Embedded Files
The staff and children would like to wish all the parents and families a wonder Summer. Stay safe and enjoy the sunshine.
The official Jubilee logo.
The logo shows four stylized figures, representing all of humanity, coming from the four corners of the earth. They embrace each other to indicate the solidarity and fraternity which should unite all peoples. The figure at the front is holding onto the cross.
Dialogue and Encounter
Dialogue and Encounter
This term the title of our RE topic has been 'Dialogue and Encounter'.
For "In him we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28).
In this branch, pupils have learnt how Christians work together with people of different religious convictions and all people of goodwill towards the common good, respecting the dignity of all humanity. They have also encountered other pathways of belief drawing on the teaching of the Church about intercultural dialogue.
Year of Hope: This term some of the Leaders of Hope attended a special celebration at Westminster Cathedral. The celebration was led by Cardinal Vincent Nichols, who has been a key figure in promoting the Jubilee Year of Hope, designated by Pope Francis for 2025. The theme for this Jubilee is "Pilgrims of Hope," encouraging Catholics to deepen their faith and share hope with the world, especially in the face of global challenges like war and poverty. Cardinal Nichols has spoken extensively about the importance of hope, emphasizing its connection to forgiveness, service, and the love of Christ. As the late Pope Francis said ‘I hope that during this Jubilee we can practice kindness as a form of love, to connect with others. May this year bring us peace, fellowship and gratitude.' If we all try and remember these words then we will be looking towards a brighter future.
The Jubilee Year of Hope, declared by Pope Francis, is being celebrated throughout 2025, with a focus on pilgrimage, reconciliation, and acts of charity. During this half term, some of the Leaders of Hope attended a special celebration at Westminster Cathedral, involving over 100 schools and featuring a homily by Cardinal Vincent Nichols. The children represented our school beautifully and were lucky enough to meet the Cardinal at the end. They showed that anyone regardless of age can be leaders of hope.
Some of the Leaders of Hope attended a special assembly at St Albans, St Stephens school to receive the ASCAT Torch. This is a very special torch, it is a symbol of enlightenment, hope, peace and guidance. It reminds us that Jesus is the light of the world and His love for us shines bright even on the darkest of days. Jesus inspires us to live a good life, be an inspiration for those around us and with this symbol of hope we can help bring Jesus' light to everyone and be inspired to create a better world not just for ourselves but for future generations. The torch was made by students at JFK and will be with us till the start of the new school year before it continues onto its next stage of pilgrimage.
Catholic Social Teaching
Catholic Social Teaching
Our faith calls us to love God and to love our neighbours in every situation, especially our sisters and brothers living in poverty. Following in the footsteps of Christ, we hope to make present in our unjust and broken world, the justice, love and peace of God.
The Catholic Social Teaching (CST) we have been focusing on this half term is Dignity.
To celebrate this theme. The children have all taken part in CST lessons.
KS1: Understood the importance of being treated with dignity and hot it means being treated fairly and with love. They looked at two bible passages explaining how God loves everyone and wants everyone to be treated with dignity. Thought about what the word ‘neighbour’ means? Who is our neighbour? and talked about how everyone has special gifts given to them by God so everyone is special. The children discussed their gifts and talents and how they could share them with their neighbours.
LKS2: Looked at how treating someone with dignity means treating them with love, kindness and fairness. We should treat everyone this way because God made and loves everyone.
They discussed why we should treat everyone with dignity? What does treating everyone with dignity look like? and discuss what the bible passages and quote from Pope Francis means. What do they tell us about treating others with dignity?
It is important the children know that they are extraordinary just the way they are. They are worthy of love and respect because God created them. It is important, too, for the children to remember that they all have gifts and talents which make them special.
UKS2: The children were provide bible passages relating to Dignity and putting it into context.
They thought about the quote from Ephesians 2:10. Discussed what they think it means and understood that we are ‘created to do good works’? We then thought about how this is related to treating others with dignity? Reminding ourselves of the times we have respected the dignity of others and had our own dignity respected.
Ephesians 2:10 states, "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."
EYFS
EYFS
In RE the nursery the children have been learning about the sacrament of Baptism. They Baptised some babies saying ".... I Baptise you in the name if the father, the son and the holy spirit amen"
Reception have been learning all about St Peter and St Paul. We wrote a letter to a friend describing Jesus.
We also learned about St Bernadette. We learned about her life and the courage she demonstrated.
Year 1
Year 1
Year 1 have enjoyed learning about Islam and Eid, as well as learning more about their own faith. They have learnt about their Church community and parish, and gained an understanding of how they are part of a global Christian family and these communities celebrate their faith in a variety of ways.
