As stated in my welcome back letter last week, WELCOME BACK to the New Year and as predicted the new term is flying along.
It has been lovely to see a full return to extra-curricular clubs last week, as well as to our sporting fixtures with matches against Rowen and St Cats already played; IAPS swimming time trials; and tomorrow Surrey Schools Cross Country races for our Year 5 and 6 team runners – go for it, girls!
Next week sees the whole school learning about Shakespeare and, in particular, the story of Hamlet with our annual visit from the Young Shakespeare Company. We have our first Open Book event for Year 4, as well as Class 6SG’s assembly to look forward to. There are further netball, cross country and swimming fixtures. And our St Teresa’s Young Voices Choir drive off to the O2 Arena on Friday for the spectacular Young Voices concert – have fun, girls.
Then, next Saturday, we have our Offer Day event which this year sees all girls in Year 6, both Prep School girls and external entrance girls, pitting their wits against the dastardly crime of Bert’s guinea-pignapping – solving clues and puzzles to lead to the safe return of Bert and discovering who in SLT would commit such a crime!
And so it seems fitting to bid you a very happy, wintry weekend with some quotes from the great detective himself: “It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.”
A quote for our Year 4 parents to use on their girls following this week’s Science lessons: “I am somewhat exhausted; I wonder how a battery feels when it pours electricity into a non-conductor?”
And finally:
“Education never ends, Watson. It is a series of lessons, with the greatest for the last.” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Have a great weekend, Gareth Tindall
This week you have received the following communications:
Whole SchoolYear 6Year 5Year 4 -
Please contact the School Office if you need copies of any of this information prepinfo@st-teresas.com
Pastoral Pause
Pastoral Pause
I trust you are fully rested following the Christmas break and that you all had as enjoyable a time with family and friends as I did. We played a lot of games, many new to the family, which was excellent fun and great socialising times.
Even though we are now over halfway through January (can you believe that), please find below the Action for Happiness January Calendar – Happier January. I really would encourage you to spend some time reading through the first 17 days and looking ahead each day to the excellent daily practices for your all round good health.
Tomorrow – get in touch with an old friend either just to chat, or perhaps arrange a time to meet up before January is up; on Monday listen to the value of getting an early night to set up the week rested; on Thursday 23rd , put away those devices and really enjoy being in the moment – embrace how it feels (and do it more regularly).
Can I please say, following professional researched advice from Dr Matthew Walker, that we all take Saturday 11th January’s advice to heart with our children and ensure that DAILY they have no tech or screen time an hour before they are expected to go to bed. The interference with their sleep patterns and brain function is huge if they are on screens right up to trying to go to sleep. They need an hour of routine, reading, hygiene practices and so on to prepare themselves for the full mind and body re-heal that sleep brings (PS they also need at this age around 11 hours sleep too!).
God Bless You All as you continue to look after yourselves and your daughters this week,
Gareth Tindall
Golden Book
Well done to all of the girls in our Golden Books this week:
4 KC Leila A and holidays and Scarlett S week when discussing factor numbers and multiplying and dividing by 10 and 100.
4 LH Eloise K for her careful observations in English. Noting that our character’s favourite colour was probably red, as that was the colour she was drawing all of the objects in. Wonderful exploration and creativity with her writing this week.
Emilia C and Ivy H asked themselves if they could make a complete circuit with only one wire and then went on to investigate, proving that this was in fact possible by balancing the battery on the metal of the lightbulb holder. Fantastic teamwork!
5 AB Sophia D and Amelia H
5 KH Sofia A for her kindness shown to others, particularly during Art club, when she went out of her way to make sure others were happy.
Daisy B for her wonderfully illustrated RE work this week, explaining the meaning of the Beatitudes. Super work!
6 SG Elodie B, Mira M, performing drama pieces for the class assembly.
6 MK Eliza P for her excellent map work in Topic this week locating UK German Air Raid targets during WWII and the safe county locations where children were evacuated to.
Khrystyna H for her impressive narrative recount of an evacuee.
Elizabeth E for her retelling and storyboarding of the second miracle - the healing of the Roman official's daughter.
Art Stars
Year 4
Ivy H for her careful study of a soldier from the Bayeaux Tapestry, using the grid method and attention to negative space to help draw it.
Year 5 Beatrice St-G and Olivia L for their creative and detailed presentation of information about the artist Yinka Llori.
