School News and Head's Blog
Posted on: 1/05/2020Weekly News - Friday 1st May 2020
Ready Steady Read Initiative Helps Raise Over £5000 for St. Helen's College Readers!
Last half term the school took part in a sponsored reading challenge called Ready Steady Read to boost our World Book Day celebrations. The response from the St. Helen's College community was quite astonishing and proved, yet again, just how much our pupils love to read! Altogether, we raised a phenomenal £2,393, a truly excellent effort. One of our parents, Ms Iqbal, supported the event through her role at Usborne publishers and we are very grateful that she has also offered us a generous boost of 60% extra on our order for the next academic year. Together with a large school contribution, this gives us over £5,000 to make for a truly exciting book order, ready for the 2020-21 school year. Every penny will go towards improving our class readers and boosting our school libraries to ensure that we have the very best reading materials available to each child. We are sure that the children will all be very excited about the new books coming their way!
We would like to give a special mention to Rhys M, Maicen M, Arya A and Liberty Y for their splendid fundraising efforts. Our heartfelt thanks go to every single pupil who took part, and to the families and friends who were so generous with their sponsorship. You have all helped to strengthen even further the reading programme at our school, an area that is so vital to all learning across the curriculum.
Helping In The Community
Manisher L (5G) decided to work on a project over the Easter holidays to help those in her road who might be vulnerable, elderly or isolated. You can see what she did by watching her video below.
Shakira (4T) is busy making pop up cards for homeless and elderly people, just to let them know they aren’t alone. Here is one of her cards - they look sure to brighten someone's day.
Anjika (4T) turned 9 this week and decided to do something different for her birthday, so she created a video to raise money for Hillingdon Foodbank and has raised almost £300 so far!
Many of our staff and parents are NHS responder volunteers and have been responding to calls in their local communities, delivering supplies, helping with the transport of medical equipment, or simply making supportive telephone calls to those who are alone and vulnerable.
Red Cross Kindness and Resilience Activities
If you are looking for inspiration for ways in which your child can develop their kindness and resilience during the lockdown, you might be interested in the activities posted by the Red Cross on their website. Parents/pupils can sign up for email updates too.
All of the free, online activities will be linked to the Red Cross Kindness Calendar and will:
encourage simple acts of kindness
build resilience
connect family and community
provide creative and quick ideas for learners
cover topics including first aid, preparedness, wellbeing and empathy.
Action for Happiness
You might also like the Action for Happiness calendar for Meaningful May, which you could print and display at home, or check online each day. This gives a simple prompt for each day to help us all to lead happier lives. We display these calendars in the staff rooms at school to help our staff to choose happiness and we thought that parents and children might enjoy them too!
https://www.actionforhappiness.org/media/875756/may_2020.pdf
Remote Learning
It has been wonderful to see the array of work which is going on around our 'remote' school this week. The children have been very creative in their approach to tasks and sport and fitness is definitely highly featured! We have seen some super Sports Day preparation going on in gardens, with excellent standing long jumps being achieved! You can see the Ogretici family practising their standing long jump here:
Well done to Jasmine B and Alex S (Y6) for their incredible 'shake table' constructions. We enjoyed sharing their experiments through the videos they submitted. You can see these here:
Feel Good Fridays
Our first 'Feel Good Friday' today saw pupils dress in their House colours and submit entries for our competition, getting creative in designing or creating something to show what their house means to them. You can see some entries on our Galleries page.
Next week, Friday is a bank holiday and there will be no online teaching/learning that day and no key worker supervision in school. On this day, Britain will be commemorating the 75th anniversary of VE Day, when the guns fell silent at the end of the war in Europe. As a school community, we will mark this momentous day on Tuesday 5th May. This will be introduced on Monday in assembly and pupils will take part in VE activities on Tuesday morning. On Tuesday, pupils may wish to wear something in a VE Day style (clothes from the era) or to dress in red, white and blue. It is not quite the day we had planned to have if we were in school, but please do encourage your children to share some of their learning with you. You may also wish to create your own VE Day bunting to hang in your windows - please see:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4TrqYDyf4PMdLypxzyTwGDg/great-british-bunting
Please do share any photos with us if you have a special 'garden party lunch' or other celebration at home to mark this momentous day.
Sadly the commemorative concert at The Barbican, in which our Chamber Choir were due to take part, has been cancelled. We hope that when we return to school we can record some of the songs which the children were learning for the event and share them with you all.
Hello Video - Lower School
The staff of Lower School have shared a video of themselves saying 'hello' to the children from lockdown in our own way. This is available on the Learning Portal. The Upper School staff will be publishing a video soon too, so do look out for that. We miss the children so much and can't wait until we are all back together!
Staff News
We are delighted that Mrs. Jane Smith will be joining our team of Peripatetic music teachers as our new flute teacher from September. Mrs. Smith has taught pupils from various schools over her teaching career, including at Wycombe Abbey and Dr. Challoners. Please contact Mrs. Allery if you are interested in your child starting flute lessons in September as there are some spaces available due to our Year 6 pupils leaving. Mrs. Allery can be reached at: rallery@sthelenscollege.com.
The Parent Practice
For those of you who have found Elaine Hannigan’s practical advice useful, please see the latest podcast, episode 23, on ‘screen time sanity in lockdown’, where she interviews Victoria Markhou, mother of two and a parenting coach.
https://www.theparentpractice.com/podcast/
The Global Classroom
On Tuesday 5th May at 4.30 p.m., The Global Classroom are holding a real-time interactive event that aims to help children understand what COVID-19 is and gain a better understanding of what they can do to keep themselves safe and healthy. The live online broadcast will promote safe hand hygiene to all children taking part. It is in partnership with WHO, UNICEF, Scarisbrick Hall and is supported by the Independent Schools Association via Microsoft Teams. All schools are invited to take part - find out more. We hope that you will encourage your children to join in.
