Another simple publisher presentation on how to save the world.
We are doing our best at Croft to be an Eco school and if everybody did the same the world would certainly be a better place. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 19/3/08; 10:21:38 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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More Words of Wisdom - SAVE THE WORLD

Following on from Neptune's study of the sci - fi classic Star Wars they decided to write their own mini comic strips following a sci fi theme.
Most the class decided to do Dr. Who and there were some great comics created. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 19/3/08; 10:10:19 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Making Comics

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 19/3/08; 9:59:42 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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How to Use Mathletics.

Year 6 have been busy preparing for the SATS in may and have been designing science powerpoints to help them learn the key things.
Here is one all about the human body and how things affect the body both positively and negatively. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 19/3/08; 9:48:19 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Science Powerpoint

Well somebody has to do it.


Neptune have been designing publisher posters on how to save the world. I will be putting a few on the website for people to see. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 18/3/08; 10:22:42 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Save The World

Controlling puppets is harder then the children thought.
But they got it right eventually. Here is one of the outtakes. luckily the puppet survived to live another take. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 18/3/08; 10:21:41 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Outtakes - Puppets Gone Wrong.

There are lots of great thing about this school and i could spend ages telling you all about them.
But even better some children have designed powerpoints about the school here is one. The children had to add sounds and animation paths to the slides so you may get a little dizzy watching it. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 18/3/08; 9:49:49 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Powerpoint About the School

The children were put into groups of four and had to act out a scene from Star Wars.
Problem was some teacher forgot to put stage directions so say how to act it out. Good job these kids can solve problems like that. All they have to do now is put it onto film and we could have our very own directors in the making.

Here is one play script by a group of four children. I wonder which child had to play Boss Nass? # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 18/3/08; 9:48:51 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Acting out Star Wars Scenes.

Neptune and Mercury class have both had great fun this term using the star wars films to help them with writing.
They have had laser fights, written letters to each other and there has even been some cheating by the dark side to get information.

One of the highlights has been the making of clay puppets during art, these puppets were used to reinact small scenes.

Here is a small clip. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 18/3/08; 9:36:09 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Neptune Recreate Star Wars Moments Using their Hand Made Puppets.

This week saw Neptune class looking at different ways to communicate with eachother. They are used to using their mouths to communicate but could they do it without speaking?

                                  

 

 

In the class we looked at sign language and picture communications, but the real fun started when we went outside to communicate by making letter shapes with our bodies.

                 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In groups of 3 and 4 the class made words, can you see the letter shapes and the words they are making? A clue? The picture on the left - you can fly this on a windy day. The picture on the right - It's a type of cake.

                          

 

 

 

Even the staff got involved. Mrs Perry makes a great letter T. can you see the word? A clue? Sometimes its called a black cab.

 

      

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the end they were set an ultimate challenge to see how their teamwork and cooperation skills were.They had to spell a message and all children had to be involved.  There was one final check to see whether it was all looking o.k neptune were ready for their message.

We are Neptune!

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 12/9/07; 11:38:17 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Communicating without speaking

Neptune class had the best attendance in school last term and as a treat got a chance to go to Crash, Bang , Wallop adventure playground. They had great fun.

            

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They had to make their way around a soft obstacle course that eventually led them down a dark twisting slide.

                      

 

 

They had chances to race each other down another slide which was really fast.

         

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even the big kids had a go, luckily the person taking the picture moved just in time. It was meant to be a race but I think Mr. Prosser must have cheated as the other person in the race had not even moved. But the children had their revenge when they set the high pressure air cannon off at him when taking this picture.

       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fun in the ball pool was next up for the children, there are actually 5 children in the picture, but one seems to have disappeared under the balls. Finally a quick game of football.

I wonder who will get best attendance next term, Mr. Prosser is hoping it is Neptune class again as he didn't get chance to go on the slide. 

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 5/4/07; 8:28:26 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Crash, Bang , Wallop fun for Neptune Class

Neptune visited Frank F Harrison School last Wednesday for a lesson all about reversible and irreversible changes.

                                                                    

At the start of the lesson the children were looking at mixing liquids and whether the liquids would return its original state.

                      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before they shock the liquids and mixed them together it was a white liquid, but shaking it turned blue. This was a Reversible change because after a few seconds it returned to its original state.

                                   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next the children got the Bunsen burners out to see what effect heat would have on some substances and mixes. They heated some wax and noticed it changed state - it was a solid but then melted to a liquid and eventually return back to its solid state. So they concluded that it is a reversible change.

                                          

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next the children heated some sugar, the noticed the sugar changed from a white colour to a black colour very quickly. The sugar did not change back to its original state. It was an irreversible change.

