The Beechwood Lion - End of Term News Lent Term 2023

THE BEECHWOOD LION

LENT TERM 2023

Photo Credit: P. Savage

It is hard to believe that after battling rainy mornings, snow, fog and ice this term we are now able to take a break, which I hope will take us into warmer weather ahead. Whether through coping with climate, or through tremendous efforts since January, I am fully aware that everyone - pupils, staff and parents - most definitely need the Easter holiday rest.

We were envious of Year 4 who enjoyed fresh conditions on their residential trip to Aylmerton in Norfolk last week. I am enormously grateful to the nine members of staff who gave up time away from their own families to accompany Year 4 - Miss Macpherson, Mrs Greenwood, Mr Bullock, Mr Le Bas, Miss Bailey, Mrs Routledge, Ms Stredwick, Mrs Oatham and Mrs Plummer. Year 7 similarly enjoyed a bracing trip to stunning Bawdsey Manor in Suffolk last week, managing to squeeze every last opportunity out of term time. The experience was made possible by Mrs Wilkins, Mr Darcy, Mr Griffiths and Mrs Hegarty, to whom I extend massive thanks at the end of a long and demanding term for them. As well as a wonderful range of team building activities, both year groups learnt a lot about their own resilience and developing characters, and I think you might find your child has grown up a little bit more as a result.

High quality creative and performing arts have kept us thoroughly entertained this term whether dramatic or musical, or indeed a mixture of both. Emil and the Detectives was a tremendously successful Middle and Senior Department production last week. 117 pupils from Year 5 to Top Form participated and packed audiences over the two nights were astounded by the confidence and talent to behold. To say that it was absolutely fantastic would be an understatement and it is gratifying that after four years we are finally able to put on a large-scale production once again which involved pupils across Year groups. Such a roaring success was made to look easy because of the attention to detail in every respect from Mrs Jacques on costume design and production, Mr Gambrell on stage technology and Mrs Hegarty for producing, directing and generally masterminding the whole performance.

The fabulous Choirs Concert was similarly a huge focus for Beechwood recently not simply because of the increasing numbers of pupils who performed – 126 in total, but it was super to have Year 2 participating for the first time. A wise person once said, that life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away. Mrs Lodge, our Director of Music, knows only too well that Lunchtime Concerts have provided many occasions where we have applauded with delight. It is wonderful to see so many parents popping in on a Friday afternoon to join an appreciative audience for the Concerts; this is often where confidence starts to build.

Full reports of our term’s sporting endeavours should have reached you regularly through the Beechwood Lion weekly newsletters. There are many highlights and memorable achievements from strong team performances this term, which are captured by Mrs Carley and her Sports Team in the round up contained further on in this newsletter (see page 74-83).

Fixtures, tournaments and sporting festivals have been part of our daily, non-stop routine throughout the term from Cross-Country, Netball and Rugby, to Swimming and Football. Efforts have been on home ground but also away at other schools and stadiums too - far and wide.

In addition to all matters co-curricular, sporting, dramatic, musical and creative, Year 6 and Top Form pupils and teachers have most definitely not lost sight of academic goals.

Hard work has clearly been centred on a strong work ethic, which, at Beechwood Park we refer to as ‘Engagement’; it is fundamental to all that we do. I am delighted to recognise several members of Year 6 and Top Form who have achieved notable success in entry to their senior schools.

This year, 19 pupils have been awarded 23 scholarships spanning Academic, Music, Art, Sport, Drama, Music and DT to the following schools:

Abbots Hill, Berkhamsted, Downe House, Haberdashers’ Girls School, Haileybury, Queenswood and St Albans School.

Congratulations to the following award holders:

11+ Awards 13+ Awards

Success isn’t always easy and the road to achieving it can be bumpy; I believe those who were not fortunate on this occasion to have received an award will have learnt a great deal about the process and should feel equally and immensely proud of their efforts. The spread of awards above reflects the first-class all-round experience and opportunities for children at Beechwood. Following such a range of applications and assessments, I am confident that Top Form are well on their way to achieving excellent results in their Beechwood Finals or Common Entrance exams in June, which will prepare them to springboard with maturity and confidence on to their senior schools.

I would like to thank the whole school community, but particularly Beechwood pupils for a very special and warm welcome this term. I have thoroughly enjoyed being part of the magic that happens at Beechwood, endeavouring to join in with as many of the incredible experiences that children have as possible. There is so much to show and tell; this newsletter can only attempt to share a glimpse, nevertheless, I hope it provides some insight, some reflection and some understanding of why your child is now ready for a rest.

I wish you a relaxing break over the Easter holiday and look forward to welcoming you back for the final term of the school year.

Please note that the first day back for pupils is on Wednesday 26 April at the usual time.

With very best wishes,

Maureen Cussans Interim Head

Ella Rose A-K, Jane C, Chloe L, Uju O; Sasha P-H.

Tom A-D; Aidan B, Max D, Joshua D, Will F, Henry G, Tommy H, Felix M, Ramsay M, William P, Anna W, Eloise W, Jamie W-S, Reuben W.

At the end of this term, we must say our sad, but fond goodbyes to staff who have either been with us all too briefly, or who have been stalwarts in their respective departments.

Mrs Balfour, Head of Year 5, is a passionate and patient educator, adored by Year 5 as much as she adores them. It must be recognised that in addition to the gratitude for guiding Year 5 children and staff with her outstanding lessons and wise counsel, Beechwood has for many years also benefitted from her significant support in the wider life of the school. Mrs Balfour’s calm and cheerful presence will be missed and we wish her all the very best as she moves on to her new role in April. We look forward to welcoming back Mrs Lane to the Middle Department for the Summer Term with 5B.

Mrs Bisset will be missed for her wonderful support and contribution to much of what has happened in Year 4 over the past seven years. In the Middle Department team, she spearheaded numerous initiatives both in and beyond the classroom, and even accompanied the first trip to Aylmerton. We wish Mrs Bisset well in her new role.

I would like to express thanks to Mrs Rutterford and Mrs Anderson, After School Care and Housekeeping Supervisors, for being enormously important threads of continuity in keeping key aspects of our children’s’ experience smoothly covered. I’m sure you join with me in wishing all our leaving staff every happiness as they move on to new pastures and challenges.

I can now bring you news regarding initial appointments to our staff team in September: Mrs June Gbedemah, Mrs Katie York and Mrs Judith Waiting will join us as Head of Mathematics, Head of English and Head of PSHE with Future Skills respectively.

I am delighted that Mr Darcy, building on his responsibility in Boarding and Head of Sebright House, will be Assistant Head Senior Department with Senior School Admissions. He will be supported in this role by a new team of Senior Heads of Year 6, Year 7 and Top Form. I will bring you further information about appointments when it is possible to do so.

The Values of the Fortnight fit carefully into the School calendar to provide timely discussions, reinforced in assemblies, or to support key School events and trends. This term the Values were Aspiration, Respect, Integrity, Perseverance and Friendship. At the start of the year, pupils reflected on what they aspired to achieve and towards the end of term, when everyone was tired, we persevered and focused on how best to manage our friendships.

In the Summer term, as part of a three year review, pupils will have the opportunity to reflect on the sixteen School Values and suggest some changes or rewording, ready for the academic year.

We have also been focusing on Etiquette, not only in the Dining Rooms but in all areas of School life, asking pupils to use Please and Thank you, to make eye-contact, to smile, to say Good Morning, to look smart (shirt tucked in!). The way pupils behave and conduct themselves reflects their personality, and the way they interact with others is usually the first things someone will notice about them. In one of the final assemblies this term, Mrs Cussans told the pupils she once received a letter from the pilot of an airplane praising one of her pupils who had been so very polite and helpful during a flight. Something to aspire to!

I know that it is of paramount importance to us all that our children are safe, happy, making good progress in their learning and interactions. As pupils use more and more digital technology and social media such as Snapchat and WhatsApp and their mobile phone in general, this is accompanied by the greater risks to online safety. So, I encourage you to be vigilant over your children’s use of digital technology and social media. Please discuss with them what they are watching, with whom they are communicating, what they are discussing and the language used. Remind them that if they were uncomfortable with anything, they should speak with a trusted adult.

I wish you all a restful Easter break!

School Uniform Reminder

The choices and flexibility in the items of School uniform pupils can wear remain the same in the Summer term as they did last term.

If a pupil would prefer wearing their skirt, shorts or trousers instead of the summer dress, that is fine. Please click here to see the Middle and Senior Department School Uniform List and here to see the Junior Department List which include the possible clothing combinations.

Mr Packer Deputy Head - Pastoral

From Science Week, practicals and chicks hatching, to Pi day, digit learning and circular challenges, to Emil and the Detectives related lessons with investigations and problem solving, to Shakespeare workshops and success at the English Speaking Union ‘Performing Shakespeare’ competition, to Geography and a new topic on fast fashion for Top Form, micro-climate investigations for Year 7 and creating earthquake proof buildings in Year 6, to a TPR Hindu temple visit, to exams and assessments (both internal and to senior schools), this term has been crammed full of academic endeavour and achievements.

Congratulations to all those children who were awarded academic scholarships this year: Ella Rose A-K, Aidan B, Joshua D, Will F, Tommy H, Uju O, and Jamie W S. It has been wonderful to witness the debating team, Joshua D, Tommy H and Aidan B, winning through to the National Finals of the Rotary Youth Speaks competition.

Thank you, once again, for all your answers and feedback on the Home Learning and Prep Survey. Home learning and prep is an extremely complex topic; research into its value does vary, although the consensus is that when learning takes place both at school and home as a combined partnership, it is hugely beneficial and leads to improved longer term outcomes. From further analysis on your responses, and having considered some overall trend in an earlier newsletter, I will summarise trends by year group:

We had fewer responses on behalf of EYFS (Woodlands Nursery and Reception) pupils and, other than the importance of developing reading skills, there was little consensus in views and feedback.

Year 1 responses showed lots of variation as well, but with a trend towards having prep.

Once again, the focus on reading was consistent; the time for allocated prep was extremely varied from nothing to 60 minutes with some focusing on the need for sleep and family time, whilst others expressed a desire for more homework.

In Year 2, the focus on reading and spellings was clear; this was also the year group where there was some concern expressed over screen time and on-line platforms. It was also the year where the amount of home learning was deemed about right!

The feedback in Year 3 was more mixed with some requesting more prep, comparing it to Year 2, some saying it was spot on and others that it was too much given the longer day and after school activities. This was the first year group where every parent said there should be some daily prep and pupils had a similar view; it was staff who felt there should be the least prep! This was also the year group where pupils requested prep in more discreet subjects, whilst the value of reading was recognised by almost everyone as was the value of online platforms.

Year 4’s feedback correlated closely with that of Year 3, with widely different views, but also articulating the step up required towards Years 5 and 6, the value of online platforms and the end of the school day with after school activities and out of school commitments. The trends in terms of time were similar, again, to Year 3

In Year 5, feedback recognised the 11+ requirements with requests for a greater focus on exam practice and key 11+ skills; this was viewed as the key purpose of prep that most people agreed with

This was also the first year group where the greatest number said that preps should include Science and Future Skills on a weekly basis.

There was more feedback and viewpoints from Year 6 than any other year group. As with some of the above years, there were many differing and conflicting opinions. There was a consensus towards focusing on 11+ examinable subjects and targeting exam practice; many parents also reflected on the challenge of the time prep can take with the school day and after school activities and commitments. This was the year group with the highest number of responses stating there should be no home learning, but also those who are looking for a step up in prep time; and despite comments requesting targeting Maths, English and Future Skills, feedback across the subjects was more wide ranging, for instance in answer to how frequent history prep should be:

Year 7 had the clearest consensus that home learning at the moment is about right and should take 30-40 minutes each evening and 60 minutes at the weekend, covering all examinable subjects on a regular basis. Clearly most parents here are not fans of projects

Otherwise, there were helpful reflections on how prep can be even more effective.

Having reached Top Form, project work and research was viewed as much more beneficial than in other year groups, particularly amongst parents. There were a number of comments on prep taking longer than the prescribed time but in terms of the actual time there were wide-ranging views

I hope this gives a year by year flavour of trends and findings; I will continue to review the feedback with Heads of Department and Heads of Year and through the Academic Committee to ensure home learning and prep is as balanced, beneficial and manageable as possible for all our pupils.

Mr Bullock Deputy Head - Academic

Senior School Advice and Guidance

Thank you for all the kind messages that I received during my absence from school. My knee replacement went well and I’m looking forward to returning to School at the start of next term.

It was great to meet so many parents on Zoom at the start of February. I hope that you found the sessions on 11+ and 13+ Senior School Admissions useful. Next term, I’m delighted to be able to offer three further sessions in the Performance Hall so that we can meet in person. You will be able to talk to other staff and to pupils who have been through the admissions processes this year.

I will send you further details nearer the time but the dates for your diary are:

• Thurs 18 May – Senior School Information Evening for Parents of Year 6 and Year 7 Pupils

• Tues 23 May – Senior School Information Evening for Parents of Year 5 Pupils

• Thurs 22 June – Senior School Information Evening for Parents of Year 3 and Year 4 Pupils

We look forward to meeting you at one of these events but feel free to email me if you have any questions before then.via k.clarke@beechwoodpark.com

Wishing you all an enjoyable and relaxing Easter break, and I look forward to seeing your children back at School after the holidays.

With best wishes,

Mrs Clarke Director of Senior School Admissions

“Variety’s the very spice of life, that gives it all its flavour.”

William Cowper

Variety is a-plenty at Beechwood and nowhere more so than in our co-curricular provision.

Whether on a virtual trip to Mexico for a fiesta, or an actual trip to Norfolk or Suffolk, there is always an adventure to be had whilst at Beechwood. This term, as ever, has been filled to the brim with exciting and enriching activities to supplement the academic learning and it can be hard to select the highlights.

How to summarise a term when just in the first week we had a Performing Shakespeare Workshop for our Year 7 cohort, a trip to St Albans Abbey for Reception, an excellent Scholars’ Lunchtime Concert, as well as hockey, netball and rugby matches and we even squeezed in an U10 Rugby Festival at the weekend.

There are so many different moments to celebrate and cherish, but the highlights for me this term have been when many year groups or entire departments have come together in a co-curricular event. Whether that be the Beechwood cross-country event back in January, our Choirs’ Concert featuring all three departments or the recent production of Emil and the Detectives.

There is something about a Cross-Country Event that makes me very emotional and I often find myself tearing up! I think it’s the range of emotions you witness a child going through from start to finish. The nerves and excitement before the race begins, the nervous chatter on the start line, the discussion about who will run with whom and do they know the route and are their shoelaces tied tightly enough. It’s the variety of facial expressions as the pupils run ranging from great excitement, to dogged determination, to pure relief once the finishing line has been crossed. It’s the electric atmosphere created by the spectators, the younger classes who come out to support older siblings, the staff on flag posts cheering on their pupils.

Yes, the prizegiving at the end celebrates the achievements of the most able athletes, breaking records and - rightlybeing congratulated for their ability and agility, but best of all, for me, is seeing the participation of the children who don’t find this event easy - the pupils who dread cross-country but go out and try their hardest for their house or their school. The amazing Beechwood spirit I witness when older pupils or pupils who have finished their race and recovered,

join their friends for that final lap of the field, demonstrating our school values in bucket fulls - cheering, encouraging, helping their friends along. And this is why I get emotional!

Cross-country seems to bring out the absolute best in people - it’s an event that so many find challenging but an event that everyone can take part in. If you keep putting one foot in front of the other, you will cross the finish line at some point. So, for me, this event was a true highlight as it’s one of the times I witness the magic of Beechwood on display for all.

After all, it was two of our teachers who supported a struggling runner from another school, running the entire course alongside them, and our pupils who cheered them over the finish line.

Beechwood

through and through.

The Choirs ‘Concert was a very special evening as we had choirs from the Junior, Middle and Senior Department performing together.

