We have had a lovely few daysd uring this short week with lots of learning about the longest reigning monarch -Queen Elizabeth II. Although the jubilee is official-on Friday 3rd June, as  had the long bank holiday weekend, and so not to miss too much continuous learning, we decided to celebrate today!

What a great time we have had this week - lots of read-ing, writing, art and craft activities, as well as learning about the Queen's life. We looked at her life and the work that she and her family do in the UK and across the world. Then today, the whole school celebrated with a jubilee picnic in the playground. The sun wasshining and the children and staff had a fantastic time together - the children had a special boxed picnic with cupcakes and lots of yummy treats, as well as watching some circus tricks and skills, and we also listened to our amazing choir and musicians who will actually be taking part in the
Jubilee Concert in front of the Queen in June. Thanks to Roz, Tom, Lawrence and Celia for organising. All of the children had a lovely time. A huge 'thank you' to all the staff who really got into the community spirit of the day, especially all of the kitchen staff and the TLAs who helped get the food ready, and to Darren who set up and Juan who tidied up at the end of the day. A very special mention to Charlotte (Taviarna's mum in Y3) who gave up her time to come and help today- much appreciated! What a great community Millfields is! *The children will all receive a special commemorative coin on Monday as a memento of the event.

Next week is SATS Week for the Y6 children. We are inviting all of Year 6 to come to BreakfastClub free of charge every morning during the SATS week. We have found in the past that startingthe day together with a good breakfast really helps to settle the children ready for their exams, so even if they normally have a great breakfast at home we would encourage you to send your children in to school Breakfast Club during that week so they can start their day with their friends. I am extremely proud of the hard work and effort made by all the children this year, especially after the last 2 years of school disruption, and most recently in the last few weeks in the run up to the tests. I always reassure the children, by saying that we expect them to do their best, and as long as they have tried hard and know they have done their very best, then we will be proud of them no matter what the result. Please reinforce this with your child at home.

Finally, please look out for several emails that have been sent home today regarding the Community Mural, feedback from the Millfields=Equality meeting, and information on a Y4 sleepover during 'Families Week'.

I hope you have a good weekend and the sun continues to shine! T

ake care, keep well and staysafe. Jane

We are already at the end of another week! The school has continued to buzz with excitement around Shakespeare, and the role play, cartoon strips and writing that every class, and every child has produced this week has been brilliant!  The children have been so engaged and so keen to share their work and their recounts of the play that their class is reading.  Some of my favourite pieces of work this week included cartoon strips of Julius Caesar in Y3 classes, writing alternative endings to Romeo and Juliet in Lovelace Class, and role play of The Tempest in Tarrant Class.

I was also lucky enough to watch the Lowry Class version of 'The Tempest' in their Sharing Assembly. The children had learnt their words really well and spoke very clearly and loud enough for us all to hear! Well done Y1! Lovelace Class also entertained parents and carers in their assembly by re-enacting 'Romeo and Juliet', and Curie Class shared their work on space and the planets. Thank you to all the children and staff in all these classes.

On Monday, more than 50 of our school choir to part in the amazing Young Voices Concert at the O2 Arena. The whole experinece was amazing -more than 5000 school children singing their hearts out was a wonderful sound. Thanks to Roz and Tom for organsing and supporting the children.

Another reminder that school is closed on Monday and Tuesday next week. School is open as usual on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On Friday 6th May, we will be having our Millfields celebration to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. This day all of the children will be doing a couple of activities about the Queen’s life and time on the throne, and this will culminate in a celebration event in the playground. We will be having a whole school special picnic. We are asking everyone to dress for a celebration on that day. I have also sent a request for help from parents/carers -if there are any entertainers or artists that could support us to entertain the children that day. If you could run a dance workshop, a hula hoop session, balloon-sculpture, disco or karaoke, circus skills or anything else, please contact me directly. Whatever our/your personal views on the monarchy, this occasion is an important historic landmark as Queen Elizabeth is Britain's longest reigning monarch. See more on this website about the national celebrations.  https://www.royal.uk/platinumjubilee

A massive 'thank you' to all the families who continue to help stock our Food Bank weekly.  This service is well used by an increasing number of our families, so all your donations are really, really appreciated. If you are out shopping this weekend -please consider buying a few extra items, we need eggs, shower gel, toothpaste, toilet paper, lentils. biscuits, cereals, bread and fresh fruit and vegetables. Many thanks,

The children looked so smart today in their clean and tidy school uniforms (not that they don't always!), ready for their class photos! I love these photos and they serve as a really lovely memento of your child's school days -there will be more information about how to buy the photo in the next few weeks.

