Life in Christ
We saw two year groups embark on residential trips this week, as we celebrated in worship living our lives to the full. The Fourth Sunday of Easter, known as “Good Shepherd Sunday”, offers the image of Jesus as our protector and guide - the gateway to our salvation. In explaining this to his disciples, he urges them to see that life in Christ is life to the full.
We are very proud of the extra provision we make for children at St Joseph’s - with our extensive club offer starting this week too! We are also extremely grateful to the many parents and volunteers who help to give the children of our school the best opportunities possible to live life to the full. Whether it's sports, crafts, performance or horticulture, giving our children the chance to try something new is at the heart of our mission as a school.
Hooray for St George!
It was St George's Day on Sunday 23rd April, and St George's class celebrated this on Monday. They learned all about the story and how over the years the tale had evolved. The children recognised that St George is the patron saint of England, and made their own shields with St George's cross on them. Take a look at their retelling of George slaying the dragon...
My Movie.movGreen Fingers
All of the Nursery children have been planting this week. We planted runner beans, carrots, tomatoes and a sunflower for the children to take home. Furthermore, we have placed beans in bags and hung them on the windows to see which plant will grow faster, for example, the one in soil or the one in wet tissue paper. Gardening can help children's language development because they can spend time chatting with an adult and being exposed to new vocabulary related to plant growth, such as "stem," "compost," and "weed."
RE-action
In RE, Year 2 have been learning about what happened after Jesus rose. They have described how the women at the tomb must have felt on the first Easter Sunday, and how the Disciples felt when Jesus was back with them. This week we have explored further and role played the day of the Ascension. The children got in role and imagined what it would be like to be a Disciple when Jesus told them he was going back to his Father in Heaven. We were able to think of some great describing words and justify why they would have felt this way. It must have been a confusing time for the Disciples as they awaited the Holy Spirit.
Bake off!
Year 4 have enjoyed making bread rolls this week as part of their DT topic this term. They first tasted various flavourings including cinnamon, rosemary and honey to decide whether they wanted a sweet or savoury bread roll. Next, they worked together to weigh out the ingredients and follow a bread making recipe. Creating different patterns, linked to their art work, was done most diligently by some! Their favourite part was trying their rolls and evaluating the texture, taste and presentation of them!
Crime and Punishment
As part of our crime and Punishment unit, Year 6 have been drawing on a range of sources to determine and understand what caused the jury system to be introduced. We started by finding out what the most common crimes in Medieval Britain were and how crime levels related to the cost of wheat. We then looked at how the jury system was implemented and what impact this had on crime.
Netball Triumph
Congratulations to our committed Netball Teams, who represented St Joseph's at a tournament, last Saturday at Tormead School. The teams played several matches against other schools. The Year 5's came 5th and the Year 6's came 2nd overall. It was wonderful to see how hard the girls tried and how dedicated they were, giving up their Saturday morning to represent the school. Miss Longman, Mrs Dollner and Mrs Evans were very proud of them all!
More about plants...
In Year 3 we began our new topic on Plants by recapping some of the common plants we had seen in previous years and observing a real plant in the classroom. Very quickly the children recalled their learning from Year 1 where they labelled the parts of a plant: roots, stem, leaves, trunk and petals, so we built on this knowledge by describing the function of each part. The children then presented their learning using a diagram and labels. To extend the learning further, we ended the lesson by discussing the differences between flowering and non-flowering plants.
Ascension Experience
In RE this week, Year 1 have been busy retelling the story of the Ascension. We spent time discussing why Jesus was going to heaven and how his disciples might have been feeling when he told them he was going. Many children identified that they would be feeling sad, heartbroken and maybe even a bit angry. However, with the promise of the Holy Spirit to guide the disciples, the children identified that they may still be feeling sad and upset at the departure of Jesus but also full of hope and excitement for what was to come.
To help us further retell the story, the children created Ascension cups, with Jesus' promise written on the main cloud and the disciples' feeling written on other clouds. Well done for your deeper levelled thinking this week, Year 1!
Year 5 Adventure
What a joy to see these photos from the Year 5 residential trip to the Isle of Wight this week!
Erykah and Florence have given us an insight into the fun below:
Our IOW trip was amazing, exciting and a great learning experience!
We learned so much, including archery, climbing skills and how to tie knots. We also learned to believe in ourselves and have confidence in the instructors. The food was incredible and filled our stomachs with joy.
The cabins were cosy and comfortable. We loved being able to share rooms with our friends and express ourselves. Outside of our cabins, were little porches for us to enjoy the picturesque view of the calm, stunning creek.
Some of the activities were very enjoyable, while others were challenging but made us realise what we are capable of.
Our groups were really fun and caring towards each other and the instructors were dependable and understanding of our feelings and fears. On the way to and from activities, there were funny songs and chants.
We loved Little Canada, and hope that next year you will enjoy it as much as we did!
We would also like to thank the amazing staff and adults for giving up their time to spend with us and ensure that our IOW trip was enjoyable, fun and memorable.
By Erykah 5C and Florence 5L
1T live life to the full!
Our thanks to St Teresa's Class for a profoundly moving worship about embracing life to the full.
Through reflections on Bible passages, a catchy song about the Ten Commandments and the valued example of young carers, 1T demonstrated the many ways we can show God that we are living life to the full.
We know that there are many people in our community who care for others and today's worship was a timely reminder of the important support they give to loved ones and how amazing these people are.
St Teresa's Class delivered this week's message with such passion and did a remarkable job of acting, drawing, singing and praying.
Thank you, 1T!
Life-loving Witnesses
Our congratulations to this week's witnesses for embracing life and being role models in our community:
Alton
Diana
Kyra
Emmanuel
Zara
William
Norah
MIss Lordan
Harper
What's on locally?
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Coronation volunteers party.pdfApril and May Online Family Learning Courses.pdf