​This Week In School…
Year 3 – have been busy finishing writing their diary entry about the Iron Man in English. They have used lots of description and used their feelings and thoughts to empathise with a character.  In Maths, they have worked hard to solve division problems using the short formal method, while in Science this week, they have been investigating forces. The children carried out an air resistance experiment using parachutes which they made in class. All the children really enjoyed their 'No Pen Day' and were able to use their fantastic orienteering skills to solve Math problems.
Year 4 – have finished writing and publishing a letter to President Biden, asking him to ban animals from being used in circuses as a result of the high number of circus animals being harmed and mistreated. They have written letters that are full of emotive language and facts as they try to persuade the American leader to make a change. In Maths, they have started their multiplication and division topics but multiplying and dividing numbers by 10 and 100. On No Pens Day, they used their new skills to play a game of maths 4 in a row and completed a dominos circle by matching dominos with dividing by 10 question and answers. Both classes also enjoyed making a musical instrument out of recycled goods as part of their science lessons. They made guitars, drums and even a few maracas!
Year 5 – have been very busy! In Maths, they have been learning about equivalent fractions and fractions greater than 1. They have continued writing and editing their narratives based on the 'The Cyclops' chapter of our Odysseus book.  Year 5 have tried really hard to include similes and metaphors to help to make the writing more interesting for a reader. They will be publishing the work next week. Everyone particularly enjoyed No Pen Day on Wednesday.  Lots of children were amazed that everyone could learn so much without writing anything down!  They enjoyed Maths relay, counting in multiples games and talking tasks in English.  A thoroughly good day was enjoyed by all!
Year 6 – have started a new piece of writing in English - a diary entry, written in character (based on the main character in the book, 'Skellig').  They have looked at different diaries and identified the features in order to include them in their own writing.  In Maths, they have continued learning about fractions and this week, have looked at comparing and ordering fractions and adding them.  Last week in Science the children set up an investigation to see what conditions mould needs to grow so this week they have been observing their slices of bread in various conditions to see if there is any mould growth yet (there is some very interesting colourful mould on some of the slices!)  Whilst Year 6 wait for the mould to grow so the children can conclude the investigation, they have continued with their Humanities topic of Brazil where the children have been doing some research into the physical geography of the country.  They had an enjoyable 'No Pen Day', where they did some storytelling in English; and in Maths they played a variety of games or worked together to discuss and solve maths puzzles.

Dear Parent/Carer,

Your child’s annual flu vaccination is now due
​
This vaccination programme is in place to help protect your child against flu, which can be an unpleasant illness and sometimes causes serious complications.  This year, with COVID-19 in circulation, it’s more important than ever that eligible groups are vaccinated to protect them from flu. The free flu vaccine will help prevent them getting the flu and is the best protection from the flu virus. Vaccinating your child will also help protect more vulnerable friends and family by preventing the spread of flu. 
 
The intra-nasal flu vaccine is the most effective protection for your child against flu.  However, if in the past you have refused the intra-nasal vaccine due to PORCINE GELATINE content, we are now able to offer an alternative injectable flu vaccine which is porcine-free.  Please complete the consent form stating that you would like your child to have the IM flu vaccine.  This can be given in school, but if you would prefer to be with your child, please contact the immunisation team  on 01296 567860 or email bht.buckschildimms@nhs.net to arrange a catch clinic appointment.  
The online consent can be accessed via any online device. Please click on the following link https://www.buckschildimmunisations.co.uk/Forms/Flu which will direct you to an online consent form for you to complete.

We will be visiting your child’s school on 06/12/2021 please complete the consent form in full using the following school code: EE110239. If a consent form is not completed by midday the day before our visit your child may not receive their immunisation at school.

The vaccination is free and recommended for children and young people. It will be given by a quick and simple spray up the nose. Here is a link to a leaflet explaining the vaccination programme which includes details about the small number of children for whom the nasal vaccine is not appropriate:
Protecting your child against flu - Information for parents and carers of preschool and primary school-aged children (publishing.service.gov.uk)
 
In the rare event that you do not have access to the internet, please contact the immunisation team who will complete a consent form with you over the phone.  Again, this year we are unable to give out any paper consent forms or leaflets due to possible transmission of Covid-19.
 
If you require further information regarding the vaccines we offer please go to our Immunisation website which has full details of our service: http://www.buckshealthcare.nhs.uk/School-nursing/immunisations.htm
If you have any queries regarding the online consent form or the Flu vaccine please contact the Buckinghamshire Immunisation Team on 01296 567860.

Yours sincerely,
​
Buckinghamshire Immunisation Team

If your child becomes wheezy or has their asthma medication increased after you have completed the on-line form, please contact the immunisation team on 01296 567860. If you decide you do not want to vaccinate your child against flu, please complete the consent form giving the reason. This will help us plan and improve the service.  For further information see: www.nhs.uk/child-flu 

