TRINITY TERM
2020/21
CONTENTS 3
Welcome from the Head
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Commando Joe's Respect Framework
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Reception
6
Year 1
7
Year 2
8
Year 3
9
Year 4
10
Year 5
11
Year 6
12
Residentials
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Soundscape
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Charity Days
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Inter-House Quizzes
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Drama
20
Sport
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Sports Day
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Music
26
Garden Party
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Ancient Greek Day
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Poet Rapper Kimba
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Goodbye to our Leavers
WELCOME FROM THE HEAD This has been a challenging year for many and the restrictions brought about by the COVID pandemic have never been far away. Thankfully, we managed a reasonably normal Michaelmas term with the pupils enjoying the full range of clubs and activities, as well as our stimulating core curriculum, despite the complications of maintaining ‘bubble’ groups.
Lent term brought us a further lockdown with the girls learning from home for eight weeks. However, our sense of community continued with the pupils engaging in whole school events, competitions, online clubs, House activities and opportunities in music and sports.
We were delighted to return to on site teaching on 8 March and Trinity term has been packed with challenging and entertaining learning opportunities. Many restrictions have remained in place but, here, we wish to celebrate this term’s successes with you. This has been a year that many may wish to forget, but we also want to remember the adaptability, flexibility, energy and good humour that has kept the Prep School community strong and united.
Mrs Judy Rowe Head
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ADAPTABILITY
teach important values and skills and adapt a framework provided by the curriculum resource ‘Commando Joe’s’ (CoJo).
Trinity term heralded the start of CoJo theme days where pupils embarked on a series of missions in which they practised the key skills within the RESPECT framework shown here.
DILIGENCE
GRATITUDE
CRITICAL THINKING
OPEN MINDEDNESS
HELPFULNESS RESOURCEFULNESS
HUMOUR
UNSELFISHNESS
REFLECTING
DECISION MAKING
EVALUATING
we have been able to identify and
RESILIENCE COURAGE EMPATHY FAIRNESS SELF-CONTROL SELF AWARENESS CREATIVITY COMPASSION PASSION INSPIRATION EXCELLENCE SELF-DISCIPLINE RESPONSIBILITY COMMUNICATION CURIOSITY TEAMWORK HUMILITY
professional development sessions,
TRUSTWORTHINESS
LISTENING
us. Using assemblies and staff
HONESTY
WILLPOWER
values that are most important to
POSITIVE ATTITUDE
PERSEVERENCE MOTIVATION
governors, we considered the
SELF-CONFIDENCE
PRIDE
children, staff, parents and
COOPERATION
questionnaires and discussion with
RESPONDING
FORGIVENESS
rounded individuals. Through
PATIENCE
become happy, successful and well-
COURTESY
strong life skills to enable them to
FRIENDLINESS
School is to help the girls develop
DETERMINATION
provision. A key aim at the Prep
KINDNESS
articulated our Character Education
INFLUENCING
COMMANDO JOE'S 4
This year, we developed and
BASED ON THE COMMANDO JOE'S FRAMEWORK
In Reception, the girls' top secret missions were based on the adventures of Incy Wincy Spider as he tried to reach the summit of the infamous waterspout. They were successful in their mission and even managed to design a waterproof hat for the CoJo bear. Their second CoJo day was based on one of the programme’s characters, Sophie Self-Awareness. The pupils enjoyed creating different emotions in a range of ways, including using playdoh and iced biscuits. They also had the opportunity to get in touch with their own sense of inner calm with a yoga session.
RECEPTION
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YEAR 1 Year 1 were inspired by the king of the savannah, Simba, and the adventures he and his friends had around Pride Rock. They had to use their teamwork and communication skills to figure out a safe way to cross a gushing river to rescue a friend in need and designed an obstacle course in an elephant graveyard! Their second CoJo Day was based on the traditional tale of ‘The Three Little Pigs’. Not only did they have to design and construct a house for the wolf to live in, the pupils also created obstacle courses for their peers to complete, which provided some interesting challenges!
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Year 2 were inspired by the heroine Pocahontas. They demonstrated their compassion, resilience and problemsolving skills as they completed their missions. From transporting vital supplies from the local village to planning a rescue mission for John Smith, all the pupils and staff
YEAR 2
thoroughly enjoyed their day! Their second CoJo Top Secret Mission Day was based on Queen Elizabeth II. The girls were tasked with designing and creating a royal carriage before then being asked to traverse the River Thames, mend the Queen’s gown AND transport water to put out a fire at Windsor Castle! After such a busy day, it was definitely time for a cup of tea and the pupils celebrated a job well done with their own jubilee party.
