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To be a Pilgrim is to make the world a better place, Episode 21 A couple of weeks ago, Mrs Short and I were having an admissions call with the mother of a four year old who registered her son for the School when he was about one. We were talking about the ethos of the School and I described how I hear Pilgrims regularly describe themselves as looking to “treat others as they would like to be treated themself”. The mother told me a lovely story. At that time, long before COVID-19, she, her husband and son came to tour the School. It was a school day. She said she and her husband were impressed about lots of things about the School but her lasting memory is how as they walked around Pilgrims’ with their little boy in his push chair (on the grass by the river bank, round the Quad, on the gravel by the Puddle perhaps) eight different Pilgrims offered to help them with the push chair! How wonderful. That makes me so proud. Pilgrims definitely make the world a better place. Pilgrims make a difference. Pilgrims make me smile. Oh that reminds me of something…! I digress. I reflected on this today, Red Nose Day 2021, when schools, businesses and people all over the UK are raising money for Comic Relief, the UK Charity founded in 1985. With many thanks to the PPA, staff and the Year 8 Charity Committee, Pilgrims’ is RED and green all over. Everyone is wearing red noses and dressed in red or funny mufti. Today, Pilgrims’ boys and staff are joining the campaign to “change the world through the power of funny” to quote Comic Relief. Enjoy the pictures below. Pilgrims have learnt this week about the work of Comic Relief at home and internationally to create a just world, free from poverty. As I mentioned in last week’s To be a Pilgrim and in my assembly to the boys on Monday, Comic Relief are focusing their work this year on four key challenges in the UK and internationally: improving mental health, having a safe place of shelter for everyone, creating a world in which children thrive, and promoting freedom from gender based fear, violence and discrimination. Pilgrims are very compassionate. This week, the boys have been touched by the stories of children and adults who have been helped by the charity. For example, the story of Ethan who lives in Leicestershire. Ethan has cerebral palsy and cannot speak. He has a voice simulator, and since he was a baby, he has been attending a centre called Steps, funded by Comic Relief. Here is Ethan's story. Or Courtney, who is 17 and lives in Edinburgh. She is only a few years older than our Year 8 boys and she is an inspiration. Courtney epitomises what it is to serve others. She helps her father provide hot food and shelter to people living on the streets. The homeless people she meets have all sorts of traumatic pasts: they may suffer from addiction, may have suffered abuse or neglect, or mental ill-health or family breakdown. Courtney’s father once had problems with addiction himself and that caused him to disappear from her life when she was younger. Now Courtney and her father work together to help hundreds of homeless people every week. Their work is also funded by Comic Relief. There is also a film about Courtney (note it is aimed at Year 7 and above). Courtney' story, for Year 7 and above. Thank you for all parents who agreed for us to take £3 from your bill as a donation to Comic Relief. This bought a red nose for all boys and a donation for wearing red (or funny) mufti today. If you would like to know more about Comic Relief go to www.comicrelief.com. There is also a fundraising programme of comedy tonight on BBC1. Pilgrims make me smile. They do. Every day. Years ago, I met a head teacher who said he sometimes got an ache in his face on Fridays after smiling so much. I am still going strong, you will be pleased to know. Pilgrims make you smile. Tonight, for your entertainment and viewing pleasure… ta da… we will present Pilgrims Make You Smile on Zoom 1900-2030 (see details below). Following on from the great success of Pilgrims Got Talent last summer, Pilgrims are now trying to make us smile. Frankly, I think we are on to a winner as Pilgrims never fail to make me smile, come rain or shine! With thanks to Mr Hammond, Mr J Beaumont, all entrants, and my fellow judging panel: Mr Craig Coweller and Mrs Hamanda (Holden) James. Enormous thanks to the superb Pilgrims’ Parents’ Association, and especially Dr Noble who leads our charity work, and Mrs Kennedy, Chair, who along with the Boys’ Charity Committee have organised our Comic Relief fund raising and fun today. Thank you too to Miss Higham, Miss Erasmus, Mrs Bailey, Mr Hammond, Mrs Ross, Miss Dennett, Mr Shroff, and Mrs Razza. I thank all Pilgrims, parents and teachers for participating, donating and learning about how we can all support others even at challenging times like now – in the middle of a pandemic. To be a Pilgrim is to serve. To be a Pilgrim is to make a difference to the world. |
