Trotts Hill Primary School and Nursery
Thank you very much to the Governing Board who delivered an assembly to the children on Wednesday 22nd May. We learnt about the reasons the Governors are proud of Trotts Hill and each Governor shared a memory from their school days. Mr Driver showed us some pottery he made when he was in Year 6 and Miss Richardson showed us her school report. The Governors spoke about perseverance and giving 100% effort at school. The children spoke with confidence about the school rules and Trotts Hill learning behaviours. The Governors also visited the classrooms to thank our wonderful staff for their hard work and dedication.
I was lucky enough to be invited to attend the year 4 school trip to Knebworth Gardens.
We travelled the short distance in a coach. Since the weather forecast had been so bad we were very lucky to find that we had the place almost all to ourselves for the whole day. On arrival, we first walked through the formal gardens to the maze where the children
quite quickly found their way in to the maze and back out again. We then made our way to the dinosaur park where the children enjoyed walking round and seeing the various dinosaurs. The highlight was the huge chair that they were able to climb on for a class
picture.
The coach then took us to the playground and slides. The children loved playing on the slides and both I and Mrs Leach braved the bumpy slide! We had a well earner lunch break before the children got very hot and sweaty playing in the adventure playground, “Fort Knebworth” followed by the outdoor play equipment.
I was very impressed with the behaviour of the children throughout the day. They listened to instructions and followed them without question. They were very polite and kind to each other and there was a real sense that they looked out for each other if someone was hurt. A number of children told me through the day that this had been “the best school trip ever!"
I had the pleasure of going on a Trip with Mrs Flack and Year 1 to Ardeley Farm on Friday 2nd July. Mrs Richardson and Mr Freeman, both Parent Governors came as well.
We had a brilliant day seeing all the animals especially the 2-day old piglets and feeding the 300 chickens and collecting their eggs. Our group of 6 children managed to collect 127 eggs which was amazing. We stroked the chickens and learnt some interesting facts about them.
We also planted beans and saw the beans from seeds in the nursery to plants taller than us and learnt what they need to grow.
The children were so enthusiastic but beautifully polite, listened well and were so engaging, we had a lovely day together.
Helen Altringham
Chair of Governors
"In any of the arts, you never stop learning" and that is certainly true with the wonderful Arts Curriculum covered at Trotts Hill over the last, challenging, school year.
I have been privileged to be the school governor responsible for the arts which has meant I have witnessed some of the spectacular work presented by our pupils through their home learning and within the school environment.
We are fortunate to have a committed and dedicated staff, all of whom are continually striving to do what is best for the children. They are keen to share their expertise with one another and are constantly looking for new ways to inspire and excite the pupils. They show a determination to ensure that a broad and balanced curriculum, including the arts, is taught to all children.
I am now looking forward to the Summer 2021 Arts week where there is a theme of Hope, Happiness and Kindness which I am sure will excite and interest the pupils to be inspired by the arts. I just hope this love for the arts remains with them, because as Pablo Picasso once said, "Every child is an artist. The problem is to remain an artist once they grow up."
I virtually met with the Welltech facility on 2 March 2021. I was really impressed with the ongoing monitoring of pupil wellbeing through lock down and the plans in place for the children’s imminent return to school.
The Governors came to visit the school for a whole school assembly to tell the children (and staff!) more about themselves and their roles in the school.
To start with, the Governor’s introduced themselves and shared a fascinating fact:
Miss Williams – has a pet lizard, which she thought was a boy for a whole year, but has just found out last weekend it is a girl.
Mr. Driver – used to do ballet for 5 years as a child, including receiving medals.
Mrs Altringham – her two children used to come to school, is the chair of governors, and she is a midwife.
Mrs. Keegan – new addition to the governing body, started to learn to tap dance recently.
Mrs. Richardson – two children in the school, is too scared to touch the skin of a peach!
Miss Cousins – teacher of a local school, used to teach in China and can even speak Chinese.
After this, children from each class asked the Governors questions.
Year One – Sophie asked Miss Williams, “How long have you been a governor?” Two and a half years
Year Two – Liam asked, “Why did you become a governor?” Mr. Driver explained that he was approached by Mrs Evans and wanted to help the school.
Year Three – Sinead asked, “Why does a school need a governor?” Mrs Richardson explained the role of critical friend and that they help the children, but also ask questions to check that things are being done properly.
Year Four – Hayden asked, “What is the difference between chair and vice chair?” Miss Cousins explained that the Vice chair steps in if the chair isn’t here
Year Five – Harry asked, “How much time does it take and what are the key roles?” Mrs Keegan answered that the Governors meet every half term and different governors come in between times to support in different ways.
Year Six – Jess asked, “What are the next steps for the Governors?” Mrs. Altringham explained that the next steps will be to make the learning as fun as possible and to make sure we look after the pennies and not wasting money.