Final Mag for checking HX 3

2016 SUMMER EDITION

The Holy Cross

Annual Magazine

A Year in Review

July 2016

THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

CONTENTS

3. Introduction
4. Reflections
5. The Early Years
6. Key Stage 1
7. Key Stage 2
8-9. Catholic Life
10-11. Sporting Success
12-13. The Arts
14. Our Bilingual School
15-16. Trips and Visitors
17. International Life
18-19. Themed Weeks
20-21. Parent Partnership
22. Residential PGL 2016
23-24. Around the School
25. Building Update
26. Year 6 Leavers
27. Geese
28. What Next…

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Introduction

As we approach the end of what has been
an exceptional year at Holy Cross, it is time
to reflect on our achievements and
successes since last September.

First and foremost, we would like to In the latter half of the year, we saw the main
congratulate and thank our whole school bulk of our building works taking place and it
community for supporting us on our road to has been wonderful to watch our new learning
Ofsted success. We truly could not have space come to fruition. We look to a future
come this far without the support and where we can learn in a modern school
dedication of our staff, parents and pupils environment and effectively prepare children
over the last four years, so thank you. for life in 21st century Britain.

The next few pages explore the range of And finally, we have grappled with a new
wonderful events and capture the spirit of curriculum, which has challenged our way of
Holy Cross, serving as a reminder of how thinking and refreshed our teaching practices,
successful this year has been. As I read allowing us to look at exciting ways to enliven
through it and reflect, I can’t help but feel our curriculum through creative and
great pride in what we have achieved this innovative learning.
year in the face of lots of new beginnings.
And now, as our Year 6 pupils head off on their
We have welcomed a wealth of valuable new chapter, we would like to thank them for
staff members this year who are continuing being so special and to wish them luck on their
on their journey with us, carrying with them a onward journey. We hope to have inspired
clear notion of where we are headed in the them to face change and new beginnings
future. It is this consistency in teaching and with the same confidence and bravery that
familiarity of staff that forms the basis of a they have experienced here at the school.
strong school and we are excited to be
moving forward together as a whole staff On behalf of all the staff at Holy Cross, we
body, building on past experiences and would like to wish you a happy and restful
moving from strength to strength. summer and we look forward to welcoming
you back in September feeling energised,
We have also been very fortunate to forge stronger and more united after such a
strong, unique links with two partner schools. successful year at the school.
These prosperous relationships serve to
better each school by sharing strengths and
teaching practises, strengthening our very
own school community and your child’s
education.

Kathleen Williams Cath Macgonigal
Executive Head Associate Head

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Reflections Progress has been made in so many areas but
what gives me greatest pleasure is that our
A word from the Chair of Governors school feels such a happy place. Our
community works together - the PTA, Parent
Dear Parents and Carers, Council and the fervour with which the children
have embraced the House system are all
It is with a deep sense of pride in our school testament to that! But there are many less
community that I reflect on all that has been obvious examples, not least of which is the
accomplished in the school over the past year, staff's resilience and the willingness of both the
a flavour of which is presented in this magazine. staff and parents to do whatever it takes to
So much has been achieved in teaching and make things work even in the face of the
attainment standards; the breadth of challenges thrown up by the building project
experiences presented to our children; the and working across split sites. It is that spirit of a
development of partnerships within our school, common goal which gives me confidence that
with parents and with other groups outside the Holy Cross will continue to go from strength to
school - all serving to enrich our children's strength.
learning experiences.

The Governing Body too has changed over the On behalf of the governing body, may I extend
course of this year as we welcomed two new our grateful thanks to you all - your on-going
Parent Governors and a new Foundation support is very much appreciated and is key to
Governor, all three of whom have had a our school's
significant and hugely beneficial input to the continuing success.
Board both in an advisory capacity and also in a We look forward to
practical one. We continue to focus on the working with you in
strategic direction of the school and are able to the new academic
do so because of the strength of our Leadership year and until then,
Team and our confidence in their ability to we wish you a happy
manage the operational aspects of the school summer break.
effectively and efficiently.
Seana Bengtsson
A Word from our Parish Priest Chair of Governors

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate our whole school
community for pulling together to achieve Ofsted success this year, which
only served to confirm what we knew already- that Holy Cross is a good
school, led by outstanding staff and governors.

