December 13, 2024
We are excited for the return of our Grandparents’ and Special Friends’ Afternoon, on Friday 14 February. This year, our theme will be ‘Love and Friendship’, and our pupils have been working hard on their performances. Welcome refreshments will be served in the Courtyard Café from 1.30pm, with performances beginning at 2.00pm. The event will conclude at the end of the school day, around 3.15pm, where you will be able to collect your children as we break for half-term. It was an amazing turn-out last year, and we hope to welcome many of you back. Tickets are limited to 2 tickets per family to ensure as many as able can be involved; if you would like to book a ticket for a Grandparent or Special Friend, please RSVP here: https://forms.office.com/e/WHHxMT022x
Thank you to everyone who made the Christmas Market such a success.
If you could take a few moments to complete our feedback form it will help us ensure next year’s is even better! https://forms.office.com/e/2tS1nzSsyD
Our parent community is looking forward to welcoming you to our Christmas Market this Sunday. Don’t forget to wrap up warm and bring your Christmas spirit along from 12-4pm.
There’ll be some fabulous stalls for your Christmas shopping, selling a wonderful array of items including jewellery, crocheted gifts, chocolates, whisky, wreaths, aromatherapy items, silks, glassware and homeware. There’s also plenty to entertain including karaoke, photobooth, face painting, tombola’s and more games.
Please remember to bring your disposable cups to use at our indoor and outdoor cafes and eateries.
This is a parent-run event not staffed by the School, so all children are parents’ responsibilities throughout the event.
The School bands will be performing on stage and we will be drawing our fantastic raffle at 3:30pm.
Thank you for all your help preparing for the event, we look forward to seeing you there.
Art Competition Rules
Theme: Nature
We are excited to announce an Art Competition open to all students from both the Prep and Senior Schools. The winning pieces will be proudly displayed on the café wall during its grand opening.
Entry Guidelines
Eligibility:
The competition is open to all pupils, divided into the following age categories:
Category 1: Nursery to Yr 2
Category 2: Year 3 – Year 4
Category 3: Year 5 – Year 6
Category 4: Year 7 – Year 9
Category 5: Year 10 – Year 11
Category 6: Sixth Form (Year 12 – Year 13)
Art Mediums Accepted:
Drawings
Paintings
Photography
Presentation Requirements:
All entries must be submitted in A3 (29.7 x 42 cm) and unframed.
Submission Deadline:
All entries must be submitted by 12:00 pm on Monday 8 January 2025.
Submissions should be handed in to the Art Department at either the Prep or Senior School.
Judging Process
Initial Judging:
A panel of three staff members from both schools will review all entries and select the finalists.
Final Judging:
Finalists’ works will be judged by the Chair of Trustees at a special event during the café’s official opening.
Prizes
Finalists from each category will have their artwork displayed prominently in the café and receive a certificate of achievement.
The winning finalist will receive a £50 gift voucher.
Terms and Conditions
All artwork must be original and created by the participant.
By entering the competition, participants grant the school permission to display their artwork publicly.
The school reserves the right to photograph and use submitted artworks for promotional purposes.
Late submissions will not be considered.
The judges’ decisions are final, and no correspondence will be entered into.
Dear Parents,
We are organising a book drive next week, together with the Senior Girls’ School, in support of The Children’s Book Project. If you have a gently used book your child is happy to part with for someone with very few books, send it to school next week and we will arrange to get it to the charity. All details can be found on the attached flyer.
Also attached is a flyer for the Christmas Evening at Waterstones on Kensington High Street on Tuesday 3rd December from 4.30pm. This is an ideal opportunity to meet a variety of authors and get some ideas for Christmas gifts.
On that note, the pupil librarians have devised a book related advent calendar which we will be opening from next week.
All suggestions will be available by the end of term.
With best wishes,
Mrs. Kourtis
Thank you to everyone who came to the workshop please see the presentation below.
Phonics Workshop November 2024
What: Montessori Toddler Club
When: Thursday 7th November and end on the 12th December
Where: St James Nursery Building
Book: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/db/585232
Only 9 days to go until our St James Families’ Christmas Market on 1 December. If you’re coming to the Market, please make sure you’ve signed up to volunteer, the Market relies on everyone coming together to make it work!
Christmas Market: Sunday 1 December from 12-4pm
Raffle Tickets coming home: the Raffle tickets should have come home today with your child. If you would like more, please email i.cooper@stjamesschools.co.uk
Donations wanted! Bottles, Chocolates, Soft Toys, Children’s Books and Board Games
Please bring to Reception from Monday 18 November.
The Market raises money for our Prep and Senior Girls’ Schools and their chosen charities, Under One Sky and Masibambane College in Johannesburg.
The Nativity: Thursday 5th and Friday 6th December
Nativity-Performances-Nursery-to-Year-2-2024.pdf
We are delighted to invite the family and friends of the children in Nursery,
Reception, Year 1 and 2 to The Nativity. Main roles are held by Year 2 with
accompanying songs and dances by Year 1, Reception and Nursery.
There will be two morning performances. Sign in at 8.45am with Curtain-Up at 9am
on Thursday Dec 5th and Friday Dec 6th.
The children have already begun working very hard in rehearsals and are full of
enthusiasm to perform for you.
Please book your tickets using the link below:
https://stjamesjunior.schoolcloud.co.uk/
Please select which performance you would like to attend and how many will be
attending.
11+ Examinations: 11-Examination-Information-for-Year-6-Parents-2024.pdf
Here is some key information specific to this year’s Year 6 11+ examination times and
dates:
• The Consortium exam for St James Senior Girls’ School and schools within the
London Consortium, if you have applied for any others, will be held at St James
Prep on Thursday 5th December. This is an electronic test which the girls will
sit in the Prep School ICT Suite.
• The 11+ exam for the St James Senior Boys’ School will be held at the Senior
Boys’ School on Saturday 30th November. Interviews and activities will also
take place at the school on this day.
• If you have applied to a school that is using the ISEB exam to be taken at St
James Prep, the exam will be sat over two days, as the test consists of four
parts; we have timetabled two mornings, two parts to be taken on one day and
the other two parts on the following day. The Maths and the Non-Verbal
Reasoning elements will be on Tuesday 26th November, and the English and
Verbal Reasoning elements will be on Wednesday 27th November.
If there are any clashes with these dates and any other entrance exams your child
may be taking at other schools, please let us know as soon as possible and we will
liaise with you to make alternative arrangements within the deadlines.
On days that exams are being sat, children should come into school at the usual time,
and dismissal will remain the same.
If you have any queries, please do contact us on office@stjamesprep.co.uk
Please sign up your child for the Performance Tea.
Children will play to their parents who have come along to listen whilst enjoying a nice cup of tea.
Thursday 12 December 2024
From 8:15am, Christmas pastries and hot drinks will be served in the Courtyard with an opportunity to mingle. Everyone will then be guided over to St Mary’s West Kensington, where the Celebration will begin at 9:15am. All are welcome for this fun and festive morning! Please RSVP here: https://forms.office.com/e/b4bkJKbYdd
The Pause
At St James, we feel it is important to introduce our pupils to stillness and allow them to discover how to be inwardly free and deeply at ease within themselves. A short period of 5-10 minutes at the beginning and middle of every day is allocated to quietude in which pupils may meditate, contemplate or simply be still – according to their own spiritual inclinations.