Friday 24 April 2026

Amazingly, it is Friday again already - time is really whizzing by! We have enjoyed another action packed week at Jupiter with amazing opportunities to learn and have fun together.

We started off the week with our final assembly in our Jupiter Choices series. This week’s theme was about knowing when it is better to ‘go to a different game’ - we considered how this is sometimes the option that allows you to retain control and gives you a chance to calm your body and clear your mind. Well done to Mrs Bolton and to the Drama Club for their amazing work on helping the school learn these new skills using filmed scenarios to make us think and inspire us to keep happy and safe as we play together. The stars of these wonderful films are Aaron, Abigail, Darius, Elio, Hallie, Lara, Sophie.

We have been blessed with some wonderful weather this week and the children have been able to enjoy the school field as well as the playground, where we continue to enjoy skipping, hula hoops, ankle hops, four square and 5-a-side football. It has been great to see everyone playing together, enjoying the sunshine.

Our after school clubs resumed this week with a huge range of activities to enjoy. We also had two amazing trips. Reception visited Aldenham Country Park and Year Five visited Warner Brothers studios. In addition, Year One had a visit from Hemel Firestation, complete with a gleaming firengine, blaring siren and plenty of water. Well done Mrs Sutherland on participating so enthusiastically in their demonstrations! Thank you to all the staff and parent volunteers for your help in facilitating all of these trips and activities. It is wonderful to have all of these enrichment opportunities for the children.

It has been great to see everyone learning together in school this week. Do encourage your children to attend school every day that they are able - there is so much to enjoy together.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend,

Al Robinson

Mr. Robinson

Headteacher

Upcoming dates

Tuesday 28 April

No Clubs- Staff training

Monday 4 May

Bank hoilday- school closed

Thursday 7 May

2pm -Parents Forum

Friday 15 May

9am - Dacorum Family Services (DFS) Anxiety and Attendance Workshop held in school hall

Thursday 21 May

9am - 10am - Year 6 Cuffley Assembly

Reception Health Screening

Friday 22 May

Inset day- No pupils in school

Attendance

At Danes Educational Trust, we believe that regular attendance is vital to support high-quality teaching and learning. Learners cannot reach their full potential unless they attend school consistently.

Reception | Hedgehogs

Weekly attendance: 85.2%

Attendance YTD: 87%

Reception | Rabbits

Weekly attendance: 98.7%

Attendance YTD: 93.1%

Year 1 | Deers

Weekly attendance: 96.3%

Attendance YTD: 93.7%

Year 1 | Foxes

Weekly attendance: 92.3%

Attendance YTD: 94.8%

Year 2 | Owls

Weekly attendance: 91.3%

Attendance YTD: 92.6%

Year 2 | Puffins

Weekly attendance: 91.%

Attendance YTD: 96%

Year 3 | Ducks

Weekly attendance: 95.8%

Attendance YTD: 94.9%

Year 3 | Swans

Weekly attendance: 95.4%

Attendance YTD: 91.1%

Year 4 | Kingfishers

Weekly attendance: 96.2%

Attendance YTD: 94.5%

Year 4 | Woodpeckers

Weekly attendance: 96.2%

Attendance YTD: 93.7%

Year 5 | Otters

Weekly attendance: 91.1%

Attendance YTD: 93.4%

Year 5 | Pine Marten

Weekly attendance: 95.2%

Attendance YTD: 92.3%

Year 6 | Eagles

Weekly attendance: 98.1%

Attendance YTD: 96.2%

Year 6 | Wildcats

Weekly attendance: 96.3%

Attendance YTD: 95.3%

Awards and celebrations

We are so proud of these students for earning the Values Award, being recognized as Star Learner, and becoming the Timetable Champion! Your hard work, positive mindset, and commitment to learning shine through in all that you do. Keep it up ! You’re setting a fantastic example for others, and we’re excited to see all the amazing things you’ll achieve next!

