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Headteacher
Chris Coyle-Chislett

Email the Office
secretary@penpol.cornwall.sch.uk

Telephone Number
01736 753472

Our Address
2 St George’s Road, Hayle,
Cornwall, TR27 4AH

“Penpol pupils are curious, creative and courageous learners. Our school community believes in authenticity as the foundation of deep-rooted learning. Through our rich and relevant curriculum, we nurture community-minded, forward-facing international citizens of the future.”
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Month: March 2025

Unlocking the World with Words: Reading in Reception

 Our young readers in Classes 1 and 2 are absolutely loving books! We asked them what their favourites were, and here’s what they said:

“I like the bus book. It turns into a hundred-decker bus!” – Hugo

“I like Bluey books, they make me happy!” – Reuben

Every day, you’ll find us sharing stories with each other, whether snuggled up in our cozy book corners inside or enjoying the sunshine in our outdoor book nook.

I like the book when the banana is a baddie! – Albert

Story time is a super important part of our day. We love getting lost in amazing worlds through books.  Whether we’re revisiting old favourites like The Gruffalo or discovering new adventures, reading together is always lots of fun!  We even get to vote on which book we read each day, taking turns choosing the next story.  Recently, we’ve loved ‘One Snowy Day’ and ‘Emergency!’ during our story times.

 

We also have a great time sharing stories with our parents during “Book and a Bagel” on Wednesday afternoons. It’s a chance to show off what we’ve been learning and enjoy all sorts of stories, from new ones like ‘When Cucumber Lost His Cool’ to classics like ‘The Gruffalo’ and ‘Paddington’.

We read books. I like reading with Daddy! – Autumn

And we can’t forget our awesome reading buddies in Years 3 and 4!  Every week, we get to read together, share songs and learning, and hear about what the older children are up to. We even play games and make new friends!

 

I like to read a book with Leo. They read the unicorn one – Flora

Our Reception classes have had a fantastic time with reading events this year. We celebrated World Book Day with fun costumes, talked about our favourite stories, made bookmarks, and spent time with our reading buddies.

I liked reading stories. I dressed up as a unicorn! – Sylvie

It’s been incredible to watch our Reception children grow as readers. Their excitement for books, their ability to recognize and read new words, and their confidence in telling stories have all blossomed in just a few months.  We’re so excited to see where their reading journey takes them next!

Coral Coders Compete at Culdrose!

This week our team of Year 5 students visited RNAS Culdrose in Helston to take part in the FIRST LEGO League Cornwall finals.  They have been working hard for the past few months creating a LEGO robot which can complete missions using code they’ve written, as well as solving a real world problem through their Innovation Project.

The competition proved a fantastic chance to celebrate all of their hard work and gave them the opportunity to share this with the judges and students from other schools.  In fact, the Coral Coders were up against 26 other teams on the first day of the Cornwall regional finals.

So, let’s dive in and see how they got on…

Innovation Project

A good innovation project is all about finding a real world problem and designing a solution to help make the world a better place.

The Coral Coders immediately hit on their problem, Coral Anchoring.  They explained that this is what happens when a ship drops its anchor and then pulls on it as it stops moving, thereby dragging up coral and damaging the precious seabed.

The solution the students settled on was to create a different shape anchor which wouldn’t drag across the seabed as much, thereby greatly reducing the amount of coral getting damaged.

“I liked the bit where we presented to the judges because we got to present the robot and anchor designs and we got to ask each other questions too which was really fun.”

– Massimo

The team put together a compelling presentation to share their project which they confidently delivered to the group of judges.  Despite being their first time sharing this project outside of school, they came out buzzing with confidence and enthusiasm as the judges had really enjoyed their ideas and energy.

27 points

out of a total of 40

The judges agreed it was “brilliant to have identified a unique problem” and that they “created an excellent solution”.  They also loved seeing the physical prototypes of their anchors in real life.

