Issue 12 Friday 11 May 2018

Junior, Infant and Pre-School Newsletter Issue 12 Friday 11 May 2018 Dear Parents Another two very productive weeks have flown by with the children working incredibly hard – we have witnessed a huge array of excited learners!

The Pre-School children have completed some superb work on repeated patterns. Our I1 children have been very busy exploring the life cycle of a butterfly and also undertaking roles as police officers investigating a crime scene! As part of their survival topic, the I2 children have been building shelters. They also invited their families to a ‘Jam Sandwich’ movie premier based on their instructional writing work. I was astounded to hear the I3 children with their perfect French accents singing Tête, épaules, genoux et orteils!

Our Junior pupils have also been very busy. The J1 Art Club have been creating silhouettes and in J2 there has been some excellent Science work carried out on Electricity. Our J3 and J4 children have all been concentrating on consolidating their Mathematics by testing out a new interactive programme, Mathletics.

With the lovely weather over the Bank Holiday weekend it feels like summer is finally here! With this in mind, could I please remind parents to ensure that children have sun cream and hats as required.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

Annette Roberts

Mrs AS Roberts Headmistress

Follow us on: Twitter: @KGJS_ @KirkhamGrammar @KGJShead Facebook: @kirkhamgrammarschool Instagram: @kirkhamgrammar

Can you work out where this photo was taken within the KGJS building?

The image to the right (from the last newsletter) can be found in the J3 corridor.

Well done to all who managed to locate it!!

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 Rosa Gill, Amelie Singleton, Leoma Gill, Lily Hunt, Francesca Margerison (Running), Joel Rogers (Swimming), Anna Vavoso (Athletics), Jay Dawson (Archery), Olivia Noblett (Dancing), Esme Lawson (Horse Riding), Mischa Almodaka-Davis (Dancing), Olivia Norcross (Skiing), Ellis McNameeSloggett (Biathle), Raia Trend (Skiing), Polly Hargreaves (Swimming), Brooke Medhurst, Jack Short, Lilly Jones, Alice Bunday and Evelyn So (Music).

Well done to J4 pupils; Eva Berry, Lily Buckley, Poppy Hunt, Eva Nixon and Louisa Seacy who held a cake sale, raffle and lucky dip over two days this week to raise money for the RSPCA and Classrooms in the Clouds. Almost ÂŁ400 was raised and nearly every cake sold was homemade by the girls! This is a fantastic achievement. Well done to you all!

Something amazing has been happening in Pre-School as a spontaneous experience turned into a magical learning moment. The children were playing outside, just as they do every morning when they get to school. Miss Blacow and Mrs Blanco-Bayo noticed that a group of children had got together and they wondered what might be happening. The teamwork that a simple building activity provoked was fantastic. The wooden blocks were arranged in a line and the lawnmower became an engine. Suddenly, the children had made a factory and as some of them became robots, the learning for the next few days evolved. The children worked in pairs to design the controllers that would make the robots move in different ways. The actions, sounds and vocabulary the children came up with was amazing. Everyone was engaged and all the areas of learning were brought together through play. If you fancy watching how the robots move, ask the Pre-School children to show you!

Each week, the J1 Art Club learn a new artistic skill. Last week they looked at ‘Silhouette Art’. The children used chalks to create a sunset sky background with black paper for the silhouette of buildings.

Well done, J1!

The I1 children have been learning about the ‘Life Cycle of a Butterfly’ and have created some wonderful pieces of symmetry.

These are now on display near the I1 classrooms so please pop in to have a look at the end of the school day!

Well done, I1!

As part of their ‘Survival’ topic, the I2Y children have been building shelters and what a brilliant job they made of it too!

Excellent teamwork, I2Y!

As part of their Science lessons on ‘Electricity’ and ‘Teeth and Healthy Eating’, the J2 children have been busy finishing off their information posters and these are now on display around school.

Yesterday, the children experimented with bubbles during their Science lesson. They used a variety of different strength solutions to find out if a more concentrated mixture made for better bubbles!

