Well done to our Upper Prep Choir for Friday evening’s performance at the O2 as part of the Young Voices event. Thank you to everyone involved, especially to those delayed by the problems with the London Underground.
Our Upper Prep Cross Country squad really enjoyed their question and answer session with GB athlete Will Barnicoat. He shared how his running days began here on the Henderson Field and how he is now targeting a place on the Olympic team for Los Angeles 2028. We wish him well with this goal.
Monday saw Upper Prep gather for an assembly to mark Holocaust Memorial Day. Year 6 then remained in the Auditorium for a talk by a visiting author about becoming a writer and the life of Saint Kolbe. Later that day, Year 4 took some time to visit our Chapel, pausing in quiet reflection and prayer to remember those lost in the Holocaust.
Looking ahead, we begin Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week on Monday. Please remember that our School Councils are holding hot chocolate sales to raise money for the Place2Be children’s mental health charity. It will take place over morning break and it will cost £2 per cup. Lower Prep will have theirs on Tuesday and Upper Prep on Wednesday.
Mr Heaver 27
Young
On Friday 24th January, 31 boys from the Upper Prep Chamber Choir sang in the Young Voices concert at the O2 Arena in London. They were part of a choir of 8,000 children, attended by an audience of 10,000 family members and friends.
Guest artists included rapper and educator MC Grammar, the voice of Strictly Come Dancing, Tommy Blaize, and Britain's Got Talent superstar Souparnika Nair, alongside a professional live band and the Urban Strides street dancers.
This was truly an unforgettable experience for the boys, and a great opportunity for them to share their love of singing with children from schools across the UK.
Many thanks to Mr Harris, Miss Evans and Miss Wewege for accompanying them.
Voices at the O2
Guinness
World Record Attempt Successful!
We were thrilled to receive the news this week from poet Laura Mucha that her Guinness World Records attempt in which our pupils participated has been approved for Largest Poetry Lesson (Multi Venues).
The formal record is for 43,516 people (from around 500 schools), which is enough to fill a football stadium!
More than 125,000 young people from over 1,000 schools took part in the lesson, but many couldn’t be counted due to the VERY strict Guinness World Records requirements. However, we are proud to say that Cranmore fulfilled all of the requirements and are part of the formal world record!
You can read the final poem on the next page. We would like to thank all of our pupils who took part in this exciting event. If you wish, you can buy a personalised Certificate of Participation for your child (A5 size, they can add their photo and name). The discount code KIDS8POETRY will give a 40% discount until the end of February.
Finally, Laura has made a video of the project which our pupils will be watching in school. You can view it here: We've Broken a Guinness World Records Title!
Mrs Watkinson and Mrs Castle
Guinness World Record Attempt Poem
Upper Prep School Council News
This week Upper Prep School Council met to share the ideas from their classes with the rest of the group and to talk about what could be done to improve our school and support others. We also talked about their role in promoting Children’s Mental Health Awareness week and helping with the hot chocolate sale.
We are excited to announce our school's participation in British Science Week 2025, a celebration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) taking place from 7th to 16th March 2025. This year's theme is 'Change and Adapt', encouraging students to explore the dynamic nature of the world around us.
In addition to engaging in activities within lessons, we are encouraging all students to participate in theBritish Science Week Poster Competition. Students can create A3 or A4 posters illustrating how plants and animals adapt to changing environments, how humans have evolved with technology, developments in scientific thinking or any other creative interpretation of the theme.
The competition is open to all pupils in Years 3 to 6, with a submission deadline of Friday 7th March 2025; there will be prizes for the best entries in each year group.
Posters should be handed to pupils' Form Tutor or Science Teacher. The best five posters overall will be submitted to the national competition, with winners to be announced in the Summer Term. For examples of previous winners and more information, please visit the British Science Week website.
We look forward to celebrating British Science Week with all pupils and witnessing their enthusiasm for discovery and learning.
Dr Verny White, Head of Prep Science
Holocaust Memorial Day—Author Visit
On Monday 27th January we commemorated the Holocaust Memorial Day by inviting in an author.
Fiorella De Maria gave an assembly to our Upper Prep pupils about what it is like being an author and a talk to Year 6 about St Maximilian Kolbe who sacrificed his life to save a fellow prisoner of war in Auschwitz.
Pupils gained a lot from the visit and even had the opportunity to meet the author and purchase a book.
Mr Jakubowski
Pied Piper Theatre Visit
On Wednesday this week, our pupils from Nursery through to Year 2 were joined by pupils from Manor House to watch an exciting theatrical performance by the Pied Piper Theatre Company. The children were thrilled to see the giant scenery as they walked into the auditorium, and were enthralled by the retelling of the story of Town Mouse and Country Mouse.
Year 3 Celebrate Chinese New Year
Year 3 were fascinated to learn about how Chinese New Year is celebrated. Shan described some of the things he does with his family to celebrate. He showed us some special Chinese Spring couplets which are the signs put on doors with messages for a prosperous and lucky new year ahead. Then the whole of Year 3 made a colourful snake fan to celebrate the New Year of the Snake. Finally, Shan shared some fortune cookies and some special rice cakes with all the children.
