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Year 5 Celebration of the Word

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This week, our Year 5 pupils led a Celebration of the Word on the theme of Hope, sharing their reflections on Advent with their families. The focal point was the Advent wreath, reminding us that this season is a time of waiting in joyful hope for the coming of Jesus.

Through readings, prayers, and a litany of rejoicing, the children explored what it means to wait with hope and purpose. Parents were invited to join in singing a joyful hymn and to write messages of hope to hang on our tree.

Thank you to everyone who joined us. May this Advent season fill your hearts with hope and joy!

Travelling Crib

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In Advent, as we wait and prepare for the coming of Jesus, the children have been invited to join our special project called ‘The Travelling Crib’.   Starting this week, each child will take turns bringing home a pack to share with their families.

This is to help us remember the journey Mary and Joseph made to Bethlehem, and as a family take time to stop and think about the true meaning of Christmas.

Children in KS1 will bring home The Christmas Story, while children in KS2 will bring home a book called ‘When the Stars Shone Bright, A Christmas Tale’ telling the Christmas story from the perspective of the three wise men.

Advent Calendars – preparing to receive God’s gift of love and friendship in Jesus

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As part of their learning in RE, Year 4 pupils discussed the different ways that Christians prepare during the season of Advent to receive the gift of Jesus at Christmas.  The children created Advent Calendars, with each door of the calendar having an act of kindness, love, friendship or a prayer suggestion.

Here are some photographs of the children creating and presenting their Advent Calendars:

Some of the children’s Acts of Kindness, Love, Friendship and prayer ideas were:

World Kindness Day 2025

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World Kindness Day is a special day that reminds everyone to show caring actions and treat others with respect. It encourages us to spread kindness through small, thoughtful deeds that help make the world a happier place.

In Mini Vinnies, we learnt that kindness means showing care, respect, and thoughtfulness to others. We talked about how small actions – like helping someone, sharing, or using kind words – can make a big difference. We also discovered that being kind helps make our school and our world happier, safer, and better for everyone. Showing kindness to others links to our Catholic Social Teaching principle, solidarity (showing others that we care about them).

The Mini Vinnies set to work creating a kindness challenge game that they could share with their friends and families. Each child challenged their friends to complete an act of kindness. The children gave out special kindness stickers to anyone who completed an act of kindness on the day.

Switch Off Fortnight

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In Eco Club this week, we learnt about the different types of energy we use in our daily lives. We discussed the energy we use in our school and in our homes. We found out that energy is needed for heat and light and thought about the appliances and devices that produce heat and light.

We learnt that burning fossil fuels releases the gas carbon dioxide (CO2). There are 500 million trucks and cars around the world all releasing CO2 into the air. This warms up the Earth, which causes the polar ice caps to melt and more extreme weather to occur like hurricanes, earthquakes and tsunamis.

We found out that using too much energy, like electricity, is expensive and harmful to the environment. We teamed up with the School Council to take part in Switch Off Fortnight, encouraging everyone in our school to switch off lights, appliances and devices when we are not using them. We are encouraging everyone to save energy to protect our common home.

We made posters to be displayed around school to promote the event, and our school councillors led an assembly to tell everyone about our campaign.

BBC Children in Need 2025

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BBC Children in Need is a charity started by the BBC in 1980, which raises money to help make a difference to children who need some support. People across the country raise money for the charity every November.

BBC Children in Need support children who might:
• have a disability;
• have a life-changing illness;
• live in poverty;
• be separated from their family;
• care for someone in their family.

In Mini Vinnies, we talked about the things that we might take for granted that other children may not have. We discussed how helping those in need is an important part of who we are as Christians and that by doing this, we are following in the footsteps of Jesus.

We teamed up with children from Year 6 to bake lots of tasty baked goods to sell at our annual Bake Sale in aid of BBC Children in Need. We sold raffle tickets to our friends and gave away some great Pudsey-themed prizes. The children had a wonderful time at our Bake Sale and enjoyed lots of Pudsey activities throughout the day.

Together, we raised over £350 to support BBC Children in Need!

Mini Vinnies Prayers for Peace

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November is a time of prayer and remembrance for our lost loved ones.
After attending our Remembrance Day assembly, our Mini Vinnies reflected on the impact of the two world wars and the conflicts happening right now all over the world. We discussed the importance of peace, forgiveness and reconciliation.

We remember all the soldiers we lost in World War I and World War II as a result of conflict. We talked about the power of prayer in communicating with God and forming a deeper relationship with Him. We wrote prayers asking God for help to bring peace and heal our broken world. Some of the children shared their prayers with the group and we added them to our Prayer & Reflection Area.

Key to Life Foodbank Harvest Appeal Total

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Thank you to all of our families and parishioners for your kind donations to our Harvest Foodbank Appeal to support the Key to Life Project. Together, we have collected 351 items to support local people in need! Our Mini Vinnies are so proud to be helping to feed people in our local area.

We have decided to keep our ‘Donation Station’ open all year round and we hope to make many more donations to The Project throughout the year!

Key to Life Foodbank Assembly

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Our Mini Vinnies Leadership Team led an assembly this week to share their learning about the Key Project in South Tyneside. They explained that helping to feed families in our local area helps us to live out our school mission. They spoke about our Catholic Social Teaching principles and explained that we can show solidarity to the poor and vulnerable in our local area by sharing what we have with them. The children appealed to their friends for donations towards our Harvest Foodbank Appeal.

© 2025 Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust.