Davey Drive, Hollingdean, Brighton BN17BF

St Joseph's Catholic Primary, Brighton

Educating in Faith, Hope and Love

                                                                                             News                                                                                      

Headteacher Christmas Challenge - The Entries

Thank you to all of the children who entered Mrs Foan's special  design a star challenge!

So many children got creative and designed a star that depicted the nativity story.

!    

 

Headteacher Christmas Challenge - The Winners!

Many congratulations to our winners: Isabella, Lea, Olivia, Leon, Crina ,Lily-Mae, Yousef and Tiana - your stars are now on proud display in the school's main office.

Save our School March - 30.11.24

Around 100 members of our school community came together on Saturday to march through the streets of Brighton. The march started at 10am at school and finished around noon at the Old Stein.

It was a joyous moment to see staff, parents, children and governors unite in a bid to make their voices heard and to let all of Brighton know the current situation here at St Joseph's. 

Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to everyone that took the time to march with us on Saturday - it will be a moment that we will never forget.

         

    

 

For Year 1's second outdoor learning of the year, they embraced the natural world and focused on their senses.  

They started the day by greeting nature and then had a textures guessing game in pairs; one person had to close their eyes whilst their partner gave them an object from nature. They then had to use their senses of touch and smell to guess what the item was.

 

After playtime, the children loved using natural materials to make their own musical instruments, which they then used to practice some of the songs from our upcoming nativity production. After that, the children had some free time to use the mud kitchen, and make some chalk drawings.

   

After lunch, it was all about the wind! The children made kites simply using a paper plate and a wooden doweling - they had a great time exploring the wind and the different directions that it travelled!

Finally, they enjoyed a delicious cup of hot chocolate donned with marshmallows!

More pictures on the Year 1 page

Many congratulations to Lea, Zara, Ronnie-Rose, Elrad, and Luke in Year 1, Teddy, RJGeorge and Enzo in Year 2,  Arlo and Leon in Year 3 and Amelia and Tiana in Year 6 who have shared their amazing work with Mrs Foan three times during the this school year.

And a double congratulations to Skye and Malchaiyah in Year 3 who have visited Mrs Foan 6 times this year!

  What an achievement - we are so proud of you all!

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

It is always lovely to celebrate with you and your family and friends and to hear what your teachers have to say about you. 

 

Well done to:

EYFS - Aariyah      Year 1- Zenita    Year 2 - Olivia     Year 3 - Skye      Year 4 - Isla B     Year 5 - Thomas     Year 6 - Evie-Rose

This week is a double week with Dojos rolled over - so many congratulations to the YELLOW team who are this weeks winners who pipped the blue team to the post by only 4 points!

 

Here are this week's totals:  

1.  YELLOW - 304       2.  BLUE - 300     3. GREEN - 290       4. RED - 285

Save Our School Posters

Some of our children have channeled their emotions of the sad news of our possible school closure in designing and making these wonderful posters.

Thank you so much - it means the world to us all!

           

Year 5 make clay pots - 26.11.24

Greek Vase gifs - Find & Share on GIPHY

As part of their history topic on ancient Greece, this week Year 5 embraced their creative flair and made some Greek inspired pinch pots.

They then enjoyed painting them with traditional Greek designs.

         

Our Choir's Church Performance - 24.11.24

Choir Concert GIFs | Tenor

On Sunday, our choir sang at St Joseph's  church during the 'Christ the King' feast. They beautifully sang Christus Vincit during the Holy communion.

At the end of the Mass, they were given a rapturous round of applause.

As a treat, the next day in assembly the children were given the special task of helping Mrs Foan make a Christmas Pudding following the Victorian traditions Stir-up Sunday is associated with Christ the King. They all agreed that it was delicious!

      

Year 4 visit the Brighton Museum - 20.11.24

Roman Empire gifs - Find & Share on GIPHY

As part of their History theme, "Roman Rule," Year 4 visited Brighton Museum to uncover the story of Brighton during the Roman period.

The children had the opportunities to investigate life in Roman Brighton , investigate the death of a local woman, uncover what life was like before the Romans and get to see some Roman artefacts up close.

         

Inspired by current school events, a group of our talented Year 6 students came together and wrote this wonderful acrostic poem:

Year 2 visit to Stanmer Park - 15.11.24

Our Year 2 class took their learning not only outside the classroom, but outside of the school on an adventurous trip to Stanmer Park.

The children loved looking for signs of autumn, most notably in the bountiful leaves that had dropped off the trees.

They also enjoyed taking part in some craft activities before working off their lunch in the adventure playground.

           

For more pictures please visit the Year 2 page

Children In Need: What happened? - CBBC Newsround

At St Joseph’s, we are proud to support Children in Need again this year. This Friday, the children came into school wearing spots or Pudsey attire.

By working together, we know we CAN make a huge difference at a time when it’s needed the most. As a school, we are pledging to support this charity and, in a small way, help make a difference to young lives.

Thank you for showing your support by wearing spots and for your generous donations to this cause.

     

Year 3 Farm Trip to Ovingdean - 14.11.24

Farm GIF-downsized_large (1) - Loudoun County Economic Development, VA

To complement their learning of the Stone Age, this week our Year 3 class visited the farm. The children have been learning about the cultural importance of farming as a primary source of food during the stone age. They also had the chance to learn more about the animals, in particular how to raise a chicken!

The children loved being in nature and surrounded by lots of wonderful animals!

             

      

Congratulations to Adam, RJ and Enzo in Year 2, Scarlett in Year 5 and Luca in Year 6 who have shared their amazing work with Mrs Foan three times during the this school year.

  What an achievement - we are so proud of you all!

Congratulations to the RED team who are this weeks winners!

A very well done to all children for their hard work in showing that they are READY, RESPECTFUL and SAFE

 

Here are this week's totals:  

1.  RED - 154       2.  YELLOW - 143     3. BLUE - 140        4. GREEN - 135

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

It is always lovely to celebrate with you and your family and friends and to hear what your teachers have to say about you. 

 

Well done to:

EYFS - Aariyah      Year 1- Khamari      Year 3 - Ethan       Year 4 - Eliana       Year 5 - Sylvia       Year 6 - Frazer

Cross Country: 14.11.24

This afternoon, we took a brave squad of Cross-Country runners from Years 5 and 6 to a sunny, but very windy Waterhall! 

We were very proud of all of our competitors - there were over 350 children in each race! Every one of our children completed the course - a great achievement by each and every one of you.

     

The children demonstrated great determination, perseverance, team spirit and resilience. 

Many congratulations to Sylvia for placing in the top 100 of her race - We were so proud of you all!

Remembrance Day: 11.11.24

On Monday, we came together as a school family for a special Remembrance Day Assembly. We stood together for a 2 minute silence and also had time during the assembly for reflection.

All children were given a very special sticker that says 'at St Joseph's Catholic Primary we will remember 2024.

     

Children then enjoyed some other activities in their classroom including making their own poppies.

Anti-Bullying Week 2024 takes place this week. This week's theme is "Choose Respect"

To launch Anti-Bullying Week at St Joseph's, we are taking part in "Odd Socks Day"- celebrating that we are all different and unique- and sharing the core values that Anti-Bullying Week promotes.

      

Year 4 Outdoor Learning: 8.11.24

Year 4 enjoyed some glorious sunshine for their second outdoor learning of the term.

      

They began their day by collecting different types of leaves to make their very own 'leaf kebab.' They then learnt how to enhance their listening skills by wearing a blindfold and guided a partner around the outside area.

After lunch they embraced their artistic side by using different materials to create an image of nature. 

Reception Bonfire Night - 7.11.24
Camp Fire Burn GIF by Hanson

To complement the children's learning about day and night, our reception class had a cozy bonfire to experience what it feels like to be outside in the nighttime.

The children heard lots of interesting new sounds and kept themselves warm with a cup of hot chocolate and a toasted marshmallow!

     

Congratulations to DannyOlivia and Kiedis in Year 2, and Anna and Malchaiyah in Year 3, who have shared their amazing work with Mrs Foan three times during the this school year.

  What an achievement - we are so proud of you all!

Congratulations to the GREEN team who are our first winners of this second part of the Autumn term.

A very well done to all children for their hard work in showing that they are READY, RESPECTFUL and SAFE

 

Here are this week's totals:  

1.  GREEN - 272       2.  RED - 267        3. YELLOW - 249      4. BLUE - 227

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

It is always lovely to celebrate with you and your family and friends and to hear what your teachers have to say about you. 

 

Well done to:

EYFS - Reggie      Year 1- Zara     Year 2 - Teddy     Year 3 - Arlo      Year 4 - Honey     Year 5 - Frankie      Year 6 - Zayden

Christmas Stars Sticker by LILLYDOO

Headteacher Challenge - Christmas 2024

This term's Headteacher challenge is to decorate a Christmas star

Children have been provided with a template of a star for them to decorate with images of the Nativity for this Christmas.
Ideas could include: carol singers, stars, candles, angels, nativity scene or characters

You may print off a template by clicking HERE

Designs to be handed to Mrs Foan by Friday 29th November 2024

Pow Nhra Sticker by Straightline Strategy Group for iOS & Android | GIPHY

Power Projects from the Half Term

It has been lovely to see the activities the children have been taking part in at home, linked to their History and Geography learning in school.

Year 1 got creative making sock puppets for their topic of Toys; Year 3 created this fantastic survival kit showing different types of shelters whilst Year 4 wrote some letters about what it might feel like to live during the Roman Reign.

Please keep sending them in via the myhomework email address

            

   

Reception Class work on their balance - 8.11.24

Illustration Moving GIF by Learner Circle

This week, our Reception class took part in balance bike training run by Brighton and Hove city council.

The program trains children to develop balance and control skills in preparation for learning to cycle. The children enjoyed being 'fitted' for their crash helmet before learning how to keep their balance.

     

Congratulations to Coby in Year 2 and Anna in Year 3 who have shared their amazing work with Mrs Foan three times during the last seven weeks!  What an achievement - we are so proud of you both!

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

It is always lovely to celebrate with you and your family and friends and to hear what your teachers have to say about you. 

 

Well done to:

EYFS - Ivy      Year 1- Kaelan      Year 2 - Penelope     Year 3 - Prince     Year 4 - Ivy        Year 5 - Darcey      Year 6 - Chidera

Congratulations to the RED and BLUE teams who are our Dojo champions for the first half term!

A very well done to all children for their hard work in showing that they are READY, RESPECTFUL and SAFE

Here are this week's totals:  

1.   RED - 183       2.  YELLOW - 174      3. BLUE - 170        4.  GREEN - 165

Year 5 and 6 take their learning outside the classroom

To bring the first part of the Autumn term to a close, Years 5 and 5 had their turn for outdoor learning.

The children participated in a variety of activities including team building games.

         

Year 6 also learnt how to create a perfect circle with chalk and how to use angles to make turns on a compass. After lunch, they had time to create natural art in the style of Andy Goldsworthy and how to be safe around outdoor fires with Miss Cross.

French Culture Week: WB 21.10.24

This week is French Culture Week. Children in Key Stage 2 have been learning about French artists and their works.

Children in Year 6 chose a piece of art work from Claude Monet or Paul Cezanne or Henri Matisse and created their own piece based on or inspired by the artwork.

Here are a few pictures:

               

   

Black History Month GIF by Peloton

Celebrating Black History Month : 23.10.24

This morning, our whole school community came together to celebrate Black History Month.

Each class had been busy learning about a famous black person from both the past and present and shared their learning with the rest of the school. It was a glorious opportunity where we shared, honoured, and understood the impact of black heritage and culture.

Children shared artwork, stories, poems and songs.

     

        

People celebrated in this morning's assembly included: Lewis Hamilton, Rosa Parks, Walter Tull, Nelson Mandella, Alma Woodsey Thomas, Usain Bolt, Harriet Taubman, Marcus Rashford and Lewis Hamilton.

Harvest Deanery Mass : 22.10.24

To celebrate Harvest season, some of our pupils from Year 6 were fortunate enough to attend a Deanery Harvest Mass at Cardinal Newman school.

   

In preparation for this children were asked to produce a piece of artwork for a collaborative harvest display in addition to helping with reading.

It was a wonderful opportunity for our family of schools to come together and celebrate the fruits of the Lord.

David Fuller Author Visit : 21.10.24

This week, the children in Key Stage 2 had the opportunity to meet children's author and publisher David Fuller.

After an assembly where he spoke about the writing process and how to edit, the children got to partake in a class based workshop and ask more specific questions.

                   

The children loved hearing more about his journey and definitely inspired some of our budding authors.

Year 1 Trip : 18.10.24

As part of their History learning, Year 1 have been out to visit Hove Toy Museum , putting some of their classroom learning about toys from the past into context.

The children took part in a workshop and got to see a range of toys from the past including Victorian dolls and old teddy bears. They learnt about toys children would have made themselves and played with in the street.

               

They also had a hands-on session playing with toys that were used by the Vallance family who used to live on the property where the museum now stands. Finally, the children visited The Wizard's Attic and the brand new Mechanical Circus exhibition.

After their visit, they had a picnic lunch in the glorious October sunshine before returning to school.

More pictures and information are on the Year 1 page.

Congratulations to Jaachi, Skye and Floyd who have shared their amazing work with Mrs Foan three times during the last seven weeks!  What an achievement - we are so proud of you all!

Congratulations to this week's STARS. We are very proud of each and every one of you.

EYFS: Dara         Year 1: Ronnie -Rose       Year 2: Halle      Year 3: Anna        Year 4:  Kira        Year 5:  Nirvana          Year 6: Alpha

                                   The DOJO totals are extremely close this week..... with only 16 DOJOS difference between all four teams!                                             Well done to the BLUE team who just pipped the other teams to the post and were this week's top DOJO collectors.

1.   BLUE - 201       2.  GREEN - 198         3. RED - 187         4.  YELLOW - 185          

Harvest GIFs | Tenor

Harvest Festival - 15.10.24

This week, the whole school gathered together for a special harvest season assembly.

In keeping with the school's ethos of generosity and reaching out to our local community, both students and staff kindly brought in items to be donated to local food banks. These foodbanks provide essential support to families and individuals facing challenging times and we are so thankful that we can help them at this time of year.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this years harvest collection.

