School Newsletter – 1st May

Key Dates

Tuesday 5th May, Readiness for Reception Talk with Miss Kate in the Nursery

Tuesday 5th May – Nursery, Vaisakhi celebration

Wednesday 6th May, 3pm to 4.15pm – Duckling Cake Sale

Thursday 7th May, 8.50am to 9.30am – Sex and Relationships Education Talk with Mrs Helen

Thursday 7th May – Drama4All workshops for Lower School

Thursday 7th May, 2pm – Year 4 Shakespeare club taster session

Thursday 7th May, 3pm to 4.15pm – Duckling Cake Sale

Friday 8th May, 9am to 9.30am – Heritage Day Assembly with Miss Rebecca

Friday 8th May, Run for Us, Wandsworth Park

 

Dear Parents,

Poetry has moved centre stage as we have celebrated its many forms in our enrichment week. The poetry writing workshops led by talented poet Jo Stokes were inspirational, bringing words to life in a fun and engaging way and involving children in the creative process. Today’s assembly culminated the week with our poetry recital and some powerful performances of classic poems, old and new. Congratulations to all the children who took part. Thank you to Mrs Allison for organising the week so brilliantly and for FORS who funded the poetry writing workshops.

On Thursday, Nursery celebrated the largest Dutch festival, King’s Day. The children rode around the playground in their orange decked bikes and scooters and learnt about the meaning behind the celebration.

NEXT WEEK

Parents of our new Reception children starting in September are invited to our ‘Readiness for Reception’ talk given by EYFS Lead and Head of Lower School, Kate Wiffen. This will be taking place on Tuesday at 9.30am in the Nursery.

Nursery will continue the celebrations with activities connected to the Indian festival of spring, Vaisakhi. The children will be making Indian coconut ladoos, dressing up in traditional Indian clothes and dancing to Indian tunes. What fun!

On Wednesday and Thursday at pick up, the Reception team have organised a cake sale to raise money for their duckling eggs which will be soon arriving in their classroom. Spring is truly in full swing!

Mrs Helen’s talk on Sex and Relationships Education will take place on Thursday 7th May 8.50 to 9.20am on the usual Zoom link. The talk will be recorded and put on our website.

Also on Thursday, Lower School will be off to Neverland, experiencing a Peter Pan themed workshop provided by Drama4All.

The Little Village Collection on Friday 8th May is focused on clothing for children aged 4-5 years old. Moses baskets are also urgently needed by the charity due to demand.

SPORT

Information about Run for Us, our biggest annual charity event, was sent out earlier this week. This year, in addition to running laps, all children will be participating in a skipping workshop after their run. I’ve heard from staff who’ve participated in these before that it’s much more than just skipping – it’s life-changing! Please support your child to get sponsored so we can raise lots for our house charity, Regenerate.

FORS

The count-down is on for the Summer Fair – please put 20th June in your diaries! Any ideas for new stalls or volunteers should contact FORS – thank you in advance.

FORS had a coffee morning with Reps today and we will be sharing details in the coming days via Reps WhatsApp groups.

This week, FORS funded the poetry workshops across all year groups, and the fruit of their labour was exhibited with recitals in assembly today – inspiring stuff!

Your contributions have also funded the new Skipping Workshop, following Run For Us, taking place next Friday – thank you for helping to give the children a fantastic experience!

AOB

There are spaces on our Southfields and Wimbledon bus run this term in the morning. Please email Ros on roche.r.holmes@therocheschool.com if you would like to book a place for your child.

Miss Marcia and Miss Karen will be running half-term holiday clubs 8.30am to 5.30pm on Tuesday 26th and Wednesday 27th May. Activities include arts and crafts, a talent show, dancing chair time, choosing activities, outdoor games, and football. These can be booked via the School Cloud clubs portal.

A reminder that we will be celebrating Heritage Day on Tuesday 12th May. Please let your class teacher know if you are able to come into school to discuss an aspect of your heritage or culture or to share a craft or story by Thursday 7th May. Please could any homework projects (family tree, significant objects, interviews, drawing….) for Heritage Day also be brought into classes by Thursday 7th May? Thanks for your support!

The Soke Foundation is running an evening for parents where psychiatrists, psychologists, and psychotherapists will be on hand to answer your questions and share practical insights on how to support your child’s mental wellbeing and how to handle behavioural issues. Tuesday 19th May 2026, 7pm arrival / 8:30pm end. Soke Wimbledon, 1 Compton Road, SW19 7QA. To register, please contact events@thesoke.uk or call 020 7139 5051

Have a wonderful bank holiday weekend,

Charlotte and Jonny

Great News!

Wow! Over a third of our incredible Year 6 cohort have won Academic scholarships at 11plus. What a result!

Tour with the Head
Friday 15th May 9.30am-10.30am

Spanish Taster Session for 4s and under on Friday 22nd May 9.30am-10.30am