Initially cloudy skies did little to cast a shadow over the fun Year 5 had when they visited Whickham Thorns on Friday. They developed their team building, listening and communication skills through problem solving and team challenges. During one of the team challenges the children were split into two teams and asked to build a waterproof shelter made from plastic bags, string and large twigs. Both teams rose to the challenge sharing their ideas and opinions on what would work best. They had great fun building their shelters!!

Children from Year 4, 5 & 6 visited Dance City in Newcastle to watch Tees Valley Dance perform Kick Off. Using football as its inspiration Kick off was a light-hearted piece about exploring the games played by two friends. Injuries, arguments, winners, losers, rules and tactics were all incorporated within the dance performance. After the show the children took part in a workshop with the choreographer of the show and members of the dance group. They got the opportunity to perform dance routines from the show and ask lots of questions about the performance.

The children are really looking forward to working with Tees Valley Dance again when they visit school at the end of the month.

Pupils in Key Stage 2 took part in the Fab Food Funhouse Roadshow to raise awareness of healthy eating. The children were spit into teams and completed physical activity challenges, took part in various games and answered questions about healthy food choices to score points for their team. A fun afternoon was had by all!!!

Year 4, 5 and 6 visited the Great North Museum to look closely at the Ancient Egyptian Exhibits housed within the museum. They studied the different art work and sketched the designs which they found interesting. These sketches were then used to create an Ancient Egyptian wall art.

Children sketching their designs.

Year 5 and Year 6 met with a fireman from the local Fire Station to learn about Fire Safety within the home. The fireman talked to the children about what to do if a fire broke out in their home, reminding the children of the does and don'ts to stay safe.

This week our pupils have been performing their Christmas Shows and they have all been a great success.

There are certainly some budding stars in the making!

Reception Class performed 'Jesus in a Manger' a traditional nativity play, their acting and singing was tremendous!

Year 1 and Year 2 performed 'A Creepy Crawly Christmas' a thoroughly entertaining show along with brilliant acting and singing from all of the children!

Year 3 performed 'A Tale of two Birthdays'. This tale had action, adventure, magical characters, lots of laughs along with a superb performance from all the children!

Year 4 & 5 performed 'Dick Whittington and his Cat' a popular and well-loved story about Dick, who was down on his luck and decided to head for the city of London to see if the streets were really paved with gold. The show had catchy songs, lots of laughs and of course a 'happy ever after' ending. Providing a great recipe for a thoroughly entertaining show along with fantastic acting and singing from all of the children.

Year 6 performed 'Hansel and Gretal an adaptation of the popular fairytale. Hansel was imprisoned while Gretal 'force fed' him in order to, as the old witch put it 'fatten him up for the Christmas pot! It was great fun to watch with its witty script, catchy songs and some real 'character acting' from the children.

Children rehearsing for their shows!

Children in Year 4 and Year 5 visited the Centre for Life where they took park in an Astronaut Workshop which explored the problems faced by astronauts as they live and work in space. They also visited the planetarium where they explored the night sky and its constellations, travelled through the solar system and took a closer look at the moon and found out where shooting stars come from!! They also learnt about night and day, phases of the moon and why years are different lengths on other planets.

Children having fun taking part in the workshop.

Year 4 and Year 5 have been working for many weeks on the Newsreel Project and the day of filming finally arrived on the 12th November. Each of the production company had responsibility for their own Space related newsreel This has involved a lot of hard work for each and every member of the team in Pre-production by the creation of the scripts , rehearsal and practising. In addition the children were responsible for the collection and creation of the prop's which were going to be used. The day of the filming was a very enjoyable experience for all the children. Most were able to take on and perform different roles from being the camera person to sound operator, director and even Boom operator. All of our actors and actresses were outstanding (I can see Oscars from some in the future!) and were able to use some green screen technology. The final part of the day saw each Production team helping to edit the film and by adding in some sound and special effects. Most were able to see a rough cut of their final Newsreel by the end of the day. Overall the project was a great success as the children have a good understanding of the whole film making process. We are now looking forward to seeing the final versions in all of their glory as a screening at the Tyneside Cinemais being arranged.

Children working alongside the Newsreel team!!

