Autumn Term Issue 15: 20th December 2024
Flourishing in the love of God, love of life, love of learning
Dear families,
As we approach the end of this wonderful term, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what a truly special time it has been for our school community. It has been a term filled with joy, growth, and a sense of togetherness that leaves us all feeling thankful and full of Christmas spirit.
One of the highlights of this week was our heartwarming carol service at the church yesterday. It was such a joy to come together, sing, and celebrate the festive season as a community. A huge thank you to everyone who joined us – your presence truly made it a memorable occasion. There’s something magical about sharing moments like these, and it’s a reminder of the strength and warmth of our school family.
As we break for the holidays, I want to express my heartfelt thanks to all of you for your continued support, which makes all the difference.
I hope you and your families enjoy a peaceful, joyful Christmas filled with love and laughter. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in the New Year, on Tuesday 7th January, ready for more exciting adventures together.
Warm wishes,
Alli
Upcoming Diary Dates
Reception
Well, what a week! Party, rehearsals, our first Nativity Show (didn’t they do well?) our first Church service, Christmas jumper day, Christmas lunch…
We are so proud of the children this week, especially as their voices soared in the church, they have done so well at learning not just the songs but the BSL signs for many of them too.
Thank you for sending in the delicious food for the party, the children really enjoyed it. Thank you too for all our lovely Christmas cards and gifts, your kind words mean so much, we wish you a happy and peaceful Christmas.
When we come back in January, our first RE lesson looks at who is special to us, the children will have a chance to talk about a photo of someone who is important to them in a circle time lesson (where we are also learning to listen to each other and speak so that we can be heard.) Please email Miss Regaard or Mrs Davies a photo of the person your child has chosen.
Year 1
Wow, what a week! The children were absolute stars in our nativity ‘Baaaamy Bethlehem’! They blew everyone’s socks off with not just 1, not just 2, but 3 performances in the week to the children at SJSC and the parents. They have worked so hard and were so excited to show everyone. Thank you for being such a great audience and helping the children with their lines. They also sang beautifully at our Christmas Carol service. Well done Year 1!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We hope you have a restful break!
Year 2
The Year 2’s had the most amazing time performing ‘The Fleece Force’ this week. We would like to thank all guests for coming and cheering on all the children, they were so excited to show you. All the Year 2’s should be so proud of their performance, everyone did a fantastic job!
Year 3
This week, we are excited to share that Year 3 children have been diving into the fascinating world of the Old Testament, exploring the prophecies given by the prophets and how they point to Jesus Christ. We have been learning about the importance of these messages for Christians and how they connect to the story of Jesus’ life, teachings, and mission on Earth. We explored four key prophecies and children then created fantastic Christmas cards.
We would also love to express how fantastic the Christmas parties were in both classes. Children enjoyed food, festive games and music all whilst spreading Christmas joy!
Year 4
This term, we've absolutely loved exploring our new English book, The Ever-Changing Earth. It's been such a joy to make connections between english, science, and history. As part of our learning, we worked hard to create beautifully crafted list poems that describe our ever-changing Earth, using vivid and thoughtful noun phrases. The creativity and effort the students put into their work were truly inspiring!
As we wrap up this first term, Mrs. Hare and Ms. Evans want to send a heartfelt thank you to everyone who contributed to making it such a success. To our amazing students, thank you for all your hard work and dedication—you’ve accomplished so much!
We wish you all a lovely, restful and well-deserved break. Enjoy the holiday season, and we can’t wait to see you in the new year!
Year 5
What a week to end the year! Year 5 have been getting into the festive spirit in many ways including writing and performing their own Christmas carols with a Christian message.
In other news, as we wrap up our topic on WWII, we had a visit from the local branch of the Royal British Legion who revealed to us that we had raised a record-breaking amount of money for the charity in under 4 days - thank you so much to all those who supported the Poppy Appeal this year!
Year 6
Year 6 had a special visitor (Alison Boghurst) from the local Baptist church who shared the meaning of Christmas from her perspective as a Christian. She brought the stories of the Bible to life, explaining how Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Jesus and the values of love, kindness, and hope that it represents. The children had the opportunity to ask questions during a lively Q&A session and received thoughtful Christmas cards and calendars to take home and share. It was a wonderful experience, helping everyone to reflect on the deeper meaning of the holiday season.
Music this week…
Wishing everyone in our school and community a very Merry Christmas! Well done to all the children for singing so beautifully in Church, to all the instrumentalists and to the soloists, Bobbi and Rafiq. You brought joy to everyone today.
Thank you to Choir for singing to the elderly people at Goose Green centre and making their Christmas lunch extra special. You all deserve a relaxing break.
Resilience Awards
This half term we have focussed on our value of RESILIENCE. Well done to the children who were nominated as class members who have demonstrated inspirational resilience and challenged themselves.
Reading champions
Well done to our reading champions- children who have been celebrated this half term for their wonderful efforts in reading
Save the children Christmas Jumper Day
We are excited to share that we exceeded our fundraising target for Save the Children during our recent Christmas Jumper Day! Thanks to everyone's generosity and participation, we raised a fantastic total of £332, surpassing our goal of £200.
Thank you all for your support in making this event a success. Your contributions will help make a difference in the lives of children in need.
Friends of SJSC
We are delighted to announce that we have raised a record breaking amount from our Christmas Fair 2024 - £9,238.47!
All of that money will go directly to the school to provide more opportunities for our children.
Thank you all for your support this term. We are looking forward to more events for our school community in 2025.
Enjoy the Christmas break. See you next year!