We had the most fantastic assembly from Year 5 this week, sharing with us the splendid, sophisticated, space themed writing on which they have been working of late. Mrs Tuite has already put the story of Luna on display in the Prep corridor for us all to revisit and enjoy. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 also had the wonderful opportunity to meet author, Lisa Thompson, who led them through an inspiring writing workshop. Elsewhere, Year 6 have written formal letters, appraising the novel they have just finished, and Year 3 completed newspaper articles reporting the terrible news that Sneeze, the dragon, has destroyed the Choo Choo village!
In Science this week, Year 4 pupils undertook an experiment to find out which materials were good insulators and then recorded their findings, and Year 3s investigated which type of paper is the most absorbent, making sure they carried out a fair test. Year 3 pupils also were busy in RS, doing some independent research into their chosen Hindu deities.
In Pre-prep, Nursery have been introduced to syllables and Year 1 read Mrs Knox their letters to Father Christmas, sent them up the chimney and have already had replies back from him, to their utter delight. All the classrooms in Prep and Pre-prep are looking eye-wateringly festive, just in time for the final week of term, thanks to their creative spirit and a whole lot of tinsel. I look forward to seeing many of you at the Prep Concert, and cannot wait to hear your children showing off their talents, as ever.
Reading certificates: Bronze for Oliver T & Elodie Y; Silver for Charlotte P and William C; Platinum for Rowan B
Rising Readers: Jenson Br, Charlie Sw, George F, Charlotte L, Rowan B and Seren G
Aloud and Proud readers: Elodie Y and Max H
Mr Wright
Stars of the Week
Nursery: Oli S for good listening and increased participation in small group activities.
Rosie A for good focus, kindness and improving pencil grip. Well done.
Reception: Jacob G for consistently displaying a fantastic attitude and applying himself with great effort in everything he does.
Theo M for always demonstrating enthusiasm towards our classroom activities. Theo is always happy to have a go!
Year 1: Jack T for his amazing attitude to School. He has become more considerate and much calmer. Well done!
Heidi A for her kindness and calm demeanour, always helping her friends resolve situations with grace and understanding. Well done!
Year 2: Aoife F for her fantastic delivery of your lines. Her wonderful expression and enthusiasm is sure to captivate your audience next week - well done!
Grey O for his consistently positive approach to learning. He always approaches challenge with a wonderful enthusiasm.
Mrs Henry
A highlight for me this week was listening to Year 1 as they read out delightful letters to Father Christmas. Their letters were charming and the children were very curious to know all about the elves and how many carrots Rudolf ate for his supper! I had the pleasure of popping them up the chimney on the magical Christmas hour. The children then read out the replies from Father Christmas the following day with great delight. Year 11 have had fun decorating the common room and the form rooms are now adorned with tinsel and paper chains. We are well into the Christmas spirit and are looking forward to many festivities next week including our Carol Service on Tuesday evening and the Nativity play by Pre-prep which I have no doubt will be simply delightful. The Prep School Christmas Concert this evening is shaping up to be another fabulous musical event. Good luck to all performers. There have also been some great football and netball matches from both boys and girls this week with some very skilled performances. All in all, a super week. 
Another Senior Production came to a stunning conclusion last Saturday, with the 70 pupils involved in the musical 'All Shook Up' creating a wonderful piece of theatre that wowed the adoring audiences for four nights!
The much anticipated Senior final for the House Bake Off took place. The five pupils were tasked with creating an illusion sponge cake and they more than stepped to the challenge! The creativity and baking prowess was exceptional. As always, the atmosphere was very positive and there was lots of encouragement as the wonderful creations took shape. The final results were a pepperoni pizza, a radio and two different sets of pancakes which looked very realistic. 
I want to begin this week by congratulating all the pupils involved in the Senior School production of All Shook Up. It was truly an incredible achievement and a testament to outstanding teamwork. The production's success was due to the collaborative efforts of everyone involved—those working tirelessly behind the scenes managing props, lighting, and sound; the talented individuals helping with costumes and makeup; and, of course, the brilliant performers on stage who sang, danced, and delivered humour with such flair.
Meanwhile, learning has continued in lessons this week, even amidst the excitement of the upcoming holidays and the festive joy of Christmas. Looking ahead, next week promises to be packed with holiday cheer: the Carol Concert on Tuesday evening, Christmas Jumper Day, Christmas lunch and festive films on Thursday, and our final assembly with the highly anticipated Christmas Prefect ‘Takeover’ on Friday. There’s so much to look forward to!
