Front page news

Painting the school wall –

We are looking forward to seeing many parents coming in to paint the wall on the Green on Saturday 6th March, from 9.30am onwards.  Please bring rollers!  Sorry, for health and safety reasons, children are not allowed.

Click here to see the new mural design.

If you fancy getting fit and training to run for the Bristol 10k, do it with Hotwells this year and raise valuable funds for the school while you do.  The Bristol 10k is on Sunday May 9th 2010. 

What you need to do:

1. Sign up online as an 'unaffiliated individual', running as part of our team -  'Hotwells PTA' - this will cost you £24. 
2. Check the PTA section of the website for more details on training and raising sponsorship money.  
3. Put your name down on the list outside class 6 or send us an email.  Please state whether you are beginner, intermediate or advanced and whether you would be interested in help with your training.
   

Congratulations to Year 1 & 2 for a fantastic performance, singing and dancing brilliantly!

Our fantastic school calendars have now arrived and will be on sale at the Christmas Fair on Saturday 11th

You can buy our wonderful Christmas cards, 40p each or 8 for £3, available from the school playground after school.  Check out the dates of the school Christmas performances and don't forget to put the Christmas Fair in your diary for 12th December.

Great Christmas present ideas COMING SOON - the ever popular school calendar and a great new Hotwells DVD!  Click here for a preview and to fill out the order form.

By Kate Strange - Communications Governor

On Thursday 19th Nov Class 3 and 4 had a special visitor.  Thea and Clifton, from Swaziland, brought a snake into Hotwells and gave the children a preview of a new documentary about the work they are doing in South Africa with deadly snakes.

In January, Luca (Class 4) and her parents went to Swaziland to make a documentary for the BBC Natural World series - Black Mamba White Witch. The film follows the life of Thea, a mum who runs a hotel but who is also on call 24 hours a day rescuing deadly snakes from local homes, schools and shops! Swaziland has 83 species of snake, 8 of which, such as the black mamba, are deadly. The snakes, looking for rats and mice to eat, find dark places to hide in people’s homes! They pop up in the most unlikely places, behind the TV, under the bed, even behind the toilet! When someone finds one, they call Thea and her husband Clifton, who rush out with their snake tongs, catch it and release it somewhere safe. Their work is vital in Swaziland to prevent snakes being killed, and to ensure the locals don't get bitten trying to remove the snakes themselves.

If you get a chance, watch the programme on the BBC iplayer, under Natural World Series.

By Mr Jones Class 4 teacher and Jo Schofield - Class 4 parent

Thanks to Liz Fellows-Smith and Waimun Chu who kicked off this term with sessions on South Africa and Malaysia respectively.

Children will soon be able to find out about the Sudan, get a taste of France and listen to experiences of life in Morocco... all in a lunch hour!  Thanks to all those parents and family who have been willling to share with us. 

Click here for more details of Culture Club or check the calendar for forthcoming dates.  If you would like to share your own experiences of your culture with our children please contact Will Ennals via the school office.

By Kate Strange - Communications governor 

Did you know that there is a proposal to extend the cycleway around Cumberland Basin?  The school has prepared a statement to be presented as part of the consultation process.  If you would also like to respond to the proposal click here. The closing date is November 27th 2009.

  By Kate Strange - Communications governor 

A wonderful face-lift for the school green

You may have noticed that over the summer we managed to create some more play space for the children on the green by removing an old condemned structure just below the outside classroom.  Over the half term holiday the green itself was re-turfed.  In the KS1 play area, under the trees, we have repaired the seating and fencing, and various tree works were done over the summer to ensure compliance with health and safety regulations and to allow more light onto the green.  Click here to see picture of the children enjoying the new play space.

During the last week of Term 1, Year 6 travelled to Osmington Bay in Weymouth for a week of fun filled activities as part of their residential visit. Over the course of the week, the children were able to take part in a range of exciting activities, such as climbing, raft building, quad biking, abseiling, archery, rifle shooting and the giant swing.  For the more faint hearted, there were also activities such as a beach walk, a sensory trail (which resulted in the children getting extremely muddy!) survival skills, which involved the children building their own shelters outdoors, and a rather wet night hike.

Class 6 were fantastic ambassadors for Hotwells, and were frequently complimented on their politeness, excellent team work skills and positive attitudes.  See the photos in our gallery.

By Mr Edwards Class 6 teacher