St Mary's Weekly
Aspiring, nurturing, flourishing;
together shining a light
Courage
This week in Collective Worship, we have been continuing to explore the value of 'Courage'. We have been focussing on 'doing what's right over what's easy'. One of the stories we shared was the story of Daniel and the lions from the Old Testament, illustrating the importance of standing up for what's right even when it is difficult.
Talk together about Courage
Being courageous can mean different things to different people. For example, one person may think it easy to speak in front of a large audience, whilst another would need to find lotsof courage to do this. Everyone faces challenges from time to time, and we have to find courage to overcome them.
Talk together about:
• The different challenges that each family member faces
• Who or what helps us find courage?
• Is there someone that we admire because of the courage that they have shown
Key Dates
This week...
Week 4
Monday 6th May - Bank holiday - no school
Tuesday 7th May - Ducklings arriving for Reception
Thursday 9th May - 09:00 - 10:00 - Parent Workshop on RSE (Relationships & Sex Education) - please use the link to let us know whether you are attending or would like the recording - https://forms.gle/Ni5y8J25E6eZC6Dr9
Friday 10th May - 10:00 - 11:00 - Inter-school Maths Quiz Championships 2024 - Round 1 (online)
This half term...
Week 5
Monday 13th to Friday 17th May - Year 6 - SATS week
Tuesday 14th May - Year 4 class trip to Batchworth Canal
Thursday 16th May - Year 3 - class trip to Hazard Alley
Friday 17th May - Non-uniform day and Bake Sale afterschool for PlaySkill charity
Friday 17th May - Year 6 - pizza and film afternoon to celebrate the end of SATs week
Saturday 18th May - Open morning at St Mary's Church - we will be supporting this event with the Choir, children serving cakes as well as having a stall to promote us. This is an important event for us to promote how special our school is in our local community
Week 6 - Monday 20th to Friday 24th May - Art Week
Wednesday 22nd May - afterschool - Art Exhibition
Wednesday 22nd May - 17:30 - 18:30 - Year 6 Parent Meeting - Residential Trip
Thursday 23rd May - Year 1 class trip - Brooklands Museum
Friday 24th May - Movie Night to raise money for PlaySkill Charity
Monday 27th to Friday 31st May - Half Term
Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th May OR Saturday 1st & Sunday 2nd June
Classroom painting weekend - we are looking at getting a painting party together for each year group to help paint your child’s classroom. Please speak to your parent rep if you can help
Next half term...
5Week 7
Week 8
Monday 10th to Friday 14th June - Year 4 Multiplication Check and Year 1 Phonics screening
Monday 10th June - afternoon - Year 2 trip into Rickmansworth to support their local study
Wednesday 12th June - Reception trip to Whipsnade Zoo
Week 9
Monday 17th to Friday 21st June - Year 6 Residential
Monday 17th to Friday 21st June - Years One to Five - English and Maths assessment week
Saturday 22nd June - Summer Fair - We will have performances from the Year 4’s that performed at the Three Rivers Dance Festival, before school gymnastics club, Karate club and the KS2 choir
Week 10 - Monday 24th to Friday 28th June - Science / STEM Week
Thursday 27th June - 9:30 - 15:00 - Years 3 & 4 - Aquadrome activities with Three Rivers District Council running the sessions for us
Week 11 - Monday 1st July to Friday 5th July - Sports Week
Monday 1st July - afternoon - Year 5 at the Aquadrome with Canoe Sports Trust - Katacanoes (6 to a boat) & Open Canoes (3 to a boat)
Wednesday 3rd July - afternoon - Year 6 at the Aquadrome with Canoe Sports Trust - Stand Up Paddle boards & Sit on Top Kayaks
Thursday 4th July - Sports Day - KS1 - morning followed by picnic lunch; KS2 - picnic lunch followed by sports afternoon
Thursday 4th July - 15:30 - 17:00 - Year 6 leavers party
Week 12
Thursday 11th July 9.30 - 11.45 - Transition morning
Week 13
Monday 15th July - Year 6 production - evening performance for parents
Tuesday 16th July - Year 6 productions - afternoon performance for parents
Thursday 18th July - afternoon - school disco and end of term activities
Friday 19th July - Year 6 Leavers Service at St Mary’s Church - all children to be dropped off at the church at the start of the day
Friday 19th July - 13:15 - End of term - No JD Club
Shining a light on...
House Points this week
Total House Points for the Term
Effort & Progress in Learning Certificates
Congratulations to the children below who received a special certificate on Friday for 'Effort and Progress in Learning'.
Reception - Caleb
Year 1 - Jagger
Year 2 - Jaycee
Year 3 - Poppy
Year 4 - Tilly
Year 5 - Megan
Year 6 - Susan
All the children that received certificates will be celebrating with Mrs Maxwell over a hot chocolate and marshmallows on Wednesday.
Above & Beyond
Amelia, Mia, Sylvie, Maeve, Lois, Sylvie, Lennon, Jacob, Eryk, Eddie, Iris, Florence, Lily, Jaiden, Jeremy, Henry, Lucy, Lily D, Amber, Violet, Jules, Charlie, Kezia, Louie, Eliza, Krysten, Lottie, Henning, Alessandro, Bobby, Pato, William
Weekly Class Attendance
A Creative Adventure in Forest School for Reception
In forest school last week, Mrs Dineen taught us how to create our own natural paintbrushes. The sun was shining (for once) so we set out on our hunt! We had to decide what materials would make a good bristle and stem. We had to demonstrate lots of perseverance tying the materials together with an elastic band, it was very tricky! We then tried out our paintbrushes in the garden, creating a large Reception artwork. This created lots of discussion and comparison about what kind of marks each brush was making.
