Weekly Update from Mr Meehan

It’s been a very busy and enjoyable week at Christ Church, with Year 1 enjoying a sea adventure at the Sealife Centre on Monday. Year 5 started the week with workshops in the hall from Rainbow Theatre, travelling back in time to the time of the Vikings. I also spent some time with Year 3 and Year 4 earlier in the week, in their maths lessons, and it was impressive to hear the children articulating their maths thinking. We’ve been focusing on the value of ‘partner talk’ in the classroom, and it was great to see how the children were supporting each other in their learning in this way.

We know that our children offer all sorts of different strengths and talents, and this adds a richness and diversity to our school community. With this in mind, we are delighted to let you know that we have an exciting event coming up for our junior children later in the term, for any junior children or their families who want to take part in our Talent Show evening which Mrs Summers is organising. We are after a wide variety of acts to have a fun evening together, and to celebrate a range of skills on display. Have a read of this letter with more details about this.

Thank you also to the many parents who responded to our Lime Grove survey, and we will keep you posted on developments, as we share our data with local councillors, Kingston’s traffic department and residents.

Have a lovely weekend!

Our School Updates for Parents

Nourish Food Taster - Thursday 30th January @ Juniors

There will be a food tasting session for all parents during pick-up time at the Junior site on Thursday, 30th January. They warmly invite you to come and sample a selection from the menu.

OPAL Day - Next Friday, 31st January

Next Friday, we are collecting the following items for our small world feature in both playgrounds. There will be four buckets outside the front of school at drop off and, if we get over 100 items in the buckets, children will get extra play next Friday. So, take the opportunity to declutter your house and help the school. We need:

• Toy cars: any material or size
• Dolls: any size dolls and doll clothes, including Our Generation, Design a Friend, Barbie, LOL etc. 
• Toy trains: again, any material or size
• Plastic Animals (including Dinosaurs) 

PTA Break the Rules Day - Friday 31st January

For one day only, children can break some rules! Come to school with wacky hair, crazy socks, painted nails and temporary tattoos and pay your teacher 50p for each rule you break! See attached poster for information on all the rules that can be broken.

Year 3/4 Soloist Concert - Tuesday 11th March in the Junior Hall @ 9am

If your child plays an instrument or sings and they would like to take part, they can send in an audition video to Mrs Bond (lucy.bond@ccnm.uk) by Monday 3rd February (but sooner if possible). This will then give the teachers time to look through all of the auditions to choose a variety of performances for the concert, and allow time for rehearsing at school with the piano if needed. Parents and the children's classmates will be invited to watch the concert. 

Please aim to keep the pieces short. If your child chooses a song, stick to one or two verses and a chorus. Also, please ensure the lyrics are appropriate and that the song can be sung easily by a child (some pop songs are unsuitable for young voices). The children may sing in a group with friends if they can arrange a video audition together. We will be available to accompany instrumental pieces and songs if we can find the music (or you can send in a backing track). Please note that this concert is only for children in Years 3 and 4.  The Year 5 and 6 children will have an opportunity to perform in the summer term.

Lime Grove Traffic Survey

We know that traffic around our school sites is an ongoing concern. Whilst this can be an issue at both sites, we are currently focusing on the Infant Site in Lime Grove. We are working with the council and residents to find possible solutions to ease traffic congestion. We would love to hear your views, particularly if you are a parent of an infant child, and this will really help our discussions with councillors and residents. Please access the survey sent to parents via email which we launched last week.

Nursery Applications

For any parents making nursery applications for September 2025, please complete this form. The closing date for applications is Friday 7th March 2025.

Spare Clothes

If your child has borrowed items of clothing please can you return them - we are running short of socks and tights at the Infants.

 

Wider Community Updates

February Half Term Science Camp

Mother Nature Science are running a Science Activity Holiday STEAM Camp 2025 - Science Investigators during February half term. Their Early-Bird Discount is now in place, but is expiring soon on Monday 27th January 2025. Don’t forget the Special School Booster Basket Discount Code ‘coolschool20’ for an extra £20-off list price. Note: Childcare Vouchers, GTFC, CGPS and Universal Credit (UC) payment methods are now accepted by MNS. Just book online as normal and choose ‘Pay By Other Method’ at Checkout to receive further instructions. Please see the attached flyer for more details or book now here.