Every year Film Education organises a nationwide film festival called National Schools Film Week (NSFW) which takes place this year on 19th-23rd October. National Schools Film Week is the biggest event of its kind in the world for young people, it is a unique festival which provides schools across the UK with free trips to the cinema with the aim of exposing children to a wide range of films. This years theme is Creativity and Diversity and our Key Stage 2 children have had the opportunity to take part. They have visited Sunderland Empire Cinema and The Customs House, South Shields where they have enjoyed watching a film.

Children in Year 4 and Year 5 visited Gateshead CLC on Thursday where they got the opportunity to work alongside well known children's author Shoo Rayner. Shoo has written over 100 children's books such as Little Horrors, Dark Claw and Ricky Rocket. During the workshop Shoo explained to the children how he gets his inspiration for his stories then, went on to suggests ways to plan stories before you begin to write them. Shoo then encouraged the children to take part in planning a story with him using drawings and key words. The children had a fantastic time sharing their thoughts and ideas freely and generating some fantastic ideas for their story thus, enabling them to produce a plan with a beginning, middle and end.

Children working alongside Shoo sharing their thoughts and ideas for their story plan!

Children in Year 5 & Year 6 had a real treat when they visited Gateshead Stadium on 9th July 2009 as they got the opportunity to meet five real-life astronauts. In spectacular style, the team-of-five from Space Shuttle STS119 landed by helicopter at the stadium and were whisked to the sports arena in a limo. The children heard astronaut Mission Commander Lee Archambault and crew members John Phillips, Steve Swanson, Tony Antonelli, and Joe Acaba, dressed in their blue mission jump suits, talk about how they flew to the International Space Station in March to carry out assembly work on board, how they survived in space and how they completed three space walks. The Children had a great day and were very lucky to have met the astronauts, as the space shuttle retires in 2010, this could be the last visit to the UK.

The astronauts arriving in the limo.

The school has a stunning memento of the event - a photograph of everyone with the crew.

Lucas, Seyi, JP, Tanith and Victoria, children from Year 5, attended the awards ceremony for the Gateshead Children's Book Awards at the Council Chamber in the Civic Centre. Victoria and Tanith read reviews of some of the books and we listened to extracts from the top books. The winning author Andrew Cope was also there and gave a short speech before signing copies of his book.

The top 3 books were:-3rd - Bearkeeper
2nd - The invention of Hugo Cabret
1st - Spy Dog Superbrain

Well done to everyone who took part!

A team of 20 pupils from Years 3, 4, 5 & 6 represented the school in the Gateshead Primary Schools Athletics Festival on Friday 26th June. A massive 48 schools took part and events included the cricket ball throw, spring jumps, javlin. long jump, sprints, relay and skipping as well as the long distance run!! The children had great success, with many of our pupils getting through to the semi finals and finals. Julian took away a silver medal in the spring jumps, Alice a bronze in the same event and Zoe a silver in the skipping race.

A fantastic team effort from everyone of which the school is really proud!

Children preparing for thier race.

Year 5 had a great fun when they visited Gateshead CLC on Wednesday morning. Linked to their literacy topic the children started the session by reading a description of the notorious pirate Black Beard. The children then worked independantly writing a paragraph using lots of adjectives, to describe a pirate of their choice. Using the computer the children then recorded their descriptions, adding appropriate musical instrumentals as background music. The children, at the end of the lesson, had the opportunity to listen to some of their finished pieces.

Children enjoying adding their own musical instrumentals.

As Year 5 are studying Mexico and the Aztecs they were lucky enough to be invited into Chiquito's Restaurant in the Metro Centre before it opened. They were allowed behind the bar to mix their own cocktails made from fruit juice and fizzy pop. Dan the manager, then made them some non alcoholic versions of traditional Mexican cocktails a Pina Colada and a Margarita. The children were also able to taste some traditional Mexican food such as nachos, fajitas and chilli. On their return to school they found out how the food was grown and prepared.

Michael having fun mixing his own cocktail made from fruit juice and fizzy pop.

Lucy Brannigan had some good news recently. In March, Year 5 entered a short story competition for children in Gateshead schools and Lucy was chosen as the winner of the under 11 category, for her story 'How The Crow Became Black!' She was presented with a trophy by the mayor of Gateshead at a special ceremony.

Well done Lucy!

Seyi, Keir, Tanith and Alice from Year 5, represented the school in the heats for the Robotics Competition 2009 against other Gateshead schools at the City Learning Centre on Friday 14th June. The children were given the challenge of programming a robot to do 5 different movements using a light sensor, ultrasonic sensor and a sound sensor. 'The Bill Quay Electronics' worked brilliantly as a team sharing and implementing their ideas. They performed amazingly in the challenge and were just pipped at the post, finishing in second place. Well done!

