Oakfield's Instagram:

Please take your time to log on to the Parent Portal and remind yourself of all the things that have been posted this week, thank you.

https://oakfield.engagehosted.com

Reflections from our Head

I remember being told as a child that it was important not to have too much time staring at the TV screen (no computers or mobile devices then, thank goodness!) and that being outside in the fresh air and looking at the green of the trees (my grandmother set great store by this) was good for the eyesight and general health and well-being - we certainly spent huge amounts of time outside playing, and of course the weather was always sunny......

I am sure that there was a lot of inherent wisdom in our parents' and grandparents' generations, and it often seems these days as if this is coming full circle. We now worry endlessly about 'screen time', about children's social and language development and about their freedom to be outdoors exploring and building confidence, physical skills and discovering the natural world. The Duchess of Cambridge has been in the news in recent months with her work on supporting Early Childhood development and stressing the importance of outdoor learning through the work of such organisations as The Garden Classroom.

At Oakfield we try as often as possible to get the children outside, both on our own site and in local green spaces. Forest School is an area of the curriculum we are keen to develop, as the benefits of being outside are well-documented in research - a recent study based at University College London concluded that children tend to far better academically if they have plenty of access to green spaces. There are ten top reasons for spending time outdoors:

• It encourages natural curiosity
• It encourages children to be active learners
• It encourages them to become more observant
• It helps cognition, especially visual spatial memory
• It helps to build connections in their learning
• It builds confidence and, crucially, resilience
• It reduces sadness and stress
• It promotes a sense of well-being
• It encourages appreciation of the environment
• It builds a greater sense of environmental awareness

I wish you a happy, outdoor weekend (the latest storm permitting!)

Moyra Thompson

.

COFFEE MORNINGS

Hopefully you will have seen the upcoming Coffee Mornings with our Head Moyra Thompson advertised on the school noticeboards or at Early Birds Club. We would love to see as many of you there as possible. The Coffee Mornings have been setup by Year Group and are as follows:

NEW CLASS NAMES

Dear parents and carers,

We are delighted to share our exciting news about your child’s class name. We will be naming all the Pre-Preparatory classes up to Year 2!

Please find below the names assigned, which we have focused around local trees in our Oakfield!

Please note that the abbreviated class name will still appear on all documents, and that the fun ‘tree’ names are for the children to identify their classes more easily.

Nursery

• Acorn Class

Lower Foundation

• LFLC Elm Class
• LFKS Ash Class
• LFLS Pine Class

Upper Foundation

• UFWN Aspen Class
• UFKT Willow Class
• UFSP Chestnut Class

Year 1

• 1SD Birch Class
• 1AR Hawthorn Class
• 1AW Maple Class

Year 2

• 2MF Sycamore Class
• 2CS Poplar Class

Best wishes,

Wendy Nicholson, EYFS Lead

ECO DAY

Miss Francis is organising an 'Eco Day' for Oakfield pupils on Thursday 7th May 2020. She has already arranged for a member of the Eco team at Lambeth council to lead an assembly in the morning and has organised for two STEM ambassadors to run workshops with each year group throughout the day. However, if there are also parents/guardians who work within this field and are available and interested in leading an environment themed activity with particular classes/year groups on this date, please get in touch by emailing: cfrancis@oakfield.dulwich.sch.uk

ECO POETRY COMPETITION

We want you to write a poem about food waste to enter into the ‘Too Good to Go’ competition. The winner will receive a £100 book voucher for themselves, a £200 book voucher for their school library and a food waste fighting pack!

Your poem has to be about food waste. Entrants could submit a rhyming set of instructions relaying the best tip for using up stale bread, a haiku that describes their favourite way to fight food waste, or a couplet that simply emphasises how silly the food waste problem is.

The best poems will be those that balance a good knowledge of the food waste issue with clever creativity.

Please submit entries to Miss Francis by Mon 23rd March 2020 (either on paper or typed to cfrancis@oakfield.dulwich.sch.uk)

Year 5

Wet Break in 5AZ

5AZ didn't let a wet break break their spirits. Both the rain and creative juices were flowing as the boys built a brick llama called ’Leo.’

