Our Lady of Good Aid Cathedral Primary School

As you may have read in a previous newsfeed post, brass instruction is fully back up and running in Cathedral Primary and, following an investment in new trumpets and trombones, more pupils than ever before are able to participate.

Even though they have only had two terms of lessons, the boys and girls have put together a piece called ‘A One Note Christmas’, which can be accessed and viewed via the link below:

https://music-nlc.com/vkx

Well done, everyone!

Pupils from Primary 6b led Christmas storytelling in the two weeks leading up to the Christmas holidays. As part of their Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) activities, the children took on the role of architects, designing and building an incredible gingerbread house as the backdrop for their storytelling. They also made fantastic decorations which transformed Ambition Avenue into a winter wonderland!

Ambition Avenue was packed with pupils at 1.00pm every day, eager to listen to the festive stories, some read by Mrs McCarthy, others by pupils. What a wonderful way to spend your lunchtime!

Many thanks to Mrs McCarthy and Primary 6b for carrying on this wonderful Cathedral Christmas tradition year after year.

Mr Young was blown away when the Primary 3 pupils pictured above brought along their artwork to show him. Not only was the artwork beautiful, the children could also articulate the skills they had developed and used to produce their paintings:

“We mixed paint to make different tones to create the sky”, said Cameron, “then drew and cut out a silhouette of the stable.”

Well done to these three pupils, as well as the rest of their classmates, for brightening up the corridors with such beautiful and impressive artwork.

The latest ‘Spotlight this month’ to appear in the library focuses on books to curl up with this winter.

Cathedral pupils are making great use of the library and twenty minutes of personal reading is now incorporated into each day’s learning. The introduction of ‘Accelerated Reader’ also means pupils can complete a quiz when they finish a book and their teachers can monitor their progress.

With Cathedral pupils being such keen readers, we know they’ll continue to commit to daily personal reading throughout the Christmas holidays. There are so many new books to discover and enjoy!

Cathedral pupils were treated to a fabulous festive feast on 14th December at our annual school community Christmas dinner. There was a choice of turkey with all the trimmings, steak pie or the vegetarian option, rounded off with ice cream and a chocolate treat. The occasion was made all the more special with table cloths, napkins and even table service from the teachers… and, of course, lots of Christmas music to sing along to!

Many thanks to Kristina and the rest of the catering team for preparing such a delicious Christmas dinner for Cathedral pupils and staff!

Primary 6 and 7 members of the Cathedral Primary choir brought festive cheer to Christmas shoppers on 8th December when they visited Pauline Books & Media in St Enoch Square, Glasgow. The children sang an extensive repertoire of carols (traditional and new), bringing smiles to shoppers, many of whom stayed around for the entire performance.

The children were treated to lunch at McDonald’s in the St Enoch Centre and also received a selection box each from Sister Angela, Provincial of the Daughters of St Paul, as well as some new books to add to our school library.

In a text to Mr Young, Sister Angela said: “Lovely to see you all today. The children were a real credit to you and the school.”

Primary 3 – 7 pupils took to the stage on 7th December for their Christmas concert, ‘Spirit of Christmas’, with each stage singing two Christmas carols and performing a festive poem. The hall was packed with families and friends, with over 400 at the afternoon performance, and there were smiles all round (as well as a few tears!) throughout the one-hour festive show.

Of course, the concert was all the more moving as, due to COVID-19, the last Christmas concert in front of an audience was way back in December 2019. It’s wonderful to have things back to normal!

Gerry Gough from Missio Scotland was back in Cathedral Primary on 5th December to lead a special assembly. The children learned about the work of Missio in different parts of the world and found out how they can contribute to the important work of the charity through their prayers and giving even small amounts.

Collection buckets were distributed to classes at the end of the assembly and Cathedral pupils are welcome to donate loose change during the course of the year to support the work of Missio.

The last group of House Captains visited Our Lady’s High School on Tuesday 29th November to finish off our new Smart School Council suggestions box. OLHS staff will fit the hinges over the next day or so and then the box will be delivered to Cathedral Primary later this week. We can’t wait to see the finished box and start using it to gather suggestions on how to improve our school!