                                          

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The children tried mixing different liquids, adding alkalis and acids to waters. They also tried mixing oil and water. Each time recording their results carefully like proper scientists.

                                  

They really enjoyed working in small groups and trying lots of exciting experiments. Thank you to all the staff at Frank F Harrison School for their help.

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 9/3/07; 1:44:29 PM to the Neptune class dept.
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Reversible and irreversible changes at Frank F Harrison School.

We keep everything at Croft, especially old photographs from past trips. At the start of the year I was given some pictures of our current year 6 children and promised them to their horror I would put them on the website.

                                         

 

 

 

 

 

It is amazing what 6 years at this school can do. Just look how much they have changed.

                                           

See if you can recognise them, if you do you will have to tell them how much you like thier picture when you see them in school.

                                           

Now be warned year 6, keep working hard or I will find some more photographs. I am sure Miss Maiden has some more.

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 17/1/07; 2:09:20 PM to the Neptune class dept.
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What a Difference a School Life Makes.

Thursday 30th November saw the two eldest classes in the school visit the Thinktank Museum in Birmingham to help improve their science knowledge.

It was a fantastic day as the children got to see how science has effected the past, is presently used and how it will be used in the future.

After arriving safely and splitting into two groups the children got to explore major scientific discoveries of the past - The way things used to be done.

                                                             

 

 

 

 

 

They explored different modes of transport, looked at jobs that no longer exist and even looked at how robots were first used in industry. They really enjoyed looking at the two robots making the car.

                                             

 

 

Now on to the present - The children got to explore how science is used in life today and how using science knowledge can help us.

The museum is split in many different areas. Here are some of their favourite areas.

                                              

 

The satellite system - the children got to record their own little news bulletin. They then got to see how the message is sent via satellite and can end up in millions of home world wide.

The forensic science area - someone had committed a crime and it was up to the children to work out who it was, using hair samples, finger marks and much more to catch the culprit.

                                                            

 

 

 

 

 

The health and fitness area - the children had a fantastic time here and they were not the only ones as some of the teachers joined in the dance routine exercise class.

                                                            

 

 

 

 

 

The body - children got to see how different systems in the body work. They were able to test their heart rate, test their strength and using the computers see what sort of a lifestyle they had.

                                                          

 

 

 

 

 

Animals and how they are suited to their environment - here children got to look at the ways in which animals survive in some very difficult conditions. Like the polar bear with its think coat and even thicker skin to protect it from the cold. They look at the food chain including a really interesting skeleton from a crocodile that had had a chunk bitten out of it. The children used the expertise of the museum guide for this part.

                                          

 

 

After lunch the children got to visit a new part of the museum, the planetarium.  The children got to see the night sky as it would be in Birmingham later that night - they were seeing into the future. Mercury class got a chance to show off their knowledge of the Earth, moon and sun and Neptune joined in by discussing the effects of gravity on the different planets in the Milky Way. The children were amazed by the amount of star constellations we got to see, Oriens belt, the Usar Minor and the Plough among the ones they saw.

                                                        

 

 

 

 

 

The children behaved fantastically on the trip and the museum staff commented on their great behaviour and the way the children interacted with them. The museum guide said she really enjoyed working with the children and they asked so many questions.

The children and staff from Croft would like to thank the staff at Thinktank for making the day so enjoyable. 

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 5/12/06; 10:30:57 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Neptune and Mercury Visit Thinktank Museum

Thursday 9th May saw Neptune class have a visitor from Walsall Museum to help them design merry go rounds.

                   

 

 

 

 

Neptune got a chance to look at the ways lots of different toys move. They had to decide which method might be the best way to make their merry go round work.

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With the bases set up and the rod ready to help make it move they tied the string to the rod in order for the merry go round to turn.

                                       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The final stage saw the class design their ride. The coloured the canvas and fixed the chairs using string.

                            

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some of the final designs.

 

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 9/11/06; 3:01:35 PM to the Neptune class dept.
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Merry Go Rounds Designed by Neptune

Neptune had the pleasure of visiting Frank F Harrison School for another science workshop on Wednesday 27th September.

                                               

This time the topic was forces, looking at how gravity is affected by the amount of weight added to a spring.

                                                

The had lots of fun making sure their test was a fair one and ensuring that all the results were taken accuratley.

Again they had a chance to discuss forces using all the new words they had learnt and have even began drawing force arrows to show which force is stronger.

Well done year 6 .

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 29/9/06; 2:24:09 PM to the Neptune class dept.
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No subject

Neptune visited Frank F Harrison School on September 13th to do a workshop on changing state.

