Half Term Already!

It seems as if this term has whizzed by so quickly, yet it feels like we are still stuck in the winter because of the dreadful weather we have been experiencing over the last few weeks. Unfortunately, the weather has had a bit of an impact on our PE lessons and outdoor learning opportunities so we sincerely hope for sunny and warmer skies after half term!

As you know, we have begun to move towards "normality" here at FPJS. In the past few weeks, we have returned to group bubbles, which has enabled us to run live assemblies and most importantly has given us the opportunity for staff to work across the team, allowing us to enhance catch up support for children. In our final week, we have changed the lunchtime arrangements slightly to allow more children to dine in the hall, which has opened up more opportunities for the bus to be used for lunchtime club to support children with their play and friendships. One thing the pandemic has given us is the chance to do things differently. We have found our new way of staggering playtimes and lunchtimes has had such a positive impact on the children's enjoyment of their free time (as they have so much more space dedicated to their own year group) that we will definitely be continuing with this even when all restrictions have been lifted!

As always, we continue to prioritise the well-being of our children after this extraordinary year and have continued to focus our PSHE around the positive mindset theme. We hope the children have tried hard to think in a positive way (be a 2 percenter!) even when things are tough, and are less inclined to think like a "mood-hoover!" If you want to know more about this, please click on the link for the parent video below. It is well worth a watch as it will most definitely give you some pointers on how to have a positive mindset which ultimately will have an impact on your children! It is 5 mins which might change your life...

Have a wonderful half term everyone- I hope you all manage to get outdoors and enjoy improved weather! Do see the photo at the end of this newsletter with some excellent advice of how to get out in nature and get away from devices for improved mental health!

Mrs Clark - Head of school

Positive mindset video- 5 mins which might change your life

Staffing update- changes for September

As we head towards the final term of the academic year, we will be finalising our plans for staffing for September and will let parents know in due course the full staffing structure for September.

One big change we wanted to tell you about today is that Mrs Fitzgibbon, who is our current Year 3 Team Leader will sadly be leaving us at the end of this academic year as she has secured a Deputy Headship post in Bracknell. Mrs Fitzgibbon has been a fantastic teacher and a significant leader of the school over the past 6 years and has made an enormous impact to both the children she has taught and to the development of the school and it will be incredibly hard to see her leave. However, we do know that she has not made the decision to leave lightly. She adores FPJS as much as we adore Mrs Fitzgibbon, but the timing is right for Mrs Fitzgibbon to develop her skills in a much bigger role. Her new school will be incredibly lucky to have her and we want to congratulate her for the successful appointment.

We will update you in our next newsletter with further staffing changes for September.

Mrs Fitzgibbon, our Y3 Team Leader

Baroness Floella Benjamin inspires us all!

On Tuesday, 11th May, FPJS were in for an absolute treat as we welcomed Baroness Floella Benjamin to our school (via zoom of course!). Floella, who is an unbelievable 71 year old, inspired us all with her talk about how she came to Britain and some of the racism she suffered. She was fantastically positive about her life and most definitely inspired both adults and children! Here are some of our Y6 comments:

By Elizabeth, Class HJ:

Baroness Floella Benjamin, has made me understand that life isn’t a question and if you are passionate to do something then you try all you can to do it. I have been inspired with courage and confidence to help our world and to have a full growth mindset in what’s going on even if it doesn’t go your way. But I am truly ashamed with how our country put so many people through such a horrible time, that we would never consider happening to us. Floella showed such independence and courage at a time, which was so scary, but she excepted it. If Floella can get through so much and keep believing, then I believe that I can too.

By Barney, Class HJ:

On the 11th March 2021, 30,000 pupils joined a live webinar, presented by Baroness Floella Benjamin. This webinar was not only entertaining, but inspiring as well. To have Baroness Floella Benjamin talking to us about her life as both a child and an adult, it was truly inspirational. She reminded us that we have to be resilient and always believe in ourselves as children of the modern generation. She also told us about her life, and about how hard it was to be a black woman in the 1900s and early 2000s. For example, when Floella worked in a bank, she was not allowed to touch the money, all because of the colour of her skin. Furthermore, she explained about her time presenting the children’s TV programme ‘Playschool’. Many adults would have watched this when they were younger. Floella had something she wanted us to take from this webinar, and that was her ‘3 Cs’. They are: contentment, confidence and consideration. These are 3 things we should definitely apply to life. She explained about the Windrush, and how it felt to see her mother and father again. As well as this, Baroness Floella Benjamin told us about her siblings, one of which went on to help create the barcode, and also self-checkout at shops. In conclusion, this webinar was truly inspirational and it is one I will personally never forget. Thank you Baroness Floella Benjamin for all of the things you have done for the children of this world.

