Summer Term Issue 33: 13th June 2025
Flourishing in the love of God, love of life, love of learning
Dear Families,
We’ve ended the week in the best way possible—loudly and enthusiastically making our voices heard! Our children have been raising awareness about climate change and encouraging everyone to take action to care for our planet. We are incredibly proud of how diligently they’ve developed their knowledge and how deeply they care about the wider issues that affect all life. As Greta Thunberg so eloquently said, “No one is too small to make a difference.”
Yesterday, we welcomed our SIAMS inspector. It is a testament to our entire community—children, staff, and parents—that our school is a place filled with love, fun, and purpose. Once the report is finalised, we will share the outcome with you. This process typically takes a few weeks.
Looking ahead, we’re excited to invite you to our OPAL Parent Talk next Friday, 20th June, led by the inspiring play expert Cath Prisk. We also have Stay and Play sessions coming up:
Reception – Friday 20th June
Years 3, 4, 5, and 6 – Wednesday 2nd July
Years 1 and 2 – Friday 4th July
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!
Warm regards,
Alli
Upcoming Diary Dates
Reception
This has been another wonderful busy ship-shape week down here in Reception… Setting sail with Pirate Day on Monday! We have been creating maps and using them to find buried treasure! We have learned how to draw and label a pirate and a pirate ship. The children have invented their own ways of using loose parts to make ships and rigging and hoisted many a sail. In maths we’ve been practising five and a bit to make numbers up to ten with counters, fingers and Rekenreks. In RE we have been thinking about what makes a place special? How can we make a calm and reflective space in our classrooms? And why might Christians feel closer to God in a church. Finally the children have been inspired to make their creative protest banners for the Eco March.
Year 1
This week Year 1 having started looking at money. We are focusing on 1p, 2p, 5p and 10p coins. It would really support your child to have practical experiences of this at home.
In History, we are looking at people who have made a change and have been focusing on Emily Wilding Davison. We hot seated her to ask questions about what it was like then created our own posters to support to cause.
In Science, we have looked at sorting animals by their diets. The children have learnt the words herbivore, carnivore and omnivore and create their own Venn diagrams to sort them.
Year 2
This term, our Year 2 children have begun their exciting journey into the world of fractions! They have been exploring the concepts of parts and wholes, learning to distinguish between equal and unequal parts. A key focus has been on identifying and understanding halves. The students have enjoyed engaging, hands-on activities that help make these abstract ideas come to life!
Year 3
“Flourishing in the love of god, the love of life and the love of learning” is our well know holistic approach in school . But, how exactly DO we flourish at SJSC? That was our big enquiry question this week during our RE sessions when children explored how our actions can show our understanding and implementation of our values. We discussed the importance of creativity, kindness, aspiration, community and resilience and how these values allow us to achieve, grow and give each day. In doing so, children created freeze frames showing the values and then drew how they live them. Amazing reflections and positivity!
Year 4
This week in Year 4 has been nothing short of magical! We’ve dived headfirst into The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde, and the children have been absolutely captivated by the way Wilde uses personification to bring the story to life. With our trusty partners by our sides, we read closely and highlighted powerful personified verbs and phrases. Then, like literary detectives, we shared our findings and collected them on the board — and yes, the interactive whiteboard was positively glowing with excitement (we think it enjoyed being the centre of attention for once!).
A heartfelt thank you from Mrs. Hare and Miss Evans to all the children and their adults for the fantastic support in preparing for this week’s MTC. We are incredibly proud of everyone’s hard work and resilience.
Year 5
This week in Year 5 we have been writing diary entries from multiple perspectives focussing on verb choices. We’ve also been asking big questions about life and death in our RE lessons—thinking about bereavement and why this is such an important topic. We finished the brilliant book Who Let the Gods Out and have been preparing for the ECO march! What a week!
Year 6
This week in Year 6, we began reading our new class text Paradise Sands by Levi Pinfold – a beautifully illustrated and atmospheric story that has already sparked some rich discussion.
