Furze Platt Juniors 2025-26 Newsletter

Welcome to our first Newsletter of the new school year! We hope that our regular newsletters will give you a flavour of all the wonderful events and learning that happen at Furze Platt Juniors.

We have only been back for a few weeks but already we are incredibly impressed with how all of our children have settled into their new classes, working really hard and being so engaged in their learning- see our Year Group news pages for more detail for your child's year group.

It was great to see so many parents attending the welcome meetings in early September- we really appreciate the opportunities for our teams to communicate face to face all of the things that will be happening in their year groups this year. If you did miss the meetings, you can find the slides with the key information here.

We will have lots of exciting events this year- one will be the Y5/6 choir singing at the O2 in February!

We are also having a big "push" on writing for pleasure this year at the school- and would like to encourage all children to take part in the 500 words competition- which is a BBC national event. You can find out further details below!

Anna Clark

Head of School

Reminder: Rules about jewellery in school

Earrings

Please can we remind parents that for PE, children should NOT wear earrings. Please ensure that on PE days, children do not come into school with earrings in. Where this is not possible (e.g. they have had ears pierced and need to keep them in for several weeks), please ensure they are covered with a plaster or tape for the day. This rule applies to ALL children. If children come into school with earrings on PE days, we will be asking them to cover with a plaster or tape themselves. Only a simple stud (or pair) is acceptable on non PE days- hooped earrings are NOT acceptable and pose a safety risk to both the child and other children.

Watches

Children can wear a watch- but this must not be a smart watch with any internet connectivity. Simple fitbit type watches are acceptable as long as they only count steps/ heart-rate and show the time.

Other jewellery

No other jewellery should be worn in school unless there is a specific religious reason which parents should communicate to the teacher.

Hair accessories

Adornments such as glittery hair-bands, bandanas and belts are not to be worn in school. Hair bands/hair ties should match school colours of Navy Blue or Red (plain coloured)

Diary Dates:

Thurs 9th October: Harvest festival- more info to follow- donating to foodshare.
Thurs 9th October: Y6 Rhos-Y-Gwaliau meeting 6pm in hall
Mon 13th October- Individual and Sibling photos
Weds 15th October- Y5 trip to Winchester Planetarium
Thurs 16th October- Parents consultation evening 1 (bookable- info to follow)
Fri 17th October- FPSA Quiz Night
Tues 21st October- Parents consultation evening 2 (bookable- info to follow)
Weds 22nd October- End of term 1
Thurs/Fri 23/24th INSET days
Mon 3rd November - Term 2 starts
Thurs 13th November- Non uniform- Children in Need
Fri 14th November- INSET day and FPSA Bingo Night
Sun 16th November- Sat 22nd November- Rhos-Y-Gwaliau Y6 residential
Sat 6th Dec - FPSA Christmas Fair
Tues 9th Dec 9am: Wren Christmas production
Weds 10th Dec 9am: Robin Christmas production
Thurs 11th Dec 9am: Finch Christmas production
Thurs 11th Dec: FPSA Junior School Discos

Quick Links

Curriculum

Lunch Menu

Term Dates 25-26

Calendar

Who's who at FPJS

Website including housepoints update

FPJS School News

Drop Offs and Pick Ups on Oaken Grove- important reminders

We have noticed an increased number of parents who are driving their children to school and dropping off/picking up along Oaken Grove. Please could we kindly ask parents to consider encouraging children to walk/cycle/scooter to school if at all possible to ease the congestion along the road. If this is not possible, please help us further by parking along other roads nearby school and walking a little bit further with your child. Not only does this help with congestion, it helps with safety and it encourages your child to develop a more healthy attitude to walking to school.

We are fully aware that we currently do not have a Crossing Patroller as we have had in previous years-. The Local Authority (RBWM) have said that they will not be providing the role anymore so we are currently trying to lobby our local council to provide us with safer crossing facilities on Oaken Grove. In the meanwhile, please take extra care when crossing the road with your children.

Parents should not be driving down the school drive unless an agreement has been made with the school- e.g. due to a disability. This includes all before and after-school clubs.