It is not often that we come together as a whole school inside, as we don’t really fit! It was a joy to sit back and listen to the different choirs ranging from Year 2s rousing performance of “Dang-A-Rang-A-Dang Do!’, to the dramatic rendition of “We’re All Made of Stars” by our Year 3 and 4 Musical Theatre group, to the Chamber Choir who delighted us with a varied repertoire of songs from all genres, my particular favourite being “Putting’ on the Ritz”.

Singing in a choir is proven to create social bonding and it automatically brings different people together. The Choirs’ Concert did just that. It was lovely to see the Performance Hall filled with parents ranging from Year 2 to Top Form, all together, celebrating the musical achievements of their respective children.

I left that evening feeling blessed to have enjoyed such an excellent concert on a Tuesday night!

Emil and the Detectives was a perfect example of all the co-curricular departments working together to create a fantastic show.

Yes, the Drama Department was front and centre but the other departments were also working away in the background.

Our amazing Heads of Art and Design Technology made and designed much of the set and props, our Music Department led the tech side of things and Sports staff were backstage helping out with supervision and getting all the cast to the right place at the right time.

It truly was a team effort from staff and pupils and the end result was a fantastic production showcasing the best of Beechwood. A school play is testament to the saying that “hard work pays off” - during the first few rehearsals of a play, it can be hard to imagine the production coming together, the first full run through is often a disaster and the play goes on and on, even with a few characters missing their scene!

But through hard work and dedication, whether at home learning lines or in rehearsals through lunch and break, the play steadily takes form. The beauty of the final performances is that you don’t see evidence of the grit behind the scenes but just the final polished picture and what a picture it was. My huge thanks and congratulations goes out to every child and adult who helped bring this wonderful production to life.

So, having looked back on this Lent Term with so much to celebrate and commemorate, it is time for a richly deserved rest. I hope you all have a wonderful Easter break and come back ready and raring for a fun-packed Summer term. There is plenty to look forward...workshops, day trips or residentials for every year group including Woodlands; a multitude of events from BPSPA including the return of ‘Picnic on the Lawn’, a Coronation Tea Party, Beech Club and the inaugural Beechwoof event; sports matches and concerts a plenty; Latin Plays and Rap Plays and all rounded off with Speech Day and Fun Night!

Miss Macpherson Director of Co-Curricular

UpRoar, the Beechwood Podcast

The Beechwood Podcast Club have been meeting regulary this term to plan lots of exciting content. So far they have interviewed Mrs Cussans, Ms Harris and Mrs Hegarty, and also were our roving reporters at the Beechwood Cross Country Event.

You can listen to their podcasts here:

Mrs Cussans

Ms Harris

Mrs Hegarty

Thank you to the team, led by Mr Gambrell: Matthew F, Isaac C, Issac G, Marcus H, Benedict B, Adam C, Henry G, Reuben W

House Captains

Well done and thank you to those pupils who have served as House Captains during Lent Term:

• Felix M (Saunders)

• Sid (Sebright)

• Henry G (Stewart)

• Joshua D (Tudor)

Congratulations to the pupils who have been chosen to succeed them in the Summer Term:

• Adam C (Saunders)

• Seb C (Sebright)

• Eloise W (Stewart)

• Will J (Tudor).

Lent Term House Points

House Music Competition

Ready, Steady, Music

Changing Room - Boys

1st Sebright 40 points

2nd Saunders 30 points

3rd Stewart 20 points

4th Tudor 10 points

Changing Room - Girls

1st Saunders 40 points

2nd Stewart 30 points

3rd Tudor 20 points

4th Sebright 10 points

Accelerated Reader

Golden Frying Pan (Pancake Races)

1st Stewart 35 points

2nd Tudor 30 points

3rd Saunders 25 points

4th Sebright 20 points

Fewest Debits

1st Sebright 50 points

2nd Saunders 40 points

3rd Tudor 30 points

4th Stewart 20 points

Clan Shield Lent Term 2023

Most Credits per pupil

1st Saunders 500 points 86.28

2nd Sebright 400 points 82.99

3rd Stewart 350 points 82.28

4th Tudor 200 points 79.66

Adding up all the points from the above categories, in addition to House Match results (see Sports pages for details), the winner of the Lent Term 2023 Clan Shield was SAUNDERS. Congratulations to all Saunders members for contributing to this success.

Position House Total Points

1st Saunders 1076

2nd Sebright 1007

3rd Stewart 1001

4th Tudor 811

The Mack Moffat Cup

Every term, the Heads of School, in consulation with members of staff, choose a recipient for the Mack Moffat Cup. This is a trophy awarded to a pupil in the Middle or Senior Department who embodies the Beechwood Values, and who always gives their all to the School.

This term, Heads of School Millie and Aidan, presented the cup to William (4R). Congratulations William!

This term, we welcomed a number o new members of staff to Beechwood. As not every parent will have had a chance to meet them yet, a team of pupil interviewers embarked on a task to find out a little bit more about the newer members of our community....

Ms Harris, Head of Boarding and Head of Geography (and Rolo the Boarding House Dachshund)

What were you doing before you came to Beechwood?

Before coming at Beechwood I was living and working just down the road, in St Albans. I was Deputy Head Pastoral at St Albans High School for Girls.

What made you want to work here?

I came to visit Beechwood for the Future Schools Fair (representing STAHS) and I absolutely loved my evening! Everyone I met was very friendly and all the parents and teachers were so child-focused and left a very good impression on me. I drove away looking in my rear-view mirror feeling sad to leave. I remember hoping and hoping and keeping my fingers crossed that a job would come up that I could apply for. A few weeks later, Head of Boarding and Head of Geography was advertised and the rest, as they say, is history!

What were your first impressions of Beechwood?

I remember thinking that it was a very special community that felt just like a very big family. I remember being impressed by the way that everything was about doing what was right for the pupils, and that the children were considered as the individuals that they are. I think I knew that it was a very special place when I first visited.

What is your favourite part of the School and why?

My favourite part of the School is actually the grounds! I love being outside, anyway, and feel so lucky to have seen the woods and fields springing into life in the past few months. The daffodils make me smile as they always seem to be dancing. My second favourite place is the library; I can get lost in a good book and the Beechwood Park Library is so well stocked, it’s like a treasure trove!

What is your favourite school meal?

This is a hard question to answer as the food at Beechwood is so tasty. I think macaroni and cheese is a firm favourite for me as it’s just the right balance of cheesy and creamy - yum!

What has been your highlight of the last term?

This past term I have met so many people, learned so many new things and now feel very much at home and part of the community. I think that’s a highlight in itself but I’ve also really enjoyed all the little celebrations we’ve had like Pancake Day, the laser tag event we did in Boarding, the Easter celebrations around School and of course the Easter Egg Hunt in Boarding.

Tell us an interesting fact about yourself

I’m a very keen swimmer, and swam for Hertfordshire in a Masters Level Gala in November last year. I have my Primary School Headmistress to thank for my love of swimming; when I was in Y6 she told my Mum and me that I was very strong in the pool and had good stamina so when we moved house, Mum enrolled me in swimming lessons! I’ve really enjoyed the odd weekend dip in the Beechwood Park swimming pool - I’m looking forward to having the opportunity to swim with the roof off in the summer time too.

Mrs Routledge, Head of Year 4

What were you doing before you came to Beechwood? I was a Year 4 teacher at St Martin’s School in Northwood.

What made you want to work here?

I wanted to work here because I love the child-centred approach to learning and I wanted to work in place with such a beautiful setting. I had also many wonderful things and I wanted to be part of that community.

What was your first impressions of Beechwood?

My first impressions of Beechwood Park was ‘Wow!’. Since I have started working here everyone made me feel extremely welcome.

What is your favourite part of the School and why?

Definitely Forest School! I have never worked in a school that has such an amazing area like that. I really enjoy going there with my class and we all learn loads of new and exciting things. I also really like the Library as it is such a wonderful large space with so many books, it is also so peaceful and has an amazing view!

What is your favourite school meal?

Mac n Cheese, it is delicious!

Tell us an interesting fact about yourself. My favourite colour is red and has been since I was a little girl, I am often wearing something red and am always carrying my red tea mug! My watch strap is also red and my car has red on it!

Watch Mrs Routledge’s class interview her HERE

Miss DOYLE , Year 3 Teacher

What were you doing before you came to Beechwood?

I was working as Head of Science at Buckingham Prep School in Pinner. And have taught all year groups from Year 1 – Year 6.

What made you want to work here?

Driving up the Beechwood drive was enough to convince me to work at Beechwood! The beautiful grounds paired with the wonderful and welcoming staff team helped me quickly realise that Beechwood was a special place to be.

What was your first impressions of Beechwood?

My first impressions of Beechwood were that it is a buzzing and busy place to be. Alongside the polite, intelligent pupils I soon noticed how many different opportunities there are; from Drama performances, to Cross Country events – there is never NOT an exciting event happening and it is so brilliant to see how enthusiastic everybody is about these.

What is your favourite part of the School and why?

This has to be my 3D classroom. Yes there are many beautiful areas, grounds and pockets of the chool but the 3D classroom is definitely where it’s happening!

What is your favourite school meal?

It is so hard to choose my favourite school lunch, Emily and the team certainly know how to deliver something special! The carbonara or the aranchi balls are firm favourites of mine. If you can’t tell, Italian food is definitely a love of mine.

Tell us an interesting fact about yourself. I was a competitive gymnast for over 13 years, coached and competed with a national cheerleading team and love taking on physical challenges!

Sue

Grant - Celebrating 35 Years at Beechwood

In 1987, Sue Grant moved to Beechwood with her husband, Allan, who was Head Groundsman at the School. They lived in the Courtyard Flat, above the old stables, part of what is now the Recording Studio and iMac Suite.

In 1989, Sue took on a classroom role, supporting children and staff in the Junior Department, a role she loved and flourished in. Following the birth of her daughter Chloe in September 1991, Sue decided to formalise her role, and began training as Teaching Assistant, supported by a variety of Beechwood staff members - and Helen Dalkin even attended the award ceremony with Sue in St Albans.

In the years that followed, Sue worked with all year groups in the Junior Department, but her love lay with the Early Years, and so she focussed on Reception classes. Upon Allan’s retirement from his role, the Grants moved out of their flat, but Sue remained as a Reception Teaching Assistant, a role she holds to this day, albeit on a more part-time basis!

In her 35 years at Beechwood, Sue has also worked as After School Care Leader, and has also enjoyed stints as Holiday Club Team Member and part of the organising committees for both Fun Night and the Beechwood Ball. In all these roles, Sue has been, and continues to be, a much-loved figure around the whole School.

Members of staff came together during the Lent Term to recognise and celebrate Sue’s long and impressive service to Beechwood; Sue is always smiling, always quick to offer help, advice and guidance, always working with compassion and always nurturing her pupils, and supporting fellow staff members.

Congratulations Sue on this milestone, and a huge THANK YOU from everyone at Beechwood - staff, pupils and parents, both past and present, for your loyalty, your commitment, and your boundless energy and sense of fun.

Mr Packer

The Lent Term has finished which means we'll only have 11 weeks left with your children once the Summer Term starts. I always feel that by the time we get to this point of the academic year, the Woodlanders are secure and confident in the Nursery and understand the routine of their week, have found some friends and are feeling like they belong. We teachers are so delighted by the visible progress they have made, their energy and positivity towards Nursery and their behaviour.

Let me just look back on some of my own highlights of this past term:

Green Class's love of singing, acting and role play: Their skill at using Alexa and joining in with their football anthems and pop songs! Their excellent table manners and their super listening skills, making them so easy to teach. Their independence and confidence. Well done, Green Class and their amazing teachers.

Orange class's passion for joining up all the various areas of their class with Sellotape and masking tape! Their love of cleaning and using spray bottles with at least 30 cloths per day! Their drive and subsequently high-level skills for creating wonderful structures, models and vehicles out of foam bricks and magnetic tiles. And, their excitement at having their nails painted and arms covered in tattoos! Plus of course, their wonderful, expressive language - they talk a lot about all kinds of interesting things. Well done Orange Class and their inspirational teachers.

We have covered so much this term, both in terms of planned content and thanks to our 'In The Moment' philosophy in Woodlands where we allow our children's passions, interests and questions to steer the learning and activities. You only have to look back over your Tapestry accounts for the last term to remind yourself of how much your children have experienced and learnt.

Thank you for your support with resources, photos and everything else you have provided each time we have asked. You are a really supportive group of parents.

As your children's teachers in Woodlands, we can't stop ourselves discussing the HUGE amount of progress we are seeing in all our children as the Lent Term finishes. We are so proud of them all and one of the things we are most impressed by, is how much they learn from one another.

We have noticed our N2 children helping our N1 children to do up their coats or encouraging them gently to try and do it for themselves. We have also seen our N1 children teaching the N2 children the words of a song from the new Matilda film and both our year groups interacting in such a beneficial way with each other. The advantages of teaching the N1 and the N2 groups together, truly shines through at this time of year.

The younger children admire and look up to the older children and they are so motivated to learn as many skills as they can from their older friends. They also benefit from picking up language skills and new play ideas. The N1 children are now brimming with confidence and it has been wonderful watching them create fantastic murals together with their N2 counterparts, in our Artists Gallery in Orange Class, this final week of term.

Our older N2’s relish the opportunity to teach their younger friends and when they are doing this, they

are embedding their own knowledge and skills. Explaining how to complete a skill really helps them to master their own learning. Just this week, we have seen an N2 child teaching others how to fold paper to cut a circle, (eye holes) in a mask and others reading stories to their friends, whilst pretending to be a teacher. Just recently, our N1's and N2's, completed a jigsaw puzzle together, each child offering their particular input and helping each other along the way, until the puzzle was completed. What great team work and negotiating skills they were developing during this.

Our mixture of N1 and N2 age groups also more closely reflects a real family. A learning environment where everyone belongs and feels secure. We are a family at Woodlands Nursery and all our wonderful Woodlanders are growing up, developing in confidence, and learning so much from each other.

Another facet of the education we strive to deliver in Woodlands is to offer the children daily opportunities to express themselves, whether this be through art, craft, talk, acting or dance.

In our Green Class this term, the children have relished being expressive in every way possible! They have been mark-making, dancing to the Conga and George Ezra and been role playing at being "Mums" and "Dads". We observe lovely friendships blossom through doing these things together and they have become a solid, "team" Green in recent weeks.

We have also been encouraging the children to express themselves in dance whilst responding to Mozart's music. As the session developed, we saw some wonderful. creative body shapes, movements and stretches from these 3 and 4 year olds. Afterwards they verbally expressed their feelings of happiness, excitement and enjoyment. Mrs McIntosh explorws the feeling of 'anger', through talk, a balloon and a story book.

Next term, Tracy, one of our Green Class teachers and a Mindfulness Practitioner, is going to run a whole week for the Woodlanders exploring Mindfulness and emotions - something new and inspirational for us all to look forward to.

Whilst we openly state that we work with the Woodlanders on their Phonics, Maths and writing skills which we believe are important, so much of what we do with your children is to build their confidence, self-esteem, understanding of themselves and social skills and all the time we weave in fun, movement, laughter, respect and kindness. A perfect recipe in my book!

Happy Easter to every Woodlander and their family and we will see you, along with eight new pupils at the end of April.

Shirley Hayman Head of Woodlands Nursery

As the last Easter hat disappears down the drive, scattering fluffy feathers and losing eggs of all shapes and sizes along the way it is difficult to remember the start of the Lent Term back in January.

Thinking back though there have been some amazing highlights to reflect on this term. Our Reception children embarked on their very first school trip as soon as we returned after the school holidays.

They were fascinated by the materials all around them in St. Albans Abbey and having observed and felt the different tiles found in the nave, they made their own beautiful clay tiles adorned with an array of religious symbols to bring back to school to paint with lustrous colour.

Staying with the theme of trips and visits, Year 2 thoroughly enjoyed their day out at Kew Gardens learning about how plants adapt to various climates.

The treetop walkway and children’s garden were other firm favourites, even though some children (and adults) had to be ‘tough tortoises’ to overcome their reservations and fears.

This was a new trip for our Year 2 children and their teachers and one that was thoroughly enjoyed by all and will definitely be repeated!

