Year 1 Weekly Blog 16.1.26 - "For where two or three gather in my name, there I am with them" - Matthew 18:20

Our week has been fantastic and jam packed with super learning and discussions! We have spent time thinking about how Jesus is the light of the world. The children have all reflected on how they will share His light each day. We have created a display in our classroom to share all of the ways we will be Jesus’ light. Our prayer and liturgy led by the children this week focused on Jesus. The children all held crosses and spent time with God. We sang one of our favourite class hymns, Sing Hosanna - we are really great at the actions too! This is a part of the week we all look forward to, the children just love to have a role during prayer time.

During our learning in RE we have learnt about Candlemas, when Jesus was presented in the temple as the light of the world. We explored how this celebration is celebrated around the world. The children found it so interesting to discover how other cultures celebrate this day.

Going deeper in conversation

During RE we discussed the symbolism of candles in our faith and how special they are. Candles help to us celebrate, to pray, and they bring Jesus closer to us, symbolising the Holy Spirits presence.

When in church this week, can you see candles around the church? Where are they? Why are they there?

Magic moments

This week we continued our learning of Beatrix Potter and have become absolutely brilliant at sharing facts about her! We loved to retrieve our fact knowledge by some more MASTERMIND time - this has been a real hit! The children are great at getting into character and answer questions with knowledge and confidence!

Let’s Celebrate

A huge well done to Diya who has been awarded this weeks learning certificate for being a focused Cooper Crab. Diya, you ALWAYS try do achieve your absolute best! You concentrate so well in every single lesson and we are so impressed with how hard you work! Each piece of work you do, you always make sure you have concentrated carefully, asked super questions and put 100% effort in. This really shows in your immaculate work! Well done Diya.

A huge well done to Willow who has received the Star award for demonstrating our Eloquent and Truthful virtues. Willow, you are always looking out for your friends demonstrating your eloquence through your words, actions and daily interactions with others - sharing Gods message that everyone is precious and we should look after one another. Thank you for being such a special part of our our class!

Reminders

Cold weather: Remember to bring all those warm layers: coats, hats, gloves and scarfs!

Snacks: A gentle reminder that as a school we are trying to reduce waste. At the start of the year we set out on a mission to bring any snacks into school in reusable containers. Please continue to help us with this, sending all snacks in reusable plastic containers. Thank you!

Uniform: Please check your child’s uniform, we have a few pieces missing! We are also missing some black football leggings, they are labelled “procombat” around the waist. Thank you!

Emails:

c.bassett@ourladystarofthesea.lancs.sch.uk

s.hartley@ourladystarofthesea.lancs.sch.uk

Year 5 Weekly Blog 16.1.2026 - Our Father, who art in Heaven.

We say the Our Father multiple times a week in school, and have done for many years. But what does it actually mean? In our RE this week, we looked at the prayer and took it phrase by phrase. The image here is the one that we looked at in class, I wonder if the children can remember what each of the lines means?

We also studied the word petition - a formal request, typically one signed by many people. The Our Father is full of petitions, but not only are we told what to ask for, but also the order in which to do it. I hope that next week, when we say the Our Father, we think a little bit more deeply.

The children also had a lovely surprise yesterday as Mr Cornwell brough baby Emilia into school to met the class. There was lots of cooing around and huge smiley faces! Mr Cornwell will be back in class on Monday.

Bikeability and Science

There are certainly two highlights to this week: Bikeability and Science. It has been a while since we have done bikeability with our Year 5 class, but if there was ever a class to do it, it was this one. Today, they have been out on the playground, and even out on the roads around the school. Next week, the children will need their bikes again as they venture a bit futher afield and learn the safety aspect of riding on roads at junctions.

In science, it was all about friction with jelly - who would have thought it. Using chop sticks and jelly cubes, they had to test the friction and which one was the most robust. A spot of oil was also used to see if there was an increase or a decrease in friction.

Conversation Starters

In RE this week, we have been looking at petitions. If you could petition for something, what would it be?

Let’s Celebrate

Virtue Star: Lena

Lena has thought deeply about what she wants to say before she says it - showing true eloquence. We are so proud of your continuing confidence.

