St Pius X Catholic Primary School

For our Entry Point, students engaged in different games and experiments to test how the brain works! We looked at how practising a task over and over again can help build connections in our brain through a fun storytelling picture game! We discussed how the brain and our emotions are connected through the ‘Zones of Regulation’. Then, students completed some experiments to see how their brain can engage their senses. Students smelled hidden items and had to guess what they were (smell), had to reach into a bag and guess what the item was by just touching it (touch), wrote down on whiteboards what they could hear when they closed their eyes (hear), and wrote down what they could see in our play area (sight). Then, students played ‘scientist’ and engaged in imaginative play with one another! "Our brains help us to do so many things, even riding a bike!" - Mia "Practice makes perfect! When we learn new things, we can practise them and get better at them!" - Eva

This afternoon, we started our new computing topic: Networks, Communication, and Collaboration. We discussed what is required for effective communication and emphasized the importance of agreed protocols. The students applied this understanding to IP addresses and learned about the rules (protocols) that computers use to communicate with each other. They were also introduced to the concept of data packets. As part of the lesson, the students completed an activity where they explored how an image is transferred across the internet. Through this, they discovered that in addition to messages (text), other types of data—such as images, videos, and audio—are also transmitted over the internet. Quote: 'It was interesting to learn about IP address and how if works in our world'. 

  📖  Reading Goal 1: Order events from a story We have made predictions and watched the story ‘ The Day the Crayons Came Home.'  🖍 Today we sequenced the events. We collaborated with our classmates to arrange ourselves in the correct order. Next we will create our own story map to retell the main events in order. You can watch the animated video of the story here  !    

  This week, the Year 4s started their weekly swimming lessons at Girl's County High School. It was a very successful lesson. Despite many of the class being nervous, the class returned with bright smiles and a new confidence. Well done to everyone. Let's continue working hard and improving our swimming skills! "It was fun. It wasn't scary. I  tried to swim across the pool." -Lisa

  This week, our young learners have been diving deep into the concept of a   growth mindset   and discovering how it can help them become even better learners. What does it mean to have a growth mindset, you ask? It's all about believing that with effort, practice, and perseverance, we can improve our skills and abilities! 🏆 To put their new knowledge into action, our Year 5 students have been creating vibrant posters that illustrate how they can adopt this positive mindset and face challenges with enthusiasm. Each poster showcases their unique ideas – from setting personal learning goals to embracing mistakes as valuable lessons! 📚💡 " We identified features that make a good learner as a class." - Jisvia

 In year 3, we have started our first IPC topic 'Brainwave'. We'll be learning about different parts of the brain, how we can improve our memory and how to become great learners! For our entry point we taught our talk partners a new skill. Here is Henry, teaching Soriyah how to do some kickups! Henry - I think it was quite hard to teach a skill but Soriyah was a good learner and could do some kickups at the end!

To celebrate the end of our topic, Year 6 created personalised ‘Zones of Regulation’ toolkits using Google Docs. We applied everything we have learned about how the brain works to help us think about how we can move between different zones. In addition, we learnt new computing skills to make our toolkits.  Quote: “It has been really helpful to think about how I can use the Zones of Regulation to help me focus during lessons.” Click here for more information. The Zones of Regulation Overview Blue Zone (Low Energy/Slow) Feelings: Tired, sad, bored, sick State: Low energy, lacking motivation or focus Green Zone (Optimal Focus/Calm) Feelings: Calm, happy, focused, ready to learn State: Ideal for learning and studying Yellow Zone (Heightened State/Alert) Feelings: Frustrated, worried, silly, excited State: A little off balance, but still in control Red Zone (Out of Control) Feelings: Angry, out of control, panicked, extremely upset State: Intense emotions that make it hard to focus or think

We are so happy to welcome our new Reception class into school this week.  They have shown resilience, maturity and kindness in their first week of school. We have enjoyed making new friends, playing with new resources and getting to know our environment. We are proud of how the children have coped with their transition so far and have been brilliant at adapting to school life. We have loved listening to new stories together, playing sharing games and singing and dancing during our carpet times.  The children have also begun to get familiar with our school hall and enjoyed some delicious school dinners for the first time!  ' I have made new friends.' - Coby 'School is fun, I played outside.' - Olive  We will be welcoming in new friends next week too and we can't wait for our class to be complete! They have had a brilliant start - well done Reception! 

The whole school rejoiced in the celebration of the feast day of Saint Pius X today. We started the day with a beautiful mass led by Father Paul where the children learnt about the importance of the head of the church, like Saint Pius X, and about the first ever pope: Saint Peter.  "I found it really interesting that Peter's name was Simon before, but it was changed to Peter because he was the 'rock'  of the church. I didn't know that Petros meant rock!" Kachi, Year 5 It was brilliant to see the children so reflective in prayer and praising God enthusiastically with their wonderful singing! The celebrations did not stop there. The children all shared some delicious cupcakes for the special occasion - a tasty treat for a Tuesday! It has been a great day and a chance for everyone to learn a bit more about Saint Pius X.

🧠Year 2 have started learning about...brilliant brains!  For our 'Entry Point' and 'Knowledge Harvest' in IPC (Brainwave) we shared ideas about what we already knew, including how important our brains are and that they control our bodies. We played memory games to challenge our skills of remembering and listed all the ways we can look after our brain. We then created posters to showcase our learning. Cassius: 'Our brains need rest and water!' Bow: 'Our brains have 2 sides and they control the opposite side of our body!' Olivia: 'Our skull protects our brain.'