In my opinion, the mark of a good school is the joy and happiness of the staff
and children within and Holy Cross certainly embodies this sentiment,
allowing our school community to come together in achieving our common
goal of living life to the fullest. Wishing you a restful summer. Peace and Joy in
Christ,

Father Mehall Lowry 4
Parish Priest

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

The Early Years

“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.”
Benjamin Franklin

Learning Through Play

The seven key areas of learning in the
Foundation Stage are:

• Communication and language
• Physical development
• Personal, social & emotional

development
• Literacy
• Mathematics
• Understanding the world
• Expressive arts and design

These are explored through free play: a series New Experiences!
of well-planned, structured activities both
inside and outside of the classroom. With a Our children have had lots of exciting
new home corner and play station installed in opportunities to help them understand the
the Nursery this year, our youngest pupils are world around them through active learning.
free to explore independently, learning about
building positive relationships with their peers As part of understanding life cycles, our
in a safe and enabling environment. children watched live eggs hatch and then
saw how the chicks began to change and
grow before their very eyes!

Our children also headed over to the park to
enjoy a Teddy Bears’ picnic in the sunshine;
they visited the London Aquarium; visited the
shop to buy Poppies as a mark of respect on
Remembrance Day and visited our local fire
station to understand a little more about
those who help us! These experiences, which
are a first for many of our children, are what
will prepare them for the next stage of their
learning!

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Key Stage 1

“Educating the mind, without educating the heart, is no education at all.” - Aristotle

From the Forest to the Throne!

After spending time enhancing and fine-tuning our
Key Stage One curriculum over the past couple of
years, our Key Stage One pupils got the chance to
make, build, perform and write at length again this
year as part of their topic work!

Pupils have been on a staggering number of “Key Stage 1 results at Holy Cross
thoughtful and well-planned trips in order to bring have been significantly better than
their topics to life! From enjoying their sandwiches
atop a river cruise on The Thames to enjoying fish national averages in reading,
and chips on the sands of Littlehampton, they writing and mathematics.”
really have got a taste of the UK!
Ofsted 2016
Pupils have held wild animals; sketched the Tower
of London; made their own castles; grown their Phonics success!
own plants in our very own playground; visited
world-famous art galleries and have enjoyed a We are pleased to announce that this
number of parent visits including a very special year, 89% of our pupils met the 2016
King for their ‘Towers, Tunnels and Turrets’ topic as government phonics assessment level.
well as a very informative talk on Islamic culture. The national average for the check is
We look forward to seeing what adventures await 77%. We are very proud of all our pupils’
them next year! achievements in Key Stage One this year.

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Key Stage 2

“The most beautiful thing about learning is
that nobody can take it away from you.”

B B King

Skills For Life

Whether they are moving onto the next
school year or secondary school, we ensure
that each of our pupils are well equipped and
ready for the next stage in their lives.

SATS Success! Across the whole of Key Stage Two, pupils
have been exploring topics and themes that
We are pleased to announce that, despite will prepare them for the opportunities,
tackling a rigorous new curriculum, our Year 6 responsibilities and experiences that they are
pupils have performed extremely well in this likely to face in later life.
year’s SATS tests! Supporting our pupils
through interventions and booster sessions in They have:
the lead up to the exams, our pupils have
worked hard to achieve their very best - well • Battled with self-confidence during
done! performances on professional stages

This year, 73% of our pupils met the new 2016 • Learnt about equality and diversity from
government expected standard against a top coaches at Chelsea Football Club
much tougher curriculum. This is an
exceptional achievement as the national • Played competitive sports against
average is 53%. We are very proud of all of schools across the borough
our pupils’ achievements in Key Stage Two.
• Taken part in forensic science workshops
We are also very proud of our Year 6 pupils • Admired local art on Portobello Road
and their individual results in each subject. • Cooked with chefs at Wagamamas
• And learnt how to swim!

It is through being exposed to such
experiences that our older pupils begin to
figure out their passions and gain a deeper
and wider understanding of the subjects in
which they are taught!

Reading 83% 7
GPS (Grammar, Punctuation & Spelling) 90%
Maths 90%
Writing 87%

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Catholic Life

“When we pray, we speak to God; but when we read, God speaks to us.” – St. Jerome

The Jubilee Year of Mercy

The Jubilee Year of Mercy, given to us by Pope
Francis, is an opportunity for us, as Catholics, to
contemplate the mercy that God revealed to us
through his Son, Jesus. It is a time to reflect on how
we might seek to draw others into experiencing
and exercising that love and mercy in our
everyday lives.

In celebration of this blessed year, pupils at Holy
Cross attended the Westminster Cathedral
Primary Mass led by Cardinal Vincent Nichols,
which was a wonderful opportunity for the
children to come together with other children
from the diocese and share in the celebration of
Mass.

