Habs Weekly - Junior School edition - Friday 18 November

Head of Junior School’s Message

Mrs L Flynn

Next week sees the school come together to celebrate St Catherine's Day. On Thursday 24 November, pupils and staff from Year 4 to Upper 6 will head to St Alban's Abbey for our annual St Catherine's Day service. This will be followed by an off-timetable day for all pupils on Friday 25 November where pupils will celebrate our internal house communities, through a poetry forum and house singing competition, as well as our wider community by undertaking an act of service

The story of St Catherine paints the picture of a brave and wise woman. She was born in Alexandria, Egypt and was the daughter of the Governor. As a young girl, she dedicated herself to study through which she found her faith, alongside a talent for using her knowledge to persuade others and stand up for what she believed to be right. Despite facing grave danger by defending her beliefs, she did not give in. The story tells us that, in the end, Catherine was sentenced to death for her beliefs and legend has it, this is where the inspiration for the Catherine Wheel firework originated. Today, Catherine is the patron saint of philosophers and female scholars and indeed our school.

When we consider her story, there is much that Catherine has in common with the pupils in the Junior School and much that they can learn from her story; being ambitious and curious in their learning and studies, being proud of their community and their role within it and having the courage to make good choices, even when things are difficult.

When we come together for St. Catherine's Day we consider and reflect upon Catherine’s story and the lessons we can learn, whilst celebrating the wonderful Habs community to which we all belong. It is a day that we look forward to in the school calendar each year and I hope you will enjoy sharing in the stories your children come home with of our celebrations this year.

Looking ahead

St Catherine's Day celebrations

Thursday 24 and Friday 25 November 2022

WHOLE SCHOOL

In the afternoon of Thursday 24 November, the Junior School Choristers will be performing alongside the St Catherine’s Singers during the service. The service will be broadcast live at 2pm via this link and all are encouraged to join us for this special whole school occasion.

The following day, on Friday 25 November the whole Junior School community will celebrate St Catherine’s Day in school. For our in-school celebrations, students will take part in a variety of House activities.

We do hope that your child enjoys these special days as we honour the Patron Saint of the Haberdashers’ Company, as generations of Haberdashers’ Girls’ School students have done before.

YEARS 4 TO 6

In the afternoon of Thursday 24 November, Years 4 to 6 will travel to St Alban’s Cathedral and join the Senior School for our St Catherine’s Day Service.

Please ensure all medical information is up to date on Firefly. If your child has asthma or carries an adrenaline auto-injector, please make sure they bring their inhaler and/or two (in date) injectors with them. Please note, they will not be able to accompany the trip without these items.

Looking ahead

Christmas Jumper Day

THURSDAY 8 DECEMBER

Whole School London

This year, on Thursday 8 December, the Junior School will be taking part in Christmas Jumper Day.

The Junior School will be raising money for Save the Children, to raise valuable funds to help disadvantaged children in the world. The money raised will help Save the Children give the world’s forgotten children a brighter future. It could help bring essentials like healthcare, education, protection and food to the millions of children around the world who are missing out on the most basic support.

This year for every £2 we collect, the UK government has promised to give £2 to Save the Children too. To find out more, click here.

We ask that pupils wear a Christmas-themed jumper or t-shirt on top of their school uniform. No headbands (for example, reindeer antlers) to be worn please. If your child would like to participate, they should bring a £2 donation to school from the week beginning Monday 5 December and hand it in to their class teacher.

London

Looking ahead

Car parking and safety

HIGHLY IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ

Click here to read a letter regarding car parking and safety from our Chief Operating Officer, Mr Rob Dunn.

Y1

History lesson - Family Trees

WEEK COMMENCING 21 NOVEMBER

Next week in History, we will be learning about family trees. Please provide your child with some photos to add to their tree. Your child will be cutting them out so do not send photos that you do not want to be cut. The photos may include immediate family members, friends, extended family, pets etc. Paper copies are sufficient. Please bring the photographs into school by Friday 25 November.

Junior School

Christmas Disco

Date: Sunday 27 November 2022

Time: Rainbow to Year 2: 1pm to 2.30pm Year 3 to Year 6: 3.30pm to 5pm Location: Performance Space Click here for more information.

Whole School

Gifts to staff

GUIDANCE FOR PARENTS

Click here to read about guidance for parents regarding gifts for staff.

Easyfundraising registration

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Click here to read a letter from the Parents’ Guild regarding registration with Easyfundraising.

