Thursday 22 July 2010

22nd July 2010

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome to the last newsletter of this academic year. It has been a year of challenge and success. All the children have worked hard and are becoming even more successful in their learning.

PTFA Summer Festival
A big thank you to everybody involved in organising a second fantastic Summer Festival and thank you to all of you who came. Our dedicated PTFA did an amazing job and I hope they are all very proud of what they achieved.

Foundation Stage Outcomes
In particular this year, the children have made good progress in their Emotional Development and their Knowledge and Understanding of the World. They will be great Year 1 class!

End of Key Stage Results – Key Stage 1 (level 2 is national expectation)
This year’s Year 2 children have made amazing progress and have attained more in most areas, than in previous years:
Reading level 2+ =83% Level 3 = 33%
Writing level 2+ = 80% Level 3 = 7%
Maths level 2+ = 93% Level 3 = 20%

End of Key Stage Results – Key Stage 2 (Level 4 is national expectation)
English level 4+ = 78% Level 5 = 30%
Maths level 4+ = 83% Level 5 = 43%
This year we are very pleased that our children are making better progress than in previous years. 90% of children made 2 levels (or more) progress in English and 93% of children made 2 levels (or more) progress in Maths.

We are also very pleased that many more children are achieving the higher levels with an amazing 43% achieving level 5! Well done Year 6.

New Office Layout
We are improving the office environment to help us provide an even better service to the school community, especially parents. So, our admin staff will be located in 2 offices giving them more space to deal with their everyday tasks and, more importantly, more space to deal with your enquiries warmly and efficiently. The changes have meant that the headteacher’s office space will also be relocated. These changes have enabled us to focus on and increase security at the front of the building to ensure that the environment is as safe as possible for our children. If your enquiry is about money or premises then you need to see Eva our Bursar. If your enquiry is about anything more general you need to see Liz our School Secretary.

There will also be a new library area, our staffroom will be given a facelift and our medical room will be relocated and improved.

Please join us for a cup of tea and some cake on Thursday 9th or Friday 10th September at 3.15 when my admin team and myself will show you around. I also hope to put some pictures on the Blog, updating you all on progress!

Our year - A Reflection by Year 6 -
· “I’ve made an effort to be more sociable and to trust people and consequently I have made a lot more friends”.
· “Knowing my levels and how to achieve them has made me more confident in my abilities”.
· “Our ‘Around the World’ and ‘Going for Goals topics have made me much more confident about where countries are in the world”.
· “Knowing my next steps has helped me to achieve level 5 Literacy”.
· “I’m proud that although I had to leave St Joseph’s for a few months, when I returned I carried on as if I hadn’t been away, and was also treated the same”.
· “At camp I overcame my fear of heights when I did the zip wire.”
· “I enjoyed our Art based Topic ‘Pop Art’ when I tried my hardest to improve my techniques”
· “I feel more confident when writing in different genres”.
· “I’ve learnt I can do anything if I put my mind to it”.
· “I’m pleased with my achievement in Maths as I have learnt different ways of approaching problems and calculations”.

We are very proud of Year 6. Good luck for the future in your new schools.

WATER WALK 2010 – So far you have raised an AMAZING £889.71

Purple Mash – Home Learning
We are delighted to launch a new web based programme Purple Mash.(www.purplemashcom). It has hundreds of activities to help children develop their knowledge and creativity. To use it simply follow the link on the school website and use the log on details below for full access. Username:pupil@c46524, Password: Fig 3

Thank You
I would like to thank all children, parents, staff and governors for all your hard work and support. We look forward to making 2010-2011 an even better year of learning.

Leaver’s Mass is tomorrow at 9.30am in the Church. The first day of term (September 1st) is a Staff Training Day. School will reopen on Thursday 2nd September.

Have a safe and happy holiday
Matt Condon, Headteacher.

Friday 16 July 2010

16th July 2010

Dear Parent/Carer,

THE SUMMER FESTIVAL IS TOMORROW!!!

Year 5 and 6 Welcome Parents
The staff and children are welcoming parents and carers into school on Monday afternoon at 3pm. Please come in, so that your children can share their work with you.

Water Walk 2010
Can children could bring in their completed sponsor forms and any money raised, by next Wednesday.

Attendance
We held a special Attendance Celebration Assembly today. All children with 98% attendance or more will have a special non uniform day on Monday.

An award was also given to the classes with best attendance – Mrs Mantle’s class and Mr Conlon’s class. They will also have a non uniform day on Monday.

This last week Mrs Rolling’s and Mr Conlon’s class achieved 97% attendance and Mr Sherwin’s and Mrs Bell’s class had a fantastic 99% attendance.

Secondary School
The '3 for 1' choosing secondary schools/My Future, My Choice event at Metropolitan Academy on Monday 19th July will now not have secondary schools present to get information from and will be an explanation of the My Future My Choice project along with the Choosing a secondary school information."

FILMCLUB
Next week’s film will be the continuation of Shark Boy and Lava Girl. This film is rated U.

