Dear Parents
This week, the new topics are well underway in our classes. As promised, the Topic Plans for each year group are now available on the school website and can be accessed here. We have had a big focus on refreshing our Foundation Subjects curriculum, starting with the INSET day in June and continuing through the year. The Curriculum Intent (include image) was developed last year with the help of staff, pupils and parents. The aim is to make the children’s learning as broad and exciting as we can, while giving them the skills, knowledge and experiences to prepare them for the future. Through this year, there will be themed days for each year group to bring the children’s learning to life. Year 6 have their themed day next week – based around their World War 2 topic. Thank you for supporting the children’s learning experiences at home and at school.
As you will have heard in the parishes, Canon Brendan MacCarthy died peacefully last Friday morning. Fr Brendan was parish priest at All Saints from 1992; he was a great friend to our school community and prayed for us all daily. He also wrote a prayer for the children of our parishes which we have prayed in school and which you might like to pray at home with the children:
Lord Jesus, you are my redeemer and friend.
In love and trust, I give you my heart.
Show me the path in life you wish me to follow.
May I live each day for your greater honour and glory.
Mary, Mother of God, pray for me.
Amen
Fr Brendan lived his life by the principles of this prayer and invited the children to do the same. The school has been invited to send some of the older children to sing at Fr Brendan’s funeral, which will be in Weybridge, probably at the beginning of February.
Lourdes Pilgrimage – If you are interested in finding out more about the diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes in July – or just in finding out “What Catholics believe about Lourdes”, you are warmly welcomed to join staff on Monday evening from 4 to 5pm for a talk from Fr David King who is a Chaplain to the young people on the diocesan pilgrimage. During the Canonisation year, we undertook to inform ourselves as Catholic laity as St John Henry Newman called us to do and this talk is the third in the series.
Finally, as mentioned last term, we will be holding a series of mufti days during the next two terms to try to raise more money towards the hall extension. The idea, which came from parents, is that children should wear mufti and donate a pound towards the hall extension fund. Please make a note of the dates which will be as follows: Friday 14th February; Friday 27th March; Friday 24th April; Friday 22nd May; Friday 19th June; Friday 17th July. Thank you for your continued support for our hall project! An update on the fund is further on in the newsletter!
All best wishes for the weekend
Catherine Burnham
