SS Alban & Stephen Catholic Junior School - Ss Alban and Stephen ...
SS Alban & Stephen Catholic Junior School Cecil Road · St Albans Telephone: 01727 866668 Web Site: www.ssasjm.herts.sch.uk Headteacher
· · · ·
Hertfordshire AL1 5EG · Facsimile: 01727 810710 E-mail: [email protected] Mr C Soyka
Dear Parents and Carers, The weather has not dampened the spirits of the children or staff this week despite the rain and grey skies. The mission has been a tremendous success and the children have responded with great enthusiasm. Please don’t forget our cake sale tonight after school. All proceeds will go to Caritas, CAFOD’s sister charity who works with refugees throughout the world. I was very proud to award our new chaplaincy team with their new ties on Monday morning. Sr Anita was present in her role as parish sister to help with the ceremony. The team gave a little presentation to the school about the current refugee crisis which helped the children and staff understand a little more about the situation. Thank you girls. The football team had their first outing this week, please read the match report below for further details. The discussions I have had with teachers this week about children’s progress in Maths have been very encouraging; keep working hard children. We will be hosting a number of workshops throughout the year which are specifically designed for parents to help them with their child’s learning. Please read below for further details. Have a lovely weekend and thank you for your continued support. School Mission: After two full days, the Sion Mission Team has left an indelible mark on the school. Through very carefully crafted assemblies and workshops they asked some very searching questions of the children about their faith. There will be a presentation tonight in the church hall at 7pm which celebrates what the children have leant over the last two days. Thanks must be given to Andy and his team for creating such a wonderful atmosphere of enthusiasm and understanding. School Journey Meeting for Year 6 Parents: There is a meeting for all parents of children in Year 6 this coming Monday12th October at 6:45pm in the school hall to discuss the School Journey to Stackpole Activity Centre. Please make every effort to attend. If you are unable to attend the meeting, slides from the presentation will be made available directly after the meeting. Teacher – Parent Consultations: These important meetings take place throughout next week. Morning meetings will take place in Mrs Jeffery and Mrs Burley’s office and evening consultations will take place in the school hall. Appointments are scheduled for ten minutes but you are invited to arrive a few minutes early to look through your child’s books. If for any reason you need to speak with your child’s teacher longer than the scheduled time please make an appointment at the school office. We look forward to welcoming you all next week.
Building God’s community of love and learning.
Parent Workshops: Over the coming months there will an opportunity for you come in to school and take part in a workshop with your child. They will be led by your child’s class teacher and will focus on the Writing process and different areas of Mathematics. The first set of workshops will focus on The Big Write. Once you have been introduced to the way the Big Write is used throughout the school there will be a session for you to work with your child using the Big Write strategies to create a piece of extended creative writing. By offering this opportunity to parents, our hope is that you have a greater understanding of how the school teaches writing and the way you can help to support your child’s learning through active participation. Year Group 6 5 4 3
Big Write Date of Workshop Friday 6th November Thursday 19th November Friday 22nd January Friday 29th January
Maths Date of Workshop Friday 26th February Thursday 10th March Friday 22nd April Friday 29th April
Boys’ Football: On a bleak and grey Wednesday afternoon the Boys football team played their first game against St Bernadette’s over at London Colney. After two hard fought halves of football and a courageous team effort they unfortunately lost 3 – 1. According to Mr Gallen, their coach, they played very well as a team and showed great commitment. Thank you to all the boys from Year 5 and 6 who represented the school and to Mr Hancock and the many parents who helped to transport the boys to and from the match.
Yr 6 Visit to Beaumont: On Friday the 8th October year 6 visited Beaumont School to attend a talk by the bestselling author Jonathan Stroud. He told us about his latest book “Lockwood and Co” and gave us tips on how to be a great writer. He picked a member of the audience to dress up as a ghost hunter and showed us all the equipment needed to be a good ghost hunter, like Lockwood from his new novel. He told us that he didn’t want to make a typical cliché ghost story and asked members of the audience to suggest settings you wouldn’t find in a normal ghost story. He sketched on the board as he spoke and his amazing cartoons brought his words to life. After the talk we were lucky enough to buy a book and we got to meet Jonathan, where we could chat to him and he signed our books, some of us even got little illustrations. We were all inspired and we will use this experience to help us with our writing. By Thomas and William Italian Club: There are still two places available at Italian Club; you don’t necessarily have to be fluent to attend. Please speak to Mrs Perra or a member of the school office for further details.
Building God’s community of love and learning.
Italian Day: Our annual joint celebration of European language day and one world week is taking place this year on Wednesday 21st October. Throughout the day, we will be celebrating the language, culture, food and traditions of Italy and all children should come dressed in the colours of the Italian flag. Mrs Jeffery is holding another meeting this Tuesday 13th October at 2.00pm for any parents who are able to help with the organising and running of this event. She is making a plea for any extra help. Can you please let the school office know if you will be attending, thank you. The Big Question: Please spend some time discussing the weekly question, challenging your child to see if they can find a number of different ways of answering the open ended question. One strategy they are familiar with is the Agree Build On and Challenge approach. See what they can come up with! “Which is heavier, a song or a dream?”
The Struggle To Do Good Doing good sometimes feels like struggling uphill, with an avalanche of mischief crashing all around; but other times it feels like paddling down the river of righteousness, towards the great sea of everlasting kindness.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Mr C D Soyka
Building God’s community of love and learning.
