Junior, Infant and Pre-School Newsletter
Issue 13 Friday 25 May 2018 Dear Parents I cannot believe it – the end of another half-term; but for our pupils the end of a busy week of tests. It looks like summer has well and truly arrived and our pupils can now look forward to enjoying some warm weather over their well-earned half term break. We have seen a lot of sport take place in the last two weeks and, in an age where children are immersed in digital technology, it is crucial that we provide this essential component of a child’s development so that our pupils can value the vitality of life. Being physically active makes children mentally alert, energetic and strong. It improves focus and motivates them to take a greater interest in classroom activities. Children who exercise regularly and play a full part in physical activities crave a good night’s sleep. And as we all know, sleep is an essential component of a happy and healthy life in childhood, as well as later on. At KGJS we talk a lot to the children about being a ‘team’, working together and understanding and celebrating our differences. It was therefore lovely to watch J3X’s assembly yesterday on this exact topic – well done to all the boys and girls involved. All our Junior parents will have received a letter regarding the interactive game ‘Fortnight’ yesterday and I would appreciate parents’ support in monitoring the use of gaming and social media generally. I am delighted to inform you that Mrs Sharon Anyon has been appointed as the new Pre-School Manager from September. I am sure you will join me in congratulating Mrs Anyon who is very much looking forward to this exciting new role. I am delighted to announce that in September 2018 we will be opening our newly designed Pre-School, as well as offering 30 hours free childcare and taking rising threes. I am sure you will agree, this is an exciting development. Whatever you and your family decide to do this week, I do hope you are able to enjoy some relaxation and recharge your batteries. Annette Roberts Mrs AS Roberts Headmistress Follow us on: Twitter: @KGJS_ @KirkhamGrammar @KGJShead Facebook: @kirkhamgrammarschool Instagram: @kirkhamgrammar
Over the past few weeks, the children have been very curious about unicorns. They have had the opportunity to design their own horns and turned the experience into something truly magical. Ice-cream cones became edible unicorn horns and sparkly materials were used to make horns with magic powers.
The children have also been using interactive equipment to match letters and sounds. They have all had a go at helping each other using Jolly Phonics actions, to match letters to sounds. The visit to see the Crown Jewels was wonderful. Mr Jackson explained why the jewels are so special and Millie was given the opportunity to wear a replica of Queen Victoria’s small crown.
The I1 children were very excited when Police Inspector Bell came to visit on Monday 14 May. He spoke to the children about 'A Day in the Life of a Police Officer', the uniform he wears and the type of crimes he helps to solve. Inspector Bell reminded the children that the police are there to help them! One of the highlights of the visit for the I1s was a ride in the police van with the lights and sirens on! A huge thankyou to Police Inspector Bell, the children learned so much and had a fantastic time.
On Tuesday 15 May, the I3 children took part in a 'chocolate tasting' session as part of their non-fiction English topic, 'All About Chocolate'. They looked at the properties of six different types of chocolate including; touch, smell, texture and taste. The 'chilli' chocolate was very spicy! At the end of the week, the I3s finished off their topic with a delicious treat! They dipped strawberries and marshmallows in a cascading chocolate fountain.
On Wednesday 16 May, and only a few days before the Royal Wedding, Kirkham Grammar School were delighted to host a display of one of only two sets of replica Crown Jewels, kindly brought into school by Mr Peter Jackson of Peter Jackson The Jeweller. Pupils and staff from both the Junior and Senior Schools were given the opportunity to have a look at the amazing selection on display, which included The Imperial State Crown, St Edward's Crown, Queen Mary's Crown, George IV Diadem, Queen Victoria's Crown, Cambridge Lovers Knot Tiara and The Spencer Tiara. The children were able to hold some of the priceless pieces, with some even being given the opportunity to try on Lady Diana’s ‘Spencer Tiara’, the real one of which still belongs to the Spencer family and has not been publicly worn since her death in 1997. The pupils were mesmerised by The Imperial State Crown, which has a 317 carat Cullinan Diamond at its centre, the second largest diamond cut from the largest rough diamond ever found, discovered in Cullinan, South Africa in 1905. The crown was adjusted for Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation in 1953, with the head size reduced to give a more feminine appearance. Some of the pupils were able to sit on the KGS ‘Throne’ and hold the replica St Edward’s Crown, the original being a centrepiece of the British Crown Jewels, which is only on public display in the Jewel House at the Tower of London. Pupils were captivated by The Cambridge Lovers Knot Tiara, which was loaned to Princess Diana to wear on her wedding day, however she chose instead to wear the Spencer Tiara, but still wore this beautiful piece many times. When Diana and Charles divorced, it was returned to the Queen and kept in a safe at Buckingham Palace, where it was not seen again until 2015 when it was worn by the Duchess of Cambridge at a diplomatic reception at Buckingham Palace. Kate has worn it several times since. Thank you to Peter Jackson for giving KGS this wonderful opportunity, at what was a very exciting time for the Royals and the country, with the Royal Wedding taking place in the same week.
