Newsletters

Summer 1 2026 Newsletter

Summer 1 2026 Newsletter

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All Are Welcome at St. James

This half term, we have been learning about tolerance and what it means to understand that “it’s okay to be different.” We've shared two stories in our assemblies, All Are Welcome and The Ugly Duckling, both of which teach us about differences,  acceptance, and celebrating who we are.

Our school community is made up of a wonderful variety of cultures, religions, family set-ups, languages, learning needs, personalities, disabilities and life experiences. At St. James, we believe this is something to be celebrated and valued every single day.

We talked about how every child is unique. Some children have brown hair, some children wear glasses, some children follow Islam, some children have autism, some children speak different languages at home, and some children simply love eating pizza! Even though we may have similarities, there is no one exactly the same — and that is what makes St. James such a special place.

The children explored how we can show kindness, respect, and understanding towards everyone, no matter our differences. 

Ask your child to show you the hand signal we use when saying, “It’s okay to be different!”

Have a wonderful half-term, and we'll see you back in school on Monday, 1st June, for the last half-term of the school year!

Mrs O'Shea

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In Poppies, we have been retelling The Very Hungry Caterpillar, turning ourselves into cocoons before bursting out as butterflies! Outside, the children explored heavy and light using scales and created caterpillars with cubes. Inside, we made the life cycle of a butterfly, decorated caterpillar cupcakes, and enjoyed mark-making activities.

We also celebrated International Bee Day! The children loved receiving their own bees to look after and enjoyed our bee-themed activities, tasting honey, and opening cocoons to discover butterflies inside. 

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Colour has been the theme of the term in Reception, and the children have immersed themselves in a world of creativity! They have made colourful fruit salads, created vibrant colour collages, and even produced a Rainbow of Daventry and a Rainbow of Antarctica.

The children have also written some wonderful poetry inspired by Christina Rossetti’s poem What is Pink? Using thoughtful questions such as What is red? What is pink? What is yellow?, they explored colour through their own imaginative writing. 

Our Year 1 children are working so hard on their phonics this half term in preparation for the Phonics Screener next month. Phonics doesn’t have to be all about books and sounds — it can be creative too! The children have been building sounds out of playdough, completing phonics puzzles, and painting sounds. Reading is everywhere!

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Our Year 2 children have had such a wonderfully musical half-term!

They were given the incredible opportunity to take part in a strings workshop led by Northamptonshire Music and Performing Arts (NMPAT), where the children had the chance to play as part of a string quartet experience. The children listened beautifully, showed fantastic enthusiasm, and embraced every moment with confidence and excitement.

To top it all off, many of our Year 2 children also attended the Big Sing, performing at the Derngate Theatre alongside 11 other schools — what an unforgettable experience!

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Our Key Stage 1 children 

In Key Stage 1, our children develop their reading comprehension skills by becoming “Reading Detectives”. They become familiar with important reading vocabulary and learn a range of strategies to help them understand texts more deeply. These include summarising, inferring, echo reading, and retrieving information from previous reading. All of these skills support children in becoming confident and thoughtful readers. During the half term holidays, try using some of these reading skills when sharing books with your child.

Ideas to support reading over half term:

  • Encourage children to read a variety of texts, including comics, magazines, recipes, sports articles, and audiobooks.
  • Listen to audiobooks during car journeys or quiet time at home.
  • Ask children to retell stories using drawings, puppets, or role play.
  • Watch a film adaptation of a book and compare it with the original story.
  • Set a simple reading challenge and celebrate effort, enjoyment, and progress rather than speed.
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Promoting reading at home helps children develop confidence, imagination, and language skills. For younger children, story baskets, puppet retellings, and bedtime stories make reading enjoyable and interactive. Keeping books visible around the home and creating a daily reading routine encourages positive habits. 

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To have 'good' attendance, the children need to be in school for 96% of the school year. 

Attendance Matters

This term's attendance Pirate Chest has been won by Snowdrops class.

Well done, Snowdrops - you will all win a treat from our Pirate Treasure Chest!

Attendance is a priority concern as part of our commitment to safeguarding every child. We believe that children can only reach their full potential through regular, full-time education.

Why 96%?
Pupils with 96% or higher attendance gain a significant advantage — that’s at least 62 more hours of learning compared to a child with just 90% attendance.

Attendance will continue to be a focus this year. While messages about attendance can be challenging, we know that children with good attendance tend to have the strongest outcomes in their future.

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Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility

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Protective Behaviours

Next half-term, we will be teaching the children about Protective Behaviours. Protective Behaviours is an educational programme that helps children understand how to keep themselves safe. It teaches them to recognise safe and unsafe feelings, understand body safety, and identify trusted adults they can talk to if they are worried.

The programme is based on two key messages: everyone has the right to feel safe at all times, and we can talk to someone about anything.

As part of this learning, the children will be taught the correct names for body parts and, importantly, what they can do if they ever feel unsafe or uncomfortable.

This learning forms part of the school curriculum. We will send a detailed letter to parents and carers next term with further information about the programme and what will be covered.

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Join the Friends of St. James Parents Association!

Would you like to make a real difference to our school community? Joining the Friends of St. James Parents Association is a wonderful way to get involved, meet other parents, and have fun while supporting our children’s education.

Phone: 01327 702783
Email: FOSJ@SJIS.inmat.org.uk

You would be very welcome if you would like to attend a committee meeting.

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Please remember to order school lunches by 8.30 am. Dolce will send out charges if they are not ordered in advance. 

Our children look so smart in their school uniforms. We do have many items for sale, so please ask us if you need anything. 

We talk to the children about road and pavement safety. Support them in getting to school safely by using the zebra crossings.

Our school has a FOSJ account with Skitkins. These labels are indestructible for labelling all items – water bottles, clothes, bags. Please use these details: the school fundraising number to add to orders is 19752, as we gain commission. 

The play equipment is not to be used before and after school.

Please return all the phonics reading books to us, even the photocopied versions. They cost us thousands to replace when lost or damaged. 

If you know anyone who may be interested in joining our Poppies class in 2026 or 2027, please see the office for a form. We are already so busy for the coming years.

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