Category: Pre-Prep News
On Friday 30 November Year 2 took part in their first swimming gala against Ipswich School and Orwell Park. The children were all eager to show parents and staff the progress they had made this term and swam with confidence. The children were proud to represent their school showing determination in individual races and great team spirit in the relay races. There was a super atmosphere throughout the afternoon and we look forward to watching the children’s continued progress throughout the year.
Anna King
The Reception children have been learning about nocturnal animals this week. After reading the story Owl Babies, they produced this beautiful art work.
Ask anyone about education and they have an opinion on what should be taught and why. Quite rightly; we all went to school and we were all affected by the experience. Where we differ though is deciding what was the best / worst / most enjoyable / most important experience. History versus Geography seems to be a hot topic in my house!
However, at prep school level it is not the individual academic subjects that are so important; that comes later as exams start to play an ever increasing part in the educational experience. At this stage each subject works alongside the skills of socialisation, emotional intelligence, problem solving and resilience. No one area is more important than another as, if we ignore learning about appropriate behaviour, manners and compassion, we cannot ask the children to ‘top up’ and take an extra module at 16.
We have worked hard at Woodbridge to integrate the L@W (Learning at Woodbridge) into the curriculum so that it is overt and obvious and the children are aware that that they are learning key skills. The skills themselves are the essence of what makes a good prep school. However there is so much more on offer that also supports this key developmental area.
Engineering at The Abbey was integrated into the curriculum for Years 5 and 6 from September 2017 and the bespoke syllabus was written specifically by a member of staff with a background in engineering. Dividing the classes allows us to teach pupils in class sizes of up to 10 and ensures that the pupils all have the opportunities to develop their practical skills. Within the curriculum we cover a variety of engineering principles and branches including:
Mechanical engineering – manufacturing, automotive and aerospace; Chemical engineering – materials and process; Electrical engineering – robotics and computing; Civil engineering – environmental and water resources.
Each project is given a brief, not a list of instructions, and the children have to problem solve, work together and test their creations to arrive at the optimal conclusion. The box cart project develops the pupils’ study into forces and Newton’s laws of motion from Year 5 and their study on invention through the Victorian era and the links to mathematics and science are obvious.
Pupils design chassis, axels, brackets, steering and braking systems in teams. They make their own material and tool choices and problem solve their way to a finished product. Engineering encourages children to experiment, make mistakes – evaluate those mistakes and overcome them.
It is these skills, together and with equal importance alongside all other subjects, which will prepare our children for the future.
Our children need to be able to use their considerable knowledge, apply it to situations but also be adaptable and resilient as they move forward in life. Every subject therefore has a part to play ensuring that knowledge is deep, connections are made and problems solved. Alongside this we want our children to be wholesome, kind and engaging individuals who will every opportunity in the future to make the right decision for themselves as they move into adulthood.
So… what is the most important subject to teach at school and why?
In science the Year 2 children conducted experiments to test the friction created by different surfaces. They used toy cars on grass, gravel, sand and tarmac and made predictions about which surface would provide the most and least friction. The children discussed what is meant by a fair test and recorded their results in small groups. Great teamwork!
Some Pirate treasure has been discovered! Could it belong to the infamous Captain Blackbeard? It’s down to Year 2 to draw the evidence, using their skills of careful observation and accuracy. We need to do a still life of our discovery, in case that landlubber returns!
As part of their topic “All About Me” the children are learning about caring for their pets. This week they have had the responsibility of looking after the Queen’s House pet chickens. They have been feeding them, collecting the eggs and cleaning them out.
Announcement from Mrs Nicola Mitchell, Head of Queen’s House & The Abbey:
I am delighted to write with positive news regarding the plans for Queen’s House and The Abbey.
As you are aware I was in the fortunate position of being able to review the plans when I arrived last September. We have been able to ensure that the revised plans provide optimum teaching facilities, which improve on the current provision we have at the Pre-Prep, and ensure that the upgrade of the current Abbey site is thorough and ensures key areas are developed.
Pivotal to the decision making has always been what is right for the children’s education and what will be of maximum benefit to their well-being and the experience they have at School.
The approved plans will involve:
- A purpose built classroom block for Reception and Year 1, replacing the current music practice rooms
- A new Pre-Prep play area
- New Music practice rooms
- A new Astro Turf
- Refurbished changing rooms
- A multi-purpose assembly room
- Upgraded Library
- Renovated ICT provision
- Refurbished Food Technology room
By creating new classrooms we have enabled free-flow access for the Early Years Foundation Stage pupils to the new Pre-Prep play area and appropriate sections of our wonderful outdoor areas. This will be a significant improvement on the current Queen’s House provision, which does not allow for this key requirement, and will enable us to structure the curriculum for the youngest pupils in an entirely child-centred way.
Moving the Music practice rooms means we are able to refurbish these and continue to ensure that the Music and performance opportunities are of the highest standard.
We looked carefully at provision for PE and Games and are delighted to say that we will be installing our own Astro-turf which means that lessons and skills development will be able to be continuously provided for throughout the year with space both indoors and outdoors.
