Newsletter 1 - 2nd May 2025

Key Dates

Monday 5th May
Bank Holiday - school closed

Tuesday 6th May
Reception visit to Painshill Park

Thursday 8th May
Larch class parent assembly at 9:00 am

Friday 9th May
PSA Year 1 cake sale after school

Monday 12th - Thursday 15th May
Year 6 SATs

Monday 12th May
Year 4 visit to Kingston Mosque

Thursday 15th May
Year 2 Great Fire of London Workshop

Friday 16th May
Lavender class parent assembly at 9:00 am

PSA Film Night for Year 3 & 4

Sunday 18th - Wednesday 21st May
Year 6 School Journey to PGL Liddington

Thursday 22nd May
Year 1 visit to Windsor Castle

Year 5 visit to Hampton Court

Elm class parent assembly at 9:00 am

Friday 23rd May
Home Learning Showcase for Years 1-6

Inclusion Coffee Morning at 9:00 am

Year 3 Roman Workshop

PSA Reception cake sale after school

HALF-TERM BREAK
Monday 26th - Friday 30th May

 

Key dates for this school year are published here. Some of these dates are provisional, and all dates are subject to change — please refer to this newsletter and communications via ParentPay for the latest information. 

Click here for term dates for the current and 2025/2026 school years, including INSET days.

Reminders

Secondary Schools
If your child is in Year 6 and intends to take up a place at an independent school for Year 7, please let the school office know. The transition process has begun and we are sharing the children's information with their secondary schools so it is very important that we know your child's correct destination. 

Year Group Weekly News
Don't forget to check your child's Google Classroom for an end of term update from your class teachers.

Home Learning 2

Home Learning

Home Learning Grids for this half-term are posted on the Google Classroom. Work should be completed in time for our next Home Learning Showcase on Friday 23rd May.

 

School Lunches

Please remember to order your child's school lunch by 8:00 am on the day required. Click here to view this term's full menu. If your child brings a packed lunch, please ensure it is healthy and strictly nut-free. Children should not bring sweets or chocolate as a snack.

Summer TermWe hope all our families had a lovely Easter break - the children have settled back into school life brilliantly! We have a busy summer term ahead and the key dates are published on the website calendar. Inevitably, there will be changes to these dates and new ones added but we will always let you know of any changes as soon as we can, and they will always be reflected in the key dates section of this weekly newsletter. Just in case you missed Kingston Educational Trust's newsletter at the end of last term, please do have a look at our spring term highlights which include sport and literacy. 

Spark!Spark! School Book Awards

The Fern Hill Spark! Pupil Competition is now open! The children can choose their favourite Spark! shortlisted book as inspiration for their entry and they can be as creative as they like…

  • Write a book review or design a book review poster

  • Write a story or create a comic

  • Bake a cake (and take a photo before it all gets eaten!)

  • Create an artwork or model

  • Create a story box for your favourite scene/setting

  • Recreate the cover using sewing/collage/crochet

  • Create a video book trailer

  • Write a song & record it

There will be prizes for the winners and the best entries will be sent on to the main inter-school Spark! Competition. Please make sure your child’s name and class is on their entry which should be handed to Ms Rouillard in the library by the deadline of Monday 2nd June 2025. 

Inclusion Coffee MorningInclusion

Our next Coffee Morning is on Friday 23rd May and will focus on positive home learning habits. We would love to see you there! It starts at 9:00 am and runs for an hour. If you plan to join us, please let us know by completing the registration form here. 

CameraClass Photographs

Our school photographer will be taking photographs of the children all together in their classes on Tuesday 3rd and Wednesday 4th June. This will include the Year 6 Leavers’ year group photograph. The photographs will be available to purchase and will be delivered to school before the end of the term. If you do not wish your child to be included in the photographs, please email the school office by Friday 23rd May.

 

Parent CouncilParent Council - The Arts & Art Parent Voice Survey

We would be very grateful for your feedback on this term's Parent Council topic of 'The Arts & Art' by answering a few short questions in this survey. Your feedback will be used to help shape the school's plans in terms of how we integrate the subjects into the curriculum and also the extra-curricular clubs and activities we offer. Thank you.