Mrs. Parsons and Mr. O’Donnell also created a Our Daily Lives
replica of the Holy Doors at the Vatican, which
was blessed by Father Mehall and used
throughout the year for Reconciliation. We also
displayed our own ‘Merciful Like the Father’
image at our front office, for all to see, as a
reminder to our school community and anyone
who visits us, to practice the love and mercy of
God.

As well as practising collective and pupil-led
worship in class, pupils from both Key Stage
One and Key Stage Two attend parish Mass
on a rotated weekly basis and are given
further opportunity to reflect on Sunday’s
Gospel with their families through the gift of
the Wednesday Word.

Weekly class assemblies’ cover the relevant
themes and liturgical events and are very
well attended by parents and family
members. This practice of worshipping
together as a whole school community,
strengthens our bond and demonstrates to
our pupils the correct way to live a Catholic
life.

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Social Justice and Service This year, we have helped our local and
wider community greatly through events
At the very heart of the Gospel is the notion of and initiatives such as:
helping others, which is therefore a fundamental
factor of living a Catholic life. • Lenten collection boxes
• Blue fundraiser for St. Joseph’s
Social Justice is a priority at Holy Cross as it invites • Harvest Festival
us to have empathy with those in need and • Trussel Trust donations
encourages us to come together in support of • Christmas Jumper Day
the common good. • Mufti Day for UNICEF

• Macmillan Bakeoff

Celebrations throughout the year! 9

There are plenty of opportunities throughout the
Liturgical year to come together as Catholics and
celebrate the Greatness of God.

During the autumn term, we celebrated our
school feast day – Exultation of the Holy Cross,
Feast of the Immaculate Conception with a
Whole School Mass and marked the Christmas
period with a Key Stage One Nativity and Key
Stage Two Carol Concert at the church, led by
the wonderful Ms Hudson.

As we approached the spring term, Easter arrived
on our doorstep, which is the most Holy time for us.
We watched a beautiful, reverant depiction of
John’s Story and our younger years grappled with
the meaning of Pentecost, making hats in
preparation.

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Sporting Success

“It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get up." – Vince Lombardi

A good PE curriculum inspires children to not only
succeed in competitive sport, but to also grow in
confidence, enhance their self-esteem and
provide them with the skills and understanding that
they need to begin to live an active and healthy
lifestyle.

Sport allows children to recognise their own
successes and to learn that competition is healthy;
it builds character and helps to promote and
exercise values such as fairness and respect.

Without sport in school, many children might not Not only have our children enjoyed
get the opportunity to explore such a range of specialist teaching in a range of sports
activities, making it the perfect – and sometimes including tennis, gymnastics and dance this
only – opportunity to discover hidden talents and year, but they also got the opportunity to
untapped passions! take part in tennis and football
tournaments, they have enjoyed exciting
workshops throughout the year and have
generously been donating Active Kids
vouchers to earn us new equipment for
next year!

Rounders for Sport Relief! 10

In the spirit of Sport Relief, our Year 6 pupils
took on the mighty teachers in a rounders
match on the common, joining the nation in
getting active and having fun in order to
help change lives in the UK and across the
world!

Of course, the staff weren’t holding any
punches and pipped the pupils to the post
by a whopping 11-5, with Luca being
crowned man of the match!

A worthy cause indeed.

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Sports’ Week!

Sports Week is a great opportunity for pupils to
participate in competitive sports and to focus on
gaining a broad understanding of how to lead
and sustain an active and healthy lifestyle!

This year, Miss Remuinan led the whole school in a
week of Sporting Excellence. Children enjoyed a
range of activities, including:

• Kin-Ball
• Dance
• Street dance
• Nutritionist workshops
• Smoothie Making Workshops
• Rounders
• Parachute

• Outdoor activities

Sports Day

Although our scheduled Sports Day was
cancelled due to the temperamental British
weather, our second attempt was a huge
success!

We saw the children – dressed proudly in Dive In!
their house colours - take part in the sack,
egg and spoon and running races as well as Our Year 4 class have been taking to the water
javelin and jump events. Even Ms Beigi could each week to learn a very important life skill:
not resist getting involved in the fun and how to swim confidently and proficiently.
took to the track for the sack race- a great
event enjoyed by all!

They have mastered breaststroke and front
crawl - skills that we’re sure will come in handy
over the summer holiday – and have even
undertaken self-rescue training in the water!

