Prep Chronicle 7 July 2023

Message from the Headmaster

This has been an extraordinary year at Cranmore. I am immensely proud of everything we have achieved and it is a real privilege to lead this school as Headmaster. We have kept our wonderful traditions and experiences of life at the school enjoying an abundance of fixtures, musical performances, assemblies, concerts, rambles and drama productions.

On the musical front, pupils have performed impressively throughout the year in soirées, concerts, competitions, workshops, and festivals. Some real personal highlights include our carol service and the visit of the London Youth Gospel Choir. Equally, in Drama, we have been privileged to watch some fabulous performances from different year groups culminating in the summer Senior production of We Will Rock You.

In sport, there have been some astounding individual and team achievements. In many respects it was the most successful year since the school was founded with over 1000 fixtures played which is quite remarkable. We have won numerous tournaments, Surrey Cups, National IAPS, ESSKIA championships and Surrey championships. It is testimony to the effort and talent of the pupils and the contribution of the staff.

Importantly, we also found time for opportunities to participate across the Trust with St Teresa’s during rambles, lectures, the World Scholars’ Cup, theatre performances, CCF training, musical workshops, the reading challenge, Maths challenges and the productions of We Will Rock You and Romeo and Juliet. This added greatly to the overall experience of the pupils.

Our guest speaker at senior prize giving, Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock MBE, encouraged us all to have a dream even if it seems crazy at times and to know we are all capable of doing what we are passionate about to realise our goals. Over the summer, I hope pupils will have the time and opportunity to explore what their dream might be.

I hope you have a wonderful summer and I look forward to seeing you back at Cranmore in September.

Mr Everitt

Lower Prep Cups and Awards

The Lower Prep School gathered together on Monday for our Cups and Awards Assembly. We were very proud of all the children who have worked so hard this term, and enjoyed celebrating their achievements together.

Miss Gallop

Music News

My congratulations to the six winners of the Young Musician Competition who performed in the Winners Concert on Tuesday morning. Bravo!

Year 4 Winner – Hugo Parry (cello)

Year 5 Winner – Nino Lawas (piano)

Year 6 Winner – Colin Cheung (piano)

Year 7 Winner – Charlie Weatherall (piano)

Year 8 Winner – Sam Barklam (horn)

Year 9 Winner – Ronan Madden (voice)

Congratulations to the following pupils for their ABRSM results:

Grade 1

Name Year Group Instrument Level

Leo B 5 Guitar Pass

Nikita O 5 Singing Merit

Theo G 5 Violin Merit

Charlie F 5 Guitar Merit

Oscar H 5 Guitar Merit

Harry M 4 Flute Distinction

Jamie T 6 Clarinet Distinction

Grade 2

Jamie T 6 Piano Merit

Daniel C 5 Singing Merit

Ethan A 4 Trumpet Merit

Zach G 6 Piano Merit

Hugo B 5 Cello Merit

Richard Harris, Director of Music

Grade 3

Name Year Group Instrument Level

Morgan D 6 Singing Merit

Grade 4

Jasper H 5 Trumpet Pass

Nino L 5 Violin Distinction

Grade 5

Edward W 6 Piano Distinction

Grade 6

Daniel A 6 Piano Merit

Colin C 6 Piano Merit

Our drum and guitar teachers ran a competition to find the best drummer and guitarist in each of the Upper Prep and Senior year groups. Congratulations to the following pupils:

Rory W Best Guitar Performance in Year 4

Oscar H Best Guitar Performance in Year 5

Dylan V Best Guitar Performance in Year 6

Rafe H Best Drumming Performance in Year 5

David L Best Drumming Performance in Year 6

Year 5 Maths Masterclass at St Teresa’s

St Teresa’s was delighted to offer five Primary Mathematics Masterclasses throughout this academic year in association with the Royal Institution.

These series of workshops were led by enthusiastic speakers, including students in Years 12 and 13 who are studying STEM subjects and undertaking a Royal Institution Masterclass project under teacher supervision at St Teresa’s. The masterclasses offered the students a fun and inclusive opportunity to investigate mathematical ideas outside the curriculum and explore the wider aspects of the subject.

The six pupils chosen by their teachers at Cranmore school to attend the entire series of five sessions were: Daniel C, Leo B, Anthony N, Nino L, Hugo B and Jasper H. These pupils along with their parents and teachers have been invited to celebrate their success at an event in London on Saturday 8th July 2023 from 10am to 2pm.

