Highlights from across Wrexham and Flintshire in the School Report

If you would like to feature anything from your school, please email claire.pierce@newsquest.co.uk

• Connah's Quay High School

Connah's Quay High School's deputy head boy Scott Parkes, Catryn Oldfield and Catrin Griffiths, contributors to the radio programme.

Connah's Quay High School has provided a feature interview for BBC Radio Cymru's national daily Geraint Lloyd show, when the programme recently focused on Flintshire.

As well as an opportunity for the school to have a live interview with the presenter, learners contributed in Welsh as part of the school's explanation of its new initiative to promote both the use of incidental Welsh by the whole school community as part of everyday life, and an upcoming competition to select the communities favourite Welsh hero in order to raise awareness of Welsh culture and identity.

The interview can be heard on the BBC sounds service.

Learners at the school have been selected within their Welsh lessons by the Urdd (Welsh National Youth Movement) to work with the Flintshire branch of the Urdd as part of a wider national well being programme to explore the impact of life in lockdown at various points over the last few months, and the new opportunities for mindfulness that have come out challenging times.

Students used their new found live lesson skills to hold a conference with a national producer as part of the interview.

• Wat's Dyke CP School, Garden Village, Wrexham

Pupils at Wat's Dyke CP School have been making puppets.

Pupils have been creating one-of-a-kind puppets to help improve their story writing.

The children have spent some time with Shropshire creative artist, Kate Johnston.

Kate has been visiting the school over the last term to teach the children puppet-making skills using mainly recycled materials.

The children have designed and crafted the puppets completely independently and they will be using them to write stories, plays and poetry over the summer term.

The puppets recently travelled through time to visit the Stone Age and even had to go through puppet passport control!

Class teacher Danielle Jackson said: “The children have an amazingly creative imagination and they have really embraced the challenge.”

• Ysgol Bro Alun, Gwersyllt

One of the 'thank you' teddies gifted to every child at Ysgol Bro Alun.

Children at the school have all received a cuddly keepsake and reminder that they have done amazing over the last year.

Every single one of the almost 300 pupils at the school is now the proud owner of a special teddy, funded by raising money through online raffles by the PTA.

Member of the PTA, Natalie Evans, said: "They loved it. When they were walking out the school, they were all hugging them.

"The PTA normally do discos and fairs for the kids but obviously they've not been able to have that, so we decided to fundraise to buy them each a gift. It's something they can keep."

Deputy headteacher Awel Watson-Smyth said: "Kindly gifted by the PTA, the purpose was to thank all the children for their hard work during lockdowns, and also a small token to lift their wellbeing.

"From nursery up to Year 6, everyone received one, and they were just so delighted, and really appreciated it.

• St Ethelwold's Primary School, Shotton

Tea party fun at St Ethelwold's Primary School.

If has been a fun and busy time for the pupils at the school. The children in Class 1 spent the week planning and preparing for their Traditional Tales Tea Party, all with World Maths Day in mind.

They planned and costed the menu, as well as baking all the cakes and biscuits using their weighing and measuring skills, baking fairy cakes, gingerbread men and rice-krispie cakes. The next day the class prepared sandwiches for the party and used their understanding of shape and fractions to cut their sandwiches into squares, triangles or rectangles.

Class 2 celebrated World Maths Day by carrying out an investigation to find out if all tins of Heroes chocolates contain the same number of each chocolate, using graphing skills to record the results. They found out every tin is different, and they don't even contain the same number of chocolates. In the afternoon they played different maths games to practice telling the time, times tables and addition and subtraction.

Tea party fun at St Ethelwold's Primary School, Imogen, Laila, and Jorgie.

Pupils of Class 3 followed up the work on climate change as a result of the live lessons which fired their enthusiasm. They have been inspired to make a difference. The children are upcycling t-shirts to make tote bags.

Children also finished their work about Ramadan by studying the festival of Eid, celebrated by Muslims at this time.

And there was some good news in Class 4. Out of nearly 3,000 schools they have been shortlisted for a prize by Surfers Against Sewage in their forthcoming annual awards, to be held on June 17.

To celebrate they are hoping to hold a little party in school to watch the event - if Covid restrictions will allow. An article about Class 4's project has been published in Surfers Against Sewage's magazine, Pipeline. The children were sent a personal copy each to bring home!

In maths the class have moved on from conversions and delved into probability this week, looking at the chances of rolling a six for instance.

In English the pupils have used their acting skills to put together a recording of a play script with the focus on the quality of their voices.

• Ysgol Licswm

Outdoor learning fun at Ysgol Licswm.

Pupils at the Lixwm primary school have been enjoying the mental wellbeing benefits of being outdoors and creating an environment, which will be bursting in colour and bee friendly.

After a plea to the community, they received generous donations from Jacksons Garden Centre, Woodworks, Lidl and even a beautiful rambling rose from 'Dunc the Postman', which has been planted in the storytelling corner to create a scented relaxing canopy.

The children have had great fun, and the Year 2 pupils have even made scarecrows to protect their plants.

Some of the youngsters at Ysgol Licswm taking part in outdoor learning.