For Year 1 the excitement came to them in the form of an African drumming workshop. Concentration and determination were written all over their faces as they mastered different rhythms and built up to a brilliant finale.

Our Maths Day in February was another first for the Junior Department. The curriculum was collapsed for the day with other subjects being sidelined in favour of an immersive Maths experience. The children arrived at school to find all sorts of changes and out of the ordinary activities. Reception’s corridor and outdoor classroom was full of circles, Year 1 had a mysterious quest to go on to recover a chest full of coins and Year 2 had length and height challenges galore. The excitement was palpable. The fun and learning continued apace both inside and out throughout the day and I am sure the children had a day they won’t forget for a while.

Year 1 have all performed a class assembly to the children and teachers in the Junior Department. Their confidence, enthusiasm and enjoyment have been wonderful to see. 1W kicked us off with their assembly all about dinosaurs. The stand-out moment was the performance poem with some huge roars. 1O were next imparting all that they had learnt about Africa. They loved singing the continents song and getting us to guess which African animal they were describing. Finally, 1J delighted us with an assembly all about time, including the days of the week and months of the year. They had some line dancing that brought a smile to the audience’s faces.

Monthly birthday parties, Forest School, World Book Day, Children’s Mental Health Week are all a well-established part of the Beechwood calendar but still important, nonetheless. These are occasions for celebration and give us the opportunity to get to know the children as individuals a little better and see them in a different light.

Our Reception children have had their first taste of the amazing activities programme Beechwood offers with a lunchtime 1st Kicks Soccer Club. The coach, Daniel, not only works on their Messi insides and touches to control the ball with different parts of the foot, he also helps them improve their balance and co-ordination, their listening and cognitive skills and makes them more aware of their bodies and the benefits of exercise. All that in a 40-minute lunchtime club!

Another exciting activities event was the Junior Choir performing in our Choirs’ Concert. Seeing and hearing the children sing was very special and they showed that age should not hinder what we can achieve.

Finally, it has been so lovely to be able to invite our parents into the classrooms once more for our Open Classrooms Morning after a long hiatus. The pride with which our youngest children showed their adults around all the Junior classrooms and far beyond it seems, told us how important sharing what they get up to each day is to them and to you! We look forward to many more happy, family events in the future.

Wishing all our Junior Department families a wonderful Easter break, and we all look forward to seeing your children back at School for what is going to be an action-packed Summer Term.

Mrs McIntosh Head of Junior Department

Message from Mrs Greenwood

It seems hardly any time ago that I was wishing you all a very happy Christmas and new year, and here we are with Easter approaching rapidly too!

As I write this, I am away in Aylmerton in North Norfolk, with our wonderful Year 4 children and an equally wonderful staff team; we have all had a brilliant time, and I know that the very special Aylmerton magic the children have experienced will live with them forever and they will always remember it fondly. They have been wonderful company, they have learned a lot about themselves and each other, whilst visibly growing in confidence and stature as the week has progressed, rising to every challenge which has come their way.

Whilst we have been away, Year 3 have held their postponed Christmas Market, when Year 1 children joined them to spend some money which is such a useful life skill for both the buyers and the sellers. Once again, a good time was had by all, and a lot of practical maths happened as well!

Many of the Year 5 children have performed with commitment, poise and enjoyment in ‘Emil and the Detectives’, and Year 5 also held a very special Forest School session in the penultimate week of term, during which Mrs Balfour was able to say a very fond farewell to all the children in Year 5.

Mrs Balfour has been both an inspirational Head of Year 5 and champion of each and every one of the children, but alongside this, she has been a truly wonderful colleague who we will all miss so very much. We wish her every success as she leaves Beechwood to join Mr Balfour at Edge Grove. Thank you, Mrs Balfour, for quite simply being ‘Wonderful You’!

The Middle Department teaching team and I wish you all the happiest of holidays, safe travels and lots of very special family time over the Easter period.

Nicola Greenwood Head of Middle Department

SUMMER TERM NOTE FOR YEAR 3 Analogue Time in the Summer

Year 3 will be doing a unit on analogue time during the Summer Term. They are much more used to digital time, as we use it for timetables and many of them have digital watches. Analogue time is trickier to learn and can take some time to master. We would really appreciate your help to prepare your children for this unit. Please could you ensure that they have an analogue watch and that they wear it in school whenever they can. On days that they have a music lesson they may need to wear their digital watch to ensure that they get to the Music Department on time. Please could they get used to wearing their analogue watches over the Easter break and could you ask them the time and help them read it. If they are confident, they could progress onto answering questions about future times “What will be the time in an hour..10 minutes..20 minutes?” “How else could you say 15 minutes past/to?” Any opportunity for pre-learning would really benefit their learning. Thank you in advance for your support!

Year 4 on Tour - Aylmerton 2023

Year 4 had the most wonderful time away at Aylmerton Field Study Centre in Cromer, Norfolk. It is always a gamble going away this early in the year, but luckily, this year the weather was kind and we didn’t get rained on at all - although it was just a little bit windy at times. We even managed too have our lunch on the beach!

Pupils and teachers alike participated in many activities including team building, den building, a twilight walk (carefully avoiding treading on lots of frogs!), listening to a story telling, seeing loads of seals on a beach, rock hunting, rock pooling, stroking birds, insects and reptiles, zip lining, bushcraft, high ropes,... oh and a Monster Trail! We had a fantastic time with lots of fun and it was a pleasure to see the children grow in confidence and independence.

Here is what the children said about our time away:

• “It was fun because I really liked the fact that there wasn’t a big break in between activities, it was constant games and activities!” – Amelia

• “I liked the teachers, they always made teaching fun and I liked their names! I liked it how they made funny noises in the Monster Trail when they came out of the bushes.” – Henry

• “I really liked the fact that we got to make new friends and I liked being outdoors!” – Emily

• “I liked when they told us about the day at breakfast time and I liked being outside.”- Mariia

• “I really enjoyed going to Aylmerton. I wish I could go there again!”-Sienna

• “It was really cool that we got to have our own dorms and make new friends.”-Abbey

• “The Aylmerton staff were really nice and looked after us brilliantly.”- Will

• “In Aylmerton we took on new challenges and always overcame them” - Penelope

• “I’ll never forget Aylmerton, it will always stay in my heart” - Simran

Thank you so much to all the staff who gave up their time to spend with the Year 4 children and made this trip happen.

Year 3 Easter Treasure Hunt

At the end of term Year 3 took part in an Easter themed treasure hunt as part of their end of term activities. Each class was given a riddle which then led to a further riddle clue, these clues were hidden around the school and linked to our English focus on riddle writing. Each Year 3 class worked well together to decipher the clues and found their final prize – A golden ticket that awarded them 15 minutes extra golden time! A stellar effort from all classes and a lot of fun that certainly cheered up a very rainy day.

Message from Mrs Wright

What a fabulous term we have had in the Senior Department. The Lent Term is always a special one for me as we emerge from Winter and look forward to the Spring; the grounds are changing, the days are lighter and the pupils are settled into the school year. This is when we really hit our stride.

Year 6 have navigated the change of pace that occurs in the Michaelmas Term and their confidence as Senior Department pupils continues to grow. They have shown real ownership of the Senior Department and were excellent tour guides for visiting prospective parents this term. They also opened the doors of their co-curricular classrooms and welcomed in their parents to show them, with deserved pride, what they had been getting up to in Art, DT, Drama and Music.

Last week we waved Year 7 off on their long-awaited trip to Bawdsey Manor; we followed their escapades with delight on our social media feeds.

The Top Form Pupil Leadership Team was appointed this term and we also have newly formed Peer Mentor and Year 5 Transition Groups (more on this soon). I have been incredibly impressed with them so far in all they have done. I am a firm believer in giving our pupils meaningful leadership roles in their Top Form year; the additional responsibilities enable them to grow and prepare for their transition to senior school.

A number of pupils across different year groups stepped up their studies this term in preparation for next school assessments: attending after school activities; lunchtime drop-ins and making use of our different online learning platforms. There has certainly been an air of purpose in all that they have done this term. Do you think you could do the work (and under time pressure) that they do? Why not try some papers and put yourself in their shoes...

In Senior Department assemblies we have celebrated neurodiversity; kindness; and explored the power of words. In lessons I continue to be impressed by the creativity of my colleagues and the wonderful attitude to learning demonstrated by our pupils. From World Book Day, Lego Competitions, Pi Day and Science Week (including the arrival of some fluffy friends), there is never a dull moment at Beechwood!

And, of course, we have had the school production. The cast and crew of Emil and the Detectives were absolutely amazing and a true testimony to what the Beechwood community can achieve when we come together. It continues to be a pleasure to be Head of the Senior Department and I look forward to seeing what we achieve together in the Summer Term.

In the meantime, enjoy a restful break and have a Happy Easter.

Mrs Wright Head of Senior Department

In recognition of their effort and engagement in lessons and their contribution to school life this term, Mrs Cussans invited a number of Year 6 pupils to a special lunch on Thursday. The pupils enjoyed “waiter service” at the specially laid table in the Boarders’ Common Room, and spent the occasion discussing a variety of topics important to their year group.

Congratulations to the following pupils on their presence at the launch of the “Credit Club” – the name chosen by the pupils:

Well done to :

George F, Ivie R, Archie L, Charlotte F, Elliot F, Riley T, Holly C, Elliot M, Joe K, William R, Alex R, and Arabella H

Mrs Wright’s Recognition Awards

Congratulations to the following Senior Department pupils who have received recognition awards from Mrs Wright this term:

Year 6 Year 7 Top Form

Zoe A, Ella Rose A-K, Holly C (2), Jane C Florence C Bertie C (2), Mathew D , Jasmine E, George F, Paddy G (2) Alex H, Arabella

H (2), Rose H, Elsie K, Archie L, Kaede L, Chloe L Anjola O, Sasha

PH, Ivie R., William R (2) Evie R, Finlay S Carla S, Jack W (2)

Diego AS, Benedict B, Oscar B

Matthew F, Harry G, Hector G, Chloe I, Nicole I, Chris LM

Ramsay M, Charlie N, Wilfred O

Thomas P, Felix R, Arthur S

Arisa T, Jamie W-S

Jacob H, Charlotte R

Congratulations to our Top Form Debating Team who have reached the national finals of the Rotary Youth Speaks Competition 2023.

Having battled their way through local and district rounds, the Beechwood Team, comprised of Top Formers Aidan B, Tommy H and Joshua D, accompanied by Team Manager Mrs Beavis, headed to the Perse School. Cambridge for the East Regional Finals last weekend.

The team was debating against predominantly Year 9 pupils in the Intermediate Category, from Grays Convent Hight School, Essex, St Joseph’s College, Ipswich and Wellington College, Berkshire.

Topics of debate included the following:

• The Monarchy should be abolished (Beechwood)

• Is school the only route for education of over 14 year olds? (Grays Convent High School)

• Climate change – should we REALLY worry about it? (St Joseph’s College)

• Social Media and technology are ruining our friendships (Wellington College)

Aidan (Chairman), Tommy (Proposer) and Joshua (Opposer) were exceptionally well-prepared but also displayed the key skill of seasoned debaters – the ability to think on their feet – and the quality of both the content and structure of their arguments, and their fabulous sense of humour made them the incredibly worthy – and happy – winners. This win means that Beechwood has entered uncharted territory, and will be competing at the National Finals next month.

Mrs Beavis said of the boys “All three performed with their usual poise, panache and charm, and were truly outstanding in this fiercely competitive round against incredibly able public speakers. Debating is not simply turning up and speaking – the boys were quick to think, paced their delivery beautifully, and made wonderful use of pauses to really engage with their audience. I am beyond thrilled for them that they have achieved so much, and cannot wait to accompany them to Rugby for the next round in April”

Interim Head, Maureen Cussans, added “We are all so proud of Tommy, Aidan and Josh’s performance at the Youth Speaks Competition, and wish them all the luck in the world as they move through the National Finals. I would also like to thank and congratulate Helen Beavis for her commitment to Beechwood Debating – there is a long history of success in this competition, with the Beechwood team reaching regional finals last year too. Her unstinting support and hard work have been, and continue to be, much appreciated by the teams and the School as a whole”

The team will be competing at Lawrence Sheriff School in Rugby on Sunday 23 April – we look forward to sharing how they get on with you.

It’s hard to pick out highlights from Boarding at Beechwood when it feels like every week there has been something fun and exciting going on in Boarding! Boarding is such a joyful part of school-life; I don’t know whether it’s the family feel of dinner in the Great Hall, or the energy of the Boarders’ Games Room or the calm familiarity of the bedtime routine … it’s easy to find something to celebrate in each evening.

From decorating pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, to Swimming Pool Games Night and our final night of term Easter Egg Hunt we’ve had a blast! Laser tag was another real highlight of this term, despite the mud and rain. The Summer Term Boarding Activities promise lots of fun, too, and it’ll be a pleasure to make the most of the lighter evenings and better weather and really get to play outside.

A huge thank you to the fantastic team of Boarding Staff!

Ms Harris Head of Boarding

We have had a fabulous term in maths at Beechwood, with continued effort and engagement from pupils who are keen to learn and make excellent progress. We have also had lots of fun in the process.

One of the highlights this term was when we came together as a maths team to celebrate Pi Day! Every year on 14th March, maths enthusiasts like to take the opportunity to talk about Pi; eat pie; recite the digits of Pi. Anything to do with Pi really. So far Pi has been calculated to over one trillion digits beyond its decimal point. As it is an irrational and transcendental number, it will continue infinitely without repetition or pattern. Pi is the most studied number in mathematics, and is an integral part of many calculations.

Five Fun Facts about Pi

Here are some facts you can impress people with:

• Pi is part of Egyptian mythology. People in Egypt believed that the pyramids of Giza were built on the principles of Pi. The vertical height of the pyramids have the same relationship with the perimeter of their base as the relationship between a circle’s radius and its circumference!

• There is an entire writing style based on the number Pi. The number of letters in the successive words must be the same as the digits of Pi.

• A crop circle was found in 2008 that showed a coded image of the first ten digits of Pi.

• Albert Einstein was born on Pi day! And so was Mr Darcy!

• The Greek letter π is the first letter of the words periphery and perimeter. And as well all know, Pi is the ratio of a circle’s periphery to its diameter.

Some of the ways we celebrated Pi Day:

Making Pi Day paper chains: By having each digit represented by a colour and pupils writing the digits on the loop themselves. In Year 5 Mrs Balfour’s group created a PIper chain with over 200 links, by designating a colour for every digit and reserving the one and only black paper link for the decimal point!

Digits of Pi memory competition: Lots of pupils from the Junior, Middle and Senior departments took part in this year's annual competition. This year's winner was Ismail W in Year 5 with 180 digits,. Well done, Ismail! Well done also to James in Year 3 who recited an impressive 166 digits

Pi Day Skyline Pictures:: Pi Day gives us the opportunity to get creative with circles; art and maths. Can you spot the connection between the heights of the buildings and the first digits of Pi?

Calculating relationships of measurements

Mr Reading’s Year 5 group headed outside as they paced out semicircles on the tennis courts and then the radius of their semicircle and then headed back inside to calculate the relationship between the measurements.

Freehand Circle Drawing

Competition:

Who can draw the perfect freehand circle? This was what the painter Giotto said he could do! This activity allowed pupils (and Mrs G!) to demonstrate their mastery of properties of circles while having a bit of fun! Try it yourself here

We are a bit sad the Pi Day celebration are all over for another year, and the Maths Department staff are already thinking that we might have to celebrate Tau Day just so that we can continue the circle fun!

Tau Day is a celebration of the circle constant C/r = 6.283185..........

Founded in 2010, Tau Day takes place annually on June 28 (6.28 in the Americal calendar system) and gives us a brand-new number to learn!

Mrs Wright Head of Maths

Junior Department Maths Day

This Term, the Junior Department hosted a special Maths Day

Reception children arrived at School to find an enormous circle on Orchard Gate that they had to pass under, before following and stepping on circles to get to their classrooms which had been transformed by, guess what? Masses of circles! Activities throughout our themed Maths Day involved making HUGE circles outside with Mr Le Bas swinging around on a chair to draw a chalk circle, learning mathematical vocabulary such as circumference, diameter and radius, finding the centre of a circle and drawing hundreds of circles between us!

