We talk to the children regularly about the meaning of the Cass feather. Some say it’s stained red with the blood of Cass as he died signing his will. I prefer to use the feather as a symbol of his gift. The gift -through his will—of a free education for every child in this area. We spend much time in today’s society focussing on what can be further improved about educational outcomes. We perhaps don’t ponder for long enough how fortunate we are to have excellent free education in London with many world class schools on our doorstep. Spare a thought for those throughout the world who still don’t have access to a quality education or who don’t go to school at all– and let us be thankful!
Bishop Pete also reminded us about the fish on our school crest– the crest of arms for Sir John. Now, fish can be slippery little creatures. We discussed in our assembly on Friday about how they are very difficult to hold onto. Some of the children shared stories about when they had been fishing with their families. When we look down at the jumpers we wear to school, we are reminded that we need to grasp every opportunity, to hold on tight to chances we receive and never give up. With these sentiments in mind, can I draw your attention to a competition we are holding in school!?
We currently have an excellent school logo– however, we don’t have a motto which we use in school to clearly represent our values. In our assembly before half term I shared with the children some examples of advertising mottos including ones from school or university. My own college’s motto was Respice Finem (consider the end). Did your school or college have a motto that you still remember? Talk to your child about it if you can.
The children have been challenged to take part in a contest to come up with a new motto for school. Think about what’s special about our school. You can find out aims and Christian values on our website: http://www.sirjohncassprimary.org/our-values.html. This page might help you to come up with some ideas. You can submit your idea online or via paper copy to the school office by Friday 9th March, 2018.