newsletter junior december2019 - st john's college, cardiff...newsletter junior school issue 16...

Newsletter

Junior School

Issue 16 November 2019

029 2077 8936 www.stjohnscollegecardiff.com @SJCCardiff

Dear Parents As we approach Christmas, the newsletter gives me the opportunity to look back over the previous weeks, which seem to have literally flown by. We have enjoyed some super successes in Chess, the Kid’s Lit Quiz and Cross Country. I am very proud of our Junior pupils for raising so much money for Children in Need, with their sponsored Joe Wicks workout and eating cake! The pupils have experienced many co-curricular, curriculum-based excursions and the R10 Assembly about inspirational writers, brought home how successful these are in connecting our pupils with real life experiences. Similarly, when visiting their lessons, it is encouraging to see pupils so engaged with their learning and keen to talk about their work and targets to improve. We now have a number of end of term activities to look forward to e.g. Advent festivities, the R8 Assembly, this term’s House competition, our R11 Enterprise Week and Christmas concert and Prize Giving – so much to celebrate and give thanks for. Wishing you all a very joyous and peaceful Christmas. With best wishes, Mrs R Thompson Head of Junior School R10 Trip to Kensuke’s Kingdom

Men overboard! R10 found themselves shipwrecked on a distant shore yesterday, reliving the story of Michael in Kensuke’s Kingdom by Michael Morpurgo. They had time to reflect on what they may have experienced, arriving on an unknown island, learned many survival skills and had a fantastic time in doing so. We were so lucky with the weather after the recent deluges and made the most of the sunshine – what a wonderful learning experience!

Mrs Giannotti

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Junior School



R11 History Trip to Cardiff Castle R11 had a wonderful day experiencing life in the Second World War. An ARP Warden, Mark, spoke to the pupils about the war and everybody enjoyed hearing different stories. His lively presentation made for an interesting time. We were able to see many things such as rations portions, bombshells and radio sets. Some pupils tried on gas masks and we were all surprised by the infant gas masks! At the end of this session, we went outside and used stirrup pumps to see how ARP wardens extinguished small fires.

After a quick lunch, we were off to the tunnels in Cardiff Castle that were used as air-raid shelters during WW2. We were led to the tunnels by Dean who told us all about ARP wardens and how they kept the people of Britain safe during the war. It was an emotional experience to hear Chamberlain’s speech announcing the war in the tunnels and to imagine how it would have felt to spend time there during air raids.

We then joined Elizabeth to sing WW2 songs and learn about their meaning. Singing “Hey Little Hen” was such fun! The teachers received several compliments about R11s behaviour from the Castle staff. Well done, R11!

Mrs Clint Book Week Once again, the Junior School have had an enjoyable Book Week. They started with a Peer to Peer Reading session which involved the younger forms being paired up with older pupils. All the children listened in their pairs to each other reading, with older pupils giving helpful advice. It was lovely to observe these interactions and to hear the children exchanging views on the books they particularly like reading.

In Form Periods the children have taken part in various book-related activities, including mindfulness colouring, making bookmarks, doing word searches and completing book reviews.

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Junior School



The annual book cover competition resulted in an excellent display of beautifully designed book covers with interesting “blurbs”. The winner in each class was lucky enough to be given a £5 voucher to spend at the Book Fair. Teachers and Teaching Assistants were kept busy selling books after school for three days. This resulted in an impressive amount of over £900 worth of books being purchased. Mr Dennis is going to be busy choosing new books for the library with the money we earned through these sales.

Thank you to everyone who has supported our Book Week this year.

Mrs Clint

R9 Cilfynydd Waterworks Trip

On 2nd October R9 had the opportunity to visit Cilfynydd Waterworks to reinforce the topics they are studying as part of their Geography lessons.

The pupils looked at the cause and effect of global warming with a particular focus on flooding. In the afternoon the R9 looked at renewable energy sources and the challenges we all face in making our world more sustainable.

The pupils completed an investigation to blow up a balloon where they learnt about anaerobic digestion using yeast, water and sugar. They showed their knowledge by answering lots of questions about renewable and non-renewable energy sources and were very good treasure hunters to complete a large scale puzzle with all the pieces collected. They worked together in teams throughout the day to complete tasks linked to climate change, renewable and non-renewable energy sources.

The pupils had a fun day which reinforced their learning of topics covered in school.

