From the Head

From the Head of Pre-Prep

Dear Parents,

What a wonderful week it has been. Nursery have been going on a bear hunt in their classroom. They have waded through a big bowl of water, walked through artificial grass, squelched through mud etc. to re-enact the popular story. If your children have had muddy feet at bath time you may want to ask them why.

Kindergarten have particularly enjoyed the sand and construction site in their classroom: sending cars down an enormous chute into the sand at the end. They have also had a talk from a real pilot who has told them all about flying an aeroplane. It’s never too early to start thinking about your career path!

Year 1 have had the most wonderful Pirate Day. Everything today has been about pirates to end their topic before half term; the costumes have been fabulous. Thank you to our special pirate visitor for adding to our excitement.

Year 2 have continued to journey into space with Neil Armstrong and packing their own bags to take on their space journey. I was pleased to see they had packed some chocolate.

When we return after our half term break, Reception children will be having a workshop on Wednesday 26^th February run by Exotic Explorers which will be all about owls. Mrs Jeffery always says she finds owls the most difficult to paint but if you follow her “Watercolour a Day” page you will not agree with her!

Overheard in Pre-Prep: "Do you know, I'm having another bad hair day!"

Have a lovely half term holiday and see you all on the 24^th February.

Zerrin Leech

Important reminder about the sharing of photographs

A reminder to St Michael’s parents that any photographs which you take at school events (sports tournaments, music concerts, drama performances etc.) featuring children other than your own must be for personal use only and not publicised anywhere (this includes on social media and sharing via text, email, Whatsapp etc.). This is essential for safeguarding reasons and the protection of our school community.

House Drama Duologue Competition 2025

We were delighted to welcomed guest judge Mike Darbon from the producing worlds of Doctor Who, Silent Witness, Casualty and EastEnders to St Michael's House Drama Duologue Competition Final on Monday 10th February.

With 12 pairs of pupils performing throughout the Final, judge Mike and an audience of staff and parents enjoyed performances of scripts ranging from Alice in Wonderland and The Parent Trap to Blood Brothers, Electra and Waiting for Godot.

The annual competition invites pupils in Years 3 to 8 to select, set and rehearse a piece of drama of their choice with another child from their school house. The hotly contested competition, which this year saw 80 pupils enter the heats of, is always met with such hard work, talent and ambition from the children.

Commenting on the standard of performance at the event, industry expert Mike Darbon said: "The children gave so much care, focus and attention to their scenes and performances. Well done to all of them and well done to St Michael's for getting them to that level at such a young age and for fostering their interest in Drama."

Congratulations to all of the performers and the winners:

JUNIORS:

GOLD: DOVER (Saskia and Evelyn - Pygmalion)

SILVER: WINDSOR (Elise and Ilse - The Parent Trap)

BRONZE: DOVER (Alice and Charlotte - After the Ball)

SENIORS:

GOLD: LEEDS (Oliver and Clara - Blood Brothers)

SILVER: ROCHESTER (Belinda and Marianne - Electra)

BRONZE: DOVER (Isabel and Sophie - Little Women)

Year 6 compete in Chess Tournament

On Tuesday 4th February a team of Year 6 pupils took part in the inaugural Solefield School Chess Tournament. The format consisted of six schools competing with teams of six pupils in a round robin format, allowing every child to play five matches.

The standard of chess was very competitive and we had a tough start playing the eventual 1st and 2nd place schools. After that we played some more evenly matched schools and started accumulating more points.

We ultimately finished in 5th place after a tense afternoon of battling it out on the chess board.

It was a great experience for the team to pit their wits against some extremely talented players. Well done to St Michael's Chess Team!

Chess Team: Thomas D, Thomas G, Sofia V, Rayaan G, Taran Singh M and Nathan H

Mr Fuller, Maths Teacher

St Michael's swimmers compete in IAPS Qualifier

On Monday 10th February St Michael's IAPS Swim Squad participated in the qualifier round at Walthamstow Hall. Our relay teams delivered commendable performances with notable individual achievements.

Miranda H secured first place in the breaststroke, recording the fastest time for under 10s, while Kayla F won her backstroke heat with a significant lead. Nathan H achieved a personal best in the breaststroke and Dylan H also delivered an outstanding performance and 1^st place in butterfly.

