Jesus taught us, “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34). Catholic Social Teaching (CST) helps us to understand how we can live out this commandment in our world today. It is a set of principles that guide the way we treat people, care for our world and live as a community.
At Christ the King, we focus on seven key principles of Catholic Social Teaching to help us live out our faith in school. These include:
- Human Dignity – every person is made in the image of God.
- Care for Creation – we are called to protect and respect God’s world.
- Solidarity – we stand with others, especially those who are suffering.
- The Common Good – we work for what is best for everyone.
- Option for the Poor – we put the needs of the most vulnerable first.
- Justice and Peace – we act fairly and help to build a peaceful world.
- Subsidiarity – everyone has a role to play, and decisions should be made at the right level.
Our faith calls us to love God and to love our neighbour in every situation, especially those living in poverty or facing injustice. Following in the footsteps of Christ, we try to bring God’s justice, love and peace into our school, our community and our world.
For more information about Catholic Social Teaching, please visit CAFOD’s website: CLICK HERE
Catholic Social Teaching at Christ The King
The Virtue of Gratitude
At the end of each half term, we encourage our children to practise the virtue of gratitude by writing a thank you note to someone who has helped them this term – this may include their friends or the adults working with them. We will be reminding the children about gratitude during our Mission Monday assembly and the children can collect a thank you note template from their class teacher. It is very positive end to the half term if there was a shower of thank you notes!
Love One Another Awards
During Mission Monday assembly, the ‘Love One Another Award’ is awarded to a child from each class who has lived out one of the Catholic Social Teaching Principles. This award demonstrates how children at Christ the King show the true embodiment of one of the seven Catholic Social Teaching principles in their day to day life.
Catholic Social Teaching in Action
As part of our Harvest festival and thanking God for the food that we are given, we have chosen as a school to support our local foodbank Braunstone Foodshare. Braunstone Foodshare delivered a video to our school to explain what they did and who they helped. During our Harvest Celebration of the Word, we offered thanks to God for the food and Creation.
Toys on the Table
In keeping with the principles of Catholic Social Teaching our school community seeks to care for those who are vulnerable and to share what we have, especially during Advent. Thank you to everyone who supported our Toys on the Table appeal. Your generosity is greatly appreciated and will make a real difference to children who might otherwise receive very little this Christmas. It has been wonderful to see the thoughtful gifts donated and we are grateful for the kindness shown by our school community during this Advent season. We were delighted to receive a letter of thanks: CLICK HERE
Supporting the Poppy Appeal
We would also like to thank all our families for their generous support of the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal. The school has recently received certificates from the charity and we are delighted to share that the Junior site raised £313.20 and the Infant site raised £204.45 giving a whole school total of £517.65. Thank you to everyone who purchased an item and to our office teams on both sites for their hard work in selling the poppies. Your kindness helps us to honour the memory of those who lost their lives and to continue praying and working for peace in our world.
Visiting Dane View Care Home
On Thursday 11th December, Mrs Pickwell’s class visited Dane View Care Home to complete their Advent promise of bringing joy to our local community. They filled their main hall with joy as they sang Christmas carols. Our year 6 choir joined 3TP to perform some of the songs that they had been learning for the Menphys concert, including Dear Elizabeth. The Year 3 children also completed their mission by making Christmas cards to bring joy to the residents this Advent. Well done to everyone involved!
Mission Assembly focused on the theme of Inspiration
This week’s Mission Assembly focused on the theme of Inspiration—the feeling of being motivated or encouraged to do something. The children reflected on how they can inspire others through their words and actions, supported by the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
We were delighted to welcome Jane from Mary’s Meals this week. Our Junior Chaplains had researched a range of charities and have chose Mary’s Meals as our Lenten charity this year. The children learned how the charity provides daily meals to children in some of the world’s poorest communities, helping them access education and giving them hope for a brighter future. During Lent, each class will be organising a fundraising activity to help raise money for Mary’s Meals. Thank you in advance for your support with this important cause.
Following the assembly, the Junior Chaplains enjoyed a session with Jane. They discussed the powerful impact that access to school and food can have on a person’s wellbeing, summarised in the message: School + Food = Hope. The Chaplains then took part in a reflective activity, folding paper step by step to create a cross – each fold symbolising school, food and hope. They decorated their finished crosses with prayers or meaningful words to remind others of the difference education and nourishment can make to a child’s future.
EYFS Mother’s Day Craft Afternoon, what a fabulous turn out and a great afternoon
Silly hat/hair day
On Tuesday 7th March, Year 2 held a fantastic Silly Hat/Silly Hair Day to raise money for Mary’s Meals. The children went above and beyond in their fundraising efforts, collecting an amazing £48.77 so far, with a few sponsorships still to come in. All the adults and children in Year 2 would like to thank their families and friends for their incredible generosity and continued support.
Mary’s Meals
Thank you to all the children and their families who have contributed to our Mary’s Meals fundraising activities during Lent. We have been overwhelmed by the generosity and talent of our pupils and families. All of the money from these fundraising activities will go to support the work of Mary’s Meals. We will announce the total amount raised after the Easter break.
Table of Awesomeness
We are delighted to share that our Table of Awesomeness continues to be a wonderful way of celebrating positive lunchtime behaviour. Every half term, our lunchtime teachers select children who have consistently shown excellent manners, kindness, and respectful behaviour in the dining hall. These pupils are rewarded with a special lunchtime experience at the Table of Awesomeness, recognising them as fantastic role models within our school community. We are incredibly proud of their efforts and look forward to celebrating many more children throughout the year.
