News list
This year, like many things, Armistice Day was a little different because of coronavirus. England was in the middle of a four-week national lockdown during this time but, with stringent safety measures in place, St John’s was able to come together at Byron and Senior House to commemorate those who have fallen and mark this occasion with sincerity and respect.
T1’s rendition of their nativity production, Christmas with the Aliens, was broadcast live to the school community this year so everyone could share the children’s production and all their hard work leading up to the performance. The nativity tells the delightful story of a disorganised but lovable angel with a wonky halo who is chosen to show the way to Bethlehem. One T1 parent commented, "It was absolutely awesome and such a treat be able to watch it as if we had front row seats."
For some, Odd & Silly Socks Day comes around 365 days a year. However, on one day of the year it is not simply about grabbing whichever socks you can find. It is about helping raise awareness during Anti-Bullying Week. At St John’s, we took part in Odd & Silly Socks Day on 16 November, the first day of Anti-Bullying Week – a day designed primarily to spread an important message but also a day designed to be fun; an opportunity for the children to express themselves and celebrate their individuality and what makes us all unique.
Every October children at Senior House look forward to taking part in the World’s Biggest Drawing Festival and this year was no exception with another opportunity to celebrate the transformative effect of drawing for Forms 3 and 4. The theme: ‘Climate of Change’ seemed particularly apt when sustainability is very much an on-going focus at St John’s. 2020 marks the 20th anniversary of The Big Draw and the campaign that shines a light on the need for drawing and its role as a tool for expression, creativity, learning and sharing ideas.
Form 1 experienced the world of ancient Rome with a Roman Day workshop. The children were transported back to Roman Britain with a recreation of life in the past including role-play, practical activities and hands-on experiences with Roman replica artefacts. The children were aptly dressed as Roman citizens, slaves or even barbarians!
Current parent, Mrs Patel, gave an insightful talk to Form 4 about the customs and traditions of Hinduism, one of the world’s oldest religions and the religion they are currently studying in class. The children found out about the Hindu belief that life is a cycle of birth, death and rebirth and that the actions in this life, or ‘karma’, have an effect on the future.
St John’s became a hub of poetic vision on Thursday 1 October when children across all ages celebrated National Poetry Day. National Poetry Day is the annual mass celebration on the first Thursday of October that encourages all to discover, enjoy and share poetry. The theme for this year was ‘vision’ with the motto to ‘see like a poet’ and #ShareAPoem. Head of English, Mrs Elaine Atkin, explained, ‘It is always incredible to see how imaginative and sensitive the children are through their poetry. They approach poetry with an open mind and produce work which is far beyond
On 1 October, our three SJCS Science quiz teams competed in the Finals of the Quiz Club National Inter-School Championships, postponed from last term. There were 442 teams (1768 children) from 308 schools taking part in the Science Championship during the last academic year and there were 51 teams (200 children – allowing for the teams with less than 4 players) from 44 schools in the Finals. As always, the questions were beyond the knowledge of the National Curriculum but the children took the challenge in their stride and battled it out for a tied 4th place and 18th place.
Our 'Action Stories' are based on a peer massage programme where the children are led through a set of massage strokes devised by the Massage in Schools Programme. Action Stories are an integral part of the Emotions for Learning (E4L) curriculum at Byron House and teachers and children have seen the benefits for over 10 years at St John’s. They aim to promote the well-being of young children in the knowledge that nurturing touch is a basic need and powerful tool to help children develop into healthy, well-balanced human beings.
This year our Harvest Festival services were held across one week at Byron House. The food and monetary donations came flooding in and were delivered to Newmarket Open Door Foodbank. This charity redistributes donated foods and household products to those needing support through their Foodbank shop, as well as via other charities and voluntary and social welfare organisations. Coinciding with our Harvest charitable giving, the annual Byron House Harvest Competition was as popular as ever with entries in the following categories: vegetables, sunflowers, art,