John Lewis/Waitrose Competition: Design A Super Hero Bear
John Lewis/Waitrose are running a competition for children to design a superhero-themed bear to grace their shelves this Christmas. All proceeds will go to the NHS in support of all their incredible work.
To enter children should simply draw, sketch and design their SuperBear using the template which is available to download here: https://jland.partners/FeelGoodFriday. Children may be as creative as they like! When designs are complete, pupils or parents should share them by email to designyoursuperbear@johnlewis.co.uk by 5pm on Friday 8th May 2020.
Full details are available here: https://jland.partners/FeelGoodFriday
Thank a Teacher Day - 20th May
Our teachers are working incredibly hard at home and it would be wonderful if any of the children would like to thank their teachers personally. National 'Thank a Teacher Day' is approaching and the children can arrange for a card to be sent to school for their teachers with a personal greeting. Please share this with your children if they would like to get involved in thanking their teachers!
https://thankateacher.co.uk/thank-a-teacher-day
Posted on: 24/04/2020Weekly News - Friday 24th April 2020
Staff News
We are sad to announce that Mrs. Rance will be leaving us at the end of the summer term. As many of you know, Mrs. Rance is expecting her second baby and she and her husband are now planning a move further away from the school, as her husband embarks upon a new job. She has therefore taken the decision not to return following her maternity leave this summer. Mrs. Rance has been with the school for 8 years and her dedication and enthusiasm have made her very popular with children, parents and colleagues. She will be greatly missed and we know that you will join us in wishing her well as she embarks on her new adventures.
Mrs. Stubbs has been with us for 3 years and has always enthused the children as a flute teacher and one of the Lower School music teachers. She has decided now to focus on family and reduce the number of peripatetic students she teaches. Mrs. Stubbs has been a super colleague and wonderful teacher and we will miss her very much. We wish her all the best for the next phase of her life.
Following rigorous recruitment procedures, we are delighted to announce some new appointments. The following new members of staff will be joining us from September.
Ms. Kyra Linton will be joining us as a Year 4 form teacher and Head of Maths. Ms. Linton, herself educated in the independent sector, is passionate about the benefits of a private education, and so, following her degree, she decided to undertake a PGCE to join the teaching profession and inspire a new generation of pupils. She is currently at the Van Gogh Primary School and will bring with her a great deal of independent school experience both as a pupil and a teacher, as well as great enthusiasm and excellent pastoral care.
Mr. Steve Roche will be joining our staff as Head of English. Mr. Roche is currently working at St. Margaret's Independent School in Bushey. Along with his considerable expertise and experience in teaching English in the independent sector, he brings a passion for mindfulness and is looking forward very much to contributing to the ethos of the school.
Mrs. Claire Fawbert will, from September, replace Mrs. Allery as Director of Music. Mrs. Fawbert is currently working at Slough Music Service as their Music Centre Co-ordinator, teaching in a wide range of primary and secondary schools in Slough and organising events for the Music Service. She is also a professional trumpet player and has already met some of our pupils.She will bring her enthusiasm and passion for music to the school and is already known to many of our peripatetic teachers in the musical world.
Mrs. Nadine Pruce will become our new Head of Art, replacing Miss Dear; Mrs. Pruce has been teaching art at the Royal Masonic School for Girls for the past 8 years and was in the midst of arranging a national exhibition for preparatory schools before the pandemic, at which many of our pupils' work would have been exhibited. Mrs. Pruce is looking forward to working with us and continuing to develop the passion and expertise that our pupils have in the subject. Alongside teaching art, Mrs. Pruce will be supporting the Teaching and Learning in her other role as a Higher Level Teaching Assistant.
Mrs. Victoria Briggs will join us in September as a Year 3 teacher, covering Mrs. McLaughlin's maternity leave. Mrs. Briggs and her husband are a military family who will be relocating from Suffolk over the summer. Mrs. Briggs has taught in many top independent schools around the world as she has travelled with her husband and will bring a wealth of teaching experience to the Year 3 classroom.
Home Learning - Parent Resources
Elaine Halligan, one of the Parent Practice founders, has invited parents of St. Helen's College to receive a free download of her '30 day to learn Parenting Cards'. These cards are superb for parents of children of any age and may be welcome at this testing time. You can access the cards at https://www.theparentpractice.com/signup.
The Parent Practice podcasts are also packed full of tips and great interviews which may prove useful for you as you support your children in their remote learning. You an access these here: https://www.theparentpractice.com/podcast/.
Feel Good Fridays
As we move into our new term with the school sites closed, we will be launching 'Feel Good Friday' with a different theme each week, to help keep children feeling connected to our school community and to boost their spirits!
Next Friday (1st May) will be our 'House Day' and we invite all the children to wear their Cambria or Windsor house colours for their day of remote learning. We also encourage pupils to create/design/make anything which represents their house. Ideas might include writing a poem, building a model, designing a coat of arms or other emblem, writing a house rap or song....pupils may be as creative as they like!
Entries should be photographed, recorded, scanned and emailed to Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Drummond. Entries will be shared on our website gallery and there may even be prizes!
Remote Learning and Easter Holiday News
St. Helen's College children have been busy creating their own rainbows to add the the 'Rainbow Trail', displayed in the windows of houses all over the country. You can see some of their creations on our Galleries page here.
There has also already been some fantastic online learning going on. Ollie T (4T) made and shared a super science video to explain the conclusion for his experiment, which you can see on the school Youtube channel here:
Xavier B (3M) has been creating the most amazing marble runs at home to test how fast and far marbles will run! In his second attempt, he even runs marbles down from his bedroom window on the outside of the house!
