Good Afternoon,

On Sunday, 1st March, we celebrated the feast day of St.David, the only saint of the British Isles to have actually been born in the country of which he is patron. He seems to have been a man of tremendous spiritual influence as there are churches dedicated to him throughout the southern Celtic world – Ireland, Cornwall, and Brittany.  May St David pray for us so that we too may proclaim the fullness of the gospel that comes to us from the Apostles.

I would like to thank the UCM group on behalf of the whole school for donating £650 to school funds.

Mrs Stewart was delighted to accept their donation on Monday evening.

"May the Church always be a place where everyone can feel welcomed, loved and encouraged."

POPE FRANCIS

Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to strengthen and encourage us. Help us to be more like you - to be an encouragement to those around us.

Amen.

Congratulations to all of the children who received an award this week, they were;

Jaime B, Mia B, Lauren E, Izzie M, Daniel P, Isla P, Lottie P, Woddy P, Thomas R, Freya S, Ksawery S, Oscar S & Alex W.

If your son or daughter is selected to receive an award at a Celebration Assembly this year you will receive two invitations from school on a Thursday. The first invitation is a push notification and the second invite is a slip in your son or daughter's book bag.

Today Year 6 led a wonderful and fitting celebration of the life of Sister Breda. They gave an insight into her time working at St. Ambrose school where she finally progressed to the role of headteacher. Her work here spanned an amazing 33 years in total.

Year 6 have worked so hard and have created some wonderful portraits and prayers. They also made  commemorative bookmarks that were given out to all of those who jopined us in our celebration.

There is a memory book that will be displayed in the school foyer and we would welcome anyone to contribute any recollections or memories that they have of Sister Breda.

The Greatest Story Ever Told

Yesterday was World Book Day and the children were reminded that the Bible is the best selling book of all time. The Guinness Book of World Records estimates that more than 5 billion copies of the Bible have been printed world - wide and the New Testament has ben translated into over 2000 languages. The Bible tells the story of God’s relationship with His people. It is a library of books covering every genre: letters, stories, prophecy, poems, wisdom, teaching, history.

Jesus was the ultimate storyteller who used parables to teach people about how to live. Whatever we are feeling God’s word can help us: When we feel scared, remember we are not alone for God says in the book of Joshua, “Do not be afraid; do not be discovered, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go!” When we feel worried, we can tell God about it. In 1 Peter, it says, “Cast all of your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” When we feel sad, we can remember that it won’t always be. In the book of Revelation, God promises that in heaven, ”He will wipe every tear from our eyes.” When we feel lost or confused we can remember what Jesus said in the Gospel of Matthew, “With Man this is impossible but with God all things are possible.” And when we feel happy, we can join with Christians throughout the centuries in the words from the book of Philippians: “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!”

The Bible is like a treasure chest filled with wisdom, comfort and advice – if only we choose to read it!

 It is God’s word, given to us, filled with stories that teach us how to live the best lives we can.

For your own personal development try reading the Bible in a year using an app such as Bible in One Year.

Traditionally Lent is a time, where during the 40 days leading up to Easter, we think about Jesus’ time in the desert refusing to give into temptation, so we give up something such as chocolate or crisps. Father Lamb also reminded the children that this is a time where we can also do something extra, particularly in this Year of the Word. He suggested they think of it in terms of the 3 R’s: Repent, Reflect and Retreat – saying sorry to God and each other, taking time to think about what Jesus tells us in the Bible about how God wants us to behave towards each other and  spending quiet time to get to know God better and think about how we should follow Jesus’ example.

At St Ambrose Lent is always a time where we think of others. Traditionally during Lent each class has decided on a fundraising event for a charity of their choice. This year we are making our Lenten Observances through three whole school events:

Bric-a-Brac sale

Sponsored Readathon

Foodbank Friday

On Thursday everyone was excited to come together to celebrate our love of reading for World Book Day and we had some amazing outfits worn because teachers and children came to school as a one of their favourite book characters. 

At St Ambrose we are very grateful to Rowberry's Farm Shop in Chaddesley Corbett who gave us a lovely deal on 200 potatoes for all children to have the chance to decorate one as a character from a book. We had some amazing entries and each class had the opportunity to vote for their favourite. The winners will be announced in Celebration Assembly on Monday and all entries will be displayed in the hall at the end of the day. All children and parents are welcome to come and view them all after school on Monday - they really are fantastic!

'I thought it was fun to paint a potato for World Book Day - it spud-tastic' - Mia Y6

'I really enjoyed decorating my potato, I needed a little bit of help using a glue gun at home but I was very pleased with the final result. It was really nice to do something different.' Josh Y6

On World Book Day we launched our 'Readathon' challenge to help raise money for disadvantaged children in schools and hospitals across the country and each child received a sponsorship form to bring home. The money we raise will help these children enjoy brand new books and inspiring storyteller visits. We will also get brand new books for our school! Please can we ask you to support your child with this challenge. All sponsorship forms and monies need to returned to school by Monday 20th April.

Thank you to the parents who came to the e-safety presentation this morning. We hope that they found it informative and a useful guide to helping their children safely use the internet.

U9s and U11s went to Winterfold this morning for the annual CTA football competition.

