From Mrs Hall

The boys listened attentively as we explored what it means to be honest, to do the right thing even when no one is watching, and how integrity shapes the person we want to be. Through a story and thought-provoking examples, the boys were encouraged to reflect on the importance of standing by their values and being truthful in all they do.

We are continuing with our Plants of the Week too; the plants are displayed in the Pre-Prep hall, and this week we learnt all about Wood Avens and Ground Ivy. Also, after our staff INSET training, the Pre-Prep staff have all been learning new skills, one being using Makaton and signing. Each class is learning new signs, and we are also learning a new sign each week in our Monday assembly. This week our whole department sign is ‘thank you’. Please do ask the boys to teach you too.

Each class has enthusiastically set their Star Jar Challenges too. These challenges are wonderful opportunities for the boys to work collaboratively towards goals that reflect our school values, particularly kindness, teamwork, and integrity. It has been inspiring to see their excitement as they brainstorm ideas and commit to working together to earn their stars. We are incredibly proud of how the boys are embracing these lessons and putting them into practice. It is wonderful to see their confidence grow as they develop their understanding of integrity and how it can positively impact their friendships and school life.

As always, thank you for your support in reinforcing these values at home. We look forward to seeing the boys continue to shine and grow in character throughout the term.

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Save the Dates !

PPA Burns’ Night: 7th February doors open 6.45 for 7-10pm
Much excitement as we plan the return of Burns night - a Scottish evening, traditionally to celebrate the life and poetry of Robert Burns, but really just a good excuse to get together with friends (and a good collection of whiskies!) for a great meal before a bit of a crash course (hopefully not literally!) in some Scottish reels dancing with a live band! Do book quickly as numbers will be limited due to dancing space in the Pilgrims' Hall. £25 per head 

PPA Quiz Night: 7th March 7pm
A much anticipated date in the Pilgrims social calendar….questions from our quizmaster set to tax even the sharpest of minds, with no subject off limits….with a huge amount of laughter and dinner thrown in! 
Make up a table of 8-10 with friends, or book individually, and we’ll make up your table for you! £17.50 per head.

Pilgrims' Parleys: Saturday 8 February and Saturday 8 March: Join us for some discussions and healthy debates!

Book on My School Portal (Bookings & Forms page).

Here is the link to the school calendar on My School Portal, from where you can export it to Outlook. Please refer to Mr Duncan's SchoolPost of Monday 6 January at 1800 for further information on how to best use it.

Music Groups for Toddlers and Babies
Don't forget our toddler music group, Musical Shells and our Littele Shells play sessions for pre-schoolers. We encourage you to spread the word to friends and family - all our welcome!

Friday 24 January	09:30-11:00	Pre-Prep Open Morning (Admissions)
Wednesday 29 January	15:00-15:30	Christ Church visits Pre-Prep
from Thursday 30 January	09:30-10:30	Musical Shells - 6 week course for pre-schoolers  (Admissions)
Friday 31 January Friday 28 February	15:00-15:30	Pre-Pre Cathedral Assemblies, parents welcome.

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Notices

Menus are available here on My School Portal. 
^{Reminder: no food is to be brought into the school and/or given to boys at any time, especially at sign-out.}

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Pilgrims' Shell Awards this week:

Year 2: to Guy for his impeccable manners and approach to learning, resulting in an outstanding music lesson.
Year 1: to Christopher for his engagement in all learning this week. What a strong start back after the Christmas holiday!
Reception: to Maxi for a super start back at school and for his good concentration in class, particularly when making two split pin Arctic animals.

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Reception

This week seems to have flown by in Reception Class. The boys have been busy continuing to help Miss Whitmore build our igloo creation. It is now generating its height well and the boys can see the layers emerging.  Thank you so much for your milk bottle contributions!  We do still need more but hope that by the end of next week the igloo will be complete.  

A challenge for you.... how many milk bottles do you think it will take to complete our igloo altogether?  

In Art, the boys have continued to explore the Artist, Kandinsky.  We recapped what we had already learnt about Kandinsky and remembered that he paints using colours, shapes and patterns in a manner known as Abstract Art.  We looked at his work, especially exploring his 'Tree of Life' painting.  We then painted our own 'Trees of life', inspired by Kandinsky's concentric circles.  The boys enjoyed colour mixing and painting their own concentric circles to represent the leaves on a tree.  

This work tied in well with our shape work in Maths. The boys have been looking out for shapes in our environment, both inside and out.  When you are out and about, try to spot shapes too. The boys are learning that our world is full of shapes everywhere!

Have a lovely weekend.

Mrs Sarah Huntley
Reception Teacher

Year 1

The boys have been working hard during their first full week back in the classroom. They have really enjoyed the different activities they have found related to their new topic. Various “challenges” have been placed around the classroom for the boys to complete during the week. Once they have completed one of these “challenges”, they take a picture on the iPad, and they tick their name off the Challenge Sheet. This is to help develop their growing independence within the classroom space.

English – knights and castles
We have made predictions about what we think will happen and what characters may be like in a new story we have been introduced to. Leo is a knight but one who prefers reading to fighting. Clues in the pictures and ideas we already have about knights and dragons have helped us form sensible predictions about the story. Each day this week, we have tried to write a few sentences to help us get back into the practice of holding a pencil and putting words down on paper. We have experimented with various adjectives in our work. Gently, bit by bit, we are warming ourselves up to write our own story by the end of the half-term that includes a hero and a mythical beast, set in the land of castles. We shall be reading lots of stories to help us gather as many ideas as we can.

Maths – “ten and a bit” numbers, the teen numbers
Maths has had a very practical focus this week to help boys to secure their understanding of a teen number (11-19) as a number that includes one ten plus another amount. We have used Numicon, Dienes, tens frames, bead strings and blocks. The boys have been challenged to problem solve and verbalise the right answer, for instance, why is the amount shown 31 and not 13. By the end of the week, it is evident how secure the boys are in their understanding of this. We are ready to progress to using number lines next week and comparing numbers within 20 and perhaps beyond.

Mrs Victoria Ford
Year 1 Teacher
 

Year 2

On Monday, we met Ada Twist, Scientist, who 'has always been endlessly curious' and 'learns the value of thinking her way through problems and continuing to stay curious.'

On Tuesday it was the boys' turn to turn scientists following Ada's quest to discover 'a horrific, toe-curling smell'. 

After donning a pair of goggles, borrowed from the science lab, the boys set up their own smelling experiment by following a set of instructions. They worked collaboratively and had much fun with their own experiments, from setting up to carrying out. 

Do please ask the boys about the smells they encountered and whether or not their experiment was a success!

 

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