Dol-y-Moch:       We welcomed back our Year 6 children on Friday 14^th February. They spent an action-packed week at Dol-y-Moch, in Wales. They had the opportunity to participate in lots of exciting activities, including: canoeing, kayaking, rock scrambling, climbing mountains and exploring mines. Some children climbed up a waterfall inside a mine to reach the top of it! All of the children showed great resilience when facing new challenges and with a little encouragement, many were able to overcome their fears. The Dol-y-Moch staff commented on what a resilient, respectful and determined group of children we had in Year 6. If you would like to see photographs of the children during their adventures, there are lots on the Moat House X (Twitter) account, which you can find: @Moat_House

 

Year 6 Visit to Leicester:   On Thursday 13^th February, the Year 6 children who did not go to Dol-y-Moch went to the Leicester Outdoor Pursuit Centre. The instructors were great and showed everyone how to safely complete the activities and supported the children to improve. Everyone had a go at the climbing walls and holding the safety ropes. All of the children made improvements and got a bit better and higher with each new climb. In the afternoon, the children found their inner 'Robin Hoods' during their archery sessions. Everyone had a fantastic time, despite the chilly and muddy conditions.

 

Safety Seymour in Year 2 and Year 5:   Safety Seymour is a fun and colourful character, who has an important message to share about gas safety in the home, and the dangers of Carbon Monoxide (or CO) poisoning in particular. The sessions, on Tuesday 11^th and Wednesday 12^th February, focused on educating children in a fun and engaging way on the dangers of carbon monoxide, what the symptoms are and also how to stay carbon monoxide safe. All of the children took home a goody bag with the Year 2 children receiving a carbon monoxide alarm, whilst the Year 5 children were directed to a link so that they can request an alarm for themselves. Additional information can be found via www.safetyseymour.co.uk .

 

Kabaddi World Cup:         On Tuesday 11^th February, Year 5 took part in a workshop around the upcoming Kabaddi World Cup. This competition is normally held in India but this year it will be held in several places, one of which is Coventry. The children learned about the rules and history of the sport and then produced collages, which will be used as artwork during the event. Year 5 had a great time and are looking forward to the tournament starting in March. 

 

Safer Internet Day:           This year’s Safer Internet Day theme was about protecting yourself and others from scams online. In assemblies on Tuesday 11^th February, children were made aware of some of the scams that may arise, whilst they are online. They saw examples of these, which included; adverts offering something for free, emails with a suspicious link or a pop-up message telling us we are a lucky winner. The children were able to recognise that if it sounds too good to be true, then it is probably a scam and they should ask for help from a trusted adult. Please see this website for any further support about keeping children safe online: https://saferinternet.org.uk/

Ofsted Report:       We were very pleased with the report that the Ofsted inspectors wrote following their visit in January 2025. They identified the outstanding work that we do with the children and how well they engage with their learning. I am very proud of the children and staff. You should have received a copy of the report earlier in the week and it is now on the school website.

 

5LM’s Class Assembly:      5LM shared a fantastic assembly with us on Friday 7^th February. They shared that in Geography, they have been learning about earthquakes, mountains and volcanoes, whilst in History they have found out lots of historical information from the remains of a stone age man, called Otzi, the ice mummy. Thanks 5LM – we all thoroughly enjoyed your assembly! 

 

Dogs’ Trust Assembly:       On Thursday 6^th February, Sarah from the Dogs’ Trust visited us to deliver an assembly. She shared lots of important information about why dogs are often put in rescue homes and how to stay safe around them. This included how to stand and react if you are approached by a dog when you are scared and how to politely ask to stroke a dog. The children in Year 2 and 3 were then given an additional workshop, where they were able to ask questions.

