End of 2026 First Term School Report
Report and photo from Rhyanna Swain
In the blink of an eye the first term of 2026 has come to an end. There has been lots happening in these first few months. At the start of the year, we welcomed Fadzie Mukuba as our Primary school teacher and Marina Burns as our Secondary English teacher. We have enjoyed working alongside them and the children love having them as their teacher. Miss Dilys turned 65 in February but agreed to carry on teaching Class 1 due to being short staffed. She is currently acting Head of Education while our headteacher Miss Maria is off island.
St Mary's School students with their Term 1 prizes
This term has been a great one for both staff and students, but I think it's safe to say we are all looking forward to the End of term holidays! On the 1st of May in an assembly prizes were given out to the students who worked hard throughout the term. The Peter Day cup was awarded to the student who had improved and accomplished all that was given to them, and the house point shield was awarded to the house who received the most house points.
Prizes for awards were given to the following students:
| Playgroup: | Seren Green |
| Class 1: | Noah Swain |
| Class 2: | Leah-Faye Green |
| Class 3: | Sophie Swain |
| Class 4: | April Swain |
| Class 5: | Lucas Swain |
| Housepoint Shield: | Inaccessible Captain - Connor Glass-Green |
| Peter Day Cup: | Leah-Faye Green |
The school was closed on the 1st of May for a two-week holiday with the teachers returning on the 18th of May for an inset day and the children returning the 19th. We wish the students a happy holiday and hope they enjoy their well-deserved break.
School presentations by Hondius cruise ship visitors
Report and photos from St Mary's School teacher Rhyanna Swain
St Mary's School pupils with their gifts
On Wednesday 15th of April there was lots of excitement at the school as we had the pleasure of welcoming three visitors from the cruise ship Hondius. Two of them were crew and one was a passenger whose local college is named after one of Tristan's first settlers, Pieter Groen.
The Hondius visitors with teacher Dilys Green
The first member of the crew was an engineer who showed a presentation about his working life including a video of what the engine room looked like.
Engineer from the Hondius, who talked about life in the engine room
The second crew member has made the journey to Tristan since 2013 is a Guatemalan national who was passionate about astronomy and talked about the probe, the Voyager, that was launched in 1977. This was very exciting especially for those who hadn't heard of it.
Hondius crew member talking about the Voyager space probes
The passenger who was from Katwijk in Holland, showed a video that some of the students at Pieter Groen College had put together to show the children here on Tristan. He was in the maritime industry before he retired and owns a museum in Katwijk. The principal from Pieter Groen College made a box of small gifts to be given to the students here at St Marys school. There was a collection of notebooks, pens, highlighters and lanyards inside the box. The children were so excited by these gifts.
Joep from Katwijk, Holland, who talked about Pieter Groen College and the Katwijk link with Tristan
They enjoyed the presentations very much and the asking of questions showed how interested they were. They were overjoyed to receive the gifts from the visitors and eating the syrup waffles was the main event of the day! The students and staff at St Marys would like to say a big Thank You to the three wonderful visitors for taking the time to come to the school and share their presentations with us. We hope to have the pleasure of seeing them back here again one day.
Easter Egg Hunt and generous gifts from visitors
Report and photos from teacher Rhyanna Swain
The children with their presents from Mandy and Noel during a St Mary's School assembly on 31st March.
On Sunday 29th March 2026 we had a visit from the cruise ship the Silver Wind. Approximately 200 passengers were onboard and among them were Mandy and Noel Volpe. They kindly brought sweets, chocolates, stickers and even a postcard all the way from New York, for all the children at St Mary's School.
Mandy and Noel had been in previous contact with the Chief Islander, Ian Lavarello and when asked if there was anything he required or would like them to bring him personally, Ian replied that they could bring something for the school children instead. We appreciated it very much and the children were all very excited to receive their gifts. The students at St Mary's would like to say a big Thank You to Mandy and Noel for their kindness and for taking the time to bring them the gifts.
Children with their Easter eggs and bunnies on 2nd April.
On Thursday 2nd April, Miss Marina kindly did an Easter Egg hunt for all the children in the school including the little ones from creche. The day before Miss Marina was busy wrapping little potatoes in foil so they would be disguised as Easter eggs. This way each child would have the opportunity of finding them and would all receive Easter eggs. So, at 11 o'clock the hunt started. The little ones from creche and playgroup had help from the older classes, and off they all went to find their Easter eggs. The potatoes were found and bought back and at the end the children where all given an Easter egg and bunny. Once the hunt was over all the children were given an ice cream at the end to cool them down after such a long hunt! The children thoroughly enjoyed their morning and the smiles on their faces said it all. We thank Miss Marina for doing this and we look forward to having more fun with her. Happy Easter from all at St Mary's.
St Mary's School End of Term Report, December 2025 |
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| A party and an awards ceremony were held at the school before it closed for the Christmas break. 3-Jan-2026 |
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Christmas on Tristan 2025 |
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| Everything closes on Tristan for the three week Christmas and New Year break, but there is plenty happening. 27-Dec-2025 |
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Christmas Festivities 2024 |
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| News of some of the special activities that take place on Tristan over the Christmas period 2024. 28-Dec-2024 |
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- End of Term Report from St Mary's School (4-Sep-2024) >>
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- School End of Term Prize Giving, May 2023 (25-May-2023) >>