Cressida Cowell visit

This week, we were treated to our second author in the last few weeks! Cressida Cowell inspired FPJS with her talk which included words of inspiration about how to become an author of the future regardless of how well you are doing in school at the moment! She also talked about how important school libraries are- something we would heartedly agree with! Y6 pupil Rishi explains:

Cressida Cowell, who is the author of how to train your dragon, came in virtually today and talked to us about her most recent book called The Wizard of Once. She told us a bit about the book itself but mainly focused on helping us imagine what it would be like living in a magical world and was very interactive with us helping us picture a magical world. I really enjoyed this talk because it helped me imagine all the possibilities in creative writing. She was also quite funny due to her body language. She read some small snippets of the book which allowed us to get an insight to what kind of an author and illustrator she is. After this session I could tell the book was for me. I had never even read one of her books but Cressida Cowell was so expressive and persuasive I wanted to order it straight away! Although I don’t want to be an author when I grow up, I really enjoyed listening to her tips on how to write. This was a fantastic experience.

It isn't too late to buy a book! Click on the link below to buy a signed copy of Cressida's book.

Buy a Cressida Cowell Book!

Superstar fpjs fundraisers!

Well done to Zack, Jude and Alex in Y5 KM for completing 100 laps around the track to raise money for the Captain Sir Tom 100 initiative. All three amazing children spent their break times and lunch times over a week running around the track, raising money for the NHS charities. They raised over £400 for their efforts! Well done Zack, Jude and Alex- you are simply fantastic and a credit to the school!

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Stars of the week

Star of the week newsletter 28th May

Well done to all our stars this week!

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.

Our stars are in a downloadable format if you want to print to keep!

TT Rock stars Update

Take a look at our Top Ten boards this week for each year group and our top progress children in each year group!

Well done to everyone who is moving up the TT rockstars charts!

Keep up the great work FPJS- we have moved up to 9th on the Nearby School Chart- very close to over-taking our nearest competition!

Sports Update

PE Lessons

Good Afternoon everyone! Where do we even begin with what's been happening over the last few weeks during our PE sessions? Firstly the weather has been somewhat CRAZY! From cloud and rain, to thunder and hail, and even the odd day of sunshine, it has been a rollercoaster of events.

This week Years 3,4, and 5 have all had sprint trials, ready for sports day which is fast approaching. Each child participated in either a 60M or 80M sprint to try and qualify for the sprint races held on sports day. A BIG well done to all FP pupils for taking part and trying their best.

Elsewhere over the last couple of weeks, again a variety of sports and activities have been taking place during our PE lessons. Many classes tried a new KICKBALL game which is similar to rounders, except instead of batting a ball you needed to kick it, in order to run around the posts to score points for your team. This game was a great success and the children thoroughly enjoyed this as they competed against their class mates.

As sports day is upon us, some classes have been looking at different races and events. A popular race being ATALANTA. This race is when each competitor needs to complete 3 shuttle runs collecting a bean bag each time and putting it into a bucket. The year 3 children especially liked this race as it was something new to them, and it tends to be a popular event.

