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To be a Pilgrim, Episode 2

Remembering Henry James

Today, our School assembly this morning was called: To be a Pilgrim … is to remember together. We wanted to remember Henry James and to reflect as a school. We were together in our remembering, if you will, and took comfort in our togetherness.

Every form Zoomed in. It was a true Pilgrims’ team effort: Mr Bryant and I each gave an address. I also read ‘Waterbugs and Dragonflies’ by Doris Stickney which Sarah Noble shared with Miss Higham and me on Monday morning.

James W in 8W beautifully read a passage from Thessalonians 4.13-18.

¹⁶ “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.¹⁷ After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage one another with these words.”

Alfie G-H in 8W led us in wonderful prayer that he had written about Henry:

“Dear Heavenly Father,

We give you thanks for the life of Henry. Thank you for his humour, his big smile and his strong character. He was a great friend to so many people here at Pilgrims’, and surely will be missed. Thank you that he is now at peace with you. We lift to you Henry’s family and close friends. We pray that you are with them and comforting them, and give them strength to get through this. Thank you that your Word says that you ‘bind up the broken hearted and heal our wounds’. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

The hymn, Christ Triumphant, which was filmed last week in the College Chapel, was sung by the Quiristers.

On Monday, a number of boys who knew Henry, or who were affected by his death, chose to spend time by the river to think about him or just to have some quiet time in our quiet place. Some were reminded of losses in their own lives.

The Year 5 boys who went down to the river with me first thing were silent to begin with. Boys sat next to each other on the benches or alone on the riverbank, heads in hands, not speaking. Mr Bryant was already there. After a while, Mr Bryant and I joined them (socially distanced of course). “May I sit here?”, I asked. I got a nod. Still, no one was speaking. Then, little by little, boys started to say a few words. We had paper and pencils and Mr Bryant asked if anyone wanted to write a prayer or a message. They did. Then they started to say a few words to each other and to ask questions. Some prayed; some thought about their own brothers. We asked Canon Andy to take the prayers they wrote for Henry and his family to the Cathedral to be offered up, which he did later that afternoon.

Soon the boys decided they wanted to send Henry some messages. But how? The river was flowing strongly, as it usually does. Then the most amazing thing happened. The boys decided to make rafts (so much for the pencils and paper Mr Bryant and I had brought). They found wood and binding on the riverbank – organic and biodegradable. They shaped the wood and bound it together, telling me they were lashing on more wood! The sailing term, and their determination and focus, made me smile. The boys attached the messages they had written and sent them down the river. They had a joint purpose and, little by little, that purpose moved into play. Rafts were now racing down the river. There were smiles. There was fun. It reminded me of some sort of cross between Swallows and Amazons and Gulliver’s Travels (especially as some of the leaves by the river are as tall as a Year 5 boy and much wider).

Later, some boys told me that this was Henry’s favourite place – by the river – and that he loved DT, so he would have enjoyed making rafts. His parents also told me this was the place where he stopped and spoke at length to Mr Burden and Mrs Kelly on his last visit to the school in the summer. I am so glad we chose this as our quiet place.

Henry had a big heart and a big smile. He was kind, gentle and creative. He was quirky and so very happy. He lived in a joyous bubble of a world where things rarely phased him. Henry was genuine. He was extremely particular about his stationery I hear; his pencil case organisation was the cat's pyjamas, and his pencils were the sharpest in the business. Without fail, he would be part of any Lego club in the school he would happily build serious constructions with his brother Edward.

I know you all join me in sending our love, thought and prayers to Edward, Agata and Robin and their wider family.

God bless you, Henry. You are so missed.

Waterbugs and Dragonflies by Doris Stickney  

Down below the surface of a quiet pond lived a little colony of water bugs. They were a happy colony, living far away from the sun.

For many months they were very busy, scurrying over the soft mud on the bottom of the pond. They did notice that every once in a while one of their colony seemed to lose interest in going about. Clinging to the stem of a pond lily it gradually moved out of sight and was seen no more.

"Look!" said one of the water bugs to another. "One of our colony is climbing up the lily stalk. Where do you think she is going?" Up, up, up it slowly went....Even as they watched, the water bug disappeared from sight. Its friends waited and waited but it didn't return...

"That's funny!" said one water bug to another. "Wasn't she happy here?" asked a second... "Where do you suppose she went?" wondered a third. No one had an answer. They were greatly puzzled.

Finally, one of the water bugs, a leader in the colony, gathered its friends together. "I have an idea". The next one of us who climbs up the lily stalk must promise to come back and tell us where he or she went and why." "We promise", they said solemnly.

One spring day, not long after, the very water bug who had suggested the plan found himself climbing up the lily stalk. Up, up, up, he went. Before he knew what was happening, he had broken through the surface of the water and fallen onto the broad, green lily pad above. When he awoke, he looked about with surprise. He couldn't believe what he saw. A startling change had come to his old body. His movement revealed four silver wings and a long tail. Even as he struggled, he felt an impulse to move his wings...The warmth of the sun soon dried the moisture from the new body. He moved his wings again and suddenly found himself up above the water. He had become a dragonfly!

