Mental Health Week 2026! 29th Jun 2026
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This week, our Reception adventurers have been exploring the wonderful world of "Mental Health." We?ve learned that our minds are just like gardens; they need plenty of care, kindness, and sunshine to grow. Through these photos, you?ll see us becoming "Feeling Detectives"?learning that it?s okay to have sunny, happy days, but it?s also perfectly okay to have rainy or rumbly-stormy days, too. We practiced finding our "calm" by sniffing pretend flowers and blowing out birthday candles, and we discovered how being a "Bucket Filler" with kind words can make everyone?s heart feel light. These photos capture us learning the most important lesson of all: that talking about our big feelings is a superpower, and looking after our inside-selves is just as important as looking after our outside-selves!

Wardown Museum Trip 4th Jun 2026
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We got on the minibus and visited Wardown Museum. We read a story about a caterpillar that didn?t know what to eat and visited lots of other creatures to ask them what they ate. In the end he decided that leaves were yummy and got so full he made a chrysalis and turned into a beautiful butterfly. We really enjoyed making our own wings and becoming butterflies as well. What a great trip!

World Book Day 2026 26th Mar 2026
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Wriggle your toes and get cozy and small, Books are the very best magic of all! We listen, we look, and we giggle away, To celebrate World Book Day today. Whether you’re big or whether you’re small, There’s a story waiting for one and for all. So grab a friend and dive right in, Let the National Year of Reading begin! This year the children in Reception enjoyed coming to school in their pyjamas and exploring all different kinds of books. They drew their favourite story, made up their own characters and built their own settings. Happy World Book Day!

Julia Donaldson 26th Mar 2026
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As part of our topic of Julia Donaldson, children enjoyed watching the 'Picture Book Magic' event by Julia Donaldson. This was a live event where Julia Donaldson shared a lovely story to all the children. We really enjoyed the story.

Safer Internet Day 2026! 26th Feb 2026
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Happy Safer Internet Day 2026! The children enjoyed going on the school tablets, using apps that we have already shown them. In most classes? the children made models of a ?voice assistant? and completed worksheets to show an understanding of what a ?voice assistant? is. The children learned that they can tell you the time, tell you facts, play music and you can set alarms. They can NOT hug you, have feelings or cook your dinner.

Year R - biscuits 15th Dec 2025
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In Reception, we have been making Christmas biscuits. First, we smelt the different flavours which were: orange, cinnamon and ginger. Then each class voted for the flavour they wanted to make. We mixed butter flour, milk, and sugar until we made a dough. When the dough was ready, we rolled and chose a cutter to make our biscuits. We enjoyed our biscuits and also made enough for year 1. As a thank you to year 1 for their wonderful Nativity, we took the biscuits and sang some lovely Christmas songs to say thank you! It was lots of fun!

Year R go to watch the Year 1 nativity... 12th Dec 2025
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We went to see the Year 1’s perform their nativity. It was a lot of fun. We watched Mary and Joseph travel to Bethlehem. We saw the Baby Jesus in a manger. Then we watched the three wise men and the shepherds visit the baby Jesus and give gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Thank you Yea

Year R anti bullying week 17th Nov 2025
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We took part in anti bullying week. Have a look at the activities we did!

Year R library trip 17th Nov 2025
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We got on the minibus and visited our local library. We found out that it costs nothing to join. If we join the library we will get a library card and we will be able to take out up to 15 books at a time, for 3 weeks! The librarian also told us that they have afterschool lego club, exercise club and craft club during the week. We also really enjoyed being able to look at the books. WOW! What a great trip!

Year R Open Classroom 17th Oct 2025
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This week we invited parents in to see their child's classroom. They really enjoyed showing off all of the wonderful work they have been doing and the various areas of the class.

Reception - Porridge 17th Oct 2025
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In our science lesson we observed and noticed the changes to the ingredients when making porridge.

Honey sandwiches 14th Jul 2025
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Over the last couple of weeks we have been learning about bees and the fact that they make honey. The children were really excited to try it and make honey sandwiches. A couple of quotes from the children were... 'it was the best sandwich I've had' and 'they were really yummy'..

Reception trip to Wendover woods- Coral Class 16th Jun 2025
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Reception children have been on an adventure at Wendover woods looking for the Gruffalo! Lots of fun exploring the woods playing, investigating, creating and making memories.

Reception trip to Wendover woods- Emerald and Opal Class 16th Jun 2025
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Reception children have been on an adventure at Wendover woods looking for the Gruffalo! Lots of fun exploring the woods playing, investigating, creating and making memories.