By Mr Kemp/Mrs Winter

PE Stars

Year 3

JF - Pippa B, Daniel, Dolly

NH - Joseph, Grace, Marni

KJS - Rushil, Cassidy, Daniel

Year 4

JSF - Evie, Nevaeh, Henry

RL - Eduardo, Sophia, Zoe

KE - Lauren, Lucas, Luca

Year 5

KM - Jude, Gus, Josh

CHDP - Katelyn, Archie, Leticia

FK - Erin, Daisy, Jacob

Year 6

PM - Edie, Zeyn, Taylor

HJ - Daniel, Layla C, Jimmy, Elisabeth

RTSS -Ciara, Milly, Layla

Staff Stars

Miss Scothern, Miss Sargood

Sports Project

Last Friday, all pupils had to be in PE kit for a very energetic and exciting day ahead. A company called Sports Project came into our school to teach a high intensity PE session. Each session included Mental solving problems, physical activity, and a form of leadership skills. Lots of different equipment was used throughout the lesson such as mini hurdles, ladders, hoops and slalom runs. Working in a team, each person had to hit a certain target for every physical activity they participated in. Use of mental maths was needed to help solve equations and work out mathematical problems in order to be successful. Mr Kemp was highly impressed with the amount of effort, determination, and communication that was used from each pupil during their half hour sessions. Thank you to all the staff for taking part and joining in the physical FUN!

Netball Matches

The netball squad travelled over to Courthouse last Wednesday to play in 2 friendly fixtures. We had a RED team and BLUE team who played at the same time on 2 different courts. I am thrilled to say every player certainly played an important role for their team and the standard of Netball was exceptionally high!

The RED team won 4-1 in a tight knitted game, with some EMPHATIC shooting and great defensive play.

The BLUE team also won 15-5 in what did seem to be a tight first two quarters. Then FP upped their attitude and speed of the game to come away as the outstanding winners....

WELL DONE TO THE NETBALL SQUAD!!

Year Group Updates

Year 3 News

I can't quite believe this term is already over. It has gone by in a flash and the children have worked so hard and achieved loads.

In English, we have focused on adventure stories and for the first time the children have had to write a full 5 part story using The Tunnel as inspiration. We have focused on paragraphs, punctuating speech correctly and creating suspense.

In maths, we have continued to work on fractions and the children can now find fractions of objects and numbers, order and compare fractions as well as find simple equivalent fractions.

The children have learnt a huge amount about Ancient Egypt including hierarchy and hieroglyphics. In art, they have made and decorated sarcophaguses using Modroc which resulted in some very messy but fun afternoons.

In science, we've been learning all about plants and have designed experiments to find out what plants need to grow well. The children have really enjoyed observing the plants growing and seeing if their predictions were correct.

We wish you all a restful and safe half term and look forward to the final term of this year which is going to be packed with fun activities, visitors and events.

By Mrs Fitzgibbon

Year 3- What are we learning?

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

What are the 5 parts of a story?

Can you write your name in hieroglyphics?

What do plants need to grow well?

Year 4 News

Where has this whole term gone? Time really does fly when you have fun and we've had lots of that recently.

In English, we have been helping Wallace and Gromit out by designing our own inventions and writing explanation texts for them. These inventions ranged from company for your pets to all in one laundry machines - a definite purchase in my opinion!

In maths, we've been recapping our knowledge of addition and subtraction, thinking about using estimating skills to improve our answers and using the inverse to check them as well as learning about time graphs.

Our afternoons have bene filled with planning our own lessons on the Tudors, which the children will be delivering to their class after the holidays, drawing a self portrait as a Tudor and learning about condensation and evaporation.

Enjoy your half term holiday and have a good rest, the next one is even busier. Information on our trip to Longridge to be released after half term!

By Miss Lawrence

Year 4- What are we learning?

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

Tell me about your invention for Wallace and Gromit.

What does inverse mean?

What is evaporation?

Year 5 News

We've had an equally creative and destructive few weeks in Year 5 continuing our learning about some of the world's biggest natural disasters!

The children have had great fun making their own papier-mâché volcanoes before mixing a number of solutions to represent a lava flow and creating an explosive volcanic eruption. We have also been learning about the engineering behind earthquake resistant buildings. Follwing this, the children designed their own buildings using their knowledge of three dimensional shapes. We then tested them using our high-tech earthquake simulator to see at which point on the Richter Scale they would collapse. We have been so impressed with the children's team work for both of these activities.

Having carried out some detailed research, the children are all now experts on a historically important natural disaster. This has enabled them to write an information text of their choice. They have then proved their ability to tailor their vocabulary and writing structure to the task by writing a piece of fiction on the same subject. Great work!

