Make your own sweets!

George and Lola found an interesting experiment where the end result is sweet! Follow the link to the instructions below to make your own rock candy. Make sure you have adult supervision as you need to use the hob. 

All you need is: water, sugar and food colouring! 

https://www.thespruceeats.com/rock-candy-521016

Thank you George and Lola for sending in your images! 

UPDATED WITH MORE MESSAGES: Can you decode the Viking runes?

Hi all,
Rousseau class have been writing in Viking runes as part of their home learning. Below are some messages that you can try to decode (I will add more as I receive)! Anyone can have a go to decode them, you can email Rousseau@windhill.herts.sch.uk if you would like to guess!

From Meena 

From Tamsin

From Sanober

From Chloe 

From Lily 

From David-Elliot 

The Assassin, by Hanako

The sun unforgivably beat down upon the desolate road. Forever onward it stretched, as far as the eye could see, with a forest and overgrown grassland running beside it. Pylon after pylon, tree after tree, but not a sound could be heard - not a rustle or bird call, only a sinister silence. 
The assassin waited on his perch. Beneath his grey hat were two, large, searching eyes, with two, black scars, that told of experience, slashed over them. He was the picture of malice. 
"I must wait," he muttered to himself, peering down where the victim would present themselves, "Patience is a virtue." But he could not wait. He was agitated. He was restless. Every muscle, every bone throbbed with life and energy. At that moment he could not care less about the murder; he desired to tear apart everything in sight. Slowly, he took a few deep breaths, calming his rage slightly, but not extinguishing his determination and bloodlust. Impatiently, he emerged from his hiding place, disguised among the branches, hovering, anticipating the moment he had been waiting for. Desperately, he searched and searched, for what seemed like years, while the sun sank lower and lower, until... he saw and heard movement. With all his effort, he launched himself towards it, plummeting to the earth, weapon in hand. Had he struck true? 
"Aarrgghh!" he cursed in annoyance. He had not pierced flesh or bone, he had only created a divot, a memento of his failure. The wind had tricked him.
"Blasted wind!" he spat and as if to mock him it began to howl and pound him with great force. Mustering as much dignity as he could, he resumed his position furiously scanning for his target. Crack! Instinctively, he turned towards the direction of the noise. By the light of the moon, he could just make out the gloomy silhouette of his victim, helplessly blundering towards him. With a grin of menace and relish, he attacked. Screech! Tear! Blood. Flesh. Darkness.
"Simple." he sniggered.
The blood-dripping rodent lay limp in the kestrel’s powerful talons. Victoriously, he took to the air gracefully, clutching his precious kill. Above the treetops he soared, until he came to rest on a telegraph pole, ready to devour his hard-won meal.

Warhol's Home Learning

Wow! What a busy first week we've had whilst learning from home!

We have been so impressed with the activities and work that Warhol Class have been sending to us.

We wanted to share a few of the exciting things they've been up to...

Taking inspiration from Samuel Pepys, Esme has been writing her own "Lockdown Diary" and documenting all her experiences. We think this is a fabulous idea! I wonder if children in the future will read her diary to research life in 2020?

Olivia has been been busy doing research on Portland Castle in Dorset. It was interesting to see all the exterior and interior pictures she had labelled and written about.

George, Ryan and Marcus all sent examples of their Science, English and Maths work they've been busy working on. We can see they've been working very hard!

Many of the children have accepted our Lego challenge! Mrs Price is building a huge Lego town and lots of children have already contributed pictures of their amazing Lego houses, castles and cabins to add to it. Watch this space as the town grows bigger and bigger!

Keep up the fantastic work, Warhol Class. We are so proud of all your efforts so far!

Ben's Lego House

Lilja's House

Ryan's Lego House

Fletcher's Adventure Cabin

Ready for battle with the Romans!

Klee class have been doing some brilliant shield designing and making while they're at home! 
These Romans are ready for you, so beware!

Milo's Roman Shield Fact File

 Roman shields by Noah C, Leticia and Emilie!  

A shield has got to come with a sword too!

Leticia has used some of the key features of a Roman shield, such as the lightning bolts and using red and gold,  but also made it her own with her globe and star design!

'You have to hold it on the other side, James!'

Emilie's dog, James Bond, thinks he'll make a great Roman soldier dog! 

Kahlo home learning...

Dear Kahlo Class,

Wow - some of the home learning that has been coming in is truly wonderful! I'd like to share some pieces with you over the next few days...just as we would in class.

