We started the term with special CAFORD assemblies focused on our mission as Catholics to support and help those less fortunate as ourselves. Our guest speaker Kate, spoke to us about the powerful impact education has on improving the lives of others and the way free access to it is transforming the lives of others.

It is great to see so many parents turning up to our weekly parents tours. Since September we've had a new child join us pretty much every week and we are pleased that so many are actively seeking to be a part of our school community. Remember that Parent/Carers tours are every Wednesday at 9.30am. These are for prospective parents, but if you wanted to come along to see how we are doing and the new developments in the school you are more than welcome.

Year 3 enjoyed their trip to the Natural History Museum on Thursday. They children had a great time learning interesting facts and extending upon their learning. Thanks to all the helpers and teaching team who made the trip a great success.

This term children across the Federation have been taking part in a project with the Guardian Newspaper! Thanks to Ms Bickmoore we've been accepted onto this special project, resulting in the children meeting and learning from journalists and editors of our top newspapers.

A huge congratulations to our Pupil Leadership Team who were selected today. They each submitted an excellent application stating why they should be in post for this year. The applications were of an extremely high caliber which made choosing the pupil leadership team even more challenging this year! A huge congratulations to Emmanuel and Naomi, who will be our Head Boy and Head Girl and Phillip, EJ, Jael and Ayelen who will who will be their deputies. Aaron will be Senior House Captain and his response to gaining this post brought teachers to tears and the children filled the hall with rapture. We will have our first meeting after the half term and we are all excited about what this pupil leadership team will accomplish. Last year's contributed immensely to behaviour and attitudes and played a pivotal role with a tender process.

We hope you and your family have a wonderful half term. Well done children and thank you!

From Mrs Ashley and the Team

Safeguarding

Around one in five headlines online are clickbait. Clickbait is content designed to influence you to visit a page, video, or image online. They usually have outrageous and misleading headlines, scripts, or images. This kind of content is difficult for some children and adults to resist. Many platforms use a clickbait strategy to make money. This is because ad networks allow apps and websites to earn money from the number of views that their ads receive. Their business model encourages ad-supported networks to create clickbait content and so the more shocking the story, the more views they collect and therefore the more money they make. This can also spread misinformation, fake news and propaganda. Please continue to monitor closely your child's/children's device.

Early Years

This term, Reception children have started exploring their new topic: Seasons and Celebrations, learning about the vibrant festival of Diwali, the Festival of Light. The children have enjoyed discovering the traditions and significance of Diwali, particularly the beautiful rangoli patterns and dazzling fireworks that are often part of the celebrations. To bring this to life, the children got creative and made their own rangoli designs using lots of colours, and they also created stunning firework glitter paintings, capturing the sparkle and excitement of the festival. It’s been a fun and engaging way to learn about different cultures and the joy of celebration!

Key Stage 1

This week, year 1 had the exciting opportunity visit West Norwood Library. They were able to experience the technology which was available and explore the different sections of the library. They were fascinated by how quiet and still the library was and they engaged really well with the activities provided by the staff. They can not wait to return!

Well done year 1, you have made your teachers feel really proud.

Lower Key Stage 2

We have had a fabulous start to the new half-term in Year 4.

On Monday we had a visitor from CAFOD who told us about education around the world - did you know that many children have to pay for their education and so can't afford to go to school? We are very lucky to be given the opportunity to learn in a safe environment.

On Tuesday we visited West Norwood Library. We did some lovely activities with the staff there and then were able to choose 2 books to bring back to school with us. We will be visiting again in the Spring Term.

On Wednesday Mrs Phillips met with some of our parents to talk to them about our PGL residential trip in March. We are all very excited and looking forward to it.

In English we have continued to work on our News Wise project - this week looking at how we can spot fake news and real news. In Maths we have been learning about Area and will be moving on to Multiplication and Division next week.

In Science we have started a new topic all about Electricity and Circuits and had a great time creating 'human circuits'!

Today we will be beginning a new Geography topic all about the Amazon.

Upper Key Stage 2

Year 5 has been busy! In Maths, we’ve wrapped up our Multiplication and Division A topic, building strong foundations for future learning. In English, we concluded our balanced arguments on Children Should Never Be Bored and kicked off our next topic, exploring Anthony Browne’s thought-provoking book Zoo. This led to lively debates on whether animals should live in zoos or the wild. Our new class novel in Reading, Stormbreaker, introduced us to the thrilling world of spies, sparking discussions about the genre’s key themes.

In R.E., we explored Hinduism, delving into its important symbols. In Science, we began studying Life Cycles, starting with the fascinating world of plants. Geography has taken us to the Alps, learning about their location and the countries they span. Finally, our P.E. included cricket, with expert coaches from Surrey Cricket Club!

Curriculum Focus

This half term, the children will be starting their new Geography topics these range from studying the Alps and locating them on a map in year 5 to investigating why people live so close to volcanoes in year 3. In Key stage 1, year 2 are thinking about the question of whether they would rather live in a hot or cold place and year 1 are exploring maps and aerial photos of the school environment. Each year group topic does involve field work in order to enhance the children's experience and understanding of Geography. The lessons will enable the children to develop their key skills, knowledge and vocabulary further preparing them as they move up through the school.

Exciting News!!!

Rugby

Ten Year 6 children represented St Joseph’s at the Catholic Tag Rugby Tournament held at Cedars School. Despite it being their first time playing together as a team, they performed admirably, showcasing the skills they had developed during their P.E. lessons. They ended up finishing 5th out of 10 teams, which is a wonderful achievement! A special thank you to all the team that helped. It was a fantastic experience for everyone involved!

Football

St Joseph's 1st VII kicked off their season with a fantastic 2-0 victory against St Cyprian's. The team showed strong defensive cohesion throughout, working together to keep a clean sheet. The highlight of the match came from Daniel F, who scored one of the most remarkable goals ever seen on St Joseph's pitch. The goal was the perfect culmination of a beautiful build-up play initiated by Jacob D and Roman T. It was a great start to the season and the team is looking forward to maintaining this momentum in the upcoming matches!

Happy Birthday!

Everyone at St. Joseph's wishes you the happiest of birthdays

Year 6: Ema and Gianluca Year 5: George

Year 4: Laila

Year 1: Ephrata Nursery: Clara

Staff: Mrs Hudson

Key Dates

Tuesday 12th November Parents' Consultation Meetings (3.30pm- 7pm)

Thursday 14th November Parents' Consultation Meetings (3.30pm- 5.30pm)

We hope you and your family have a wonderful weekend

The St. Joseph's Team

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