We are pleased to now able to accommodate up to 32 pupils at our new, larger school site on Thorpe Road, which has been completely renovated with state-of-the-art facilities and resources that fulfil the SEN requirements of our pupils. Our opening event was a huge success, with guests getting to tour all our new amenities and meet our talented pupils and teachers. We are so proud of how well our pupils interacted with everyone, the amazing artwork they produced, the tours they gave, and their speeches – including one who bravely stood up in front of everyone to talk first-hand about his experience of attending our school.
Our pupils have been working extremely hard in all of their lessons, from making traditional Tudor houses out of pine needles in History, to creating pictures of flowers by mixing colours and shapes in Art, and enjoying sensory play in the garden.
In English, they have been reading “Stone Age Boy” and had a go at making the character themselves out of playdough, before using adjectives to describe elements from the story and form sentences. They have also been reading Roald Dahl’s “The Witches,” exploring the characters and their personalities in order to produce a final piece. They have also been writing their own diary entries about what they have been doing at the weekend, and presenting it back to the class.
In Science, pupils have been learning about evaporation, condensation, and the water cycle by creating their own mini water worlds and growing cress. They investigated the weight of gas using fizzy drinks, made erupting papier-mâché volcanoes, and used rice krispies to represent how particles behave in solids, liquids, and gases. The school celebrated Science Day by carrying out a variety of experiments involving chemical reactions, and making balloon rockets to demonstrate Newton’s Third Law of Motion. Everyone’s favourite part of the day was definitely learning about planets, as they got to make their own edible Mars rover!
In their Gardening lessons, pupils have been learning about the different apple varieties that are grown in the UK, their characteristics, and how seeds are planted to grow into trees. They then used their creative skills to prepare “apple pumpkins” afterwards!
In Food Technology (FT), they have been practicing making healthy meals such as pesto egg muffins, oven-baked chicken nuggets with salad, turkey bolognese, and oat balls. They have been learning about the origins of different food and cooking techniques from across the world such as the Indian tandoor, before having a go at creating their own dishes. They have picked up a variety of skills in their FT lessons such as how to correctly handle meat, cut ingredients, and sanitise utensils.
Our pupils have also been enjoying spending time outdoors with regular visits to Rutland Farm Park where they get to meet, groom, walk, and feed different animals, including some adorable newly born baby lambs! In the farm’s forest, they learned how to light fires and cook freshly laid eggs. They also spent time walking on the Gruffalo Trail at Wakerley Woods, which consists of a two-mile track through the woods and ends at a playground!
On Halloween, everyone dressed up in their scariest costumes and wrote their own ghost stories using skills learned in their English lessons. They then shared their stories with the group in the hall while enjoying hot chocolate and marshmallows. They also enjoyed decorating Halloween biscuits, making masks, decorating pumpkins, and taking part in different Halloween-themed sensory activities.
