St James E-News

16th June 2023

Welcome to the St James Primary School's E-News, a weekly roundup of the latest news and events at the school

School Notices

Whole School Visit - please see the letter on the Parent Portal about our first ever whole school trip to The Rural Life Museum in Tilford. This venue has been chosen for the variety of activities it offers for all age groups and it's proximity to school to help with the cost of transport.
Paper Boats - please see the letter from Mr McArthur asking for materials to help Eagles make their boats for the Elstead Paperboats Race.
Home Start Request for Volunteers - please see the flyer on our Advertising Hub. They are asking for volunteers with parental experience to help support families in need. Full training is offered.

Final reminder to take part in the Transition to Teenager in Girls Project. Message from the research team:  We are at the final stages of signing up girls (aged 11-13 ½ years) to the Transition to Teenager in Girls Project.  Thank you very much to everyone who has already taken part in this project. It has been so nice meeting you.  We only need about 20 more girls to take part so please consider signing up.
What do I have to do if I decide to take part?  Girls will be asked to do a 20-30 minute meeting on zoom with the researcher Ailbhe. In these meetings, they will answer questions by ticking boxes about mental health, social relationships, and menstruation (periods). Ailbhe will be there to help you along with the questions. If they want to, they can do the questions without the researcher and not have the zoom meeting. Then, they will do the same questions again in one year. The project was designed with teenage girls to make sure it was enjoyable and very easy to take part in. A lot of girls have said they enjoyed taking part.  Parents will complete questionnaires about their daughter (20 minutes).
This research is all online. You don’t need to go anywhere for it.  The research is aiming to understand mental health and well-being in girls as they become teenagers. The research is being carried out by a group of researchers at the School of Medicine from the University of Edinburgh.  This project is closing the 30^th June. The deadline for contacting Ailbhe to take part in the 29^th June. If you’d like to take part or find out more about the research contact at Ailbhe McKinney at a.m.mckinney@sms.ed.ac.uk or call/text 07388454435.
Swimming days - please see the days that different classes need to have their swimming kits with them for the rest of this term;
YR - Monday and Tuesday
Y1 - Tuesday and Wednesday
Y2 - Monday, Tuesday and on some weeks an additional session on a Thursday
Y3 - Tuesday, Wednesday and some on weeks an additional session on a Friday
Y4 - Monday, Thursday and Friday
Y5 - Tuesday and Friday
Y6 - Wednesday and Friday
Children in Key Stage 2 could go in at any time for an additional session so it is a good idea to bring kits in every day.

Sun hats and sun cream - please remember to equip your child with a named sun hat or cap whilst they are in school. We recommend that you apply a long lasting sun cream if they cannot apply it themselves or send a named bottle of lotion in with them if they don't need adult help.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat - the children are working hard in rehearsals for this year's KS2 production. Please see the letter on the Parent Portal to order tickets for this not- to-be-missed event. All the children will have the opportunity to watch this in school.
Advertising Hub - don't forget to check out the Advertising Hub on our website. We have just added lots of flyers advertising summer events.

Drop in sessions with our Home School Link Worker, Helen Owen - The role of the Home School Link Worker (HSLW) is to support families with a range of issues at home or at school. 1:1 sessions are available on Wednesdays. To book an appointment, email Helen on hslw@st-james-elstead.surrey.sch.uk or ring the school office to request a call back

Letters This Week

The following classes have had letters uploaded to the Parent Portal this week. Note: You will need to login to view this area.

Puffins
Robins
Eagles
Whole school

PTA News

Pre-ordered Tea Towels are available for collection from the school office.

There will be a Summer Fair Planning Meeting at the Royal British Legion at 8pm on Monday 19th June. Everyone is very welcome. Please see the requests for help for numerous events coming up this term.

View the latest PTA News