MUSIC

Composer of the Week

Claude Debussy

Dear musical dreamers,

From rip-roaring themes to impressionist dreams, we move from John Williams to the delicate rebellion of Claude Debussy. His rebellious streak led him to disagree with the teachers, who didn't like his 'modern' compositions, with his peers - and especially the Germanic symphonic form - who he felt were obsolete, and finally his own labels, as he vehemently fought against his label as an impressionist.

His work is stunning; from Clare de Lune's wistful sorrow, to the sound-painting of La Mer's stormy seas, it is hard not to get lost in Debussy's unique world.

He also has a fantastic beard.

Adieu,

Sam Howes (Director of Music)

Club and Activity News

Fencing Club

For the Summer Term we are delighted to announce that, among several other new clubs, Fencing Club will be available. It will be run by a great organisation called Little Musketeers and it will take place for Years 2-3, and for Years 4-6 on Friday after-school.

M-Tech

M:Tech is a creative composition course in which children create exciting music using the latest music technologies. The course is available to children age 7 - 13 and is suitable for all levels of musical ability.

In the Summer 2020 term the children will be working on Project ‘ANIMATION‘. Enter the world of Animation composing music and exploring sound design, bringing the visuals to life, telling a story and creating musical personalities

Fees are £175 per term with weekly sessions of 30 minutes. Please note M:Tech is a group instrumental lesson teaching creative composition with a clear graded learning curve, therefore we apply the same terms and conditions as for instrumental lessons. Notice is required by half term in order to stop at the end of term. Please apply to join M-Tech during the Summer Term via the Parents Portal.

Upcoming Competitions

We are keen to alert you to some upcoming competitions which offer a great opportunity to practice your art and writing, and potentially win prizes at the same time! Why not give it a go over half term!?

British Science Week Poster Competition

There is an exciting poster competition we would love you to get involved in which combines the best of art and science. The theme for the British Science Week 2020 poster competition is ‘Our diverse planet’. You can find out more, including activity packs, by clicking the button below. As you will see from the website the competition is open to lots of different age categories so there's no excuse not to give it a go!

Oakfield will be collating and submitting the entries so please bring your poster into school well before the entry deadline of 3rd April .

Evesham Festival of Words Short Story Competition

It is an open entry competition with the category open to Oakfield pupils as 8-11 year olds. The word limit is 500 words and there is no specific theme or subject.

The deadline is Friday 20th March. Book tokens and trophies are there to be won so get entering!

Writing Wizadry Competition

Calling all writers of eleven years and under! If you like to write poems or stories, why not prove what a Writing Wizard (or Witch) you are, and enter our competition? You could see your work published AND win a fabulous prize!

Send us a poem or a story of fewer than 500 words and you could see it published in the Writing Wizardry anthology AND win a fantastic prize. Your story or poem can be about ANYTHING you like, so let your imagination run wild!

There are two categories for this competition each with their own magical prizes: Years 3 & 4 and Years 5 & 6

There are no restrictions on what your story must be about but entries must be your own original work, so get scribbling! The closing date is 27th March 2020.

Cricket Writing Competition

For all cricket fans out there this competition is FREE to enter and the categories you will be interested in are 6 to 10 year olds and 11 to 14 year olds.

Your piece of work can be about cricket in general or a totally made up story about cricket. It must be your original work. Closing date is 31st March 2020 at 5pm. Why not give it a shot!

Philip Pullman 'in conversation' with Michael Rosen - 17th March

This is a rare opportunity to listen to the acclaimed and inspiring children’s authors, Philip Pullman and Michael Rosen in conversation about children’s literature. Philip Pullman will be talking about his writing and some of the stories and ideas behind his influential and much loved books.

This event is hosted by the Centre for Language, Culture and Learning and connected with the MA Children’s Literature programme at Goldsmiths, University of London. There will be a charge of £15 a head with tickets redeemable against a book by Philip Pullman or Michael Rosen from ‘The Word’ bookshop, on the night.

The event will take place in the Ian Gulland Lecture Theatre, at 5.30pm on the 17th March.

Monday 2nd March:

Y3 Netball vs Rosemead

10.30am - Guest Head Assembly (Mr Hewlett from St Dunstan's)

Tuesday 3rd March:

Y1 Toy-making workshop

Y4 Adopt-a-chef

Wednesday 4th March:

LF Space Workshop

Friday 6th March:

2+ Observations