Pavitar (5G) and his father played on the Dhol on their street to show their family support to the NHS and all the key workers. Bravo!
During the Easter break in one of the Friday messages Mrs Drummond challenged the children to create something from a simple piece of wire. Some of the children's creations can be seen on the Galleries page.
Since returning to school on Wednesday, Year 2 have done some amazing talks on Google Meet. The pupils worked on them over the Easter holidays and have spent the last two days sharing them with the class. Topics have included swimming, family, skiing, Scotland, cats, foxes, staying healthy, cars and many more. Some children even presented their screens! Well done, Year 2.
Videos
If you have not yet been watching Mrs. Hunt and Mrs. Drummond videos and messages, please do take a look - there is a link on the home page of the Learning Portal. These have been posted throughout the Easter holidays. There is a mixture of stories, songs, messages and short clips to lift the spirits! You might like to take a look at this 12 second clip of Mrs. Drummond, Mr. Smith, Miss Baldwin, Roshni and Ajit dancing at Lower School over the holidays for a start!
First News
We would like to encourage our pupils to keep up to date with current affairs while they are learning from home. The school has a subscription to First News, the excellent newspaper for primary school children, and many pupils usually read this when they are visiting the library at school. For now, First News are publishing digitally and making their content available for free download. Please do encourage your child to subscribe digitally and to read First News each time it is published. Further information on how to do so is available here.
Music News
We are thrilled to announce the results of the ABRSM examinations taken at the end of last term:
Flute
6M Keaton P Grade 1 Distinction
6M Dhiya K Grade 4 Merit
6RD Esha T Grade 2 Merit
Singing
6RD Laura B Grade 3 Distinction
4T Shruthi T Grade 3 Distinction
6M Jasmine B Grade 5 Merit
4KT Chrissy S Grade 1 Merit
4T Ria M Grade 1 Merit
6RD Catherine L Grade 6 Pass
2B Senna G prep pass
3M Xavier B prep pass
Clarinet
5A Jessica L Grade 1 Distinction
Saxophone
5G Vidhit N Grade 2 Pass
Violin
2B Emily S Initial Grade Distinction
1C Aanya C Initial Grade Distinction
4KT Layla O Grade 1 Merit
6M Ibraheem F Grade 3 Pass
Piano
6RD Kaixin F Grade 1 Merit
5A Aaran P Grade 1 Pass
Guitar
4KT Luka K Grade 1 Pass
Trumpet
3B Dominic M Grade 1 Pass
This is a fantastic set of results and we are very proud of all of the pupils involved, who worked so hard last term to practise and prepare for their music examinations alongside their other daily work and activities.
For the time being, individual instrumental and vocal lessons are being delivered remotely. Timetables for the summer term have been posted to the website and are available here.
From September, due to Year 6 pupils leaving and creating some vacancies, we will have spaces for children to learn flute. Some of our talented flautists will be playing in Friday assemblies over the next few weeks so do encourage your children to watch - hopefully they will be inspired to want to learn the flute themselves! Spaces are allocated on a first come, first served basis and you should email Mrs. Allery directly if your child would like to learn the flute: rallery@sthelenscollege.com
STARS Competition
The London Borough of Hillingdon STARS Team are running a 'Design your Dream Bike' competition, which closes on Thursday 30th April, and we would like to encourage children to make an entry.
Children should draw what their dream bicycle would look like. It doesn’t have to be a conventional two-wheel bicycle - the bike can be as wacky and inventive as they want. The more creative the better! Think wings and rockets and you are on the right track! Children are encouraged to use their imagination and whatever medium they have to hand. Paints, pencils, crayons and pens are all totally acceptable!
Once the top 3 winning designs from each key stage have been selected, they will be sent to a graphic designer to be turned into a piece of art - digitising the design and adding colour and backgrounds to the print, which will then be mounted and framed for your child to keep.
Prize breakdown (for each KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4):
1st Place will receive a £50 Amazon Voucher and an A3 framed print of their bike
2nd Place will receive a £30 Amazon Voucher and an A4 framed print of their bike
3rd Place will receive a £15 Amazon Voucher and an A5 framed print of their bike
In addition, work will be exhibited at a local library, subject to changes to the current lockdown conditions.
Here is a template that could be printed out and used by your child; however, if you don't have access to a printer then please feel free to use any piece of paper and art supplies you have! When your child's design is complete, please e-mail a photo of the design including the child's name, school and year group to stars@hillingdon.gov.uk. Entries must be received by Thursday 30th April 2020. The STARS team will then contact the winners by email.
Good luck, everyone!
Posted on: 20/03/2020Weekly News - Friday 20th March 2020
Scholarships
We are thrilled to announce that our Year 6 pupils have performed extremely well in the independent school entrance processes. Following the 11+ entry assessments and interviews, they have been awarded the following scholarships. As you will see, it is an impressively long list! Many congratulations to all of these children, and to all of the other Year 6 children - we are so pleased that your hard work has been acknowledged in this way.
