Schools/colleges

Pupils from Shortwood Infant school had a chance to watch seven chicken eggs hatch into baby chicks last week.

The children at the Stanwell New Road school were given ten eggs and an incubator by the Living Eggs programme on Monday March 1, and they began hatching on the Friday (5).

A professional film maker has created a four minute movie of Shortwood Infant School to try and move council bosses to keep it open.

James Shanks, 37, created the documentary-style promotional video at the Stanwell New Road school two weeks ago.

Six Spelthorne schools started a competition on Saturday (6) for the chance to win their very own allotment.

The competition, which is co sponsored by the Staines Informer was launched at The Elmsleigh Shopping Centre and will see pupils competing for a raised bed allotment and seeds, gardening equipment and expert advice on how to get started.

Pupils from Buckland Primary School, in Berrycroft Road, Staines, Kingscroft Junior School, in Park Avenue, Staines, Manorcroft Primary School, in Manorcrofts Road, Egham, Shortwood Infant School, in Stanwell New Road, Staines, Hythe Primary School, in Thorpe Road, Staines and Stanwell Fields School, in Clare Road, Stanwell, will be encouraging people to vote for their schools.

SIX schools are currently competing to win a prize from a joint campaign launched by Staines News and the Elmsleigh Shopping Centre.

'Get Schools Growing' was launched on Saturday (March 6) in the High Street shopping centre, which has seen Buckland Primary, Kingscroft Junior, Manorcroft Primary, Shortwood Infant, Hythe Primary, and Stanwell Fields schools, try and come up with a campaign to get as many votes as possible to try and win a raised bed allotment and seeds.

Schoolchildren dressed up as their favourite book characters to celebrate a national event on Thursday and Friday (4-5).

Pupils from Shortwood Infant School, Knowle Park Infant School, Kingscroft Junior School, and Buckland Primary School, all in Staines, celebrated World Book Day by letting the children dress up in the character of their choice.

Campaigners against the proposed closure of Shortwood Infant School have been left 'confused' after a Surrey County councillor has stated the need for new schools.

In a statement issued by the council last week, Peter Miles, cabinet member for children and learning said that Surrey need to find 6,000 primary and secondary places over the next four years after admitting that schools are 'fit to bursting.'

Pupils at Staines Prep have been creating their own mummies as part of their history lessons.

Year three pupils aged between seven and eight have been studying the cultures and practices of ancient Egypt by visiting libraries and the British Museum website to try and understand how to preserve a body for the afterlife.

With the information the children mummified their fellow pupils and placed lucky charms between the layers of bandages.

The kids then mummified their soft toys, and created decorative masks to adorn them.

A spokewoman for the school said: "Everyone found the task both challenging and fascinating."

The Mayor of Spelthorne was the guest of honour at the STEPS open day on Tuesday, February 9.

The alternative education programme, which helps young people who by their own admission don't work well in school, hosted an open day at the Staines Learning centre in Wyatt Road, to demonstrate what they had been learning.

As well as Mayor Councillor Caroline Spencer, representatives from the police were there to donate a cheque for £500.

Disheartened school children visited the Mayor of Spelthorne today (Wednesday 17) to read poems to try and stop the closure of their school.

Children aged between five and seven visited Caroline Spencer in her offices at Spelthorne Council, in Knowle Green, and read stories and poems about the possible closure of Shortwood Infant School, in Stanwell New Road, Staines.

Two young sports fans sang in front of 80,000 people, royalty, and world class rugby players at the start of the Twickenham Centenary Celebrations on Saturday February 6.

Aidan Parsons and Tom Ollason, both 13 and students at Matthew Arnold School in Staines, sang with 50 other people at Twickenham Stadium before the England versus Wales match in the Six Nations competition.