Let's start with George's Topic project - a really fascinating piece on Raoul Wallenberg. George has also been very creative, and he is actually our narrator (and on camera) for the entirety of the presentation...so it very much feels like George is at the front of our class, telling us all about his research.

I had no idea who Raoul Wallenberg was until today - and what an heroic man he was. Saviour to thousands of Jewish people in World War II, he bravely put himself in the face of danger over and over again to save others.

Have a look at George's work - it's a really interesting watch.

https://1drv.ms/v/s!Al0GCSUp2vXLhK5OxAD0lPM7naCTww

See you all soon...I'm excited to share some of your brilliant 'Assassin' pieces.

Mrs Mihajlovic

Viking studies!

Rousseau class have been throwing themselves into learning about the Vikings whilst at home. It has been so interesting for me to learn from you!

I have seen lots of Viking long boats...

There have been a few Viking shields....

We've even already had a secret message in Viking runes...

The Assassin- By Emily

The uninviting mist consumed the eerily dark sky, a full moon piercing through the despair-filled air. The assassin's beady eyes lingered across its victim’s home, unmoving, waiting for his unexpected victim to pass by any moment now. The assassin gave a wicked smile, his soft extended coat covering him head to toe, blends into the inky, starless night sky.

"Any second now, I can make my move." Thought the assassin in his blood-thirsty mind. He crept in the darkest quarter of his hiding spot, impatiently waiting for his unexpected victim to set foot in his territory. The murderer's adrenaline started racing. Every moment felt like hours, days!

Every limb was numb with determination. Just as the assassin was about to come out of his pose - ready to pounce, giving up - when... "Creak, crack."

"It’s time" chuckled the craving-for-death assassin. "Any moment now my long waited victim would come into sight, and that will be the end."

Getting into the perfect position to strike, the noise from his victim came to rest. He steadied his whole body making sure not to make a single sound, not a single movement. Patiently waiting, watching, preparing for the right moment to make the final blow. And then... out soared a piece of litter.

"Drats!" shrieked the assassin letting out all his anger.

Being more inpatient and more determined than the beginning of this failure of assassination he struck back into his position. Tensing his whole body.

Trying to stay calm, they took a deep breath, as quietly as they could. Panicking, he fixed his vision on the walkway their unfortunate victim would walk. And then out of the mist, the victim appeared, unaware to what was about to happen, the murderer gave a sinful smile. Swoop! Rip!

"Piece of cake!" Chuckled the murderer under his breath.

A torn dead anoles on the swaying, bloodstained grass, reduced to bits of dry, scaly skin. The crow flew back down already tasting the dead anoles. The crow seized his prey in his beak and went back to his precious nest, the anoles still in his mouth. He and his impatient chicks prepared for their feast.

Hello Windhill21!

A virtual update for you on some of the things your friends at school have been doing to keep themselves active whilst we are all at home.

Joe Wicks

I have had emails from parents saying you are all enjoying the Joe Wickes PE (even if some of the parents are suffering from DOMS!) Please be advised that having watched his daily activities. Some of these activities might not be suitable for all children across the school community. If your child/children are saying they find any of the activities difficult, trust them and let them sit it out and join back in when they feel comfortable. Safety first!

Zumba/Cosmic Yoga

It has been great to hear that several of you have been doing the Refit Zumba and cosmic kids yoga these are great low impact exercises to music or stories! I haven't yet seen any pictures or videos of anyone doing these yet it would great to have a full inbox of these activities in the next week.

A special mention to a few of our school community members who have sent me some videos of keeping active through gymnastics, trampolining and cycling. In some cases there has been some impressive up levelling of skills happening! Keep up the good work.

http://www.windhill.herts.sch.uk/WH21-PE-Home/

Well done to all of you for keeping active as best you can with our current restrictions. Remember any time you are moving your body it means you are being physically active. This might be taking the dog for a walk, riding your scooter or bike, climbing trees, playing in your garden. Something is better that nothing!

Keep sending me your videos and pictures, these may inspire your friends at Windhill21 when I post them! It also brightens my day very much because I miss you all! 

Take care and be safe.

