Atwood Newsletter 1st May 2026

We started the week dressed in blue raising vital funds for Diabetes UK and we finished it with a great assembly from Green Class. We crammed in so much in between.

The Nursery children have been solving problems and enjoying the sunshine.

https://www.pegasusacademytrust.org/news/eyfs/atw-nursery-news-1st-may

In Reception, this week the children have been reading the story of The Billy Goats Gruff and practising their number bonds to 5.

https://www.pegasusacademytrust.org/news/eyfs/atw-reception-news-the-three-billy-goats-gruff

Year 1 have continued writing their Tinga Tinga Tales. When writing their story, the children included exclamation marks, question marks and chose interesting verbs. During maths, they counted in groups of 10 and then used multiples of 10s in arrays. Year 1 also made and counted groups of 5. Next week, they will show this as an array. In science, the children worked in groups to share their knowledge of animals and were able to draw and label a variety of animals. Year 1 discovered in their thematic lesson that Africa has different geographical features to the UK. They also designed an African mask and made sure their ideas were symmetrical. The children are really looking forward to making their mask in the next few weeks.

This week, Year 2 continued their learning all about money in maths. The children learned how to make amounts in the most efficient ways using different coins. In their Thematic learning, the children began discovering how certain colours can evoke a mood when painting. In their whole class reading, the children we looked at their first wordless book ‘Flotsam’ by David Weisner and came up with joint meanings of different pages. Lastly, Green Class practised non-stop to get ready for their Class Assembly on Friday! They treated the school to a wonderful show where they shared all of their learning and sang some very catchy tunes.

This week, in English, Year 3 have been publishing their non chronological reports full of fascinating facts about the Stone Age. They used alliterative titles, some great adverbial sentence starters and included some very gory hunting pictures. Did you know that bat poo was used in cave paintings? In maths, the children have been learning about telling the time recapping some of the Year 2 learning on quarter past and quarter to. In thematic, the children have been refining their sketching skills drawing Stonehenge as well as learning some fact about it. In their whole class reading the children are enjoying ‘The Wild Robot’. The children also managed to find time to visit the library and enjoy a good book. They are also enjoying reading their Spark Award nominated book ‘Wild Magic’.

In Year 4 the children have completed and published their narratives based on the book Varjak Paw. They used apostrophes for passion and lots of adjectives for description. In maths the children have been learning about perimeter and area and learning about horizontal and vertical lines. In art, the children completed their watercolour paintings of Saxon settlements and in their PSHE the children learnt about the dangers of smoking.

This week, Year 5 have been writing their biographies of Catherine Johnson based on the book Hidden Figures. They have also continued their Crime and Punishment unit by learning about the first fleet, a group of 11 British ships that departed Portsmouth on 13 May 1787, arriving at Botany Bay (18 January 1788) and then Sydney Cove (26 January 1788) to establish the first European penal colony in Australia. In science, the children have been learning all about our Solar System and in maths the children have been learning that percent means ‘out of a hundred’ and then relating percentages to decimals and fractions.

In English, Year 6 have been busy planning and developing their non-fiction survival guides linked to our Wolf Brother unit. The children have begun writing instructional paragraphs explaining how to create shelter and fire in a Stone Age forest environment. They have focused on using clear organisational features, precise technical vocabulary and effective instructional language to guide the reader successfully. In maths, the children have been working their way through a range of challenging reasoning problems in preparation for their SATs. They have been developing their confidence in explaining their methods, applying their arithmetic skills and tackling multi-step problems carefully and accurately. Finally, in thematic learning, the children have been learning about primary and secondary sources and how these help us to understand and interpret life in the ancient world. They have explored different forms of evidence and discussed how historians use sources to learn about the past.

Bikeability

This week, many of our Year 5s have been out and about on the streets of Sanderstead learning how to safely ride their bikes on the road. The instructors have been impressed with the children’s enthusiasm and listening skills as they learn this important life skill. Let’s hope that it leads to a lifetime of cycling enjoyment for the children.

Diabetes UK

On Monday in our assembly, we learnt all about how Diabetes UK are at the forefront of research making lives easier for people diagnosed with diabetes. We heard how technology has moved on from people injecting themselves daily with glass syringes to pen injectors and now closed loop systems that can monitor and manage blood sugar levels. Advances like these have been transformational for people with diabetes and the £623 that the school raised will go towards more important research as scientists seek a cure for diabetes. Thank you to everyone who supported our ‘Blue Day’.

Parental Questionnaire

Thank you to everyone who responded to our Parent questionnaire at the recent parents’ evenings. If you wold like to read more about the results please see the special newsletter that can be downloaded here: https://www.pegasusacademytrust.org/media/Atw-Newsletter-questionnaire-special-2026-FINAL2.pdf