Miss Nirenberg

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Junior School



Junior School Council

Well done to all pupils who applied to be Council members. Many of our pupils applied, submitting an application with excellent ideas, a poster and a presentation to their form group. The Form Tutors were very impressed by their confidence to stand up in front of their peers explaining their ideas and why they should be chosen as a representative on Council. Congratulations to our new Council members. Mrs Thompson

R8 Trip to the Celtic Roundhouse at St Fagan’s

We learnt so much on our trip to visit the Iron Age roundhouses in St Fagan’s. R8 were fascinated by Taran, our Celtic guide. We enjoyed hearing about life as an Iron Age child. We all decided that life is much easier now!

We were all able to touch a replica flint and the toys that children in the Iron Age would have played with. We also had to decide what foods the Celts ate…did they eat bananas and chocolate? We learnt that they had to grind their own grain to

make bread and we all had a go – a very hands-on job!

Our highlight was the opportunity to weave like the Celts. A very busy morning that will be really helpful when we’re back in the classroom. Well done, R8!

Mrs.Burleton

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Junior School



R10 Visit to Cilfynydd Waterworks

R10 went to Cilfynydd Waterworks to reinforce their topic of water being taught in their Geography lessons- in particular, they discovered how the waterworks cleans water, treats waste water and all about the water cycle. The pupils learnt via practical activities how we get clean water in our homes and the various processes wastewater goes through to be cleaned. The pupils completed further activities to reinforce their learning of the water cycle and that it is the never-ending journey that water takes, as it circulates from clouds to the land to the ocean and back again.

R10 had a wonderful trip to the waterworks, yes it might have been a bit smelly but it was worth it, to see the real-life workings of the waterworks and how water is cleaned. Miss Nirenberg R11 Reading Group R11 Reading Group encourages our keenest and most committed readers to explore challenging and thought-provoking new books and discuss them in-depth.

Before half-term, we looked at ‘Once’ by Morris Gleitzman, a poignant and moving look at the Holocaust through the eyes of a ten-year-old Jewish boy in Poland in 1942.

All who attended thoroughly enjoyed the book and got a lot from it, and their insight and maturity were hugely impressive.

Next time we shall look at Sally Nicholls multiple award-winning* debut novel Ways to Live Forever, amazingly written when the author was only 23.

All in R11 who have read the book are welcome to attend.

Mr R Dennis

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Junior School



R9 Visit to Wastesavers

On the 12th November, R9 pupils went to the Wastesavers Newport depot to reinforce their learning about recycling and the importance of dealing with waste correctly and responsibly. A highlight of the visit was the viewing platform where the children can see and smell first-hand what happens to the materials that are sent to the recycling centre from our homes. Miss Nirenberg

R11 Enterprise Day

Our R11 pupils had a busy and enjoyable day learning important skills in preparation for their Enterprise week.

The children learnt about the importance of making items that are of high quality and the impact of a display to help showcase their products. We learnt about famous entrepreneurs and Mrs Crowley-Davies helped the children design fantastic logos for their teams.

In the afternoon, teams were challenged to create a spaghetti tower; this activity showed

us the importance of teamwork and taking on a role that best suits our talents. We were also lucky enough to have Mr Self come and deliver a fantastic talk too! R11 are definitely excited for this year’s Enterprise Week which is coming up in December.

Mrs Taylor

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Junior School



R10 Visit to Big Pit

What a fantastic day in Big Pit! We were all welcomed at the Pit Head to receive our helmets and headlamps (and to leave our contraband – fitbits and car keys!!) We then entered the ‘cage’ for the 90m journey down in the lift. We were all very excited about going down to the mine! In the mine, we learnt so many interesting facts about a miner’s life. We saw the “widow maker”, Davy lamps, canaries and were plunged into darkness like the miners! We were all fascinated to hear about the lives of the pit ponies. R10 found it fascinating that the horses were blindfolded 6 times when they

came out of the pit on their summer holidays to avoid blindness!!

We enjoyed a delicious lunch in the miners’ canteen before heading off to the Miners’ locker rooms and showers. We had fun trying to pull carts and seeing how heavy a kettle would be to fill a tin bath for the miners. Thank you Big Pit for a wonderful day!

Mrs Burleton

R8 Visit to the Brecon Beacons

As part of their Geography studies, R8 visited Brecon Beacons National Park. During their visit, they were able to visit several locations during the day to see the effects tourists have on the environment. The children conducted their own litter survey at the base of Pen Y Fan, learnt about the local history and visited the mountain centre. Miss Price

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Junior School



Junior School Achievers’ Lunch

Congratulations to our Junior School Achievers who enjoyed lunch with our Assistant Head, Mrs Jones and Head of Junior School, Mrs Thompson. They were commended for their effort, outcomes and being super role models. They regaled each other with their favourite subjects, pets and their life outside School. A particular highlight was the photograph on the balcony – you can see the sea from this point! Well done all.