Please note, we have been monitoring the situation carefully and, as requested by RBWM, we will be passing details to the police of any vehicles which are seen to be breaking laws (such as parking on zig-zag lines) or undertaking dangerous maneuvers by the entrance to the school (such as attempting 3 point turns or reversing on/out of our drive). Please do your part in keeping our children safe.

Any parents who hold blue badges should discuss needs with the school if they require parking on site on the double yellow lines on our driveway, by the main gate. We ask to be informed so we can manage the number of cars parked on our driveway and keep the area safe for our children coming onto and leaving the school site. As a reminder, if you have a blue badge for yourself or a passenger, with notification to us, you can park on the yellow lines between our gate and the main road. DO NOT PARK ON THE YELLOW HATCH OR ZIG-ZAG LINES. If you choose to do this, you must adhere to not reversing along or doing a three point turn on this driveway. Cars are requested to either drive into the school grounds (before 3pm), turn around and then park facing the main road OR wait until 3:30pm - when the gates open - to drive in to turn around. Anyone not following these safety expectations will no longer be able to park on the driveway. Please do not double park by the gate in any instance, access for emergency vehicles is needed at all times.

Many thanks for your support in this important matter.

Head Students for FPJS 2025-2026

Well done to all of our Year 6 students who put themselves forward for the position of "Head Student" last week. Year 6 pupils wrote and presented their vision for why they should be chosen to represent the whole school. The Year 6 team were very impressed with all of the speeches and the confidence shown by the pupils and had a difficult time deciding who would make the final shortlist.

9 children were made their final speeches to the whole school who then voted for their favourites.

We are delighted to announce that this year, our head students (pictured above) are: Laura, Scarlett and Cameron.

We are also very proud of all our remaining shortlisted candidates who will gain the honour of becoming our school ambassadors pictured below:

Tommy, Ivan, Sebby, Aizah, Skye, Adya

House Captains at FPJS 2025-2026

Well done to the children pictured below who have gained the honour of being voted in for House Captains this year:

Romans: House Captains: Benj & Cleo; Vice Captains: Carina & Ivan

Vikings: House Captains: Finley & Sam; Vice Captains: Ailsa & Clementine

Normans: House Captains: Morgan & Phoebe D; Vice Captains: Sebby & Elodie

Danes: Sophia W & Frankie; Vice Captains: Violet & Tommy

Our new Y6 Librarians

Meet our new Y6 librarians who will be organising the library, supervising and advising our children on all things books over the coming year! They will also be required to complete some "shifts" at the infant school to support our younger readers!

New addition to our outdoor play areas:

Our Y3 children really love our environmental areas where they can dig, build and enjoy the natural enviornment of the trees. This year, thanks to funding from the FPSA, we have invested in a mud kitchen! As you can see- our Y3 and Y4 children are really enjoying role-playing in this area during lunchtime!

Young Voices at the O2

Furze Platt Juniors will be singing in the Young Voices Concert at the O2 in London on Wednesday 25th February 2026 for the first time ever! This an exciting new venture for our school and we are delighted to be able to take 60 Y5 and Y6 children along to sing and dance the night away!

More info will follow for those parents who have signed up for their children to take part in this exciting concert!

500 Words competition- open now!

We would love to encourage all of our brilliant writers to take part in this execellent competition which values creativity and the importance of a fantastic story idea!

There are very few rules for 500 Words but a few points to remember when writing a story.

All 500 Words stories must:

Be 500 words or less (title is not included in the number)
Be written by an individual and not a group
Be a child’s own original idea
Be prose, not rap or poem

Stories must not:

Give any personal details of the child, including their name
Recount an historical event (but they can use a real person or historical character as a source of inspiration)
Be created, written or developed by AI

In every 500 Words competition, all stories are judged on the following criteria:

Characterisation
Plot
Originality
Language
Enjoyment

All of our children have enjoyed a "live" lesson this week, hosted by Lenny Henry to encourage them to create a story and enter the competition. To take part, click on the link here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/500wordscompetition/login

Calling all inspiring parents and carers!

Do you have a career, interest or talent that would inspire our children? If the answer is "Yes!" we would love to hear from you! We are always looking for speakers to come into our assemblies to inspire our children. We plan our assemblies on a range of themes, but we would love to hear from people who have a passion for their career or hobby. Get in touch by contacting annaclark@fpjs.org.uk telling me what you can offer!

