Dear Parents,
This week we celebrated my Headship with an induction Mass, led by Father Kevin and Father Chris. It was a really special moment for me to pledge my commitment as Headteacher to St Bernard's Prep, surrounded by staff, governors, family and friends. Ros Knockles, our Head of Governors read out an inspiring letter from the Bishop and the children from Remove (Yr 6) wowed everyone with their beautiful singing. It was a really memorable and moving occasion and one that I will always cherish. A big thank you to Mrs Whitaker and Mrs Bowen, who wrote the Mass and organised the music, and to our lovely Remove children and Hailee and Kaiden, who were fantastic ambassadors of St Bernard's Prep school and made me so proud.
This week we have also enjoyed a beautiful May procession, led by Upper Prep (Yr 2). The whole school walked to Mary's grotto whilst reciting the rosary, to lay flowers. The weather was kind to us and the children were beautifully behaved.
In other school news, our Wellbeing Workshop on a Thursday with Mrs Clark is proving incredibly popular, making us all aware of how we must look after our emotional wellbeing as well as striving for the best in our school work. Upper Prep have been painting outside, Early Years have been planting and most of the school has been rehearsing their forthcoming performances. Yes another great week packed with learning and fun.
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Rehearsals have begun!
Prep and Upper Prep have begun their rehearsals for their production, The Selfish Giant and Lower Trans, Trans and Upper Trans are working on their Peace Performance, which will include an array of poetry, drama, music and dance.
The children are so excited about their respective performances, and we are delighted, after a covid-induced hiatus, that they are able to work on their oracy, drama and presentation skills, and share them with you later in the term.
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May is month of Mary
To celebrate the Month of Mary, our children walked in a procession to Mary's grotto to lay flowers.
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Early Years
Early Years have continued with their Farm topic this week, progressing onto food and dairy production. It has prompted some interesting discussions with the children about the meat that they eat and where it comes from! Early Years 2 have also been doing a bit of their own horticulture this week, planting a rose bush to commemorate Queen Elizabeth's forthcoming Jubilee.
In typical Eary Years style, our staff and children celebrated Eid, sharing with each other the significance of Breaking The Fast and wearing traditioal dress.
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Spotlight on Success
This week's Spotlight on Success has been awarded to Sai in Remove (Yr 6) for his outstanding work in French. Sai has achieved 100% in Reading, Writing, Listening and Oral French assessments. Incredible results, which are a testament to Sai's hard work and talent. Well done!
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Sport Stars
Well done to Ria Virdee who is Mr B's Sports Star of the week, for making fantastic progress in her swimming lessons. Congratulations to also to Ira in Upper Prep (Yr 2) who was awarded a yellow belt in karate.
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Music Stars
Well done to Kaiden in Trans (Yr 4) on passing Grade 6 Piano with Distinction, a wonderful achievement. Remove have also been exercising their musical talents with Berkshire Maestros in preparation for a concert at Reading Hexagon later this term.
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Spell It!
Miss Mehta took four children from Trans (Yr 4) to Eagle House for a spelling competition. With 18 different schools competing and 33 teams, I am delighted to tell you that St Bernard's Prep came joint second, with one team narrowly missing out on the top spot to the host school, Eagle House. The other team were awarded 6th place. Congratulations to Arav and Zane in 2nd place and Elle and Adam in 6th place. Mrs Mehta was so proud of them all!
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Dates for Your Diary:
Saturday 14th May - St Bernard's Prep Open Morning
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Taste the Rainbow
The children were treated to a Taste the Rainbow experience today. The kitchen prepared for them a feast of different fruits, which unsurprisingly was a huge hit! Sorry if this prompts a wave of requests for passion fruit and kiwi, dragon fruit and papaya!
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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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Word of the week: Aberration
An aberration is a departure from what is normal, unusual or expected, typically an unwelcome one.
She is normally calm and level-headed, so this outburst is an aberration.
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In The News This Week - UK Local Elections
This Thursday there were local elections in some parts of the country. Local elections offer voters the chance to have their say on what's going on in their area. parties.
They've been counting the votes overnight in some parts of England but in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, but not all the votes have been counted yet.
So far, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's party has got fewer votes in some areas of England than last time around and has lost control in some areas.
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Calling All Book Worms
This week we're recommending the Britannica Children's Encyclopedia for children. It is a fantastic resource and great source of information for children (and adults!) of all ages. With beautiful illustrations it is a lovely reference book that you'll keep going back to.
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Finally, I would like to wish Upper Prep (Yr 2) and Remove (Yr 6) all the best in their SATS next week. Our teachers and children set high standards for themselves, so I know they will do brilliantly. Please say a prayer for them.
Enjoy the sunshine!
Yours sincerely,
Mrs A Verma
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