Headington School
Academic Scholarship - Catherine L
Music Scholarship - Catherine L
Long Close School
Academic Scholarship - Taha U
Merchant Taylors School
Academic Scholarship - Daniel G-J
Northwood College
Academic Scholarship - Aarna A
Academic Scholarship - Esha T
Art Scholarship - Kaixin F
Art Scholarship - Ridhima M
Sport Scholarship - Rhea A-V
Reddam House School
Academic Scholarship - Ibraheem F
Royal Masonic School
All-Rounder Scholarship - Ridhima M
St. Helen's School, Northwood
Academic Scholarship - Aarna A
Academic Scholarship - Ridhima M
St. Mary's School
Academic Scholarship - Jasmine B
St. Paul's Girls' School
Music Exhibitions for Flute and Voice - Catherine L
Wycombe Abbey School
Music Scholarship - Catherine L
Music Personality of the Term
The Musician of the Term trophy was awarded this term to Jasmine B, who has always worked conscientiously and demonstrated great enthusiasm over many years in all aspects of music at St. Helen's College. Jasmine has excellent music skills, applies and shares creative ideas well in class work, and has is an excellent role model within the music department as a music prefect. She has been a regular member of the Junior, Senior and Chamber Choirs and she regularly performs in assemblies and recitals. As well as playing the recorder fluently, Jasmine plays the piano and the guitar, and has recently taken her Grade 5 singing exam. Well done, Jasmine!
PA Easter Egg Winners
The following children won the PA Easter egg raffle today. Some of these children were not in school but don't worry - we will hold onto their prizes for them until we return!
Ducklings - Alana P
Robins - Aaria M
Wrens - Nihaal P
Kingfishers - Millie B
Owls - Caitlin P
1C - Avar D
1HC - Ashvika A
2B - Hana H
2H - Lachlan J
3B - India C
3M - Milo M
4KT - Nirvaan D
4T - Avaani M
5A - Jessica L
5G - Joban K
6M - Jai D
6RD - Aran C
Many thanks to the PA for their generosity in donating these Easter prizes!
Outdoor Choir
This week the Senior Choir took their musicality outdoors and delighted Accent staff, other pupils and staff (including catering staff) with a medley of Frozen songs. It was wonderful to see and hear such uplifting musicality around the Windsor Garden and playground.
Sports News
Well done to the girls who played in the netball rally last Saturday. The team lost in the semi finals and were awarded bronze medals. They were also presented with gold medals and the cup for winning the league. Congratulations, girls.
Staff News
We know that you will wish to join us in congratulating Ms Califano (1HC) who is expecting her second child!
Posted on: 13/03/2020Weekly News - March 13th 2020
Chess
Congratulations to Michael K from Year 6, who was the winner of the Delancey Chess Tournament; Michael received a lovely trophy and book voucher. Congratulations also to Marcus S and Alex S who both qualified for the Megafinal, which is due to take place over the Easter break.
Wrens Assembly
A budding group of scientists entered an amazing time machine and went back to the prehistoric era in the Wrens class assembly this week, where they met two paleontologists who introduced them to an array of fascinating dinosaurs.
The children delighted us with their singing, acting and knowledge of dinosaurs and how they became extinct. There were some wonderful performances from such young children. Congratulations to everyone involved!
6RD assembly
It was an emotional morning for the pupils and parents of 6RD as the children presented their final class assembly. They took the opportunity to share their favourite memories of their time at school with the audience, from Nursery right through to Year 6, and to reflect upon the great start they have made not just to their education but to their lives! They considered their hopes and dreams and speculated on the careers they might go on to undertake, but also reminded us all that health and happiness are the most important goals in life. Well done, 6RD; your singing and acting were very impressive and we very much enjoyed sharing your reflections.
Quiz Club Heats
On Tuesday, our Quiz Club visited the Emmanuel Centre in Westminster to take part in the national primary General Knowledge Quiz Club finals. The A team came 10th overall and the B team came 25th overall. There were 31 teams taking place in all. This was a fantastic experience including a super minibus tour of London for our Quiz Club members, who were: Catherine L, Esha T, Ben L, Vandan V, Aryan B, Riddhi S, Annie L and Arshvir S.
Book Sale
We are delighted to report that the World Book Day book sale last week (of surplus library stock plus some books donated from home) raised £108, which will be used to purchase new school library books which enhance our wellbeing. This might include books specifically addressing wellbeing and mental health, fiction for different ages, hobbies and sports...any specific suggestions or ideas are most welcome! In the summer term, our librarians will create a display of the new books. Many thanks indeed to all those who supported the book sale!
Sports News
Table Tennis
We took twelve players (three teams) to the Hillingdon Primary Table Tennis at Oakwood School on Monday.
The format of the competition was different this year, with twelve individual medals available instead of team medals. We are delighted to report that, of the twelve individual medals available, St. Helen's College won seven!
There were four seed pools overall and our individual medals were as follows:
Seed Pool 1
Silver - Eli V-B
Bronze - Ciaran R
Seed Pool 2
Gold - Jai D
Silver - Harry J
Bronze - Mohib F
Seed Pool 3
Silver - Rhea A-V
Bronze - Hema G
We were crowned Borough Champions once again and the team proudly retained their silver plate trophy! Well done to all those pupils involved.
Football
Our school football team finished their campaign for this season with a 2-1 defeat at home to St. Matthew's. It has been a season of two halves, with some great play and results before Christmas followed by a drop in form after the Christmas break. The team should be proud of themselves as we have introduced younger players this year and some of the performances from our Year 6 players have been outstanding. Mistakes have cost us a higher finishing position in the league, but with the introduction of youth we look forward to a successful campaign next season.
Netball
Many congratulations to our netball team, who were winners of the Year 6 netball tournament at Reddiford School this week. Schools taking part were Alpha Prep, Reddiford, Quainton Hall and St. Helen's College.
Our team were undefeated all afternoon and showed great competitive skills and team play.
Swimming Gala
At Thursday evening's swimming gala, the St. Helen's College team put on a very strong performance indeed, qualifying through the heats for 7 out of 8 finals!
In the finals, there were bronze medals for Krisha S in breaststroke and Catherine L in freestyle and a silver medal for our freestyle relay team, made up of Catherine L, Ben L and Krisha S.