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

It is always lovely to celebrate with you and your family and friends and to hear what your teachers have to say about you. 

 

Well done to:

EYFS - Willow       Year 1- Lea       Year 2 - Leighton       Year 3 - Dylan        Year 4 - Shania        Year 5 - Favour           Year 6 - Luca

DOJO POINTS - Week ending 11.10.24

The children receive DOJOS when they demonstrate our three key behaviours, "BE Ready. Be Respectful. Be Safe."

Well done to the GREEN team - this week's top DOJO collectors!

2. GREEN - 324      2. BLUE- 320       3. YELLOW - 317       4. RED- 302

Year 2's go back in time on their school trip - 9.10.24

To complement their history topic about 'Pioneers' the children in Year 2 had the chance to go back in history and experience what life was like in the Victorian era by taking part in a workshop run by Preston Manor.

After that, they took a visit to Preston Park to discover how parks changed people’s lifestyles back then and compared life in the Victorian times to nowadays.

      

Check out the Year 2 page for more photos

This week, the children in Reception were lucky to meet author Sophie Bresnahan. 

The children loved hearing her read out loud her book :  The Mouse and The Mushroom Blooms. They then immersed themselves in the story through learning how to draw creative illustrations and some colouring sheets.

We were keen to buy our own copies of her book!

            

Today the children in Year 1 had their first outdoor learning day of the school year and what a fun and busy day it was! The sun was out in full force today and made for some wonderful outdoor activities. 

The children enjoyed exploring the nature area and looked for objects that were of different textures, including rough, shiny, smooth and sticky. They then had fun creating some transient art, inspired by the artwork of Andy Goldsworthy, and getting messy in the mud kitchen.

After lunch they learnt more about their topic of toys and were challenged to make an old fashioned pully toy. To finish the day they played some team building games before enjoying a cup of hot chocolate.

Here are a few photos. Have a look on the Year 1 page to see more!

       

We have two weeks of DOJO points in this week's totals. The children receive DOJOS when they demonstrate our three key behaviours, "BE Ready. Be Respectful. Be Safe."

Well done to the YELLOW team - this week's top DOJO collectors!

1. YELLOW - 312           2. GREEN - 308            3. RED - 301            4. BLUE - 299

Congratulations to this week's STARS. It is always lovely to celebrate with you and your family and friends and to hear what your teachers have to say about you. 

It was lovely to welcome our EYFS Class in to their first Celebration Assembly today and to have our very first EYFS star!

Well done to:

EYFS - Dolce          Year 1- Luke         Year 2 - Enzo          Year 3 - Jaachi         Year 4 - Hannah         Year 5 - Archie          Year 6 - Tiana

 

Rosh Hashanah GIFs | Tenor

Celebrating the Jewish New Year : 2-3rd October 2024

This week, children throughout the school heard all about the Jewish New Year Rosh Hashanna in an assembly led by Mr Fishman. They learnt about some of the rituals of how Jewish people commemorate the coming of a new year, including it being a time for prayer and reflection and throwing their 'sins' away into flowing water.

They learnt about special foods that are eaten around this holiday, most significantly apple and honey - to symbolize having a 'sweet' and healthy new year whilst acknowledging the coming of harvest season.

 

         

   

Wishing all of our Jewish families and friends a 'Shana Tova' 

See the source image

Grandparents Day : 27.9.24

Today, we  celebrated Grandparents' Day in school.  Grandparents (and honorary Grandparents) were invited into classes to spend some time on an activity with their grandchildren - these included Art,  Drama, Bingo and lots more!

It is always lovely to see the wonderful connections between the generations. Today, provided an opportunity to celebrate the fantastic contribution our Grandparents make to our lives.

    

          

What an amazing turnout! Thank you to all the Grandparents who were able to join us today. Those Grandparents who were not able to join us were very much in our thoughts.

Welcome Mass: 27.9.24

This morning we celebrated Mass with Father Kieron. It was wonderful to come together as a whole school for such a special occasion - to welcome our new Reception children and their families into our St Joseph's family.

 Thank you children for your contributions in reading and singing. Our new Reception Class received a special keepsake each and were formally and spiritually welcomed into our school community.

Welcome to all of our new families too. We look forward to working together over the next few years.

Thank you to all of the parents and carers who came along to join us this morning for the Welcome Mass and for coffee and biscuits afterwards.

We are proud to be supporting MacMillan's  "World's Biggest Coffee Morning," today, raising funds to support those affected by cancer.

          Tying in our grandparents visit with an invitation to join us for a "cuppa and a cake" at 2.30 p.m. we  were delighted by the response! 

                       

Thank you for your generous cake contributions and for supporting today's event. All donations will go to MacMillan and our support will help those living with cancer.

Thanks to your generosity, we raised an amazing £250!

Governors' Day : 27.9.24

Friday was a very busy day in school! We were delighted to welcome some of our Governors into school. We are very fortunate for our School Governors' support and the time they invest into our school.

The Governors spent the day taking part in the lessons and seeing our wonderful school in action as well as being part of the Welcome Mass, MacMillan Fundraiser and Grandparents activities!

Outdoor Learning : 24.9.24

Year 2 had their first outdoor learning session today and the dismal, grey conditions did not dampen their enthusiasm!

Here are a few photos. Have a look on the Year 2 page to find out more about what they did.

        

BikeAbility Fix : 23.9.24

This week, some of our Year 5 and 6 pupils have been learning how to maintain their bikes through some BikeAbility Fix sessions.

Bikeability Fix sessions teach trainees how to perform basic maintenance to their bikes such as changing a flat tyre. The children were able to work on their own bikes or school bikes, providing them with lots of practical hands-on experience.

      

The DOJO totals were very close this week with the RED team being this week's top DOJO collectors!

Well done to the RED team for collecting many DOJOS for demonstrating our key principles of "Be Ready, Be Respectful, Be Safe.".

1. RED - 216           2. YELLOW - 212          3. BLUE - 209          4. GREEN - 203

Congratulations to this week's STARS. As always, it is lovely to hear what your teachers have to say about you in Celebration Assembly.

Year 1: Bryn            Year 2 : Adam            Year 3 : Ruby D         Year 4Isla           Year 5: Emanuel            Year 6: John

Outdoor Learning: 19.9.25

Year 3 were again fortunate with the weather today for their first outdoor leaning day of this academic year.

Again, the theme was based around team work using the natural environment. Have a look on the Year 3 page for more photos.

        

 

Back in May last year, each child planted their own tomato seeds and took home a tiny pot of tomato seedlings. It is lovely to see how you have looked after your seedlings and nurtured them until they have produced tomatoes.

These pictures show Bryn's tomato plants, some of which are now over 6 foot tall! Well done Bryn!

    

Outdoor Learning: 13.9.24

Year 4 were our first class to take part in an outdoor learning day this year, and they were lucky with the weather.

This term's whole school theme is team work and the children took part in several activities that required team work skills and cooperation including the egg drop challenge!

       

Have a look on the Year 4 page for more pictures.

It has been lovely walking around the school and seeing the children so engaged in their new classes, demonstrating positive learning behaviours during this first two weeks back and collecting lots of DOJOS!

Here are the results for the first two weeks back:

1. BLUE - 194              2. RED - 189             3. GREEN - 186             4. YELLOW - 183

Congratulations to our first STARS of this academic year. It was lovely to celebrate with you and hear the wonderful things your teachers had to say about you after just two weeks back at school!

Year 1 - Aris          Year 2 - Lyla-Mae          Year 3 - Emma          Year 4 - Mila         Year 5 -  Sindy        Year 6 - Maisie

Stunning Starts!

It has been lovely to see the excitement as each class's theme has been revealed through a "Stunning Start" this week.

As an introduction to their new topic on "Toys," Year 1 had a teddy bears picnic, bringing in their favourite teddy bear to join in with the party and teddy themed games.

As an introduction to their History learning based around Victorian Schooling, Year 2 had a go at writing using ink and a quill!

         

Dressed in Roman attire, the children in Year 4 worked in groups to create "Roman Roads" by following a series of instructions. The tasks required good teamwork skills and the final solution revealed the topic title for Year 4 - "ROMAN RULE." 

Dressed as stone-age people, Year 3 used their hands and natural objects in our outdoor area to make stone-age dwellings and tools.

      

      

Year 6 came into school in Mexican attire or wearing clothes in the colour of the Mexican Flag and were introduced to their theme "Mexico and the Mayans" with some activities including food tasting and a Pinata!

Have a look on each class page for more photos.

Language of the half term

At St Joseph's School, we are proud of our diversity and the vast number of languages spoken by our families.
At St Joseph's, every half term, we celebrate the languages besides English which are spoken at home by some of our pupils.

Each half term,  we try to learn a few useful phrases and words, to answer the register and say "please" and "thank you" and "hello" and "goodbye" in our chosen language. The child/children who speak the chosen language will help their classmates learn the correct pronunciation and will share picture books written in their home language as well as in English. 

These are the languages for this half term:

Year 1 - Polish      Year 2 - French        Year 3 - Portuguese      Year 4 -  Cantonese   Year 5 - Greek      Year 6 - Cantonese

Education Sunday : 8.9.24

Today is Education Sunday and it was lovely to see our pupils (looking very smart in their school uniform) and their families, in church as part of our local community. 

The children read the bidding prayers clearly and sang our St Joseph's School song beautifully. Their behaviour and contributions to the service were commented on by several parishioners.

Coming together today on Education Sunday was a reminder to all members of the Catholic community of the importance of education to the Catholic mission. Holy Mass on Education Sunday is a wonderful opportunity for churches and parishes to
celebrate Catholic schools. 

Thank you to those children and their families who joined us and to the school staff who came too.

 

Just before the Summer Break, Miss Cross gave every child a poster to help them identify the diverse array of butterfly species that we have in the UK and the children were encouraged to take part in the "Big Butterfly Count"

Skye has sent in lots of photos showing the different butterflies she had spotted locally.

        

Well done Skye for contributing to the Big Butterfly Count-  the information you provided will help our experts understand how some of our butterflies and day-flying moths are doing, and how we can help protect them for the future. 

 

Back in May, each child planted some tomato seeds and took their little plants home to nurture and harvest during the summer.

It was lovely to see how much the plants had grown and the fruits of Lea and Ronnie's efforts!

How rewarding to grow and then enjoy your own produce!

      

Stunning Starts!

As we head towards the end of the first week of term, it is lovely to see the children so settled and engaged in their learning.

Some classes have been introduced to their History or Geography based topic through a theme launch and topic tables have been set up with books and artefacts for the children to explore. The other classes have this to look forward to next week.

         

As part of their History and Geography learning "Greece Lightning" Year 5 came to school dressed as Ancient Greeks, took part in some Greek related activities and sampled some Greek food such as feta, olives and pitta bread with tzatziki. 

Welcome back to another exciting new school year at St Joseph's. The children have settled back in exceptionally well and are looking smart in their uniforms. 

Thank you for making sure the children were in school, ready to learn for our new start time of 8.40 a.m.

A warm welcome to all of our children and their families, but especially to those children who have just joined the St Joseph's family - the children in the Reception Class and a few other children across the school. We are delighted you have chosen to join us here and we look forward to getting to know you and your families over the coming weeks.

 

Thank you generally to all of our wonderful parents and carers for your kind messages, cards and gifts. We have really appreciated your support this year. Have a wonderful summer break and we look forward to working with you again in September.

We look forward to welcoming the children back on Tuesday 3rd September 2024

 

We were delighted to be informed today that St Joseph's has achieved the Gold School Games Mark award for our commitment, engagement in the School Games for 2023/24.

 

In the afternoon, they had the traditional shirt signing and they finished the day with our traditional St Joseph's "Farewell Tunnel" send off in the playground.

     

Year 6 -  We will never forget you! Keep in touch and let us know how you get on in the future. Good Luck!

Top Team Treat : 19.7.24

It is lovely to see how excited the children get in Celebration Assembly when the team who have been awarded the most DOJOS is announced.

The half termly totals have been pretty evenly spread this year with RED and BLUE winning one half term each and GREEN and YELLOW winning two.

      

The overall points for the year were added together and the YELLOW team with the most, are this year's top DOJO collectors!

They enjoyed a refreshing ice lolly treat today. Well done to everyone in the YELLOW team for contributing to your winning total!

Goodbye Year 6 : 19.7.24

Our Year 6 pupils had a lovely final day at St Joseph's. They started off the day with the Leavers' Achievers' assembly and an opportunity to take a walk together down memory lane, recounting their many shared memories and reflections.

                           The end of year awards were then given out - congratulations to each and every one of the Year 6 pupils                                     - you are ALL winners in our eyes.

Here are a few of this year's awards and their recipients:

          

                   Finn - Sports Award, Julian - Outstanding role-model and Personality (voted by class), Lily-Jo - Head Teacher's Award,                               Alicia - Outstanding Effort and Ibiye - R.E. and Living Out The Ethos Award.

Attendance Treat: 18.7.24

We are delighted to have had 10 children in school EVERY SINGLE DAY since 4th September. What an amazing achievement!

To celebrate, we took these ten children to Preston Park this afternoon where they enjoyed some time in the play area and an ice lolly.

        

        

We understand that from time to time children do become ill and this can't be helped but we had to acknowledge the 190 days these ten children have managed this year!

Leavers' Mass: 18.7.24

23rd Jun 2019

Today, was the beginning of our week of goodbyes to our Year 6 pupils and we were joined by Father Kieron to celebrate our Year 6 thanksgiving Leavers' Mass. 

    

Our school year is drawing  to its conclusion and so this morning we gathered together as a school community to celebrate and give thanks for all the blessings we have received.

Today's Leavers' Mass was a time for reflection by our Year 6 pupils, both to remember and to look forward to new schools, new friends and new beginnings.

Year 6 Prom : 17.7.24

This evening was our Year 6 Leaver's Prom. Thank you to the FOSJ's for organising this event. The school hall looked amazing as did the children in Year 6!

      

      

      

The children enjoyed party food, karaoke, dancing and had a wonderful evening together: another lasting memory of their time at St Joseph's.

Summer Offer 

Please click HERE for information from the School's Mental Health Service detailing Summer Holiday Support available. 

