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St Joseph’s Infants Collective Worship- Ten Ten

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January 2023

With the arrival of the new year, we start to put away signs of our Christmas celebrations: we finish off festive food, box up decorations, maybe recycling Christmas cards (and Christmas trees!) and perhaps generally breathe a sigh of relief about the return to normality. As we busy ourselves discarding all things of the festive season and look ahead to what 2023 might have in store, it’s good to pause and remember that we are still in the season of Christmastide, which officially ends at Candlemas on 2nd February. We can leave many things behind, but hopefully the image of Jesus, God’s gift of joy, hope and peace for the world remains.

This newsletter shares some of the content children will experience in school throughout January and suggests ways for you to engage with them about it. We hope and pray that the new year brings peace and blessings for you and your family.

Mary, Mother of God

At the start of the new year, our focus is on Mary, the Mother of God. During the assembly of the first week of term, children were reminded of the events of Christmas and invited to reflect on Mary’s ‘yes’ to God at the Annunciation; the response which made the whole Christmas story possible.

Through a connecting game, children saw that Mary is the special connector who leads us to Jesus and brings us closer to God through her prayers and intercession.

Looking back at the amazing events of the Christmas story gave an opportunity for older children to reflect on the meaning of the ‘Incarnation’. This revelation led into the assembly for the week beginning 9th January, where Jesus is revealed at His baptism as God incarnate!

Why not…

  • Take time to say a Hail Mary with your child/ren this week, or show them how you like to pray the Rosary.
  • In talking about the Incarnation, you might want to talk to your older child/ren about these important articles of faith:
  • God became man in Jesus.
  • Jesus is both fully human and fully divine.
  • ‘Emmanuel’ means ‘God is with us’.
  • Read the Gospel of the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38) with your child/ren, and discuss ways in which you can say ‘yes’ to God this month.

A Riverside Revelation

In the assembly for the week commencing 9th January, children explored the meaning of the word ‘revelation’ through examples of dramatic reveals in fairytales, history and everyday life, before hearing the most important revelation of all: at Jesus’ baptism, God revealed Jesus as His Beloved Son. Pupils experienced this life-changing revelation in the form of a news report drama.

Perhaps you’d like to read the full Gospel text of this amazing event with your child/ren:

  Matthew 3: 13 – 17 Full Text (from the Jerusalem Bible)   Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John. John tried to dissuade Him. “It is I who need baptism from you,” he said, “and yet you come to me!” But Jesus replied, “Leave it like this for the time being; it is fitting that we should, in this way, do all that righteousness demands.”   At this, John gave in to Him. As soon as Jesus was baptised He came up from the water, and suddenly the heavens opened and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on Him. And a voice spoke from heaven, “This is my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on Him.”  

In this Gospel, the Holy Trinity – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit – is clearly revealed. God the Father’s voice is heard from heaven, God the Son is Jesus, and God the Holy Spirit came down like a dove.

God calls Jesus His beloved child, and He welcomes each of us to be part of His family and be called His beloved child too – we just need to say ‘yes’, like Mary said ‘yes’ to God!

Children were challenged to repeat the revelation “I am God’s beloved child!” to themselves throughout the week, e.g. when they wake up, go to bed, and at times when they might feel angry/sad/alone and need a reminder of how loved they are.

You might like to do this as a family and invite your child/ren to notice how it makes them feel to be reminded of this truth, and how it changes their interactions with others, for example, do they find that they have more patience, are kinder, more generous or loving?

Why not…

  • Challenge your child/ren to write/draw their own news report about this incredible Gospel story.
  • Write “I am God’s beloved child!” on a sticky note and place them on each mirror in your house, so that the whole family are reminded of this truth whenever they catch a glimpse of themselves!

December Newsletter 2022

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Advent- A time of getting ready!

Dear Parents/Carers,

As we move through the season of Advent, we remember the four candles on the Advent wreath. Please take a moment to talk about the first candle, when we focus on our Catholic Virtues of hope and faith. Sunday’s Gospel reminds us, ‘Be like Noah and his family, who were ready.’ As a whole school community we want our children to be faith-filled and hopeful at this time of waiting and preparation.

