Many thanks to our Year 6 children on their wonderful Easter assembly.

They presented 'The Way of the Cross' to the children in Years 4-7 and to parents, family and friends in a very meaningful and powerful manner which allowed all present to reflect on the key days and moments of the Easter season.

Thanks also to the Year 6 staff who guided the children in what was a very poignant and reflective ceremony and to Mr. McCann in the canteen for providing some lovely refreshments.

'Because by thy holy cross, thou hast redeemed the world'.

Many congratulations to all the boys and girls who received Subject, Accelerated Reading, Pupil of the Month, and Principal Awards at our Easter Awards Assemblies.

Year 3 and Year 7 also finished their Paired Reading Programme today and were presented with certificates to mark the completion of this special and very beneficial initiative.

You are all superstars - Well done everyone!

Such eggsitement in our Nursery Unit today with some 'cracking' Easter bonnets on parade. Congratulations to all who took part.  The Easter Bunny hid some very special treats along the way.  However, all the boys and girls searched very hard and managed to find where he had hidden all those lovely chocolate eggs! 

Thank you so much to the parents who came along and took time to create the wonderful pieces of art the children wore.

And how wonderful to feature in the front page of Wednesday's 'Irish News' 

Happy Easter!

'An Easter Bonnet sent your way, to brighten up this special day!'

Many thanks to Ricky and all the canteen staff for a special and very delicious Easter treat at lunchtime today.

Also congratulations to all our canteen staff on achieving their Food Hygiene 5 star rating.  We are very lucky at St. Joseph's to be able to enjoy such wonderful canteen breaks and meals!

The Pupil Council had the opportunity to take part in a British Sign Language lesson as part of Sign Language Week 2024.

The aim of the Sign Language Week is to encourage people of all ages across the UK to take up the challenge of learning British Sign Language for themselves and finding out more about the language and culture of the Deaf, Deafblind and hard of hearing people for whom BSL is their first or preferred language.

The lesson provided them with the opportunity to learn BSL from a deaf teacher, improving their communication skills and confidence, and teaching them new ways to express emotions, whilst giving an appreciation of the diverse cultures of the UK. 

During the lesson they had an opportunity to sign the alphabet, some colours, animals and pets and many family member names.  It was good fun.  They also saw the importance of facial expression whilst signing. 

The pupil council then led our Year 4-7 End of Term 2 Assembly.  They spoke to them about Sign Language Week, the lesson they took part in and demonstrated signing some of the words they had learned.

They finished by reminding everyone about the importance of communication.  They also reminded us all that as a school community we should always think of others, be inclusive, be kind and treat others with respect – simply put, to treat others the same way we expect others to treat us!

The Eco Council meet with Mr. Traynor to discuss Food Waste Week.  This year's theme was all about buying fruit and vegetables loose and only buying what you need.  Lots of conversation was generated and lots of ideas put forward.

We discussed why food waste is a problem and ways to avoid waste.  We also discussed why loose fruit and vegetables are the best because you can choose only the items that are right for you and you're also helping the environment because you're not buying plastic packaging.  

#FoodWasteActionWeek

We are delighted to be part of a new EA programme called 'Being Well Doing Well', creating a whole school approach to Emotional Health and Wellbeing.  All school staff came together this week to meet our link advisor for 'Being Well Doing Well', Mr. Stuart Kennedy, who held an information session for us all.

We have always valued the health and well-being of all members of our school family - children, staff, parents and the wider community.  Social, emotional and physical health and wellbeing has been a long standing item on our School Development Plan, and something we value and try to improve continuously, so we are really looking forward to strengthening this through the support of the 'Being Well Doing Well' programme.

Follow the link below to find out more about the 'Being Well Doing Well' programme and to access the information video provided by the EA.

https://www.eani.org.uk/services/being-well-doing-well-programme

Now that Spring is truly upon us and the days are getting brighter, our Faith Group have been working very hard with Mrs. Loughran to ensure that our outdoor sacred space is ready for the season of Easter. 

They have completed a Spring tidy up, and using their Forest School skills, have added some beautiful art work depicting the Easter Story.  We also thank Mr. Kelly for making our wooden cross and Mrs. Mirza for working with the girls and boys in the group to create a beautiful  sign to ensure that all within our school community know that they are welcome to come and pray, reflect, relax, or simply unwind in this peaceful outdoor area.   

'We may think we are nurturing our garden, but of course it is our garden that is really nurturing us.'  Jenny Uglow

On Wednesday 2oth March, two firefighters visited our Year 5 children to complete our annual Fire Safety Talk.  The children participated in discussions and educational conversations about how to prevent fire in the home.  In addition, they discussed with the Fire service, what measures to take in the event of an emergency fire situation.

The firefighters gave the children TWO challenges:

• To make sure they could remember their home address incase they had to make a 999 call and request the help of the Fire Service.
• To make sure all smoke alarms were tested at home and were working properly.

All children received a ‘Safety Team’ pack to discuss with adults at home

Congratulations to all those boys and girls who took part in our Annual Music Recital in the school assembly hall.  We enjoyed a range of performances from our School Orchestra, Guitarists and individual soloists.  A wide range of musical instruments were represented to include the violin, cello, trumpet, obeo, flute, guitar and piano.

What amazing talent we had on show - we all all very proud of the girls and boys today.  Many thanks to Mrs. McDonnell (Music co-ordinator)  and Mr. Heron (EA Music Tutor)  for all their hard work with the boys and girls throughout the year. 

Well done to all involved!