3ST Class Blog: Attendance

100% Attendance

            As we start the final week of this school year, we are delighted to announce that 10 children have 100% attendance for this academic year - being in school every single day since September 4th 2023!

This is such a great achievement that these children will be having a treat on Thursday afternoon. They will also receive a special medal and a certificate.

We also have 23 children who have 100% attendance for the entire Summer Term. These children will receive a sticker and a treat in Wednesday's assembly.

Attendance remains a key priority at St Joseph's - thank you for your ongoing support with this.

First Holy Communions: 15.7.24

Congratulations to the children who have made their first Holy Communions recently. Thank you for sharing these pictures of your special and momentous occasion with us.

        

      

On Monday, in school, the children wore their special outfits and we celebrated their First Holy Communions in assembly as a school family.  The children invited a couple of friends and family members to share in the Communion Breakfast celebrations afterwards.

A Taste of Spain!

As you know, our KS2 pupils study French. Each half term, they study an aspect of French culture as well as learning key phrases and simple conversational French.

      

In the final two weeks of term, our KS2 pupils have had a taste of Spain - learning about the location of Spain, its currency, its well-known landmarks and exploring Spanish art alongside learning some key words and phrases in Spanish.

      

      

They also sampled some Spanish food including tortilla (Spanish omelette), chorizo, Manchego cheese, olives and churros.

Summer Party: 12.7.24

Today, we held our annual Summer Party, organised by the FOSJ's. The dark clouds did not deter us!

We are very grateful to Sheree and the FOSJ's team for their hard work and dedication in helping raise funds to support and enhance our pupils' school experience.  Without their help and  enthusiasm, these events would not be able to take place and we would not be able to raise vital funds for the school.

      

      

Thank you also to the staff for helping run the stalls and to the parents, carers, pupils, families and friends for coming along  to support our Summer Party.  It was another fantastic community event. 

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Congratulations to these children who have received a Head Teacher certificate or pencil or badge in today's Celebration Assembly:

Well done: Lottie (EYFS) Emma, Mark, Ella, Ray, Mal, King and Skye (Year 2)

This is the last week of collecting DOJOS for the academic year - children , you having been amazing this year and it has been lovely to see you receiving DOJOS for demonstrating positive learning behaviours.

These are the final results for this week and the winners for the half-term and the overall winners for the year!

1.  YELLOW - 252              2. BLUE - 248              3. GREEN - 244              4. RED - 239

Summer 2 Champions: YELLOW

Top DOJO collectors for the year: GREEN and YELLOW. There will be a tie break to decide the overall winners.

Children in the winning house will receive a treat next week.

Congratulations to our final STARS of this academic year - there will be no Celebration Assembly  next week as we have our Leavers' Achievers' Assembly.

We are very proud of all of this week's STARS and look forward to celebrating your individual successes again in September.

EYFS:  Kaelen         Year 1:  Mina        Year 2:  Rosie       Year 3: Shing Him       Year 4:  Sihas        Year 5:  Zayden        Year 6: Scarlett

Year 5 Trip: 10.7.24

Year 5 were invited to Patcham High School today to see their annual production of "We Will Rock You"- a musical extravaganza. The children thoroughly enjoyed the show.

We really appreciate Patcham High School inviting us and other local primary schools to see their productions.

Celebrating Learning: 11.7.24

It has been lovely to invite parents and carers in to school during these last two weeks of term, so that each class can share and celebrate different aspects of their learning with friends and family.

      

      

The fashion show celebrating "The World's Kitchen" theme was fantastic! The dishes were SO creative - with pizza and pasta from Italy, sushi from Japan and croissants, baguettes from France and even Turkish Delight from Turkey!

Thank you parents and carers for coming in this week and for your on-going support.

Have a look on each class page for photos of their performance to parents.

KS2 Sports: 10.7.24

This afternoon, our KS2 pupils had their Sports Day. It was lovely to see so many of our positive learning behavious demonstrated such as determination, resilience and good sportsmanship, as well as  skill and competitiveness.

      

      

       

Congratulations to the BLUE team - this afternoon's winners.

Thank you to Miss Pippa for organising today's track and field events and to those parents and carers who were able to come along and support their children this afternoon.

KS1 Sports: 10.7.24

This morning was our KS1 Sport's Day. Despite the grey weather, nothing could dampen the spirits of our youngest children!

         The children demonstrated skill and it was lovely to see their enthusiasm and energy while taking part in a variety of activities.           

       

      

Congratulations to the GREEN team - this morning's winners!

Thank you parents and carers for coming along this morning to support your children and your enthusiasm in the adults race!

Thank you to Miss Pippa for organising today's event and also to the Cardinal Newman Sports Leaders for their help.

Year 6 Production: 9.7.24

This week, our Year 6 class put on their end of year production of Alice in Wonderland, firstly to the rest of the school and then to their family members.

The heart warming adaptation of the well  loved story was performed with passion, talent and energy and was another wonderful celebration of the end of  St Joseph's journey for our Year 6 pupils.

       

      

From the Mock Turtle to the Mad Hatter, the King to the Cheshire Cat, the Duchess to the dormouse...and of course, Alice - you were ALL amazing!

Thank you to the pupils and the Year 6 staff team for their combined efforts in putting the show together and to parents and carers for coming along to support this evening.

Year 5 Trip: 9.7.25

Year 5 enjoyed an end-of-term treat to Pizza Express, catching the bus into Brighton.

The children  were shown by the pizzaiolo (pizza chef)  how to make a famous, Italian classic: the Margherita. They kneaded the dough to create the perfect base. They then topped their base with Pizza Express's famous passata sauce and mozzarella. 

       

What a fantastic end-of-term treat!

Biodiversity Pledges: 8.7.24

It has been lovely to see how you have been doing to promote biodiversity through your agreed pledges.

      

Sihas in Year 4 pledged to buy strawberries form a local producer, make a bee hotel, allow weeds to grow and to not use pesticides. 

Keep those pledges active...and don't forget to send in photos too! 

DT Week : 8.7.24

This week is DT Week and the children across the school have been busy preparing food, using simple electrical circuits (including more complex switches and circuits ) and exploring joining techniques using textiles to make puppets.

All of the activities follow the same process: investigate, design, make and evaluate.

Pictures to follow on the class pages.

      

      

Bronze Award: 5.7.24

We were delighted to receive an award this week for achieving the Our City, Our World Bronze Award through committing to integrate sustainability and climate change into all aspects of school life.

We are very proud to be acknowledged for the work we are doing here at St Joseph's. 

  

Thank you to Miss Cross for leading this initiative and to our pupils and families for their support with their pledges.

Together, we are making a difference!

Mrs Foan and a few of our Year 6 pupils will be running a Lucky Dip stall at this afternoon Cardinal Newman School Festival along with other Catholic Primary Feeder Schools.

See the information above. Please come along and support the event if you can.

have a picnic clipart - Clipground

EYFS Picnic: 5.7.24

It was lovely to meet our new Reception Class (EYFS) starters and their families this afternoon for a picnic. They were able to meet the EYFS staff team and see the classroom environment.

We are looking forward to welcoming them and their families again in September.

Congratulations to this week's STARS. We are very proud of each and every one of you.

EYFS: Lukus           Year 1:  Ethan           Year 2:  Mark           Year 3: Harvey           Year 4: Anirudh            Year 5:  Evie-Rae                 

                                  Another close week with the DOJO totals! There is all still to play for over the last two weeks!                                               Well done to the GREEN team - this week's winners.

1.   GREEN - 216                  2.   RED -  210                  3.   YELLOW -  207                   4.    BLUE - 201

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Well done to these children who are today receiving a Head Teacher Certificate or a Head Teacher badge or pencil. Mrs Foan and Mrs Skinner have had lots of visitors to the office this week to share and celebrate their learning!

Well done: Lottie (Year 2)   Lily-May and Yasmin (Year 3) Jeremiah (Year 4) and Tate (Year 5)

Year 3 Outdoor Learning : 4.7.24

Today, Year 3 did their final outdoor learning session for this year. They went off-site to the local woods and dew pond in Hollingdean for their outdoor learning activities.

       

       

 

Have a look on the Year 3 class page to see what activities they did.

Year 5 Outdoor Learning : 2.7.24

Today, Year 5 had their final outdoor learning day. Their focus was 'Sustainability and Geography'  looking at what climate change and greenhouse gases are and how we are responsible for its impact and making a change. They learnt about the three R's (Recycle, Reuse and Replace) and how the world is beginning to make great changes to our planet. 
      
The children made their own wind turbines from recycled materials, learning how to make two different natural joins with materials and then they used these skills to make their own recycled art that referenced climate change and our responsibilities in some way.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          More pictures to follow on the Year 5 class page.

Here are this week's DOJO totals. Again, the weekly totals are very close!

Congratulations to this week's top DOJO collectors - the YELLOW team.

1.  YELLOW - 196                    2.    GREEN - 190                    3.  BLUE - 184                      4. RED - 181

Well done to our class STARS this week. As always, it is lovely to read what your teachers have said about you on your certificate and to celebrate with your family members and friends in Friday's Celebration Assembly.

Congratulations to:

EYFS: Donovan          Year 1: George          Year 2: Skye          Year 3: Zara          Year 4: Leona          Year 5: Lok Tin         Year 6: Julian

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Well done to these children who were awarded a Head Teacher certificate in Celebration Assembly today.

We were very proud of: Olivia-Rose (Year 2)  Nirvana and Floyd (Year 4) and Emellia (Year 6) 

Good Shepherd : 27.6.24

Today, Mrs Foan and Mrs Cox and some Year 4 children attended the annual Diocesan Good Shepherd Celebration. Every year, the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton invites all of its schools to a special celebration of the Good Shepherd at Worth Abbey.

The theme of this year's celebration was The Year of Prayer with a particular focus on the prayer that Jesus gave us - The Lord's Prayer.

Each school participating was invited to create a representation of The Our Father prayer in one of the languages spoken by their school community. The prayers were presented during the liturgy by representatives from each school.

      

Drusilla's Trip : 25.6.24

To support and enhance their Science learning this half term around animals, their offspring, their habitats, their diets and their adaptations, Year 2 visited Drusilla's Park for the day.

They had a fantastic day with lots of Science learning and opportunities to get up close to different animals. They also had the opportunity to have a ride  on the Safari Express, play in the play area and cool down in the Splash Zone.

        

    

       

More pictures to follow on the Year 2 class page.

Ukulele Performance : 25.6.24

Over the last 10 weeks, our Year 5 pupils have been learning how to play the ukulele supported by Brighton and Hove's Sound-Makers programme.

Today, they showcased their instrumental techniques and ensemble skills with a whole class performance to parents and carers.

Thank you parents and carers for coming in today - it was lovely to see so many of you.

Year 2 Outdoor Learning: 24.6.24

Year 2 are  having a busy week! Today, they did their final outdoor learning session of the year and again they had beautiful weather!
They did some Hapa Zome art and explored local flowers / plants and the life cycle - looking for seeds. They also learnt about metamorphism.
      
 
    
More pictures to follow on the Year 2 class page .

Year 1 Outdoor Learning: 21.6.24

What a busy week Year 1 have had - they have certainly been lucky with the beautiful weather! 

Today, they had their final outdoor learning day of the year which included making dream catchers, exploring the mud kitchen and taking part in a recycling relay before cooling down with a refreshing ice cream!

      

More pictures to follow on the Year 1 class page.

EYFS Trip: 21.6.24

What a busy week at St Joseph's - we have had four class trips since last Friday!

Today, it was the turn of our youngest children - in the EYFS class who went for a flight on the i360!  They had a bird's eye view of Brighton, finding out about different landmarks and places.

      

    

They had a chance to play in the play park, had a picnic on the beach and finished the day off with a much needed ice-cream! 

Pictures to follow on the EYFS page.

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Congratulations to these children who today received a Head Teacher's certificate for 3 pieces of fantastic work.

For some of the children, it was their sixth Head Teacher sticker, which meant they received a special Head Teacher badge or pencil.

Well done to :

Elrad and Kaelan (EYFS) Emma and Maryam (Year 2) Oscar (Year 3) Theo and Maisie (Year 5)

                   Here are this week's DOJO totals. Again, it has been very close this week!                   

Congratulations to this week's top DOJO collectors- the BLUE team

1.  BLUE - 221                 2.  GREEN - 217                 3.  RED - 209                 4. YELLOW - 204   

Congratulations to this week's STARS. We are very proud of you all and love to share your achievements in Celebration Assembly.   

EYFS: Luke- John      Year 1:  Blake           Year 2:  Maryam          Year 3:  Isla T         Year 4:  Sindy        Year 5:  Maisie         Year 6:  Emellia 

Year 1 Trip: 20.6.24

To conclude their learning around "Flight" Year 1 visited Brighton City Airport in Shoreham. Brighton City Airport is is the oldest airfield still operating in the country – with the first recorded flight taking place in 1910.

Year 1 enjoyed a guided tour of the wonderful historic buildings and the hangars from one of the expert volunteers and then visited the on-site museum and watched some light aircraft taking off and landing.

The children were delighted to be joined by Miss Watkinson and enjoyed the final part of their trip by playing together in the play park.

    

      

More pictures to follow on the Year 1 class page.

Year 4 Trip: 19.6.24

Today, our Year 4 children caught the bus up to Stanmer Park where they took part in an outdoor learning day provided by "Schools Without Walls."

Schools Without Walls specialise in high quality learning outside of the classroom for all, offering a wide range of creative learning opportunities to connect with nature, be more active, be creative and have fun.

      

      

The Year 4 children took part in a range of activities including fire lighting, Hapa Zome and shelter building using the beautiful walled garden and surrounding woodland.

It was a lovely day being outdoors and at one with nature. Pictures to follow on the Year 4 class page.

Withdean Athletics: 19.6.24

     This Wednesday, we took a squad of 21 athletes from Year 5 and 6 to Withdean Stadium for the Small Schools Athletics Competition.            The children took part in a variety of track and field events.

We were so proud of ALL of our competitors who showed perseverance, determination, resilience and good sportsmanship.

Here are a few photos of our fabulous competitors, medal winners and supporters:

       

        

Thank you to Miss Pippa for organising our competitors today.

