July 2011

• School trips and END OF TERM for all pupils-Mon 11 July 2011.

• R11 Parents' Assembly - Fri 8 July 2011, 2.00pm.

• R14 & Sixth Form Music Trip to Elgar's birthplace - Thurs 7 July 2011.
On Thursday 7th July, Sixth form and R14 music students undertook an excursion to Malvern to see the birthplace of the famous English composer Edward Elgar. They watched a presentation on Elgar and were able to view some of his original scores, before visiting the cottage where the composer spent much of his life and the modest graveyard where he was buried. They then climbed to the top of an old Iron Age hilltop in the sunshine, while eating ice creams, for a fantastic view over the Malvern Hills, a sight which provided inspiration for many of Elgar's compositions. (Isabelle Thomas, Lower Sixth Form student).

• Middle School Induction Meeting, 4pm - Thurs 7th July 2011.

• Junior School meeting (parents of Sept 2011 starters) - Wed 6 July 2011, 4-5pm.

• Infant Sports Day, UWIC, Cyncoed Rd, Cardiff - Wed 6 July 2011, 1pm - 3pm.

• Junior Girls Choir Concert at Nazareth House, Cardiff - Tues 5 July 2011.

 

 

 

 

• End of Year Mass - Tues 5 July 2011.

• Junior Sports Day, UWIC, Cyncoed Rd, Cardiff - Mon 4 July 2011, 10am - 3pm

• R15 Work Experience - Mon 4 July - Fri 8 July 2011.
Congratulations to all R15 pupils who had a very successful work experience week 4th-8th July 2011. Industry Visits were carried out by St John's staff. Pupils were hard at work embarking on new experiences, we were delighted by the feedback received during our visits and we have already received a considerable number of emails for pupils who were carrying out their work experience further afield. The pupils were a credit to our school.  R15 pupils built up quite a versatile career portfolio as a year group, from medicine, veterinary, sport, leisure & arts, optometry, pharmaceuticals, teaching, physiotherapy, psychotherapy, accounting, law, property development, industry supplies, media to aircraft engineering.

• Senior Sports Day, UWIC Indoor Athletics Stadium, Cardiff - Fri 1 July 2011, 10am - 3pm.
A great day was had by athletes, staff and parents. There were some great performances on both the track and field events. Four track records and four field records were broken and all the athletes can be proud of their efforts!  A full list of results can be seen via the link below:

/f/Senior_Sports_Day_Results_2011.pdf

We now look forward to Junior Sports Day on Monday.

Mr D. Milton.

• Junior School Lego Day (R7-R11) - Fri 1 July 2011.
Building a lego city was an amazing experience.  Planning our design in groups, getting all the different pieces together, making circuits, building roads and a stadium was very exciting. They say: Rome wasn’t built in a day, but we had a fabulous time building our own lego city in a day.

 

 

June 2011

• Sixth Form Close Harmony Outreach Workshops - leading secondary pupils from Wales and Herefordshire in rehearsing for the Festival of a Year in Catholic Education- Tues 28 - Wed 29 June 2011.
This week the Sixth Form Close Harmony Group travelled to St Joseph's High School (Newport) on Tuesday and St David's Sixth Form College (Cardiff) on Wednesday to lead secondary pupils from across South Wales and Herefordshire in rehearsals for the Festival of a Year in Catholic Education (which will be held at St David's Hall on Thursday 3 November 2011).  Our Sixth Formers received a very warm welcome from staff and pupils, and were especially pleased to perform songs by the Beach Boys and Michael Jackson to rapturous applause!  Further choral workshops will be led by Mr Dominic Neville in schools across South Wales in the Autumn term, as well as orchestral workshops led by Mrs Diana Neville and our Concert Orchestra.

• R8 Recorder and Violin Players Perform to R7 - Tues 28 June 2011.
The children played several pieces and encouraged the R7 pupils to clap along during ‘Ragamuffin’, which was their favourite.  R7 are now really looking forward to learning the recorder with Mrs McMahon and violin with Miss Wall when they move to R8.

• Sixth Form Close Harmony perform songs by Michael Jackson and The Beach Boys for the Nursery and Infant School and parents- Mon 27 June 2011.

 

 

 

• Eleanor Dimond & Elise Williams have been selected to represent Wales in Rounders against England - Sun 3 July 2011.

• First Holy Communion (Metropolitan Cathedral) - Sun 26 June 2011.

• Cathedral Choir sings Parry's I was glad for the Installation of Archbishop Stack at the Metropolitan Cathedral- Mon 20 June 2011.

• R10 Cycle Training- Mon 20 June 2011.

• R14 History Trip to the Somme battlefields - Thurs 16 - Fri 17 June 2011.

Just passing through the rolling, verdant countryside and coming across so many neatly maintained cemeteries and memorials to British and Commonwealth dead, proved to be an experience never before encountered and likely never to be forgotten. The sheer incongruity of prosperous life-sustaining agriculture alongside the countless graves of our recent ancestors gave rise to mixed emotions of awe, bewilderment and soul-searching questions about whether we might have had the courage to risk all in the name of freedom.

Many of our party bore the same names as those on the headstones and a few had details of their great grandfathers who had fought and died with names inscribed on monuments atThe Menin Gate in Ypres and on the huge Thiepval Memorial. It was here that one of our party sounded the Last Post as we bowed our heads to ‘remember them’.

There was a visit to the haunting museums at Thiepval and Ypres, as well a visit to the trenches of the front line at Sanctuary Wood. The zig-zag of the trenches brought the classroom lesson to life in a unique way. Next was a visit to the Newfoundland Memorial where the lines of trenches could be clearly seen and a detailed account of the appalling losses on the first day of the Battle of the Somme were relayed to us by a Newfoundler who acted as guide.

On this trip the dead paradoxically brought history alive and there was a stirring of emotions profoundly moved by a realisation that, truly, for our tomorrow they gave their today.

Mr G. Goode

• Confirmation (Metropolitan Cathedral) - Sun 12 June 2011.

• Lucy Daly (R16) has been chosen to represent Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan Schools’ District at the National Track and Field Championships 2011. This will be held in Brecon on Saturday 2 July 2011. Congratulations to Lucy who has been selected for the pole vault. Good luck Lucy!

• R13 Latin Trip to Caerleon Roman Amphitheatre, Barracks and Baths - Fri 10 June 2011.
See 'Senior School' page for more details.
R13 pupils enjoyed a very informative trip to Caerleon Roman town which has complemented our study of Roman life.  The pupils completed worksheets on the fascinating exhibits in the museum including fully-armed Roman soldiers, Roman jewellery, Roman vases and even some Roman teeth!  Next we arrived at the recently updated Roman Baths which were brought to life by 3-D projections and sound effects of Roman swimmers and interactive displays and commentaries.  The finale of our trip was a guided tour of the amphitheate and Roman barracks.