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

The Arts

“Every child is an artist.” – Picasso

Music to our ears! This year, we were incredibly lucky to have
had the expertise of Ms Hudson, our
Our musical education engages and inspires wonderful music teacher, in our midst, who
our pupils to develop a love of music and to gave so much to our school community
nurture talent, increasing our pupil’s self- and helped to prepare for performances
confidence and sense of achievement. including International Evening and the
Christmas concert.

Ms Hudson provided our pupils with a
broad musical education, spanning
historical periods, genres, styles and
traditions and introduced them to the
works of some of the great composers and
musicians who have ever lived! We look
forward to welcoming Anna Lewis, our new
Arts Lead, who joins us in September.

Drama 12

The opportunity to take to the stage and explore
learning through drama is crucial to a child’s
education. It can challenge their perceptions of
themselves and the world around them and provides
an outlet for emotions and thoughts they might not
otherwise have expressed.

In taking on responsible roles and guiding their own
learning, pupils develop their creative,
communication, leadership and negotiation skills.

This year, our Year 5 pupils performed A Midsummer
Nights Dream on a professional stage, as part of the
Shakespeare Schools Festival; all pupils have enjoyed
visits from the Peter Pan Pantomime and Chicken
Shed Theatre Company and, of course, they have
grown in confidence during weekly drama lessons
with Miss Emily!

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It’s a Hard Knock Life!

Miss Emily has worked tirelessly with the Year 6
pupils and staff over the last few weeks in order
to pull together another fantastic end of year
production! This year, our Year 6 children
performed a fantastic rendition of Martin
Charnin and Thomas Meehan’s ‘Annie’, which
was arguably better than any West End version
we have ever seen. In fact, we are fairly certain
that we might have some budding actors in our
midst… J

Art at Holy Cross

A high quality art education should engage,
inspire and challenge pupils. Based around
our half termly topics, we provide pupils with
the knowledge and skills to invent and create
their own works of art, as well as critique
others.

As pupils progress through the school, they
begin to understand how art and design
both reflects and shapes our history,
contributing to not only British culture, but
also lots of different cultures around the
world.

Art Week and Annual Art Show Stepping into what felt like the Saatchi
Gallery, our Holy Cross Art Show was a
During Art Week, led by our resident artist Miss fantastic opportunity to showcase what our
Trisha Finnegan, our pupils got to explore the art pupils had produced, under the guidance
world through making and doing. They enjoyed of Miss Finnegan, throughout Art Week and
screen-printing workshops with Heather Martin over the course of the whole year.
and Year 4 even went to see the “Mirrors and
Reflections in Art” exhibition at The Tate Britain!

We were amazed by models made from
Willlow withie sticks, stunned by tapestries
and astounded at different prints - a
wonderful opportunity for our whole school
community to come together to
acknowledge how imaginative, talented
and creative our children really are.

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Our Bilingual School

“Everyone smiles in the same language.” Anon

Success

The Fulham Bilingual celebrates uniqueness and
works closely with parents and staff to provide
the very best for its pupils. The achievements this
year at The Fulham Bilingual have surpassed
many an expectation. The school, led by Leiah
Davidson and her team, works closely with the
Strategic Board and Parent Reps to provide high
quality education for all pupils.

This year, the successes of our bilingual stream
will be celebrated in their own magazine. We
look forward to sharing this with you in the new
academic year.

Growing

Similarly to Holy Cross, the Fulham Bilingual is
also undergoing building works through the
summer and into next year. New classrooms,
an EYFS playground, toilets and
refurbishment works will take place over the
coming months.

As Holy Cross also continues to grow, we
look forward to sharing more resources and
experiences as we forge greater links
between our school and our bilingual
section.

Au Revoir!

It is with great sadness that we also bid farewell to two members of staff who have worked here
at Holy Cross. Julia Warren, one of our KS2 teachers and Gregoire Frealle our current French
teacher. Both Miss Warren and Mr. Frealle will be truly missed by pupils, staff and parents and we
wish them all the very best in their new adventures.

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Trips and Visitors

“You’re off to great places, today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, so be on your
way!” – Dr. Seuss

Trips outside of school are an integral part of a child’s development of character and social skills.
For many, they offer the opportunity to broaden their horizons and enrich their experience of life,
which might otherwise have been unavailable to them. First-hand experiences of learning outside
the classroom can help bring topics and subjects to life, enhancing a child’s understanding of not
only the content, but also the world around them.

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside!