Car parking and safety

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Click here to read a letter regarding car parking and safety from our Chief Operating Officer, Mr Rob Dunn. Lunch Menu WEEK

COMMENCING MONDAY 21 NOVEMBER

Please click here to view our EYFS and KS1 menu.

Please click here to view our KS2 menu.

Reminders

Clare Balding, CBE visit

MONDAY 21 NOVEMBER

We are very excited to announce that the Junior School will be hosting a visit from Clare Balding, CBE on Monday 21 November 2022.

Writer, broadcaster, animal lover and sports fan, Clare is also the best-selling, award-winning author of numerous books and children’s novels and an ardent campaigner for better coverage of women’s sport.

During the visit Clare will talk about her passion for books, animals and sport, and share her experiences of being a writer. You can read more about Clare and her books on her website Clare Balding Books. Clare will also conduct a book signing whilst she is with us. The titles available are:

• The Racehorse Who Learned to Dance : £6.40 (RRP £7.99)

• The Racehorse Who Wouldn’t Gallop : £5.60 (RRP £6.99)

• The Racehorse Who Disappeared : £5.60 (RRP £6.99)

• Fall Off, Get Back On, Keep Going: 10 ways to be at the top of your game : £8 (RRP £9.99)

If you already have any of Clare’s books and you would like her to sign them, please bring them in on the morning of the visit and leave them with the class teacher. Ensure the books are clearly labelled with your child’s name and class.

We are very much looking forward to hosting Clare, and hope that the pupils will have a very enjoyable day.

Reminders

House Poetry

One of the school’s key areas of focus is to develop pupils’ mastery of oracy and the spoken word. Later this term, we will be holding our first poetry forum at the Junior School. We would like to invite all pupils to have a go at learning one poem. This is an opportunity for the pupils to have some fun as well as challenging themselves at the same time!

Pupils are at liberty to choose any published poem, but we ask that it takes a maximum of two minutes to perform. Click this link for some suggestions.

During half term, pupils are being asked to learn their chosen poem off by heart. Please can you listen to your child performing their poem and encourage them to bring it to life, making it their own.

As part of St Catherine’s Day, on Friday 25 November, the pupils will be split into their House families and will have an opportunity to perform their poems to each other. House captains and leaders will then choose one pupil from each house to perform their poem in front of the Junior School as part of the celebrations.

We are sure that this will be a very exciting and enriching learning experience for everyone. Good luck and have fun!

Wraparound Care

INFORMATION

Information about our Wraparound Care provision can be found in the resources section on Firefly and in the Parent Handbook. Please use this link for quick booking access.

Reminders

Snacks INFORMATION

Our snacks list remains the same as last year and as published in the Parent Handbook. Please note that we are a nut and sesame free school; it is imperative no food containing nuts or sesame seeds is brought on site. Student Voice will be surveying our whole community regarding snacks in the coming weeks, and any changes will be published accordingly.

Y3

Class assemblies DATES

We are excited to invite Year 3 parents to their child’s class assembly.

3A will be delivering their class assembly on Monday 28 November at 8.45am to 9.15am in the Performance Space, to which parents and guardians are warmly invited. Please follow the signage towards the DT doors.

3 Alpha will be delivering their class assembly on Monday 5 December at 8.45am to 9.15am in the Lecture Theatre, to which parents and guardians are warmly invited. Please follow the signage towards the DT doors.

Y3 to 6 Reminders

Carol Service drawing competition

INFORMATION

We would like to invite all KS2 students to enter a competition to design a cover for the order of service for our carol concert.

If your child would like to enter, she should complete a drawing of any size, using pens, pencils, pastels or paint. There is no need to include any text. The theme of the drawing is ‘The Nativity.’

Entries should be named (on the back of the paper) and handed to Mrs Walsh by Monday 21 November.

Reminders

Y3 to 6

After School Clubs collection arrangements

IMPORTANT NOTICE

Please be reminded that the following changes have been put in place for collection arrangements for Years 3 to 6 after their clubs.

After their club has finished, at either 4.45pm or 5pm, all KS2 students will be brought to the Junior School playground by the member of staff running the Club, and will be dismissed from the playground. Pupils will not be dismissed to the car park, so parents will be required to come up to collect them.

If you child has a Club which takes place in the Boys School (Senior or Junior buildings) they will be taken by the member of staff to the Prep School Reception, and should be picked up in person from there.

If parents are running late, please contact the Junior School Reception.