PGL 14.6.24

Our Year 6 class have had a wonderful residential experience this weekend. They were a pleasure to take away showing determination, resilience, perseverance, good sportsmanship and respect at all times.

The weather was MIXED, the activities were CHALLENGING and the children were AMAZING!

Mrs Skinner,  Miss Redmond, Miss Pippa and Mrs Jones were very proud of each and every one of you. Here are a few photos:

         

Saturday morning: Zipwire (in the rain) and Rifle Shooting

         

Saturday Afternoon - Canoeing and Problem Solving

            

Sunday Morning: Trapeze and Sensory Trail

          

Sunday Afternoon: Archery and Giant Swing.

Click HERE to see more  pictures on the Year 6 class page.

Well done to this week's STARS. As always, it is lovely to read what your teachers have to say about you all and to share this with your family and school friends during Celebration Assembly.

EYFS:  Elza        Year 1: Enzo         Year 2:  Ruby D        Year 3:  Crina        Year 4:  Sonny        Year 5: Henry        Year 6:  Lily-Jo  

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Wow! What a lot of visitors Mrs Foan has had this week, sharing their learning with her. It is lovely to celebrate your achievements of receiving a Head Teacher certificate, pencil or badge together as a school family in Celebration Assembly.

Congratulations to:

 Zara (EYFS) Adam (Year 1) Isla B (Year 3) Sihas, John, Audrey (Year 4) Zayden, AlphaHenry (Year 5)  Finn, Eddy and Julian (Year 6)

Congratulations to this week's top DOJO collectors - the RED team. The scores were incredibly close again with just 13 DOJOS between the highest and lowest collectors this week!

1. RED - 212                  2. BLUE - 209               3. YELLOW - 201                 4. GREEN - 199

Poetry Competition: 13.6.24

This afternoon, we hosted a Poetry Competition here at St Joseph's.

Two pupils from six local primary schools were selected to participate in today's event. The competition started in classrooms and today the winners performed in front of the Mayor - Councillor Mohammad Asaduzzaman in our school hall.

The competition consisted of a recital of a well-known poem and also a pupil written poem performed by the poet.

It was lovely to come together with local schools from our APPL Cluster and celebrate the beauty of poetry.

Congratulations to the two winners from St John the Baptist and Coldean School.

     

EYFS Outdoor Learning : 11.6.24

Our EYFS children enjoyed their last outdoor learning session of this year today and the sun shone for them!

They made their own shelters and chose items to take in a survival kit bag. They explored the mud kitchen and applied their knowledge of compass directions in a game.

      

Have a look on the EYFS page to find out more.

Tasting Session : 11.6.24

Our school council were invited for a tasting session with Colette and two cooks from Caterlink - our school catering specialists.

The children (and Mr Fishman) had the opportunity to sample and give their opinions on different meals which Caterlink may potentially include on their future school menus including lemon and herb chicken, chicken pasta bake, vegan chilli and berry mousse.

       

      

The children each filled out a feedback form which were very honest and informative.  

The food was delicious! We really hope to see these dishes on the school menu next year.

Bluebell Railway: 7.6.24

As part of their History learning around transport through the ages, Year 3 visited the Bluebell Railway - one of the first preserved heritage lines in the country and one of the finest collections of vintage steam locomotives and carriages.

Their visit included a ride on a steam train including going up on the plate, having a look around the museum, and seeing how the signal box worked.

      

    

        

More pictures to follow on the Year 3 class page. Click HERE to see a video clip of the steam train.

 Police Youth Team Visit: 7.6.24

Year 6 had a visit today from the local police youth liaison officer who came to talk to the class about keeping safe. The children learnt many interesting facts and asked lots of questions.

The children were surprised to hear that at the age of 10, they are now at an age of criminal responsibility and action can be taken if they commit a crime. They also learnt that a "threat"  is a criminal act.

It was a very informative and useful session for our Year 6 pupils.

Congratulations to this week's STARS. We are very proud of you all.

Thank you parents and carers for coming in to assembly today to celebrate with us. 

EYFS:  Khamari         Year 1: Teddy          Year 2:  Olivia          Year 3: Hannah         Year 4:  Sylvia        Year 5:  Tiana        Year 6: Freya

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Well done to the following children who received a Head Teacher Certificate in this week's Celebration Assembly after sharing a third piece of work with Mrs Foan.

Congratulations to Mina (Year 1) Ethan, Anna and Jaachi (Year 2) Lilly-Mae (Year 4) and Kowen (Year 6)

The DOJO totals for the first week back have been collected and  counted! It was very close again this week. Here are the results:

1.  YELLOW - 194                  2.   RED -189               3.  GREEN - 181                 4. BLUE - 174

Congratulations to this week's top DOJO collectors - the YELLOW team.

Racket Festival : 6.6.24

We took 12 children from Years 3 and 4 to a Racket Festival at Withdean this week.

The festival was all about participation, trying something new and having fun!

The afternoon involved the children going around a circuit of tennis, badminton, squash, table tennis and multi skills activities, learning the fundamental skills and experiencing new sporting opportunities.

        

Miss Azor and Miss Johnson were very proud of your commitment, determination and the new skills you learned and demonstrated today.

Well done all of you.

D Day 80 Year Anniversary: 6.6.24

Today in assembly to commemorate D Day, the children learnt about the events, story and the history of the Normandy landings which took place 80 years ago today. 

      

The assembly explained and commemorated the pivotal invasion that changed the course of World War II in favour of the Allies.

It has been lovely to see the children across the school tending to their tomato plants which they have grown from seeds.

This week, the children are re-potting them and a tomato plant will be coming home today with your child, which will need to be cared for at home.

We look forward to seeing photos when the tomatoes are ready to be harvested at the end of the Summer!

      

    

Click HERE for information about how to best look after the tomato plants.

Year 6 Trip: 24.5.24

Year 6 finished the half-term with another treat - a trip to the cinema and then a picnic in the park!

They walked down to the Duke of York's Cinema and watched the film "Robot Dreams." They then walked along to Preston Park where they had a picnic lunch and enjoyed a game of rounders and some time in the play-park.

The weather was beautiful and today gave the children the opportunity to relax together following a very busy half-term.

    

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Well done to the following children who will be presented with a Head Teacher certificate in Friday's Celebration Assembly.

Olivia (Year 1)    Jasper and Honey (Year 3) Sylvia (Year 4) and Chidera (Year 5)

                            Congratulations to the GREEN team - this week's and the overall top DOJO collectors for this half-term.                               Well done everyone in the GREEN team.

1. GREEN - 287                     2. YELLOW - 264                      3. RED  and BLUE - 255

Congratulations to the final STARS of this half term.

EYFS: Elrad           Year 1: Penelope          Year 2: Dylan          Year 3:  Honey         Year 4: Elliot        Year 6: Alicia

DT Week : 24.5.24

This week is DT Week and the children across the school have been busy creating free-standing structures, preparing food, using simple electrical circuits as part of an RE task or creating mechanical systems such as pulleys or gears.

All of the activities follow the same process: investigate, design, make and evaluate.

Here are a few pictures. More to follow on the class pages.

      

French Culture Week: 23.5.24

This week is French Culture Week in KS2 and the children have been learning all about Bastille Day. 

They found out about what happened at the storming of the Bastille - a significant moment during the French Revolution and also about how the French celebrate this today on July 14th.

      

Year 5 used straws to create Bastille Celebration fireworks.

      

Year 4 dressed in the colours of the French flag and found out all about Bastille Day.

Year 6 Outdoor Learning : 23.5.24

What a lovely week our Year 6 pupils have had this week following their SATs - two trips and an outdoor learning day!

Their outdoor activities were based around their History learning and they worked together to build their own Viking Longships!

       

More pictures to follow on the Year 6 page shortly.

    

Magnificent Maypolers!

Over the last few weeks, our classes have been enjoying learning the traditional Maypole dances associated with this time of year.

To share and celebrate their learning, Year 2 parents were invited in to watch our Year 2 pupils showing off their dancing and ribbon weaving skills!

Thank you parent and carers for coming along to see the children perform this afternoon.

Year 6 Trip: 21.5.24

Year 6 had a post SAT's treat, taking the bus into town and then visiting Pizza Express! 

The children  were shown by the pizzaiolo (pizza chef)  how to make a famous, Italian classic: the Margherita. They kneaded the dough to create the perfect base. They then topped their base with Pizza Express's famous passata sauce and mozzarella. 

       

Whilst their pizzas were cooking in the giant pizza oven, the children took part in an ingredients quiz - tasting and learning about different ingredients and toppings such as artichoke, goat's cheese and capers.

More pictures to follow on the Year 6 page.

Crowning of Mary: 20.5.24

There is a long-standing tradition, the May Crowning of Mary, honouring Mary, the mother of Jesus in the month of May.

Today, the children  were led class-by-class to the statue of Our Lady where she was crowned. The children came together to sing as they processed towards one of our Mary statues.

      

      

In a "May Crowning" Mary is presented with a floral crown and other handmade items. Each child and adult was invited to honour Mary with the gift of a flower which adorned her statue.

Thank you parents and carers for sending in flowers today.

Year 5 Outdoor Learning: 20.5.24

Year 5 had a beautiful day for their outdoor learning which was a very busy, active and cross-curricular day!

They combined their French Culture Week learning with their outdoor learning and came in to school dressed in the colours of the French flag - red, white and blue.

    

They also linked their Power of Reading text "The Savage" to their learning in the outdoor environment.

Pictures to follow on the Year 5 class page.

Year 4 Visit: 20.5.24

To support and enhance their History learning around this term's theme, "Crime and Punishment," Year 4 were visited by PCSO's Rob and Tori.

The children had a great interactive session trying on police uniforms, learning about the police vehicle, finding out about fingerprinting and answering a whole range of questions!

    

    

It was a really informative visit - thank you to Rob and Tori for coming in to support Year 4's learning.

Home Learning: 20.5.24

It is fantastic to see the activities you are doing at home inspired by your learning in school. It is especially lovely to see your passion for taking part in our Biodiversity Pledge.

      

Lily-May makes a bird house and a bee hotel, Penelope plants some seeds and Skye makes a bird feeder ball.

As always, thank you parents and carers for your support with this - we do appreciate it. 

SAT's Celebration: 17.5.24

We are so proud of our Year 6 pupils and the way they have handled themselves this week while taking their SAT's tests.

To mark the end of SAT's Week and the hard work that the children have put in to prepare for it, parents and carers were invited to join us for a celebration breakfast.

    

        

Thank you to those parents and carers who were able to join us this morning and to all parents and carers for your support in the build up to the SAT's.

The Year 6 children will be continuing their learning as usual, but they do have two "treats" next week too!

Lots of DOJOS have been collected this week for demonstrating positive learning behaviours and for home learning related to the POWer Projects and our Biodiversity Pledge.

It is getting very close as we get nearer to half term! Keep those DOJOS coming!

1. BLUE - 245               2. RED - 239               3. GREEN - 227                4. YELLOW-224

Congratulations to this week's SUPERSTARS. Well done to :

EYFS:  Ronnie-Rose       Year 1:   Leighton       Year 2: Prince       Year 3:  Sisa       Year 4:  Favour       Year 5:  John      Year 6: Tia

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Mrs Foan and Mrs Skinner have had lots of visitors this week sharing their amazing work and talking enthusiastically about their learning.

Well done to these children, all from Year 2 : Olivia, Ray, Ruby W and  Skye (HT medal)

Year 4 Outdoor Learning: 15.5.24

Year 4 were SO lucky on Wednesday with their outdoor learning weather!

It was glorious and the children enjoyed a range of cross-curricular and creative activities.

      

Have a look on the Year 4 page to see what they did and what they learned about.

Tri-Golf : 15.5.24

This afternoon, we took ten children from Years 3 and 4 to Blatchington Mill School  for a tri-golf competition. 

The children started off by working their way around a circuit of golf skills challenges. The children earnt points for their team by applying their skills to the challenges. 

        

Miss Azor and Miss Evans were very impressed by our young golfers' skills and putting and chipping techniques.

Mykie was picked out for a special award for demonstrating determination throughout the afternoon. 

    

Home Learning: 14.5.24

It is lovely to see the activities you are doing at home inspired by your learning in school.

Thank you parents and carers for your support with this. You are so creative.

      

Kiedis in Year 1 made her own 3D models related to Year 1's "Flight" theme.

Skye has planted seeds and made a bee house and Shing-Him has built a Lego bird feeder as part of our Biodiversity Pledge.

    

Inspired by Year 4's theme," Crime and Punishment," Sihas designed a new patrol car and created a recruitment poster to try to encourage more people to consider a role in the Police Force.

Olivia is doing her bit for the local area by picking up rubbish on her way home and then disposing of it properly or recycling it.

SAT's Week: 13.5.24

This week is end of KS2 SAT's week. The children will be coming in to school bright and early for a class breakfast each day and for a quick revision session before sitting the tests.  

Good luck to all of our Year 6's this week -we are very proud of how you have worked in preparation for these standard assessment tests.

      

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SAT's Prayers

We had some beautiful prayers written by our Year 6 pupils which were read out before each SAT's test this week.

Thank you to the children who took the time to write a prayer and for your well-thought out and meaningful words.

Here is one of them:

                                                                                                                Dear God                                                                                                                                                                                                              As SAT's finally come and disappear                                                                                                                                                                                   Our hearts fill with excitement as well as fear.                                                                                                                                                                                        As our tests start                                                                                                                                                                                                                Guide us to reach into our hearts                                                                                                                                                                                     Help us to remember the things we learnt                                                                                                                                                                            And to remember that this isn't the worst.                                                                                                                                                                                         Support us as we try                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Comfort us as we cry                                                                                                                                                                             Thank you for giving us strength, knowing you are always with us                                                               Amen.

Emellia

Mental Health Awareness Week 2024: 

Mental Health Awareness Week will take place from 13th-19th May, on the theme of “Movement: Moving more for our mental health”.

Movement is important for our mental health. But so many of us struggle to move enough. We know there are many different reasons for this, so during Mental Health Awareness Week, we are aiming to find moments for movement in our children's daily routines.

      

Have a look on each class page to see how they have been "moving" this week. Year 4 have been doing Yoga at the beginning of each day.