As part of their termly topic, ‘Land Ahoy!’ our lovely
Year 2 classes got the chance to head to the
seaside at Little Hampton, indulging in some fish
and chips and dipping their toes in the cold, cold
water! It was a wonderful opportunity for our
children to breathe in some fresh sea air, build
sand castles on the beach and try to spot the
naughty seagulls that kept stealing The Lighthouse
Keeper’s Lunch!

A River Cruise!

The topic, ‘Bright Lights, Big City’ took Year 1
on a surprise river cruise! Class teachers
sourced inspiration from their key text, ‘Katie in
London’ and announced to their children – on
the day of the cruise – that they would be
heading off along The River Thames! Wrapped
up warm in hats and scarfs, they headed
downriver to see, first hand, what delights they
could spot along the way!

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Fire Fighters!

Reception Class visited our local fire station!
The children got to speak to real firemen, try
on fire helmets, see inside a fire engine and
test out the hose attached to it! A great
opportunity to see people at work in the real
world and an introduction to understanding
who keeps us safe and how!

Portobello Graffiti Tour

As part of their ‘Urban Pioneers’ topic, Year 3
headed over to Portobello Road for a graffiti
tour! Who would have thought so much art
could be found on the streets of West London?
The children got to see the Joe Strummer Mural
and the Scrabble Banksy and even found the
time to visit the Palm Tree Gallery and One Five
Zero - Fiona Hawthorn’s exhibition.

Fulham Palace

Some of our pupils visited Fulham Palace
for a workshop to bring their topic, ‘Tribal
Tales’ to life! The children hunted for
artefacts from the Neolithic period on
the foreshore of the Thames; sorted
artefacts and discussed why items such
as pottery, leather and bone wound up
in the river in the first place.

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International Life

“As one person I cannot change the world, but I can change the world of one person.”
Anon

Our Community

At Holy Cross, we are so proud to have such a variety of nationalities under one roof and we take
any opportunity we can to celebrate this! Our children speak over 30 different languages
including: Akan, Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese, Czech, Dutch, English, Filipino,
French, Georgian, German, Guarani, Hausa Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Kurdish, Krio, Lithuanian,
Mende, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Spanish, Tagalog, Twi-Fante, Tigrinya and Turkish! How
amazing is that!

International Week & Evening

Our annual International Evening was, once
again, a wonderful celebration of the different
nationalities and cultures here at the school. We
enjoyed culinary delights from around the world
from rows of beautifully decorated food stalls!
We also enjoyed performances from Sri-Lankan
dancers, London African drummers and our very
own school choir and dance troop!

Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot!

Our diverse community is not only
celebrated on one night of the year, but is
weaved through our curriculum at every
opportunity. During their termly topic, ‘Rio De
Vida’, Year 1 gathered the pupils, staff and
parents in the playground one sunny
afternoon to celebrate all cultures in a
carnival-inspired party, complete with food,
costume and dance!

Diversity at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea Football Club invited us to join them in

educating children on equality and diversity in

sport. Coaches from the club led classroom

sessions raising questions about culture and

religion and explored ways in which these can

impact us in our everyday lives. Pupils then got

the chance to visit the stadium!

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Themed Weeks

“The function of education is to teach
one to think intensively and to think

critically. Intelligence plus character -
that is the goal of true education.“

Martin Luther King Jr

Maths Mania!

We kicked off the year with Maths Week, A Bunch of Book Worms!
which was not only a great chance to
strengthen our maths skills, but to understand Book Week was a great chance for children to
the importance of maths and to learn how it reconnect with reading and discover some
is used in our everyday lives. Our pupils great new stories! Not only did we redecorate
enjoyed a variety of exciting events our classroom doors as book covers, we
including: enjoyed a range of literary delights including:

• Poster competitions
• Maths Quiz
• Maths Trail
• Parent Talks
• Rap Battles
• Guess the Number challenge

All of this excitement culminated in a • A visit from illustrator of ‘The Slodge’,
Jenni Desmond
Mathematical Mufti Day Parade, which saw
• A Q&A with Virginia Ironside and her
our staff ‘Big Bag of Worries

dressed as a • A visit from author Lou Zuenzler
• The Travelling Book Fair
set of dominos • A ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ costume

and our pupils parade
• A Scrap Book Competition
dressed in an
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array of

mathematical

themed outfits.

