We have had a very busy autumn term at El Peñascal school. We have been studying very hard but we have also participated in lots of activities and trips.
El trimestre de otoño (primer trimestre) hemos hecho muchas cosas en el colegio El Peñascal. Hemos trabajado mucho pero también participado en muchas actividades y excursiones.

In infants we roasted chestnuts which is very typical here in the autumn.
En Infantil asamos castañas (La castañada), lo que es muy típico aquí en otoño.

In years 1 and 2 we visited a vegetable garden and after our visit we made a special kind of cold soup called salmorejo made with tomatoes, garlic, olive oil and bread. Some parents joined our activity and we had a great time.
En 1º y 2º visitamos un huerto y después de la visita hicimos un plato frío llamado salmorejo con tomates, ajo, aceite de oliva y pan. Nos acompañaron algunos padres y lo pasamos muy bien.

In years 3 and 4 we visted a centre in San Lorenzo where we took part in workshops about recycling and also about the animals in our local environment. The highlight of our term however was a trip to “ Micropolix”  a mini city in Madrid.
En 3º y 4º visitamos un centro en el barrio de San Lorenzo y allí realizamos talleres sobre el reciclado y también sobre los animales de nuestro entorno. Sin embargo la actividad estrella del trimestre fue nuestra visita a Micropolix, una miniciudad en Madrid.

In years 5 we formed in orchestra in music to perform a song composed by our teacher. 

En 5º formamos una orquesta en la clase de Música para interpretar una canción compuesta por nuestra profesora.

In year 6 we participated in a workshop about robots where we had to give instructions to a robot which acted to aid a sick person.
En 6º participamos en un taller sobre robots en el que tuvimos que dar instrucciones a un robot para ayudar a una persona enferma.

Also last term we had a very special new arrival. A mysterious owl came to live in our school library. We have decided to call him “Don Owl” (don is Mr. in Spanish) and he is going to live in the library and help us with our reading.
En el trimestre pasado tuvimos una visita muy especial. Un búho misterioso vino a vivir a nuestra biblioteca escolar. Hemos decidido llamarle "Don Búho"  (don es Mr. en español) y se va a quedar a vivir en la biblioteca y nos ayudará con la lectura.

At the end of term we celebrated Christmas with performances of plays, poems, songs and dances.
Al final del trimestre celebramos la Navidad con obras, poemas, canciones y bailes.

From all of us at El Peñascal school, we wish our friends in Wickford a very happy New Year and a great term. 
Desde el Peñascal, todos deseamos a nuestros amigos en Wickford un feliz año nuevo y un estupendo trimestre.

Our first term 2011-2012

Our First Term

Our first term is almost over and we are now thinking about Christmas. It has been a busy term with lots of events. In year six, we had our residential trip. We spent a school week in Norfolk(about two hours away by coach) and had a great time. A numbr of activities were prepared for us such as quad biking, archery and leap of faith. In the evenings, we had, amongst other things, a campfire and a disco.

Tonight we have our annual carol concert and this Friday it is our Christmas bazaar which we are all looking forward to. The rumour is that Father Christmas is going to make an appearance!
On behalf of Wickford Junior School, we wish our Spanish friends a very merry Christmas and a happy new year! Feliz Navidad.

Our Nativity Scene in the school hall

We got some New Year cards from our link school in Wickford. In some of them they tell us about their resolutions for this year. We have read the cards in class and  we have displayed them on the classroom wall. We'll take them home at the end of the week.

This week we are going to write and send individual letters telling them about our Christmas holidays and we'll include some New Year's resolutions, too. Thanks for the cards!

"The 12 Days of Christmas" carol

A la vuelta de vacaciones nos hemos encontrado tarjetas de felicitación del nuevo año de nuestros amigos en Wickford. En algunas, incluyen sus propósitos para este año. Hemos leído las tarjetas en clase y las hemos puesto en el display que tenemos en clase. Las llevaremos a casa a finales de semana.

Esta semana vamos a enviar cartas individuales contando cómo hemos pasado las navidades y también incluiremos algunos propósitos. Gracias por vuestras tarjetas.

The Autumn term was very busy and we ended it with a carol concert, Christmas parties and a Christmas bazaar. Father Christmas visited us to deliver presents and everybody had a lovely time. Just before Christmas, we sent Happy New Year cards to our Spanish friends.

