This week in Year 5 we’ve been very busy completing SATS papers in Maths and English in readiness for our transition into Year 6 in September.  Everyone has tried really hard and now has a good idea of what to expect next year. Well done with your efforts!

This was also the week we took a welcome break from our tests halfway through and, I think it’s safe to say, it’s been one of the highlights of this term!  It was our Year 5 class trip to the RSPB’s Nature Reserve at Rye Meads. We went by train from Waltham Cross to Rye Meads and everyone was very well-behaved. The weather stayed fine for us despite a short rain shower after lunch and we were made very welcome by the RSPB staff. We spent the morning examining the different temperatures in grassland.  First of all, we tested the temperature of air, then in the soil and finally the amount of light using a special light monitor.  We investigated the different type of wildlife that lived in the hedgerows around the nature reserve and enjoyed finding ants, ladybirds, caterpillars and lots of other mini beasts as well. In the afternoon, we went pond dipping to investigate the very varied wildlife in one of the large ponds on the reserve.  We discovered newts as well as a very fine water scorpion which isn’t really a scorpion!  It has a very large tube at the back of its body which looks like a scorpion’s tail and acts like a snorkel helping it to breath. There were lots of back-swimming water boatmen, blood worms, water snails, midge larvae and even water spiders as well. The staff at Rye Meads said they really enjoyed meeting us and complimented us on our knowledge and behaviour.

It was a fascinating day and we learned a great deal about the wildlife on our doorstep. There’ll be photos posted on our class page very soon.

Many congratulations to our Writer and Stars of the Week as well!

Best wishes

Mrs Howard