EYFS – Penpol Primary School

Dusty and Brownie Visit Class 1

4th April 202331st March 2023 by Amanda Aspden

Cora’s guinea pigs visited Class 1 today.

They are really cute, they are the nbest pets in the world, I love cuddling them every time after school, Dusty is mine and I really love when Brownie is squeaking – Cora

We learnt that they like to eat hay and raw vegetables and only nap for 20 minutes at a time.

They are only 12 weeks old so are not fully grown yet. They will be adults at 2 years old and will live for 5 years.

They eat some cucumber and some carrot and maybe some cabbage, they sleep on hay – Elliott

They live in a hutch and have sensitive ears, which meant we all had to be quiet so we didn’t scare them.

One was naughty because he was running away, we cant touch their ears – Talia

Cora told us that Brownie is the naughty guinea pig because he like to escape out of his hutch and hide. He has escaped twice and hid underneath the his hutch and the TV cabinet and refused to come out.

They were soft and we stroked them – Albie

Class 1 would like to thank Cora and Mrs Kemp for sharing these very cute pets with us.

Reception Visit The Tate

4th April 202327th March 2023 by Elizabeth Nidds

Classes 1 and 2 had a great time visiting the Tate in St Ives last week as part of our Super Sculptures project.

We have been learning about Barbara Hepworth and her sculptures in school with the children creating their own sculptures the week before. We enjoyed being shown around the gallery by Helen and finding all the different sculptures with our spy tubes!

The children also got the opportunity to take part in a workshop with artists Steph and Emily as part of our visit. We had lots of fun playing musical sculptures, moving our bodies into different poses each time the music stopped!

After practising making sculptures using our bodies, it was time to recreate them on paper. The children took turns to draw around each others’ shadows before then creating them out of plasticine and wire.

After enjoying a tasty packed lunch we finished off our visit with a trip to the beach and had lots more fun making sculptures out of the sand, before boarding the bus to come back to Penpol.

We had a great day on our visit to the Tate and would like to say a big thank you to Steph, Helen, Emily and Rachael!

Barbara Hepworth Inspiration

4th April 202323rd March 2023 by Amanda Aspden

The reception classes were thrilled to be joined by Steph and Helen, two local artists from the Tate Gallery in St.Ives.

We learnt about who Barbara Hepworth was, what she created and the types of materials she used to create her masterpieces.

You can make sculptures out of glass, pottery, wood and metal – Ruby

We investigated some of the structures she created and even handled some of the tools she used from her art studio.

Next we explored some of the shapes that she made and had a go at creating our own sculptures using 2D and 3D shapes. We discussed the different properties the shapes had and tried to find some examples of shiny, smooth and rough shapes, some with holes and some with many sides.

We experimented with torches to create some shadows. We drew around the shadows to create some interesting art work.

I made sculptures like Baraba Hepworth. They showed us how to make towers out of triangles and squares – Felix

Finally we had a go at making our own Barbara Hepworth inspired models from clay. The children designed, moulded and shaped to make their lovely sculptures.

I made a sculpture. I made it look like a ring. I made a whole in it like Barbara Hepworth – Cameron

Class 1 and 2 would like to thank Steph and Helen for helping us to create our own masterpieces.

Police Visit

7th December 202316th December 2022 by Amanda Aspden

The reception classes had a great time when Police Officer Mike visited us today.

He brought loads of equipment which we tried on and found out all about the different roles that the police do, including search and rescue, first aid and lots of different things to help us and keep us safe.

Police look after people -Cora

We got to see what is inside the police car and had a go with the lights and sirens.

If someone takes a bike the police take them to jail – Charlotte

I want to be a policeman when I grow up – Isaac

Class 1 and 2 would like to thank Mike for spending the time to share his exciting and interesting career with us.

Reception visit Heyl Crossfit

2nd December 20222nd December 2022 by Amanda Aspden

The reception classes had a great time at Heyl gym.

Louise, our personal trainer, taught us how to do proper squats and we did some bear, frog and duck walking. We also learnt how to swing the kettlebell properly so that it worked on our full body strength.

The children had fun going into competition with each other and practised their endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, coordination, agility and balance.

The reception classes would like to thank Louise and everyone at Heyl gym. We had a great time.

A Book and a Bagel

29th November 20224th November 2022 by Amanda Aspden

The reception classes had a lovely morning sharing stories with Mummy’s, Daddy’s and Granny’s.

The children had chosen some books from the library the day before that they said they would like to read with their parents.

