Rhos is an integral part of Year 6 and we are glad that so many children got a chance to visit this iconic centre. As a family run business it really is unique in the field of outdoor centres. The children were a credit to the school and had a fantastic time. They threw themselves into the activities and came back with loads of brilliant ideas and anecdotes. They should now be more independent - let them make their lunch!

The striking Welsh countryside allowed them to experience going down a slate mine , gorge walking , canoeing and even a hill trail without adults - most found their way back to the centre!

Huge thanks to all the staff and parents who went on the trip - without them it just wouldn't happen and it is hard work for them as they are on call 24/7 during the trip.

There will be a meeting very soon for Year 5 parents to tell you all about it and hopefully lots more children will get to experience this wonderful trip.

This week, Year 3 concluded their samba workshops with a fantastic musical performance for Y5!

The children have used a range of instruments to improve their rhythm, dynamics and tempo, carefully following the directions of a 'conductor' to keep them in time. They've had loads of fun learning about the history of samba and how it is used in Brazil as festival music. The improvement from week one has been phenomenal and we are very grateful to Berkshire Maestros for facilitating the experience.

We have been so impressed by how well the children have listened to one another to stay in time with their part. Please see your child's seesaw for a recording of the performance.

Congratulations to our fabulous pupils Lucas, Phoebe and Amelia (Y5) and Shreya (Y6) who won our school four trees to be planted. Also pictured is Cameron (Y2 FPI). The eco-friendly pupils entered the Maidenhead Advertiser competition to win trees by explaining why we need more trees in Maidenhead. The trees the children have won are all native species – crab apple - malus ‘Evereste’, flowering cherry – prunus ‘autumnalis rosea’ and mountain ash – sorbus ‘aucuparia’ and are being supplied by specialists at Stubbings Nursery Ltd, Maidenhead. Well done!

We have also recently gained a further free tree via the Queen's Canopy Charity which encourages different schools and community groups to plant a tree ahead of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee in 2022.

By planting all of our new trees, FPJS is doing one small step towards being more eco-friendly, and enhancing our environment.

2 weeks left of term and we can't quite believe how much we have done. Our afternoons have been filled with play rehearsals including costuming, singing and practicing our acting - we definitely have some budding performers in our year group! We hope that parents are ready and excited for our Christmas performances because we're very much looking forward to showing you our hard work!

In English, we have been learning about the poem The Sound Collector and writing our own versions thinking about what sounds could have been stolen from school. Our maths learning has seen us continuing with multiplication and using written methods to solve multiplication sums. In topic, we have been learning about map skills; identifying the points of the compass, finding the names of key cities and counties and plotting a route on a road map. In computing, we have been using spark video to record our sound collector poems so keep an eye on seesaw in the coming weeks.

Mrs Lawrence-Davis Y3 Team Leader

Year 4 have been working so hard over the last few weeks. We have been writing story build ups using the Dream Giver for inspiration. Our children have worked so hard to build up suspense! As well as focusing on the content of our writing, Year 4 have also been working hard to improve and join their handwriting. A special well done to Rares, Marni, Katherine, Tawana, Arthur, Sky, Maria, Farhan and Samaira for being the first children to achieve their Pen Licence!

In maths, we have moved onto learning about converting measurements and measuring perimeter. Last week, we used measurement conversions to draw a timeline and plot important points in history!

We have been continuing to learn about the digestive system in science and, in particular, the food pyramid. We have learnt all about balanced diets and why we need to eat a variety of food from different food groups.

Our Anglo Saxon pots are finally back from the kiln and we are looking forward to glazing these over the next few weeks.

Mrs Barbosa Y4 Team Leader

Over the last two weeks year 5 have been busy with a whole host of activities! The children have been working very hard on their figurative language and have created some excellent poems inspired by the work of Adisa the Verbaliser. By the time you read this the children will have had the opportunity to perform their poems as part of the Year 5 poetry slam!

As part of our design and technology work, we have been investigating pulleys, levers and gears. The children are now well on the way to designing and making their own drawbridge using their learning.

The children have been developing their historical research skills by analysing a wide variety of primary and secondary sources to learn about the history of our school. There were some familiar (if slightly younger!) faces along with some interesting discrepancies in the sources which have led to some excellent discussions into the challenges facing historians.

Having watched the Year 3's fantastic samba performances, we are very excited to be starting our own unit of samba after Christmas!

Miss Moakes Y5 Team Leader

It is that time of year when you want to settle down with a bowl of vegetable soup and that is what Year 6 are learning about at the moment. This week they have been writing the recipe and looking at why it is such a nutritious meal and great value to make and comparing homemade with shop bought varieties. Hopefully, by the end of the unit, they will know how they can rustle up this tasty treat and it will be something they can make when they are students in the future!

The Battle of Britain was a key turning point in the war and we have just started learning about why the war started and main events before we find out about the very important work of Hugh Dowden and why "The Few" were so highly valued. Watch this space as we are hoping a trip linked to this topic will soon be happening.

We have had a lot of fun thinking about our future selves in English and writing our very own biographies of our lives to come. There have been some hilarious future careers and relationships and lots of great ambitions for the future - if their writing is anything to go by, the class of 2022 from FPJS are going to solve most of the world's problems - good to know!

Miss Johnson Y6 Team Leader