Swooping and dipping in great curves, he flew through the air. He felt exhilarated in the new atmosphere. By and by, the new dragonfly lighted happily on a lily pad to rest. Then it was that he chanced to look below to the bottom of the pond. Why, he was right above his old friends, the water bugs! There they were scurrying around, just as he had been doing some time before.

The dragonfly remembered the promise: "The next one of us who climbs up the lily stalk will come back and tell where he or she went and why." Without thinking, the dragonfly darted down. Suddenly he hit the surface of the water and bounced away. Now that he was a dragonfly, he could no longer go into the water... "I can't return!" he said in dismay. "At least, I tried. But I can't keep my promise. Even if I could go back, not one of the water bugs would know me in my new body. I guess I'll just have to wait until they become dragonflies too. Then they'll understand what has happened to me, and where I went."

And the dragonfly winged off happily into its wonderful new world of sun and air. 

Sport News

The PE programme for the juniors in the Christmas term is gymnastics.

Gymnastics is fantastic because it develops strength, co-ordination and balance. It engages problem-solving skills and group work. Pupils get a sense of achievement from the less usual movement skills they undertake, and they can readily work at their own level. Building on work in Pre-Prep, we practice individual skills and sequences in Year 3, partner balances in Year 4 and weight on hands, vaulting and inversion in Year 5. I find that many of the boys have not normally had much experience of gymnastics and they can sometimes find some of the tasks daunting - particularly in Year 5. Nevertheless, once they've worked through the progressions they usually find they can perform work they would not have thought possible at the outset - and that gives everyone a real buzz.

I've loved gymnastics ever since my PGCE year at St Luke's, University of Exeter. There, our tutor, the legendary Martin Underwood, enthusiastically instilled in us its educational benefits. The fact, too, that it isn't a team sport / invasion game that the boys are more au fait with, makes different demands upon them and in this current climate of non-equipment, calisthenic workouts, it's even more relevant. This week, we had the year 5 boys through vaulting, using mats and benches and themselves as apparatus. Two members of each group also acted as supporters, for safety. It was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to the next lesson.

We've all been missing the fun and excitement of competitive football. So, we're introducing 'The Big Match' as we tentatively stage matches with spectators in attendance, following the latest guidance. We'll write out with further details but over coming Saturdays we aim to stage year group matches and the chance for parents to come and watch. To help maintain space, the other senior year groups will have Games as normal.

Saturday 3 October

U13 (Y8) The Big Match (spectators allowed). Games as normal for Years 6 & 7.

Saturday 10 October

U12 (Y7) The Big Match (spectators allowed). Games as normal for Years 6 & 8.

Saturday 17 October  

U11 (Y6) The Big Match (spectators allowed). Games as normal for Years 7 & 8.

Have a good exeat. 

Mr Short

From the Library

Pupils have now received the second selection of library books which are sent to each bubble via the Bubbles Box Book. Every week carefully handpicked titles will be offered to pupils and can be borrowed or used during the day, when the timetable allows.

Lockdown made it impossible to return library books last year. However, we are now ready and keen to welcome back any Library book used over the past months. A 'drop-off' station is now available outside the Library and children are encouraged to return those books, so they can be enjoyed and shared again.

Mrs Brill

Chorister news

The Choristers are now in the swing of their new routine. Rehearsals now take place in the Prior's Hall in the Deanery. This allows them to spread out as is now required and the passers-by can continue to hear their beautiful voices wafting across the Close. They are singing at two Evensongs each week; Mondays and Thursdays. 

For a peek into Prior's Hall, watch the Cathedral Choirs Administrator, Kate Downer talking about the planning that goes behind Evensong services

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Z8iKVM767w

Quirister news

The Quiristers began the week with a recording for the Founder's Obit service. Originally, four days were set aside each year to commemorate the death of William of Wykeham (1324-1404), founder of Winchester College. Last year the event was marked in a memorable service at Winchester Cathedral with the Cs, Qs and the Choir of New College, Oxford, combining forces and raising their voices together.

To watch a short video of the Qs during their first rehearsal together since March, go to https://twitter.com/i/status/1304698843351732224 

The piece they are working on is Vaughan Williams’ The Call (from five mystical songs), words by George Herbert.

Artwork of the Week

'Calm sea' and 'Wind and driving rain' by Max H and Alfie L (4B)

As we work to get the boys back into the Art room in a Covid-safe way, the boys themselves have been resilient in embracing the constraints of practising Art in their classrooms. The Year 4s are an outstanding example of this: they have eagerly begun an 'illustration' project with whatever is in their pencil case and have, nonetheless, produced some very exciting work in the last two weeks. 

In our lessons, I have been giving the boys some simple verbal prompts which they then illustrate. This week's Artwork of the Week is shared between Max H and Alfie L, both of whom captured the essence of this week's two cues and delivered beautiful, powerful, and evocative work. Well done, boys! Thank you for your brilliant work.

Mr Walters

From the Base: Bouncability

Light at the end of the tunnel is an oft used saying.  The message is: Get to the end, get out, then things will be okay!

Perhaps this is helpful at times, but recently I have come to consider there is a better metaphor.  The problem for me is that What happens if you can't see the light at the end?

