Does your child struggle with completing homework?  If so, read on...

At FPJS, we gradually build up our expectations of completing homework. All homework will be set online. Your child's class teacher will give details of the weekly homework on Seesaw. 

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 children to record their reading in a reading log.  For other year groups, there is no expectation to record reading in a 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 mostly be set via MyMaths and Bedrock Learning.   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. 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.

Welcome back to Year 4!

The children have returned to school with boundless energy and have settled into the new academic year well. It has been lovely to witness their enthusiasm for learning and their rapid adaptation to their new classrooms and routines. We're off to a great start!

In English, the children have been showcasing their writing skills through persuasive letters. They've taken on the challenge of to persuade their class teachers to assign them specific classroom jobs. What's even more impressive is the way they've harnessed the power of connectives, superlatives, and formal language to craft convincing arguments. These young writers are making their case with style and creativity, leaving us all thoroughly impressed.

Over in the realm of mathematics, Year 4 has been delving into the fascinating world of place value. They've been busy exploring concepts using base ten materials, place value charts, and counters. The real magic happened with the Gattegno charts – as our budding mathematicians have been learning how to use them to break down and assemble numbers in exciting ways. It's hands-on learning at its best!

As we look ahead, we are excited about the coming weeks learning. The book fair is just around the corner, promising delightful reading adventures for the children. Plus, we'll continue to work on mastering those new spelling rules. Stay tuned for more updates on our Year 4 journey!

Miss Keating-Bell  Y4 Team Leader

Year 5 have been super busy since starting the new academic year and we have impressed by how well they have settled in. They have also been showing us how hard they work after a long summer break. Well done, Year 5! 

In maths, the children have been getting to grips with large numbers. They have understood the place value of digits of numbers up to a million, ordered and compared them and we have finished off by rounding to the nearest 1000, 10,000 and 100,000. Next week, we will be moving onto adding and subtracting. 

In writing, the children are at the planning stages of writing a scary story after watching the short video of a girl named Francis Brandywine. What did happen to her on that day at Quetico Park? I guess we will never know...! 

In science, the children have been fascinated with all things space. They have had a chance to research a chosen planet and find out how the planets orbit the sun. 

We are looking forward to our upcoming trip to Longridge next week as well as the Scholastic book fair.
Bring on the last two weeks before half term! 

Mrs Dean, Y5 Team Leader

Top of the school!

What a brilliant start to Year 6 all the children have had. We started the year with lots of team building activities including who can build the tallest tower out of newspaper! It has been brilliant to see the classes gel together so well and settle into their new routines. We have already seen lots of children deliver brilliant speeches which has resulted in the allocation of our Head Students, House and Vice Captains - we know you will be brilliant! 

In maths, we have dived into place value and we have been exploring mathematical concepts with lots of manipulatives. We have also done some brilliant problem solving work!

In English, we have completed our first unit on how to write an effective setting description. The children were able to choose how they wanted to make the reader feel and had to tailor their writing to suit. 

In History, we have been exploring what life was like on the homefront during WW2 which links with our class book 'When the Sky Falls' by Phil Earle. We have lots of brilliant learning still to cover this term including some very exciting work on microbits in computing. We look forwarding to keeping you updated on all of the brilliant things Year 6 are getting up to!

Miss Morales, Y6 Team Leader