prep news spring 2016

1Prep News Spring 2016

Science Centre Experimenting with our fantastic new facilities

Musical Skills Pupils impress with concerts, polyphones, and beatboxing

Cheltenham Literature Festival Workshops and experiences for all ages

House Art An autumnal display of colour

Spring 2016PREP NEWS

2 Prep News Spring 2016

Science Centre At the start of Term, the new Science Centre was the cause of much anticipation for both pupils and teachers. The Bunsen burners were out on day one and Mr Webber was concocting lots of exciting experiments in his chemistry room. The new IT facilities are first class and have enabled the teachers to bring to life lots of exciting science through video clips and power points and, of course, the children and staff have thoroughly enjoyed writing all over the interactive walls.

The new classrooms have bought Science to life for the pupils of The Prep. We now have a dedicated space that is university standard, full of brand new exciting practical equipment and with lots of space to display the pupils’ work. This Term, children from Years 5-8 have enjoyed using the microscopes, bunsen burners, electrical circuits, van der graph generators and much more. All of our Science lessons can now be practical, which has had a positive impact on both teaching and learning. Science lessons are engaging, interactive and hands on, allowing pupils to explore and investigate new topics. The new department has enabled the teachers to demonstrate complex and dramatic chemical reactions and allowed the children the freedom to design their own experiments.

Here’s what the pupils think:

"We love the new Science block because we get to do lots of interesting things like dissecting the heart, that was cool";

"I really like it as we have the chance to try stuff out like using the bunsen burners and we can see chemical reactions happening!"

"We can try experimenting; I really enjoyed using acids and alkali’s and watching the reactions"

The Headmaster’s Reflections

As we look back on a job well done, I am always struck by how the whole school community maintains its energy, its enthusiasm and sense of balance. Hard work in the classroom is always complemented by a full range of activities and children, staff and parents are mutually supportive.

As we enjoyed the Christmas festivities (a little earlier than normal), it also became apparent to me how dependent we are on all those who are an integral part of the success of the Prep but who we rarely see. Catering, cleaning, administrative, grounds and gardens staff are so important that I wish to emphasise our gratitude to them and also record my observations of how polite the children are towards them. Failure to afford these people the respect they are due and not to consider them as part of the team would be a mistake. I am delighted to preface our record of the Autumn Term 2015 with the view that I am privileged to lead a true team!

Mr Jonathan Whybrow

Jon Whybrow, Headmaster

Welcome to our new arrivals! This term we welcomed six new members of the school community who have most certainly been the best in their field – well, pen actually. Our farm is now alive to the sound of trotters: 24 to be exact. All the children were delighted to meet the pigs, with boys and girls from Kingfishers helping Mr Whybrow to feed them. They certainly weren’t impressed by the pigs’ manners!

Additions to the Prep Farm

"Urghhh you should never stand

in your food, that’s disgusting!"


Pupils’ Informal ConcertsWe enjoyed listening to pupils performing on a range of instruments including the piano, guitar, violin, flute, oboe and bassoon at the Pupils’ Informal Concerts this Term. It was wonderful to see such a range of pupils throughout the school from Year 3 through to Year 8, for many of whom a concert this term would have been their first time performing in front of an audience. Well done to you all!

Musicians Visit Thirlestaine Park Care Home Several of the music award holders (and potential music award holders) from Years 5-8 took part in The Prep’s music outreach programme. The school is keen to take music out into the local community and, as part of that enterprise, the pupils were taken to a local care home to perform a short recital to the residents. Many are unable to leave the home and are clearly delighted to have some beautiful music brought into the residence, particularly by such talented and young children.

The manager of the care home commented on the power that the music had over the residents: he informed the children that one of the residents had been particularly upset during the morning, and that the recital had changed her mood entirely and she ended the afternoon with a huge

smile on her face. We are due to visit each Half Term as part of this outreach programme, in addition to visiting local primary schools, so the department is as busy as ever. Well done and thanks to all the pupils who took part.

Shakespeare Schools FestivalThe Shakespeare Schools Festival casts of Year 6 and Year 8 Prep pupils entertained an audience of three hundred people at Cheltenham’s Everyman Theatre, in November, with their abridged productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Comedy of Errors. It has been, as

always, a fabulous experience for all of the pupils: to have rehearsed and produced a play, participated in cast workshops with National Theatre actors and performed in a professional theatre with all their staff, equipment and expertise, an experience our pupils will never forget.