​This Week In School…
Year 3 – have busy starting to write a diary entry in the character of the Iron Man. The children have enjoyed imagining themselves as the Iron Man and have made some ambitious word choices. In Maths, they have worked hard to solve division problems and been learning about fact families. In Science, they have commenced a new topic and are looking at forces. The children thoroughly enjoyed shooting marshmallows whilst investigating push/ pull forces!
Year 4 – have been writing to the president of America, trying to persuade him to ban animals from being used in circuses. In Maths they have been solving perimeter problems and even took part in some orienteering around the playground solving perimeter questions. They have been working scientifically during science by investigating sound. They have tested different materials to find out which material absorbs the most noise and would therefore be the best material to soundproof a room. In DT, they had the tricky challenge of making nets this week. Some were really tricky and had 20 sides!
Year 5 – have really worked hard to write a narrative retelling the Cyclops chapter of their class book Odysseus.  They have written two paragraphs and really thought about how they could add more detail using the language features to improve their writing.  They will continue with the narrative next week. They have learnt to divide, two, three and four digit numbers by a one- digit number in Maths this week.  Year 5 have taken time to understand, using visual representations what they are doing when exchanging from one column to the next. In Topic, they have learnt about the Trojan War and used Now Press Play to listen to a story about the Ancient Greeks.
Year 6 – have been finishing and publishing their narratives with a particular emphasis on describing settings and characters in English.  The children have continued learning about fractions in Maths and have been looking at equivalent fractions; simplifying fractions; and converting improper fractions to mixed numbers and mixed numbers to improper fractions.  In Science, they set up an investigation to see what conditions mould needs to grow in and will be observing the growth of mould on bread over the next few weeks.  The children created their own version of a 'Guess the Alien' game in computing, using some of the skills they have been learning in the Year 6 coding topic.

To celebrate everyone’s individuality, we observed Odd Socks Day today! This marked the start of Anti Bullying week here at IVJS. Thank you to all the children who sported their colourful socks!

​This Week In School…
Year 3 – have been finishing up their investigation in English. They have reported on the events of last week and have been brilliant at writing in a formative and informative style. They have also been introduced to their Power of Reading text, The Iron Man. In Maths, they have been applying their times table knowledge and developing ways to help them find out the answer any time tables that they don't already know. In Humanities, their exploring hats have been put back on as they explored the continent of Europe! They have looked at different European countries and their capitals and are beginning to understand the difference between a continent, a country and a city. They have written about sailing across the European oceans and seas and created a travel brochure about wonderful mountain ranges.
Year 4 – have been busy writing a detailed setting description of a circus. They have used their senses to create interesting descriptions that show the reader when it is happening rather than just telling them. In Maths, they have been working on converting units of measurement; centimetres have become millimetres, metres have become centimetres and kilometres have become metres. They have used this skill to add and subtract different lengths from each other. In French this week, they have enjoyed learning the names of different modes of transport. In Humanities, they have explored Western Africa and completed a research project on Nigeria. In RE, they have looked at the story of Moses and the significance of the Seder plate to Jewish people. In DT, they started their project on packaging. They explored different pieces of packaging and tried to work out how they were made, from what and who they are aimed at.
Year 5 – have written a character description of Odysseus during English this week. They have tried hard to include adjectives that help to describe him but also that convey the atmosphere within the setting. They really took their time to edit their work and many of them have been able to demonstrate how they can use language features to improve their writing further. In Maths, they have extended their knowledge of multiplying using the formal written method when multiplying by 2-digit numbers.  Remembering which digits to multiply was what everyone has had to concentrate on in order not to become confused!  Lots of them have got this now but will continue so that they all feel confident. For Year 5 Topic lessons this week, they have learnt about the battle of Marathon and that the modern-day marathon is an event because of this!
Year 6 – have been working hard in English to write some great narratives with a focus on setting and character description.  Their stories are inspired by our book, 'Skellig'; they also showed their good listening skills in Guided Reading when they were asked to sketch Skellig and produced some great, detailed sketches having listened to the author's description of the character.  In Science, the children have continued with the topic of 'Living Things', they have been looking at micro-organisms and finding out about the different types of helpful and harmful bacteria.  In Maths, they have started the topic of fractions and in Computing the children enjoyed using code to create simulations.

​This Week In School…
Year 3 – have put on their reporter hats and investigated the destruction of the courtyard! They have developed multiple theories and started to write a newspaper informing the rest of the school about the event. In Maths, Year 3 have started to look into multiplications. They have been looking at their times tables and applying their knowledge to reasoning questions. In Humanities, they have been exploring the world and travelled on the high seas of the five oceans of the world! They then narrowed their focus and are started to look at the continent of Europe in more detail. In Computing, they have discussed what makes a strong password and why it is important to keep passwords safe. One of the most exciting things to happen this week however was a visit from Farmer Nicola via Zoom. The children got see her farm up in the highlands of Scotland and they were introduced to some of the animals on her farm, including a herd of hungry deer!
Year 4 – have started reading their very exciting new class text, ‘Leon and the Place Between’. They have then started writing a detailed setting description about a circus, as this is where the story takes place. In Maths, they have practised estimating calculations and checking by using the inverse operation. They also started their new measurement topic and have been looking at the relationship between centimetres and metres & millimetres and centimetres. In Science, they started to explore the topic of sound. They took a walk around school completing a sound survey before trying to then decide how the noises were made. In Humanities, they started looking at Africa in more detail, a continuation of their topic from last term. They learnt about the natural disasters that have occurred from droughts to cyclones to earthquakes. They looked at the damage caused and how this impacted the population.
Year 5 – have had a busy first week back! In Maths, they have been multiplying 3 and 4-digit numbers by 1-digit numbers. In English, they have started reading the new class book 'The Adventures of Odysseus'. They have been planning a character description of Odysseus and have come up some brilliant ideas to describe his appearance and personality, including some great similes. During the week, they have also started looking at the Ancient Greeks, which fits in nicely with their English work. They have learnt about life in Greece and the differences between Sparta and Athens.
Year 6 – have had a good return to school after PGL and the half term break.  They have started reading the new class book, 'Skellig' by David Almond and in English, the children have been identifying descriptive language in the first couple of chapters.  They are using this as a basis for planning their narratives, with a particular focus on describing settings and characters.  They have started a new topic in Science, Living Things (including Micro- organisms).  The children have created their own classification keys to sort a range of animals.  They also took part in an interesting quiz during PSHE when they were discussing the meaning of the word 'normal'.