Posted 10/07/2026
by Anthea Hillman
History Timeline
This morning we officially unveiled our new outdoor history timeline, made possible by a generous grant from the Polperro Legion Social Club. The timeline will help pupils develop a clear understanding of the chronological order of historical periods and make connections across thousands of years of history.
To celebrate, two members of the Club visited the school as our guests of honour while pupils from every class dressed as historical figures and shared their favourite periods in history, from the dinosaurs to Neil Armstrong, via a stone age man, an Egyptian mummy, Ann Boleyn, Amelia Earhart and a WW2 soldier.
Books
If your child has any school reading books at home, please send them back in next week.
Your child will be bringing their schoolbooks home at the end of Monday 20th July. Please provide them with a carrier bag to help carry everything home.
Clubs have finished for the year. Because of school trips and activities taking place until the end of term, there will be no extra-curricular clubs now except for wraparound (breakfast and after school club).
End of term is fast approaching. Here are the important dates for your diary:
• Monday 13th July - Talland Class Polperro Museum visit
• Tuesday 14th July - Chaipel Class visit to Bodmin Jail
• Wednesday 15th July - Landaviddy Class visit to the Maritime Museum, Falmouth
• Thursday 16th July at 2:45pm - Guitar, Piano and Keyboard Concert, for parents and carers of children who receive lessons with Mr Grint
• Friday 17th July at 2pm FOPS Summer Fair
• Monday 20th July Y6 Leavers' Assembly and Party. 2:30 for parents and carers of pupils in Y6
Monday 20th July books go home (carrier bag needed)
• Tuesday 21st July Swimming Gala for all year groups
• Wednesday 22nd July - End of term 1:30 finish
Have a wonderful weekend.
Mrs Hillman-
Posted 10/07/2026
by Antonia Bolton
This week in Maths, we have been collecting our own data and drawing bar charts. We have been making sure to label the axes correctly and thinking carefully about presentation by using a ruler to draw each bar neatly.
This week in English, we have been creating our own mythical creatures and writing detailed descriptions using exciting vocabulary. We have really focused on helping our readers imagine the creature by including vivid details that bring our descriptions to life.
We have been making the most of the sunshine by taking lots of dips in the pool! We have been working on our pushing and gliding skills, as well as improving our front crawl breathing techniques.
This week in Science, we have been learning about how animals are similar to humans and how they can be different. We explored the difference between vertebrates and invertebrates, learned about skeletons and exoskeletons, and classified animals into these groups.
This week in Art, we have been exploring how to use everyday objects to create repeating patterns. The children chose their own objects and used them to create wonderful pieces of artwork. Every picture was different, showcasing their creativity and individuality.
A huge congratulations to Sonny for being awarded Pupil of the Week! Sonny has worked incredibly hard in all of his lessons this week, making sure he completes every task, which is something he has sometimes found challenging. He has been particularly impressive in English with his fantastic descriptions of mythical creatures. You used exciting vocabulary and showed great imagination-keep up the brilliant work!
A big congratulations to Sonny and Lowen who has achieved their 99 badge this week!
Well done, everyone!
Miss Bolton & Miss Colton
Posted 10/07/2026
by Helen Fitzsimmons
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Hello Everyone,
It's been a busy week in Penhallow.
On Monday, Year 1 and 2 enjoyed their transition morning in Landaviddy, while Reception enjoyed getting to know some old and new friends in Penhallow. Reception learnt a new song, made birthday cards to give out throughout the course of next year, and helped next year's Reception children to find their way around, whilst having fun playing in the different areas.
On Tuesday we all enjoyed a trip to The Heritage museum, where we learnt about how Looe has changed over the years. We found out about how flooding has affected Looe, how the bridge has changed, and we built an arched bridge in teams. We also learnt about the different fish that is caught in the area, and about the different items that Looe has sent to different places over the years.
As well as our usual routines of reading, phonics, maths and writing, we have enjoyed several swims throughout the week, where we have been able to practice for our swimming gala.
In science this week, we continued to learn about the human body, and how human skeletons work. We linked our learning to the 'Funnybones' stories and enjoyed moving our paper skeletons that we had made, with magnets which were attracted to the split pins that we had used.
We hope you enjoy the sunshine this weekend.
From The Penhallow Team
Posted 10/07/2026
by Emily Randle
The weeks are flying by and Chaipel have been preparing for their Leavers' Assembly (Monday 20th). It's always bitter-sweet but we are confident that this year's will definately be one to remember.
On Monday and Tuesday, Chaipel had their Transition days at Looe Community Academy. They had a wonderful time - baking cupcakes and undertaking science experiments - and have all come back feeling positive about their move to secondary education.
