St Pius X Catholic Primary School

  Year 6 were given homework to find out how World War Two affected their own families. They were encouraged to bring in any stories, artefacts, or photographs they found interesting. In class, we looked closely at a WW2 helmet, a gas mask, and a piece of wartime-inspired artwork. These items helped spark discussion about life during the war and made history feel more personal and real. Pupils are still welcome to bring in any WW2 artefacts, photos, or family stories to share with the class.

 As part of their World War Two Home Front IPC unit of work, Year 6 pupils took on an exciting hands-on challenge: designing and building their own Anderson shelter using recyclable materials. The project began with careful planning. The children researched what Anderson shelters were used for during the war and discussed why they were so important for keeping families safe during air raids. They then sketched their ideas, thinking carefully about how their shelter would look and how it could be constructed using materials that could be reused or recycled. Once their designs were complete, the children moved on to the building stage. They worked collaboratively, showing great teamwork and problem-solving skills. Recyclable materials formed the main structure, while wood and basic tools were used to add stability and strength to the shelter. Safety was a key focus, and pupils learned how to use tools responsibly and carefully. This practical activity helped bring history to life. No...

  Drama & Role‑Play – Becoming Night Pirates! This week in English, Year 1 set sail on a magical moonlit adventure inspired by the much‑loved story The Night Pirates . The classroom transformed into a world of shadows, sneaky footsteps, and brave young buccaneers as the children stepped into the roles of the characters and brought key scenes to life. Re‑enacting the Adventure To deepen their understanding of the story, the children worked together to re‑enact some of the most exciting moments: Climbing aboard the pirate ship Children used big actions and expressive faces to show how the little pirates scrambled onto the ship in the dark of night. Sneaking past the grown‑ups This was a favourite moment. The class tiptoed, whispered, and used careful body language to show how the pirates crept silently through the night. Stealing the treasure With plenty of imagination, the children acted out discovering the treasure and carrying it away triumphantly. These drama activit...

  What an absolutely brilliant day Year 5 had on their trip to the National History Museum! From the moment we set off, it was clear this was going to be an adventure of cosmic proportions. Our journey began with a smooth and enjoyable ride on the train and tube. We were so incredibly proud of the children's impeccable behaviour. In fact, members of the public went out of their way to comment on how wonderfully behaved and respectful our students were – a fantastic start to our day! Upon arriving at the museum, we were immediately launched into the wonders of their space exhibits. The children were captivated by the vastness of the universe, eagerly exploring displays about our solar system. Their curiosity was truly ignited, and it was fantastic to see them engaging so enthusiastically with all the fascinating information. The absolute highlight of our visit was undoubtedly the Mars Rover workshop with the brilliant scientists from the museum. 'I enjoyed the trip so much! When...

Year 2 have been looking at digital media (photographs) in their Computing lessons this term. It has opened up some great discussions about asking permission before taking, editing or sharing a photo of somebody. Today they also thought about what they should do if something happened online, for example: a pop-up advert asking us to click on a link a friend request from someone we don't know a message saying we have won a prize, just enter our details to claim Year 2 were very savvy - they could spot the scams and the unreliable sources ! To consolidate their ideas and learning, they created mini-posters. Their posters explained what to do in different scenarios. It was very pleasing to see the children had a mature attitude towards the possible dangers and that they knew what to do if they were unsure, for example: tell an adult block log off play a different game click the X button to close the window Excellent work Year 2! Here are some of the mini-posters:

  This week, our Year 3 class explored a chapter from The Iron Man  by Ted Hughes through role-play. After reading the chapter together, the children discussed the key events, characters, and emotions before bringing the scene to life. The children worked in groups to act out the chapter, using voice, movement, and facial expressions to show how the characters were feeling. Everyone had a role, which helped build confidence and teamwork. The activity supported children’s understanding of the story and developed speaking and listening skills in a fun, memorable way. Role-play proved to be an engaging way for Year 3 to deepen their connection with the text. I can't wait to see how it ends! Bow

 This week as part of our topic- Our Wonderful World, the children are learning all about space. We have transformed our role play area into a space station and Mrs Wiseman has very kindly made us a rocket! The children are loving exploring the new area and communicating with each other as astronauts.  'We're coming into land'- Immanuel  'Look it's the moon'- Ivy  In the afternoon, we acted out our mission to space and started learning about the different planets. We had to put on our moon boots, oxygen pack, backpack and helmet and then travelled through space. When we landed on Mars, we had to use our telescope to look for Martians; when on Jupiter, we discovered it is a stormy planet and so had to whirl around pretending to be in a storm.   

