REMINDERS

6th Mar @ 9.00am	Assembly – All welcome
6th Mar	Bikeability – Year 4 Group B
9th Mar	Y4 Rural Life Centre
9th Mar – 12th Mar	Bikeability Y6
9th Mar @ 2.30pm	Netball Tournament selected Y5&6 pupils
10th Mar	Sports Relief Dance Off – children to wear active wear in their team colour and bring £1
11th Mar	Y5 Winchester Science Museum
11th Mar @ 1.00pm	Football Tournament at Tillingbourne Selected pupils
11th Mar	NO Girls Football Club – see below
12th Mar @ 9.00am	Y2E Class Assembly – Y2E Parents/Carers
12th Mar	Y3 Seacity Trip
13th Mar 13th Mar	YR Forest School Trip Science Day
13th Mar @9.00am	School Assembly – All welcome
16th Mar	Book Week + Book Fair in school
18th Mar	Book Character Dress Up Day
19th Mar @ 9.00am	Y3 Class Assembly - Y3 Parents/Carers
19th Mar @ 6.00 – 7.00pm	KS1 School Disco
19th Mar @ 7.15 – 8.15pm	KS2 School Disco
20th Mar	Football Tournament @ Pennthorpe School Y2 CANCELLED
20th Mar	Last Homework Club
24th Mar @ 3.30 – 7.30pm	Parents Evening – whole school
26th Mar @ 9.00am	Y5 Class Assembly – Y5 Parents/Carers
26th Mar @ 3.30 – 6.00pm	Parents Evening – whole school
27th Mar @ 2.15pm	REACH Assembly – All welcome
30th Mar	Y2 Marwell Zoo Trip
31st Apr @ 10.00am	Easter Service @ St Marys Church
1st Apr	Pause Day
2nd Apr	School Photos and Y6 Leavers Photos
3rd Apr @ 9.00am	Celebration Assembly + Rocksteady Concert – All welcome
3rd Apr @ 1.30pm	End of Term

 

Please remember to make your school lunch choices by noon on Wednesdays

CORONA VIRUS

As I am sure many of you will have seen over the weekend, there have been media reports about Coronavirus in the UK and in Surrey, and many of you will be concerned. I can assure you that we are taking the situation seriously but that we do not need to cause undue alarm. It is important for the children that we remain calm, sensible and work together as a school community to follow the national guidance.

The advice to us from Public Health England and Surrey County Council remains the same and is as follows:-

1)           Where a suspected case has been in a childcare or educational setting, there is no need to close the setting or send other learners or staff home.

2)           Even if there is a confirmed case in your childcare or educational setting, in most cases, closure of the childcare or education setting will be unnecessary and advice would be provided by Public Health England.

3)           As always, everyone should continue to promote good hand and respiratory hygiene:

•            Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after using public transport. Use a sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available.

                      •            Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.

•            Always carry tissues with you and use them to catch your cough or sneeze, then bin the tissue and wash your hands (or use a sanitiser gel).

                     •            Avoid close contact with people who are unwell.

Remember, if you have any direct medical concerns, to contact NHS 111.

The Department for Education have set up a Coronavirus helpline (tel 0800 046 8687) for queries relating to schools and other educational establishments in England. Lines are open Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm.

Please be assured that when there is a confirmed case, Public Health England (PHE) use the method of contact tracing to prevent the infection spreading further. Please see below to link below to find out more about contact tracing: https://publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/2020/02/13/expert-interview-what-is-contact-tracing/

For further information, please see www.nhs.uk/coronavirus and ‘Guidance to educational settings about COVID-19’ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19

CLUBS INFORMATION

The last maths booster will take place on Friday 20th March.

There will be NO girls football club on Wednesday 11^th March as Mrs Wright is at a tournament.

THE JUNGLE BOOK

Last Thursday morning, our school hall was transformed into an exciting theatre complete with music, lighting and scenery, as visiting Theatre Company M&M productions put on a spectacular performance of The Jungle Book.  Children from Reception through to Year 6 were mesmerised by the show, with broad smiles and a look of awe on their faces as they were invited to interact with the fast paced, energetic and fun adaptation of the story.  Staff and children agreed that it was an incredibly slick and professional performance, and the set, costumes, music, lighting and outstanding acting really brought the classic story to life and gave the children an incredible theatre experience.  After the performance, our Year 6 pupils took part in a workshop where they learnt about all of the hard work that goes on behind the scenes in order to put such a fantastic show together.  We have high hopes for their Summer Production!

BOOK WEEK IS COMING!

Today marks annual ‘World Book Day’, and we want everyone to spread the love of books and reading for pleasure, both at school and at home.  Keep an eye out in your child’s book bag for their £1 book token which can either be used to get a ‘World Book Day Book’ for free, or for £1 off a book or audiobook costing £2.99 or more at your local bookseller.

Key Dates:

Thursday 12^th March: ‘Potato Book Character’ competition entries submitted.

