Kingswood Prep School in focus 2014

Kingswood 2013-2014

Prep School in focus

Nursery

6-7

contents KPS Head’s Introduction

1-2

KPS Reflections

3-5

Nursery

6-7

Reception 8-11 Year 1

12-13

Year 2

14-15

Year 3

16-17

Year 4

18-19

Year 5

20-21

Year 6

22-25

Boarding at KPS

26-27

Sport

28-31

Drama

32-33

Music

34-35

Art

36-37

DT

38-39

Creative Arts

40-41

Creative Writing

42-45

MFL

46-47

Biodiversity 48 Visitors to KPS

49

KPS Community

50-51

Year 1

12-13

Year 5

20-21 Sport

28-31

Drama

32-33

DT

38-39

Glastonwood 52-53 Maths

54-55

Outdoor Activities

56-57

Science

58-59

Year 6 Leavers

60-61

KPS activities

62-63

MFL

46-47

Outdoor Activities

56-57

KPS Head’s Introduction

A word from the

Head at KPS T he Brearey family have now completed three years at Kingswood Prep School, a very special school and part of a very special Foundation.

Economically, things have been tough for many families and for business in general. It has been more important than ever to look at what we offer and to keep asking the question: “Is it the best it can be?” Believe me, I will never become tired of asking that particular question. We have record numbers at the school, including more girls than we have ever had previously.

We have worked very hard to fit in with families’ busy working lives. We are very much a family school and it has been so good to share the many successes of your children, in and out of the classroom.

We are looking and playing smarter and are producing children well equipped to excel at KSS and beyond. Over the three years we have kept John Wesley’s vision at the centre of what we do. Our aim is for children to grow up with solid Christian values and decency, with good manners and an appreciation of how lucky they are to come to a school like KPS. No school I have worked in has had a better understanding of, and sensitivity to, the wider community and the needs of others; we have now raised well over £35,000 in three years for charities, both locally and further afield. Our children realise that they are a small part of something much bigger and I want them to grow up believing they can make a difference in all they do.

Although we strive for academic excellence at KPS, there is no one area of school life that is more important than any other. A love of learning and a positive attitude to all we do at school are aims for us all. Dealing with over 300 individuals is also something that we pride ourselves on. We are not going to put children on a production line of ‘sameness’. I want their character and personality to shine through what they are doing. We take great care to look after each individual and draw out their strengths. Our outstanding pastoral care, activity programme, creative arts and sport all help our children to develop into well-rounded human beings, which is what KPS is all about. I am lucky to have staff that care passionately about the children in their care and want to go the extra mile for them.

Our schooling shapes us as people and, if one is involved in education, it inevitably influences one’s vision of the ideal that one is aiming for.

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My expectation as a parent at Kingswood is that my children will be taught superbly and will end up reaching their potential in an environment that is kind and caring. Outside academia, I want them to have a passion for something, whether it is music, art or sport.

Academic success was in short supply in my own education, which was a slight disappointment to a father who received a First from Oxford University. My schooling was equally divided between the state and private sectors. It taught me the value of an atmosphere and ethos that emphasise what children can do, not what they cannot.

Being nauseatingly positive is something I have worked into an art form and will continue to do so! Children should grow up surrounded by inspirational role models in an ‘I can do’ environment, in which excellent teaching instils genuine intellectual curiosity and a desire to learn, both in and out of the classroom. This is our challenge.

All of us experienced something different in our own education and this will inform what we want for our children. I was a very late developer and the only part of my educational journey that I look back on with any fondness is my university lectures, which were stunning, thought-provoking and inspiring. Prior to this, it had often felt as if I was wading through treacle. Getting the basics right is crucial: it is essential to spend time in the early stages with skilled and sensitive teachers, whose desire is to get those foundation skills firmly in place. My primary education in a variety of state schools was very much a mixed bag of teaching and a combination of a one-dimensional approach and a struggling pupil who often felt cross or tearful - or both.

Our job is to find something that the children are good at, something they love doing. Whether it is archaeology, fencing, ceramics, designing a solar buggy or taking part in a triathlon, we will attempt to find that something that lights the spark.

Every child is different and we love that.

There are some lucky children who just know what they are good at, but there are others (including some in my friendship group) who are still waiting to discover their full potential. We can all look back at a key character who inspired us to be the type of person we have grown into. If children can find things that they love doing and are good at, and if they have been well taught and the basics are in place, they will grow into

Warmth, discovery, learning for life

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KPS Head’s Introduction young adults comfortable in their skin and ready to take on the complex challenges of adulthood and the workplace. We teachers are the ‘dream keepers’ and it is our job to motivate our charges and light the flame of inspiration. It is my aim that no child looks out of the window through boredom and no child feels uncomfortable because they do not understand what is being asked of them.

“Is KPS the best it can be?” We cannot afford to become complacent and must continue to strive for perfection, but I hope that you will agree that this edition of ‘KPS in Focus’ shows that we are moving in the right direction. We are a school with high academic standards, high expectations and superb levels of pastoral care, an environment in which all children can reach their potential. I am a very proud Headmaster.

At KPS I am pleased that we are moving towards a school that enables every child to achieve and feel good about themselves in doing so. We are in a good position to produce 11-year-olds prepared and ready for the complex challenges ahead, with their feet firmly on the ground and with the attitude that the world does not owe them a living.

My thanks go to the staff and children for working so tirelessly and enthusiastically every day, to Simon Morris and our dedicated Governors for their support, and finally to Yvonne Brearey for her hard work in putting this publication together.

Enjoy ‘KPS in Focus’.

Mark Brearey

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KPS Reflections

COLIN BURNS

Chairman Of Governors Some 31 years ago, when our eldest daughter Lorna was 9, we decided as a family that we needed to find a senior school that would provide our 2 daughters with the continuity of education that would be difficult in the State system. As a serviceman, on a long-term engagement, I was likely to move several times during the period of our girls’ senior education.

Jane and I were both educated in single sex state grammar schools but we agreed that an essential criterion for our children would be a co-educational school.

We had visited several co-ed boarding schools by the time we arrived at Kingswood one Saturday morning (then a school day) in February 1984. We first spent 30 minutes with Laurie Campbell, the then Head of the Senior School (the Prep school at this stage was still at Prior Park near Newbury). We were then handed over to a charming young lady in the 6th Form, one of the first girls to have started at Kingswood in Year 7 following the introduction of girls to Kingswood, for a tour of the School. We returned to the Head’s office for a closing chat and I distinctly remember Laurie’s last words to us, “The key thing is that Kingswood should be right for the child, but equally the child should be right for Kingswood”. That first Saturday morning experience has remained with us ever since. We had not even reached the top of Lansdown Hill before we looked at each other and spontaneously said, “We need look no further”.

It is difficult to put into words just how we felt but that feeling is still prevalent today whenever we visit both KPS and KS. Some months later in September 85 Lorna started in Year 7 and boarding in then Beaconfield (now Summerhill) in the safe and loving care of the Allisons (Joyce and John). I had travelled across country from Bedfordshire that day to be present at her induction. When we departed that afternoon we drove into the city and made our way to Parade Gardens. Not a word passed between us until we sat down in the park and then simultaneously burst into tears. ‘What had we done?’ We accepted that we had entrusted our lovely daughter to a 3rd party, we just hoped and prayed that this 3rd party was the right one. We need not have feared. Lorna’s and 2 years later her sister Pippa’s developments over the following 7-9 years were a pleasure to observe and both have turned out to be solid citizens following their Kingswood experiences.

What was and is it about Kingswood that makes it so special?.

Undoubtedly, the commitment and dedication of the staff is significant but this is not unique. All 3(KS) and 2(KPS) recent Headmasters have demonstrated inspirational leadership albeit in different styles. I have tried very hard over many years to analyse what it is that creates and maintains the atmosphere that for me has lasted for over 30 years. Christian Faith and

regular worship is certainly important and the exemplary pastoral care is also very significant. `Parental support should also not be underestimated.As parents we were involved in the support group raising funds for the building of the Theatre and we came to know a number of the younger members of staff, some of whom I was reacquainted with when I became a governor 9 years ago. They like so many since. bought into the ethos which pervades every aspect of life at Kingswood. This self-perpetuating characteristic is a key factor in maintaining the core values within both schools.

Over the past 9 years many friends have asked me why I was prepared to give up so much time in support of Kingswood.

Whilst it may seem somewhat glib, my answer has always been that I firmly believe that the 18 year old product of our schools is the type of person that both the country and the World needs. This view was reinforced when I was involved in the interviewing process for a senior post several years ago, when one of the unsuccessful candidates was asked to describe the School. He replied that, although he had only previously spent 2-3 hours at Kingswood, half way through his escorted tour of the School by a 6th Form girl, it became obvious to him that she put self at the bottom of her priority list.

Service to others was firmly at the top. This was so reassuring and speaks volumes about the continuing achievements in both our schools. I wonder how many pupils at other schools would convey this message within an hour to a stranger unfamiliar with their environment. The quality of the staff and the leadership in creating and maintaining this pervading atmosphere should also not be overlooked or underestimated as it is a key element in maintaining the core values and ethos.

It was therefore with much regret that my recent illness has forced me to stand down from the Chairmanship of the Board of Governors. When I look back to my time as a parent, I could never have envisaged being invited to become a governor and certainly not being given the privilege of leading the Board.

Both Schools are continuing to move forward in a visionary way but remain true to the Wesley tradition and to Kingwood’s unofficial motto of ‘continuity and change’. Whatever prevails, I shall endeavour to keep in touch with the progress of KPS and KS as both schools enter a very exciting period in their histories. My recent experience as Chairman has brought me into contact with some inspirational people several of whom are now close friends; I remain eternally grateful that I have had the honour of guiding the Schools in recent years and working alongside such outstanding and faithful people. I wish the Foundation every success as it faces the daunting educational challenges of the 21st Century.

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KPS Reflections

‘Not much’ Linda Court, quite recently retired and former Head of the Senior School’s Religious Studies Department, used to set her younger pupils an essay question. ‘What does the Chaplain do?’ Those boys and girls could be forgiven for quite short responses that began with the words ‘Not much.’

After all, they saw the Chaplain for 15 minutes on a Tuesday and maybe 35 minutes on a Friday but, when he taught, he was usually with older pupils, Sixth Formers in the majority of his teaching career. It is no surprise that he might have seemed a little bit ‘over there.’ Yes, he could be managing queues just like other staff, running activities, perhaps visiting Westwood and, as a part of a management team, he would be gowned and more ‘on view’ on Monday mornings or at key events.

However, apart from these more visible rather than personal interactions, he could never be so regularly alongside as a tutor or housemaster/mistress.

Chaplains worry about that sense of being missing. It is a worry that is probably not justified given the bigger and more complex picture of their days, but it persists. So I have been grateful for what can best be described as a ‘head start’ – those hours with the youngest members of our community in KPS that sit within the pattern of a Chaplain’s week. It has never been the aim here to discover the story of children in any depth, unless specific pastoral needs require it. It has been an exercise in face – showing and name recalling, though, to my shame, name storage has never been my strong point.

It hasn’t been many hours a week, I wish it could have been more, but the bonus of meeting children at the age of 11 and below who feel some familiarity with the Chaplain, say ‘Hello, Mr Wilkinson’ and smile, is real.

It is hard to put a salary value on those aspects of work. Chaplains don’t add to the bottom line unless in some way, they help, amongst others, to shape a community ethos which attracts parental interest. Like all members of staff they are and need to be appraised on their performance in key elements of their job description, but they have that odd facility where some of their best work is rightly never revealed or scrutinised. Having the freedom ‘to be’ rather than constantly being timetabled ‘to do’ is essential. I can applaud Kingswood in comparison to some schools I know for the way it has taken that aspect of the work to heart.

Of course, the reality for Chaplains is the same as for any staff member in schools like ours. The days can be long and tiring, but are likely to be incredibly fruitful. Those uninterrupted hours of monastic meditation never happen, books get saved up for the holidays and, when the pressures bring us down, we need those greetings and smiles from young ones which can and do lift us back up.

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Staff Hellos and We welcome to our KPS family...

Lisajane Caesar, as Head of Learning Support. Lisajane is a richly experienced and qualified teacher who will be a real acquisition to the team. She was previously Head of Learning Support at an IAPS Prep school.

Andrew and Ali Ward join us as House Parents in High Vinnalls. They are accompanied by Sam and Charlie and cannot wait to throw themselves into life in ‘Bath’s Best Boarding house’.

Welcome James and Hannah Hull as Assistant House parents. James will also be teaching Year 4 and leading our archery and canoeing. If he is not busy enough he will also be managing KPS Active our new holiday club.

Helen Birchall joins us from a primary school in Bournville.

She impressed us all at interview and is a keen horse rider and loves the outdoors. We are delighted she has joined us at KPS.

This year we said goodbye to...

The wonderful Ali Vickers who has been such a wonderful Teaching assistant in our Pre Prep. In my time at KPS she has never had a bad day and has been a paragon of positivity and warmth. She will be missed by us all. She leaves to join Emirates Airlines and to travel the world ... who can blame her?

We also say goodbye to Jess Portman and Rees Redman who have been excellent work colleagues and will be fondly remembered by all the staff and children. Full of enthusiasm and energy they have thrown heart and soul into everything both in and out of the classroom. Jess leaves for University and Rees to a job in Corporate Hospitality. We wish them both every success and happiness.

As next summer approaches, my 23 years of joy (mostly) within this community comes to an end. I will leave with a sense of quite a lot having been done, but won’t fret too much on mornings in retirement when my wife asks ‘What are you doing today?’ and I can say ‘Not much.’

We said ‘goodbye’ to Amanda Titley after many years of hard work in High Vinnals. She will return to work with the MOD and will be able to spend more family time with Matthew and Sarah and of course Phil. On behalf of all the staff and the families of boarders, ‘thank you’ Amanda for all you have done.

Mike Wilkinson

Mark Brearey

KPS Reflections

Goodbyes

ard Andrew W

aesar Lisajane C

Alison Ward

Ali Vickers

n

edma R s e e R

Hannah

Hull

Jess Portman

Amanda Titley

ll

rcha i B n e l He

James Hull

5

Nursery

LEARNING THROUGH

IN THE NURSERY

P

lay is a vital part of childhood.

Children learn through experimenting, watching and play. The Nursery is a stimulating environment that inspires through play opportunities and structured activities.

The learning environment in the Nursery is carefully planned inside and out so that all children can develop emotionally and creatively as well as physically. We fully appreciate and embrace that all children are individual and we follow each child’s lead with regard to their interests and learning.

SUMMER TERM The Summer Term is a wonderful time in the Nursery with lots of outside play in our beautiful grounds. The children are encouraged to investigate in the Adventure Playground, run fast on the field and whizz around the painted road on cars and bikes.

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“I like the fairies” Sofie “I love going in the cars” Sarah “ I like playing in the Sand” Olivia

“I like to play with Dragons and go outside and I like to go on the pink bike” Seb

“I really like the painting” Emmy

“I can make footprints” Aine

Nursery

“I am bigger” “My daddy is bigger” “ I can make it taller, taller than the roof” “Look, look it’s big as me”

‘We can Grow’ GREEN-FINGERED NURSERY CHILDREN.

We have grown Sweet-Peas and Sunflowers. We have looked at how plants grow and how we grow. The children were all so excited to see the tiny little green shoots grow into leaves and long stalks. We have found many different ways to measure with standard and non-standard measurements. Especially using the ‘Mega blocks’ and different parts of our bodies.

‘DOWN ON THE FARM’ We are all looking forward to our trip to ‘Warleigh Lodge Farm’ .

