Good Afternoon,

It has been another busy week with some fantastic learning taking place. This week I have been priviledged to visit every class and I have seen some fantastic work. I am looking forward to seeing Year 4 Children at Mass on Sunday at 11am, they have worked very hard to prepare the readings.

The next Family Mass is for Year 5 on Sunday 10th November.

UNFORTUNATELY, DUE TO UPDATED GDPR GUIDELINES WE ARE UNABLE TO PUBLISH ANY PICTURES OF THE CHILDREN THIS WEEK.

'Prayer brings us not only nearer to God but also nearer to one another.'

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

Today the children in St Luke’s house celebrated their patron saint’s feast day. They wore their house colour (yellow) with pride and enjoyed a drink and cake in the Hall together before going over to Church for a service of thanksgiving led by Father Lamb. He told them all about the life of St Luke. To round the day off, of course there had to be the customary extra playtime too! Congratulations you all look like you had a lovely day.

The children in Saint John and Saint Mark' s Houses all had the opportunity to attend mindfulness exercise at lunch time. The class was led by Lucy and she focused on core strength.

If you have children starting school in September 2020 or know anyone who has we will be holding our second open day at school on Friday 22nd October 10-11.30am.

The children were all sent home with 2 flyers each to distribute in the local community, we would very much appreciate you helping to support us advertise our open days.

We have places available in Years 1, 3, 4, 5 & 6. If you know of anyone who would be interested, please refer them to the School Office in the first instance.

We were so proud this week of everyone who was awarded a certificate for their curriculum achievements or discipleship behaviour and attitudes demonstrated in every aspect of school life.

The children who received an award are:

Julia, Joseph, Lydia, Kaleb, Kian, Catherine, Gracey, Ethan, Katie, Natalia, Hubert, Lacey, Lily, Luke & Alex.

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.

Please pop into the school office at anytime if you are not receiving the push notifications. 

On Thursday 31st October at 6.30pm the parish are hosting a 'Halloween Supper'.

It will be held in the Borromeo Hall. The cost will be £3 for adults and £1 for children and the food options are a jacket potato or sausage and beans.

There will be prizes for fancy dress/decorated lanterns.

If you would like to attend please sign up on the sheet at the back of Church.

Proceeds from this event will go to the maintenance fund.

Thank you for your continued support.

Mrs Wallace is continuing with her 'Teapot Time'. Please come along from 9-10am for an informal chat and to help form a group that could support you and your children.We look forward to welcoming you. Should you require any further information please see Mrs Wallace for more details.

MULTIPLICATION TABLES CHECK:

In June all Year 4 pupils will be required to take an online multiplication tables check.

The national curriculum specifies that pupils should be taught to recall the multiplication tables up to and including 12 × 12 by the end of year 4.

The purpose of the Multiplication Tables Check is to determine whether pupils can recall their times tables fluently, which is essential for future success in mathematics. 

On Thursday 14th November Year 4 parents are invited to attend a times tables workshop from 9-10.30am. The workshop will update parents regarding the multiplication check and provide you with the opportunity to work with your son or daughter at school.

Year 4 Parents will receive an invitation from their children on Monday.

Miss Holtom's favourite book:

When I was younger my favourite book was 'Mrs Armitage on Wheels' by Quentin Blake and I can remember bringing it on a plane when I was going on an Easter holiday with me because I loved it so much. Its about a lady called Mrs Armitage who sets off for a quiet cycle with her faithful dog, Breakspear, but she just can't help thinking of ways to improve her bicycle. Before very long she has added three very loud horns, a bucket of water to wash her hands, a complete tool kit. And by the time she has also added a seat for Breakspear, two umbrellas, a cassette player and a mouth-organ, Mrs Armitage is riding a very eye-catching contraption. But it is when she finally adds the mast and sail,that Mrs Armitage really runs into trouble. I love reading this story to children and getting them to join in with some of the repeated phrases!

War Horse:

Last year, when we were in Year 5 we read ‘Kensuke’s Kingdom’ by Michael Morpurgo and this year we decided to read ‘War Horse’ by the same author. We all have copies to read in class together.

I prefer War Horse because I feel that it is a more realistic story and if there are parts you don’t understand you can ask your family about it because they have knowledge of the war. I like how Michael uses grown up language because it helps you picture everything that is going on in your head. Because of what I have read, I have included repetition of words for effect in my own writing like he does. Edward.

I loved ‘Kensuke’s Kingdom’ last year because it was interesting and was the first book that I have properly enjoyed for a while. I really like War Horse because it is based on a real event that happened and has a good storyline to it. The way Michael writes his books makes you always want to read on. Last night, I went to the book fair afterschool and I bought ‘A medal for Leroy’ and ‘ The Fox and the Ghost King‘. Michael Morpurgo is definitely my favourite author at the moment. Adrian.

I love reading and I am a school librarian. I helped set up the library last year and think that the books in there will intrigue everyone and make them love reading even more. Michael Morpurgo is my favourite author because even if he doesn’t put a lot of detail in his work it still makes a good book and the way he writes makes the plot line interesting and you can’t put the book down. Mia.

Next week Miss Brewer will be sharing her favourite book and there will be exciting news about our story telling competition.

