1st April 2020 | Leighton Middle School

Year 5

Hello Year 5,

What a strange week! We hope you are all safe and well at home and getting used to not coming into school. Hopefully you’ve done some of the work your teachers have set for you and perhaps tried some of the fantastic online classes – Mrs Price has been doing a bit of Cosmic Kids spiderman yoga with her little boy and Mrs Waite has been working out with Joe Wicks! Please remember that you only need to do what you can; learning without a teacher there can be tricky, especially when your grown ups are busy trying to work from home too. You can’t see us at the moment, but all your teachers are online, and your grown ups can still email school to get in touch with us if you need help with anything.

Lots of things this week are different and perhaps seem a bit unfair, so we’ve been trying to focus on being mindful and finding the positives. Here’s something for you to try:

Can you make a list of 5 things that you’ve done that made you or someone in your family smile this week?

If you want to, post your list in the comments (on Facebook) so we can see what you’ve been up to.

See you soon,

Mrs Waite, Miss Holmes, Mrs Schofield, Mr Solomon, Mrs House and Mrs Price.

Year 6

Hello Year 6!

We hope that you are all well. We have been missing you all over the past week and a half and just wanted to let you know that you are in our thoughts. We are keeping ourselves busy each day by doing schoolwork, attempting Joe Wicks’ PE and taking some time to allow our brains to process the strange things that are happening. We hope you are all doing the same and getting some work done as well as accessing the many fantastic opportunities that are online. Please do not forget that you only need to do what you can manage. We completely understand that without a teacher to help, sometimes tasks can seem a little bit scary especially when your adults are trying to work from home too!

We would always encourage putting your well being first and therefore would love you all to take part in some exercises over the next week. Breathing, yoga, meditation, colouring and listening to some relaxing music can help make you feel at ease. We have done a few of these in class before and you all responded very well to them so we hope they will be of help to you at home too.

Look at your teachers getting involved in a little monkey meditation! We all felt relaxed after taking part and are sure you will too.

The links for the mindful breathing/hearing/seeing exercises that we have done in class can be found here: https://annakaharris.com/mindfulness-for-children/

The link for the meditation is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk_qU7l-fcU

Keep smiling!

The Year 6 team,

Miss Guy, Mrs Solomon, Mr Hatfield-Shaw, Mrs Ellaway, Miss Perry, Mr Cook and Mrs Saunders

Year 7 & 8

Mr Bunting and I want to say how proud we are of you all in KS3. We know that these are uncertain and anxious times and that we are asking all of you to step out of your comfort zones.

You have reacted to these challenges with extraordinary calmness, maturity and a sense of responsibility. We could not be more impressed.

Your teachers have been working hard behind the scenes to plan and prepare for this situation; we hoped that we would not have to implement these plans, but we all know it is better to stay at home being safe whilst continuing with your learning remotely.

You all have the technical skills to handle the remote learning tools and the flexibility and creativity to work in different ways. You will be building knowledge and skills, and by the end of this uncertain time will feel a huge sense of pride in what you have achieved. However there will be hiccups and moments that you will struggle along the way. You will need to be determined and resilient to persevere to find a resolution or think creatively to approach the challenge in a different way. We want to reassure you that all of your teachers are here to help you. You might not see us in person but know we are here for you. The world is going to seem very strange for a little while but when we are in uncertain times, we can and must all support each other.

Last term I introduced you all to the Start programme (startprofile.com), an online careers platform, designed to connect 11-18 year olds with their future career potential. You should all be able to access this using your own login and passwords which I asked you to write down in your homework diaries. Below is a link to some Home Learning Activities, which you can access using your login details. Here you'll find a series of activities to help you to continue your career learning at home.

https://app.startprofile.com/workbook/module/84

I'm also aware that some of you in Year 8 may be feeling anxious about the prospect of moving onto Upper School. You have not had the opportunity to meet anyone from your new schools or had the opportunity to share your thoughts or concerns with your form tutors and peers as planned. Nobody knows how long this situation will last and indeed if you will return to Leighton Middle School as year 8 pupils. However, having worked with both Upper Schools over many years, I am sure both schools will be in contact with you to reassure you and guide you through the move. Mr Bunting and I will also be available to answer any questions or concerns you may have about your move over the next few months. Please don't hesitate to email us or share your concerns with your families.

By staying at home and being a responsible independent learner, you are helping to limit the spread of COVID-19; you are playing a critical role in helping the Government’s effort and it is important that you take that responsibility seriously and follow all the guidelines.

Stay safe, keep smiling and we look forward to hearing how you are all getting on.

The Year 7 team

Mr Herbert, Mrs Costin, Miss Earnshaw, Miss Noikovitch, Mrs Maidment, Miss Benning and Mr Smuts

The Year 8 team

Mr Bunting, Mme Perez-Rae, Mrs Purcell, Mrs Grace, Miss Daarvill, Mrs Jeeves, Mrs Tooman, Mrs Winchester and Mrs Wimshurst.