Year 6 Eva M and Sophia S-S for the careful tonal studies of objects, based on the work by Shaun Tan.
Drama Stars
Year 4 Vivienne WS for her positive participation and high level of concentration during our lesson learning about sound effects.
Year 5 Ania S for performing her Shakespeare rap so confidently.
Year 6 Mira M for her focussed performance based on the scene from 'The Jungle Book' showing the wolves finding the baby Mowgli.
Key Diary Dates:
Mon 20th Jan Young Shakespeare Company: Hamlet workshop Afternoon
Wed 22nd Jan Year 4, Open Book, Henderson Hall and Classrooms
Thu 23rd Jan 6 SG Class Assembly, Henderson Hall
- 09.00
Fri 24th Jan Young Voices Choir at the O2 Arena Afternoon Young Voices Concert at the O2 Arena 19.00
Sat 25th Jan Year 6, Offer Holders event - Finding Bert AM & PM
Wed 29th Jan Year 5, Open Book, Henderson Hall and Classrooms
Thu 30th Jan 4 KC Class Assembly, Henderson Hall 08.30 - 09.00
Wed 5th Feb Year 6 Open Book,
7th Mar Alice in Wonderland Dance Workshop, Henderson Hall All Day
12th
6 SG Class Assembly
Parents of girls in 6 SG are invited to join us for their class assembly on Thursday 23rd January 2025 at 8.30am in the Henderson Hall Refreshments will be served in the Henderson Hall from 8.15am
Open Book Dates 2025
We will be holding Open Book Mornings for each Year Group starting in the Spring Term. This is an opportunity for your daughters to show you their books and their classrooms.
Please use the links below to confirm your attendance:
Year 4 - 22/01/25 https://forms.office.com/e/W7766gL1e5
Year 5 - 29/01/25 https://forms.office.com/e/RfKQw831NB Year 6 - 05/02/25 https://forms.office.com/e/8WFBSqVHEy
Refreshments will be served in the Henderson Hall from 8.15am 08.30 - 08.55am in the Year Group Classrooms
FOSTValentine's Dance Art Competition:
Get ready to show off your artistic talents in the FOST Valentine's Art Competition!
Theme: Valentine's Day
Style: Simple and eye-catching
Size: A4
Deadline: January 17th 2025
Submit your artwork via email to fosteffingham@gmail.com or hand-deliver it to the Prep School office.
The winning artwork will be featured on the Valentine's Dance Poster!
4 KC Class Assembly
Parents of girls in 4 KC are invited to join us for their class assembly on Thursday 30th January 2025 at 8.30am in the Henderson Hall
Refreshments will be served in the Henderson Hall from 8.15am
Key Dates 2025
As outlined in the Parent Handbook, and reiterated at the Parent Welcome Reception, there are three key dates in the school calendar that are compulsory for all the girls to attend. This is to help them understand the importance of team work and collaborative responsibility as these are events where they are all involved and need to support each other.
These remaining two dates are as follows: Spring Concert, Thursday 13th March, 18.30 to 19.30 Prep School Prize Giving, Thursday 3rd July, 19.00 to 20.00
We would be grateful if you could keep these dates free so that all girls can be present at these important community events.
Parents’ Evenings
Meetings for the Prep School will take place on the 12th & 13th February. A letter will be sent out next week with further information, including booking details. Bookings will open on 28th January 2025 at 7pm.
FOST 2nd Hand Uniform Shop
Submission forms are under FOST 2nd hand uniform on the St Ts website.
REMINDER: CASH or CHEQUE only please for the foreseeable future.
Open Fridays 8.30am-9am and First Saturday of every month 10:30am 11.00am by appointment only: Fostuniform@gmail.com
Second-hand Uniform Shop
Please contact Wendy or Camilla
LifeLab
The Year 6 girls were very excited to have their first LifeLab session this week. They were introduced to business terminology, top tips for being entrepreneurs and put into their groups. Ideas for their small businesses are already flourishing!
Year 6 Evacuation
On Monday, the Year 6 girls experienced what life would have been like for evacuees during World War II. Each girl brought in a suitcase with her belongings and a gas mask, just in case! The girls participated in a drama activity where they discussed their emotions, thoughts, and predictions about life as an evacuee. Some lucky girls were greeted warmly by their host families, while others received a very cold welcome. Some were even made to sleep on the floor!
