You received my main end of term message on Tuesday, but I have a little extra to add here. We break up early compared to many schools, and the holidays ahead give us plenty of time to relax, travel, spend time with family, and celebrate in the many different ways that reflect our community.
Despite all the excitement that the festive season brings, there will inevitably be a point over the coming weeks where your child claims, “I’ve got nothing to do”. This is invariably not true, with new toys to play with, new books to read, and lots of extra time to spend time pursuing hobbies and interests, but children tend to say these things anyway.
If this happens to you, I would like you to encourage creativity this Christmas holiday. Paint a picture, play the piano, bake a cake, write a story, sew a cushion, take some photographs, build Lego, create a dance routine – the list is as wide as the imagination. These activities are of course screen free (I don’t think following a recipe on YouTube counts!), and they all create things that can be enjoyed by others.
I say this with a particular purpose in mind for our older children. Parents in Years 6 to 8 have received the letter about the Leonardo Creative Competition, for which the deadline is mid January. Many of your children are already working on their ideas, please encourage them to work on their entries over the holiday. I am looking in particular for our Year 8s to produce some entries of a very high standard, given their talents in the creative arts this year. St Christopher’s won the Leonardo trophy overall in 2024, and won three creative categories in 2025.
I am very keen to see further success in 2026, and everyone in Years 6 to 8 who enters the Leonardo Competition works towards that end for me.
Ms Elizabeth Lyle, Head