 

Water Safety Assembly:     On Wednesday 5^th February, the whole school enjoyed an assembly led by a representative from Severn Trent. The children learned about the water cycle and the process dirty water and sewage goes through in order to be reused. We discussed all of the different ways we could help save water and Year 4 enjoyed a workshop all about the different stages, as water is cleaned for our use. During the workshop, the children learned lots about what you can and can't put down the sink or toilet. Did you know, you shouldn't wash sauces down the sink? We also found out some things they find at Severn Trent, like jewellery, nappies and even pet fish! It was fascinating to learn more about the cleaning process and the children thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

School Council Visit:         On Thursday 7^th February, our School Council were lucky enough to visit the Council House in the city centre. They met the Lord Mayor (Councillor Mal Mutton) and the Lady Mayoress (Maggie Hickman), who answered lots of questions about their roles and gave the children a tour of the special rooms in the Council House. The children were fascinated by the chambers and had lots of questions to ask about the Lord Mayor’s roles and responsibilities, which mainly consist of promoting Coventry far and wide about the amazing city that it is! The children had a wonderful time, were all perfectly behaved and were rewarded with a special pen! 

 

Myton Hospice Fundraiser:       On Friday 31^st January, we invited our children to come into school wearing their favourite colour, in exchange for a donation of 50p for Myton Hospice, following the special assembly we held last week. Every child who made a donation received a raffle ticket and one ticket was pulled out of the hat – the lucky winner was Carter (Year 4) and he has received the special Myton Hospice Monty Bear prize. Thank you to everyone who contributed.

 

Workshop for Young Carers:     On Wednesday 29^th January, we welcomed Kelly to Moat House, who led an assembly to our Key Stage 2 children to raise awareness about recognising if you could be a Young Carer and how they support their families. Some of our Young Carers participated in a workshop where they played some fun games and were introduced to a range of activities that they could become involved in eg: cooking club and even day trips to the seaside. The children will have come home with a postcard with a link to enable parents to give permission for the children to access these activities on offer. 

 

Open Morning in Reception:      On Wednesday 29^th January, we invited parents and carers to come into school to find out about how we teach phonics at Moat House. Parents were then given the opportunity to watch their child being taught phonics in their small group. The morning then finished with a fun craft based session, which also included some tasty themed treats, whilst children and parents enjoyed celebrating the Lunar New Year.

Myton Hospice Assembly:         On Friday 24^th January, we welcomed some children and adults from Castle Wood to join our assembly as we had a special visitor. Claire, from Myton Hospice came to talk to us about the Myton Hospice charity and all of the excellent work that they do to look after people who are very ill. We were all surprised to find out that patients can have special animal visitors to cheer them up and these have included a llama and even a reindeer in the past!

 

Young Voices:    On Friday 17^th January, some of our children from Key Stage 2 participated in a Young Voices concert at the BP Pulse Arena in Birmingham. During the show, they sang a range of songs, including hits from  'Hairspray' and 'Bob Marley' and a medley of music all about dancing, to a full audience and with children from lots of other schools. Moat House children were particularly fantastic at singing 'Get Loud' and 'Try Everything'. They were able to work with a conductor, as well as sing and dance alongside some very talented performers, including Tommy Blaize, the lead singer of the Strictly Come Dancing band and dance group Urban Strides. They particularly enjoyed learning to rap with multi award winning Rapper MC Grammar! Everyone had a fantastic day, danced the night away and did Moat House proud!

 

Ofsted: I'd like to thank everyone for their conduct during our Ofsted inspection in the week beginning 13^th January. They were very impressed by the children's behaviour, attitudes and maturity. I am confident that we will get a favourable report which we will share when it's released in a few weeks’ time. Thanks, too, to everyone who took the time to complete the online survey.

 

Healthy Eating Week: In the week beginning 13^th January, our children took part in Healthy Eating Week, where there was a focus on learning about the benefits of eating healthily. The children learnt that it is important to eat a balanced diet of protein, carbohydrates and plenty of fruit, vegetables and water and that treats can be enjoyed in moderation. We hope that they can encourage everyone at home to adopt good food habits to benefit the whole family.

 

3EW’s Class Assembly: 3EW treated us to an amazing assembly on Friday 17^th January, which was all about the Stone Age. We got to travel back in time to the Stone Age Era and witness the show, ‘Stone Age has got Talent’ which was hosted by our very own Ant and Dec! We all got to learn about how people lived during the Stone Age, such as how they created cave art, tools to hunt and gather food, as well as the fashion at the time. We also got to hear an amazing rendition of ‘Stone Age Will Rock You’, which was performed brilliantly by the children. All of 3EW spoke with clarity and confidence and were amazing throughout!