The Dog House
Could you provide a loving home for a rescue dog? The Channel 4 series, The Dog House, is looking for those seriously considering bringing a rescue dog into their lives and willing to share their reasons for doing so.
To apply, please follow this link: The Dog House | Channel 4 or email thedoghouse@fivemilefilms.co.uk.
For more details or any questions, please contact Jacob Lloyd at 0117 405 6350
Music News
Musicians of the Week
Year 4
Year 5
Leila A for her kindness, hard work and resilience in Music lessons.
Jessica S for amazing work in Young Voices and excellent work in Music class.
Year 6 Eva J for consistent hard work in Music and a wonderful start to Chamber Choir!
We’re delighted to see so many smiling faces as we kick off the Spring Term! It’s wonderful to have everyone back and ready for another exciting term of music-making.
This term, Year 4 will continue to develop their skills with the Toot, while Year 5 dive deeper into their ukulele practice. Year 6 will focus on keyboards, exploring keyboard harmony all alongside their weekly whole-class music lessons.
As part of these lessons, all year groups will also learn a selection of songs to showcase their hard work at our end-of-term Spring Concert. We can’t wait to celebrate their musical progress with you! Here’s to a term filled with joy, creativity, and plenty of music!
Exciting News!
We are thrilled to announce that Year 6 will be performing The Jungle Book musical for their Summer production! This timeless tale of adventure, friendship, and selfdiscovery will be brought to life with wonderful songs, lively performances, and plenty of energy. The girls are already buzzing with excitement as they begin preparing for what promises to be a fantastic show. Stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks.
Our talented musicians in the orchestra received their badges today in Celebration Assembly!
Ava-Skye N
Carys D
Rosalind D
Amelia H
Maggie M
Monday
12.45: St Teresa’s Singers (Y.4 & 5) 3.45: Orchestra
Tuesday
12.45: Ukulele Club (Y.5 & 6)
3.45: Young Voices Choir
Wednesday
10.55: Wind Ensemble
4.15: Chamber Choir
Thursday
12.45: Recorder Club (Y.4)
12.45: String Group
Apolonia C-D
Eleanor B
Elizabeth E
Ania S
Sofia C
Rosie M
Prep Sport News
Netball
On Tuesday the U11A team played against Rowan Prep School. They showed tremendous improvements in their game play and they are now driving at speed and performing front cuts to receive the ball. The teams were evenly matched but unfortunately Rowan managed to convert more shots on goal. The final score was 7-1. Well done to Penny C who was awarded player of the match. Penny was dynamic on court and made many an interception. On Tuesday the U11B Netball team played against Rowan Prep School. The team showed incredible determination and sportsmanship throughout the match, both on and off the court. It was close throughout the game but in the final quarter Rowan managed to extend their lead. The final score was 7-3. Well done to Anna P who was awarded player of the match. Anna showed great awareness on court and was effective in both attacking and defensive plays. Well done to all the players for their efforts and representing St Teresa’s to an exceptionally high standard. The U11C team played extremely well against Rowan Prep School on Tuesday. They all showed great improvements throughout each quarter and continued to grow in confidence. The final score was 7-4 to Rowan. Well done to Ruby S for receiving playing of the match. Ruby worked well driving down the court and fed the shooters well. Well done to all the girls for showing great determination and representing the school, a special mention to Mira M who was awarded player of the match!
The U11D team demonstrated good character and determination in their recent netball match against Rowan Prep School. The game began with a tentative start, as both teams appeared cautious and hesitant to commit fully to the ball. However, as the quarters unfolded, the players grew in confidence, and some impressive netball skills were demonstrated. The game highlighted the U11's enthusiasm, determination and growing potential. Well done to all the players for their efforts and for representing the school with such spirit!
St Teresa's U11E team triumphed 5-3 over Rowan Prep School in an exciting match. Sybella J was the standout player, earning Player of the Match for her exceptional hard work and performance on court. The team showed great teamwork and determination, securing the victory with strong offensive play and solid defence throughout.