Visit from MISSION FIT: 10.5.24

Our KS 2 classes were fortunate to experience team based fitness, fun and challenging military style activities, involving camouflage nets, tug of war, games and bodyweight exercises. 

    

The sessions reinforced positivity and encouraged a "can do" attitude. They helped the children to challenge themselves  physically and mentally, both individually and as part of a team whilst also reinforcing  confidence and self worth.

    

Thank you to Miss Pippa for organising this event.

Year 3 Outdoor Learning: 10.5.24

          

Year 3 had glorious weather for their outdoor learning day today. The children had a great day and took part in several cross-curricular activities. Pictures to follow on the Year 3 page.

Tri- Golf Masterclass : 10.5.24

Next week, some of our Year 3 and 4 children will be taking part in a Tri-Golf Festival and Competition.

In preparation for this, Mr Azor kindly came in to help the children in Year 3 and 4 to practice their golf skills and techniques.

      

We look forward to seeing them applying these skills next week at the local schools' tournament.

Maypole Dancing: 9.5.24

With the beautiful Spring weather this week, Miss Pippa has been able to deliver her Maypole dancing lessons outside.

It is lovely to see how adept the children are becoming weaving the ribbons into complex patterns through traditional dance.

    

"Open The Book" : 9.5.24

We were joined this morning for an "Open The Book" assembly led by Year 9 pupils from Cardinal Newman School.

Open The Book is an exciting story-telling project where Bible stories are shared with children in a way that is fun, interactive and memorable.

The CNS pupils used the power of story-telling, drama and song to share Matthew 13: 44-46 and its message from the Bible, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field."

Mary Makeover: 9.5.24

Leon (Year 2) and his dad have given our Mary statue at the front of the school a much-needed makeover.

They have weeded the area and replanted it with Spring flowers. The area has been finished off with some subtle lighting.

This heartfelt gesture ensures our annual procession for the crowing of Mary will be a special and meaningful tribute to Mary.

   

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Congratulations to Harry (Year 2) who was the only child this week to receive a Head Teacher's certificate this week. Well done Harry!

Congratulations to this week's STARS. We are very proud of you all.

EYFS:  Bryn        Year 1:  Kiedis        Year 2:  Ella         Year 3: Eliana        Year 4: Antonia        Year 5: Wiktor        Year 6: Frankie

It has been a shorter week than usual but the adults in school have noticed lots of children demonstrating positive learning behaviours across the school.

Well done - it is lovely to see how focused and engaged the children are in their learning when walking around the school.

1.    GREEN - 166                 2.  BLUE - 162              3.  YELLOW - 159                 4.  RED - 146              

8.5.24

Our Year 5 class started their swimming lessons today at Surrenden Pool. They will be swimming every Wednesday until the end of term.

The swimming instructor Rachel and the staff who accompanied Year 5 were very impressed with the children's positive attitude, skill, resilience and determination.

We look forward to seeing how they progress over the next 10 weeks.

PE across the school

It is lovely to see the children across the school participating in a wide range of PE and sporting activities as part of their PE curriculum provision, demonstrating skill and sporting values such as resilience, teamwork and determination.

Here are a few pictures of Year 3 tennis and Year 5 football:

       

Children's Parade: 4.5.24

What a wonderful morning we had this morning as part of the Brighton Festival Children's Parade. The city was transformed into a sea of colour and creativity as 65 schools and 4000 children took part in the annual parade - this year based around the theme of dreams.

Thank you to all the children, parents and carers and staff who took part in or supported this celebration today. It was an amazing event to be part of.

       

      

       

      

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Congratulations to the following children who are receiving a Head Teacher certificate in this week's Celebration Assembly. 

Luke-John (EYFS), Ruby D, Maryam and Tyler(Year 2) and Harlie (Year 6)

Congratulations to this week's STARS. As always, it is lovely to hear what your class teachers have to say about you.

EYFS:   Luke       Year 1: Olivia        Year 2:  David       Year 3:  Yasmin       Year 4:  Shanice      Year 5:  Brandon     Year 6: Legend

The DOJOS are in and have been counted! Here are this week's totals:

1.  YELLOW- 268              2. BLUE - 257              3.  RED - 249             4.  GREEN - 244   

Maypole Dancing: 1.5.24

Today, we celebrated the arrival of Spring and the month of May with some Maypole Dancing during Year 2's, 5's and 6's PE lessons.

The lessons across the year groups over the next few weeks will provide an introduction to traditional Maypole dances and music and will combine physical exercise and teamwork.

       

More pictures to follow on the class pages.

Outdoor Learning: 29.4.24

Year 2 were lucky for their fifth outdoor learning session today as the weather was beautiful!

Each class in the school has received a growing kit and will be "Growing to love ....tomatoes." Each child will be growing their own tomatoes from seeds to fruit which they will bring home at the end of the school year to continue to grow... and then eat!

Year 2 also enjoyed the mud kitchen, exploring shadows and created their own natural sculptures.

       

       

More pictures to follow on the Year 2 page.

Home Learning: 29.4.24

It is always lovely to see the children's home learning supporting and extending our curriculum.

This may be through the POWer Projects linked to each class's History/Geography theme or the Brighton Bingo experiences linked to our Our City, Our World sustainability focus or extension research or creative activities linked to any aspects of current curriculum learning.

Thank you parents and carers for your support with this. We really do appreciate it.

         

Sihas created a habitat for a frog, Ray finds a badger's sett, Coby made a hot-air balloon as part of Year 1's "Flight" theme, Harvey (Year 3) builds a house for bees and Freddie tries curry and rice as part of Year 2's theme, "Indian Spice."

Parade Preparations: 25.4.24

The annual Children's Parade is getting closer and preparations for the big build in school have begun!

The theme this year is "Dream Again" and our sculpture, accessories and costumes will be created around the book, "The Tin Forest."

Groups of children have been helping Miss Cross and Miss Rance today.

         

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Congratulations to these children who have shared a third piece of amazing work recently with Mrs Foan.

Some of them are actually on their 6th or even 9th Head Teacher sticker and therefore received a special pencil or a Head Teacher badge.

We are very proud of: Elza (EYFS) Halle (Year 1) Jacchi and Freddie (Year 2) and Blessing and Emellia (Year 6)

Well done to this week's STARS. It is lovely to share your successes and celebrate with you in our Friday assembly.

Congratulations to:

EYFS:   Ronnie           Year 1:  Eli          Year 2:  Emma         Year 3:  Isla B         Year 4:  George V         Year 5:  Freddie         Year 6: Lily-Jo

The DOJOS are in and have been counted! And once again, the totals are close!

Well done to the RED team - this week's top DOJO collectors!

1. RED - 229               2. YELLOW - 220              3. GREEN - 217              4. BLUE - 204

Outdoor Learning: 23.4.24

It is the turn of our EYFS and Year 1 classes to take part in outdoor learning sessions this week.

To tie in with their "Down In The Garden" topic, the EYFS children continued to explore their "Wonderful Worms" theme!

They shared books about worms and other bugs and creatures, made woven worms and worked together to make a wormery, collecting their own worms to rehome there.

      

The sun came out for Year 1 despite a drizzly start. The children had a busy day with lots of their outdoor learning activities based around their Power of Reading book, "

      

 

Stunning Starts: 24.4.24

The remainder of our classes have launched their new History or Geography topics this week with a "Stunning Start!"

Year 5 have been finding out about staple Saxon ingredients and today they put some of their soup and porridge recipes into practice!

Have a look on the Year 5 page for more pictures.

       

At St Joseph's School, we are proud of our diversity and the vast number of languages spoken by our families.
At St Joseph's, every half term, we celebrate the languages besides English which are spoken at home by some of our pupils.

Each half term,  we try to learn a few useful phrases and words, to answer the register and say "please" and "thank you" and "hello" and "goodbye" in our chosen language. The child/children who speak the chosen language will help their classmates learn the correct pronunciation and will share picture books written in their home language as well as in English. 

These are the languages for this half term:

EYFS:  French        Year 1: Spanish          Year 2:  Hindi          Year 3:  Wolof         Year 4:  Arabic          Year 5:  Mandarin          Year 6: Greek

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Well done to these children who have been to share a third piece of amazing work or to talk through their learning with Mrs Foan and Mrs Skinner. We love seeing how proud you are of your work and hearing you talk about your learning so enthusiastically.

Congratulations to Yasmin and Ronnie-Rose (EYFS) CJ (Year 3) and Frankie (Year 6) 

Well done everyone! You have settled back into school so well this week and have been demonstrating positive learning behaviours and have been recognised for your good choices, resilience, determination, teamwork and for being active, focused and engaged!

The DOJO totals are again very close! Well done to the GREEN team - this week's top collectors.

1.  GREEN - 186           2. BLUE - 181             3.  YELLOW - 174           4.   RED - 168  

Congratulations to the first STARS of the Summer Term.

EYFS: Yasmin         Year 1:  Logan        Year 2: King         Year 3: Jasper        Year 4:  Betty        Year 5:  Theo       Year 6: Eddy

Stunning Starts!

As a launch for their new Humanities topics this term, each class has had a "stunning start" as an introduction to their History/Geography learning.

As a hands-on introduction to their theme "Crime and Punishment," Year 4 came into their classroom to discover a crime scene and had to use different techniques to discover who had stolen their class IPAD.

      

 

As an introduction to their theme " Indian Spice," Year 2 had a tasting session sampling some traditional Indian foods and learning about Indian food and eating traditions.

      

Year 1 made their own bubble wands as an introduction to their theme "Flight."

      

 

Islam Week: 15.4.24

This week is ISLAM week in school. Each class has been learning about a different aspect of the Islam faith and the children have had the opportunity to explore and handle artefacts and take part in learning experiences to deepen their understanding of the Muslim faith Islam.

     Year 1 learnt about Muhammad, Year 2 about Muslim prayer, Year 3 found out about the Mosque, Year 4 learnt about the Qur'an,          Year 5 learnt about Ramadan and pilgrimage and Year 6 found out about the Pillars of Islam.

       

      

    

Making Music!

We were delighted to begin our Sound Makers sessions in Year 5 this week which provides a whole-class instrumental learning opportunity over a ten week period. The Year 5 pupils were introduced to their instrument - the ukulele.

Follow their progress on the Year 5 page over the next ten weeks.

     

Sound Makers is a Brighton and Hove model of whole class ensemble tuition and is linked to The National Plan for Music Education.

Led by a Create Music specialist instrumental teacher and supported by the class teacher, pupils experience the excitement of practical music making and learn: instrumental technique, ensemble skills, links to composing and improvising, performance skills and working as part of a team.

Each Sound Makers programme leads to a celebration performance to which families and members of the school community are invited. 

        At a recent attendance review, we were delighted to see that 29 children had 100% attendance for the whole of the Spring Term   (3.1.24 - 28.3.24) These children will receive a celebratory sticker and a small treat during Friday's Celebration Assembly.

Thank you parents and carers for your support in raising attendance and improving punctuality at St Joseph's.

Together, we ARE making a difference.

Attendance Support: 

              There will be an Attendance Drop-in Session for parents and carers on Monday 22nd April at Roundabout Children's Centre                       (Whitehawk Road, Brighton, East Sussex, BN2 5FL) from 10am – 2pm.

These sessions are designed to offer a space for you to share any concerns you may have about your child’s attendance.

In these sessions, you will be able to meet with an Attendance Officer from Brighton & Hove City Council and a Family Support Worker from the Schools Mental Health Service to explore what support can be offered and to support conversations with your child’s school.

 

We wish all of our families a happy, safe and restful Easter break. Thank you for your ongoing support.

The children return to school on Monday 15th April.

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Easter Egg-citement!

What a busy last day of term! The children looked amazing in their home-made Easter bonnets and hats - thank you parents and carers for your support with this - you are SO creative!

Many of the classes have been taking part in Easter themed activities during the day including an Easter Egg hunt.

The day was finished with the Easter Raffle! 

      

      

Year 4 trip: 28.3.24

As part of their Geography theme, "The World's Kitchen," Year 4 visited Moshimo, a Japanese restaurant in Brighton. 

The children were split into two groups - one group learnt the art of using chopsticks to pick up Edamame beans while the other group learnt how to make their own Maki rolls!  

    

     

It was a really informative and engaging session and we are very grateful to Moshimo for providing our pupils with this opportunity to enhance their Geography knowledge and understanding.

More pictures to follow on the Year 4 class page.

Big Lent Walk: 28.3.24

We are proud to be joining in with the "Big Lent Walk" helping to raise money and support global poverty. The Big Lent Walk is organised by CAFOD and this is our chosen charity for Lent. 

To support the appeal, we are going to have a WALKING circuit in and around the school. Each child will be given a purple wristband to show our united support and help raise awareness.

          

       

 

The Faith Council have made posters to advertise the BIG WALK.

If you would like to support the work of CAFOD and make a small donation, please click HERE

Year 6 Outdoor Learning: 27.3.24

Year 6 had a bright but windy morning for their outdoor learning session today.

The children are keen to attract beneficial insects to our school grounds, so they worked in groups to make bug hotels. 

      

Insects and other minibeasts need safe spaces to shelter, hide from predators and raise their young, so the children in Year 6 used their creativity to design some small cosy homes as well as multi-storey mansions!

The children discovered all sorts of creatures outside including newts! Find out more on the Year 6 page.

French Culture: 

Year 5 were so interested in their French food lesson yesterday, that Mrs Gilbert decided they could make their own croissants today!    They learnt that the sweet French pastries got their name due to their crescent shape.

Once baked, they were able to eat with jam (confiture) cheese (fromage) or ham (jambon)

    

BON APPETIT!

As part of our French provision, the last week of each half term is dedicated to learning more about a different aspect of French culture.

This  week, the children in KS2 have been learning about traditional French food.

They tasted some basic French food such as crêpes, Madeleines, baguette, Brie cheese, pain au chocolat and Quiche Lorraine.

       

        

Brighton Bingo

Now the weather is getting slightly warmer, it is lovely to see your photos of where you have been getting out and about  in the local environment.

Sihas (Year 4) is now on Starling Level- Bingo Board 3! Here are a few of his pictures....

