Collective Worship, Prayer and Liturgy
Please click here for our Collective Worship Policy
School Assemblies
- Our school week begins with a whole school Gospel Assembly; the focus of the assembly relates to the Sunday Gospel and is led by the Headteacher.
- R.E leaders from each class lead the Wednesday Word Gospel reflection for their class on Wednesday mornings.
- At the end of the school week, the whole school comes together in Celebration Assembly lead by the Headteacher or senior staff.
Class Assemblies & Themes
- During our school year, each class prepares two assemblies that parents are warmly encouraged to attend, as this promotes community spirit, the sharing of the talents that God has given us and the children’s achievements.
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We take the themes of our assemblies from the Catholic faith, and we observe the festivals and mark the events of the Liturgical year. We follow the “Come and See” Religious education programme and our displays and themes of assemblies follow this scheme.
Classroom Prayers
- Prayer is woven into the daily life of our school through liturgy and prayer and within our school assemblies and faith celebrations.
- Prayer also takes place in the morning, lunch and at the end of the school day. There is a strong pupil involvement in the preparation and presentation of prayer.
- Classes have a specific RE / Prayer area and display as appropriate to the Liturgical calendar.
- All Governing Body Meetings and Staff Meetings begin with shared Prayer.
- There is a children’s prayer area in the inner lobby where children write and offer prayers.
- Children are encouraged to share music and hymns as part of our shared prayer life in the school.
Expectations of Prayer ( guidance taken from Prayer in Primary and Secondary schools 2020)
Prayer can be planned or spontaneous in schools. Below is a simple outline of our expectation of prayer at La Salette
EYFS - Prayer in reception is about saying 'I love you, Thank you, I am sorry and Please help me with..'
KS1 - Sign of the Cross, Morning Prayer, Grace Before and after Lunch prayers, Night prayer, Hail Mary, Our Father, Glory Be
KS2 - Will know the KS1 prayers and as part of prayerful life be aware of Hail Holy Queen, The Magnificat and The Angelus.
Prayer can be seen in many forms and ways:
Praise: the highest form of prayer because there is no self-interest in that, just praising God for being God. That’s what we are called to do in prayer.
Thanksgiving: to be thankful for all we have or are gifted.
Repentance: when we reflect on how we sometimes fall short of the Gospel ideas and ask for forgiveness.
Petition: intercession, for ourselves, for others and for the world.
Three ways of praying:
With the voice - vocal prayer - saying prayers
Of the mind – meditation – meditative prayer
Of the heart – contemplation – contemplative prayer
Masses
- Whole School Masses are celebrated on Holy Days of Obligation and special Feast Days and Celebrations.
- Masses are celebrated in The Parish Church of Our Lady of La Salette.
- Our children also join the parish community for early morning masses ( daily) before school.
- Seasonal celebrations and school events are also celebrated in the Parish Church.
- The First Communion preparation is Parish based and the whole community takes part in the First Holy Communion celebration.
- In the summer the children have class outdoor masses on our paved outdoor reflection area.
- We venerate the Shrine of Our Lady Of La Salette on our school feast day and use religious statues and icons as a focus for our personal reflection.
- A service for the Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered by our priests in the school for years 4, 5 and 6 during Advent and Lent.
- Year R – Year 3 take part in a reflection assembly as part of reconciliation services.