The SSF area coordinator commended our Year 6 cast on their enthusiasm and comedy, and seemed particularly impressed with the characterisation, from such a young cast. She

said “there was a youthful vibrancy to the whole production and you were clearly having fun.” The Year 8s performed with similar “energy and gusto,” the coordinator said. “You made all the relationships very clear whilst clarifying what is an extremely difficult story… I loved the mix of girls playing boys and boys playing girls as that added to the comedy, as well as the Hollywood-style music that enhanced the story brilliantly.” Congratulations to all the pupils involved as they worked extremely hard and should be proud of their achievements!


KINGFISHERSCo-operationAt the very beginning of Term, Year 1 and 2 boys and girls got to know each other better whilst learning about the value of co-operation.

They listened to the story of how a King challenged his greedy brother and sister to eat using only a very long spoon. Their challenge was to eat a jelly tot using a spoon that was 1 metre long.

Although stumped at first, with many spilling onto the floor, with encouragement and several ideas tried and rejected, they came to the conclusion of feeding each other. Well done boys and girls for recognising that we can achieve so much more if we work together!

ChessIn November, Kingfishers joined Lower School chess-masters to learn all about the game and take part in the first tournament of the year. The Kingfishers children enjoyed some coaching on a 1:1 basis from a member of the more experienced Lower School and consolidated their knowledge of how the pieces move and game strategy.

Finally, the competitions were held; one for Kingfishers and one for Lower School players. The children were focused and it was impressive to see their concentration, as if practising for a real chess congress. After several rounds, the finalists of both sections emerged. These were: Harry Richardson and Felix Warr for Lower School and Monty Campbell Black and Michael Warr for Kingfishers. After an epic battle on both boards, the champions arose victorious! Well done to Felix and Michael for winning their respective tournaments, and to all those who took part in our Autumn Chess Challenge.

Bonfire nightIn preparation for The Prep’s fireworks, children in the Cottage decided that they wanted to be well prepared for Bonfire Night and were all at the ready with their fire engines. They had a focus on fire safety throughout the week and their artwork included some wonderful firework paintings.

Reception were getting in the spirit too, as classrooms exploded with glitter and flickers of paint to make Bonfire Night paintings! Our very own ex-firefighter, Mrs Simpson, taught us how to keep safe and Rory kindly modelled the uniform for us.


Year 2 Rugby and NetballThe last weekend in November saw the Year 2’s first rugby and netball fixtures against Dean Close – and what an event they were!

Playing in a round robin festival format of four 4-a-side games, the rugby players got fully stuck in and put their training into action. They demonstrated a good understanding of the game and how it was played, with lots of tries scored as players ran with purpose and skill. In defence, the boys made it hard for the opposition to score by “tagging” the opposition. The players all took their turn to rest without a fuss, returning to the fray with renewed vigour and maintaining their focus in front of a large crowd of parents and grandparents who supported good play from both

teams. Many of the boys took a large step forward in their levels of performance and confidence on the morning and all left the field via the traditional tunnel having enjoyed the experience and looking forward to match teas.

The girls got stuck in too as a throng of parents and grandparents flocked into the sporst centre to show their support. Both schools brought three teams who all played each other, and each match was hard fought and played at a high level for

such young players. The skill levels on show were of an exceptionally high standard: the accuracy of passing and catching was such that there were some points scored when the ball never touched the ground, and both sides demonstrated some fantastic interceptions. Every game was played in such a great spirit, and the girls were on such a high when they came off the court, that they wanted to do it all over again!

MathsIn Maths class we were all ‘secret agents’ who cracked secret codes! The agents found all the different ways to make 6, 7, 8 and 9 using their number bonds. They used the magnifying glasses to check their answers.

Reception enjoyed their Maths lessons this term where they have been carrying out addition exercises and identifying numbers. They have particularly loved playing ‘Splat 100’ on Primary Games, trying to see how quickly they can identify numbers to 100 and listening out for the entertaining splat sounds!

OutdoorsEveryone enjoyed an ‘eggstremely’ good start to Autumn at Forest School, with children using natural materials to make walls for Humpy Dumpty to sit on. No eggs were harmed in the making of this activity, although the Cottage did have a cracking time!

Later in the term, Year 1 children were very excited to learn about Andy Goldsworthy and to be given the opportunity to become sculptors themselves. They were challenged to find and use natural materials from around the school to create their own sculptures or land art. It was amazing to see some of the magnificent works of art that they created!