Special recognition goes to Grace P, Ava M, Daniel W and Isla B who competed in a gala with St Michael's for the first time, demonstrating exemplary effort and team spirit. The event was marked by a fantastic team spirit with all swimmers overcoming their nerves to perform brilliantly.

The top 20 swimmers in each event will be invited to the IAPS National Swimming Finals at the London Aquatic Centre on Saturday 7th June 2025: the results from the qualifier are usually released in May. Congratulations to all of our swimmers and best of luck in the upcoming Finals.

Swimmers:

Mrs Fornasier, Swim School Manager

Last Friday saw the annual Year 2 Matball Tournament take place. There were a lot of excited children ready to showcase their skills and gameplay to a large parent crowd in the Prep Sports Hall.

The children played superbly with smiles on their faces and excellent attitudes towards their opponents and the competition.

In the Eagles group, there were 21 goals scored in the six games played. The champion Green Team scored five goals on their way to winning all of their matches without conceding a goal!

In the Lions group, two unbeaten teams finished on 10 points after drawing their match against each other 6-6. But thanks to a superior goal difference, the Non-Bibs Team were crowned winners over the second placed Green Team.

Many thanks to the Sports Department and Year 2 Team for assisting with officiating and of course to the parents and family members for their encouragement and support. 

Mr Davies, Pre-Prep PE Teacher

Years 2 and 3 had a wonderful time at their annual Maths Challenge morning on Monday which is part of the Year 2 transition programme.

It was a great morning full of teamwork, fun and enthusiasm where the children had to work together to solve maths challenges, problems and play team games. The morning ended with Years 2 and 3 having lunch together in the Prep Dining Room. Well done to all involved!

The Years 2 and 3 Team

House Reading Competition

Prep children are invited to take part in the Prep House Reading Competition. Children will receive a stamp on their bookmark every time they read a book from one of the ten given categories. Stamps will go towards each child's house, with the trophy being awarded to the winning house on Friday 2^nd May. This is a collective rather than individual competition.

A visit from author Claire Hatcher-Smith

Pre-order books for your child

We are looking forward to welcoming children's author Claire Hatcher-Smith to St Michael's with Sevenoaks Bookshop on Tuesday 4th March 9-10am to speak to pupils in Years 3, 4 and 5. 

In advance to Claire's visit, parents have the option to pre-order books from Sevenoaks Bookshop for their child which will given to them on Tuesday 4th March.

Parents of children in all St Michael's year groups can pre-order books from Sevenoaks Bookshop to be delivered on this day.

Please click here to pre-order books for your child

Camp Beaumont returns to St Michael's this Easter

Children's activity provider Camp Beaumont are returning to St Michael's over the Easter holiday from 7th to 16th April 2025.

Camp Beaumont is running at offer until Monday 10th February including prices from £40 per day.

Use discount code STMICHAELS25 for an extra 10% off your booking.

Please click here to book your child's space.

Scams and fake news

Following our involvement in Safer Internet Day 2025 this week, our poster this week covers some of the risks that young people may face online with regards to scams and fake news.

From fake celebrity endorsements to recognising ‘clickbait’ phishing schemes, it is important to stay informed and encourage open conversations at home. Mistakes happen and it's important for children to know that it's okay to talk about them!

Luke's sea cadets and LAMDA success

Congratulations to Luke who participated in the District Drill and Piping Competition with the Orpington Junior Sea Cadets Piping Team last weekend and won the District Piping Competition! 

Luke and his team will now represent the London Southern District for the Area Competition in March. Here, they will aim to emulate their success, being the current winners of the Junior Sea Cadets London Southern district area 5-a-side football team.

Luke also recently received his results for LAMDA - Speaking in Public Grade 5 which took place at the Ashford International Hotel in December where he received a Merit for Prepared Speeches 1 & 2 and a Distinction in overall knowledge of both chosen subjects for each speech. 

Keep up the good work, Luke!

Muddy Stilettos' February Half Term Guide

Foal Farm Valentine Trail

Otford Village Fete 2025 Poster Competition

Kemsing Cricket Club

Kent Fostering

Half Term Staff Sports Camps

Mr Thomas' February half term hockey camp

Mr Thomas will be holding his Half Term Hockey Camp at Hollybush Hockey Pitch on:

Monday 17th February

Tuesday 18th February

Wednesday 19th February

Please click here to book.

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Make sure you are following St Michael’s social media channels for important updates and content throughout the year.