We also used Kandinsky’s Concentric Circles to inspire some art work, and finished off the day with some fun circle games. Maths, art, teamwork and problem solving were all part of our day and above all…we had lots of fun whilst learning!

Year 1 pupils were immersed in money during Maths Day. It began with a letter from a mysterious visitor, who was staying in the Beechwood forest. This led us on a hunt to find a treasure chest full of coins. Once we found the treasure, it was divided equally between the three classes. Each class then sorted their share into different values, from smallest to largest. The children were then able to make different amounts using a range of coins, where they put their place value and addition knowledge to good use. This was excellent preparation for the afternoon, as Year 1 classrooms were transformed into a bakery, a pet shop and a book shop. The children were able to visit each shop using their money to buy various items, they carefully chose what they wanted to buy and what coins they needed to use to pay for it and then most importantly what change they back. All of these activities provided opportunities for the children to put their maths skills to the test with some excellent calculations. Click here to see more photos from our day.

Armed with their rulers, Year 2 dived into a day of measuring on Thursday. We ordered, compared, estimated and of course measured different heights and lengths, with a smidge of problem solving thrown in for ‘good measure’.

To start the day the children were met with challenges…How long a playdough snake can you role? How tall a tower of cm cubes can you build? They perfected the skill of using a centimetre ruler creating and measuring a Numicon city and landscape of flowers. The highlight had to be taking our learning outside the classroom with a scavenger hunt. How long do you estimate the width of Orchard Green to be? Ask any Year 2 child for the answer!

As ever, it has been another busy term in the Beechwood English Department! Here are just some of our highlights of the Lent Term 2023:

National Storytelling Week

National Storytelling Week takes place every year and is a celebration of the power of sharing stories. Stories teach us about the world, they allow us to step into someone else’s shoes and feel empathy, they help us to relax and escape and they can help develop essential literacy skills.

At Beechwood, pupils in Year 6 visited Woodlands nursery to share stories with the youngest members of our school community. There was a palpable buzz in the air as the Year 6 pupils told their stories with passion, and the Woodlanders listened with awe. It was lovely to see our senior pupils ‘buddying up’ with our Woodlanders to read stories, answer their questions and together work out which superhero they would be.

When Woodlands Nursery opened its doors eight years ago, some of our now Year 6 pupils were the first children to step foot through the door and start their Beechwood journey with Shirley. The pupils love having opportunities like this to return to where it all began, and the Woodlands Team thoroughly enjoy seeing how much their former pupils have learned and grown since their Woodlands days.

Workshops

Pupils in Year 6 were treated to a drama workshop from the Young Shakespeare Company to learn all about the plot and characters in Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth.

Also, in January Year 7 had the wonderful experience of having Jennifer Rigby from the English Speaking Union to host an acting workshop and help us polish our performances. “I found the workshop very interesting and helpful. It helped my confidence to get to practise with a real actress, and I thought that she somehow managed to engage and excite everyone,” says Benedict from Year 7.

Jennifer showed us how to notice the hidden stage directions. She also taught us about the life of William Shakespeare and how his plays reflect his life.

Peforming Shakespeare

Year 7 have worked exceptionally hard this term learning their Performing Shakespeare monologues, for the English-Speaking Union’s Performing Shakespeare competition. It was amazing to see so many great performances in the School final

This made it extremely difficult for us to select two performances to represent Beechwood at the regional heats. Nevertheless, we are pleased to announce that Isaac C and Jamie W-S were choen as our winners. Both boys then have since wowed the regional heats judges with their performances at Sandy Secondary School earlier this term, and will now be participating in the regional final which will be held in May. We wish the boys the very best of luck.

World Book Day 2023

The whole school took part in World Book Day 2023 and in true Beechwood fashion, there were plenty of colourful and creative costumes on display.

Pupils enjoyed a World Book Day quiz, visiting the travelling book shop in their English lessons, and speed dating with books. Eagle-eyed pupils spotted various doors dotted around the school, which had been decorated as popular book covers.

See page XX for lots more photos from World Book Day

Rotary Youth Speaks Competition

Aidan B, Joshua D and Tommy H (Top form) won the East of England regional finals of the Rotary Youth Speaks competition in Cambridge. They will now face stiff opposition from other schools in the Grand Final on April 23rd in Rugby. This is unchartered territory for Beechwood, but we expect a superb performance from the boys who have already wowed the judges with their debate about whether the monarchy should be abolished. See page XX for a full report of the boys’ journey so far.

Arts Week 2023

As part of Arts Week and in celebration of our school play, Emil and the Detectives, pupils in Year 7 had to crack the code to escape from the bunker. They put their detective skills to the test, and worked together to solve the clues. There was fierce competition in the room, but eventually one group emerged victorious and cracked the code, much to the frustration of those who were trailing just behind!

Accelerated Reader Programme

We have had great success with the Accelerated Reader programme this term. Pupils who exceeded their reading target were selected to attend the inaugural Mad Hatter's Tea party to celebrate their reading achievement. Pupils enjoyed a mouth-watering afternoon tea, fit for royalty, and took part in fun party games.

As a school community, we have read a staggering 32,717,735 words this term. We are clearly a school that loves to read, and understand that in the words of the great Dr. Seuss, 'The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go."

Year 2 and 3 Reading Buddies

Year 3 were visited earlier this term by Year 2 pupils for a Reading Buddies session.

It was lovely to see how seriously the Year 3s took on their role as the older children. They acted with great maturity and Year 3 Form Teachers all felt very proud of them. The Year 2 children read to the Year 3s, who asked them the meaning of words and complemented their skills; they then swapped over and got the chance to share their good understanding of intonation.

The younger pupils were then given the chance to ask their buddy a question about Year 3 and finally they were able to show their buddies the other year 3 classrooms before heading off for lunch. Both year groups showed real Beechwood values and so we will definitely arrange another session next term.

In the Senior Department, Top Form pupils have been looking at the shift in power from the monarchy to Parliament, with the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89. Pupils have learnt that this refers to the series of events in 1688‐89 which culminated in the exile of King James II and the accession to the throne of William and Mary. It has also been seen as a watershed in the development of the constitution and especially of the role of Parliament.

Top Form have also been studying the Battle of Blenheim, voted the second most important battle in British military history by some historians, yet far less well known than Waterloo, the Somme or D-Day. The Battle of Blenheim was fought on 13 August 1704 during the War of the Spanish Succession (1702-13). A decisive defeat for a Franco-Bavarian force by the allied English, Dutch and Austrian armies, it destroyed the myth of French invincibility and earned the British Army an enduring reputation for battlefield courage and discipline.

Year 7 have been continuing to learn about the Tudors and considering the ‘mid-Tudor’ crisis of Edward VI and Mary I. The Mid-Tudor Crisis denotes the period of English history between 1547 (the death of Henry VIII) and 1558 (the death of Mary Tudor), when English government and society were in imminent danger of collapse in the face of a combination of weak rulers, economic pressures, a series of rebellions, and religious upheaval in the wake of the English Reformation, among other factors.

Of course, Edward VI has a connection with Beechwood and how lucky we are to be able to view the place where this young King of England once slept!

Year 6 have been studying medieval leadership, looking at the Magna Carta, the Parliament of Simon de Montfort and more recently Edward I’s attempts to control Wales and Scotland - one might argue a blueprint for later British colonialisation.

Year 5 pupils have continued to explore Norman England, this term turning their attention to the methods used by William I to gain control of his rebellious subjects including the building of castles all across the land. The now legendary “skittles game” illustrated the way in which land was used as a method of control as part of William’s feudal system. The more lowly your position in society, the smaller the amount of land you were allocated: you may be able to spot the winners and losers in the photos here! mmThe pupils have enormously enjoyed learning about the defensive features of castle, how siege warfare developed and how castle design adapted. From the ruins of Berkhamsted castle on our doorstep to the Royal Palace at Windsor, they have been fascinated to learn that hundreds of the castles that punctuate our landscape were first built by William and his loyal Norman soldiers.

Year 4 having also been studying a new topic on the Aztecs, and hod lots of fun learning about and then creating their own sunstone calendars The Aztec Sun Stone is a large piece of solidified lava stone featuring intricate carvings of two calendar systems used by the Aztec people during the 1400s

Next term, we look forward to the visit of Paul Middleton, Head of History at St Albans School, who will be talking to Year 7 pupils and there will also be an exciting historical fiction writing competition.

Mr Cook Head of History

It has been such a pleasure getting to know pupils from Year 6 through to Top Form in Geography this term.

Year 6 have explored Plate Tectonics, and have learnt about both the theory and examples of places impacted by moving plates. As well as studying fascinating case studies such as Montserrat and Mt Etna, we have also learnt how and why people live with tectonic hazards. Year 6 designed some incredible earthquake-proof buildings and considered geology, structure, materials as well as kerb appeal, in their designs.

Year 7 have been studying Weather and Climate and we all took great delight in heading out into the grounds to investigate Beechwood’s infamous weather. It didn’t take the pupils long to establish that there were many anomalies around the school site; places that were cooler or windier or slightly warmer than the rest! Writing up a full investigation into the microclimate at Beechwood Park, including graphs, analysis and conclusion, drew on many key geographical skills.

I’ve been really lucky that Top Form had been very well-taught and well-prepared which meant we could take a few weeks off revision to tackle the controversial topic of The Fashion Industry

Pupils asked some challenging questions about whether the fashion industry can ever be environmentally or socially sustainable. They carefully examined the impacts of cotton farming in Kazakhstan seeing the damage that has been done around the Aral Sea, as well as looking at the human cost of the industry by investigating the Rana Plaza disaster. Pupils were inspired to come up with their own sustainable fashion brands and our final lessons of term consisted of a dragon’s den style ‘pitch’ of all the fashion brands.

In the Middle Department, Year 5 have looked at the different regions and landscapes of Brazil which will then lead onto climate patterns. In addition to the physical geography of the land, we have explored urbanisation, push and pull factors and the significant economic differences and challenges that affect so many Brazilians. We have journeyed to the rainforest to find out more about the indigenous people that inhabit this tropical wilderness and also how humans rely on the rainforest and the effects of deforestation in recent times.

Year 4 have been enjoying learning about the location and features of Rainforests in Geography. They have discovered that cacao comes from trees and have listened to a story about a boy who harvests the seeds from the pods in the rainforests of Ecuador. It was fun to try some of the powdered form of cacao with a little sugar and water. It was interesting to compare the taste to the chocolate that we eat. Year 4 have also been learning all about continents. They work collaboratively in pairs to research a continent and create a presentation about it. They then showed the class their ‘masterpieces’ and shared their most interesting facts. The class then gave them constructive feedback about their presentations.

Year 3 have been looking at the geography of the UK thank you so much for all of the wonderful pictures you have sent into school in the wide variety of places in the UK that the children have visited. They have been so excited to see themselves on our Geography boards and it has helped them to create an image in their heads of where these landmarks and cities are located.

Ms Harris Head of Geography

The TPR topics this term, for the Middle and Senior School have been Philosophy and Religion

Year 3 have studied the Hindu religion, looking at temples from around the world and what happens inside. They have finished the year designing diva lamps and Rangoli patterns. Having extended their knowledge in the classoom, Year 3 then visited the the Hindu Temple in Bhaktivedanta Manor. The Manor is a spiritual sanctuary spread over 78 acres of land with beautiful gardens including one dedicated to the Beatle, George Harrison, who bequeathed the Manor House to the Hari Krishna community. There is also an organic farm, a protected herd of cows, a temple and a monastery.

The children had a wonderful time, learning about Hinduism, riding on a cart drawn by oxen, visiting the cows, trying on costumes and eating delicious vegetarian curry, which for many was their favourite thing! Thank you to Mr Wood for organising the trip. The Temple staff commented on how well-behaved and interested the children were; they definitely demonstrated excellent Beechwood values!

Year 4 have entered the world of Philosophy. They have grappled with some curious stories that are thought provoking and have caused great debate. The tale of Zarboog’s ‘chair’ caused much amusement as he thought it was a chair, as it fitted his alien head, whereas it definitely didn’t fit Mr Wood’s head!

Year 5 have studied an introduction to Judaism and have looked at food, festivals, the synagogue and rites of passage. They explored the importance of the Torah scroll and the Shema prayer in the Jewish faith. They were fascinated to learn more about the role of the trained scribe, or sofer, who writes each of the 304,805 letters by hand, an undertaking which may take almost two years to complete. Even one error in transcribing may make the Torah invalid and mean that the scribe must start again. The pupils started to write some of the Shema prayer out themselves, some of them even attempted to trace the characters from right to left, as they would be read. The have designed their own Kippah caps and made a Mezuzah. The Passover Seder plate caused great interest as the children happily munched through a box of Matzos – available at Waitrose and ideal with cheese...

Year 6 have studied an introduction to Islam. They have examined the life of the Prophet Muhammad, the Five Pillars of Islam along with the Six Articles of Faith. Several pieces of excellent work were awarded by the Head in a visit to the class, where the talents of some pupils were showcased, including more stop motion Lego videos of wudu and salah (ritual washing and prayer) videos of pupils performing these acts, various PowerPoint predestinations and even a book!

Year 7 have begun their preparations for Common Entrance studying Philosophy, specifically one of the works of Plato – ‘The Cave’ and the famous Scottish philosopher David Hume. Their analysis of these philosophers has further developed their essay writing skills, ready for the national essay writing competition next term. They have explored the nature of reality and if we can prove God exists making some startling observations for pupils twelve-years old.

Top Form have been worked through he remainders of their Common Entrance topics, which have included both ethics and Christianity. The have further applied what they have learnt in response to some very challenging Common Entrance essays. They ended the term preparing for their final Beechwood school exams in June. In the words of Alexander Graham Bell – “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” We wish them every success.

TPR in the Junior Department

Children in the Junior Department show endless enthusiasm for finding out what different faiths believe. The classrooms are filled with curiosity and respect when we investigate some of the core beliefs of different religions as well as finding out about those that are atheist or agnostic.

As in all subjects that the children learn at school, our job is to educate and help children see things from different perspectives and viewpoints from a position of neutrality and balance. Children learn to understand and value the beliefs and choices of other members of the class, department and community so that they can demonstrate the British Values of tolerance and mutual respect.

An especially popular part of our TPR studies involves investigating and experiencing a range of physical artefacts. The Tibetan singing bowl was a particular favourite (and harder to use than it looks, as Mrs McIntosh will testify!)

In Reception, one of our areas of learning is Understanding the World. This encompasses People, Culture and Communities which leads onto TPR lessons in Key Stage 1. We have recently been learning how people celebrate new life. We were very excited to spot the arrival of some eggs in the Science Department last week, especially when they began to hatch! The very cute fluffy chicks came to visit us in our classrooms. We are thinking about all sorts of new life occurring at this time of the year including tadpoles, lambs and lots of new plant life!

Year 1 have demonstrated impressive thoughtfulness as we considered the different groups that we all belong to and why these groups are special to us. This led into thinking about how babies are welcomed when they arrive in families and that some babies are also welcomed into a religion. We did some more detailed learning about how Muslims and Christians welcome new babies into their faiths. This culminated in the great excitement of a trip to the School Chapel in order to act out a christening. Every child played a part in the ceremony (wearing a variety of fabulous costumes) and many members of the school community enjoyed observing parts of our learning through drama. Mrs Allen (at Front Desk) had the enviable experience of hearing three christenings in a row!

Year 1 then carefully explored a variety of interesting artefacts from the Christian and Muslim religions and showed their drawing skills in recording pictures of these.

We finished the term by learning about Spring and Easter. This has involved the delicious treat of a seasonal Hot Cross Bun while learning some key facts about the events in the Easter story. The perfect combination of educational and delicious!

Year 2 started the term by thinking of what they were thankful for in their lives. We then considered ways in which different religions say “Thank you” and studied a wide range of physical artefacts related to prayer. We reviewed the detailed work that we had done on Muslim prayer in the Autumn Term and moved on to consider the Lord’s Prayer in Christianity and the Shema prayer in Judaism. There was much hilarity at our attempts to write in Hebrew as we made a scroll to go inside our own Mezzuzah.