Kingfishers Christmas Productions

In the first week of December Kingfishers welcomed Christmas to the Prep with performances of two very different Nativities. During November, all the children rehearsed and practised very hard: learning lines, putting costumes together and practising songs until they were singing them all day long! Year 1 and Year 2 began the proceedings performing Christmas with the Aliens on Tuesday. Taking quite a novel approach to the Christmas story, six aliens were taught the true meaning of Christmas and found themselves being part of the stable scene in Bethlehem. All the children, from the villagers to the angels, from the Kings to the camels, worked tremendously hard and their efforts made the production a resounding success. Reception and Cottage children presented a more traditional Nativity on Wednesday afternoon, impressing everyone with their confidence and certainly sharing the Christmas message in a very special way. All the Kingfishers staff were immensely proud of the children this Christmas; they deserve to feel very proud of their superb performances. Congratulations to everyone!


Lower School Christmas Production

The Christmas performances of the The Little Nutcracker were simply wonderful to watch. The teamwork between Lower School staff and pupils was so evident and everyone worked incredibly hard to ensure it was a success. It is quite an achievement to think 88 children were involved and all had a role to play, whether it was dancing, speaking or backstage. Knowing that lessons continued as usual during the run-up, and Enrichment days still occurred, makes it even more impressive. We are constantly reminded that if you aim high, the children never let you down.


LOWER SCHOOLDundry Nurseries As part of our Science project on growing plants and in conjunction with PSHE, the Lower School trip to Dundry Nurseries in September had it all. Dundry Nurseries has an incredible maze of workrooms, hidden gardens, a yurt and a recycling plant: the children were able to experience it all. They looked in detail at seeds and discussed how they were dispersed; as well as at wildlife, recycling, waste and caring for the world around us.

Back at school, the following week, Year 3 learned how to care for growing plants and even learned about photosynthesis. The pupils decided to hold a plant sale, and grow as many plants as they could: potting pansies, growing salad leaves and even making their own environmentally friendly pots from old newspaper.

When parents arrived at the school a week later, the children had set up the stalls on which they sold both the pansies they had planted and (as no garden centre is complete with without cake!) some cakes they had decorated. A grand total of £130.38 was raised for Dundry Nurseries.

Dutch visitors to Lower SchoolIn early November, Lower School welcomed nine Dutch teachers to their classrooms, to hear about famous Dutch people, the geography and culture of the Netherlands.

These Dutch students have been teaching us lots of interesting new things: In Year 4 we learned about famous Dutch people: Dick Bruna, a famous Dutch author, who has written the Miffy books since 1955, Johan Cruyff, a famous soccer player, and Willem van Oranje (William of Orange), a founding father. The visitors taught us some fun games to play outside, then Year 3 learnt all about Dutch culture, songs and their language.

Lower School Science DayA fantastic, experiment-filled day was had by all in Years 3 and 4, when they took part in Science Day.

They were all involved in a variety of different activities, such as making a Mars Lander to safely land an egg on Mars without cracking the shell, and they even got to make their very own alien goo!

As well as taking part in these wonderful activities, they had to answer and investigate questions such as ‘does your sense of smell affect your taste buds?’ and ‘are some liquids more dense than others?’


Egyptian and India DaysThe children enjoyed the opportunity to explore the exotic: Year 4 were in India, whilst Year 3 travelled back in time to Ancient Egypt, where they learnt about Egyptian maths, mummification and writing. The children used their knowledge of hieroglyphs to write their names on papyrus and these were then turned into bookmarks. They also made death masks and mummified some very ill-looking peg dolls, using real linen to wrap them up.

India Day brought the Indian culture alive for Year 4 pupils who spent the morning creating colourful rangoli patterns, make coconut barfi and took photos in traditional costumes. Even the PE curriculum changed to teach the children an established Indian game called Kabaddi. The afternoon continued with henna handprints, curry cooking and dancing!

Young Shakespeare CompanyLower School were treated to a fabulous interactive workshop about Romeo and Juliet. The Young Shakespeare Company is a long-standing visitor to The Prep and their lively, vibrant shows are always eagerly anticipated.

Pupils were taken through the full range of emotions from slapstick-style physical comedy to heart-wrenching tragedy. With a cast of just five, the actors used volunteer pupils to play some minor roles, with moments when the whole group was active and involved in the story.