Overall the judges were really impressed with what they described as a “slick, well rehearsed and well planned presentation”.

Robot Design Presentation

The second half of the judging session focusses on the students sharing their Lego Robot and discussing the way they built it and how they learnt to code it. 

As a first year team there was no shortage of things to talk about here and to try and cover as much ground as possible the team decided to do an ‘interview-style’ presentation where they asked each other questions about the robot and the journey they’d been on.

This proved highly effective and allowed the children plenty of opportunity to share their highs and lows of coding – from the missions which work every time to those which are much more troublesome – as well as all of the fun they’ve had along the way.

“When we were talking to the judges I kinda felt nervous but actually it was fine and as soon as we started talking I didn’t feel nervous anymore!”

– Charice

24 points

out of a total of 40

The feedback from the judges on their Robot Design presentation celebrated their “clear strategy, which was broken down into clear tasks” and suggested that further explaining how the code works would be a good place to develop for next time.

Robot Games

In the Robot Games you are given three opportunities to get your best score possible – giving each robot (and team member) a chance to warm up in the high-pressure environment at RNAS Culdrose.

The Coral Coders however were cool as cucumbers for their first match, with all five of the robot engineers launching their missions with control and precision – no mean feat!  And more still, the continued for all three of the Robot Games runs.

“I think the robot games was really difficult, especially when the last code seemed to break the whole system! It was really difficult to fix but we did it! And the whole thing was crazy fun!”

– Sorrel

As the matches went on the scores steadily climbed too, as the robot completed the different missions they had programmed it to do.  Whether releasing the shark, raising the ship mast or dropping the unknown sea creature, the robot moved with precision at all times.

“I found the robot building really fun, as was trying to program it.  It was definitely hard, but super interesting doing the Robot Games!”

– Dexter

160

Round 1

170

Round 2

175

Round 3

Robot Games

The Coral Coders achieved the second highest score of the day in the Robot Games with a fantastic score of 175 points.

“I loved having a go with the Virtual Reality stand.  It doesn’t matter if you win or not in the competition it’s about having so much fun”

– Resola

BBC Spotlight

If this wasn’t enough excitement for one day, three of our students were asked if they’d be happy to talk with a BBC reporter for Spotlight News! 

Without hesitation all three said yes and I’m delighted to say their interview made it onto Spotlight news that very evening! 

You can watch their interview on the right.

Reception Celebrate Science Week

What an exciting Science Week we’ve had in Classes 1 and 2! The children have loved getting hands-on with lots of fun experiments.

I liked everything! I planted flowers and gave them seeds and water – Hugo

We started off by making magical potions with baking soda, glitter, and food colouring—then added vinegar to create amazing fizzy explosions!

We made bubbles with baking powder, fruit colouring, glitter and vinegar. It made bubbles and exploded! – Ava

We also used Skittles and water to create beautiful rainbows and were amazed as the colours spread across the plate.

When you put the water on, the rainbow came – Ciara

I liked the skittles. The hot water made the rainbow come – Tristan

I like when the potions exploded! – Eryn

As part of our ‘Growing’ topic, we’ve been busy planting sunflowers, cress, and beans, learning all about what plants need to grow strong and healthy.

We put some water and dirt and seeds in it – Oaklyn

We also explored floating and sinking by testing different objects from around the classroom. The children made their own predictions before putting them to the test—there were lots of surprises!

The carrot was sinking and the pen was floating. The pencil was floating too! – Reuben

Our rain cloud experiment was another big hit! We watched in fascination as drops of colored water fell through the ‘cloud.’ We were also amazed by the Coke and Mentos reaction and had so much fun making our very own erupting volcano.

 

To round off the week, we visited the school’s science fair, where we got to see what other classes have been investigating. It’s been an exciting week full of discovery, and we think we have lots of future scientists in the making!

