From the Head

From the Head of Pre-Prep

Dear Parents,

This week has flown by with a panto performance on Monday. All the children loved it with a favourite part being a cow mooing down the phone!

The Nursery, Kindergarten and Reception Nativities have been wonderful. I know all of you have enjoyed coming into school to see your children perform. It is such a huge thing to achieve singing on stage to a room full of adults, but the children have been amazing.

This afternoon I am looking forward to seeing Year 1 perform. Their rehearsal was very good so I’m sure the Nativity will be spectacular.

There are not many dates left for your end of term diary:

Tuesday 12^th December, 2pm: Year 2 Nativity

Wednesday 13^th December: Christmas Party Day – children to bring in a small plate of party food (they will have eaten their normal lunch). School uniform can be adorned with sparkles.

Thursday 14^th December: Wear your Christmas jumper to school (over your uniform). This is also Christmas lunch day where Early Years will eat together in the hall followed by Key Stage 1.

Fri 15^th December: Break up for Christmas at 12.00. Prep school siblings will join Pre-Prep so you can collect all of your children from one place.

Can I please remind you to drive around the tarmacked car park in a clockwise direction. Some cars coming out of spaces are going for a quick exit - anticlockwise, to the detriment of the queue of cars travelling clockwise. Whilst on my favourite subject of driving, I realise that everyone is busy in the morning, but we all know that Row Dow and Pilgrims way can be tight. If you do knock another car (as happened this week) please acknowledge and apologise. We all want to show the children travelling in our cars that we have good manners.

During assembly this morning all the children committed to being extra good this weekend to help you out prior to Christmas and so if you need me to inform Father Christmas of any sibling squabbles, please feel free to use my name as a reminder!

Overheard during a fire drill: "Why do we have so many practices and no real fires?!"

Have a lovely weekend,

Zerrin Leech

At the end of this term we will be saying goodbye to the following individuals:

Elaine Martin

It is with a heavy heart we say farewell to Mrs Elaine Martin this Christmas. She has finally decided to hang up her whistle and head for a calmer life at the coast. After 30 years working with St Michael’s from Kindergarten through to Year 2 there can’t be a family who has been through Pre-Prep that she hasn’t sprinkled with her kindness and gentle encouragement. We will miss her greatly, but wish her well as she gets to spend more time with her grandchildren.

Mrs Martin kindly requests no gifts please. However, if you would like to do something as a farewell or thank you to her, she invites you to donate to Cancer Research UK: https://donate.cancerresearchuk.org/donate

Kate Mulley

Mrs Mulley has been a wonderful, calming presence in Year 2, bringing an abundance of experience and fun to every situation. She has a unique ability to understand and respond to every child, bringing out the very best in each one of them! Her infectious sense of humour has made staff and children laugh every single day. We will truly miss her and wish her all the very best! Please keep in touch Mrs M.

Stable Court Team 

P & F Christmas Fayre Extravaganza

Christmas Fayre highlights video:

Congratulations to Year 7 pupils Oliver N, Maggie B and Florence D who designed, made and sold their own jewellery at the Christmas Fayre. They raised nearly £75 which will be donated to Tonbridge Dementia Friendly Community - a community group who focus on improving the lives of those living with dementia in Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells. They also spent their Friday evening bagging up over 200 bags of sweets for the P & F pick n mix stall.

Year 8 entrepreneurs raise £105.13 for Guide Dogs UK

At this year's Christmas Fayre, Year 8 were selling jewellery made by themselves in their Design Technology lessons. They were inspired by the work of Tatty Devine, a company based in Covent Garden which makes high quality, laser cut acrylic jewellery.

Each pupil designed three pieces (either a necklace, bracelet, earrings, keyring or brooch) on computers, which were sent off to the laser cutter and then assembled by the pupils. The pupils costed the project and worked out how to price each item.

At the Fayre, the pupils helped on the stall and sold loads of jewellery, making a grand total of £105.13 to be donated to Guide Dogs UK. Thank you to everybody who bought items and for helping us support this very worth cause.

 

An amazing £149 for Great Ormond Street Hospital

Congratulations to Year 8 pupils Amelia A, Matilda M, Lucy A, Louisa W and Georgie G who raised £149 for Great Ormond Street Hospital at the Christmas Fayre from their sales of handmade bracelets and earrings. The vibrant pieces of sale were made in their spare time and during school break times over the past few months. They chose to support Great Ormond Street Hospital to give poorly children the chance of being at home at Christmas and to help bring Christmas to the hospital if they cannot make it home.

Many St Michael's pupils displayed entrepreneurship across the Fayre and should be very proud of themselves.