⭐️ Club of the Week ⭐️
In our coding club, children across different year groups have been tackling exciting projects that cater to their developing skills.
In Years 3 and 4, we've been using Scratch to program interactive scenarios like a virtual fish tank where fish react to boundaries by bouncing and swimming in the opposite direction, and a bunny that hops and changes costumes on command. Our coders have also honed their debugging skills to fix any issues that arise during their projects.
Meanwhile, in Years 5 and 6, we have advanced to using Python to create original ASCII drawings, allowing children to explore the intersection of art and coding in a textual format. Looking ahead to our next session, Years 5 and 6 will have the opportunity to explore music-making using a computer program called Isle of Tunes. This exciting shift will introduce them to the basics of digital composition and sound engineering.
Chairs on Strike in Year Three
In an unexpected turn of events, Year Three arrived at school this morning to find that all the chairs had gone on strike! Tired of being taken for granted and mistreated, they refused to be sat on and decided to make a statement. As a result, the children had to adapt, either sitting on the floor or standing by their desks.
Undeterred by this unexpected challenge, Year Three rose to the occasion and embarked on a persuasive writing task. Their mission: to convince the chairs to return to their rightful roles. Armed with emotive language, facts, and rhetorical questions, the children crafted compelling arguments to persuade the chairs to end their protest.
Their efforts paid off! By the end of the morning, the chairs had reconsidered their stance and returned to their positions, ready to support the children once again.
Information
2024 - 2025 Term Dates
Autumn Term
Autumn Term
Thursday 5th September 2024 - Autumn term starts
Monday 28th October to Friday 3rd November - Half Term
Friday 20th December 2024 - Autumn term finishes
Spring Term
Wednesday 8th January 2025 - Spring term starts
Monday 17th to Friday 21st February - Half Term
Friday 4th April - Spring term finishes
Summer Term
Thursday 24th April - Summer term starts
Monday 26th to Friday 30th May - Half Term
Friday 18th July - Summer term finishes
Attendance at school is the foundation to a child's future success and happiness. Over the coming weeks, we will be taking a letter from the alphabet, in turn, in order to highlight the importance of being at school and advice for parents and carers.
H is for Healthy Habits: Establishing solid morning routines and consistent bedtime rituals involves creating structured daily schedules that prioritise adequate sleep and preparedness for the school day. This includes:
1. Consistent Bedtime: Encouraging children to go to bed at the same time each night to ensure they get enough sleep for their age group, as recommended by health experts.
2. Screen Time Limits: Implementing rules to reduce screen time before bed, as exposure to screens close to bedtime can interfere with sleep quality.
3. Wind-Down Activities: Encouraging calming activities before bedtime, such as reading, listening to soothing music, or practicing relaxation techniques, to help children relax and prepare for sleep.
4. Setting Alarm Clocks: Teaching children the importance of waking up at a consistent time each morning by setting alarm clocks and establishing morning routines to ensure they are ready for school on time.
5. Preparation the Night Before: Encouraging children to prepare their school bags, lay out their clothes, and pack their lunches the night before to streamline the morning routine and reduce stress.
By implementing these strategies, families can establish routines that promote restful sleep and set the stage for successful, productive days at school.
Class Blogs
Our Class Blogs provide an extensive update that exceeds typical primary school offerings. Not only do they outline the week's homework, but they also offer insights into our class's ongoing learning journey. You'll find information about our recent lessons, previews of upcoming topics, and key dates tailored to each year group. We encourage you to invest time in reading these blogs—they offer valuable glimpses into our children'' educational experiences. These do take a significant amount of effort for staff to create.
Playskill Charity
We will be focussing our attention on our final charity of this academic year - Playskill. As we have mentioned previously, this is a local charity that has supported a number of our children in our school community.
Have a read of Maeve's story from the Playskill website - PlaySkill - Maeve's Story
So far, we have added in a few activities to help raise money for this amazing charity -
Friday 17th May - Non-school uniform and end of day bake sale
Friday 24th May - Movie Night in our school hall
Let us know if you have any other ideas to raise money for this fabulous charity.
Community
Representing our School at St Mary's Church Open weekend
Our school choir has been invited to perform at the upcoming St Mary's Church Open Day. This event provides an excellent platform for our children to share their vocal talent with the wider community and contribute to a joyous occasion. The choir will be performing a selection of uplifting and inspiring songs and is a wonderful opportunity for your child to gain performance experience, build confidence and make a positive impact through singing. If your child is in the school choir, please complete the school gateway confirming if your child is able / unable to attend the event.
Details of the performance are as follows:
Date: Saturday 18th May
Time: 12.00pm (Children to arrive for 11.30am and be in full school uniform)
We would love more children to be involved during the morning to show our fabulous school community. We will have a school stall as well as serving refreshments. Please let us know if you would like your child to be involved in the event.
This is an important event for us to promote how special our school is in our local community -
please sign up for your child to attend using SchoolComms
We have such an amazing school and are looking at ways to promote ourselves in the wider community. To do this, we will be developing our use of social media. Please like our new Facebook page and any posts that you enjoy.
