Preston Primary School

Sponsored Swim Excitement is Building!

https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/fopps-swim

We are counting down the days until our Sponsored Swim next week, and excitement around school is growing! The children are eagerly looking forward to taking part in this special event as they challenge themselves to swim as many lengths as possible to help raise money for our much-loved school pool. Children will be taking part on their normal swimming day next week.

To make the event even more memorable, the pool area will be decorated and filled with music, creating a fantastic atmosphere for the children as they swim. We can't wait to celebrate their determination, resilience, and team spirit throughout the week. Keep an eye out for daily updates of the achievements next week.

We are so thrilled with the support we have received so far from our families and wider community. As of this morning, our online sponsorship total has reached an incredible £1,400. Thank you to everyone who has already donated and shared our fundraising page. Every contribution is helping us move closer to our goal.

Adding to the excitement, we were delighted to receive a special message of encouragement and support from Olympic champion Anna Hopkin. The children were inspired to hear from such an accomplished athlete and her words have given everyone an extra boost ahead of the challenge. You can watch the message here: https://youtube.com/shorts/qZ4PUK2WLBo?feature=share

Thank you for your continued support. We look forward to sharing updates and celebrating the children's achievements throughout next week.

Message from Olympic Swimmer Anna Hopkin Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

Children in Year 5 and 6 had a fantastic day at The Box museum in Plymouth this week, to support their History enquiry on Ancient Civilisations. They toured the exhibits and took part in a workshop classifying ancient Egyptian artifacts. Our tour guides were so impressed with their respectful behaviour and their wider knowledge about history. We also have achieved yet another one of our '30 ways to Connect' - number 2 - Visit a museum!

As part of the National Year of Reading, our Reading Ambassadors recently visited three local nurseries to share their love of books with younger children. The visits provided a wonderful opportunity for our ambassadors to help inspire the next generation of readers and demonstrate how enjoyable reading can be.
This experience was also one of our 30 Ways to Connect initiatives, specifically 'Make meaningful connections beyond the school'. By building relationships with children and staff in our local community, the ambassadors demonstrated the positive impact that our pupils can have beyond the school gates.
The ambassadors were fantastic role models throughout the visits. They showed great confidence when reading aloud, bringing stories to life through their expression, enthusiasm, and engaging storytelling. It was wonderful to see how quickly they captured the children's attention and encouraged them to join in, answer questions, and talk about the stories they had heard.
The younger children thoroughly enjoyed the experience and were captivated by the stories shared. Nursery staff were incredibly complimentary about our ambassadors, praising their confidence, maturity, enthusiasm, and ability to engage the children so effectively. The positive feedback was a testament to the preparation and dedication shown by our pupils.
Our Reading Ambassadors should be incredibly proud of the maturity, confidence, and kindness they displayed. They represented the school brilliantly while helping to foster a lifelong love of reading in the younger generation and promoting the importance of reading as part of the National Year of Reading.

This week, two of our Connect Council representatives visited Widey Court Primary School with Miss Farmer to meet with Connect Council members from across the Trust. This experience linked directly to our 30 Ways to Connect, particularly Number 12 – Representing Our School, as the children proudly shared the views and experiences of their peers while contributing to important discussions.
The pupils worked collaboratively to discuss a range of trust-wide topics, sharing ideas and experiences from their own schools. One of the key discussions focused on school dinners, with children celebrating what is working well and suggesting ways to make lunchtime experiences even better for everyone. The representatives also explored reading across the Trust, considering how schools can further inspire and motivate children to develop a love of reading.
Throughout the day, our representatives demonstrated our School Values of Responsibility and Respect, listening carefully to the views of others, contributing thoughtfully to discussions, and representing our school in a positive and mature manner.
The meeting concluded with a reflection on the achievements of Connect Council throughout the year. Pupils shared their favourite memories and successes, capturing these through drawings and discussions. It was wonderful to see the children confidently representing our school, working together with others across the Trust, and celebrating the positive impact they have had within their schools and communities throughout the year.