Pre-Prep shine bright in magical Nativities

Children in Nursery to Year 1 shone bright in their Nativities this week as they delivered fun and captivating performances. Led by Mrs Crane, St Michael's Pre-Prep Music Teacher, as well as their Teachers and Teaching Assistants, the pupils sung and delivered lines beautifully, spreading joy, and happy tears, to all of those in attendance.

A trip down the yellow brick road!

On Monday afternoon, The Cat's Grin Theatre Company transported Pre-Prep to the Emerald City, with a brilliant performance of The Wizard of Oz. The children joined Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tinman and the Cowardly Lion, following the yellow brick road to see the Wizard. Dorothy and her friends needed the children's help: the children turned into fields of corn and poppies, oiled the Tinman's joints and portrayed the native residents of Oz, The Winkies. Thank you to The Cat's Grin Theatre Company for an amazing and magical show!

ABRSM results 

We are delighted to share the following results of the ABRSM music exams held in school last Friday. The examiner commented on how the children were a credit to the school. We would like to congratulate all the children involved for their hard work at such a busy time of year and to the peripatetic music staff for preparing their pupils so well.

Carol Service - Tuesday 12th December 2023

Please see our letter sent on Tuesday 4^th December regarding important details of the rehearsals on Monday 11^th and Tuesday 12^th as well as the service itself.  This was sent to parents of those in Junior Choir, Cantoria, Treble Trouble and the readers. If you did not receive the letter or have any questions, please email music@stmichaels.kent.sch.uk

Eliza C for an amazing performance of Mary during our Nativity and perfect timing with all her lines and actions

Neve H for using her phonics to write a note independently asking Santa for a Polly Pocket

Leo M for achieving well and independently in our learning activities

Alex K for wonderful and independent subtraction

Daniel A for trying hard with his handwriting

Walter B for knowing all of his words and stage directions for our Christmas production as well as supporting and helping others

Lila P for knowing all of her words and stage directions for our Christmas production as well as organising the other angels so beautifully

James C for working well in our Maths lesson looking at fact families

Arthur R for super effort with independent writing about his naughty elf

Hugo W for demonstrating a great work ethic, working with great pace and focus

Grace F for being brave and sharing her wonderful ideas about Old Bear with the class

Owen J for sharing his Maths knowledge with us

Archie F for working hard to listen and make the right choices

Mason M for knowing all of his lines as well as everyone else's

William T for carefully subtracting two numbers using the column method

Ella F for writing a lovely, descriptive story about her Super Pet

Harvey R for excellent story ideas for his Super Pet story

Rosanna C for her enthusiasm and improved focus in all lessons

Aliénor D for writing a wonderful story about a Super Pet

Reis N for having lovely manners all the time and for always being helpful in the classroom

All of RB, RJ and RMP for a spectacular Nativity performance

Times Tables Certificates

Bronze Times Tables Certificate: Rafferty R; Charlie C; Arius G; Woody W and Bertie D

Players of the Match - week commencing 4th December

A reminder that Déjà Vu is now buying blazers (size 4 up) from anyone wishing to sell them for £35.

The shop is open 8.15-9.15am Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays. Term time only. 

The Hive would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who came and visited us at the Christmas Fayre. We made an impressive £207 which the children would like to put towards a new Didi-car and scooter. This week in the Breakfast Club, our children have been enthusiastically painting cardboard boxes to create a beautiful nativity scene. Whilst in The Hive, the children have had lots of fun hand printing gorgeous festive characters to make a special calendar.

Ella and Florence canter to success at Show Jumping Regional Finals

Congratulations to Ella M and Florence D who did brilliantly at the NSEA Inter-Schools Show Jumping South East Regional Finals on Sunday 3rd December. The event took place at Felbridge Showground and despite the weather which meant the riders, spectators and ponies were drenched, the girls achieved some fantastic results. Ella M in Year 8 came 2nd place in her class and Florence D gained 7th place in her grass roots class. Ella and Florence spend hours each week looking after their ponies, keeping them fit and practising. On show day, they walk and learn a course of 10-13 fences, warm up their ponies then ride the course in the correct order, judged on style without ‘faults’ which include: knocking down a pole, refusing to jump, running out or the rider falling off which have time faults/elimination; the fastest, clear round wins.

Half Term staff sports camps

Mr Thomas’ Christmas Hockey Camp

Mr Thomas will be holding his Christmas Hockey Camp at Hollybush Hockey Pitch on:

Monday 18^th December

Tuesday 19^th December

Please click here to book.

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Make sure you are following St Michael’s social media channels for important updates and content throughout the year.