Pre-Prep News, Friday 6 March
What a full and enriching week it has been in Pre-Prep, with every class heading out on a trip to bring their learning to life. It's been a Week of Adventures in the Pre-Prep!
From Mrs Hall:
Year 2 spent a fascinating day at the Hawk Conservancy Trust, where the boys were captivated by the magnificent birds of prey. Learning about habitats, conservation and adaptation was made all the more memorable as they watched the birds soaring overhead.
Year 1 travelled back in time to Portchester Castle. Exploring the ancient walls and towers brought their history topic vividly to life. The boys showed great curiosity as they imagined life as castle dwellers!
Reception enjoyed a wonderful hands-on visit to the Weald and Downland Living Museum, linking beautifully with their traditional tales topic, The Three Little Pigs. The boys explored building materials and techniques as they constructed their own houses in a workshop inspired by the story. It was a fantastic opportunity to bring both History and Science to life.
We are incredibly proud of how the boys represented the school throughout the week. Their excellent manners, curiosity and teamwork shone through at every stage. What a week to be in Pre-Prep!
A reminder that Monday is our Book Celebration Day and the boys are invited to come to school wearing a ‘word’ from their favourite book. We also look forward to welcoming many of you for Parents’ Evening and for our Mother’s Day in the Woods event next week, another busy penultimate week of the Spring term.
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Save the Dates !
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Friday 6 March |
1900 |
Year 1 and 2 Stargazing event - EVENT NOW CANCELLED |
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Monday 9 March |
1600-1800 |
Year 2 Parents' Evening |
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Tuesday 10 March |
1500-1700 |
Year R and Year 1 Parents' Evening |
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Wednesday 11 March |
1500-1600 |
Christ Church visits the Pre-Prep |
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| Thursday 12 March | am |
Mother's Day in the Woods |
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Monday 16 March |
0815-0845 |
Open Classrooms, all welcome |
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Tuesday 17 March |
0815-0845 |
Open Classrooms, all welcome |
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| Friday 20 March |
1500
19:00 |
Red Nose Day Pre-Prep Celebration Assembly and term ends for Pre-Prep PPA Event: Race Night from 7pm |
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Monday 20 April |
0830 |
First day of Summer term |
Notices
Menus are available here on My School Portal.
Reminder: no food is to be brought into the school and/or given to boys at any time, especially at sign-out.
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Shell awards:
Year R - no award this week due to class trip
Year 1 - to Hammie for his interest, excitement and engagement on our class trip to Portchester Castle. Well done, Hammie!
Year 2 - Rory, for striving for excellence and approaching all learning with joy, determination, and enthusiasm.
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Upcoming Events
FOR ALL OPEN DAY ENQUIRIES CLICK HERE
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Year 2
What a fantastic way to start the week! We were delighted to take the boys on a trip to the Hawk Conservancy, where we were treated to beautiful weather. The boys’ behaviour and manners were impeccable, as expected, and they truly rose to the challenge of meeting the high standards we set—representing the school brilliantly throughout the day.
During the visit, the boys experienced a full and engaging programme of activities. The day began with a fascinating workshop on adaptation, where the boys had the opportunity to handle and compare real feathers from different birds, including a vulture and a snowy owl. This hands-on experience helped them understand how birds of prey are uniquely adapted to survive and hunt.
We then enjoyed the Woodland Owl flying display, where the boys were captivated by the silent, low flight of the Siberian Eagle Owl. The atmosphere, combined with the impressive flight demonstration, made this a real highlight of the morning.
After lunch, the boys had time to relax and enjoy the play area before continuing their exploration with a visit to the burrowing owls. The day concluded with the impressive World of Birds of Prey display, where the boys observed a range of birds in action—from the speed and agility of the Lugger Falcon to the ground-hunting behaviour of the Crested Caracara. It was wonderful to see how engaged the boys were, asking thoughtful questions and sharing their growing knowledge throughout the day.
Following the trip, we put our writing skills to the test by creating detailed recounts of our experience. Using the rich experiences from the day, the boys worked hard to include descriptive language, clear sequencing, and interesting facts..
In Maths, we have now moved on to length and measurement. The boys have enjoyed taking a practical approach, beginning by measuring items in the classroom before heading outside to measure longer distances. It has been fantastic to see their enthusiasm and confidence grow as they apply these new skills in real-life contexts.
As with number and place value, multiplication and division will continue to be a key focus in our mental arithmetic and warm-up activities. Please do keep up with fluency and practice at home—it really does make a significant difference to your son’s learning journey.
