Newsletter 11 Autumn Term

22nd November 2023

St Andrew’s and St Mark’s 

Church of England Junior School

“I have come in order that you might have life - life in all its fullness.” John 10:10 

-School News- 

Our Instagram feed displays photos of school events. Click or tap on a photo to find out more:

If you would like your child to have the opportunity to be featured on our Instagram page, please update the parental consent on the SIMs Parent App and ensure permission to be posted on social media is ticked.

Next week is autumn assessment week for Years 3, 4 and 5


Summative standardised assessments are conducted termly at SASM. These are low-stakes assessments, delivered in classrooms, which help inform our next steps in teaching. In Years 3, 4 and 5, this takes place next week (27th November - 1st December). Year 6 assessments take place during the following week (4th - 8th December).


Parents and carers will be sent the outcomes of autumn term assessments in the final week of the term via the SIMS Parent App. You will have received an invitation to join the SIMS Parent App via the email addresses you have provided when registering with the school. More information about the assessment results will be included within the report.


The BIG Ambition - have your say!


Dame Rachel De Souza, the Children's Commissioner for England is committed to ensuring the voices of all children in the London area are fairly represented and would like to invite all children or parents/carers to participate in The Big Ambition Survey.  Your participation will allow Dame Rachel to share your views with the government and have your voices heard. This is a great opportunity to teach children about politics and why it is important for them to use their voice. 


Children or parents can complete the survey here: www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/thebigambition.

Classics Workshop

This morning, Year 4 attended a Classics Workshop at Surbiton High organised by their Classics team and their very talented Year 12s. We played Musical Mentoes and Latin Word matching games, learnt about the Elgin Marbles and acted out a temple sacrifice.  Year 4 impressed everyone with their knowledge about Classics and the consolidated our learning in class. 

 

Summer (4H)

Insight visit - is peace the most important message of Christmas?


Year 4 pupils had a talk about peace in the Christmas story, following on from their RE learning about peacemakers around the world. Pupils began the session by reflecting on what Christmas and peace mean to them and shared with their peers some of the Christmas traditions that they take part in. They then took part in activities to understand why some Christians would say that Christmas is a time of peace and created a cartoon strip to present their learning.  


Non-fiction November

Vadhana (3M)

Lirion (3M)

As research demonstrates, providing children with the opportunity to read and explore non-fiction plays a vital role in helping them to learn about their world, as well as fostering reading for pleasure. This November, pupils across the school have been completing pieces of non-fiction work in English. Year 3 have completed non-chronological reports about polar bears, Year 4 are working on information texts using their knowledge of the Romans and Year 6 are exploring journalistic writing to report on Ernest Shackleton’s Antarctic adventure.

 

Where can you find suitable news stories to use at home as a family? Follow the link to find a wide selection of age-appropriate news sites offering both UK and global perspectives: https://theguardianfoundation.org/programmes/newswise/schools/child-friendly-news



Home Learning

At SASM we take pride in our pupils demonstrating their historical knowledge and enthusiasm for learning. In Year 3, pupils have been learning about the Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age. Miss Dickens was very impressed with Freya (3C) who has produced some outstanding home learning. Freya created an amazing Stone age roundhouse and proudly showed her history learning to Miss Dickens. 

Congratulations!

Last Sunday, Oliver (5GJ) was invited to represent his music school in the Kingston Festival of the Performing Arts and chose to play "Singing in the Rain" on his violin. However, after months of preparation and hard work, Oliver faced an unexpected challenge during his first ever public performance - the sudden activation of the venue's fire alarm! Undeterred, Oliver displayed unwavering confidence and continued to play and despite fearing his performance had been affected, he was presented with a bronze medal.  Congratulations Oliver, on your outstanding achievement, which just goes to show, that hard work, perseverance and confidence can help children to achieve their aspirations. 

St Andrew's and St Mark's Church Fair - Saturday 25th November, 11.00am-2.00pm


Our churches are holding their Christmas Fair this Saturday from 11.00am-2.00pm at St Mark's Church, Surbiton. All are welcome! The fair will begin with a performance by our very own SASM choir. 


SASM PTA Raffle Tickets


Your child will be bringing home PTA SASM Winterfest raffle tickets for you to sell this week. 


Please complete the ticket stubs by adding  your contact details / child's name and class.  Please and return the filled out stubs along with the correct money in the envelope provided by Thursday 7th December. 


There is an amazing assortment of raffle prizes to be won including - themed hampers, gift bags and vouchers. 


If you require more raffle tickets, additional books are obtainable from the school office.  Your participation in selling raffle tickets will not only make the SASM PTA Winterfest a memorable event, it will contribute to subsiding the cost of school trips for all our children. We appreciate your support. 