 

 

 

 

• R10 ‘Pirate Day’ Geography trip - Thur 9 June 2011.

• Xiamen Youth Orchestra performs at Cardiff Metropolitan Cathedral- Mon 6 June 2011.
See 'Music & Performance' page for more details.

Monday 6th June, 7pm
Cardiff Metropolitan Cathedral, Charles St. Cardiff (next to M&S)
ADMISSION FREE.

This full scale symphony orchestra has embarked on a concert tour of twinned cities in Cardiff and in the Netherlands. 

The orchestra was a guest of the City of Cardiff and of St John's College Cardiff, (Old St Mellons) its special host.  The connection is that Jerry Zhuo, a 6th form student at St John's College and an outstanding Double Bass player in the College Orchestra, is a former member of the XIAMEN YOUTH ORCHESTRA.

This has been a wonderful opportunity to bring together two educational communities from our twinned cities, St John's College and the Xiamen Foreign Language School.  Each has an outstanding symphony orchestra playing a wide range of concert repertoire.

The orchestra performed very well indeed at their magnificent concert on Monday evening.  St John's College is very pleased to welcome Xiamen Youth Orchestra.

• Girls' Golf practice takes place every Wednesday afternoon from 4-5pm.

Courtesy of Golf Development Wales pupils have the opportunity to attend the Wales Golf Open Tournament at the Celtic Manor Resort.

 

 

• Noa Gabay wins 2nd prize in the Year 7-9 Urdd Harp competition! - half term holiday.

• R14 & R15 Trip to the Urdd Eisteddfod, Swansea - half term holiday.
Miss Rowlands and Mrs Armour took a coach load of the R14 & R15 pupils to the Swansea Urdd Eisteddfod in half term. Everyone had an excellent day experiencing the best of Wales’ youngsters who participated in song, recitation, drama, dance, composing, poetry, arts and crafts competitions. The pupils walked around the ‘maes’ (field) where there were numerous stalls where they purchased things such as Welsh cards, books, jewellery, clothes and food at lunchtime. There was also a fair where they had tremendous fun on the rides. This trip was really worthwhile, providing a great insight into Welsh culture and especially the Welsh language. 

May 2011

• Ralph Pompeus (R16) represents Wales at Under 15 European Squash Team Championships and achieves bronze medal - May 2011.
Congratulations to Ralph on this superb achievement!

• Ella Evans (R7) selected for Elite Development Squad for Welsh Gymnastics - May 2011.
After a recent trial Ella Evans has been selected for the Elite Development Squad for Welsh Gymnastics. There are only 5 girls in each year that are chosen in Wales.  Congratulations, Ella!

• Junior Enterprise Week raises £300 for Noah's Ark Appeal- Thurs 26 May 2011.
See 'Junior School' page for more details.
On Thursday 26 May a cheque for £300 will be presented to the Noah's Ark Appeal. This money was raised by the children during Enterprise Week in October.  A representative from the Children's Hospital in Wales will come along to receive the cheque and to speak about their work.

• R11 Return from Activities trip to Abergavenny- Wed 18-Fri 20 May 2011.
See 'Junior School' page for more details.
R11 have all returned safely from their residential stay in Abergavenny.  They enjoyed excellent weather for the activities they undertook.  As a group they worked very well together and participated in all tasks with great enjoyment.

The staff at the Centre commented on the politeness of the children who conducted themselves very well.
Well done, R11!

• R14 pupils awarded certificates for KS3 Mathematics Masterclasses at Glamorgan University - May 2011.
See 'Senior School' page for more details.
Ali J, Jack I, Abhinaba G, James B, Namitha M, Hannah S and Natasha S of R14 proudly show their certificates, awarded for completing the KS3 Mathematics Master Classes at the University of Glamorgan.

 

 

• Positrons Chess Team win promotion to division 3 of East Glamorgan League - May 2011.
St John's Chess Club (SJCC) participates in the East Glamorgan League on a Monday from 7.30pm to 10pm.  Congratulations to St John's Positrons (Senior team) who are at the top of division 4 and will be promoted to division 3 in September.  Pupils represented the school at this level are:Karthik Kumar, Tom Boocock, Abhinaba Guha and Aditya Nanapaneni.

 

 

 

• Early Years & Infants Newsletter: /f/IS_Newsletter_May_2011.pdf

• R12 History Trip to Chepstow Castle and Chepstow Museum - Mon 16 May 2011.
See 'Senior School' page for more details.
R12 historians have had a thoroughly enjoyable trip to Chepstow Castle and Chepstow Museum, including a guided tour by a Norman knight who gave fascinating demonstrations of Medieval weapons, armour and many aspects of daily life in the Castle.  The pupils then had some free time to explore the many passageways and staircases of this imposing and atmospheric castle. Following lunch and a visit to the gift shop, the girls and boys (and even some staff members!) had great fun reenacting battles with toy wooden swords and bows and arrows. 

At Chepstow Museum the children filled in worksheets on historical exhibits which traced the development of Chepstow as a town.  It was a wonderful day for both staff and pupils and brought to life much of what we have been studying in class.  The girls and boys can be particularly commended for their excellent behaviour throughout the trip.

Mr J. Neville.

 

• Dominic Yau wins silver medal in U15 80m hurdles at the South Wales and East Wales Track & Field Championships at Leckwith Stadium - Sat 14 May. 
Following several months of training, this is a very impressive achievement.  Well done, Dominic.

• R12 Theatre Trip - Goodnight Mr Tom- Thurs 12 May 2011.

• R9 History Trip - Llancaiach Fawr - Thurs 12 May 2011.

              • R10 & R11 Visit by P.C. Pope - Thurs 12 May 2011.

• U11 Rugby Team compete at Cardiff Arms Park- Tues 10 May 2011.
The Under 11 Boys Tag Rugby Team have competed superbly at the Tag Rugby festival at Cardiff Arms Park this week. Excellent performances came from Gruff Shewring, Dylan Edwards and Benedict Dimond. The boys played against Llansannor Primary, Y Bont Faen Primary, St David’s Primary and Bishop Childs Primary.

 

 

• R7 Big Pit visit- Tues 10 May 2011.
See 'Early Years & Infants' page for more details.
R7 are studying Welsh History through looking at life and conditions for working people in Blaenafon in the past.
The pupils were amazed to find out how hard life was for children. We had a memorable visit to Big Pit where David, our miner guide, took us on an underground tour. Turning off our lamps gave us an opportunity to experience ‘pitch black’ total darkness. Back at school the children wrote thank you letters and drew charcoal pictures of the pithead.

 

• R8 & R9 ‘Wonderful Weather’ Geography trip- Tue 10 May 2011.

• Sam Wink wins British Schools Tumbling Championships!- Sun 8 May 2011.

• Georgia Wink competes in Women's Compulsory Levels in Birmingham- May 2011.
Georgia Wink was recently selected to represent Wales and competed in the Women's Compusory Levels in Birmingham.  This competition is the elite pathway in British Gymnastics, and she came 11th individually overall - an outstanding result.

