Category: School

On Thursday we held our first ever #STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Maths) enrichment day at Prep School. Built around a philosophy promoting collaboration across academic disciplines to achieve innovative results, the day presented an exciting House challenge for all Prep School pupils. The day began with an inspiring assembly led by Mr Porter with support from Mrs Duffy, Mrs Mac and Miss Cuthbert. Food for thought was provided by the video below which showcased amazing home inventions and demonstrated that incredible things could happen with a bit of ingenuity.

The challenge for the day was then revealed…transport one eco egg from the Pre-Prep balcony to the Outdoor Classroom without any human intervention; at approximately 49 metres this was no small ask!

Organised into House teams with girls from Y0 to Y6 working together the morning was spent exploring different ideas, theories and designs. With an exciting bank of resources available, the teams had everything at their disposal to work on ideas related to robotics, pulleys, water slides and propellers.

Once designs were finalised and prototypes created, the teams moved on to create their final models. Each model then competed to see which creation was most successful in meeting the brief and reaching the Outdoor Classroom from the Pre-Prep balcony. The competition was tough and the range of ideas incredibly impressive. In the end the winning team was Gurney 2 and the were proudly declared winners of the EGGS Prize 2019; check out the table below to see how each team performed against the strict criteria.

Alongside the EGGS Prize Challenge, all classes enjoyed taking part in workshops run by Learn by Design. From an introduction to forensic science to constructing and testing  wind turbines using a voltmeter to looking at how robotics can be constructed to complete a challenge there was something for everyone and a fantastic insight into practical applications of the skills taught in STEAM subjects.

Huge thanks goes to Mr Porter, Mrs Mac, Mrs Duffy and Miss Cuthbert for organising this exciting day.

On Wednesday, year 3 spent the day at Horton Kirby. The day started with a lively introduction to the field study skills that the children went on to apply at the river. Equipped with their own discovery bags, the children completed a short walk to the river, looking at physical features on the way. After gauging the flow of the river with a quick game of pooh sticks, the children had the opportunity to study photos of the immediate environment in order to ascertain how the physical and human features have changed over time. The children then entered the river at two sites; each time measuring the flow and depth, and using their observations to explain why these measurements change throughout the year.

In the afternoon the children completed a series of hands-on activities related to the River Darent. In pairs, the children created their own land on which they developed a river.  A second activity involved the children using microscopes to investigate the permeability of rocks, in order to help explain how this property of the rocks in Horton Kirby affects the flow and depth of the river.

Finally, the children experienced an engaging presentation which showed the entire journey of the River Darent; showing how human and physical features have changed over time. It was a great day and the girls returned to school buzzing with excitement about their day.

On Wednesday afternoon we were delighted to welcome Director of Music, Dr Ryan Hepburn, to the Senior School Recital Hall to judge the finals of the Prep School Musician of the Year Competition 2019.

Following the competition heats which took place in February, twelve pupils from across Years 4 to 6 performed to a small audience of parents, as well as Ms Boyd and Mrs Woodcock. The standard was exceptionally high and each performance reflected the hard work and musical talent of the competitors.

Once all performances were complete, Dr Hepburn took some time to deliberate before announcing the recipients of three Highly Commended Certificates, as well as one overall winner, who not only took home the coveted Prep Musician of the Year Trophy but was also invited to perform in front of the whole Prep School at Prize Giving on Monday 1 July. Dr Hepburn took the time to provide personalised feedback to each finalist on the strengths and areas for future development.

Congratulations to all performers and especially to Noa for her winning performance! Thank you to Ms Duval for organising this event.

Today pupils from year 1 spent a fabulous day at Greenwich’s National Maritime Museum. As well as spending time viewing some of the museum’s permanent collections and the Cutty Sark ship, pupils participated in an interactive workshop entitled We are Explorer’s.

The workshop focused upon the fact that Professor C. Breeze had gone missing leaving only a bog of artefacts behind. Pupils were invited to use their exploration skills and imagination to work out what has happened to the professor.

Opportunities were provided to handle Museum objects to piece together the clues, use imagination and enquiry skills and develop literacy skills to tell the rest of Professor C. Breeze’s story. Thank you to the parents who joined the trip for the day; we hope you enjoyed it as much as the pupils!

The Senior School Sports Hall was awash with bright leotards and dazzling smiles on Friday afternoon as Prep School pupils took the floor for the Gymnastics & Dance Display.

The display included a varied range of floor and apparatus work alongside contemporary dance and classical ballet performances. Representing gymnastics and dance from our Prep School curriculum as well as that from Charisma Gym, the afternoon did a fantastic job of showing the talent of our pupils.

A big thank you to Mrs White for organising this event.