Dear Parents,
This week we have been battling a tsunami of Covid cases, which has been challenging at times. I am however pleased to report that our blended approach to teaching has meant that those children who are well enough, have continued with lessons, albeit from home. It is a strange new world that we find ourselves in, but I'm so pleased that out online provisions mean that no child's education will suffer.
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School Mission Statement
In RE, Year 5 have been learning about ‘Missions’. The sixth form students at St Bernard's Grammar school planned one of our lessons as part of their learning. For one of the tasks, the children were asked to create some artwork based on our school mission statement.
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To the moon and beyond
The subject of Space has really inspired our Early Years children this week. They have produced some beautiful written work, learnt the names of the planets, dressed up as astronauts and even designed and built their own rockets in woodwork!
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Spotlight On Success
Our spotlight on success this week goes to Satinderpal in Remove (Yr 6) for embodying the true values of St Bernard's Prep in the kindness that he shows to others. It has been noticed by a number of members of staff that Satinderpal is incredibly kind and patient with our younger children. He is a great role model. Satinderpal also wrote and performed a fantastic Battle Cry in English, which we will share with you on social media. Well done.
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Celebrating Success
Congratulations to Devam, also in Remove, on reaching the finals of Berkshire Young Singer of 2022 last weekend. The finals will take place in March, which are at Old Court, Windsor. Good Luck Devam!
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Sports News
Football
We were delighted to resume with fixtures again this week, with both our boys and girls Under 11 football teams playing matches vs Long Close School on Wednesday afternoon. Fantastic football was played all round with plenty of goals being scored. We won 3 out of our 4 matches and in total we scored 27 goals among our four teams, with only 6 goals being scored against us. Well done to all the players for their outstanding contributions on the pitches and a special congratulations to Vihaan, Basant, Shaan and Daya for being nominated as MVPs for their teams.
Results:
Boys U11A 8-1 WIN
Boys U11B 3-4 LOSE
Girls U11A 7-1 WIN
Girls U11B 9-0 WIN
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Reminders and dates for your diary:
Tuesday 1st February: Next week we are celebrating Chinese New Year with a change in the lunch menu.
Term Dates: The term dates for the academic year 2022/23 are now published on our website.
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A busy week for Transition (Yr 4)
As part of the Change Of States topic in Science, Trans have been participating in their own Great British Bake Off. Some amazing cakes, biscuits and breads. Mrs Skorupska can vouch for the quality - all cooked to perfection. A big thank you to all, and it was perfectly acceptable for your family to eat your homework.
In History the children have been learning about Ancient Eygpt and the River Nile, and its role in trade, which has tied in well with Geography's Biome topic, which has touched on the English Channel's role in trade as well.
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Virtual Trip Around The World
Prep (Yr 1) have been around the world in Computing. We have visited famous landmarks, such as the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben and Real Madrid, via Google Earth. We have flown to Antarctica, Germany and even visited a funfair, all without leaving the ICT Suite! Later in the term they will be composing a postcard on the computer to send to their class teachers.
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Battle Cries
Over the last couple of weeks Remove (Yr 6) has been learning about Battle Cries. The children have been learning about the mythological Tyrannoflax, a tyrant beast that rules over Absolon. They have imagined themselves as villagers and have written persuasive speeches to encourage the people of Absolon to rise up against the Tyrannoflax. It has been wonderful to watch the children develop their ideas and produce evocative and powerful speeches that they have then performed. We've enjoyed recording the children and look forward to sharing their work with you.
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Eco Council - Great British Birdwatch
This weekend the RSPB are asking as many people as possible to spend some time counting the birds in their garden. This is a real way St. Bernard’s children can help to support our local wildlife. By tracking how many birds and the types of birds we can see the effect of the changing environment on our local wildlife. More ideas can be found on the Eco-Council board or on the RSPB website.
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Mrs Verma's Big Ideas for Curious Minds
As a school we love to stretch and challenge our children, to enrich their education beyond the curriculum. Every week I will be sharing with you some discussion topics, new vocabulary, Maths riddles and book recommendations, that will infect our children with a love of learning. These will all be posted in the Parent Portal section of our website as well.
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Phrases of the week - Idioms
It was reported in the news this week that we are in danger of losing some of our language's most traditional sayings and expressions (idioms) through lack of use. A survey highlighted 50 of the top phrases most at risk of dying out. Top of list was the term to cast "pearls before swine", which means, you are wasting your time by offering something to somebody who doesn't appreciate it. The term originally came from the bible.
Here is a list of some of my favourite idioms. There will be prizes next week for the children who can tell me what they mean and a bonus prize to any child who uses an idiom in conversation with a member of staff. Good luck!
1. A stitch in time saves nine
2. A fly in the ointment
3. Know your onions
4. Storm in a teacup
5. Steal my thunder
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The World This Week - Ukraine
Some people are worried that Russia - one of the most powerful countries in the world - wants to send soldiers into its neighbouring country Ukraine, with fears that this could lead to a war. Russia has sent many of its soldiers to the Russian Ukraine border, which is seen as an aggressive act. Russia has denied that it has any plans to invade Ukraine.
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Calling All Book Worms
Inside the Suitcase by Clothilde Perrin
A little boy is packing his suitcase, before embarking on a wonderful adventure. Journeying to tall, pointy mountains and a dark forest, the little boy finds wonderful treasures and mysterious monsters, all the time collecting things in his suitcase, or using what he has to give to others. Our Early Years children will love the mystery and the magic of the illustrations and lifting all the flaps.
Girl Power: Indian Women Who Took on the World by Neha J Hiranandani and illustrated by Aditi Kakade Beaufrand and Niloufer Wadia
Featuring 50 brilliant Indian women from history and the present day, this is an inspirational read, with clearly laid out text and gorgeous painted portraits by Niloufer Wadia.
Breaking News by Nick Sheridan and illustrated by David O’Connell
This fun book by a real-life news journalist is a great guide to what news actually is and how it works. It includes some technical detail such as explaining the ‘inverted pyramid’, where the most important information is at the top of an article. The book contains lots of industry secrets, including who does what in professional journalism – a perfect book for a budding newshound!
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"Let us live in the joyful hope of reciprocating to our brothers and sisters, through what little we can, the abundance we receive from God each day."
Pope Francis
Yours sincerely,
Mrs A Verma
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