The U9s drew 1 game and won 4 games in their group, making it through to the semi final. They battled and battled, but after 0-0 at the end and 0-0 after golden goal they lost at penalties. They finished 4th overall.

The U11s drew 1 game, lost 1 game and won 3 games. Although they played amazingly, through goal difference they ended up in 6th place playoffs, and finished 6th overall.

Every single player should be extremely proud of themselves for playing so well together, it was a fantastic morning!

Bring on next year!

All classes have had a hygiene lesson this week to ensure they are aware of the importance of washing their hands regularly. Please remind your son or daughter to follow these five steps every time.

The Y6 SVP will be collecting food donations for the foodbank, from each class every Friday during Lent. Please contribute generously as always.

 Once again, a sincere thank you for all your support with helping the children to think of others less fortunate than themselves during Lent.

On Tuesday, three boys from Year 4 went on a Science trip. The theme of the day was ‘Hooked on Physics’ and we learnt all about sound. We completed different science experiments throughout the day and answers scientific questions.

Oscar (Year 4) said, “I enjoyed all of the trip especially when we made straw oboes because it taught me that you make different sounds from different lengths of straws. I made a really long one that made a very low sound”.

Ethan (Year 4) said, “My favourite part of the trip was when we got to make a loud speaker out of: a plastic pot, paper, a copper wire, sellotape, a magnet and a washer. It actually worked!”

We had a brilliant time being scientists for the day and we learnt a lot.

Next week is science week.

To celebrate science week each year group will take part in a science activity based on the theme ‘Our diverse planet’.

We will also launch a poster competition next week.

This spring the Diocese are running a competition for children in all diocesan schools, with the theme of ‘The God Who Speaks’. They are asking pupils to build a Lego scene of Vocation based on Scripture and to send pictures to office@st-ambrose.worcs.sch.uk

All entries will be shared at the weekly Gospel Assembly on a Friday. We have already recieved our first entry and remember there will be prizes for winning pupils. The closing date is Thursday 19th March (St. Joseph’s Day), with the winners announced on the Solemnity of the Annunciation (25th March). Please see below the poster and rules and entry information.

Channel 4 are looking for the UK's best young bakers for their tv show. They are accepting applications until the 5th of April.

Interested bakers can apply online at - WWW.APPLYFORJUNIORBAKEOFF.CO.UK 

Tapp have organised a school disco for KS1 and KS2 on Friday 27th March. Letters have gone out with your child today with more information. Please check their school and book bags. Alternatively you can print a copy at home by clicking on the link below.

In a similar format to the Reverse Advent Calendar, from next week, each child will be given a day when they are encouraged to bring in an item to sell – book, toy, hairband etc. (NOT FOOD or CLOTHING) to contribute to a whole school Bric a Brac sale on Friday 3^rd April with the money raised being divided between supporting pupils in school and a charity of the children’s choice. Any leftover items will also be donated towards helping a charity such as Kemp or Oxfam.

Please don't forget to follow us on Twitter where you can see all the wonderful tweets that the teachers share.

@ambrose_primary

PLEASE REGULARLY CHECK THE DIARY DATES FOR ANY UPDATES.

CAN WE PLEASE REMIND YOU THAT VIOLIN LESSONS ARE ON A MONDAY AND CLARINET LESSONS ARE ON A FRIDAY. PLEASE CAN YOU ENSURE THAT YOUR CHILD BRINGS THEIR INSTRUMENT INTO SCHOOL WITH THEM ON THE RELEVANT DAYS. MANY THANKS.

Mr. Hodgson and Mr. Miatowski from Hagley High School will be present at parents evening on Monday 30th March between 3.30pm and 6pm to talk to year 6 parents. If you would like an appointment to see them you can book this via the School Life app.

Thank you to all of the parents, carers and family members who attended the Year 6 SATS workshop. We hope that you found it informative and that you enjoyed spending time in schoool with your child.

Please see below the dates for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 tests.

First Holy Communion Day is Saturday 13th June 2020 at 12pm

The preparation classes for your child this academic year will be held after school on a Wednesday 3.10-4pm (see below for the dates).

Father Lamb will lead the evening meetings for parents at 6.30pm in the Parish Centre. 

Please see below the Mass dates for the Spring and Summer terms.

Please see the poster below giving details of the Knock Shrine Devotions that are being held at St. Ambrose Church on Friday 6th and Saturday 7th Macrh. 

A warm welcome is extended to everyone.

We have places available in Years Reception, 1, 4, 5 & 6. If you know of anyone who would be interested, please refer them to the School Office in the first instance.

Well done Year 6  !!

If you or anyone you know would be interested in going along to the Parish's Baby and Toddler group, the sessions are held on Wednesdays in term time from 9-11 am (except the last Wednesday of the month). We welcome newborn up to pre-school children and their parents. Your first session will be free of charge and thereafter will be 80p. This cost includes refreshments for you and your child. We have an array of toys and activities for you and your child to enjoy and this is also a great opportunity to meet and socialise with other families. If you have any enquiries, please see the Facebook page 'St Ambrose Toddlers Kidderminster'.

St Ambrose

Sunday 11am & 6pm

Saturday 11:45 am - 12:45 pm, and by request.

Please see the attached poster detailing the Montini Group meetings for 2019/2020.

Kind regards,

Mrs Brocklesby