FPJS Recommended Reads & SMaRt library

We absolutely love books at Furze Platt Junior School! We love reading for pleasure and we encourage all our children to love books as much as we do. Our teachers are constantly on the lookout for new and exciting reads and we regularly update our library with current reads. .

You can find the checklists for our current book lists here: How many can your children read this year?

Our library is also now up and running for this year. Children can visit at the times shown above. Don't forget parents can also pop into the library on Wednesdays after school if they wish to support their child in choosing a new book as our librarian, Mrs Belfrage will be available to help.

Year 3 book list

Year 4 book list

Year 5 book list

Year 6 book list

Year Group Curriculum Maps for 2025-26

Our curriculum for next year can be found on our website or below:

Homework at FPJS

For all year groups, the most important aspect of homework is daily reading. Your child should be reading daily (either aloud to you or a sibling or independently once they are a fluent, free reader). We would like Y3 and Y4 children to record their reading in a reading log. For other year groups, some children will continue with a reading log, although teachers will be regularly checking in with their class about their reading for pleasure habits. All children who are still learning to decode will be monitored closely and will receive additional support or interventions.

We also expect children to practise their times-tables (TT rock stars is brilliant for this!) for speed of recall, and work on any spelling rules.

In Year 3 and Year 4, we set one piece of formal homework a week, alternating maths and English. In Year 5 and Year 6, this increases to two pieces a week. This work will be set either on our online learning platforms such as Bedrock Learning (reading comprehension), Spelling shed (spelling!) or via good old fashioned pencil and paper homework! This year, following feedback from parents, we have decided to set some maths homework work via CGP booklets which children can fill in. There will also be additional challenges set via either TTRS (Times tables rock stars) or using Maths Shed. The team leader will send weekly message on Seesaw to ensure parents are aware of what needs to be completed each week.

At times, there will be alternative homework to complete for variety- this could be practical tasks, handwriting or other more open-ended tasks- we normally set "topic" homework before half term.

Although homework can be frustrating for both children and parents, it is our duty to prepare children to be "secondary-ready", enabling children to get into good habits with completing homework tasks. If your child is struggling with any of the homework set, please DO let teachers know via Seesaw. The children should be able to complete most tasks without adult support- if your child needs your full support when completing the work it is too hard for them and needs to be adjusted, or they may need further support in class.

If you have any problems accessing any of the homework on- line due to issues with internet to access to devices, please speak with your child's class teacher who will be happy to support in any way possible.

All parents should be on Seesaw in order to get weekly updates from the team leader or teacher- please do let us know if you have any issues with this- Year 3 parents should be given a code which then lasts for their time at the junior school.

Stars of the week - Class Stars & PE Stars

Star of the week Newsletter 1: 26th September 2025

Well done to all our stars over the last few weeks:

Our stars are chosen from following the values of the school: Passion, Well-being and respect.

We also chose children who have made exceptional effort in their work or attitude to learning.

TT Rock stars- Top Ten

Well done to all our children who have started using TT rock stars regularly to practise times tables!

Keep up the daily practise everyone- it is scientifically proven that practising a little and often will ensure you master those times tables as soon as possible until they are automatically recalled from memory.

Here are our Top 10 children who have played the MOST in the last month:

Bedrock Learning

Well done to all our children who are regularly completing their homework tasks to improve their vocabulary! Here are our top 10 children who have spent the most time on their bedrock learning since September:

Sports Update

PE News

What a fantastic way to start our netball season!
Our A and B teams played against Courthouse on Wednesday 24th September. Both schools performed extremely well in their first match of the season. We are delighted to share that both of our teams won — the A team with a score of 8–4 and the B team with a score of 9–4!

Well played, everyone — we are all very proud of you! 🎉

Miss Gill

On Wednesday 24th September, our whole school took part in the 10@10 live workout to celebrate National Fitness Day!

The session was run by Leisure Focus and involved 10 minutes of fun exercises for the children to join in and copy. It was a brilliant way to get everyone moving and to celebrate the importance of staying active!