This is a great opportunity to learn all about farm animals, where they live and what they give us. The children have all helped to create our ‘Down on the Farm’ display, including sheep, pigs in the mud, cows and hens in the hen house.

“Cows give us the milk” “On holiday I got the eggs from the chicken house” 7

Reception

A Year in Reception (RS) T

he past 10 months have been a marvellous journey of discovery for the children, beginning with the insides of our own bodies and visiting the coldest most remote parts of the planet, before finally confronting our nemesis – the dreaded pirate Captain Fishface and his dastardly crew.

As we are, we believe, the most important Year Group in the school, we began with a topic close to our hearts (and brains, kidneys, etc) – Marvellous, Wonderful Me. The children learned how our internal organs worked and even had the opportunity to dissect the heart, lungs and kidneys of a pig, as these bear a close resemblance to humans.

These were kindly provided by Mrs Andreou. There was a surprising but absolute lack of squeamishness, as the children nearly grappled with each other to get their hands on various pink and interesting pieces of pig. After looking at a pig’s heart, the children had fun listening to their own heart beat by using a real stethoscope. We talked about how eating healthily and exercising keeps us fit. The children took part in various activities, such as running, hopping, climbing and star jumps, to see for themselves the changes that take place in our bodies. To make human sense of how contagion works, Mrs Brown gave a wonderful demonstration using glitter (pink for the girls and blue for the boys). After we had shaken hands, we were amazed to see how much we had passed between us. We won’t forget to wash our hands again in a hurry!

After Christmas (when the class were magically transformed into singing frogs and dancing fireflies) we headed for the polar regions to investigate the life cycle of penguins (in Antarctica) and Polar Bears (in the Arctic), as well as understanding Inuit culture and lifestyle, past and present. We then followed in the footsteps of historical explorers such as Roald Amundsen, Robert Scott and Sir Earnest Shackleton, as well as

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present day explorers such as Helen Skelton and Sir Ranulph Fiennes. We were particularly lucky to have some outstanding talks to support this extraordinarily interesting topic. Mr Williams demonstrated the sort of equipment that mountaineers use to climb on ice and snow and the children had a wonderful time trying to pull him over, first without crampons, and then with them on. Result – a score draw: Children 1 - Crampons 1. Mr Shonfeld told us all about the expeditions he had made to the Arctic, showing us some wonderful pictures of the Northern Lights and of the incredible icescapes he saw, as well as telling us about Inuit culture.

The end of January brought Chinese New Year, when Jerry’s Mum gave a wonderfully eloquent talk on the Jade Emperor and the Dragon, and how the Chinese calendar reflected the story.

Shortly afterwards, Mr Perriu, an expert from the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society told us some amazing facts about whales, dolphins and porpoises, about how fast and how deep they can swim and how intelligent they are. He told us how important it was to conserve whales and dolphins and that the Society existed to make sure that all whales and dolphins could be safe and live a free life. The children used a piece of string to represent the length of a whale. It was enormous!

Spring came and brought Mrs Gray who talked about our native birds. We made bird houses and bird feeders, and the children sketched and painted some wonderful watercolours of birds, blossoms and flowers which made our classroom a real pleasure to work in.

After the Easter holidays, Mrs Simpson returned to the classroom to discover, to her

Reception horror, that the children had transformed themselves into the motley crew of the bad ship The Silly Saucepan. She was forced to walk the plank or join them ….. and, from that moment on, we followed a secret pirate code. Later, we were horrified to find that we had been robbed all of our treasure by Captain Fishface and his (even more) dastardly and wicked crew. But no matter! We found a treasure map and followed Old Fishface to his Treasure Island (aka Weston-SuperMare – which Fenn said reminded him of St Lucia), and recovered our chest. Mrs Simpson, of course, had to do all the digging. We learned how to count 100 gold doubloons so that we could make sure we had all the treasure back when we found it. We talked about what made pirates steal and heard about the pirates who still exist today, and what motivates them.

A grand finale to what has been a wonderful year was our pirate party, when both Reception classes sang sea shanties, drank grog and, for a change, ate weevil free food. Thank you to all the children for a really memorable year.

Love, Mrs Simpson

A visit from a

real polar expert!

Sofia was very proud when her father came and gave Reception an amazing description of the Arctic, which he has visited and photographed for the National Geographic.

Starting north of the Arctic Circle in Norway, he travelled up to the North Pole, taking photographs all the way. It was so cold that, if you threw a glass of water in the air, it would freeze before it hit the ground!

We learned all about how the Inuit people live now, and how they survived in the past. It was fascinating to hear and see how adults pass on traditions and hunting methods to their children, teaching them about how to tell where the snow is thinnest so that you can make a borehole, and how to imitate a seal as a decoy for hunting. We also learned about how igloos are built and why they are needed, and how the Inuit today live mostly in brightly painted cottages. We heard how they often use skidoos, but that they still hunt using skis and husky drawn sledges.

We saw how the Inuit people relied on the Arctic animals to survive and how they lived in harmony with them, using reindeer to pull sledges and making warm tents out of animal hides. It was fascinating to see how they used dog sleighs which were a cross between a boat and a sled, so that if they did break through the ice, they would still float.

We learned how, because the winters are so long and cold, the Inuit have to store a lot of food and supplies in their houses and saw how they gut the fish on their boats ready

to dry out to preserve.

The food they eat was very different to our diets, including whale meat, polar bear and lots and lots of fish. We heard how they knew it was important to cover their eyes and how they wear sun-glasses when they are outside.

Inuit children had much more basic toys than in the UK, with many of them made out of sculpted wood and bone.

Mr Shonfeld showed us some wonderful photographs of the Arctic region, with huge icebergs and sun glinting on the ice.

We saw some of the tough fishing boats which the Inuits have to use to avoid being damaged by floating ice, and were introduced to the kayak.

We had the opportunity to look at the truly beautiful Northern Lights and learned how they are formed.

The children were absolutely fascinated by Mr Shonfeld’s extraordinarily interesting presentation and asked some searching questions which helped them to extend their learning and their understanding of this amazing region.

Very, very many thanks Mr Shonfeld

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Reception

Land Ahoy,

Here Come the Pirates ! (RC) “Creative work is not merely a question of playing with things, of randomness and chance. It has much to do with serious and sustained effort. Often at the highest levels of absorption and intensity.”

Gulbenkian Report

T

here is a world that exists beyond the child. A world that exists whether he or she exists or not. The child needs to know about this world, move in it and manage him or herself in it. But there is another world of his own sensations and feelings. He shares the former world with others. He shares this second world with no one.

out more about. We wrote down their questions and discussed with the children how you find out about things that you do not know, for example by asking other people, using books, making visits, and using the Internet (with parental supervision).

We said that we would refer back to our original mind map at the end of our topic so that we could add new jottings of what the children had learned since embarking on the theme. What did they enjoy the most? Have they found out everything that they wanted to?

What follows are examples of some of the exciting activities we covered.

As we all now know, children do not learn by first mastering skills.

They learn in a context that is meaningful for them and then work to ensure that their learning be enjoyable, rewarding and fun which explains why this Summer in Reception we decided to embark upon our latest topic, “Land Ahoy, Here Come the Pirates!”

PIRATE NAMES

Learning about pirates is an eternal favourite as a theme for young children. The myths and legends of pirates, combined with a hint of menace, which serves to heighten the excitement, is a fantastic and stimulating starting point for children’s learning.

HISTORICAL PIRATES

Our popular culture has ensured that these sea bound criminals have developed a romantic and brave image: however far removed this image may be from the reality of piracy. We were even able to learn about modern piracy which is still rife in certain parts of the world. Modern pirates we discovered favour small boats and take advantage of the small number of crew members operating modern cargo vessels.

The children’s learning this Summer has encompassed all areas of learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage as we have been able to delve into the historical and geographical aspects of piracy, (The World Around Us), the creative writing opportunities, the imaginative role – play and Maths opportunities, the rich and fun language and creative writing opportunities not to mention the scope for unbridled creativity in all areas.

We started by making a mind map of all the things the children already knew about Pirates, at the start of our learning journey.

We asked them what they would like to find

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The children were supported to make up their own pirate name – would their name be menacing, alliterative, funny? We looked at real – world historical pirates as examples of how to construct a name.

We found out more about famous pirates in history, for example, Blackbeard, and Anne Bonnie and fictional characters, such as Captain Hook and Jack Sparrow. The children loved Captain Hook who was the Pirate Captain of the Jolly Roger and the Lord of the pirate village/harbour in Neverland in J M Barry’s ‘Peter Pan’. The children also loved the fact that Hook is so named because an iron hook replaces his right hand which was cut off by Peter Pan and eaten by a saltwater crocodile!

We created a group acrostic poem using the word ‘PIRATE’ written vertically down the side of the page and worked together to find something related to pirates beginning with the P first, then I, then R, and so on.

MONEY, JEWELS AND USING OUR PIECES OF EIGHT. The children had a go at making their own coins and then had plenty of time to count and sort them. We made number lines using cardboard cutout doubloons where we counted up to 10, then 20 and then arranged all our doubloons in order from one to 100. We then gave special attention to the numbers 10 – 20 to reinforce the children’s practical and written ability with these numbers. We used our golden

Reception doubloons as we worked on our addition and subtraction both practically and then with recording. We also used a selection of beautiful coloured ‘crystals’ from our treasure chest to support us in our Maths activities.

whistle through, draw patterns on arms, to make pinging noises with and occasionally to draw and write with!

HERE BE TREASURE!

When the paint became very lumpy as the children were painting their individual pirates they decided to call it ‘trifle’ paint “for trifle pirates!” One child knocked a whole pot of water over her pirate painting to, “make her all wet ‘cos she walked the plank and fell off so she would be all wet, wouldn’t she?.” Of course she would.

The children were very keen to make their own large treasure map which we made by using a very large piece of paper made to look old by sponging tea onto it then once dry, ripping the edges in a wavy manner to make their map look ancient. The children spent a considerable amount of time discussing all the different areas that would feature on the map including, The Misty Mountains, Dead Man’s Cave, The Squelchy Swamp, Wild Thing Woods, Crocodile Swamp, Shark Infested Sea and of course X Marks the Spot!

IMAGINATIVE ROLE – PLAY The creation of our large pirate ship in our outside role-play area has been the source of many hours of fantastic, imaginative and highly creative role-play. It is here where the children have had the opportunity to bring everything together to model and express their learning and understanding in their own unique way and to collaborate and enjoy playing in the world of awe, wonder and make-believe where they are very much at home.

It was particularly important to me that this topic would encourage the children’s creativity.

Far from being a vague, ‘artsy’ gift given to the favoured few, creativity is an ability inherent within us all however if it is not exercised it will wither and fade… and if children are denied the necessary time and opportunities to develop this right of birth it can be lost. It is our responsibility as educators to nurture and develop our children’s innate creativity and what better way to do it than through the excitement of entering the world of the pirates.

So here are some examples of how the children expressed their creativity within this exciting topic:

ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS They showed that they were extra - interested in the world around them. They had the opportunity to pick, poke, prod, listen, hear, ask, taste, touch, feel, smell, peer at, stare at, find, discover, collect. They looked at and discussed the strange, the new, and asked and enquired about all of it.

FLUENCY OF IDEAS They had the opportunity to use things in all kinds of different ways. At one point one young pirate in the role-play pirate ship was pretending to read a newspaper but was also swatting flies with it then wrapping fish and chips in it. Another young pirate wanted to use the newspaper as a large match with which to light fires whilst yet another decided to catch sea slugs with it.

The pens on board the ship were used to pick teeth with, to

FLEXIBILITY

SELF – CONFIDENCE It became clear that no matter what activities we embarked upon the children would nearly always be willing to have a go at things – even if they had not yet acquired the necessary skills. During a recent pirate expedition through the Seven Seas, (Adventure Playground), some less confident children showed great courage as they attempted climbing a steep and uneven bank to, “quickly get back on board before the sharks get us!” whilst being loudly encouraged by their shipmates shouting at them from the top of the bank.

Back in the classroom there would often be a forest of waving hands as the children eagerly attempted to answer some pirate questions even though they may not have had an accurate answer they were eager to create their own and have their voices heard.

ORIGINALITY Originality is defined as “uncommonness of sensory response,” or – doing it differently from the way other people do it. All the children are absolute masters of this!

COMBINING Throughout this topic the children proved that they have an ability to join together all sorts of seemingly unrelated bits and pieces to make something complete and whole out of them so that even though what someone produced may not have been what they originally planned, they were willing to go along with it as it was, perhaps changing its function, inviting others to collaborate in their creation, deciding to extend it or finding items from other parts of the classroom to add to it. Good examples of this ability of children to ‘combine’ was when we made our junk - modelled pirate ships also when they made their individual pirate treasure maps and during small – world play when they were having fun enacting a dramatic, imaginative pirate story in a small group.

We will round off our pirate topic by having a special Pirate Party hosting the party in the Adventure Playground (The Seven Seas). The children will have the opportunity to dress up as pirates, act like pirates all afternoon, sing sea shanties and the pirate songs and rhymes we have learned and have plenty of opportunity to ‘walk the plank’, ‘scrub the deck’, ‘splice the mainbrace’, ‘swim with the sharks, ‘climb the rigging’, ‘watch out for the rats’, ‘drink the grog,’ ‘make the dinner,’ and of course ‘eat the picnic!’

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Year 1

What an exciting year we have had in

Year 1

BEGINNING WITH ‘A WALK IN THE WOODS’, TRAVELLING ACROSS THE WORLD AND ENDING WITH A MAD HATTER’S TEA PARTY. HERE ARE SOME OF OUR HIGHLIGHTS.

During the Autumn Term we journeyed through the woods visiting storybook characters on our way. One of the people we met was Little Red Riding Hood. To help her, we tested materials to see if they were waterproof, picked berries to make cakes, designed baskets to carry the cakes and covers to keep them dry. Testing them was great fun and did the cakes stay dry? Well most of them!

We visited the Victoria Art Gallery to learn about homes in the past. We even got to dress up.

At the beginning of the Spring Term we took our passports and boarded a plane at Bath City College to begin our ‘Journey around the World’. We even made the newspapers!

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We ended the term by making our own Nativity figures and celebrated the Christmas story with our very own candlelit Nativity, listening to the story of the birth of Jesus and singing carols in the secret garden.

Hot air balloons arrived in the Year 1 classrooms and we learned that hot air rises.

Year 1 After a long-haul flight to Australia we touched down at Ayers Rock to admire the amazing colours and learn about the lives and stories of indigenous Australians. One of our favourites was the story of Tiddilick the frog. We wrote storyboards to tell the tale.

We then travelled back to Europe to learn about Russia.

Luckily we had some experts to help us. We also enjoyed some home-made Russian delicacies.

After finding a message in a bottle from a mermaid we learned about the lost city of Atlantis and began our undersea adventure. We wrote poems and fact files about Blue Whales.

Great fun was had making and testing boats to see what they could carry before sinking and we finished our underwater adventure by visiting the Aquarium in Bristol.

erson

Sian Higgins & Jessica And

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“I loved building a home for insects”

Year 2

Bea

YEAR 2 WHAT AN AMAZING YEAR THIS HAS BEEN!

THE CHILDREN HAVE ENJOYED A WIDE RANGE OF NEW EXPERIENCES AND HAVE LEARNT SO MUCH THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. EACH TERM WE HAVE EXPLORED A DIFFERENT TOPIC. THIS IS WHAT THE CHILDREN HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THEIR YEAR: “The best bit about Year 2 is playing cricket, when we started doing proper games and Toby and me got 20 runs because I hit it into the witch’s hat tree! It was just a really good match.” Edward

“I love the Maths books”

Daniel T

d up as I dr ess e o us e M Mi n ni e Bo ok ld r o W on e Da y– Zo

“The most fun thing in Year 2 is making friends and playing good stuff that I like.” Victor

“I liked Year 2 because I started playing with new people I had never played with before” Daniel R

“The best bit was when we learned about electric circuits.