MIDDLE SCHOOLPolyphones WorkshopAt the beginning of the Term, Year 6 pupils were treated to a unique polyphones workshop. These unusual musical instruments are, to all intents and purposes, varying lengths of coloured drainpipe, tuned to a range of notes, which you hit with a rubber bat that looks like a table tennis paddle!

Polyphones are relatively easy to learn, exciting to play and impressive to perform with. This all-inclusive workshop engaged the pupils in music, whether they learn an instrument or not. It encouraged valuable life skills such as working together, developing confidence and expressing yourself through music. In addition, the workshop covered key elements of musical theory: the topics discussed and put into action included melody, harmony, ensemble playing, rhythm and dynamics.

11+ Experience Day"On 13 November 2015, we had external students from all over the country come to join the rest of Year 6 at Cheltenham Prep for our 11+ Experience day. In the morning we did a wide range of activities run by teachers, including samba music, periscope making, language skills and code cracking, as well as thinking skills. After lunch, we went over to College and had a treasure hunt! We also had to perform a play using all the Boarding House symbols. We really enjoyed the day and it was great to meet some of the pupils who will be coming here next year."

Jamie Reid – 6N

"It was difficult at the beginning, but I persevered and

eventually I got the timing right."

"I liked learning how to play the polyphones; the sound is unique and very different to the guitar which I normally play."


Children’s Author Tom Palmer VisitsMiddle School pupils enjoyed a talk by author Tom Palmer. Tom has mainly written books about football and rugby; however, other themes in his books include WWI, ghosts and international espionage.

Tom told us that he was not keen on reading or school as a child, but he did love sport. His mum encouraged him to read about football in magazines, newspapers and books. Gradually he developed a love for reading.

Pupils were able to ask Tom questions about his books and his career, before he then treated them to a sports quiz and each pupil who answered correctly attempted to kick a ball over the rugby posts in the hall.

Brolly Good Artwork!For the first half of this term, Year 5 pupils have taken time to observe and draw umbrellas. They have focused their work on an installation of lots of umbrellas in the Art Room, and used collage, pastel and paint on their final pieces to create mixed media pictures. The finished pictures have been put on display around school and here are some of the artists proudly showing off their work.

Middle School House HockeyJust before October Half Term, Middle School girls competed in hockey for their Houses. They approached this event very competitively and the captains did a fantastic job of organising their teams and ensuring everyone was included. The standard of hockey was excellent, and as always, our girls impressed with their attitude. The winning team, Rome, are pictured here.


UPPER SCHOOLIndependent Learning Projects - What’s Under Our Feet?Pupils who moved into Year 7 this September had been tasked to produce an Independent Learning Project over the summer. The theme ‘Under our feet’ prompted an array of very impressive individual and creative projects.

There were interesting investigations, archaeological and mining projects, an ant farm and a wormery, some unique shoe designs, some detailed display boards and books of different types. Some pupils constructed large 3D models including a mysterious metallic creature, a beautiful wire sculpture and a carefully constructed dinosaur. Our thanks go to all the pupils for their hard work and creative ingenuity in interpreting this year’s theme.

Reading Buddies"A Reading Buddy is when a Year 8 volunteers to listen to a Year 5 pupil read. I meet with my buddy and listen to them read during morning registration on Mondays and Fridays. Having a reading buddy in Year 5 is a great opportunity to help someone with their confidence in reading aloud, as well as guiding them with their pace and when to pause. I chose to take on this role as I love reading and it gives me a chance to help someone else develop a love of reading too, and because I like working with younger children. Overall, I am definitely getting a lot out of Reading Buddies."Hermione Lloyd-Horton, 8L


Rap and Beatboxing WorkshopsUpper School enjoyed a fun day of music workshops to complement the Pop and Rap music lessons they will take with Mr Perona-Wright in the Summer Term. Workshops were organised for the whole year group in Rap music (lyric writing, technique and performance) and in Beat-Boxing (the art of vocal percussion).

The children were lucky to spend time with Ad-Apt (an MC/Rapper currently touring the world as support artist for the DJ ‘Wilkinson’) and Marv-ill ‘Super-lungs’ (a Championship Beat-Boxer). A highlight of the day was hearing the two artists

perform a free-style rap/beat-box item together. Much fun was had by all, in addition to learning about and performing two styles of music that were new to many of the children.

PrefectsOur team of Year 8 prefects was appointed in September to perform duties around school, as well as getting to know all the boys and girls in the Prep. Their first task was to make sure they were working with the younger girls and boys and the pupils in their Houses.