We read stories about pirates, bugs, the tooth fairy, aliens, wild things, plants, recycling, the deep blue sea, crocodiles and snails, as well as the old favourites such as Winnie the Witch, The Highway Rat and The Scarecrows Wedding.

After enjoying our stories, the classes proudly demonstrated their fabulous phonics knowledge to parents. The children taught the parents how they learn phonics in class and introduced them to Fred, who can only say words in sounds.

The children loved sharing their classroom with their parents and enjoyed listening to all the exciting stories.

We look forward to welcoming you to the next book and a bagel session.

Scavenger Hunts in Tehidy Woods

29th November 202231st October 2022 by Amanda Aspden

The reception classes had a great time at Tehidy Woods.

We loved foraging for different treasures and found most of the things on our scavenger hunt list, including snails, slugs, woodlice, leaves of all different colours, animal foot prints, spiders, twigs, rocks, flowers, ants, birds and birds nests.

After that built some fairy dens and tried to find the magic faraway tree.

Next we had a quick game of 40 40 and hide and seek, then had a little wonder down to Otter Bridge.

Finally we ambled back with just enough time for a little play and some more exploring before we made our way back on to the bus.

Lots of fun was had by all.

Surf’s Up

21st July 202220th July 2022 by Amanda Aspden

The reception class spent a glorious summers day on the Bluff beach in Hayle.

Ben taught us all about beach safety in the Surf Life Saving Club. We learnt where to swim and surf safely, what the different coloured flags mean, what to do if we find ourselves in trouble in the sea and what kit the lifeguards have to help them do their job.

We went to the lifeguard hut next to catch up with some lifeguards on duty. They showed us some of their kit and told us some interesting stories about rescues they’ve had to do this summer.

We were also really lucky and excited to sit on the lifeguards jet ski and quad bike.

After lunch and more suncream, we played a few beach games then the surf was up.

The conditions were perfect and the children loved surfing. Lots of waves were caught. We had a few attempts at standing up and a couple of wipe outs.

We would like to say a massive thank you to Ben and the lifeguards for giving us such a fun day out at the beach.

Penpol Mini Marathon 2022

1st July 20221st July 2022 by Nic Stanlake

The sun shone brightly for our first Penpol Mini-Marathon for 3 years on Wednesday; with it came the flushed red faces, the gallons of water drank and the hundreds of smiling faces.It always is such a lovely afternoon and it was bettered this year to finally be able so many parents back to spectate. I am sure this of you in attendance would agree that the children (and staff) did brilliantly; all showing determination to achieve their own person best! Our PFA do a wonderful job in supporting the school through events like this so please do send any remaining sponsorship money in with them or drop it into the office.

Paul has put together an awesome video of the event for you to enjoy below.

Fun at the Fire Station

30th June 202230th June 2022 by Amanda Aspden

The reception classes have had a great time learning about fire saftey at Tolvaddon Fire Station. We had a talk first with fire fighter Robbie who explained to us all about their role as a fire fighter and what they do to rescue people and animals. He showed us some smoke alarms and we practised shouting “the fire alarm is going off” as loud as we could. He gave us the task of going home and trying to spot where the smoke alarms are in our homes and count how many we have.

We saw Andy, the station manager, slide down the pole to show us that it is quicker that taking the stairs. We learnt that they have 90 seconds to get into the fire engine with all their kit after a call comes in.

We saw the trucks, they had sirens, they help people and set out fires and they also help animals. They help them if they are in trouble and if there is fires and they don’t know how to get out, they help them. Hazel

Next, we had a look at the fire kit that the fire crew have to wear when attending fires to protect themselves. We tried some of the kit on and it was surprisingly heavy.

After that, we met Gertrude the cow who we learnt is used by the firemen to practise rescuing because they have to rescue many animals from cliffs and mine shafts around the Cornish coastline.

I like how they showed us the fire trucks. I really like how they showed us the hose, we sprayed the water. Maya

Next, Max showed us around the firetrucks. We learnt there are different types of fire trucks with different equipment and different sizes depending on the type of call they have to attend to. Some of the trucks are smaller and some have computers, winches, specialist cutting saws, cutters, spreaders, ropes, pumps, ladders and hoses to name a few.

The fire men save the animals if they are too close to the edge of a cliff. Maia

Finally, we got to have a turn at squirting the water from the hoses. This was great fun and we loved pretending to put out a fire.

The reception classes would like to say a massive thank you to the fire crew on blue watch, we learnt a lot about fire safety. Thank you for keeping us all safe.

Healthy Choices on the Menu at Penol

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