Learner of the Week: Ellie-Rose

Ellie-Rose has shown real focus and determination in her work this week with an amazing effort to provide detailed and well thought out answers. This was evident in her English and in her understanding of short division.

Notices

  • Homework- Please check the homework blog for your child’ weekly homework, including the deadline date.

  • Bikeability will be on Friday 23rd January. You will need to bring in your bike and your helmet and wear full school PE kit. Please dress warm as the children will be out and about whatever the weather. On the morning, please bring your bikes to the gate on Kenilworth Road where they will be placed on the playground.

  • PE days for this half term: Outdoor PE will be on a Tuesday and Indoor PE on a Thursday

    Mr Stocks, Mrs Gregan and Miss Johnson

This week...

Worship

This week we discussed the gifts that the Three Wise Men brought to Jesus. To show how special Jesus was, the Wise Men gave Him three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These were very special presents that showed they believed Jesus was a king and very important.

The first gift was gold. Gold is shiny and precious, like a crown for a king. This was to show that Jesus would be a special king.

The second gift was frankincense. Frankincense is something that smells really nice, like a candle or perfume. They gave this to show that Jesus was very special and that people would pray to Him.

The last gift was myrrh. Myrrh was something people used when someone was very sick or had died. This gift showed that one day Jesus would die to show His love for us.

We then played ‘Pass the Love game’. We passed the love all around our circle of friends

Learning landscape

A great week exploring and finding our.

We continued our investigation of triangles…all different types of triangles. We played a game using triangle to make lots of different shapes, great fun and some odd looking shapes.

Our interest in space passion has not abated and this week. When talking about the moon we discovered that there is less gravity on the moon! and that:

Gravity Pulls Things Down: Even on the Moon, things don't float away because gravity still pulls them.

Moon is Smaller: The Moon is smaller than Earth, so its gravity is weaker, like a gentle tug instead of a strong pull.

Feeling Lighter: Because the pull is weaker, you weigh less on the Moon (about 1/6th your Earth weight), so you can jump much higher and take giant, slow-motion steps.

Earth vs. Moon: On Earth, a ball falls quickly; on the Moon, it would float down slowly. 

This led us to explore forces such as magnetism, and material properties, using lots of magnetic resources to explore pushing, pulling, attraction, and repulsion. We found lots of objects around nursery and in the school hall!

We have learnt five new sounds c, k, u, b and f. We are spotting them everywhere. Can you see them when you are out and about at the weekend? At nursery we have been doing a shape sort!

Our maths concept has introduced a new word…more and fewer. We have been looking at objects in a jar and comparing if there are more or fewer objects in the jar. It was a bit tricky at first but we are getting there…fewer is a new word.

Blue Our Lady book bags.

Owing to a shortage of space in our entrance could you please ensure that your child brings a school books bag and not a back pack. They are becoming a tripping hazard as they often do not fit in our storage box. Thank you for your support.

Have a restful weekend and see you on Monday.

Stay safe and God bless

Barbara

Year 6 Weekly Blog '"Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." John 1:29

Earlier this week in litrugy we reflected on the Baptism of our Lord, reminding us that Jesus is God’s Son and that baptism helps everyone to become part of God’s family. Thank you to the following children for their beautiful Liturgy they prepared for us …

This week our Liturgy word of the week was ‘Lamb of God’ and we reflected on the gospel reading John 1:29–34, where John the Baptist pointed to Jesus and called Him ‘the Lamb of God. We talked about the name ‘lamb of God’, how a lamb is gentle, peaceful, and pure. In the Bible, a lamb was often used as a gift to God. So when John calls Jesus ‘the Lamb of God,’ he is saying: Jesus is special and chosen. Jesus is the one who brings forgiveness and new life. Jesus shows us how to live with kindness, peace, and love. When we say ‘Lamb of God’ during Mass, we remember that Jesus loves us so much that He gives Himself completely for us. This linked beautifully in to our RE lessons, where we are focusing on John Gospels, which have a deeper meaning than the other gospel writers, as he tells us about who Jesus is, rather then retelling the same events. John’s Gospel is trying to tell us about Jesus’ divinity- He is God.