U11 & U9 Rounders v St Mary’s Hall It was a beautiful sunny day for the J4 and J2 Rounders matches v St Mary’s Hall last Saturday. The J4s won 15-10½ and the J2s lost 17½-11. Well done to all who played. The players of the games were Mia Carmichael and Isabel Tuck. Thank you to St Mary’s Hall for hosting and to all the parents who came along to support. U11s Cricket v Manchester Grammar School & Oldham Hulme On Monday 14 May, our U11 Cricket team travelled to Manchester for an enjoyable match v Manchester Grammar School in the Lancashire Cup. Our U11s unfortunately lost, but many positives were gained from the match. A week later, the U11 boys reached the AJIS Cricket Pairs Final after a pleasing win against Oldham Hulme. Many thanks to both Manchester Grammar and Oldham Hulme for being excellent hosts. U11s Athletics v Westholme On Tuesday 22 May, the U11s welcomed Westholme for an enjoyable evening of Athletics. The match involved sprints, hurdles and long distance races and the field events included long jump, triple jump, high jump, shot putt and cricket/rounders ball throw. The match concluded with the sprint and medley relay. The scores were as follows: Boys: Kirkham 104 Westholme 50 Girls: Kirkham 83 Westholme 71 Thank you to Westholme for a great evening. The PE department would like to thank Mr Butterworth, Miss Cooper and Mr Edgar for their help on the night.
U11s Rounders v Lancaster Girls Grammar School On Thursday 24 May, the U11 Girls Rounders team, along with a number of J3 girls who have been attending the Friday after-school club, travelled to Lancaster Girls Grammar School for a ‘round robin’ against their Year 7s. It was a very enjoyable evening of rounders and our thanks go to Lancaster Grammar for hosting and to their Year 10 Sports Leaders who were excellent and umpired every game.
If parents take photographs at school events/sports fixtures we would love to see them! They may even get used in school newsletters, on the website and in press releases. Please email them to Michelle Tickle at m.tickle@kirkhamgrammarjnr.co.uk. Thank you!
On Monday 14 May, we welcomed Lisa Whiteside, Commonwealth Games Flyweight Champion, into school. Lisa, who defeated Northern Ireland’s Carly McNaul in the flyweight final on the Gold Coast in April, spoke to the children about her ‘boxing journey' and brought with her a selection of international medals to show the children, including the most recent Commonwealth Games Gold medal. She explained how much dedication and commitment is required with regards to training for her sport and her message to the children was clear, if you have a desire to do something and work hard to achieve this, anything is possible! After the whole school assembly, the J4 children were given the opportunity to attend a 'Question and Answer' session with Lisa and they certainly kept her very busy with their fantastic array of questions. They were also given the opportunity to look at, and hold, her Commonwealth Gold medal, the first children to be allowed to do this, which was a real honour!
Following the Crown Jewels visit last week, the I3Y children made their own ‘crowns’ during their Art and DT lesson. Well done, I3Y, you all look amazing!
On Tuesday 22 May, a group of eight children visited Pear Tree School for a fun ‘World Cup’ Maths activity afternoon. Upon arriving at Pear Tree, the children were greeted with a hall filled with football themed activities. There were lots of different games including making amounts of money, recognising coins and many other world cup themed activities. They even returned to school with a prize for winning the most games! Well done to Theia Chesworth, Leo Paraskeva, Ellis McNamee-Sloggett, Oliver Clark, Gabriella Pearson, Poppy Pickervance and Harley Marginson who were a credit to the school.
Last Friday, the children and staff enjoyed a ‘Royal Wedding’ themed lunch. The catering staff all wore their ‘royal masks’ to serve the children!