Reception Children’s Magical Adventure at the Minack Theatre

I was the queen fairy and I was in love with a donkey – Jackson

Our Reception children have embarked on an unforgettable journey to the breathtaking Minack Theatre for a singing, dancing, and performing workshop. The experience was a playful and immersive exploration of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, filled with music, movement, and storytelling.

We went to the Minack Theatre. I was a builder and we also did super heros. We had to save the day – Tristan

 

Led by the lively and engaging Wenna White, Betty Blue and Ryan Red, the children were transported into the magical world of fairies, kings and queens, builders, and even a donkey! Through song and dance, they brought Shakespeare’s enchanting story to life, stepping into the roles of characters and embracing the spirit of the play.

I was a fairy. We saw the dressing room. We had to collect magic dust. We had to be naughty with it and spread it over the builders and the princess and the donkey ee-or – Esme

 

The adventure didn’t stop there! As well as performing, the children had the chance to explore the stunning Minack Theatre and its beautiful gardens. They learned about the theatre’s fascinating history and how the remarkable Rowena Cade built it with her own hands. A real highlight was going backstage, where the children got a glimpse of where the performers prepare before stepping onto the famous stage.

I was being the prince – Ava, I was being the queen – Flora, I was being a fairy and I falled in love with a donkey – Georgie

The day ended with a special performance on the Minack’s stage, where the children showcased everything they had learned.

It was a magical and memorable experience for all, sparking creativity and excitement about theatre and performance.

A huge thank you to the Minack Theatre team for giving our children such an incredible opportunity. Who knows? Maybe one day, we’ll see some of them return as future stars of the stage!

 

Best Selling Author Drops into Year 3

Year 3 had an amazing time meeting Vashti Hardy, author of our whole class text Harley Hitch and the Iron Forest! She shared how everyday life and things we love can inspire stories, sparking excitement among the children.

During a creative workshop, Vashti guided them in designing maps of imaginary worlds to inspire their own stories. Their creativity shone as they sketched forests, rivers, castles, and futuristic cities!

The children also asked Vashti questions about her books and writing process. By the end, they were eager to read more of her work and start their own storytelling adventures.

A huge thank you to Vashti Hardy for such an inspiring visit!

Exploring the Wonders of Science: Year 1 Learners Dive into Discovery During Science Week!

A Week of Wonder: Classes 3 & 4 Make Science Sparkle!

What an incredible week it’s been for Classes 3 and 4 as we’ve dived into a whirlwind of fun and fascinating experiments! From making our own rainclouds to cleaning up shiny pennies, and even creating explosive fizzy pops — we’ve truly been hands-on with Science!

We’ve been busy predicting, observing, and recording every step of our exciting experiments. But that’s not all! We even grew our very own rainbows! 🌈 It’s been a week full of colour, creativity, and curiosity — a Science adventure like no other!

Here our some of memories from this week:-

Fee-Fi-Fo-Fun; Penpol’s Magical Minack Adventure!

Excitement filled the air this week as Year 2 pupils from Penpol School’s Class 5 and Class 6 embarked on two magical trips to the Minack Theatre for a special Jack and the Beanstalk workshop. To make Class 6’s trip even more magical, pupils were dressed to impress as their favourite books characters for World Book Day!

The stunning open-air theatre, perched on the Cornish cliffs, provided the perfect setting for a day of storytelling, drama, and adventure. The children took part in interactive activities, bringing the classic tale to life with their own acting and imagination. They explored character roles, practised reciting and improvising lines and even had the chance to perform on the famous stage!

    

“It was amazing to act on a real stage by the sea!” said one enthusiastic pupil. Another added, “I loved pretending to be the giant – fee-fi-fo-fum!”

The workshop not only sparked creativity but also helped the children build confidence and teamwork skills. A big thank you to the Minack Theatre team for some truly unforgettable experiences on this historic stage!

 

Stay tuned for some Jack and the Beanstalk-inspired stories from the Year 2 pupils…