Year Group Updates

Year 3 News

What a wonderful start the children have all had in Year 3. We are all so incredibly proud of how quickly they have settled and how happy they all are as they come into class in the mornings!

We started the term with our 'Establishment Phase' which involved the children transitioning into routines slowly and getting to know the staff, school and routines well.

As part of this we read the story 'I am Fabulous' where the children created their own thinking hats and then designed their own posters using words to describe them as well as colourful paint, glitter and sequins.

We took part in an adjective hunt around the school and used this to help with our English work where we described a picture of a boy on a beach.

In maths we looked at clocks and recapped o'clock and half past times. We wrote numbers and then matched these to the correct words before using base 10 to make 2 digit numbers.

The children made some wonderful 'Dot Day' pictures and looked at lines and shading in art.

Our science topic is science this term is 'Forces' and the children have looked at push and pull forces.

In history our topic is 'The Stone Age' and the children have looked at the timeline as well as what life was like as a hunter gatherer.

What an exciting few weeks we have had - I know the children will continue to grow and learn each week.

Well done Year 3 - what a magnificent bunch you are.

Mrs Barry- Y3 Team Leader

Year 3- What are we learning?

Ask your child the following questions to see what they have learnt over the last few weeks!:

What number would the big hand be on for half past the hour?

What adjectives would you use to describe the sea?

What did the people of the Stone Age use deer for?

Our current reads we are enjoying in Y3...

The boy who grew dragons - Andy Shepherd

24 Hours in the Stone Age - Lan Cook

The Magic Finger - Roald Dahl

Year 4 News

Welcome back!
We have been so impressed with Year 4’s return to school. The children have settled in brilliantly and made an excellent start to the year.

In English, they have enjoyed planning their film reviews inspired by Disney Pixar’s short film Lava. They have been learning how to extend their sentences using coordinating conjunctions and how to write persuasively.

In Maths, the children have been introduced to numbers up to 10,000 and have thoroughly enjoyed using our interactive place value charts on the iPads.

In History, they have been placing the Anglo-Saxon time period on a timeline and discovering how key events in history can happen at the same time.

In Science, the children have been learning all about electrical circuits and their different components. They are especially excited to apply this knowledge next half-term when designing and making light-up Christmas decorations in DT.

Well done, Year 4! What a fantastic start you have made to the year – keep it up!

Mrs Batchelor - Year 4 Team Leader

Year 4- What are we learning?

Ask your child the following questions to see what they have learnt over the last few weeks:

What is 10 more and less than 6,973?
How many coordinating conjunctions can you name? Hint: FANBOYS
How would you describe Humza's personality?

Our current reads we are enjoying in Y4...

Little Badman and the Invasion of the Killer Aunties

By Humza Arshad & Henry White

The Boy in the Back of the Class

By OnJali Q. Rauf

The Land of the Roar

By Jenny McLachlan

Year 5 News

Wow! What a great start to Year 5!
The children are settling in well and are already producing some brilliant work.

In English, they have begun writing wonderful setting descriptions, inspired by a short film clip. They have been working hard to lull the reader into a false sense of security... before building suspense and tension to send shivers down their readers’ spines!

In Maths, they’ve been getting to grips with 5- and 6-digit numbers: writing them in digits and words, representing them in various ways; comparing and ordering them and learning how to partition them.

In Art, they have demonstrated fabulous shading skills, applying these to draw a sphere. In Music, they’ve been creative with songwriting, and in Computing, they’ve been learning all about video creation.

In Science, pupils have explained how night and day occur, and in History, they have been exploring the impact of the Industrial Revolution.

They’ve also taken part in meaningful discussions in PSHE and RE, sharing many interesting thoughts and ideas.

Well done to Kestrel, Kite, and Eagle classes for such a fantastic start to the year!

Miss Scott and Mr Sawle, Year 5 Team Leaders

Year 5- What are we learning?

Ask your child the following questions to see what they have learnt over the last few weeks:

Which number is greater? 234,560 or 234,650? How do you know?

How would you say 'horse' in French? What about 'pig'?

The butterfly was as blue as the sky. What is this figurative language device called?

Our current reads we are enjoying in Y5...

