Newsletter 7/12/2018. Lest we Forget

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1 Newsletter 7/12/2018 Lest we Forget November, traditionally the month of remembrance, was particularly special this year as we celebrated the 100 years since the signing of the armistice on the 11 th November Our Year 6 children led a wonderful assembly to help us remember the event 100 years ago, and we learned about how the different coloured poppies help us to remember those fallen in the Great Wars, and how they now stand as symbols of peace and hope. The children taught us how the purple poppy is often worn to remember the animals that have been victims of war; the black poppy commemorates the black, African and Caribbean communities' contribution to the war effort; the white poppy commemorates the people who died in conflict, but focuses on achieving peace and challenges the way we look at war; and of course the red poppy which represents remembrance and hope the red poppy having being inspired by the fields of poppies that grew where many of the battles were fought

2 Mrs Lawlor Writes Dear Parents/Guardians Mary s Meals The whole school community showed great generosity in supporting our Mary s Meals Backpack project. We have been successful in completing 49 backpacks ready to be sent off to the headquarters in Glasgow, and then on to children in Africa. For many children, a Mary s Meals backpack will be the first gift they have ever received. Mary s Meals provides one good meal to some of the world s poorest children every school day. The charity, named after Mary the mother of Jesus, who brought up her own Child in poverty, consists of, respects, and reaches out to people of all faiths and of none. We are delighted to have been able to participate in this worthwhile initiative, and we thank you for your support. Anti-bullying week Anti-bullying week also featured in November, and children spent time in their classrooms engaging with different themed activities. One of the activities was helping hands. The children were asked to write onto the fingers of a hand the people they would talk to or turn to if they felt worried or concerned about bullying. The whole theme of the week was Respect. Parental Questionnaires feedback Following on from parents evening, I received a relatively good response to the parental questionnaire (52 completed questionnaires). My aim was to gauge general thoughts and themes from parents and carers. An overwhelming majority of parents said that their children were happy at school which is positive to hear. We received many positive comments which is always well received. I have summarised below the comments relating to areas that could be improved as well as answering some of the questions posed. Comments and Suggestions 1. Communication could be better with parents, suggestion of a contact book. 2. More information on how to support children at home, and a clearer understanding of whether or not children are making sufficient or good progress. Further information and explanation about topics. 3. More curriculum opportunities in PE, Forest School and subjects to help prepare children for secondary school. 4. A few comments around transition from Reception to Year 1, class changes made to the current Year 2 and Year 3, and phased entry to Reception Year. 5. Reading record books in Year 1 to be more consistent comments were made with regard to incidents of poor behaviour and bullying. 7. Road safety and road layout. 8. The school seeking views and reporting back on actions taken. 9. Sacramental preparation in Year 3.

3 Cont d Our website has now been updated with the homework policy as well as the curriculum information slides presented in September. There are links to help with choosing books for children to read, appropriate to their age. More reading, writing and maths links are on their way. Year 3 children are currently preparing for the sacraments of Reconciliation and First Communion. Sacramental preparation is always carried out in the parish as it enables children to be supported by their parish community, however, we support the themes of the programme within our RE lessons at school. SJA Thanks Thank you to the SJA for organising our second Make a Difference Day on the 17 th November It was a lovely November day with the last of the sunshine making an appearance. Lots of families came on to the school site and into the Forest School area to make a difference to the grounds. Thank you to everyone for their help, a lot was achieved in a short space of time. A special thanks to Mr Wood for being so generous with his time, and to Mr De Iacovo for providing very agile expertise and power tools to remove some of the woodland area. Thanks also to the SJA for organising a highly entertaining Quiz Evening. It was a lovely atmosphere and Parents who are new to the school found it a good opportunity to get to know people. Many thanks to the organisers and for all those who attended. And a big thank you the SJA for the beautiful Christmas tree generously donated by them! Attendance and Punctuality Please note that the gates will shut at 8:55am. Children arriving late must be signed in the late book by the adult dropping them off to school. There are a number of children being collected late after school. Please phone the office and inform us of any late pick up arrangements. We will always make allowances, but regular late pick up is not acceptable. There are places available in the afterschool club and information about the club is on our website. If you regularly cannot pick up on time, please make use of this facility. Please could you try and make sure routine or non-urgent doctor or dentist appointments are during half term breaks or afterschool. We have seen a rise in children missing school to attend appointments which does cause disruption for all concerned. Parents are asked not to approach teachers in the morning as we need to get on with the school day, however urgent messages and general messages will be facilitated by the main office. Parents are free to talk to staff after school. communication is to be sent to Mrs Sawyer secretary@stjosephs-redhill.surrey.sch.uk and will be forwarded to the relevant member of staff. Advent The season of Advent officially began on the first Sunday of Advent (2 nd December 2018). Year 5H illustrated in a very moving way in their class assembly, how we prepare for visitors and prepare for Christ s birth. The children took part in an Advent service in school on Monday 3 rd December. We look forward to sharing with you our Christmas celebrations in our December newsletter at the end of term.

4 Year 6 Preston Manor Trip The children immersed themselves into a variety of working roles on their recent school trip to Preston Manor. Prior to the trip, they had written letters of application for a number of different jobs set in Victorian Britain. On the day the children very efficiently made beds, cleaned rooms, beat rugs, set out tea trays, and made jam and lemonade. The children were able to get a true sense of life in Victorian Britain, and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. They were commended by the Lady of the House, on their behaviour and enthusiasm.

5 Staffing I am delighted to announce that Mrs Millican will soon be expecting her first baby. Mrs Millican is due to have her baby in May and will starting her maternity leave at the beginning of the Summer Term. I am sure Year 6 parents will be delighted for Mrs Millican but also concerned about Year 6 staffing. Please be reassured that we will communicated staffing arrangements to you as soon as possible. The bulk of the preparation will have been completed by the end of April Unfortunately, Mrs De Sampayo is currently on compassionate leave. We will keep you informed as necessary. Please do contact Mrs Tinker or a member of the senior leadership team ( Mrs Lawlor, Mrs Scanlon, Mrs Millican or Mrs McGrath) if you have any concerns or queries. St Joseph s School Admissions If you are applying for your child to attend St Joseph s School in September 2019, Fr Tony will sign the Supplementary Information Forms (SIFs) on the following dates: Monday 7 th January 3.00pm pm, and Wednesday 9 th January 5.00pm pm in the PNL Centre at St Joseph s. You must then submit your SIF to St Joseph s School by the 15 th January. Reminders Please do take notice of dates and timings for the Nativity plays, Christmas Dinner Day, KS2 Christmas Service and Christmas Jumper and Hamper Day. Date Event Where and Who 7 th December 2018 EYFS Nativity 2pm Upper Hall (KS2 siblings to attend) 10 th December 2018 EYFS Nativity 9.30am Upper Hall (KS1 siblings to attend) 11 th December 2018 Christmas Dinner Day Father Christmas visits EYFS & KS1 Junior Christmas Discos Children to wear Christmas Party/home clothes All Christmas activities will be during the school day. 12 th December 2018 KS2 Carol Service rehearsal at St Joseph s Church Within school time 13 th December 2018 KS2 Carol Service Carol service 1.30pm St Joseph s Church 7.00pm St Joseph s Church (all KS2 children are expected to attend) 14 th December 2018 Christmas Hamper Day Children wear Christmas jumpers and donate items for the Christmas Hampers. SJA will make up hampers and raffle them as in previous years.