In today’s assembly I shared the parable of The Three Servants; three people who had been given a gift by their master but who all chose to use them differently. We discovered that the first servant was delighted to have been given so valuable a gift and was determined to use it well. She went out and bought vines, planted them, grew grapes, made wine and sold it. She made lots and lots of money! The second servant was very grateful for the 2 pieces of gold and wanted to prove to the master that he was responsible and hardworking. So he bought some flour. Every morning he got up very early and made bread to sell at the market, and he made lots of money! But the third servant, who thought that because her gift was smaller it wasn’t important, had kept the money very safe, but certainly had not put it to good use. She had planted it in a hole in the ground.
No matter the size of our gifts and talents, we need to use them wisely; they are all important and with them, great things can be achieved. We are incredibly proud of each and every member of our school community who use their gifts on a daily basis for the greater good. On Monday, I had the pleasure of accompanying Mrs Harrison and Mrs Webster, along with our dance team to The Winter Gardens. Our children competed in the annual Wyre and Fylde Dance Festival. We are beyond proud of the hard work and dedication that this entire group has shown. I am sure you will agree just how wonderful they were and how they have used their talents wisely for the joy of others.
Today is without doubt the comfiest day of the year. Our annual pj day for Brian House has been well and truly embraced along with furry friends of all shapes and sizes! Thank you all for your generous donations for this wonderful charity. We will continue to raise money for them during Advent through our school nativities. Please do see the individual class pages for photos.
Thank you to everyone who supported Curriculum Evening last night. It was joy to see so many families come and meander the classrooms in school. Our curriculum is broad and exciting; we wanted you to share that and see just how deep we get the children to think. I think the Bee Bots in computing and geography went down a treat! A huge thank you to our wonderful staff who took the time to carefully plan the activities that they wanted you to try. You could not wish for a more dedicated and passionate team.
As part of our wider curriculum, Year 2 and Year 5 are on a beach clean next Tuesday, 21st November from 12.30pm. We desperately need volunteers to assist them on the trip, from any year group. If you are able to give a couple of hours on Tuesday afternoon, the children would be so grateful. Email l.hotchkiss@ourladystarofthesea.lancs.sch.uk if you are able to attend.
Our Lady Star of the Sea is a special community which is built on love and trust, made up of our children, staff, parents, the parish and the school governing body.
Our governing body works tirelessly to support and nurture the school vision, providing a platform on which we can build, to move forward, grow and ultimately flourish, keeping the school mission statement, ‘You are precious in My eyes’ at the centre of all actions and decisions. The governing body is made up of volunteers who work together with the head teacher to improve education and all other aspects of school life, building work, safety, safeguarding, our budget etc!
Due to changes within the governing body, there is now a vacancy for a parent governor at school. We had lots of applications last time so we hope that those people and new ones will apply again.
Are you someone who:
Wants to make a positive difference to the experiences of our children
Works well with other people and can work as part of a team
Has some time to spare to attend meetings within the term (usually 2, held early evening)
Is ready to learn and open to new ideas
Is willing to give something back to our school
You don't need any formal qualifications, you'll get full training and support to make sure you are fully equipped to carry out the role successfully.
If you are interested in applying for the role of Parent Governor, please write a short biography (no more than 150 words) stating who you are, a little about yourself, any experience or skills you could bring to the governing body and why you would like to be a governor at Our Lady Star of the Sea. Please send this to Mrs Nel at bursar@ourladystarofthesea.lancs.sch.uk by Friday 24th November. Once we have the nominations in, and depending on the number received, we can arrange an election process in which parents and guardians will be eligible to vote. We are hoping to have our new governor in place ready for the next full-governors meeting on Tuesday 5th December at 6pm.
We look forward to hearing from interested parents; this is a role in which you can make a difference so please do think about applying to become a Parent Governor.
Leading Learners and School Virtue Role Models
Learning Role Models
Year 1 Learning Role Models
School Virtue Role Models
Weekly Attendance
News from the Office
What a wonderful week in school this has been! There’s nothing quite like the sound of children singing to brighten up your day. Listening to the children practising for their class assembly, as well as the nativities, has brought smiles to the ladies in the office. It all promises to be an absolute delight for you. Thank you so much for keeping on top of your ParentPay account. We know that these are increasingly difficult times and, as always, our door is open if you need a discreet word. Today was the second fencing session before school. May I remind you to please pay for these on ParentPay if you have not yet done so. I would also like to highlight the Y3 & Y4 Parish Panto that is coming up on the 1/12/23, payment is due soon on ParentPay too. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend from the office.
The Great Our Lady Bake Off
On Friday 8th December, our Christmas jumper day, we will also be hosting the very first Our Lady Christmas Bake Off as a fundraiser for our school. We want to continue to develop the outside area and a reading shed has also been suggested. The only rule is that the baking needs to be festive! Anybody can enter with each class deciding their winner. We will also be holding a cake sale that day with all of the entries - so get planning what you will make.
We do not want it to be an expensive day, as we are understanding of the pressures families are facing at the moment, therefore there is menu of opportunity to choose from. The cost for the day will not exceed £5, depending on what your child chooses to take part in:
Christmas Jumper = £1 donation
Christmas Bake Off entry = £3 entry fee
Cake Sale Purchase = £1
In the afternoon of the 8th, from 2pm, we would like to invite all family and friends into school for ‘Carols and Cake.’ The tree will be up and the lights will be lit. There will be the opportunity to buy some cake, have a hot drink and listen to our choir sing to get you into the festive mood. Pop the date in your diary now!
Wrap Around Care
For many years, we have had a wonderful relationship with St Thomas which has allowed us to provide wrap around care for our families off site at their Parish Centre. Both breakfast and after-school clubs have thrived here with more and more children attending from our school. From September 2024, the government would like to extend the care options for children until 6pm each night; ensuring that this is embedded by September 2025. Because of this change in agenda, now seems to be the right time to evaluate the provision that we currently have and to discuss ways in which it can be improved to meet the needs of our community. Over the next few weeks, I will be meeting with the head teacher at St Thomas’ and the after-school team to brainstorm all ideas so that we can move forward together. There is also a growing number of clubs provided at school which can sometimes mean that those in after-school club cannot attend due to its distance away from the school.
I would be really grateful if you could spare two minutes to complete this short questionnaire on wrap around care which will inform our discussions going forward. Whether you have used it or plan to use it or not, all responses are valid and important. Thank you.
On Monday morning from 9am to 10am, Miss Woodend will be available to chat all things SEND. If you have any questions about your child in school, or need further information, or just want to find out what happens, please do pop in. There won’t be a formal presentation, but a chance to grab a drink and have a conversation. We look forward to welcoming you all into school for this. Please complete the form below indicating whether you will be able to join us.
The following Wednesday, 29th November, from 9am-10am, Mrs Lyons and some of Year 4 will be hosting a reading coffee morning and workshop. She will be providing lots of practical ideas about how you can support your children with reading at home, what fluency looks like and text selection. We are incredibly proud of all of our children and their love of reading. If you have a child from Reception through to Year 6 and you want to know more, please come and get involved.
Have a lovely weekend with your families
God bless
Mrs Gregan