Reminder!  Mufti-day


Don't forget its mufti-day for all pupils this week on Friday 24th November.  Pupils can come to school in their own clothes in exchange for donations for the family gift room (for all ages), which the PTA will be collecting at drop off. Thank you, once again for all your support.


Reminder! Book your tickets now!  

TIcket bookings close this week on Friday 24th November at 6.00pm.

All pupils in Years 3, 4 and 5 will be performing in our Christmas concerts, celebrating Christmas Around The World. You can reserve seats by completing the appropriate sections of this form. Due to space, we can offer a maximum of 2 seats per pupil (these can be for the same performance or split between 2 performances).

If you have any questions about our Christmas concerts please contact the school office.


Christmas Trees!

Starting this weekend, Surrey Christmas trees will be selling fresh Christmas trees of all sizes from our carpark on the following dates; 

 

Opening times for this year: 


-This Week's Notices- 

Exciting Job Opportunity  


Would you like to join our incredible school community as a special Educational Needs Teaching Assistant and Lunchtime Supervisor?  To learn more about the role and its responsibilities, please click here.  We also welcome you to share this information with anyone you believe might be interested in this rewarding position. 

Looking for a Christmas gift?  SASM has some pre-loved iPADs for sale!


Watch out for our iPad sale coming next week on Monday 27th November. We have a limited number of pre-loved iPads for sale which can be purchased via the school shop on ParentMail from 7.00am!  Whilst we are able to include the plug, you will need to provide your own lightning cable. Most of the iPads will be sold with their survivor case.



Whilst we do not envisage any problems with the iPads, please check them thoroughly and report any issues as soon as possible.  No exchange or refunds will be accepted after 9.00am on Monday 11th December 2023. 

Walk in Flu Vaccination Clinics in Richmond and Kingston


It is important to protect your child against flu and its serious complications such as bronchitis and pneumonia. Flu vaccination is provided to children through a nasal spray which is painless and easy to have. There is also the choice of an injectable vaccine.


Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare (HRCH) are hosting two walk-in flu vaccination clinics for primary school children in Richmond and Kingston. These are walk-in clinics – no appointment is required.


Click here to read more.



Kingston Christmas touch typing course for 7 - 16s

Date: Tuesday 2nd  - Friday 6th January 2024 

Time: 10:00 - 12:15 pm daily

Place: St Joseph's Primary School, Kingston KT1 2UP

Beginners, improvers and advanced typists are warmly welcome.  Learn how to type 40+ words per minute with the correct fingers and posture. 

The latest app style games and challenges are used to make learning effective and fun.  

Cost: £176.00 

Child care vouchers accepted

(10% sibling/ bring a friend discount) 

Duke of Edinburgh skill assessor   

More info from sarah.holt@typingscool.co.uk.  Apply at www.typingscool.co.uk

                                                        -Repeat notices-

Emotion Regulation Parent/Carer Workshop at Maple Infants’ School

On Friday 24th November, Abigail Southall (EWP and Systemic Practitioner) will be holding a parent/carer workshop on Emotion Regulation at 9.00am in Maple Infants’ School. Maple has extended the invitation to all SASM parents and carers; if you would like to attend, please click here to complete the Google Form. 

Keeping children safe online   


If you were unable to attend the our Online safety discussion, Peter Cowley, Achieving for Children's Former Online Safety Advisor is running an online safety session for all parents/ carers on Tuesday 28th November (8.00pm - 9.30pm).  For further information about this event and to book a place please click here.

Express CIC: Comedy Night

Express is an independent user led organisation based in the borough of Kingston upon Thames.  Their aim is to support autistic people and their families, and promote awareness and acceptance in the community.  

They are holding one of their legendary comedy nights on Thursday 30th November.  For further details and to book tickets please click here.  There is an early Bird offer until Friday 10th November 2023.

Making a difference within our community

Surbiton Community Fridge is joining forces with Surbiton High School to donate products on the first Thursday of each month from 3.30pm until 5.00pm at the Community Fridge, 115 Brighton Road, Surbiton. 

Families receiving free school meals are invited to attend.  To receive products you will be kindly asked to complete a brief registration form.  Please click here for further details. 

Home learning support


Our home learning webpage includes step-by-step guides to signing into each app as well as answers to frequently-asked questions.

Clubs and Wrap-Around Care

We have a fantastic offer of after-school clubs, Breakfast Club and After-School Care. On Friday, our club offer for the Autumn Term will be sent via ParentMail. Please remember to book your child into Breakfast Club and After-School Care in advance of them attending.

Autism and Sleep

For an information booklet about autism and sleep, please click here.   


