Guide Dog Summer Fair

 

 

Thank you to everyone who came to our School Fair back in July and supported our Guide Dog stall.  I think everyone enjoyed very much our Puppy Dog Tombola and also meeting Tom McInulty with his Guide Dog, Brunel.

 

We raised in total, £132-00.  £66-00 pounds going to the Guide Dogs & £66-00 going to the Macular Society.

 

We have recieved a lovely thank you letter from the Guide Dogs.

 

 

 

 

Thank you again for your amazing support and raising so much money for both charities.

Messy Feet!

We began the new academic year with a spirit of adventure, exploration and mess!! The focus for this months In-Reach was to explore our sense of touch ....using our feet! Well, we use our hands so much, so Mr Cownie wanted to know what our feet would tell us. 

Our pupils and our guests from surrounding schools were faced with ten trays, each with a different 'substance' to put their feet into. 

There was.....jelly...

... And pebbles....

....dried Cous-Cous....

...swell gel (that goes in hanging baskets)....

...shaving foam....

...which also produced some dodgy 'santas'! ...

 ....feathers....

...wet Cous-Cous....

... Beans!...

...and spaghetti....

...and lastly, corn flower.

All the children had to come up with good describing words to tell us what they felt with their feet. 

We also had some new younger VI visitors who joined in with their feet, but also enjoyed the sensory toys on offer.

A great afternoon was had by all. There was plenty of chat and socialising by adults and children alike.

Which included a quick bit of afternoon tea and cake! 

Thank you to all of our visitors and participants.... Next In-Reach on November 7th. 

Making a start....

In Year R, the children are settling in and finding their feet. This means there are lots of new things to find out, but not just for the children. The teacher and her assistants are finding out all about the children and what things interest them. 

For our new pupil with a visual impairment this is the Fire Service! So out come the dressing up clothes, out come the walkie talkies and out comes the tricycle/fire engine....and off we go! 

Sometimes there are babies that need rescuing.... 

But there can be a lot of waiting in the fire station!

But if we are really lucky..... 

We find one of these visiting Year 2 just waiting in the playground! After a little chat with Alf the fireman...

We're in! Not just driving....there is important hose work practice!

Providing real-life first-hand experiences is what triggers children's engagement with school and learning. Finding out what makes a child tick and the using this is good practice, not just for pupils with a visual impairment, but all children! 

Sound Posts Farewell

It was the last Sound Post Session of the year today. 

Sound Posts is run by Year 5 and 6, and we had to say goodbye and a BIG thank you to our departing Year 6's.

 One young man in particular has been fantastic over the past few years, with his dedication and enthusiasm as well as his technical knowledge! Mr C would like to say THANK YOU and good luck in your new schools to all of Year 6. 

Inclusion

Inclusion means being able to join in with everything that happens in school.....

Whether reading the prayer to the whole school in assembly (in Braille) ....

Or climbing on top of a climbing frame with your friend and playing "rescues". Our job is to make sure that this not only can happen, but that it does happen! 

Happy Birthday!

We always celebrate birthdays at school. Mr Hayman ensures every child receives a Birthday card from the school, and they are quizzed in Friday morning's Celebration Assembly about what presents they have received and party plans. For the pupils of the Oasis there is the extra bonus of sharing a little bit of Birthday magic at our VIP Club on a Friday afternoon! 

All of our VI pupils live out of catchment and most come by taxi, so making the most of these social times is really important, developing friendships and encouraging engagement. 

We also get cake! 

VIP Story Time

For many of our partially sighted pupils having the opportunity to read to others is a welcome chance to practice and use reading skills learnt in class. It also provides a brilliant role model for our younger pupils. 

But you have to do it properly and show the pictures!