This term in Modern Foreign Languages, Beechwood pupils have been continuing to improve their French and Spanish, while showcasing their skills in a number of ways.

Led by Mrs Fairburn, Year 3 enjoyed a Beechwood safari, trekking round the school site in search of rare breeds. One animal, l’oiseau, proved especially hard to find as it had decided to move from its apparently secure location!

Year 4 have covered a range of topics and enjoyed using props to help to describe someone’s personality - using words such as bavarde, timide, intelligent, sportif. severe and drole - ask your Year 4 child if you are not sure about any of these!

With the help of Miss Burton. Year 5 had a guest teacher, Clara S, who showed wonderful creativity in giving a fun lesson to her classmates. Clara’s lesson started with a wonderful game of animal charades. The children took it in turns to think of an animal and act it out. The other children had to guess the animal and say the word correctly in French. Clara was a stickler for pronunciation! Then they went out on to play a ‘find the animal’ game in two teams. Clara was so encouraging, and they all loved the competitive nature of this game. Next up was animal bingo, and by the end of this game, it was clear that Clara had worked her magic in getting them to remember lots of animal words, including ‘un kangourou’ and ‘un koala’.

The second half of Clara’s lesson focused on revising the rooms of the house; Clara gave the children a match-up writing task and explained very clearly exactly what to do. She also gave them some little clues as to how to work out which room was which. They then had to categorise the words into masculin, féminin and pluriel. Whilst the children were finishing off their sheets, two children from each table came up to the front to play ‘un jeu de mémoire’, which once again gave them a chance to practise their pronunciation.

A quote from la professeur herself:

«C’était super de faire une leçon pour 5CB et 5B le lundi et le jeudi dernier! Les jeux étaient très compétitifs et tout le monde a écouté et a participé. Moi et Mademoiselle Burton ne les avons guère aidé parce que tout le monde connait les mots pour les animaux et les pièces de la maison. C’était super d’être la maîtresse pour la leçon.»

“It was really fun doing a lesson for 5CB and 5B on Monday and last Thursday! The games were very competitive and everyone listened and joined in. Miss Burton and I barely needed to helped because everyone really knew their animals and the rooms of the house. I really enjoyed teaching them!”

Year 6 have been busy learning about the topic of school and produced some great posters about life at Beechwood.

Year 7 and Top Form put on a range of dazzling fashion shows, which included some interesting outfits and necessitated the use of some new vocabulary.

Year 7 French pupils have been learning about the topic of clothes.

To conclude this half-term’s studies, they treated their classmates and teachers to a series of Beechwood-style fashion shows - The pupils provided immaculate commentary in French about their chosen attire and staff certainly gained a greater understanding of current fashion trends....

Top B2’s French lessons were a riot of colour and fun, as pupils dressed to impress – and to bring to life key areas of their Modern Foreign Languages curriculum. This half term has been all about different items of clothing, professions and descriptions, and pupils have become adept at using more complicated sentence constructions and more confident using advanced vocabulary. We are slightly less sure about their dress sense though…

Top Form scholars performed very well in their exams and preparations for summer finals are in full swing. All in all, a fun and productive term.

Middle School Spanish clubs have been popular, with pupils enjoying the opportunity to experience another language and, in some cases, to practise their singing and dancing moves!

Joyeuses Pâques!

Mr King Head of Modern Foreign Languages

The children and teachers in the Middle and Senior Departments have enjoyed some really interesting discussions around a number of very important PSHE topics this term.

It is wonderful to see the pupils approaching their PSHE lessons with such maturity, listening to one another and responding appropriately and considerately. Have a look at the photos below to see what our pupils have been doing.

This is a just a snapshot of the conversations they have been having and the range of activities they have been doing.

Year 3 - Staying Safe and Economic Wellbeing

Year 4 - Staying Healthy and Families

Year 5 - Mental Health and Careers

Year 6 - Health & Hygiene and Friendships

Year 7 - Substances and Careers

Top Form - Mental Health & Wellbeing and Economic Wellbeing

The week of 6th –12th February was Children’s Mental Health Week. This year’s theme was ‘Let’s Connect’. To raise awareness of the importance of looking after our mental health, every pupil in the Junior, Middle and Senior Departments started every day of that week with some form of mindfulness activity. The children did some quiet reading, were read to by their teacher, and did some mindfulness colouring. Teachers played an array of calming musical tracks to encourage the children to take some time for themselves before the real rush of the school day began. It was such a success that lots of classes have tried to start every school day in a similar way.

Miss Burton Head of PSHE

Studying Latin provides pupils with an excellent grounding in the way that language and grammar work, and forms a good platform for both the challenges of learning modern languages and continuing their Latin studies at Senior School. From the earliest foray into learning Latin via the Minimus programme in Year 5, through to Top Form studies for Common Entrance, the emphasis is on engaging and fun teaching and learning, with ideas frequently coming from the pupils themselves.

Here is just a glimpse at what has been happening in Latin lessons this term:

Along with grappling with the six cases of the 1st Declension (critical thinking skills are working over-time!) Year 6 have produced their own Perseus and Medusa comics strips:

7B2 have done some marvellous pictures illustrating use of Prepositions plus Accusative and Ablative Case;

7B1 are designing their Perfect Mottoes using the tricky perfect stems of verbs;

7A are discovering just how many English words spring from the stems of third Declension Nouns. A treasure trove!

Top Formers have all been learning about activities that used to take place in amphitheatres. They linked this to translating Latin accounts about Spartacus, the gladiator slave who led a revolt against Roman masters. They’ve also translated stories and learned about Alexander the Great and Hannibal. The Latin is differentiated according to how much grammar and vocabulary each pupil has met.

Of course, the Summer Term is an important one for the Classics Department with our Latin Plays and Roman Banquet - we can’t wait!

Mrs Anderson Head of Classics

It was a busy time in the Science Department for British Science Week between 10 and 19 March.

This year, it is safe to say that the Department has really nurtured, engaged and inspired. The baby chicks, as ever, have been the biggest attraction and pupils and staff alike nurtured them from arrival of the eggs at the start of Science Week through to saying goodbye to the chicks as they headed off to their “forever homes” at the end of term- chicks.

Pupils have been inspired learning about a variety of scienfitic careers, and as ever, fun, practical handson lessons and experiments have engaged each and every curious mind in the Science Labs.

The theme we used this year was forensic science to link with the play Emil and the Detectives. Pupils from Year 5 to Top Form had a special one-off lesson where they had the opportunity to decode secret messages, write their own secret messages, view evidence samples using the microscopes, take their finger prints, use a UV torch to identify’ blood splatters’ and to make up photofits.

They also all had a live interactive lesson exploring aspects of medical sciences with resources to identify the myriad of scientific careers it is possible to pursue.

Click

Aside from Science Week, there has been plenty of scientific invesitgation going on throughout the School.

Here are just a few highlights:

Year 4 have been studying TEETH and loved their egg-periment on eggs! As both the outside of an egg and teeth are both made of the same material - enamel! pupils used eggs to investigate the effect different liquids would have on our teeth by leaving eggs to soak in a variety of different liquids.. The conclusion? Sugar and acid attack enamel in our teeth and it is very important to brush our teeth twice a day! Fluoride which is in our water and toothpaste can help prevent tooth decay. Year 4 had more exciting lessons in Science where we took ‘disclosing’ tablets’. We had to crunch the tablets in our mouths and they turned the plaque on our teeth blue so we could see where we needed to better brush our teeth. We then brushed our teeth making sure we got rid of all the blue stains.

Year 5 have been studying both Sound and Light this term. They have enjoyed some furious debate on whether glow in the dark stars count as light sources or not and why it is that some creatures have even adapted to produce their own light. Armed with torches, mirrors, translucent materials and ‘shadow sticks’, the pupils have enjoyed plenty of independent investigation already and are now looking forward to studying the biology of the eye and how light rays reflect and refract.

A variety of noises have been heard coming out of the science labs as Year 5 pupils have explored how sound is made. Alongside more familiar musical instruments, they have been using balloons, straws, bottles and elastic bands this week to explore what pitch is and what affects the pitch of a note. Next up, boom whackers, straw pipes and lollypop harmonicas before moving onto measuring volume using sound meters and investigating if sound travels quickest through a solid, liquid or gas.

Year 3 have been studying rocks and soils. They became Rock Detectives and walked around the School and grounds trying to spot where different types of rocks were used in the building. We were amazed to see just how many different types of rocks were used and had some great discussions about why these particular rocks had been chosen for each job. The children have all really enjoyed carrying out experiments testing the durability, buoyancy and permeability of different rocks, as well as studying fossils.

Another busy term in the Beechwood DT Workshop both in lessons and across a range of co-curricular activities.

A highlight of the term has to be our Lego Lions’ trip to Legoland as part of the First Lego League Engineering competition run by the Institute of Engineering. The pupils have been working since September on this competition, to which there were four parts:

First, pupils had to design, build and code a robot that would complete a series of challenges. The robot had to run by itself and used sensors and motors to be able to lift, pull, push, follow a line etc. This was the Robot games and we had to 2.30 minutes to complete as many tasks as possible against another team.

They then needed to design, build and code a robot that would complete a series of challenges. The robot had to run by itself and used sensors and motors to be able to lift, pull, push, follow a line etc. This was the Robot games and we had to 2.30 minutes to complete as many tasks as possible against another team. There were 12 teams in total and the standard of the entries were extremely high, with a lot of older secondary school pupils taking part. The current UK champions happened to be one of the other teams in our heat! The team nevertheless managed to win two out of their three robot games.

They also had to design a project that was based around the idea of energy production, storage or efficiency. The pupils came up with the brilliant idea of a mobile phone case that produced energy just through the normal movement of a person throughout their day. So the case would have a solar panel, a dynamo and a piezo transducer, which created energy through vibrations. They 3D modelled and printed a prototype and presented their idea to a panel of judges who asked them questions about their project.

The third aspect of the competition was a discussion on their robot design, how they coded the robot, what issues they faced and how they overcame those problems.

The fourth part of the competition was about the ‘core values’ of the competition, which included teamwork, inclusion, innovation, discovery and impact.

The team did amazingly and we are really proud of how they presented themselves and their ideas to the judges.

Meanwhile, in lessons....

Year 3 have been focusing on paper engineering and different types of pop-up folds, working on accuracy, neatness and creativity to make their own short story pop up book.

Year 4 used saws for the first time and constructed 3D wooden frames which were then covered with some of their jelly-print work from Art. The importance of measuring accurately and using tools safely was a big focus this term.

Year 5 have built musical instruments! Either stringed things or kalimbas. They learnt how to use the scroll saws in order to cut complex shapes from sheets of wood and what parts of their design would help the vibrations of their musical constructions become amplified. A nice cross curricular project with Science who were studying sound this term too.

Year 6 have been working on CAD, or Computer Aided Design

The first half of term as focused on 3D design, where they designed some keychains for the 3D printer but also got involved with designing moonbases for an ESA competition. The second half of term was focused on Vector illustration and design for the lasercutter.

Year 7 topic this term was electronics and soldering, where we made some Atari Punk Dual Oscillator Synthesisers! These intruments will be controlled by light sensors and variable resistors in order to change the noises and tones they create. Lots of very precise instruction following and awareness of using very very hot tools this term.

Top Form have been combining lots of different skills in order to create mini companion bots that act as a timer to remind them to do specific tasks. They had to mould forms, vaccum form, solder electronics, code in circuitpython and line-bend plastic in order to make their little robotic creations. This was a complex build that they managed incredibly well with, and the creative outputs both from the physical making side and the coding side to code animations was really impressive.

What a wonderfully fun - and sometimes messy - term we have had in the Art Room! Pupils of all ages have thrown themselves into their artistic endeavours, and, as always, we are blown away by their creativity, skill and imagination. Here is just a snapshot of what they have been up to this term....

Year 3

This term in year 3 we have been learning all about texture, using our knowledge and skills to create collograph plates and print them using the press. T he pupils have successfully created the illusion of texture by applying ink carefully. It was messy!

Year 4

Year 4 have completed their Hundertwasser inspired clay tiles this term, through which they have learned to join and blend clay using scoring and slip (or as we call it “grip, grip, slip!”) and the resulting work is really detailed and bright!

Year 5

The Journalling project has been a roaring success for Year 5 this term! The quality of work produced is absolutely incredible, and the pupils have worked for 3 hours+ on their reflective doodle pages.

Year 6

Year 6 have used viewfinders to isolate an area of Gaudi’s architecture and they have recreated it using the wax resist technique - a combination of oil pastels and watercolours.

Year 7

Year 7 have worked brilliantly on a hybrid painting/digital project this term, making the most of the ipads to create. The inspiration for this work was the artist John Piper, and we used Beechwood’s beautiful architecture as the subject. Here the pupils had the opportunity to analyse the work of John Piper by trying to recreate parts of it in their sketchbooks using, pencil, pen, colour pencil, coloured pens and collage. This term we are focusing on the artist’s architectural studies and using his influence to inform the way we present the architecture of our beautiful school.

Top Form

The Graffiti walls created by Top Form are spectacular! They have experimented with new fonts, equipment and techniques and the art room wall looks amazing!

Collaborative Easter Egg Project

Easter has come to Beechwood in the shape of some giant eggs now proudly sitting in our ornamental urns on the Front Lawns. The inspiration for our giant eggs was the approach of Easter, combined with the colourful textile works of Phyllida Barlow. Pupils in Years 3-7 worked together in both lessons and lunch time clubs, first weaving lengths of willow to create the frame and then using ribbons and recycled fabric to create the colour and patterns. They collaborated brilliantly on this project, demonstrating some of the Beechwood Values throughout the proces!

Choirs’ Concert

On Tuesday 14th March, the five Beechwood Choirs and the Musical Theatre group, a total of 133 pupils, performed to a packed audience for our Choirs’ Concert.

The concert started with our 60-strong ‘Beechwood Choir’, for Year 5 to Top Form pupils, with confident 2-part singing in ‘Sing With Me’.

It was the very first time that our new Year 2 Choir had performed, and after only 8 rehearsals this term, they were one of the highlights of the concert, confidently performing two amusing ‘nonsense’ songs (Clickety Fingers and Dang-ARang-A-Dang Do!) to delighted parents.

The Year 3 Choir added some great props to their ‘Yellow Submarine’ bringing a smile to all, and Year 4 had a super ‘Blast Off’ linking to the Planets work they have been doing in their class music lessons this term. It was also wonderful to see our Year 3 and 4 Musical Theatre group add such confident and expressive actions and movement to their two songs: We’re All Made of Stars from Finding Neverland and If Only you would Listen from The School of Rock. The Chamber Choir (our only auditioned choir) sang songs in a variety of styles, including their favourites It Don’t Mean a Thing if it ain’t got that Sing, Sing, Sing, and Puttin’ on the Ritz, which they sang with huge enthusiasm and great actions!

The concert finished with all singers on stage together, singing their hearts out with two songs from Mambo Italiano.It was wonderful to see such enthusiasm from all pupils in their performances, such lovely smiling faces and producing such a fantastic atmosphere for all in the Performance Hall.

Well done to everyone who performed and had worked so hard this term preparing and practising so well! A very big thank you also to my colleagues - Mrs Jarvis and Miss Bailey for leading their different groups, and for Mr Harrington’s superb accompanying throughout the evening.

Click here to watch the Choirs’ Concert

Scholars’ Concert

Our very first lunchtime concert this term was given by pupils working towards senior school music and drama scholarships. They all treated their audience of parents, staff and friends to very memorable and truly wonderful performances.

Click here to watch this term’s Scholars’ Concert

Jane C, Henry G and Reuben W played us their whole audition performances, moving seamlessly from one instrument to the next and demonstrating a very wide range of talent on their different instruments. It was also lovely to see Will F and Felix M perform their songs with such great confidence and style and which would be part of their Drama sScholarship.