It was our first of many visits for the year and the class were really looking forward to doing some real science experiments. (Real science experiments are where we use dangerous equipment like Bunsen burners according to Neptune class)

                        

 

 

 

 

 

 

With all the safety talks complete and all the safety equipment on Neptune began the experiment. They had to find at what temperature wax turns from a solid to a liquid and how long it would take to turn back into a solid.

                     

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next we looked at a model of the water cycle and watched the cycle including where the sun evaporates the water from rivers and seas to where the clouds cool enough for the rain water to fall back to Earth either as rain, sleet or snow (well percipitation is the correct scientific name for it).

The children got chance to use lots of the scientific words we have used in class such as evaporation and condensation.

They can't wait to visit again, next time we will be doing a workshop on forces

# Posted by Mr. Prosser at 27/9/06; 12:17:44 PM to the Neptune class dept.
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Neptune Changing State at Frank F. Harrison School

Year 5 got the chance to visit Frank F Harrison school and design a buggy. They competed in three's against other children in their class and other schools.

                                 

The children all designed excellent buggies. The winners were three children from Neptune class at Croft Community Primary School, not only did they design a great buggy they also broke the school record for year 5 children. Well done boys # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 11/7/06; 11:47:12 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Design Award for Three Pupils

After the success of last year Croft Community Primary School and Beechdale Primary School took the year 6 for another day of team building exercises and raft building.

The day got off to a strange start, the coach was on time, it picked the children and staff from Beechdale up, but forgot us at Croft and had to turn around and come back.

We arrived at Upton Warren Outdoor Centre ready for the mornings team building exercises, which were even harder to solve than last years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Working as a team was very important for these tasks as for every one you solved you earned points, the more points you had the more equipment you got to build you rafts with.

Some of the task took sheer bravery, some sheer determination and others required you to have a very good imagination.

                                                              

 

 

 

 

 

 

The children loved the scenario where they had to retrieve a floating bottle just out of their reach using two short planks. They set off with a plank and one person stood on the end while another walked along it, no chance the weight was too big and if it was not for the quick thinking of the team we would have had our first wet child. It was solve when the children crossed over planks and all put their weight on the planks while a child slowly crawled along to retrieve the bottle, great teamwork guys well done.

 

Another activity was the logs, all walking in unison with each other to get across a crocodile infested lake (this is where the imagination starts to work.

 

 

The funniest activity of the day had to be 12 children trying to cross the same lake on just four small mats. This required excellent balance and for all the children to work as a very close team, but they did solve it. Well done.

 

The final activity the children did was a system of ropes with a hook attached to the middle, they had to retrieve some buckets working as a team. The hardest part was working out what happens when you pull each rope.

 

 

Then time for lunch, 30 minutes, a quick chat about the morning and then time to get ready for the afternoon. Life jackets and helmets on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

All teams did very well, they earned enough points to have 6 logs, 3 barrels and enough rope to build a secure raft. They fetched the logs in pairs, rolled the barrells and secured the rope.

 

                  

 

 

 

 

 

After a quick lesson in knot tying, they started to build the rafts. First the frame, then tying knots and finally securing the barrels to help the raft float.

                          

 

 

 

 

 

Now time for the test, the relay race. Three teams, three teachers and go. The first part of the groups did really well, only one child fell in, but in no time she was back on dry land and the team was off and catching up.

                                                      

 

 

 

 

 

 

All three teams arrived back to the beach area at nearly the same time, so it was still anyones race to win. One team shot off into the lead leaving the other two teams to fight it out for second place. Mr Prosser's team stormed into second place only to forget how to row as a team, half was rowing one way and the other half rowing the other way. At this point Mrs Gum's team caught up and help the team going around in circle by pushing the to the turn around point.

This is where the problems happened, Mrs Gum's team turned around, but Mr Prosser's team just kept on going and needed a little help to turn and head back to dry land.

Finally everyone back on dry ground, the raft dismantled and everybody on the coach home. What an excellent day, we all definatly know about what make a good team and how we can work together as a team.

Well done the pupils from both schools. # Posted by Mr. Prosser at 26/6/06; 10:13:07 AM to the Neptune class dept.
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Team Work Day at Upton Warren

Tuesday 23rd May saw Neptune and Mars class become young engineers for the day.

 

 

 

With a partner they had to design a piece of playground apparatus that could be used by more than three people at a time. Who knows if their apparatus is that good you might see it one day at your local playground.The only items they had in order to build their playground apparatus was a box of K'Nex

Pencils and paper out both Mars class and Neptune class got their engineering brains into gear for a sketch of their apparatus. The ideas were fantastic.

 

 

                                              

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sketching over, now time for the difficult part, building their designs. Would all the practice in the lunchtime K'Nex club help anybody?