School Chaplaincy Team Member's Page
Chaplaincy Team Members
On the 4th October, our new Chaplaincy Team Members attended a training event to learn how to be a school Chaplaincy Team Members.
St. Patrick's has a passionate team of KS2 Chaplaincy Team members, who play a vital role in enhancing and promoting the School and Gospel values alongside our faith to students, staff and the wider community. All of our Chaplaincy Team Members take joy in wearing their Chaplaincy Team Members badge and carrying out different responsibilities.
The Chaplaincy Team Members are working on an action plan where they are considering different ways in which they are strengthening the mission, deepening prayer and enabling communion, as well as raising the importance of Catholic Social Teaching across the school.
The Chaplaincy Team Members Aims to:
- To help the school to grow as a community of faith.
- To encourage the pupils to live their faith in daily living.
- To support Liturgy, prayer and the spiritual life of the school.
- To continue to involve pupils in fundraising for charities.
- To continue to develop strong links with the Parish.
- To support the school community to live the virtues and themes of Catholic Social Teaching.
The Chaplaincy Team Members meet regularly with senior leaders and these meetings give every Chaplaincy Team Member the chance to share their ideas and together we make decisions about how we can promote the Catholic ethos in the school. Chaplaincy Team Members will have the chance to lead Gospel worships, Collective Worship, plan and lead charity events throughout the year along side Miss Franco, the school's Curriculum Enrichment Lead, monitor class reflection areas and class display boards and have plan prayer events for key points of the Liturgical seasons.
Prayer and Liturgy
The Chaplaincy Team Members support the planning and preparation of Collective Worship across the school and assist the adults who are leading on the weekly Gospel Assembly.
Chaplaincy Team Members help the children to follow the four step plan when planning and preparing Collective Worship:
- Gather - to introduce the session. This could be listening to calm and reflecting music, tapping the chime bar or sing 'Come and join the circle'
- Word - Sharing a reading from the Gospel
- Response - an activity, for example a five finger prayer, reflecting on the word or holding a pebble and thinking about someone that you would like to ask Jesus to help.
- Mission - This is a task to take away, for example - do something helpful at home, invite someone who is lonely to join you at break time etc.
Chaplaincy Team Members Action Plan 2022-2023
St. Patrick's want to help to protect God's creatures, and have adopted two endangered animals.
Saoirse and Heldana have been researching how we can help animals in the world.
Here at St. Patrick's, we care for the environment and have decided to adopt an animal to help save them.
As Chaplaincy Team Members, we had a vote out of 5 animals to adopt and care for their needs since most animals are getting hunted down.
Children voted for two of the rarest animals in the world.
You can also make a difference..
Chaplaincy Team Member's Voice
Saoirse- "In our Chaplaincy Team Members meeting today, we planned to make pupils in our school more aware of the climate change crisis and how we can change it."
Arthur- "At lunch time, we met and talked about our action plan and added more, and talked about activities and the next meet on Friday."
Learn a little more about out Chaplaincy Team Members
Arthur
"For me, being a Chaplaincy Team Member is fun because I get to learn more about God and Jesus in fun ways. One activity that particularly talked to me during the training at Westminster Abbey was an activity where we were put in out school group and we had to a conker and we had to memorise it. Everyone put their conkers in a pile and then we had to find our conker. This taught me how God made us so that we are all different and we have different talents".
Amelia
"Being a Chaplaincy Team Member is an amazing job as you are given multiple responsibilities. This helps me to grow as a person while helping younger children to develop their belief in God. I enjoy helping others and showing my love of Jesus. This is why being a Chaplain Team Member is a great job".
Stevie-Rose
"Being a Chaplaincy Team Member for me is special because as a Christian I like to help others and help them to follow in Jesus' footsteps. Following the virtues and being faithful is very important to me as I try to do what God wants us to do. Every one in school follows the virtues to make our school community a better place".
Oliver
"I think being a Chaplaincy Team Member is important as we have to speak to others about God's words2.
David
"I have led a Gospel assembly, and I have been on a trip for the day where I learnt to play Bible related games".
Heldana
"It is very good to be a Chaplaincy Team Member as we set up Gospel assemblies which gives us the chance to get closer to God and we get to go into different classes to that they can share what they have been learning in R.E.".
Saoirse
"I put myself forward to be part of the Chaplaincy Team because it is a chance to get closer to God and to inspire others to do the same".
Timi
"It is good to be a Chaplaincy Team Member because you get to direct the Catholic teaching and be more active with Christ and teaching".
School Chaplaincy Team
Left to right: Arthur, Amelia, Stevie-Rose, Oliver, David, Heldana, Saoirse and Timi
Leading Prayer in school
Chaplaincy Team members help ensure that our school is a place where prayer and worship are at the centre of our mission.
The Chaplaincy Team Members:
- help teachers to create meaningful prayer tables in classrooms
- lead the whole school during Gospel worship
- help lead the school in prayer especially at special times like Lent, Advent and during Months dedicated to our lady
- Help in the celebration of whole school Mass
- Lead the classes to weekly Gospel Assembly
The Year 6 Chaplaincy Team Members planned, prepared and delivered a Gospel assembly about the Epiphany. Year 5 Chaplaincy Team Members lead on the Gospel assembly on the Baptism of the Lord.
Taking Care of God's Earth
“I therefore renew my appeal: let us take care of our mother Earth ... let us overcome the temptation of selfishness that makes us predators of resources, let us cultivate respect for the gifts of the Earth and creation, let us inaugurate a lifestyle and a society that is finally eco-sustainable.”
Pope Francis, May 24th 2021
Miss Franco, Coach Terry and the Year 6 Chaplaincy Team Members took some of the Year 2 children on a local litter pick to teach them about the importance of caring for God's world.
