St. Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy

• We have a strong and growing sense of purpose in the local community, not only with our own parish church but with other faith groups too. As a school, we exist to serve our local community and provide a centre of excellence for those who choose to attend.
• We develop relationships by building a community rooted in faith and one of service to each other. Most important is the relationship between home, school and parish. As this relationship continues to grow, so too will the quality of education which is provided to our children.
• Central to catholic education is the provision of outstanding learning experiences for our children, not just in Religious Education but in all aspects of the curriculum. It is also important to provide children with opportunities to better understand their place in society and ways in which they can contribute to sustaining and improving the world in which we live.
• The development of the individual is probably the most important aspect of our mission as a catholic school. It isn’t just the development of the pupils but also of the staff, governors, parents, parishioners and everyone else connected with the school. Every individual has God given talents and bags of potential and it is the responsibility of our community to help its members to grow and become the best they can be, both academically and personally.

Worship in School 

Gospel Worship
Each Monday afternoon children gather in their classes for a class Gosepl worship using the Mark 10 mission charity. Children enage in the worship provided by the Mark 10 mission charity, linked with Sunday's Gospel. Teachers then spend this time witht heir class discussing this week's Gospel and considering ways in which they can live out this week's mission.

Virtues - Collective Worship

On a Tuesday afternoon the whole school gather in the hall for a worship assembly organised by Mrs Bulloch that focuses on that week's virtues to live by. “Virtues to Live By” is a resource created by the Diocese of Leeds with the creative and financial support of the Leeds Diocesan Association of Primary Headteachers.

https://www.virtuestoliveby.org/

Visit the link above to see which vurtues we focus on at each part of the year and to find out more information about the meaining behind these virtues. Virtues are displayed around classrooms and are refered to reguraly throughout the day in any given opportunity. 

All pupils participate in a  whole school Tuesday worship.  This is organised by Mrs Bulloch and involves pupil-led discussions and ensures that pupils have an opportunity to be involved and included within the act of worship. It follows the structure of:

1. Gather
2. Word
3. Respond
4. Mission

Hymn Singing

Wednesdays are our days to celebrate our faith through singing hymns of praise & worship. This session is led by Mrs Walsh and involves pupils singing hymns relevant to the liturgical calendar. These are uplifting and opportunities for spiritual joy. 

Pupil-led Prayer & Worship

By the end of the week, we provide the children with more opportunities to lead prayer and worship within their classrooms. Pupils are able to plan their own worship which follows the same structure as Tuesday’s Gospel Collective Worship.Children in class choose their own theme linked to the time of year, what's happening in their classroom or can sometimes be linked to topics studied throughout the curriculum. Adults also plan an extra worship durign the week that is adult led with child invovlement. The themes for these are planned by Mrs Walsh and are linked with world events, the litruguical clander, themed days across school, gosepl values and virtues. 

1. Gather
2. Word
3. Respond
4. Mission

Click on the links below to see all the wonderful events and opportunities for worship that took place in the academic year 2021-22

• Autumn Events.pdf
• Spring Events.pdf
• Summer Events.pdf
• Autumn website 2022-23.pdf

Prayer is central to life in our school. The day begins and ends with a prayer in each class. Children participate in various forms of prayer throughout their school life. Prayer can happen anywhere and should be a true relationship between God and the child. Please see the prayers which we introduce and learn for each year group as part of supporting the spiritual and moral development of our pupils. As Children progress through the year groups they will become increasingly confident in being able to say the prayers, understand their meanings and explain when they are said and why.

• Reception prayer book.pdf
• Year 1 prayer book.pdf
• Year 2 prayer book.pdf
• Year 4 prayer book.pdf
• Year 5 prayer book.pdf
• Year 3 prayer book.pdf
• Year 6 prayer book.pdf

Please find attached details of Sacramental preparation. For more information or to put your child's name down for one of the sacraments please contact Father Jonathan Hart either in person or via email office.stjoseph.batleycarr@dioceseofleeds.org.uk.

• Sacramental preperation.pdf

Take a look at the RE newsletters to find out what your child will be learning during RE and what events are taking place each term.

• Religious education and Catholic Life Newsletter Autumn term.pdf
• Religious education and Catholic Life Newsletter spring 2023.pdf

St. Joseph's lives in a community and world that is multi-faith and multicultural. In accordance with the teaching of the Catholic Church, we teach children about other faiths in order to help them understand and respect them. Below is our long term plan.

• Other faiths Long term plan 2022- 23.pdf