Welcoming Christ
As we prepared for the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A), we heard how Jesus instructed his disciples, before sending them out, "Anyone who welcomes you, welcomes me."
We stressed to children this week that we believe God dwells in every human person, so treating our brothers and sisters with dignity and compassion is non-negotiable. One of the ways that we first share this love for others is by welcoming them warmly into our community - staff, children and parents.
We've asked children to make a special effort to be a welcoming witness in their work and play this week.
Growing Wings
In Reception the children have been learning all about life cycles in a very practical way! A few weeks ago, some very small caterpillars arrived in each classroom. The children watched them eat lots of food and become a lot bigger. After about a week of eating they made their own cocoon and the children had to do a lot of waiting. We predicted what colour butterflies might emerge from the chrysalis - white, gold, blue....
When the children arrived at school on Tuesday, lots of excitement erupted! We had butterflies!
We loved watching and examining the butterflies in class before setting them free to live in the real world. The next time you see a butterfly it might be one from our Reception classes!
Dipping into Year 4
This week in Year 4, we have taken our learning into the local community to gather some data for our Science unit on classification of living things. We are lucky enough to have a pond within walking distance so, armed with pond dipping nets and a range of scientific testing equipment, we headed off with hi-viz jackets to Chitty's Common. Whilst we have been blessed with a hot and dry spell of weather, we noted that this has impacted the pond and the water level was significantly lower than in previous years. The colour of the water led us to think that this was an unhealthy pond but when we looked closer, we realised that many different creatures live in the habitat. We carried out three different experiments at the pond - pH testing, assessing the clarity of the water and our favourite - pond dipping. Because the water was so low, we had to be careful not to go too close to the bottom and stir up the mud. In class, we have been learning how to classify animals and we were able to use our skills to attempt to identify the creatures we found in the pond. We were amazed to find water snails, tadpoles, dragonfly larvae and even leeches! We are very grateful to the parents who supported us on the trip; we wouldn't be able to offer such rich learning experiences without you.
Nursery Let it Go!
Throughout the week of 19th June, St. Joseph's held their annual Music celebrations and Nursery joined in too. For us in Nursery this was a week dedicated to music and creativity. This year's theme was Musicals, in particular those linked to Disney.
Nursery made props and learnt the song, ‘let it go’ from the Disney film, Frozen. The children loved singing the song and making their own musical shakers, white and blue ribbon sticks as well as some glittering snowflakes and crowns.
Having opportunities to create resources and props to support singing and dancing is an important way for the children to engage with the arts and a crucial way to develop their understanding, self expression and an ability to communicate through the arts. This links to the ‘Expressive arts and design’ area under our Early Years guidance, which we follow in Nursery.
The Magical World of Disney
On Tuesday, 20th June, Year 3 explored one of the most famous songs from the film ‘The Jungle Book’ called ‘The Bare Necessities’. It was sung by Baloo (Phil Harris) and Mowgli (Bruce Reitherman) in 1966 and released in 1967. It was, in fact, the last film that Walt Disney made himself.
The children have been learning the song's words for the last week. So we started by practising our singing before making character headdresses. The children enjoyed deciding how to decorate their Jungle Book character, with most children staying close to the originals.
After lunch, the children created dances using four beats and attempted to keep the beat with percussion instruments.
Lots of practice followed before each class decided what and how to perform their version of the song. The three performances were very different and all unique!
It was wonderful to see how creative the children could be, with many of the children stating, “This was the best day ever!”
An invitation...
This week it has been a busy one in Year 2 with Science Day and Music Day! An array of skills have been covered in both areas. A specific high was creating the music video as part of Music Day. The children focused on 'Be Our Guest' from Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Each class learned a different part of the song and we recorded their singing along with dancing and acting. We are delighted to show you the finished product!
Be Our Guest.movTudor Tales in Year 1
Linking to our learning on Elizabeth I and The Tudors, Year 1 enjoyed an action packed day at Hampton Court last week. We each enjoyed spending time with Lady Alice, going back in time and learning how to bow and dance like a Tudor. We got to explore many artefacts from this era, including a spoon made of animal bones which surprised the children!
We just about made our way around the maze and then explored the palace itself, including Henry VIII’s apartments and kitchens. One child commented that the palace was much bigger than her house which she wasn’t expecting! It’s fair to say we were all amazed by the things to see, and our feet were aching by the end but what a fun day we had!
Good Shepherds
Our deepest thanks to represents from the Spiritual Council in Year 5 for volunteering to embark on the journey down to Arundel Cathedral last week, celebrating with our whole diocesan family at the annual Good Shepherd Mass. Children from all the Catholic primary schools across Arundel & Brighton came together to pray, praise and worship with Bishop Richard - remembering the awesome impact of Catholic education across our diocese. Thank you for representing our school so beautifully children - well done!
Good luck Jake!
Our thoughts and prayers are with Jake, from Year 4, this week as he competes with his dance team at the World Dance Cup finals in Portugal. Jake's family extend their thanks to all the families who supported their journey by contributing towards the cost of their very impressive looking kit!
Moving On
As Year 6 come to the end of their last term at St Joseph's, we have been spending time in class looking back at their experiences. We asked the children to reflect on their time and create a 'Day In The Life' video to show what wonderful memories they have and all the adventures they have shared. Take a look at some of our slideshows below...
8b4a9a04-6dee-4be5-90ae-b016dfc65263.MP4A Good Sign!
A special shout out to Josie in Year 1 this week! Josie has been an exceptional participant in Sign Club this term, who has developed a passion for learning signs. On her way back from Devon, Josie sat and focused on practising signing the complete alphabet. She has been a fantastic role model for others, encouraging them to broaden their language skills.
Well done Josie, you are an absolute inspiration!
Emmanuel's Moves
Congratulations to Emmanuel who is enjoying Teakwon-do success! He has recently won gold and silver medals for sparring, patterns and special techniques and has now been invited to join the AETA (All England Teakwon-do Association) squad. He will be competing as an international competitor in the ITF (international Teakwon-do Federation) Welsh Open on the 1st of July. There will be over 700 people competing from numerous countries from across Europe!
Good luck Emmanuel! - We are so proud of you.
What's on locally?
WSV Show 2023.pdf
June and July Family Learning Courses flyer.pdfKOOSA Kids Summer Holiday Club Brochure - St Joseph's Primary School in Guildford.pdf