Reception trip to Wendover woods- Ruby class 16th Jun 2025
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Reception children have been on an adventure at Wendover woods looking for the Gruffalo! Lots of fun exploring the woods playing, investigating, creating and making memories.

World Oceans Day 2025 8th Jun 2025
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The children had lots of fun exploring their creativity to celebrate World Oceans day and learnt what they can do to improve our oceans.

Reception Oceans Day 2025 7th Jun 2025
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The reception children had lots of fun learning about keeping our ocean's safe. They learnt a poem about the sea, made bookmarks for the book fair competition linked to the oceans and outside the children had to try and clean up the 'sea' by getting the rubbish out of the water. TThis week the children have also been learning about snails and they explored the sand and made spirals of sea snails.

Dentist Visit 23rd May 2025
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We had a visit from the dental nurses who taught us how to keep our teeth clean and healthy . We learned that we need to brush our teeth for 2 minutes in the morning and before bedtime.They kindly gave us all a new toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste to take home.

Wardown Park trip 12th May 2025
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We took a trip to the museum at Wardown Park where we learnt all about minibeasts. We read a lovely story about how a caterpillar turns into a butterfly and then made our own butterfly wings.

DT: Fruit kebabs 12th May 2025
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In our DT lesson we have been learning new skills such as chopping, cutting , slicing and peeling . We used the skills we have learnt to make our own fruit kebabs. We had a choice of blueberries , oranges , strawberries , bananas and grapes to make our kebab .Then we cut the fruit , placed it on the skewers and ate it all.

Science - Healthy living week 24th Apr 2025
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During spring term we have been learning how to keep ourselves healthy . We explored healthy foods by looking at a balanced diet and finding out where we get our food from. We looked at why exercise is so important to keep us healthy and created our own exercise circuits during outdoor learning. We learnt all about how to keep our teeth clean and what happens when we visit the dentist. We also looked at how we can keep our bodies clean.

World Book day- Dress the Door 24th Mar 2025
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As part of world book day 2025 the children had to dress their classroom door linked to their favourite book or their class book. The designs were amazing and it was a tough job selecting a winner.

Mental Health Week-"Our Voice Matters" 5th Mar 2025
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Year R - Computing - Information Technology 23rd Jan 2025
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In our computing lessons this week we have been learning how to use an app to create a piece of artwork.

Winter walk 13th Jan 2025
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This term we are learning about winter and have been on our winter walk to see how the tree has changed in this season. We learnt that the leaves have all died and trees are bare in winter.

Healthy living workshop 13th Jan 2025
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We took part in a healthy living workshop with our chief Paul. We had 3 stations where we got to taste and smell fruit and vegetables , look and feel vegetables and cut and grate them.

Year R - Information Technology 18th Nov 2024
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In our Computing (Information Technology) lesson we have learnt how to take a picture on the tablets. We know to keep the camera steady so it doesn't go blurry and to always hold the tablets with two hands.

Year R - Antibullying week 18th Nov 2024
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We took part in Anti bullying week and learnt how to treat others with respect. We all signed an agreement as a class that we would treat others how we wish to be treated.

Year R - Autumn walk 18th Nov 2024
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We have been learning about the seasons and focusing on Autumn. We have looked at what happens to trees during the change of seasons. We enjoyed an Autumn walk on the school field and collected some leaves to make crowns with.

Year R - Exploring materials 18th Nov 2024
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In Science we have been looking at exploring different materials to see which is the best fit for the three little pig houses. We decided that lego was the best material because it was strong and the wolf couldn't blow it down.

Year R - library trip 18th Nov 2024
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We went on a trip to Leagrave library. We learnt how to look after books and how to get a library card. We listened to the librarian reading a story and took a ride in the minibuses.

Year R - Digital Literacy 24th Oct 2024
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This half term we learnt the very important rule that if something makes us feel sad or uncomfortable on our devices we T-A-G... Tell a grown up.

Year R Maths - WB 14th October 18th Oct 2024
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This week in maths we have been learning all about numbers 8 and 9. We have practised number formation using our number rhymes and have made number block characters 8 and 9. Our maths tables have activities focused on numbers 1-9.

Year R - Art 15th Oct 2024
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This week we have been learning how to paint mix to make brown. We have used the primary colours , red , yellow and blue and used this to paint a bear.

Year R - Literacy - Goldilocks 11th Oct 2024
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In our Literacy lessons this week we have been learning the story of Goldilocks and the the three bears. We have learned about the characters feelings and have use role play to retell the story.

Year R - Computing - Information Technology 11th Oct 2024
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This week in computing we learnt what a digital device is. We learnt new words such as 'device and machine'. We used these words to role play with digital devices in our focused learning time.