In English, we have created a character profile on our fictitious villains and will spend our last full week creating a cartoon-style double-page spread. In our Wider Curriculum, we have been learning about Victorian crime and punishment - analysing the inmates and jailers at Bodmin Jail, in preparation for our school trip on Tuesday. We are looking forward to seeing the Crank and Treadwheel at the jail so that we can bring the past to life! Chaipel enjoyed their last music lesson with Mrs Butlin, playing musical, rhythm games. Well done to the Choir who received their Music Award, commending all of their hard work over the years!
We had the Secretary and Treasurer of the British Legion come to formally open our outdoor History Timeline. Children from each class dressed up as famous people in history and it was a huge success. Kora made a fabulous Anne Boleyn and Tristan as a WW2 soldier!
SCHOOL TRIP
Just a reminder that the trip to Bodmin Jail is on Tuesday. We will be leaving at about 9:45am, so the children will need to be in school uniform and have a snack, packed lunch and water bottle. After that, we will be stopping off at Hannafore for an ice-cream and a play on the beach. Children will need sun hat, sun lotion and £3 (if they would like to purchase an ice-cream). Please let me know if you would like to collect your child from the beach at 2:40pm as we will leave at 2:50pm to return to school for normal pick-up. Any queries, drop me or the secretary an email!
Congratulations to Thomas and for being our People of the Week, demonstrating our school values.
That's all from us so enjoy the warm weekend and see you all on Monday!
Miss Randle and Mrs Clary
Posted 09/07/2026
by Julie Peat
We have continued to explore "Under the Sea" this week and the children have enjoyed an under the water themed tuft tray where they have been naming different sea creatures and counting how many shells.
They have made lots of different arts and crafts including tissue paper fish and have finished their crabs and paper plate under the sea scenes.
Outside we have enjoyed playing on the grassy area, getting out nice and early to avoid the hot sun. The children have loved lots of water play and playing in the shady areas and on the hill.
At story time we have enjoyed reading "Commotion in the Ocean" and "Titch the Tiddler" and in phonics this week we have had a noisy week of playing instruments- loud/quiet/fast slow and have enjoyed some listening walks, listening to the different sounds indoors and out.
In maths we have been exploring patterns, following and creating our own. The children have been putting blocks in a sequence.
Have a great weekend
Julie and Sarah
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Posted 05/07/2026
by Emily Randle
What can I say? I could not be more proud of these amazing individuals. We have had an amazing Residential - at The Ultimate Adventure Centre - and have made many memories for life.
For me, it was the unwaivering sense of love, camaraderie and kinship that these Y6s have towards each other. We've had many highs and some lows as we faced our worst fears; yet, through it all, there was always a friend ready to support and help us through it. The instructors were overwhelmed at how everyone worked together and bounced of each others' energy and as their teacher, it has been a pleasure to witness.
Here is just some of the highlights: there will be a montage of photos from the trip at the Leavers' Assembly on Monday 20th July.
"WELL DONE, TEAM CHAIPEL, WE NAILED IT!!!"
Good luck with your transition days on Monday and Tuesday, and Mrs Clary and I will be waiting to welcome you back on Wednesday.
Miss Randle and Mrs Clary
Posted 03/07/2026
by Helen Fitzsimmons
Hello Everyone,
On Thursday we were treated to a visiting artist, who helped us to make our own clay fish. These lovely creations will become part of a large art project in which pupils from Polperro and surrounding primary and secondary schools will all have their individual fish displayed together.
In our class art lesson this week, we continued with our John Dyer artwork, where we added details to our painted backgrounds and also used a paint program on the iPads, to recreate aspects of his paintings. We were so proud of the results.
During our music lesson this week, we used percussion instruments to create sound effects for different animals to accompany a new song. We improved our listening skills by copying rhythm patterns that increased in length.
In PE this week, we completed the bridge schools games challenges. We completed 5 different challenges, all with a World Cup football theme. Each of the schools in the bridge academy trust will submit their results of the challenge. We look forward to finding out the results soon.
Enjoy your weekend!
From The Penhallow Team
Posted 03/07/2026
by Anthea Hillman
It has been a quieter and slightly different week at school, with our Year 6 pupils away on their residential visit to the Ultimate Adventure Centre in Devon. On Monday, we were delighted to welcome the children who will be joining us in Reception this September for a transition session in Penhallow Class. It was wonderful to see them exploring their new environment and beginning to get to know their teachers and classmates. This week Penhallow Class has enjoyed developing their creativity and artistic skills creating ceramic fish as part of the United by the Sea project, set up by Creative Looe CIC. Meanwhile, Years 4 and 5 spent Wednesday afternoon honing their orienteering skills around the school grounds, while Year 3 took their science learning outdoors to investigate how the body works.
