From Mrs Hall:

We began the week with an assembly to mark Florence Nightingale’s birthday. The boys listened attentively to her inspiring story, and it prompted some thoughtful conversations about kindness, caring for others, and how small acts can make a big difference.

A heartfelt thank you to Rory’s daddy, who kindly came in to speak to the Year 1 boys about his incredible experience of being rescued by the RNLI. The boys were absolutely captivated and full of questions – it was a memorable visit that helped bring their topic learning to life.

We are always looking to enrich the boys' experiences with real-life stories and connections, so if you have a hidden talent, an interesting job, or a special story you’d like to share with the boys, please do get in touch. You would be most welcome, and the boys absolutely love having visitors in to speak.

We are also excited to share that our Pilgrims’ therapy dog, Bear, will be visiting some of the year groups next week. The boys will have the opportunity to share stories with Bear during his visit – a wonderful way to support reading and wellbeing in a calm and comforting setting.

As we look ahead to the upcoming holidays, we are on the lookout for any kind volunteers who might be happy to offer George the Tortoise a little holiday of his own! George Sheldon is our much-loved pet and is looking for a comfy garden or sunny spot to enjoy over May half-term – and looking ahead to the summer holidays too. He’s relatively easy to care for (a big fan of dandelions and gentle strolls!), and we’ll provide everything you need, along with plenty of tips and advice! If you’d be interested in hosting our slow-and-steady friend, please do let us know – George would be ever so grateful!

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Shell awards:

Reception: to Joshua for his confident week at school. 
Year 1: to Maximilian for his willingness to work hard, focus and try his best on all the classroom jobs this week. Well done, Maximilian.
Year 2: to Arthur OB please for showing excellent listening skills and impressing us with his brilliant general knowledge. 

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Save the Dates !

Little Shells for Toddlers and Babies
Little Shells play sessions take place next on 6 June. We encourage you to spread the word to friends and family - all are welcome! (See flyer at the bottom of this newsletter). 

Saturday 17 May	0900	PPA Breakfast in the Yard Pilgrims' Parley - still some space if you would like to come, (Pilgrims' Hall) What are the risks and opportunities of current digital evolution?
Tuesday 20 May	All day	Year 2 trip to Chichester harbour, Dell Quay.
Friday 23 May	1115 1200	Pre-Prep Celebration Assembly Half-Term begins
Monday 2 June	0830	Teaching resumes

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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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Commoners

Year 1 and 2 Cartoon Commoner Fun – Alphamonster Mania!
It’s no surprise that Cartoon Commoner continues to be a firm favourite — the only trouble is, it goes by so fast! This week, the boys were buzzing with creativity as they set to work designing their very own Alphamonsters based on the initials of their names. From zigzag tails to googly eyes and wild colours, each creation was as unique as the boy who made it. Creativity was in abundance, and it was wonderful to see how proudly each boy presented his work, eager to share the story behind his monster. A fantastic blend of art, imagination, and a touch of literacy — well done, boys!

Reception

This week has been a glorious sunny week and the boys in Reception Class have been thoroughly enjoying their time outside in our Reception garden.  Lots of key learning has been shown through the boys' super ideas.  They have constructed walls, guttering runs, outside office work spaces and musical ensembles, to name just a few.   

Literacy sessions this week have focused upon the text Little Hotchpotch by Brian Patten and Michael Terry. 

A little creature doesn't know who it is, so it starts an important quest for identity. The little creature tracks down all of its friends, from the tiny harvest mouse to the huge polar bear asking. 'Who am I?' but nobody quite has the answer except one wise friend. 

'You are the rarest, most wonderful creature of all. You are Little Hotchpotch' explained the owl.

The boys were excited to create their own Little Hotchpotches, at first with a friend, then on their own. What creative ideas were shown, from crab pinchers to pig noses. Next we will work on where their creature lives, what it likes to eat and what their character likes doing.

We have also said a fond farewell to our ducklings, Zoomie and Quackers, as they have moved on to their new forever home with Mr Halliday. We will miss them very much but know they will be very happy on the farm and that we will be able to receive updates on how they are doing.

