Welcome to our Rufford Class Page 

Here you can have a look at what we have been doing in class, and we also have some interesting links and information on important dates for you. Enjoy and come back soon!

Our PE day is Tuesday. As we're doing PE outside, please send your child with their outdoor PE kit, as well as hats and gloves and a waterproof coat.

From now until the end of the school year, Rufford Class will be going to the Acre all day on Thursdays for their catering work experience. They will need to bring a packed lunch every week, unless they have free school meals.

Dates for your diary:

15th April                                                      start of the Summer Term

17th April                                                      Construction Day 

18th April                                                      start of the catering work experience at the Acre

24th - 26th April                                            "Pathways to Work" virtual work experience

6th May                                                         May Bank Holiday

24th May                                                       last school day before Half Term 

3rd June                                                        first day back after Half Term

4th - 5th June                                                Duke of Edinburgh walk and camping             

Week ending 29th March 2024

As part of our "Tools for Success" theme, we visited Asmech Systems, where owner Shane Gunstone took the time to show us around. He demonstrated to us how their new milk bottle loading machine works, and students lent a hand loading it back up. We also had a chance to talk to their newest apprentice.

Week ending 22nd March 2024

Our Big RE Day this term was all about spring festivals in different cultures. Rufford Class covered Chinese New Year, Thoresby Easter and Sherwood Holi. We had a visitor tell us about Chinese customs and their significance, before we cooked a selection of Chinese meals for everyone to sample. Then we had a chance to create Chinese dragons, as well as taking part in Holi celebrations and an egg hunt.

Week ending 8th March 2024

Students had the opportunity to observe the archaeological activity at the Kirkby Castle site. They learned about the history of the location and were able to handle some artefacts, before watching the ground penetrating radar at work.

Week ending 1st March 2024

In preparation for next week's World Book Day, Rufford Class decorated all our windows today. Our inspiration was our current class book, the wonderfully spine-tingling "Seven Ghosts" by Chris Priestley. I think we captured the mood of the book perfectly!

Week ending 23rd February 2024

This week, Rufford students had the opportunity to practise their animal care skills on our very own school guinea pigs! They cleaned the cages, fed and watered them all and gave them some love and attention. They also performed a thorough health check and discovered that two of the guinea pigs needed their claws clipping.

Week ending 2nd February 2024

As part of our current ASDAN project, students are creating collages about themselves They brought in things that are important to them and took photos with those items or clothes. We experimented with the green screen to create memorable pictures.

Week ending 19th January 2024

Between now and Easter, students will get to know these guys a lot better, as they learn how to look after and care for them, as well as a host of other small animals. Some of our students have already shown great talent in handling and grooming the animals, and they are beginning to have definite favourites.

Week ending 5th January 2024

Welcome to the New Year! We plunged straight into our new work and explored electrical circuits today.

Week ending 15th December 2023

As part of our project on homelessness and with the valued help of friends and family, we have raised some funds to buy a range of items that might be useful for people who find themselves without a home this Christmas. 

We made decorations, wrote Christmas cards and packed and wrapped 9 boxes in total. Next week, we will deliver the boxes to a homeless charity in Mansfield.

Week ending 10th November 2023

It was Money Week for the whole school this week. We had several guests from the DWP, the local council and Speakers for Schools here to tell us about different aspects of dealing with money in adult life. Rufford class also ran the £5 challenge, where students had to come up with a business idea with a start capital of only £5. We brainstormed ideas, researched recipes and people's preferences, and 3 enterprise projects emerged: one group made pancakes, one group made cookies and one student cleaned shoes. Together, in only one day, we made over £15 profit!

Our Bracken Hill football team have really done us proud this week. They played some excellent football, but also showed fantastic sportsmanship and kindness towards their opponents. 

Oh, and they won 5, drew 1 and only lost one of their games!

This Friday, we visited the Ashfield Careers Fair at the Kirkby Leisure Centre. Students had the chance to speak to a variety of local employers and ask them about jobs and careers they offer. We also took part in a workshop led by Futures.

Our first ever "Meet a career" cafe was a great success. We had guests from a variety of backgrounds who told students about their career paths so far and skills that are important for their line of work, before answering students' questions. Students learned a lot about employability skills and the importance of passion and perseverance. A huge thank you to our guests

Angela Reed and Ruth Farrall from the DWP

Shane Gunstone of Asmech Systems

Andy Frogson of Sauce and Brown

former Tai Chi world champion Ken Mead from Takeover Radio

and our very own Andrew Jackson

We really appreciate you giving up your time for us!

Welcome to the new school year!

We are now well into this half term's theme, Work for it, and already, we have been able to answer some of the questions that came up when we first started talking about this theme back in July.

Students have also had fun learning how to make changing pictures