The St. Helen's College team came in 3rd place overall and should feel very proud of themselves!
Speech Competition (Years 1- 6)
Our finalists have now been selected from each class for the Speech Competition, following a very high standard of semi-finals. Parents of finalists will receive a letter inviting them to attend the final on Monday 23rd March, which will be judged by one of our school Governors, Miss Linda Beckett. We hope that we will all enjoy a sensational day of 'projection, expression and clarity'!
Singing Competition
Our very exciting Singing Competition for Years 2-6 will take place on Friday 5th June this year. Children should decide which category they would like to enter and choose a song. Next, fill in a slip and put into the boxes which can be found at the front of the Upper School hall. Entries must be submitted no later than Thursday 26th March. Semi-finals will be held during the first half of the summer term this year.
Once again, there is no set theme this year as we would like to hear songs from all different genres and perhaps a range of songs throughout musical history. Singing in other languages is permitted. The only restrictions are that we would like you to avoid singing pop songs and we would like to see only simple gestures and appropriate movements relevant to the performance. No dance moves please. Duets and groups are encouraged to add harmony/part singing to their performance.
The categories are:
Best solo singer from each year group.
Best duet
Middle School
Upper School
Best group - trios (3) or quartets (4) only.
Middle School
Upper School
There should be just one solo entry per child but they may also participate in either a duet or a group. No summer term choir songs please!
A backing track is required (without words) for performance on the day; CD or ipod only. No piano accompaniments will be used this year, unless a child is playing the piano or guitar as part of their performance.
All winners will be invited to sing at the Singers’ Concert on 9th June.
Exhibition Day, Easter Service and Nursery/Reception Poetry Recital
We have taken the decision to postpone Exhibition Day, which was due to take place on Saturday 21st March, and to cancel the Upper School Easter Service, which was due to take place on Friday 27th March, as part of our action to mitigate against the risk of Coronavirus. We are sorry that these events will not take place this term but we are sure that parents will understand the reasons behind their cancellation. We are currently considering the format of the Nursery/Reception Poetry Recital and whether it will be possible for this to take place, and will contact parents about this in due course.
PA Easter Raffle
The PA has again donated prizes for a raffle for the children this Easter. All of the children are included in this free Easter egg draw with one prize drawn for each class. We hope that the lucky winners enjoy their prizes and we thank the PA for organising the raffle!
Rescheduled PA Forum Meeting Date
The next PA Forum meeting is now scheduled to take place in the Upper School Hall at 7 p.m. on Monday 27th April. Class rep's should send any points for discussion to Mrs. Smith at susmith@sthelenscollege.com by the first day of term please, to allow the school time to collate and research any issues before the meeting.
Posted on: 6/03/2020Weekly News - Friday 6th March 2020
What a wonderful day we had yesterday as we celebrated World Book Day! At Ducklings and Lower School, children and staff dressed up following their 'enchanted' theme and the pupils of Robins Nursery presented a beautiful book-themed assembly (see below).
At Upper School, the children arrived at Platform 9 3/4 to embark upon their Hogwarts adventure as the school grounds were adorned with Harry Potter themed signs. Staff and pupils enjoyed a day of Potter-themed activities and lessons, including riding 'broomsticks' in PE sessions! The following morning, 6M presented their Harry Potter assembly (see below). In response to a parent request, you can see here a picture of some of the many staff who dressed up as Hogwarts teachers and pupils!
Soula and her wonderful team provided a special 'enchanted' themed lunch and the Evans Hall was transformed into the Hogwarts Great Hall, with extra long tables and polyjuice potion smoothies. Accent Catering have provided some World Book Day themed recipes which you might like to try cooking with your children at home. You can see them here.
Thank you to all of the parents who worked hard to help your children dress up as characters from their favourite books - reading really did come to life at St. Helen's College this week and we couldn't have done it without you!
Robins Class Assembly - Books Books Books
Wow! The children of Robins Nursery really did enchant us all with their assembly performance on Thursday, as they stood up confidently in front of a hall full of adults and recited their lines and songs about books and all the magic to be found within them. Their costumes were really beautiful and it was particularly touching to see the children being such good friends to each other, as they helped each other to remember their lines and take their places. It is easy to forget that these children are only 3 and 4 years old when we see them able to command a room, remember lines and songs and present themselves so confidently. Very well done, Robins!
6M Class Assembly
We are grateful to the children of 6M, who presented a confident, musical and meaningful Harry Potter-themed assembly on Friday morning. Linking the Harry Potter stories neatly to our school values, they reminded us that friendliness is perhaps one of the most important values of all, and that bravery and perseverance often pay off. We were treated to a beautiful rendition of 'Double Double' by a Hogwarts-style choir and there was some super choreography and some humour too! Five of the girls also played Harry Potter themes on recorder, in parts, to begin the assembly. The pupils certainly showed off their excellent musical and acting skills and we are sure that, along with the children of 6RD, they are going to give us an end of year musical to remember this year - there is so much talent among them! Well done, 6M.
Year 1 Trip to Windsor Castle
Year 1 were very lucky with the weather on Tuesday, as the children and staff enjoyed a super day out at Windsor Castle, the largest and oldest inhabited castle in the whole world! The pupils really enjoyed learning all about the Queen and her favourite home.
Exhibition Day
Our annual Exhibition Day will take place on Saturday 21st March from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. This is a wonderful St. Helen's College tradition and we hope that all families will attend so that you may view the displays of children's work across the curriculum. Pupils should wear full school uniform please. Please note that Friday 20th March is a half day and that there will be no Funtasia available on this day as the staff prepare for Exhibition Day.