Once we had to make a light shine or the air fan go.” Miro

I loved eating Pain au Chocolate on French Day - Milo

AUTUMN TERM:

Who Am I? We had great fun making vegetable faces – Emilia We drew vegetables and fruit in art – Alex My heart hurt when we tested how fit we were – Hugo The smell test was fun and very smelly – Maiya We smell test in Science – Gracie

“I dressed up as Sophia.

I had a pretend cat just like in the painting. It felt strange to be dressed up but fun at the same time. I felt like someone different.” Alma

“I liked watching the film about Florence Nightingale. I like the bit when she was in the hospital when she was making the soldiers better” Edward “I liked the bread experiment when we washed our hands. We had to wait for two weeks and the germiest bread was the one when we didn’t wash our hands properly!” Alfie “I liked it when we did the Christmas play. I was a donkey!” Iona “The best thing about that I love in Year 2 is probably going to the secret garden because we had a club when we search for dragons eggs.” Monty

I loved trying on a hearing aid. – Eleanor

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We were taught to shoot arrows at targets – Toby

SPRING TERM:

Turrets and Tiaras We went to see a real castle in Cardiff – Isabel I loved seeing all the old weapons – Charlie I loved holding the Barn Owl – Dom “Mr Hull told us about bows and arrows. The first one that I shot was really high and the second one was low. It was exciting!” Jerry “I really liked the trip to Cardiff castle. The best bit was finding the dragons egg!” Daniel A “It was really fun when we made castles out of scrap. My castle had 4 cereal boxes and four turrets.” Ollie

Birds of Prey and Archery

“I enjoyed it when we measured the castles” Max

Year 2 have been learning all about castles and for their ‘amazing’ end to their ‘Turrets and Tiaras’ topic they had the West of England Falconry Centre visit them in the morning with some birds of prey and in the afternoon a chance to become knights and learn how to do archery under the expert supervision of knight, ‘Sir James Hull’.

“I liked learning about king Arthur. I really liked trying to work out whether it was true or not. We thought he was real but I don’t think he pulled the sword out of the stone” Daniel RC

We can play with the dragon puppets – Archie

The children learnt all about the Birds of Prey and how they hunt and fly. They were all very quiet when Jay and Tania brought out the birds for them to see. There was Bay, a Harris Hawk; a very beautiful Barn Owl called Ghost, who the children were lucky enough to all get a chance to hold and lastly a 4 week old Burrowing Owl, called Arthur (much to the delight of Arthur) who decided to have some fun and start to wander around the classroom between the children looking for somewhere to hide.

In the afternoon we all went to the archery field and were taught how to do archery. The children had great fun learning to do this and took turns to shoot arrows at the targets. Some even managed to hit the target! I think we have some knights in the making.

We made bridges at Gloucester Waterways Museum – Archie

SUMMER TERM:

Tales of the Riverbank I liked seeing the locks open and shut – Leo I loved eating my lunch on our boat trip – Scarlett “The best bit of year 2 was when we made [Toad’s] cars. I got to work with Max and Alfie. Our car is excellent!” Drew “I really liked making the narrow boat out of tape on the carpet. It showed us how small the space in a narrow boat was.” Ella “I liked learning about how they painted the canal boats. I painted flowers on a jug” Gaby “My favourite was imagining what it was like [on the Northwich narrow boat] sleeping in the cupboard bed. It was very small!” Daisy Rebecca Howe & Eleanor Watts

Year 3

Big Days in The Year 3 Calendar Bringing the Curriculum Alive and Developing Independence Offering children different learning experiences in new settings has many benefits. Special days create lasting memories and with a ‘school trip’ there is always a great sense of adventure, even if you only go down the road! Children have the opportunity to take new risks, engage in new environments and have fun which can bring a new motivation back to the classroom. It is also a brilliant opportunity for teachers to see their pupils in a different light and discover characteristics and qualities which don’t always get revealed in the classroom. This is a real highlight of the job – assuming the characteristic is a good one of course!

WW2 Year 3 children have the opportunity to go on a range of trips and experience special event days. One of the first is the ‘Evacuation Morning’ which took place in the autumn term to support the World War II topic. Children came in to school wearing evacuee outfits and reenacted the day of a schoolchild in 1939. The teachers looked and behaved just that little bit stricter. They talked rather strangely and did things like check hands and nails for cleanliness. Lessons were different. There were times tables by rote, handwriting practice, the threat of the cane for bad behaviour or the dunces hat for silly answers. The children thought about why they were being evacuated to the countryside and how it would be different. Mr I liked the Pernicktynitpicker paid the children a visit to check evacuation heads were clean before the ‘ train journey’ (on the KPS morning when Mrs playground train) to the country. The children sang war Mallaband was very time songs to finish the morning and lift morale.

The WW2 outfits got another airing on our trip to Swindon Steam where children immersed themselves in the sights and sounds of the Home Front. The children were taken around a carousel of interactive workshops including role-play, simulation, storytelling, dressing up and played with toys from the 1940s era. They met people who lived through the war, found out about rationing, ‘Make Do and Mend’ and actually went into a replica public air raid shelter, feeling it shudder with the sound of the bombs and a sense of relief when the all clear siren went. Developing empathy and understanding is a significant part of the trip.

FairyTales Later in the season we studied fairy tales and the children enjoyed two exciting events. One was a workshop by actors from the Theatre Royal, who shared with the children some of the origins of Pantomime and asked them to act out the outline story of Peter Pan. The other was a visit to the Theatre Royal

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I liked the bit when Mr NitPicker did the nit check!

– Emma

strict and had a cane! – Oscar B

where they got to have a behind the scenes tour, discovering some of its history and traditions. The actors from the show involved some children in a comedy sketch on the main stage and Grace and Oscar were the fortunate ones to be chosen for this role. They revelled in their new found fame! The finale of the day was to watch the

Year 3 they went. Clues from the past were investigated and the church offered a host of historical information. After a picnic lunch and an ice-cream at the local pub gardens, there was time to explore some more and compare newer buildings to the older styles, before returning home. The children used their knowledge to write tourist leaflets for the village. The Tourist Information Office would be proud of them!

pantomime itself, which was spectacular to the eye and aching to the ribs.

“It was fun when we were evacuated on the steam train” – Peter

Poetry Café In the Spring Term, Year Three were set the challenge to learn a poem of their choice, to read aloud to parents at our annual Poetry Café. The children arrived in our school dining hall with some fear and anticipation, but felt a huge sense of achievement once they had performed their poem. It helped to develop the children’s skills of public speaking, invaluable for later life, and began building their confidence for future public speaking events and opportunities. The children said they felt really proud of themselves afterwards and enjoyed the experience.

The First Overnighter In May, the Year 3 children went on their first school residential. The bags were packed and without too much ado or tears, we were on our way to The Amazing Hedge Puzzle in Symonds Yat. Here the children were let loose to explore the yew hedge puzzle and try to find the temple at the centre. They played some tag games and looked at the history of mazes. After a picnic lunch the children were shown how to use diabolos. It didn’t take long for them to master a few tricks. Viney Hill Adventure Centre offered an ideal place to rest for the night, play in beautiful grounds and eat well. After teddies and children had enjoyed a bedtime story it was lights out. The children had varying amounts of sleep. The staff had little. However, the next day everyone was ready for a very exciting caving adventure. The route to the caves was as exciting as the caving as a steep muddy bank was descended, using a rope. Then it was into the ground. The activity needed a good amount of courage as there were some small dark tunnels and holes to crawl through. It was great to hear the encouragement and reassurance the children gave each other. Once outside, there was a real sense of achievement and the children were proud of what they had done. We had a picnic lunch in the woods and then it was back on the coach for the journey home. The coach was surprisingly quiet as children were exhausted and some even had a little snooze. Isn’t it amazing what you can fit into thirty hours?!

The trip presents some challenges for the children to overcome; being away from home, strange places and adventurous activities.

A little, and for some, a lot of courage was needed but the bravery had its rewards.

Most of us can probably remember some of our school trips.

They tend to stay with you. Here are some of our Year 3s memories of their trips this year:

SWINDON STEAM/EVACUATION MORNING Martha – I enjoyed going into the air raid shelter, especially when all the lights went off Amelie – I liked playing with the old fashioned toys at Swindon Steam Museum Leyla – I enjoyed evacuation morning as it gave it first-hand experience of what it must have been like for children during the war Charley – I liked going under the steam train at the museum PANTO Bea – I liked the Pantomine as it was really funny and they changed the story slightly from the traditional tale Oscar B – I liked it when I went up on stage!

Martha – I liked the workshop best Leyla – I enjoyed learning about the history of the Theatre Royal Matthew – I liked learning about the ghosts at the Theatre Royal Peter – I liked going up the Gods in the theatre and going backstage Amelie – I enjoyed the ice cream in the interval Ryan – I liked the acrobatics in the pantomime Guy – I knew somebody in the show so it was fun for me POETRY CAFÉ Emily – I liked the joint poems, they were funny Imogen – I enjoyed hearing everyone else’s poem Joe – I enjoyed performing my poem RESIDENTIAL Phoebe – Mr Heyes could throw the diablo really high and he could catch it without wobbling the sticks Arthur – When we arrived we unpacked our bags and had chat time Oscar – I really enjoyed the caving because it was dark and spooky Wilbur – We won the best room! We kept it tidy and went to sleep!

Jack – Caving was really, really, really fun and challenging Maisie – I really enjoyed the puzzles at the end of the maze Amy Mallaband and Katy Elliott

Monkton Farleigh Village Study As part of our Geography and History topic in the Summer Term, Year 3 studied settlements. Their trip to nearby Monkton Farleigh provided an opportunity to carry out some local field work. The children went on three walking routes around the village, following a map and studying the land use as

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Year 4

In Year 4 the teachers are committed to developing the children’s strengths and talents and their independence through a range of activities.

We have had a We started in the depths of the Amazon Rainforest learning about the flora and fauna, the tribes, fair trade and deforestation. We enjoyed a fantastic trip to Bristol Zoo and the Butterfly farms where we held hissing cockroaches, snakes and spiders and released new butterflies. ‘Hands on learning’ has really brought our topic to life. Our Literacy focused on writing factual reports based on our research and the children created beautifully illustrated and informative writing about Amazon animals.

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Year 4

The Spring Term saw us travel to the Polar climates, learning about the great explorers, pretending to be emperor penguins, finding out about climate change and animals’ adaptation to different environments.

The Romans arrived at Kingswood and we had great fun role playing what life would have been like as a Roman. We are so fortunate to have the Roman Baths on our doorstep and so had a very enjoyable visit there. In History, we considered and evaluated evidence from the past to form our own opinions. We thought about who might have written it, or painted it and what their aims were.

The year has drawn to a close much closer to home, Dorset and the Jurassic Coast, We have dreamed of dinosaurs who roamed the land and the fossils they left, studied coastal geography at Charmouth on our residential trip to Hooke Court. We have learned of the Vikings and the Nordic Myths and Legends, made wattle and daub huts and listened to the secrets of the trees.

We have been privileged to learn together and enjoy the richness of our experiences.

“Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.”

In Year 4 we have been ablaze.

Sarah Gilmore

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Year 5

Year 5 Tudor Day King Henry then told us about himself and his life in 1541. He explained that his new wife was wife number 5 and told us the stories of his other less fortunate wives. He explained that he fully expected Queen Catherine to be his last! The king and queen explained to us their elaborate and enormous costumes.

We learned that kingly robes are very heavy and not just because of the layers of golden chains the king wore.

We learned about Henry’s war campaigns, his palaces and his ambitions for the future of England and we were privileged to see and touch a large selection of original Tudor artefacts and weaponry. We had a go at calligraphy, making Tudor sweets and discovered the history of surnames.

Year 5 enjoyed an amazing spectacle on ‘Tudor Day’ when Henry VIII himself arrived at KPS with his fifth wife, Catherine Howard. We spent the entire day in role as Tudor men and women at the court of King Henry VIII and the children created a variety of fantastic costumes which they wore all day. Queen Catherine instructed us in proper courtly manners and how to behave in the presence of the king. We then welcomed him in to his court by bowing gracefully, curtseying and avoiding the gaze of the great king.

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In the afternoon we created a Tudor Feast for the King and Queen which, we discovered involved very little food that we would consider to be healthy! We feasted on pies, cheese and chicken. There were no fruits or vegetables and we substituted juice for the wine and beer that even children would have drunk!

We learned a Tudor dance and practised entertainment for the king which we then presented to him in groups: poems, short plays, jokes and dances went down very well to the somewhat bemused king!

The day ended in spectacular style with Queen Catherine firing a Tudor gun across the field for us. What a dramatic end to an amazing day.

Rebecca Briggs

Year 5

Mill on the Brue T

he whole of Year 5 took a trip to Mill on the Brue, an activity centre overlooking the beautiful Brue Valley in North East Somerset. For some of the children it was their first time away from home so there was a mixture of excitement and nerves as we left Bath on the coach.

After arriving the children settled themselves in and fuelled up on a fantastic lunch. Then they set off to start their first activities. Mill on the Brue offered a huge range of activities which the children (and staff) thoroughly enjoyed. Some of the highlights included grass tobogganing, tunnelling, the climbing wall, archery, animal feeding, raft building, crate stacking and, most popular of all, the zip wire, which is the third longest in the country! The children were also particularly excited about the assault course race which involved all four teams racing against each other. All the groups did really well and we were particularly pleased to see that the children were not only supporting their own teams but also encouraging the other teams. They came back tired and muddy but very happy!

Part of the aim of our trip was to improve the children’s teamwork skills and after each session they evaluated what had gone well and what they needed to improve on. They asked themselves questions such as: Was our communication good?

Did we cooperate with one another? Did we listen to everyone in the group? The children worked really hard to support each other and work together over the course of the week. All the teachers and instructors agreed that the difference in their teamwork skills from the beginning to the end of the trip was absolutely phenomenal and we are already starting to see these put into practice in the classroom!

Overall Year 5 had a tiring, fantastic and rewarding week at Mill on the Brue, one that they will never forget and will continue to look back on fondly.

Helen Birchall

One of the highlights of the trip, particularly for the staff, was the incredible food, all of which was organic and some even picked by the children themselves from the Mill on the Brue gardens.

Every day we were able to see the total number of miles the food had travelled to get onto their plates, a fascinating and interesting experience for the children and it certainly made them think carefully about where their food was coming from!

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Year 6

Some highlights of Year 6 AUTUMN TERM

SPRING TERM

The Autumn Term in Y6 is always dominated by thoughts of the impending transfer assessment and the children had their heads down in English and Maths as staff made sure that they were well prepared for it, but there was plenty of fun and excitement to be had in other lessons.

The exam over, we could all relax a little! Rather than doing endless comprehensions we started reading Ian Serraillier’s The Silver Sword and based our English around this – tasks including drawing a German camp, writing poetry, writing scripts and above all lots of reading.

HISTORY – THE VICTORIANS - this topic could go on all year there is so much to do. We pick and choose our topics but they include child workers, Victorian schools the railways and Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The work is enhanced by three great trips:

In Maths we set off on a Round the World challenge – the children planned their whole itinerary for a gap year adventure – they were so passionate about it you would have thought they were actually going and some fantastic maths resulted.

Sevington School – an original Victorian school room where the children stay in role as Victorian school children all day. They use slates and dip pens, learn to use pounds shillings and pence and encounter real Victorian punishments!