Tanith getting the robot set up for one of the challenges.

Pupils in Year 5/6 Hockey team played In the Gateshead Mini Hockey Tournament. They lost their first match but won all their other matches finishing 4th overall.

Well done, a great team effort!

On Thursday 19th March Megan, Chloe, Lucas, Callam, William, Joseph, Michael, Victoria and Jessica represented Bill Quay School at the Felling Swimming Gala at Leam Lane Swimming Pool.

Well done to everyone who took part, they all tried really hard!

Bill Quay Swimming Team.

Children taken part in the gala.

Four children from Year 5 represented our school in the heats of an Animation Competition taken place at Heworth CLC this week. Victoria, Seyi, Niamh and James worked together as a team, sharing their ideas to create a storyboard. Then using models, various props, software programme 'I Can Animate' combined with images captured on a digital camera they created their animation. The children thoroughly enjoyed their day at the CLC and produced a brilliant animation 'The Easter Disco' well done everyone! .

Congratulations to Kells Lane Primary School who won the heat and go through to the next round.

Children working together sharing their ideas to create a storyboard.

Niamh and Victoria capturing their images on a digital camera to create their animation.

Seyi and James using various models to create their animation.

Year 3/4 and Year 5 visited Heworth City Learning Centre to work on the latest ICT technology. Year 3/4 had great fun exploring digital music, they began by creating a short film about an action hero called Jonni Star. They went on to compose the soundtrack and lyrics for the film as well as selecting different sound effects to add to it using a software program called Garage Band.

Year 5 had the opportunity to learn how to program robotic devices using Lego Nxt Mindstorm software. They worked alongside Mr McKenna throughout the day learning how to build instructions into programs using a light sensor, ultrasonic sensor and a sound sensor. These sensors enabled the robots to carry out routines and manoeuvres, such as, following a black line, reversing to avoid an obstacle and changing direction in response to a sound.

Everyone had a fantastic day!

Year 5 had a surprise when they returned to school after Kingswood - sitting in their classroom, sewing, was a lady from Ancient Greece. As it was impolite to say a lady's name in Ancient Greek times they referred to her by her relationship to men in her family e.g. the niece of Pericles. They found out lots of interesting facts about life in Ancient Greece and were able to handle real artefacts. Some people were even allowed to dress up in the clothes.

The week beginning 2nd March some of the children from year 5 visited Kingswood for 3 days. Year 5 had an excellent, if a little muddy, time at Kingswood. We took part in a hectic schedule of activities designed to get us working in teams and challenging our bravery. Most people found the aerial see-saw 30ft in the air the most enjoyable activity although with so many fun experiences it was hard to choose. Year 5 are now looking forward to an equally enjoyable time at Robinwood next year.

A fantastic time was had by all!

Pupils in Keystage 2 took part in the Skipping and Cheerleading Festival at Gateshead Stadium. They performed to the 'Kaiser Chiefs' track 'Never miss a beat' where they skipped in time to the fast paced music.

They never missed a beat so well done to them!

On Monday 9th February children from Years 5 & 6 took part in an athletics tournament at Heworth Grange School against three other schools. The children did both track and field events and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. It was a very noisy afternoon as the children cheered each other on.

All the children taken part had a wonderful time and best of all - Bill Quay won!

Following this event, a representative team will be selected for the finals in March at Gateshead International Stadium.

On Thursday 5th February Year 5 visited St. Nicholas Cathedral where they were met and introduced to James who took them around the Cathedral. He told them about the font, Bishop's seat, pulpit and altar. He even let them hold some precious objects!

Children looking and holding the precious objects.

It looks like Mrs Lees is enjoying wearing the Bishops Mitre and holding the staff.

When Year 5 visited the Metro Centre on 28th January 2009 they were in for a surprise. They followed a maths trail around the malls and realised maths is all around us. They looked at measurement using the metro unit (a square with a circle and a line in) which can be seen on the railings in the upper malls and identified lots of different shapes. They even got the change to see a 'Maths Magician' and play with rubik cubes. They all agreed it had been a very interesting and enjoyable day.

Children working together to complete their maths trail booklets.

Children sharing ideas while playing with the rubic cubes.

