Read below to find out more about some of the different activities we have been getting up to; from sporting and musical activities, to visitors and 'wow' days. We are looking forward to helping our children 'explore and grow' further in 2025-26.

• 'The Panto that nearly wasn't!' - or 'Aladdin!'

  Wed 18 Dec 2024 M Davis

  On Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon of the last week of term, Cobalt class shared their, now traditional, pantomime performance with the school and community.

   

  This year, the panto started in crisis! Mrs Davis was 'refusing to play the piano' and Mrs Larratt was 'too tired to write one' so two children found themselves in charge of not only creating a pantomime, but also finding a way to persuade Mrs Davis back to accompany the songs.

   

  The pantomime therefore started with auditions for parts, finding a setting and choosing a story- Aladdin was eventually settled on.

   

  The story of Aladdin then unfolded, with much hilarity and all the traditional pantomime jokes (oh no it didn't.....). An attempt was made to persuade Mrs Davis back to the piano by making all the songs, songs sung by the Muppets - but this didn't appear to be working!

   

  Aladdin found himself stuck in the cave, before he was rescued by the genie. There were some lovely solo singing from a number of children, as well as some great 'grumpy men' asides from the back! Soon Aladdin and the princess were united and  there was an audience participation song, which even the RLT CEO joined in with at the afternoon performance.

   

  It looked like Mrs Davis was not to be persuaded back, until one character realised the children's mistake.... they had been trying to persuade her back with Muppet songs, when her first love is Julie Andrews.... a promise to sing Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious soon had her back at the piano!

   

  The children did an amazing job with great comic timing. Roll on next year!

• Away in a Manger - Nativity

  Wed 18 Dec 2024 M Davis

  On the afternoon of Tuesday 17th and the evening of Wednesday 18th December, Aqua class share the story of the nativity with parents and friends in their production of 'Away in a Manger'. 

   

  With beautiful singing, great acting and some fantastic narration, the children shared the story of Maurice the donkey, who was not very sure about sharing his manger with a variety of animals, and then found a baby asleep in it!

   

  It was a lovely retelling of the Christmas story and put us all in a great mood for Christmas.

• RLT Christmas Choir

  Fri 13 Dec 2024 M Davis

  We had a fantastic afternoon on Friday 13th December taking part in the inaugural RLT Christmas Choir performance, led by our very own Mrs Davis!

   

  At the beginning of the afternoon we practised, together with children from 6 other RLT schools, some of our favourite Christmas songs. We were very grateful to have Mr Davis there to play the piano, and to be Mrs Davis' voice, as she had completely lost her own voice!

   

  At 2.15pm we began our performance for a lovely supportive audience of friends and families from across the trust. The concert included traditional carols, such as 'Away in a Manger' and 'Hark the Herald'; some more modern carols, like 'Calypso Carol'; and some Exton favourites, such as 'Sheep, Sheep, Sheep' and 'The Holly and the Ivy'. The concert finished with a song from Whistle Down the Wind - 'When Children Rule the World'. 

   

  It was fantastic to be able to come together and sing with children from across the trust. A good time was had by all!

• Carols Round the Tree

  Fri 06 Dec 2024 M Davis

  A huge thank you to David Healey for again providing a tree for the village at the bottom of Garden Road in Exton. It was a pleasure to once again lead the local community in a few carols at the turning on of the lights. Around thirty people joined us to to sing 'Hark the Herald' and 'Away in a Manger' amongst others traditional carols, before everyone was sent on their way with a round of 'We wish you a Merry Christmas'. 

   

  Thank you to all those who have made donations to the school as part of the village tree and the Carol singing. 

• Parents Association Christmas Fayre

  Fri 06 Dec 2024 M Davis

  Friday 6th December saw another successful school Christmas Fayre, run by the Parents Association. 

   

  Stalls were set up down in the Exton Village Hall which, being a little larger than the school hall, enabled visitors to come and join and sell their wares. Alongside the tombola, cake stall, and various Christmas games, there was also a raffle and opportunities to buy handcrafted items by local people. 

   

  Midway through the afternoon Santa dropped in to join us in his grotto to talk to the children and give them a little gift. 

   

  A huge thank you to the Parents Association for another successful event, raising just over £716 to support the school. 

• Aqua Class Rutland Museum Visit

  Wed 04 Dec 2024 M Davis

  On Wednesday, Aqua Class went to Rutland Museum and  enjoyed a festive trip back in time to discover where our Christmas Traditions have come from. This linked not only to their current history topic looking at a Victorian Christmas, but also to their next history topic looking at toys through time.

   

  During the visit they made some Victorian Christmas cards, a hanging pomander, a pop up Santa toy and they also enjoyed a Christmas bauble hunt around the museum.

   

  They  all had a great time learning about Christmas in the past.

  

• A Flourishing Church School

  Wed 04 Dec 2024 M Davis

  A few weeks ago we were visited by an inspector from SIAMS for our Statutory Inspection of Church Schools. We were last visited in 2016, so we were looking forward to showing the inspector how we uphold our school Christian vision and how this drives the work of the school. 

   

  The SIAMS inspector noted the following strengths within his report:

   

  "There is a shared commitment to live out the school's Christian vision amongst staff and pupils. This motivates learners to be aspirational and deep-thinking individuals."

   

  "The curriculum, driven by the vision, is effectively built on enquiry-based learning. As pupils explore and grow, they demonstrate a love of learning that enables them to flourish."

   

  "Underpinned by the school vision and values, respect and kindness permeate throughout the school. As a result, members of the community live well together and grow in self-confidence."

   

  "A culture of responsibility and care is promoted by the Christian vision and values. Pupils demonstrate love and respect for members of their local community."

   

  "Collective worship sparks personal reflection for pupils that influences their daily learning. It is carefully planned to be inclusive and inspirational. This enables them to grow spiritually."

   

  "An unswerving approach to equity demonstrates a commitment to individuals."

   

  "A carefully sequenced RE Curriculum ensures that pupils develop a clear knowledge of key Christian beliefs. It also broadens their understanding of other religions and worldviews."

   

  The report can be read in its entirety on the Collective Worship, RE and SIAMS page.