Ripon Cathedral School Update

We had a fantastic time celebrating World Book Day in school yesterday. The day was filled with a love of reading: we welcomed guest readers to share stories with our KS1 and EYFS classes, and enjoyed shared reading sessions across school with classes joining together to read with each other. Children and staff also took part in our “dress up as a word” theme, which led to some wonderfully creative costumes and lots of discussion about vocabulary. It was a joyful celebration of books, stories and the power of words. A big thank you to Steve and Mary Kersys for leading some really entertaining and enjoyable story sessions.

On Wednesday, three groups of children from Year 2, Year 3 and Year 6 represented the school at the Sporting Influence Cross Country Festival at Outwood Academy. The pupils showed fantastic enthusiasm and determination as they tackled the course, encouraging one another and demonstrating great sportsmanship throughout the event. It was wonderful to see their confidence and resilience as they completed their races. Well done to Max who won the over Y5/6 Boys race, Primrose who won the Y5/6 Girls race, Iris who won the Y1/2 Girls race and Alfie who won the Y1/2 Boys race! What a superb achievement! Special mention also to Cleo in Year 3, who came third overall in the Y3/4 Girls race, meaning she finished ahead of many of the older pupils in that race!

On Wednesday, the Year 5 class led an informative worship for their family members and the rest of the school all about the Amazon rainforest. For their courageous advocacy topic, they are raising money to sponsor an endangered animal and they spoke about some of these animals, for example jaguars, scarlet macaws and Amazonian manatees. They helped everyone to think about the importance of the rainforest and its many animals, well done Year 5.

Well done to this week's Stars of the Week who were presented with their certificates in Celebration Worship this morning.

Nursery –Bella, for growing in confidence, trying new things and making new friends. She always has a smile on her face!

Reception – Freddie, for showing lots of care and details when creating a fabulous portrait. He thought about the features of a face and where they should be positioned.

Year 1 –Lacey, for effort and attitude to learning in maths. Lacey's confidence is really growing and it's been wonderful to see this in maths as she's been sharing her ideas with the class and teachers. She's worked so hard when learning about length and height and has done a fantastic job when measuring in centimetres.

Year 2 – Joshua, for trying his best in school, listening to and following instructions, and showing fantastic perseverance with his spellings and maths.

Year 3 – Sammy, for his super team work. Sammy was a brilliant role model for others in his team when making a movie trailer.

Year 4 – Natasza, for taking great care in everything she does, producing some beautiful artwork and a creative, entertaining story.

Year 5 – George E, for always following the 'Be' rules and making excellent suggestions in class discussions. He always has such a positive attitude!

Year 6 - Ella, for continued effort and determination in everything she does.

Our parents' evenings will be held on Monday 16th and Wednesday 18th March, in the school hall. Please note that you can only book one appointment per child, so please choose your preferred day. A booking guide is available on the button below. This is the link to the booking site https://riponcathedral.schoolcloud.co.uk/ Booking opens at 9am tomorrow morning (Saturday 7th March) as we hope this is a time when most parents are available to make bookings.

For parents of children in Year 4 only: Mrs Perkins is unavailable to work beyond 6pm. In order to provide enough slots for all parents to book, she is also offering appointment times on Tuesday afternoon. If you are able to book one of these consultations instead of after school on Monday or Wednesday, that would be helpful, thank you. We will let you know the location of Tuesday's appointments separately as the hall will be in use at that time.

For parents of Nursery children: we apologise that we are currently unable to offer appointments due to Mrs Powell's absence.

We have several military families in school, and are pleased to share a message from Margaret Newman, who has been into our school on several occasions to work with our service family children.

Over the last term, I have had the privilege of working with military children from nine different primary schools. Each session has been an opportunity not only to learn more about their unique experiences but also to help them express their thoughts and identity through a creative, shared project.

To celebrate their individuality—and the strength they find as part of a wider community—every child decorated their own jigsaw puzzle piece. Some children chose colours that were important to them, some drew symbols some drew patterns, while expressing emotions or memories that are important to them. Each puzzle piece became a small window into their world.

This week, all of the pieces were brought together to form one large, striking jigsaw. Seeing the final artwork assembled was a powerful moment. Although each piece is unique, together they form a complete picture—symbolising how every child is an essential part of the wider military community. The completed jigsaw reflects connection, belonging, and the reassurance that even when life changes, they are never alone.

To mark the experience and celebrate their contribution, each child has received a photo of the finished jigsaw. It’s a reminder that they play an important part in something bigger, and that their individuality strengthens the whole.

This project has highlighted the resilience, creativity, and sense of togetherness that defines military children. It has been an honour to share this journey with them.

All are welcome to a get together on Thursday 12th March at 7pm in the Claro Lounge. This is a good chance for a catch up with other parents. There will be a little bit of planning which you may like to be involved in, but the main focus is meeting up with other parents. Board games are available so if you're short of a baby sitter, you can bring along older children.

Email: admin@riponcathedral.n-yorks.sch.uk
Website: www.riponcathedralschool.org.uk
Location: HG41LT, United Kingdom
Phone: 01765 602355
Facebook: facebook.com/riponcathschool