Keep up to date with all the news happening in school at the moment.

• Sports Update

  Sun 04 Jul 2021 Mrs Taylor

  After what has been a difficult year for sport, it has been lovely to see the children taking part in a range of different sporting challenges in the summer term.

  Our first competition of the year was Gymnastics back in May. We entered several teams into the competition ranging from Year 4 to Year 6 and a mix of boys and girls. We also had some very talented Gymnasts who entered the individual category. Each school who took part, competed at their own school and Jason Tucker judged each competition. Once all of the results were in, the winners we announced and I’m proud to say that our Year 5 girls team took 1^st place. There were some outstanding gymnastic performances on the day and the children should all be extremely proud of themselves.

   

  Our annual Sports Day took place in June, following strict Covid guidelines. Each year group competed separately in both track and field events. The day was fantastic and I am incredibly proud of all the children who took part and to all those that cheered and gave encouragement to the competitors from the side-lines. It was lovely to see children outside and enjoying being active again!

   

  Also in June, we held our annual Kevin Mann memorial race. This event holds a special place in our hearts and is something that the children look forward to and aspire to be a part of each year. This event was also the first time that we had the whole school together for in over twelve months (under strict Covid regulations and bubbles socially distanced at all times). The atmosphere on the morning was brilliant! I’d like to thank the children who took part for their hard work and commitment in the lead up to the race and for being fantastic on the day. You were all amazing and should be so proud of yourselves! Also, I’d like to thank all of the spectators for your support and encouragement to all of the runners – they really did appreciate it and were inspired to keep going!

   

  Towards the end of June, we held our first interschool tennis tournament in over a year. We entered two Year 4 teams consisting of a mix of boys and girls. Both teams played fantastic tennis and won a place in the final at the end of June. The final was just as exciting and again there was some outstanding tennis played. Our A team were crowned the winners of the whole tournament and the B team came in in 4^th place (although there was only 3 points difference between 3^rd and 4^th). I am confident that we will see both teams at Wimbledon in the near future! Keep your eyes peeled!

   

  Also at the end of June, we played our first Year 6 Rounders tournament in over a year. We entered two teams, which consisted of a mix of boys and girls. The standard was high throughout both rounds but the A team managed to win all their games and were awarded a place in the final (to be held on 6^th July). The B team won one game and lost their other, just missing out on a place in the final. Well done to both teams – you were fantastic and you should be very proud of yourselves. You all demonstrated superb School Games Values – thank you! We will keep everything crossed for the A team in the final and keep you updated on the result.

   

  Finally, the whole school took part in Wellbeing Week the week commencing 21^st June. This event was organised by Energize to replace the School Games Festival which was unable to take place this year due to Covid restrictions. The aim of the week was to have fun while being active. It also, as the name suggests, focuses on wellbeing with resources and ideas for everyone. After the last year, we need to work together to support each other’s wellbeing more than ever. Each class kick-started the week by watching some videos of various sporting heroes to help the children to think positively and to share some examples of their sporting memories. The three challenges were Chest Passes, Daily Mile and Skipping. Each day the children completed all three challenges and strived to beat their personal best over the week. The results were then collected and sent off to Energize to judge. I’m proud to announce that our school was awarded the winning school for the most improved Daily Mile challenge and the overall winning class was 6LS! I’d like to say a huge thank you to all of the children and staff for making this week so successful and for everyone’s hard work and determination to be the best you can be. I’m very proud of everyone who took part – thank you!

   

  Thanks to Mrs Taylor and Mr Roberts for organising these events for the children too.

• Well-being picture

  Fri 26 Feb 2021

  Thank you very much to Ginnie in 4EL for creating this beautiful piece of nature art-work about her hopes for the future. It links to the well-being activities that they have sent out in Year 4. 

   

  I'm sure you will all agree it is a stunning picture - well done Ginnie.

  

• Advice for online safety

  Sat 20 Feb 2021

  Keep your child safe online

   

  It is important to have regular conversations about staying safe online and to encourage children to speak to you if they come across something worrying online.

   

  The resources on the link below provide guidance for parents and carers to keep children safe online. They will, amongst other things, support you to talk to your child about a range of online safety issues, set up home filtering in a child-friendly way and set up age-appropriate parental controls on digital devices:

   

  Click on Online Safety

• Supporting your child's remote education

  Sat 20 Feb 2021

  The government have released information and support for parents and carers of children who are learning at home.