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The Week AheadSaturday 20 March | | Parent Drop in with Dr Essex will not take place this week due to a Governing Body meeting | Friday 26 March | 11:45 - 12:45 | End of term - see below for details |
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End of Term Arrangements – Friday 26 March Pre-Prep boys should be collected at 1145, from their normal collection point. Please ensure you have departed by 1155. Junior boys, including boarders, should be collected at 1200, from their normal pick up points. Please ensure you have departed by 1210. Senior day boys should be collected at 1215, from their normal pick up points. Senior boarders should be collected at 1245 – Year 6 and 7 from the Yard, and Year 8 from Q School. The boys will have had lunch at 1200. For parents with boys in different year groups, please collect both/all your sons at the earliest pick-up time that applies. We will ensure that the boys are there to meet you. |
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LAST CALL FOR BALL TICKET REFUNDS! If you previously bought a ticket to the 2021 Pilgrims' Ball and would like a refund, please follow this link on My School Portal to indicate your preference by Monday 22nd March. The form also allows you to make a donation of all or part of your ticket to the ball's original charitable beneficiary, The Hampshire Medical Fund. Otherwise, we will assume that you would like to join the festivities in July 2022 and your ticket will be rolled forward. The PPA ppa@pilgrims-school.co.uk |
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School NoticesTraffic in the Close and surrounding streets Again, concerns have been raised about parking, drop off, and collecting in The Close and in the surrounding streets. The safety of our children and all pedestrians in these areas is paramount, so it is essential that the guidelines below are followed. The Close - If you drop off or collect your son at the front of school, it is imperative you are mindful of pedestrian traffic at all times. The Cathedral requests that no cars are parked in the spaces outside the Deanery (or the Bookstall), nor should this area be used for turning. Please confine your movement through the Close to the drive in front of the school. St Swithun's Street and College Street - Please drive and park with care in College Street. Do not leave your car in the turning area between Kingsgate Picture Framing and Cornflowers. Similarly, do not leave your car in the turning area on the Cathedral side of the Kingsgate, at the end of St Swithun's Street. Both of these areas must be kept free for larger, or indeed emergency vehicles to turn. Thank you for your assistance. Form of the Week: Junior – 5W Senior – 6Y Junior Plus Badge Winners 5P - Felix F, James H 5W - George S, Alfie W 4B - Edward G, Patrick H 4M - Rupert B, Donghan 3G - Max L 3E - Kit M Mr Burton Menus Please find next week's menu on My School Portal here. |
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Artwork of the WeekCity Road in One-Point Perspective by George Si. (5W) During this term, the Year 5s have been studying the illusion of pictorial depth created by the application of the rules and conventions of One-Point Perspective. This week's 'Artwork of the Week' is an outstanding demonstration of not just this technique but also of the artist's meticulous attention to detail and his grit and perseverance to see a work of Art through to completion. Well done, George, on a brilliant drawing! Have a Show Up for your efforts. If you are on Instagram, please take a look at a few other excellent examples of this project in this week's post on the @art_at_pilgrims account. Mr Walters |
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Keep calm and scroll on A year ago, a group of small Year 3 boys, perplexed and confounded by the first ever lockdown, were encouraged and cohesively brought together with a clever idea of their Year 3 teachers - to produce a video compiled from individual clips of them at home throwing a toilet roll to each other. Remember how everyone went mad for toilet rolls? Now, grown a little, and wiser and more mature, that same group of boys asked their Year 4 teachers if they could repeat this venture. This time they threw a scroll to each other. Inside this scroll was a compilation of words that each boy attributed to his own experience of lockdown and how he overcame its obstacles. The attached videos are the result. We have no doubt that your spirits will be lifted by watching and enjoying them, and we trust that you will be as proud of these boys as we are. The boys are truly amazing; we hope that they will never forget that. Fantastic Boys!_Trim.mp4 or go to: https://vimeo.com/524829793 Year 4 Scroll Video plus_Trim.mp4
or go to: https://vimeo.com/524833080 Mrs Buckett and Miss McGrath
