Message from the Head
Dear Parents,
And over to you! Please have wonderful half-terms and some down time together. Please do be mindful of the highs and lows of social media usage; it’s not all evil but some is. Our youngsters need to be very mindful of their digital footprints – all employers are advised to search social media accounts these days prior to an appointment and a misplaced image can stick!
Thank you to Mr Casey for Monday’s assembly dedicated to World Mental Health Day – some really useful strategies (exercise!) in there to keep a good balance and some useful resources if you need advice. You can view his presentation here.
On Wednesday, we had the results of the House spelling bee competitions (hope you have noticed the new house badges) and it was great to see the ‘buy in’ to houses that our students have. Next half term will see the reward trip for the most house points, so the competition is on there!
Last night saw the launch of Hollygirt’s Sixth Form and thank you to all the parents who came and to the catering team for their ‘goodies’. It’s an exciting time for the school and this final key stage truly underpins the benefits of an ‘all through’ school – the oxytocin factor that is associated with belonging to a family. September 2023 will be the first cohort and we will open the doors to external candidates so if you know someone looking for a bespoke sixth form with a common room and café – please bear in mind that Hollygirt open a Sixth Form in 2023. The majority of the teaching will be face to face with known / appointed teachers but if there is an unusual A level choice then I can also arrange for an online A level.
It was lovely to see a couple of mums this morning for the Head’s breakfast and to talk about non-school related ‘things’ too; Year 6 and I enjoyed cups of tea and the remaining croissants along with chess later on; nothing goes to waste! Dottie is also enjoying the crumbs!
This week, I also met with a new strings’ teacher, and she will be coming into the juniors for an assembly when we come back. Please do get in touch if your son or daughter is interested in learning a strings instrument.
Thank you all for your generous donations to Emmanual House for our Harvest Festival. Mrs Griffiths would also like to thank her Harvest assembly readers Lotty, Charlotte and Joy, and the choir for helping us sing Autumn Days.
And just a reminder of the beauty of life and the fact that your teenagers were once like this….
Thank you to Mrs Thompson (one of our lovely Learning Support Assistants) for introducing us to Jesse this week, many of you will also remember his father – our former Head of Music, Mr Thompson. Apparently, Jesse is Hollygirt through and through already. A reminder to enjoy family time over the next two weeks.
My thanks to the whole team for their hard work this half-term!
Best wishes
Helen Barsham
Head
Message from the Head of Juniors
Good afternoon,
The Juniors have had such as busy week. I have just visited Nursery and Reception who are enjoying stories in the library. Years One and Two have made bread, linking to their Great Fire of London topic. Year Three have been very creative making parachutes. Year Four are currently testing out their volcanoes. Year Five made some fabulous lanterns and Year 6 have been busy creating some realistic looking fossils.
The children will be bringing home some half term challenges. I am sure they will enjoy the activities and we look forward to hearing about these when the children return. There will be certificates awarded for challenges completed.
Children will also be bringing home Christmas card designs; these will have either been completed in School or for Years 5 and 6, are to be completed over the holiday. Orders for these need to be in by Monday 7th November.
Please remember to fill in the online consent form for the Air Museum Trip for Years One to Six which takes place the first week back.
I hope you all have an enjoyable and restful half term and we will see you on Monday 31st October.
This week’s Stars of the Week can be viewed here.
Have a lovely weekend,
Victoria Wright
Head of Juniors