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Posted on: September 24th 2021

A Message from Mr Morton

A very big hello and an even bigger thank you to you all for giving me such a warm welcome to our school. Walking through the school gates each morning with the sun on my face (other weathers are available!) fills me with joy and energy for the day. Stoke Sub Hamdon is a wonderful place to be and your children make our school its heart.

The term is off to a great start with all the children settling back into their classes with a skip in their step and a smile on their face. I have even seen a few of the teachers doing the same!!! 

Our discovery sessions are underway and this term we are focussing on Art. All the children are currently thinking as artists and learning the specific vocabulary to be able to speak with confidence when discussing it. They are honing their skills and working on some amazing projects. We hope to be able to share all of their amazing art with you later in the year.

I look forward to getting an opportunity to chat with you on the playground over the coming weeks and we, as a school, look forward to sharing with you all of the marvellous things that we are planning to achieve as the term progresses.

 

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A message from Mr Morton Posted on: 25/03/2024

A message from Mr Morton

My goodness, this term has flown by! So many exciting experiences have been had and wonderful adventures the children have been part of, inside and outside of the classroom. Despite the weather seeming determined to rain on every single Forest School session, our spirits have remained high and where others would see grey skies, we saw an opportunity to splash in the puddles.     It is always a privilege to speak with our children about the activities and experiences that they are offered throughout each term. I have thoroughly enjoyed spending my lunchtime dining experiences with Sophie, Olivia and their guests, as part of our Charlie Castle ‘Wonka Bar’ golden ticket prizes. The dinner table conversations have been delightful.     We have been able offer trips to the top of Ham Hill to experience iron age living, visits to the tank museum followed by VE Day experiences. Live writing webcasts with Micheal Rosen to enhance our creative writing and opportunities to join a national celebration of new books for children as part of the judging panel. Also, not forgetting that our team representing the school in the ‘Big Bake’ won their heat (pardon the pun). The team were so highly motivated by their experience that they have agreed to create our own ‘in -school’ version of the competition next term. Watch this space for how to take part and hopefully eat some delicious cakes!    We are also proud of how our teachers drive to find new ways to enhance our school offer and experiences to the children. Mrs Abbott is now part of a programme set up by Westminster to bring a better understanding of government, democracy and how our voices and actions can make a powerful difference for change. We are already working together to build a new parliament in our school setting. There is a strong possibility that we may have a future PM in our school!    Finally, a huge thank you to FoCS and all of you for the amazing support and energy that you bring to our school every day. Greeting you all at the gate each morning is a real treat and a wonderful start to my day. Thank you for your support and kindness for all that we do. Have a restful Easter and we look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday 16th of April.    Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
Castle teacher privileged to join Parliamentary ambassador programme Posted on: 9/02/2024

Castle teacher privileged to join Parliamentary ambassador programme

Congratulations to Mrs Abbott, a teacher from Castle Primary School in Somerset, on her successful application on to this year's UK Parliament Teacher Ambassador course. Mrs Abbott was one of only 70 teachers from across the UK who were successful in their application and has recently taken part in the three-day programme in London. Mrs Abbott watched debates in the House of Commons and House of Lords, learnt more about the role of MPs, Lords, doorkeepers and select committees. She toured the palace, met fellow teachers, and had the unique opportunity to quiz Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House of Commons, and his counterpart in the Lords, Lord McFall of Alcluith.  Sir Lindsay said the three-day programme ‘offers a great opportunity for politicians and teachers to share their experiences’. He said: “In my view, you are never too young to get involved in democracy and to make things happen – so giving teachers an insight into our world is a great way to pass that message back to the classroom.” Frances Abbott, teacher and Senior Mental Health Lead at Castle School said: 'It was an absolute privilege to attend the Parliament Teacher Ambassador course. I am brimming with ideas and knowledge and look forward to sharing with students and staff in our school and community.” Fran Jeens, UK Parliament’s Head of Education and Engagement, said: “I congratulate this year’s successful applicants and thank them for their support in inspiring and engaging young people with the work of the House of Commons and House of Lords.”Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
A message from Mr Morton Posted on: 11/12/2023

