Prep for the Week Issue 1813

Prep for the Week Issue Number 1813 – 4 December 2015

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In this week’s issue…

Headmaster's Blog and Commendations Friends of The Prep Bake Sale next Thursday!

Academic Olympiad Kingfishers Nativity Plays Kingfishers, Lower and Middle School News Letter from the Library Bakery and Craft Clubs Boys and Girls' Sports, and Year 2 Fixtures Calendar and Notices

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Headmaster's Blog Dear Parents As The Prep hurtles towards the end of term, I am able to enjoy the atmosphere of a school which knows that, after a job well done, it has earned its break. It is pleasing to note that across the school, children are approaching this busy period with more energy than is usual and there is almost a complete absence of the hollow, sunken eyes, which can characterise a school without balance at this time of year. I would suggest that the new timetable with ‘catch up’ Wednesdays, a dedicated prep period, and the new Saturday arrangements have something to do with this.

The final week of the term looms and there is so much to look forward to. The scene has been set

by Kingfishers, who treated us to a wonderful nativity play, as well as Christmas with the Aliens.

Crystal clear words were complemented by enthusiastic yet controlled singing and it was clear that the children were having a ball. Thank you, parents, for the obvious support that you offer ALL of the children when you attend. The sense of willing every child to succeed has been palpable.

Next week, our musicians will entertain us at the Christmas Concert whilst Lower School will present their adaptation of The Nutcracker. Upper School will dance the night away at their Jingle Bells Party and the full Boarders will enjoy their themed feast (I cannot give away which theme – it’s a secret).

And finally, to bring this exciting and productive term to a close we have our Kingfisher Carol Service at 14.00 in the Assembly Hall and the Carol Service for Years 3-8 in the College Chapel at 16.00.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Mr Jon Whybrow

Friends of the Prep Cake Sale Our Bake Sale will take place Thursday 10 December 08.0009.00 & 15.00-17.00, outside the Davis Block in Lower school, to accompany the not-to-be-missed Staff Carol Singing (08.0008.25)!

We need your cakes!

Please deliver all your hand-baked, bought or decorated goodies to the Homfrey Room (near reception) on Wednesday 9 December, between 15.00-18.00.

All cakes must be nut-free.

Prep for The Week Issue Number 1813 4 December 2015

Fancy some festive baking?

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Headmaster's Commendations Jules Hazeldine for consistently showing great confidence, bravery, determination and technique in our contact Rugby practices Oscar Mann for producing a brilliant fact page about the continent of Africa for the Year 4 ‘Read Around the World’ display Ben Urbanovsky for excellent fuselage (body) shape on his biplane Design Technology project Evie Cook, Sammy Baines and Laura Bingham for excellent smooth finish on their biplane Design Technology project Thea Peterken and Rory Maddinson for excellent wing shape and design on their biplane Design Technology project Claudie MacInnes for excellent work on her spelling test - this was a real achievement for her and she scored full marks Imogen Creed for her enthusiasm and outstanding effort while completing her Geography coursework Denis Solovyev for excellent additional research into Revolutions and Revolutionaries Rory Jenkins for excellent additional research into The Mary Celeste and Edward the Confessor Izzy Reid, Dekhan Dodo and Shani Choudhary for outstanding research prep on William Wallace Anabelle Wells for outstanding research prep on Richard III Finlay Hurst and Jack O’Connor for their performance in the Cross Country on Monday - the grit and determination they displayed really was admirable and set such a good example. They really did push themselves and each other to the absolute limit Honor Hardie, Harry Garbutt and Oliver Callon-Hine for excellent creativity and finish on their biplane Design and Technology Project Denis Solovyev, Pablo Benedit, Imogen Creed, Genny Richardson and Hermione Lloyd-Horton for imaginative creative writing

PARKING AT THE PREP The relatively new arrangements are working well and although there is no perfect solution, the drop off zone appears to have improved the flow of traffic through the site. As always I encourage those who drop-off and collect their children to exercise the utmost caution, paying due attention to the fact that children are unpredictable.

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Academic Olympiad Saturday 28 November 2015 Our first Academic Olympiad gave all pupils a chance to show their strengths in applying their subject knowledge to new challenges. Each pupil was selected within their House as a 'Genius' or 'Mastermind' in their section and went off in their team to put their grey matter to work. The Geniuses attempted tasks in Maths, Science and Design while the Masterminds took on challenges in English, the Humanities and Languages. The importance of teamwork was stressed before the event began and pupils soon realised that their ears were going to be twice as important as their mouths when finding the right answer or conducting their experiment in the best way. It was certainly evident to staff that the children’s ability to work together and to hold discussions improved as the morning went on. The morning was a great success, thanks to the enthusiasm of the staff and the energy of the children. Pupils displayed tenacity, independence, co-operation and intelligence throughout the morning and I hope that many feel they have been able to demonstrate their strengths in different ways during this new event.