· · · ·
Hertfordshire AL1 5EG · Facsimile: 01727 810710 E-mail: [email protected] Mr C Soyka
Dear Parents and Carers, The weather has not dampened the spirits of the children or staff this week despite the rain and grey skies. The mission has been a tremendous success and the children have responded with great enthusiasm. Please don’t forget our cake sale tonight after school. All proceeds will go to Caritas, CAFOD’s sister charity who works with refugees throughout the world. I was very proud to award our new chaplaincy team with their new ties on Monday morning. Sr Anita was present in her role as parish sister to help with the ceremony. The team gave a little presentation to the school about the current refugee crisis which helped the children and staff understand a little more about the situation. Thank you girls. The football team had their first outing this week, please read the match report below for further details. The discussions I have had with teachers this week about children’s progress in Maths have been very encouraging; keep working hard children. We will be hosting a number of workshops throughout the year which are specifically designed for parents to help them with their child’s learning. Please read below for further details. Have a lovely weekend and thank you for your continued support. School Mission: After two full days, the Sion Mission Team has left an indelible mark on the school. Through very carefully crafted assemblies and workshops they asked some very searching questions of the children about their faith. There will be a presentation tonight in the church hall at 7pm which celebrates what the children have leant over the last two days. Thanks must be given to Andy and his team for creating such a wonderful atmosphere of enthusiasm and understanding. School Journey Meeting for Year 6 Parents: There is a meeting for all parents of children in Year 6 this coming Monday12th October at 6:45pm in the school hall to discuss the School Journey to Stackpole Activity Centre. Please make every effort to attend. If you are unable to attend the meeting, slides from the presentation will be made available directly after the meeting. Teacher – Parent Consultations: These important meetings take place throughout next week. Morning meetings will take place in Mrs Jeffery and Mrs Burley’s office and evening consultations will take place in the school hall. Appointments are scheduled for ten minutes but you are invited to arrive a few minutes early to look through your child’s books. If for any reason you need to speak with your child’s teacher longer than the scheduled time please make an appointment at the school office. We look forward to welcoming you all next week.
Building God’s community of love and learning.
Parent Workshops: Over the coming months there will an opportunity for you come in to school and take part in a workshop with your child. They will be led by your child’s class teacher and will focus on the Writing process and different areas of Mathematics. The first set of workshops will focus on The Big Write. Once you have been introduced to the way the Big Write is used throughout the school there will be a session for you to work with your child using the Big Write strategies to create a piece of extended creative writing. By offering this opportunity to parents, our hope is that you have a greater understanding of how the school teaches writing and the way you can help to support your child’s learning through active participation. Year Group 6 5 4 3
Big Write Date of Workshop Friday 6th November Thursday 19th November Friday 22nd January Friday 29th January
Maths Date of Workshop Friday 26th February Thursday 10th March Friday 22nd April Friday 29th April
Boys’ Football: On a bleak and grey Wednesday afternoon the Boys football team played their first game against St Bernadette’s over at London Colney. After two hard fought halves of football and a courageous team effort they unfortunately lost 3 – 1. According to Mr Gallen, their coach, they played very well as a team and showed great commitment. Thank you to all the boys from Year 5 and 6 who represented the school and to Mr Hancock and the many parents who helped to transport the boys to and from the match.
Yr 6 Visit to Beaumont: On Friday the 8th October year 6 visited Beaumont School to attend a talk by the bestselling author Jonathan Stroud. He told us about his latest book “Lockwood and Co” and gave us tips on how to be a great writer. He picked a member of the audience to dress up as a ghost hunter and showed us all the equipment needed to be a good ghost hunter, like Lockwood from his new novel. He told us that he didn’t want to make a typical cliché ghost story and asked members of the audience to suggest settings you wouldn’t find in a normal ghost story. He sketched on the board as he spoke and his amazing cartoons brought his words to life. After the talk we were lucky enough to buy a book and we got to meet Jonathan, where we could chat to him and he signed our books, some of us even got little illustrations. We were all inspired and we will use this experience to help us with our writing. By Thomas and William Italian Club: There are still two places available at Italian Club; you don’t necessarily have to be fluent to attend. Please speak to Mrs Perra or a member of the school office for further details.
Building God’s community of love and learning.
Italian Day: Our annual joint celebration of European language day and one world week is taking place this year on Wednesday 21st October. Throughout the day, we will be celebrating the language, culture, food and traditions of Italy and all children should come dressed in the colours of the Italian flag. Mrs Jeffery is holding another meeting this Tuesday 13th October at 2.00pm for any parents who are able to help with the organising and running of this event. She is making a plea for any extra help. Can you please let the school office know if you will be attending, thank you. The Big Question: Please spend some time discussing the weekly question, challenging your child to see if they can find a number of different ways of answering the open ended question. One strategy they are familiar with is the Agree Build On and Challenge approach. See what they can come up with! “Which is heavier, a song or a dream?”
The Struggle To Do Good Doing good sometimes feels like struggling uphill, with an avalanche of mischief crashing all around; but other times it feels like paddling down the river of righteousness, towards the great sea of everlasting kindness.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Mr C D Soyka
Building God’s community of love and learning.
