Helo! We are the Criw Cymraeg of St. Joseph’s Primary School. We are so delighted to announce that we are working towards our “Arian” (Silver) Siarter Iaith Award! We are one of only a few schools in Neath Port Talbot to be doing this. We are very excited to be helping the school to continue to be more bilingual and to establish a better Welsh ethos.
We think being bilingual is extremely important because;
- It’s fun!
- It improves your chances of being employed in the future.
- Over two thirds of the world’s population are bilingual.
- On average bilingual pupils achieve higher English exam results than pupils who speak one language.
- Academic research has confirmed that bilingual pupils are more creative and score higher in IQ tests.
- Bilingual people in Wales earn more on average in comparison with people who speak one language.
We want to try and help all the pupils in the school become more confident at speaking Welsh in school and at home. We have introduced a Welsh speaker of the week certificate for all classes. Who will be awarded this week?
If you want to find out a Welsh word or check spelling, try Ap Geiriaduron.
How can I help my child?
Sut allwch chi help’ch plentyn?
Below are some basic phrases to use at home.
Days of the Week
Monday – Dydd Llun Tuesday – Dydd Mawth Wednesday – Dydd Mercher Thursday – Dydd Iau Friday – Dydd Gwener Saturday – Dydd Sadwrn Sunday – Dydd Sul
Months of the Year
January – Ionawr February – Chwefror March – Mawrth Aprill – Ebrill May – Mai June – Mehefin July – Gorffenaf August – Awst September – Medi October – Hydref November – Tachwedd December – Rhagfyr
Greetings
Good morning – Bore da Good afternoon – Prynhawn da Good evening – Noswaith da Goodnight – Nos da Goodbye – Hwyl fawr
Why not try some Welsh APPS at home – they are all free!
*Cyw (3-7 year olds)
*Llyfrau Bach Magi Ann (3-7 years old)
*Campau Cosmig/Compau Cosmig 2(7-11 years old)
*Codi Hwyl
* Trica Chlic
Wales has a vibrant musical history and thriving contemporary music scene. If you can try to listen to some Welsh music at home with your children this will be bendigedig! Here is a list of some famous Welsh artists:
*Tom Jones
*Shirley Bassey
*Catatonia
*Stereophonics
*Katherine Jenkins
*Duffy
*Charlotte Church
*Manic Street Preachers
*Bonnie Tyler
*Candelas
*Alys Williams a’r band
*Swnami
*Luke Evans
News
On Wednesday 1st March Criw led our Eisteddfod celebrations to honour our patron saint of Wales. Throughout the week all classes worked on a range of different Welsh activities including signing, dancing, art, drama, poetry and story writing to name a few. We had so much fun and learnt lots!
To mark the day we wore our St. David’s Day costumes and one of Wales’s national emblems – a daffodil or a leek and enjoyed Welsh cakes during breaktime. Criw held a competition where they judged the tallest daffodil and the heaviest leek. A huge thank you to all entries. 1st, 2nd and 3rd place certificates and prizes were awarded during celebration assembly on Friday to end the week.
On Wednesday 8th March Mrs Aston our Welsh TDO spent the day with us working with all classes sharing ‘Gwrando’ activities through fun games, supporting our Welsh language skills. She has kindly volunteered to come in and work with Criw Cymraeg and groups of children to teach us some new Welsh Language yard games to enjoy soon. We can’t wait for her next visit and we are very thankful for her support. Diolch!