We focused on a key moment in the story where the characters are faced with a mysterious and unsettling decision: should they enter the grand but eerie hotel, or turn back? Before reading ahead, each child had to make their own decision – would they go in, or would they walk away?
We created a class opinion line, and it was fantastic to see such a wide range of views. Some children felt strongly that the characters should enter and explore, drawn by curiosity and a sense of adventure. Others firmly believed they should stay away, trusting their instincts and picking up on the warning signs in the text and illustrations.
Each child justified their choice with thoughtful reasoning, showing empathy for the characters and an impressive understanding of narrative tension. We’re looking forward to seeing how the story unfolds – and whether any of the children change their minds!
Music this week…
In Music this week, Year 5 were counting in 3s as they learnt how composer Igor Stravinsky wrote a Waltz for one of the characters in Petrushka, The Ballerina. We discussed how the first beat of a Waltz is usually stronger with beats two and three being a little lighter. We also talked about Oom Pa Pa being a phrase used instead of counting 1,2,3. Children selected contrasting instruments for a strong Oom and a lighter Pa Pa. Please watch the video attached to see an example.
News from the Art Studio…
Take a look at the amazing art produced this week in the art studio…
Hearing Resource Base
We are passionate about our children learning BSL as part of their language curriculum. Learning BSL not only enhances language skills but also helps to foster a more inclusive learning environment whilst also encouraging active listening and developing non-verbal communication skills.
At the start of this year, a group of parents and carers of deaf children from the local area starting to learn British Sign Language (BSL) through the Hearing Resource Base. Our wonderful tutor, Laura, from Remark, teaches the Key Stage 2 children BSL during the day and then stays for an hour after school to teach the adults.
The parent and carer group are working towards their Signature Level 1 certificate. They are now preparing for their 101 exam which they are planning to take before the end of term. Good luck to all the adults currently revising and practising for their exam!
For anyone currently practicing fingerspelling here are the right-handed and left-handed alphabets. You can also use this website for a fingerspelling game:
Sports Update
School council update
This week, our School Council took a trip to the heart of British democracy—Parliament! From exploring the grand halls to learning all about the House of Commons and House of Lords, the visit was packed with fascinating facts and memorable moments. The children discovered how big decisions are made and why leadership and democracy really matters. They even had the chance to meet a representative from our local MP’s office and asked some brilliant questions about how decisions are made for our community. One of the biggest highlights was walking the very path King Charles takes and catching a glimpse of his impressive throne! A truly inspiring day that made politics come to life!
Values Awards
Every half term we focus in on one of our school values. On the last day of term we celebrate children who demonstrated the value wonderfully.
Reading Champions are chosen each half term to inspire us all- they are children who show lots of effort, dedication and enthusiasm for reading.
Well done to all of our award winners …
Friends of SJSC
The SJSC Summer Fair Raffle is now LIVE!
Tickets are £2 and there are some amazing prizes from local businesses including:
- meal vouchers at Artusi, Trinco & Olivelli
- Sweaty Betty, F45 Gym & Oddonos ice cream vouchers
- many, many more!
Link to buy tickets is here:
Please share with your friends & family - anyone can buy tickets & help raise money for our school.
We look forward to seeing you next Saturday at the Summer Fair!!
Notices
Lost Property – Let’s Keep Track of Those Jumpers and Coats!
We’ve noticed a growing number of lost items lately, especially jumpers and coats.
If items are clearly labelled, it makes it much easier for us to return them to their owners — so please take a moment to check that your child’s clothing is named.
We recommend Stikins for easy-to-use name labels. Not only are they super handy, but every purchase also helps raise funds for our school! You can find the link below.
Buy Your Stikins Labels Here | Stikins ® using the code 19887
Please note: Any items not collected before the end of term will be added to the PTFA bank of uniform for swaps.
Thank you for your support in helping us keep track of all those missing jumpers!
See you next week!