Today St Mary’s held it’s very own celebratory event, to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee (her 70th year on the throne). As you will be aware, for the rest of the country, this celebration will be taking place between Thursday 2nd June and Sunday 5th June.

At St Mary’s, each class chose a special theme:

Reception enjoyed a whole week of Jubilee activities, which included singing the patriotic anthem ‘God Save the Queen’, making a London landmark and finding more out about monarchs—past and present.

Year 1 chose: the Moon Landing (from July 1969) - an important historical event from the Queen’s early reign.

Year 2 focussed upon the Queen’s Coronation (from June 1953) - including her wedding. They coloured pictures of the queen, made their own special crowns and even enjoyed their very own party in the afternoon!

Year 3 picked the 2012 London Olympics; they watched the Opening Ceremony (including the spectacular entry featuring James Bond meeting the Queen), looked at British athletes who had won Gold medals and in the afternoon created their own London 2012 posters. They also looked at the Windsor’s family tree—include heirs and descendants.

Year 4 selected Beatlemania; they looked at the 1960s, the importance of the Fab Four in British modern history, listened to a range of their popular music and focussed on some of the positive messages from the hippy era—including compassion and peace and love.

Year 5 looked at the 1980s through food, music and fashion. For those of us around that time I think we would all agree that it was a fascinating and eventful period in Britain, at the mid-point of the Queen’s reign.

Year 6 studied the 1966 World Cup victory by the famous Three Lions and the impact that football has had since that momentous occasion (sadly, we have not won anything in Men’s Football internationally  since—although we have got close several times!).     Just before breaktime, Ruth Gilmour (Co-Chair of the PTA) along with Miss Allin (Staff PTA Liaison) went into each classroom to decide upon a winner of the Best Crown Award.

Poppy was chosen as Reception class winner, Jasper was chosen as the Key Stage 1 winner and Lilly B was chosen as the Key Stage 2 winner.  A huge well done to everyone who took part in this competition.

At lunchtime, the Kitchen team of Riina, Emma and Sian, laid on a incredible spread of British favourites—including sandwiches filled with brie and cranberry, bacon, lettuce and tomato, coronation chicken, egg and cress, ham, tuna and sweetcorn and cheese and cucumber. This was accompanied by platters of scotch eggs, sausage rolls, crisps, vegetable sticks and houmous, coleslaw and potato salad. This was followed up with some delicious meringue with cream and berries and washed down with the children’s favourite squash.

To add to the party atmosphere, Claire Burgess (the school’s Finance Officer) had been hard at work in the corridors, outside the school and the school hall and each space was beautifully bedecked with bunting (in red, white and blue), crepe streamers, balloons and Union Jack flags, with a selection of British tracks playing in the background—the children were literally gobsmacked as they came in to eat their lunch! What a memorable day!