Newsletters

What a busy time at St. Andrew's! 

A message from Mrs Statham

The past week or so has been the busiest so far this term. We ended last week with our annual Macmillan Coffee Afternoon. Thanks to everyone who donated cakes and cookies; many were home made and were delicious. Numbers were down this year but everyone, including staff gave generously. We hope to have a total for you in the coming days. 

This week, we ran a Book Fair everyday after school. Everyone who purchased a book has helped the school to buy a book. Thanks to all the staff who helped to set up and run the fair. 

The Year 4 children have had the busiest week so far. Read further down to find out why! 

Filming Day

On Thursday, the whole school was involved in a filming day to promote the school. We had spoken to the children in the lead up to the day itself, and had a few mini practise runs with some of the children the day before. The day itself was what I like to call 'a topsy turvy day' where staff and children were asked to be in different places at different times. A drone flying over the entire school, was a highlight for us all, especially the younger children! The film crew captured the junior children singing in the hall, as well as all the classes out in the sunshine, on the field, on the climbing frame and in the Reception gardens. Other groups of children such as our House and Vice Captains, Worship Committee and School Council were filmed together, as well as parents, who had volunteered to take part in the filming. Thank you all for your contribution.

Finally, a huge thank you to the pupils and staff, who coped with disruptions to their lessons all day without any objections. You were all amazing! I will be letting parents and children know when the film is ready to view.

Parent Events

This week, Mrs Meekin, our Reading Lead, led a Phonics workshop for Reception parents and it was very well attended. 

We finished this week with a MYME coffee morning for parents. This event was led by My Young Mind Enfield, an NHS service, which supports and works with young people and families. We were very pleased with the turnout of parents for both events and hope to run more next term. Please email the office or speak to Miss Jones,  if you would like to learn more about MYME. 

Year 4 delight hundreds with their spoken word

Over the past month, the Year 4 children have been taking part in a series of exciting workshops, led by the Write2Speak company. Working with the leader Tyler, the children were taught strategies to express themselves through spoken word. They wrote poems, discussed their writing and were able to share them with their peers and the class.

These workshops supported pupils of all abilities and needs and the teachers were thrilled to hear the spoken word of children who do not usually offer to read their work aloud or in front of an audience. The children performed their work to other classes and on Tuesday night, some were chosen to perform at the Dugdale Centre, in front of over 200 people. 

We are always very proud of the behaviour of our pupils in and out of school. However, on Tuesday evening, the 24 Year 4 pupils behaved impeccably in front of their parents and the parents of pupils of other schools, as they listened to the children perform. They were a true credit to St. Andrew's and demonstrate the values we share and expect from everyone in our community.

A trip to the British Museum

Year 4 children also went to the British Museum this week to look at the Ancient Egyptian exhibition. This museum is always one of our favourite venues for bringing history to life. The children took great care to read the information and were delighted to see some of the historical sources in real life. Many thanks to the staff and parents for their support on the trip.

Year 2 learn how to develop a growth mindset

At St. Andrew's, we understand the importance of building resilience from an early age, using approaches which teach problem-solving, perseverance and a growth mindset. In our Year 2 PSHE (Personal, social and Health education) lessons this half term, the focus is all about exploring a growth mindset. The children were given challenges to do, such as threading small beads, making towers from cards and using chopsticks, all with varying levels of challenge. They learned the importance of hard work, effort and determination and showed a positive attitude throughout the tasks. Please see Mrs Cahalan, our PSHE Lead, if you would like to find out more about the PSHE curriculum. 

Our boys' football team has been involved in a number of games against other local schools and over the weeks, we are pleased to see new players joining the team. So far, St. Andrew's have won 3, drawn 1 and lost 1. Well done to all the boys who have represented the school so far and a big thank you to Mr Cook for his support with the football. 

In Year 5, the children have been enjoying the Design and Technology lessons this term, based on Cooking and Nutrition. They have been using the MacBooks to research and adapt a standard recipe, to improve its nutritional content. 

Our Reception children visited Aldersbrook Park this week and enjoyed exploring the signs of nature around them. It is amazing what we can see in our local environment! Thanks to the parents who helped out on RB and RW trips.  

PTA Events coming up 

The PTA would love to hear from Reception and Year 1 parents, as well as any other parents, who would like to help the PTA with their amazing work for the school. As our PTA parents of Year 6 pupils step back, we always need to replace their roles. So please contact the school or the PTA directly, if you can spare some time to help them. Thank you.