Newsletters

July is a strange time of year in education.  On the one hand we are coming to the end of the teaching year and looking forward to a summer of sunshine.  Staff will be taking a well-earned rest before their thoughts turn towards preparing for the new year.  It is a welcome time to recharge for everyone.  On the other hand, the sense of endings is more poignant for some – Year 6, Year 11 and Year 13 students will be moving on, some leaving the IET family entirely. 

This is also the time of year where we see most staff changes.  We thank those who are moving on, and wish all of those who are not returning in September the very best of luck in their new endeavours and adventures. 

If you are one of those people moving on for (staff or student), then I think Dr Seuss (“Oh, The Places You’ll Go!”) sums up exactly the sentiments I and IET want to send you off with

“You’ve got brains in your head

You’ve got feet in your shoes

You can see steer yourself any direction you choose”

“You’re off to great places!

Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting.

So…get on your way!”

If you will be returning in September, refreshed and ready for new challenges, then we look forward to working with you to make sure that when your day comes, you will be equally well-prepared to climb the mountains of your choice.

However, you are spending your summer, enjoy and steer yourself carefully, safely and well.

Sarah Sprack, CEO

As another year draws to an end I was hoping to write to you about the fact that everything is returning to normal, and then we get a Red Weather Warning for extreme temperatures.  I think the only way to describe the last 3 years is crazy.

Amazingly, I've now been at Epworth Primary for 3 years and have no plans to go anywhere else.  Time really has flown with so much happening in that time.  What I have learnt is what an amazing community we are working in.  The children on a daily basis show how amazing they are.  Their resilience, especially over the past few years has been remarkable.  They have managed the pandemic, changes in daily routines, staff changes and the ups and downs of daily life in their stride, supporting each other on a daily basis.  Parents too, have and continue to make me feel very welcome with a regular smile or a comment such as "have a good evening" or "enjoy your weekend."  Thank you to everyone for this as it makes hard days for all our staff so much easier.

Over the past year the academy has evolved as we have begun to come out of the pandemic.  You will have seen a number of changes; from the new playground markings, re-decoration and smartening up of the hall area to the introduction of a new kitchen area for the children to work in.  Trips and residential visits have begun to take place with children having a wonderful time.  We have also been able to have a range of parent activities as the year has gone on - seeing the children observe our remembrance service, take part in a carol service, the atmosphere of the family picnic for the Jubilee and finally being able to host a sports day where the numbers that came along were amazing.  These things for me, are what make a primary school.  Moving forward we will work to develop these types of activities and more for all the children and families to attend. 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the PTFA.  When I started at EPA it was something that was missing.  Having it set up in some of the most challenging times we have known has added to the offer at Epworth.  Working alongside us to support the children, staff and community with events and fund-raising to put back into the academy is fantastic.  The effort and time that it takes to organise the smallest of events can’t be underestimated.  Ice-cream vans, fayres, raffles, treasure hunts, Easter eggs and bake sales all take time to organise and plan for.  This has lead to monies being available for: gardening equipment and plants, ICT equipment, Easter eggs for the children and ice-creams to name a few.  I hope that you continue to support their efforts and I would encourage people to get involved to support the committee.  I look forward to discussing next year's events with them.

As we move into next year we will continue to work with the all stakeholders at Epworth Primary Academy to make it the best it can be. 

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank each and every staff member at Epworth.  The last few years have been very tough.  Every day they focus on the children in the academy, work together and work long hours.  I cannot thank them enough for their time and commitment going over and above on a regular basis.

Please do enjoy your summer, and we will see you all back in September.

Sean Woolley, Principal

Anti-Bullying - Feel Good Friday 

This term our Anti-Bullying Ambassadors organised a 'Feel Good Friday'. The theme of the day was to send and receive compliments. Here are Chestnut Class writing their messages on a gift tag to share a compliment with other children and adults in school. Beforehand, the class talked about using kind words and compliments and about how it makes us feel when we give and receive them.

This term Pine class had a sunflower challenge. The children explored different seeds and produced some large-scale paintings of sunflowers.

