School News and Head's Blog
Posted on: 26/04/2024Weekly News - Friday 26th April 2024
UKMT Maths Challenge
This week seventy children from Years 4, 5 and 6 completed the annual online UKMT Maths Challenge. This demanding sixty minute test aims to stretch the children's knowledge and application of mathematical reasoning and provides a great opportunity to demonstrate their problem solving abilities. Well done to all the children who took part, we were very impressed by their positive approach; certificates will be awarded in due course once the results have been processed. Watch out for exciting information coming soon about a new maths challenge aimed at Years 2 and 3 later this term.
Mini Marathon
Congratulations to all of the St. Helen's College children, staff and parents who took part in the TCS Mini Marathon last Saturday. The school entered one hundred participants in the one mile run along the final stretch of the London marathon route. The atmosphere was fantastic and it was brilliant to see the children making the most of the opportunity to be involved in a world famous marathon. Runners can find out where they placed and their running time by inputting their bib number here.
Thank you to Ms Drummond, Ms Raja-Ross, Mr. McLaughlin and Mrs. Webb for running and supporting the children. We hope this event will inspire a love of running which may one day lead to some of our community tackling the whole 26.2 miles! Huge congratulations also to Mr. Karunananthan, father of two St. Helen's College children, who achieved this on Sunday to raise money for Young Lives v's Cancer, a charity who have personally supported the family. You can read more about their experience and fundraising here.
Book Drive A Huge Success!
Thirteen heavy boxes of books were collected thanks to the efforts of all the children and parents who supported our Book Drive for the Children's Book Project. Piles of books arrived at Lower and Upper School this week (855 in total!) and we appreciate the gift of each and every one. Thank you.
Once collected by our student librarians, sorted and boxed, the Children's Book Project van took our book mountain to 'book headquarters' where the book magic happens. Volunteers organise the books by genre and age group and prepare bundles to gift to children in need via schools, food banks and prisons.
Thank you to our dedicated school librarian, Mrs. Emanuel, for arranging and organising the book drive, and to the premises team for moving boxes. We are very proud as a school to be involved in this valuable initiative.
House News
Our House assemblies this week focussed on Inclusivity and Belonging, as well as a look at the exciting House events coming up this term. These include Sports Days, the Singing Competition and our House Centenary Fun Day!
The four Houses have now agreed their mottos, which have been developed by the children. They are:
Cambria - Courageous, creative, caring. That's the Cambria way!
Hibernia - Be happy, be helpful, be Hibernia!
Caledonia - Believe and succeed!
Windsor - Aim high, win it, be Windsor!
Month End Music Recital
Well done to all of the children who performed to parents and their peers at this month's Music Recital. It was a joy to watch our young talented musicians, from Year 1 through to Year 6, performing so confidently on a range of instruments, including the piano, clarinet, trumpet and flute. The Month End Music Recital is a wonderful opportunity for the children to build their experience playing to an audience in a relaxed, safe and supportive space. You can watch one of our Year 5 musical stars practising on piano here.
Free Cycle Skills Training - Children and Adults
Hillingdon Council STARS team are running free cycle skills training for children and adults from April through to October. Sessions are held every second Saturday of the month at Pield Heath School cycle track, a safe and enclosed local space. Cycle instructors can teach children how to ride a bike and build confidence, and help adults to improve and enhance their skills. Participants should bring along their own bikes and helmets if possible; however, there is also limited equipment available to use, free of charge. More information can be found here.
Summer Netball Camp
Blaze Netball Club have opened bookings for a summer camp from 19th - 22nd August at Douay Martyrs School. There are morning sessions available for children in Reception to Year 2 and longer day sessions for Years 3 to 9. This a great opportunity for keen netballers to stay active and polish their skills during the holidays. More information and booking information can be found here.
Fulmer Family Fun Day
Join the fun in Fulmer on bank holiday Monday, 6th May, from 1.00-5.00pm at their Family Fun Day. The event will include lots of fun stalls, a bouncy castle, petting zoo, welly wanging, dog show, games, BBQ and more!
Next Week
Monday 29th April - Friday 3rd - Year 5 Isle of Wight Residential Trip
Monday 29th April - Year 3 Trip to Kew Gardens
Thursday 2nd May - School Open Morning
Thursday 2nd May - Year 6 French Residential Information Evening
Friday 3rd May - 4T Coffee Morning and Class Assembly
Friday 3rd May - Year 6 Bikeability continues
Posted on: 17/04/2024Weekly News - Friday 19th April 2024
Centenary Celebrations
Welcome back to a busy summer term at St. Helen's College. As we begin the final term of our Centenary year we have some very special events coming up, so please make sure you have the following dates in your diary.