• Sixth Formers Raise Money for Japan- May 2011.
Sixth Formers have been selling personalised keyrings to raise money for Japan, raising a total of £288.68.  Particular thanks to Nao Yamamoto (U6th) for organising fundraising.

• Spring Orchestra Concert, School Hall, 7.00pm- Thurs 5 May 2011.
Many congratulations to all of the many musicians involved in the magnificent concert on Thursday evening.  Thank you also to the many parents and grandparents who supported the concert.  Please click on the following link to view the concert programme:/f/Spring_Concert_2011.pdf

April 2011

• William James (L6th) reaches Everest base camp in Nepal for Marie Curie Cancer Care - April 2011.
During the easter period William James (Lower 6th student) undertook a trek to Everest base camp in Nepal to raise £1000 for Marie Curie Cancer Care. William completed this impressive feat over 16 days during his stay between 13th April the 2nd May, during which he reached heights of around 18,500ft.  William is already more than half way towards his £1000 goal. Donations can be made via:http://www.justgiving.com/william-james93.

• The Vatican has appointed the Westminster auxiliary bishop, Bishop George Stack, as Archbishop elect to serve the Archdiocese of Cardiff -Tuesday 19 April 2011.
We warmly welcome him and look forward to singing in his presence at future Cathedral celebrations of the Liturgy.

• Cathedral Choir Concert at St David’s Hall: Handel Messiah -Tuesday 12 April 2011.
The boys, girls and gentlemen of the Cathedral Choir performed Handel's masterpiece with orchestra to a very large audience at St David's Hall.

 

 

 

• Trip to RHS Flower Show for R9 Finalists in RHS Wheelbarrow Competition- Fri 8 April 2011. See 'Junior' page for more details.
R9 pupils had a wonderful day at the RHS Flower Show in Bute Park.  On their tour of the Show the children met a Victorian flower seller who talked about natural remedies and a member of the Cardiff Bonsai Society who explained about the importance of caring for Bonsai trees.  Along the way, the boys and girls also enioyed ice-creams and a spontaneous dance to some live folk music!  

 

• Nursery topic - 'Fairytales' - Winter 2011. See 'Early Years & Infants' page for more details.
The Nursery topic this term has been 'Fairytales'. The children have been learning about traditional fairytales, castles and dragons. We had a trip to Castell Coch where we found a real princess and we celebrated The Royal Wedding with a Royal Banquet. We even had 2 very special guests!

 

 

• R10 Residential Stay at the Millennium Centre - Tues 5 - Wed 6 April. See 'Junior School' page for more details.
During their two day trip, the pupils explored the Millennium Stadium, visited the Norwegian Church where they did art work, had a behind-the-scenes visit to the Millennium Centre where they learnt many interesting facts about the construction of the building and the art work, and even saw the dressing rooms and costumes. In the evening everyone enjoyed bowling in the Dragon Centre before returning to the Youth Hostel at the Millennium Centre for the night.

The next day geography and maths were on the agenda as well as a visit to the Senedd. The guide at the Senedd commented that our pupils were one of the best groups of children that he had ever escorted.

Before returning to school everyone enjoyed a boat trip around the Bay in brilliant sunshine.

The children conducted themselves very well and were a credit to the school.

Well done, R10!

• Teri Gee and Matthew Edwards win Dewar Shield with Cardiff U15's Rugby Team -Wed 6 April.
Congratulations to Teri Gee and Matthew Edwards who were part of the Cardiff Schools Under 15’s Rugby Team that won the Dewar Shield by beating Rhondda Schools U15’s 20-10 in the final at the Millennium Stadium.  Thanks to all of the parents and pupils who supported the boys on the day.

• R9 Parents’ Assembly See 'Junior School' page for more details.
The R9 parents’ assembly was on 1 April.  Even though it was after midday, R9 entertained their parents with April Fool jokes and tricks, bringing a smile to everyone’s face. 

This was followed by musical items by budding pianists, violinists and a 'cellist.

Well done, R9!

• Sixth Form Charity Fundraising: Smoothie and Cake sale for LATCH and Cancer Research UK - Tues 5 April.

• Michael Diamond (R13 Cathedral Chorister) sang the treble solos in Mendelssohn's Elijah with Llandaff Cathedral Choral Society alongside former St John's College pupil and professional tenor, Mark Chaundy - Sat 2 April, Llandaff Cathedral, 7.30pm.

• Sixth Form English trip to Stratford-upon-Avon to visit William Shakespeare's birthplace and to see the RSC production of 'King Lear' at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre - Thurs 31 March. See 'Sixth Form College' page for more details.

 

 

 

March 2011

• Starlab - Mon 28 March 2011 See 'Junior School' page for more details.
On Monday, 28^th March, Techniquest brought their portable planetarium to school and each of the Junior classes had an opportunity to learn almost first-hand about the solar system.

Starlab is a large inflatable dome which was assembled in the Hall.  After a short introduction by two very knowledgeable guides from Techniquest the pupils crawled into the dome and enjoyed a presentation on the planets. The most exciting part was when all lights were extinguished in the dome and the top of the dome turned into the night sky.

• Junior Readathon - March 2011 See 'Junior School' page for more details.
The children have been busy reaching their personal reading goals by fitting in extra reading time and collecting sponsorship money. It has been a pleasure to witness the children’s enthusiasm for reading and their and your efforts in supporting the charities. Over £700 has been raised through all the hard work.  This is an incredible result.  It will help local children with serious illnesses. This also means that we shall be able to choose books to the value of £100 from Scholastic. 

During Readathon the pupils also collected together their favourite jokes and have made a Junior Joke Book that will go on sale for the price of printing the book which is 40p.   The school will support the sale of this by making a donation to Comic Relief that also fell within the timescale of the Readathon Challenge.  Many of the pupils have used their art and IT skills to produce the book. 

Well done to all the Junior pupils.

Mrs C. Loveland (Head of Juniors).

• Lower 6th trip to Oxford / Cambridge Conference at the Millennium Stadium - Wed 23 March.

• Sixth Form Physics Trip to Swansea: Physics Particle Masterclass - Wed 23 March.
The Sixth Formers enjoyed a very informative conference hosted by Swansea University, comprising a day of lectures, practicals and discussion.

• R15 History Trip to the Imperial War Museum, London - Wed 23 March. See 'Senior School' page for more details.
R15 historians enjoyed an immensely informative day at the Imperial War Museum, including the ‘Blitz Experience’, where an ARP warden led the pupils through a bombed out London street.  This was followed by some free time where pupils were able to see exhibits about conflicts involving this country throughout the twentieth century to the present day.  It was a wonderful day for both staff and pupils and went a long way to enhancing our understanding of conflicts past and present and their consequences.

