Year 6 residential
The Year 6 children have arrived at Robinwood and having a great first day and night. They’ve been raft building, canoeing and swinging on the trapeze!
Our Christian value this half-term is...
…courage.
At St James’ CE Primary School, we learn about Christian values that help us to become well-rounded citizens in society. Each half-term, we have a new Christian value that will be embedded into our collective worship and our reflection areas.
‘Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.’ Joshua 1:9
One of the Hebrew words translated as ‘courage’ means ‘to show oneself strong’.
The Bible abounds with stories of courage. Moses was courageous when he confronted the Pharaoh of Egypt and commanded him to let God’s people go (Exodus 5). Joshua was courageous when he conquered Canaan (Joshua 1). Young David was courageous when he faced and fell the giant Goliath (1 Samuel 17).
The Bible says we can be courageous by having faith and confidence in the fact that God is with us and for us. This value promotes the act of speaking out against an issue of injustice, often on behalf of those whose voice is not heard.
A Junior Leader in school thinks this value is important because, ‘It’s all about being brave and you have to be brave to get through something hard in life’.
Help at home!
Talk together about a time when you have been courageous or you have seen someone being courageous.
Have a think about times that are coming up when you can show courage.
Our weekly message (Friday 24 May 2024)
Our message this week is a short one…
Positive Home-School Relationships
Governors have asked us to remind you about a recent policy – our Positive Home-School Relationships Policy. Please check it out.
And two things worth knowing about: one for Year 1 and 2 children, and the other for children in Year 4.
Year 1 and 2: Phonics screening check
In the week beginning 10 June, children in Year 1 (and those who didn’t meet the standard who are in Year 2) will take part in an assessment around their phonics skills. Check out the government’s phonics screening check information for parents.
Year 4: Multiplication tables check
Have a happy and healthy – and hopefully drier – half-term week!
PE Partner @ St James'
Just a reminder that PE Partner are running a holiday club at school next week. All children age 5 to 11 are welcome (they don’t have to attend St James’).
Brownlee Triathlon
Key Stage 2 had a fantastic day at John Smeaton Leisure Centre taking part in the annual Brownlee Triathlon. The children arrived back to school looking very happy- smiles on their faces and showing off their medals. Well done to all the children who showed perseverance, determination and courage.
Our weekly message (Friday 17 May 2024)
This week has been SATs week – the end of Key Stage 2 assessments. Well done to all the Year 6 children for coping so well. Well done also to adults in school for supporting our children, making sure the week isn’t a horrible one. Thanks to one of our governors who visited school to ensure the assessments were being managed effectively, going through a checklist of points to ensure robust procedures are in place.
Healthy eating
Our recent Living and Learning healthy eating sessions have included reference to the 5 a day message and the Eatwell Guide. Linked to this, the Just One More campaign, currently running across Leeds, aims to encourage increased vegetable intake by ‘just one more’ portion per day.
The campaign is to help people eat more vegetables by:
- Consuming vegetables as snacks
- Adding more vegetables into meals
- Adding more vegetables when shopping
- Growing vegetables at home or in community spaces
- Sharing vegetables with friends and family
- Choosing more vegetables at school
Give it a go – try ‘just one more’!
Handwriting and spelling
This comes from Mr Catherall, based at Scholes (Elmet) Primary but our Writing Leader across Sphere Federation…
When it comes to writing, children have to think about a whole range of things in order to get their ideas down onto the paper. Some people liken writing to playing multiple games of chess at the same time – the demand on the brain is huge.
That’s why handwriting and spelling are so important. If children can write neatly and legibly without having to concentrate on this, it frees up lots of brain space for them to concentrate on other aspects of writing – like choosing the correct vocabulary.
It’s similar for spelling. If you can spell words automatically, your brain doesn’t need to waste power on thinking about this which significantly reduces the cognitive load on your brain.
In school, we place a huge emphasis on what we call the ‘Must Dos’
for writing – the basic skills needed to be an effective writer. A recent publication by Ofsted found that this isn’t always the case in primary schools.
With this in mind, we really appreciate the effort that goes into learning the weekly spellings at home – please encourage your child to learn these words. Also, if you’d like some help with how to support your child with their handwriting, check out our handwriting guide or speak with your child’s class teacher.
Finally this week, with just one more week of the Summer 1 half-term to go, you might like to check out the activities going on within Active Leeds this half term.
Our weekly message (Friday 10 May 2024)
We hope you’ve enjoyed the great weather this week. Check out the NHS guidance around sun protection for your child.
In case you missed it, last week’s message had a link to a useful NHS website with advice to support your child if they’re feeling anxious about any assesssments.
The rest of this week’s message is about Relationships and Sex Education.
Coming up in the weeks commencing 03 June, 10 June and 17 June, children from Year 1 to Year 6 will take part in Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) lessons.