Speech Competition (Years 1- 6)
Well done to all of the children who have been reciting their poems in class this week. The teachers have been very impressed with the standard and have had the very difficult task of choosing class semi-finalists. When finalists have been selected from each class, the parents of finalists will receive a letter inviting them to attend the final on Monday 23rd March, which will be judged by one of our school Governors, Miss Linda Beckett.
Staff Updates
Mr. Tovell will be leaving us at the end of this academic year to take up a new position at St. Alban's High School for Girls prep department. This is much closer to his home and will allow him more family time as his son Teddy starts school. Although we are very sorry to see him go, we wish him well in this new stage of his career.
We are currently recruiting and will announce details of new appointments soon.
Sports News
Football
It was a difficult week for the football team, who lost 3-1 to Heathrow on a challenging pitch in very wet, boggy conditions. Well done to the boys for their efforts on such a miserable day. Onwards and upwards!
Netball Borough Finals
Our netball team competed in the borough finals this week and put up a creditable performance on a rather dismal, rainy day. In the end, they won 4 matches and lost 2, and were placed 9th overall. Well done to the girls who took part.
Marks and Spencer's Little Garden
Marks and Spencer are currently running a promotion named 'Little Garden'. When you spend over £20 in the food hall or on food to order, M&S will give you a free seedling kit. You could use this to grow seedlings with your children at home or, if you find you have surplus kits, we would be very grateful if you would bring them to school for Ms Gilham, who will use them in our summer term Gardening Club.
Many thanks for your support - let's all get growing!
Posted on: 28/02/2020Weekly News - Friday 28th February 2020
World Book Day
We would like to remind you that next Thursday, 5th March, we will be celebrating World Book Day. The theme for Ducklings and Lower School is 'Enchanted' and the theme for Upper School is 'Harry Potter'. The children are asked to dress as a book character of their choice (which may of course link to the themes if you wish). It is sure to be a fun-filled day, celebrating the fantastic world of books and all the reading done throughout the year. The children are also asked to bring the book their character is from on the day so that we can share them together.
There will be a special themed lunch menu on World Book Day. You can see this, and associated allergens, here.
In conjunction with our World Book Day celebrations, the school is taking part in a sponsored read through Usborne Books in a bid to get even more fresh new books into our classrooms and libraries for your children to enjoy. Sponsorship forms and reading logs have been sent home with your children and full details have been sent out on SchoolsBuddy. Many thanks for your continued support of the children's reading.
As part of World Book Day, we will be holding a book sale of pre-loved books surplus to the library. It will take place in the Upper School gazebo between 8 a.m. and 8.30 a.m. on Thursday and books will cost 25p, 50p or £1. The money raised will be used to buy new books that will boost our wellbeing and good health! Please do come along with your child(ren) if you can.
Speech Competition
Children are busy preparing their Speech Competition entries and recitals. This is one of the many opportunities across the year which enables the children to showcase their verbal skills and to develop their confidence in public speaking. Please note that children must not use gestures or choreography of any kind in their performances. For Years 1-6, the judging criteria are: expression, projection and clarity.
Year 2 Visit The Heath Robinson Museum
Year 2 had a very enjoyable trip to the Heath Robinson Museum on Monday.
They had a look around the beautiful museum and then took part in an art activity using different coloured wool and lots of soap and water to make felt. They used the colour wheel to decide on different colours for their designs and have created some lovely pieces of art work.
This beautiful, local museum offers lots of craft activities over the holidays for families so please do consider taking your children during school holiday times too!
JRSO Conference
On Wednesday our Junior Road Safety Officers were invited to attend an event at The Winston Churchill Hall by the London Borough of Hillingdon’s Road Safety & School Travel Team.
Our team, consisting of six pupils from Year 5 (Fredericka, Georgia, Samir, Vidhit, Jena & Manisher) were invited to participate in a number of fun educational activities, including a theatre performance, workshops and the “Dragons Den”, for which they had to present an idea and pitch for funding.
Over the past few weeks the team have been discussing ideas on how to improve road safety and decided upon a drive to raise speed awareness amongst parents, staff and pupils. They came up with various ideas of how this could be achieved including signage, banners on the railings, a portable speed bump to reduce speed in Parkway to 10mph, assemblies for parents, leaflets and making their own awareness video similar to the TfL “Watch your Speed” campaign. They researched the resources that are available and then calculated the costs involved. They then produced their proposal in the form of a presentation.
On the day they were all very excited and a little nervous before they were called in to face the “Dragons”. They spoke confidently and delivered a polished presentation. The Dragons gave them quite a grilling at the end of their presentation and they answered all their questions with confidence. Councillor Burrows remarked that he was unable to authorise a speed bump but was impressed by their well thought out ideas for raising speed awareness.
At the end of the day we all sat nervously waiting to find out if their pitch to the Dragons had been successful and we were delighted that not only did the Dragons endorse the children’s ideas but actually gave them more money than they had asked for! We received a total of £500 which will enable the JRSOs to get working on their campaign. We look forward to seeing their Speed Awareness Campaign come to life!
Year 3 Pedestrian Training & Year 5 Road Safety Workshop
Our Pedestrian Safety training programme continued this week, with Year 3 pupils undertaking their road safety training with the London Borough of Hillingdon's Road Safety Team, and Year 5 children enjoying a visiting Road Safety Workshop from 'Riot Act' today.
Kingfishers Class Assembly - Space
The children in Kingfishers rocketed us into space this week with a superb assembly, teaching us all about the solar system and space travel. We even met some cheeky little aliens! We were also reminded of how to look after our planet by reusing, reducing and recycling our waste. The children performed confidently and it was a very informative and enjoyable presentation. Well done, Kingfishers.
