The last few weeks of school before the Easter holidays were very busy for everyone. The children went to St. Peter's for their Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 services, led by Anne Dowdeswell, in which the story of Holy Week was told in songs, stories, readings, pictures and prayer. Before each service, standing on the path up to the Church, the children recreated the excitement of the Palm Sunday entry into Jerusalem. Some of them lined up, waving paper palm branches they had made and enthusiastically shouting 'Hosanna' as the other classes walked through the arch they formed.
During the services, Paul talked about the Cross which stood in Church during Lent and was adorned with various items relating to the Passion. After the Key Stage 1 service, a Lenten Cross was carried from the Church to the School and placed in front of the main building, where it could be seen by all visitors to the School and by all who passed by on Hall Road. After the Key Stage 2 service, the children carried a crown of thorns to be placed on the Cross. On Easter Day, the Cross was decorated with flowers and surrounded by pots of Spring flowers to symbolise Christ's Resurrection.
All the children took part in a Cultural History Day, in which the classes explored different cultures around the world by looking at the lives of famous people past and present, from Nelson Mandela and Gandhi to Pele and Stevie Wonder, and at folk-tales and stories. The children took part in activities involving music and dance, art, craft and quizzes. At the end of the day, they came together in an assembly to share what they had learned - a very enjoyable and thoughtful day.
The annual House Music Competition, organised by the House Captains and their Houses, has taken place. This year, St George were the winners.
Children have enjoyed a range of sporting activities. The school entered two teams in the Primary Schools Tag Rugby tournament, which took place in Bishop's Cleeve. Out of 42 teams, the 'A' team came 5th overall. The school hosted the first round of the inter-schools Albert Dix football tournament.
The Headteacher and Chair of Governors gave a talk and participated in a workshop at the University of Gloucestershire for primary PGCE students, to provide advice to the students on the process of writing application letters and performing well at interviews for teaching posts.
In March, Mr. Gardner gave a presentation entitled 'the Privilege of Headship - Making a Difference' to the Cheltenham Rotary Club dinner at the Queen's Hotel. The President of the Rotary Club presented the school with a cheque for £400, part of the sum raised at their Christmas concert at the Town Hall at which the Junior Choir had delivered a brilliant performance. This money will be donated to the charity COPA, which the school supports and which provides education for children in the Dominican Republic. More information about the work of COPA can be found on their website www.copa.org.uk.
Anne Gale