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Sensational Scientists Power for Good

An ever-increasing timetable and Anti-Bullying Week is one of the most important
rigorous new curriculum means that events in the school calendar, shining a spotlight
themed weeks have become an even on bullying and encouraging pupils, staff and
more important opportunity to bring parents to take action against bullying both
together our whole school community online and in real life.
and spend time focusing on one key During the week, we ran class based activities,
area of the curriculum in order to helping children to recognise bullies and
become experts in a particular field. bullying and provided them with strategies to
combat bullies. Pupils also participated in anti-
Science Week provided an opportunity bullying workshops and were encouraged to
for pupils to develop a sense of take collective action to stop bullying in order to
excitement and curiosity about the world maintain a safe and caring environment here at
around them. Pupils were encouraged to Holy Cross.
recognise the power of rational
explanation and understand the
implications of science on today and the
future. This year, we enjoyed a host of
scientific delights, including:

• An Imperial College ‘Forensic
Science’ workshop

• A visit from The Impeyan Zoo
• A trip to the planetarium
• Poster competitions
• Astronomy Road show
• Class-based experiments

The children were fascinated by the

facts, information and experiments they

got to see, overcoming fears by holding

chinchillas and

insects and

being dazzled

by scientific

experiments -

what a

fantastic

week!

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Parent Partnership

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” – Helen Keller

A Partnership

We as practitioners, respect that parents are the
first and on going educators of their own children.
This is why we encourage and invite parents to
play an active role within our community, as it
can make a real difference to how children see
themselves as learners, drastically improving how
they react to their school setting.

We are so lucky to have such a dedicated and
enthusiastic parent body here at Holy Cross and it
is clear to see that this climate of mutual respect
between parents and staff helps our pupils to feel
more confident and positive about themselves
and their school lives.

Parent Volunteers

We are so grateful to have such a dedicated team of parents who volunteer their time to come
in and read with our children on a weekly basis. This time spent with them exploring new words
and exciting stories is invaluable! Our trips and visits would also not be possible without our parent
volunteers who attend and keep our children safe. Thank you for all that you do to support our
school!

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Our School PTA

The Holy Cross PTA plays a vital role in the
development of our school. A fantastic
group of parent volunteers who organise
key events in order to raise money for our
school so that we can buy equipment and
important resources to help us reach our
fullest potential. This year our PTA have
organised a range of successful events,
including:

• The annual pub quiz The Parent Council
• Summer Fair
• Christmas Fair Parent Councils give parents and carers the
• School Uniform sales opportunity to gather parent voices and put
• Croissant and Ice Cream sales forward suggestions for whole school
improvement.
This year, the PTA raised raised nearly £7000
and here are just a some of things it has Our Parent Council is made up of 13
funded: representatives – one per class – who meet
on a half termly basis to put forward
• River Thames Boat Trip £500 suggestions to senior leaders for whole school
• Coach to the seaside £1190 improvement.
• Curriculum Books £2228
• Early Years equipment £1089 This is our second year of having a Parent
• Role Play corner £1532 Council and working as a partnership in this
• Visualisers for every classroom £556 way, has allowed us to work towards
• Touch Screen PC £795 achieving the best possible outcomes for our
• The Year 6 prom pupils.
• Plus so much more!
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Parent Workshops
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Always striving to support our parents in any
way we can, we have organised a number
of parent workshops and events this year
including: termly coffee mornings for all
parents; SEN coffee mornings and a range
of workshops including ‘Better Parenting’,
E-Safety, Phonics, Assessment procedures
and Secondary Transfer – in order to best
support and include you in your child’s
education.

THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Residential PGL 2016!

“It is amazing how much can be accomplished when it doesn’t matter who gets the
credit.” – Anon

PGL is such an important time in the lives of PGL is a chance for children to explore the
our pupils at Holy Cross. Getting the chance outdoors with their peers, promoting a love
to stay away from home with friends and for nature and the opportunity to expose
without parents for five days, probably for children to the valuable lessons that can be
the first time, is such an exciting step! learnt by venturing outside!

Long days packed full of adventures, which There really is no better reward for us than to
inspire, motivate and challenge pupils, help see a pupil overcoming one of their fears or
to build pupil’s confidence, encourage achieving something they once thought was
independence and allow pupils to support out of their reach.
their peers and strive to do their very best.
This year’s residential trip to Osmington Bay
will be one that we definitely won’t forget!

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Around the School

Holy Cross Houses

This year, we saw the introduction of a Holy
Cross House Points system, a school wide
initiative with three main aims: to promote
healthy competition; to raise aspirations and
to develop community spirit and provide
children with an identifiable role in the school.

Our House System promotes and celebrates Pupils as Leaders
success, teaches children how to both win
and lose graciously and encourages This year, we also appointed our very first
comradery. prefects!