Woodlands Care Home Visit
On Thursday a group of our Year 6 children, Mrs. Belvoir, Mrs. Drummond and Mr. Barnard visited Woodlands Care Home in Ickenham. This was the first 'getting to know you' visit for the children and the residents and our pupils are incredible ambassadors for the school. Many of the residents suffer from dementia/Alzheimer's and the children were so incredible with their communication and the interest they showed in their new friends. Our new relationship with Woodlands is particularly special for Mrs. Belvoir as her mother is one of the residents who enjoyed the company of the children.
Friday Informal Music Recital
We enjoyed another superb informal music recital in the Evans Hall at the end of the school day today, with performance from pupils from many year groups. It is wonderful to see the children gaining confidence in performing to a supportive, friendly audience and we are sure that many of them will go on to a lifetime of performance and musical achievement! Well done to all those who took part.
Football - Cup Match v. Oak Farm
Unfortunately on Wednesday we suffered our first defeat of the football season, going down 4-0 to Oak Farm in the Cup. The team weren't at their best and hopefully we can rectify that for our remaining two league games.
Exhibition Day
Our annual Exhibition Day will take place on Saturday 21st March from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. This is a wonderful St. Helen's College tradition and we hope that all families will attend so that you may view the displays of children's work across the curriculum. Pupils should wear full school uniform please. Please note that Friday 20th March is a half day and that there will be no Funtasia available on this day as the staff prepare for Exhibition Day.
StarGazing Event at Ruislip Lido This Weekend
The West of London Astronomical Society would like to invite children, parents and staff to a public stargazing event being held at Ruislip Lido this coming weekend: Fri 28, Sat 29, Sun 1 Mar, 7 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Details are on the poster attached which you are invited to print and publicise as you wish.
Medium term forecasts are now quite reliable and are currently saying:
Fri: poor
Sat: starting partially cloudy then clearing
Sun: the most promising, again improving over the evening.
Please check the WOLAS website before setting off: http://www.wolas.org.uk when the GO/NOGO call will be made by 4pm.
The next stargazing weekend is 20 - 22 November, at the end of National Astronomy Week when Mars will be at its closest until 2035.
We do hope that many of you will take your children along to enjoy some stargazing!
Junior Bake-Off
Love Productions, the company behind The Great British Bake-Off, are currently looking for young budding bakers between 9 -15 years old for a new series of Junior Bake-Off. Filming would take place from July 2020, but applications close on Sunday 5th April 2020.
Interested young bakers can apply online at WWW.APPLYFORJUNIORBAKEOFF.CO.UK.
Spice of the Month - Caraway
Accent Catering's 'Spice of the Month' for March is Caraway. You can find lots of recipes including Caraway here - we hope you will enjoy making some of these with your children!
Posted on: 14/02/2020Weekly News - Friday 14th February 2020
Well-Being Week
Our focus on well-being this week was kick-started on Monday with wonderful performances in assemblies from children who wished to share their talents with their peers. We enjoyed singing, dancing, poetry recitals, trumpet playing and ballet to name but a few talents. It was such a joyful start to the week!
Well-Being Day
Yesterday was a wonderful day throughout the school as the children from Ducklings to Year 6 participated in a wide array of well-being activities from making gratitude jars and well-being snow globes to listening ear crowns, yoga, mindful nature walking, a tree of life activity, reflective diary writing.... the list goes on! Do speak with your children and discuss what they did on the day. I am sure that many of the activities they did they would love to do again with their families.
For those of you who were unable to attend last night's parent presentation and workshop evening, please see our booklet for information, some activities to do with your child and top tips to support your child's well-being.
Some children had the opportunity to take part in a session with 'Youth Fit' whilst others took part in other physical activity sessions during the day yesterday. The children thoroughly enjoyed themselves. If you would like to sign your child up for Youth Fit sessions outside of school, you can find out more information here.
Owls Assembly
Happiness exuded from the Lower School Hall yesterday as the Owls class launched the Lower School well-being day by sharing their smiles and happiness with us all in songs and poems. Mr. Happy even managed to put a smile on Little Miss Miserable's face!! They were all little rays of sunshine! Well done Owls.
5A Assembly
5A shared the love of Valentine's Day with everyone today, re-enacting the story of St. Valentine and reminding us that it is not all just about roses, chocolates and cards but in the ways that we can demonstrate our love towards each other, towards ourselves and to our community. Well done, 5A!
Soula and her team delighted everyone at lunchtime, continuing the Valentine's theme, with love-heart shaped strawberry cheesecakes. LOVEly!
Asthma and Allergy Training
All of our pupils from Year 4 to Year 6 participated in a superb training session this week from Rebecca, the asthma and allergy nurse from Hillingdon.
The children now have a much better understanding of what asthma is, how it can affect people and how important it is that children and adults who are diagnosed with asthma follow the medical advice they are given and use their inhalers as appropriate. Rebecca also spoke to the children about the types of allergies people can have and the treatment that is given if someone has a reaction. Our pupils at St. Helen's College really are equipped with amazing life skills.
Football News
We travelled to John Locke on Wednesday afternoon after our win last week, when we beat St. Andrew's 6-0. Looking at the very uneven pitch, we thought we were in for a tricky game at John Locke and this proved to be the case. We managed a 1-0 win thanks to Adam K and the team showed great determination and desire to come out on top. This puts us in a very strong position in the league with two games to play against Heathrow and St. Matthew's. Winning both should see us crowned as champions! We entertain Oak Farm the week after half term in the Borough Cup, with kick off at 3.45 p.m. on Wednesday 26th February in Court Park. All support welcome!