Monday 16^th – Friday 19^th March:  Book Fair open in School Hall (7:50 - 8:45am)

Wednesday 18^th March: Book Character Dress Up Day

Thursday 19^th March: Author Rachel Jane to visit Reception, Year 1 and Year 2. 

Thursday 19^th March: School Disco & Book Fair open in Year 5 (6:00 – 8:00pm)

Book Fair

The Book Fair will be returning to St Mary’s in the week commencing Monday 16^th March, when St Mary’s will be celebrating, sharing and developing our children’s love of reading throughout the whole week!  The fair will run for the duration of the week, and we’re hoping to match, or even better last year’s success where we raised over £500! 

Children will have the opportunity to browse the bookshelves with their class throughout the week, and the fair will be open to parents in the school hall every morning during breakfast club, as well as in the Year 5 classroom on the evening of Thursday 19^th March when the children return to school for the school disco. 

This year we are working towards creating a small library space outside the Years 3 and 4 classrooms, and with funding from the PTA and parent donations, we have been able to purchase new seating and shelving.  To further enhance this area, we would love to refresh our library stock, and every purchase at the book fair contributes towards raising money for more books for our children.  Look out for a leaflet in your child’s book bag to give you some indication of the types of books that will be available, and for information on pre ordering books before the fair. 

Book Character Dress Up Day

On Wednesday 18^th March, children are invited to come to school dressed as their favourite book character for our ‘Book Character Dress Up Day’. 

Author Visit

Reception and KS1 will be visited by children’s author Rachel Jane on the afternoon of Thursday 19^th March for story time sessions and a workshop.  Rachel has written a series of rhyming picture books, which are aimed at children in early years and KS1. They all follow the adventures of the campervans from Red Hatch Farm, focusing on friendship, adventure and kindness.  These will be available for parents to purchase for just £5, instead of the usual retail price of £6.49, at the end of the school day.

Book Week Competition

Prior to the week, we will be running a ‘Create a Potato Book Character’ competition to allow children the opportunity to win vouchers to spend at the Book Fair.  Simply get a potato, and be as creative as you can to turn it into a book character!  You may use a range of materials to design your potato, including googly eyes, paint, pipe cleaners, pens, fabric etc, and completed Potato Book Characters are to be brought to school on Thursday 12^th March.  Winners will be announced and presented with their vouchers in assembly on Monday 16^th March.

Reading at Home

To continue to support your child’s love of reading at home, we recommend signing up to www.oxfordowl.co.uk  The website is packed with expert advice, top tips and activity ideas so you can help your child with reading and maths.  It is free to register, and once signed up you will have access to top tips for helping at home; activities and games to support your child’s developing maths and English skills as well as a free library of over 200 eBooks for children aged 3-11.

SHARE THE MIRACLE AT EASTER

This term, St Mary’s will be participating in an initiative called Share the Miracle (sharethemiracle.org), which invites individuals and organisations to collect chocolate eggs and give them to those less fortunate in the local community at Easter.

Our egg collection station will be open from Monday 23rd March to Thursday 2nd April, during which time we hope that our children and their families who are able to give a chocolate egg, will bring them in to school.

Then, on Friday 3rd April, we have arranged for our Reception class to visit Chiddingfold Village Hall and donate the eggs to a monthly Lunch Club of elderly people. The children will have the chance to sing to the group before giving an egg to each member. Any remaining eggs will then be donated to a number of other worthy local causes.

The ‘giving’ event promises to be a lovely opportunity for our children to connect with members of the older generation, many of whom can feel lonely and isolated at times.

If you can spare a chocolate egg this Easter, please do send it in with your child between the dates given and we will ensure that it brings a smile to the face of a member of our local community.

WATER AID

Clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene are basic human rights. They should be a normal part of daily life for everybody – but they aren't. Together with St Mary's church we will try to make a world of difference by supporting Water Aid, a UK charity working to ensure everyone everywhere has clean water to drink, cook and clean. This Lent we are encouraging children to put their spare change in a jar and help collect funds to improve lives of many people. If you'd like to take part and join our Jars of Change appeal, please collect a jar from the school's office and bring it back by the end of Spring term. To find out more information about the charity please go to https://www.wateraid.org/uk/

SURREY YOUTH GAMES

The Specsavers Surrey Youth Games is the largest multi-sport youth event in the county. The next games will take place on 13 and 14 June 2020 at Surrey Sports Park. Young people from all the boroughs in Surrey can get up to eight weeks' free sports coaching in preparation for the games. Children need to meet the sports criteria and live or go to school within the Borough. It's a great opportunity for young people to try a new sport. All of our sports and how to register can be found on our website via this link: https://www.waverley.gov.uk/syg.

Parents/Carers Right to Reply slip

 

Is your Right to Reply comment for the School or PTA? (Please delete as applicable)
School	PTA

 

Please use the space below or overleaf, or email admin2@stmarys-godalming.surrey.sch.uk to notify us of anything you wish to discuss:
Name
Child/ren’s class/es
Date