Life to the Full – Session about Death and Grief

As part of your child’s RE and RHE learning, we will be completing a lesson on Monday which introduces children to the topics of death and grief in a sensitive, age-appropriate way from a Catholic faith perspective.

In the session, your child will learn:

●       What ‘death’ means

●       About some feelings often connected with grief

●       What the Christian faith says about death and eternal life

●       Some ways to support themselves and others when they are grieving.

The most important way you can support your child’s learning is to be willing to have open, honest conversations about death and perhaps share your own experiences of death and grief if you feel able to.

You may like to pray with your child and as well as praying the following traditional prayer for those who have died, you might like to name any family and friends who have died and ask that they would rest in peace.

Prayer for Those Who Have Died

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,

and let perpetual light shine upon them.

May they rest in peace.
Amen

 If you have any queries about the lesson, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Where has our learning taken us this week?

Wow the learning in Year 6 has really started to pick up pace and Year 6 are rising to all of the challenges- we are all so proud of them. We are managing to fit in so much learning and they are even becoming much more organised in the mornings, getting all of their equipment and books ready for the lessons ahead. This week we have been working hard on our biography work, writing a paragraph each day on our Henry VIII biography and practicing using semi-colons and our relative clauses, using them as embedded clauses and at the end of our sentences. Next week we will be writing our own biographies on Rosa Parks, we were hoping to watch the Dr Who eposide to help us undertsand her struggles, please let me know via email if this is not something you want your children to see. In Maths we have been looking at mutlipiplication strategies- perfect time for some of us to get on TT Rockstars and speed up our mental recall! Our Indoor PE was spent practising our field events- lots of jumping, hopping and throwing!

We had a great time on our Forest School Takeover today, as you can see from the photographs …

Delving deeper through talk …

What is our Catholic Social Teaching focus this year?

Can you explain what SUBSIDIARITY is and what examples of this do you see in school?

Leading Learners

Well done to TEDDY this week.

Teddy, thank you for reflecting on your learning this week, ensuring you apply what you have learnt to all areas and striving to be the best you can. This week you have been super focused on your learning, staying on task independently and ensuring you get the job done. We have been so proud of your writing this week- well done!

Eloquent and Truthful Stars

This half term we will be on the lookout for all the children that are eloquent in their words, that show the language to ask questions, express emotions, speak beliefs, talk about matters of faith and hope, debate points of view, and engage in conversation. Those who are truthful, who speak the truth about themselves and others. These children are the role models of the school. This week we thank Beth for always being eloquent and truthful.

Helpers in the morning

This week we have the following children helping to take the younger children to their class:

Rory Grace Amelia William

Notices

  • Some important homework to complete for next week- the Rosa Parks homework will be needed for at the latest- Wednesday.

  • Please do continue to keep up to date with your child’s homework and check they have completed but also that the presentation is in keeping with what they produce in class. We were a little disappoingted to see the amount of children who did not complete all their homework, didn’t hand it in or who have rushed their work, making it illegible. This time is crucial for their revision, for you to see what they are learning about in class but also to develop independence needed for high school- it’s not that long off!

Year 6 Home Learning 16.01.26

Homework to be completed and handed in to school on Thursday.

English- Please complete the worksheet on semi colons in your books by adding the missing semicolon.

We did a lot of work on conjunctions last term- please revise by using this game:

https://wordwall.net/resource/65119032/english/conjunction-sort

Maths- Please complete the long multiplication in your books and do 10 minutes of TT Rockstars every night!

Reading- Please read the Rosa Parks biography over the weekend ready for our writing next week. I want you to do two things: Find out what any words you do not understand mean; and write down the key dates in your homework books.

Dance Update

Dance rehearsals are coming on so well, they are all such stars- focused, enthsuaistic and willing to give everything a go! We are so excited for you to see what we have created! It promises to be a memorable experience for everyone involved. To make this event truly spectacular, we need your support…

We are now getting together the costumes and equipment for our performace, to ensure all children look the part and feel confident on the stage! We are running with the Olympic theme and all children have their own colours from the Olympic ring. All we ask that you provide your child with straight-legged, plain black leggings or skins.

