Summer Term Issue 27: 24th April 2026
Flourishing in the love of God, love of life, love of learning
Dear SJSC Families,
I hope you have been enjoying the sunshine! We are definitely feeling the joys of spring in school at the moment. Reception have been absolutely loving having chicks in class (me too!), and we also have frogs in our pond – Marlon has proudly been telling everyone about holding one! As I write this, I can hear our Reception children playing in the garden, cheering on boats bobbing along on large channel they have created collaboratively as a group. It’s a joyful reminder of how much learning happens through curiosity, creativity and teamwork.
A reminder of a new date for the calendars of our class representatives: Friday 8th May, 9.00–9.45am. This will be the first of our Headteacher/Class Rep meetings, aimed at ensuring communication is as helpful and constructive as possible, and at supporting positive and useful dialogue within the parent WhatsApp groups. It would be wonderful to see as many class reps as possible. If you are unable to attend, please do arrange for someone to come in your place.
In a couple of weeks’ time, we will be holding our annual SJSC Arts Festival. The children take enormous pride in creating work for this pop‑up exhibition, and we would love to see lots of you there. Please check the Summer Term Key Dates for the afternoon when your child’s year group will be visiting.
Wishing you all a lovely weekend.
Warmest wishes,
Alli
This week in Reception we have had so much excitement as a clutch of eggs arrived from the Incredible Egg Company, safely keeping warm in their incubator. The children were amazed to see them hatch out! (We have been having a live stream to the board in both classrooms.) Children have been keeping each other updated with minute-by-minute reports “I can see a beak” “the crack is getting bigger” “The shell is breaking” . The chicks themselves are delightful, and we will all be having a go at holding them later. We have written reports of our observations and drawn the lifecycle of a chick.
In RE we have been listening to each other share all about our special objects, and we have made new prayer leaves about them.
And in Words and Pictures Club we are off to a flying start, children are excited to come in each day and write about the picture of the day. It really helps them to have practised at home, so they already know what they want to say when they arrive, then they only need to focus on the writing. We are practising remembering our finger spaces and forming our letters correctly. (You can practise that in the Red Phonics books with all the different sounds in.)
We have also planted lots of bean plants and are keeping an eye out for snails.
Forest School Next week on Friday 9-11.30 for Himid Class. Volunteers welcome.
Reception
Year 1
We have had another busy and engaging week in Year 1! In Science, we have been learning how to classify different animals, focusing on amphibians, insects and reptiles. The children really enjoyed sorting and discussing the features of each group, and it has been great to see them using their new vocabulary so confidently. In PSHE, we have been thinking about what makes a good friend. We shared ideas about how we can be kind, supportive and inclusive, and talked about what we can do if someone is feeling lonely. The children showed real thoughtfulness during our discussions and demonstrated a strong understanding of how to care for others. In Maths, we have continued exploring odd and even numbers, looking at what happens when we add or subtract 2, and learning about consecutive numbers. The children have been fantastic at applying this knowledge and explaining their thinking.! We also really enjoyed finding features from a non-fiction text- this will support our learning when we write our non-fiction book on the moon next week!
Sunflower Project!
Following on from our Science learning on plants last week, we are revisiting what plants need to grow, including water, sunlight, air, time and suitable temperature.
We are very excited to be linking this learning to a community initiative led by the The Dulwich Society, which is inviting Year 1 classes in local schools to take part in growing sunflowers this summer. As part of this, we are very lucky to be being provided with seeds and resources support our planting in Year 1, allowing the children to observe growth over time and apply their learning in a meaningful, real-life way. We will keep you updated as our planting journey begins!
If you would also like to take part at home, free sunflower seeds will be available on Saturday 25 April (10:00–13:00) from:
East Dulwich — Ben Oakley Gallery, 20 North Cross Road
West Dulwich — just outside The Dulwich Trader
North Dulwich — West 16th Café, Half Moon Lane
Dulwich Village — Dulwich Square
In Year 2 we have been learning all about endangered animals and how we can help protect them. The children were especially fascinated by orangutans and were shocked to learn how their rainforest homes are disappearing.
