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Some thoughts for the starting school year

October 2024 Edition
Our October Value is Kindness
- Loaning someone your strength instead of reminding them of their weakness
Jessop Priorities
- To ensure our children are happy and we explain things well
- To ensure no child leaves our school unable to read
- To ensure children learn a broad vocabulary to access the world around them
- To enhance the educational experiences of diagnosed and undiagnosed children with SEND
A Message from Mr Baffoe
Dear Parents and Carers,
I want to take a moment to celebrate the fantastic events we’ve had recently. Our Year 6 Assemblies, the School Council’s Harvest Festival Assembly, and the wonderful International Breakfast were all highlights of the term to name a few, bringing our community together in meaningful ways. We’re also excited to announce that the Winter Fair is just around the corner, taking place in December, but before that we will celebrate the Festival of Light in our first week back after half term.
A big thank you to all parents who attended the Parent Consultations. If you have not yet met with your child’s teacher, please make an appointment as soon as possible to ensure you’re up to date on how your child has settled so far this term.
School Council Harvest Festival Assembly
The School Council Harvest Festival Assembly was an amazing and informative event that beautifully highlighted the values of kindness, giving, sharing, and caring. The children performed a thoughtful sketch to remind us all of the importance of being mindful of those in need and giving generously to others. They emphasized the crucial role food banks play in supporting our community, and how we all contribute to making this possible through our donations and efforts. It was a powerful reminder of the difference we can make together. 'Stronger Together!' a special thank you to Ms Delano for putting together such an memroable assembly.
Festival of Light
Dear Parents and Carers,
We are excited to announce that our annual Festival of Light will be held on Thursday 7th November, from 5:30pm to 7:00pm. Join us for an evening of dazzling fireworks and family fun. Food, drink and glow sticks will be on sale to raise funds for the school.
We are also looking for volunteers to help run the stalls on the night. If you are interested in lending a hand, please contact friendsofjessop@gmail.com
We look forward to seeing you there!
Exhibition of Work
The Exhibition of Work has done us proud as always, it is a fantastic showcase of creativity.Each year group have presented their amazing projects based on the topics they are learning this term. Our main hall was filled with impressive displays, highlighting the hard work and imagination of the children. A big thank you to all the parents who supported their children with their projects.
International Breakfast
We would like to say a huge thank you to all parents, carers and children that came together for our annual ‘International Breakfast’. There was a fantastic turn out which created a real buzz up in the dining room. Many families brought in breakfast dishes from their home countries to share with everyone, ranging from freshly baked pretzels, sweet pancakes, authentic dumplings and ackee, samosas, spring rolls, fresh fruit salad, delicious pastries and so much more.
It was an amazing start to the morning with lots of families sitting with their children to share breakfast as well as mingling with other parents, staff, and the Inclusion team.
Dolphin Class Assembly
Dolphin class assembly focused on the value of cooperation and its importance in achieving success. The students worked together to create their presentation, sharing ideas and collaborating on key points.
Through discussions and group activities, they demonstrated how cooperation enhances their learning experiences. By sharing stories and examples, they highlighted how working together can lead to better understanding and outcomes.Their combined efforts resulted in an engaging assembly that highlighted the significance of collaboration in learning, promoting a sense of unity and shared responsibility among the students. The assembly not only demonstrated their understanding but also reinforced the idea that cooperation is an essential skill for future success.
Scholastic Book Fair
The Scholastic Book Fair was a great success, offering families the opportunity to buy books while also helping to raise money for the school. Many families visited the fair and purchased books, supporting both their children’s love for reading and the school. We are still waiting for the official total raised from Scholastic, but in the meantime, we want to thank everyone who participated. Happy Reading!
Afro Hair Project
World Afro Hair Day is celebrated annually on September 15th to honour the history, culture, and identity of Afro hair. The day was founded in 2017 by British entrepreneur and hairstylist Michelle De Leon. This date was chosen to honour the UK Parliament’s debate of a petition that called for the acceptance of Afro hair in schools. This represented a significant step towards addressing the discrimination and biases faced by people with Afro-textured hair.
De Leon's vision was to promote self-acceptance, challenge stereotypes, and encourage positive conversations and understanding surrounding Afro-textured hair. To honour De Leon’s vision and celebrate the diversity that exists within our schools, we took part in a borough exhibition, as part of the Raising the Game initiative.
Opening a World of Possiblities
Our Year 5 children have recently had a fantastic opportunity to experience the exciting world of horseriding in all its glory! It is an unforgettable experience, allowing them to connect with these magnificent animals and learn new skills. A huge thank you to our local stables, Ebony Horseriding, for making this possible and giving our students such memorable experiences.
Reading at Jessop
Early Reading Development
At Jessop we use the Essential Letters and Sounds (ELS) program for reading. In EYFS and KS1, children are taught 20 minutes of phonics everyday. Ask your child what sound they are currently learning?
We encourage children to continue applying their phonics learning to support their spelling in KS2, particularly for those tricky words. You are never too old to use phonics!
At Jessop we teach reading discreetly, this means it is taught as a single subject. Each day we have a different focus.
On Mondays it is ‘Text and Talk,’ the children are introduced to their new text for the week. Children are exposed to a variety of different text types and genres. The children hear the text being read to them and identify new vocabulary and meaning of words.