Year 2
Year 2
Year 2 read the ‘Parable of the Good Samaritan’ from the Bible, found in the Gospel of St Luke. This story is a parable where Jesus asks us to become neighbours to all, not just those who are close to us or similar to us. The children were invited to ‘hot seat’ the Good Samaritan to explore why he stopped to help the traveller. They also ‘hot seated’ the traveller to see how he would have felt to have been left by the road with no one to help him. We discussed that Jesus’ parable was to give the message that we should all ‘love your neighbour.’ We brainstormed and wrote about the values of how Christians should live according to the parable of the Good Samaritan. Year 2 were able to give examples of ‘Who is my neighbour’ and how we can all look for ways to ensure we are good neighbours to others.
Year 3
Year 3
Year 3 enjoyed learning about the Examen prayer. We discussed that it is a method of daily reflection to help individuals notice and respond to God's presence in their lives. We drew around our hands noting the five things to think about when saying the Examen prayer. We then wrote out our own Examen prayer giving thanks, asking for forgiveness, and looking ahead with God's guidance.
Year 4
Year 4
This half term in RE, Year 4's topic has been Dialogue and Encounter. Within this topic, they focused on St Paul and the work he did as an apostle of Jesus. He spread the teachings of Jesus and influenced the lives of many Christians around the world. One of their activities was to write a letter to St Paul to thank him for all the work he has done and the way he influenced people's lives. They also looked at different events that took place in St Paul's life including those that took place before he became an apostle of Jesus. They made top trumps out of these and ranked him based on his kindness, bravery, respectfulness and influence. Their learning then focused on different faiths and religions. Within that, they looked at the Five Pillars of Islam. They spoke about the importance of each one and what each pillar represented.
Year 5
Year 5
In Year 5, we have been thinking about the Bible and investigating how it was written. We have looked at scripture in both the Old and New Testament and thought about how the Bible contains both sacred texts from the Jewish TaNaKh and also the Gospels.
We explored books that are special to us and recognised that the church teaches that sacred scripture is inspired by the word of God and is important to Christians all over the world.
Year 6
Year 6
This half term, Year 6 have been studying the faith of Islam and looking at how patterns are used in Islamic art. They researched calligraphy, vegetal and geometric patterns and learned how they are used on buildings, sculptures, in clothing and many other items.
Protective Prayers:
Dear Heavenly Father, As we begin this new day, we come before you with hearts full of gratitude for the gift of our family. We thank you for the love, support, and bond that unite us.
We humbly ask for your divine protection over each member of our family. Watch over us, both near and far, as we go about our daily routines. Shield us from harm, accidents, and illness. Guard our hearts and minds against negative influences.
Bless our home with peace, harmony, and unity. Help us to treat one another with kindness and respect, and to be a source of support and encouragement for each other.
Lord, we place our trust in you, knowing that your love is a fortress around us. May your angels encamp around our home, ensuring our safety and well-being as we come in and go out.
Guide our steps, O Lord, and may we always seek to follow your path of righteousness. Grant us wisdom to make wise decisions and the strength to overcome any challenges we may face.
We commit ourselves and our family into your loving hands today and all days, knowing that with you, we are secure and protected. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
A prayer for the children starting a new adventure:
A prayer for the children starting a new adventure:
As they start nursery or school for the first time - give them joy in new experiences As they move to new classes - give them confidence in growing friendships As they move to new schools - give them strength in their growing independence As they move on to college or university - give them wisdom in their maturity And for all the teachers, assistants, helpers, carers and volunteers who teach and nurture our children and young people, we ask for your blessing, your joy, your wisdom and your patience as they re-charge their batteries over the summer break, ready for the new term!
Prayers for safe travel:
Dear Lord, as I prepare for this upcoming trip, I ask for Your protection over my journey. Whether I’m traveling by car today, boarding a plane, or simply walking down the street, I trust You to be with me. Keep me safe from harm, help me make wise decisions, and lead me to my final destination safely. Let me be mindful of Your presence in every moment.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
Loving and merciful God, you have commissioned your angels to guide and protect us. Command them to be with us from our leaving until our return; keep us safe from all injury, accident or malice and sin. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen
The staff at St Bernadette would like to wish all our families a lovely summer.
We pray that God keeps you safe, healthy and happy.
Thank you for your support this year and we look forward to seeing you all in September.
For those families leaving us, thank you for placing your children in our care. We wish our Year 6 students good luck as they start their new adventure in their new schools. Come back and visit us!
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