P2

P2 had lots of fun when the snow arrived. They had the opportunity to build a snowman, which was a first for some of these pupils.

The pupils from Primary 2 went on a R.D.A picnic ride to Bourton On The Water, The weather was lovely, and they all had a wonderful time.

Click on the image below to see more.

P2 went to see SS Great Britain, dressing up in class in black and white.

Key Stage 2 Pupils having a blast in Brass Workshops led by the Gloucestershire Music Service!

P3

P3 has been very busy before Christmas making lots of things like mince pies, gingerbread men and Challah bred in R.E. Also we learned all about healthy and unhealthy food in science.

The pupils from Primary 3 designed and printed their own T-shirts, with designs’ ranging from Teddy bears to Aeroplanes.

Click on the image below to see more.

The pupils from primary 3 have planted a variety of seeds to see how different plants grow, and the different heights they grow too!

Primary Three visited Oliver's house in Fairford as part of a curriculum topic on celebrations. The weather was very pleasant and we all enjoyed the day.

One of the pupils took along his friendly dog Preston.

 Click on the image below to see more.

P4

The circle group from the Primary Department have been having lots of fun with learning number songs this term - particularly Five Currant Buns in the Bakers Shop!

 S1

S1 made an interesting visit to Taena Pottery in Upton. The potter demonstrated how he made plates, dishes and jugs. The class were shown how the pots are decorated and then everyone had a turn at decorating a small plate with splendid results.

 S1 visited parts of the sculpture trail in the Forest of Dean. It was a cold but sunny day and we all had to wrap up warm. We enjoyed exploring some of the sculptures and walked nearly 2 miles. We had our packed lunch sitting outside at Beechenhurst and then played on the children's play park.

S1 residential visit to Gradbach Mill Youth Hostel 7-11 July 08

S1 had an enjoyable “camp” in The Peak District in Derbyshire. We stayed in a self contained stone building in the Youth Hostel grounds. The weather was mostly rainy but we did not let that deter the Bettridge spirit of adventure and fun. In fact most of the rain seemed to happen while we were driving in the minibus!

We visited various places of interest during the week.

On Tuesday we visited Jodrell Bank observatory looking at the huge magnificent satellite dishes. We had great fun in the Whispering Gallery which consists of two convex dishes placed vertically facing each other about 100 yards apart. When you speak and indeed, whisper, facing into the dishes, it can be heard when you stand by the other dish. A superb example of practical physics! Our pupils were really fascinated by this and all made noises or spoke into them. We also enjoyed a virtual tour to Mars watching a 3D film.

On Wednesday we visited Crich Tramway Village. There were various types of trams from different parts of the country, dating back as early as the 1920s, all having been lovingly restored by volunteers. They were run as they would have been with a driver, conductor and some inspectors, (all volunteer men). We had rides on several of them and were quite intrigued when the trams reversed their route, because all us passengers had to get up and turn our seats around so we could face the other way! We were amazed to find Dr. Who’s tardis in the village too!

On Thursday we went to Freshfield’s Donkey village and this was indeed in the rain. We spent some time stroking and talking to the donkeys before retreating indoors. The place is spearheaded by the actress June Brown, (Dot Cotton in Eastenders) and there are quite a lot of other celebrities who have helped set it up. We visited a local history museum in the pretty village of Castleton and had delicious cakes and drinks in Rose Cottage café.

The hostel had a “Juice Bar” which was open for a couple of evenings where we sampled juice cocktails after watching them being made in a cocktail shaker.

We ended our camp with a birthday party for one of the pupils on the Thursday evening.

S2

S2 have been very busy with a student teacher running the class this term.  They have been working very hard and learning a lot of Spanish.  They have also been trying some of the delights of Spanish food. 

S2 has visited the Corinium Museum in Cirencester to look at Roman artefacts. We had the opportunity to try on different clothes that the Romans would have worn.

We have been lucky enough to enjoy the Winter climate with snow at school, which the pupils thoroughly loved playing in.

S3

S3 joined in making a film of their favourite things and the pupils were able to bring in items from home that they liked.  

 On Monday 28th April Pupils from S2 and S3 went to South Devon to stay at Mountain Water Experience for a week, with a variety of weather, rain, hail and sun! The pupils took part in a assortment of activities, including, body boarding, riding a zip wire, water slides and a rather exhilarating coastal walk, with swimming in the sea, and kite flying on the beach were also on the agenda.

Everyone ate and slept well, and a good time was had by all, returning back to school on the Friday exhausted but happy.

S4

S4 have been very busy with their planting and have been reusing the compost from recycled fruit and the vegetable bin. 

 As an end of term treat, the pupils who are in Alison’s group on a Tuesday went to her house for a bar-b-q, The pupils played with the dog and enjoyed the day.

 It was Shantelle's birthday, she was 15 so we went to the Pitville Park for cake and a play.

S5

S5 would like to thank Alley Rats Blues charity club who gave our school a cheque for £400 last month.  We are very pleased and the plan is to use the money to buy equipment for our new school. 

Hartpury College work

Pupils in Key stage 4 have been working hard during their weekly visit to Hartpury College. They constructed boxes in the Autumn term in which they subsequently planted hyacinth bulbs. The box construction involved measuring and cutting wood and fixing the pieces together with nails. They were then decorated with tiles and twigs. The finished products were taken home at Christmas for families to cultivate the hyacinths.

This term they have been making bird tables and also constructing poly tunnels in which to plant vegetables.

Click image to open a larger version.

Post 16

On a beautiful sunny day at the end of March, Post 16 visited Gloucester Cathedral as part of our ‘Light and Dark’ topic.  We enjoyed looking inside the Cathedral at the stained glass windows and stonework.  We then walked all the way around the cloisters, even spending some time in the lovely garden. To finish off our super day out we had fish and chips for our lunch!

The students went on a shopping trip to Gloucester Farmers Market,

Enjoyed the sunshine and looking at the goods on offer.

We had an outside Gym trainer come in to take a session with the post 16 students, practising ball skills and feeling the different textures. The students enjoyed the interaction.

Click on the image below to see more.

Every week we have a music therapist come in to sing to and encourage the students to participate, she is a great hit with all of them.

---

Sports

This term the Secondary department has been enjoying Karate and street dancing sessions. A quote from one pupil described the dancing as “very energetic, exciting and got me into my music a lot more”.

Primary 3 and 4 had a football coaching session, they enjoyed learning all the skills and played a match against each other.	Sports Relief Key Stage 3 and 4	Wake and Shake

Creative Arts

Charlotte's Web

Visits

On Monday 28th April Pupils from S2 and S3 went to South Devon to stay at Mountain Water Experience for a week, with a variety of weather, rain, hail and sun! The pupils took part in an assortment of activities, including, body boarding, riding a zip wire, water slides and a rather exhilarating coastal walk, with swimming in the sea, and kite flying on the beach were also on the agenda.

Everyone ate and slept well, and a good time was had by all, returning back to school on the Friday exhausted but happy.