Two people are better than one ….. If one person falls, the other can reach out to help.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
A Message From The Head
It has been refreshing to see most of our children back in school after a very trying half term. At a point last half term, every class saw high numbers of pupils off school due to Covid-19. This half term we hope that fewer children’s learning will be affected by this.
Our Christian value for this term is ‘Trust’. Trust is essential to human life and lies at the heart of all relationships. Trust entails vulnerability and putting yourself in others’ hands. We have to trust experts including pilots, dentists and surgeons. Trust is the very essence of faith. You may wish to explore this further using the resource on Trust, found on the Christian Distinctiveness page.
At the end of last half term, Year 4 Anning Class held an International Day to celebrate all of the different languages, cultures and countries around the world. In Geography, Year 4 have been focusing on Europe and this was a fantastic way to end their geography work. The children dressed in the traditional clothes of a country, shared food and listened to music from different cultures. It was a lovely day of discovery, finding out new facts and information about other countries.
On 8th February, Year 6 had their annual outing to the Junior Citizens Day hosted at Chessington World of Adventures. Our children got to learn different things about keeping safe in the home, and when out and about. They got to act out and answer questions about different realistic scenarios they may have to face and it encouraged them to think through problems and resolve them.
Opportunity to join the School Governing Body
Before half term nomination forms were sent home for the position of parent governor. Please consider putting yourself forward for this great opportunity to be more involved in school life. You need to return the completed nomination form together with your personal statement to the school office by 12 noon on 4th March. Any queries or to find out more please contact Clerk to the Governors, Libby Lazenby on llazenby1@stjohns.rbksch.org
Forest School and OWL News
We are very proud to announce that our Forest School provision is now accepting referrals from other Primary Schools in the Kingston upon Thames and Richmond areas.
We are opening up our Alternative Provision (AP) and will deliver Forest School and gardening activities to children who need our outdoor space to help them thrive.
The main users will be primary aged children with SEMH behavioural issues some of which may be at risk of exclusion from mainstream education. They will be referred by local schools. The St John’s OWL and Forest School timetable will not be affected and our young visitors will not access the main school building as they will come and go via the Forest School gate. Our AP children will be accessing the site when St John's children are not using it. We are really looking forward to having them here and are so pleased that we can offer our community this much needed service.
For more information please visit https://www.forestschooling.co.uk/referrals
Swimming Lessons have started for our Y4 and Y5 pupils
The children were very pleased this week as they had the very first of their swimming lessons at The Malden Centre. All Y4 and Y5 children took part in the assessment lesson, and the course of lessons will begin in a few weeks' time (all dates will be sent out to parents in order to ensure children come in to school with their swimwear and a towel).
Two of our Year 4 pupils getting ready for their swim!