Online Learning Software
Accelerated Reader (referred to as AR or Renaissance) is a popular program used in schools. The program does not teach reading skills or strategies; it is intended to encourage children to read independently, at their own level and pace. When a child has read a book, they ‘quiz’ on it using the online platform during the school day. Teachers use these quizzes to track progress and set appropriate learning goals (targets) to reach each term. As they work towards their goal, a sunflower grows on their screen to allow them to see their progress. To encourage more reading, the AR system cleverly counts the words read in each book, too, and children are rewarded with a brand new book of their choice for reading each million-word milestone.
Century is an incredibly intelligent online software that personalises content, questions and pathways for every learner in English, Maths and Science, allowing teachers to identify and address misconceptions and close gaps in children knowledge and understanding. It is a supportive system that stretches the child at a pace that is right for them. At GBJS we use this as a classroom and/or homework tool, and also offer after-school clubs for children to attend.
Fiction Express is an innovative book platform that connects learners with professional authors, encouraging reading for pleasure through fun co-creation of stories. Every half term, three books are published on their website in weekly chapters. What happens next is completely up to the readers. After each chapter, readers are asked to vote for their favourite way to take the story next and the author will write the next chapter based on the most votes. The website has a whole library of previously published books for the children to enjoy at any time too.
MyMaths is a whole-school interactive resources used in the classroom and can be used to for homework tasks. It is easy to use within lessons to support understanding, in addition to activities which consolidate learning through self-marked homework tasks, providing instant feedback to learners and teachers about successes and areas for development.
PiXL is a valuable teacher tool which allows them to diagnose gaps in children’s learning through termly assessments and use ‘therapies’ to close those gaps quickly. It also allows the school to track the progress of every learner, measure our progress against other PiXL schools nationally and accurately report to parents the progress their children are making each year.
Pobble is an educational platform designed by and for teachers to help improve children’s writing ability through the opportunity to see examples of other children’s writing to model their own on and through increased enthusiasm by becoming ‘pobblished’. Every week, your child's teacher will select “published authors”. Their work will be shared with the school community and a global audience. We ask you to join your child on this learning journey by engaging with their writing online by leaving a comment or ‘liking’ their writing. A weekly ‘Pobble Champion’ is selected by our English Leader and is shared during our weekly celebration assembly and in our Facebook group.
New to GBJS, Emile is a Department for Education approved online platform to improve spelling skills by engaging children in a four-level online game process. We will be using this to support spelling development in school for boosting spellings through interventions where needed, as well as for homework tasks from September 2022.
We introduced Teams, initially, as a way to provide a home learning platform during the pandemic national lockdown. We continue to use this to provide teachers with a tool to communicate tasks and reminders to children about their learning. It will have been explained to your child/children that the discussion board is not a chat facility and should not be used to talk with their friends. It is purely for work-based discussion, tasks and questions. Staff members will endeavour to provide an answer to questions or clarification as soon as possible, but please bear in mind that your teacher’s onsite commitments can vary and they will only respond during working hours.
Times Table Rock Stars is a fun and challenging programme designed to help pupils master the times tables. To be a Times Table Rock Star you need to answer any multiplication fact up to 12×12 in less than 3 seconds! The goal is for all participating rockers to be Times Table Rock Stars as soon as possible. As well as having opportunities during the school week, they are expected to practice online at home for a minimum of 10 mins per day, 5 times per week as part of their homework commitment.
We are a cashless school so use ParentPay for all items requiring payment. This includes booking and paying for school meals, school trips, after school clubs, Breakfast Club and Wraparound Care. All children at the Infant School receive free meals, however, if you think you may be entitled to these at Junior School you will need to apply at www.cloudforedu.org.uk/sims Otherwise, all meals will need to be booked and paid for in advance. When your child starts with us, you will receive details on how to set up and use this system. If you already have a ParentPay account for a child at another school, you can add our school details to your existing account.