St Joseph's football team sensationally progressed to the prestigious Bishop's Cup Final on Monday night. After coming through two previous rounds, the standard was extremely high as we took on St Bernadette's, last year's runners up St Alban's and a very strong English Martyrs' team on their home ground. A tense first game finished deadlocked at 0-0 against St Alban's with St Joseph's peppering the opposition goal to no avail. English Martyrs' won their game before we locked horns with St Bernadette's. A solid team display ended with defences on top and another 0-0 stalemate. It was clear that the teams were all very evenly matched and of a high standard. Our final game saw us needing a win to progress against English Martyrs'. A brilliant all round performance saw us come out 2-0 winners to top the group and make the final. The team did not concede a single goal in three matches which is a sensational effort. St Joseph's have never made a final before and the team continue to do themselves and their school proud.

A group of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School children said au revoir to Benwell when they travelled to Nancy for a week-long French adventure. Twenty-seven Year 6 pupils from our school enjoyed a cultural trip to the city – which is twinned with Newcastle – as well as a sight-seeing tour of nearby Paris. St Joseph’s partnered up with Hubert-Monnais Primary School in Luneville, just outside of Nancy,” said our Headteacher, Paul Brown, who accompanied the children, along with fellow staff members Sharon Rogan, Hilary Hall, Nicky Storey, and Jessica Bennaceur. “We worked with our French friends throughout the trip, visiting their school and participating in an educational visit with them, where we explored the rich history of Nancy.” Highlights of the action-packed itinerary included visits to an art gallery, a castle, a palace, a museum, and an aquarium – as well as a range of restaurants. The group also enjoyed a riverboat cruise down the Seine, which started and finished at the Eiffel Tower, and enabled them to explore many of the other famous sights of the French capital. “I loved going to the castle and loved socialising with the French children our own age,” said one pupil, while another said that she had enjoyed “the art and the museums, as I learned so much historical information”, and a third added: “I enjoyed playing – and winning – my first international football match against our French friends.” St Joseph’s, which is a member of the Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust, received full funding for the trip from the Turing Scheme. “During the trip, the children were an absolute credit to themselves, their families, and their school,” continued Mr Brown. “Their level of maturity, independence, and, of course, kindness, made all of the accompanying staff extremely proud. “Mrs Rogan deserves a special mention for all of her organisational skills – backed up by St Joseph’s Office staff – and the commitment of all the staff made a hugely successful adventure possible.”

Ten children from St Joseph’s, Years 4 and 5, celebrated making their First Holy Communion on the 28 th  of June, alongside children from St Bede’s school. It was a wonderful occasion shared with family and friends at St Bede’s Church.  The children continued their celebrations during Sunday Mass, the following day, by presenting themselves to the parishioners and receiving their certificates from Father Maridas.   During whole school’s Monday Celebration of the Word, the children lead the prayers. This was followed with a special communion breakfast which was thoroughly enjoyed!   First Holy Communion is a significant event in a Catholic child's life, involving preparation within the church and school, over the school academic year. At St Joseph’s, preparation for the Sacrament of the Eucharist takes part in Year 4. We wish the children all the best and to continue their journey with Christ by guidance of his love.   Thank you, Lord Jesus, for the gift of your presence. May the grace they have received strengthen them to live your love. Amen

Year 2 enjoyed a wonderful day at Wallington Hall. We took time to enjoy nature and looked at the different plants and trees it had to offer. We followed the map which led us to some wonderful ponds and adventure play parks! We also had the opportunity to explore the Wallington Hall which was inhabited by  the Trevelyan family  for over 150 years.

Year 2 enjoyed a morning at Scotswood Nature Garden. They first learned to identify different types of minibeasts by investigating the different characteristics and parts of the body they possess. The children then had the opportunity to carry out a mini-beast hunt around the garden and in different habitats such as under rocks, on trees, under bushes or on different types of plants. The children also had the opportunity to explore the garden through play such as making dens and climbing trees!

Moving Monsters Year 2 children designed and made their own moving monsters.   They used cardboard for the materials and then used a pivot mechanism to move the mouth. The children then decorated their monster.   Once they had finished, they each evaluated their own work and thought about how they could improve if they were to make this again, they shared this with their peers.

The Year 6 pupils were fantastic ambassadors for St Joseph’s throughout our inaugural France residential. It was an amazing experience for pupils and staff!

At the YMT Festival in this year of jubilee, our Year 6 pilgrims of hope felt celebrated and encouraged to recognise their call to be saints of our times too. In the words of Pope Francis: ‘Dear young people - do not be afraid! Dare to dream big!’

This week we have been super busy learning about sea creatures! Our focus story is Commotion in the Ocean, we have learned lots of facts about the different creatures from this book. We have been looking at the different sea animals and discussing their features, practicing our number recognition  and counting and we have even done some under the sea yoga!

This week in Nursery we have been busy getting our outdoor area summer ready! We discussed what plants need to grow and then planted our flowers in a space with lots of sunlight and gave them some water. We can’t wait to watch them grow!

Languages Day Year 2 took part in Languages Day. We had a great day learning about different languages and cultures within our classroom. The children took part in: ·      Geography map work ·      An Arabic lesson ·      Learning the song ‘hello’ in many different languages https://youtu.be/472AnCrHYVs ·      A lesson about Mehndi ·      Sharing their own languages and culture with each other Year 2 learned so much about each other and had an amazing day!

Year 2 have been learning about fractions of shapes and numbers. They found halves and quarters. Some children used their knowledge of dividing 2 for halves and 4 for quarters. Other children found it easier to use manipulates such as numicon in order to see this visually.