Church School

To introduce this half-term’s Christian Core Value – Trust – Florence guided a blindfolded Leo across the school hall. Leo had to trust in her to reach the destination. From the Book of Exodus, Mrs Sonnex then read part of the eventful story of Moses’ life when the Lord appeared to him in the form of a burning bush in the wilderness. God appointed Moses to lead the Israelites out of captivity in Egypt. Moses trusted in God, accepting this massive responsibility, and his people trusted him in turn to be their leader. 

Mrs Church wowed everybody with bee-related facts. Did you know…

• It takes 12 bees their entire lives to make one teaspoon of honey?
• Honey bees flap their wings 12000 times per minute? (Well done Jonah for attempting to match this!!)

Following on from Reverend Darleen’s Collective Worship last week, Mrs Church then read to us from Proverbs 16: “Kind words are like honey – sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.” After staff and children shared some words they would like to hear at school – “Well done!”; “You can do it!”; “Good morning!”; “How are you?” – children were asked to reflect on what today’s message means for them personally. Blossom (Year 4) said it best: “These words make me feel brave enough to try again. Even if you fail it’s okay, you should still be proud of yourself.”

Reverend Darleen visited to speak to us about thinking responsibly before we speak. Once unkind words are spoken, they can’t be taken back – it’s like trying to put toothpaste back in the tube. (Well done Leo for bravely attempting this impossible task!) Reverend Darleen read to us from James 3:5-6: 

It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke.

At Salhouse, we combined Empathy Day with World Refugee and Migrant Day to learn about the challenges faced by others around the world and how to be more empathetic towards people from different backgrounds. In the morning, our House Captains sorted the children into their house colours and they sat in a special assembly to learn about some things that are being done locally to help refugees. The House Captains then took their teams around all classrooms to share books and activities specially prepared by the class teachers. From ‘The Boy at the Back of the Class’ by Onjali Rauf to ‘The River’ by Tom Percival, the children imagined themselves in different scenarios and completed activities on each book. Among the exercises completed, they showed their changing emotions (flowing like Tom Percival’s River) in words and pictures, drew and explained what they would put in their backpack should they have to leave home in a hurry – like ‘The Boy at the Back of the Class.’ After lunch, the children regrouped in house teams and headed outside to build shelters, listen to more stories around the campfire and painted stones to rejuvenate the ‘WELCOME’ message that greets everyone by the entrance to the office. 

Galatians 3:28, “…for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” 

It is with great sadness that we also bid farewell to Mrs Wright, who has led our school choir at Salhouse Primary for many years. This week in a special assembly, choir performed a medley of songs fit for a king to a packed school hall full of children and parents! As well as singing ‘I just can’t wait to be king’ from Disney’s The Lion King, the school choir sang many songs to help mark the coronation year of King Charles III. Mrs Wright accompanied on piano and the ukulele band also performed songs to the audience, with everyone on their feet and singing along. Although Mrs Wright doesn’t officially leave us until the end of term, we didn’t want her slipping away quietly. Here are two of the Year 6 children – who also leave us in a few weeks – presenting Mrs Wright with a rose plant as a token of the choir and the whole school’s appreciation for all that she has done over the years. 

On Wednesday, we said a very fond farewell to our Chair of Governors, Mrs Gay, who is moving to France with Mr Gay (her husband). Mrs Gay explained that they are moving to France to learn French and to hopefully start a new church in the country. Mrs Gay even explained how she was trying to learn the Bible in French as well! 

Mrs Church interviewed Mrs Gay about her life and memories of her time at Salhouse, just like a real TV interview! Mrs Gay has had a very long teaching career at Salhouse Primary and at the village Baptist Chapel. As well as regular visits for assemblies, Mrs Gay helped organise our Easter activities and previously our ‘Allsorts’ Bible Club. We wish both Mrs and Mrs Gay ‘bon voyage’ and ‘bonne chance’ on their future and look forward to updates on their adventures.