Good afternoon,

What better way to start the last day of the week than with lots of Mums and Chums for breakfast! Today we all enjoyed a delicious breakfast cooked by Marvin and his team and lots of cheerful morning banter, complete with a spot of Encanto! Thank you to everyone who joined us, which made the day start with a large smile.

The large playground has some new paint markings – Hopscotch, Copy Me and so much more! Thank you to FOSS for funding this initiative – much appreciated. The children have loved exploring some new games at playtimes.

Thank you to Mrs Hayes’s Year 1 class for an absolutely superb collective worship based on the book- The Smeds and the Snoods. The children’s ability to memorise a whole book was truly spectacular and their confidence and fabulous singing voices, truly impressive. It was an absolute treat to start a Thursday morning with so many smiling faces.

Year 6 at Parliament!

On Tuesday Year 6 had a fantastic trip to parliament. First up, they had a tour of the House of Commons and Westminster Hall, before moving on to a learning session where the children conducted their own debate, pretending to be opposing parties. Finally, the trip finished off with talks from Andy Slaughter and Danny Kruger. It was a great day and a great opportunity for the children to learn how democracy works and how laws are passed.

British Science Week

Science Week was launched by Mrs Wordsworth and Mercedes, our Scientist in Residence in Monday’s collective worship. The children learned all about the different branches of science and saw some fun experiments played out before them.

In aid of British Science Week, Year 6 took part in a bridge building workshop put on by some civil engineers from Conway. The children learnt how bridges are constructed and maintained, particularly looking at Hammersmith Bridge and what is being done to restore it. Once they had built a suspension bridge that they could walk across, they built smaller bridges using K’nex, thinking about the shape and structure that would hold the most weight.

Neurodiversity Week

It has also been Neurodiversity week (please see Mrs Pereira’s Blog). We have welcomed some really positive feedback including the following from a parent; I really appreciate these sorts of initiatives and such a welcoming and inclusive culture “on the ground”. I think it really benefits everyone – and I love that the young people I know are generally much better informed about and accepting of neurodivergence and other differences these days. Vive la difference!

Punctuality and Attendance

We continue to monitor the attendance and punctuality of all the children. Please ensure that your children are heading for the classroom between 8.45 and 9am. Please ring in regarding any absences, clearly stating the reasons.

Auction Night

I am dusting off my gavel and practising my vocal exercises in readiness for the most amazing Auction Night possible! Please do join us and help to raise some much needed funds for our school! If you don’t fancy making a bid, come and sweep up with me at the end for a spot of sparkling banter! Over to Linda for more information (anyone got / or know someone who has got a second home in England they fancy putting forward as an auction item?)

If you haven’t bought your ticket yet for the St Stephen’s Auction Night on 30^th March, please do! Tickets are now available on ParentMail. Tickets are £20 or a table is £160 (seats 8).

We are planning a fun night for you! On arrival you will receive a welcome drink and there will be canapes to nibble, while you chat with friends and browse the auction lots. There will also be some live music to enjoy. The main meal will be served at your tables and pudding later in the evening.

Even if you aren’t tempted by any of the bids (although we think you will, as we have had some amazing lots so far – more on that at a later date), please come along and support our wonderful school and FOSS.

Sports Round Up

Year 6 Netball – St Stephens took two Year 6 netball teams to compete in a tournament against a number of Hammersmith and Fulham teams. Some great netball was played and St Stephens ended up winning the whole tournament! Well done girls!

Lambrook Football – St Stephens took the Mayor’s Cup girls football team to a tournament held at Lambrook. They played 7 matches against a range of teams. St Stephen’s scored a whopping 18 goals in those 7 games and conceded 0 and every player scored a goal. After winning all their games, they each received gold medals and a fantastic trophy (although the highlight according to some of the players) was that “the sausage rolls were really good.”

Basketball – St Stephens took two basketball teams (A+B) to the Hammersmith and Fulham borough event. Both teams started off really well, Team A winning all of their games and the Team B only losing 1. They both qualified for the knockout rounds. The B team made it to the final and won comfortably in a 3-0 win and the A team triumphed over last year’s winners 2-1 in added time. Gold medals for both teams and the A team are now representing the borough at the London Youth Games in the summer. Well done both teams!

Walk and Wheel to School

In aid of being part of the Healthy Schools London community, next week we will be taking part in Sustran’s big Walk and Wheel to School. I have told the whole school about this challenge, but it would be great if this could be encouraged at home as well. I will be collecting the data from each class every day, and the class that has the most children and adults walking, cycling or scooting to school will get a prize! I understand this may not be possible for all of you, but even just talking about the importance of walking to school or using bikes instead of cars, is great. This is a great opportunity for children to learn about staying healthy and helping the environment!

Another fun packed educational week with a fry up thrown in to the mix at the end!

Have a lovely weekend.

Mr Schumm