 

• Sixth Formers take part in National Business and Enterprise Competition, run by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales (ICAEW).  See 'Sixth Form College' page for more details.
A group of 6 Sixth Form Economics Students travelled to Oxford to partake in a National Business and Enterprise Competition (BASE) run by the Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales (ICAEW).  The event saw the team (Charlotte Camilleri, Macario Chung, James Hodge, Jerry Zhuo, Yinglun Teng and Howard Cheung, all of Lower Sixth) analyse a case study of a business and present their findings in a five minute public presentation.  The team performed exceptionally well against immense time pressure and produced an insightful evaluation and a very professional presentation.  The team also gained some invaluable careers advice from top firms of accountants exhibiting at the event.  The competition was designed to enhance their business and enterprise skills and also give insight into financial careers.

• R13 Theatre Trip - A Midsummer Night’s Dream - Tues 15 March.
R13 enjoyed an afternoon at the theatre watching Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' at the Wales Millennium Centre. This was a lively and energetic production of the comedy, enhanced by the state-of-the-art staging and setting at Wales' newest theatrical venue.

 

 

• Celtic Cup 2011 - Sam Wink: Gymnastics Champion!
On Saturday 11^th March Sam represented Wales in the 2011 Celtic Cup held in Belfast, Northern Ireland.  He formed part of a 5 strong Under 13 team competing against Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man.

Samuel performed on 6 pieces of apparatus, the Floor exercise, Pommel Horse, Rings, Vault, Parallel Bars and the High Bar.  Samuel competed well and was the second highest overall scorer in his team.  The team finished in 1^st position and Wales are the Celtic Cup champions for 2011.

 

 

• R15 Geography Field Trip: Rivers - Wed 16 March.  See 'Senior School' page for more details.
The R15 geography students had a very enjoyable and informative trip to The Ty’r Morwydd Field Study Centre in Abergavenny.  From the Talybont reservoir, the pupils climbed the hill to their first site. Three sites were explored on the Afon Caerfanell, which were chosen to represent the upper, middle and lower stages of the river.  The pupils produced field sketches and photographs and measured and recorded characteristics, such as width, depth, wetted perimeter, bedload size and shape and velocity. Personal observations are perhaps the most memorable way to bring the textbook to life; to see the river features in their natural surroundings.

Back in the classroom the students are processing the data collected and will analyse the results, draw conclusions and evaluate their investigations. In September the same students will embark on another fieldtrip day to carry out a human geography investigation; this time for their GCSE Controlled Assessment and so their experience now in R15 will be invaluable.

Mrs Waters.

• Intermediate Mathematical Challenge 2011.
Congratulations to the following students for some outstanding results in the recent competition:

Gold Certificate: Joanna Leigh, Sandeep Karthikeyan, George Thomas, Morgan Foley, Richard Griffith.

Silver Certificate: Dylan Robson, Graeme McCann, Rebecca Stevens, Catrin Taylor, Tom Morris, Anna Jones, Karthik Kumar, Jonathan Tong, Jack Israel, Abhinaba Guha, James Ball, Natasha Sturrock.

Bronze Certificate: Sam Butcher, Chun Yin Choi, Scott Gordon, Emyr Thomas, Lucy Daly, Waseem Jawad, David Birley, Joseph Evans, Max Cliffe, Charlie Hall, Hannah Son, Ali Jaffar, Yuchen Zhu.

Next Round Qualifiers: George T (R15) and Jack I (R14)
Good luck, both!

Mrs Regan.

• Cardiff Schools Under15’s Rugby success.
Congratulations to Matthew Edwards and Teri Gee who have both starred in Cardiff’s semi final victory over Llanelli Schools on Wednesday 16 March. The win puts the boys into the final against Swansea Valley which is being played at the Millennium Stadium on 8th April. We will be organising a school trip to go and support them.  Please watch this space for details.

PE Department.

• Ballet Success for Sophie Nethercott(R15).
Congratulations to Sophie who got through to a performance of Coppelia with English Youth Ballet.  Only 20 dancers were chosen out of approximately 70.  The audition took place in The New Theatre (Cardiff) and lasted 2 hours.  Sophie will experience casting and a photo shoot in May and the show takes place in July.  Early booking recommended.
http://www.englishyouthballet.co.uk/productionscoppelia.html

• Red Nose Day Cake Sale- Fri 18 March, Dining Room.
By popular demand, St John's College pupils organised a Cake Sale and a variety of actvities - Joke Factor, sponsored sing-along and sponsored skipping (to name just a few)in the Dining Room to raise money for Red Nose Day. The day was a great success and hugely enjoyed by all the pupils. We had a magnificent response to our cake sale and raffle. Mrs Brown would like to thank all those who generously donated cakes and raffle prizes. The total amount raised so far is £1,150. We are expecting to raise extra funds this week from the sale of the joke book produced by pupils in the Junior Department. Congratulations and well done to everyone involved!

Mrs Brown.

• UWCM Open Day 'Science in Health 2011' for Lower 6th students - Thurs 17 March.

• Ross Lisney-Wilson (R14) has gained a very high distinction in grade 5 bassoon - congratulations Ross.

• World Maths Day & World Spelling Day 2011 success - Wed 2 March
Thank you and well done to all those pupils who took part in the World Maths Day and World Spelling Day competition.  Congratulations to the following pupils who performed very well in the practice and actual event:
 
Dylan Edwards, Shaili Kadambande, Aditya Joshi, Patrick Nielsen, Nicholas Daly, Joel Neelankavil, Robert Field, Anthony Smith, Marco Aldridge, Harini Somasekar, Olivia Montgomery, Nithin Michael, Aron Amal-Calist, Raisah Rahim, Edward Williams, Niamh Field, Suyash Agarwal, Charles Williams, Gwennan Shewring, Chirag Goyal, Eleanor South, Jack Aldridge, Joshua Wright, Amber Knappe, Jasmine Son and Catrin Dimond.

• Sam Wink wins gold medal in Welsh Schools Gymnastics Competition (U12)- Fri 4 March.
See 'Sports News' page for more details.

• Welsh Gymnastics champions, Samuel and Georgia Wink, have great success at national finals!
Please click the following links to see videos of outstanding performances by Sam and Georgia:/f/sam_rings.flv

/f/georgia_floor.flv
Congratulations to Samuel and Georgia Wink, who each gained 1st place in the recent Welsh Gymnastics Competitions (19 February 2011). Georgia came first and is now the Welsh Compulsory Level 4 champion and as a result has now been selected to compete in a team for Wales in the British Finals at the end of April. Samuel is yet again the U12 Welsh Champion. Samuel will compete in Ireland for Wales on 12th March.

