The Bulletin Edition 24

There are weeks that simply hum with a particular energy, and this has been one of them! We enjoyed welcoming some visitors to school this week, who I know found us going about our business in exactly the way we always do. The boys and girls here have been engaged, curious and kind and the staff thoughtful, purposeful and committed. That, of course, is rather the point. As a school confident in what it does with, naturally, nothing to hide and everything to share we were genuinely glad of the opportunity to open our doors this week and demonstrate what makes Hampton Pre-Prep & Prep the terrific place I know it to be. The outcome of any such visit takes its own time to be formally confirmed and published but the experience of welcoming that scrutiny was, in itself, a thoroughly affirming one.

What the week also did, as such occasions invariably do, was prompt a great deal of deep and honest reflection for me personally as the Head here. There is real intellectual value in pausing to ask: what are we doing, and why does it work?Good schools do not simply carry on, they look carefully at their own practice, celebrate what is strong, and attend with equal rigour to what might yet be stronger. This habit of reflection is, I would argue, one of the most important intellectual behaviours we can model for our pupils because in my view, it sits at the very heart of effective learning.

And now, with all of that satisfying earnestness duly noted, it looks to me as I write that the Bank Holiday weekend ought to be crowned with a great deal of lustrous sunshine – if it is, hoorah! I shall definitely be stepping away from the serious business of school improvement with considerable enthusiasm, and I hope warmly that all our families will do the same. It is, after all, rather easier to reflect on a week well spent when one is doing so from a garden chair, even if I am sitting in the rain!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

Here’s a round-up of our Instagram posts from this week – take a look below!

Make sure to follow us on Instagram for regular updates and snapshots of daily school life.

What a difference three weeks makes. Long, sunny afternoons and blue skies were a welcome sight as we returned from the Easter break, and perfect conditions for the start of the cricket term. The U10s and U11s were both in action against Claremont Fan Court School, with plenty to enjoy across the fixtures. The U10s, playing away, produced a strong set of results. In the As, Luca bowled consistently and showed real athleticism in the field. Ethan H impressed behind the stumps as wicketkeeper for the Bs, while Alex Simmins was effective with the bat for the Cs. The Ds also contributed well, with Jason scoring some valuable runs. It was a pleasing afternoon that reflected the boys’ early-season focus and enthusiasm.

Bicycle Proficiency has been taking place this week for our Year 6 pupils. Over the course of a week of training, the boys have been developing their confidence cycling safely on local roads beyond the school gates. Through a mixture of practical riding and expert guidance, they have learnt how to indicate clearly using hand signals, practise safe U-turns and navigate junctions with increasing independence. The course has helped the boys to build important road safety awareness while encouraging responsibility, confidence and good decision-making on their bikes.

Year 3 pupils enjoyed a fantastic week at Sayers Croft Outdoor Learning Centre in Surrey, embracing every opportunity for adventure, teamwork and outdoor learning.

We have enjoyed some much-needed sunshine this week, and it has been wonderful to see the positive effect that clear blue skies can have on everyone’s spirits. The beautiful weather has certainly lifted moods across the school, creating a cheerful and energising atmosphere for pupils and staff alike.  Our new assembly theme, The People on Our Planet, is now well and truly underway. So far, we have explored just how extraordinary Planet Earth is. The children learnt that the Earth is over four billion years old, yet humans have existed for only a very short time in comparison – if the planet’s history were compressed into a single day, humans would only have arrived by tea time! 

Kindergarten have enjoyed reading a range of Jack and the Beanstalk stories and noticing the similarities and differences between each version. We were especially interested in how differently the characters are illustrated from book to book, even though the same characters appear in every retelling. One version even surprised us by revealing that the giant had originally stolen the gold, hen and harp from Jack’s father. 

This week in Reception, our topic has been “Mindfulness and Sky”, with a special focus on the water cycle. The children have been learning all about how water travels through evaporation, condensation and precipitation, and they showed a fantastic understanding of each stage.  We enjoyed listening to the story The Little Raindrop by Joanna Grey, which inspired the children’s own creative writing. They wrote imaginative stories about their own little raindrop’s journey through the water cycle. It was wonderful to hear how confidently the children recalled each part of the cycle and used impressive scientific vocabulary such as “evaporate” and “condensation”.

What a great learning week we have had in year 1! The children have been so engaged and excited to learn, and the lovely sunshine has certainly helped create a positive atmosphere in the classroom.  In English, we have continued our work on alliteration, using this new skill to create fun and imaginative sentences about superheroes and villains. The children have shown a fantastic amount of creativity and have written some wonderful alliterative sentences using ambitious vocabulary. 

In mathematics this week, we have continued our fraction learning by turning our attention to recognising and finding a quarter and a third of a number. We have had great fun exploring a range of fractions using playdough, Lego, and a variety of shapes and objects! The children are also beginning to think about the similarities and differences between finding ½, ⅓ and ¼ of a number. It is now very clear why knowing our multiplication facts is so important, so please do keep brushing up on the 3 and 4 times tables at home. The children were also introduced to the termsnumerator and denominator for the first time.