For our Special Places topic in RE, Reception Class explored St Alban's Room. Everyone liked the coloured windows and we know that they help us to track the seasons of the Church's year.

Year 5 told the Easter story through song, action and narration. 'Easter!' tells of Jesus' preaching, teaching and miracles, his joyful entry into Jerusalem and the events leading up to his arrest and crucifixion. It concludes with the wonder of his friends when they see the risen Christ.

Children have been taking home Easter Mystery boxes to share the story of Jesus' death and resurrection with their families. They are helping us to think about the true meaning of Easter.

We were very proud to receive our award from Andy Akinwolere and Lord Hill. The Church School Awards is a new event, open to all Church Schools, promoting the fantastic and vital work done in the areas of community cohesion and global citizenship. It was a wonderful opportunity for St Alban's to showcase the important work that pupils, teachers, governors and staff do for our local community, for our country and throughout the world. Linking Citizenship with Religious Education enables our children to see faith in action and to know that their actions have an impact on others and the world.

Reception Class went on a Spring hunt today. We were looking for signs of new life. We found lots of Spring flowers and buds on trees.

Year 1 reenacted the Last Supper and listened to the words of Jesus. They know the priest says the same words when we celebrate Mass.

Year 4 are learning about Confirmation. Children took the roles of Bishop, priest, candidate and sponsor. They thought about the meaning of the words and actions used.

Year 1 celebrated a baptism yesterday. They learnt the words that the priest says as he pours the water over the baby's head; I baptise you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Year 3 prepared questions to ask Mrs Nixon as part of their RE topic. The children wanted to find out what she had to do to prepare for his arrival and how she looks after a new baby. Aaron was very well behaved in the classroom and posed for lots of photos.

Reception Class discovered that the cross on a hot cross bun is to remind us of how Jesus died. They learnt the song and sampled the buns. Not everyone liked them, but some children thought they were delicious!

Parents letter Spring 2010.doc

Year 1 are learning about the work of some of the special people who help in church. Children took on the roles of priest, reader and altar servers.

Children have enjoyed sharing the Christmas story with their families through our travelling cribs. Thank you to everyone who took part. Special thanks to those who returned photographs for our display.

At the start of our Advent RE topic, Preparations, Reception Class thought about how important it is to prepare well every day. They made timelines to show how they prepare to come to school. They had to think carefully about the order of events - don't put your shoes on before you get out of bed!

In our RE topic on Preparations Year 3 investigated the story of St Nicholas, often thought to be the real Santa Claus. They made St Nicholas models and visited an American website www.stnicholascenter.org to research the many legends about him.

Reception Class visited St Alban's Church as part of their work on Baptism. They looked at the font, the altar and the lectern.

Year 1 are finding out about Baptism. They listened very carefully to the words the priest uses then they acted out part of the celebration.

Year 3 studied Millais' painting of The Carpenter's Shop then put themselves into the painting. We talked about what Mary and Joseph taught Jesus and how important families are.

This week in RE we are learning about Islam. Today, we were visited by Nasim Ali who told us all about her faith.
We have found out about Muslim traditions and cultures, how Muslims pray and what Muslims believe in. The children had lots of questions to ask Nasim and found today very interesting.

The statement is:
I am proud of what I can do.

The statement is:
I can set a simple target for myself.

The statement is:
I can learn from my mistakes and failures.

You may wish to share the Lenten calendars with your families. To view the Lenten Family Calendar, click below.
Lenten family Calendar 2009.pdf

Today, we gathered together in collective worship to mark the beginning of Lent. We reflected on what Ash Wednesday means to Christians and offered up our Lenten promises.

The statement is:
I try to take care of God's world around me.

In Year 1 we are discussing the celebration of Mass.We enjoyed role play to help us understand the words and actions of the priest.

Today we are celebrating the Feast of the Epiphany when the Three Kings visited Baby Jesus.
" When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. They saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him.Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh." (Mat 2:10-11).

Year 1 have been finding out about Baptism. They know it is when we are invited to join the family of Jesus.

The statement is:
I can help somebody today.

The statement is:
I can say how I feel.

The statement is:
I can say one thing I would like to get better at (personal/acedemic).

The statement is:
I can laugh and have fun.

To celebrate St. Alban's Day, the whole school enjoyed a visit from Mr. Twister. Some of us dressed up in different costumes and others were even given balloons as prizes. Everyone had lots of fun!
At the end of the afternoon, we all gathered together in prayer.

The statement is:
I matter so do you.

The statement is:
I stand up for people being treated unfairly.

The statement is:
I try to forgive people when they hurt me.

The statement is:
I try to understand that God loves and forgives me.

The statement is:
I know how to help others when they are in trouble.

The statement is:
I know that God says, 'Do not be afraid, I am with you.'

This week's statement of belief is our school's vision statement:
"I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full." (John 10:10)

The Statement of Belief is:
I know who to ask for help.

April Promise
I promise to find out more about the lives of other children around the world by visiting
www.cafod.org.uk/kidzone.

The Statements of Belief for this week are :
I am proud of what I can do.
I know what humility means.

This week's statement is:
I am proud of what I can do.

The Statement of the week is:
I can set a simple target for myself.

This week's Statement of Belief for 10-14.3.08 is:
I know that it is OK for me to make mistakes.

The Weekly Statement of the week is:
I try to use words that make the world a better place.

In Reception Class we listened to the story of Jesus and the children using Godly Play. The children then explored the story using the Godly Play figures and a storyboard. See our Gallery for more photographs.

During February, I promise to raise money on Lent Fast Day to make a change for people living in poverty.

As part of our Celebrations topic Year 1 have been finding out about the Mass. We used role play to learn about the different parts of the celebration.

Lenten Term RE Download file
Read about the RE topics for this this term.