• Choir Schools Association Sports Festival at Llandaff Cathedral - Wed 2 March.
On Wednesday 2 March, the girl and boy Cathedral Choristers took part in an immensely enjoyable day of football, netball and choral evensong, hosted this year, by Llandaff Cathedral School.  Congratulations to the boys who reached the final of the Football Plate Cup and to the girls who performed very well against strong competition in the netball tournament.  The choristers sang splendidly with the 150 choristers from the cathedral choirs of Bristol, Exeter, Hereford, Llandaff, Wells, Worcester, and the choristers of Tewkesbury Abbey and Magdalen College, Oxford. 

 

• Junior Eisteddfod - Tues 1 March. See 'Junior School' page for more details.
To celebrate St David's Day, the Junior School enjoyed an Eisteddfod on the morning of March 1st.  The standard of competition this year was particularly high; Music, recitation, written work, art and handicrafts presented the judges with difficult decisions.
This year the Bard was Robert Field who had the highest score.  There were three runners up: Dylan Edwards, Ben Dimond and Patrick Neilson.  The winning House was De La Salle.  Congratulations to everyone who took part. 

 

• Middle School Eisteddfod- Tues 1 March

Mostyn house were deserving winners of the Middle School Eisteddfod this year. Dominie Patel won the prestigious bard competition winning the most points scored from R12, R13 and R14. Other winners included Jack Mann in the English competition, Noa Gabay playing the harp in the music competition and Soroya Alburquerque in the maths competition. A fun and exciting afternoon for all – da iawn! Thank you for all teachers for their thorough preparation.

• Kate Gildersleve (R16) selected for the U17 Wales Netball European Squad 2011.

Kate is one of onlythree girls in the whole of the Cardiff and the Vale area to reach the European Squad.  Many congratulations to Kate on this outstanding achievement.  http://www.welshnetball.co.uk/under17s.htm

February 2011

• Cathedral Choir tour to Paris including a concert at Nôtre Dame Cathedraland The Madeleine - Wed 16 - Fri 18 February 2011:

It was a magnificent trip, and the choir sang superbly before an audience of well over 400 at the Madeleine, and an estimated audience of 1000 at Nôtre Dame. There were so many other highlights from the excursions too, including the amazing views from the top of the Arc de Triomphe, and the wonderful cruise on the River Seine.  A diary of the tripwill follow.
- see 'Music and Performance' page for details.

• Senior pupils have been entered for World Maths Day 2011 and are currently attending Royal Institute Mathematics Masterclasses.
- see 'Senior School' page for details.

• Joe Holmes (R16) crowned overall winner of the Cardiff Schools Climbing Championships.
Joe not only came out on top in his age category (Under 18), but also scored the highest out of any of the 227 competitors. Joe trains with the Cardiff-based Boulders Club and we are delighted that he was able to use his talents to represent the school. Congratulations, Joe.

 

• Junior Swimming Gala at Pentwyn Leisure Centre, 9.30am - 1.00pm - Tues 8 February 2011 Results: /f/Junior_Swimming_Gala_2011.pdf

• Junior School Newsletter: /f/JS_Newsletter_Feb_2011.pdf

January 2011

• St John's Sixth Formers reach Welsh Final of Cambridge Union Schools Debating Competition- Sat 29 January 2011
On Saturday 29 January, Elnaz S & Arvind K (Team A) and Idrees A &Ying T (Team B) travelled to Pontyclun to compete in the Cambridge Union Schools Debating Competition hosted by Y Pant Comprehensive School.  Team A, Elnaz & Arvind, performed outstandingly well and reached the fiercely contested Welsh final.  In her first ever public debate, Elnaz should be particularly commended for this outstanding achievement.  Congratulations to all of the students who took part.
- see 'Sixth Form College' page for details.

• Junior Girls' Choir trip to Cinderella at the New Theatre - Wed 19 January

• Middle School Newsletter: /f/MS_Newsletter_Jan_2011.pdf

December 2010

• Christmas Concert and Awards Ceremony- Tues 14 Dec 2010
The evening witnessed outstanding performances from the Concert Orchestra of Wagner Overture to Meistersinger, Jerry Zhuo (L6th Music student) Adagio, Massenet Meditation of Thaïs, Bizet Entr'acte to Carmen, Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2, Movt. 2 and Brahms Academic Festival Overture as well as performances by the Cathedral Choirs, Sixth Form Close Harmony, the Training Orchestra, the Flute Choir, chamber ensembles and a selection of solo items.  Please click on the following link for the concert programme: /f/Christmas_Concert_&_Awards_Ceremony_Dec_2010.pdf

• Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2, Movt. 2 performed by the Concert Orchestra at the Christmas Concert and Awards Ceremony
(Piano solo - Harrison D (Upper Sixth Form student, who has recently gained an unconditional offer to study Law at Oxford University):  http://www.rachman.stjohnscollege.info/ 

• L6 DNA Photocopying Workshop at Techniquest
- see 'Sixth Form College' page for details.

• Senior School pupils achieve high position in Four Nations Maths Challenge
- see 'Senior School' page for details. 

• Primary Maths Challenge success for Junior pupils
- see 'Junior School' page for details.

• R9T raise £193 for Children in Need
- see 'Junior School' page for details.

November 2010

• St David's Hall annual Christmas Concert - Tues 30 November
The boy, girls and gentlemen of the Choir performed an exceptional concert to a large audience.  An immensely rich and varied repertoire stretched from plainsong to Renaissance polyphony (Laetentur coeli of Byrd), through to extracts from the Bach Magnificat and contemporary works, such as Lauridsen's O magnum mysterium.

• Early Years & Infants Newsletter:/f/IS_Newsletter_November_2010.pdf

• Senior School Golfers play at unveiling of newly expanded Began Park Golf Centre
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

• R15 Biology Trip to Botanic Garden of Wales
- see 'Senior School' page for details.

• Remembrance Day 2010 - Pupils attend the opening ceremony of the Garden of Remembrance in Cardiff Castle.
- see 'Senior School' page for details.

• St John's College Calendar 2010-2011: /f/SJC_Calendar_2010-2011.pdf

• James Minto (R13) has succesfully gained a place in the British Cycling DHL Sprint School.  Ben Dimond (R11) has been selected to represent Cardiff Schools in swimming. Congratulations to both pupils for these outstanding achievements.

• International Golfer, Rhian Wyn Thomas, presents awards at annual Sports Awards Assembly October 2010!
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

October 2010

• Patrick Gildersleve (Sixth Form) hunts variable stars - Faulkes Telescope Project: http://www.faulkes-telescope.com/news/2322

• Exciting Middle School Careers events have been taking place over the past few weeks
- see 'Senior School' page for details.

• International Golfer, Rhian Wyn Thomas, presents awards at annual Sports Awards Assembly October 2010!

• Yinglun Teng in National Mathematics Summer School 2010
- see 'Senior School' page for details.

September 2010

• Junior School Newsletter - September 2010:/f/JS_Newsletter_September_2010.pdf

• The St John's College Chess Club has begun the new academic year with several victories in the East Glamorgan Chess Association
- new members of all ages are very welcome.  See 'Senior School' page for details.