The Birth of Jesus– Please take some time to read the Nativity story with your child. Start with Mary’s good news and read the journey and the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.

Also, please find time to pray.  For traditional prayers, maybe focus on one prayer at a time. Start with the sign of the cross, then the Hail Mary, Our Father and Glory Be.

 Prayers from the heart. At bedtime and first thing in the morning try to find some space to talk to Jesus with your child. In Advent, maybe think about a prayer of thanks, of love, of joy of peace.

Missio Group – Year 2 pupils. 

Most pupils have chosen to be part of 2 groups: Missio Prayer and Missio World. Missio Prayer are helping to lead different types of prayer within the school. Missio World are working at supporting our Catholic Life and Mission in the wider world. This term Missio World Update: Our charities for this term are Shelter Cymru, CAFOD and Mission in Peru. Please sign up to our Strava Challenge to walk 5929 miles to Peru.

Collective Worship Community Celebrations

It was fantastic to be able to return to celebrating Collective Worship in the Autumn Term with our community. All parents and friends were invited to share these acts of worship in which children joyfully led the Gathering, the Listening, the Reflecting and the Going Forth. Well done each and every pupil. Please see our school TWITTER account for photo feed.

Prayers and Hymns with Bampis and Grandmas

Well done to Year 2 who led a very informal Collective Worship celebration with invited Grandparents and Friends of St Joseph’s. This was the first of a new venture for our school and it was uplifting to have Grandparents and great grandparent join us on the day. Please look out for the invitation for our next gathering. Mrs Turner’s children will lead this celebration.

Christmas Nativity (Main School Reception to Year 2)

  • Thanks to the support of Monsignor Joseph our whole school, Nativity will once again return to the St Joseph’s Church. To avoid clashes with St Joseph’s Juniors there will be TWO performances.
  • Dress rehearsal will be on 12th December in the morning followed by the first performance in the afternoon at 1:30pm.

Christmas Nativity (Main School Reception to Year 2)

  • The second performance will on Tuesday 13th at 1:30 pm.

Nursery Nativity

  • Thursday 15th at 9:30 in School Dining Hall

Christmas Raffle We are holding a big Christmas raffle this year in the hope of raising money for school funds.  Please send in RED, GREEN, GOLD and SILVER prizes, which will be made-up into hampers. If you know of a local business who could donate a prize, then please let us know.  We need volunteers to help with sale of tickets in the yard at end of day please let school know. Tickets are £2.00 per strip.  The Christmas raffle will take place on Friday 16th December.

Christmas Meal and Jumper Day on Thursday 8th December Children are invited to wear Christmas Jumpers and hats and bring £1. Missio World Group have decided money raised will go to our local charity Shelter Cymru.

Father Christmas and Christmas Film

Father Christmas will be visiting school on Monday 19th December andon Wednesday 21st December; children are invited to wear warm pyjamas for our film day with treats.

Heart shaped Christmas Greeting Message from School Council

Living out our Catholic Mission –School Council have asked could we help save our planet by sending in one Christmas heart wish, which Missio will hang on our Christmas tree for the whole school to see. Celebrating diversity, you are welcome to write wishes in your home language, Welsh or English. The more languages our pupil see, the richer the experience.

Working with our community- Pre School sessions Come along and bring your friend- all welcome.

 ActivityTime
MondayBaby Sensory Music1:15 – 2:30
FridayPre School Language and Play1:15 – 2:30

It is looking like a very exciting end of term! Ms Beaumont

St. Joseph’s Infant School

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Pupil Development Grant (PDG) Strategy Statement

This statement details our school’s use of the PDG for the 2022 to 2023 academic year.

It outlines our strategy, how we intend to spend the funding in this academic year and the effect that last year’s spending had within our school.