  Monday 26 th January 2026 We have been learning about different habitats and how animals adapt to survive! From camouflage to sharp claws, blubber to long. curly tails.... animals have adpated in some amazing ways in order to survive the dangers of their habitats. Today we got creative and made habitats using a variety of materials. The paper plate was our base, and then we cut out our chosen animals. We chose materials and decorated the background to match the habitat, for example, a sloth would live in a rainforest. We also watched BBCbitesize videos to help us understand how and why animals adapt. Soon we will be designing and making bug hotels as part of our next DT project!

Next week the Book fair will arrive in school. It will be in the school hall on the following dates and times:  Thursday 5th February - 3.20pm Friday 6th February - 3.20pm Monday 9th February  - During Parents' evening Tuesday 10th February - During Parents' evening Your child will be able to use their 'World book day token' in advance at the book fair - all children will receive £1 off any purchases.  Please note that the book fair is now cashless! You pay via QR code online. 

 Yesterday during R.E, we explored the question: How do we know Jesus takes care of everyone? We discussed the Miracle of Jesus and how he fed 5000 people by turning 2 fish and 5 loaves of bread into a feast for everyone.  We each took a piece of bread and thanked Jesus for taking care of us. We thought about what it feels like when we are hungry and how we feel when we get to share mealtimes together, like snack and lunch time.  Then today, it was time for us to make our own bread for all to enjoy.  We began by identifying the ingredients needed to make the bread and the steps of the recipe.  The children had a chance to help add the ingredients, stir, mix and knead before Mrs Hughes in the kitchen baked the rolls for us.  “The yeast looks sour” Jesse Joy  “ It smells like pancakes” Nina “ It’s like playdoh “ Da’Jean  “ It’s so squishy” Gideon “You need to put it in the oven to bake it, the oven is a cooking thing” Brian  “It’s warm” Quinn “...

We're about to we have been learning how to use counters and drawings to help us understand multiplication better. We used counters to make equal groups. For example, to work out 4 × 32 , we made 4 groups with 32 counters in each group . This helped us see that multiplication is the same as repeated addition (32 + 32 + 32 + 32).  When we solved worded problems , drawing pictures really helped. We drew what was happening in the problem, such as groups of objects or rows of items. Drawing it out helped us decide which multiplication we needed and stopped us from getting confused. Using counters and pictures helped everyone feel more confident. It showed us that multiplication is not just numbers—it is something we can see and explain . We are getting better at choosing helpful strategies to solve tricky problems.

  🌍 Year 1 Explore the World Through Maps! Year 1 have been busy becoming young geographers this week, diving into the fascinating world of maps and developing their understanding of the wider world as well as their own surroundings. The children began by exploring a world map, using it to identify where we live and to locate the seven continents , the five oceans , and the equator . They were excited to spot familiar places and amazed by how big our planet really is. This sparked lots of thoughtful discussion about different countries, climates, and how far away other continents are from the UK. From there, the children moved on to learning about map plans . They discovered how maps are drawn from a bird’s‑eye view , and they practised looking at objects and spaces from above. This new perspective helped them understand why maps look the way they do and how symbols are used to represent real‑life features. To put their learning into action, Year 1 headed outside to explore the sc...

  Our specialist Behavior Support Team works with parents/carers to support them with understanding their children’s behavior and improving family relationships. How this can benefit families? - Builds confidence and understanding in parenting - Supports emotional wellbeing - Strengthens home-school partnerships - Easy to access – online sessions over 5 weeks Home-Start Essex offers a 5-week online behaviour support course designed for parents and carers to develop practical strategies to support emotional and sensory needs. There is a different topic each week, based upon issues most commonly raised by families. Topics covered include:- Week 1: Behaviour as communication, connection, and parenting styles Week 2: Emotional regulation and calming strategies Week 3: Sensory processing and behaviour responses Week 4: Daily routines, sleep, SEN support, EHCPs, and more Week 5: Parent wellbeing, self-care, and overcoming judgement   