• Sixth Form Debating Society meets on Thursdays at 1.10pm - in previous years the Society has won prizes at county-level and in national debating competitions at the Oxford Union and at the Cambridge Union.  Sixth Form students are encouraged to contribute to debating topics, and to develop their analytical and presentation skills. 

• Robert Field (R11 Cathedral chorister) is currently a soloist in Welsh National Opera's performance of Mozart's The Magic Flute.

• Former St John's College pupil takes Edinburgh Fringe by storm!
- Kathryn Griffiths, former pupil of St John's College, who is currently reading English at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, has achieved great success at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with her play, The Cure.  Please follow the link below for a published article written by another former St John's College pupil who is currently studying English at Durham University, Emily Hodge.
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2010/08/12/kat-griffiths-takes-the-fringe-by-storm-91466-27046444/

• Kate Gildersleve selected for Welsh Netball Squad
Congratulations to Kate Gildersleve who has been selected for the Welsh Netball Squad.  Over a hundred talent-identified girls competed for the  final squad of 25.  Kate will even be playing alongside the U17 & U19 Welsh National Team.  Very well done to Kate.

August 2010

• Elizabeth Skene has been selected to represent Wales in Volleyball
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

July 2010

• Junior School Newsletter: f/JS_Newsletter_July_2010.pdf

• De la Salle - winners of Junior Sports Day - Tues 6 July
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

• Success for Lucy Daly in Welsh Schools Championships pole vault competition - Sat 3 July
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

• Joint Charity concert with the Schola of the London Oratory School, St Peter's Roath - Sat 3 July
Our Cathedral Choirs joined forces with the Schola of the London Oratory School to perform an outstanding concert on Saturday night followed by Sunday morning mass.
- see 'Music & Performance' page for details.

• Bute House - winners of Senior Sports Day - Fri 2 July
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

• Congratulations to Kane Teear- Bourge in the Junior School who has been chosen to train with Bristol Rovers
Both Kane & Charles Williams have been chosen to play for Cardiff Schools next season. This is a great honour for the school and we wish the boys every success.

• Inter-house Rounders Competition - Thurs 1 July
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

June 2010

• Visiting Choir from Rouen - Tues 29 June
We were very pleased to welcome the choir for their fourth visit to us in Cardiff.

• R7 Welsh Week - Mon 21-Fri 26 June
- see 'Early Years & Infants' page for details.

• Congratulations to Noa Gabay of R12 - Winner of the Urdd National Eisteddfod Solo Harp Competition 2010
- see 'Music & Performance' page for details.

• Golf success for Junior girls
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

• R8 & R9 trip to Botanical Gardens Wales
- see 'Junior School' page for details.

• First Holy Communion - Sun 13 June
The children taking their First Holy Communion were a great credit to the school.  The Cathedral Choir sang Parry's I was glad at the service, and the children had a very enjoyable reception at the Park Plaza in the afternoon.

May 2010

• Nursery & R6 trip to the Beach
- see 'Early Years & Infants' page for details.

• Early Years & Infants Newsletter: f/IS_Newsletter_June_2010.pdf

• R11 Residential Study, Abergavenny: Wed 19 May - Fri 21 May 2010

• Early Years & Infants news on World Maths Day, Big Pit visit & Ancient Egypt project - see 'Early Years & Infants' for details.

• Sixth Form Tennis Team storm ahead in Regional Schools Tournament 
- see 'Sixth Form College' page for details.

• Athletics County Championship success for R15 and R16 girls and boys
- see 'Sport News' for details.

• R13 Options Evening – Wednesday, 5th May
A very successful Options evening was held for R13 pupils, to guide them in their GCSE options beginning in R14.

April 2010

• UK Junior Maths Challenge – Thursday, 29th April

• Spring Orchestral Concert – Wednesday, 28th April at 7pm
Congratulations to the Concert Orchestra, Training Orchestra, Flute Choir, Junior Girls Choir and the Metropolitan Cathedral Choirs, as well as soloists, for outstanding performances.

• Middle School Newsletter: f/MS_Newsletter_April_2010.pdf

• The Early Years & Infants Department news on Sport Relief, RHS Flower Show Wheelbarrow Competition and the PE session, 'Patterns' - see 'Early Years & Infants' for details.

March 2010

• R9 trip to Cardiff Central Library - Thursday, 25th March

• Choir Schools Association Sports Festival - Magdalen College, Oxford - Wed 24 March
We'd like to congratulate the choristers for their wonderful achievements at Oxford on Wednesday.  They sang splendidly with the 150 choristers from the cathedral choirs of Bristol, Exeter, Hereford, Llandaff, Wells, Worcester, and the choristers of Tewkesbury and Magdalen College, Oxford.

We are extremely proud of the girls' netball team who won the entire netball competition for the second year in a row and remain unbeaten in CSA sporting history.  We are equally proud of the boys, who scored several truly outstanding goals and came through to be victorious as winners of the football plate.

A special note of congratulations to Ross Lisney-Wilson for his solo treble performance in Handel's Messiah with Llandaff Cathedral Choral Society on Saturday evening.  The performance was a sell-out and received a standing ovation!

• Easter Concert given by Cardiff Metropolitan Cathedral Choir at St David’s Hall, Cardiff, 1.00pm - Tues 23 March
- Many congratulations to the Cathedral choristers for a magnificent performance of Bach's St John Passion to a large audience on Tuesday.  The opening chorus was especially thrilling.

• Nursery Outdoor Activities (including building a den!)
  - see 'Early Years & Infants' for details

• R13 Art trip to National Museum of Wales, 9.45am-12.30pm - Fri 19th March

• 'Jeeves & Wooster' Senior Musical Drama Productions.  Congratulations to all the pupils involved, whose outstanding performances matched the professional set on Thursday 4th and Friday 5th March - Please see 'Senior School' page for details.

• Junior School News

Eisteddfod - it was a lovely morning on 26th Feb, with work and performances of the highest standard.
Congratulations to the Bard  -  Soichiro Kikuchi.  Runners up were Andrea Mizzen, Hope Tranter and Gabrielle O'Sullivan.

Snow Queen - What can one say about The Snow Queen?  What an experience!  What a spectacle!  What fun we had on the way!  Great sets and costumes!  All the junior children surpassed themselves.  We felt truly proud of them.  Thanks to all parents who helped so enthusiastically  with costumes, props and make-up.  Such a show only came about because of teamwork.  Well done everybody!
   
On the 12th March, R11 visited the Police Facility at Treforest  - Crucial Crew -  where they learned about many of the dangers in the home and out and about. They learned about keeping themselves safe in a fun way.  All said that it was a great trip.

The Junior School raised £50 on Tuesday, 16th March from Beat the Goalie - Mrs Loveland being in goal.  Well done everybody who participated.

On Tuesday evening, parents of R11 were invited to a meeting about the summer residential course.  If parents were unable to attend the meeting all information will be sent out by Mrs Cooke. Please try to return the forms as quickly as possible.