Please click here for the latest edition - Creative Skills & Wellbeing Newsletter.


New for this half term Kingston Adult Education are offering Skills to manage your Stress, Anxiety and Emotions.  This is a 7 week course that looks at ways to deal with stress and anxiety.  

 

Their next workshop is on 6th December 2023 - Support Your Child Through Exam Stress .



Safer Schools App

We would encourage all parents/carers to download the Safer Schools app for free push notifications about online safety and helpful advice. You can download the app using the instructions here. 


Safeguarding Hub  

This week the Safeguarding Hub  have received reports about a YouTube cartoon series called Jeffy which is a cartoon series of an animated videos that looks child-friendly, but content-wise, they are anything but.  

Do you have concerns about a child?

Adults - you can contact the Single Point of Access to request support, or to report a concern about a child or young person. Click here to make a referral.  You can also call for advice. Opening hours: From 8am to 5.15pm, Monday to Thursday, and 8am to 5pm on Friday call 020 8547 5008  (Out of hours, phone 020 8770 5000). If you think a child or young person is in immediate danger call 999. Referrals are not limited to safeguarding: the Single Point of Access acts as a signposting service to other services, including mental health. Matt Gates is our Designated Safeguarding Lead.

-What's New? Community Groups-

Click the 'Community Groups' button to see all community notices:

-School reminders-

Pupil Premium Grants

For the first time, all pupils at SASM are entitled to receive a free school lunch. To enable your child to access this, you must book your child's lunch via ParentPay.com. 


If you were previously eligible for means tested free school meals or are in receipt of any of the following benefits...  


...your child maybe eligible for a Pupil Premium Grant. This will gives your child access to: 


This gives your child access to:



... and much more!


In order to make this possible, our school receives funding for every pupil signed up. If you think you might be eligible please sign up as soon as possible here.


Please contact the school office if you have any issues with activating an account.   

Our school gates close at 8:45am

The school gate on Maple Road opens at 8:30am and closes promptly at 8:45am, when registration begins. If pupils are late to school, they must arrive via the school office and log the reason for being late to school. 

Winter uniform

As mentioned in our previous newsletter, our uniform has now switched to ‘winter uniform’, which pupils wear until the end of the spring term. This includes a white long/short sleeved school shirt or blouse and a red tie with the school logo (a tie does not need to be worn with blouses). More information can be found on the school uniform page of our website.


We have continued to have conversations with families regarding uniform and will be writing notes in planners this week as appropriate. Pupils are required to wear smart black shoes as part of their uniform. Trainers, boots or football boots are not allowed and shoes should not display a logo. All hair beyond shoulder length must be tied back with a black, red or white hairband.  Polo shirts and summer dresses are not permitted as part of the winter school uniform.


School uniform can be purchased from our second-hand clothes shop in the school office in return for a donation to the PTA. This makes sure the correct uniform is accessible to all of our families. Thank you to the many families who have donated their old uniform to the shop; you can donate any pre-loved items to the school office at any time.


Bring a coat to school - wet weather ahead!

When ever possible, pupils play outside at break and lunch, including in rainy conditions. Please ensure you child brings a coat to school every day.


Bringing valuable items to school

Please do not send your child to school with toys or valuable items. Whilst the school does not allow toys nor smartwatches, valuable fitness trackers and expensive 'Air Up' bottles are becoming regular features in some classrooms. Should such items be bought to school and become lost or broken, the school will not be responsible for this. 

Jewellery

Children can wear watches to school but the wearing of jewellery and earrings of all types is not permitted on safety grounds.  Any child wearing earrings to school will be asked to remove them.  If they are unable to remove them they will be required to stay inside during break and lunch times and will not be able to participate in any PE or physical activities. 

Smart Watches

Fitness trackers without smart watch capability are permitted but St Andrew’s and St Mark’s accept no responsibility for the loss or damage of these items. Smart watches , including iWatches- are not permitted due to their messaging capabilities. 


Lost Property

Please remember to label your child’s uniform, lunch box and water bottle.  All named lost property will be returned to your child by the next school day.  Unlabelled property will be kept for one week only in the school office. 

 

Road safety for children

If your child walks to school on their own, it is important they know how to cross roads, including  zebra crossings safely. Please click here for more information about Road Safety for children.

 

Unwell and absent children 

If your child is unwell and absent from school please contact the school office before 10am. If you need to leave a message on the answerphone please explain the symptoms of your child’s illness. Siblings of unwell children should attend school.


Diarrhoea and vomiting 

PHE recommends that children are kept off school until 48 hours after the last symptoms have passed. Whilst this is not enforced by us it is responsible practice by parents/carers.