Saturday 22nd June - PA Centenary Summer Fete
Friday 5th July - Lower School Art Exhibition
Tuesday 9th July - Centenary Fun Day for Pupils
Thursday 11th July - Upper School Centenary Concert and Art Exhibition
Book Drive - Monday 22nd and Tuesday 23rd April
We are excited to be hosting a book drive in school next Monday 22nd and Tuesday 23rd April to support the important work of The Children's Book Project. Learning to read - and reading to learn - is central to our school life and we are grateful to enjoy a wealth of books.
The Project shares books with children who are less fortunate and matches families who have grown out of their books with those who have few books at home. Working with schools, food banks and prison projects, books are donated to children in need. You can hear more about this from the author and ex-Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq, a recent visitor to St. Helen's College, and from some of our own avid readers here.
Please take this opportunity to delve into your book shelves at home and donate any books you have enjoyed and feel could now enrich the lives of others. Books should be very gently worn - no creased covers, tatters or yellow pages. No thank you to puzzle, sticker books, dated books such as annuals, text books or school books. We are looking for books aimed at children between 2 and 11.
Lower and Upper School will each have a collecting point to accept books which will then be sorted and passed on to new homes. Thank you for your support for this valuable project.
Singing Competition
Our very exciting Singing Competition final will take place on Friday 14th June. The categories this year are as follows:
Middle School Competition: Year 2 Solo, Year 3 Solo, MS duet, MS group and Best Overall Performance.
Upper School Competition: Year 4 Solo, Year 5 Solo, Year 6 Solo, US duet, US group and Best Overall Performance.
Full details of how to submit song choices for approval and enter the competition are being sent out by Mrs. Fawbert to the parents of children in Years 2 to 6.
Music Lessons
There are a limited number of spaces available for trumpet, flute, violin, cello and singing lessons for children in Years 2 - 6 this term. If you wish to sign your child up for lessons on these instruments please complete this Google Form. Spaces will be allocated on a first come first served basis.
If you have already completed the form for other instruments there is no need to resubmit it as your child will have been added to the waiting list already and Mrs. Fawbert will be in contact once a space is available. Please note there are no spaces for piano lessons at present. The following instruments are also eligible to join the school orchestra: violin, cello, flute, clarinet, trumpet, trombone.
Quiz Winner!
Congratulations to the children who recently participated in the SATIPS (Support and Training in Prep, Primary and Senior Schools) national general knowledge quiz, and in particular to Aaron B, who placed joint 40th in the Junior category and reached the prestigious leader board! Aaron achieved a score of 71/100 competing against pupils from a large number of independent schools from across the country. He has won a very well deserved Amazon voucher in recognition of his achievements. Well done Aaron!
Reading Buddies
It was wonderful to see our tradition of peer reading in action this week when Year 3 'reading buddies' visited Year 1 to read together. This is a terrific way to model a positive love of books and something our pupils thoroughly enjoy. Shared reading is a brilliant way to boost children's listening, speaking and social skills - and it is fun!
Bikeability
There was much excitement today as Year 6 began a four week Bikeability training programme. Over the duration of the course the children will complete levels 1 and 2, gaining the skills, knowledge and understanding to cycle safely on the roads.
Today they took to the tennis courts to practise basic bike skills, learning simple bike maintenance and how to set off, pedal, slow down and stop including how to look behind, cycle one handed, turn and control speed.
Cycling has huge benefits, not only for physical health and fitness but also for building social connections, cognitive skills and as an environmental mode of transport. It is vital that children learn how to navigate the streets safely and with confidence. We look forward to seeing their progress as they hit the roads in the coming weeks!
Open Morning
Please note that our upcoming Open Morning has moved from Wednesday 1st May to Thursday 2nd May. We are looking forward to welcoming prospective families into the school to see the school in action. If you have friends or family who would like to visit then please direct them to register online here.
Football at Hillingdon Leisure Centre
The football development centre are running training courses this term on Monday evenings at the astroturf pitches at Hillingdon Leisure Centre. Sessions are tailored for children aged from Nursery up to Year 7 and offer the opportunity for budding footballers to develop skills under the expert eye of FA and UEFA accredited coaches. You can find out more information and book a free trial session here.
Next Week
Saturday 20th April - Mini Marathon
Wednesday 24th April - Year 4 Flatford Mill Information Evening
Thursday 25th April - PA meeting in Upper School Hall
Friday 26th April - Month End Music Recital in Evans Hall
Friday 26th April - Year 6 Bikeability continues
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