We are now back at school following the Christmas holidays ready to start our Spring term.

El primer trimestre estaba muy atareado y lo acabamos con un concierto de villancicos y fiestas de Navidad. Papa Noel nos visito para darnos regalos y todos se disfrutaban. Enviamos tarjetas a nuestros amigos espanoles.
Acabamos de volver para empezar el segundo trimestre.

Back to our blog

We are back! We have already started working with our friends in Wickford. This year several classes will be involved. We have already exchanged some pieces of work and started getting to know each other. We have displayed the class photos on our class walls and have taken ours to send there. By using email and traditional post we have asked them about their school calendar and holidays and we have also answered their questions. We are excited about having friends in Wickford.

Ya estamos de vuelta. Después de un inicio de curso atareado, nos hemos puesto en marcha. Este curso vamos a trabajar varias clases de 3º a 6º de nuestro colegio con clases de Wickford. Ya hemos intercambiado algunos trabajos y nos estamos conociendo. Tenemos las fotos de las clases en las aulas y enviaremos las nuestras muy pronto. Por correo postal y también por emails les  hemos hecho preguntas sobre el calendario escolar, entre otras cosas, y respondido  a las  que desde Wickford nos han hecho. Nos encanta tener amigos en Wickford.

Years 5 and 6 have been learning how to order food in a cafe. They have really enjoyed this topic and 6W have a lovely display in their classroom. They have brought a touch of Spain to Wickford Junior School.

Este trimestre, algunas clases han estudiado el tema de 'la comida' con mucho entusiasmo. La clase de 6W ha puesto un cafeteria en su aula, un poquito de Espana en Wickford Junior School.

Year 5 have also translated our school dinner menus into Spanish and we now have them on display as well as the English ones.
Ademas, algunas clases han traducido nuestra carta de comida escolar al espanol. Las hemos expuesto con las cartas inglesas.

Last week was healthy living week and we had a week full of healthy living activities. One of our events was a 'mini olympics' on our school field. All of the children took part in running, throwing and jumping events. The winners received a certificate.

La semana pasada era una semana sobre la buena salud y tuvimos una semana lleno de actividades sanas. Uno de nuestros eventos era el 'mini olympics.' Todos los ninos participaron en eventos de correr, lanzar y saltar. Los ganadores recibieron un certificado.

School orchards

Excursión a los Huertos del Valle Clamores

Este martes 13 de abril, hemos ido de excursión a visitar los Huertos del río Clamores. Hemos salido del colegio a las nueve y media, y hemos ido hasta allí andando. Durante el camino, íbamos de dos en dos. Al llegar, nuestra monitora, Berta, se ha presentado. Después nos ha ido enseñando las distintas plantaciones que había cultivadas. Siempre nos preguntaba si sabíamos qué tipo de planta era la que señalaba. Había muchas verduras: escarolas, lechugas, berzas, cebollas, coles,... También nos ha explicado cuál era el sistema de riego de los huertos. Después, hemos participado en una actividad, en la que teníamos que sembrar algunas judías en una maceta. Ha sido entretenido. Luego nos ha dejado un rato para coger flores y quitar malas hierbas, en una antigua imprenta, en la que ya solo quedaban unos muros pequeños y derruidos. Berta, nos ha contado que esa imprenta fue destruida durante la guerra civil. Finalmente, nos hemos despedido de Berta, y hemos vuelto al colegio. Esta visita ha sido muy interesante y a la vez divertida, en algunos momentos.
Lucía


The Vegetable Groves of the River Clamores

On Tuesday 13th of April our class went to visit the groves at the river Clamores. We went walking by pairs. Javier went with us. When we arrived, our monitor, Berta, introduced herself. Later, she showed us the different types of vegetables that they had. There were a lot of them: onions, lettuces, endives, cabbages… She asked us if we knew some vegetables. Also she told us what the watering system was. Later, we planted some beans in plant pots. Then she gave us a short time to recollect some flowers, she told us that in that place, a long time ago, there was a printer’s, but during the civil War, the printer’s was destroyed. Finally, we said goodbye to Berta, and we went back to school. This visit was very interesting and at same time, funny.
Lucy