Advent Preparations

Over the last four weeks, we have been counting up the days to Christmas, waiting and preparing to celebrate the birth of our Lord & Saviour once again.

We began with the messages of self-control and repentance, learning to prepare our own hearts and minds for the coming of Christ. In the the last two weeks we have looked ahead with greater joy and anticipating, focusing on Christmas traditions and the ways that we can reflect the goodness of God in our lives this Advent season.

Across the school we have heard carols sung, nativities enacted, Jesse trees created and Advent wreaths lit, all helping us to engage faithfully with the preparations that keep Christ in Christmas.

A - 4th Advent

A - 1st Advent

A - 2nd Advent

A - 3rd Advent

Choir of Angels

Junior Choir took a visit to the parish Thursday Club this week. It really was a moment of pure joy and we were so warmly received. The children sang beautifully (the acoustics in that hall are phenomenal!) The elderly parishioners who were in attendance joined in with singing and lots of clapping - a real feel good factor. All the children left with beaming smiles (not least because they gave us chocolates to say thank you)!

Oh Little Town of Bethlehem

Year 4 enjoyed a wonderful visit to Queen Eleanor’s School this week to experience Wintershall's Travelling Crib. From the moment we arrived, the children were captivated by the characters who brought the nativity story to life. They met Mary, Elizabeth, a weary traveller, a group of shepherds and even a king, along with some friendly sheep and Sam the donkey. At each station, the children listened carefully as the characters shared their part of the story, offering a special gift to help them understand its meaning. These thoughtful moments encouraged the children to reflect deeply, ask questions and think about the journey to Bethlehem in a new way. It was a truly memorable experience, filled with imagination, curiosity and wonder. We are grateful to Wintershall for such an engaging and inspiring visit that helped our Year 4 pupils connect so vividly with the Christmas story.

If anyone has been inspired by Year 4's visit, Wintershall offer a wonderful Nativity experience, details of which are on their website, wintershall.org.uk. You can use coupon code tc2520off to get 20% off your visit.

Getting in the spirit...

For active play today Miss Cogger and Mrs Lewis carried out some Christmassy fun. The children started with a Christmas jumper daily mile, followed by a football shootout. The children had lots of Christmas fun.

Who should own space?

No one can "own" Space, right? According to the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, Space is the province of all humankind, free for exploration and use by all nations. Well, Year 5 held a passionate debate this week about whether private companies should be able to acquire ownership rights over celestial bodies, and boy did we hear some strong views! It was brilliant to see the children present their passions to the class. Who do YOU think should own Space?!

In the net!

Our Year 4, 5 and 6 netball teams have made us incredibly proud this term. For many children, it has been their very first experience of playing netball, yet they have shown remarkable progress in such a short time. Their dedication and commitment have been outstanding, arriving enthusiastically to every training session, whatever the weather! It has been wonderful to see their confidence grow, their teamwork strengthen and their skills develop week by week. We are excited to build on this brilliant start and look forward to many more fixtures and opportunities as we head into the Spring Term. A huge thank you should also go to Betsy S, Mikolaj and Alfie, who have been supporting the Year 4 team as they learn the basics of netball this term. Their knowledge and encouragement have been invaluable.

At our final fixture of 2025, our Year 5 and Year 6 netball teams took to the court for their very first friendly home fixture of the season against Queen Eleanor’s School - what a fantastic afternoon it was! For many of the children, this was their first ever competitive netball match, but you would never have known from the confidence, teamwork and determination they displayed throughout.

Year 5 kicked things off with a brilliant performance, securing an impressive 5–1 victory. Their passing was sharp, their communication strong, and their enthusiasm infectious. Year 6 followed with an equally outstanding display, winning 9–1 and showing great tactical awareness and superb team spirit.

What stood out most across both matches was the way the pupils encouraged one another, celebrated each other’s successes, and played with such positivity. It was wonderful to see their hard work in training come to life on the court.