Free Girls’ Cricket Opportunities

Hampton Wick Royal Cricket Club are offering girls in the borough free membership and top quality winter training. Please see the attached flyer for details.

Light Up Kingston - 14th - 23rd February

Kingston First and Riverside Walk proudly announce the return of Light Up Kingston, an immersive light experience held in Kingston town centre from 14-23 February 2025, 4.30pm-9pm daily. From beautiful light displays to unmissable deals, Light Up Kingston is a wonderful event to enjoy with the whole family this half term. Please see the attached flyer for details.

Key School Dates

• Tuesday 28th January - Y4 Rainbow Theatre Workshop (Romans) (pm)
• Thursday 30th January - Antelope Class Worship @ 2:40pm
• Thursday 30th January - Nourish Food Taster for all parents @ Juniors
• Friday 31st January - PTA Break the Rules Day
• Monday 3rd - Friday 7th February - Chums Week
• Tuesday 4th February - Safer Internet Day
• Wednesday 5th February - Y5 & 6 French Play ‘Au Musee Magique’
• Wednesday 5th February - Nursery - Y5 Parents’ Evening @ 3:45 – 6:45pm
• Thursday 6th February - Nursery - Y5 Parents’ Evening @ 2:45 - 5:45pm
• Thursday 6th February - Y6 Learning Reviews @ 1:30 - 5:30pm (new)
• Friday 7th February - Y6 Learning Reviews @ 8:00am - 12:30pm (new)
• Monday 10th February - Y6 Kingston Junior Citizen 2025 
• Tuesday 11th February - Charity Tuesday
• Monday 17th - Friday 21st February - Half Term
• Tuesday 25th February - Nursery Tour for Prospective Parents @ 9:30am
• Thursday 27th February - Eagle Class trip to Wimbledon Synagogue (am)
• Thursday 27th February - Hedgehog Class Worship @ 2:40pm
• Monday 3rd March - Y1 Zoolab Visit (pm)
• Wednesday 5th March - Y1 Insight Visit
• Thursday 6th March - World Book Day - Special Lunch Menu
• Thursday 6th March - Tiger Class Worship @ 2:40pm
• Thursday 6th March - Parrot Street Pop Up at the Juniors @ 3:00 – 3:45pm
• Tuesday 11th March - Year 3&4 Soloists Concert @ 9:00am 
• Wednesday 12th March - Junior Talent Show @ 6:00 - 7:30pm 
• Thursday 13th March - Macaw Class Trip to Wimbledon Synagogue (am)
• Thursday 13th March - Fox Class Worship @ 2:40pm 
• Monday 17th - Friday 21st March - Wellbeing Week
• Monday 17th - Friday 28th March - Y5 Bikeability
• Wednesday 19th March - Ross Montgomery Author Visit (pm)
• Thursday 20th March - Y4 Insight Visit (pm)
• Thursday 20th March - Owl Class Worship @ 2:40pm
• Friday 21st March - Reception Trip to Polka Theatre (am)
• Monday 24th - Friday 28th March - Chums Week
• Tuesday 25th March - Charity Tuesday
• Tuesday 25th March - Y6 National Child Measurement Programme (am)
• Wednesday 26th March - Y5 Easter Experience at The Baptist Church (am)
• Thursday 27th March - Learning Look - from pick up until 4:30pm 
• Thursday 27th March - Lion Class Worship @ 2:40pm
• Friday 28th March - PTA Break the Rules Day
• Tuesday 1st April - Cluster Choir Concert at Rose Theatre (pm)
• Wednesday 2nd April - Easter Bonnet Parade at Infants
• Thursday 3rd April - Y3 Trip to Butser Farm
• Friday 4th April - Easter Church Service @ 9:30am
• Friday 4th April - Term finishes early at 1.05pm (infants) and 1.20pm (juniors). Connect will finish at 5:15pm
• Monday 7th - Monday 21st April - Easter Holiday
• Tuesday 22nd April - Summer Term Starts