Children in Key Stage 2 had the opportunity to learn about the different ways in which we communicate during the workshop. The workshop used music and song to help the children recognise how communication has developed over time from smoke signals to mobile phones. The children thoroughly enjoyed taking part and singing songs such as Message in a Bottle and SOS.

Children taking part in the Music Workshop.

The school choir have been out and about in the community this week. On Tuesday they sang in Eldon Square and raised £230.00 for the 'Coping with Cancer' Charity. On Wednesday they visited Pelaw Library to perform some traditional and modern Christmas carols .

The school and Mrs Messenger are very proud of their efforts!

Children having fun performing in Eldon Square.

Children singing in Pelaw Library.

Pupils in Key Stage 1 and Keystage 2 performed at this year's Gateshead Gymnastic Festival at Gateshead Leisure Centre on Thursday 26th November 2008 as well as, children from other schools around Gateshead. Mrs Bone worked with Keystage 1 pupils and Mrs Messenger worked with the Key Stage 2 pupils in preparation for the evening. Their performances to 'Jump Around' by 'House of Pain' and 'Walk Away' by 'The Egg' were outstanding.

Well done to everyone who took part!

Children in Year 5 had a fantastic day out at the National Railway Museum in York on Wednesday. In the morning they took part in a Victorian Railway Workshop led by Helen and Zoe who work at the museum. They learnt about the different Victorian rail companies between 1837-1901 and how they each had their own design engines, regulations, signal boxes, coat of arms, colours and livery. The Taffail Railway Company in Wales had over 800 regulations including, not been able to smile when employees were working! They also had the opportunity to experience what it would of been like to travel as a third class and first class passenger, as well as working as a driver and a fireman on the footplate. After lunch the children explored the museum and even got the chance to look at the Royal Trains.

Kate and Alice working as the fireman and driver on the footplate.

Children travelling in the third class carriage.

Monday 17th November saw the whole school take part in an 'Enterprise Day' in the style of Dragon's Den. Children in Key Stage 2 were organised into mixed age groups with Year 6 pupils taking the lead. Each group designed and created something to sell at the Christmas Fayre. They presented their ideas to 4 dragons who then chose one group to produce a Christmas shaker for the fayre. One of the dragons was Mr Patterson a Governor for maths and business enterprise.

Children sharing ideas on their product.
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Children working together on their Christmas crackers idea.

The winning prototype.

This term pupils in Year 5 & 6 have been taken part in 'News Real' projects organised by the Tyneside Cinema. Both projects have engaged the children in filmmaking in a creative and exciting way. Inspired by watching original newsreels, pupils in Year 5 & Year 6 worked alongside professional filmmakers to create their own piece of newsreel footage on life in the Victorian times (Year 5) and life during the Second World War (Year 6). These projects will culminate with a celebratory screening of the children's films in the Tyneside Cinema, where the news was first screened over 70 years ago as well as in school.

Dates to be confirmed.

Year 5 children working alongside professional filmmakers to create their own piece of newsreel footage.

On Wednesday in Year 5 , Martin from Zoo Lab came in to tell us about food webs. Martin drew a food chain on the board and we started the food chain off by looked at an actual cockroach. Some pupils even got to hold the cockroach and some other creatures! After the cockroach he explained the next level of the food chain. With the help of a large snail, a frog, a tarantula spider and a snake, he demonstrated how a food chain could be turned into a food web.
It was exciting, informative and challenging.

Bill Quay Tag Rugby Team took part in the Gateshead Tag Rugby Tournament at Low Fell Rugby Club on 22nd October 2008. The team played brilliantly, well done to everyone for taking part!

On Monday we were visited by a lady from Beamish who came to work with us on our topic about the Victorians. We had lots of tasks to do to gather evidence about a miner called James Harris who travelled from Cornwall to Cramlington during Victorian times. We had to use rubbings of his gravestone and census records to fit together the pieces of his life and were able to see some of the tools he would have used in the mine. Two days later, we went to Beamish and had a Victorian style lesson in the school. We had to sit with straight backs and call the teacher Ma'am. After that we went down the mine to see what life was like for James Harris and visited the miner's cottages. We spent the afternoon looking around the town. It was a fantastic day out and everyone enjoyed seeing the Victorian times come to life!

Children working alongside the lady from Beamish.

Christopher, JP, Jack, Julian , Aaron and Kieran from Year 5 had the opportunity, over a few weeks, to visit the Dryden Centre. They met Gary Cordingley a local story teller, who told stories to the boys from different countries around the world including Norway. The boys were very eager to listen to some spooky Halloween stories too including The King of Cats.