   

  Click on Support for Remote Learning

   

  If you are struggling to get your child to engage with their learning:

   

  Engaging children at home

  Watch Dr Elizabeth Kilbey’s top tips or read the video transcript (PDF, 167KB, 3 pages).

  Watch Dr Elizabeth Kilbey’s top tips

  The Education Endowment Fund has produced support resources for parents. These include:

  • ways to support your child’s reading at home
  • advice on how to establish a routine with your child

   

  There is also advice on how to support your child's mental health and well-being.

• Supporting Parents Helpfinder

  Tue 09 Feb 2021

  Go to https://youngminds.org.uk/supporting-parents-helpfinder/

   

  By answering six questions, parents can find out how to support their child's mental health during the pandemic (and beyond).

• Memory Baubles

  Thu 17 Dec 2020

  Children at a Shropshire primary school have got into the festive spirit by capturing their memories in baubles donated by David Wilson Homes.

   

  The homebuilder commissioned pupils at Market Drayton Junior School to showcase their memories of 2020 in a clear bauble. The baubles have now been hung on trees at the homebuilder’s development on Blandford Way, Drayton Meadows, for its residents to enjoy this Christmas. 

   

  The children were allowed to encouraged to think about their favourite memories from the past year, and create something beautiful out of a year that has been difficult for many thanks to the current pandemic.

   

  Charlotte Wharton-Jenkins, Art Co-Ordinator at Market Drayton Junior School, said: “I’d like to give a massive thank you to David Wilson Homes for asking our Year 3 children to get into the festive spirit by making beautiful baubles for their Christmas trees.

   

  “The children thought about what Christmas meant to them, their favourite parts of the special day and what they'd like to receive from Father Christmas this year. After such an odd year, it was lovely to see how some children wished to just spend time with their family and friends.

   

  “A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all from Market Drayton Junior School!”

   

  With schools being closed for a long period of time this year, the baubles feature a range of memories, giving visitors and residents at the development a small snapshot of the children’s lives throughout the pandemic.

   

  Georgina Hall, Sales Manager at David Wilson Homes Mercia, said: “The children’s baubles were so fantastic and offer an insight into what children across the county have experienced throughout the pandemic.

   

  “It is important for us as a leading developer to maintain a relationship with the local community, such as the one we have formed with Market Drayton Junior School. It has been a pleasure to see the children get so involved in the activity we put together, and we know that residents at Drayton Meadows will enjoy the baubles as much as we have.”

• Ollee App

  Sun 15 Nov 2020

  Ollee is a digital friend for children aged 8-11 funded by BBC Children in Need’s A Million & Me initiative, which aims to make a difference to children’s emotional wellbeing. Ollee is created by Parent Zone.

   

  Ollee aims to help children reflect on how they feel and to process their experiences with the support and help of their parents and carers, offering advice and support they can also store for later.

   

  To find out more click on the link, below:

   

  https://app.ollee.org.uk/#/welcome

• Children In Need 2020

  Wed 04 Nov 2020 Admin

  We will be supporting Children In Need by holding a non-uniform day on Friday 13th November. Children may come in to school wearing something yellow or spotty, as in previous years.

  Due to the unusual circumstances this year will will not be asking for £1 donations in the usual way, we have set up a 'JustGiving' page, where you can donate your £1 straight to Children In Need. We hope that you will be able to support the charity in some small way, but we understand the difficulties faced by families this year and so there is no expectation on our part.

  You can donate to the JustGiving page by clicking here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/market-drayton-junior-school?utm_source=Sharethis&utm_medium=fundraising&utm_content=market-drayton-junior-school&utm_campaign=pfp-email&utm_term=4190e5e0eee74ed387e95817188937f7.

  Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to BBC Children in Need, so it's the most efficient way to give - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

  Thank you for your support.

• Guidance on sending my child to school

  Thu 17 Sep 2020

  Dear Parents and Carers

  
  The return to school has been a challenging one for us all.  The information below and attached has been received from the local authority and we thought it would be useful guidance to share with you.

   

  Testing of Under 5’s

  A reminder that regarding Under 5’s and testing:

  The advice remains that parents need to speak to 111 or GP for under 5’s
  Get advice from NHS 111 if you're worried about your child or not sure what to do:

  • For children aged 5 or over – use the NHS 111 online coronavirus service.
  • For children under 5 – call 111.

   

  Should a child be in school?

  Please find attached the guidance for whether parents should be sending children to school. 

  

• Return to School Support for Parents

  Thu 09 Jul 2020
  Help and support from Shropshire Council to help parents prepare children for the return to school in September.