On Monday and Tuesday this week we had nineteen visitors in school who were hoping that they might join us to train to become teachers next year at Ivanhoe. We could only choose two and it was a very difficult job indeed. I asked all of them what they thought of the school after they had spent a morning or afternoon with us, and I was very pleased with some of the things they said. Everyone said how friendly and confident the children were. They loved the fact that you were so friendly and welcoming and they liked your politeness and good manners. They said it was obvious that children, staff and parents all got along very well with each other. Many of them said that Mrs Foster was very welcoming and looked after them when they first arrived. They said the school looked beautiful and that children worked very hard in their lessons! They also loved the idea of the golden leaves on the golden tree. I hope that everyone is proud of the good impression that these visitors had of the school.

What is it about our school that you think that visitors would like so much? Write down some of your ideas…

I expect that everyone has seen the terrible news about the earthquake in Haiti and seen the awful pictures in the newspaper and on the television; up to 100,000 people may have died. I hadn’t realised that Haiti is next to the Dominican Republic, which is a place where many children and grown ups from Conisbrough have visited on holiday. Members of the School Council have suggested that we should  have a non-uniform day to raise some money quickly to send to help. We are very lucky in this country – our houses are strong and we don’t get bad earthquakes. I hope that people agree that as a school we must do something to help. Does anybody else have any suggestions?

Please help by coming in non-uniform on Tuesday 19th January and contributing at least 50p towards helping Haiti.

We had a bit more snow in Sheffield on Friday night. I cleared all the snow off my car on Friday evening so that I could use it early on Saturday – and then it was covered with snow again when I woke up! I would like children (and parents if they wish) to tell me what they think of the snow and what they have been up to. We are going to walk the dog with gran tomorrow, but apart from that we are keeping off the snow as much as possible. So, have you been sledging, have you made a snow person – what have you been up to?

We are definitely intending to stay open all next week – so I hope to see everyone in school on Monday!

Well –  New Year Resolution time. I expect that everyone knows that people choose the 1st January to make promises to themselves for the rest of the year. It’s often quite hard because people make really difficult promises and then find pretty soon that they can’t keep them up! I would like to know if people have thought about a resolution for themselves – it could be quite simple like resolving to go to bed early on Sunday night… or always remembering PE kit, or eating all the vegetables at dinner time. Resolutions, ideally, should be positive – adding something rather than giving something up (unless you are a grown up and you give up smoking or something). Resolutions should add something to your life – make it better. So I was thinking that I could set aside time each day for reading, or I could definitely eat five portions of fruit and veg a day, or I could always keep my room tidy ( my desk gets very messy sometimes!) But in the end I decided that I would watch a film in a foreign language every week – some at the cinema and some at home. I love the cinema ( which is why I run cinema club) but since having children I haven’t managed to find the time for films. This year – 2010 – my resolution is to watch on average one foreign film a week…will I keep that resolution? What is your resolution – and why are you making it?