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Our Act of Remembrance and Dedication held at St Faith’s Church is always a very special service for the school. The service helps the children understand the significance of honouring those who have died in service of our country and this year our service was led by the Reverend Jeremy Goulston. We received many comments commending the school on such a memorable and moving service. We are waiting for the total amount collected for The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal to be confirmed.

The school opened their doors on Friday 22nd May from 2.00pm – 3.00pm and invited families into the classrooms to see the school as a ‘working’ school and to give parents an opportunity to engage with their children’s learning. We had activities involving scientific experiments led by our oldest pupils in the school to child-led creative explorations by the younger pupils in the school. The Open Afternoon also marked the opening of our new Library which was generously part-funded by FoSS. Our Library has been relocated in the school offering a larger and more accessible space for the children to enjoy reading. The completion of our new resource area called ‘Anne’s Room’ which has been set up for pupils requiring additional support was also open for parents to view.

On Friday 8th May the whole school was involved in a day of poetry workshops. We were visited by the poet James Carter who inspired us all to get creative and to have some fun with words. The day involved wordplay and music to enthuse the children to feel confident in reciting and writing poems. The day culminated in a ‘Poetry Recital’ at the end of the day for parents and family friends which was led by James Carter and involved all classes reciting poems, together with some audience participation! Afterwards there was an opportunity to talk to James Carter and purchase books signed by the poet himself. Friends of Shellingford School provided refreshments before and after the event and the whole day was a really rewarding experience for the school.

The last Wednesday of the spring term saw pupils taking part in our second annual ‘Sponsored Fun Run’. We were very lucky with the weather, with light cloud cover and the spring sunshine just breaking through. The pupils showed fantastic levels of stamina with most, even our youngest, running the 15 laps of our track, roughly equating to a mile. Praise goes to the Year 5 and 6 pupils who also acted as leaders for the event, helping set up the track, leading the warm ups, recording the number of laps achieved and generally encouraging the children’s efforts! The School Council are looking forward to purchasing play equipment and outdoor games from the money raised. As well as being a fund-raising event, the run marked the start of an on-going whole school fitness challenge ‘The Golden Mile.’ Family Groups will be competing against each other during the course of the summer term to run the most miles and the winning Family Group with the most mileage accrued over the two terms will be announced on Sports Day. . .

We held a whole school ‘Music Serenade’ event in the Community Hall during the afternoon of Friday 23rd January. Individual pupils had the opportunity to play their instrument and pianists, recorder players, guitarists and cornet players performed to the school and in front of an audience of parents and family friends. This year we were very fortunate to have Marcel Pusey from the award winning ‘Bassistry Music’ holding ‘Live World Music’ - a rhythm, song and dance workshop. He worked with each class in an interactive, energetic and fun workshop using body rhythms, movement and dance during the day. Each class learnt original songs, used percussion and a drum-kit to explore world and popular music. Marcel and each class showcased their music-making during the Music Serenade; there was also some audience participation! Friends of Shellingford School (FoSS) kindly provided refreshments for the occasion and the event was a real celebration of the children’s musical talents - everyone enjoyed being serenaded by the children!

Our Christmas Play was a real delight and once again the children thoroughly enjoyed performing to an audience! The community hall was packed with parents and family relatives for both the afternoon and evening performance.  The mince pies, savouries, hot soup and mulled wine added to the festive spirit and were warmly welcomed! A staggering £205.67 was raised in donations for Embrace the Middle East. Thank you for supporting this charity and helping to make a difference to the lives of refugees in Gaza and elsewhere in the Holy Lands.

We are holding an Open Afternoon on Friday 28th November, from 2.30-4.30pm.  Come and join us for an early Celebration Assembly, followed by an opportunity to view the classrooms, meet the Friends of Shellingford School (FoSS) committee and enjoy some refreshments.