Mrs Maxine Kent
Year 2 Teacher
Year 1
Portchester Castle
What a fabulous day out at Portchester Castle! From start to finish, the boys were a pleasure to spend the day with. First, we thought about how brilliantly the castle was protected from attackers and looked at all the features that kept people safe on the inside. We learnt that the castle was first built by the Roman Empire nearly 2,000 years ago, the keep was built by the Normans and was later lived in by kings such as Edward III and Richard II.
If we were playing the role of a royal or a guard, we had to practise our serious faces (see photos!). We even got to hold a real longbow made for an eight-year-old child. We walked all the way around the curtain wall of the castle before enjoying our picnic lunch in the outer bailey in the sunshine.
Climbing the spiral staircase was a highlight, but unfortunately, due to a pigeon problem, we were not allowed to go all the way to the top of the keep. We still enjoyed some wonderful views through the arrow slits. Much excitement was had when we discovered the toilet and the prison!
The visit helped the boys understand how castles were designed to protect people and how life in the past was different from today. After all that fresh air, walking and learning, many little people needed a snooze on the minibus home to recharge their batteries.
A memorable day that hugely furthered and cemented our learning in this fascinating subject. Rachel, the leader of the workshop, made a special comment about how well-behaved, interested and engaged the boys were, and she was impressed with their knowledge — a recent Show and Tell had thankfully secured the word trebuchet firmly in our memory!
We hope the boys enjoy sharing their favourite moments with you at home - perhaps you might even hear about spiral staircases, arrow slits or latrine pits at the dinner table! I knew a good day had been had when some boys did not want to come home!
Mrs Victoria Ford
Year 1 Teacher
Reception
What a fantastic and busy week we have had in Reception! The boys have been fully immersed in their learning and have shown such enthusiasm across all areas of the curriculum.
This week, we began exploring Traditional Tales and discussing what makes a story a traditional tale. The boys were brilliant at sharing the stories they already knew. It was wonderful to see how many they could confidently recall! We also talked about how traditional tales are often told in different ways, meaning there can be lots of versions of the same story. Sometimes the ending in one version is slightly different in another. The boys enjoyed comparing the stories they knew, spotting similarities and differences, and sharing their ideas with one another.
Our main focus story this week has been The Three Little Pigs. The children have taken part in a wide range of activities linked to the story, including:
- Sequencing the story events.
- Designing a brand-new house for all three pigs to live in together.
- Cutting and sticking clothes onto pig characters.
- Engaging in role play to retell the story.
- Making either a pig or a wolf from a paper plate or wooden spoon, mixing the colours pink and grey accurately and adding facial features successfully.
- Investigating how many cupfuls of water it would take to fill the cooking pot that the wolf burnt his tail on.
The boys have shown great creativity, teamwork and problem-solving skills throughout these tasks.
In Maths, we have been focusing on the composition of number, particularly the numbers 6, 7 and 8. Using ladybirds, the children explored different ways to partition these numbers into two groups (part-part-whole). It has been lovely to see them confidently finding different combinations and explaining their thinking both practically and then in drawing form.
As March marks the beginning of Spring, we also turned our attention to our outdoor environment. The boys worked incredibly hard helping to spring clean our Reception Garden too, by washing equipment, sweeping areas and digging up weeds. They each took part in planting beautiful Spring flowers in our hanging pots to welcome the new season. They will check their plants weekly, making sure it has everything it needs to thrive!
It truly has been a super week, with plenty of opportunities to learn, explore and get busy outside, including our class trip! We will be able to share more about this trip to The Weald and Downland Living Museum in next week's article. Happy weekend!
Mrs Sarah Huntley
Reception Teacher
Forest School
The weather was finally a little bit more settled this week, so it was a perfect opportunity for all the year groups to have a fire pit session, which is always very popular. The sun was out and Spring was definitely in the air. Sitting calmly around the fire always helps the boys to connect with nature and enjoy the wonderful environment around us. After reminding the boys how to behave around a fire and how to build a waffle fire, the boys helped cook the popcorn. Cooking toast on an open fire is always such fun, and it seems to taste much better when cooked outside.
The boys in Year 2 also worked on their fire-striking skills using a flint and steel striker, which proved to be more challenging than they expected.
We always finish our fire pit sessions with some songs, and some of the boys helped put out the fire with small cups of water. As they did this, they reflected on the session and shared with the group what they had enjoyed most about it.
Mrs Fiona Walker
Forest School and LAMDA Teacher
Winchester College Events
Winchester Book Festival