How does it work? The purpose of this initiative is to instill a
sense of pride in our pupils and to prepare
Pupils are assigned to a House – either More, them for responsibilities that await them at
Line, Fisher or Warde when they arrive at Holy secondary school and beyond.
Cross, with siblings being assigned to the same
House. Prefects have already played an integral
part in the running of our school, by assisting
Whenever a student makes excellent progress, and supporting both staff and pupils
demonstrates exemplary habits of behaviour throughout the year. Children are chosen
or makes a positive contribution to the school based on their consistent ability to uphold
community, they are rewarded with House high standards of behaviour, to attend
Points. House points are collated and school on time everyday and demonstrate
recorded on our display board in the front of respect for themselves, for others and their
the school and in our newsletters on a weekly school uniform and equipment.
basis. The weekly points are also announced
during Star of the Week assembly. Providing pupils with responsibilities such as
these has proven to give them a sense of
At the end of each term, the winning house is pride and they set a wonderful example to
rewarded with a treat – it has been a great the younger years.
incentive and huge success so far.

We look forward to seeing how our prefects
get on next year- Year 5; you have a lot to
live up to!

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

In the Kitchen… gp“uoubEOnpovafdeidlslastenefnhrotdscahtoaeveRddeneydcpadoihoniuemogrntticag2oaete0fnus1sad.rt6”e –

We have, once again, enjoyed a year of Payment System
delicious, healthy school lunches, lovingly
prepared by Maria and her team! At the start of this academic year, the wonderful
Ms Potts introduced a new online payment system
Not only have staff and pupils sat down for parents, which has been a huge hit! A much
together to enjoy freshly prepared, hearty more up-to-date, convenient way to pay for
meals on a daily basis, including Maria’s now clubs, care and school meals, we are so pleased
much-demanded ‘Soup of the Day’, we it has been such a success!
have also enjoyed celebrating Pancake day
and Christmas lunch in the hall as a school
community- hats off to the chef!

Raising the Bar!

We assist our pupils in achieving their very Wraparound & Clubs

best and this year saw the introduction of We provide after school provision in the form of
a Wraparound service as a way of supporting
an exciting new Broad and Deep Learning our families. Our children love this service and
thrive off the opportunity to interact with their
programme at the school, promoting a peers outside of the classroom.

fullness of life and taught by Miss Brown, a

wonderful new addition to our team! The

programme runs alongside the curriculum

that is taught in class and incorporates Pupils have enjoyed a variety of clubs this year,

subjects such as philosophy, educational ranging from ‘Hoopla to Music’ to Homework

theory, poetry, numerical and Arts and Crafts, giving them the

reasoning, lateral thinking, opportunity to explore potential talents or

mathematical problem master an on going passion. It is important to

solving and debating. note that this would not be possible without

the hard work of our Wraparound team,

guided by the wonderful Pam.

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Building Works Update

“It is not the beauty of a building you should look at; its the construction of the
foundation that will stand the test of time.” - David Allan Coe

Progress so far…

We were pleased to announce early in
the year, that planning approval had
been granted for the expansion works.
The design of the project was then
developed through a tender process,
where HA Marks were selected as the
successful contractor. They have been
working closely with the school since April
to ensure the new works cause the
minimum of disruption to the running of
the school and its neighbours. Phase 1 is
currently underway, with Phase 2 starting
at the end of the summer term.

What’s next?

Phase 1 and 2 will be completed over the
summer holidays, and the remaining Phase
3 works, for the new school hall and
landscaping to the playgrounds, will be
completed by the end of the summer
holidays in 2017.

The oldest parts of Holy Cross date back to
1884! There are actually parts of the school
built in the 19th, 20th and 21st century. This
makes for a rich and interesting history. We
now wish to unite all parts of the school
building in order to create a fresh, new
environment in which we can deliver high
quality teaching and learning. It is our aim
to create a 21st century school that
prepares children for modern day life.

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Our Year 6 Leavers

“We all take different paths in life but no matter where we go, we take a little of each
other everywhere.” – Tim McGraw

The Class of 2016

As we approach the end of the school year, we would like to take this opportunity to say
thank you to our Year 6 pupils who will now be starting a new chapter in their lives. You have
been a very special year group who have not only achieved academically, but have
provided us with a relentless enthusiasm during your time here. You have always lived up to
the task and you have paved the way for our future school leaders, setting the perfect
example as our first set of school prefects.