I3 enjoyed a relaxing read in the sunshine yesterday. They brought their favourite book into school and happily discussed the contents. As they complete their Infant journey, they have found a joy in reading which we hope will last a lifetime.
The KGJS J3s have had a wonderful day at the Senior School! They experienced a variety of lessons including Biology, Drama, Physics, ICT, Games, German and Spanish, as well as enjoying lunch in the Senior School Dining Hall. One of the highlights was making rockets in Physics and launching them to see how far they travelled. In ICT, the children learned how to programme and were able to create a game on the PC using Kodu's simple visual programming language. In Biology, the children extracted and viewed DNA from raspberries and in Spanish and German, learned how to count to ten. Thank you to the 4th Year and Lower Sixth mentors who looked after the J3s throughout the day, you were all fantastic role models!
It has been another busy fortnight for the J3 children. The pupils have continued to work hard in their Science lessons and have yet again showed themselves to be competent, hardworking practical scientists. They have enjoyed investigating the force of gravity using Newton meters and are looking forward to studying air and water resistance in the future. To complete their ‘Ultimate Explorers’ topic in English, the J3s have read about different explorers and their challenges. They have researched their chosen environment and, using their eBook for inspiration, they have composed their own unique handbook. The children have spent a lot of time and effort on their ‘Ultimate Guides to Survival’.
Yesterday, during their French lesson with Madame Simpson, the I1 children enjoyed a game of ‘La Marelle’ (hopscotch). The children practised counting in French as they hopped! Well done, I1!
Our KGJS Head Boy, Oliver Kollard and Head Girl, Alexa Anderson, went over to the Senior School last week to have their photograph taken with KGS Headmaster, Mr Berry, and the newly appointed School Captains, William Kollard and Charlotte O’Neill.
It is always lovely to hear about the children’s achievements outside of school. The children have certainly been very busy over the last couple of weeks! Well done to Lucie Wilson, Esme Lawson and Polly Hargreaves (Horse Riding), Amelie Singleton and George Godbold (Running), Charlie Asquith, Bertie Jones and Alice Bunday (Football), Gabriella Wise (Swimming), Liberty Kirszanek (Holy Communion and Ballet), Isabella Asquith (Blue Peter Badge), Isaac Wan, Raurie Sumner and Freddie Butler (Rugby).
Thank you to the Friends of Kirkham Grammar School for organising a wonderful 'Artisan' barbecue on Friday evening and to Mr Vevers and the catering team for the delicious food! The sun shone and the children enjoyed having their faces painted. They were kept occupied by the fabulous entertainer while mums and dads enjoyed a glass or two of Pimms or Prosecco! Thank you to everyone who came along, we do hope you all had an enjoyable evening!
Last Thursday, for the second year running, KGJS held their House Challenge Day with all pupils arriving at school in their sports kit! The infants experienced a range of challenges including; an immersive guided story using headphones, learning to drive Bluebots across a map, solving a range of challenges along the way and also used pic collage to create a Frankenstein monster of their classmates. For the juniors, activities included; exploring music and sounds using laptops and iPads and learning how to program ‘Edbot the Robot’ to make her move and respond to the environment. Well done to all, and a special mention to School House who were the overall winners! It really was a fantastic day!
KGJS summer hats are now in stock at the Uniform Shop. The children will hopefully need these for the forthcoming Infant and Junior Sports Days! Please could we also remind you that our school policy is for predominantly white trainers. Thank you in advance for your support.
Can you work out where this photo was taken within the KGJS building?
To view an electronic copy of this newsletter, as well as previous newsletters, please scan the code to the right. There are a variety of QR Readers available for Android and Smart phones and other electronic devices.
The image to the right (from the last newsletter) can be found outisde the I3 classroom. Well done to all who managed to locate it!!
Monday 4 June - School re-opens 8.50am J4 Residential to Manor Adventure Lockerbie departs 10am I2 Trip to Williamson Park, Lancaster J2 Trip to Liverpool World Museum Wednesday 6 June - J1 Trip to Tatton Park Friday 8 June - I3 Trip to Brockholes Nature Reserve, Preston J4 Residential returns eta 3.30pm Pre-School Sports Day, BBQ and Production 6pm-7.30pm Tuesday 12 June - AJIS Rounders, AKS 10am New Reception Parents Afternoon 2pm Wednesday 13 June - I1 Trip to Old Holly Farm Thursday 14 June - Pre-School Trip to Clip & Climb