Following additional appointments this term, we now have a Prefect team of 13 (which will increase during the year). Although they have been fantastic throughout the term, they worked on 11+ Experience particularly well, demonstrating great team spirit and always leading by example.

HeadsHead Girl Anabelle WellsHead Boy Charles HellensHead of Boarding (girls) Fionnuala Dowling-MembradoHead of Boarding (boys) Rory Southall

PrefectsPiers Brown, Anna Forde, Charlie Anton-Smith, Jessica Hale, Francesca Pinchard, Rebecca Cook, Isabella Reid, Holly Ellis and Louis Dessalles

Positions of ResponsibilityHead of Hockey Freya CoullHead of Rugby Charlie Anton-SmithHead of Netball Anabelle WellsHead of Tennis Fionnuala Dowling-MembradoHeads of Swimming William Bradley and Caitlin BristerHead of Cricket Monty GraveneyHead of Orchestra Grace WhiteHead of Choir Isabella Reid

Poet LaureateBefore Half Term, the English department launched a competition to award Cheltenham College Prep School’s first Poet Laureate! Pupils in Years 7 and 8 were tasked to write a poem in any form about the theme ‘journeys’. Competition was fierce and entries ranged from personal experiences of travelling abroad, transport, spiritual journeys, the voyage of words, expeditions through Wonderland and, topically, migration.

After much deliberation (and difficulty) the English department took great pleasure in announcing our two Poet Laureates! Bella Isaachsen (who leaves us for pastures new at the end of this term), and Holly Ellis. Congratulations to both of these budding poets! The following week, Mr Whybrow congratulated the girls and gave them their first task: to write a poem linked to the recent tragedy in Paris. Isabella took up the mantle without hesitation, and crafted a moving tribute to the terrible event.

Year 9 ScholarsDuring some tough weeks of exams and revision, we welcomed last year’s Scholars back to Upper School to talk to us about what it’s like when you get to College after a scholarship, what to revise in particular, and which exam is the trickiest. It was great for our current Year 8 Scholars to know that if they needed to talk to someone who had already done the exam, or had any specific questions, they could get in touch with any of these Year 9 Scholars.


Choir Tour to RomeDuring the Half Term holiday a selection of the Prep’s choir members represented the school in a choral tour of Rome. Between all the pizza and pasta, the group was able to absorb the culture and heritage of this beautiful, historic city, as well as perform in some of the destination’s most famous locations. During their stay in the city, pupils were lucky enough to enjoy the historic Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel, as well as incredible sights including Piazza del Popolo, Piazza Navona, St Peter’s Basilica and the Colosseum – a once in a lifetime trip for many!

Their concert venues included Sant’ Andrea della Valle and the awe-inspiring Pantheon. Both soloists, Izzy Reid and Charles Hellens, sang with confidence and the choir sang with the crest of Cheltenham College Prep emblazoned on their poloshirts to the thousands of tourists present at the Pantheon! Each choir member was an outstanding representative of our school and performed wonderfully.

House Art CompetitionWhen setting the House Art theme, it is always tricky to choose something that children aged 7 through to 13 will find relevant, interesting and accessible enough that they feel able to take part with confidence. However this year’s theme ‘Autumn Leaves’ prompted a wealth of creative ideas, original use of materials and genuine skill, as exhibited by so many of our pupils during the Half Term break. Upon the pupils’ return to school, we were treated to everything from autumnal orbs to dress designs and from rockets to hot air balloons. Each idea came with a story of how it was born and made: holiday stories, involvement of grannies and grandads, aunties, uncles and “Mum’s best friend”.

There were 121 entries, a huge improvement on the 36 we had in 2014. The standard was also very high. Autumn had certainly arrived! Once counted and displayed the difficult task of grading and marking the work began. There were three criteria: creative ideas, commitment to the task and skills shown. Each carried 5 points, maximum 15 points total. As a House Competition, the House with the most entries won... well done Persia! Many thanks to all who took part, well done, everyone surpassed themselves.

Academic OlympiadOn Saturday 28 November, The Prep held it’s first Academic Olympiad, giving all pupils a chance to show their strengths in applying their subject knowledge to new challenges. Each pupil was selected within their House as a ‘Genius’ or ‘Mastermind’ in their section and went off in their team to put their grey matter to work. The Geniuses attempted tasks in Maths, Science and Design while the Masterminds took on challenges in English, the Humanities and Languages.