Dogs on School Grounds
Can I remind you all that dogs are not allowed on school grounds. This is for reasons of health and safety.

School Uniform
We have the following school uniform left in the stock cupboard to sell at a reduced price:-

2 x 5/6 Navy fleece, 2 x 10/12 navy fleece, 3 small adult navy fleeces, 2 small adult navy sweatshirts, 2 x 5/6 navy cardigans, 2 x 11/12 navy cardigans. Please make us an offer.

Can I remind you that if you require any school uniform you can either collect an order form from the porch or order on online at www.schoolwearforless.com/schools/stjosephsrcprimarybs163qr

Dinner Money Arrears
Please could you ensure that all dinner monies are paid on Monday 19th July so that all arrears are paid before the end of term. Any credits will be refunded on Friday 23rd July.

Dean Field Study Centre Residential Trip
If your child will be in either year 5 or 6 in September they wil be able to attend an activity residential trip in February 2011. If you would like more details please contact the school office.

Barton Hill Fun Day
Barton Hill RFC, Duncombe Lane, Speedwell are holding a Community Fun Day & Charity Game on Sat 24th July from 1 - 5pm. There will be a BBQ, bouncy castle, inflatable slide, stalls & more. All welcome.

Celebration Assembly – End of Year Special
There will be a celebration assembly on Monday, 19th July, at 9.15am, where the following children will receive their headteachers award:
Alya Rasul, Kamal Smallwood, Joel Vadhyanath, Mia Hood, Summer Edwards, Anique Sergeant, Erin Brooks, Jakub Spocinski, Stan Doling, Sam Iles, Edwin Sebastian, Shaan Singh, Natalia Warmuz, Olivia Woodruff, Eddy Brain, Davina Masemo, Kelsey Ford, Jaya Kaur, Shinique Dehaney, Emediong Jumbo, Ann James, Courtney Hollis, Joseph Cachia, Matthew Bristow, Chelcia Velmurugan, Kavita Sahota, Julia Lewkowicz, Hamda Ibrahim-Mahamoud, and Airam Pamintuan.

Dates for Diaries

Monday 19th July - Attendance winners non uniform day
Tuesday 20th July - Parents Evening (optional meeting to discuss reports) Tuesday 20th July - Y6 Performance – 2.00pm
Wednesday 21st July - Fencing Tournament
Wednesday 21st July - Y6 Performance – 7.00pm
Friday 23rd July - Leaver’s Mass in church and end of school year
Wednesday 1st Sept - Staff Training (school closed)
Thursday 2nd Sept - Start of new school year!

Best wishes


Matt Condon, Headteacher

Friday 9 July 2010


9th July 2010

Dear Parent/Carer,

999 Fun Day
This is held tomorrow, between 12 and 4pm at the Harry Crook Centre, Moorlands Road. A great fun day!

PTFA Summer Fayre
The PTFA Summer Fayre is next Saturday - 17th July. WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!!!
Can you help for an hour between 1.00-4.00pm? Please let the office know if you can.

Water Walk 2010
Yesterday’s water walk was a great success, and was enjoyed by all. A big thank you to everybody for making it such a big success! It would be greatly appreciated if children could bring in their completed sponsor forms and any money raised, by the end of next week. There are lots of photos on the school blog and the event is also featured in today’s Bristol Evening Post. The online link is –
www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/Pupils-learn-reality-life-Africans

Attendance
Well done to Mrs Joseph’s class for achieving 96% attendance, Mrs Mantle’s class for achieving over 97% and Mrs Bell’s for achieving over 98% attendance.

Star Radio – School of the Week
This week we learned that we had been nominated to be Star Radio’s School of the Week. This honour is particularly special as the nomination came from Pat Coombs, grandmother of Thomas Coombs, who sadly passed away earlier this year. Pat was an active member of the parish and I remember her fondly as a parent of Thomas’ dad and his uncles when I was at school.

To celebrate this we had a special assembly followed by Star Radio recording the choir’s beautiful singing and then interviewing a group of children and myself. The broadcasts will be on the radio on Star FM (107.2) just after 8.20am on Monday, Wednesday and Friday next week.

It was great hearing the children talk about their school. One child described the school as, ‘one big family’. A wonderful thing to hear!

FILMCLUB
Next week’s film is yet to be confirmed, but it will be a U certificate. A reminder that FILMCLUB is now open to Year 2 and children need to ask Mrs Martin for details.

Year 6 leavers Lunch
The year 6 leaver’s lunch will take place on Thursday 15th July. The cost is £2.10 and the menu for the day is:-
Sausage, chips and beans OR
Jacket Potato with Tuna
Bannoffi Pie

Celebration Assembly
There will be a celebration assembly on Monday, 12th July, at 9.15am, where the following children will receive their headteachers award:

Taychon Graham, Josmi Saji, Darshan Sebastian, Harry Barton, Muskan Rehan, Anisa Rasul, Mathews Manuel, Cameron Wallace, Saul Ayton, Sandra Paslowska, Paige Dwyer, Amber Batt, Chris Tshimanga, Jaylene Manmohan, Daniel Edwards, Wiktoria Surel and Agnel Aliyath

In the celebration assembly we will also be watching some video of the School Choir performing at the Sing Up award ceremony. Feedback from parents who helped out is that the children were amazing ambassadors for the school. Well done!

