The last few months have been very difficult and we know that you might be feeling unsure about September.
At IVJS we have an excellent staff who are going to make sure that all of your child’s needs are catered for when they return in September. We know that the start of the new school year is going to be difficult for some children and we are currently changing our curriculum plans to ensure that all children’s needs are met. There will be a focus on wellbeing when we return and we will be planning lots of activities outside.
Your class teacher will be having ‘handover’ meetings with your child’s new teacher during the next few weeks to make sure that there is a smooth transition to their new class. If there is any information about how your child has been during lockdown, that you think would be useful for us to know, please email your current class teacher so that they can pass it on to the new teacher.
It is going to be a very different start to the school year and we will do everything we can to look after your child and ensure that they get back to enjoying school as quickly as possible
There are a couple of points about the next school year that we are still trying to work out.
Firstly, is there a way we can have some sort of transition so that children can say goodbye to their old teacher and meet their new teacher. This may be possible with a staggered start back to school which would mean not all children would start back at the same time. Please keep this in mind when you are thinking about child care and work arrangements for the first two weeks of September.
Secondly, clubs are also causing us some worries. If we are keeping the children in class bubbles all day to limit the spread of any germs, then mixing the children in a club seems to make no sense. However, we know that many of you use our breakfast and after school clubs for child care so that you are able to work and so, we are waiting to get further advice on this as at the moment there are mixed messages. Please be prepared for clubs not to start straight away at the beginning of term.
Please remember that school life will be different in September and in the next couple of weeks we will send out more details once we have had time to digest the guidance from the government. It is important to remember, that just like you, the staff have also had personal challenges during the pandemic. We are very excited to get everyone back into school but we know that there will still be challenges ahead. By working together, we can get through this!
Classes for September:

Dear Parents / Guardians,

On the week beginning Monday 13th July, all IVJS children will be taking part in a new look Sports Day!
Pupils will be able to compete, whether they are at school or at home. We are planning to do five simple stations which involve limited equipment (details on the next page).
Children in school will compete in their bubbles forming separate teams. Children competing at home will be counted as one big team! There will be no winning house this year but a winning ‘team’.
If you will be competing in Sports Day from home, please send your best score for each event to shawkes5@bucksgfl.org.uk by 3pm on Thursday 16th July.
It would be amazing if we could get multiple scores from home for each event (parents, siblings etc.), alongside pictures and videos of you competing!

Best Wishes,

Please click the image to download the full letter from Buckinghamshire Council

​This week I would like to say a massive thank you to all of you who have been so patient with us while we started using Teams to teach small groups of children – it has been a steep learning curve for all of us!  I would also like to thank the staff who have been amazing at adjusting very quickly this week to all the changes.
Bringing in more children to school has been both lovely and frustrating.  It is wonderful to see children back in school but disappointing that we can’t fit in everyone who wants to return.  You all know me fairly well by now and I hope you can trust that we have not made any decision lightly about inviting children back to school.   I cannot wait to have everyone back in school and have some sort of normality!
At school we are busy preparing for the next academic year and feeling excited at the thought of all the children returning to us in September.  School reports are nearly finished and will be sent out to you the week beginning 6th July.  The reports are much shorter than previous years but will give you an idea of how your child was doing before we closed in March.   
Next week the government are due to publish new guidance and then we can start to let you know what is happening for September and about your child meeting their new teacher. 
Have a lovely weekend and stay safe.

Miss Digweed

After a very thundery and wet week the sun is finally coming out!   After weeks of having just a few children in school, it is now much busier and it is fantastic to be able to hear children back in the building. 
We are acutely aware that our children need to be in school and are concerned that we are not able to fit any more children into our ‘bubbles.’  This week we have announced that we are going to start running some online sessions for children who are in years 3 and 4 (who are NOT attending school) and we hope that we may be able to offer this to some year 5 children very soon.  Please be patient with us as we get to grips with using Microsoft Teams – we are all learning new skills and some of us are needing more time to get to grips with the technology than others!
In the coming weeks, we are going to hold a virtual sports day and Mr Hawkes will be sending out information on this very soon.  We hope that everyone will take part including parents so get those trainers on!
Chalfont Community College
Y6 parents – if your child is going to CCC please make sure you have seen the email they have sent.  The deadline for returning the forms to CCC is Friday 26th June. 

Dear Year 5 Parents/Guardians,

Following the updated guidance from the government, we are looking to see how we can support more children in school.
We have space for a few Year 5 children to join an existing 'bubble'. If you feel your child falls into once of the following categories, please contact the school to discuss the possibility of them returning to school;

• Special Educational Needs
• Vulnerable/Pupil Premium
• In Exceptional Circumstances

​
Spaces in school are VERY limited and we may not be able to accommodate everyone who would like a space. We will  continue to provide home learning on our website and support all our Year 5 children until the end of term.

Best wishes,

Miss Digweed

If there's one thing we miss about the Summer Term, it's got to be the school trips but fear not, we have the answer!

Why not head over to the Space Agency's online event; a talk about rockets and planets by the fantastic Tim Peake! Join him today from 11.30am to get to hear from a real life astronaut!
https://www.facebook.com/events/2463275507296456/

Everyone loves a good wander around an Art Gallery but now you can virtually explore Met Kids from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, watch their videos or even jump in a time machine!
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/online-features/metkids/

If it's the animals you are missing but can't go to the zoo, why not bring the zoo to you!
London Zoo have made a virtual tour so you can meet baby sloths, squirrel monkeys, lemurs, penguins, giraffe and so many more!
​https://www.zsl.org/zsl-london-zoo/virtual-london-zoo

Phew! Now that is a long day!