Year 5 visited Gateshead City Learning Centre on Friday to take part in a Magic Space Workshop linked to their Science topic, Planets. They took on the role of a 'Space Ranger' finding out lots of information about space and the planets using the internet. They put the information they found into their own powerpoint presentation. In order to quickly recall the order of the planets orbiting the sun, they had great fun making up their own mnemonics!

Children finding out lots of information about space and the planets.

Year 5 took part in a 6 week cycle safety course. They learnt how to use hand signals and road positions to stay safe. Unfortunately the weather wasn't kind to them but all the children had a great time and learnt a lot.

Children from Year 5 and Year 6 had a fantastic day at the Newcastle Falcons rugby ground last week. They spend the morning touring the ground with Danny, then they watched some of the players training in the gym and saw the player's dressing room. They even had the chance to sit on the bench where Jonny Wilkinson sits before a match. Then Danny took them on to the rugby pitch for some tag rugby training. The afternoon was spent in the computer suite where all the children were engaged in an advertising campaign for the Falcons. They each made an advertising DVD which they were allowed to bring home with them.

Can you spot Mrs Hilton on the bench, thats where Jonny's sits?
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Children having great fun tag rugby training.

They even got the chance to meet the Falcons mascot.

Year 5 visited Gateshead CLC which had been transformed by the WOW spacebus team into a scene from outer space. During the morning they made and tested their own rockets, programmed a moon buggy to follow q route, composed some space music and visited a planetarium, everyone thoroughly enjoyed the trip and learnt lots about space.

Year 3/4 and then Year 5 went along to Sunderland Museum to take part in a family portraits workshop. They explored feeling within portraits and then created their own by dressing up and showing emotions in a giant photo frame.

Can you guess what emotions these children are creating?

Welcome to year 5 our class teacher is Miss Newsham.

This year, Aidan and William from Year 5 took part in the Gateshead area final of the Junior Engineers for Britian Knex Challenge, against Katie and Alisha from St. Aidans Primary School. The children had to design a lifting mechanism made from Knex, the model was then judged and tested on its strength, frame and cranking mechanism. Geoff Clack from the Engineers Employers Federation judged the competition and announced Aiden and William the winners.
They went on to represent the Gateshead area in the Regional finals at Sunderland University on 27th June 2008.

Well Done both of you the school is so proud of you!

Year 5 and 6 had a fantastic day at the Stadium of Light. They spent time with Phil Cowler, one of the resident teachers at the stadium, working on 'Healthy Living'. Everyone produced a beautiful poster incorporating tips for keeping fit and healthy. The highlight of the visit was the stadium tour and the chance to run through the tunnel onto the edge of the pitch. Newcastle fans were nearly tempted to change their team!

Sixteen pupils from Years 5 & 6 spent 4 days near Krakow, along with pupils from Hungary & Poland. They visited the famous Salt Mines and Krakow city. Despite mislaying the passports for 10 minutes the trip was a fantastic success. A great time was had by all in Poland and we are looking foward to visiting Hungary and Spain next year!

This was part of the Comenius project.

Joseph, William, Megan and Kayleigh from Year 5 represented the school in the Robotics Competition Final against 5 other Gateshead schools at the City Learning Centre on Friday 4th July 2008. The children were given the challenge of programming a robot to do 3 different movements using a light sensor, ultrasonic sensor and a sound sensor. The children then worked together, rising to the challenge with 'The Bill Quay Robots' winning overall. The children won individual prizes and Mindstorm Robotics for the school. Well done!

Kayleigh and Megan rising to the challenge.

Joseph, Megan, Kayleigh and William receiving their winning prize from Mr McKenna.

Whilst the rest of their classes were in Poland, Years 5 and 6 went to the Life Centre to link in with Year 5's Science topic - Keeping Healthy. They looked around the museum and took part in a workshop where they had a go at making a plaster cast for a broken arm, making fake scabs, looking at skulls and planning a healthy diet. They all had a great day.

Aidan had great fun making a plaster cast.

Year 5 went to 'Exploring Strings' at The Sage to see Simon Mayor and Hilary James from BBC schools music. They took us on a 'Musical Mystery Tour' of silly songs and talked about the instruments, some of which we'd never heard of before like the mando-bass. Afterwards the children got the chance to go up on stage and have a go at playing some of the instruments.