The overall winner will be announced in our final Assembly, but here are some initial results to whet your appetite: Lower School: 1st place Athens, 2nd place Rome Middle School: 1st place Persia, 2nd place Athens Upper School: 1st place Corinth, 2nd place Troy

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Kingfishers

Cottage and Reception Nativity

This week, the Christmas festivities well and truly began in Kingfishers with the performances of our Christmas Nativities. Over the last few weeks, all the children have been rehearsing very hard, learning lines, putting costumes together and practising songs until they were singing them all day long! Year 1 and Year 2 began the proceedings performing Christmas with the Aliens on Tuesday. Taking quite a novel approach to the Christmas story, six aliens were taught the true meaning of Christmas and found themselves being part of the stable scene in Bethlehem. All the children, from the villagers to the angels, from the Kings to the camels, worked tremendously hard and their efforts made the production a resounding success. Reception and Cottage children presented a more traditional Nativity on Wednesday afternoon, impressing everyone with their confidence and certainly sharing the Christmas message in a special way. All Kingfishers staff are immensely proud of the children this week. They deserve to feel very proud of their superb achievements. Congratulations to everyone.

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Year 1 and 2 performance: Christmas With The Aliens

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Kingfishers Medieval Feast!

This term, Year 1's topic has been ‘A Royal Celebration’. As part of this, the children were extremely excited to attend their very own medieval Banquet on Wednesday afternoon. To prepare for the occasion, the children made some medieval gingerbread from breadcrumbs, honey, cinnamon and ginger. Although excited by the prospect, the general consensus was that the gingerbread we enjoy today is much better! The children enjoyed munching a variety of food, including bread (fortunately not stale, as it would have been for the Normans!), cheese, fruit and honey cakes. In order to entertain the guests, the children performed short dances, jokes, poem recitals and shared things that they had made at home. Some of them also chose to take on the role of King or Queen to give speeches and thank the guests for coming. During the afternoon, the children also made some lovely stained glass windows and practised their sewing skills. A busy, but fun afternoon was had by all!

Join the Kingfishers Choir for Carols

Join the Lower School Choir for Carols

Tuesday 8 December at 14.00 The Exmouth Arms, Bath Road *Kingfisher children can sign out from the Exmouth

Wednesday 9 December at 10.00 Cavendish House, the Promenade

We stuck these on

Ready to fill with presents!

Festive Holly

Craft Club As you can see, Christmas has arrived at Craft Club, as the pupils decorated large Christmas stockings. They stuck on braid, buttons, felt Christmas trees, snowflake stickers and gingerbread-themed motifs. Each pupil created an individual design, which any fireplace would be proud to display.

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Lower School Year 4 India day was another huge success this term. Enrichment days like this really bring a topic alive and give children many opportunities to appreciate other cultures.

During the morning, colourful rangoli patterns were created, coconut barfi made and photos taken in traditional costumes. Even the PE curriculum changed to teach the children an established Indian game called Kabaddi.

Following a well earned lunch (roast, not curry!), the afternoon continued with henna handprints, curry cooking and dancing. Thank you to parents for coming and seeing the children's work and also for joining in the dance! A wonderful day, enjoyed by pupils and staff.

Lower School Smarties What Maths can you show using just a box of smarties?

This investigation was tasked to all Lower School children on Friday. The activity started with a group brainstorm and then the children could choose to show different Maths concepts that they were confident with. Some pupils looked at how to create pie charts, others showed tally and bar charts. Thinking 'outside of the box' is always encouraged and I was very impressed to see force meters being used and bridges constructed. All children were fully engaged and enjoyed the edible reward at the end of the session!

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Middle School Random Acts of Kindness A random act of kindness is a selfless act performed by a person or a group wishing to either assist or to cheer up an individual person to be kind, thoughtful, use their manners, give out compliments, volunteer or forgive someone. In Middle School we have been noticing other people’s random acts of kindness and making a display. Here is just a taste of some of the kind things that have been happening around Middle School…

• • • •

She makes me feel welcome when I am boarding He gave me an ink cartridge when I ran out of ink He helped me when I was hurt in the playground When I dropped my equipment in the doorway, she picked it all up for me

Swimming Success!