  Our free Holiday Club is run once a week during most school holidays. It creates a safe space for children to: participate in meaningful activities make friends and socialise access lunch and snacks and all of this is while developing social and communication skills and exploring new talents or interests. Who is Holiday Club for? Holiday Club sessions are booked and offered to families according to criteria. Priority will be given to those from lower income families, in receipt of pupil premium or eligible for free school meals. Activities are free and suitable for children aged 6 and over in primary school. For more information you can  read our Holiday Club Terms and Conditions. Where are the Holiday Club activities? Activities are held at our Kids Inspire HQ, Hargrave House, Hollycroft, Great Baddow, Chelmsford, CM2 7FW Time:  10:30am-3:30pm Upcoming dates for 2026 Holiday Clubs: Tuesday 17 February 2026 - Animal Discovery with  Eden Oasis This February half ter...

Year 5 gathered for our very special Class Mass . It was a wonderful opportunity for us to pause, reflect, and celebrate our faith together as a community. We were delighted to welcome Father Paul , who joined us in the classroom to lead the service. His presence always brings a sense of calm and joy to our school, and it was a privilege to have him guide us through our worship. Year 5 showed spiritual maturity during the times of reflection and participated fully in the worship.  Thank you to those parents who were able to join us for the service. We are already looking forward to our next Mass. 

Today, we were looking at dividing by powers of 10. We thought about the relationship between multiplying and dividing by 10 and 100. We took our whiteboards outside drew place value charts on the floor. We created numbers and multiplied and divided them by 10 and 100. We looked at how we weren't just adding and taking away 0s, but moving the numbers up and down the place value chart.  

 Year 3 launched their new geography topic, Island Life , with an exciting entry point lesson that sparked lots of curiosity and imagination. The children were told they had been shipwrecked and stranded on a desert island, where they had to think carefully about how they would survive. As part of the experience, the children tasted a variety of fruits that might be found on an island. This helped them think about natural resources and how people use what the environment provides to meet their needs. The children discussed what they would need to survive, including food, water and shelter, and how island life might be different from life at home. These ideas introduced key geographical concepts and set the scene for our learning this term. This engaging lesson was a great way to start our geography unit and Year 3 are already excited to learn more about island environments and how people live on them..

During our new IPC topic, See Hear! , we have been exploring the fascinating world of light and sound. We learned about light and darkness, as well as how light can be reflected and refracted. As part of this topic, we also discovered how the human eye works and how it helps us to see the world around us. After learning the science behind light, we put our knowledge to the test by designing and creating our own periscopes. By using reflection, we were able to see around corners and over objects, bringing our learning to life in a fun and practical way. This hands-on activity helped us understand how light travels and showed us how science is used in everyday objects. For the second part of our topic, we used Chromebooks to create and present our own presentations about sound. We learned how sound is produced, how it travels, and how it is received by our ears. This helped us develop our research, digital, and presentation skills while deepening our understanding of how we hear the wor...

  Year 1 Gymnastics – Balances, Jumps and Brilliant Teamwork This week in gymnastics, Year 1 have been busy developing their balance, control and confidence as we explored a range of different balances and jumps. The children were fantastic at trying new shapes with their bodies, practising 2‑point, 3‑point and 4‑point balances , as well as some trickier positions such as dish , Y‑shape and straight balances . It was wonderful to see them concentrating so carefully and holding each position with growing stability. We also focused on a variety of jumps, including straight jumps , tuck jumps , half‑turn jumps and star jumps . The children enjoyed putting power and height into their movements while remembering to land safely with bent knees and good control. A highlight of the lesson was using the apparatus. The class travelled confidently along the benches before jumping safely from the boxes , showing great courage and coordination. Alongside this, the children have been learning ...

 This half term, we have introduced new writing lessons, called Drawing Club. Children focus on a story, traditional tale or cartoon each week. We discuss new vocabulary similar to that in the text and then draw our own creations. Alongside this, children have to write the magic code of their choosing to bring their pencil to life and perform all sorts of magic. On day 1, we draw a main character, day 2 is setting and days 3 and 4 are when our creativity truly starts- Adventure Time. These lessons allow children to take the story in any direction they choose.  The children are really pushing themselves with their writing without even knowing it. They truly want to write so their picture becomes whatever they imagine.  This week, we are focusing on The Gingerbread Man. On Monday we drew the Gingerbread Man, Tuesday we drew the river he had to cross and today we decided to bring in a new character.  'I'm going to draw a stinky carrot'- Macie  'Mine is the happy le...