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YEAR 3 Year 3 decided to base their CoJo day on the remarkable Amazonian expedition undertaken by Ed Stafford in 2008. With the famous words “fail to prepare, prepare to fail” providing inspiration for their day, the girls enjoyed facing and overcoming the challenges of the Amazon. From constructing camps, to crossing the treacherous Amazon River, to escape rising flood waters, the pupils demonstrated excellent communication and problem-solving skills over the course of the
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mission.
Journalist and adventurer Kira Salek inspired Year 4 in their quest to save endangered baby gorillas from the clutches of jungle poachers. With excellent communication and problem-solving skills, the pupils successfully completed their missions and the baby gorillas were transported safely on a well-constructed raft across Lake Tanganyika.
YEAR 4
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Year 5 were playing amongst the stars with Tim Peake as they embarked on a space themed CoJo experience. They had to build communication towers, design space suits and create a space rocket! During their Ranulph Fiennes Mission Day, the pupils carried fresh water, designed a transportation device, rescued an injured doctor and found ways to fund their expedition. Innovation and creative thinking were definitely on
YEAR 5
display as the pupils navigated their way through the different missions.
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The final CoJo mission day was in the last week of term as our Year 6 pupils prepared to leave the Prep School and move onto their senior schools. They had to demonstrate their excellent communication and collaboration skills as they enjoyed working with their Prep School friends for the last time.
YEAR 6 11
Water shoes – Check! Sleeping bag – Check! PJs – check! Toothbrush – Check!
We were so pleased that, with the easing of some restrictions, we were able to take our Prep pupils away on their residentials this term.
E R SI Year 4 travelled back to a time before iPads, Google Classroom and Zoom on their one-night residential to Celtic Harmony. After enjoying a morning of warrior lessons, teams of hunters ventured out into the wild in search of a woolly mammoth for their tea! In the evening, everyone settled around the campfire in their own roundhouse and listened to the stories of the chieftains. They then spent a peaceful night in the roundhouse, with only the crickets and stars for company.
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DE
Both Year 5 and Year 6 enjoyed their residentials at Manor Adventure, Norfolk Lakes. While Year 5 were away for two nights, Year 6 spent a full week by the water and thoroughly enjoyed immersing themselves in the Manor Adventure experience. Despite the changeable (and sometimes disagreeable) weather, the pupils approached each activity with boundless energy and an infectious sense of fun and adventure. Both year groups enjoyed a range of activities, including giant stand up paddleboarding on the lake, raft
T N I 5
building, kayaking, climbing, archery, rifles and high ropes – all fuelled by delicious
S AL
meals and good sleep! They showed determination and resilience when overcoming their personal fears and conquered new heights (both figuratively and literally!).
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D S N E C P A SO U The girls in Year 6 have been extremely busy this term, collaborating with a team from Microsoft Research in developing the Microsoft Soundscape app – a free app that aims to help blind people and users with limited vision be more aware of their outdoor surroundings by providing visual cues as to where locations are in relation to a user's position.
Over the course of the term, students have been fully immersed in all things Soundscape, from exploring different forms of poetry in their English lessons to researching the lives of those who lived in Wheathampstead House before it became home to the Prep School. They have learned to plot points on an OS map and have applied these skills to Open Street Map.
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On 11 June, there was a buzz of excitement around the village as the girls gathered important data for the specific points on the trail. Celebratory ice creams were enjoyed in the sun to mark a job well done! The pupils pulled together a wealth of information from which the team at Microsoft has created a trail of our beautiful village, including points from the original heritage trail that was already in place.
On 7 July, the pupils presented their project back to Microsoft, who were very impressed, not only by the hard work the pupils had dedicated to the project, but also the innovative ideas that were presented as next steps in developing the software.
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CHARITY DAYS CHARITY DAYS CHARITY DAYS CHARITY DAYS CHARITY DAYS CHARITY DAYS Giving back to the community is something we value highly and we were glad to be able to host two charity days over the course of the Trinity term. The pupils of Paris designed and ran exciting stalls for their peers in aid of Keech Hospice Care, a charity based in the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire area. Later on in the term, Verulam raised money for the COVID appeal in India, generating vital funds for a country gripped by the pandemic.
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In a quiz devised and presented by a group of (very strict!) Year 6 pupils, the teachers were put through their paces with some seriously tricky questions on topics ranging from popular culture to Guinness World Records! In front of a live Year 6 audience and with the rest of the Prep School watching via Zoom, it was Mandeville who emerged triumphant. Then, on 10 May, it was the turn of the students to get quizzical, with Verulam eventually coming away with the trophy. Well done to all who took part!
INTER-H USE QUIZZES
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DRAMA The Lodge played host to a number of excellent plays over the course of the Trinity term and it was lovely to see our Year 4 and Year 6 pupils treading the boards with confidence! The pupils of 4C took the audience on an adventure into the mythical world of mermaids and pirates, while 4V took us back to the time of King Arthur and his quest to save Camelot, with the help of his trusty knights of course!
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The final plays of the term were performed by Year 6 and, needless to say, they finished their time at the Prep School with a brilliant set of performances! The audience was enthralled with 6R’s performance of Shakespeare’s classic comedy ‘A Midsummer’s Night Dream’, while 6T were on a quest to save the school from closure by entering The X Factor! “Who dunnit?” was the question on the audience’s lips during 6E’s murder mystery . . . the cast were excellent at keeping the secret under wraps!
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Luckily, we have managed to maintain our competitive sport this year, even during this difficult time of COVID. The pupils participated in a number of virtual cross-country events and, towards the end of term, we even managed to have some netball and cricket fixtures. Furthermore, girls in Years 3 to 6 loved taking part in a variety of interhouse sports, including cross-country, swimming, netball, football, lacrosse and, most recently, Sports Day.
SPORT 20
INTER-HOUSE
SWIMMING RESULTS 1st – Verulam 2nd – Julian 3rd – Paris 4th – Mandeville
INTER-HOUSE NETBALL RESUL S Years 3 and 4
Years 5 and 6
1st – Verulam
1st – Julian
2nd – Paris
2nd – Paris
3rd – Julian
3rd – Mandeville
4th – Mandeville
4th – Verulam
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Despite reduced spectator
SPORTS DAY
numbers due to the COVID restrictions, the spirit of our pupils remained steadfast and the Pre-Prep and Prep Sports Day proved extremely exciting for all participants.
In Pre-Prep, the weather did not dampen spirits and events such as the egg and spoon race, the long jump and the bug race all proved highly competitive. Cheers of encouragement and celebration could be heard as the girls pushed themselves towards the finish line. Of course, mandatory ice lollies were
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enjoyed at the end.
The Prep School pupils eagerly took to the track at Westminster Lodge for their long-anticipated day. Rounders balls sailed through the air and great lengths were reached by the long jumpers. Blistering pace was observed on the 100m track and it was fantastic to see the grit and determination etched on competitors’ faces during the 600m race. The weather remained kind to the competitors and cheers of encouragement arose from the assembled staff spectators.
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MUSIC At long last, we were treated to the wonderful sound of our pupils singing together echoing around our beautiful grounds this term. Whilst our normal performance opportunities weren’t possible, we certainly haven’t been idle! All 13 music ensembles were able to restart in Trinity term and the pupils worked hard to produce music of high quality. In the most part, our outdoor recordings were the first and only time we were able to meet as one group this term and the students really rose to the challenge.
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Alongside the extra-curricular programme, the incredible team of Visiting Music Teachers have continued to support our pupils over the year. Over 130 instrumental lessons took place weekly and, amazingly, that number is set to increase further in September! Twenty of our pupils entered for our ABRSM and Trinity exams, with an impressive set of mostly ‘Merit’ and ‘Distinction’ results. To all those who took an exam this term, congratulations and well done!
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R D N A E
P
Y A R T
On 8 July, the grounds of the Prep School came to life as our community was able to come back onsite to visit their children’s classrooms and see all the fantastic work that has been completed this term. The beautiful singing of our resident birds was matched by the wonderful singing of our pupils and all the parents thoroughly enjoyed the different performances.
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ANCIENT GREEK DAY
On 11 June, Year 3 took a trip back in time to Ancient Greece and thoroughly enjoyed their experience. From learning how to create theatrical masks to mixing ingredients to make medicine, the pupils all came away with a better understanding of what life in the past was like. After such a hard day of work, everyone thoroughly enjoyed sitting back and relaxing during their afternoon feast, all celebrating Zeus of course. He too was impressed by the offerings they made!
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POET RAPPER KIMBA Ever thought you could write a poem about an ‘octopus tree’? Or a rap perhaps? On 2 July, every year group was treated to an immersive, spoken word workshop with Kimba, a poet rapper and ‘artrepreneur’. Kimba has performed to politicians, corporate executives and festival crowds, as well as being a featured artist at the Tate Modern and the Houses of Parliament. He engaged all years in using words to paint pictures through a series of rhyming, rapping and poetic techniques. Pupils even had the opportunity to perform their raps on stage to music – a feat not for the faint-hearted! We so enjoyed learning from Kimba and look forward to welcoming him to our school again soon.
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It was with fond memories that we bid farewell to our wonderful Year 6 at the end of the Trinity term. Their energy, love of learning and good humour have made for some fantastic memories that will be enjoyed by staff for many
GOODBYE TO OUR
V
LE VERS
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years to come. We know that great adventures and successes await them and we wish them all the very best of luck in the future!
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St Albans High School for Girls Codicote Road, Wheathampstead, Hertfordshire AL4 8DJ stahs.org.uk