Miss Freeman 🙂

The Assasin- By Maggie

She nervously left the gloomy depths of the forest and skittered onto the pavement. The half-moon emitted icy rays of weak light that seeped over the jagged road and that enveloped the surrounding street. She wearily watched the last lights from the houses flicker out and pulled her shadowy mask tighter around her ghostly face. Her nose twitched as the stench of rubbish wafted with the breeze and she smirked a horrid grin. There were enough places to hide in this dump. Houses glared at each other across the streets desolate road and trees stretched their gnarled fingers up to the sky.  She gripped her grey coat firmly and wrapped it around herself even tighter as she crawled behind large bins and into the shadows, any minute now…

‘They’ll be here soon,’ the assassin reassured herself, crouching low, positioned for the attack. Adrenaline dangerously pulsed through her, eyes squinting into the curtain of black. But soon she was doubting herself considerately but the sheer hunger for blood kept her stock still. Eyes adjusting, nose twitching, mouth framed in a murderous snarl, she crouched ever so slightly moving from dustbin to dustbin to see if he was there.

After what seemed a lifetime, with her face sweaty and her legs shaking from ache, a small shadow snuck along the derelict street, over the twisted roots of a cherry blossom and into the moon’s light. The figure emitted unexplainable sounds, ‘Scrape’, ‘Rustle’ and the assassin tensed her body, every limb in her body shrieking with pain and anxiety.

“You stupid animal,” she spat with glee, “It’s just too easy...”

And with that, she lunged. Weapons raised, the assassin went for the kill. She pounced upon her victim and she stopped. The rustling continued as it sank down, the plastic bag flew into the wind once more as the murderer slowly reclined, white hot with anger.

She kicked herself hard in the shins and roared. Her face was tense and ridged with fury. Never had she been so ignorant and embarrassed, she cursed herself and ran nimbly under a car and behind its tyre.

She inhaled the muddy tyres and breathed out, talking quietly to herself to reassure her that she would not go home and give up. Time ticked by until it slowed down and to the assassins delight, he appeared. Oblivious and unaware of his whereabouts. She sprinted at the victim, ‘Scratch’ ‘Snap’ a malicious grin stretched across her face.
A murdered cat got dragged into the forest, the eyes dead and lifeless.
Blood spurted from its wounds and left a gruesome trail along the jagged stones. With the raccoon’s mouth frothing around the edges, she gleefully disappeared into the forest with the cat and waited triumphantly for the welcome back and the banquette ahead for her and the others.

Weather watch

Lots of the children in Cassatt class have been enjoying learning in the sunshine! Some children are spending time in their own gardens or going outside on daily walks; you all seem to be getting a lot from learning outside. Whether it's watering the plants, conducting experiments, counting your steps, following treasure hunt clues or going on a number hunt, learning outside can be really beneficial.

The next time you go on a walk to get some fresh air, see how many steps you take in a minute. Or perhaps you could see if you could spot written signs, numbers or shapes in the environment? Maybe you could play a game of 'would you rather...?' with your grown up! Here's one of Cassatt's favourite 'would you rather' questions:

From John Burningham's book "Would You Rather..."

Though... hold on, let me check the weather today... oh dear. Not an inch of blue sky in sight! If only I had my weather chart to help me keep track! Maybe you could make your own weather chart for the week like this one:

To grow your brains even further, you could label your weather pictures, write the days of the week yourselves or even present the weather to your families as if you were on the television!

Whatever you are up to this week (and whatever the weather) let me know how you get on at

cassatt@windhill.herts.sch.uk

Cassatt Home Learning

From spreading joy with rainbows, baking and dance challenges, to getting busy with treasure hunts, craft activities and reading, Cassatt class have been really busy learning at home. The juggling act parents and carers are undertaking is truly admirable, but remember you are not alone! With young children, it is tricky to encourage independent learning, so do not feel disheartened if the children are finding this hard. As best you can, work to a timetable that is tailored to your own routines; this will help the children understand what is expected of them every day. Displaying this timetable for your child to see is a good idea, and post it notes (like the example pictured) are a great way to work flexibly. Refer to your Home Learning packs for details on what your child should be engaging with each day. Please do not hesitate to email cassatt@windhill.herts.sch.uk if you would like to share some work, ask advice or clarify anything at all.

We have been receiving so much work from the children; it is so lovely to see what you have been up to. A lot of you have been using Purple Mash to develop literacy skills, through letter formation practice and segmenting words to write their very own captions. Children have also been using Fred Fingers to write words and simple sentences on their home learning boards; very impressive! RWI phonics sessions and story times on YouTube have also been a roaring success and help to embed familiar school routines. 

To mark the start of a brand new term after Easter, we will be sending you new topic packs all about Minibeasts! Literacy work will focus on two key stories ('The Very Hungry Caterpillar' and 'The Very Busy Spider') both available as online animations. Maths learning will centre around revisiting and reviewing past learning with the help of The Numberblocks, and we will be providing you with lots more ideas to engage with the new topic.