Finally, please make a note of the Summer Fair date -Saturday 25th June. Look out for more information in the next few weeks. Also, another exciting event to put in your diaries now is 'Millfields Dog Show' -Saturday 17th September.

Take care, keep well and stay safe. Have a lovely long weekend.

Jane

Welcome back to everyone! Thankfully, for the first time in a couple of years, it sounds like all of the children had a lovely time travelling to see family and spending time with friends over the holidays. They all seem very happy to be back in school, they looked well-rested and ready for the busy summer term!

This week, teachers have been introducing the new learning for this term, and there is a real buzz around the school about William Shakespeare! Each year group is studying a different Shakespeare play or poem, and there has been a lot of great role play, brilliant orating, puppet making and fantastic character and setting descriptions . Some of the plays being read are Julius Caesar, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet, Midsummer Night's Dream and The Winters Tale. The children in Y2 know lots of facts about Shakespeare too. He was born in Stratford upon Avon, he died on 23rd April in 1616, his plays were on stage at The Globe Theatre and lots more. I am looking forward to reading some of the children's rewrites of the plays and scripts in the next few weeks!

We have reached the end of term already! It feels like we have hardly been back for long but we have, as always, managed to pack lots of learning and fun into the last 6 weeks! A massive 'THANK YOU' to everyone for dressing in something blue today as we mark 'Autism Awareness Day'. We are still counting the cash but there is already around £200 - thank you as ever for your generosity! We also had some great Easter bonnets today -great effort!

We also have some brilliant cyclists and triathletes who have been raising money for Ukraine. Lots of young cyclists in Hackney did a 100 mile sponsored cycle at the Olympic park circuit on 30/3 to raise funds for the Ukraine crisis response. Well done to Hattie, Catrin, Grace, Esther, Ayla and Milo! Donations are still being collected here.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/hackneycycle100ukraine

We have had such a busy and fun week of learning as all the children have been enjoying workshops, parent talks and activities based on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Maths) and Design technology.Thank you to the parents who visited classes to talk about their jobs and who also brought some very interesting activities in to school for the children to try! You were amazing -thank you! The children all had a presentation from their teachers about smashing stereotypes in Science and then drew what they thought a scientist looked like! The results were quite shocking in terms of stereotypes, so we all need your help to make sure that the children know, ANYONE can be a scientist if they want to, if they work hard, have natural curiosity and inventive ideas!

The children also worked on challenges and activities throughout the week including food technology, making spaghetti and cup towers, dissecting owl pellets, making self-inflating balloons, making bouncy balls, chromatography, making foil and paper boats that hold a heavy load! The children (and staff) had so much fun and learnt so much! Thank you to Lucy, Sheyenne and Bruno for organising!

We also had our termly London Day this week. This is an opportunity once a term for all the classes to visit somewhere in our wonderful capital city. Yesterday, classes visited some of the following places:  Tate Britain, Hackney Museum, the Maritime Museum, the Museum of London, The Science Museum, The Estorick Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. It was a clear crisp day, and the children enjoyed their visits and eating lunch outside in the Winter sunshine! Please ask your child about their day.

This morning, Vicky and our Class Eco-champs and parent volunteers, Erica and Nicole, took part in the Big Spring Clean-up! They walked to Clapton Pond and around the local area collecting rubbish and trying to recycle some of the things they found! They also did some 'guerilla gardening'! Look it up!

A reminder that there is a used School Uniform Sale after school today for all ages! Thank you to the parents, especially Bettina, who have been organising and running a stall every day this week. Please also have a look in the Lost Property Box -there are so many clothes that are not labelled and are unclaimed!

To see all the amazing things that we do, check out and like/follow our new 'Instagram' account.millfieldscommunityschool

Finally, please have a lovely break with friends and family over the next 2 weeks, and let's hope that everyone is back safe and sound to start the summer term on Tuesday 19th April.

