Holy Week activities

This week we are focussing on the events of the Easter story this week and the children are enjoying a variety of activities to help them learn and understand the significance of those events.

Monday: The children began the day by re-sharing their Lenten promises now that we are half way through the time of Lent, most of us agreed to try and continue keeping them beyond Lent in order to be more caring, more sharing, more giving and more loving. had buttered hot cross buns for snack. Meanwhile, there was a lot of creative learning going on with card making, basket making, painting patterned eggs and crosses, rescuing the trapped Easter chickens before the 1 minute timer ran out, building crosses from a variety of construction toys and colouring Easter pictures.

The Easter story will be read from a different book or children’s bible each day.
After lunch we prayed a decade of the Rosary, today’s was a Joyful mystery with the birth of Jesus. Groups then went up to the chapel to look in detail at the crucifix and search for crosses in different places in the chapel before hearing the story through the Stations of the Cross pictures. Those back in the classroom continued with painting eggs for more cards, threading the Easter baskets and playing Easter turn taking games.
Tuesday: We began our day with a reflection of yesterday’s activities followed by another telling of the Easter story from different bibles and bible story books. It was then a busy morning printing flowers on egg shapes, cutting out the eggs then sticking them onto card to leave a cross shape in the middle. With 2 cards completed, the children then chose which card they’d like to take home and which one they’d like to give to someone in the local community. All the Easter baskets were completed ready for Mrs Orr to fill with eggs which will also be delivered to people in the local community. Those who missed out on hot cross buns yesterday, enjoyed their special snack today. Outdoors, children used chalks to make patterned Easter eggs and crosses on the ground before returning inside to pray the sorrowful mystery of the Agony in the garden with our Rosary beads.
After lunch we took our crosses onto the sports field for our stations of the cross walk. Every child experienced carrying the cross, just as Jesus did all those years ago and joined in with prayers and reflections whilst looking at the art work at each station. Our crosses were then placed by the statue of St Joseph before we were invited to join key stage one on their wonderful new outdoor area.
Another beautiful day of creativity, prayer and reflection.
Wednesday: Today was a day of more versions of the Easter story, hot cross scones baking and tasting. We prayed the sorrowful mystery of the crowning of Jesus with thorns. Nursery children began making an Easter garden while the reception children attended the Tenebrae service in chapel.
Thursday: Lots of children contributed to a large painting to illustrate the resurrection of Jesus on the Sabbath day. Fresh flowers were added to the Easter garden to represent new life. Meanwhile children threaded crosses, completed Easter egg designs and constructed and painted crosses.
We prayed the sorrowful mystery of Jesus carrying the cross. After lunch the reception children went to the chapel for Godly play about Jesus entering the temple in Jerusalem, while the nursery children did some Easter Bunny wake and shake dances and then mastered the 5 minute challenge of matching Easter eggs and balancing them onto tube towers.

Friday: Our day began with a whole school assembly and reflection of the week's activities. We then made the most of the warm, sunny weather and enjoyed chalking crosses and eggs on the playground before snack on the field. While we were indoors finishing the resurrection art work, praying the sorrowful mystery of the crucifixion and other last minute tasks, the Easter bunny visited and left some treats on the field for the children. This was the perfect reminder of the new life that Jesus brought for us!