On Thursday, 3CS performed their class assembly to their parents and the Lower Prep department. The theme was Cranmore’s value for the year, Community. The children shared their examples of the different communities they belonged to, sang songs about how people support each other in communities and then made a connected web of colours, explaining how we could make Cranmore an even more caring community.
Mrs Sinclair and Mrs Norris
Year 2’s Plant Heads
Year 2 pupils have been looking into the world of plants in science, discovering that plants are living things and come in an amazing variety of shapes and sizes. The children explored the parts of a plant and their vital roles.
A highlight of the topic was creating grass heads as they observed the growth and development of their grassy creations, marvelling at the ever-changing "hairstyles" as the grass sprouted and grew. It’s been a fun and hands -on way to connect with nature and see the wonders of plant life up close!
Mrs Stefano and Mrs Carpenter
This week the Nursery children have been celebrating Chinese New Year – the year of the snake. They have participated in lots of exciting activities including a dragon dance, making lanterns and writing the symbols that represent the Chinese numbers 1 to 10.
Ms Luke, Director of Nursery
Reception’s Trip to Pizza Express
Last week, Reception had the most wonderful trip to Pizza Express in Cobham. The children learnt all about the preparation of the pizzas, how the food and dough are stored, how the pizzas are cooked and the history of Pizza Express. Miss Hurl and Mrs Prothero were so impressed with the questions the children were asking and how well behaved they were.
The highlight of the trip was making their very own pizza and of course having a slice when we returned to school.
What a fantastic trip!
This Week’s House Cup Winners
Congratulations to Morton House in the Lower
and
the
for gaining the highest number of merits this week!
Prep
Stokes House in
Upper Prep
Miss Hurl and Mrs Prothero
Many rugby matches have taken place across all year groups, from U8s to U11s. Whilst most school fixtures were cancelled on Tuesday afternoon due to the adverse weather, we were pleased to be able host two schools to allow all of Year 6 to still play. Thank you to our Head of Rugby, Mr O'Neill, for the last-minute organisation and our grounds team for their dedication and hard work to prepare our pitches. Both Parkside and Shrewsbury House were extremely grateful after their own fixtures had been cancelled.
Last Saturday we had 6 pupils from Year 8 through to Year 11 swim at the English Schools Secondary Individual Event at The Guildford Spectrum. All boys took part in an individual 100m event, there were some great swims with a couple of pupils making PB times in their event. Well done to Henry C (Year 8 –Butterfly), Gus E (Year 8 – Front Crawl), Daniel B (Year 9 – Backstroke), Theo L (Year 10 – Breaststroke), Jack P (Year 10 – Front Crawl), Jensen W (Year 11 – Front Crawl)
The Murray Cup - Saturday 1st February
Sporting fixtures between Cranmore and Rokeby are remarkably long standing. The schools share a common set of sporting values. This trophy completes the circle of sporting competitions between the two schools following The Henkes Shield (Football) and The Phillips Travers Trophy (Cricket). Jake Murray left Rokeby in 2016 after captaining the 1st XV in his final year. His favourite team to play against was always Cranmore, hence the beginning of the Murray Cup. Annually, many matches are played between the two schools and in rugby, eight fixtures count towards this prestigious cup. These fixtures, age groups U9s to U13s, take place tomorrow morning on The Henderson.
We wish everyone taking part the best of luck.
Previous Winners
2018 - Cranmore
2019 - Cranmore
2020 - Cranmore
2021 - Cancelled (Due to Covid-19)
2022 - Cranmore
2023 - Cranmore
2024 - Cranmore
2025 - ????
Mr Hodgson, Director of Sport
Charity Hot Chocolate Sale
Part of Children’s Mental Health Week
£2 per cup
*Dairy Free Option Available*
During morning break
Lower Prep - Tuesday 4th February 2025
Upper Prep - Wednesday 5th February 2025
Money raised will be donated to the children’s mental health charity Place2Be
A Message from our Chaplaincy Team
This Week
A Reading from the Gospel of Mark
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”
“What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.
They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”
"You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with?”
“We can,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”
When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Reflection
This week we reflected on Leadership and on the need to develop leadership skills. Each one of us has been given a gift by God, each of us has been given a specific purpose. As we approach the end of this week let us learn to recognise a little more the gifts that we have been given and think of ways we can use these gifts for our community. Monday 27th January marked the 80th Anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Let us pray that the Hope and Peace of Christ grows in us and spills over into the communities we are a part of.
Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom.
Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart.
Main Chicken & Vegetable Korma
Vegetarian
Slow Cooked Beef Lasagne
Sides
Paneer & Spiced Root Vegetable Dhal
Roasted Vegetable Lasagne
Roast Pork with Yorkshire Pudding, Apple Sauce & Gravy
Braised Lentil Cottage Pie with a Sweet Potato Top
Loaded Mexican Chicken Nachos with Sour Cream, Salsa & Cheese
Freshly Battered Fish or Jumbo Fish Finger with Ketchup and Tartare Sauce
