Weekly News - Friday 16th September 2022

Author Visit - Mini Grey

On Thursday 22nd September, we will welcome multi award-winning author/illustrator Mini Grey to St. Helen's College to present to our children in Years 2, 3 and 4.

Mini will take pupils on a whistle stop tour through the story of life on Earth - all 4.6 billion years of it! Children will be introduced to the amazing creatures which have evolved on our planet and the events - including mass extinctions - which have caused chaos.

To pre-order copies of her latest book, The Greatest Show on Earth, ready to be signed and dedicated at school on the day, please click the link below and place your order through Chiltern Bookshops by 5 p.m. on Wednesday 21^st September:

https://schools.chilternbookshops.co.uk/events/mini-grey/

Orders placed in time will automatically be delivered free to St. Helen's College for your child to bring home. 

STEAM Day

Next Friday (23rd September) we will hold our annual STEAM Day.

The children will be off timetable and will take part in a range of activities covering Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Maths.

Pupils should wear PE kit as they will have an active day. Co-curricular clubs will run as usual. 

New House Competitions!

This week the children in Years 2 - 6 attended their first house assemblies with their new groups. They were introduced to their new pupil and staff teams amid much anticipation. Here is a reminder of our new house names, colours and House Leaders for this year:

Cambria (Red - Mrs. Hunt)

Caledonia (Blue - Mr. Lewis)

Hibernia (Green - Mr. McLaughlin)

Windsor (Yellow - Mr. Harrington)

To launch the new house groups, the children have been asked to take part in a competition to design a house shield and mascot. Form teachers have the templates; entries should be returned to them by September 30th. Each entry will gain house points for their team and the winners will be displayed on our new house boards. We look forward to an exciting first year with our four houses and a keenly contested House Cup competition too!

Rearranged Dates

Just a reminder for parents of upcoming events, some of which were rearranged due to the period of mourning following the Queen's death.

Monday 19th September
SCHOOL CLOSED
Funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Tuesday 20th September
Individual Lower School pupil photographs (optional sibling photographs from 7.40 a.m. at the Methodist Church Hall)
Co-Curriculum clubs start
Year 5/6 Meet the Teacher Evening at Upper School

Wednesday 21st September
Individual Ducklings pupil photographs from 9.00 a.m. at Ducklings
Year 1 Phonics & Maths Evening at Lower School
Year 2 Phonics & Maths Evening at Upper School

Thursday 22nd September
Individual Upper School pupil photographs (optional sibling photographs from 7.40 a.m. in the Upper School Hall)
Year 2-4 author visit (during morning lessons)

Friday 23rd September
STEAM Day

Parents are reminded to check the school calendar regularly for information about events.

Co-Curricular Clubs

Co-curricular clubs will begin on Tuesday 20th September. Allocations were sent to parents during this week. Please remember that, once you have signed your child up to a club and they have been allocated a place, the school is unable to make changes to the allocations or issue refunds.

We are looking forward to a busy and fun term with so many different clubs and activities on offer!

Supporting Children With Grief

National Online Safety have published a guide with tips for supporting children in dealing with grief. As we all continue to focus on the death of Queen Elizabeth II and her upcoming funeral, this may be useful for you in discussing bereavement with your children. It is available here.

Polio Booster Vaccination Programme

Following the detection of polio virus in sewage samples taken from North and East London, the NHS is offering all 1-9 year olds in London a polio booster vaccination. For some children this may be an extra dose of polio vaccine on top of their routine vaccinations. In other children it may just bring them up to date.

Polio is an infection caused by a virus that attacks the nervous system and can cause permanent paralysis of muscles. Because of the success of the polio vaccination programme, there have been no cases of natural polio infection in the UK since 1984. By giving an extra polio vaccine dose, this will boost each child’s protection.

Please read this NHS letter carefully and follow the NHS advice.

School at Work Open Morning - Wednesday 12th October

Our next 'School at Work' Open Morning for prospective parents will take place on Wednesday 12th October. This is a lovely opportunity for prospective parents to view the school and meet the pupils and staff on a normal day.

If you know of any family who are considering private education for their child, please do let them know about the event. Visits on Open Morning are by appointment only; prospective parents can book an appointment by calling the school office on 01895 234371 or emailing susmith@sthelenscollege.com.