Form 3 Trip to Dulwich Picture Gallery - December 2012
Last Wednesday Form 3 visited Dulwich Picture Gallery to help develop their story writing skills. In the morning they had an Art Skills session with artist Jo, in the studio. They were asked to take an ink 'line' on a journey using different styles, brushes and media, to create a story board. It was thoroughly enjoyable and the results were surprising to several of the children (e.g. the reaction of ink over wax lakes and ponds of water). Following our packed lunch, we had a brisk walk over to the park to give our legs a stretch. In the afternoon the children were split into two groups and a guide took them around the gallery comparing many artists and the stories the paintings told. It was a super trip enjoyed by all. Many thanks to Mrs Palfreyman, Mr Smart and Mr Jones, staff and to the parents Mrs Jones, Mr Ferguson-Grande and Mrs Biju for accompanying the children. Pictures from the visit can be viewed in our Gallery.

Christmas Challenge Cup - December 2012
Well done to all the boys from across the Junior School that played in the Christmas Challenge Cup this weekend. There were some fine team performances throughout the morning exhibiting some high quality football. Congratulations to the St David’s teams, who finished winners and runners up and as a result of this great performance were presented with the Challenge Cup trophy. The next Challenge Cup competition will be held at the end of the Spring term. Go to our Gallery to see pictures of our boys in action!

Sporting Success - November 2012
Well done to our U11 Football team at the recent Reddiford Tournament. St David's was the only unbeaten team in the competition and came away with silver medals (narrowly missing out on gold by just one point!) Congratulations also go to our School Swimming Team who put on an outstanding performance at the ISA London South trials on Saturday and came away with six bronze medals.

Form 2 Trip to The Monument & Museum of London - November 2012
The children from Form 2 had an exciting trip to London last week to learn more about the Great Fire and how London was changed after the fire was finally extinguished. The day started with a race to catch the train, followed by a walk under beautiful blue skies across London Bridge to get to the Monument. The fantastic views from the top of Canary Wharf, the Eye and the Gherkin amongst other sights, made the climbing of 311 steps (phew!) worth every step. After a slightly more tentative descent (the children decided it was definitely scarier going down than up!), Form 2 then walked to the Museum of London to visit the War, Plague and Fire Gallery. Here, they worked in pairs to understand how the Great Fire started, what life was like in the 1600s and how people were affected. They had great fun trying on old leather fireman's helmets and comparing these to modern day versions. After an hour at the museum, it was time to trek back to the station, grabbing the chance to take in the sights of St Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, HMS Belfast, the Bank of England and the Shard along the way. Pictures from the visit can be viewed in our Gallery.

Remembrance Day - November 2012
In keeping with tradition, Head boy, Qabir, and Head girl, Georgia, laid a wreath at the Woodcote Green War Memorial on behalf of St David's School. It was a beautiful morning and many of the St David's family joined us there to remember all the men and women who were killed during the two World Wars and in other conflicts.

Form 1 Trip to Dulwich Picture Gallery - November 2012
The children from Form 1 had an enjoyable and informative trip to Dulwich Picture Gallery this week. They gained an understanding of the concepts of portraits and looked at the detail and stories within pictures. They had a great time drawing their favourite parts from the pictures and dressing up as characters from the paintings as well. Much amusement (particularly among the boys!) was caused by the portrait of Mrs Moody and her sons, as the boys were dressed in long lacy dresses! Despite the gallery being very busy, the children behaved beautifully and many comments were made about how well behaved they were. Our thanks go to Mrs Nag, Mrs Deragon and Mrs Tracy who helped out on the trip and also, of course, to Mr Kendall, Mrs Coxall and Mrs Rykala who made the trip such fun. Pictures from the visit can be viewed in our Gallery.

New Catering Company Appointed - November 2012
We are delighted to announce the appointment of The Brookwood Partnership as our catering partner from 1st January 2013. They will work with our dedicated in-house catering manager, Mrs Gray, to bring an exciting range of fresh and healthy food to the children at St David's. In addition to providing varied and highly nutritious meals, the team from Brookwood will run assemblies (the first of which will be on Tuesday 12th November) and other events and initiatives to help teach the children about healthy eating. A sample of a new weekly menu and break time snacks, which will be available from next term, can be seen by clicking here. Parents are invited to an evening on the 12th November, from 7pm, when they will have the opportunity to meet the Brookwood team and find out more about what will be on offer.

