Sacrifices for Christ

In Celebration of the Word this week, we heard how Jesus sent out his disciples, commanding them to serve the people in need with a spirit of self-sacrifice, “You received without charge, give without charge.” We have been reflecting this week on the Gospel value of sacrifice - we want to be a school community where children and adults freely offer their time and talents without thought of reward or personal gain. Children offered beautiful, practical examples this week of how they will make sacrifices for you at home - my favourite was, “Turning the hose off for Dad when he’s finished watering the plants.”

A - 11th Ordinary

Oscar Romero Award

On Friday 5th June, Noah and Matty alongside Mrs Hua had the wonderful opportunity to present at the Oscar Romero Trustees’ meeting, where they both spoke confidently about our school's Catholic Social Teaching (CST) journey and the values that shape our community. Through their words and actions, they demonstrated a deep understanding of CST, especially the call to serve others by demonstrating their sense of stewardship and responsibility, uphold dignity, and working for the common good.

Their thoughtful reflections and enthusiasm made us incredibly proud, truly showcasing how our pupils live out their faith in action and represent our school with integrity and compassion. Mrs Julie Oldroyd (Director of Education, Diocese of Arundel and Brighton) has sent them a personal thank you as their presentation and speeches gave witness to the impact of CST principles in our Catholic schools.

Year 6 Bring Suspense to Life with Alma

This week, Year 6 have been showing off their fantastic writing skills in our new English topic inspired by the short film Alma. The mysterious video tells the story of a young girl who discovers a strange doll shop and is drawn inside, only to become a doll herself. The eerie atmosphere and unanswered questions made it the perfect stimulus for suspense writing. Using the film as inspiration, the children wrote their own suspense stories, carefully building tension and keeping their readers on edge. They worked hard to include all the key features of suspense writing.

The results were impressive. Many pupils crafted stories filled with creeping footsteps and unsettling silence, while others focused on Alma’s curiosity and the growing sense of danger around her. Their writing showed real creativity and a strong understanding of how authors keep readers hooked. It has been wonderful to see the children so engaged in their writing, experimenting with language and structure to create suspenseful and imaginative stories. We are very proud of the effort and enthusiasm Year 6 have shown in this topic. We can’t wait to see where their writing takes them next!

Oh biscuits!

In DT, Year 3 were set the task to create a box to protect, preserve and contain biscuits - after all, nobody wants to eat broken biscuits! After looking at a selection of food packaging, the children explored different nets and considered which shape they would choose for their biscuit container. The next step was to design the packaging, making it attractive and appealing to customers. The following lessons involved the skills of measuring, cutting, folding and assembling until a final biscuit container was produced. Finally it was testing time with real biscuits! Did the biscuit container meet the design criteria? Children discussed what had gone well and how they would improve their product before completing a written evaluation. A busy and enjoyable couple of days!

Making Sense of the Seasons

In Science this week, Year 1 have been learning about how the weather changes across different seasons and how this impacts what deciduous trees look like at different times of the year. The children then really enjoyed making their own tree models showing these seasonal changes. The lesson sparked some very interesting thoughts around the fact that we were learning about the weather in different seasons, while at the same time it was raining outside in June!

Getting Ready for Writing

This week in Nursery, we have been focusing on developing the fine motor skills needed for a successful transition into school. The children have enjoyed using playdough alongside a variety of child-friendly cutlery, helping to strengthen the muscles in their hands, fingers and wrists through play-based activities.

By rolling, squeezing, chopping and cutting the playdough, the children have been building the strength and control needed for everyday tasks, including using knives and forks independently at mealtimes. These activities also support early writing skills by developing hand strength and coordination, ready for a effective pencil grip.

The children showed great enthusiasm and perseverance as they practised cutting and manipulating the playdough in different ways. It has been wonderful to see their confidence grow as they become more independent and capable. Developing these important self-care skills is a key part of preparing our children for their move to school.

Preparing for Portsmouth

This week in Year 2's Geography we have started our comparison study. The children are now learning about Portsmouth and will be comparing aspects of it with Guildford. Later in the term we will be heading down to Portsmouth for our trip. The children have already been challenged with looking out for particular points of interest along the route and while we are there. Our first focus was to make maps showing the route to Portsmouth and identifying features along the way.

Go Betsy!

We are delighted to celebrate an exciting achievement for Betsy S in Year 5, who has been awarded Most Improved Player this season at her netball club, Old Bridgians.

Betsy’s success comes as no surprise to us. We have been watching her develop her skills since Year 3, when she first impressed us with her natural talent and enthusiasm for the game. It has been a pleasure to see her confidence, determination and ability continue to grow over the years.

Following in the footsteps of her sister Molly, now in Year 8 and achieving wonderful things both on and off the court, Betsy has shown the same commitment and positive attitude that makes her such a fantastic role model.

Her dedication extends beyond her club netball too. As a valued member of the Year 5 netball team, Betsy has helped the team achieve an incredible unbeaten record this year, winning every tournament and remaining undefeated throughout the season.

We are incredibly proud of Betsy and look forward to seeing what she achieves next. Congratulations, Betsy!

Cloud Busting

Year 4 have recently begun reading "Cloud Busting" by Malorie Blackman, our new Master Readers text. As the story is written in verse, we took the opportunity to explore some of the features of poetry and create poems of our own.

During our lessons, we focused on using ambitious vocabulary to make our writing more vivid and engaging. We also experimented with repetition and similes to add impact and help our poems build in pace and excitement. The children thought carefully about the words they chose, creating imaginative images for their readers and listeners, using the base of Malorie's Blackman's poetry to help us.

There was a wonderful buzz of creativity around the classroom as everyone drafted, edited and improved their work. The children especially enjoyed sharing their finished poems with their classmates, listening to different ideas, and especially enjoyed when children had been able to add some humour into their poems, too.

We are very proud of the enthusiasm and creativity Year 4 have shown and are looking forward to continuing our "Cloud Busting" journey in Master Readers.

St Oscar's Sacrifice

Our thanks to RO this week for leading us in prayer and thanksgiving for the Gospel value of sacrifice. We heard how Jesus instructed his followers to live their life at the service of others - to use their time and talents to build up God's Kingdom.. The story of the Giving Tree helped us to reflect on how God's creation provides everything we need, in return, we are called to be generously spirited in giving to others. Thank you St Oscar's Class!

Witnesses to Sacrifice

Congratulations to this week's outstanding Witness Award winners, who have been living out the value of sacrifice in their actions around school this week. From sharing what they have with others, to opening their play to new friends and even spending time developing the skills and talents of others through peer-to-peer coaching. What an inspiration you are! God bless you children.

Favourite Stories

Reception children have been enjoying the story Dear Zoo this week. Hearing great stories again and again is an essential way of building up children's familiarity and confidence with the English language. Check out their own versions of the classic story! - Children are learning to form letters correctly and write phrases that can be read by others, by spelling words with sounds they know.