Well, it’s finally half-term! I would like to take amoment to thank our hard-working staff who I’msure will have found this half-term more difficultthan most as we work to try to continue asnormal in the most abnormal of circumstances.

In spite of all of the restrictions, our staff havecontinued to endeavour to make school as fun,stimulating and exciting as it was before thepandemic.

No doubt you will have seen the rising number ofcases in the news. At the moment, there is noindication that the advice to schools is likely tochange. However, as I said in September, wehave adopted a cautious approach and I dobelieve that this has been successful in limitingthe number of cases. In fact, at the time ofwriting, we have had no positive cases amongstour children this academic year.

Mrs White and the Worship Committee arecollecting prayers to feature in future newsletters.If you would like to contribute, please pass yourprayers to Mrs White or your class teacher. Don'tforget to include your name and class. Yourprayer could be about our school, our communityof Blackburn or the World. You could considerour school values. We look forward to seeingwhat you come up with!

I’d also like to thank you for your continuedsupport. As a parent myself, I know howfrustrating it can be when a school imposes rulesand restrictions that you may not agree with, butthere can be little doubt that your support hascontributed to our success in managing thespread of the virus.

In other news, this half-term should see thecompletion of the roofing works. If the roof is notcomplete by the end of October, I will be takingMr Mason’s advice and introducing a ‘Leak of theWeek’ feature to the newsletter!

Unfortunately, due to the weather, we had topostpone our football match against StStephen’s, but we are very much looking forwardto the rescheduled fixture next half-term.

Finally, I would like to wish you all a pleasant andrelaxing half-term break. School re-opens tochildren on Tuesday 2nd November 2021 as wehave a staff training day on the Monday.

We look forward to seeing everyone in just overa week.

Yours sincerely

Mr. D Stitcher

22nd October 2021

RK

RM

1F

1J

2P

2W

3A

3H

4NW

4B

5G

5R

6M

6P

Amina Noor & Ehla

Faima & Eesa

Alesha & Laiba

Hafsa & Mohammed Rayyan

Mohammed Yahya & Warsaan

Mohammed Yahya & Aisha

Hasan Ali & Mohammed Isshaq

St. James’ Stars of the Week!Well done everyone, we are very proud of you. Who will be receiving a certificate after half term?

Fatimah Sakeena

Farhan & Rehan

Hosino & Haris

Javeria & Dua

Subhana & Fatima

Muhammed Raihaan & Sabeeh

Muhammad Fahim & Aayan

This week the children have enjoyed being outdoors in all weather! It was lots of fun jumping in puddles in the rain! The children have enjoyed mini beast hunts and developing their gross motor skills through climbing activities. The children have finished their retell of 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt'. Perhaps you can ask your children to tell you this story at home!

Have a wonderful half term break, we can't wait to see you after the holiday!

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We would like to say a big well done to all the children in Reception! They have completed their first half term at school. We are so proud of how they have settled in and the progress they have made already.

We hope you have a lovely week off and we can't wait to see what next half term brings.

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Well done for a fantastic start in Year 1. Everyone has worked hard and settled in quickly. We hope you have a restful break and return to school on the 2nd November refreshed and ready to learn.

Please continue to read with your children and practise their maths on Numbots.

Please talk to your children about what they have been learnt this half term such as, The Gruffalo, The Great Fire of London, Materials, the United Kingdom etc...

If you have any questions or concerns before half term, please speak to your class teacher.

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We hope you have a lovely half term break.

We've been sewing in our DT lesson this week. The children had a lot of fun.

Please do practice at home over the holidays if you have time!

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We just want to say well done to everyone in Year 3. The children have made an excellent start to the year and worked extremely hard.

Thank you for your continued support. We hope everyone has a lovely break.

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Well done Year 4 for all your hard work this half term! Next week we aren't setting spelling and Maths homework.

You can choose to enjoy relaxing with a good book or have some fun practising your times tables on Timestable Rock Stars or UR Brainy.

Enjoy the holidays and remember that we are back in school on Tuesday.

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Year 5 have settled back into school brilliantly this half-term. They have done so well and are already making fantastic achievements this year. Mr Grogan and Mrs Riaz both hope you have a fantastic rest and look forward to seeing the pupils again in November.

Reminder: Swimming is a part of the school curriculum and is not a lesson that can be missed. If children are well enough to come to school, then they should be participating in swimming. We must ensure that all pupils are participating in swimming as it is the same as any other lesson.

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Thank you to everyone who attended their parents' meeting this week. It was great to talk about the progress of the children and the next steps for the upcoming year. As we go into the holidays, it is important for the children to keep on top of all the skills they have learnt in the past few weeks. Therefore, please allow your child to practice their skills in reading, mathematics, writing and grammar (the homework sent out will support them with this). For those parents, whose child have been invited to Writing Club, don't worry if you haven't received a letter. This will be sent out at the beginning of the new half term and will start on the 8th November.

We hope you have a fantastic break and will look forward to speaking with you in November.

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School Prayer

Dear God,

Thank you for providing food and warmth.

Thank you for our friends and family.

Thank you for an education.

We praise you every day.

Amen

Swimming Timetable for Year 4 & 5

Wednesday

Session 1: 4NW

Session 2: 5R

Session 3: 5G

Friday

Session 1: 4B

October Half Term

Children will return to school on Tuesday 2nd November.

Remember, school starts at 8:40 and gates are closed for 8:45. Arriving to school late means your child has missed out on learning time.