The little Match Girl Strikes Back

By Emma Carroll

Vile Victorians

By Terry Deary and Martin Brown

Year 6 News

Top of the School!

Year 6 have made a wonderful start to their final year at FPJS. They have settled into their new classes with confidence and positivity and we are already so proud of the effort and enthusiasm they are showing.

In writing, the children have really enjoyed exploring adventure and suspense stories. They have been working hard to use figurative language to bring their settings and characters to life.

In maths, we have been revisiting place value and putting our skills to the test with some tricky challenges — the children have shown great resilience and determination.

In reading, we have started When the Sky Falls by Phil Earle, a gripping story set during World War II. The children have been captivated by the main character’s journey, and it has linked perfectly to our history topic about life on the Home Front.

In science, the children have been investigating how light travels and what happens to shadows. In RE, we have started learning about the Five Pillars of Islam, exploring how Muslims show commitment to their faith. The children have asked thoughtful questions and shown real curiosity in their discussions.

It has been a brilliant start to the year. Well done Year 6!

Miss Morales - Y6 Team Leader

Year 6- What are we learning?

Ask your child the following questions to see what they have learnt over the last few weeks!:

When did WW2 start? Why did the War start?
Name 3 pillars of Islam and tell me what they each stand for.
Summarise the story of 'When the Sky Falls' so far.

Our current reads we are enjoying in Y6...

SEND updates

FPSA Update

The Furze Platt Schools Association (FPSA) would like to welcome back everyone to a new school year. We have a busy autumn of fundraising events, please see below for more details. The money raised from these events is shared between the Infants and the Juniors. The FPSA is currently a team of 13 people but always on the lookout for more. Contact us at fpsa.ebox@gmail.com.

2nd hand uniform sale (Wednesday 10th September)

Thank you to everyone who supported our recent 2nd hand uniform sale, this has helped raise £191 for both schools which is fantastic.

Personalised name label stickers

We have an updated discount code for buying school uniform labels and labels for water bottles etc. from the 'Easy2Name' company. Simply order from the following site: https://www.easy2name.com/stickeasy, quote code 'FR-FPIS-72' and not only will you will get free delivery, the FPSA will receive 20% of the order value. These labels will help the schools return mislaid uniform and will help cut down on the lost property including water bottles and lunchboxes as well as uniform.

Windsor & Maidenhead Community Lottery

This is a weekly lottery that raises money for good causes in the Royal Borough including the FPSA. Tickets for the lottery cost just £1 and from that 60p goes to good causes including 50p to the FPSA. Each ticket has a 1 in 50 chance to win a prize each week with a top prize of £25,000! So please sign up and buy a weekly ticket or two using the following link: https://www.windsorandmaidenheadcommunitylottery.co.uk/support/furze-platt-schools-association

Dates for your Diary:

Mr T's Quiz Night - Friday 17th October (8pm - 11pm)

The quiz night returns in October with a brand new round called 'Herd Mentality' as well as the usual 4 picture rounds, music round and much more!

Book the babysitter, get your team together and start brushing up on your general knowledge. Tickets include lovely food from Palmieri's.

Tickets are available at www.pta-events.co.uk/fpsa

Happy School Bag Collection - Wednesday 12th November

Happy School Bags is school fundraising through clothing donations. A chance to have a clear out of your unwanted clothes. Bags will come home with your child a few weeks before this date and filled bags can be dropped off by the Infants front gate in the morning of the 12th.

Bingo Night - Friday 14th November (8pm - 11pm)

Bingo Bob is back for another fun evening at the Juniors hall. There will be some traditional games of bingo along with plenty of musical bingo games too. Lots of prizes on offer including the final game £100 jackpot! Tickets will be available soon at www.pta-events.co.uk/fpsa

Christmas Fair - Saturday 6th December (11.30am - 2.30pm)

The Christmas Fair is back at the beginning of December Please pop this date in your diary. This is our second biggest fundraising event of the year and will need your help!

FPSA recent spends from FPIS and FPJS

Please see the poster below for examples of what the money raised from our different events has been used either at the Infants or Juniors.

The 2nd poster details what future projects the schools need funds for so hopefully a great motivation for our families to help the FPSA with their fundraising events! Thank you for your support.