Report by Mrs. Cooper (Swim Coach)

On Monday evening, some of our Y4, Y5, and Y6 swim squad members proudly represented BWJS at a gala hosted by Bedales School in Petersfield. With their pool being the same size as ours, we brought along a smaller team than we typically would for matches held at larger venues like St. Swithun’s.

In preparation for this match, our upper school swim squad has been focusing on backstroke turns, breaststroke touch turns, and tumble turns—and the hard work certainly paid off! The Y5 and Y6 races, which were mostly over 40m, showcased these skills beautifully, while our Y4 team tackled their 20m races with determination and technique.

The atmosphere at the event was a perfect blend of friendly camaraderie and competitive spirit. The standard of swimming—from stroke technique to dives, turns, and relay takeovers—was truly exceptional. Our team approached every race with confidence and determination, leaving us incredibly proud.

The effort of every swimmer contributed to an outstanding overall victory for BWJS, with a final score of 183 points to Bedales’ 140 points. Here’s how the results broke down:

• Y4 Team: An incredibly close match, winning by just 1 point!
• Y5 Team: A solid victory, winning by 10 points.
• Y6 Team: Leading the way with a magnificent 32-point win!

This success wouldn’t have been possible without the fantastic support from our parents, who not only provided transport but also cheered enthusiastically from the poolside. A huge thank you to Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Loosemore for helping ensure our swimmers were ready and in the right place at the right time.

We look forward to a rematch against Bedales next spring, which we hope to host in our own pool—if we can find a rare free slot in our busy timetable!

A very proud,
Mrs. Cooper

Welcome to the Team!

Bishop's Waltham Junior School is delighted to officially welcome Mrs. A Saint to our staff site team as one of our new school cleaners! 

Her role is vital in ensuring our school remains a clean, safe, and welcoming environment for everyone. We are so pleased to have her on board and look forward to working together. Please join us in giving her a warm welcome!

Year 5 have been hard at work over the past fortnight!  Here’s a bit of an insight into what we’ve been up to:

Guided Reading
Last week, Year 5 finished looking at the Hampshire Illustrated Book awards texts: a lovely selection of picture books for older children, which we explored with enthusiasm.  The children thoughtfully judged each book according to criteria in the categories Picture Power, Picture Position and Picture Pleasure.  This week, we have moved onto reading texts relating to the theme ‘survival’, and considering the purpose, audience and effects of the texts on the reader.  We have been really impressed with the children’s confidence talking about the texts.

English
In the past fortnight, Year 5 have embarked on a new English topic, looking at timeslip stories.  We’ve watched extracts of ‘Tom’s Midnight Garden’ and gathered a rich pool of vocabulary to describe the gardens in each time, along with the Tom’s feelings.  Inner monologues were penned, and today we experimented with starting sentences with -ed words such as ‘Astonished,’ and ‘Frightened,’.

Maths
In Maths, our recent focus has been time.  We have recalled how to tell the time on analogue and digital clocks, and then compared the difference between 12-hour and 24-hour digital clock displays.  We then moved onto solving one and two-step worded time problems.  Your support at home is so helpful in this area of mathematics in particular, so please do get into the habit of asking your child to read the time/work out time intervals whenever the opportunity presents itself!

Science
We have been exploring the earth, sun and moon in Science lessons, and so much enthusiasm has been shown towards this subject.  Ask your child some questions to test their knowledge in this area – we think you’ll be impressed!

Homework
Just a little reminder that homework is continuing to be set via Google Classroom weekly.  This goes live every Friday, and is to be completed by the following Thursday.  In addition to this Maths homework task, every child should be completing 20 minutes of TTRS (recommended in short bursts for maximum effectiveness) and should be reading both to themselves daily and out loud occasionally, to aid their reading fluency and confidence.  Optional games have now been set on Spelling Shed too!

Art ‘Exhibition’
Our classrooms will be open for parents and carers to visit straight after school on Friday 6^th December to view the fantastic Titanic-themed 2D sculptures that the children have created in Art lessons this term.  We are really proud of these sculptures and keen to show them off!

Have a fantastic weekend!

This afternoon, the children treated their parents to a fantastic short ukulele concert, showcasing all the skills they’ve been learning during their weekly autumn term lessons with Mrs. Hughes. From strumming chords to playing in time together as a group, it was wonderful to see their confidence and musical talents shining through.

The performance was the perfect way to celebrate their hard work and dedication throughout the term. It’s been amazing to see how much they’ve progressed, and the smiles on their faces showed just how much fun they’ve had along the way.

Thank you to Mrs. Hughes for inspiring the children and to all the parents who came to support this special event.

The children sounded amazing—well done, Jackalberry Class!

We are incredibly proud of sisters Jemima (Year 5) and Abigail (4R), who recently had the opportunity to participate in a truly special event. Along with other military children whose parents serve in the UK Armed Forces, they were invited to the historic Royal Hospital Chelsea for an intergenerational Christmas storytelling event with the esteemed Chelsea Pensioners. 

The event was a beautiful celebration of community, connection, and the festive spirit, bringing together children and the retired veterans in a heartwarming exchange of stories, laughter, and holiday cheer. It was an unforgettable experience for all involved, and we are delighted that Jemima and Abigail were part of such a meaningful occasion.

To read more about this wonderful event, visit:

https://london-post.co.uk/christmas-storytelling-with-the-chelsea-pensioners/ 

Report by Mrs. Cooper (Swim Coach)

On Monday evening, some of our Y4, Y5, and Y6 swim squad members proudly represented BWJS at a gala hosted by Bedales School in Petersfield. With their pool being the same size as ours, we brought along a smaller team than we typically would for matches held at larger venues like St. Swithun’s.

In preparation for this match, our upper school swim squad has been focusing on backstroke turns, breaststroke touch turns, and tumble turns—and the hard work certainly paid off! The Y5 and Y6 races, which were mostly over 40m, showcased these skills beautifully, while our Y4 team tackled their 20m races with determination and technique.

The atmosphere at the event was a perfect blend of friendly camaraderie and competitive spirit. The standard of swimming—from stroke technique to dives, turns, and relay takeovers—was truly exceptional. Our team approached every race with confidence and determination, leaving us incredibly proud.

The effort of every swimmer contributed to an outstanding overall victory for BWJS, with a final score of 183 points to Bedales’ 140 points. Here’s how the results broke down:

• Y4 Team: An incredibly close match, winning by just 1 point!
• Y5 Team: A solid victory, winning by 10 points.
• Y6 Team: Leading the way with a magnificent 32-point win!

This success wouldn’t have been possible without the fantastic support from our parents, who not only provided transport but also cheered enthusiastically from the poolside. A huge thank you to Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Loosemore for helping ensure our swimmers were ready and in the right place at the right time.

We look forward to a rematch against Bedales next spring, which we hope to host in our own pool—if we can find a rare free slot in our busy timetable!

A very proud,
Mrs. Cooper