Any students not collected from the playground within five minutes of the finish time of a club will return to the Junior School reception. They will then attend after school care at Habs Boys’ Prep, which is chargeable. On these occasions, parents will be telephoned so they are aware that collection will be from the Boys Prep school. A member of the Junior School reception team will also ring ahead to the Boys’ Prep School so they know to expect the child.

Collection arrangements for sports fixtures remain the same, and will be communicated through fixture letters.

Reminders

Y3 to 6 Assembly

Flu vaccinations

MONDAY 21 NOVEMBER

Vaccination UK are coming into school on Monday 21 November offering flu vaccinations to all pupils in the Junior School. As per last week’s newsletter, the consent form link to approve or decline a vaccine closed today at 3:45pm. If you have any queries, the contact number for the Immunisation Team is: 01462 427008.

4 ALEPH - MONDAY 21 NOVEMBER

4 Aleph: Class assembly will take place on Monday 21 November, 8.45am to 9.15am, in the Performance Space. Attending parents, please follow the signage to the Dining Hall doors, where you will be registered and directed into the Performance Space.

Tooled Up

This week in the Junior School we have been marking Anti-Bullying Week. We started the week with an assembly led by Charlotte from KIP Education, teaching us all about how important it is to ‘reach out’ when we see or experience bullying. All week, we have been having discussions in class about the things we can do to support each other in school, and what we should do if we are worried about bullying.

Below are some links from Tooled Up that you may find helpful to further explore this topic at home.

• Parents and Carers (anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk)

• Researcher of the Month: Dr Larisa McLoughlin Discusses Cyberbullying and Social Connectedness - Tooled Up Education

• Dr Weston Talks with Dr Gemma Lewis: Teen Mental Health and Evidence-Based Early Interventions - Tooled Up Education

• Nurturing Positive Sibling Relationships: Tips for ParentsTooled Up Education

• Books to Cultivate Kindness and Empathy - Tooled Up Education

Cornflower Assembly

Friday 11 November

Friday afternoon assemblies are always a time of joy and celebration in the Junior School. Our weekly Cornflower Assembly celebrates individuals who have particularly demonstrated ways in which they have embodied our school values: Courage, Curiosity, Community and Ambition. Without fail, the pupils in our school community celebrate the successes of their peers, as well as take time to reflect on the ways in which they have, themselves, taken risks, wondered why, supported others and aimed high. We cherish our Cornflower Assemblies, and hope that you enjoy celebrating weekly with us too.

Ambition

Amy (Rainbow Blue)

Suzie (Rainbow Blue)

Poppy (Rainbow Red) Mia (1 Green)

Lottie (1 Orange) Emilia (2A)

Sloane (1 Purple) Maya (3A) Emily (4 Aleph) Lara (4 Aleph)

Chloe (3 Alpha) Aria (3 Alpha) Ophelia (4 Aesc) Tianlong (5 Aesc) Emma (5 Aleph)

Community

Daya (2A) Esme (2 Alpha) Ivy (4 Aesc)

Tanisha (5 Aesc) Olivia (5 Aleph) Chloe (6 Aleph)

Courage Curiosity

Imaan (Rainbow Red) Anaya (1 Green) Anoushka (2 Alpha) Shaylee (3A)

Asha (6 Aesc) Sofia (6 Aleph)

Cornflower Assembly

Friday 11 November

Here are some other celebrations in last week’s Cornflower Assembly.

ESSA Individual Primary Swimming Championships

On Friday 11 November, four students in Year 6 took part in the ESSA East and South East Individual Primary Swimming Championships.

Charlotte Stewart, Gia Soni, Ava Kaye and Chloe Yuan had to have swam a specified time or faster to be able to enter the competition and as a result this was an extremely competitive gala. All four students swam a number of different strokes with excellent determination and grit and showed a very positive and competitive attitude.

Well done to all swimmers and congratulations for achieving new personal bests too! All of these swimmers should be exceptionally proud of their achievements.

Leila 4 Aesc

I have been riding ponies for five years. It’s a first time I have won a rosette and I felt really uplifted and joyful. It made me feel that I can achieve greatness when I put my mind to it.

Super Saxes ACE Focus

Super Saxes is one of eight musical ensembles in the Junior School and unites all saxophonists each week to collaborate and learn new pieces of music. In recent weeks, students have been preparing two short pieces with backing tracks that they will share with the Junior School next week, as we celebrate St Catherine's Day:

• Muddy Wellies by Sarah Watts

• Snapdragon Samba by Sarah Watts

Our Super Saxes group have been learning to play their separate parts and then put them together with the track and Carrie Lyons is improvising some short ‘fills’ in the blues piece. We all look forward to hearing the complete arrangement next week.