On Sunday 29 November, Jude Richardson swam in the Junior Inter-League Final for his swimming club. This competition is entered by clubs all over the country. Jude swam two individual races, in which he came 3rd, and many relay races as well. Overall his club came 8th. He has been training for this event for months, and was very proud of his club doing so well. Here's what Jude had to say about this race:

It is great to see that even at this late stage of term, Middle School have remembered that a simple act of kindness can go a long way to keeping harmony.

Well done to George and Violet Bailey who both enjoyed an afternoon of playing with the Royal Marines Band at Birmingham Conservatoire last weekend. The Marines were visiting the city and spent the day mentoring the Junior Conservatoire Wind Band followed by a concert including Aaron Copland's Fanfare for the common man.

Prep for The Week Issue Number 1813 4 December 2015

“I started swimming when I was six years old because I had a disease in my hip, which meant that I couldn’t run, walk or do Games and PE. I improved and improved until I was good and at the start of this year I got into the Junior League A team with my club. Teams from all over the country race in this competition and we made it to the Regional Finals. We swam really well and came second. I have been training very hard, getting up at 05.00 and swimming before school and at weekends.

On Sunday we went to the National Finals with the other seven best teams in the whole country. I was 3rd in my individual races and swam in all of the nine and ten year old relays. The team was 8th and we had parades, medals and photographs which was great fun. It was a brilliant day.”

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Letter from the Library Some of The Prep pupils have been taking the opportunity to find out more about what is happening in the world around them by reading First News and having a go at the weekly quiz in the library. Last week’s paper and quiz covered the recent events in Paris and it was great to see so many pupils taking time to find out more about current affairs and earn themselves a House point at the same time!

Bakery Club We all really enjoyed Bakery Club last week when we decorated gingerbread houses! The catering department kindly made large slabs of gingerbread for us. We then cut out a house template and stuck on lots and lots of different sweets and Christmas sprinkles to create very festive tableaux. They tasted delicious too!

Mrs Barrett and Mrs Williams want to say a big well done to all the pupils who come to Bakery Club: they have demonstrated good teamwork, enthusiasm and excellent baking skills.

First News is the award-winning weekly national newspaper for children aged 7 to 14.

It provides articles on a range of subjects from entertainment to politics, sport to science, as well as all of the major news stories from the UK and around the world. We provide copies of it in the main Library, Lower School and in the Boarding House.

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Girls' Sports TEAM OPPOSITION DATE SCORE RESULT U10A Beaudesert Park 2 Dec 2 – 3 LOST U10B Beaudesert Park 2 Dec 0 – 4 LOST U11A Beaudesert Park 2 Dec 1 – 5 LOST U11B Beaudesert Park 2 Dec 0 – 2 LOST 1st VII Bromsgrove 2 Dec 3 – 3 DREW 2nd VII Bromsgrove 2 Dec 3 – 3 DREW 3rd VII Bromsgrove 2 Dec 1 – 1 DREW 4th VII Bromsgrove 2 Dec 4 – 3 WON 5th VII Bromsgrove 2 Dec 7 – 0 WON

s and s, fixture witter!

For new s on T follow u , s e t a d up repgirls @cheltp

Team of the Week – 2nd VII A score of 3-3 against Bromsgrove doesn't really reflect the match played by the 2nd's today. The girls fed the ball well from defence to attack and used the full width of the pitch switching easily from one side to the other. All of our players intercepted passes and looked strong in tackles. I was impressed with the defence's aggressive approach, and their support of the mid field allowed The Prep to push forward into the Bromsgrove D. Bromsgrove picked up a stray pass and made a lucky break that ended in a goal just before half time.

The Prep had possession for most of the first half and it was a relief to see them score a goal that they thoroughly deserved, just on the whistle. In the second half a brilliant second goal was, again, a reflection of the girls' more impressive play. A moment of confusion amongst our mid fielders immediately after led to another quick goal by Bromsgrove. Bromsgrove then went on to score a good goal followed by a brilliant pass to the top of the D and a fantastic shot by The Prep bringing the score to 3-3! End to end action and a super game! I was very impressed with the girls' commitment and how well they are now playing together as a team. We are now looking forward to the last match on Saturday, and determined to make it a win!

Cross Country The House Cross Country races were completed this week in the blustery wet conditions out on the fields. All children, regardless of their ability, approached this event with a positive attitude and a good mixture of nerves and excitement. Every race was a delight to watch, from the raw talent and determination at the front, to the very competitive sprint finishes throughout the races, to the support and encouragement of those pupils at the back. Well done to all of our pupils who ran for their House points.

