From Mrs Hall

It's been heart-warming to watch the boys making new friends and feeling right at home. The older boys have embraced the younger boys with enthusiasm, offering support and encouragement every step of the way. Kindness has truly prevailed, and the boys have wonderfully embodied the Pilgrims’ values this week. The teaching staff have also been full of praise for the high standard of work already being produced.

I’m delighted to announce that this year’s Christmas nativity will be The Fleece Force! It has all the traditional elements you'd expect from a nativity, with the added fun of some important Police Sheep! The date for this performance will be Friday 6 December at 11am. Please keep an eye on the upcoming events for more details.

 Wishing you all a fantastic weekend, and hopefully some late summer sunshine!

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Shell Awards this week:

Year 2: to Benedict for settling into his new class effortlessly.
Year 1: to Justin for working hard to settle into the routines of his new school. Well done, Justin!
Reception: Hammie for excellent listening and a confident start to school.

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Save the Dates !

Sunday 15 September	0930-1200	PPA Parents 6-a-side Football event (see flyer below)
Monday 23 September	all day	Year 2 trip to visit Tudor House, Southampton
Friday 27 September	1500	Pre-Prep Cathedral assembly, please do come and join us
Friday 4 October	0830-0900 1000-1100	PPA Pre-Prep Coffee by the river event (see flyer below) Pre-Prep Pilgrims' Play (in Reception) for pre-schoolers
Saturday 5 October	0830-0900 0930-1130	PPA Breakfast-in-the-Yard event (see flyer below) Whole School Open Morning
Friday 18 October	all day	Year 1 trip to Winchester Science Centre
Saturday 19 October	0815-0915	Wellbeing Matters Live 1
Monday 21 October	1700-1900	Pre-Prep Parents' Evening
Tuesday 22 October	1800	Pre-Prep Celebration Assembly Half-term break begins
Monday 4 November	0830	School resumes

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Notices

Menus for the first week back 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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From the PPA

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Year 2

It is hard to believe that we are now completing our first full week into the new academic year. The boys in Year 2 have settled down extremely well and have enjoyed discovering their way around their new classroom. They have impressed Mrs Hall, Mrs Pleming and me greatly with their maturity and are rising to the challenge of being the oldest in the Pre-Prep.  

We have had a busy seven days getting to know each boy and discovering their strengths and passions. It looks like it will be an exciting year ahead, starting with our trip to the Tudor House in Southampton on Monday 23 September. We hope it will inspire the boys as we delve into learning about the Great Fire Of London. 

Mrs Kent 
Year 2 Teacher

Year 1

The Evil Pea’s visit to the Year 1 classroom last week has facilitated lots of opportunities for learning this week. The boys have discussed and described why SUPERtato was such a good SUPERhero. They thought about how they could be SUPER in the classroom and the playground and have created their own SUPERhero medal. Their ideas about being SUPER in the classroom have been used to create our own class routines and responsibilities to start the term, to help all boys to feel safe and secure in their school space and to be able to learn effectively. Of course, a week with a SUPERtato would not have been complete without some potato printing!

A very big well done to all of Year 1 for starting the year off in such a SUPER fashion!

Developing speaking and listening skills
There are various opportunities within the Year 1 classroom to promote effective speaking and listening, which is an important skill for our boys to develop. Each Monday, we shall have 'Weekend News' time when we will share something of interest to us from our weekend. Each Friday afternoon, we shall have 'Show and Tell' time, when the boys can speak about an item that is of interest to them. 

You can help them prepare for both of these speaking and listening opportunities at home by talking to them to help them organise their thoughts. If your son would like to bring something in for Friday Show and Tell, we ask that it is either something they have made, something from a special day out or trip, or perhaps something of interest they have found. A photo of something they have done is also a lovely way to share some news. This can be emailed to me or shared via Tapestry once you have your logins for this resource. Boys should try to speak for a minute or two about their item and answer some questions from the rest of the class. There is no requirement for boys to bring something in each week, only as and when they wish to.

Mrs Ford
Year 1 Teacher

 

Reception

Our class theme for this half term is 'All about me'.  We have already been talking about our families, what we like doing and what we like to eat (to name a few topics of conversation).

The boys have been busy completing self-portraits with Miss Whitmore. There was a lot of discussion whilst looking carefully in a mirror to compare eye colour, hair colour and uniform. Super listening skills were shown as the boys mixed and painted very carefully. What excellent results! Do have a look at these portraits, which are proudly displayed in the classroom.

We have now completed a full week at school!  The boys have experienced PE, Music, French, Forest School, Whole Pre-Prep Assembly, playtimes, lunchtimes and 'Exploring time' inside and outside our Reception Classroom.  Such a lot of new experiences, rules and routines to learn.  We are so very proud of how well the boys are doing and every day something new is learnt and remembered.  

Next Friday (and every Friday moving forwards) we will be starting 'Show and Tell' sessions.  If your son would like to bring in something to show to the class and talk about, that would be great. I just ask that it is not a 'toy' but something, for example, that they have made, or found whilst out and about; a souvenir from a trip, or anything unusual or interesting.  Chat to your son about what they could say and what questions may be asked. The session encourages confidence and speaking and listening skills.

At some point next week please could you provide a 'family photo' for us to display in our classroom. This photo will remain up on the wall for the whole year and is a great way for the boys to see you when you are not here.

Many thanks for your support and well done boys! Have a super weekend.

Mrs Huntley
Reception Teacher
 

Forest School

It was lovely to welcome the boys back to Forest School and everyone was keen to get outside. A huge part of our sessions this week for Year 1 and 2 was about re-familiarising the boys with the sites, identifying hazards, as well as understanding our Forest School expectations.

Year R were most excited about their first Forest School session. Time was spent exploring the site, understanding our expectations and learning how to take natural rubbings, which we then turned into some bunting. 

After exploring the site and playing a simple game that enabled them to re-connect with the Arboretum, the boys in Year 1 were each given an egg box. They then individually found six natural items that they found interesting; the egg boxes were displayed all together and some of the boys shared their findings with the class.

Year 2 were very excited about re-connecting with nature and enjoyed playing ‘1,2,3 where are you?’ This is a fun game that gives the boys a chance to personally explore the site. We also worked as a team and created some fabulous woodland animals made entirely out of sticks!

Reminder: all boys need to bring a waterproof coat into school each week, along with waterproof trousers and wellington boots for their Forest School sessions.

Mrs Walker
Forest School