North Hillingdon Methodist Church - Worship KidStyle!
The North Hillingdon Methodist Church are holding new church services especially for children on the third Sunday of every month, with the first one taking place this Sunday, 16th February. Why not take your child along to join in. You can see their Kidstyle poster here.
Coronavirus and Half Term Travel
Many families might be travelling abroad over the half term break, so we would like to remind you that, as a school, we are following the advice issued by the government concerning the Coronavirus. This advice is being updated online daily at 2 p.m. and can be accessed at this link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/wuhan-novel-coronavirus-information-for-the-public
All parents should check this advice and, if you are travelling abroad, please continue to check the latest government advice before, during and after travelling. During and after travel, please be vigilant for signs of illness in children or other family members, and comply with the latest advice issued if you have any concerns.
Posted on: 7/02/2020Weekly News - Friday 7th February 2020
1C Assembly - Brazil And The Rainforest
The children of 1C took us on a journey to Brazil on Thursday and shared the delights of their culture, landmarks, traditions, football and of course the wonderful Amazon rainforest. Superb performances from all children - thank you!
5G Assembly
Albert Einstein and Benjamin Bloom graced us with their presence this morning as 5G explained relativity, why the sky is blue and how to ask outstanding questions using Bloom's Taxonomy. The children engaged their audience with their knowledge and understanding of critical thinking skills and performed the popular song from Matilda 'When I grow up'. I am sure that everyone present is confident that when our children grow up our world will be a very interesting place indeed! Well done 5G.
Chamber Choir
Tremendous congratulations to our Chamber Choir pupils who performed at the Children's Trust London Schools Concert in St. John's Smith Square on Sunday to a most appreciative audience of approximately 800 people. All the staff who attended and Mr. and Mrs. Crehan were so proud of the children. Thank you to all the families who supported the event
We wish the Chamber Choir well for this weekend, too, as they will be representing the school at a concert at St. John's Church, Royal Lane, Uxbridge on Saturday evening. The concert will begin at 6 p.m. and tickets will be available on the door at a cost of £5 each. Please do come along and support the Chamber Choir if you can!
Mindful Sit
Pupils from Year 2 - Year 6 and staff participated in the national Mindful Sit on Wednesday during assembly time in recognition of National Mental Health week. Pupils were guided through a practice of noticing with their attention finally settling on their breathing. A wonderful start to the day as the children returned to their classes ready for the day ahead with a clear and calm mind.
Pedestrian Skills/Road Safety Training
Our annual pedestrian skills/road safety training programme has commenced for this year. Our Year 2 children received their training this week and other year groups will be taking part in training and/or workshops over the coming weeks. The children have really enjoyed wearing their new hi-vis jackets which we have been able to purchase for every child in the school, thanks to a grant from the London Borough of Hillingdon Road Safety Team.
Sports News
Our netball and our football teams remain at the top of their respective local leagues, having both won their matches this week.
The handball tournament last Saturday was well-attended and most enjoyable. The St. Helen's College children played well in their matches and enjoyed putting the skills they have been learning at school into practice.
Co-Curricular Clubs Led By Pupils
It is always wonderful to observe our children using their leadership skills around the school. Several clubs are running this term led by pupils. One such is the Coding Club, which began this week and is led by Michael K in Year 6.
World Book Day
The school will be celebrating World Book Day on Thursday 5th March. The theme for Ducklings and Lower School is 'Enchanted' and the theme for Upper School is 'Harry Potter'. The children are asked to dress as a book character of their choice (which may of course link to the themes if you wish). It is sure to be a fun-filled day, celebrating the fantastic world of books and all the reading done throughout the year. The children are also asked to bring the book their character is from on the day so that we can share them together.
World Cancer Day
St. Helen's College staff have supported World Cancer Day this week by buying wristbands and donating money in return for staff room treats! Thank you to all of the staff who have contributed.
Uxbridge Library Exhibition - Hillingdon Geological Society
Harrow and Hillingdon Geological Society will be holding a 'hands on' exhibition in Uxbridge Library from 12th to 28th February. Pupils might like to go along to explore the geology of our local area and discover, amongst other things, that Ruislip was once warm waters of a shallow subtropical sea!
PA Forum
The next PA Forum meeting will take place on Tuesday 25th February. If you have any points of school-wide relevance that you would like discussed at this meeting, please send these to your class representative as soon as possible. Class rep's should send any issues for discussion to Mrs. Smith by Friday 14th February please, just before we break up for half term.
Robins Nursery class do not currently have a class representative - if you have a child in Robins and would like to volunteer, please contact Mrs. Smith as soon as possible. Mrs. Smith can be reached on susmith@sthelenscollege.com or by telephoning the Upper School office.
As usual, we will circulate minutes from the PA Forum meeting to all parents after the meeting has taken place.
School Arrival and Collection
The safety of your children whilst they are at school is crucial to us all. Please note that pupils are not permitted to enter the Upper School via the Long Lane entrance after 8.30 a.m. when the door is closed. After this time, parents must accompany pupils to the Parkway entrance and sign them in as a late arrival.
Parents are also reminded that they must not hold the gates/doors open for other parents or visitors to enter the school sites at any time.
Parents using the 'drop and go' system on Parkway are reminded that your child must be ready to leave the car independently (with their belongings) as you pull up alongside the kerb, and that they must exist the car on the kerb side. Please then pull away promptly to allow other cars to move up and drop children off. Children should exit the car when their car is the first in the line (just before the barriers) and not further down Parkway. Parents using 'drop and go' should not exit the car or linger at the kerb after a child has exited; it is crucial that we keep traffic flowing at this busy time of day.
Many thanks, as always, for your support.
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