Fixtures (week commencing 20th January)
Tuesday 21st January -U10 Netball vs Manor House (H) 2.15pm
Tuesday 21st January -U9-U11 Cross Country @ St Catherine’s, Bramley (A) 4.00pm
Thursday 23rd January U9-U11 Swimming vs Cranmore (A) 3.45pm Friday 24th January
Afterschool: U11 Netball Training & U9/U10 Hockey training
Friday 24th January
Afterschool Training U11 Netball Training & U9/U10 Hockey training
SOCS
As a reminder, SOCS can be accessed through the St Teresa’s Senior Sports page St Teresa's Effingham | Sports Home
Here you will be able to access fixtures for the day, alongside the Sports Calendar which can provide you with all the sports fixtures weeks and months in advance. If a team sheet has been published for a particular fixture, the blue ‘person’ symbol will be available to click on. Simply click on the blue symbol next to the fixture to access the team sheet and use the password stteresasteams
For any questions related to Prep Sports, please contact the new Prep PE email at PrepPE@st-teresas.com or reach out directly to the specialist teachers.
This Week
This week we focus on the Baptism of Jesus.
A reading from the Gospel of Matthew
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying,“I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
Jesus replied,“Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.”Then John consented.
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water.At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.And a voice from heaven said,“This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
The story of Jesus reminds us that each of us has a divine vocation.A calling if you will. May the Lord reveal His calling to each of you.
Extreme weather and lessons
Whilst the sunny skies and freezing temperatures created a beautiful winter scene, the STE team are all pleased that the Arena has had chance to thaw out to allow riding to resume this week.
Cancellation of ridden lesson
It is always a difficult decision for the Yard Management team to cancel ridden lessons. However, the safety and welfare of both riders and horses is paramount. If the ground in the Arena freezes, it becomes too hard to ride on: frozen ground causes problems for the horses’ joints and increases the potential for them to trip on frozen ruts and endanger the rider.
Substitute lessons
If a lesson is cancelled due to extreme weather conditions, the ridden aspect is replaced by a Stable Management lesson. These sessions are invaluable as they provide an opportunity to go through riding theory and goal-setting as well as practical lessons in preparing the pony to be ridden - grooming and tacking up. The sessions enable the rider to get a better understanding of the ponies they ride as well as understanding horse and rider bio-mechanics, allowing them to become more independent and confident riders.
Bobby being a living diagram as part of the Stable Management lessons this week
February HalfTerm Hacks—Thursday 20th February
For those under 13, booking is open for a 45-minute lead-rein hack on Thursday at 1.15pm
For those over 13, and a Level 8 rider, booking is open for an off-site hack with Georgie at 10.30am
There are only 2 spaces for the off-site hack and 3 for the lead-rein, so please book as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
There are a few spaces left for our Pony Mornings and Afternoons and private lesson availability.
Please contact r.orme-smith@st-teresas.com if you are having problems booking.
Booking System: st-teresas-equestrian.ecpro.co.uk
For more information, please visit our website www.st-teresas.com/equestrian
You can also call direct on 01372 750257 or email : equestrian@st-teresas.com
Find
Menu—w/c Monday 20th January 2025
Hot lunches include a selection of family favourites and suitable alternatives for children with allergies and intolerances.
Week 3 Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Soup
Main
Pasta Bar
Soup of the day
Mild Beef Chilli
Con Carne served in a taco & dips
Soup of the day
Piri Piri
Chicken with Pitta Bread, Baby Gem and Homemade Sauces
Pasta with Tomato & Basil or Cheesy Pesto Sauce
Vegetarian
Sides
Mixed Bean & Quorn Chilli
Spicy rice
Steamed
Sweetcorn
Additional Jacket
Potato & Baked Beans
Freshly Baked
Bread
Salad bar
Pasta with Tomato & Basil or Bacon
Carbonara Sauce
Soup of the day
Locally Sourced
Oven Baked Pork
Sausages with Onion Gravy
Pasta with Tomato & Basil or Roasted
Pepper, Chicken & Chorizo Sauce
Cheesy Vegetable Enchilada
Potato Wedges
Macho Peas
Rainbow Slaw
Jacket Potato & Baked Beans
Freshly Baked
Bread
Salad bar
White
Dessert
Soup of the day Soup of the day
Freshly
Turkey & Bacon Pie
Battered Fish or Fish Cake with Ketchup and Tartare Sauce
Pasta with Tomato & Basil or Bolognaise Sauce
Pasta with Tomato & Basil
Macaroni
Vegan Sausages with Onion Gravy Feta & Spinach Filo Pie
