At St. Bernadette’s Primary School, a Catholic Voluntary Academy, we base our actions and interactions with each upon Gospel values such as love, sharing, kindness and forgiveness. We have our own school ‘Beatitudes’ which dictate our conduct.
We believe Religious Education to be ‘the core of the core curriculum.’ We believe Religious Education is central to the educative mission of the Church.
We acknowledge and concur with the Bishops’ view of the importance of high quality Catholic Education: ‘At the heart of Catholic education lies the Christian vision of the human person. This vision is expressed and explored in Religious Education. Therefore Religious Education is never simply one subject among many, but the foundation of the entire educational process. The beliefs and values studied in Catholic religious education inspire and draw together every aspect of the life of a Catholic school….. All pupils have the right to receive an overall education which will enable them, in the light of the faith of the Church, to engage with the deepest questions of life and find reasons for the hope which is within them.’
Charism of our school
The word charism, in the tradition of the Church, refers to spiritual gifts used for the service of the whole community. These gifts or graces of the Holy Spirit are given to individuals and groups for the sake of others.
A Catholic Christian school draws upon this rich heritage of spiritual gifts to formulate its own unique way of being and giving service to all. The central influence on the charism of any school is the person of Jesus Christ. All charisms seek to provide a pathway through which a school community might interpret and give voice to the centrality of Jesus Christ.
Schools draw inspiration and direction from the stories of how their founding religious congregation, patron saint or significant people in the school’s history exemplified particular gifts of the Spirit in living out the gospel of Jesus Christ.
(The Religious Education Curriculum P-12 Archdiocese of Brisbane, 2020, p208).
In responding to the needs of the community, we at St Bernadette’s Primary School, draw from the model and examples of St Bernadette. Our school’s charism is lived through using our gifts for others in service, welcome, compassion and education.
Our staff and students continually strive to make Jesus real and are reminded through the life of St Bernadette and our local saints St Bede, St Hilda, Blessed Nicholas Postgate and Margaret Clitherow to be the best that we can be and to make Jesus real in the lives of those around us.
Catholic Social Teaching
Catholic Social Teaching is based around the Church’s belief that we can all make a difference in making our world a better place for all. These teachings are rooted in Scripture and especially in the teachings of Jesus found in the Gospels. Christ shows us how to walk in his footsteps, bringing love and care to those both near and far. It is our vocation to live as Jesus and saints throughout the ages, bettering our world for everyone.
The Catholic Church has seven principles of social teaching that we will explore in school, just like our virtues. Throughout your child’s spiritual journey at St. Bernadette’s, we explore these principles through our curriculum, Mission Weeks, activities and through our everyday actions.
- Dignity of the human person
- Family and Community
- Solidarity and The Common Good
- Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers
- Rights and Responsibilities
- Option for the Poor and Vulnerable
- Stewardship of God’s Creation
| Catholic Life CST 2023-24 Plan | ||
| EYFS | Common GOOD | Care for PEOPLE |
| Y1 | Promoting Peace | Praying for peace
|
| Y2 | Preferential Option for poor | Cause / fundraising
SVP |
| Y3 | Stewardship (Laudato Si) – creation and environment | Care for the Environment weekly allotment – growing vegetables – ask for volunteers? |
| Y4 | Dignity (everyone is loved) | Care for the elderly VisitingNunthorpe Hall weekly |
| Y5 | Solidarity (Global neighbours) | CAFOD or Missio – work on supporting our neighbours around the world (raising awareness)
cafod.org.uk/demandchange |
| Y6 | Subsidiarity | Our voices are heard. Debate/ letters to MPS etc
(raising awareness) |