Transition Day Monday 6th July
We are looking forward to our Transition Morning on Monday, when the children will spend the morning in their new class for next year.
FOPS Summer Fair - Friday 17th July at 2pm
If you are able to help at our Summer Fair, we would love to hear from you. Whether you can spare some time on the day or make a donation, your support is greatly appreciated.
We would be grateful for donations of:
• Soft toys for the Teddy Tombola
• Good-quality books and toys for our book and toy stalls
• Homemade or shop-bought cakes (please ensure all homemade cakes are clearly labelled with a list of ingredients).
Reminder that Thursday 9th July will be a MUFTI day where we will be asking for donations of an item matching your child's house team colour to create hampers for raffle prizes. Children can wear their own clothes and this could include wearing their house colour.
The Summer Reading Challenge
You will be able to sign up your child/children for the Summer Reading Challenge at the school fair on Friday 17th July.
Guitar, Piano and Keyboard Concert
Reminder that on Thursday 16th July at 2:45 pm, pupils who have music lessons with Mr Grint will be performing in an end-of-year concert. Parents and carers of children who receive lessons with Mr Grint are warmly invited to attend and enjoy the performance. If you would like to come, please email the school in advance so that we can make the necessary arrangements. We look forward to seeing you there.
Clubs
Please note that the week commencing 13th July will be the last week of clubs for this school year. Wraparound care will continue as usual.
Supporting Your Child Online
The Headstart Kernow Online Resilience Toolkit Support on Digital Issues : Headstart Kernow
offers practical advice to help parents understand their child's online activities and recognise when they may need extra support.
The toolkit includes easy-to-use guides, resources and podcasts designed to build parents' confidence in talking about topics such as gaming, social media and online safety. It helps families understand online challenges, consider what is age-appropriate, and start positive conversations with their children about staying safe online.
Have a great weekend.
Anthea Hillman
Posted 03/07/2026
by Antonia Bolton
This week in Maths, we have continued our learning on Statistics. The children have been developing their skills in interpreting data, collecting and collating information from our own class, and presenting their findings using bar charts. We have placed a particular focus on creating clear, accurate, and well-presented charts. Next week, we will begin a new topic on Money. Any opportunities to practice recognising coins and notes, counting money, and working out simple amounts at home would be a great way to support your child's learning.
This week in English, we have been rehearsing the story of The Cobbler and the Dragon in preparation for writing our own version. The children will be changing part of the story by creating and including their own mythical creature, so we have been focusing on learning the structure and key events of the original tale. We also enjoyed reading a shortened version of King Arthur and the Sword in the Stone. As part of our learning, we created an Arthurian picture dictionary, collecting and illustrating new vocabulary that we have come across in the stories we have read so far. This has helped us to develop our understanding of the language and characters found in Arthurian legends.
This week in Design and Technology, we practiced our cutting and grating skills using a variety of fruits and vegetables. Before beginning our food preparation, we learnt some important safety rules, including how to use the claw and bridge techniques when cutting, the importance of always using a chopping board, and why we should wash our hands thoroughly before handling food.
Next week, we will be tasting a range of fruits and vegetables, describing their textures and flavours, and using this to help us evaluate different foods.
We have been lucky enough to make the most of the lovely weather by enjoying two swimming sessions this week. During our lessons, we have been practicing our pushing and gliding skills, as well as learning how to position our bodies correctly in the water to help us float with confidence and control. It has been wonderful to see the children growing in confidence and developing their swimming techniques.
This week in Science, we carried out our investigation to find out whether the length of our arms and legs affects how far we can jump or throw a ball. After collecting and analysing our results, we discovered that the length of our limbs did not have a significant effect on how far we could jump or throw. We also learnt about the important role muscles play in helping our bodies to move. We explored how muscles work alongside our bones to allow us to perform a range of everyday movements.
A huge congratulations to Darragh and Hector for being awarded Pupil of the Week! Darragh has shown great enthusiasm for his learning throughout the year, which is evident in the excellent progress he has made across the curriculum. He has demonstrated that determination, perseverance, and a positive attitude can have a real impact on learning. Darragh should be very proud of all he has achieved this year. Well done! Well done, Hector! You have worked incredibly hard in all of your lessons this term. You listen carefully during teacher input, always try your best, and your commitment to learning has helped you make excellent progress across the curriculum. You should be very proud of your achievements. Well done!
Well done everyone!