Mrs Thompson

Childnet Digital Leaders Event

Our Digital Leaders have had a brilliant day working with pupils from other schools and creating a pitch about how we can encourage children to stay safe online. Many thanks to Childnet for allowing us to host this regional event. We very much enjoyed working with you and our young Digital Leaders are now well placed to pass on important knowledge and skills to their peers.

Mrs R Howells.

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Junior School



Musical achievements Violet H has achieved her Piano prep test; Anya I has achieved her Piano prep test; Millie P has achieved her Grade 1 Piano; Huw S has achieved his Grade 1 Violin and Piano prep test; Nazneen A-H achieved her grade 2 violin; Joanne S achieved her grade 4 singing; Lara O has achieved her grade 5 flute. Sporting achievements Dylan A has been awarded a certificate for swimming; Georgina E has been awarded a football trophy; Henry E was made man of the match in football; Anya I has been awarded a badge in swimming and passed a Taekwando grading; Millie P has been awarded a badge in swimming; Angelo T had a prize for the highest karate kick; Elsie W has been awarded a gymnastics badge; Brandon D has been selected for Cardiff City swimming; Ben H moved up to wave 7 in swimming; Iwan M was man of the match in rugby; James came 23/90 in cross-country; Arya B has moved up to stage 7 swimming; Mandhira N has moved up to wave 7 in swimming; Arvin S has moved up to stage 7 swimming; Charles S achieved 20m in swimming; Manu came 3rd in regional tennis finals and top in his club championship; Emma K came in the top 10 for cross-country; Calum L has been recognised for his improvement by his rugby club; Charlotte S is now in the Welsh sailing squad; Johnny S has completed his Taekwando badge; Matilda D has gone up to level 6 in swimming; Rohan G was awarded boy of the year in football; Max E came 4th at a Taekwando competition whilst representing Wales in Barcelona; Gala S is now Captain of Cardiff and Vale girls’ football; Noah D has achieved his orange belt in karate; Joe M is now competing in the South West Ice Hockey region. Other achievements Kiaan G took part in a chess competition; Howie L took part in a chess competition ; Mary M took part in a chess competition; Violet H has completed a ballet grade; Elinor B is peforming in Elf; Natasha K participated in a Bollywood performance; Maia passed her English Kumon exam; Giuilio was chosen to take part in the Uppingham chess competition; Charlotte S has been made a sixer at Brownies; Rithvika has achieved her classical Indian dance and karmatic music grades; Benjamin J came first at the ECB chess competition; Selina L came 3rd in a group dancing competition; Robert S played chess for Wales;

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Junior School



Dates for your diaries: January: Mon 6th INSET Tues 7th Lent Term starts for pupils Tue 14th Trip Day:

R8 - Roman Baths R9 - TBC R10 - Royal Mint, Fakes & Forgeries R11 - TBC

Wed 15th R11 Parents’ Evening 4.30-6.30pm

Thu 16th Book Club Mon 20th-Fri 24th R11 Swimming Wed 22th R10 Parents’ Evening

4.30-6.30pm Thu 23rd R10 Author Cathy Farr Fri 24th Prefect Meeting (lunchtime) Mon 27th-Fri 31stR11 Swimming Wed 29th R9 Parents’ Evening

4.30-6.30pm Fri 31st Peer to Peer Reading Fri 31st Council Meeting (lunchtime) February: Wed 5th R8 Parents’ Evening

4.30-6.30pm Thurs 6th Aqua Games Fri 7th House Meeting Fri 14th R11 Reading Group Mon 17th Feb – Fri 21st Feb Half term March: Tues 3rd Eisteddfod Wed 4th Book Club

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Junior School



Thu 5th World Book Day Thu 12th Junior Production Fri 13th Junior Production Mon 16th-Fri 20th R10 Swimming Tues 17th Achievers’ Lunch Tues 17th R9 Parents’ Assembly Thu 19th Disco (DJ Stirling)

(5.30pm to 7pm) Fri 20th Prefect Meeting (lunchtime) Mon 23rd-Fri 27th Mar R10 Swimming Mon 23rd Council Meeting (Lunchtime) Tues 24th R9 Llancaiach Fawr Fri 27th R11 Reading Group Fri 27th Lent Term ends Please remember that Form Tutors are always your first point of contact for any query. They are happy to resolve any questions you may have about your child’s learning and well-being.

newsletter junior december2019 - st john's college, cardiff...newsletter junior school issue 16...

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