We are incredibly proud of every member of the squad and excited to see how they continue to grow and develop as the season progresses. Well done to all who took part!

RSCH Choir

Once again, our committed Junior Choir warmed the hearts of many local residents at the Royal Surrey County Hospital's annual carol concert. The children performed a repertoire of carols and songs to bring the light of Christmas into the lives of so many who are facing personal challenges at this time of year.

The children's bright smiles and confident performance was a joy to behold and a blessing on the whole hospital community. Well done children!

Gingerbread Magic in Year 6

To end the term, Year 6 has been busy combining creativity, research and baking skills in a festive Design & Technology project that was as delicious as it was educational! They began with exploring the world of ginger where the children investigated how it is grown, its history in cooking and the many products it can be found in - from ginger tea and biscuits to ginger cake and even ginger beer - before moving on to sketching and planning their own gingerbread Christmas scenes. We spent time creating prototypes with card and paper to test ideas and think carefully about structure, decoration and how the pieces would fit together. With designs ready, the classroom was soon filled with the warm, spicy smell of gingerbread as the children measured, mixed, rolled, and cut out their shapes, learning the importance of accuracy in measuring ingredients. Once cooled, they decorated their creations with icing, sweets (so many sweets!) and sprinkles to bring their Christmas scenes to life, from frosted rooftops to candy cane fences, before carefully constructing their gingerbread structures and problem-solving along the way to make sure everything stood tall and looked festive. Finally, they reflected on how the project was a wonderful mix of research, design and practical skills where they showed teamwork, creativity and perseverance, producing spectacular finished scenes that not only taught them about product design and construction but also gave them the joy of making something that could be admired- and eaten! A huge thank you to all our wonderful volunteers that helped on the day.

Infant Nativities

Everyone was a little star in this year's infant nativities! What a joy it was to see the children acting, narrating, singing and dancing to the precious news that Jesus Christ was born. This year, Nursery and Reception classes joined forces for three performances of Whoopsie Daisy Angel and Year 1 and 2 classes collaborated to shared three mornings of traditional nativities. There was tears and laughter as the children enthralled us with their beautiful performances.

Year 2 Prints

This week in Year 2 we have been learning all about printing. We looked at the work of different artists such as Warhol and Burgerman and evaluated their paintings. We were particularly interested in the patterns that we noticed in their work. We went outside to look for patterns in our natural environment. The children then designed and made their own print using some natural and man-made materials and turned them in to some beautiful calendars!

Away in a Manger

In DT, Year 1 have been busy looking at different joining techniques including a flange, l-brace, tabs and slot. Using this new knowledge, we then created our very own mangers which needed 4 sides, 4 legs, to hold a baby Jesus and to stand up on their own. The children took to this challenge and persevered remarkably. We're sure you'll agree that the finished results are certainly something to be proud of!

O come, O come Emmanuel

In RE, Year 3 have been learning how Advent is a time for preparation, waiting for the coming of the Messiah. Each class made an Advent wreath by drawing around our hands. Next, we individually made our own Advent wreath on a paper plate, ensuring the five candles were clearly displayed. After looking at artist’s representations of Bethlehem, we responded in our own, creative way.

Prophecy & Promise

Year 4 have now completed their Religious Education unit on Prophecy and Promise, and they have thoroughly enjoyed their learning. Throughout the unit, the children explored God’s promises in the Old Testament and reflected on the descendants of Jesus. They listened carefully to key scripture and discussed how these stories link together to form God’s unfolding promise.

To bring their learning to life, Year 4 created their own Jesse Trees during our Celebrate Worship sessions every day. Each tree included symbols and artwork representing important people and events from the Old Testament. The children showed great creativity and thoughtfulness, producing some truly beautiful trees that clearly reflected their understanding of the stories.

During our final lesson, the children created advent calendars, inspired by the words of Isaiah and John the Baptist, thinking of different ways that Christians can make their paths straight for Jesus. It has been a wonderful unit, full of reflection, discussion and artistic expression.