Key Stage 1

Last week, Year 2 enjoyed an incredible hands-on history experience with The Past Presents, who returned to deliver their much-loved Great Fire of London workshop. This immersive day was designed to deepen pupils’ understanding of the dramatic events of 1666 and the lasting impact on our city.

The children stepped into the shoes of Londoners from the past through five engaging sessions:

• Colourful Characters – Meeting key figures who shaped the story of the fire.
• Unsuspecting London – Exploring life before the blaze, including the infamous bakery and Samuel Pepys’ diary.
• London’s Burning! – Reacting in real time to the fire, firefighting and escaping the flames!
• Rebuild London – Working together to plan and rebuild a stronger city.
• A Monument – Ending the day by constructing a life-size monument to commemorate the Great Fire.

“I liked being Samuel Pepys – he wrote about the fire!” – Year 2 pupil
“We built a big monument – it was taller than me!” – Year 2 pupil

Miss Bernatek, Year 2 Lead, said:

“This workshop brought history vividly to life. The children were completely immersed and made fantastic connections to their classroom learning. It’s experiences like this that make history exciting and memorable.”

A huge thank you to The Past Presents for inspiring our young historians!
📽 Watch our Reel of the day here.

On Tuesday 7th October, Year 2 visited author Nadia Shireen, described by The Observer as one of the “best and brightest picture book creators working in Britain today.” During the Grimwood workshop, pupils explored the wonderfully weird forest of Grimwood, met quirky characters, and learned how to create their own funny stories. The session was lively, inspiring, and full of laughter and creativity.

Miss Hall, who accompanied Year 2, said:
“The children were absolutely captivated. It was a joy to see them so immersed in storytelling and bursting with ideas. Experiences like this really help foster a lifelong love of reading.”

We’re delighted our pupils could take part in such a memorable event, and we look forward to seeing how their imaginations continue to flourish in the classroom.

At Aragon, we are always looking for meaningful ways to prepare our pupils for life beyond primary school. This September, we launched our very first Democracy Week – and what a success it was!

The purpose of the week was to introduce children to the idea of democracy and give them the chance to experience what it feels like to be part of an election. Pupils who wished to stand for one of our leadership roles prepared speeches or videos to share their ideas, while during OPAL playtimes they designed eye-catching posters and banners to support their campaigns.

On Friday afternoon, the whole school came together to vote. To make the process as authentic as possible, we even set up a ballot booth, just like the ones used in general elections.

The roles on offer this year included:

• School Council
• Eco Warriors
• Reading Champs
• PE Leaders
• Digital Leaders
• Wellbeing Champs
• House and Vice Captains

The atmosphere around school was fantastic all week, with campaign posters brightening our corridors and children passionately discussing their ideas. We were incredibly proud of every pupil who put themselves forward for a role – it takes real courage and confidence to stand up in front of your peers, and each candidate showed great ambition and enthusiasm.

The results of the elections will be announced in Monday’s assembly, and we look forward to seeing our new pupil leaders take on their roles and make a real difference across the school this year.

Democracy Week has been an inspiring way to celebrate pupil voice, responsibility and leadership. It is certainly something we will look to continue in future years.

As the term draws to a close, we’re excited to share a glimpse into what the children have been learning so far this year.

To celebrate and showcase their hard work, we have created a special Spotlight on Learning. This interactive Microsoft Sway presentation captures the highlights of this half-term, showcasing what the children have learnt and how their experiences have been enriched both inside and outside the classroom.

Click here to access the Microsoft Sway presentation 

We hope you enjoy this opportunity to see the progress, enthusiasm, and achievements your children have demonstrated over the past weeks. It’s a testament to their hard work, curiosity, and the wonderful school community we’ve built together!

Theme - Celebrating Teamwork

Last week, our school came alive with energy, enthusiasm and team spirit as we celebrated our annual Healthy Me Week. The week was filled with exciting activities designed to promote physical health, emotional wellbeing and collaboration, giving children opportunities to try new challenges, strengthen friendships and build confidence.

A huge thank you goes to Miss Ballantine, Mr Hicks and Miss Smith for their exceptional organisation of the week. Every aspect of the timetable was thoughtfully planned, and their commitment to enriching the pupil experience was clear to see. Reflecting on the week, Miss Ballantine shared, "Healthy Me Week is always, without a doubt, my favourite week in the school calendar! There's nothing better than seeing the children thrive taking part in sports and activities whilst they become even more aware of the importance of healthy, active lifestyles. Throughout the week, the ability of the children able to work collaboratively with their class and house team peers improved drastically as the week went on- even in the stifling heat!"

Each day at lunchtime, our Year 5 Sports Leaders stepped up to run fun and engaging activities for younger pupils, helping to keep them active and involved. In between the various scheduled events, children took part in team-building activities, including a hugely popular den-building challenge. Each year group had their turn to head out to the field and, working in their house teams, they constructed dens using tyres, logs, tarpaulin and rope. The activity encouraged excellent communication and problem- solving skills, and house points were awarded for teamwork, effort and creativity.

On Monday, the week began with a series of whole-school team challenges. Key Stage 1 and Reception joined Miss Smith for an interactive assembly, which began with a hoola hoop teamwork task. Afterwards, pupils headed to the field for the “Longest Line” challenge, where they worked in house teams to create the longest possible line using anything they could find. Meanwhile, Key Stage 2 gathered on the field for a “Save the Water” challenge, using bins to transport water with minimal spillage, before heading into their own assembly with Miss Ballantine, where the winning team (Unicorn) was revealed. These activities highlighted the importance of communication, resilience and creativity in solving problems together.

On Tuesday afternoon, the team from Olive Kitchen visited to speak to pupils about healthy eating, running sessions for both EYFS and KS2.

Throughout the week, each year group enjoyed their own Sports Day event. Year 5 and 6 kicked things off with their sports morning on Tuesday, with Unicorns taking the early lead. Wednesday saw Year 3 and 4 taking part in their events, with Reception rounding off the week with their Sports Day on Friday morning. Year 1 and 2's Sports day was unfortunately postponed due to the soaring temperatures but we look forward to Wednesday 16th July to cheer on our KS1 pupils! These events gave every child the opportunity to challenge themselves physically, cheer on their teammates and contribute to their house team’s overall score. On Thursday, our Nursery children took part in a joyful Rainbow Run, which was a colourful, high-energy celebration that left everyone smiling.

We'd like to thank the wonderful pupils of RPHS who came to help on both mornings - running events, tallying scores, helping the teachers and encouraging the children. Thank you so much and particular thank you to Mr John Oldridge for organising the pupils and volunteering his time.

Two highlights of the week were the much-anticipated staff v student matches. Monday saw the netball match take place on the top playground, with pupils and staff alike showing determination and good sportsmanship. On Friday afternoon, the staff and student football teams met on the field for an exciting finale to the week. Both events drew enthusiastic crowds and lots of laughter.

Netball match score: 22-1 (to the staff)

Football match score: [score TBC]

Throughout Healthy Me Week, pupils earned house points for their efforts in all activities, with every event contributing to the final total.

Healthy Me Week is always a highlight of our school year, and this year was no exception. It was a celebration of everything we value at Aragon: kindness, respect, teamwork, resilience and ambition. Thank you once again to all the staff who supported the week and to all the pupils who took part with such positivity and enthusiasm. We are already looking forward to next year!