Miss Bolton & Miss Colton
Posted 03/07/2026
by Julie Peat
This week the children have enjoyed making paper plate under the sea pictures using different textures such as sand. They painted their hands and used these to make the fish.
They have discussed things you might find at the beach or in the water and created crabs.
At story time we have read "Sharing a Shell" and "Mr Seahorse" which the children enjoyed listening to and were able to ask and answer questions relating to the story.
In phonics we have been practicing sounds and looking at how our mouths move to form these sounds.
The children have identified sounds in a game of "I Spy" and explored different musical instruments.
The children going to school in September enjoyed a visit to reception class on Monday and then went for a snack and story on Wednesday morning.
A quick reminder that there is another transition visit on Monday 6th July 9.15- 10.30am.
Enjoy a lovely hot and sunny weekend.
Julie and Sarah
Posted 02/07/2026
by Anthea Hillman
Well done Y6 for tackling the climbing wall and the assault course today!
Posted 02/07/2026
by Anthea Hillman
Mrs Clary reports that year 6 all really enjoyed the campfire singing and games last night. Henry conquered his fear of heights and got to the top of the climbing wall this morning and they were all really good at archery.
More photos later to include the Ultimate Assault Course!
Mrs Hillman
Posted 02/07/2026
by Anthea Hillman
After a good night's sleep for everyone, Y6 have had a hearty breakfast and are getting ready for a morning of climbing and archery.
Watch this space for photos of last night's campfire and today's activities.
Mrs Hillman
Posted 01/07/2026
by Anthea Hillman
Well done year 6 for navigating the Nightline, with and without blindfolds, and enjoying dinner afterwards (keeping an eye on England with Mr Langley)!
More photos tomorrow.
Mrs Hillman
Posted 01/07/2026
by Anthea Hillman
Year 6 have arrived safely at the Ultimate Adventure Centre, proudly wearing their new leavers' hoodies. After lunch they will be enjoying their first two activities: Nightline followed by Orienteering. Pictures to follow later.
Mrs Hillman
Posted 28/06/2026
by Helen Fitzsimmons
Phew!
It's been a hot week, but thankfully the weather cooled off just in time for our sports day on Friday. Thank you to all of those who joined us. It was a lovely end to the week.
Earlier in the week, we have all enjoyed separate swimming sessions, where some of us enjoyed being in the pool for the first time, and others began to build more confidence in the water.
During our English lessons this week, we have been reciting and learning a poem about the sea. We practiced and refined our techniques of performing, making sure that we speak clearly with expression, as well as using actions and gesture to improve our performance. We have also been expanding our vocabulary by finding adjectives to describe different nouns in the poem.
In our art area this week, we have been developing a collaborative colouring project, making collage ice lollies and mixing colours. In art, we have been continuing to learn about the artist John Dyer, and have been learning to blend our painting, to make different shades of blue for a background. We also used wax resist to create the effect of jellyfish and plants under the water.
During our RE this week, we have leant about special people in Cornwall, and we found out all about the legend of St Piran. We made links to the Cornish flag, tin mining and other Cornish traditions.
Have a lovely weekend,
From The Penhallow Team
Posted 28/06/2026
by Anthea Hillman
The children have been amazing this week in the very hot weather. Fortunately, they have been able to cool off in the pool every day.
Summer 2026 Bridge Schools Trust Parent and Carer Questionnaire
Your feedback is really important to us as we work in partnership to achieve the best possible education for the children. Here is the link to the Bridge Schools Trust Parent and Carer Questionnaire which closes on Friday 10th July.
Summer 2026 Bridge Schools Trust Parent and Carer Questionnaire We would really appreciate your views on the key strengths of Polperro School to celebrate, as well as areas we could develop even further for all our children. Your time in completing this questionnaire is valued and will help us continually improve, thank you!
Sports Day
It was great to see so many of you at sports day this morning - thank you for coming. We were very proud of the way the children joined in, competed and supported each other (especially year 6 in their last races) and of the Year 6 leaders who ran the morning so well.
Sports Day House Points
We added up the house points from the sports day races and the final scores were Oak 62; Chestnut 74; Ash 80 and Willow 110. Congratulations Willow! This puts Willow in the lead overall for the year.
Landrake Fun Run
Congratulations to our 12 pupils who represented Polperro at the Landrake Fun Run on 19 June. They all completed the race showing great determination and enthusiasm.
Guitar, Piano and Keyboard Concert
On Thursday 16th July at 2:45 pm, pupils who have music lessons with Mr Grint will be performing in an end-of-year concert. Parents and carers of children who receive lessons with Mr Grint are warmly invited to attend and enjoy the performance. If you would like to come, please email the school in advance so that we can make the necessary arrangements. We look forward to seeing you there.