Connect Games Mini Swimming Gala.
This week, Preston proudly hosted the Connect Games Mini Swimming Gala, welcoming pupils from Widey Court Primary, Cockington Primary, and Eden Park. The event was a fantastic celebration of teamwork, sportsmanship, and swimming talent.
Throughout the morning, children competed in a variety of individual races and relay events, showcasing their skills in front crawl, breaststroke, and backstroke. The atmosphere was filled with excitement and encouragement as each swimmer gave their best effort in the pool. We are incredibly proud of the children from Preston, who not only performed brilliantly but also extended a warm and friendly welcome to our visiting schools.
A huge congratulations must go to Team Preston, who were crowned overall winners of the gala. This was a fantastic achievement and a testament to the hard work, determination, and positive attitude shown by all of our swimmers throughout the event.
We were especially proud to host the gala in our own school pool. The event highlighted the unique opportunities that having a school pool provides, not only for our pupils but also for the wider community. It was a wonderful example of how the pool enriches children's experiences, bringing schools together, promoting healthy lifestyles, and creating lasting memories through sport.
A special thank you goes to our dedicated Sports Ambassadors, whose support and organisation helped ensure the smooth running of the gala. Their leadership and enthusiasm were greatly appreciated.
Well done to everyone involved for making the gala such a memorable occasion, and congratulations once again to Team Preston on their well-deserved first-place finish!

Last Friday, some of our Year 6 children hosted a Civic Award fayre after school. This was to raise money for their chosen charities as part of attaining their Civic Award. This means the children have also fulfilled number 5 of our 30 Ways to Connect - Raise money for a charity.
The Civic Award is an award open to all Year 6s, and the children achieve it by showing they have contributed positively to their school, their community, and demonstrated personal growth.
We are so proud of the independence the children have shown in organising, resourcing, and then selling their goods. Thank you all for supporting them by visiting their stalls.
Altogether, they raised a total of £520.50, which will go to their various chosen charities. What a fantastic amount! This is an excellent example of our School Value of Responsibility and contributing positively to their community.

Swimming sessions have got off to a fantastic start. It has been a pleasure to see the children challenging themselves in the water while having lots of fun and smiling along the way. Their determination has been particularly encouraging as they practise key swimming strokes, building both their ability and water confidence. Thanks to the voluntary contributions from parents and carers, we have been able to purchase new swimming noodles and back floats. These resources are already making a real difference in supporting the children's confidence, development, and progress in the pool. We look forward to many more enjoyable and successful swimming lessons in the weeks ahead.
Thank you to everyone who has already contributed through sponsorship. Your support is greatly appreciated. All the money raised will help us to improve our swimming facilities for the children. We are looking forward to a fun and successful event next week and can't wait to celebrate the children's achievements. Here is the link to our online JustGiving page – please feel free to share it with friends and family. Every donation, no matter how big or small, will help us move closer to our goal and make a lasting difference to our school swimming provision. https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/fopps-swim

We recently attended a swimming gala at Torbay Leisure Centre, organised by Paignton Academy. Seven schools took part in the event, with children competing in a variety of 25m, 50m, and relay races.
Throughout the gala, our swimmers demonstrated great determination, resilience, and teamwork, giving their best effort in every race. The competition was strong, and all participants should be proud of their achievements.
This event links to our ‘30 Ways to Connect Charter’ by providing children with the opportunity to represent the school in the wider community. The children were excellent ambassadors, showing respect, sportsmanship, and encouragement towards others throughout the day. A special thank you goes to the pupils from Paignton Academy who helped to facilitate the event; they did a fantastic job supporting the races, recording results, and ensuring the gala ran smoothly.
We are delighted to share that, overall, our team finished in an impressive 3rd place. Well done to all of our swimmers for representing the school so positively and embodying our School Values.

Our Year 3/4 boys represented the school brilliantly at the Bradfords Cup football tournament held at the Devon FA Headquarters before half term. Competing in challenging hot temperatures throughout the day, the team made an excellent start. They created impressive victories against Gatehouse and Chudleigh, while also pushing Galmpton all the way in a closely contested match that ended in a narrow defeat. These strong performances secured a second-place finish in their group and a well-deserved place in the Cup competition.
The Cup group featured some very strong and experienced opposition but the boys showed fantastic determination, teamwork and resilience. They earned a hard-fought victory over Kingskerswell and were unfortunate to narrowly lose their final two matches against Sherwell Valley and Blackpool. Despite missing out on a place in the finals, finishing third in such a competitive Cup group was a tremendous achievement.
As part of our 30 Ways to Connect, this event provided a wonderful opportunity for the children to represent their school, connect with pupils from other schools, and demonstrate our values through teamwork, respect, and sportsmanship.
The boys should be extremely proud of the efforts they displayed throughout the tournament. A big thank you goes to all the parents, families, and supporters who came along to cheer the team on and provide fantastic encouragement throughout the day. Also a special thank you to Mrs Tombs-Cousins for her coaching support.