Happy weekend!

Mrs Sarah Huntley
Reception Teacher
 

Year 1

A special visitor to Year 1
We are hugely grateful to our special visitor, Tim Harding, who came to visit Year 1 on Wednesday and share his experience of being rescued by the RNLI.

It would be no overstatement to say that the whole class was utterly CAPTIVATED by Rory’s daddy when he shared his story of a 2-metre wave tipping him out of his boat on the way back from the Isle of Wight in gale force wind conditions. Their eyes were like saucers when he told them he was in the water for 45 minutes before he was rescued… they all agreed this was an extremely long time to be treading water (with heavy boots on!) even with an inflatable life jacket. They learnt about the safety of kill cords and automatically inflating life jackets, and even that the Cowes RNLI crew make the very best cup of tea!

Excitement levels went through the roof when they were asked if they would like to try on his special life jacket that kept him above water whilst waiting to be rescued. Of course, 11 little hands flew into the air. The boys asked some thoughtful questions, like 'Did you lose anything?' (Skerdi), but my favourite question was asked most earnestly by Christopher, 'Did you get any bad sea creatures come to visit you?' Christopher was rather disappointed and hoped that perhaps that meant that some good sea creatures did come to visit Tim. Thankfully, Tim's visitors were his rescue crew of the Red Jet 6, the Harbourmaster and the RNLI.

Tim’s visit helped the class to really understand the importance of their charity work for the RNLI through their Mayday Mile Challenge. It is safe to say that Rory was rather thrilled to have his daddy in his classroom too.

Thank you so much, Tim, for your special visit to our classroom. You brought our learning about this exceptional charity to life!

PIRATE DRESSING UP
Next Friday, the boys would like to dress up as pirates for the final day of their Mayday Mile Challenge. Boys can come into school on Friday 23 May in full pirate regalia! If you do not have any items of clothing that would be suitable, just ask us. We have a lot of spare costumes in the classroom.

Mrs Victoria Ford
Year 1 Teacher

Year 2 

Reminder: our upcoming trip to Dell Quay is next Tuesday, 20 May. Boys should wear their school uniform, including a coat, and bring their water bottles.  They will need long wellington boots (if not already in school) and a small backpack. Money will not be required.

Year 2 Spreads May Day Cheer – and Keeps Learning Too!
This week, Year 2 boys once again had the wonderful opportunity to support Year 1 in their May Day Mile activities. After last week's laughter-filled 'Walking Backwards in Pairs', today’s challenge was all about balance and teamwork — two children sharing one hoop as they made their way around the course. 

Back in the classroom, our learning hasn't slowed down. In Maths, we’ve continued exploring fractions, confidently working with both unit and non-unit fractions. Year 2 has shown fantastic focus and growing confidence as they break wholes into equal parts and tackle new challenges.

In Literacy, the mystery of the dragon’s egg continues to capture our imaginations. Who does it belong to?  The class is buzzing with ideas and predictions as we build up clues and continue our storytelling adventures. 

In Topic, the boys have also enjoyed diving into a new sub topic: the reef. They've been fascinated by the colourful world beneath the waves — learning about coral, reef creatures, and the importance of protecting this delicate ecosystem.

Mrs Maxine Kent
Year 2 Teacher
 

Forest School

This week in Reception, we decided to help summer on its way by creating some beautiful summer wands. The boys collected items from the forest floor and carefully attached them to their sticks. They were then asked to think of something their wand could be responsible for in nature. The boys came up with some lovely ideas; a spell that turned the leaves green, a spell that made the trees grow and a spell that looked after the animals.

Inspired by the English sculptor Anthony Goldsworthy, the Year 1 boys used their creative skills to create some wonderful circular and spiral patterns using items from the forest floor. It was wonderful to watch the artwork evolve over time into a fabulous natural masterpiece!

Mrs Fiona Walker
Forest School and LAMDA Teacher

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Pre-Prep for Pre-Schoolers and Pre-Prep Open Days