The word resilience is derived from 'resiliens', the present participle of Latin 'resilire', 'to recoil or rebound'. So, to have resilience is to be about to recover, to move on.  We often think that people with high resilience know that things will get better, that failure is often only temporary.  Some might say they have an Expectation of better things. The problem with expectation is that it implies the possibility of being let down.

I much prefer to think that those with resilience have Hope.  Hope in the future, hope that if we can get things right the world will be a better place.  Hope implies positivity, but backed up with a need to act.

With hope, we don't look for the light at the end of the tunnel.  We arm ourselves with a torch to help us find the way to that light.  

Use hope to fuel our resilience, a belief in the people and actions of tomorrow.

Boarders' Weekend, 19-20 September

Sunday afternoon saw eight boys (and a number of staff!) showing off their painting skills!  Having each chosen items to paint from The Pottery Pantry, ranging from a mug shaped like Superman, to a pot for a cactus, and finally a rather impressive platter, the boys delighted in selecting their colours and designs.  With stencils and added glitter on offer too, nearly three happy hours were spent in the Art Room perfecting their pieces.  They have been sent off to be fired with a hopeful return in time for exeat! 

Miss Higham

Bespoke Birthday Cupcake Service (COVID-19 and Allergy safe)

As you are all aware, no food is allowed on the premises that has not been made in school. So, if your son has a birthday coming up, why not order professionally made cupcakes direct from our catering team for your son to share with his friends in tutor time or at break?

To do so, please email:  ipayne@pilgrims-school.co.uk and I will send you an order form. There are several flavours and toppings to choose from to make a memorable day even more tasty. Please allow three days ahead of the special day and please note, there is a charge for this service:

Cupcakes made in groups of 6 at £9.00 per 6 or £1.50 each

Mrs Payne

Charity @Pilgrims - from the PPA

With the broad remit of “Enabling boys to recognise and meet the needs of others”, charity has moved under the umbrella of the PPA, with input from teachers, boys and families to be very much welcomed and encouraged! Sarah Noble (Fraser Y5, Finlay Y2) will be coordinating efforts but we would love to hear from anyone who wants to get involved. We would particularly like to hear from you about any charities that you already support or have links with so that we can build up a picture of charities that mean something to the Pilgrims' family and that we might be able to support in some way. We would also like to hear from anyone who is interested in getting involved with future charity events or anyone who has ideas for developing this area of work within the school. Please email sarah.noble@doctors.org.uk with your thoughts.

Harvest is the first date in the charity diary this term and the festival will be celebrated by the boys during the week beginning 5 October. As part of Harvest celebrations we would like to have a collection of produce for the Winchester Basics Bank.  Please visit their website for more information about the charity and an informative video, suitable for boys, on how produce is used.

Please also see the information about what produce is particularly useful at the moment in the context of increased demand but limited storage space. If you could only donate products from the list, this would be immensely helpful.

Due to COVID logistics, please bring produce to either the Wolvesey playing fields or to the lawn outside the front of the school anytime between 8.00-08.45 on Wednesday 7, Thursday 8 or Friday 9 October.

If you are able to help with ‘manning’ the collection stations or taking produce to the charity, please email sarah.noble@doctors.org.uk – all help gratefully received!

Many thanks in anticipation,

PPA

Another busy week of fun-filled learning has rushed past.  The boys have continued to delight staff with their enthusiasm and infectious energy at school.  Our first 'Celebration Assembly' via Zoom went smoothly today.  Boys from each class were awarded their Golden Rule Certificates and Golden Shell badges to rapturous applause.  We also formally introduced and welcomed our new Pre-Prep boys in both Reception and Year 1.

In Year 1 and 2 our 'Read, Write Inc' Phonics Scheme got off to a super start, with new groupings and excellent progress displayed by the boys.  I look forward to providing more detail regarding our Literacy teaching and learning during your Year group parent meetings in the next two weeks.

Mrs Ross

Year 2

Y2 Parents' Zoom meeting: Tuesday 6 October at 1900

Year 1

Year 1 have had super week, packed full of exciting activities, including rocket and alien spaceship crafts, a whole host of new and exciting funky fingers and phonics activities and lots of learning about life on the International Space Station.  The boys have enjoyed thinking about what they would need to pack if they were to visit the space station and have used their knowledge to draw and label their own space suitcases. Read Write Inc lessons are in full swing and all of the Year 1 boys have worked hard in their groups on tasks based around their specifically levelled story books.

It was lovely to see so many parents at the Pre-Prep information evening on Wednesday 23 September. As mentioned in this meeting, there will be year group meetings in the coming weeks.

Year 1 Parents' Zoom meeting:  Wednesday 30 September at 1900

Mrs James

Forest School

The boys in Pre-Prep have been honing their observation skills this week, looking for signs of Autumn.  Hedgerows have been scoured and colourful fruits and berries identified.  Rosehips, snow berries, haw berries and spindle berries have all been spotted.  Blackberries provided a juicy snack and pockets brimmed full of shiny conkers! 

In addition, the Year 1 and 2 boys used mirrors to explore habitats from a different perspective.

Mrs Judd