The Pre-Prep day
No two days are ever quite the same in the busy Pre-Prep. Chicks hatching from eggs in the incubator, a Lego workshop challenge, a day building sandcastles on the beach, a tea party for grandparents, or a performance of the Pre-Prep musical - there is always something a little bit different and exciting happening.
Dropping your son off in the morning
The Pre-Prep opens at 8.00am, but you are welcome to drop your son with us from as early as 7.15am each morning for our breakfast club, where he can tuck into a healthy breakfast and play with friends until the Pre-Prep opens. Games and activities are laid out in the Pre-Prep classrooms, ready for the boys to enjoy as soon as they arrive. As your son settles in to the start of his day, there is time for you to have a quick chat with his teacher before saying goodbye.
The Pre-Prep timetable
At 8.30am, we start the day.
Teaching in the morning usually concentrates on the core subjects of mathematics and literacy skills, including phonics, reading, handwriting, creative writing, grammar, and speaking and listening. There are two teaching sessions, with a mid-morning break for a snack, lots of outdoor play and creative fun with friends. Perhaps your son will head to the role-play corner, or run outside to clamber over the Adventure Playground, play football, or share a book on a bench with friends.
Lunch and playtime in the Pre-Prep
At 12.00pm the boys sit down with their teachers to enjoy a hot lunch with pudding and fruit, freshly prepared in the school’s kitchens. This is a wonderfully sociable time, with lots of chatter between the boys and their teachers. The boys are gently encouraged to try new foods, and we help them learn the importance of good table manners and healthy eating.
When your son is in Year 2, he and his classmates will enjoy walking across to the Main School dining room to have lunch with ‘the big boys’ in the Prep. Sitting with the boys in Year 3, who take their job of being ‘Cousins’ to the younger boys very seriously, he will soon start to feel a part of the Prep and look forward to being a Junior. He may even sit next to his Cousin, who will come with all the other boys in Year 3 to play in the Pre-Prep each Friday after lunch. With the guidance of boys just a little older than themselves, the Year 2 boys make the progression to the Prep with ease.
Afternoon lessons in the Pre-Prep
After lunch, there is another playtime, and Sit Down, a quiet time when all the boys relax and read or enjoy a class story. If your son is in Reception, he will have Lie Down, a time to curl up on a comfortable padded mat, listen to some gentle music and a story, and maybe even have a nap.
Fully refreshed and ready to get going again, the boys begin their afternoon activities. These will include practical, cross-curricular lessons with science, art, history, geography, ICT and music forming the bedrock of our topic based learning. He will be taught PE and sports skills by specialist teachers, and our outdoor curriculum is led by a specially trained Forest School Leader.
A quiet time to review the day and enjoy a story together usually brings the teaching day to an end, at 3.45pm.
After school clubs in the Pre-Prep
After school, your son can choose to enjoy a variety of activities, known in school as Commoners. The choice changes regularly - cricket, junk modelling, board games, cycling proficiency, arts and crafts, hockey, bread making, football, to name but a small selection. You will be delighted to see how quickly your son develops new skills and interests, all through play and fun with friends.
We are very happy to look after your son until 6pm with our After School Care, and he is welcome to join us for high tea in the Main School dining hall. We even build in time for one to one reading before you pick him up and take him home, which we hope you will find helpful.