Well done, J2!

U11 Boys Cricket Our U11 Cricket team have played four matches over the last fortnight and achieved three pleasing wins and one loss against Rossall, AKS, St Pius and Broughton Primary School.

A highlight from the matches was a sensational catch by our wicket keeper, Oliver Kollard during the match against St Pius. Thank you to all of the schools for being excellent hosts and to Fulwood and Broughton for allowing use of their ground for the St Pius match.

U11 Rounders v AKS Our U11 Rounders team played two enjoyable games against AKS on Wednesday 2 May. This was a great start to the season which saw every girl in J4 take part.

Well done to you all!

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!

The I1s have been practising ‘mindfulness’. The children made themselves comfortable and focused on their breathing while listening to mindfulness meditation music.

Some of the children said it made them feel very relaxed! It was a lovely start to the afternoon!

The I1 children had a very exciting afternoon on Tuesday. The children returned from lunch to a crime scene! Someone had been in their classroom and taken the class dinosaur! The children recorded lots of evidence onto crime scene reports for the police and completed posters to place around school to let others know about what had happened. All the children were amazing at finding the evidence and enjoyed undertaking their roles as a police officer!

The J3s have recently completed their ‘Super Scientists’ topic. They have been busy researching and collecting facts about a scientist of their own choice. They then presented this in an informative fact file (please see the images above). The J3 children are to be congratulated on their super independent study skills.

In Art, the children have been learning how to make 2D shapes appear 3D. They have learned about highlighting, mid-tone and shadows when shading their shapes. They applied and improved their skills using a range of pencils, colours and shading techniques (please see the images below).

Well done, J3!

Friends of Kirkham Grammar School Artisan Barbecue To commence a celebratory weekend, FKGS have arranged an Artisan Barbecue on Friday 18 May from 6pm to 8pm, in the grounds of the Junior School.

You will arrive to the sounds of a live jazz band and enjoy an early summer Pimms, Prosecco or Beer, while the children split their time between eating and enjoying the giant garden games, craft areas and face painting. At 6.30pm, the children’s entertainer will ask the children to join him for 90 minutes of fun, games and a disco, allowing our parents and friends to enjoy the culinary delights from the BBQ. The ticket price of £10 per adult and £5 per child will include a mixture of meat and salad dishes, a dessert and non-alcoholic beverages. There will also be a bar where alcohol can be purchased. Every child will also receive a goody bag to take home with them.

There will be tables and chairs available, but please feel free to bring along any rugs or deckchairs that you may have to enhance your barbecue experience.

Tickets can be purchased following the link below or from the school receptions or uniform shop. https://form.jotformeu.com/81185670907362 Should there be inclement weather, the barbecue will still take place, but it will be indoors at the Senior School.

We do hope that you will be able to join us in what will be a relaxed and enjoyable start to our summer evenings.

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.

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.

Please visit the link below or scan the QR code on your mobile device to access a very useful guide for parents about the social networks children use. https://net-aware.org.uk/

Monday 14 May - U11 Boys Cricket Lancs Cup v Manchester GS (A) 3.45pm Tuesday 15 May - J3 Taster Day at KGS Thursday 17 May - House Challenge Day Friday 18 May - FKGS BBQ 6pm - 8pm Monday 21 May - AJIS Cricket Semi-Final v Oldham Hulme (A) 2.15pm Tuesday 22 May - U11 Athletics Westholme (H) tbc Thursday 24 May - U11 Rounders v Lancaster Girls (A) 4pm Friday 25 May - Half Term Commences 3.45pm

Monday 4 June - School re-opens 8.50am J4 Residential to Manor Adventure Lockerbie departs 10am J2 Trip to Liverpool World Museum Wednesday 6 June - J1 Trip to Tatton Park Friday 8 June - Pre-School Sports Day, BBQ and Production 6pm-7.30pm J4 Residential returns eta 3.30pm