Using their new knowledge, the children created bright, eye‑catching posters to persuade people to help save the orangutans. They shared powerful messages about protecting forests and showed how humans can make small but important changes to help animals survive.
The classroom was full of passion, teamwork and brilliant ideas – from recycling and reducing waste to protecting habitats and spreading awareness. It was wonderful to see the children feeling like real wildlife heroes and using their voices to stand up for animals who cannot speak for themselves.
Well done, Year 2 – you’re proving that even small people can make a big difference!
Year 2
In Computing, we have been learning the differences between facts and opinions. We have learnt about ‘fake news’ and how we need to be very careful about sources of our information and recognise that sometimes what we read may not be accurate. We created amazing PowerPoint presentations explaining what facts and opinions are and enjoyed creating quizzes to test others knowledge of facts and opinions too.
In maths, we have been learning about the links between the 4 and 8 times tables. We discovered that we can use doubling and halving to help our calculations because double 4 is 8 and half of 8 is 4! We then used this knowledge to solve practical problems, working out how many tables would be needed to seat people into tables of 4 or 8.
Year 3
Year 4
This half term, the Year 4 children are getting ready for Sports Day! They are working on improving their accuracy, speed, and leg strength through a variety of fun activities. These include skipping, speed bouncing, target throwing, long jumping, and sprinting. Each week, the children will record and compare their scores, allowing them to track their progress and see their improvements over time.
We will also be creating our own light houses using our scientific learning about electricity so please be prepared for requests of strange household objects!
Year 5
This week in year 5, we have been learning all things space related! We’re learning more about the masterminds behind NACA’s success in Hidden Figures in our English lessons, we’re learning about the distances between planets and their features in Science and we’re learning about the missions to space that took place in the twentieth century through our guided reading lessons. Here, we are enjoying our second samba session of the term!
Year 6
In RE, we have been using freeze frames to explore the importance of Abraham to Jewish people as part of our learning about Judaism and the Torah. The children have been retelling key parts of Abraham’s story and thinking carefully about his significance within the faith. With the addition of our new student teacher, Mrs Nurse, we are in very good hands!
News from the Art Studio…
This week in the Art studio Year 1 used mixed media to explore spirals. We thought about which part of our arm we used when drawing small, medium and large spirals and how it felt drawing slow and fast.
Music this week…
In Celebration of Earth Day this week, children have been listening to “Earth” a piece of music written by the well-known film composer, Hans Zimmer. As they listened, they drew what they imagined the music was representing on our planet: living things, mountains, rivers and streams. You can watch a clip about Hans Zimmer and his composition by clicking on the link below. Year 1 children were using a parachute to represent the Earth moving as they sang a song about looking after our planet to the tune of Old MacDonald.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByTpoGNOBGI
Friends of SJSC
On Wednesday 20th May, the Friends of SJSC will be hosting our annual School Disco. This is a great opportunity for children to have even more fun together. Children can wear non-school uniform on this day.
The disco will include:
- Our very own DJ Marcus on the decks (all year groups)
- Entertainment by BoogiePumps (Reception/Y1/Y2)
- Face Painting/glitter
- Snacks
- Quite (er) room for children should they need it
Year group times below:
During the school day:
Reception: 14:00-14:30 / Collection time: 15:20(as usual)
Years 1&2: 14:40-15:10 / Collection time: 15:20 (as usual)
After school:
Years 3&4: 15:20-16:10 / Collection time: 16:10
Years 5&6: 16:20-17:00 / Collection time: 17:00
**NO afterschool clubs will be running**
What you need to do:
1. Buy your child’s ticket (£3 per ticket) in advance. Pupil Premium children will get a free ticket - details to follow. Click here to buy tickets: https://st-johns-and-st-clements-ptfa.square.site/
2. Organise your child to be collected at the correct time (Magna children will be collected as usual)
3. Y5/Y6 parents will need to give parental consent via Arbor if children plan to walk home unaccompanied at 5pm (link to be set up next week)
We look forward to welcoming the children on 20th May.
Thanks for your support.
Star of the Week
Enjoy the Easter break!