The Bulletin Edition 13

How do lions behave? Well, sometimes they can be rather ferocious, at other times they appear frightfully laid back. What they have in common, however, is how they choose to live their lives and as we all know, that is in a pride. Given that our visual symbol is a friendly lion cub (a nod, of course, to the four rather majestic lions on and beside the Hampton crest), it seemed only right that the values we have chosen to embody at our school should be known collectively as our Pride Values.

We can be proud of our school and proud of our endeavours, but I believe most importantly of all, we should be proud of our behaviour: of how we treat others, how we conduct ourselves, and how we contribute to the wellbeing of our community. These Pride Values are not about roaring the loudest but represent we hope actions that help make a community flourish, naturally ours included.

I have already referred to the Pride Values we are seeking to reinforce across the Pre-Prep and Prep this term in my end of term letter to parents in December. Mrs Howard, in her role as Deputy Head (Pastoral), working alongside Mrs Murphy, other staff and, crucially, our pupils themselves, led the thoughtful selection of the values that mean the most to us. It is a pleasure now to see this project coming so clearly to life.

If we can help all our girls and boys here to carry these values with them beyond the school gates, then we will have done something truly worthwhile, in my view. After all, a Hampton lion should know when to show courage, when to show compassion and, every now and then, when it is perfectly acceptable simply to lie in the sun and look quietly pleased with itself, feeling (I hope perhaps even somewhat modestly) proud of their achievements!

iN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

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The boys have returned to the sports fields in 2026 full of energy and enthusiasm as we begin the rugby season. However, it wouldn’t be the rugby season if the weather didn’t play its part in the disrupting the best laid sports lesson plans! Rain earlier in the week forced Years 3 and 4 indoors, where they made excellent use of their time in the James Hall sharpening their dodgeball skills.

Year 3 pupils were delighted to welcome their families to this year’s first Reading Café. Guests sampled a curated three-course menu of literary delights, including The Polar Espresso, Lord of the Pies and Peter Pan-cakes, before relaxing over tea and biscuits. The café buzzed with enthusiasm as pupils proudly shared their love of reading, immersing their families in stories. It was a wonderful opportunity to see our young readers’ confidence shine!

It has been wonderful to see how confidently and enthusiastically the children have returned to their learning during this first full week back at school. They have settled into our routines and expectations with ease, and their curiosity and energy are already shining through in the classroom. We are very excited about all the opportunities this term will bring.

As part of our Winter topic, we enjoyed reading the story Jack Frost by Kazuno Kohara. It inspired us to think of words such as frosty, icy, foggy, and cold to describe the chilly season. We also discussed the snow and ice that we had last week.  We watched a fascinating video showing an igloo being built and were amazed by the skill and time it takes to construct one. The igloo even had windows and a skylight made from sheets of ice!

Brrrrrrr! It has been a chilly week here in Reception as we took an imaginary trip to Antarctica to meet some penguin friends! We explored an informative book and watched an engaging ‘Penguin PowerPoint’ presentation, learning fascinating facts about these amazing creatures. For example, did you know that daddy penguins carry the egg on their feet for two whole months without eating, until the egg hatches? We all agreed that this is an incredibly tough job!  

What a busy and exciting week Year 1 have had!  The children have truly impressed Miss Madden and Mrs Swain with their lovely manners and kindness throughout the week – well done, Year 1!  In mathematics, we have been exploring ‘teen’ numbers, learning how they are made up of tens and ones. The children have also been comparing numbers and groups of objects using a variety of practical resources. Keep up the fantastic effort, Year 1! 

Year 2 have kicked off the new year with some new topics for this half term and excitement is brewing. In humanities, we are learning about significant individuals. To find out about the variety of people who have made an impact on the world we will be learning to use our historical investigative skills. This afternoon, the children were historical detectives, examining a range of images to reveal this week’s significant individual: Alan Turing. Not only did they learn about his tremendous work during World War II but they also made their own codes and tried to crack their friend’s codes! The children are excited to find out who next week’s significant individual will be…!