Lunchtime Cncerts

In addition to our ‘Scholars’ concert’, we have also had a further 89 performances from 108 pupils in eight Friday Lunchtime Concerts this term.

Lunchtime Concerts

Music Technology

The concerts have featured a very wide range of some pupils performing for the first time, to those who so just confidently take it in their stride to perform on our Song Room ‘stage’, from soloists to duets, trios and small groups. It has been lovely to see such a wide variety of instruments too, including our ‘Doods’ group performing for the first time; we have seen a total of 18 different instruments. It is such a valuable experience for all pupils to gain that confidence standing up in front of an audience and our friendly and relaxed lunchtime concerts provide just the right setting for this. You can watch the most recent Lunch Time Concerts here: 17 March and 24 March

We are very excited that Mr Gambrell will be working more at Beechwood from next term. This means that we will be able to provide even more opportunities, especially for our Senior Department, for pupils to learn about the amazing world of Music Technology; recording in our Studio and composing and editing in our Mac Suite.

One of Mr Gambrell’s aims is also to provide top quality recordings of all pupils - from class lessons, to individual lessons and of all our choirs and ensembles.

Click here to watch this term’s

House Music Composition Competition

This term we have held our annual House Competition, and it was the return of the Composition Competition. Every pupil from Year 3 upwards has been very excitedly composing in their class music lessons and some have composed additional individual pieces at home, all earning points for their Houses:

Year 3 20 group compositions about travel

Year 4 23 group compositions about planets

Year 5 64 ‘Battle’ compositions using GarageBand software

Year 6 25 group compositions using various ‘World Music’ techniques

Year 7 17 pairs composing a ‘Beechwood’ Advert

Top Form 18 group compositions devising a soundtrack to an animated film

We also had 14 individual compositions from the Middle Department and 19 extra group and individual compositions from the Senior Department. This gave a grand total of 200 compositions which were all amazing.

Mrs Jarvis and I then had the extremely challenging (but very enjoyable) task of choosing winners from each year group - it took a while and lots of listening. We would like to congratulate everyone on the very high standard of work produced throughout and the time and care taken by all pupils on their work. Congratulations to the final winners in each category:

Year 3 class work

Year 4 class work

Year 4 individual

Year 5 class work and individual

Year 5 individual

Year 6 class work

Year 6 individual

Year 7 class work

Year 7 individual

Top Form class work

Top Form individual

George G and Alessia G

Clara L and Abbey W

Isabelle P

Malin S-L

Malin S-L

Ella Rose A-K, Kaede L and Easher S

Jane C

Marcus H, Wilfred O

Wilfred O

Henry G and Reuben W

James H

Huge congratulations to Malin S-L and Wilfred O who were named overall Middle and Senior Department Composer respectively.

Music Competition/Rock Band Compositions

In Rock Band, we’ve been collaboratively working on the Beechwood Rock Bands’ first songs. Check out their masterpieces here:

Hear Our Song (Top Form Rock Band) with their new self-penned song for Beechwood Park’s House Music Competition.

Band members: Aidan B (Guitar), Will F (Vocals), Jacob H (Keyboard), Finlay W (Drums).

Kaleidoscope (Year 6 Rock Band) with their debut self-penned song for Beechwood Park’s House Music Competition.

Band members: Alexander H (Bass Guitar and Vocals), Will H (Drums and Vocals), Lochan K (Vocals), Alex R (Guitar and Vocals), Finley S (Guitar and Vocals).

Find My Way Home (Hot Flames) - Year 5 Rock Band with their debut self-penned song for Beechwood Park’s House Music Competition.

Band members: William A (Rhythm Guitar and Vocals), Angus C (Lead Guitar and Vocals), Sam C (Bass Guitar and Vocals), Louis C (Piano and Vocals), Alfred M (Bass Guitar and Vocals), Joe P (Drums and Vocals), Jovan S (Vocals).

‘Top Banana’: The Cone Phish (Year 7 Rock Band) with their original composition

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Summer Term Lessons / Choirs and Ensembles

Individual lessons, choirs and ensembles will be starting from 0930 on Wednesday 26 April. 0800 ensembles that usually happen on this day will NOT be taking place as it is the first day back. As it is a short week, we are unfortunately not able to timetable every pupil for a lesson. Please check the teacher’s Google Classroom carefully to see when your child’s lesson will be; these will be available to view from Monday 24 April.

If you have any general queries about music, please do use our music email address: musicadmin@beechwoodpark.com

Forest School has, as ever, gone ahead whatever the weather this term, and we have seen pretty much every kind of condition, from spring sunshine to snow. Every year groupb from Woodlands through to Year 5 has had Forest School sessions, and we have plans for pupils in the Senior Department to also get out and enjoy this wonderful resource next term. We also enjoyed welcoming a class from Markyate Village School for an afternoon of Forest School activities, as well as a large group of local pre school children, who enjoyed getting muddy with us towards the end of term.

Here are just a few photos to illustrate all the activities pupils have got up to in Forest School this term:

Lots more photos on our Flickr channel, or follow Forest School on Twitter @BWPForest_Sch

Another term has flown by on the pitches of Beechwood Park. I think we’ve seen every type of weather this term, which unfortunately forced us to cancel some fixtures and tournaments. When the weather was kind to us, we had a number of fantastic matches, giving the Beechwood pupils the opportunity to shine and demonstrate the skills they’ve been working hard on in games lessons. Below, members of the Sports department mention some of their highlights from this term.

Rugby

As Head of Rugby, it has been fantastic to see this great sport thrive at Beechwood this term. In a time when there is a lot of negativity regarding the game, this season could not have been more important, and what a season it has been!

In total we played 51 rugby matches, winning 37, drawing 3, losing 11 and scoring a whopping 741 tries! We had the U10A, U10B, U11B and U12A teams all winning every single one of their matches.

We have also had some memorable experiences such as playing rugby on the Saracens pitch at half time of their European match, being guard of honour for Saracens, having a coaching session with ex-British Lions player Michael Owen and most recently taking over the Tottenham Hotspur stadium with over 100 Beechwood family and friends attending the Saracens vs Harlequins match! Did anyone notice our school logo on the back of the number 21 shirt? We will be getting presented with this shirt during Saracens last home game of the year. Thank you to everyone who has supported our pupils and Beechwood rugby. It has really been an unforgettable season.

House Rugby Results

1st Stewart 145

2nd Tudor 120

3rd Sebright 105

4th Saunders 90

Griffiths

Click here to see Year 5/ 6 House Rugby Photos

Mr

Head of Rugby

Hockey

The mixed hockey term is one of my favourite times of year at Beechwood Park. A new cohort of boys, who are not necessarily familiar with the sport, are able to throw themselves into something different and build their confidence whilst developing their skills. Throughout the term there is a continuous blending of those players with more experience and those new to the game. The beauty of the term is an opportunity to stretch all abilities through mixed ability collaboration. Our aim, exciting the group with new skills, different concepts and learning how to champion everyone no matter where they are in their hockey journey.

A highlight for me was being able to facilitate those more experienced players to develop their leadership through peer-on-peer coaching. After a skill station session and mixed matches, Lockers Park school pupils had beaming faces, and could not thank the Beechwood pupils enough for the positive experience and gave them a group “3 cheers” to show their appreciation.

Penalty corners can be an alien concept if you have not witnessed them before, and it adds another strategic and technical side that the group can experiment with. An example of this, is Jamie W-S, who is new to the sport, and following some good practice has taken to injecting brilliantly, and his eyes light up when he has the opportunity to shine. Seeing the development of Top Formers from the previous year has been awesome, all personally showing development in the application of their skills, confidence to run harder and lead.

In all matches and Games lessons we have seen fantastic engagement and improvement from all, and myself, Mr Darcy and Mr Robinson are proud of all those that took part this term. Top Formers, we wish you all the best in your next schools and hope you enjoy your hockey in the future, and Year 7s we cannot wait to work with you again next Lent Term!

Mrs Briscoe Head of Hockey

House Hockey Results

Netball

Wow what a jam-packed netball term for all year groups! From fixtures to House matches, regionals to nationals, ASAs to games lessons, and from girls to boys to mixed netball – we have not stopped! With over 130 fixtures across the term, it has been wonderful to see so many pupils at Beechwood shine.

Years 3 and 4

With numbers flourishing in the ASA as the year has progressed, it has been brilliant to see some of our younger members of the Beechwood community move forwards in leaps and bounds. Settling easily into the Fliers’ format of 4 vs.4, they have played with confidence and high skill level. A highlight being when the boys got to participate in a fixture this season with the girls’ teams.

The culmination for me was seeing players with such positive responses and efforts in House matches towards the end of term. The integration of both year groups was a great learning opportunity for all.

See photos of the Year 3 / 4 House Netball Matches here

Years 5 and 6

Our Year 5’s transitioned seamlessly into Stingers netball, applying the fundamental skills they built up in Year 4. A highlight was the Haileybury end of season tournament, in which the U10A team got to the semi-finals, a day full of adaptability and resilience. The U10’s have also been particularly good at supporting one another and showing the true spirit of netball across each of their games.

Our Year 6 had a fantastic season and it was superb to see how much further ahead they started this term compared to previous years. Their proficiency in the rules and tactics to Stinger 5-a-side netball allowed them to start the ground running. The U11A team had a good campaign at the Berkhamsted pre-season tournament and it was wonderful to see our U10C and U10D teams finish with resounding wins. The U11A team had a great run at the IAPS Regionals, finishing in the top half.

See photos of the Year 5 / 6 House Netball Matches here

Year 7 and Top Form

Our U13 mixed teams have worked hard throughout the term. It has been super to see the teams be challenged in their game awareness, allowing them to make decisions and apply tactics both to their skills and game play. It has been brilliant to have so many Year 7’s and 8’s commit to the netball ASA. We are looking forward to the rearranged IAPS netball on Friday 28th April.

Boys’ Netball

In our inaugural year, we have had many boys from Year 3 to Year 8 keen to play. We have had mixed ASA’s and also two lunchtime boys’ netball clubs.

Four netball teams competed in the England Men’s and Mixed Netball National Youth Cup; U13A, U12A, U11A and U11B, and we are the first school in Herts and the South who have entered this National competition. The U13 team qualified for the Cup final. The U11B qualified for the U12 Plate Final. We await to see these in action in the coming months.

Both our U12A and U11A teams qualified for their Cup final match and had an incredibly special weekend at the end of March. They were lucky to have coaching from Nottingham Trent University Performance Players to prepare them for their game. Even more excitingly, they got to meet England Men’s Vice-Captain James McClelland, who gave them some brilliant tips. He was extremely impressed with both Beechwood teams and thought they had enormous potential.

Well done to the U12A Boys Netball team who finished 2nd in the U12 National England Men’s and Mixed Netball Youth Cup. They played superbly, leading the game in the first quarter. They were incredible ambassadors for Beechwood and we have been impressed with their improvement over the competition. Particular congratulations to Hector G (7GW) who was selected as Player of the Match.

It is with absolute delight that we announce… Beechwood have become National Netball Champions!

The U12 Red team claimed the first ever National U12 title, after a nail-biting final. After going 4-1 down in the first quarter, they worked incredibly hard to implement their targets and finished with a 14-7 win! What a way to make Beechwood and National history!

The team have been a pleasure to coach and their adaptability and willingness to learn has been outstanding. It has been great to see how much netball, as well as this competition, has meant to them. It should be noted that this team were playing up an age group, with all members being U11, making this achievement an even more outstanding feat.

Beechwood Park U11 Netball Tournament

Last, but by no means least, this term Beechwood hosted their first ever U11 Netball Tournament

Welcoming 16 teams on a slightly grey day, we were enormously proud to see so much netball taking place. In an enjoyable yet competitive atmosphere, it provided an outstanding end to the season. Celebrating both the winners and our Fair Play Award, it was definitely a moment to remember in the year and we look forward to warmly welcoming all the teams to this big event again next year. As this season draws to end, we are already reviewing and planning for next year and cannot wait to match, or even beat, the successes of netball at Beechwood in 2023.

Beechwood Park Netball have closely followed guidance from England Netball (National Governing Body), continuing to align our school programme with the England Roses development plan. Every year, England Netball recognise different coaches, teachers, supporters, clubs and schools who have had a positive impact on Netball and ‘make it work’. Nominations can be received by anyone. Please use this link to see The ONE Awards nomination categories and how you may be able to nominate Beechwood or a special teacher/coach for these.

Congratulations to Sai S (6SA) who was voted player of the match.

Miss Summerfield Head of Netball

See photos from the Beechwood Netball tournament here

See photos from the EMMNA U12 Netball tournament here

Cross Country

We kicked the season off with a return to our “full format” Beechwood Park Cross Country Event. It was wonderful to be able welcome everyone back on-site for the return of the usual mass start event in January.

Approximately 380 runners in 71 teams representing 17 local schools, took part across the three age groups. The Beechwood U11A girls, U13A girls and U13A boys teams all finished in 3rd place and our U11A boys team won their race, winning the cup! Special mention to Will H (Year 6) who won silver in the U11 boys’ race.

photos

The following weekend some of the team were back in action at Verulamium Park in St Albans for the Hertfordshire Schools’ County Championships. Every race was really competitive with up to 131 finishers. Special mentions to Lilly B (Year 5) and George M (Year 5) who both finished 8th and were therefore invited to run for Hertfordshire in the Primary National Championships. In the Secondary races a shout out must go to the Top Formers who had to race against both Year 8 and Year 9s and we had several top 40 finishes.

Up next was the much loved, and much anticipated, St Martin’s Road Relay event, where teams of four take it in turns to run around the pavements and paths. The U11A girls and U11B boys finished 3rd, U13 girls 2nd and both the U11A boys and U13A boys led from start to finish, winning their races. There was lots of individual success with the top 6 in each recognised with medals or trophies. Max D (Top Form) 6th, Anna W (Top Form) 4th, Ava S (Top Form) & Will H (Year 6) 3rd, Eloise W (Top Form), Chloe L (Year 6) & Alex A-D (Year 6) 2nd and George M (Year 5) 1st!

See photos from the St Martin’s

See

from the Beechwood XC Event here

Road Relay here

The following week some of our competitive and committed runners travelled all the way to Malvern College in Worcestershire to take part in the prestigious National Prep Schools’ Cross-Country Championships. It was an incredibly tough course with an uphill sprint from the tight starting gates. Everyone represented Beechwood really well with lots of top half finishes in races with over 200 runners from all across the country. Special mentions to the runners who stepped up at the last minute to compete, our Year 5s running up an age group and Chloe L for the top Beechwood finish, with an impressive 30th place.

The very next day was last race of the season hosted by Westbrook Hay This was a great event, giving some of our Year 3 and Year 4 pupils another chance to compete.

Special mention to Sam S, Charlie M, Amelia K, Olivia S, Will H, Finley S & Will P for their top 10 finishes and huge congratulations to the U13 Mixed team for winning the U13 team race. A wonderful conclusion to their Beechwood cross country career!

Well done to all the runners who took part this season. We wish all the leavers good luck and hope to see them running in events in the future and look forward to seeing everyone else back next year! Just keep running!

Miss Hamilton

See photos from the National XC Championships at Malvern here

Congratulations to our Lent Term Sports Awards Winners:

• Colts Boys - Most Improved Rugby Player – Matthew D(Year 6)

• Colts Boys - Outstanding Contribution for Rugby – Sai S (Year 6)

• Senior Girls - Most Improved Netball Player – Jane C (Year 6)

• Senior Girls - Outstanding Contribution for Netball – Chloe L (Year 6)

• Senior Boys - Most Improved Rugby Player – Max D (Top Form)

• Senior Boys - Outstanding Contribution for Rugby – Maximus M (Year 7)

• U13 - Most Improved Hockey Player - Sid S (Top Form)

• U13 - Outstanding Contribution for Hockey – Anna W (Top Form)

Barbados Cricket Tour Charity

The charity that we have chosen to support through the tour is: The Cricket Kindness Project (https://www. cricketcharity.org/ For the past seven years, the Cricket Kindness Project (formerly the Children’s Cricket Charity) has given thousands of children, teenagers & adults throughout the world the simple joy of access to equipment to play the great game of cricket. The Cricket Kindness Project was inspired by a heartfelt determination to make the world a happier place for cricket loving communities unable to access proper equipment and uniforms.