We still have spaces left on our after school sports clubs.

KS2 Multi-sports with Mr Garvey (Tuesdays). You will need to sign up via http://sportsstars.class4kids.co.uk

KS1 Multi-skills with Mr Carter (Wednesdays) please see the school office for a registration letter.

Unforunately, due to again not securing the numbers for netball we have had to cancel this club.

the Junior SVP will be holding a Coffee afternoon with Bingo next Friday at 2.15pm in the Year 6 classroom.

Meeting date 16th October:

During Wednesdays school council meeting Luke, Kinga, Ashley and Oliver made some very eloquent speeches.  We are pleased to announce that the school councillors voted for Luke to be their Chairperson and Oliver to be their secretary.  Congratulations!

The school councillors received their badges in the meeting which means they are easily spotted if anyone wants to ask them anything.

Our noticeboard is now complete and we want to thank Mrs Baylie for all of her hard work.

Year 2 are still in charge of the suggestion box this week because we didn’t get an opportunity to look at the suggestions in this week’s meeting.

Mrs Fish has asked us to sort through the lost property so hopefully some children should be reunited with their mislaid uniform soon!  We hope to do this in the meeting next week.  Also in the next meeting we will be talking about ways to make learning our times tables fun!

Our next meeting date has been set for Wednesday 23^rd October.

On Wednesday the 23rd of October, the Parents and Teachers would like to hold a 'Spooky Bake Off'  to raise money for the school. The Parents and Teachers will be organising a variety of events this year and they will be calling themselves TAPP (Teachers and Parents in Partnership). We will notify you as soon as we have the date for the first TAPP meeting.

For the bake off children can bring in their spooky cakes, cup cakes or biscuits (nut free) on Wednesday 23rd October.  Remember each entry needs to be named and a list of ingredients must be provided.  The judges will award a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place for each key stage and prizes will be provided by TAPP.

At 1.30pm the children will have a chance, a class at a time, to bring in a £1 and buy a cake or slice and at 3pm all parents are invited. A selection of cakes will be auctioned off so don't miss out- we have some amazing bakers at Saint Ambrose School.

Letters have gone out to all of KS1 regarding the Christmas party that is being organised by TAPP. To secure your child's attendance you will need to complete the consent form and return the payment of £2 to the school office. The party is being held at 'The Kidz Barn' in Kidderminster.

Every child in KS1 is invited and once we have clarified numbers we will be able to offer a limited amount of places for siblings.

This week the Key Stage 2 children have voted for their Christmas event.

The TAPP will be organising a Christmas production to come into school for the children.

More details to follow.

The Year 6 children be taking a jar of sweets around at school and it will also be available in the playground after school. The aim is to guess how many sweets are in the jar. The cost is £1 per guess and the winner gets the jar of sweets. All the money raised will be put towards Christmas events for the children.

The dates for your child's confirmation meetings are as below. They will be held on Wednesdays after school from 3.15-4.15pm.

The dates for the parent meetings are as below. They will be held from 6.30pm on a Tuesday in the Parish Hall and will last no longer than 1 hour.

First Holy Communion Day next year is Saturday 13th June 2020. The preparation classes this academic year will be an after school club on a Wednesday 3.10-4pm (start date will be confirmed in January 2020). Father Lamb will lead the evening meetings for parents and the start date and time will be confirmed in January 2020.

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.

PLEASE KEEP BRINGING IN YOUR ALDI STICKERS FOR THE KITS FOR SCHOOLS PROMOTION. WE HAVE ALREADY COMPLETED ONE POSTER AND ARE ONTO OUR NEXT. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!

Please see below the Mass dates for the Autumn Term.

PLEASE REGULARLY CHECK THE DIARY DATES FOR ANY UPDATES.

If your child is due to transfer to High School in September 2020 then you will need to fill out an online application by 31st October 2019. All Year 6 children were given their 'admissions to high school' pack last week. This included details of how to apply and a unique code for the individual child.

If your child is due to start Reception in September 2020 then you will need to fill out an online application form by 15th January 2020.

If you have applied for your child to go to Hagley Catholic High School they require a copy of your child's baptism certificate and a completed supplementary form to be sent back to them. The supplementary form is attached below or alternativley you can access this from their website. www.hagleyrc.worcs.sch.uk  From the home page select Our School>>Admissions>>Scroll down to the pdf's at the bottom and select 'Supplementary Form'.

The postal address to send the documents back to is:

Mrs L Millard, Hagley Catholic High School, Brake Lane, Hagley, DY8 2XL.

Due to the increasing demand for toast we need to change the days that it is available to the children.

KS2 will only be able to buy toast on a Tuesday break time.

KS1 will only be able to buy toast on a Thursday break time.

The cost per slice will remain at 20p which is to be given to the class teacher in exchange for a token that the children will use to get their toast.

Thank you for your support in this venture.

Well done Year 6!

The Parish 200 Club is a major fundraiser to help support the running of the Parish. Members contribute £2 a month (£24 a year) and there will be monthly draws for cash prizes. Application forms for new members are now avaliable from the School Office.

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 socilaise with other families. If you have any enquiries, please see the Facebook page 'St Ambrose Toddlers Kidderminster'.

Sunday 11am & 6pm

St Ambrose

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.