Bath at Work Museum – the children tour an original Victorian bottling factory and then role play a scene in Mr Bowler’s ironmonger’s shop. The big question is...will the young pie thief receive charity or punishment?

The SS Great Britain – the trip includes a workshop looking at evidence about the people who sailed on the SS Great Britain and a tour of the museum and ship.

The realistic smells of horse and vomit all add to the atmosphere on board ship.

SCIENCE – HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDED: Making shadow puppets and performing plays with them. Experiments with light which involved the whole class disappearing under tables shrouded with blackout sheets. Going on a fungi hunt, growing mould on bread and discovering how to make parallel circuits to light up a cardboard Christmas tree.

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Our Geography topic was Waste – this resulted in lively debate, much scrutiny of waste at home (thank you parents for your cooperation with this) a very wet but inspirational visit to M.J Church’s recycling centres and a successful ‘Upcycling sale’ which showed off the children’s entrepreneurial skills.

In Science some chemistry hit the curriculum. Pop rockets proved a winner as did burning – we burnt very small samples of different materials in a candle flame but some proved exciting. (The children were carefully protected with goggles and every window in the classroom was open). Those not in the O2 choir had a Lego day – putting into practice their knowledge of circuits as they built and illuminated model towns.

An end of term treat was a visit to Cardiff to see ‘Wicked’ which most described as ‘awesome’. We combined this with a visit to a Sikh temple where the liberal use of chocolate rewards by our hosts ensured the children really exercised their brains.

Year 6

SUMMER TERM The Summer Term got off to a bang with water rockets. The children’s designs were both clever and striking with many expertly designed parachutes deploying to slow the rockets’ descents.

Preparation for our French trip (on which we are about to depart as we write this) included work on the D-Day landings and reading and writing war poems. Many of the poems the children wrote are deeply moving. We find that such preparation makes the whole experience of visiting the D-Day landing beach and 3D cinema at Arromanches much more meaningful.

The parts for the end of year musical, Robin Hood and the Sherwood Hoodies have now been allocated and a remarkably funny first rehearsal has taken place, which went to prove the depth of acting talent in Y6.

They had to fight They had to fight, They had no choice as the Germans are taking over.

Attack is what they had to do, kill was their command.

They had to fight, although they were innocent.

It was their job and it was their life.

They had no choice, kill was their command.

They had to fight, to protect their family.

Were they dead?

Were they alive?

There will be no let-up in the pace of life in Y6 as they head towards the end of their time at KPS. When they leave they will be more than ready to begin Y7.

By Jasmine

KINGSWOOD PUPILS VISIT M J CHURCH RECYCLING SITES

were already on their way to mend the railway, damaged by the storms at Dawlish and they watched the construction of a waste water purifying reed bed. Most importantly, they found out about the eventual destinations of the rubbish produced at their school and how they, themselves, are crucial in the pre-cycling stage of recycling.

M J Church have now been working in partnership with Kingswood Prep School for two years, providing a complete waste management and recycling solution. Their colour coded bins are found all over the school and the children are taught to recycle from an early age. For this reason, when Y6 started a geography topic on waste it seemed sensible to ask M J Church if they could help.

What the children experienced during a visit M J Church’s Star Farm and Green Recycling Yard far exceeded all their expectations. Could recycling be fun, even in the pouring rain – absolutely! For a start the site was incredibly noisy and because it was noisy the children were encouraged to make even more noise and to shout as loudly as they could at every opportunity. The shouts resulted in friendly responses from all the staff – lorries blasted their horns, flashed their lights and revved their engines.

Massive diggers, lifters and grabbers performed ballet on a vast scale. As Lizzie commented: ‘The diggers danced for us – it was spectacular!’

And all the while the children were learning about the importance of recycling, of keeping different materials free from contamination, and about the cost, both financial and to the environment, of landfill. They were able to watch and even help with the processes involved in sorting waste; they found out about composting of Christmas trees and about food waste digesters; they heard how plant and materials from M J Church

M J Church sends quarterly reports to the school about the percentages of their waste which is recycled. Last year it was around 50%. The target is to increase this and with the children’s new enthusiasm for recycling this should be possible. The staff at M J Church went to a huge amount of trouble to both inform the children and give them an ‘awesome’ experience.

Susan Butcher Y6 teacher, Kingswood Prep School.

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Year 6

War Poem Soldiers bound to the grassy ground A storm bewing ahead A life of doom A life of darkness A life of misery and dread Living in a nest of barbed wire Surviving in the nightmares of explosion and fire Doomed for eternity Friends dead Marching away Last words said.

Soldiers bound to the grassy ground A storm brewing ahead Militant soldiers at their wait Driven by success Driven by fate Soldiers running into a graveyard of souls Hoping they will make it back Running, running, running.

In position to attack Gunshot here, Gunshot there The stink of rotting corpses Filling the air Parachuting men being pecked from the sky Spitfires bombing the battlefield Flying high The taste of victory is nearly here But where there is hope, there is also fear.

Soldiers bound to the grassy ground A storm brewing ahead At the peak of hell they won the battle They gathered the Germans up and butchered them like cattle They marched a few paces Before stopping They stared at the next trench Their pride not dropping.

By Alex Read

The Bomb

The pilot of the Enola Gay said he’d do it again one day, Cast a bomb down into the city wiping innocent men away.

He watched it fly, his little boy, his pride, his joy, his deadly toy.

He looked wide eyed and swelled with pride as down below him thousands died.

At temperatures up to 4000°, it brought Japan nearly to their knees.

The awe inspiring things he saw, just so America could win the war.

I heard the boom, I felt the heat, the wind that swept us off our feet, Children on fire, children in pain, never to see their families again.

Silence fell, nobody in sight, not another peaceful night.

Japan had drawn the shortest straw, America had nearly won the war, what a cost, the price so high, the only question left was, why?

By Tayo Sawyer

In preparation for the Year 6 French Trip to the D-Day landing beach in Arromanches, the children wrote their own war poems. Their creations were very poignant and portrayed a mature and realistic view of wartime, while focusing on a variety of emotions, such as love, loss, tragedy, separation, trauma and survival. These poems were a particular highlight of independent work from the year.

To War The general led 2000 men To war, to war, He had the courage to go forward Into the valley of gore, He led his troops on great steeds Longing to run and flee.

The enemy charged towards him, Bullets fired hailing down on his men.

They had no chance to beat them For his legions were far greater than theirs.

The battle is finished, The enemy is dead, Though it was no great victory, He has lost so many, wounded and dead.

By Georges Boutin

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WAR POEMS

Year 6

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}

‘Cleanliness was next to Godliness’

IT WAS BACK IN OCTOBER THAT SIXTY EAGER CHILDREN STEPPED OFF THE MINIBUSES AND TRAVELLED BACK IN TIME TO VISIT SEVINGTON VICTORIAN SCHOOL. WHAT AN EXPERIENCE THE DAY WOULD BE...

T

he children walked along the pavement towards the school with the morning bell ringing in the distance. They were met

by Miss Squire, a very strict and formidable looking lady!

The children were stunned into silence while their hands, fingers and school uniform were inspected, after all ‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’ according to Miss Squire! The children were keen to avoid the punishment that was handed out should anyone fail to meet the standard. With the boys and girls now in separate lines, they filed into the Victorian classroom and sat silently on wooden benches. The classroom had a stone floor and wood panelling on the walls with various signs hung quoting the famous saying, ‘Children should be seen and not heard.’ The children were a long way from the warm and familiar surroundings of KPS now. After an initial prayer and a reading from the Holy Scripture, it was time for registration, Victorian style. The class were asked to hand in their ‘school pennies’ in order to pay for the school’s coal and lamp oil. Miss Squire spoke to the children about the strict rules of conduct and how no child was allowed to speak without first being spoken to by the teacher. Slouching was replaced by a good posture, with a courteous mode of address demanded of all pupils, both to their peers and to their superiors. After this, the children received basic training in Reading, Writing and Arithmetic. Work was completed either on slate or in copybooks with a dip-in pen.

{ } ‘Practice makes perfect’

Miss Squire was patrolling the classroom to ensure handwriting was completed to the highest standard. A stroke of the cane was delivered to any pupil lacking the necessary competency. After a brief lesson on pounds, shilling and pence, the boys and girls were separated to complete different tasks. The girls were taken into the parlour room where they learnt about the requirements for entry to domestic service or the blessed state of matrimony. The girls had the opportunity to make lavender bags, an important skill when seeking employment. The boys, who had no need to learn about these matters, were kept in the classroom to continue their important studies in History, Geography, Natural Sciences, Drawing and Craftwork. The task was to draw an oil lamp, label the features and then clearly explain how it worked. Miss Squire was keen to remind the boys that ‘Practice makes perfect’ and that a neat hand was particularly key for employment. After lunch, the girls and boys were asked to undertake recreation outside on the grass. Footballs were a distant memory by this point; instead, the boys were provided with metal hoops, spinners and a cup and ball game, while the girls were given wooden hobby horses, a ‘gone fishing’ game and skipping ropes. After recreation had finished, there was time for a final prayer and reading from the Holy Scripture, before the children bade a courteous farewell to Miss Squire and Sevington School.

The children had a brilliant day, but were rather pleased that Miss Squire and her Victorian teaching methods did not make it back to KPS at the end of the day!

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Boarding at KPS

“It will be just like having a bigger family!” they said, “Living in a bigger family home; but look out for those late nights when the children are sick or messing around in their room!”

WHAT ARE OUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS AFTER OUR FIRST YEAR? Indeed it is just like having a bigger family; 16 children to get through breakfast (not just Samuel and Charlie!); we are living in a bigger family home…5 bedrooms and 16 beds (not just Samuel’s and Charlie’s!) to make sure are tidy and presentable each morning (we’ll forget about ours!) and as for those late nights… well, the children have been very well behaved actually, and apart from the odd sickness or bout of chicken pox (not just Samuel and Charlie… and me!) we have been able to wander upstairs at regular intervals and listen to the sound of their choice of audiobook (ranging from Mr. Stink to Private Peaceful) or even better, snoring!

Both Alison and I and James and Hannah have really tried to instil a friendly, happy and homely environment. Whilst we can never replicate the true feeling of ‘being at home’ we can certainly make sure that the children are well-fed, kept clean and loved and nurtured in the hope that they feel comfortable in their surroundings at Bath’s Best Boarding House (High Vinnalls) so that they can talk to us as if we are their ‘surrogate’ parents. As with all families, we have our disagreements about when and why to shower or complete our prep or keep our rooms tidy but these are very few and far between. Yes, we do have guidelines and rules but these are often created in conjunction with the children so that they have ownership over what they are doing – after all, it is THEIR house.

What have been the best moments this year? Wacky Wednesdays, Film Fridays, Design a Dinner, playing on the field on the beautiful summer evenings and weekends? The list could go on and on and I am sure that each child has a particular favourite in mind.

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Boarding at KPS

The boarding house a parent’s perspective Childcare can be complex especially when both parents work and family is not local. When children start school it can become easier in some respects and harder in others!

Last year we found ourselves in a situation of having to find alternative arrangements for childcare in a hurry. After a few sleepless nights and some negotiation at work we came up with a plan - to try the boarding house for breakfast and supper. It has been such a success that the girls complain if they don’t go!

The Boarding House offers a fun and safe environment that is reliable and flexible to meet our needs. We are always greeted at the front door of High Vinnalls with a smile and plenty of manpower to transport school bags down the hill. It’s easy to arrange with a quick e-mail to Mr Ward and you can add or cancel sessions with a bit of notice. There is a choice of delicious food and all sorts of fun evening activities when homework has been done.

New friends have been made across the Year groups and this has been lovely to see play out in school. They also offer overnight stays and my eldest would love to do this.

It’s a wonderful resource for working families and provides a real home-from-home. We are so lucky to have such dedicated and lovely house parents.

LIAM

High Vinnalls is lovely; sometimes I find it a little bit more homely than home! I’ve loved every minute of it.

NATALIE

The boarding house has a nice atmosphere and the staff are understanding.

The staff go out of their way to make sure that we’re happy and to organise fun.

I would recommend boarding to anyone who isn’t?

Dr Elizabeth Hersch

For us, apart from the fun times, our favourite moments have come from watching each and every one of ‘our children’ grow (physically and mentally!) into someone who has developed their own character and who are happy within their own and each other’s company. We encourage an atmosphere where we look after each other and the surroundings in the hope that everyone can empathise with each other at times of homesickness and sad feelings and make things better.

For the first time this year, we have publicised the fact that we can provide a ‘Breakfast’ and a ‘Supper’ club for those of you that lead busy professional lives and need the wrap-around care that we can offer our day children as well as our boarders. The numbers have grown steadily since September and both are very popular – we have even supervised children completing their prep, under the guise of qualified teachers (although don’t ask us too many maths questions!). Tie this in with the fact that we can offer occasional and casual boarding during the week and at weekends and it goes to show that we are considering the needs of everyone at KPS. For those of you that see this as a viable option, I am sure that you will read the article by Dr. Hersch (mother of three girls in the Pre-Prep and Prep School) that gives a ‘parent’s view’ of what we can provide.

The doors of High Vinnalls are always open… if you want to see for yourself why we call ourselves Bath’s Best Boarding House, pop in and have a look – I am sure that you will be happy with what you see…

Andrew and Alison Ward

DONALD

I miss my home but I have many good friends.

The boarding house has many play-times so I can be with my friends for a long time.

We listen to story CD’s at night (when we go to bed).

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Sport AUTUMN TERM 2013

Girls’ Hockey

In Year 5 the teams include goalkeepers and Phoebe Hall and Cordelia Stott have stepped into these roles with ease. The girls have enjoyed some close games this year under the watchful eye of Mr Brearey who has been delighted with the girls’ skills.

The girls enjoyed a very successful season and the hockey at Kingswood Prep School has gone from strength to strength. Even the Pre-Prep girls in Year 2 have progressed to playing small sided matches in their hockey lessons. The Year 2 girls have enjoyed the experience of practising their skills on the main Astro pitch and have proudly boasted about learning the ‘reverse stick dodge’!

Last but by no means least the Year 6 girls. This group of girls has been one of the most successful Year groups we have ever had, and therefore I feel it only fair to mention some of those girls. In goal - Olivia Wilson, in defence - Eleanor Phillips, Ritika Shrestha and Beth Harris, in midfield - Andi Newman, Elizabeth Narbutt, Skye Bayley and Isobel Hodge and in attack - Eleanor Webster. This group of girls were unbeaten this term. They won the King Edward’s Tournament and the County Tournament.

They have now qualified for the regional tournament which is being played at Millfield in May.

The Year 3 girls loved playing competitive sport against other schools for the first time. When possible all the girls from the Year group played and enjoyed winning the majority of their matches. Some bright stars for the future are emerging from this year group; Emily Hersche and Phoebe Gilpin have been particularly impressive.

The other Year 6 girls have also worked hard and enjoyed playing in fixtures. Natalie Parobek in goal and Jess Bailey in defence have been the stand-out players.

In Year 4 the girls have progressed to playing on the larger pitch and are now playing seven aside hockey as opposed to the five aside they played in Year 3. Tilly Bankes has been a stalwart in defence and Alice Boutin has great composure on the ball. All the girls deserve a mention for the progress they have made particularly with the way they can remain focused throughout a match and their enthusiastic approach to Games lessons.

A huge number of people are involved in making the sporting schedule happen. A big thank you must be given to all the staff that drive mini-buses, coach and umpire, plus the catering staff who provide hundreds of teas each week. Not forgetting all the parents who brave the elements on the Upper to support the Kingswood Prep School Teams.