Take care, stay safe and keep well.

Jane

The weather has been glorious this week, and the staff and children have been making the most of being outdoors by going out in the local area. They visited local parks for science and PE lessons, and also went out in the local area for art and design activities and geography and history sessions. The children have also enjoyed being outside in the playground for story sessions.

We are still using the smaller outdoor space that is timetabled all day to make sure that all of the children get a share of the playground at least twice each day. As you will see, the construction of the scaffolding has started...again. I am really hoping that the side section will be finished by the end of this weekend and that the children can have the area with the climbing frames and treehouse slide back to play on! Fingers crossed!

As a further update on the scaffolding -the back elevation of scaffolding is scheduled to be completed during the Easter break, and then there will be an investigation and survey of the roof to ensure that all possible hazards and defects on the roof are identified and then made safe/good. This will mean that the rest of the playground can be used again! It will probably mean that the scaffolding will then be up for the rest of the academic year, but at least we will have the majority of the playground back in use and it will mean that the building is safe. Just to reiterate again, the children and staff have been amazing in navigating this difficult situation and have made the most of their time outdoors.

Following on from last week's very busy week, I wanted to say another huge 'thank you; to you all for the amazing fundraising effort and community spirit generated over our Day for Ukraine, and for Comic Relief. Also thank you so much to all the parents who met their child/ren's teacher during online Parents Evening this week. The verbal and anecdotal feedback we have received has been very positive, but we would like to ask you to complete a questionnaire that will be coming out so that we can consider your feedback and comments on all aspects of school life for your child.

There have also been a few more trips and events happening this week, Cooke Class went to Woodberry Wetlands to do some pond dipping, Macintosh visited the East London Mosque on Tuesday as part of their RE work, and a group pof Y4 children took part in a creative workshop at the offices of advertising agency, Weiden & Kennedy -this is a project that we have been part of for many years now and is a fantastic opportunity for the children involved. Thank you to the parents from Bond Class who came to have lunch with their child. Year 1 and Year 2 parents will have an opportunity to sign up for lunch with your child in the summer term.

Well done to Potter Class and Anming Class on their sharing assemblies today -great   work everyone!

Finally, I cannot believe that there is only one week left before the Easter break! And you know us at Millfields, the final week is another busy one! It's STEAM Week -there will be lots of science, technology and design workshops and projects taking place on Monday-Wednesday, and then on Thursday, it is our whole school, London Day. You should receive an email with details of where your children are going that day. Then Friday is the last day of term -here will be more details sent about the theme of non-uniform on that day! But they can definitely start making their Easter bonnets for Friday!

Have a lovely weekend, and enjoy this lovely weather! And remember the clocks go forward on Sunday 27th March, so there are much longer and lighter days ahead.

Take care, keep well, and stay safe.

Jane

What a wonderful Friday it is! The sun was shining and the school was filled with the sound of silence after 9.30am as the whole school celebrated Comic Relief -Red Nose Day by combining it with our half-termly Outdoor Day! The children and staff were dressed either in their own clothes or in red, and there were lots of red noses on show! We have sold almost 1000 red noses, and about £150 from on the gate donations, with all that money going towards Comic Relief charities. Thank you so much to everyone for their generosity!

The local parks -Hackney Downs, Millfields Park, the canal, the filter beds and Hackney Marshes were busy with the sounds of the brilliant Millfields children playing, learning and laughing in glorious sunshine in the wonderful outdoors. There were class basketball and football games, story time, badminton practice, daisy chain making, mini-bug hunts, stick and leaf art,  cricket, team building challenges and much much more! The children and staff have had a fantastic time learning and playing outdoors. Days like these really lift the spirits and the sense of joy and well-being around the school at the end of the day was amazing!

This week, we have also come together as a community to support a 'Day for Ukraine'. We all wore yellow and blue clothing, bought ribbons, made and bought cakes and informed ourselves about

the ongoing tragic humanitarian and refugee crisis, and especially for children and their families being torn apart in Ukraine. The response -the compassion, the empathy and the generosity of our wonderful community of families. We collected and raised more than £1500, and we are still counting...........We will use all the money raised to either buy quantities of any items needed by The Red Cross DEC or to send donations directly to UNICEF who are working in the Ukraine. We will be asking the children where they would like the money to go during lessons next week. A special huge 'thank you' for all the many cake donations, and to all the many parent volunteers who sold cakes for 2 nights in a row! Thank you also to the parents who made the ribbons for us to sell! An amazing community effort all round!

Also this week, we celebrated St Patrick's Day,  and for the first time in 2 years, we enjoyed listening to the beautiful music, and singing, and watching the fantastic dancing from the St Patrick's Day Troupe. The organisers were so complimentary about our children appreciating the display and also joining in with the celebrations!

On Wednesday, 24 of our Y6 children visited the Houses of parliament on Wednesday as part of our work on democracy. The Millfields Prime Minister and her cabinet along with some of their classmates had a brilliant time, learning more about parliament but mainly impressing the guides and workshop facilitators with all their knowledge! Thanks to Emma for organising!

Last Friday we also celebrated lots of success again on the cycling track. The brilliant Cycling Team from Millfields took to the Velo Park and did amazingly well (as always)! Medals will be awarded next week!

Finally, thank you to all the parents who came from Hutchins and Cooke Class to have lunch with their children. We hope you enjoyed the lunch and spending some time in school with your child. Look out for more dates for different classes soon!

Have a lovely weekend, enjoy the outdoors and have a good rest!

Take care, keep well and stay safe.

Jane

This week seems to have flown by as there have been so many things going on across the school. I have been amazed, wowed, and blown away by the children's writing that I have seen, and read this week, from all classes from Reception up to Year4. The vocabulary, the sentence structure and the use of alliteration, similes and metaphors is phenomenal! We have some very talented writers, and hopefully future authors in our midst! My treat box is almost bare as they have all earned a trip to my office and a special prize!

Also this week, there have been several trips. workshops and visitors in school that have been organised and planned as part of different areas of learning across the curriculum in different classes/year groups.Year 3 and Year 4 classes took part in a PE and Science workshop on Monday -the children learnt about the effects of food, energy and exercise. On Tuesday two of our Y4 classes visited the Benjamin Franklin Science Centre and took part in a workshop entitled  “The True Nature of Lighting” as part of their science work. On Wednesday Rosen Class and Tarrant Class visited Forest School as part of their weekly science learning. Yesterday Y5 classes visited the Science Museum and had a fabulous time in the WonderLab as part of their science curriculum learning. And today, Hutchins Class visited the Woodberry Wetlands to take part in the Wetlands Bugs and Pond workshop as part of their topic this term. Learning outside the classroom is so important and I am so pleased that we are getting back to Millfields 'normal' trip routine!

There is also lots going on next week -again workshops, trips and events to enrich and enhance the learning experience at Millfields. One of the things that we have reintroduced is the ever-popular 'Come Dine With Us'. The parents of reception classes have been invited to join their children for lunch, and it is Hutchins Class on Tuesday, ooke Class on Thursday and Bond class the following Wednesday. Please call the main office to book a place.

We have 2 days next week when we will be dressed in non-uniform. Firstly, I am aware that we have a very diverse school community, including families from both Russian and Ukrainian backgrounds or connections, but regardless of the political situation, fundamentally there is a tragic humanitarian and refugee crisis unfolding in Europe. We will be asking pupils who would like to show their support for the Ukranian refugees, to wear the country’s blue and yellow colours on Wednesday 16th March in exchange for cash donations .We will be collecting cash donations, and will use all the money raised to either buy quantities of any items needed by The Red Cross DEC or to send donations directly to UNICEF who are working in the Ukraine. In school we will be looking at the children's newspaper 'First News', and watching children's news items on BBC Newsround.

Then, on Friday 18th March we have a non-uniform day for Comic Relief twinned with our whole school Outdoor Day. There will be red noses on sale at each gate every day next week, and we will be encouraging children to wear their own clothes on that Friday, as we will then be going out to various Hackney parks during the day to take part in learning outside. We will also all be having a picnic lunch on that day. The school will provide packed lunches for children who are free school meals or in Reception, Y1 and Y2

Finally, another massive 'thank you' to all the parents/carers who donated food to the Millfields Food bank this week. Your generosity is appreciated by our families who use it every week, especially as the price of almost everything seems to be going up at the moment!