Year R - Maths 11th Oct 2024
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In maths this week , we have been learning to recognise and write numbers 6 and 7. In our outdoor learning lesson we learnt about size language - baby bear is the smallest , mummy bear is bigger and daddy bear is the biggest bear.

Year R - Science 11th Oct 2024
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In our science lesson we observed and noticed the changes to the ingredients when making porridge.

Reception children make a super start to the year. 28th Sep 2024
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Reception children have been enjoying the story `Once upon a Time` by John Prater, looked at different jobs people do in the community, learnt the sounds m,a,s and d and learnt to count and write to 10! WOW what a busy few weeks!

Downsides Future Stars Art Gallery 9th Jul 2024
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This afternoon it was time to let the art do the talking at the annual Downside Art Gallery. The quality and range of work was exceptional and once again just shows how talented Downside children are.

Reception- Computer science 2nd Jul 2024
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The reception children have been learning how to use Bee bots. The children had to explain what a given command can do, combine two direction commands to make a sequence and know the directions of forward,backwards, left and right.

Reception trip to Wendover woods 28th Jun 2024
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All the children in reception visited Wendover woods and completed the Gruffalo trail, looked for insects, climbed trees, flew a kite and had lots of fun playing in the woods and exploring nature.

Reception- Can you feel the beat? 30th Apr 2024
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We have been learning about rhythm in our music lessons. We learnt 3 notes and learnt how to play these on the claves.We followed a rhythm with our teacher and then made up our own using the notes we have learnt.

Computing - Information Technology 30th Apr 2024
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We have been learning how to use digital devices to take photos. We learnt to recognise the camera icon on the tablet and followed instructions on how to take pictures.

Computing - Digital Literacy 30th Apr 2024
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We have been learning how to keep safe online . We have followed Smartie the Penguin rules to keep us safe when using devices.

Reception-Computer Science Algorithms 30th Apr 2024
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This term we have been looking at algorithms in reception . We have learnt that an algorithm is a set of instructions . We have had lessons on unplugged algorithms where we learnt to follow instructions for head , shoulders , knees and toes.

Reception Dentist Visit 30th Apr 2024
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Reception were lucky enough to have a visit from the dental nurses . They told us what it is like to go to the dentist and why it is important to keep our teeth healthy. They showed us how to clean our teeth properly and reminded us that having lots of sugar can cause our teeth to fall out.

Reception Healthy Living workshop 30th Apr 2024
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Reception took part in a health living workshop with the new chef Paul . We were shown how to use graters and to cut vegetables carefully . Then we went round to different tables and had the opportunity to touch , smell and taste a variety of fruits and vegetables. Now we know how to eat a balanced and healthy diet.

Reception World Book Day 18th Mar 2024
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Reception had a fantastic time celebrating World Book Day.

It's Gruffalo model time! 29th Feb 2024
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Look at the wonderful Gruffalo models we made at home!

Reception- making shadows. 16th Feb 2024
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In Reception we have been learning about shadows.We used torches to give us light and then we made shadows with our hands.

Reception- There's no such thing as a Gruffalo!!!! 16th Feb 2024
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Our learning this half term has been based around the story of The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson

Internet Safety Day 2024 10th Feb 2024
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On the 6th of February 2024 we celebrated Safer Internet Day across the school. This is something we do annually at Downside and here are some examples of our work this year.

KS1 Christmas Lunch 18th Dec 2023
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The children in KS1 enjoyed their christmas dinner on Wednesday.

Reception visit Preschol 18th Dec 2023
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On Friday, Reception children visited Preschool, to perform the poem Needles, by Brian Bilston. They also sang some Christmas songs, and exchanged gifts with the Preschool children. Reception children gave Christmas cookies, made especially by each class, for the younger children to enjoy.

All the children were treated to watch the annual pantomime (Oh Yes they were!!) 12th Dec 2023
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There was lots of fun, laughter and shouting whilst the children `Peter Pan Never Grow Up` on Thursday 7th December. Unlike the panto the photos are below- not behind you!!

Short Tail Trail 2024 12th Dec 2023
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We are delighted to working with Keech Hospice to bring alive the Short Tail Trail. Follow the website as we update you on the progress.

Reception at the Library 12th Dec 2023
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Reception children had lots of fun exploring the library and sharing stories with each other.

Autumn Time 12th Dec 2023
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The children in Reception when for an Autumn walk around school to gain resources and inspiration for their crown making.

Food Bank Donations 12th Dec 2023
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Thankyou to all our amazing families who donated food to the food bank last Friday (8/12/23) we had more food donated than every. What a fantastic and generous community we are.