If you have any cricket equipment lying around the house you no longer use, please feel free to bring it into school and hand it into reception. I will collect up all the kit and ensure it gets to the charity. I will also take a selection of kit out with us to donate to the local clubs and schools that we will playing against whilst in Barbados. On the last tour to Barbados, I was taken aback by the lack of proper playing kit the children we played against had. It would be great to be able to support those children by providing them with some appropriate playing kit.

On behalf of us all in the Beechwood Sports Department, we wish you a very Happy Easter. Look after yourselves, stay fit and healthy and we look forward to seeing you for a spot of cricket next term.

Natasha Carley Director of Sport

Beechwood Equestrian News

What a busy and successful term it has been for the Beechwood Equestrian Team, with some fabulous team and individual achievements. Here is a summary of the year so far:

NSEA Grassroots Showjumping Show March 2023

The entire squad participaged in this show and depsite wet weather and an early start, the riders were fabulous and had the added bonus of seeing our Prime minister Rishi Sunak as he was there too watching his daughter ride!

The teams and results are as follows:

40cms: Cecily D on Starlite Dancer, Euan H on Cosford Limbo, Florence D on Rosslyn Christopher Robin and Frank H on Hillin Camelot

This class was judged not only on ability but also on style, The Beechwood team. comprised of two sisters and two brothers, won a Team 3rd with Frank H coming an individual 2nd in the class. This means they have qualified for Regional Grassroots Championships.

50cms: Frank on Hillin Camelot, Violet G on Jackets

Domingo Eleanor on Mayboy Brandy Snap and Florence on Rosslyn Christopher Robin

The 50cms was run with an optimum time and the riders not only had to go clear but also to get as close to it as possible. They coped brilliantly and won a team 2nd, meaning that they too have qualified for the Regional Grassroots Show Jumping Championships. Florence D in particular, showed maturity with her ringside awareness, riding a seriously competitive timed clear and gained 6th place. Well done to Flo!

60cms: Eleanor P on Mayboy Brandy Snap, Florence D on Rosslyn Christopher Robin, Violet G on Jackets Domingo. No team placing here or individual but all girls tried their hardest.

70cms: Guy G on Old Forge Rum Punch, Leo R on Coco, Nicole I on Sailin Dandy and Chloe I on Toureen Bob. This team came second, meaning they too have qualified for the Grassroots Regional Show Jumping Championships.

80cms Nicole I on Sailin Dandy, Chloe I on Toureen Bob, Rory L on Rosscon Mia and John G on Galcross Amigo. This team came a spectacular first place, with Nicole I riding a fast clear to get an individual 3rd and Rory riding clear to get an individual 8th.

90cms: John and Rory stepped up for this class which is the biggest competing height of any Beechwood NSEA rider to date. They were up against older riders on bigger horses on a full up to height course. Both boys rode really well and whilst not perfect, they really got their teeth into their rounds. Rory and his new partner Roxy came 10th and John and Milo 16th.

The Beechwood Park Equestrian Squad has had a terrific run of it lately with much competition success, as can be seen below:

• National Championship Qualifiers Eventers Challenge 75cms and 85cms - Champs at Hickstead May 2023 Rory L, ,John G, Nicole I and Chloe I

• Hertfordshire County Show Jumping Champions 70cms which Qualifies for National Show Jumping Championships - Hickstead May 2023 Rory L, Guy G, Nicole I and Chloe I

• Combined Training National Schools Championships - October 2023 Rory L, John G, Nicole I and Leo R

• INDIVIDUAL National Championship Qualifiers 2023 Nicole I - Eventers Challenge 85cm and Show Jumping 80cms; John G - Eventers Challenge 85cms; Rory Eventers Challenge 75cms, Dressage and Combined Training (Show Jumping and Dressage) 70cms

• Regional Grassroots Show Jumping Championships 2023: Cecily D, Euan H, Florence D, Eleanor P 40cms; Frank H, Violet G, Eleanor P, Florence D 50cms; Guy G, Leo R, Nicole I, Chloe I 70cms

•

Thank you to all our riders, their parents for transporting and supporting them and of course their wonderful ponies. Thanks also to Team Manager Mrs Laing without whom none of this would be possible.

We look forward to bring you news of the team’s next events later in the Summer Term.

Kids Judge BETT 2023

The BETT Show, held every year at London’s ExCel Centre, is the world’s leading EdTech show, featuring three days of inspiring content, networking and innovative product demonstrations from top solution providers.

An integral part of the show is an initiative called Kids Judge BETT , a student-led event, organised by Katy Potts from Islington Council in partnership with BESA (British Educational Suppliers Association).

It runs across the Bett and sees pupils judging and exploring all the stands, exhibitors and their products and choosing their favourites across ten categories. Pupils then announce their chosen winners live on stage and hand out coveted chocolate trophies to the worthy winners. This year, the presentaton featured a special guest appearance from writer and poet and former Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen!

This year, Beechwood was amongst a group of eight schools chosen to send a team of judges to the shoon 31 March to choose a winning exhibitor, based on a range of criteria. Pupils are expected to act in strict impartiality in announcing their winners.

Beechwood pupils applied for and were interviewed in order to become a judge.

Congratulations to our final eight judges, who represented the School at this prestigious event:

Our judges, and their motivation for applying for the role, were:

• Aria (Year 5):“I’m really interested in how technology can make life easier and more fun using things which are accessible to everybody”;

• Jonas (Year 5): “as a user of many educational sites and learning platforms. I have an insight into what works and what does not”

• Hari (Year 6): : “I love all high gadget stuff and gaming and think I have the knowledge and enthusiasm to be a great judge and will be fair at all times.”

• Clemency (Year 5): “ I am fair when judging and never have a favourite. I love all sorts of technology and am quite good at figuring out how things work and if they’re good or not.”

• Will H (Year 6): “I have applied to be part of #kidsjudgebett for the opportunity to see and judge technology that could become big, as I can develop my interest and knowledge on technology.”

• Alex H (Year 6): “I enjoy watching engineering product reviews on YouTube, so would like to try reviewing and giving recommendations myself.”

• Albert (Year 6): “I also like judging shows like Britain’s Got Talent and Strictly Come Dancing from home.”

• Katherine T (Year 5) “I think it will be fun to judge other people’s ideas. I like judging routines such as funniest person at break time or gymnastics competitions.”

The jury members all thoroughly enjoyed their day at BETT, with the highlight being announcing their chosen winner, live on stage with Michael Rosen.

Having surveyed a number of different edtech products, testing the benefits and consdering who the audience for each may be, the panel selected BLUE FROG ROBOTICS as their winner. Blue Frog are a pioneer and leader in social robotics, and create “Robots for Good” that embody Emotional AI to drive significant positive impact on major social issues: Education, Inclusion of vulnerable people and Ageing population. A World First, the company deploys the largest fleet of humanoid tele-education robots in the world after winning a contract from the French Ministry of National Education to fight against isolation of Hospitalized children to be “tele-present”. In addition, their robot, Buddy, can serve as a teaching assistant, student’s learning companion as well as an essential teaching tool for coding and programming.

Beechwood Judges chose this product as they all saw the very many benefits to children, notably children in hospital who may be feeling lonely or who may struggle to make friends, as well as more extensive benefits of helping to learn languages and aid communication skills.

Well done to all our judges, and especially Katherine and Will who announced their winner in front of a packed crowd on the arena stage! Thank you too to the parents who accompanied their children to BETT, and to the other Beechwood families who came along in support.

Mr Buddie Director of Digital Learning

Thoughts from our Cast and Crew

“I played a Tram Passenger and an Uniformed Adult in the play. As a tram passenger, I enjoyed that I got annoyed at Emil for not paying for his ticket. I can react and be surprised at this. I was able to act out and understand what people were like one hundred years ago in Berlin. I understand that Berlin’s citizens were all very civilised and got annoyed at children, running around in the streets.

I learnt in the play that I always need to face the audience and project my voice rather than shouting. I found the Saturday rehearsals very useful as we were able to go through the performance like what we would do in the real thing and notice the scenes that weren’t as good as others.

I found the costumes very useful as we could transport into the lives of the people in Berlin and understand what they wear at that time.

I would recommend the experience to others because it is very exhilarating when you are on stage and you feel really proud of yourself when it is finished”

“The Emil and the Detectives rehearsals went well. The cast worked hard and they were all excited for the show after all the rehearsals were done. The tech team spent time to make sure everything was perfect. The 2 Saturday rehearsals helped the scenes flow better and improve the play massively. It also gave Mrs Jacques a chance to make sure all of the amazing costumes she had spent time making, were perfect and ready to be performed in.

I played the part of Emil’s Grandma. To be this character you had to be strict, and angry most of the time. I also got to use a walking stick! I think the 2 Saturday rehearsals took my performance to a whole new level and it helped me get used to performing on a stage, improve my vocal and facial expressions and project my voice more”

“I played as a Newspaper Seller and it was a really fun role to play. I loved the costume, especially the braces as it made me look like the actual character. I enjoyed acting with my friends and wearing the boards, which had one of my headlines written on it.

I went to rehearsals once every week on Mondays and I think I improved by a lot. I tried to follow the instructions and listened very carefully. I learned to shout confidently for my role because if I was too quiet no one would hear my Headlines.

We had Saturday rehearsals, which I thought was really helpful. I think that because it helped me know what the show was going to be like when we were going to perform”

I think that my favourite part of working in the tech team was a lot of the teamwork because throughout different performances there were different people doing different jobs so everybody got the entire experience so everyone did every part of the lighting and the sound.

Jacob H (Top Form)

Reuben W (Top Form)

Eloise W (Top Form)

Jane C (Y6)

“I would recommend it because you get to bond with other actors and you might find a hidden passion for acting”

Baxter F (Year 6)

“Taking part in “Emil and the Detectives” was lots of fun and we learnt lots about acting. Having lighting and costumes enhanced our performance by making it feel more in character and real.

I think my best performance was the last one because I had more experience of performing in front of an audience and I had lost my butterflies by the end. I played a Neustadt resident. A Neustadt resident is someone who lives in Emil's hometown "Neustadt" . I liked this role because I could use my imagination to make actions for my role. I developed my facial expressions and my spatial awareness. Spatial awareness is when on the stage you look for space and create it wherever you are. I went to rehearsals every other Monday and I worked on projecting my voice and by the end of the last performance I think I had perfected that.

Saturday performances were useful because they helped us to experience what it would be like to be in an actual performance. In the end,

I think that this performance was a good thing to do and I really enjoyed it taking part in the rehearsals and the performances. That is why I recommend being in school plays to people who haven’t done it before”.

Georgie H (Year 6)

“I would recommend this production to another pupil because it is a good way to meet new people and improve on your acting and being in front of an audience”

Arabella H (Y6)

I would recommend this performance experience to every pupil at Beechwood even the ones with stage fright because everybody in the show makes you feel warm and part of something big”.

Sophie C (Year 5)

The Beechwood Play, Emil and the Detectives, was very successful with the performances getting better and better each time. All our hard work paid off; as the last performance came to an end, Mrs Cussans ran out of superlatives to describe the performance. The pupils could not have put on such a wonderful show without Mrs Hegarty, who organised the whole production, working day and night. “It was a joy to be involved”, said Chloe (Year 5). All the children really enjoyed being part of the annual school performance, and lots want to take part again next year!

I cannot decide which cast was best because both performed fantastically, and got the audience out of their seats in excitement! All the characters looked amazing in their costumes, so the whole school owes a T-Rex sized thanks to Mrs Jacques who designed and created the costumes which brought the play to life. The whole Beechwood team pulled off an exceptional play so everyone had plenty to talk about afterwards and nobody could stop talking about how amazing it was.

Most people liked the bank scene best, and Tuesday’s mouse was a favourite, almost beating Heinrich the Goat’s burp. However, one audience member was not so impressed... “What’s the trouble with children these days, that stupid goat just burped in my face” said someone sitting in the front row... I hope he doens’t sue the School....

Overall, the nailbiting performance was wonderful, involving everyone who wanted to take part. It was JUST BRILLIANT”

Kaspar (Year 5)

LAMDA Results

Level Grade Pupil Name

Group Entry Level Merit

Ade, Aveer, Oliver G, Rudr, Tallulah, Louisa L, Laikley, Mya, Vivian Amelie M, Lela, Lily V, George G, Owain, Sophia U, Naomi, Amelie B, Joshua, Charlie M, Sofia V, Annabel R, Ethan P

Grade 1 Group Merit Olivia C, Annabel J, Alexander L, Sebastian T, Alexa, Luke W, Findlay, Belle, Lottie L

Grade 2 Group Merit Georgia L, Evie C, Ismail, Sam C, Katherine, Emilia, Harleen, Josie, Daisy, Olivia S, Scarlett

Grade 2 Duo Merit Harry S, Jonas, Frank H, Lucy T, Olivia F, Ffion M-P

Grade 2 Duo Distinction Serena, Sophie C

Grade 3 Solo Distinction Elsie, Jasmine, Jane, Sasha, Uju

Grade 4 Duo Merit Felix R

Grade 4 Solo Distinction Hector G, Ramsay

Grade 4 Group Distinction Seb, Finlay, Tommy H

Grade 4 Duo Distinction Isaac C, Chloe, Nicole

Grade 5 Group Distinction Aidan, Ethan H, Tom A-D

Grade 5 Duo Distinction Sam C, Jacob H

Grade 5 Solo Distinction Josh D, Felix M, Will F

See more photos of this term’s LAMDA performances here

I would like to say a huge thank you to Mr Orme for delivering my Future Skills lessons during my absence. He ensured that everything ran smoothly and that each year group were working on the topics appropriate to their needs at this time of year.

Year 5 were introduced to Planet Bofa just before Half Term and most have embraced it enthusiastically to start their preparations for senior school admissions tests. An impressive 649 tests have been completed so far, with 167 of those coming from just two pupils! Yiqian G and Katherine T are definitely our Bofa King and Queen of the term. Special mention should also go to Nikhil S, Josie D, Kai K, Sofia and Emilia G-S for completing over 20 tests each so far. This work is often done on top of other prep so it takes real dedication to do so much.

In lessons, Year 5 pupils have focused on different question types involved in both verbal and non-verbal reasoning. Pencils scribbled and Mr Orme reported hearing brains actually whirring away as the problems got harder and harder. I’m sure that parents have been called upon to help with preps and have learned some new skills along the way! The majority of 11+ senior school admissions tests are next term and this is all great preparation for what lies ahead.

It was National Careers Week at the beginning of March. Year 6 investigated different career options, researched their dream job, compiled a CV of their skills and achievements and then wrote a formal letter of application. They certainly learned that applying for a job can be a complicated process and that not checking your application carefully can result in it being filed in the B1N pile! All of this was done alongside copious amounts of Planet Bofa and ATOM prep as many of our Year 6 pupils have 13+ senior school assessments next term.

Year 7 have also been preparing for 13+ senior school assessments so they have been completing lots of verbal and non- verbal reasoning tests in timed conditions in the classroom. Alongside this, they have focused on the topic of leadership, analysing what makes a great leader, different leadership styles and applying this learning to leadership in their own lives.

Top Form have their sights set firmly on their Beechwood Final exams in June. This term they focused on study skills, learning to prioritise effectively and to create an effective revision timetable to keep themselves on track over Easter. Please ask your Top Former to show you their timetable if their revision doesn’t seem to have started yet! All the resources they need are in their Google Classroom but it’s down to them to make a timetable that works for them.

During the School Production week, all pupils from Year 5 and upwards completed a very thought provoking Emil themed puzzle challenge. The skills of problem solving, creative thinking and teamwork were certainly in evidence and it prepared the classes well for their traditional end of term Easter Escape Rooms. No bunnies or chicks were harmed, the Easter Bunny was rescued and the Bunny Bandit was defeated.

Have a look at the Emil themed puzzles (and answers!) on the next page if you would like to work on them as a family over Easter.