In Chestnut Class we have read 'We're going on a lion hunt' by David Axtell and we compared the text to the original book about a bear hunt. We worked in pairs to create a Lion Hunt map and some children recreated the route to the lion's cave using the small world and construction toys. We have also learnt about the animals that live in African countries.

Dinosaur Theme 

In Chestnut Class we followed the  children's interests with a dinosaur theme.  We read a range of books about dinosaurs and sorted them into groups of 'fiction' and 'non-fiction' .  We used the text 'Dinosaur Roar' as the starting point for our own dinosaur writing and we also created dinosaur riddles based on the facts we had learnt about each one.

In the Investigation Area we became archaeologists by looking for fossils and then we created our own using plaster of paris.   We created a dinosaur swamp in the outdoor area and compared dinosaur footprints in the playdough.

STOP, LOOK, LISTEN, THINK!

Vegetable Growing 

Chestnut Class have been growing vegetables in our garden area. Some of the children helped to dig up the radishes.

Mulberry, Sycamore and Elm class had a great time at the multi-skills festival at South Axholme this month.

We enter the blimp into the world of air discovering how sound travels through it, how it can be used to make music, it’s impact on a suspension bridge and an air tornado before being blown away to the fire pavilion to experience the fire tornado. 

Heat and power as well as a spectacular view opened our eyes to the world of fire. Dressing as firefighters to feel the weight of their uniforms without oxygen tanks helped us to understand the important roles they play. The senses and our perceptions of how things feel was tested when we felt different materials all at the same temperature as we crashed down to the next pavilion Earth. 

Blowing up rocks, digging using JCBs, lifting and hauling were nothing compared to the builders hut. The children really enjoyed having a break in hard hats singing Bob the builder! 

To end an amazing day of exploring we climbed the extensive playground area. I think after this trip we may have some budding scientists. 

The children in Year 4 had a fabulous 3 days at Kingswood for their first residential trip.  

For our first residential trip for our Year 5 children we stayed at Hatfield Water Park.  The weather was fabulous - just what was needed for the water events. The children had an amazing 3 days away. 

What a week Year 6 had at Kingswood Peak Adventure.  The weather was amazing and so were the children.  They encouraged each other to overcome challenge after challenge whether it was crawling through dark tunnels, climbing to the top of the wall or even just climbing one rung higher.  They were a pleasure to take, so caring, kind and polite.  What a wonderful group of Year 6 children they are.

This term, Year 6 had a visit from PC Gul and PCSO Manning to talk about hate crimes and how to stay safe on the internet and through social media. PC Gul showed the children a presentation to help them understand what it's all about. 

The children really loved the session and had some great answers to the questions posed by PC Gul. He was really impressed with their knowledge on this subject. It's important that the children know how to stay safe and kind through their actions on social media and through group messaging. 

At the end of the session the children were given the opportunity to try on PC Gul's helmet and hat which caused much hilarity!

Our thanks go to PC Gul and PCSO McNally

During the first half of the summer term, Year 6 children took their SATs examinations. We were so incredibly proud of all the hard work and outstanding effort that the children demonstrated over this week. 

The children were invited in for a super SATs breakfast provided and served by the Year 6 teachers - croissants, cereal, bagels and toast were eaten in huge quantities to boost their brain power throughout the morning. What a lovely way to start each day, eating and catching up with their friends. 

We are sure the results will be fitting for all the hard work that has taken place over this school year. Well done Year 6 we are proud of your accomplishments and wish you well for the next stage in your education journey. 

Thank you to Axholme Landscapes for the supply of our flowering cherry tree which was planted as part of the town and Academy Jubilee celebrations. The tree was planted by our Head boy and girl along with Councillor Whittaker. Thank you to all the parents that were able to attend.

The children created some fabulous work for the Queen's Jubilee which was displayed at St Andrew's Church during the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations.

Family Picnic 

It was wonderful to see so many families attend the picnic on Friday 27th May 2022 as part of the Queen's Jubilee celebrations in school.