Monday 13th January 2020 Please see our PTFA Facebook Page Contact school: sch.164@educ.somerset.gov.uk Website: https://stbenedictsjuniorschoolglastonbury.org/
As we start a new year, lots of us have made New Year’s resolutions; as a school ours is to ensure every child at St. Benedict’s is a fluent reader. Please help us by making sure your child is reading at least four times a week at home, ideally every day. As a parent, this is one of the greatest gifts you can give your son or daughter. We have brand new ‘Reading Response’ books, which we will be showing off at our next Parents’ Evenings – these are used to record all the reading work children are doing at school.
Every day I feel lucky to be working with such a wonderful team of staff and to have such supportive parents, all of whom care deeply about their children’s education. On the odd occasion, however, some parents have been a little aggressive towards staff members, and I would remind you to keep all interaction positive and child-centred. We are all role-models for our pupils and we need to model positive communication to them. Of course there are sometimes issues, but please try to report them in a calm and polite manner and we will do our best to get them resolved as quickly as possible. Many thanks.
As a Church School, we have Christian values, but we’ve decided it’s time to sharpen our focus on these by selecting six that truly represent our school and school community. This way, we can zero in on one per half term. Here’s where we’d like your help… we’re asking pupils, parents and carers, governors and staff what they think are the key values that should be most important to our school. These must be selected from the existing Christian Values list. Please have your say as we’d like opinions from the whole school community. Keep an eye out for the letter going home this week for your chance to have your say.
It has come to our attention that lots of children are on the TikTok website. There has been some media coverage about this recently and it is a known site for grooming, so, as ever, we would urge you to be vigilant about your child/ren’s on-line activities. Always make sure they can be seen and remember to ask them questions about what they’re doing and who they are ‘chatting to’ online. We have e-safety sessions coming up at school, so we will send out this clear message too. DID YOU KNOW? The age of consent for TikTok is 13 years old, so, really, no child at St. Benedict’s should be accessing it. If you choose to let them, be aware and be vigilant. Be inquisitive and be approachable, that way your child should come to you if there is a problem. Encourage them to report any online behaviour they are concerned about – to you and/or to us.
ATTENDANCE CHAMPS! Attendance for 7th –10th Jan: Cat Class: 97.2 % Unicorn Class: 91% Chameleon Class: 98.7% Owl Class: 97.7% Spider Class: 95.4% Tortoise Class: 92.8 % Peacock Class: 96.4% Leopard Class: 91.1%
As part of our eco-drive, St. Benedict’s has teamed up with Terracycle to wage war on the crisp packets we see littering our streets and playground. Please bring in your used crisp packets for recycling: for every 1000 packets recycled, we earn £10 for charity. Hand in your packets to the office, please. Thanks in advance!
We are really excited about the broad range of clubs we have running this term. They include Production Club (we are working towards an amazing production of Joseph (18th and 19th June at St. John’s Church), Netball Club (including league games vs local schools), the continuation of Eco Club (please bring in your crisp packets to recycle), Lower School Multi-Skills Club which will feature a different sport each week and the debut of TT Rockstars Club! Please note - Film club will start tomorrow instead of 21st January as the starling trip that Ms Lowe was originally going on with Year 4 tomorrow has been cancelled due to the bad weather forecast.
Leading up to Christmas, lots of pupils forgot their PE kit or brought in the wrong clothing. As it’s a new year, let’s try to start as we mean to go on and bring in the correct kit every week. This means blue shorts, white T-shirts and trainers. As we are in the depths of winter, please feel free to bring in jogging bottoms. Every child should bring in their PE kit on Monday and take it home on Friday.
Weekly Awards:
Head Teacher’s Awards:
Teachers’ Awards:
STARS OF THE WEEK
Cat Class: Unicorn Class: Chameleon Class: Owl Class: Tortoise Class: Spider Class: Leopard Class: Peacock Class:
Sophie Nicole Alesha Olivia Shiloh Lucas Sam Leonora
Amelia Zander Faeth Oli Ryan Freddie P Blake Poppy S
Felicity in Year 4 for being ‘Star Gymnast of the Month’ at her out of school club and the whole school for coming Runners-up in the Somerset PE Awards
PARKING PROBLEMS It has come to my attention that some parents/carers are parking dangerously outside school. This is a particular problem at the back of school (opposite Proper Job). The message from the children of St. Benedict’s is clear…
“DON’T PUT OUR LIVES IN DANGER!” It may be more convenient for you, or save you finding a space somewhere else, but you are risking lives if your car obscures a crossing place. Please do not park on yellow lines, even if just for a few minutes. Also, could you please not leave your engines running whilst waiting by the school. Children are particularly affected by air pollution as their lungs are still developing and it can increase their risk of a range of long-term issues including asthma. I’m sure we all share the same hopes for the children in that they are able to live happy and healthy lives, and small steps like turning your engine off will have that positive effect of improving air quality. Thank you in advance for your co-operation.
The week ahead Tuesday
14th January
DASH club (8.00 – 8.30a.m.); 3- 5 p.m. – Netball match at Strode; 3.15 – 4 p.m. – Gardening, Eco, Film and Netball club; 3.15 – 4.15 p.m. – Drama club;
Wednesday
15th January
DASH club (8.00 – 8.30a.m.); 3.15 – 4 p.m. – Glee club and Multi Skills club.
Thursday
16th January
DASH club (8.00 – 8.30a.m.); 3.15 – 4 p.m. Tag Rugby and TT Rockstars club; Year 4 visiting nature reserve.
Friday
17th January
DASH club (8.00 – 8.30a.m); Year 4 visiting nature reserve.
Monday
20th January
DASH club (8.00 – 8.30a.m.); 3.15 – 4 p.m. – Production club, 3.15 – 4.15 p.m. – Chess club.