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Choral Audtions Last Saturday, formal auditions were held for the next generation of Winchester College Quiristers and Winchester Cathedral Choristers to join us in September. We were delighted to hear all those who bravely put themselves forward - all applicants were tremendous. Congratulations to Timothy Cheong (joining Pilgrims' very soon) and Rian Dhital who will be joining the Quiristers in September, and Edward Duell, Austin Short, Freddie Wheeler, and Sebastian Wilson who will become Choristers. The Admissions Team |
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Accelerated Reader - Week 9As we move into the last week of the Easter term, the scores for all Sets have again improved! The Romans have had a particularly strong week, and are closing the gap between them and the Saxons, who have slowed a little towards the end of term. Wrens have extended their lead over the Normans, reaching over 9 million words! The Monks have some way to go, but there is still time. Keep up your brilliant reading, boys! Miss Higham |
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PPA Trout Night - Event report Thank you to the Hardman family from ChalkStream for hosting a fun cooking evening. We followed Tor’s instructions to create delicious Moroccan trout and listened to Godson Arthur chat about some big fish. It was a relaxing and enjoyable way to prepare a Spring supper. PPA |
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The Sky at Night - March 19 onwardsEqual Day and Night On Saturday, March 20 at 9:37 GMT, the sun will cross the celestial equator traveling north, marking the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere and the beginning of northern spring. Days and nights will be of equal length on that day, and the sun will rise due east and set due west. Enjoy the light! Mr Hammond |
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From the BaseIs talking all it's cracked up to be? When things are tough, we're encouraged to talk about it. Got a problem? Open up. Feeling rubbish? Call a friend. Struggling with life? See a therapist. Question is, does it help? Well, depends on who you talk to - but often the answer is based on someone's own experience. In 2020, The New York Times ran a series of articles on the theme of talk. Here is section from one of them. 'When you are feeling very intense feelings — especially fear, aggression or anxiety — your amygdala is running the show. This is the part of the brain that, among other things, handles your fight or flight response. It is the job of the amygdala, and your limbic system as a whole, to figure out if something is a threat, devise a response to that threat if necessary, and store the information in your memory so you can recognise the threat later. When you get stressed or overwhelmed, this part of your brain can take control and even override more logical thought processes.' Research from UCLA (Lieberman et al 2007) indicates that putting feelings into words can help lessen the response of your brain when you encounter things that are upsetting. This might enable us to become less stressed about things that previously have been things that trouble us. For example, having a terrible experience on a plane might make us adverse to ever getting on a plane again. But by talking through the experience, over time, we could get back on the plane and take that trip we really want. Other work (Pennebaker et al, 1988), along similar lines, also indicates that talking can help tackle the horrible feelings difficult situations or events might create within us. If we have negative feelings anyway, then repressing them means we spend even more energy and time, both physically and mentally, thus making us feel even worse than if we confronted and talked about our feelings. What does this mean at Pilgrims'? I want out boys to feel that talking and being open is a good thing - it helps. I don't want them to fall into stereotypes of 'boys don't cry' or 'stiff upper lip'. I also want them to be have the emotional literacy to actually understand and express themselves coherently, meaningfully and in ways that help them grow personally, make and sustain good relationships, and to be fundamentally happy. I certainly miss having a beer and talking with my mates and I look forward to being able to share how I feel. Mr Shroff |
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Pilgrims get back 'home'The lockdown forced massive change across the education sector, not least in PE. PE teachers across the nation were commendably inventive in their approaches to remote learning. Nevertheless, if you were a pupil engaging in a live zoom PE lesson, it may well have been within the confines of your bedroom. Therefore, the buzz on the return to our first Games sessions last week was infectious. To see activity on all areas of our playing fields in the glorious weather we enjoyed that afternoon was inspiring. So, what impact does an environment have on our pupils' learning? There are many fine playing fields in schools around the British Isles and I would argue, whilst ours aren't the largest in the world, they do have a place amongst the finest! Here at