Mrs. E. Loveland (Head of Juniors)

February 2010

• Infant Department Eisteddfod - Mon 1 March

• Middle School (R12, R13) Eisteddfod (Hall) - Fri 26 Feb

• Junior Department Eisteddfod (Rm 3.1) - Fri 26 Feb

• Early Years & Infants celebrate Chinese New Year
- see 'Early Years & Infants' for details

• Cathedral Choir BBC radio broadcast - 14 February
  - The Choir performed Bruckner's Os Justi magnificently

• Junior Swimming Gala (Pentwyn Leisure Centre) - Tues 9 February 2010, 9.30am - 1.00pm
  - see this week's 'Sports News' for details

• Early Years & Infants Newsletter: f/IS_Newsletter_Feb_2010.pdf

January 2010

• Junior School Newsletter: f/JS_Newsletter_Jan_2010.pdf

• Maths Pop Quiz success for fifth form pupils!
- see 'Senior School' page for details.

December 2009

• Boy & Girl Cathedral Choristers in BBC's Doctor Who - Christmas 2009
- see 'Music & Performance' page for details.

• Middle School Newsletter - December 2009: f/MS_Newsletter_Dec_09.pdf

• The Christmas Tableau at St Cadoc’s Church at 10.30am (Early Years & Infants) - Tues 8 December

• Nursery, R5 and R6 visit the Sherman Theatre - Fri 11 December

• Christmas Production of The Bossy King in the school hall at 7pm - Mon 14 December

• Nursery & Infant Christmas party - Tues 15 December

• CHRISTMAS CONCERT & AWARDS PRESENTATION
Founders Day, School Hall, 7.00pm: Tues 15 December 
Awards Ceremony for R16 pupils, Lower Sixth, Upper Sixth & former Sixth Form students.
This was a most enjoyable evening for pupils and parents alike, celebrating the achievements of our current and former pupils, and showcasing the latest musical offerings of the school's many talented musicians.  It was wonderful to see so many former pupils at the ceremony, many of whom had just returned from their first term at University.  Congratulations to members of the Concert Orchestra, the Training Orchestra, the Flute Choir as well as the Cathedral Choirs for performing so beautifully.

• R7 to R11 trip to the Sherman Theatre ‘A Christmas Carol' - Wed 16 December

• Christmas Assembly - Wed 16 December

• For the 'Jeeves & Wooster' cast list & weekly rehearsal updates, please see the Drama section of the 'Music & Performance' page.

• Gibraltar Tour Bowling Trip - Tuesday 15 December
Mrs Crawford organised a fantastic trip to the bowling alley at Cardiff Bay on Tuesday night for the Gibraltar Netball Tour squad.  We
had an excellent turn out with 26 pupils and 4 members of staff.  Mrs Brown ensured that we all had a pair of tour socks to mark the occasion. Winners received a free bowl on their next visit. 

• Trip to Brecon Mountain Railway - Thurs 3 December
The Nursery & Infant children had an immensely enjoyable day at the Brecon Mountain Railway, experiencing an authentic steam train, breathtaking views and even time to have fun in the play area.
- see 'Early Years & Infants' page for details.

• Music for Advent & Christmas
Lunchtime Concert at St David’s Hall, 1.00pm - Tues 1 December
The Cathedral choristers performed outstandingly to an audience of around one thousand people on Tuesday.  Congratulations to the boys, girls and gentlemen for such a beautiful performance.

November 2009

• Full Junior School rehearsal of  'The Snow Queen' - Fri 27 November
Thank you to all parents for assisting your children with learning of lines in preparation for the forthcoming Junior Christmas Production.  There outstanding performances, and I am sure the final performance will be immensely enjoyable!

• Operation Christmas Child - Wed 25 November
The 'Shoebox Appeal' has been a great success this year.  More than one hundred boxes were donated.  Thank you for your generosity.

• L6 Biology DNA Fingerprinting Workshop - Tues 24 November
- see 'Sixth Form College' page for details.

 

• Children In Need Cake Sale - Fri 20 November
Our annual cake sale and raffle took place on Friday 20 November.  Thank you to all parents for your generous gifts of home-made cakes, sweets and raffle prizes.  This year we raised more than £1000 for Children In Need.

 

 

• R10 visit to 'Horrible Histories' at the New Theatre - Wed 18 November
R10 attended a 'Horrible Histories' production of the First World War at the New Theatre.  The children enjoyed it very much and learnt a great deal.

• R11 Victorian Day - Mon 16 November
The recreation of a Victorian lesson in Maestir School House at St Fagan's was both very informative and fun for all the children involved.  Many children bought the bread baked in the traditional wood-fired oven for their parents after their visit to the school house.

• Charity News
Harvest Festival: Many thanks to parents for your most generous response to our Harvest Festival.  Your contributions enabled us to distribute more than 100 parcels to the elderly, sick and needy in our local community.  The school has received many messages of thanks from individuals and organisations we have supported.
Remembrance Day: On Wednesday 11 November we had a whole school assembly for Remembrance Day with beautiful and moving offerings from the Concert Orchestra including Dido's Lament by Henry Purcell and the Music from Band of Brothers by Michael Kamen, as well as The Last Post, performed beautifully by trumpeter Joseph Evans. Poppies were on sale throughout the school as well as a small number of wooden crosses.  Pupils wrote on the crosses the names of family members who were casualties of war, and these were placed on the table of remembrance during the service.

On behalf of the staff, I wish to express my appreciation for your continued support.

Mrs L. Brown

• Early Years & Infants Newsletter - November 09: f/IS_Newsletter_Nov_09.pdf

• Early Years & Infants News - for news of our youngest gardeners, storytelling, Book Day, this year's Christmas Production, and the latest photos of forest school activities, please see the 'Early Years & Infants' page.

• R9 Special Assembly
The R9 Special Assembly took place on Friday 6th November, attended by many parents.  The children delighted the audience by performing a play, by recitation and their musical talents.  The children were presented with certificates outlining their achievements in R9.  All the children are a credit to the school.  Congratulations to everyone in R9.

• For news of the recent Gibraltar Netball Tour and this year's Sports Awards Assembly, please see the 'Sports News' page.

• Snow Queen News
All pupils are now learning the songs for the musical 'The Snow Queen'
R10 and R11 are practising the play every Tuesday.  Please would parents help their children with the learning of their parts.

October 2009

• R11 Enterprise Week & Trade Fair - Mon 12 Oct to Fri 16 Oct
R11 have raised about £600 for the Children's Hospital in Wales.
- see 'Junior School' page for details.

• Gibraltar Netball Tour 2009 itinerary f/Gibraltar_itinerary_final_itinerary.doc

• Junior Book Week - Mon 28 Sep to Fri 3 Oct
£300 was raised for books and the children especially enjoyed the visit of Enid Middleton, Welsh storyteller on Fri 3 Oct.
- see 'Junior School' page for details.