The importance of teamwork was stressed before the event began and pupils soon realised that their ears were going to be twice as important as their mouths when finding the right answer or conducting their experiment in the best way. It was certainly evident to staff that the children’s ability to work together and to hold discussions improved as the morning went on. The morning was a great success, thanks to the enthusiasm of the staff and the energy of the children. Pupils displayed tenacity, independence, co-operation and intelligence throughout the morning and I hope that many pupils feel they were able to demonstrate their strengths in different ways during this new event.


Boys’ RugbyThe Cheltenham Prep Boys’ Sports Department has again been competing above its weight, taking on much larger schools and continuing the well established reputation for producing outstanding performances.

This latest rugby season has seen a tough year for the 1st XV, however up against more physically dominant sides the boys have shown plenty of

heart and should be very proud of the retention of the College’s Cup. All other teams results have also been outstanding. The U11A and U11B have

only lost one match all season, the U9A team have been unbeaten and the U9B team have beaten a number of other schools’ A teams.

Girls’ HockeyThis Autumn Term we have been back to hockey, and our girls have had plenty to keep them occupied. We again hosted our U9 and U10 invitational tournament that saw 30 teams embark on the Cheltenham astro pitches.

Our 1st VII showed great progress throughout the season, which culminated in a second place finish at

the Severnside tournament after holding their nerve to put Dean Close out of the semi-finals on penalty shuttles. Both our U11A and 1st VII progressed to the

quarter finals of their respective IAPS tournaments. Our Y8’s had a very enjoyable end to the season taking on a staff team in a full pitch 11-a-side match.


Dates of Spring Term 2015Half term: Friday 12 February – Sunday 21 February

End of term: Friday 18 March

Cheltenham College Preparatory School, Thirlestaine Road, Cheltenham, GL53 7AB

@cheltprep

www.facebook.com/cheltenhamprep

Note from the EditorI would like to thank all members of the Common Room and The Prep pupils who contributed to this publication, in particular, Andy Banks for much of the photography.

Lesley Southgate, Editor

T: 01242 522697 E: [email protected] www.cheltenhamcollege.org/prep-home

KEEP UP-TO-DATE, VISIT COLLEGE TWITTER AND FACEBOOK PAGES

Cheltenham Literature FestivalWe are so lucky to have such a prestigious literary event on our doorsteps and all the pupils have benefited from their visit to it. Year 1 and Year 2 were fully engrossed watching Nick Sharratt and Year 4 were left in stitches by author Steve Cole. In between fits of giggles, pupils listened to his interactive and engaging session, which gave lots of ideas about how to write creative stories. Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell had Year 5 laughing hysterically as they led us into their

world of fantasy and science fiction. The highlight for us all was the question and answer session where Stewart verbally answered whatever was thrown at him and Riddell illustrated it.

Grim ghouls, scuttling spiders and beastly beasts were all strongly encouraged at the Year 6 Writers’ Workshop! Author Vivian French put five of our lucky pupils through their paces and challenged them to write a story from scratch, with a gothic or fantasy theme. Good did not always triumph over evil and eerie happenings haunted every line

and paragraph! Some more of our Year 6 pupils immersed themselves in a whole day of poetry with poet Joseph Coelho, throwing themselves into a dynamic session that included drama, learning poetic devices and creating fantastic adventure poems of their own.

Year 8 were entertained by the theatrical Tanya Landman, talking about her strong female characters, the settings of her books and her passion for historical fiction, whilst David Almond carefully explained the process a writer goes through, from rough jottings and pictures, to print.

News from the Boarding HouseAlongside their regular evening activities, the Boarders have enjoyed a wide selection of Sunday trips this Term. From rock-climbing and visits to the Everyman Theatre, to ice-skating, bowling championships and nights at the movies, the boys and girls have done it all!

The Autumn Term began with exciting day of challenges in the pool and out on the field in our Boarders’ Superstars event. The scores were tight throughout and everyone was keen to win; but despite this, it was lovely to see everyone helping one another, cheering and working as a team.

The following weeks saw visits to Cirencester for an excellent day out at a high ropes course, and to Drayton Manor. Although many were really scared, everyone overcame their fears and had a fantastic time on the ropes and the crazy rollcoasters! The term ended with the atmospheric Boarders’ Christmas Feast, a magical event which took place in Narnia, no less! Entering through a wardrobe

of coats, the boys and girls discovered a land of snow and forest – and even met the great Aslan, the Lion!

prep news spring 2016

Documents