We want parents/carers and pupils to feel assured that RSE is delivered at a level appropriate to both the age and development of pupils, and to feel safe to voice opinions and concerns relating to the provision.
The lessons are led by children’s class teacher. They take place in a safe learning environment and are underpinned by our school ethos and values.
Nationally, all primary schools are required by law to teach Relationships Education and Health Education. In Sphere Federation schools, we’ve provided RSE lessons successfully as part of Living and Learning for many years.
- Section 9 provides a list of the vocabulary that will be used (pages 7 and 8)
- Section 11 includes an overview of the topics that will be covered (page 11 includes a table to show the learning across each year group)
We know that you might have some concerns. If you’d like to find out more, discuss any concerns, or speak to someone in more detail about the teaching and learning planned for this important aspect of your child’s education, please contact Miss Beatson.
Similarly, you have the right to request that your child be withdrawn from some or all of the lessons that can be regarded as ‘sex education’. For our school, this comprises lessons in Year 6 on what human reproduction is and how babies grow. Please see the government’s factual guide to RSE for parents: Understanding Relationships and Health Education in your child’s primary school: a guide for parents. If you wish to withdraw your Year 6 child from RSE, please contact the Head of School to discuss the matter. See page 6 of the RSE policy for more information about your right to withdraw your child.
We’re committed to working in partnership with parents/carers. Feedback has indicated that the overwhelming majority of parents/carers are highly supportive of our Relationships and Sex Education programme.
Playground equipment
This week, we’ve been enjoying our new playground equipment which the PTA have bought for the school. Thank you to everybody who has been part of fundraising for school- it enables equipment like this to be provided for all the children to use so they can have happy and healthy playtimes.
Our weekly message (Friday 03 May 2024)
May is the month of SATs for children in Year 6, and – like most schools – as we approach the end of the school year, there are various assessments for children in each year group. Ask your child’s teacher if you’ve any questions, comments or concerns. You might like to check out this NHS guide to help reassure your child, too.
We’re pleased that in Sphere Federation, we now have an officially trained senior mental health lead, as part of the government’s commitment to offer this training to all eligible schools and colleges by 2025. The extensive training supported the senior mental health leads to develop and implement a whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing. It’s important that any mental health issues or wellbeing concerns can be addressed on a bespoke, individual or small group scale. Having a SMHL now gives us the ability to identify specific need and monitor the impact of any support or intervention.
The rest of this week’s message is about one particular assessment. It’s mainly for parents and carers of children in Year 1. It might also be useful for if you’ve a child in Year 2 or Reception.
Phonics Screening Check
The Year 1 phonics screening check is for children in Year 1, and children in Year 2 who didn’t meet the threshold in the previous year. It checks that children are on track to become fluent readers who can enjoy reading for pleasure and reading for learning.
The screening check is a way for teachers to ensure that children are making sufficient progress with their phonics skills to read words. It helps to identify whether your child needs additional support at this stage so that they don’t fall behind in this vital early reading skill.
The check assesses phonics skills and knowledge learned through Reception and Year 1.
We make sure it’s not a stressful process for each child. It’s carried out by a teacher – usually the Year 1 teacher – who will be well-equipped to listen and understand children’s level of skills.
It checks if your child can sound out and blend graphemes (letters) in order to read simple words. This includes phonically decodable one-syllable and two-syllable words, eg cat, sand, windmill. There is also a selection of nonsense words which are referred to as pseudo (or ‘alien’) words eg brip, snorb. Pseudo words are included in the check specifically to assess whether your child can decode a word using phonics skills and not their memory.
The check is not about passing or failing but checking appropriate progress is being made. If children do not reach the required standard, then the teacher will be in touch to discuss plans and offer additional, tailored support to ensure that your child can catch up. Children progress at different speeds, so not reaching the threshold score does not necessarily mean there’s a problem. Your child will re-sit the check the following summer term.
School will report your child’s results to you by the end of the summer term as well as to the local authority.
Help at home by supporting your child to say each sound in the word from left to right. Blend the sounds by pointing to each letter – /b/ in bat, or letter group /igh/ in sigh, as you say the sound. Then, run your finger under the whole word as you say it. Talk about the meaning if your child does not understand the word they have read. Work at your child’s pace. Always be positive and give lots of praise and encouragement.
Gardening club
We’re finally having some signs that brighter, sunnier days are coming. It was lovely to see lots of children in our gardening club preparing some seeds and plants ready for Summer.
This week, they’ve planted potatoes, runner beans, broccoli and radishes. They were very excited to tell me that we have lots of tadpoles in our pond, too!
We have a variety of after school clubs happening this term and we still have some availability. If your child would like to join a club, please speak with the school office.