September 2009

• Junior School Newsletter - September 2009: f/JS_Newsletter_Sep_09.pdf

• R14 pupils' Art & DT trip to Bristol Zoo - Monday 21st September.
- see 'Senior School' page for details.

• The Cathedral Choir sings to thousands at the Benediction and Mass for the Reception of the Relics of St Thérèse of Lisieux - Tuesday 22 September.
- see 'Music & Performance' page for details.

• St John's College Gibraltar Netball Tour October 2009 News!
- see 'Sports News' page for details.

• New Adventurous Activities introduced to PE this year!
The entire Junior & Senior Schools (R8 - R16) have greatly enjoyed the introduction of 'adventurous activities' to the PE curriculum since the beginning of the new term.  The activities have helped pupils develop their team building skills, problem solving, communicating and working with others.
- see 'Sports News' page for details.  

Junior School News this Week:
• R8 Trip to the National Museum of Wales to aid science, history & art studies (Wednesday 16 September).
• Snow Queen Audition scripts have been distributed to pupils in R10 & R11
- see 'Junior School' page for details.

August 2009

• A level Results 2009

Leading Wales again in combined A+B grades as confirmed by the ISC webpage: 

*No. 6* in The Times Top Co-educational School League Table in the whole of the UK (Saturday, 29 August 2009) 

*No. 34* in the Daily Telegraph League Table of top performing schools in the whole of the UK (Saturday, 29 August 2009). 

July 2009

• Cathedral Choristers' trip to Cambridge & evensong at King's College (Sun 12 July)

The Cathedral Choristers (girls and boys age 8-15) and GCSE Music pupils have recently returned from a summer trip to the historic university town of Cambridge, where they were given a warm welcome by King's College and had the privilege of hearing the world famous Choir in its last service of the academic year.

• Congratulations to all pupils in Bute House, winners of 2009 Junior Sports Day (Tuesday 7 July)
- see the Sports News page for details.

• George Thomas (R13) is invited to Junior Mathematical Olympiad 2009
George Thomas performed so well in the Junior Challenge that he was invited to take part in the Junior Mathematical Olympiad 2009.  In the two hour long paper, he performed exceptionally well and was awarded a Distinction and a JMO medal.
- see the Senior School page for details.

• Congratulations to all pupils in Bute House, winners of 2009 Senior Sports Day (Friday 3 July)
- see the Sports News page for details.

• Junior School News 29 June - 9 July
* R7 Transition Week & Africa Assembly, 29 June - 3 July
* Lego City, 3 July
* Junior School Open Hour (Q&A for parents, 3.1), 8 July, 4-5pm
* R11 Parents' Assembly (the Dining Room), 9 July, 2pm
- see the Junior School page for details.

• Junior Girls' Cathedral Choir & R13 pupils' Summer Concert at Nazareth House, Cardiff - Wed 1 July, 2pm
As part of our commitment to wider public benefit, the Junior Girls' Cathedral Choir and R13 instrumentalists performed their annual summer concert for the residents of Nazareth House.

• Sixth Form & R14 Trip to Wimbledon - Wed 1 July
The Sixth Form & R14 Tennis teams had a very enjoyable day at Wimbledon.  The excellent weather was matched by some inspirational tennis playing.

June 2009

• Morgan Foley (R13) has passed ABRSM Grade 5 Oboe with distinction (an outstanding 140 points!).  Congratulations Morgan!

• R11 Trip to the New Central Library & R10 Cycling Proficiency (22-26 June)
- see the Junior School page for details.

• Sixth Form Tennis Success - June 09
Following victories over Lewis Boys, St Cyres, Monmouth Boys and Christ College Brecon, Matthew Davies, Samir Almitwally & Scott Thompson of Lower 6th, and Andrew Wright of Upper 6th should be congratulated for reaching the regional tennis finals at Cheltenham.
- see Sixth Form College page for details.

• R14 History Trip to the Battlefields of the First World War 4-5 June
- see the Senior School page for details.

• R8 First Holy Communion at the Cathedral
Congratulations to all the R8 pupils who made their First Holy Communion on Sunday 14 June.  The boys & girls behaved immaculately, and the Cathedral Choir sang magnificently.

• Middle School Newsletter - June 2009 f/MS_News_June_09.pdf

• R7 News:
Winners of Blooms 'Vegetable Growers' Competition 
History Trip to Big Pit
Dr Isaac's Visit - fossils, minerals, metals & gems!
- see Early Years & Infants page for details

• Announcing next year's Drama Production .... P.G. Wodehouse’s Jeeves & Wooster

Auditions will take place on the following date and times:
Tuesday 7th July
 
R12 – 12.15pm. Room 0.1
R13 – Periods 2 & 3 (English Office)
R14 – Period 6 (English Office)

May 2009

• Wed 13th to 15th May - R11 Geography & Science Field Study visit to Ty'r Morwydd Environmental Centre, Abergavenny
- see the Junior School page for details.

• Congratulations to Morgan Foley (R13, principal oboist of the Concert Orchestra), who recently won second place in the Cardiff County & Vale High Schools' Orchestra Young Musician of the Year

• Three of our Girl Cathedral Choristers have been selected to sing in Welsh National Opera's performance of The Queen of Spades at the Milennium Centre, Cardiff 13 May - 4 June 2009

• Congratulations to Jamie Halpin and Arvind Kumar who recently represented the School at the final of the Oxford Union Schools' Debating competition, against debating champions from all over the world.

• Floral Wheelbarrow Competition - the Frog Garden

R9 and the Nursery recently collaborated on a project to enter the RHS Flower Competition.  The pupils of R9 excelled themselves in helping and working with our youngest pupils.  There was also a photographic display of the wheelbarrows in Queen's Arcade.  Congratulations to all the pupils involved.

April 2009

• BBC recorded Doctor Who with our choristers, David Tennant, Bernard Cribbins & Claire Bloom on Monday 20 April 2009

• Readathon raised £1322.62 for CLIC Sargent and the Roald Dahl Foundation!
See the Junior School page for more details.

• St John's College pupils to represent Wales in National Final of UKMT Maths Challenge
On Wednesday, 11th March 2009 the Welsh regional Final of the UKMT Maths Challenge was held at Howells School, Cardiff.  Despite being the yougest team there, the St John's College team of Morgan Foley, Joseph Evans, Karthik Kumar and George Thomas emerged victorious and now go forward to represent Wales in the National Final to be held in London in June 2009.  Congratulations!

 

• Victory for Girls' Cathedral Choristers at Wells Cathedral School
See the Music & Performance page for more details.

On Wednesday, 4th March 2009, the Senior Girl Choristers were crowned champions of the Choir Schools' Association Sports Festival, following successes over Llandaff (7-1), Wells (6-1), Exeter (6-1) and Bristol (12-1).