Advent at church

It was great to gather together again as a school family at church last Thursday to start our Advent journey. The children were invited to take part in an advent challenge, that focused on surprises. Our theme being that Christmas is actually a story of surprises, if not even a tale of the unexpected!

Our reading and prayers were led by our year four, foundation and year 2 classes and as ever a selection of musicians performed at the start and end of the services. 

Our final song was accompanied by the distribution of glow sticks, a chance for us all to add a little 'light' to the proceedings!

 

Smartie time

Our year two classes were undertaking a data collection exercise last week all based around a tube of Smarties. The children were asked to record how many of each colour there were in individual tubes. All of this being brought together at the end to see if there were any patterns in the distribution or whether it was all quite random!

Great enthusiasm and self control exhibited by the children, no Smarties eaten and therefore no data sets distorted!  However they were rewarded at the end with the freedom to eat their work! The Smarties not the graphs!

 

Deck the halls

The 1st of December draws near and the Christmas decorations are up in our hall. A wonderful display of festive fun.

 

 

Art around the school

KS1 continue with their pirate theme and year 4 take the time to reflect on what Jesus may have looked like.

 

 

A time for light to show the way

In our KS1 assembly today we considered how amazing God's creation is through the words of one of our favourite songs; Our God is a great big God. The verse reminds us that God is wider than the universe and beyond our wildest dreams!

A star filled night, is all you need to consider the vastness of the universe and we only see a glimpse of what is actually up there! In our assembly we considered how important stars are to the Christmas story and how significant they were to people many years ago, in particular how they were used to navigate and find a destination.

We also thought about another source of light - the lighthouse. This reminded us of one of our other favourite songs - Shine from the inside out, so the world might see you live in me!

Light it would seem calls us to follow, but at the same time calls us to be lights ourselves.

Our verse for the next few weeks is taken from Micah 6 v 8

The Lord has told you what is good. He has told you what he wants from you: Do what is right to other people. Love being kind to others. And live humbly, trusting your God.

To do what is right to other people is most certainly a way of sharing the light!

Romeo and Juliet

Last Tuesday saw our intrepid band of actors deliver an outstanding performance of Romeo and Juliet at the Curve Theatre. Despite being faced with a sold out audience, they showed no nerves as they brought to the stage their interpretation of Romeo and Juliet. The final scene was greeted with rapturous applause and the smiles on their faces showed their delight and pride in what they had achieved.

This was certainly a night to remember for all involved, for the children themselves, for their proud parents and relatives and for us as a school.

It has been a hectic journey since they first came together, but under the watchful eye of our talented Teacher Director, they have worked hard to deliver the Shakespearean tragedy with a maturity beyond their age.

Thank you to all the staff who have worked so hard to make this happen, it was certainly a once in a life time experience!

The light of the world

This Thursday will see us gather together as a school community to mark the beginning of Advent.

The lighting of the first candle marks the beginning of this festival of light, that points us to the birth of Christ and to a time of celebration and remembrance of what that first Christmas was all about.

Light is a strong and constant theme in the bible as it is for other faiths as well. It signifies not just truth, but also the idea of someone seeking to lead us to something. The star that the wise man followed, the symbolism of Christ being described as the light of the world, is all about drawing us towards something. Advent calls us to seek the source of the light and to consider what that means to us.

As we commence once again our journey to Christmas, may we take the time to remember the importance of light and to reflect on what it  points us to, but also what it calls us to be.

Shakespeare at the CURVE

The end of our rehearsals are in sight as we prepare for our live performance tonight. The dress rehearsal on stage at the Curve this morning went really well and the children are very excited about performing tonight.

It's been brilliant to see this group of children grow in confidence and come together under the watchful eye of our teacher director. The performance of Romeo and Juliet is fantastic and they should be very proud of everything they have achieved.

A creative and inspired retelling of a classic tale.

Just a few hours to go until the curtain is raised!

Children in need

 

 

 

 

On Friday the whole school joined in to raise money for Children in Need, raising a fantastic £380 in the process.

 

Our whole school assembly focused on the work that CIN does across the country, looking in particular at some of our local charities that it supports.

 

Our time of reflection and prayer was for those who CIN seeks to make a difference for every day of the year.

 

 

Liberty, unity, equality

A time to pray and remember those who have lost and suffered.

Art in KS1 this week

A time to remember has led to great artistic creativity.