Reception | Hedgehogs

Values awards: Harper

Star Learner: Bella

Reception | Rabbits

Values awards: Ella

Star Learner: James

Year 1 | Deers

Values awards: Santiago

Star Learner: Lily-Rose

Year 1 | Foxes

Values awards: Alvior

Star Learner: Patrick

Year 2 | Puffins

Values awards: Oliver

Star Learner: Margret

Year 2 | Owls

Values awards: Albie

Star Learner: Isla

Year 3 | Ducks

Values awards: Saif

Star Learner: Izzy

Timetables champions: Isaac H

Year 3 | Swans

Values awards: Lyra

Star Learner: Benjamin

Timetables champions: Boris

Year 4 | Woodpeckers

Values awards: James

Star Learner: Emir

Timetables champions: Alex

Year 4 | Kingfishers

Values awards: Amelia R

Star Learner: Jessica

Timetables champions: Lottie

Year 5 | Pine Martens

Values awards: Ella & Whole class

Star Learner: Nana

Timetables champions: Harvey

Otters

Values awards: Whole class

Star Learner: Darya

Timetables champions: James

Year 6 | Wildcats

Values awards: Henry

Star Learner: Alice

Timetables champions: Amelie

Year 6 | Eagles

Values awards: Alarnah

Star Learner: Maximus

Timetables champions: Aston

House points

The race for the House Cup is heating up! Venus and Jupiter have absolutely crushed it this week to claim the top spots, but Venus is still holding strong as our overall term leaders. The competition is incredibly close, keep up the good work, stay focused, and remember that every single token could be the one that secures the ultimate victory!

Jupiter

Points this week: 61

Total points this term: 96

Saturn

Points this week: 43

Total points this term: 77

Venus

Points this week: 61

Total points this term: 108

Mercury

Points this week: 44

Total points this term: 76

Learning this week

This week in Reception

This week in Reception we had our trip to Aldenham Country Park. The children were so well behaved and had a wonderful time learning all about different animals and their young. We also visited the ‘100 aker wood’ and found some of the homes of the Winnie the Pooh characters. The children walked and walked and I am sure they slept well that night, I know I did!

Using this fantastic opportunity, the children have then written their own simple recounts of the visit. We are also painting pictures of the favourite animals we saw.

In Maths, we have continued to develop our understanding of ‘5 and some more’ which has also linked into learning number bonds to 10. The children have used tens frames and two 5s frames to aid their understanding.

This week in Year 1

This week in Year One we have worked hard on perfecting our sentence structure. We focused on creating sentences that contain a noun verb and adjective while remembering capital letters, finger spaces and full stops. In maths we have started learning about division through sharing. We had a great time at our first forest school session on Wednesday where we went on a scavenger hunt to find items from around the forest school area. On Thursday we had a visit from the fire department, the told us all about how they complete their job and the tools they use which we found out is drastically different to how fires were fought during the great fire of London.

This week in Year 2

This week in Year Two the children have enjoyed their first forest school session. The experience of working together outside was a pleasure to see. In Literacy, we have started our new unit on Supertato! The children created their own Supertato in Literacy and have enjoyed learning the text. In Maths, we have continued our learning around fractions and have consolidated our learning on finding halves, quarters and thirds. This is a note to say that whilst we are doing forest school, we will not be having our Friday PE lesson.

This week in Year 3

This week in Year Three we have been reading our new text in literacy all about magical portals. In maths we have been looking at non - unit fractions of an amount. In art we turned our 3d sculptures into more advanced designs with the use of tape, string and pins. In science we have continued our topic of light and shadows, learning about human made and natural light sources. Ask your child about the moon

This week in Year 4

This week in Year Four we have introduced the model text, The Night Fairy, into our English lessons. We have been looking at effective ways to describe character and setting which has led to some fantastic descriptive language being used through appropriate word choice. In Maths, we have continued our topic of decimals, in particular focusing on converting hundredths into fractions and decimals. In our Humanities lesson, we have been so impressed by the creativity on show as the children created double page spreads to consolidate their learning.