Eco Schools LogoEco Schools Update 

Thank you for supporting our Eco-Refill Shop last week. The next one will be held on Thursday 17th July, just in time for the summer break. We hope to see many of you there! The Eco Committee would love to hear your feedback on this initiative, whether you have bought from the shop or not. If you can spare a couple of minutes, please complete this linked short survey to help them plan for future shops.

 

Bird FeederThe Eco-Committee have announced their Bird Feeder Competition! Children are invited to design and build a bird feeder to encourage birds to come to our school grounds and improve biodiversity. Entries should be handed to Miss Evans in Nursery by Friday 23rd May and the winner, chosen by the Eco-Committee, will be announced after the half-term break.

 

Pond DippingThis week, the Eco-Committee scattered wildflower seeds in our meadow area, in hope of attracting some pollinators! They also investigated the nature pond to see what wildlife they could find...newts! 

Dates for the summer term

Please save the date for Sports Day, which will be held on Friday 20th June at the YMCA Hawker Centre field. The format will be the same as last year with events for children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 running in the morning from 9:00 am – 12:00 pm and events for children in Years 3 to 6 running in the afternoon from 12:00 – 3:00 pm. We hope you will join us to cheer on your children and enjoy a whole school picnic lunch from 12:00 - 12:30 pm.

Class changeover day, when the children will spend the afternoon with their class teacher for September, will be on Monday 21st July. 

School Clubs

Lunchtime and after-school clubs for children in Years 1 through to 6 started this week. They will run until the week of 7th July. There are still a few places available for some clubs - please email for booking information. The club timetable and details of where to collect your child after their club are published on the school website here. 

 

 

 

Books of the Week

Boy who made everyone laugh"The Boy Who Made Everyone Laugh" by Helen Rutter

 

Billy Plimpton loves telling jokes and dreams of becoming a stand-up comedian, but there's only one problem - he has a stammer. When Billy starts secondary school his stammer creates a whole new set of problems and Billy wonders if he can just get through the school year without talking at all. But the school talent show calls and Billy's stand-up comedy dream lives on, despite everything.

 

'The Boy Who Made Everyone Laugh' is a poignant story, perfectly pitched for KS2, that was very popular in the Year 6 Book Club. Billy's final triumphant performance is moving and inspiring.

 

 

 

Reviews from the Year 6 Book Club:

‘I thought it was interesting how he changed from being interested in comedy to being in a band. I liked how he stood up to the bully but he also helped him. I liked how he cared for his granny and I liked how he improvised at the end. Skylar was cool but her story was sad. It was different but cool.’  ~ Gabby

 

‘I liked how it was based on something that can actually happen. If people had a stammer it would be helpful to see that they can be a comedian too and that they can have people look up to them as well. I enjoyed it because it was funny.’  ~ Alfie

 

Mama Car"Mama Car" by Lucy Catchpole and Karen George

 

A little girl loves to ride on her tricycle, to drive in her Dad’s car, and to sit on Mama Car - her mother’s wheelchair. Sometimes they go on expeditions together, she pulls her arms and feet in when they ride through doorways, and she helps to clear small obstacles from the path of Mama Car’s wheels. They have so many adventures together, but the best thing about Mama Car is that it has Mummy in it.

 


This story is inspired by the author’s real life experience with her daughter who used to call her wheelchair the ‘Mama Car’. A charming and inclusive story about a parent with a disability, told from the perspective of a child.

 

 Team Points Update

The overall House winner this week is KINGSTON

KINGSTON

486

COOMBE

261

RICHMOND

417

HAMPTON

364

 

Attendance Update

Weekly Attendance

Congratulations to Year 3, who had the best attendance for this week.

Well done to Elm class with 100% attendance! 

 Year Attendance % Star Year ★
Reception 97.9%  
Year 1 97.0%  
Year 2 99.0%  
Year 3 99.2% ★
Year 4 97.2%  
Year 5 97.9%  
Year 6 96.2%  
     

 

 

PSA News & Events

Click here for Fern Hill PSA's weekly newsletter.  

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