Dear Parents/ Carers,
What a superb couple of weeks filled with Year 3s Collective Worship, Lunar New Year Festivities, Coding Day, NHS visitors…. I could go on and on!
Last night, we welcomed well over a 100 FOSSILs (former parents of St Stephen’s) for a rather special drinks party. The parents/ carers were all from our one form entry days and the spectacularly famous ‘bulge year’ – the year we took two Reception classes, which started us on our journey to becoming a two form entry. We had a wonderful evening, renewed old friendships and found out what our amazing former pupils are up to at some rather impressive universities! This is the start of creating a St Stephen’s Alumni and next on the agenda is to invite former students back for a special event – obviously with some parental supervision.
Meet Jessie Evening – Tuesday, 3rd March at 7pm
At the end of next week, we say au revoir to Cookie and I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for her commitment and dedication to our school. Over the last few weeks, Cookie and Jessie have had an extensive handover period discussing menu changes for the coming term, children with allergies ( though I would like to point out all children, with dietary/ allergen requirements, wear a lanyard detailing this and all kitchen staff know these children off by heart!) and so much more! With this in mind, we would love to invite parents to a ‘meet Jesse evening’ on Tuesday, 7th March at 7pm. We will taste a range of dishes from the menu, set out our vision for the kitchen and obviously answer any questions parents may have. It would be really useful if parents could email me with any thoughts, ideas and suggestions before the meeting so we could address them and explain why some ideas may or may not work. It is worth remembering that we are not going to please all the parents all of the time though we will give it our best shot!
Crummell had their long awaited lunch today – chicken burgers and waffles! Well done to Jessie, Marvin and the team for still managing to deliver hot meals from our remaining gas appliances while two ovens were out of action – we only had sandwiches on one day while the gas was turned off for them to be mended – superb!
Please join us for school lunches on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday just book with Annora at the school office.
Luna New Year
Last Friday saw the whole school celebrating Lunar New Year decked out in red! We started the day with a lion dance, a presentation about Lunar New Year from Wing Kei, mother of Beatrice in Year 1, and finally a Tai Chi and Fan Dance/ Ribbon Dance presentation from May – who went on to lead workshops across the school.
We had a spectacular Lunar New Year themed lunch complete with fortune cookies and chopsticks for all the children – lunch took slightly longer that day.
We had parents visiting classes, craft activities, library sessions and much more. It was a very special day, which saw us celebrate the heritage and culture of children in our school.
Thank you Wing Kei – same time next year? And just in case you missed it –
Highland Fling!
This is going to be the most amazing evening – I’m getting my kilt out and shaping up my knobbly knees!
February 9th – Doors Open at 7pm, be there for 7.30pm
What a fun night we have planned for you! Come and join us for a spot of supper followed by a Ceilidh (think barn dancing but better). Don’t worry if you have never gone to a Ceilidh – it’s definitely a case of no experience necessary and you don’t need to be able to dance either. We have been extremely lucky to get one of the best Ceilidh bands around to play for us. They are Edinburgh Hogmanay’s Ceilidh Band and have done star studded performances around the globe and now they are coming to St Stephens (https://www.whiskykiss.com/home-1). Tickets available on Parentmail – dig out that kilt! A quick reminder from me – https://youtu.be/77f5XAikagw
St Pauls’ Cathedral
It was fantastic to join with 1,600 pupils and staff from 97 schools last week at St Paul’s Cathedral. Mr Perry and I travelled with the House Captains for this special service of thanks. The Cathedral was filled with the voices of all the children. We were especially proud to see our banner raised above the crowds with our school motto flying high!
Sickness
If your child has vomited and / or is suffering from diarrhoea, please keep them at home for 48 hours after their final episode of either vomit or diarrhoea. This is really important to ensure that they are clear of infection. Both vomiting and diarrhoea spread very easily in schools and some children can be very unwell with these infections.
Crummell Trip
Crummell were the winning house for the Autumn Term and I have planned an exciting trip to Kidzania on Friday, 3rd March – more details to follow but I would love some volunteer’s please – you know you want to!
Compass Markings
Hopefully you will have noticed our fantastic compass point markings in the main and Year 1 playgrounds – now we can always find our way to the classrooms! Watch out for more markings to come.
Year 5 at the British Film Institute!
Year 5 had thoroughly marvelous trip to the BFI (British Film Institute). The children attended a workshop entitled ‘Learning Spanish using Short Film’. The presenter took the pupils on an exciting journey to practice Spanish language in a fun and interactive way using short films. In the afternoon, they watched a full Spanish movie (with subtitles) that was followed by a Q&A session. They had a fantastic time and were perfect St Stephen’s role models!
Coding Day
On Friday 3rd February, we had our annual Coding Day! The day began with Mr Faith leading a Collective Worship session where he highlighted the importance of code in the world we live in, as well as ways we can stay safe online. In-class, we continued to explore all the different ways we use Computing (Computer Science, Information Technology and Digital Literacy) in and around school. Enjoying a range of ‘plugged’ and ‘unplugged’ activities, for the former, we used a range of online tutorials to practise our coding skills. For the latter, we completed activities designed to build upon and refine our online safety skills. A great time was had by all!
Cracking Careers – The NHS
Today we are recognising and celebrating the 75th anniversary of our beloved NHS! The children learned about the variety of roles in the NHS and that anyone from any background can do any role. Men are not always doctors, women are not always nurses and there are many many more professions in the NHS than these two! This afternoon, the children had a special visitor from the NHS, who told them about their specific role within the system.
The Secret Artist is Back!
We are looking for art donations for an Affordable Art Sale event using art kindly created by the school’s talented parents, grandparents, relations and YOU! It could be a painting, a sketch, a sculpture or a photograph, as long as it’s made by you.
Artwork submissions deadline is not until Thursday, 9th May, so there’s plenty of time to create!
Please email your interest to:
gwendoline.bradley@gmail.com by 28th February
Have a lovely weekend.
Mr Schumm