Could we please ask for a small contribution of £10 towards the rest of the costumes and the transport to the event, which is now on ParentPay. This will cover the rest of the costume, which is a coloured t-shirts, elasticated ribbons for on their arms, hair and face glitter, hair accessories and as mentioned before will go towards the coach to the event. Your contribution will help us embark on this exciting journey, giving the children an opportunity to showcase their hard work and talent. They have been practicing with enthusiasm and dedication, and we want to make sure their efforts are celebrated in the best possible way.

Together, we can make this event unforgettable for our young dancers!

Thank you for your continued support.

Year 1 Homework to be handed in on 19.1.26

Thank you for the super home learning below you will find this weeks tasks along with the optional half term tasks. Any optional homework that you complete, please bring these into school so that they can be added to our classroom displays.

Optional homework linked to our learning this half term:

Optional Homework Spring 1

Year 5 Weekly Blog 9.1.2026 - "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another" (John 13:34).

In RE this week, we have started our new branch; Galilee to Jerusalem with a focus on who Jesus is and why he came to us. There was time spent on the retrieval of the Ten Commandments and why these had been given to us, with the challenge to remember as many as they could. Before we then moved onto look at the New Commandment. Jesus didn’t come to undo the work of those who had come before him, but to build upon it and the New Commandment does this. Today with Mr Stocks, the class have looked at The Transfiguration of Jesus. The Transfiguration is a pivotal biblical event where Jesus's appearance transformed, revealing his divine glory to three disciples (Peter, James, and John) on a mountain. This is so special as it truly shows Jesus as both man and the divine figure that he is.

This half term, we are looking at what it means to be Eloquent and Truthful. As we look for God in all things and use his teachings to speak his words eloquently and truthfully in our every day life. This is something you can discuss at home too.

Forest School

So much learning has taken place in class this week, led by Mr Stocks who will be with us next week whilst Mr Cornwell enjoys time with his family. From The Windrush book, to consolidation of maths and some excellent french! But I think the highlight of the week has been forest school where mud skincare was the choice activity - amongst shelter building and frog finding. The pictures speak for themselves!

Conversation Starters

In RE this week, we have been looking at laws and the new commandment that we were given. If you could create a new law to live by, what would it be and why?

Let’s Celebrate

Virtue Star: Rosa

Rosa has been really kind and welcoming this week; showing that she is a kind and considerate member of the Year 5 team.

Learner of the Week: Heath

Heath has shared lots of fantastic ideas this week in all lessons. There has also been a real focus on his effort to stretch his vocabulary.

Notices

  • Homework- Please check the homework blog for your child’ weekly homework, including the deadline date.

  • Bikeability will be on Friday 16th January and Friday 23rd January. You will need to bring in your bike and your helmet and wear full school PE kit. Please dress warm as the children will be out and about whatever the weather. On the morning, please bring your bikes to the gate on Kenilworth Road where they will be placed on the playground.

  • PE days for this half term: Outdoor PE will be on a Tuesday and Indoor PE on a Thursday

    Mr Stocks, Mrs Gregan and Miss Johnson

Year 5 Homework- Due Thursday 15th January

Compulsory Homework

Maths

We have now started our new unit of division by dividing 2 digit numbers by 1 digit numbers. Our table facts are crucial in order to access Year 5 division level so keep chipping away at TTRS and keep practicing those trickier facts.

Reading

All children have began working towards their new target for this half term. Try and aim for at least 20 minutes of reading at home per day.

Spellings

Here our new spellings for this weeks test. Can you spot our suffix focus for this week. Remember, the ending of the root word will slightly change the ending of the suffix.

Practice writing these words three times on the line in your BEST handwriting. Make sure to complete lots of mini spelling tests in preparation for our weekly test on Friday.

  1. poisonous

  2. mountainous

  3. nervous

  4. famous

  5. continuous

  6. courageous

  7. outrageous

  8. furious

  9. glorious

  10. victorious

  11. obvious

  12. curious

  13. serious

  14. dangerous

  15. hideous