School Overview

Number of pupils in schoolFull time 110,   Part Time 20    Full time equivalent 120
Proportion (%) of PDG eligible pupils38%  as of January PLASC
Date this statement was publishedOctober 2022
Date on which it will be reviewedOctober 2023
Statement authorised byHeadteacher- Mrs Julie Beaumont Rees  & Governing Body
PDG LeadDeputy Headteacher – Mrs Sarah Turner
Governor LeadChair of Governors – Miss Teresa Welsh

Funding Overview

DetailAmount
PDG funding allocation this academic year£26,450
Early Years PDG£26,450
Total budget for this academic year  £52,900

Part A: Strategy Plan

Statement of Intent

As our children grow throughout their time at St Joseph’s Infant School, we aim to build independence, resilience and resourcefulness among learners to provide them with the skills required to solve problems and make decisions now and in the future.  Through our concept/theme-based approach, we aim to foster a curiosity and love for learning in our children, ensuring that they are equipped with the knowledge, skills and dispositions for future challenges as lifelong learners in a rapidly changing world. All pupils to make progress in Literacy, Numeracy and thinking skills. Curriculum and provision is equitable and inclusive. Use of the Pupil Development Grant supports these aims to be inclusive for all children and increase opportunities for additional learning opportunities, increase their wellbeing and enable inclusion in experiences inside and outside of the classroom.

Intended Outcomes

This explains the outcomes we are aiming for by the end of our current strategy plan, and how we will measure whether they have been achieved.

TargetSuccess criteria
To develop children’s understanding of the language of learning and higher order thinking skills       
To develop and successfully implement ALN reform within the school. 
To increase range and participation in Collective Worship. 
To improve the spelling, grammar and handwriting within children’s writing (Read Write Inc) 

Activity in this academic year

This details how we intend to spend our PDG this academic year to address the challenges listed above.

(1)Learning and Teaching  

Budgeted cost:

Teaching Assistant- (L2) 27.5hrs per week     £16,903.00

(1)ActivityEvidence that supports this approach
To meet the language needs of e-f pupils as identified in assessment, through effective delivery and monitoring of specific literacy based interventions Following Covid younger children have lower language skills than previously and need re-enforcement of speech, language, phonics and reading skills to have a positive impact on reading skills.
  

(2)Wider strategies

Budgeted cost:

Teaching Assistant – (L2) 18.5 hrs per week   £14,023.00

Teaching Assistant    (HL) 37hrs per week       £30,963.00

(2)Activity – wider strategiesEvidence that supports this approach
Fund a team of highly qualified and well-motivated of 2 TA’s  to provide bespoke or small group support to pupils who require health and wellbeing support through a range of approaches – Play therapy, Emotional Literacy Support Assistants, Smart Moves, Sensory Circuits.The school has seen a significant increase in the overall Wellbeing of a number of  pupils. Programmes which have been successful have been re-introduced and more staff have been trained to deliver and support more children.
  (3)Budgeted Cost  £2,664.00 £2,664.00
(3)Community Engagement for pre school: Half Day Language and Play 1 x TA L4 for 3hrs a week, 39 weeks Half Day Baby Sensory 1 x TA L4 for 3hrs a week, 39 weeks  School self-evaluation and listening to parental surveys highlights the importance of our school as a learning community and the potential importance of our impact on early childhood experiences.    
(4)Budgeted Cost£250.00 £1,700.00
Community Engagement Extra Curricular After school ballet club Camera Club          In line with New Curriculum for  Wales, we are Embedding 4 Core Purposes, setting aspirational goals, supporting pupil well- being through the provision of a range of After school activities    

Total budgeted cost: £69,167

Total Grant Allocation: £52,000

Externally provided programmes

Please include the names of any programmes that you purchased in the previous academic year. This will help us identify which ones are popular in Wales.

ProgrammeProvider
Read, Write, inc.In school
Inspirational Ballet for Under 7-Madam Eleanor
Camera ClubJack Moyse
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

St Joes Missio Prayer Partners

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Year 2 Missio Prayer Leaders are supporting others in learning and saying our traditional prayers.

Pope Francis has asked that in the month of October we make a compassionate and loving promise to say the Rosary. Please spend 5 minutes daily saying the Hail Mary with your child.

Pray one Hail Mary on each of the next three beads for an increase in faith, hope and
charity.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death. Amen.