Attendance Celebration Assembly – Friday 16th July 9.15am
Awards will be given to all children with over 98% attendance (an amazing 62 children!). All parents and carers are welcome. Reports (which will be sent out on Monday) will contain attendance figures for this year.

Dates for Diaries
Saturday 17th July - 999 Fun Day - Harry Crook Centre, Moorlands Road
Friday 16th July - Attendance Celebration Assembly
Saturday 17th July - PTFA Summer Festival
Tuesday 20th July - Parents Evening (optional meeting to discuss reports)
Tuesday 20th July - Y6 Performance – 2.00pm
Wednesday 21st July - Fencing Tournament
Wednesday 21st July - Y6 Performance – 7.00pm
Friday 23rd July - Leavers’ Mass in church and end of school year
Wednesday 1st Sept - Staff Training (school closed)
Thursday 2nd Sept - Start of new school year!

Best wishes, Matt Condon
Headteacher

Friday 2 July 2010

2nd July 2010

Dear Parent/Carer,

REMINDER – SCHOOL CLOSED ON MONDAY FOR STAFF TRAINING

Sponsored Water Walk – 8th July

Next Thursday the whole school will be taking part in a sponsored event raising money to build fresh water wells in Ethiopia. Sponsor forms went out for this event last week. We aim to leave the school by 1.15pm and will return by 3.30pm. To carry the water, we will need all children to bring in an empty container to carry the water. Infant children should bring in a 1 litre bottle and Junior children should bring a 2 litre bottle. Children can bring these into school on Tuesday 6th July or Wednesday 7th July. They will then be stored in the classrooms. We would also ask if bottles could be labelled with the child’s name.

We invite all parents, carers and friends of St. Joseph’s, to join us on this special journey.

Attendance

Well done to Mrs Joseph’s class with over 95%, Mrs Ford’s class with 96%, Mrs Rollings’ class with 97% and Mr Conlon’s with 98%!

Summer Fayre

A reminder that it will be a non-uniform day next Friday, 9th July to support this year’s Summer Fayre. The theme for the tombola is ‘Over the Rainbow’ and to support this stall, we are asking each child to bring in an item of a specific colour, which is red for reception, orange for year 1, yellow for year 2, green for year 3, blue for year 4, pink for year 5 and purple for year 6.

FILMCLUB – An Invitation to Year 2

Next week’s film will be the remainder of Watership Down. The children will then be writing reviews of the film online. The following week we are opening up FilmClub to year 2 children. If children want to join, they need to write a short letter to Mrs Martin explaining why they enjoy watching films and what they hope to gain from FilmClub.

School Uniform

We still have a small stock of uniform:-

7/8 white polo shirts - £2 each or 3 for £5
Small adult sweatshirts - £4 each
selection of school fleeces - £5 each

May I remind you that the last date for ordering uniform by post or online is 1st August to ensure delivery before September. We have samples of uniform which you can try on your child for size.

Dean Field Study Centre

The next instalment of £25 is now due. If you are paying by cheque, please make it payable to Bristol City Council.

School Packed Lunches

The catering contractor has introduced packed lunches to be served alongside the hot school meals. If you would like your child to have a packed lunch either complete a slip available from the school porch or let the office know. Please note that packed lunches for Wednesday's and Friday's will only be available on request.

Year 6 leavers Lunch

The year 6 leaver’s lunch will take place on Thursday 15th July. The cost is £2.10 and the menu for the day is:-
Sausage, chips and beans OR
Jacket Potato with Tuna
Bannoffi Pie

Celebration Assembly

There will be a celebration assembly on Wednesday, July 7th at 9.15am, where the following children will receive their headteachers award:
Alexander Ailyath, Kai Drysdale, Nathan Long, Micah Gayle, Hannah Maslowski, Jordan Toy, Cole Edwards Eve Bonniface and Muhammad Baig.

Dates for Diaries

Monday 5th July - Staff Training Day (school closed) - Curriculum Focus
Thursday 8th July - Water Walk 2010
Saturday 10th July - 999 Fun Day - Harry Crook Centre, Moorlands Road
Friday 16th July - Attendance Celebration Assembly
Saturday 17th July - PTFA Summer Festival
Tuesday 20th July - Parents Evening (optional meeting to discuss reports) Tuesday 20th July - Y6 Performance – 2.00pm
Wednesday 21st July - Fencing Tournament
Wednesday 21st July - Y6 Performance – 7.00pm
Friday 23rd July - Leaver’s Mass in church and end of school year
Wednesday 1st Sept - Staff Training (school closed)
Thursday 2nd Sept - Start of new school year!

Best wishes,

Matt Condon
Headteacher