St David's Sporting Success - October 2012
The netballers won in grand style against Cumnor in October, winning by a massive 8-0. This victory came hot on the heels of the St David's U11 football team winning 6-4 against St David's College and 4-1 against Laleham Lea. Head of PE and Games, Rob Jones, said "All U11/U10 teams have performed above expectations this half-term and we look forward to continued success next half-term." Upcoming fixtures in November to look out for include the U11 football match against Reddiford on the 15th, the U11/U10 netball match against Bramley on the 20th and the London South Swimming Trials on the 24th - Go Team St David's!

PTA Horticultural Show - October 2012
The children amazed everyone with their wonderful creations and home-grown fruits and vegetables at the first St David's Horticultural Show in over 50 years!  The standard was unbelievable, ranging from sweet peppers, beetroots and chillies, to mini gardens made of lego, wonderful artwork and incredibly decorated cupcakes. Every single entry was of such a high standard that the judges had a difficult time choosing the winners - which just goes to show what talented and inventive children we have at this school! You can see a list of all the winners by clicking here and images from the show are in our Gallery.

Form 6 Trip to Boulogne - September 2012
Despite a 6am start at the School, the children set off with excitement for their trip to France and a chance to parler un peu de francais!  Highlights of the day included an exploration of the Old Town, picnicking on the ramparts and a trip to see the First World War Cemetery at Terlincthun.  Delicious goodies were purchased at the local boulangerie and confiserie and postcards were written and sent back to the school telling everyone about the fabulous day that was had by all! You can see images from this visit in our Gallery.

ISA Athletics at Norman Park, Bromley - June 2012
Congratulations to all the children from St David's who took part in the ISA Regional Athletics Finals. Despite the inclement weather, we produced some excellent individual and team performances throughout the day. Special congratulations go to David Middleton (Year 4 - Gold Medal Sprint & Silver Medal Relay), Amy Lauder (Year 4 - Silver Medal Sprint), Alex Ullman (Year 6 - Silver Medal Shot), Daniel Akinsanya, Thomas Rea and Adam Green (Year 4 - Silver Medal Relay).

St David's Reunion - May 2012
A hundred years of history was celebrated at St David's on Saturday 26th May 2012 when nearly 200 past pupils, teachers, Governors and parents came together representing the last five decades of St David's for a reunion day. The highlight of the afternoon was the cutting of a beautiful centenary cake with ex-Headteachers Mrs Ann Stranack and Mrs Lindsay Nash alongside Miss Cressida Mardell. Everyone enjoyed the afternoon and toasted the next 100 years of this great school!

Olympic Sports Day - May 2012
The Olympic Sports Day, for Nursery to Year 6, was made up of two competitions involving the Infant School in the morning and the Junior School in the afternoon. All of the children competed for one of eight Olympic countries in a variety of sporting activities designed to showcase their co-ordination, balance and movement skills. The three winning countries in the morning and the three winning countries in the afternoon were awarded Olympic medals. The highlight was to see all of the children competing so well for their Olympic teams and to see all the flags fluttering in the wind! At midday, a centenary cake was cut by ex-Headteacher, Mrs Ann Stranack, along with Miss Mardell, to celebrate our 100 years! All the children received a slice of cake and the sun thankfully shone brightly! 

Double Sporting Victories! - March 2012
The netballers were triumphant at this year's combined U10 & U11 Royal Russell event in March 2012. St David's entered two teams and played in a round robin tournament. Both the A and B squads fought hard and they won! Games teacher, Mrs Palfreyman, said: "It is a great experience for all of the girls in a superb setting, and to work together as a team made up of girls from different year groups. I am very proud of them all and the manner in which they played."

The netball victories come hot on the heels of the St David's U11 boys squad winning the team competition at the ISA National Gymnastics Championships in Stoke in February 2012. It was the second year running that St David's has been crowned national team champions. Head of PE & Games, Rob Jones, said: "It was an outstanding performance once again. All the boys worked extremely hard in training under Head Coach, Ian Heasman, and their achievements are a fitting reward." Teams from all over the country took part.

Nursery Visit to Pizza Express - March 2012
The Nursery children recently visited Pizza Express in Purley on 14th March 2012. They had a wonderful morning learning about the ingredients and making their own pizzas. The highlight of the event was eating them!