Upcoming Diary Dates

This week	Event	Details
Monday 13th May	Swimming Intensive begins for all Juniors	Swimming lessons will take place between May 13^th – May 16^thand May 20^th – May 23^rd All details have been sent via the booking form. To remind yourselves of timing check here: https://forms.office.com/e/7pb6kyJ2hh
Wednesday 15th May	Den Day – junior children only event	We will spend more time in the school hall this Wednesday, with each class building their own den! If you have any spare den building materials (lightweight sheets are the best), please do send them in with your child. We will also be using a lot of pegs. so any spare ones are welcome.
Friday 17th May	Class Representatives Meeting 9:15 -10:00 am	Please send your Class Reps any questions or suggestions you may have about The London Acorn School. This will be shared with our Deputy Head in a Q&A forum. Class Reps, questions from parents must be received via email by Wednesday 15th May: zoe@thelondonacornschool.co.uk If you are interested in becoming a Class Representative for the academic year of 2024-25, please let Zoe know and she can share more information with you about what the role involves. Please note change in time due to previously coinciding with Birch Walk and Talk.
Friday 17th May	Birch Walk and Talk 8:45-9:15am	An opportunity to join Sarah Thorne to ask questions and find out more about Birch Class’s transition to Hazel in September.
Next week	Event	Details
Monday 20th May	Celebration of Languages and Communication – children only event	Junior children from The London Acorn School and Hall School Wimbledon will join a a beautiful celebration of language and mother tongues. If you have another language in your family or heritage, please share a translation of the following verse with your child and class teacher by the end of this week (teachers will be in touch to remind you): Shine little light Shine so bright Shine little light with all your might Make me brave And make me bold And turn my words To living gold The colour for this festival is white – like a blank page – if you can include white in your child’s clothing for this day then all the better. Kindergarten children will celebrate their home languages in their kindergarten groups.
Monday 20th May	Kindergarten to Juniors Transition Q&A – 2pm	All kindergarten families are welcome to attend this event for which an invitation will be issued later this week. Find out about our new Willow Class teacher and how they will support the journey from kindergarten to the classroom. How children are gently prepared to love their learning, and how this preparation is designed for life. Sarah and Rachel Bochenski, our incoming Head Teacher for 24/25 will lead this session, which is designed for parents with children either going into Willow (yr2) or joining the oldest kindergarten year (yr1) between September 2024 and September 2025. This meeting will be recorded for working parents to join remotely or watch later. A zoom invite will be shared shortly.
Friday 24th May	Oak and Chestnut Walk and Talk 8:45am-9:15am	An opportunity to join Sarah Thorne to ask questions and find out more about Oak and Chestnut Class’s preparation for their next academic setting in September.
Friday 24th May	End of Half Term	After school clubs on this Friday will be running as normal. We look forward to welcoming children back on Monday 3rd June 2024.

Welcome from our Headteacher

Welcome everyone!

Philip Larkin, often rather a grumpy poet but so very good with words, evokes this time of early summer so well as he surveys the landscape from a train in his masterpiece Whitsun Weddings:

I thought of London spread out in the sun,

Its postal districts packed like squares of wheat:

This remains a time of warmth, excitement and new beginnings. Plus of course appropriate communication. By next Nutshell we will be able to let you know about all staffing plans for next year, and families anticipating the academic year ahead, starting in September 2024 and finishing in 2025, will have plenty of opportunities to find out more about the upcoming journey. For those with children in Kindergarten, we have a curriculum event next Monday where the journey from Kindergarten to classroom life is clearly outlined and all are welcome (see details in diary dates). For those with older children, either approaching year 4 (currently in Birch) or about to embark on the next step at year 5/6 (Oak and Chestnut), we have an event offering full information on transition from The London Acorn School to Hall School Wimbledon, from minibuses to school schedules and curriculum.

As for our children, they very much live in the now, and their excitement about either learning to swim or polishing their swimming strokes is palpable. The cooperation and communications opportunities for them will be really fun and are arriving thick and fast. This Wednesday they will be having fun with Den Day and on Monday 20^th May they will join with visiting children (Ysr3-6) from Hall School Wimbledon in our beautiful hall to host our Celebration of Languages and Communication which is a beautiful festival.

Have a lovely week!

Sarah

Announcements, Reminders and Important Information

MAY FESTIVAL PROFESSIONAL PHOTOS:

Thank you to all our wonderful parent photographer, Aga. Please find her beautiful, fun and dynamic photos at the end of this newsletter.

BRIDGE CLOSURE:

Please be aware of the upcoming works to the riverbed in the park which will affect access to the school for a short period.

NT are doing important riverbed restoration works from Monday 10June through until Friday 28 June. During this period the bridge across will be inaccessible to any staff or visitors.

Sorry in advance for any inconvenience.

School drop-off and pick-up times – let your voice be heard:

As we approach another academic year it is normal for us to review school drop off and pick up times. Please don’t hesitate to let us know your views on school drop off and pick up times as it is always useful to know your thoughts.

Transition to Hall School Wimbledon for year 5 and year 6 education – Monday 10^th June drop off and pick up time sessions

Join Sarah and Andrew Hammond of Hall School Wimbledon for details of the transition to Hall School Wimbledon for year 5 and year 6, this year and in the years ahead. All interested families are welcome. These sessions are to answer practical questions on the transition, from preparation at The London Acorn School, through to minibuses, sports and curriculum. Sessions will be held at 8.45-9.15 and 2.30-3.15.

Our Grow Space – a big thank you!

A massive thank you to all parent volunteers, Sustainable Merton and National Trust for help preparing our Grow Space for planting out before summer half term. It makes such a difference to the children. This space is so precious and thank you for renovating it ready for the grow season!!

HOT WEATHER PROTECTION

Finally, we are starting to enjoy some sunny weather! On hot, sunny days, please provide your child with a sunhat and water bottle, as normal. Suncream may be applied before school but will not be administered by staff during school hours. Please come prepared.

Kindergarten News

It’s the glorious sunshine that has created a sense of positivity everywhere. The heat brought seedlings out of the soil, pressed the button for the flowers to bloom and encouraged insects and birds to sing! Children’s energy level have spiralled towards the sky. The meadow glimmering with bright yellow buttercups and the dappled shade under the trees have become their oasis after an active morning. Thank you for sensibly dressing your child in light, long sleeved clothing, applying sunscreen in advance, and preparing summer hats and water bottles!

Children are generally more sensitive to changes. As seasons change, some of the kinde children have been ill. In the classroom, we followed the same routine but slow down slightly and take it easy. Some children spend significant amount of time drawing, flipping through books, or just enjoying hanging out with friends. We started a new ring time all about birds. Children also made colourful birds in different forms during craft sessions. Older children’s hobby horses are gradually taking shape. Slow and steady efforts have begun to fruit!

Junior School News

Willow Class: students have started learning about time. We had a wonderfully dynamic introduction to analogue clocks by making our own clock in the garden, using a long branch for minute hand and a short branch for the hour hand, everyone having a go to create o’clock and half past times.

It would be great if families could support children’s learning at home with conversations about time and pointing out analogue clock faces around the home and nearby surroundings.

Birch Class: students have completed their information leaflets about different biomes around the world, learning how deserts are not just hot, sandy places but can be cold, dry places, too.

Oak and Chestnut Class: Our older students from Oak and Chestnut gave a wonderful presentation of The River’s Tale by Rudyard Kipling, recounting the history of the Thames in verse form, and word perfectly. They have really got stuck into Greek myths and became deeply engaged in writing a persuasive text on behalf of either goddess Athena, or Poseidon, god of the sea.