School Uniform
We have a large selection of preloved school uniform available for a suggested donation of just £1 per item. While you might have seen a few things on the rail by the school office, there is actually much more available in a range of sizes - plenty of everything! It's a great way to save money, find what you need, and help reduce waste. Before heading to the shops, please consider taking a look. Just ask at the office for the size you need. Giving these clothes a second life helps keep perfectly good uniform out of landfill.
Have a good weekend
Anthea Hillman
Posted 26/06/2026
by Ben Heasman-Langley
We're hoping everyone has had a fantastic week, have enjoyed the various weather and are still enjoying the World Cup! What a fun morning - SPORTS DAY is always a treat!
Here's a snapshot of what we've been learning:
Maths:
Year 5 have been rounding decimals to the nearest whole number, to one decimal place and to two decimal places - we have had to really think about place value and the the rounding rule - 'if the last digit is 5 or more, raise the score. 4 or less, let it rest.
Year 4 have completed their unit on time and are now moving on to position and movement. Why not quiz your child on time.
English:
We have moved on to our final piece of descriptive writing for the year and we are going SCI - FI! Children have created their own planets and have started thinking about what is on it? We have been inspired by Avatar so some great clips have been shown for inspiration.
PE:
I think it is fair to say that Sports Day was a roaring success and the children conducted themselves brilliantly showing excellent sportsmanship and competitiveness . Due to the glorious weather, Talland have managed 2 sessions in the pool this week where they worked on their front crawl and backstroke, alongside a range of different floating methods. Hopefully, if the weather continues, we will hop in the pool a couple of times next week so please make sure your child has the appropriate kit.
History:
This week, we concentrated on smuggling, why people decided to smuggle and thought about, what turned out to be quite a challenging question - 'were smugglers heroes or criminals?' TRIP INCOMING!
COMPUTING:
We became animators this week. Children created flipbooks and thaumatrope through drawings and then filmed themselves flicking through the pages or spinning their thaumatropes to show off their animation - they looked super cool!
CELEBRATIONS:
Congratulations George, Rory, Amber and Lowen for earning their next badge in 99 club. Well done to Renley for showcasing excellent work in English!
That's all from us - we hope you have a wonderful weekend and can't wait to seeing everyone next week.
Signing off, Mr. Langley and Mr. Bishop.
Posted 26/06/2026
by Emily Randle
We have had a full-on week, this week. We began with an art afternoon with Sean where we were ink printing abstract, bird's eye landscape views onto card. These will become part of an Art Exhibition which we will hold at the Summer Fayre on Friday 17th July.
In English, we have created our fictional outlaws and used Tinkercad to design their hideouts. We will be writing up our character profiles before the end of term as next week's Residential is top priority for us now! In History, we have learnt about the signing of the Magna Carta and how its abolishment led to some heinous punishments during the Tudor and Stuart periods. What a gruesome time to be alive! We are looking into Cornwall as a spiritual place in RE, linking local myths and legends with areas of interest to people of faith.
We were invited to Looe Community School on Wednesday afternoon as part of a wider community project. We created our own bespoke ceramic fish - alongside pupils from some of our cluster schools - which will eventually be mounted to make one impressive display in the heart of Looe for everyone to appreciate, hopefully, for many years to come.
We had our Sports Day on Friday and it was a huge success. The Year 6 made us all extremely proud with how well they organised and help to run the events; however, it was the camaraderie in their 600m races at the end that made many adults shed a tear! What a lovely kind, caring bunch of Y6s we have!
Congratulations to our People of the Week, Frankie and Isaac for demonstrating our school values and being role models to others.
And finally...
Remember it's our Residential on Wednesday! Please make sure that children arrive in non-uniform ready for the off at 10am. Any last-minute queries, please email me!
That's all from us, so have a lovely weekend.
Miss Randle and Mrs Clary
Posted 25/06/2026
by Julie Peat
It has been a busy week here at nursery. On Monday the children enjoyed a visit in the afternoon from Peter Heywood. He is part of a project called "United By The Sea" and the children enjoyed making ceramic fish with him which will be displayed in Looe. They created patterns using a wide range of materials and then used fish shaped cutters to create the shapes. Fun was had by all!
The children took part in sports day today (Friday) and all did super running in their races.
We have finished our arts and crafts related to holidays this week and will soon be exploring a new enquiry question.
At story time this week we have read books including "What the Ladybird Heard at the Seaside".
In phonics the children have been trying hard to blend sounds together to make short words and have been suggesting words that complete different rhymes, well done.
We hope you all enjoy a lovely weekend.
Julie and Sarah
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We are the best we can be.
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