Lower School Winners – Persia Middle School Winners – Athens Upper School Winners – Athens Cross Country is definitely on the up at Cheltenham Prep and becoming more and more popular. Good luck to our five pupils competing in the County Championships this weekend.

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Boys' Sports Cheltenham College Prep School Barbarians 10's Tournament Now in its second year, this festival of rugby gives an opportunity to our 3rd and 4th team players to experience what it is like to play in tournament rugby. By the end of the afternoon, as darkness fell, it was clear that the boys thrived on the situation. Our first game was against Downs Wraxall who were a stronger side, but through sheer determination not to concede, we managed to hold them at bay and secure a 0-0 draw: a wonderful defensive display. With no rest, we were straight into our second match against Pinewood and unfortunately switched off, momentarily, conceding a try from the kick-off and never really recovered, and lost 20-0. This meant we finished third in our group and went into the Bowl competition for three further matches: the whole squad was enjoying the fact that they had so many matches! Clifton were up first and after another slow start, where we went 5-0 down, we suddenly started to believe in ourselves, securing good ball at the breakdown and came back to win 10-5 through two well-worked tries. This second half display was carried forward into a good 15-5 win against Bromsgrove. Our final game against Prior Park was the group decider, with the winner securing the trophy! With this at stake, it seemed to inspire the team, as they played not only their best rugby of the afternoon but their best rugby of the season to secure a fantastic 20-0 win, with everyone in the team contributing to a wonderful performance. It was a delight to see the team’s beaming smiles as they went up to collect the trophy and their medals, which they wore with pride; the very purpose of the tournament. A fantastic afternoon and a great way to end the season.

For n update ews, fixtures a s, follo w us o nd n Twitt @chelt er! prep_b oys

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Year 2 Fixtures Last weekend saw the Year 2's first Rugby fixture against Dean Close!

On a chilly but dry morning there were high excitement levels from the Year 2 boys (and their parents), as they arrived for their first tag rugby fixture against Dean Close. Playing in a round robin festival format of four 4-a-side games, all of the boys got fully stuck in and put their training into action.

They demonstrated a good understanding of the game and how it was played. There were high numbers of tries scored as players ran with purpose and skill. In defence, the boys made it hard for the opposition to score by “tagging" the opposition. The boys all took their turn to rest without a fuss, returning to the fray with renewed vigour and maintaining their focus in front of a large crowd of parents and grandparents who supported good play from both teams.

Many of the boys took a large step forward in their levels of performance and confidence on the morning and all left the field via the traditional "tunnel� having enjoyed the experience and looking forward to Match Tea. All players were a credit in the manner of their performance and behaviour throughout. Well done!

The girls got stuck in too - Year 2s also played their first Netball fixture!

Saturday saw our Year 2 girls take part in the annual netball fixture against local rivals, Dean Close. There was a huge buzz of excitement in the Sports Centre, from both the girls and the throng of parents and grandparents showing their support. Both schools brought 3 teams who all played each other, and each match was hard fought and played at a great level for such young players. The skill levels on show were of an exceptionally high standard: the accuracy of passing and catching was such that there were some points scored where the ball never touched the ground, and both sides demonstrated some fantastic interceptions.

Every game was played in such a great spirit, and the girls were on such a high when they came off the court, that they wanted to do it all over again! It was a great experience for all the girls involved, and with every girl in Year 2 taking part, a fantastic demonstration of sport for all.

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Ski Club Well done to all our Prep Ski Club members, it's been a great term of skiing! During their last session, the team enjoyed an informal race with prizes and awards: the results from the competition are in the table below. Here's a letter from Kandahar racing, who are really impressed with your efforts on the slope!

Dear Ski Team, I just wanted to pass on my thanks to all Cheltenham Prep Ski Team trainees and parents for your participation in our training programme during this term. It’s been a pleasure to see how much everyone has enjoyed it and from a coaching point of view it was hugely encouraging to see the improvements made by all.