The children have shown excellent levels of dedication to their learning and are rapidly progressing with their understanding when it comes to fractions in Year 5. This has included multiplying fractions and converting fractions to decimals along with problem solving challenges. The children are now also well on the way to completing their cushions in DT. The material is dyed, the stuffing is ready, all there is left to do is to sew the fabric together. Meanwhile, for Science, we have been learning about the simularities and differences between life cycles in different animals.

We are very excited about our school trip to Kidzania at the end of June. More information about this will be provided in an email soon.

In the meantime, we wish everyone a wonderful half term holiday and look forward to welcoming you back with more fantastic, fun learning opportunites!

By Miss Moakes

Year 5 What are we learning?

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

What makes a good earthquake resistant building?

Tell me about the natural disaster you researched.

What is the difference between the life cycle of a frog and a bird?

Year 6 News

It’s been footballtastic in year 6 this week as we had a visit from Maidenhead FC footballer Danilo Orsi, who came in to speak to the year 6’s about his career and how he stays fit, healthy and motivated. The children asked lots of interesting questions about his life in Florida (where he played for three years), how he coped with no fans to watch the games and how much he earns (enough to keep his family comfortable – good answer!) He posed for photos and it was a really great session that the pupils enjoyed.

We have reached the stage where we are now rehearsing without scripts and the years 6’s are doing us proud as they have really learned their lines and developing their characterisation – we are now starting to think about the costumes – lots of tights needed this year.

An exciting STEM week on electricity has meant the year 6's have had a go at making vacuum cleaners, robot art machines and circuits made of playdoh – great fun but also a chance to learn about how circuits work and how to adapt and improve designs.

We have also been studying Islamic art and there have been some beautiful examples of the colours and patterns inspired by their research that the children have designed.

In science, we are learning about Darwin and his theory of evolution and his travels around the Galapagos Islands – did you know he dropped out of medical school because he hated the sight of blood?

Enjoy the holiday as we get ready next term for the play, sports day and Rhos!

By Miss Johnson

Year 6 What are we learning?

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

Why is a vacuum a back to front hairdryer?

What effects does static electricity cause?

What does LED stand for ?

Book Reviews- What can my child read next?

Y3 Book Review

By Violet, NH

The Worst Witch Series

If you like magical witches and animals then you will love this series of books!

These books are about Mildred, a clumsy student witch at Cackles Academy for witches. She has a unusual cat and special friends who help her when she finds things difficult.

She has a really mean enemy called Ethel who keeps trying to get Mildred expelled from school- get ready to get really annoyed with her!

I enjoyed these books because they are full of animals, magic and fun.

I recommend you read these books in order so that you don't confused. I would rate them 10 out of 10.

Y4 Book Review

By Megan in Class JSF

The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q Rauf

This story is about a refugee boy called Ahmet. He comes from Syria and has now joined a new school in the UK. Ahmet has had a tough time making the dangerous journey. He's even lost some of his family! Can his four new friends help him find them again?

I liked this book because it has lots of good vocabulary in and some really funny bits. It was also interesting o learn about refugees.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes adventures, suspense and fun and would rate it 5/5 stars.

Y5 Book Review

By Zach in Class FK

The Epic Zero Series by R.L. Ullman

These books are all about a boy called Elliott Harkness who is from a family of sperheroes. Unfortunately, Elliott is a zero (super-speak for a person with no powers). As Elliott gets older he becomes Epic Zero, and sets out on many adventures with the aim of saving the world.

I recommend these books because they are very fun and if you like the first one, there are seven others in the series to read. I love them as they are interesting and exciting!

Y6 Book Review

By Vidyashri Class, HJ

Why does a ball bounce and 100 other questions from the world of science by Adam Hart-Davies

This interesting and wonderful books is full of beautiful images and ham-packed with amazing fact and answers to all your science related questions. Not only does it explain, it also shows you what happens with pictures in the text. The book is particularly aimed for those who love science or are just curious on how or why things work. This books purpose is mainly to explain that’s why I love it! In the introduction Adam Hart-Davis says he wants to inspire and help people with this books.

My opinion on this books is that I quite like it because it taught me many things s such as the reason a match stick lights up is partly to do with kinetic energy and friction. The pictures are also amazing and very cool. Overall I suggest this to you if you like non-fiction books, science or a want to find out answers and it is very inspiring.

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