Michelle Newman

Athletics

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Sport

Multi-Sport News BRITISH SCHOOLS’ MODERN BIATHLON CHAMPIONSHIPS – APRIL 2014 Hundreds of young athletes had the opportunity to compete at one of the iconic sporting venues of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games over the weekend 5th/6th April.

Some 1600 athletes aged nine to 18 took part in the British Schools’ Modern Biathlon Championships at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The event was organised by Pentathlon GB, the national governing body for the Olympic sport of modern pentathlon.

The young athletes swam in the inspirational setting of the Olympic Pool at the London Aquatics Centre and ran around a course on Olympic Park. Seven pupils from KPS qualified for this event.

Unfortunately Tayo picked up an injury and was unable to race, however six KPS athletes made the trip to London and by all accounts thoroughly enjoyed their experience. This is what they thought: Olivia (96th), Cam (106th),

“It was fun and inspirational.”

“Exciting and enjoyable.”

“It was great, I had the best time ever.”

Max (104th), Ollie (104th),

great.”

“It was amazing,

“It was amazing and I had a great experience.”

Finn (76th),

“It was fun and a great experience.”

Ellie (4th),

Well done to you all, we are very proud of your achievements.

Orienteering News Kingswood pupils have once again excelled at orienteering throughout the year. The highlight of the year is always the British Schools Championships; this year held at Shipley Country Park in Derbyshire. Kingswood’s Year 6 boys: James Bailey, Georges Boutin and Callum Chamberlain claimed the trophy as the winning team with the year 6 girls of Elizabeth Narbett, Eleanor Webster and Eleanor Phillips coming a very close second. Elizabeth Narbett and James Bailey both won the year 6 classes and the whole school team came a very close 2nd overall with everyone coming away with a medal.

Earlier in the autumn term Louis and Alberta Fryer travelled to Newcastle to compete in the British Schools’ score championships. Both ran well in atrocious condition finishing 4th and 2nd respectively.

In the Avon Schools’ league, Kingswood had 2 overall league winners with Elizabeth Narbett (year 6) and Thomas Button (year5). The year 6 boys competition is highly contended with the three top runners all having won British Championships. James Bailey ran a harder course for most of the season and finished third just 11 points off the perfect 500 score. Close behind was our other highly competitive year 6 with: Georges Boutin, Louis Fryer, Charlie Harden, Callum Chamberlain and Johnny Phillips. In the girls Eleanor Webster finished 6th. In year 5 Alberta Fryer, who has been competing since year 2, came third overall in the year 5 class and with still another year to go will she get further up the leader board next year? Will Shardlow (year 3) has gained in confidence and now runs solo scoring well during the latter half of the season.

In the individual championships Kingswood, held on a glorious sunny day high on the Mendips Kingswood had 3 winners.

Elizabeth Narbett had an outstanding run finishing 9 minutes ahead of second place and both Alberta Fryer and Will Shardlow won the year 4 titles. James Bailey was third in year 5. It was here that some new younger runners competed for the first time and we will look out for them taking up the reins next year as our highly successful year 6 move on.

Kingswood once again won the overall league trophy.

At the Avon Schools’ relays it was going to be a question of whether Kingswood could redeem themselves, having not completed all the courses correctly for the past three years.

Well they didn’t disappoint this year and it was a fantastic victory as the team of Jim Bailey, Elizabeth Narbett and Callum Chamberlain romped home.

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Sport

Cricket at Kingswood Prep School

Kingswood Prep School can be very proud of their cricket, where we have genuinely led the way in a couple of areas! The U11 boys had a particularly good season (once the rain stopped around half-term) whilst the U10s also showed some real promise throughout the term – but neither can really claim to be “pioneering” in the sport. The two aspects of the sport where we can give ourselves a hearty pat on the back are as follows:

U9 and U8 Kwik Cricket (and lower ability levels above that age) Most people know kwik cricket as a simple soft-ball version of the sport which makes it easily accessible for young players, but a few years ago we recognised that this form of cricket still had major limitations – particularly around children’s ability (or, indeed, lack of ability) to bowl straight. It was then that we developed the game of kwik cricket with tees which now, every school locally plays as a matter of course – and, for all we know, it may be sweeping the nation (and if it is, how I wish we had patented it!) The game means that something happens every ball, wides are not punished but good bowling is rewarded, fielding skills ( and interest) have to develop quickly whilst such things as placement of shots, running and calling, etc. are all developed. We are constantly tweaking and trying to improve but we can genuinely proud of the way we have led the way with this version of the game.

Girls’ Cricket Whilst we cannot claim to have developed the concept of girls playing cricket (I hear there are one or two decent women cricketers in this country as well!), we have driven the change in “standard” girls’ summer sport which has happened this year.

Through our leadership of the Bath Schools’ Group we have made the change this summer from rounders throughout the term to a 50/50 split of rounders and cricket – which has been a very popular move. Miss Newman has embraced this change and has herself become something of a cricket guru to the female staff from other schools and, although I do not expect a total shift away from rounders in the near future, it is possible that the ratio of cricket to rounders could shift a little more in the future. For now, we can be proud of the way our girls have played and proud of the fact that we have led the way towards a sport which is easily accessible to girls through to adulthood – and one where there are a growing number of accessible role models and even the prospect of becoming a professional one day!

Ian Shrubsole

Netball season 2013/2014 The girls enjoyed an extremely successful netball season from Year 3 up to Year 6. The Year 3 team had an unbeaten season and demonstrated the importance of working hard in Year 2 to establish the basic skills before they start playing fun competitive matches in Year 3. However the outstanding team was the U11 A team who won both the Monkton and King Edward’s Tournaments, and narrowly missed qualification for the IAPS finals.

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This year we were delighted to welcome the England captain Serena Guthrie to our coaching team and she proved inspirational to all the girls in the Prep School. Unfortunately she will not be with us next season as she is moving to New Zealand to play in the professional league and we wish her every success for the future.

Michelle Newman Head of Girls’ Games.

Sport

Rugby

KINGSWOOD JUNIOR SCHOOL JUDO CLUB 2014 Judo is a Japanese martial art and the names of the techniques as well as the refereeing terminology are in Japanese and the children have to learn these names as well as the English translations as part of their promotional grading tests.

The skills of judo can be used in a variety of self-defence situations as well as in the sporting side of the sport and it is a credit to the young people that they learn to use these moves on the judo mat and do not use them outside.

The highlight each term for the pupils is the belt grading.

The belts denote the standard which the judo player has reached. The grades are awarded when the pupil completes all of the following:- 1. Attendance. 2. Theory requirements, i.e. understands the names of the techniques and can demonstrate them. 3. Show a variety of the techniques learnt in a competitive situation.

This year has seen all of the pupils attaining higher grade belts during their grading tests. They have worked extremely hard during the sessions to improve their theory and competitive knowledge of the sport.

The enthusiasm of all the pupils has made the teaching of them a pleasure and it has been good to see the girls who have taken up the activity competing on an equal footing with the boys during the sessions.

Ethan Hawtin has again made tremendous progress this year and is my selection for the club’s Player of the Year. He won the combined Year 5 section and Year 6 competition where he took first place producing wonderful throwing and pinning techniques. Every young person in the club has made very good progress and the determination to attain higher grades has been a pleasure to see.

Members of the club took part in the Bushido national championships. William Shardlow won every contest in the under 25 kilo group to take the gold medal whilst club mate Basti Langkilde won all his contests except the final against William and so took the silver medal. Daniel Zukas in his first outing for the club dominated the under 30 kilo group to win the gold medal. Ethan Hawtin who last year took the silver medal in the under 35 kilo section went one better this year winning the gold medal with devastating competitive techniques.

The annual school championship always produces some excellent judo skills and tremendous rivalry between the members. This year’s results are as follows:Year 5 and 6 1. Ethan Hawtin.

2. Harry Maskel 3. Louis Fryer 4. James Kennedy.

Year 3 and 4 1. Basti Langkilde.

2. William Shardlow.

3. Raff Weston.

3. Daniel Adams.

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Drama

ROMEO JULIET at the Roman Baths

Shakespeare with a touch of Hollywood It was an amazing experience and a magical evening that none of us will ever forget. As part of National Shakespeare Week, KPS was invited to perform at the historic and magnificent Roman Baths. Not only that, but through the conspiring of Edgar (Benvolio), our Head Boy, and the Hollywood designer Penny Rose, we had been loaned authentic costumes provided by the world-famous, Oscar-winning costumiers, ‘Angels’ of London.

Our troupe had already performed the play at Kingswood Theatre, alongside Senior School productions of ‘A Winter’s Tale’ and ‘Much Ado About Nothing’, as part of a delightful Shakespeare Evening. In addition, our abridged version of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ was staged at the Egg Theatre alongside other local schools as part of the Shakespeare Schools Festival.

This, however, was the highlight of our ‘tour’.

The previous week saw thirty children emerge from minibuses clad in silk dresses and wimples, doublets and hose (many brandishing swords), much to the bemusement of passing locals and tourists who were quick to seize a unique photoopportunity. We familiarised ourselves with the flagstone stage, practised projecting voices across the Great Bath and tried not to be distracted by the watching ducks. Juliet found her position on the terrace for her famous ‘O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?’ speech while Romeo himself had to be harnessed to one of the pillars to deliver his reply – for health and safety reasons! The backstage area was the site of the ancient changing rooms and saunas. For an enchanted hour of rehearsal, we had the entire place to ourselves.

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It was a truly glorious setting and did not fail to inspire.

On the evening of the performance, there was a tangible buzz of excitement, not only from the cast but also from the audience who could not fail to be impressed by the beauty of the torch-lit Great Bath. Some rain fell onto the hot spring water, resulting in a natural mist which only added to the magical atmosphere. Undoubtedly, the setting enhanced the final showing and helped bring the play to life. Shakespeare’s words were well delivered, cues swiftly followed and the story was re-enacted with energy for one final time. The costumes were stunning and the balcony scene was particularly memorable. Crowd fight scenes and the masked ball were examples of great ensemble work and there were many wonderful individual performances.

Only too soon was the final bow taken and then it was all over.

Thank yous were made and costumes packed away to be sent back to Tim Angel. For all, though the memories of this very special experience will remain for many years to come; the pictures of those wonderful costumes will certainly remain vivid in our minds. It truly was a magical evening.

Marie McGlynn

Drama

PORRIDGE!

Nursery Nativity

O

nce upon a crime, Jack Spratt, private detective had to help Goldilocks to find Marigold the cow.

Meanwhile, the police were on the trail of an unknown master criminal and his gang, arresting Peter Piper, Tom-Tom the piper’s son, and a Lumber Jack along the way. The Bear family reopened their porridge Pot Diner to rapturous applause before Papa Bear and the three Billy Goats Gruff set about causing havoc in Happy Valley. Mother Hubbard and Simple Simon were on the edge of ruin; Little Bow Peep and Wee Willie Winkie had to calm Little Miss Muffet; and Humpty Dumpty needed the skills of Doctor Foster and Nurse Polly to put him back together again. In true English farce style, the muddling up of four identical suitcases proved the downfall of the Goatfather and everyone lived happily ever after! The Years 3 and 4 play was full of cheesy jokes and there was a great deal of laughter from the audience. We witnessed some brilliant performances from such young children with comedic talent far above their age. ‘Porridge!’ was a fitting culmination to all the hard work and energy the children had put into their drama and music lessons all year.

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Music

Making music AT KPS

O

ur three school choirs were busy this year. The Pre-Prep choir performed in our Christmas Christingle service and in our various Year group concerts. We sang lots of action songs and our favourite this year was ‘Sing a Song, Sing a Joyful Song’. The Year 3 and 4 choir sang beautifully in the Prep Carol service and also in their Year group concerts.

They also sang for the Weston All Saints Church Lunch Club and performed in our end-of-year events too. The Year 5 and 6 choir spent the Autumn Term preparing for the concert at the O2 Arena in London, and for the Prep Carol Service. This year we performed descants to many traditional carols together and sang in two parts at the O2. The choir also performed in Year group concerts, the Gala concert and our end-of-year events.

We took a composite choir, consisting of one child from every Year group, to Stratton House to sing to the elderly folk at harvest time. We were thrilled that one of our choir members, Kristel Langkilde, won a place in the National Childrens’ Choir, and that five others now sing with various Bath Abbey Choirs.

Informal Concerts This year saw the introduction of Friday afternoon informal concerts. The aim of these concerts is to provide a more relaxed, intimate setting in which to perform to family and friends. Numbers performing vary widely from week to week, as the music teachers put forward children who have pieces that are ready for an audience. It has been a lovely opportunity for very young children to play alongside our more advanced players, always finishing with refreshments and a chance to chat. One of our concerts was especially for grandparents.

We expected about 12 in the audience and were thrilled to see over 80 filling the Music Room to over-flowing. Thank you grandparents, for all your loving support. Performing music is a difficult skill, requiring confidence and a cool head! We continue to be amazed at the hard work that our children put into their music and the commitment they show to becoming as good a musician as it is possible to be.

Congratulations to everyone who has performed this year.

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New Instruments from the Friends The Friends of KPS continue to be very supportive of the music here. This year they gave the department a large sum of money to spend on new orchestral instruments to be used in class lessons so that children could try out instruments prior to starting lessons. It’s hard to choose to play the oboe if you’ve never seen one before! Thanks to the generosity of the Friends we now have a new flute, oboe, saxophone, cornet, trumpet, child’s trombone and French horn. We were also able to purchase a beautiful school harp, which is large enough for children to take music exams up to Grade 5. Harp lessons have really taken off at KPS and we are delighted to add this to the range of instruments children can learn here. Thank you so much, Friends of KPS. The Gala Concert This year it seemed right to hold a celebration of all our musical and dramatic talent and so the idea for a Gala Concert in the Kingswood Theatre was born. At first we thought we could do a half-hour concert with a few really good items, but it quickly grew to take in the very best of what our children have achieved this year within the performing arts. It was, quite simply, one of the best evenings I have ever experienced in 19 years at Kingswood! We listened with amazement to beautiful pieces by Tayo Sawyerr on trumpet, Tom Lane Fox on violin, Mia Randolph on violin, Eleanor Duke on piano and Alex Sedcole on piano. All five of these pupils are already playing at Grade 5 level or above (there are 8 grades in music and most children would not reach Grade 8 until they are 18 years old). We were also delighted to hear vocal solos from Isobel Hodge and Kristel Langkilde, who is our very first member of the National Children’s Choir. The brass ensemble made their debut, playing as confidently as if they had done it a hundred times before. The string orchestra played a superb selection of pieces, and the O2 choir reprised three favourite items from their concert in London in January. The audience was also treated to music from Mrs Emily Mullins, our harp teacher, who played both classical and folk music for us to enjoy; and from Mrs Leah Marion Jones, who is a professional opera singer and one of our parents. You will read more about the poetry, drama and dance that took place in the concert, elsewhere in this magazine.

What talented children we have at KPS!

Music MUSIC EXAM RESULTS

This year many of our children have taken graded music exams, either on instruments or singing. There are 8 grades plus preparatory (P) or initial (I) exams. We use 2 different exam boards – most exams are taken with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) but some teachers use Trinity exam board. Since the magazine was last published we have taken and passed 97 exams!

Matthew Bacon Cecilie Brooks Thomas Button Clementine Coxen Emilia Denman Sam Ewing Alberta Fryer Imogen Hall Phoebe Hall Beatrice Harding Niamh Harding Sophia Heath Emily Hersch Dillon Hodge Toby Low George Lowes Charley Lunt Fergus Matthews Finlay Morris Freya Morris Alice Mumford Natalie Parobek Mia Randolph Madi Sayce Alex Sedcole Ritika Shrestha Oliver Williams Soraya Yasin Reuben Zukas

Piano Piano Guitar Piano Piano Piano Piano Violin Clarinet Piano Piano Piano Piano Piano Piano Guitar Piano Piano Piano Cello Violin Piano Violin Piano Piano Piano Piano Violin Piano

1 108 Pass P --- Pass 1 120 Merit 1 102 Pass P --- Pass 2 120 Merit P --- Pass 1 127 Merit 1 126 Merit 1 122 Merit 2 120 Merit 1 130 Distinction 1 111 Pass 1 130 Distinction P --- Pass P --- Pass P --- Pass 1 114 Pass 2 115 Pass 1 133 Distinction 2 127 Merit 1 100 Pass 4 123 Merit 1 106 Pass 4 130 Distinction 1 112 Pass P --- Pass 1 125 Merit 3 127 Merit

Eleanor Duke Amelie Girdher Lola Gulotti Imogen Hall Phoebe Hill Isobel Hodge George Hudson George Hudson Alex Lam Tom Lane Fox Emma Meier Alice Mumford Ruby O’Mahony Joe Randolph Alice Small Aoife Targett Iona Stokes Emelia Jones Eva Wake Emmy Lunt Peter Weston-Burt Rory Ferguson Clementine Coxen Martha Small Eleanor Webster Grace Weston Alma Bode Maiya Milford Sabastian Langkilde Cecilie Brooks Lucia Batters Bella Shorten Rose Bates Alice Small Isabella Canham James Bailey George Bendrey Georges Boutin Rufus Dakin Imogen Hall Beth Harris Dillon Hodge Dorothy Hodge Isobel Hodge Emeila Jones Matilda Jones Alex Keogh Tom Lane Fox Benjamin Lockey Maiya Milford Alice Mumford Eleanor Phillips Mia Randolph Anna Rose Read Tom Roach Daniel Ross Chukhrov Sofia Ross Chuhrov Sofia Ross Chukhrov April Russell Alex Sedcole William Shardlow Martha Small George Lowes Charlie Stevens Grace Stuart Archie Wake Jamie Wright Christopher Zikos-Barlow

Singing Piano Piano Piano Clarinet Piano Cello Piano Violin Violin Piano Piano Singing Cello Piano Piano Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Trinity Singing Singing Cello Piano Violin Singing Piano Piano Singing Piano Singing Piano Piano Singing Piano Violin Singing Piano Singing Singing Piano Singing Piano Violin Piano Piano Violin Guitar Piano Singing Piano Piano Singing

1 134 Distinction P --- Pass P --- Pass 3 102 Pass 1 124 Merit 3 123 Merit 1 125 Merit 2 113 Pass 1 135 Distinction 4 111 Pass P --- Pass 3 100 Pass 1 121 Merit 2 132 Distinction 3 124 Merit 1 103 Pass I 67 Pass I 87 Distinction I 78 Merit I 61 Pass I 68 Pass 1 85 Merit 1 82 Merit 1 78 Merit 3 87 Distinction I 81 Merit I 73 Pass I 81 Merit 1 81 Merit 1 73 Pass 1 82 Merit 2 81 Merit 2 83 Merit 2 89 Distinction 2 79 Merit 1 117 Pass 2 121 Merit 1 105 Pass 3 111 Pass 2 122 Merit 2 127 Merit 2 127 Merit 1 130 Distinction 1 132 Distinction P --- Pass 2 115 Pass 1 117 Pass 2 126 Merit 3 124 Merit P --- Pass 3 125 Merit 2 121 Merit 3 130 Distinction 1 115 Pass 2 113 Pass P --- Pass 1 114 Pass 1 120 Merit 1 125 Merit 5 124 Merit P --- Pass 1 127 Merit 1 111 Pass 1 120 Merit 2 136 Distinction P --- Pass 1 123 Merit 2 126 Merit

Jackie Cross

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Art OUR AIM FOR THE ART AT KINGSWOOD IS TO SEE CHILDREN EXCITED TO COME TO EACH LESSON AND TO NURTURE A SENSE OF PRIDE FOR THEIR CREATIVE IDEAS AND OUTCOMES. THEY CONTINUE TO SURPRISE AND DELIGHT ME WITH THEIR INVENTIVE IDEAS AND PASSION FOR LEARNING. INCREASINGLY, CHILDREN BRING IN EXAMPLES OF ART AND CRAFT MADE AT HOME PROMOTING THE EVERIMPORTANT AIM TO BECOME INDEPENDENT LEARNERS.

YEAR 3 Year 3 children have been surrounded by colour this year, learning more about primary and secondary shades, producing delicate oil pastel flowers and sculpting a decorative papier mache fish.

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We printed a beautiful illustrated book with Year 4, each child designing their own part of ‘Twas the night before Christmas’, written by Clement C. Moore in 1823. They have recently been looking at Print-making and, inspired by Islamic and natural patterns, they have produced a two-colour print with four way symmetry.

YEAR 4

Art

YEAR 6

There has been a real exploration of technique in Year 6 with large-scale fish in expressive ink and collage, textural flowers professionally printed into greetings cards and more recently ceramic book-ends. Sketchbooks are regularly used to research, experiment and review progress and all pupils are encouraged to make ambitious choices with quality of finish in mind.

Pupils in Year 5 have developed their understanding of tone and produced some atmospheric drawings of woodland creatures. Looking at Picasso, we have since designed emotive faces with strong angular lines and a vibrancy of colour.

YEAR 5

With ever more increasing choices for Extra-Curricular activities including art club, drawing, recycled art, craft club and ceramics in both Pre-Prep and Prep, the creativity is vibrant and clear to see. Children are able to work towards an Arts Award in their Pre-Prep club with professional artist Lorna Bode and these opportunities are planned to increase in Key Stage 2 in the future.

Entries to the ‘Paint the Wolf’ competition run by Jack Wolfskin were stunning and the designs for Greetings cards produced by each child showed the wonderful variety of skills in each Year Group. The children never fail to make us proud and we are delighted to share these wonderful examples of their artwork with you.

Karen Fox

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DT

Design Technology T

he children have been very busy in all aspects of Design Technology, both in lessons and the after school clubs. Feedback from parents both in the playground and at the specialist teacher/parent evenings reinforces my belief that the children love doing DT and get a lot from it. They have an insatiable appetite for learning about technologies past and present, often being amazed when studying the ‘what’, ‘where’, and ‘how’ of everyday objects and the materials around us. For example, it is refreshing to see in this the iPad age, a fascination with what ‘clockwork’ really means and how a coiled spring can power a ten-legged walking toy across a desk.

Although all year groups undertake ‘making’ projects throughout the academic year and study objects in depth, much emphasis is also put on practical problem solving and thinking skills. A project or idea is discussed as a class prior to the children attempting to design and make it themselves, relying on their experiences to date, creativity and understanding. Following initial drawings and recording of ideas, construction and experimentation is carried out. It is at this stage where problems occur and have to be properly identified in order to find a solution. All very ‘hands-on’, and as we all now know, we learn from making mistakes.

And what a sense of pride and achievement at the end when it works!

Highlights this year include the amazing range of shoes designed by Year 6. The initial ideas drawings were very creative and colourful, if somewhat impractical –

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DT think rockets and built-in cola dispenser – but after studying real shoes of every kind, revised designs were more realistic.

Overall it was a very challenging construction project which saw the children overcoming all sorts of problems, using materials not usually found in real shoe construction. It was noticeably the girls who enjoyed this project the most, producing a range of elegant models compared to the big boots of the boys. Dare I say their interest in shoes is naturally hard-wired?

Another project highlight was undertaken

by Year 4. It is very hard to visualise an object in 3D when you only have a 2D representation – especially when you are only 9. So focusing on the human head, correctly proportioned drawings were developed, including in profile, from which 3D models were produced in colour clay mouldable material. The shapes, proportions and detailing were challenging [as was the colour clay itself on the morning in winter when the Summerhill heating broke down]. However the resulting character heads looked amazing and have been much admired.

There have been many exiting DT. projects undertaken this year and new ones are always being developed. The children have risen to specific Lego construction challenges, built various vehicles, studied textiles and weaving, made wooden puzzles, siege catapults, bug houses and puppets. They have studied mechanisms, packaging, structures and the process of design. There was also an amazing response to a half-term challenge to build a bird-house from recycled materials. The finished boxes incorporated a huge range of objects, from bottles and old floorboards to basketballs and a surprising number of empty wine boxes! A particular favourite was a cake tin made into a caravan. Well done to everyone who took part. All the bird-houses are now installed around the KPS campus.

A new activity in the Summer Term has been the start of a DT enrichment group involving a small group of children learning about greenwood crafts, ie. ‘bodging’ to give it the correct name. Under the expert tutelage of Jonathan Stockton, KPS parent and master craftsman, ably assisted by Messrs Chitson, Stephens and Hull, the children have been able to re-cycle a lot of the wood produced as a result of tree surgery on the school site into useful objects, including a unique 9-legged stool.

DT at the Prep School has always been about challenging our children to learn about the objects and technology that surrounds us through exploring, questioning and experimenting. By building up ‘hands-on’ practical and problem-solving skills, together with an underlying subject knowledge, they should be well placed to enjoy DT throughout their time at Kingswood.

Jeremy Chitson

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Creative Arts

Poetry OUT LOUD 2013

Only at KPS could you experience an evening where Pam Ayres shares the limelight with Shakespeare, but this was the treat that lay in store for the audience at our 2013 Poetry Out Loud competition, with everything from aliens to baboons sandwiched in between.

Twenty nervous finalists from Years 3-6 competed for the honour of being chosen as the overall Poetry Recital Champion.

A delightful selection of verse was performed to a very high standard. Words were clearly projected, voices were well modulated and there was a super sense of communication.

The adjudicator, David Hughes, (recently-retired Head of English at the Senior School) had the unenviable task of making the final decisions. His duty was not an easy one!

A HUGE thank you to all involved for such an entertaining evening.

Marie McGlynn

Winners (and runners-up) were as follows:

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YEAR 3:

Oscar Bankes (Y3 Winner) Dotty Hodge Toby Low Emma Meier

YEAR 4:

Dillon Hodge (Y4 Winner) Fia Jones Charlie Stevens Oliver Williams

YEAR 5:

Rufus Dakin Eleanor Duke Fergus Matthews Thomas Meier Seb Morley (Y5 Winner & Poetry Recital Champion 2013) Robert Wilson

YEAR 6:

Georges Boutin Molly Dixon Ed Gilpin Issy Hodge (Year 6 Winner) Alice Mumford Johnny Phillips

Creative Arts

ESB Success 2013/14 Back in March, twenty-eight children from Years 2 – 5 sat their ESB exam. English Speaking Board gives children the opportunity to express themselves and to develop their oral communication. All children are required to present three prepared pieces: a poem, a reading and a presentation on a subject of personal interest. This year, the children worked very hard throughout two terms and always showed an excellent level of commitment to ESB. All the children were coached and given supportive feedback and ideas by the staff running the club.

This year’s ESB results were the best to date! Nineteen children achieved a distinction, the highest grade awarded, and nine children achieved a merit plus endorsed. They should all be very proud of themselves!

The visiting examiner was incredibly impressed with the children’s level of preparation and commented on all the wonderful facts she had learnt, particular about Creatures of the Deep, Greek Gods, Rhinos, Horses and Ponies, Doctor Who, Lace and Oil Rigs. The examiner felt the children spoke knowledgeably and confidently, making excellent use of the boards, props and costumes to illustrate specific points. The children had lovely, clear and lively speaking voices when performing their poems and passages, highlighting their enthusiasm and interest. Each individual group contributed to discussions and asked some thoughtful questions of other speakers.

As a teacher, it was fantastic to watch the children show real focus and commitment to ESB and to have prepared all three elements with such attention to detail. A fantastic set of results and very well done indeed to all who took part!

Emily Brunt

ESB Exam Results 2013/14 Monty Coxen Leo Gulotti Arthur Hamilton-James Eleanor Hurley Land Emelia Jones Zoe Lee Scarlett Smith Grace Weston Leyla Aysan Clementine Coxen Hayley Crowhurst Amelie Girdher Sophia Heath Emily Hersch George Hudson Imogen Isaac Emma Meier Leo Palmer Aoife Targett Rohan Harvey Phoebe Hill Alexander Keogh Beatrice Meadowcroft Sebastian Miller Anna Rose Read Oliver Williams George Lowes Madi Sayce

Year 2 Year 2 Year 2 Year 2 Year 2 Year 2 Year 2 Year 2 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 3 Year 4 Year 4 Year 4 Year 4 Year 4 Year 4 Year 4 Year 5 Year 5

Merit Plus endorsed Distinction Merit Plus endorsed Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Plus endorsed Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Plus endorsed Distinction Merit Plus endorsed Merit Plus endorsed Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Plus endorsed Merit Plus endorsed Distinction Distinction Merit Plus endorsed Distinction

LAMDA Exam Results 2014 MIME Entry Mime Tom Blezard Distinction Lucia Batters Distinction Clementine Coxen Merit Grade One Mime Joseph Boyle Distinction Chris Zikos Barlow Distinction Grade Two Mime Edgar M Davies Johnny Phillips

Merit Merit

ACTING Entry Acting Sophie Walsh Isabella Canham Alberta Fryer Grace O’Gorman Basti Langkilde Phoebe Gilpin

Merit Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction

Grade One Acting Lola Gulotti Emily Bond Mia Randolph Charlie Stevens Cecilie Brooks Ciara Newcastle Matilda Jones

Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Pass

Andi Newman Olivia Governo Zillah Austin Freddie Stockton Oliver Williams James Redman Seren Johnson Ruby O’Mahony Hannah Kelly Alexander Bushell Thomas Meier Rory Ferguson

Pass Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Merit

Grade Two Acting Bella Shorten Cordelia Stott Grace Stuart Seb Morley Eleanor Duke Alice Small Tom Lane Fox Kristel Langkilde

Merit Pass Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Distinction

Grade Three Acting Isobel Hodge Distinction Anna Blezard Distinction Harry Stevens Distinction Lizzie Narbett Distinction Niamh Harding Distinction Grade Four Acting Beth Harris Distinction

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Creative Writing

writing

A celebration of

at KPS

E

very year, the children at KPS enter numerous writing competitions, both internal and externally set. Whilst it is wonderful that children enter such competitions and our pupils always enjoy many successes with their entries, I felt that it was also important to recognise what the children do day-to-day in their English lessons. With this in mind, this term, I set up the Celebration of Writing. Although not strictly a competition, this celebration allows teachers to recognise the excellent writing that children do in class throughout the year.

Here is a selection of some of the exceptional pieces of work.

Happy reading!

Mishka Diaz-Grigg English Coordinator

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Creative Writing

Joe, Nicole and the Ball – LEYLA AYSAN 3M

The Piano – BELLA SHORTEN 5HB In the dark, the old man sat at a piano. A white light shone over him as memories slowly flowed through his mind.

He tapped the keys gently, whilst thinking of his wife.

Gradually, he took one hand off the piano. The old man had remembered that his wife would play this part of the beautiful tune. He felt a smooth kiss on his cheek as if it were yesterday. His wife’s ghostly figure slowly drifted away as he placed his hand back on the dusty white keys. He carried on with his melodic tune.

He remembers the war with his brother. They were both medics. He ran up to the wall where his brother was waiting.

The young man at the time had told him to go out and shoot, he thought it was the right time, but he was wrong.

His brother got shot in the chest; he fell to the ground. He ran over to his brother and held him in his arms. He was gone. Why him?

His next memory opened. His hobby horse was one of his prized possessions…

Once upon a time there lived two twins by the name of Joe and Nicole, whose mother died of cancer so the father remarried. He married a woman who became the children’s stepmother. She was horrid, cruel and mean to the children. Then she did a terrible thing, she killed the father! So the children were left alone with the stepmother.

“Mother, it’s the post.” called Joe. “Yes, mother it looks like an invitation!” exclaimed Nicole.

“I am coming,” shrieked the stepmother.

“Can we go mum, please?” chanted Nicole and Joe together.

“Certainly not,” replied the stepmother.

“But, mum,” pleaded Nicole.

“No buts!” exclaimed the stepmother.

“OK,” sobbed Joe. The children were crying when there was a sound. In front of them appeared the wizard maker.

“Why are you crying children?” asked the wizard maker.

“There’s this invitation to a ball and mother’s not letting us go,” sobbed Nicole.

“Who are you anyway?” asked Joe. “I’m the wish maker.”

“In that case can you take us to the ball, please?” asked Joe. “Nope,” replied the wish maker.

“Why not?” asked Nicole.

“You can’t go in the clothes you’re wearing.”

Before the children could say anything the wish maker began singing a spell.

“The clothes you’re wearing, shred them to pieces to make ball gowns.”

The wish maker laughed as Joe was dressed in a ball dress.

“Oops!” he laughed and changed his clothes.

“Now you can go,” he chanted.

“But what do we go in?” asked Nicole.

“This flower – watch. Flower to cabbage. Oops, I’ve turned it into a cabbage instead of a carriage. Cabbage to carriage! There, you can go now. You can go to that ball of yours. But remember that the palace is a big place so there are rats. If you see one come straight back, OK? Now off you go.”

We’re at the ball now. Let’s dance to the music,” Nicole said in wonder.

“OK,” replied Joe. Lalalala, you look in my eyes, I’ll look in your eyes, lalalala, went the music.

“Dance, dance, dance,” went Joe and Nicole.

“Look, it’s a rat,” said Nicole.

“We must go, Joe,” panted Nicole. “I can’t run as fast as you – I’m in a ball gown.”

Suddenly all went black for Nicole. Joe looked in horror as he saw that the rat had bitten Nicole. He ran quickly to the carriage, with Nicole in his arms, not noticing he’d left their masks.

A few days later, there was a knock on the door.

“Who is it?” asked Joe. “I am the magic doctor. He said these masks were left at the ball and there was a rat with blood on its fangs. We believe the couple who were dancing left early because they got bitten. Is it you? I’m here to cure you.”

“Yes,” replied Joe. “That’s my sister.”

Joe led the magic doctor. When the magic doctor saw Nicole, he snapped his fingers and all was better.

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Creative Writing

writing

A celebration of

at KPS

The Rainbow Fish – MAISIE FOX 1A Once upon a time there was a rainbow fish that was so beautiful and colourful that his friends called him Rainbow Fish. One day a little blue fish swam right next to Rainbow Fish and asked if he had a shiny scale.

But Rainbow Fish said no! Little blue fish swam away.

Rainbow Fish suddenly felt lonely. He went to see the starfish. The starfish told Rainbow Fish to see the wise octopus. So Rainbow Fish went to the cave. Rainbow Fish couldn’t see anything at first. But suddenly he saw two glowing eyes! The octopus told Rainbow Fish that he should share his scales with the other fish.

“Then you will be happy!” said the octopus.

Improving our playground – TOM JACKSON 5RB Dear Mr Crupp, I have made a few suggestions about the improvement of our playground and some of them will make our school stand out like a diamond in a money sack. So please take my advice.

Diary entry for ‘The Piano’ – LIAM TONER 5DG Early this morning I woke with a start, the sound of gunfire loud in the air. Many hours passed as we waited for the signal to go over. Eventually, after what seemed like hours, the signal came. It was a huge scramble, everyone trying to get out. Some were going to take revenge, some just taking all their anger out on them.

But for certain men were going to die.

Many of the troops died that day, but somehow me and my friend William were still alive hiding behind a bathroom wall. After a while, when I thought it was safe to move, I gave him a signal to go around the wall and shoot. Not even a second later, he was dead. I felt terrible; he was dead, lying on the floor in his own sticky blood. Got to go now, the new officer’s calling.

I think we should add some trees to our play area so it will be a much more environmentally friendly environment.

The other day I was taking my morning stroll through the playground at break, and poor old Jimmy was sat on the bench with nothing to do! So, I went up to Jim and asked what the matter was.

“I’m OK, it’s just…it’s just that there is absolutely nothing to do. I wish there was a climbing frame or a slide of some sort” replied Jimmy.

Then it clicked. I glanced around and there was nothing in sight like a climbing frame or a slide.

“Thanks, old Jimmy boy, you’re a genius.” I leapt up and started jotting my ideas down in my jotter and I neatly copied out my ideas.

Jotter Here are a few ideas: a quiet area for readers, football pitch, slide, play frame, fireman’s pole, tunnels, wooden train, pergolas and a climbing wall.

Thank you and I hope you take this to the extreme.

Yours sincerely, Ferguson Camelback

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Creative Writing

Celebration of Creative Writing RC – NEFELI ANDREOU

What an exciting weekend Nefeli! Your writing is beautiful – well done!

4G – STERLING SMITH THE DEATH OF FREYA

I chose it for its gruesome and horrifying content!

Mrs Gilmore

Miss Caden

4H – PHIA JONES

RS – AVA SHAW

Ava has worked consistently hard on her spelling and writing. She is eager to do well and always does her very very best.

Mrs Simpson

1A – MAISIE FOX THE RAINBOW FISH

Maisie used accurate punctuation and well-chosen adjectives in this piece.

An excellent, well-presented piece of work. She used some expressive words and phrases. Her opening and closing paragraphs introduce an element of mystery and hold the reader’s attention.

Mr Hull

5HB – BELLA SHORTEN THE PIANO

I chose this writing because of the well thought out structure and the lovely phrasing.

Miss Anderson

Miss Birchall

1H – BEA HERSCH – A PIECE ABOUT THE SEASIDE

5RB – TOM JACKSON – IMPROVE OUR PLAYGROUND

This piece linked to our underwater topic. We talked about our senses and tried to add adjectives to our writing.

I chose this because it made Mr Dixon and I laugh out loud. Brilliant!

Mrs Briggs

Mrs Higgins

2H – CHARLIE SIEBERHAGEN OTTER MOON

Charlie really enjoyed having fun with imaginative words. He sees a picture in his mind and creates this through his writing.

5D – LIAM TONER FOR HIS DIARY ENTRY INSPIRED BY THE PIANO ANIMATION

In Liam’s piece he has managed to capture the anguish and horror that a soldier may feel during war time.

Mrs Diaz-Grigg

Miss Howe

6EB – BEN YATES INTO THE TRENCHES 2W – DAISY BASSET – THE OTTER POEM

Daisy really showed she understands how to use similes. I love this poem.

I chose this because there was good repetition, effective description and it builds a picture in your mind.

Miss Brunt

Dr Watts

6SB- OLLI BIGGS THE GUNS WILL FIRE 3E – WILL SHARDLOW BEYOND MY HOUSE

This piece was chosen because of the pictures that Will created with his words.

Miss Elliott

3M - LEYLA AYSAN JOE, NICOLE AND THE BALL

This piece was chosen for its originality and because Leyla worked so hard on it.

Mrs Mallaband

I chose this because I found it very moving. Olli used patterning and repetition to great effect as well as strong vocabulary and alliteration.

Mrs Butcher

6M – LOUIS FRYER AS I FLY THROUGH THE AIR

This piece is written from a most original perspective that of an arrow being shot in battle.

Mrs McGlynn

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MFL

J’adore les langues

à KPS

Languagenut fun at KPS! In 2013, Languagenut was introduced in the Prep. It is a simple to use website with online games, songs and stories that make modern foreign language learning fun and easy. The online activities are built around the core skills of language learning: listening, speaking, reading and writing. The children actively engage with the activities and learn without even noticing! As well as the languages taught in class (French, Spanish and German), the children can have fun experimenting with seven other languages including Japanese, Arabic and Mandarin.

There are hundreds of activities online which pupils can access with their personal login. Once logged in, they can compete with other schools and children around the world to win medals and strive to achieve the highest scores; this adds a competitive dimension to learning and I have been absolutely delighted with the great enthusiasm of our pupils.

A truly European experience KPS pupils are very fortunate to have the opportunity to start learning French at the tender age of four in Reception all the way through to Year 6.

In the Pre-Prep we focus on rhymes, songs, stories and games to encourage the children to participate in the learning activity.

We aim to provide enjoyment and encourage accurate pronunciation from the start. In the Prep, pupils develop communication and literacy skills which form the foundation for their future language learning.

The learning of a foreign language provides a medium for cross-curricular links and for reinforcement of knowledge, skills and understanding developed in other subjects.

It is important to instil confidence and enthusiasm for the language, upon which pupils can build in secondary years. With this principle in mind, in 2013, German and Spanish were added to the Year 6 MFL program of study. Pupils have thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to learn these languages alongside French and are now able to make a more informed decision about our Senior School MFL choices.

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In order to reinforce this approach to teaching languages, in the Summer Term, all pupils in Year 6 go on to enjoy a week of fun and discovery in an immersion centre in Normandy at Le Château de la Baudonnière.

Our children are living in an increasingly multilingual and multicultural world and it is so important to introduce an international dimension to pupils’ learning.

MFL

Vive La France!

FRENCH DAY

This year KPS annual French Day took place on Tuesday 4th March. The school was decorated in bleu, blanc, rouge and everyone came to school dressed up in these colours or in berets and stripy jumpers.

The day started with an extended whole school Assembly in which children from every class, ranging from Reception to Year 6, confidently took to the stage to perform songs, rhymes, weather forecasts and role-plays in French. We were also treated to short drama productions of The Hare and the Tortoise and Jack and the Beanstalk. The enjoyment and assurance of the pupils involved was a pleasure to see.

Throughout the day, the children were not only exposed to French language but also French culture. The Year 6 pupils got the opportunity to order French breakfast in our very own “Café du Bois du Roi”. The food on offer included des croissants, des pains au chocolat, du chocolat chaud, de la baguette avec du beurre et de la confiture et des biscottes.

To celebrate Mardi Gras, all the children took part in La Course aux crêpes. “Les jaunes” also known as Sackett won the race this year.

A delicious French lunch was served and the coq au vin was particularly appreciated! After lunch many children took part in le concours de boules.

Good fun was had by all and most importantly, the event stimulated the children’s interest in learning foreign languages and raised their awareness of different cultures.

Isabelle Turner

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Biodiversity

Biodiversity at KPS Just lately, Annabel (our wonderful gardener) was very excited to find ten native orchids growing in the school grounds, just one unusual example of the huge biodiversity we have at KPS which we encourage the children to appreciate and to learn about.

Early in spring the area near the ‘pull-in’ is carpeted in primroses and crocuses and violets grow on the banks of the drive.

Enter the ‘Secret Garden’ a little later and you find a carpet of wild garlic, bluebells, daffodils, primroses and many more woodland flowers. Meanwhile, the meadow is a mass of cow parsley, grasses and meadow flowers. Annabel adds to all this with her careful planting of native species – the beautiful purple catnip in the triangle near the food tech room attracts a huge variety of bees, important since bees are under so many environmental threats.

The trees in our grounds are also hugely varied. The Year 6 children were able to use the different species to make identification keys – they based these on eight different species.

They could have doubled this number without problem and there would still have been more to choose from.

Habitats in the school grounds include woodlands of mature trees, grassland and meadowland; we have dark, damp, shady places, glorious sunny banks and rocky dells. All of these, we

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can enjoy and appreciate but also study in Science, Maths and outdoor education. Annabel mows paths into the meadow so that children can sit in the middle of the long grass and observe the life around them or use nets to sweep and find out what insect life they can find. (A jewel-like rose chafer was an exciting find in May). We are well equipped with bug pots and magnifiers so that the children can get out and find invertebrates, which they all love doing, and of course because of plant biodiversity, there are plenty of invertebrates to find.

Bird and animal life is abundant too. Shanti is our bird watcher and has jays and nut hatches regularly visit her feeder, as well as more common birds. There is a clever crow which manages to knock off our bird feeders every time we fill them and rehang them (even though we now tie them on). Buzzards sit on the fence in the drive. Deer wander through the grounds, squirrels steal the bird food and raid the litter bins and badger tracks can be followed through the High Vinnalls Field. We are very lucky.

Sue Butcher

Visitors to KPS

Nigel Marven

KPS were delighted to welcome wildlife presenter, television producer, author, naturalist and ornithologist Nigel Marven to school this year.

The children were captivated by Mr Marven’s presentation about his close encounters with dangerous animals. He shared clips of his work with komodo dragons, sharks, bears and leeches.

Our pupils could not help but be inspired by his enthusiasm, knowledge and love of wild creatures. They were even able to have their own close encounter with two of Mr Marven’s rather unusual pets; a ball python and a blue-tongued skink!

Yvonne Brearey

To coincide with Remembrance Day, we were delighted to welcome ‘The History Squad’ to Kingswood Prep School.

During the day, pupils in Years 3 - 6 were involved in an educational, interactive and entertaining workshop with Kevin Hicks, who told compelling stories about World War II, demonstrated weaponry and shared his family’s experiences of evacuation during The Blitz.

In the evening parents joined their children to share a moving reflection of how life was in the trenches for soldiers during World War I. One parent, whose great uncle had served in the British Expeditionary Force from 1914 and was sadly killed in 1917, found the evening particularly poignant. His son was kitted out for the trenches, standing in the uniform and wearing the kit bag on his back; his great-great-uncle would have been only ten years older when he joined the army.

Delivered with pathos, honesty and humour, the audience found out about the historical tragedy of World War I, ensuring that a new generation understand the sacrifices that have been made by our armed forces. http://www.historysquad.co.uk/

Jeff Norton takes KPS into the future!

Year 5 and 6 pupils were fortunate enough to have a visit from the popular author, Jeff Norton. Jeff has many strings to his bow, but his main interest now is writing. He has just completed the fourth book, The Freedom Frontier, in his futuristic MetaWars series. He came to the Prep School, not only to promote this title, but also to talk in general about what influences his writing, his creative writing process and his eerie view of the future. After the talk, the children then had the opportunity to buy books from the MetaWars series and meet the man himself.

Samba Workshop

Jeff was an excellent speaker; he was engaging, humorous and not only managed to educate and inspire the children, but the staff also! Here are quotes from pupils who attended the talk:

“At first, I wasn’t keen on a book to do with technology and video games. But after an inspiring talk, I was convinced that they were really awesome books for girls like me, even if it was about video games! Now I know that futuristic books can be interesting, even if they don’t sound like your thing.”

Eleanor, Year 5

“The best part of his speech was when he spoke in a Canadian/American accent and when he told us something, he explained it properly. He is really good at imagining books and he uses good vocabulary.”

Miles, Year 6

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KPS Community

s k r o Firew

The Christmas Fayre in December included Santa’s Grotto, Christmas café, traditional games and stalls plus, of course, the Grand Raffle.

The Annual Fireworks night was held in November. This proved to be a very popular event and the fireworks, bought, organised and set off by Messrs. Titley, Stephens and Shrubsole, were yet again magnificent. After the initial panic of losing the glow-sticks, the evening went smoothly and a fantastic evening was had by all.

KPS Quiz night took place in March. This was, as expected a cracking night with tapas, full bar and the odd quiz question.

We can’t remember who won the coveted prize of a photo of Lycra-ed Mr. T but everyone had a great night.

We held, in March, as part of a fund-raiser for the Senior School Theatre seating, a Gala Concert showcasing the talent of the Junior School pupils. There was a wide variety of music/ improvisation and poetry on show and we are hoping this may become an annual event. The evening was organized very much on the hop at the last minute and raised a whopping £1,208.17.

Our final event of the year was the ‘Glastonwood’ Music Festival which took place on a warm summer’s evening in June. This was a first-time event for KPS and turned out to be a lovely family evening with a wide variety of music and beautiful food supplied by Moorish.

The Prep School playground was a riot of colour earlier this year as pupils and staff arrived at school in their pyjamas, dressing gowns and ‘onesies’ to raise money for ‘Children in Need’.

At KPS we take our fundraising for charity very seriously and as usual the whole school community entered into the spirit of the day to help raise over £300 for a wonderful cause.

Yvonne Brearey

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KPS Community

Christmas Fayre

Christmas Lunch

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Glastonwood

Glastonwo On a beautiful summer’s evening in June the first ‘Glastonwood’ Music Festival was held at KPS. An eclectic mix of musicians and singers provided a stunning evening of entertainment for parents, children, grandparents, friends and staff in the beautiful school grounds.

The weather was kind and picnic hampers and rugs were scattered over the Summerhill lawn. It was a perfect, fun filled, family evening and was a true reflection of all that is special about our school and community.

Whilst bringing family and friends together the event also raised a further contribution to the RUH Forever Friends Appeal.

This is in addition to the £20,000 that KPS has already raised over the last 18 months.

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Yvonne Brearey

Glastonwood

ood Rocks!

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Maths

Pupils at the Prep School have been challenged and excited by mathematics this year.

Four children travelled to Bristol for the annual Year 6 Maths Challenge. KPS had two teams competing and they were faced with mental maths challenges and problem-solving exercises.

Over 160 enthusiastic, committed and able young mathematicians took part in the competition and congratulation must go to Tayo and Charlie who came seventh out of forty teams in their group and to Skye and Ed who came fifteenth out of thirty-eight teams in their group. A formidable achievement!

Later in the term ‘Mathemagician’, James Maunder visited the school. He enthralled pupils in Years 5 and 6 with magic tricks. He fully engaged the children in interactive activities explaining the maths concepts behind his tricks.

In the afternoon James treated a captivated audience of Pre-Prep pupils to a magic show.

The feedback from the children and staff was fantastic and we are already looking forward to his next visit!

Yvonne Brearey

Maths Challenge You could almost see steam rising from the heads of the 160 children who filled The Red Maids’ School Hall for the annual Y6 Maths Challenge, such was the intensity of concentration and application involved. KPS had two teams competing: Tayo Sawyerr and Charlie Harden were our first team, Skye Bayley and Ed Gilpin our second team. The first task was a relatively straightforward mental maths test. Then things heated up. They had to do a Countdown challenge in a similar format to the TV one but with 26 problems to do in half an hour. As they completed one, they had to run to the front to have it checked and scored, then run right around a large block of desks and back to their seats. I thought collisions would be inevitable but none occurred and all the running must at least have diffused some of the tension.

This was followed by problem=solving tasks, which again involved a huge amount of brain power, competitive spirit and lots of running.

In an age when the government is constantly criticising the maths ability of the nation, it was inspiring to see the number of enthusiastic, committed and able young mathematicians from around the area. Congratulations to Tayo and Charlie who came 7th out of forty teams in their group and to Skye and Ed who came fifteenth out of 38 teams in their group. A formidable achievement!

Susan Butcher

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Maths

A new Maths Curriculum to be introduced at KPS A new Maths curriculum begins in September 2014. Although we at KPS do not have to follow it, as its aims are to increase attainment we have decided, as a school, to follow this new curriculum.

September 2014 promises to be an exciting and challenging time for the teaching and learning of Maths at KPS.

Sian Higgins Maths Coordinator

Abacus is a maths toolkit that has been written for the new primary maths curriculum. It has been carefully created on a robust approach to creating inspired and confident young mathematicians.

To help children make sense of and practise their maths, Abacus provides a combination of maths games, interactive activities, pupil videos and pupil worksheets, focused around an interactive pupil world where your child can earn rewards and personalise their learning.

We have invested in a complete scheme which will be followed from Year 1 to Year 5 with Year 6 joining in September 2015.

The reason behind the change is to ensure that our pupils have every opportunity to excel in the entrance exam to the Senior School.

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Outdoor Activities

Outdoor Education

at KPS

Outdoor Education is a strategy of learning, which encompasses adventurous activity and environmental study, through which cross-curricular objectives can be achieved, by working in an outdoor environment. It describes all learning, social development and the acquisition of skills associated with living, exploring and journeying in the outdoors.

The aims of Outdoor Education at Kingswood Prep School are: •

•

Curricular development: The ‘outdoors’ provides an environment well suited to an integrated approach to learning. Educational objectives can be achieved through this strategy of learning.

Personal development: Outdoor Education is used as a vehicle through which pupils develop in confidence, self-esteem and motivation. It can also contribute to the development of self-discipline, judgment, responsibility and the ability to relate to others.

Prep-Prep In the Pre-Prep we offer a wide range of outdoor education activities where children are encouraged to explore our extensive school grounds through den building, environmental conservation, learning to build and cook on fires and through freely-chosen play.

The children take part in a programme which starts in Year 1 with Hunter level and will progress in Year 2 with Ranger level.

When the children achieve each level they receive certificates and badges.

A summary of the skills and activities covered at each level is below:

Level 1 – Hunter • • • • • • • • •

I can carry sticks safely I can choose different sticks for a fire I know how to be safe around a fire I can toast marshmallows on a fire I can build a mini shelter I can share my ideas and listen to others I am a team player I have an awareness of plants and wildlife around me I care about the environment

Level 2 – Ranger • • • • • • • • •

I know how to build a simple campfire I can help to cook simple campfire food I can build a shelter for 2 people I can use a lopper I can tie a reef knot and a half hitch knot I can identify 3 trees, 3 minibeasts and 3 plants I am a team player I listen well to others I look after the natural environment

Prep For children of Prep ages, we continue our range and quality of Outdoor Education. The children participate in activities such as • making shelters • carving wooden spoons • fire lighting • toasting and cooking food on open fires • archery • map work • orienteering • kayaking • climbing • team-building and leadership tasks The activities offered are designed to build on the outdoor skills learnt previously and introduce new and exciting opportunities to enhance the capabilities, confidence and development of the children.

We also offer a range of after school outdoor clubs for both Pre-Prep and Prep in which children can continue to develop these skills and learn to work together as a team whilst having fun in the outdoors!

James Hull & Amy Mallaband

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Outdoor Activities

Woodtastic If you went down to the woods during the Summer Term you would be in for a big surprise!

No, you would not have found a load of Teddy Bears having a Picnic but a group of children beavering away under shafts of summer sun filtering through the tree tops. What are they up to...? Well under close supervision by myself and three dedicated staff they are doing a bit of Bodging.

Bodging is a traditional craft of making chairs in the woodland from newly felled ‘Green’ timber. All the wood we used was from an assortment of trees that have either fallen or been trimmed on the Kingswood Estate this year. The Beech tree that dropped a huge bough near the school drive was converted into seat slabs and a variety of other species were used for legs, backs and arms.

The idea was for each child to make a proper piece of furniture, to really achieve something substantial, something to be proud of. The academic curriculum teaches basic skills with limited materials and tools available. I wanted the children to have the chance to use real cutting tools in a controlled way and with careful guidance to make something useable.

Enormous thanks to Mr Stephens, Mr Chitson and Mr Hull for their hard work, enthusiasm and tool lugging.

I got each child to design a chair or stool on paper to establish a clear idea of their objective, some were highly ambitious, some were very radical (I like thinking outside the box), some were simply elegant.

We used a froe and huge mallet to split logs into pieces and then used a drawer knife and spoke-shaves to create the legs and stretchers needed. Joints were cut by hand and then we graduated to using a modern tenoning tool. Everyone got a great understanding of how trees grow, how to select suitable timber and how you can take an unpromising log and turn it into something FABULOUS. Once everyone had mastered making a joint we assembled them all into one seat top - creating the very funky NINE-LEG STOOL!!

After a lot of hard work and after a fantastic Sunday afternoon session when willing parents rolled up their sleeves and pitched in, we produced eight very different and beautiful pieces of furniture. It is impossible to cram a lifetime of designing and making into eight weekly workshops but we gave it a jolly good go.

Jonathan Stockton Designer - Maker

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Science

SC I E NCE I

n March, I attended a course in Bristol about teaching the science in the new National Curriculum. While chatting to colleagues from state schools about Year 6 Science, I quickly realised just how lucky the children at KPS are.

Many Year 6 children in state schools barely get any practical Science lessons because their teachers are too busy drilling them in numeracy and literacy for their KS2 SATs. At KPS, all the Y6 children have a full hour and a half practical science lesson every week and they love it. The lessons are skills based. During them they learn to devise their own investigations for a given topic, select the apparatus they need, carry it out, predict, measure, observe closely and draw conclusions. They find averages, graph their results, consider health and safety issues and above all get excited about science. A huge amount of literacy and numeracy takes place in these lessons, as well as science, but in a relevant, practical way.

Primary science is above all a practical subject. Children need’ hands on’ experience to grasp new concepts and all classes are timetabled to have sufficient time to carry out some meaningful practical work every week. Our wonderful grounds add to the children’s depth of experience. If you are walking around the school you will frequently find children outside doing practical science investigations, from charting the way the position and orientation of their shadows change over a day to investigating the many different habitats of our

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at KPS

school grounds or modelling the solar system. Practical work extends into trips and homework. Year 4 had a fascinating visit to Bristol Zoo to extend their work on habitats. Year 5 children made musical instrument out of scrap materials as part of their topic on ‘Sound’. (The results were brilliant and the children were able to create music with them in an Assembly). Year 6 attended the Science Fair at Bath University where they were able to get up-close to a wide range of exciting science phenomena including super conductors and liquid nitrogen.

In the Pre-Prep, Science is integrated into their Creative curriculum because subject barriers do not exist for young children. The investigations they carry out arise from their class topics; for instance which material would be best to make a waterproof cover for Red Riding Hood’s basket (Year1) or how could you make an electrical circuit to light up a (modern) castle (Year 2)? They too have many scienceorientated trips and visitors extending their knowledge and understanding.

The new National Curriculum is not very different from the old one; we will be looking at where change is necessary at KPS, adding, swapping around or removing subject areas.

However, we are already secure in one of its main aims – we teach science through practical work.

Susan Butcher

Science

What do science lessons at KPS consist of?

Well there are no science labs here, so forget images of Bunsen burners and glass test tubes. Science at this level is kitchen sink science. We don’t need dangerous chemicals or much heat beyond the occasional candle flame to explore our world and that is what KPS science is all about – helping children to be excited about and to make sense of their world by developing their innate curiosity and giving them the methods with which to explore it.

Outside the Nursery the other day, one of the assistants was discussing how to empty a water tray with a small group of children. One of the children suggested using buckets and others talked about water being heavy and needing to wear wellies so they would not get their feet wet. That is an example of early science – they were learning all about the properties of water.

By Y6, science is becoming more formal: the children can independently design their own investigations on a given topic, select the apparatus they need and ensure that it is a fair test.

They can predict, measure to two places of decimals, find averages, graph their results and draw conclusions based on their scientific knowledge. They are truly ready for the lab-based science at the Senior School.

There will have been a huge progression since those early years, but we hope that one thing remains constant – a sense of excitement and having fun. Above all science should be a hands-on subject and at KPS it is.

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Year 6 Leavers

ME M O R I ES & ME SSAGES TO O U R LEAVERS

Year 6 Leavers

“Thank You & Good Luck!”

I

t is always very sad to see a Year group come to the end of their time at a Prep School and this year’s Year 6 have been a special group of children. All have gone out of their way to make me feel welcome and part of the Kingswood family.

We had a wonderful Leavers’ Service in the Kingswood Chapel to mark the end of the Year 6 children’s time at the Prep School. I was able to thank all the staff who had made such a difference to the Leavers’ learning with their love and all the extra-curricular activities which they offered. Our Leavers are part of a new century, a changing and fast-moving workplace, where they will need to be equipped with a host of skills in order to flourish and be happy. I was able to wish them all every success and happiness in the future at their new schools and beyond.

‘I have been so impressed by your kindness and warmth, your enthusiasm and your listening skills. Your new schools will be looking forward for one thing above all else - a positive attitude. Believe that you can achieve anything and even when things get difficult - and they will! - it is your attitude that will get you through. Oscar Wilde is alleged to have said, “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken”. You all have special and different gifts; my advice to you is - be yourself, believe in yourself, celebrate difference, face all challenges with an “I can do” philosophy, believe that you can make a difference, continue to be kind, and avoid dullness! All of you are welcome back at any time in the future - we would love to see you and hear about your future successes.

Good luck and God bless.

Mark Brearey

Let no one steal your dreams

By Paul Cookson

Let no one steal your dr eams Let no one tear apart The burning of ambitio n That fires the drive insid e your heart Let no one steal your dr eams Let no one tell you that you can’t Let no one hold you ba ck Let no one tell you that you won’t Set your sights and ke ep them fixed Set your sights on high Let no one steal your dr eams Your only limit is the sk y Let no one steal your dr eams Follow your heart Follow your soul For only when you follo w them Will you feel truly whole Set your sights and ke ep them fixed Set your sights high Let no one steal your dr eams Your only limit is the sk y

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Year 6 Leavers

TWO YEARS OF

happy memories at: Kindness, Kindness and Kindness; (Knitting too!)

International Day, French Day, World Book Day New friends (too many to name) Guinea pigs; Gold Book assemblies Sharing jokes and laughter; Shoes in DT; Summerhill Wizard of Oz; Wesley House; Water Aid O749 from Bristol Temple Meads (my train) O2 concerts; Orchestras Digging up stuff in Archaeology Club Pre-prep buddies; Poetry out Loud Romeo and Juliet; Robin and the Hoodies Epic teachers; Exams (piano, violin, Lamda, Entrance) Playing hockey and netball on the freezing cold Upper Sevington School; Story writing; mid-Somerset Festival Cleopatra, Clifton Suspension Bridge – Costumes!

Humanities holiday homework; Hymns; House talent shows Our trip to France; Our Maths trip around the world One more step along the world we go...

Leaving. (Don’t remind me.)

Alice Mumford 61

KPS New Activities

Archery Kayaking Club

O

ur Activities Programme continues to expand and this year several new activities were introduced to our already extensive and impressive list of options. Pre-Prep Ceramics, Archery, Kayaking, Airfix Club, Scrapheap Challenge.

Street Dance, Horse Riding and Quiz Club were all available for pupils to take part in.

Four pupils from Mr Brearey’s Quiz Club won the South West Round of the National Inter School Quiz and secured a place in the National Finals that were held at Harrow School, London.

Neiw ties

activ

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We have had a really successful start to our Riding Club at KPS! Every Monday we head to Wapley Stables, near Chipping Sodbury, where the children take part in a half hour lesson and are then taught some stable management. We have one beginners’ group and one group for the more experienced rider. The instructors have been absolutely superb, helping to build the confidence of those who have just started and really challenging the confident riders. The children enjoy themselves from beginning to end and they are never short of smiles, despite some fairly difficult weather conditions! It has been fantastic to see the beginners’ group gaining confidence and some of our advanced riders tackling cross-country jumps and some dauntingly high spreads with great gusto! We are looking forward to seeing them progress even further over the next term!

Quiz Club

KPS New Activities

Horse Riding

d o o w s G n I K at Scrapheap Challenge

Pre-Prep Ceramics 63

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We love our school

We love Art!

www.kingswood.bath.sch.uk