Pilgrims', we are in the historic heart of Winchester. The ruins of Wolvesey Castle, ancient home to the Bishops of Winchester borders one side, its younger counterpart, Wolvesey Palace, with its well-kept gardens, provides a handsome aspect just adjacent to it. The whole area is enclosed by the old city walls - Saxon and medieval brickwork based on Roman foundations. Winchester Cathedral is a reassuring presence (like a blind-side flanker) on the city-side and Winchester College chapel (more a glory-hunting winger) over towards the south and the watermeadows beyond. As a PE teacher, with such an area as his classroom, this beautiful location serves to give real meaning to the place-based learning that we are undertaking here. Regardless of their youth, this sporting arena is inspirational. Your sons' experiences here - whether they be in joy, in struggle, in victory, in defeat - will be given context set against the backdrop of this dramatic space. The playing level is inconsequential - there will be moments of magic across the skill range. To play any sport here tethers our pupils to Pilgrims', to Winchester and we hope their memories of physical education, of games, of matches, of sport will be bound up in the culture and history of their school and city. Can you imagine your son, in later years, strolling round College Street and pausing by our gates to show his children, or his grandchildren, the fields where he once played? Last week our pilgrims came home. Mr Short |
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From Mrs RossOur Red Nose Day Assembly has been the culmination of a wonderful week of learning and teaching in the Pre-Prep. Thank you to all boys, parents and staff for your continued hard work and positivity! |
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This week's Pilgrims’ Shell AwardYear 2 - to Rafe, for his positive attitude at school this week. He has been kind, helpful and has made excellent choices both in class and in the playground. Year 1 - to Max, for being really kind and caring to his friend. Reception - Teddy for his hard work and independence. Well done. |
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Year 1 "Non-stop" is the phrase that springs to mind when describing this week in Year 1! Maths lessons have included a lot of practical weighing and measuring activities with great opportunities for team work amongst the boys. We have been giving our phonics and handwriting a huge push and the boys have amazed me with their super letter formation! Creativity has been in abundance during Topic lessons and the boys have continued to develop their Sea Monster character profiles, focusing on describing their monster's behaviour. It is no wonder, after all this learning coupled with busy playtimes and active P.E. sessions, that everyone has been enjoying lunchtime! Mrs James |
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This week the boys have based their own learning around two familiar stories: What’s the time Mr Wolf and Goldilocks and the Three Bears. They have enjoyed playing the game, taking turns being the hungry wolf. They have been learning to tell the time: O’ clock, and have made clock faces as well as learning to turn in a clockwise direction. Mrs Kent |
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It was so lovely to meet the boys in person this week and fabulous to get outside despite the rain and wind last week. After playing some ‘Getting to know you games’, Year 1 were set the task of trying to create a waterproof shelter for their bug. We talked about what the shelter would need for the bugs to stay dry on this wet day. We also tested the shelter and the boys were pleased with the results. Year R and Year 2 were excited about visiting the beautiful grounds of the Bishop’s Palace. This gave us a chance to see Spring really bursting into life. Year R played ‘Springo’, the boys had a chance to get up close to those wonderful signs of Spring , for example listening out for bird song and trying to copy it, as well as seeing what happens when you tap a catkin. Year 2 went on a Spring texture trail and used their senses to explore the Arboretum further. They were amazed by all the different textures they saw and touched. The boys were thrilled that I hadn’t forgotten the Forest School tradition of hot chocolate and a snack and there were lots of chocolatey faces and smiles at the end day! Mrs Walker |
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Sign up at www.thepilgrims-school.co.uk for The Pilgrims'' School Outreach Programme event taking place on Saturdays from March to the end of May. Please share it widely! |
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Please email: ppa@pilgrims-school.co.uk for further information. |
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The Pilgrims' School, 3 The Close, Winchester, Hampshire SO23 9LT 01962 854189 pilgrims@pilgrims-school.co.uk; admissions@pilgrims-school.co.uk |
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