It is important to monitor all areas of the School and it has been shown that the changing and toilet facilities can make a great deal of difference to a pupil’s experience. We will be upgrading and expanding these facilities to ensure they are safe spaces and easy to supervise; maximising pupil well-being.
There will be a second music, movement, Drama and assembly space incorporated within the Dewar Building to allow for House Meetings, lessons and year group work.
The Library will be modernised and upgraded as the important heart of the School and a vital point of inspiration for all the children. I.C.T. provision will be upgraded with an improved I.C.T. room. The main teaching buildings will receive a redecoration and upgrade which will also continue over the coming years.
Within the new plans there is the ability to keep specialist teaching zones for Spanish, Science, Art, Engineering, Music and Drama whilst developing and modernising the Food Technology area.
The majority of the upgrades for the existing buildings will take place during the holidays. The planned work for the Early Years classrooms will take six months and will be confined to the peripatetic music classroom block which is easy to isolate from the children on a day to day basis.
We are thrilled that we have been granted permission for the new plans and are confident that they will allow the teachers to ensure the curriculum is delivered and developed in exciting ways now and into the future.
We have carefully considered the impact of these changes on the immediate environment and are confident that they will impact in a minimal way and preserve the special outdoor space from which we are so fortunate to benefit.
With the plans approved we are now on track to ensure a successful completion of the development in time for a September 2019 start for the Pre-Prep at The Abbey.
Detailed plans will be available on 11 October at Queen’s House to coincide with Parents’ Evening. The following week there will be an information evening at The Abbey and displays set to highlight the changes.
We are very much looking forward to upgrading the Abbey site and welcoming the Pre-Prep pupils. The move will enhance the community feel that Woodbridge School has and improve the morning and afternoon routine for families. As always I am happy to answer any queries you may have and look forward to sharing the detailed plans with you.
It was our great privilege to welcome The Right Reverend Tim Stevens, erstwhile Bishop of Dunwich and more recently of Leicester, to help us celebrate and commemorate our founders and benefactors at our annual Commemoration Service. He embraced the opportunity to talk to the whole School community, from four to sixty-four (I’m guessing!), and took as his theme the importance of giving in all its guises: from the Sermon on the Mount and reflections on what brings true happiness, to Stephen Hawking (where the sermon started), to Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai whom we may not have remembered by name, but could not possibly have forgotten for her story – recovering from her attempted assassination by the Taliban as a child only to petition even more strongly and globally, on her recovery, in the struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education. Bishop Tim’s was a simple and passionate message for us to be the best we can, and to do the best for, and by, others and for our fragile world. It was what our founders hoped for us, all those generations ago. Now to rise to the challenge.
Speech Day was, as ever, a wonderful day of celebration – made all the more special for the opportunity it afforded the School Community to welcome our new headmaster, Dr Robson. The Swing Band has made a tradition of turning out exceptional performances, and the half-hour of fantastically upbeat music set the scene perfectly. Thereafter Mr Finbow formalised the welcome with an introduction that both encapsulated what we stand for and gave Dr Robson the platform to see where we might go from here. That Dr Robson did so with such enthusiasm and passion, and with heartfelt appreciation of his predecessors Mr Tetley and Mr Cole, was extremely well received – as were his five top tips for our leavers bound for university! Amongst them: do not fear failure, but embrace instead the opportunities that the risk of failure opens up. It’s a great message, and one all of our prize winners clearly hold dear given the wealth of achievements they have secured and range of endeavours they have undertaken. Indeed, once the presentations were at an end and their praises sung, Dr Robson felt compelled to honour them once more with words that were touchingly delivered with just a hint of a lump in the throat… not that he’s the first to find the achievements of our children (young adults!), when laid out so strikingly, pretty emotionally overwhelming.
It fell to Head Girl Lily and Head Boy Harry to close proceedings with their beautifully judged votes of thanks intermingled with reflections on their own experiences here. Not a dry eye in the house… Perfect
Years ago, as an English literature student, one of the books I studied was Thackeray’s Vanity Fair. It was tome that, at first, was slightly daunting; however, I soon became enthralled and somewhat horrified by the ambitious nature of the main character as she resourcefully plotted how to improve her opportunities in life.
As we know though there are better routes to success that amoral behaviour and scheming. Many of these rely on passing a set of tests to allow the pathways to be navigated and the doors to be unlocked.
Working in a prep school we are joyously free from the constraints of exam syllabi and grade boundaries. However, there was a buzz of excitement (and relief) this summer as the Senior School pupils received their exam results. This is not an event I have been part of in a school before and it was interesting and humbling to note how invested the pupils and parents were; but also the staff.
Not only did they want to check how their class faired to level their teaching of new curriculums but there was also real devotion to the individual; those who had to work particularly hard, or some who had perhaps thought they could take things too easy.
Many pupils are now starting their A Level journey but some have taken the next step and are beginning to take on the first challenge of their adult life as they pack up for university courses.
I will be watching the coming adaptation of Vanity Fair with interest in the coming weeks. As Thackeray’s tale is brought to life depicting; “A world where everyone is striving for what is not worth having.”
I am sure our pupils will be successful in their endeavours in whichever field they choose and hope they remember that not everything of value is valuable as they travel though their lives.