Definitely some budding musicians in the making!

Year 5 had a fantastic and fun packed day at Whickham Thorns. We all had a go at archery trying to hit the Archery Association badge, it was a challenge.
Snow tubing (slide down the dry ski slope in an inflatable ring) was great fun an a bit scary when you started spinning down.
In the afternoon some people got very muddy on the assault course whilst the others got very lost orienteering around the grounds then we swapped over.
We all had a great day and will be putting our orienteering skills into practice back in the school grounds.

Joseph, William, Megan and Kayleigh from Year 5 represented Bill Quay school in a Robotics Challenge against other Gateshead schools at the City Learning Centre on Friday 25th April. The children were given the challenge of programming a robot to do 6 different movements. The children then worked together, rising to the challenge with 'The Bill Quay Robots' winning overall by a clear 60 points!!

They will now represent the school in the finals later on in the year.

Great news 10 chicks have hatched. The children in Year 5 have chosen their names and they are Speckle, Steve, Sweety, Stitch, Fluffy, Chicky, Owen, Daffy, Bill and Jimmy. The chicks will be spending Easter weekend at the Centre of Life in Newcastle before returning to us on Tuesday.

Four children from Year 5 represented our school in the heats of an Animation Competition taken place at Heworth CLC this week. Kate, Daniel, Hannah and Callum worked together as a team, sharing their ideas to create a storyboard. Then using models, various props, software programme 'I Can Animate' combined with images captured on a digital camera they created their animation. The children thoroughly enjoyed their day at the CLC and produced a brilliant animation well done everyone! .

Congratulations to Roman Road School who won the heat and go through to the next round.

Children planning their storyboard and sharing ideas.

Children using the digital camera to capture the images.

As part of National Science Week Year 5 took part in 'Professor Brainstorm's Exploding Science Show' at The Discovery Museum in Newcastle. Professor Brainstorm showed them how to use science to perform 'magic' tricks like hammering a nail in with a banana and making a balloon shrink and blow itself back up again by using liquid nitrogen. They also looked around the Fashion works exhibition at look at the use of pattern an how it has changed over time. Finally, they had lots of fun exploring the activities in the science maze.

Like the outfits girls!

Looks like the children are having great fun in the science maze.

Girls from Year 5 and Year 6 took part in the Sportshall Atheltics Finals at Gateshead International Stadium on Thursday 6th March 2008. The girls joined up with pupils from Roman Road, Wardley and Lingey House Primary schools to represent the Heworth area as 'Heworth Grange' in the finals. One hundred and sixty pupils took part in the event competing in indoor, track and field events.

A fantastic result for the Heworth Grange team who came in 2nd overall.

Well done to everyone!

Bill Quay pupils were visited by the 'Climate Dome' team on 28th February 2008 where they learnt about what the green house effect is and why it matters. They also looked at climate change and what effect it will have on the weather and us. As well as learning about the impact of melting ice caps on us all.

Children exploring the Climate Dome.

Year 5 visited the Land of the Pharaohs exhibition at Segedunum as part of their history topic. They where able to see some 2,500 year old mummies - one was even out it's bandages! They also looked at artefacts from Ancient Egypt. They then travelled back in time to meet Aneski an Egyptian farmer. She told them about her life and was surprised to learn how different it was to theirs. Just as they were about to take part in a ceremony to worship the Sun God they were interrupted by Shepenwepet, the High Priestess of Amun- Ra who told them stories about the Sun God.

The children were very inquisitive about Aneski life.

As well as finding out lots more about Ancient Egypt the children also had the opportunity to view the Roman parts of the museum and investigate the remains of the Roman Fort.

Children investigating the remains of the Roman Fort.

When Year 5 and Year 6 visited the Metro Centre on 31st January and 1st February 2008 they were in for a surprise. They both followed a maths trail around the malls and realised maths is all around us. They looked at measurement using the metro unit ( a square with a circle and a line in) which can be seen on the railings in the upper malls and identified lots of different shapes. They all agreed it had been a very interesting and enjoyable day. To top it all off Year 5 were chosen to feature in an article in the Newcastle Evening Chronicle about the maths in malls event!

Aiden and Lee from Year 5 working together sharing ideas on the maths trail.

As well as Year 6 developing their 'control' skills further in ICT, Year 5 have also had the chance to develop theirs. They visited Gateshead City Learning Centre (CLC), on Friday 1st February where they spent one and a half hours with teacher, Mr Mullen, working on the Junior Insight Control programme.