    

Take a close up photo of a flower, design a poster to attract visitors to Preston Park rockery, make a free-standing sculpture using leaves and sticks

Reconciliation Service: 26.3.24

This morning, Years 4, 5 and 6 gathered in the hall for our Lenten Reconciliation Service.

Father Kieron led us in a Reconciliation Service which focused on the forgiveness that comes from Christ.         

Year 5 River Trip : 22.3.24

Today, to support and enhance their Geography learning "Wild Waters," Year 5 went on a field trip to the River Adur in Shoreham.

The children were able to identify different features of the river using geographical vocabulary. They then sketched and photographed these observable features.

They also completed a hands-on river study by getting into the water to measure and investigate the contents of the river!

      

      

More pictures to follow on the Year 5 class page.

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Mrs Foan has been busy this week - looking at amazing pieces of work across the school!

Congratulations to the following children who have shared three pieces of their learning.

Elrad and Lea (EYFS) Ray and Elijah (Year 2) Jasper, Eliana and Ronnie (Year 3)  and Legend ( Year 6)

Congratulations to this week's STARS. We are very proud of you all!

EYFS:              Year 1: Coby              Year 2:  Rosie             Year 3:  Kira             Year 4: Hattie          Year 6: Tia

Another busy week collecting DOJOS! It has been very close again this week and there is still all to play for next week!

1.  YELLOW - 236               2. RED - 234               3. GREEN - 228                 4. BLUE - 219

Holiday Activities and Food

Please click HERE for more information about the Easter HAF (Holiday Activities and Food) which will be running from Tuesday 2nd April to Friday 12th April.

The HAF programme is a government initiative that aims to provide healthy hot food and enriching activities during the school holidays, primarily to children and young people aged 5 to 16 who are eligible for benefits related free school meals. 

It is funded by the Department for Education (DfE).  The aim is for children and young people to socialise, learn and play during the specified holiday periods, enjoy a hot meal and have fun.

Easter Raffle

Thank you for your donations for the Easter Raffle Hampers - organised by the FOSJ's. The contributions are looking good so far!

    

Raffle tickets will be on sale next week and any more Easter related donations would be much appreciated. The raffle will be drawn next Thursday afternoon.

Thank you again for your support.

Outdoor Learning: 20.3.24

We have two classes taking part in outdoor learning sessions this week- our EYFS class and Year 4. Luckily, after all the recent rain, the weather was kind to both classes with Year 4 having a beautiful, sunny day on Wednesday!

The whole school outdoor learning focus this half term is "Seeking Science" and the children have been exploring science in the outdoor environment.

The Year 4 children explored reflections, light and sound! Here are a few photos:

         

       

 

Our EYFS children categorised natural found objects and materials, measured items using cubes and used a tally chart to record signs of Spring. They also used watercolours to paint flowers around the grounds.

      

More photos to follow on each class page.

Let's Dance: 19.3.24

Today, we took 27 amazing dancers from Years 4, 5 and 6 to the Dome for the annual "Let's Dance" show. Pupils from schools from across Brighton and Hove are performing every night this week and it was our turn on Tuesday night.

The dance, choreographed by Miss Pippa and the children, was entitled "SJ Remix"  and was based around a Missy Elliott medley.

Here are a few photos from this afternoon's dress rehearsal:

      

    

    

St Joseph's Day : 18.03.24

Today, we celebrated the feast day of St Joseph with a range of creative activities across the school.  Father Kieron came into school and joined us this morning  to celebrate and honour St Joseph with a Mass.

Here are a few photos showing how we celebrated St Joseph's Day. Joseph was a carpenter so several of our activities were based around woodcrafts. Some were based around the flower associated with St Joseph - the lily. We even had some tool shaped biscuits!

      

 

Today was a really special day. We are proud that St Joseph is the patron saint for our school.

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Mrs Foan has had a steady stream of children in her office sharing their amazing work with her this week.

It is lovely to hear the children talking so confidently and enthusiastically about their learning.

Congratulations to Zara (EYFS) Skye (Year 2) and Theo (Year 5)

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

We love to hear what your teachers have to say to about you and celebrate your successes in Celebration Assembly.

EYFS:  Rio         Year 1: RJ          Year 2:  Ethan        Year 3: Eira        Year 4:  Frankie        Year 5:  Tate       Year 6: Emellia

Children - you have been busy this week collecting LOTS of DOJOS! Here are this week's totals:

1.  BLUE- 261             2.  YELLOW- 228              3.   RED- 221          4.   GREEN - 219

Upper KS2 Tournament: 13.3.24

This afternoon, our Year 5 and 6 classes had an intra-house football and tag-rugby tournament.

It was a lovely atmosphere with children demonstrating the key sporting values of resilience, determination, teamwork and respect.

The children thoroughly enjoyed the tournaments and Miss Pippa was impressed with all of the children's attitudes and efforts.

Well done to the BLUE and RED teams who jointly won the football and to the YELLOW team who won the tag-rugby.

       

Choral Festival: 13.3.24

Our Year 4 children have been working with Faye Eldret and are tonight performing in the chapel at Cardinal Newman School alongside Year 4 classes from Catholic Schools in Brighton and Hove.

The Choral Festival will be a celebration of secular songs and sacred music and will provide a wonderful opportunity for Year 4 children to join their voices together and celebrate the joy of singing.

Here are a few photos from today's rehearsal:

    

       

Click HERE  to listen to a recording of one of the songs the Year 4's from the Catholic Schools across the city performed together.

Pedestrian Training: 8.3.24

Year 3 have had a very busy day today with Pedestrian Training as well as Outdoor Learning!

Brighton and Hove City Council provide training to help children learn to cross the road safely. Child Pedestrian Training is one of the initiatives that can help reduce the number of child casualties on the roads. 

The scheme is designed to:

                                                    -raise children's observation and awareness skills while crossing roads with an adult                                               -provide children with road safety skills in preparation for independent travel

Click HERE for the booklet containing information relating to Year 3's training over the next few weeks.

Outdoor Learning: 8.3.24

Today was the turn of Year 3 for this half-term's outdoor learning and the sun did its best to come out for them!

Have a look on the Year 3 page to find out about their lovingly-made natural Mother's Day cards, their nature hunt and more....

    

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Congratulations to Junior and George in Year 6 who have been to share their learning with Mrs Foan on three different occasions recently. Well done both of you!

Congratulations to this week's selected STARS. We are very proud of you all.

EYFS:  Albie        Year 1:  Mina        Year 2:  Riley        Year 3: Tealaa-Rose       Year 4:  Jaklyn         Year 5: Luca        Year 6: Finn

The DOJO totals are very close again this week!

Well done to everyone who has collected DOJOS for demonstrating positive learning behaviours or for completing a POWer Project or Brighton Bingo activity.

Well done to the RED team - this week's top DOJO collectors!

1.  RED - 199            2. BLUE - 192          3. GREEN - 189           4. YELLOW - 185

Netball Tournament: 7.3.24

This afternoon, we took a squad of eight Year 6 children to Sussex University for a Stinger Netball Tournament.

Stinger Netball requires the children to rotate positions to ensure they have the opportunity to play in both defence and attack positions.

Miss Azor and Miss Evans were impressed with how our squad demonstrated the School Games Values such as determination, resilience and good sportsmanship throughout the afternoon. 

Here are a few photos:

       

    

    World Book Day: 7.3.24

It was an absolute joy to see so many book characters coming into school today! Children - you looked fantastic! Thank you parents and carers for your support with today - you are so creative!

The children took part in book-related activities today including a sharing a book  in our specially made "book nook" with hot chocolate and cookies!

Here are a few photos - more to follow on the class pages:

        

    

Brighton Bingo: 4.3.24

More of you have been enjoying the great outdoors this weekend and ticking off different activities on the Brighton Bingo boards.

Here are a few more pictures:

      

Create a tree rubbing, feed seeds to the ducks, play noughts and crosses using natural materials and draw a seagull, bird or duck.

 

Open The Book: 1.3.24

We were joined this morning for an "Open The Book" assembly led by Year 9 pupils from Cardinal Newman School.

Open The Book is an exciting story-telling project where Bible stories are shared with children in a way that is fun, interactive and memorable.

The CNS pupils used the power of story-telling, drama and song to share the Parable of the Great Banquet to our KS 2 pupils.

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                Well done to the following children who have, this week, shared a third piece of great piece of learning with Mrs Foan:                           Penelope (Year 1) Emma (Year 2) Jeremiah and Shanice (Year 4) Wiktor (Year 5)

Thank you to the parents and carers who were able to join us to celebrate these achievements with their children.

Congratulations to this week's STARS. It is always lovely to hear what the adults who work with you have to say about you!

EYFS:  Lea        Year 1: Lyla-Mae        Year 2:  Harry       Year 3: Mila        Year 4: John       Year 5:  Lok Tin       Year 6: Blessing

Another busy week collecting DOJOS for demonstrating positive learning behaviours! Well done to everyone.

Congratulations to the GREEN team with this week's highest DOJO total!

1. GREEN - 286            2. YELLOW - 266            3. RED- 262             4. BLUE- 259

Brighton Bingo

It is lovely to hear how the children have been out and about in the local area and enjoying the wonderful outdoors.

Keep working through your Bingo Board - we are looking forward to seeing the evidence of your experiences outside and with nature once you have completed them.

Here are a few recent pictures that have been sent in from the CRAB board:

                  Run 20 laps around the clock tower.    Stack pebbles on the beach to make a tower.  Count how many robins you see in an hour.

Outdoor Learning: 28.2.24

         

       

Year 2 had their fourth outdoor learning day today and what a great cross-curricular day they had!

They applied their maths learning by conducting a travel survey and recording their observations using a tally chart and they also applied their measuring skills to things outdoors.

The highlight of the day was, as always, getting dirty in the mud kitchen where they created items for their Pudding Lane Bakery!

 More pictures to follow on the Year 2 page.

Outdoor Learning: 23.2.24

Year 1 started off this half term's outdoor learning days today, and luckily the rain we have had for the rest of the week, held off!

Their learning today in our outdoor environment was Science based with the children learning about how to find the age of a tree by measuring the circumference of its trunk, about push and pull forces and also about floating and sinking.

 Here are a few pictures. Have a look on the Year 1 class-page for more.

        

  

We are delighted to share with you this wonderful achievement from Caterlink.

'After a recent inspection Collette (St Joseph's Catholic Primary School) was awarded a Certificate of Excellence. She achieved a score of 97.27% -  an impressive score!'

We know how amazing Collette (and her assistant Lauren) are - but it is lovely for Collette to get this recognition from Caterlink.

 

Congratulations to the first STARS of this half -term:

EYFS: Elza          Year1:  Adam        Year 2: Anna        Year 3:  Lily-May        Year 4: Darcy         Year 5: Henry       Year 6: Harlie

It is only the first week back but you have all been busy collecting DOJOS!

Congratulations to the RED team who are this week's top collectors.

1. RED- 216           2. GREEN - 202           3. BLUE - 198             4. YELLOW- 191

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Mrs Foan's office has been very busy this week with children sharing their amazing work!

Congratulations to these children who will receive a Head Teacher certificate in Friday's Celebration Assembly. 

George (Year 1)  Lealand, Jaachi, Mal (Year 2) Jasper and Zara (Year 3)  and Luca (Year 5)

               Two children will also receive a special badge for visiting Mrs Foan six times to share their work since September.                     

Well done Leon (Year 2) and Harvey (Year 3) A fantastic achievement!

Year 6 Trip : 21.2 .24

To support and enhance their understanding around their Power of Reading book, "Goodnight Mr Tom," Year 6 visited Down's Junior School where they had a tour of the air-raid shelter built underneath the school  playground. 

They also had a workshop led by WWII veterans who were able to give them a personal insight into what life was like in Brighton during WWII. The morning finished off with a Q and A session.

It was such a fantastic learning experience for our Year 6 pupils. More pictures to follow on the Year 6 class page.

      

    

Language of the Half-Term

At St Joseph's School, we are proud of our diversity and the vast number of languages spoken by our families.
At St Joseph's, every half term, we celebrate the languages besides English which are spoken at home by some of our pupils.

Each half term,  we try to learn a few useful phrases and words, to answer the register and say "please" and "thank you" and "hello" and "goodbye" in our chosen language. The child/children who speak the chosen language will help their classmates learn the correct pronunciation and will share picture books written in their home language as well as in English. 

These are the languages for this half term:

EYFS-  Kinyarwanda     Year 1-  Spanish      Year 2-  Thai      Year 3-  Romanian       Year 4- Turkish      Year 5-  Portuguese      Year 6- Arabic

Brighton Bingo

         Some of you have been so busy during half-term, getting out and about in the local area. Thank you for your enthusiasm children                                       and parents and carers for supporting your children with these activities and experiences in nature.                                       We look forward to seeing your Badger Bingo boards as you complete them over the next few weeks.

    

Activity 2-create a tree rubbing, Activity 7 - take a photo of the view at Hollingbury Hillfort and Activity 3 - make a piece of art using leaves.

     

Activity 4 - play noughts and crosses using natural materials and Activity 9 - feed seeds to the ducks.

 

Thank you parents and carers for your ongoing support this half term. Wishing all of our pupils and their families a happy half term break.

The first day back for the children is MONDAY 19th FEBRUARY.

 

On Friday, we launched our Brighton Bingo! The children were very excited and may have brought the Level 1 (Badger Level) Brighton Bingo Board home.

    This activity is a small part of our sustainability project and encourages exploration of the diverse habitats in and around Brighton.        We hope that through nature,  the children will gain a renewed appreciation for it and feel motivated to protect it.

Each level has 8 different tasks. Once all 8 have been completed, the children should email the evidence via the myhomework email address or take it in to share with their teacher. They will receive 40 DOJOS and a Head Teacher sticker when each board is completed.

Click  HERE for the Level 1 Badger Bingo Board.

Click  HERE  to be taken to out sustainability page for more information.

French Culture Week

The last week of each half term is based around a different aspect of French culture. This half term, the focus was learning about favourite French people. 

       

Year 6 used the Ipads to research famous French people and created fact-files. Year 4 created their own dances inspired by listening to Daft Punk - a French electronic music duo.