On Tuesday, the children become ‘Word Detectives’. The children answer retrieval questions. This is where they can find the answer in the text. Children use their skimming and scanning skills to find their answers.
On Wednesday, children use their ‘Thinking Caps’. They answer a variety of inference questions. They are taught the skills that help them use your prior knowledge and textual information to draw conclusions, make critical judgments, and form interpretations of a text.
Thursday is our ‘Building Blocks’ lesson. This is where children look at the grammar and structures of the text they have been reading.
On Fridays, children answer opinion questions. We call this our ‘Points of View’ lessons. Children are encouraged to express their opinions and make links to the text and their own experiences in the world.
The children revisit the text daily reading it aloud, independently and with their peers.
Try reinforcing the day's learning with focussed questioning during home reading time!
FoJ (Friends of Jessop) - Update
Thank you for your Generosity - Amazon Wishlist
A huge thank you from everyone at Jessop to all the generous parents and carers that have purchased items from our Amazon wish list, we are overwhelmed by your kindness !!
If you would like to make a donation to our scholl please click on the link below.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/2TI248ATPIW60/ref=cm_go_nav_hz
Homework
Please help support your child with their spellings by looking at the spelling rules, sounds and patterns in each word. Practising spellings daily (or as much as possible) will help your children to learn and remember each word.
In KS1, children will need to choose five spelling words to put into sentences.
In KS2, children will need to write a sentence for each word, using neat, joined handwriting.
This will give the children the opportunity to understand the meaning of each word, put the word into context and allow them to practise their handwriting.
The children will complete a Spelling and Times Table test during the week.
Top questions to ask your child this month!
Please remember, there is a 'Word of the Week' for every subject.
In this Jessop Journal, we cast a spotlight on some of the vocabulary learnt in Maths this term.
What maths word of the week has your child been learning?
Year 1- minus Year 4- decline
Year 2- partition Year 5- interval
Year 3- minimum Year 6- converted
Please reinforce the learning by asking them what it means.
Important Dates for your Diary November 2024
Friday 25th October
Last day of term
Monday 4th November
INSET Day - School Closed
Tuesday 5th November
First day back
Thursday 7th November
5:30 - 7pm - Festival of Light
11th November - 15th November
Anti-Bullying Week
Wednesday 13th November
Odd Socks Day
09:30 and 2pm - Open Day
(please check our website for details)
Thursday 14th November
08:55 - 09:20 - Parent Maths Drop In
Friday 15th November
Children in Need
Wednesday 20th November
09:30 and 2pm - Open Day
(please check our website for details)
Attendance
Central to raising standards in all schools and ensuring all pupils can fulfil their potential, is the need for children to attend school regularly to benefit from their education.
There is a strong link between good learning, high achievement, rapid progress and developing good social skills with excellent attendance.
We want to take this opportunity to outline our expectations for school attendance this academic year.
If your child arrives at school from 9.01am they will be marked as LATE, if they arrive after 9.30am they will be classed as “late after the register is closed” and their attendance is classed as absent for the morning session. As the registers would have already been returned to the Department for Education.
Regular poor punctuality can also have a negative effect on your child’s attendance as well as their academic learning. Being 6 minutes late each day equals 30 minutes of missed learning every week.
If your child’s attendance drops below 90%, we will need to share our concerns with the Local Authority Education Welfare Officer at Lambeth Council.
Is my child too ill for school?
How to seek support with attendance challenges
Attendance
Whole School Attendance 96%
Reception Butterfly Class - 98%
Year 1 Seals Class - 95%
Year 2 Kangaroo Class - 97%
Year 2 Koala Class - 95%
Year 3 Elephant Class - 98%
Year 3 Gorilla Class - 95%
Year 4 Lion Class - 98%
Year 4 Tiger Class - 98%
Year 5 Polar Bear Class - 96%
What's new on the website?
Check out our new learning updates page on the website.
Going forward, we will share the direct links to the new learning updates on the website with you.
You will also be able to access our current term curriculum learning (Knowledge Organiser) from there too.
Key Stage 1
Lower Key Stage 2
Key Stage 2
Raising a Concern
It is important to us that any concerns or questions you may have are dealt with as efficiently as possible. The structure we have in place is designed to do just that.
The structure
1) Your first port of call is -Your child’s class teacher
(email via the admin team to request a meeting)
2) You may contact the leader of your child’s phase
This includes issues regarding communication and organisation
(email via the admin team to request a meeting)
Should you be dissatisfied with the handling or outcome…
3) You may raise your concerns with Mr Baffoe
(email via the admin team to request a meeting outlining the nature for the purpose of the meeting)
Leaders are required to share items (as appropriate) with Mr Baffoe on a weekly basis, even if the matter is being handled by them.
We request that you do not field your concerns to FoJ but instead work directly with the school staff as outlined above.
Quote of the Month
Out of School Clubs at Jessop
Do you have the Skill to help?
When we need particular support from our parent community, we post for help on our 'Call to Action' page on the schools website, and send the direct page link in an email to our parent community. So signing up is really easy!
Perhaps you would like to be a secret reader (reading a story to your child’s class), or would like to support us in maximising children’s opportunity to practice their reading skills.
We need you. Click on the title to find out more.
What's on at Jessop Children Centre
Keep up to date
For more information on any of the above and more, press below to visit the schools website and follow us on Twitter!