Ella Naik says: “I love super saxes because it is really fun and we get to perform in concerts throughout the year.”

Values in Action

Community and Courage

Every Sunday, Jaya, in 3 Alpha, reads to an older lady through the charity Silver Stories.

Silver Stories is a charity based in Cornwall which links children to older people by telephone. Children (known as Silver Readers) telephone a Silver Listener every week and then read a short story or poem to them.

Silver Stories aims to combat the loneliness and isolation that can be felt by older people, to create intergenerational relationships and to offer children a richer reading experience.

Jaya says: "I read every week to Barbara on the phone. She has no grandchildren, so I read and then we discuss our weeks together. She tells me what life was like a long time ago."

News stories

Staffing update

Following Mrs Hardy’s letter last week sharing that Mrs Hayes has taken up the role of Acting Assistant Head Pastoral in the Senior School, we are delighted to share that Ms Elliott has been appointed Acting Assistant Head Pastoral in the Junior School for the remainder of this academic year.

As a current phase leader, Ms Elliott has a wealth of experience in leading on pastoral areas of school life and will be working closely with Mrs Hayes in the coming weeks to ensure a smooth handover. As ever, the first port of call for pastoral concerns should be your child's class teacher.

We are sure you will join us in wishing both Mrs Hayes and Ms Elliott every success in their new roles.

Radlett Remembrance Parade

On Sunday 13 November, a number of Year 6 pupils gathered in Radlett to take part in the Radlett Remembrance Parade. They walked, alongside their Prep School peers, in the parade with others representing faith groups, Scouts, Guides, Brownies, Rainbows, the armed services and the emergency services.

Two Year 6 pupils, Alma and Lucas, represented the schools so beautifully; in front of the entire assembled throng, they read out some of the names of the fallen and then both laid wreaths on behalf of Habs Girls and Habs Boys.

Special thanks to them for the part they played in this important community event, and to all who attended representing Habs.

Mini Police Assembly

We hope that the parents who attended our Mini Police Assembly enjoyed it. During the last seven weeks we have had lots of help and laughter provided by PCSO Milan Boca and PCSO Leon James. We were also visited by Zoe from the Fire Department who taught us all about Fire Safety, Why Hoax calls are serious, and how the Fire Brigade operates.

During this time Year 6 have learnt about anti-social behaviour {ASB}, road safety, bullying {including cyber, physical, verbal and indirect bullying}, anti-bullying and fire safety. In these topics Year 6 have learnt that ASB and bullying can do serious damage to people. We have learnt that on the roads you need to: Stop, Look, Listen and Think.

Finally, Year 6 learnt that hoax calls are not safe, and they can put people's lives in danger. Most importantly, Year 6 had a lot of fun performing to the whole Junior School and parents of Year 6 pupils. They learned a lot about the Police and their lives.

Safa (6 Aesc) said: "We thoroughly enjoyed presenting the assembly and showcasing our Mini Police knowledge, through four mini scenarios about the correct and incorrect actions to take in a variety of circumstances that could have an impact on our local community."

Anushka (6 Aleph) commented: "At the end of the assembly, the Deputy Mayor presented Year 6 pupils with a certificate and a small gift for having successfully completed the Mini Police course. This is a great way to remember our Mini Police experience and now, whenever we are unsure about the correct actions to take, we can reflect and recall what the PCSOs would do because Year 6 are all ‘qualified’ Mini Police!"

Year 5 Quiz

Six pupils were selected from Year 5 to join with the Boys’ School to make teams for the Science Championship Quiz. Iman, Qaya, Henrietta, Rio, Anara and Aggie took part in the first heat and thoroughly enjoyed working others to pool their knowledge. Well done all!

Henrietta (5 Aleph) said: “I really enjoyed the quiz because we got to know two Year 6 Prep pupils called Eric and Krisha. I was also in a group with Anara. We did really well and got into the next round!”

Year 6 Netball

On Wednesday 9 November, three Year 6 teams played against Stormont School. Stormont were very competitive and strong, with hard and accurate passes. Two of the teams had very close matches.

The A team from Stormont were extremely fast and robust when passing the ball, their shots did not miss. We worked together, demonstrating both resilience and determination; this resulted in the last quarter of the game being a closer contest. We look forward to embedding what we have learnt against Berkhamsted next week.

Ava and Chloe, Year 6 Netball Captains