With cherished memories, we bid you farewell. Goodbye can be a sad word because it
signifies an end. But Year 6…this is not an end…this is just the beginning for each and every
one of you.

As we open the door and wave you off on your next adventure we want you to know that as
a member of our school family, you are always welcome back to Holy Cross. Come and visit
us and let us know how you get on. More importantly however, make us, your families and
yourselves proud. Be the very best you can be.

“Friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It's not something you learn in 26
school. But if you haven't learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven't
learned anything.” ― Muhammad Ali

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THE HOLY CROSS MAGAZINE SUMMER EDITION 2016

Geese

Have you ever seen geese flying overhead in a V formation? Have you ever looked up and
wondered why they do it? “What’s the purpose of flying like that?”

Well, it’s not by chance and it certainly isn’t just an impressive trick.

Geese fly in a V formation to be more effective. They fly in a V to be the best team that they can
possibly be. As each goose flaps its wings, an “uplift” of air is created that helps the bird that follows.
By flying in a “V” formation, the whole flock adds a much greater flying range than if each bird flew
alone. The geese have a shared goal and they all know what that goal is.

And that’s what we believe here at Holy Cross.

If we all work together, if we all share the same goal and move in a common direction with a sense
of community, then we can all get to where we are going, much quicker and easier, because we
are travelling on the thrust of one another.

Another fact about flying geese is that when the lead goose tires, it rotates towards the back of the
formation and another goose flies to the point position. As with geese, people are dependent on
each other’s skills, capabilities, gifts, talents and resources. We believe it pays to take turns doing
the hard tasks and believe that it pays to share the leadership roles.

At Holy Cross, we deploy a distributive leadership model. We see all staff, including support staff as
experts in their own right – each person is unique and an important sources of knowledge,
experience, and wisdom. We believe in sharing the load and working together to create the best
team possible.

Geese flying in formation also honk to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.
Encouraging each other along the way and when a goose gets sick, wounded, or shot down,
two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it
dies or is able to fly again. Then, they launch out with another formation or catch up with the flock.

If we have as much sense as geese, we will stand by each other in difficult times as well as when we
are strong.

Here at Holy Cross, we want to build a shared sense of community around a shared vision, a shared
set of values, one common direction and shared objectives.

When your entire team embraces that type of attitude and belief system, when a whole community
comes together to fly in formation, incredible things can happen.

We welcome you all to join us on the next part of our journey here at Holy Cross.

Are you ready to fly?

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What Next?

Promoting a Love of Literature

Next year, we will develop our children’s lov`e of reading, turning them into independent,

enthusiastic, life long readers with a passion for a good story. Looking to further develop the skills
that have been taught this year, we will strengthen reading skills across all Key Stages, in order
to ensure that pupils can read fluently. Being able to read is a fundamental skill and holds a
power for children now and in later life. With so many stories to be enjoyed by our pupils, we will
be providing ample opportunity for children to enjoy reading different types of text… including
on screen! Reading is a pleasure, which all children deserve to enjoy both at school and at
home. We also wish to improve the level of comprehension for all pupils and explore a range of
strategies that allow pupils to discuss texts they have read in great depth.

Strengthening Links between Schools
We are fortunate to have formed close links with Servite over the last four years and more
recently with St. Francis of Assisi. This has enabled us to share good practice and strengthen our
school. Working as a team we benefit from these links, in a climate where recruitment in
education is challenging. We celebrate our differences and diversity as individual schools, but
are also so proud in bringing them together in order to bring out the best in each other.We look
forward to further strengthening these relationships next year as we consider formalising this
partnership in line with government policies.

Innovation in the curriculum
We have successfully tackled the introduction of the new curriculum this year and will now be
taking more risks and looking for creative ways in which we can deliver lessons to pupils in class.
Miss Brown’s ‘Broad and Deep Learning’ programme will continue to challenge pupils and will
now expand beyond maths and literacy and into the foundations subjects. We are also
delighted to be welcoming Anna Lewis – our new Arts Curriculum Specialist - who will be
responsible for further developing the new arts curriculum and supporting staff in delivering it, in
order to develop this deep and diverse learning experience in the new year.

Maths
Next year we wish to further develop the maths curriculum
here at Holy Cross. By studying concepts with pupils in a
variety of ways, we will allow them to try out and explore
problem-solving contexts to give our pupils a richer and
deeper learning experience. We also aim to enhance the
opportunities for application, practice and exploration in
order for pupils to master the different areas in
mathematics.

We look forward to welcoming you back to school in September 2016. Have a fabulous holiday!