Well done on a fantastic week year four!

This week in Year 5

This week in Year Five we enjoyed our fantastic trip to Warner Brothers Studios. The children were able to see many of the sets where the Harry Potter series were filmed and find out about how some of the many special effects were created. A fun but exhausting day was had by all. Back at school, in English we have been continuing to develop our writing skills using imagery and powerful verbs for description and in Maths we have been reading and drawing line graphs. We have been most impressed by the children’s creativity in Art as they added some wonderful backgrounds to their lovely line and word portraits. A great week’s work Year 5 - well done.

This week in Year 6

This week in Year Six started with our history lesson on Monday, where we designed adverts after exploring the different roles men and women held during World War II. In Literacy, we have been busy drafting formal letters of complaint about a fictional activity centre, while in maths we have mastered our angle facts, including the rule that angles on a straight line sum to 180 degrees and a full circle totals 360 degrees. We are very proud of everyone's hard work and hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Jupiter PTA

We are proud to have a dedicated and enthusiastic team of parent teacher association (PTA) at our school. The PTA plays a vital role in bringing together families , staff and the wider community to support and enhance the education experience of all our children. Through fundraising events, volunteer support, and community initiatives, the PTA helps provide valuable resources, enrich learning opportunities, and create a positive, inclusive environment for everyone. We welcome all parents and carers to get involved, whether by joining the committee, helping at events, or sharing ideas every contribution makes a difference!

PTA Events and website link

School News

Parent Forum

Please find here the parent forum minutes. Our parent forum is more than just a meeting, it’s a chance to help our children thrive. By sharing our ideas and working together, we build a stronger, more supportive school community where every student’s voice is heard.

Join us at our next meeting! Whether you have a new idea or just want to listen, your perspective is what makes our school better. Come along, meet other parents, and help us shape the future for our kids.

Next meeting- 7 May 2pm

Keeping Your Children Safe Online - What Parents Need to Know About Minecraft

This week we are sharing another parent guide, this time about Minecraft. We are aware that lots of our children enjoy Minecraft and it is great for creativity. There are some really interesting points raised in the guide that make it well worth reading.

Dacorum Family Services (DFS) Anxiety and Attendance Workshop

DFS are holding a Jupiter ‘Anxiety and Attendance Workshop’ for parents on Friday 15 May at 9am in the school hall. We would like as many parents as possible to attend as we hope that this will provide some much needed support for our families here at Jupiter.

Please look out for more information, including how to sign up for the session. Numbers are not limited and we would like to reach as many parents as possible.

Community News

KidzZone- May Holiday Club

Please find flyers with more details attached

Pricing and venues

Activity timetable

Congratulations to Amelia in Pinemartins who has won best in school for the Dacorum Young Artists Competition.

Amelia along with all entrants are invited to the presentation at Ashlyns School on Saturday 2nd May 26.

Gadebridge ParkRun

I have recently heard that some of our children have been participating with great success in the Junior Parkrun at Gadebridge Park. This is a wonderful opportunity to get exercise and have fun together in an inclusive and supportive, non-competitive community event. It is a weekly event that is open for children aged 4 - 14 and is entirely free to participate. Well done to Ezra, Oliver, Jorge and Joshua for their success on the leaderboard recently. If this is something that interests you, visit parkrun if you would like to find out more.

Please note that this event is not linked to Jupiter Primary School in any way - we just thought you may be interested to hear about it.

Community Support: Free Food Fridge

Need a little extra help with the weekly shop?

The Hemel Hempstead Community Fridge is open to all local families every Wednesday and Saturday, 11am - 12pm at Highfield Community Centre.

Just bring a reusable bag to the car park entrance. You’ll receive a variety of fresh produce and cupboard staples donated by local supermarkets. This is a brilliant local resource designed to support our community during difficult times - don’t hesitate to stop by!