Ms Fagan

School Council News

A clock has been mounted on the bus shelter in the main car park. This idea came from pupils through our School Council. A hot chocolate sale was held to raise funds for this purchase. Thank you to our pupils for this practical suggestion. It will help us all to be on time for school!

Years 3 and 4 enjoyed a demonstration by M-Tech on Tuesday afternoon. This club is part of the activities programme at Cranmore and will be open to all boys in Year 4 and above in September.

Mrs Spooner

M-Tech Demonstration to Years 3 and 4

Reception News

This week, Reception pupils have been learning about Road Safety. We learnt a rap to help us to remember to ‘stop, look, listen and think.’ We then went to the school carpark to practise crossing the Zebra Crossings safely. Well done, Reception. We are very proud of you.

Nursery News

The Nursery all had a wonderful end of year party. The theme was Mermaids and Pirates and they all made a huge effort with their costumes! They made a choice of sandwiches for their party and had fun playing games and dancing.

The EYFS and Lower Prep Sports Days were wonderful occasions for us to come together and participate in some fun races. We were very impressed with the enthusiasm from all the children and the sportsmanship on display, as they cheered on their friends. A big thank you to all who came to support.

Upper Prep Sports Day

The sun shone during the Upper Prep Sports Day, ensuring that spirits were high. Well done to all who took part, and special congratulations to all those who won their races. Borelli House were the winners in both the Upper Prep and Seniors. Congratulations to them!

Sport Update

Year 6 pupil Freddie W participated at the National Schools Athletics on Monday. Freddie did incredibly well running in the 1500m, taking 7 seconds off his PB. He finished in the top 3 in his heat and 7th overall. He was the highest placed runner in the event from Surrey. Well done, Freddie.

Our final cricket matches included a year group block for our U10s vs Parkside and our U11 A&Bs vs Donhead. I'm pleased to say that Cranmore played some superb cricket and manged to win all the matches.

The U13 cricket season finished with success in the 'Martin Alden' 6 aside tournament at Rokeby. Cranmore started well and finished top of the group with victories against Feltonfleet, Parkside and Summerfields. Qualifying for the main competition we also defeated Farleigh House in the semi-final to set up a return fixture against Feltonfleet in the final. Feltonfleet batted first and set a tournament record of 86-0 off their five overs. Despite this daunting target, Cranmore managed to keep up with the run rate, eventually requiring 17 from the final over. Some well-timed boundaries and excellent running meant we then needed 4 from the final delivery. Billy Craigen remained the calmest person in the ground, hitting a 6 to secure an incredible victory.

Skiing

Head of Skiing, Mike Mellstrom, will be stepping down from his position at the end of this term. Mike has led the skiing at Cranmore for over 20 years and has had unprecedented success along the way. In his time, Cranmore has competed exceptionally well across all notable school skiing events, including the IAPS, ESSKIA, Surrey Schools and Interski. With many trophies won, Cranmore has been consistently recognised as the leading Prep skiing school in the country. With Cranmore now having older year groups, this success is now also being seen on the Senior circuit. Mike has built the most positive and friendly skiing community which has meant hundreds of pupils have taken to the slopes. His hard work and dedication for the sport have been obvious to everyone. Although Mike will still be advising and supporting our new Head of Skiing, Max Barson, we wanted to share our appreciation and gratitude for everything he has done. From everyone connected to the school, thank you Mike.

Summer Sports Camps at Cranmore - please see links below and flyers:

Activate Camps - https://www.activatecamps.co.uk/venues/cranmore-school/

Football Camp - https://www.participant.co.uk/surreyfootballcoaching/holiday-clubs

Goalkeeping Camp - https://ab1academy.com/cranmore-camps/

Gymnastics and Athletics - please see flyer

ECDC Cricket Coaching at Cranmore, from September - please see flyer

Mr Hodgson, Director of Sport

God Bless

We pray together...

At the end of this school year we give thanks to God: For all the teaching and learning that has taken place in our school, both in and out of the classroom, For the talents and gifts that have been shared and the challenges that have been faced; For the burdens that have been lifted and the hurts that have been healed; For the respect and care that has been given. We give thanks for the friendships that have just begun and for those that have grown; For the faith that has been lived in our daily struggles, For the hope that has lifted our hearts on the dark days

And for the love that has kept us going. We give thanks for the community that we are, and we ask you LordBless our students:

May your Spirit inspire them with confidence and calmness; Bless our families as we take our holidays, May our time together leave us with memories to cherish. Pour out your love on us that we may return renewed and refreshed to continue our journey in faith together. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen.