In senior assembly this we looked at the fuss around Christmas and all the elements that make it Christmas.
The task the four groups had was to make a Christmas tree using all things Christmassy.
And this was the result:
So we all want to be Christmas trees!
Hello and welcome to The Christian School, Takeley Open Day. My name is Josh and I am in year 11 and I’m here to tell you about my experience of this unique school.
I have thoroughly enjoyed looking back at my time at school, looking back at the wonderful memories I have collected.
What is so unique about school?
Well, the first thing I remember is the warm welcome I received on my first day at school. I was extremely nervous but was welcomed in such a kind way that I instantly felt at home.
Which leads me on to my next point: the strength of the school is family . Because of the size and accepting atmosphere, you know and look out for others across different years . I have had friends across years including younger and older pupils and the friendships last. I play football with past pupils every week. There are also good relations with teachers who we call by their first names.
Due to the size of the school everyone receives the attention they need. As a year 11 I have my own tutor with whom I have one to one sessions every week. Some of my friends here have learning difficulties, which at other schools did not get the necessary attention, but they have thrived here because of the more flexible approach our small classes allow. There are no sets, or one set lesson plan but instead, a lesson plan for each student as we all learn differently at different speeds.
I have learned and had opportunities that I would only have had here. I have learned many qualities through being part of the school council, part of a jobs team, involved in charity fund raising, going to camps and taking part in plays and concerts. These opportunities are open to all.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at school and if I could I would do it all over again.
Our Christmas Concert is on the last day of term, Wednesday 21st December, at 2pm. The pupils will be performing plays and there will also be a number of individual items. Last year’s leavers will be back to be presented with their GCSE certificates, so we are looking forward to catching up with them. We hope that all our families will join us for this festive celebration.
Our annual Christmas Carol Service will be held on Friday 9th December at 7pm. This will be a mixture of traditional and modern carols and readings following the theme Hope is Born. We would love all our families to join us for the service and for mulled wine, hot chocolate and mince pies afterwards.
A week of wild weather gave us a fresh and sunny day for our November Nature Walk!
We set of down the Flitch Way towards Hatfield Forest and made our way back past the airport balance pools. The Flitch Way runs along an old railway line.
What did we learn! We saw the winter crops in the fields and spotted Old Man’s Beard. We also compared the smoothness of Ash bark to that of Oak. Oak trees line the old railway line. For those new to the walk we looked at the Stane Street Halt.
We talked in detail about sewage, saw the processing plants and wondered at the clarity of the water in the old faithful Pincey Brook.
Each Friday afternoon the Juniors usually find themselves outdoors enjoying the gardens and looking at nature.
It’s a real pleasure to grow and harvest our own food.
We also look after some chickens. One of the jobs we have to do each year is to clip the chickens’ wings.
We only do one wing so that they are not able to fly away.
One of the things we also do is each week we record the weather. So, since last Friday we have had a maximum temperature of 15 degrees and a minimum of 3. It was 6 degrees to day with a light South Westerly wind.
The Infants and Juniors have all been busy in the kitchen this term exploring some seasonal produce as well as learning new skills. There has been a bounty of homegrown apples around and both groups have used them in their cooking. A big hit has been ‘Apple Dappy’, a fun recipe involving a simple pastry mixture rolled up with an apple filling and then cut into swirl buns. Both groups enjoyed making these and taking them home to share with their families. Everyone agreed they were very tasty! Baked apples were also on the menu in the Infants class and the children honed their chopping skills with this simple dish that combined the complimentary flavours of raisins and cinnamon with the apple.
Earlier in the term the Juniors had a go at making their own bread rolls. They learnt about yeast and watched their rolls grow bigger as they proved. They all felt a great sense of achievement in the end result of real tasty bread that they had made themselves.
After the half term break the Infants learnt about pumpkins. They carved them with faces and used the insides in their cooking too. They found out how this versatile vegetable can be used to make both sweet and savoury dishes and sampled some different spices that compliment it well. They made a spiced pumpkin soup as well as pumpkin passion muffins with a yummy cream cheese icing.
The Juniors have taken on a big challenge, and tried some warming autumnal flavours, in making a delicious chicken and paprika stew with herby dumplings – flavoured with the school’s own homegrown rosemary. Lots of skills were combined to create this dish as well as having to face the hurdle of the dreaded onions as some have found it harder than others to fight back the tears!
Skills in peeling, chopping, grating, weighing, measuring, mixing, sieving, kneading, frying, stirring and rolling have all come together to create these culinary treats this term. It’s been wonderful to hear some of the pupils asking for the recipes to try at home and we hope that this is the first step towards being able to produce nutritious meals for themselves and their families.
On Thursday 10th November the Juniors went on a fun trip to see the Ministry of Science Live at the Rhodes Centre in Bishop’s Stortford. To add to the adventure they travelled by bus to the venue. The show covered some history of inventors and scientists as well as lots of practical demonstrations and some good laughs. It will come as no surprise there were lots of explosions and bangs. The pupils learnt about different forms of energy and definitely learnt some new words! One of the group was even chosen to go up on stage to test out a homemade hovercraft. Here are some photo highlights of the trip:
We have a vacancy for teaching sport. Please visit http://tcst.org.uk/vacancies/ for details.
Junior Pupil’s Banners
The junior pupils’ banners graced the back of Holy Trinity Church, Takeley as we joined with the rest of Takeley village in presenting a festival of flowers and colour to celebrate the Queen’s official birthday.
The pupils were commended for their originality and everyone seemed delighted with the fun the banners conveyed.