 

      

   Year 5 found out about the life and achievements of Coco Chanel. They added interesting facts to a line drawing portrait of her.            They designed their own perfume bottle for one of Coco Chanel's iconic perfumes.

Bike-Ability: 9.2.24

Today, a small group of Year 5/6 children have been taking part in Bike-Ability training. 

During Level 1 Bike-Ability training, the children learn to control and master their bikes. The training takes place on the playground.

The aim is for the children to gain basic cycle control skills including starting and pedalling; stopping; manoeuvring; signalling and using the gears on their bikes.

       

Attendance: 9.2.24

Today, we celebrated attendance in assembly - we were delighted to congratulate 16 children who have had 100% attendance since September! This is an amazing achievement bearing in mind the number of colds/coughs and tummy bugs there have been going around.

Congratulations to all of these children and their parents and carers - together, we are improving attendance at St Joseph's. 

Click HERE to see our Spring Term Attendance Newsletter

Head Teacher Challenge:

It was lovely to read through the prayers and poems that the children had written for Mrs Foan's latest Head Teacher Challenge.

The challenge tied in with our new sustainability initiative with the key focus being "HOPE."

    

The children had really thought about the theme and had included beautiful words about ways we can look after our beautiful world.

Thank you to everyone who took part in this challenge.

Super Spellers!

We also celebrated our "Spelling Superstars" in Celebration Assembly.

         Several children from Years 2-6 were chosen either for their effort and improvement with spelling or for 100% in spelling tests.                  They each received a special spelling badge.

Congratulations to Maryam, Riley (Year 2) Zara, Isla T  (Year 3) Scarlett (Year 4) Amelia N (Year 5) and Blessing and Legend (Year 6)

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Congratulations to Yasmin in EYFS who has shared three pieces of amazing learning with Mrs Foan recently.

It was lovely to celebrate her success in assembly today.

Congratulations to the final STARS of this half term.

EYFS:  Bryn          Year 1:  Halle         Year 2: Jaachi         Year 3:  Zara         Year 4:  Scarlett         Year 5: Emelia T         Year 6: Ibiye

 

This week's DOJOS have been collected and counted! The weekly totals have been very close this half term.

This week's top collectors are also the overall DOJO champs for this half-term.

Congratulations to the  YELLOW team!

1.   YELLOW- 230             2. RED - 228               3. BLUE -220               4. GREEN - 215

Movie Night: 7.2.24

Thank you very much to the FOSJ's for organising and running two movie nights this week.

Today, our KS 1 pupils will be relaxing on a duvet with a teddy and enjoying a drink and some popcorn whilst  watching "Elemental" with their friends.  Tomorrow , our KS2 pupils will have the opportunity to watch "Space Jam 2" 

We are very grateful to the FOSJ's for their support and for organising and running a variety of fundraising activities , which all contribute to enhancing the provision for our children. 

    

Outdoor Learning: 7.2.24

Year 2 had a full fun-filled outdoor learning day today! They made twig dolls, dream catchers, created outdoor sculptures and did leaf prints and rubbings.

      

    

Have a look on the Year 2 class page for more pictures and information.

 
 
The Literacy Team are holding an open evening for parents/carers on 13th March at Cardinal Newman School.
This is an opportunity to meet the Literacy SEN specialist teachers to get tips and strategies to support your child with literacy
Please click HERE  for the flyer with more details & HERE for a parking map if you would like to attend.

Sustainability: 6.2.24

Miss Cross delivered a KS2  assembly this week based on this term's theme of ENERGY. It was lovely to see the passion and commitment  evident through the children's ideas, thoughts and contributions.

Many of the children have signed up to our school pledge to read a few pages of a book rather than use an electronic device. The children will log how many minutes of energy are saved each time they made this greener choice. A whole school total will be calculated at Easter.

Our aim is to help to empower children to make small changes such as this, that can collectively have a big impact.

  

Outdoor Learning: 6.2.24

Our EYFS class had their third outdoor learning experience today. Our theme for this half-term is "Art of the Outdoors," with the children across the school exploring and being inspired by artists who use natural materials to express themselves creatively. 

Have a look at the activities they took part in, which artist inspired them and what else they learnt on the EYFS class page.

Here are a few photos...

..       

Safer Internet Day: 6.2.24

         Safer Internet Day 2024 takes place today on the 6th of February 2024, with celebrations and learning based around the theme                ‘Inspiring change? Making a difference, managing influence and navigating change online’.

Safer Internet Day is the UK’s biggest celebration of online safety. Each year their focus cover an online issue or theme that young people are seeing and experiencing online.

Miss Hill delivered lessons around this theme to Year 2- 6 this week. Each class teacher will also be reminding children of how to keep safe online as part of their PSHE learning activities.

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Congratulations to these children who received a Head Teacher certificate during Celebration Assembly. They have shared 3 amazing pieces of learning with Mrs Foan recently.

We are very proud of : Anna, Freddie, Delilah, Harry ( Year 2) Lily-May, Sisa (Year 3) and Tate (Year 5)

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

We love to hear what your teachers have to say about you each week and to share these successes with your friends and family.

EYFS:  Khamari         Year 1:  Simon         Year 2:  Ruby W           Year 3:  Ivy          Year 4:  Nirvana         Year 5: Harry        Year 6: Alicia

There is all to play for next week with the DOJO totals!

Each team has collected the most DOJOS one week each during this half term so whoever collects the most DOJOS next week will win overall for this half term!

Congratulations to the GREEN team - this week's highest DOJO collectors.

1. BLUE - 226            2. GREEN - 220            3.  RED - 214           4.  YELLOW - 209

POWer Projects: 31.1.24

We love to see the home learning you do relating to our school History and Geography themes. Anna was able to tell us so many facts about the Great Fire of London with her fantastic model of the bakery in Pudding Lane where it started!

  

It is lovely to witness the enthusiasm that our pupils have for their History and Geography learning.

Thank you again parents and carers for your support with the home learning.

Attendance

As you know, raising attendance and improving punctuality are a key priority here at St Joseph's. Thank you parents and carers for working with us on this - it is making a difference. 

Some of our children have had an attendance celebration chart for a four week period in January. This was to motivate and celebrate!

It is lovely to see how keen the children are to improve their attendance.

Here are two of our top attenders - managing to be in school every day for the entire four weeks. Well done!

Fire Visit: 30.1.24

The EYFS class were so excited today to have a special visit from a local fire crew. They had the opportunity to sit in the fire engine, see the different valves and even had a go with the hose!

They learnt about the protective clothing worn by firefighters and how to crawl down low to avoid too much smoke inhalation in a fire.

We really appreciate the fire crew coming out to visit us at school so that we could learn about their job.

      

    

Have a look on the EYFS page for more pictures.

Year 5 Visit: 30.1.24

Year 5 were delighted to receive an invitation to Patcham High School to see their Wintertime Showcase. Our pupils enjoyed a spectacular array of dancing performed by students throughout the year groups.

It was a fantastic show and many of our pupils came back excited and inspired about the opportunities that will available to them at secondary school.

We are very grateful to Patcham High for giving our pupils this opportunity to see their students perform.

Year 6 Outdoor Learning: 30.1.24

Year 6 had an exciting outdoor learning day today, despite the rather grey and dull weather. They certainly managed to bring some colour to the playground today!

          

They focused on this half term's outdoor learning theme "Art of the Outdoors" and tied it in with their class art theme based around street art  and applying an understanding of impact and effect to create a powerful image.

Have a look on the Year 6 page to see more photos and find out what the children learnt in more detail.

Here are the STARS for this week. It is lovely to walk around the school and to see such positive learning behaviours being demonstrated. The children are really engaged, focused and working hard!

Congratulations to:

EYFS: Ronnie             Year 1:  Logan           Year 2: Ray           Year 3:  Ronnie           Year 4: Jeremiah           Year 5:             Year 6: Jenny

The DOJO totals for this week are in! Again, it is another very close week! Well done everyone for collecting so many DOJOS.

1.  GREEN- 216             2. YELLOW- 210               3. RED- 206               4. BLUE-199

Outdoor Learning: 24.1.24

Luckily for our Year 5 and 6 classes, the weather has warmed up slightly this week! Both classes enjoyed a creative, cross-curricular outdoor learning day this week.

      

   Year 4 created costumes from natural and man-made resources to act out a narrative from their Power of Reading text, "The Tin Forest."           It was lovely to witness their creativity, excitement and engagement!

      

Have a look on both class pages to see more photos.

Bikeability Sessions: 25.1.24

Some of our Year 3 and 4 pupils have been taking part in "Learn To Ride" sessions this week on the school playground.

During the sessions, the children were taught how to control their bike including setting off, cruising, slowing down, braking and stopping. The training  also helped the children to develop a better awareness of each other and their surroundings! 

Thank you parents and carers for your support with bringing your children's bike in this week!

      

Outdoor Learning: 19.1.24

Year 1 were wrapped up warmly for today's outdoor learning curriculum day. It was a beautiful but crisp day and the children in Year 1 took part in several exciting activities finishing off with a well-deserved and warming cup of hot chocolate!

      

Have a look on the YEAR 1  page to see more photos and information about today's outdoor learning experience.

Year 4 and 5 have outdoor learning next week (Year 5 on Tuesday and Year 4 - Wednesday)

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Well done to the first children of 2024 to receive a Head Teacher's award for sharing three special pieces of their learning with Mrs Foan.  It was lovely to see one of our EYFS children receiving their first  Head Teacher's award today!

Congratulations:  Kaelen (EYFS) and Simon (Year 1) and Leona (Year 4)

Well done to this week's STARS. We love hearing what your teachers have to say about you in Friday's Assembly and celebrating your achievements with you.

EYFS:  Lukus          Year 1: Olivia            Year 2:  Leon           Year 3: Isla T           Year 4: Archie          Year 5: Chidera          Year 6: Kowen

This week's DOJO totals have been collected and counted - this week's numbers are so close! 

Well done to the RED team - just pipping the BLUE team to the post!

1.  RED - 238             2.  BLUE - 236              3.  YELLOW - 230              4. GREEN - 224

Outdoor Learning: 12.1.24

Our Year 3 class were the first class to brave the winter weather for the first outdoor learning session of 2024.

They linked our outside environment to their current learning, making Egyptian collars from leaves and using sticks and mud to write using Hieroglyphs.

    

Pictures to follow on the Year 3 page.

The DOJOS for the first week and a half back have been collected and counted and the totals are very close!

Congratulations to the YELLOW team for collecting the most DOJOS.

1. YELLOW- 234             2. RED- 228             3. GREEN - 219               4.   BLUE - 217

Congratulations to our first STARS of 2024!

It is lovely to hear how quickly and easily you have settled back into the school and learning routine after the Christmas break.

EYFS: Zara          Year 1: Blake         Year 2: Tyler         Year 3: CJ           Year 4: Mykie           Year 5: Zayden        Year 6: Scarlett

Our City, Our World Logo – Our City, Our World

This week, we are launching the "Our City, Our World" initiative.

"Our City, Our World" is Brighton and Hove's Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Education Programme. It is one of several council based initiatives that aim to help the city to become carbon neutral by 2030.

For us as a school, it is a chance to become more sustainable whilst equipping our pupils with an understanding of environmental issues and empowering them to make small changes that can collectively have a big impact. 

In line with our school ethos, we are leading the project with a strong sense of hope and the belief that together we can help to create a brighter future for all.

Today's launch  had a celebratory feel about it: building excitement for the project.

The children looked great in their green and blue earth colours.

Thank you for your donations - these will go to our school eco fund.

 Eco-Launch: 11.1.24

Year 4 recycled and re-purposed Tetra Pak packaging to create pots to grow plants in. 

Year 2 used toast to illustrate  how we need to work together to minimise damage to our Earth and Year 3 reused damaged plastic bags to create beautiful flowers.

Year 1 tried some Quorn nuggets alongside some chicken nuggets to introduce them to different plant-based alternatives.

         

      

The children in EYFS made banana bread, using up over-ripe bananas that may otherwise have been thrown away.

Year 6 created bird feeders using old food cartons and Year 5 had a "Green Day Challenge" working out how much energy they had saved by not using electricity in the classroom for the whole day.

Year 1 saw with their own eyes the impact on wildlife of the polar ice caps melting and this made them think about what could be done about this issue.

  

Thank you to the parents and carers who were able to join us for this afternoon's launch assembly.

Power of Reading 

It is lovely to see the excitement as the children are being introduced to their new high-quality texts based on the Power of Reading scheme.

After hearing the opening to their new class book, "The Silver Donkey," the children in Year 6 used charcoal and techniques learnt previously in their art lessons to depict the scene and image that the piece of text created in their minds.

Here are a few of them:

      

Stunning Starts...

To launch our History and Geography themes each term, the teachers plan a "Stunning Start" to ignite the children's interest in the current learning theme through a rich and creative experience!

      

Year 4 had an "around the world tasting session" as an introduction to their theme, "The World's Kitchen" sampling different foods such as feta cheese, guacamole, pineapple and falafel and trying to work out which country they came from.

      

More pictures to follow on each class page shortly.

Balance Bikes: 9.1.24

Our EYFS class are taking part in Balance Bike Training this week. A Balance Bike is where a child's cycling journey begins.

Balance Bikes build strength, stamina, motor skills, coordination and agility.

        

Over the four days of training, the children will be developing skills in gliding, braking, steering and controlling speed when on a bike.

More pictures to follow on the EYFS page.

Year 5 Science: 9.1.24

Year 5's Science learning this week is based around the human circulatory system and the different parts and functions of the heart.

Today,  they created models of the heart using salt dough and food colouring.  More pictures to follow on the Year 5 class page.

       

Epiphany Mass: 5.1.24

We were delighted to be joined by Father Chris to celebrate an Epiphany Mass in school this morning.

Thank you to those parents and carers who were able to join us.

POWer Projects

It is lovely to see the home learning that has been taking place over the Christmas break linked to each class's new History or Geography theme. Thank you parents and carers with your support with this.

      

Year 1 have been creating igloo models and Year 3 have been designing and making Egyptian headdresses.

More pictures to follow on the class pages.

Language of the Half-Term

At St Joseph's School, we are proud of our diversity and the vast number of languages spoken by our families.
At St Joseph's, every half term, we celebrate the languages besides English which are spoken at home by some of our pupils.