 

 

Table tennis

Sainsbury's School Games Table Tennis competition

On Friday 6th November, eight children from Years 5 and 6 took part in a Table Tennis competition at Judgemeadow Community College.  Our boy and girl teams played against 13 other city schools and secured 5th/6th place in the competition.  Competition was fierce and all our competitors played with skill, determination and exhibited excellent sportsmanship throughout, being exemplary models for St John's. 

 

Well done to everyone.

Who would you remember?

I listened to a motivational speaker the other day talking about remembrance, not linked to poppies, but linked to those people who have made a difference in your life. His challenge was to think of one person who had made a real difference and to make the decision to get in touch and thank them for the difference they had made. Quite a challenge really, as there are so many people in our lives that have made a difference. In fact some of them we never even knew!

His talk did lead me to think of those who I would wish to thank personally and those who I have never met. The list is long and varied, from family members to school teachers, from church youth workers to friends and colleagues. But also there is another list of people who although I have never met, have made a difference in my life. This list would contain Jesus Christ, Dr Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandella, Mother Teresa, Mahatma Ghandi and Peter the disciple of Jesus, to name but a few. All are well known names, but there are others as well, many not well known, but they are still significant people to remember. 

One of them would be Nicolas Winton probably be a name not known to many, but a man who is remembered today by the many people and their families that he left such an impression on. In 1939 with the German army about to invade Czechoslovakia , Nicolas put into place a plan to enable Jewish children to travel to London. Why? Simply because he realised that the impending German invasion would lead to these children and their families being transported to gas chambers. The task he undertook was immense and time critical, yet in the time available he enabled approximately 670 children to travel to safety. 

The thing is that he told no one of his actions when he returned to England, it was only, because his wife found a scrap book in the loft that listed all the children that he had saved, that his actions came to life. She sent the book to Ester Rantzen and her team, who tracked down some of the children he had saved. The result was an emotional reunion through her This is your life programme. Check out the You Tube clip to see the full emotional impact!  These people had continued to refer to themselves as Winton's children. His actions saved their lives and he will always be remembered for this.  

I wonder who would be on your list and for what you would wish to remember them for? 

 

FS2 fun

After a fun afternoon collecting Autumnal items, observing changes, and running & jumping in the leaves on the field & nature trail, our new Autumn area is ready to investigate,

 

We also had a wasps nest in our shed. It's now been removed, but it was fascinating to see it (from behind a glass door) being removed. A real talking point in the classroom & thanks to the observant parent who spotted it.

A time to knit

Our knitting club have been working really hard to make a blanket to supply to the RSPCA this Autumn. They have written a joint letter and are looking to dispatch their gift of 'warmth' later this week.

Dear RSPCA

 

We are writing because knitting club has made a checked blanket for a puppy or kitten to use. At knitting club we have knitted a lot and have been helped by the staff who run this for us. They have sewn together our squares to make the blanket. We hope that it will be useful.

 

Yours sincerely

 

The St John's knitting club

A time to remember at St Johns

Today we gathered together as a school community to remember the significance of why we wear poppies at this time of the year. This took the form of two church services, in which each class laid a wreath at the war memorial at the front of the school. This was a particularly important act of remembrance as this week is significant for the community of St Johns Church

One hundred years ago seven members of the parish were killed in action in the 1st world war in the same battle. One of them was a the son, Benjamin, of a former church warden, Guy Russel. Guy donated the Reredos at the front of the church  in his son’s memory.  The laying of wreaths in our service was an important way of  marking this anniversary, but also of honouring all of those associated with our local community, who gave their lives in the two World Wars and since.

 

 

 

Christmas shoe box appeal

The school has been busy since half term collating items to fill shoe boxes to send as part of our response to the needs of others at Christmas time.

Our boxes will be going to Romania, where we hope they will bring some of the joy and hope that Christmas is all about.

At the going down of the sun

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

 

 

 

 

A time to remember

This week we begin our annual focus on remembrance. This is  when we take time to reflect on memories that are important to us, but also to consider the difference and the sacrifice made by men and women who have served our country in the field of conflict.

Our main displays in the corridor reflect this and also exhibit our recent work as part of a multi faith response to the history and significance of the 1st World War. Our focus was the distribution of John's Gospels to all serving soldiers and a group of children have worked together with staff over the past few weeks to put a very imaginative presentation together. The tree and the banner that are on display in our corridor are the outcome of their work.