I’m very enthusiastic about the future of Kandahar Racing and Cheltenham Prep working together over the coming years and there are already plans in place to build and improve upon the start that we’ve made over the past few months. Last Monday marked the last training session for this term and we’ll be wrapping up

the programme during the winter period while the majority of our staff are in the mountains. You’ll be glad to know, however, that we will start training again in April and run it right through until December on an annual basis, going forward. More details will be made available next term and I hope to see you all again in April! All the best, Matt, Hope, Rich & Angela CHELTENHAM PREP SKI CHAMPIONSHIPS 2015 Kandahar Racing

SURNAME

FIRST NAME

England Isabella Mann Oscar Richardson Harry Smith Oliver Bridge Jude Poulain Evie Murashov Maxim Zamora Andre Tacey Felix Blanchfield Ollie Poulain Lilly Fairs Sydney Bennett Teddy Palmer Savannah Maynell Charles Dunkerton Kitty Leach Tula Salam Abdul Bennett Bertie Christie Mia Leach Zara Christie Isabelle PrepJeveons for The Week Issue NumberLois 1813 4 December 2015 White Monty

# 1st 2nd 3rd 4 5 6 7 7 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 DNS DNS

1 19.49 22.76 22.72 24.24 27.04 27.13 26.82 27.74 33.92 28.62 28.89 27.97 30.00 28.52 32.24 32.01 34.01 30.80 33.24 39.23 36.09 39.33

2 19.34 22.14 22.60 24.08 26.09 26.25 26.66 26.80 30.32 27.74 28.20 27.96 30.12 DNF 30.96 31.00 31.02 32.07 32.95 35.59 37.18 42.37

RUN 3 19.62 21.67 21.97 24.40 26.17 25.69 26.75 25.96 28.41 26.60 27.62 27.50 29.66 28.35 30.25 30.44 34.25 29.73 32.55 32.74 33.04 -

FASTEST 4 19.49 22.54 23.99 25.68 25.86 25.96 26.58 26.67 26.99 26.97 27.65 28.25 29.12 29.20 29.37 29.53 31.75 33.91 -

5 27.55 26.28 -

19.34 21.67 21.97 23.99 25.68 25.69 25.96 25.96 26.28 26.60 26.97 27.50 28.25 28.52 29.20 29.37 29.53 29.73 32.55 32.74 33.04 39.33 14

All changes and additions to the School Calendar appear in pink.

Calendar

Sunday, 6 December 2015 14:00 Boarders' Bowling Championship (Full and Regular Flexi-Boarders Only) 16:00 Prep Chamber Choir at the Suffolks Christmas Market Monday, 7 December 2015 Week 14 , 7 - 13 December 14:30 Lower School 1st Performance (Assembly Hall) 18:30 Christmas Concert (Assembly Hall) Tuesday, 8 December 2015 Departure for the Sibford Rugby VIIs (A): U13A Girls. Start 13:30. Pick up 18:00 12:00 14:00 Kingfishers Carol Singing on Bath Road 16:30 Lower School 2nd Performance (Assembly Hall) 18:00 Upper School Jingle Bells Christmas party Wednesday, 9 December 2015

No flexi boarding available 10:00 Lower School Carol Singing on The Promenade 14:00 Kingfishers Christmas Party 14:00 Middle and Upper School Netball Training and Trials. Pick up 16:15 14:00 Middle and Upper School Hockey Training and Trials. Pick up 16:15 Thursday, 10 December 2015

Christmas Mufti and Christmas Lunch No flexi boarding available 15:00 Year 6 and Year 8 Drama Rehearsal 15:30 School day finishes for Kingfishers (no after school care, activities or tea) 16:00 School day finishes for Lower School (no after school care, activities or tea) 16:30 School day finishes for Middle and Upper Schools (no activities, supervised prep, tea or flexi- boarding) 18:00 Boarders' Christmas Feast (Full Boarders) Friday, 11 December 2015

Term ends

Boarders can depart, timings by prior arrangement 09:15 Year 6 and Year 8 Drama Performance 14:00 Carol Service for Kingfishers (Assembly Hall) Term ends for children in Kingfishers (no after school care, activities or tea) 15:30 Carol Service for pupils and parents of Years 3-8 (Chapel) 16:00 17:00 Term ends for children in Lower, Middle and Upper School (no after school care, activities or tea)

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NOTICES Happy Birthday to the following pupils next week!

Ted McQuitty 6

Thomas Martin-Harrington

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Harry Mills 10 Oliver Smith 10 Theory Clarke 12

Finlay Hurst 12

School Uniform Shop A message from the Uniform Shop: Dear Customers, We have really enjoyed working in the shop and meeting all of you but the time has come for us to hang up our school caps.

As from 1 January we are handing over to Emma Collings. She will be able to be contacted on the same mobile phone number and email address as all previous enquiries.

The shop opening hours may well be altered from January, but we will let you have details as soon as possible or please look at the school website.

Thank you to all who have come to the shop and we wish you a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Julie Tague and Irene Jones

Happy Advent!

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