Each half term,  we try to learn a few useful phrases and words, to answer the register and say "please" and "thank you" and "hello" and "goodbye" in our chosen language. The child/children who speak the chosen language will help their classmates learn the correct pronunciation and will share picture books written in their home language as well as in English. 

These are the languages for this half term:

EYFS: Arabic         Year 1: Slovak       Year 2: French        Year 3: Spanish        Year 4:  Dutch      Year 5:  Spanish       Year 6: Spanish

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Wishing all of our children and their families a happy and healthy Christmas break. Thank you for all your support this term. We do appreciate it. We look forward to working with you again in 2024!

The children return to school on Wednesday 3rd January 2024

 

Thanks to your generosity, we had a little bit of party food left over on the last day of term.

The staff at St Richard's Foodbank were delighted to receive it - it is good to know we can help support families in the local area at this special time of year. 

    

Let's Party!

Friday was party day for the children at St Joseph's - well deserved after a term of hard work!

In the morning, the children took part in festive activities in their classrooms such as Christmas musical bingo, decorating biscuits, face-painting, Christmas crafts, Yule logs ... and much much more!

          

       

The afternoon was more festive fun with traditional party games and activities such as karaoke, followed by some party food. 

      

We have been very lucky to have Faye Eldret, a choralist from the Diocese  working with our Year 3 and 4 classes this term.

She has been working in many schools across the Diocese and all the schools she works with have put together an E-Christmas Card.

Click HERE to see it.

The final DOJO totals for the year have been collected and counted!

This week's winners are also the overall winners for this half term. Congratulations to the BLUE team!

1.   BLUE -256           2. RED - 240            3. GREEN and YELLOW  - 237          

Congratulations to our final STARS of 2023!

EYFS:  Joseph        Year 1:  Leighton      Year 2: Ruby D       Year 3:  Sisa        Year 4: George J       Year 5: Evie-Rae       Year 6: Julian

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Congratulations to these children who have shared their work with Mrs Foan three times during this first Autumn Term.

We are very proud of: King (Year 2) Eliana (Year 3) Darcy, Nirvana, Thomas, Scarlett (Year 4) Rhianna (Year 5) Ibiye and Scarlett (Year 6)

As you know, raising attendance and improving punctuality are a key priority here at St Joseph's. Thank you parents and carers for working with us on this - it is making a difference. 

In our final whole school assembly, we celebrated both improved and 100% attendance.

This term, we had 30 children who have made it into school every day since September. A great achievement!

 

Some of our children have had an attendance celebration chart for a four week period. This is to motivate and celebrate!

It is lovely to see how keen they are to improve their attendance. Freddie was one of several children who managed a full four weeks!

Hoodies: 15.12.23

Year 6 received their leavers hoodies today - a little earlier than usual!

This is so they have plenty of time to wear them with pride before they leave us in the summer. They are the same bottle green colour as our uniform and include our school logo.

   

The Year 6 children love them! Thank you to Mrs Jones for organising this.

Carols in the Community: 14.12.23

It has become a regular part of our Christmas celebrations to share some festive joy with others in our local community.

Year 5 are due to visit Lindfield Court tomorrow to sing some Christmas Carols and to personally wish the residents next door a very merry Christmas.

   

The children in Year 5 made and delivered to each resident a personal Christmas card.

Our children were delighted to receive a selection box from the residents as a thank you!

Christmas Story Experience: 13.12.23

Mrs Foan and Mrs Cox took the Faith Council to Wintershall today, where they discovered the true meaning of Christmas with an unforgettable, immersive theatre experience.

      

The children were able to stand with the shepherds, walk with Mary, Joseph and the donkey, journey with Roman soldiers and enter the stable to witness the miracle of Christmas unfold.

There were real sheep, a live donkey and a real baby in the re-enactment! 

A truly memorable experience for the Faith Council, bringing the story of Christmas to life.

Outdoor Learning: 13.12.23

Years 1 and 2 joined forces today for the final outdoor learning day of the term.

The morning session was based around transient art- foraging and gathering natural resources and objects in our outdoor environment to create unique tree decorations. 

      

The afternoon was based around sensory activities, exploring textures, sounds and smells in the natural environment.

They finished off the day with a warming cup of hot chocolate.

       

Carol Concert: 12.12.23

Tonight was our KS2 Carol Concert at St Joseph's Church.

It was lovely  to come together as a school community and share some final festive cheer. 

Thank you children for your joyous singing and narration of the Christmas Story. Thank you parents and carers for joining us tonight.

DT Week

The last week of each term is dedicated to DT (Design and Technology)

Across the school, each class has been working on a particular project following the same process of investigate, design, make and  evaluate. 

        

Year 1 made cards with a moveable mechanism and Year 4  made a page from a book by giving it moving parts using levers and linkages.

Have a look on each class page for more photos of the children's learning.

Feeling Festive...

Miss Pippa has put a festive twist on this week's PE lessons keeping the children active with a "Dress As Santa" relay and a game of reindeer tag!

KS1 kept active inside despite the rain too!

      

      

Carols in the Community: 11.12.23

Our Year 2 class went across to Grove Park this afternoon to sing some of the songs from their Nativity to the residents there.

It was a lovely opportunity for the different generations to come together and for our pupils to share some festive joy locally.

The children were delighted to receive a drink and a cup cake at the end of their visit.

      

Nativity

Our EYFS class and KS1 classes did a final dress rehearsal on Friday in preparation for their performances to the school and nursery children on Monday and to parents and carers on Tuesday and Thursday. 

They have been rehearsing over the last few weeks and it is lovely to finally see the finished performance of "Baarmy Bethlehem."                    The singing, dancing, acting and speaking were all amazing!

      

       

It is a really uplifting and enjoyable performance - well done to all of the children and to the staff for putting it together.

Here are a few photos. Parents and Carers - you are in for a treat!

If you have any concerns about your child's emotional mental health and wellbeing, please click HERE to find out details of a Christmas Holiday Consultation Line.

Telephone consultations with a Primary Mental Health Worker will be available over the Christmas Holiday.

Christmas Holiday Clubs

Please find details below of a HAF (Holiday Activities and Food) multi-sport holiday club run by SportsCool at Longhill Sports Centre from December 18th-22nd. 

Click HERE for more information.

 

Please click on this LINK to see "The Big Ambition" survey from Dame Rachel De Souza, the Children's Commissioner for England. She is keen to hear from children and young people in England on what they think is important. 

You have until this Friday (15th December) to complete the survey if you wish to.

Christmas Fair: 8.12.23

The children have been busy getting creative this week in preparation for this year's Christmas Fair. The FOSJ's have lent each class           £20 to invest wisely on prizes or craft materials for their stall. All profits go to the class and they decide how or where to spend it.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     This has provided an excellent opportunity for a mini enterprising project and it was interesting to see each class's ideas.

       

    

 Thank you to all the children and staff involved in organising and running the stalls, parents and carers for your donations to the stalls and hampers and for supporting the fair this afternoon and to the FOSJ's for overseeing everything this afternoon.

We really do appreciate your support. 

Santa Dash : 8.12.23

Santa Dash 2023

             The School Games National Santa Dash returns for another fun-filled day of festive fun today!               

It is great to be part of this event, which over 80, 000 youngsters took part in last year!

      

      

Miss Azor set up a simple obstacle course around the playground to make the St Joseph's Santa Dash even more fun!

It was lovely to see the enthusiasm with which the children (and staff) took part!

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Well done Freya - you have shared your amazing work with Mrs Foan on three occasions this term. We are very proud of you.

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Congratulations to this week's STARS! It is always lovely to hear about your individual achievements

EYFS:  Lottie          Year 1: Teddy        Year 2: Jason       Year 3: Oscar       Year 4: Elliot          Year 5:  Freddie          Year 6: Lily-Jo

As we draw towards the end of the term, the DOJO totals and weeks won are very close!

There is still lots to play for, so keep demonstrating those positive learning behaviours and it could mean your house team are the overall winners!

Well done to the BLUE team! Here are this week's totals:

1. BLUE: 217                2.  RED:  210              3.  GREEN: 206            4. YELLOW: 199         

Christmas Lunch

     Today was our school Christmas lunch day! Everyone came into school wearing a Christmas jumper and other festive attire.  We had a delicious roast dinner followed by ice-cream and a special festive cookie. We had party hats and sang along to Christmas songs.

Thank you to Colette and Lauren for preparing such a lovely lunch for us.

      

         

Carols in the Community

Today, our Year 3 class paid a visit today to a local nursing home - Grove Park - to share some Christmas spirit with the residents there.

They sang some traditional and modern carols and brought a little bit of festive cheer to the residents, who loved seeing the children perform and joined in with the carols they knew.

The children coloured in a festive image and wrote a special Christmas message for each of the residents.

Our pupils were delighted to receive a  cupcake and a drink as a thank you. 

    

Our Year 2 class will be sharing their Nativity songs at Grove Park and Year 5 will be visiting Lindfield Court next week.

Active Advent

At St Joseph's, we love to keep active, so we are delighted to be taking part in Brighton and Hove's Active Advent challenge - which provides festive challenges to get pupils active and moving every day in the lead up to the Christmas break.

Click HERE to see the daily challenge calendar for the Advent period. Why don't you take part at home?

Here are a few pictures.  More to follow on class pages.

                     

                        Day 1 - Reindeer Lunges                                                    Day 3 - Advent Star Jumps                     Day 4 - Santa Squats

                                    

                             Day 5 - Frozen Ice Push Ups                                                          Day 6 - Christmas Tree Yoga Pose

Messy Church : 1.12.23

We were joined by Julia today from St Joseph's Church who ran a "messy church" taster session.

The children and parents took part in some creative activities based around the feast of Christ The King.

          

Messy Church is a Christ-centred way of being church based on creativity, hospitality and celebration. It reflects the creativity of God in its imaginative hands-on approach. Today's session consisted of story-telling, singing, prayer, sharing food and messy creativity.

St Joseph's Church run Messy Church sessions once a month.

Head Teacher Challenge: 1.12.23

Thank you to everyone who designed a Christmas bauble for the latest Head Teacher's Challenge around the theme of bringing joy to the world.

The baubles will be hung up in school for all to see. They certainly have bought joy to our hearts looking at the thoughtful designs and careful colouring and the care you have put into them. Thank you everyone who completed one: here are a few.

      

    

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Congratulations to these children who have shared three fantastic pieces of work with Mrs Foan this term:

Arlo (Year 2) Harvey (Year 3) Junior (Year 6)

Special mention must also go to Harlie who has shared six pieces of work with Mrs Foan since September!

Congratulations to this week's STARS.

We are very proud of you all and love to share your special moment with you, your friends and family in our Celebration Assembly.

EYFS: Chayton         Year 1: George         Year 2: Taylor        Year 3:  Harvey         Year 4: Thomas        Year 5:  Lok Yin        Year 6: Blessing

The DOJO totals were again very close this week! Well done everyone for demonstrating positive learning behaviours and for collecting so many DOJOS again this week.

Congratulations to the GREEN team - this week's top DOJO collectors!

          1.  GREEN - 215                         2.    YELLOW - 209                       3 - RED and  BLUE- 201                        

Drama Workshop: 30.11.23

This afternoon we hosted a free drama taster workshop led by ThirdSpace Theatre Company.

ThirdSpace are an award-winning company, running 15 drama clubs across Brighton and Hove. This afternoon's taster session allowed our pupils and their parents and carers to experience the workshops and see what ThirdSpace can offer first-hand.

Getting Ready for Christmas....

There are signs of the season starting to appear around the school! 

Our post box is now out in the foyer. If your child wishes to send individual or a class card, please remember to include the children's name and class on the front of the envelope and please do not put chocolate or sweets inside. 

The school council will regularly empty the post box and distribute the cards.

    

Some of the Faith Council collected greenery from our outdoor environment and made an Advent Wreath in preparation.

The first candle, symbolising hope, was lit this morning during Celebration Assembly.

Outdoor Learning: 29.11.23

This week, it is the turn of our EYFS and Year 3 classes to have their outdoor learning curriculum days.

The EYFS children had such a busy morning with cross-curricular links including music, art and DT!

        

Year 3's activities were based around their Geography learning theme, "Extreme Survival."

      

Have a look on each class page later in the week to see more photos of the activities they took part in.

Year 4 Trip : 28.11.23

To support and enhance their Science learning, Year 4 visited the Booth Museum. They had a great hands-on experience and were able to study the skeletons of a variety of animals and look closely at different bones.

      

      

More information and pictures to follow shortly on the Year 4 page.

POWer Projects: 24.11.23

It is lovely to share and celebrate your home learning tasks which support our History and Geography themes in school. You have been so fantastically creative! Year 2 have made some amazing models of the solar system and designed and built their own rockets!

Thank you parents and carers for your support with these home learning tasks.

        

Open The Book...

Our KS2 classes were very lucky to have another visit from the Chaplain and some of the Year 9 students from Cardinal Newman School on Friday who came in for a special assembly, which they present to several of their feeder schools.

                          The assemblies are called "Open The Book" and bring stories from the Bible to life through acting and music.                                                 This week the students presented the story of the Good Samaritan.

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Congratulations to Skye who received a Head Teacher's certificate this week.

Well done Skye - it is always lovely to see both your school work and your home learning tasks.

Congratulations to this week's STARS. We love sharing your moment with you and hearing all the positive things your teachers have to say about you in Celebration Assembly. Well done to:

EYFS:  Zenita        Year 1: Kiedis        Year 2: Delilah        Year 3: Jasper        Year 4: Sonny       Year 5: Amelia N      Year 6: Legend

The DOJO totals were very close this week! Congratulations to this week's top collectors- the RED team.

1. RED- 240             2. GREEN - 238             3. BLUE - 231             4.  YELLOW - 229  

Year 6 Outdoor Learning: 21.11.23

Year 6 enjoyed a cross-curricular outdoor learning day today with activities including applying their fraction knowledge to demonstrate the bar model using sticks!

They used tree rubbings and chalk pastels to create a wave effect and texture for some artwork based around their Power of Reading text Odysseus and they created self-portraits using natural and found objects including making their own dyes.

      

    

Pictures to follow on the Year 6 page shortly.