Mrs Clarke Director of Senior School Admissions and Head of Future Skills

CLICK HERE TO TRY THE EMIL PUZZLE CHALLENGE

CLICK HERE TO CHECK YOUR EMIL PUZZLE CHALLENGE ANSWERS

CLICK HERE TO TRY THE YEAR 5

CODE BREAKING CHALLENGE

CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE CODE BREAKING CHALLENGE ANSWERS

It's been an eventful Term and I’m happy to share some charity updates with you.

At the beginning of March, we held our annual dressing up day for the World Book Day charity, which raised over £500 for this amazing cause. We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all those who took part, donated, and helped to make the event a success, especially the English Department. Your support enables World Book Day to continue their mission to give every child in the UK a book and engender the love of reading that we have at Beechwood. The link to our fundraising page is here, if anyone is yet to make a donation

To support the Work of Comic Relief, we sold 3 boxes of red noses, which raised nearly £400.

I would like to give a shout-out to a Beechwood family, the Sahotas. They had asked if their children could have a netball shoot out at school and we were delighted to offer a court, posts and balls to help this

happen. I congratulate Mrs Groeneveld on beating my modest six goals in 20 seconds and becoming the top teacher scorer and the amazing children who smashed it even further! We appreciate their dedication and commitment to The Brain Tumour Charity and congratulate them on raising over £1,800! If anyone would like to donate further please click on this link

Beechwood pupils have been voting in the last few weeks to determine which charity we support next year as our School Charity, and next term we will help them pick this lucky charity.

I would like to thank all of our children who have supported these events and donors for your ongoing commitment to the Charity events that we hold, including those run by our brilliant BPSPA. Your generosity and kindness enable us to continue to help make a difference in our community and the wider world. Thank you for your continued support.

Mr Wood Head of Charities

Beechwood London Marathon Runners

Good Luck to two Beechwood parents running in this month’s London Marathon for two fabulous charities.

Hannah Gray is running for Great Ormond Street Hospital

Millie (Top Form) and Ed’s (Year 4) Mum, Hannah (pictured), is running the 2023 London Marathon to raise funds for Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity.

Hannah explains why she is running for this charity: “As many of you know, Ed and his family are lucky to be a GOSH family. Ed has been looked after by GOSH since he was 6 weeks old and had his 13th operation at the hospital last month. Running the marathon and fundraising for this incredible place are part of the way the family try and give back and they would love support from our wider Beechwood family. Millie will be out supporting on the day and Ed is hoping to be near the finish line.”

For a little more detail on why Hannah is running, how the hospital have supported the Gray family and to show your support, please click here

Nick Robeson, running for Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity

Albie (Y2) and Joseph’s (Y3) Dad, Nick Robeson is running the 2023 London Marathon and has set himself a crocodile sized target!. Marvin the Marvellous Crocodile has even been seen running in the grounds of Beechwood as he prepares for his big run!

Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity, based in Amersham funds 86 nurses who serve 25000 children, parents and carers) across the UK. Nick is attempting to raise one year’s salary and to do so would love support from the wider Beechwood Park family. We asked Nick why he was running and why he had chosen to support the work of the RDMCC:

“I have got to know this amazing charity well and the work their nurses do to support the lives of many children with extremely complex care needs is extraordinary. With two nerve-wracking (albeit brief) exposures to Paediatric Care at Great Ormond Street and Luton and Dunstable Hospitals (both hospitals are served by Roald Dahl Nurses) it was an easy choice. The marathon is a great opportunity to raise awareness and critically needed financial support and I hope you will lend me your support to hit the target. Individual or corporate donations welcome”.

To how your support for Nick and Marvin and Marvin the Marvellous Crocodile, please click here

Food Committee

As part of Beechwood’s commitment to Pupil Voice, the School Catering Manager and the Deputy Head (Pastoral) host termly Food Committee meetings to discuss provision at Beechwood and other issues relating to catering. The Food Committee, comprised of 16 pupils members from Year 2 upwards recently met to discuss a variety of topics including food waste, sustainability and most importantly, Beechwood meal times.

The first topic up for discussion was snacks at School. The committee talked about which snacks the pupils enjoy most, which snacks are least popular, and they also considered some new additions. Smoothies seem to be popular current option, although the Committee also had some suggestions for new flavours as we move towards the summer months – wild berry, tropical, and carrot / orange are now on the list of potential new flavours. At Holroyd Howe’s Spinach Tasting Table earlier this month, pupils had tried out and enjoyed a spinach & apple smoothie so this has also been suggested as a Smoothie of the Week. Food waste is an important issue, and members discussed the 1,2,3 system – what works, and what can we do as a community to reduce plate waste. One member explained how her commitment to reduce food waste as part of her Lent resolution means she is starting with a Portion 1 and only if she still feels hungry would she come up for seconds. Individual acts such as this can make a big difference to our overall food wastage totals.

Sustainability is, of course, high on everyone’s agenda, and the Committee had an animated discussion about packaging, food miles and the importance of sourcing local ingredients, the effects of air pollution, why planting wildflowers and initiative such as No Mow May are so positive, and much more!. Ultimately the plan is to build our own Beechwood Park Recycling Centre, to encourage our community to embrace the importance of recycling and do our part to create a sustainable future.

Of course, the Food Committee cannot meet without discussing LUNCH – the most important time of the day according to our pupils. They discussed plans for the Summer Term and talked in depth about the types of dishes pupils would like to see on our menus – for breakfast, lunch and supper. Suggestions included a Breakfast Bagel Bar, Polish dumplings, and gyros, and the idea of a foreign focus once a week when pupils should learn about a different national cuisine and try a new national dish – watch this space!

Message from the Catering Manager

We want to take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy and restful Easter, and we look forward to welcoming everybody back after the holidays.

Our focus for the summer term will be around food wastage, balanced diets and sustainability, with a visit a from Holroyd Howe’s Nutrition and Sustainability team.

Emily Henry Catering Manager

EASTER READING LISTS

Don’t forget to have a look at our Easter Reading Lists - and share with us next term which books you read, and which ones you enjoyed most. There are two lists - one for Woodlands and the Junior Department, and one for the Middle and Senior Department, and both feature books in a variety of genres, roughly in ascending order of difficulty. Click on the links below to see the lists:

WOODLANDS / JUNIOR READING LIST

MIDDLE / SENIOR READING LIST

RAINBOW READING CHALLENGE FOR JUNIOR DEPARTMENT

The librarians have suggested another great reading challenge for Junior Department pupils this Easter – Read the Rainbow!

There are a few rhymes to help you remember the colours of the rainbow; “Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain” or maybe you know “Rinse Out Your Granny’s Boots In Vinegar”.

It doesn’t matter which one you remember, but to ‘Read the Rainbow’ you simply need to read books with the right coloured covers. Start with a mainly Red cover, then an Orange, a Yellow, a Green, a Blue, an Indigo and finally a Violet – then you have Read a Rainbow. You can pick any book you like (as long as it’s the right colour in the right order) and you can read on your own or with your family. Most importantly enjoy your reading challenge.

How many Rainbows can you read?

We really look forward to hearing how you made your Rainbows and which books you picked for each of the colours – Please send us a photo of you with your ‘Book Rainbows’ so that we can display them for everyone to enjoy.

MEET AUTHOR TOM PALMER AT NEXT PAGE BOOKS, HITCHIN

If you are free on Thursday 20 April from 1600-1700, author Tom Palmer (some of you may remember him from an online assembly) will be visiting Next Page Books in Hitchin as part of his RESIST book tour.

Resist shines a light on the incredible work of the WWll Dutch Resistance, in a story inspired by the childhood of Hollywood legend Audrey Hepburn. As the brutal Second World War stretches on with no end in sight, life for ordinary Dutch people in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands is perilous and full of hardship. There is very little to eat and they face the constant threat of arrest and enslavement.After the murder of her beloved uncle and the capture of her brother by the Germans, Edda is determined to do anything she can to help the resistance fight back. But how much risk is one teenage girl willing to take?

Forest Fun

Just before the end of term, 30 local pre schoolers and their parents enjoyed a morning of “Forest Fun” in the Beechwood Woods. During the course of the morning, children enjoyed taking part in lots of arts and crafts activities in the woods, as well as sampling a delicious Beechwood Brunch. Thank you to Mrs Le Bas for masterminding this successful event, the first of this type we have hosted for a while, and we hope to run more events to share this wonderful natural resource with our local community. Thank you to Mrs Palin and Mrs Pope for helping out, and our wonderful team of Top Formers (Mille G, Aidan B, Josh D, Thomas G, Tommy H, James H and Finlay W) who all remembered how to make Forest School wands and were brilliant ambassadors

Markyate Village School Visit Forest School

Earlier in the term, Forest School Leader Mrs Le Bas hosted a session for Year 2 pupils from Markyate Village School - it was lovely to be able to share this wonderful resource, and we look forward to welcoming MVS back again soon!

Porsche in the Park - 15 July

Porsche in the Park is coming to Beechwood Park on the 15th July. Over 300 Porsche cars from classic to racing will be on display, and there wlll be lots of fun activities including a games bus and motorcycle stunt shows performing twice on the day.

Food and Drink available.

Tickets for children are free for the day including all the activities and adult tickets can be purchased here

Hope that everyone’s had a good term and is now enjoying spring. For the BPSPA, Lent term is in some ways a term to pause breath, sandwiched between the hectic Michaelmas and summer terms. Before I get told off, I realise that there’s never a quiet term for the children, staff or parents! At the BPSPA, we’ve been organising activities, asking what you want and planning for the fun-packed summer term.

Early this term, we held a successful disco - for those in junior and middle departments, plus year 6. The DJ somehow managed to keep lots of different ages entertained and the children seemed to enjoy themselves.

Via the Dressing Up Box, we supported the hiring out of costumes for children to wear on dressing up days, notably World Book Day. Shortly afterwards, there was the kind donation of sports shoes from lots of parents to the charity, One Impossible Thing. Thanks to everyone that contributed.

We’ve also pulled together and given out small Easter craft bags for everyone in the junior department. We hope they get to enjoy and use them over the holidays.

We’ve done a BPSPA survey this term too. Thank you to all of you that completed it. We were delighted that we had responses from over 100 people. We’ll work through your comments and then share key insights, plus what we plan to do about them, early in the summer term. It won’t surprise you to hear that there are lots of different views amongst the parent community and that it is difficult to please everyone, but we’ll do our best to listen and to respond fairly.

We’ve been doing lots behind the scenes too. We’ve reviewed finances and have made a large amount of money available for school projects plus have passed on large sums to charity, particularly our longstanding charity partner, Keech Hospice Care, where the team is extremely grateful for all your support.

Thank you as ever to the BPSPA Committee - including Nicola Palin, who looks after merchandise and the BPSPA online shop, but who only officially joined the Committee this term. And thanks everyone that’s supported BPSPA activities in different ways this term. Special thanks to two people, who have gone ‘above and beyond’. Firstly, Pippa Peel, who has run the second hand uniform shop for several years and who is now handing over the reins. Whilst the second hand uniform shop is run separately from the BPSPA, the profits go to the BPSPA – and Pippa and helpers have raised many many thousands of pounds for the BPSPA over the years. Secondly, Sarah Bremner, who has not only helped Pippa with the second hand uniform shop, but has also worked incredibly diligently and thoughtfully on so many different BPSPA events and activities over the years – typically quietly behind the scenes not wanting to take praise. From the whole Beechwood community, thank you Pippa and Sarah!

Next term we have a feast of fun activities for you to get involved in and enjoy! For all the family, there will be a coronation tea party mid to late afternoon on Fri 5th May (more on that early next term); picnic on the lawn on Sun 14th May; Beechwoof, the BPSPA’s first dog show, on Sat 20th May; and the end of term bonanza of Fun night on Tues 4th July (tickets for which go on sale next term). There is also Beech Club, the end of year parent social (previously called Beechfest), taking place offsite at Luton Hoo on Sat 10th June. Maybe even the odd ice lolly on a Friday afternoon as well. We’ve been starting to plan BPSPA events for 2023/24 too, but we’ll spare you the details on that for now... Hope you all have a great Easter holiday!

Click here to book tickets to BPSPA EVENTS

Dan Crossley BPSPA Chair

Second Hand Uniform

PLEASE NOTE: Picnic on the Lawn - Snack Packs

Please note that the last date to pre-order snack packs for the Picnic on the Lawn is the 16th April. Please pre-order via bpspa.shop.

We are looking forward to seeing you!

Date Event

Wednesday 26 April Term Starts

Year 5 Trip Information Meeting

Friday 28 April Lunchtime Concert

BPSPA Year 7 and Top Form Disco

Monday 1 May BANK HOLIDAY - NO SCHOOL

Friday 5 May Year 3 and 4 Open Classrooms

BPSPA Coronation Tea Party

Monday 8 May BANK HOLIDAY to mark King Charles’ Coronation - NO SCHOOL

Tuesday 9 May Year 6 Residential (back 10 May)

Thursday 11 May Year 3 Welly Boot Camp (overnight)

BPSPA Committee Meeting

Sunday 14 May BPSPA Picnic on the Lawn

Barbados Cricket Tour 20:20 Competition

Tuesday 16 May Summer Concert

LAMDA Exams

Woodlands Puppet Show

Wednesday 17 May Trinity Music Exams Year 2 Great Fire of London

Reception Day Trip

Thursday 18 May ABRSM Exams

Year 1 Day Trip

Senior School Information Evening (Year 6 and 7 Parents)

Friday 19 May ABRSM Exams

Barbados Tour Hundred Cricket Competition

Saturday 20 May Beechwoof - BPSPA Dog Show

Monday 22 May School Examination Week - Year 5 to 7

Woodlands “Special Adult in the House”

Tuesday 23 May Welly Boot Camp Assembly for Year 3 Parents

Senior School Information Evening (Year 5 Parents)

Thursday 25 May Music Information Meeting for Year 1 and 2 Parents

Friday 26 May Whole School Open Morning Lunchtime Concert School breaks up for Half Term

Monday 29 May -

Friday June HALF TERM

Tuesday 6 June Year 3 Day Trip

LAMDA Performances to Parents

Wednesday 7 June Woodlands Parents’ Consultation

Thursday 8 June Year 5 Mini Plays Performance to Parents

Date Event

Saturday 10 June BPSPA Beech Club

Monday 12 June Top Form “Moving On Moving Up” Programme Begins

Top For to Houses of Parliament

Year 5 Residential departs

Tuesday 13 June Woodlands Sports Day

Thursday 15 June BPSPA Meeting

Year 3 House Swimming Gala

Senior School Information Evening for Year 3 and 4 Parents

Friday 16 June Year 4 Viking Workshop

Junior Department Sports Day

Top Form Leavers’ Assembly

Monday 19 June

Tuesday 20 June

Top Form Residential departs

Year 5 House Swimming Gala

Woodlands Day Trip (N2 only)

Middle Department Cafe du Lion

Year 4 House Swimming Gala

Year 5 Trial Boarding Experience

Thursday 22 June Reception Prize Giving (pupils go home afterwards)

Year 2 Local Trip

Reception 2023 Induction Afternoon

Friday 23 June Top Form Return from Residential Trip

Tuesday 27 June Middle and Senior Department Sports Day

Wednesday 28 June Whole School Transition Day

Thursday 29 June Latin Plays and Roman Banquet (Year 6 to Top Form) Boarders’ Family Barbecue

Friday 30 June Woodlands’ Teddy Bears’ Picnic with families

Early finish for all pupils

Pupils vs Parents Cricket Match

Saturday 1 July

Monday 3 July

Speech Day

Woodlands Leavers’ Assembly

Year 7 / Top Form House Swimming Gala

Tuesday 4 July Year 2 Moving On Assembly

BPSPA Fun Night

Top Form Boarders Camp Out

Wednesday 5 July Barbados Cricket Tour departs

Year 1 Summer Party

Year 6 Leavers’ Assembly

End of Term for all Senior Department Leavers

Thursday 6 July END OF TERM

Please note: This is not an exhaustive list; please refer to the calendar on the Parent Portal for full up to date information