Children working on the Junior Insight Control programme at the CLC.

Year 5 went to South Shields Museum to find out about how the Victorians celebrated Christmas. They made lots of Victorian style decorations using traditional materials like paper. Some of the things they made were crackers, cards (using ink pens), angels, doves and a very long paper chain!

Children working alongside staff creating Victorian style decorations.

Yes thats definately a very long paper chain!

Year 5 have been investigating gases linked to their Science topic.
They had great fun making their own air driven monorails using balloons and string.

Look what fun they are having!

On Thursday 8th November Year 4 enjoyed their visit from visiting artist Pippa Bell. They had the opportunity to see images of sculpture throughout the years and found out how they were made and what materials were used.
Year 5 also enjoyed their visit from Pippa who came to talk to them about the Victorians. They looked at some pictures of Queen Victoria's Coronation and life in the Victorian times. They also saw pictures of famous Victorians, such as Florence Nightingale. "It was really fun, we learnt a lot" said Kate Hanlon. "My favourite part was learning about all the diseases and what doctors did in Victorian times" said Callum Doyle.
Year 6 children looked at paintings and photographs from the Second World War. Pippa showed them different techniques used in the paintings and explained how the colours helped to express feeling and emotions. The children also had the opportunity to discuss the different aspects of the war through the paintings.

Pippa working with Year 6.

The Education Business Links team from Gateshead Council came to run a workshop with us. In groups we made our own company, gave it a name and had to design, make and produce a marketing campaign for a hat. Well done to the winning company Fools Fun!

Planning together using lots of ideas.

Designing our products was such good fun!

We had a great day at Beamish, finding out about life in the Victorian times. We visited the town to look around the shops and houses owned by rich people. We saw sweets being made and sampled a few before going to see the dentist! After lunch we had a lesson in the Victorian school. We got very messy trying to write with ink pens!

Pupils getting down to hard work in the school house..

Oh no inky hands!

Yum something smells nice!

This is hard work.

Year 5 went to Shipley Art Gallery as part of their history topic on Victorians. They saw the painting of the Blaydon races and dressed up in Victorian clothes whilst they learnt the song.

Don't you all look the part!

Nice hat William!

Ready for the races boys?

No excuse for you to be late with that lovely Victorian timepiece Jack!
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This term we are going to be very busy time travelling!
We will be going back to the Victorian Times to find out what life was like for children who were alive when our school was built. We are going to visit Beamish and South Shields Museum to take part in some Victorian activities, as well as looking at Victorian artwork at the Shipley Art Gallery. We will also be finding out about our Solar System and what the climate is like on Earth and other planets. We are also using space as our theme for music and art. With all of this as well as our literacy and numeracy work, we're looking forward to a very busy and exciting time.

Linked to their Literacy topic Years 4 & 5 visited the Theatre Royal in Newcastle to see Birmingham Stage Company’s adaptation of one of Roald Dahl’s most famous books ‘Danny Champion of the World’.
The children thoroughly enjoyed joining Danny and his dad on this magical and remarkable adventure with a touching moral.

Ten children from Year 5 represented Bill Quay school in a Robotics Challenge against other Gateshead schools at the City Learning Centre on Friday 29th June. The children were split into two groups and were given the challenge of programming a robot to do 6 different movements. The children then worked together, both teams rising to the challenge with 'The Rampaging Penguins' winning overall by a clear 40 points!!!!
They will now represent the school in the finals later on in the year.

A great team effort, well done everyone!

Year 4, 5 & 6 had the chance to put rubbish to good use this week, linked to their 'Textiles' topic, when Mrs Dale visited the school and showed them how to use recycled material to weave small trays and baskets.

Children from Years 4, 5 & 6 visited the CLC over 2 days. Year 4 worked on composing a song track and they selected different sound effects to add to it, they also worked on a computer aided design programme producing a key ring. Year 5 also composed their own songs using a software programme called Garage Band. They went on to add their music to a comic strip using the software programme 'I movie'. Year 6 had the challenge of helping Harry Potter rescue Professor Dumbledore, in their quest to help Harry they had the chance to fly on broomsticks, retrieve magic treasures and watch Harry play Quidditch, using the latest technology equipment.

Years 5 & 6 will have the opportunity, over the next four weeks, to work alongside a professional art teacher from Heworth Grange School. They will be working on murals to improve the outside environment of the school.

