Mills to look at some of the work they created whilst in Year 5. Last year the children took part in a project where they created various pieces of work using historical skills. This work has since been turned into an exhibit for the wider community so go along and have a look for yourselves.  Well done Year 6.  

The internet is potentially a wonderful resource but as we all know there are also risks associated with using the internet/social media and we have a well-developed curriculum aimed at teaching the children how to keep themselves safe online. This week all our children in school took part in Online Safety lessons which looked at a broad range of topics linked to how we stay safe on the internet. Topics included how to ensure we keep our passwords safe, how to interact with other internet users and why it is important to always speak to an adult if we are worried about anything we see or hear online.   KS2 also discussed how much time it is healthy to spend online.  The vast majority of children demonstrated a good understanding of how they should behave online. 

As a school we will hold regular sessions over the year about online safety but as I am sure all parents appreciate, it is important that parents have these conversations with their children too. If anyone wants any help, support or guidance, please don’t hesitate to contact our computing subject leader Mrs Bennett who will be happy to help.

We have a section on our website set up to provide parents and carers with some useful websites that provide good advice about how to keep your child safe online. Go to Parents/E-Safety and Digital Parenting – guidance for parents or click here http://www.farsleyspringbank.co.uk/e-safety-and-digital-parenting-guidance-for-parent/

Year 3 had a fantastic time at Leeds City Museum learning all about the Ancient Egyptians. The children were fascinated by the real life mummy of Nesyamun and all of the artefacts on displays. During the workshop the children took part in their own mummification and created amulets to keep the person safe in the afterlife.  Year 3 represented the school beautifully so well done Year 3. 

Year 1 were extremely excited to have some very special visitors join us for African drumming and dancing workshops today.  The drumming session was a great success, with the children thoroughly enjoying being allowed to make as much noise as possible!  The children learnt a lot about how and why drums are used throughout Africa, before learning to play some simple rhythms.  Year 1 were also lucky enough to enjoy a dance session led by Tongi.  He taught the children a traditional dance that is often seen at celebrations and weddings, before teaching them a song in one of his 12 languages!  All the children thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon and it was a fantastic way to kick off our topic 'What African Wonders Await?'. 

To kick off the Autumn Term Topic 'Does History Repeat Itself?' Year 6 took part in a trip to Armley Mills museum to experience just what it was like to be a child evacuee in the war. The children, dressed for the part, were taken to an old fashioned classroom where they role-played life in 1940's Britain for children who were having to leave their families and head off for an unknown future in the country. A very strict school teacher inspected the children for gas masks, identity cards, ration booklets (and nits!) to see whether they had everything they needed for the trip. They were then educated in the ways of the war including the 'Dig for Victory' campaign and 'Make-do and Mend'. It was a fantastic way for the children to get a first-hand experience of WW2 and one which we will use to help them build their education on in the coming topic.

Year 4 had a fantastic time on their trip into Leeds. They explored the Leeds City Museum and learnt all about how Leeds has changed throughout the years to become the city it is today. Then they went into Millennium Square to practise their sketching skills, they each sketched the Civic Hall, the museum and The Electric Press building. After lunch they began their owl trail, we walked all around Leeds searching and counting the owls and learning a little about some of the buildings along the way.  The children behaved extremely well all day.  Well done Year 4.