A message from Mr Morton

How else could I start my newsletter other than to wish you all a Merry Christmas and to thank you all for the support, kindness and goodwill that you have shown to us here at Castle Primary School. A huge thank you to Castle Farm for, once again, donating our beautiful Christmas tree and also for kindly donating the cider to make the mulled cider that I hope you had an opportunity to sample? A massive thank you must also be given to FoCS for everything that they do to enhance and enrich our school experience for all of the children and staff. You are amazing!!! Despite the floods and relentless rain we have managed to keep up our high Christmas spirits and to share most of our celebrations with you in person (Seesaw carols coming to a small screen near you soon!). I challenge anyone to have not felt overwhelmingly Christmassy after meeting Humph and the rest of the cast of the Drogo/Corfe nativity. Who knew that the story of Christmas could be told from the perspective of a grumpy camel! I can’t wait to experience the Dunster/Tintagel debut performance of ‘One more sleep’. A play that has been written and directed by our very own Mr Penn. Sadly, we couldn’t persuade him to also star in it too. Stoke today Holywood tomorrow!!! Speaking of Holywood, we are so proud of our school council and head girls and boys as they represented our school on BBC1 Spotlight news. They spoke eloquently about how we, as a school, can make a big difference to our local and global communities. If you missed it or want to share it with friends and family then please click on or share this link: Castle children on BBC1 Spotlight News As we ready ourselves for a new chapter in our school’s history, we say a fond farewell to The Redstart Learning Partnership and welcome our alliance with The Cabot Learning Federation. We would like to say thank you to Mrs Suzanne Flack and all of the team that have worked tirelessly over the past 9 years to ensure that our children have been able to access the highest educational standards with love and equity for all.  All that is left for me to say is stay safe, have a merry Christmas and we look forward to welcoming you all back on January the 3rd 2024.  Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
A message from Mr  Morton Posted on: 4/09/2023

A message from Mr Morton

Welcome back everyone!   We hope that you have all had a restful summer break and enjoyed lots of new adventures and relaxing days. We are grateful to have such nice weather for our return to school, allowing the children the chance to get outside and catch up with their friends and have a run around. It is a shame that we didn’t have this weather during the holidays but we will embrace it while we have it. Winter is coming!   The children have all settled back into school life seamlessly. Everyone is enjoying their new classes and they all look so smart in their new school uniforms. I have had the pleasure of complimenting many of them on their new…everything! It is a good time to remind everyone to please ensure that all items of clothing and objects that come into school have a clear name label on them. It helps us to return misplaced items swiftly to their rightful place.   Staffing updates:   We have had confirmation from Mrs Sandiford (from her rooftop garden!) that she is safely in Egypt and loving her new job and accommodations. We are not jealous at all!!!!   We welcomed Miss Raybold’s little baby girl, Marlee, into the world. We look forward to many cuddles over the coming weeks.   Mrs Staniland underwent major surgery over the summer break. She is well and recovering at home. She wanted you all to know that she is on the mend and looks forward to seeing everyone around the village again soon. Until she is back up and working I have continued my split headship role over the 2 schools. I’m sure you will join us in wishing her a speedy recovery.   We officially welcome Miss Hill to our teaching team as the Totnes class teacher. She is off to a flying start and we can’t wait to see the exciting experiences she will enrich our school with over the year.   We also welcome David Seccombe and Emma Logan to our school site maintenance and cleaning team.    Lots to take in within only 2 days of school so far… We will soon be sharing many more school events and letters from the class teachers and FoCS about all of the amazing events and learning experiences we have planned over the coming term. Please do come and say hi on the playground anytime for a catch up or chat. I look forward to our exciting year’s adventure together.     Mr Steve Morton     Head of School  Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
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