Children from Years 4, 5 and 6 visited the Winter Gardens in Sunderland to discover a new interactive way for pupils to explore and learn more about rainforests, linked to their humanities topic. Pupils were given Rainforest Explorers backpacks which contained ten numbered objects that matched ten numbered task cards hanging on the plants in the Winter Garden. The children were then given rainforest maps with the locations of the task cards shown, the children were then given the challenge to find the cards and read the information before, finding the object and completing the task.

Year 5/6 girls took part in the first ever 6-a side girls football tournament at Heworth Grange. Five schools took part, each completing four matches and a skills challenge. A great team effort from the girls, which will hopefully lead to further girls football in the future.

Pupils in Year 5/6 Hockey team have had great success recently. In the East Gateshead tournament they won all their matches giving them the opportunity to compete in the finals on Wednesday 28th March. The team did extremely well winning three of their games to take the bronze medal. Well done, a great team effort!

Year 5 children visited the Newcastle Discovery Museum to take part in a car balloon workshop. Pupils worked in groups of three with engineers to make a car powered by a balloon which they raced against each other.
The rest of the day was spent looking around the various displays at the museum.

Year 5 children were provided with wood, tools and all the nails they needed to help them create a fantastic wooden sculpture of an elephant for the school garden. They worked alongside professional artist Joe Hillier who helped to create and capture their ideas.
The elephant will reside in the school garden so feel free to come along and have a look for yourself at the children's fantastic creation.

Year 5/6 pupils were selected to compete in the Heworth Athletics Tournament.
Activities included sprints, hurdles, speed bounce, vertical jump, javelin and long jump.
We did very well coming a close second overall in the competition.
The best pupils in each event from the four schools have been selected to represent the Heworth schools cluster in the finals.
Well done to them!

Our science topic is solids, liquids and gases and we enjoyed a fun-packed day at the Centre for Life. We visited 2 science labs, the first one was to see a snow show were we learned all about how penguins keep warm in the South Pole, then Lucy put on lots of items of clothing to show us how to keep warm. During the rest of the show we found out about solids, liquids and gases. The next lab we visited was to learn the difference between snow and ice. We learned how to stick some string on to an ice cube by adding salt. In the afternoon we all went ice skating. It was great fun!

by Emma Hudson

Year 5/6 visited St. Mary's Cathedral and the Salvation Army Temple on the West Road. They compared the interior and exterior of each building and identified key features such as the pulpit, font and cross.

Year 5 had a visit into school from Star Lab where they learnt about planets and the earth and space linked to their science topic.

Year 5 children enjoyed taking part in 2 sculpture days at Bill Quay Farm. This years theme was 'Our World' and the children were provided with tonnes of wood, tools and all the nails they needed. to help them create a fantastic display of animals, objects, landmarks and landscapes. Professional artists were also on hand .to help create and capture their ideas. The finished sculptures will be on display at an exhibition in Saltwell Park on 8th October 2006 during Family Sculpture Day from 11am-4pm. They will also be displayed in the small hall in school when they have been returned from the exhibition.

Year 5 are really looking forward to a planetarium in the main hall to experience viirtual space!

Welcome to Year 5! We are a small class of 19 pupils working with Mrs Hilton on a morning, when we do maths, literacy and science. Our topic this term is Earth in Space and we are making a huge rocket to hang in our class! We will publish a photograph of it as soon as it's complete!

Year 5/6 have been creating different technology designs with specialist teacher Tom Mullholland. They have designed and built bridges which needed to be able to hold a heavy load, just as a normal bridge would. This meant they had to test the effectiveness of their bridges using weights to measure the strength of their structures. The projects have enabled them to use their knowledge of materials, forces and mechanisms and have been really fun activities for them.
As well as the bridges they have made dodgems, ferris wheels and windmills.

Here are some pupils hard at work building their windmills.

Last week year 6 pupils had a fantastic adventure at the Robin Wood Activity Centre near Alston. They faced their darkest fears in the caves and the Piranha pool, scaled Mount Everest on the climbing wall, climbed the heady heights of the trapeze, zipped down the zip-wire and waded courageously through the stream walk. Robin of Sherwood never had such thrilling adventures, I am sure. All the pupils had a go at the activities, as did the Bill Quay staff, even when they were more than a little bit nervous about it! What fantastic fun they all had.

Just hanging around!
Ready, steady, jump!