Our Lady of Good Aid Cathedral Primary School

This enthusiastic Primary 2 athlete was thrilled to show Mr Young the medal she earned after taking part in the Strathclyde Park Santa Dash on Sunday 7th December. Sporting her festive Santa hat, she proudly completed a lap of the park while helping to raise vital funds for St Andrew’s Hospice.

What a shining example of determination, community spirit and Advent kindness!

Cathedral’s long-held tradition of lunchtime Christmas story-telling continued on Tuesday 9th December. Discovery Drive was packed with learners of all ages, eager to listen to Mrs McCarthy read the latest festive story of the season. What a wonderful way to spend a winter lunchtime!

These two enthusiastic Primary 3 learners were delighted to share their latest maths ‘Milestone Moment’ with Mr Young on Tuesday 9th December. After a block of learning focused on subtraction with exchange—using concrete materials, plenty of practice, and opportunities to learn from mistakes—these budding mathematicians successfully calculated all 24 written sums correctly. A brilliant achievement that showcases our school value of perseverance!

It has been a joy to see so many learners, staff, parents and parishioners gather for Mass on Tuesday and Friday mornings during Advent. There are now just two morning Masses remaining before the end of term:

• Friday 12th December
• Tuesday 16th December

We warmly invite all members of our school and parish community to join us at 8.15am in the Investigation & Innovation Hub as we continue our Advent journey and prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ at Christmas.

During the week beginning 8th December, Primary 7 embraced a festive Christmas budgeting challenge. Learners were tasked with buying gifts for a family of five, carefully considering each person’s age, interests, and hobbies to make thoughtful choices. The activity required careful discussion, teamwork and accurate use of decimal addition to ensure every penny of the budget was spent wisely. Fun, festive, real-life learning!

On Sunday 7th December, this Cathedral learner played a remarkable role in a historic moment for Motherwell. With a single press of the demolition button, he triggered a controlled blowdown that brought three iconic tower blocks to the ground in just 15 seconds. Having spent recent weeks documenting the demolition for a personal school project, he found the experience all the more special.

The Allan, Coursington and Draffen Towers – each standing 58 metres tall and containing 117 flats – were demolished to prepare the site for future development. The event marked a significant change to Motherwell’s skyline, and our learner’s involvement ensured Cathedral Primary was proudly represented at this historic occasion.

This week our young learners have been busy exploring a wide range of experiences and beginning to decorate our nursery for Christmas. The excitement is building, especially with the arrival of those cheeky elves, bringing plenty of mischief and fun. We’re sure they’ll help us all stay on Santa’s good list this year!

In our messy area, the children had great fun exploring shaving foam, discovering its soft, fluffy, and slippery textures. Using wonderful descriptive vocabulary such as smooth, squishy, icky‑sticky, and foamy, they swirled, patted, and mark‑made with their fingers and hands.

As part of our Childsmile toothbrushing programme, the children are continuing to build their awareness of dental hygiene. They are becoming more independent and understand why brushing twice a day helps keep our mouths healthy. We’ve loved talking together about what makes a “happy, clean smile.”

Snack time has been full of learning too! Our young learners created simple patterns with fruit and other foods, copying and extending them to support early mathematical thinking and visual sequencing.

With the colder weather upon us, curiosity has been sparked by the magic of ice. Children have been experimenting with how water changes form, making their own ice, noticing how it feels, watching it melt, and observing how it changes back into water.

What a wonderful week of festive fun, hands‑on exploration, and exciting discoveries for our Cathedral nursery learners!

Last weekend, a talented Cathedral swimmer made waves at Wishaw Sports Centre — and what a performance it was! With remarkable determination and skill, she powered through a series of 50m events to claim an outstanding 4 trophies and 7 medals. Her success was so impressive that she even needed a classmate to help carry her array of trophies along to show Mrs Duffy on Friday 5th December!

A true Cathedral Dolphin, she continues to inspire us all with her dedication, resilience, and shining success in the pool.

Lunchtime Christmas storytelling has been a cherished Cathedral tradition for over ten years, introduced by avid reader, Mrs McCarthy. On Thursday 4th December, Discovery Drive was bustling with pupils — not for the opening story, but for an elf recruitment drive to find Mrs McCarthy’s special helpers!

The first storytelling session will take place tomorrow, Friday 5th December.

Mass is celebrated at 8:15am in the Investigation & Innovation Hub every Tuesday and Friday during Advent.

All pupils, staff, parents, and parishioners are warmly invited to join Cathedral School community as we prepare for the coming of Christ at Christmas.

‘This time of Advent is a time of waiting for the Lord, who will visit us all on the feast of Christmas, but also, each one, in our own hearts.’ (Pope Francis)