From Mrs Hall:

Our focus this week has been on 'Heart' – one of our Pilgrims’ values. We have been thinking carefully about what it means to be a good friend, to show kindness and compassion, and to include others. On Monday, I read the boys a story about a bird caught in the rain, and how only the hedgehog stopped to help. This simple tale sparked rich conversations about empathy and the power of small acts of kindness, with the boys sharing thoughtful ideas about how they can support and care for those around them.

The Year 2 boys had a particularly special experience this week, meeting the author Abie Longstaff. They had prepared excellent questions in advance and were thrilled to receive signed copies of her books. The visit was inspiring and encouraged the boys to think deeply about stories, characters, and the joy of reading. 

Our after-school activities have also been buzzing with energy and creativity. In woodwork, the boys are demonstrating care, patience, and imagination as they bring their projects to life. Meanwhile, Cooking Commoner has seen the boys exploring simple recipes, practising their measuring and mixing skills, and learning how to work safely in the kitchen. The delicious aromas drifting through the department on Thursday afternoons have been a real treat! Both activities are providing fantastic opportunities for teamwork, problem-solving, and hands-on learning.

We are also very pleased to announce that Musical Shells will begin again on Thursday 2 October. This session is designed for our youngest music-makers. For more details, please visit the link on our website here: Visits and events - The Pilgrims' School. We would be grateful if you could share this opportunity with friends and family who may be interested. 
(See the poster below advertising this and other open day events.)

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do come and chat to us. Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

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Shell awards:

Reception: to Yi, for showing kindness towards his friends and for gaining in confidence at school.
Year 1: to Hammie, for setting such a good example in the classroom when listening and sitting on the carpet.
Year 2: to Macarthur, for showing kindness and care to others and the environment, always bringing warmth to Year 2!

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Save the Dates !

Monday 29 September	all day		Year 2 class trip to the Tudor House, Southampton (information to follow)
Tuesday 30 September	tbc		Pre-Prep Drama workshops
Thursday 2 October	all day		National Poetry Day
Friday 3 October	09:30-11:30 15:00-13:30		Little Shells Pre-Prep Cathedral Assembly - all parents very welcome
Monday 6 October	tbc		Year 2 Parents' Evening
Friday 10 October	all day		Year 1 trip to Roche Court
Saturday 11 October	morning		Whole school Open Day
Monday 13 October	tbc		Reception and Year 1 Parents' Evenings
Friday 17 October			Half-Term begins at the end of the school day
Monday 3 November	08:30		Term resumes

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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Report from Commoners

Crafting Commoner
Well done to all the boys in Crafting Commoner this week! You showed an amazing amount of perseverance during our origami session, which turned out to be much trickier than I had planned. Origami is a Japanese word that means “folding paper” — “ori” means fold, and “gami” means paper. This special art has been around for hundreds of years and was first used in Japan for ceremonies and gifts, not just for fun. One of the most famous origami shapes is the paper crane, which is a symbol of peace and good luck. All you need to get started is a single square piece of paper — no scissors or glue! By sticking with it this week, you not only created some wonderful folds, but also practised patience, focus, and careful hands. Great job, boys! ORIGAMI JUMPING FROG (Traditional model) MVK

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Upcoming Events

 

Book here: 

• Little Shells: Book your Little Shells session - The Pilgrims' School
• Musical Shells: Book your Musical Shells course - The Pilgrims' School
• Open Morning: Pilgrims' Open Morning

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Reception

This week during our Literacy (English) and PSHE (Personal, Social, Health Education) sessions in Reception Class, we have been reading the story The Colour Monster by Anna IIenas. Many of the boys were familiar with the book already, which was great. The Colour Monster changes colour to match his emotions. For example, he turns blue to match sadness, yellow to match happiness and red to match anger. While reading the story, we looked closely at the illustrations and spoke about how important pictures are to help us understand what is happening in books. We saw, for example, the sunshine and birds to match yellow, black forests and fog to match fear and green leaves to match calmness.  We spoke a lot about emotions this week: what they are, how our bodies show these emotions and what sorts of things spark different emotions for different people. 

We also chatted about it being 'okay' to show a mixture of emotions throughout one day and how we can change our emotions if we need to, just like the Colour Monster.

 

CBeebies Bedtime Stories - A-E: Amy Dowden - The Colour Monster Join Strictly Come Dancing's Amy Dowden for a Bedtime Story about how colourful your emotions can be. www.bbc.co.uk

The boys enjoyed painting Colour Monsters using the correct colour for each emotion.  They had to remember how to mix pink and that this colour matched 'loved' also. Clear understanding was shown of what each colour meant. Super conversations were had alongside the activity.

Another fun activity the boys completed linked to this week's text, was to choose, cut and stick correctly, parts of a monster to create their own mixed-up Colour Monster.  Scissor skills were also shown throughout this activity.  Great effort and imagination.  Well done boys! You may like to explore more of The Colour Monster's adventures at home. There are several books in the collection. I hope you all have a super weekend.

Mrs Sarah Huntley
Reception Teacher

Year 1

Astronauts!
One of the class’s initial questions about space early in the term was what a spacesuit actually is and what makes it special. We looked closely at Tim Peake’s spacesuit that he wore when travelling in the Soyuz up to the International Space Station, and we looked at the type of spacesuit he would wear when taking part in a spacewalk outside the International Space Station. The boys looked closely at the features required when a spaceman is “free” in space and had a go at recreating it on paper. Look out for these useful key features in the drawings below: the Primary Life Support System, visor to keep out the sun, microphone, camera to send pictures back to Earth, mission badges and flag of one’s country.

Having done some rather hefty research about life in space last week involving books and video clips, the boys are now seriously clued-up about what life is like for astronauts living on the International Space Station. Discovering how astronauts drink water in space was a real highlight. They used their research to write an information leaflet to help other budding astronauts know what to expect!

Mrs Victoria Ford
Year 1 Teacher
 

Year 2 

Year 2 have had another fantastic week of learning! The children continued their work on traditional tales with a twist and letter writing, and this time received a very special letter from none other than the Three Little Wolves. They needed our help to make some Wanted posters to catch the Big Bad Pig! The class worked brilliantly, using their imagination and writing skills to describe the character and warn others. It was wonderful to see everyone so engaged, creative, and enthusiastic as they combined storytelling with real purpose in their writing. Well done, Year 2!

This week, the boys also had the exciting opportunity to meet Abie Longstaff, the author of Little Bad Wolf, at PG Wells Bookshop. "Little Bad Wolf is the first in a new series that reimagines the early lives of classic fairy-tale characters, exploring how the heroes – and villains – became the legends we know today." 

They asked some very inspiring questions, such as “Who was her favourite author?” and “How long did it take her to write the story?” Abbi explained that she has never actually met her illustrator, as she is Spanish and lives in Spain. The boys were absolutely thrilled to meet a real live author, and they left the event feeling inspired and full of new ideas for their own storytelling and writing.

Mrs Maxine Kent
Year 2 Teacher

 

Forest School

Autumn is such a wonderful inspiration for Forest School, and this week saw autumn start officially.

The leaves are a wonderful resource for us, and the boys in Year R very much enjoyed going on a leaf hunt at the front of the school and then learning how to follow the patterns on the leaves using some acrylic pens. We then proudly placed them in our temporary art gallery for everyone to admire.

In Year 1 this week, the boys learned how to turn fir cones into some wonderful flying insects with the help of leaves, bits of wool, and pipe cleaners. The fir cones seemed to spring into life once the goggly eyes were added as the final touch. The boys enjoyed exploring the site with their new insects.

Patterns in nature are everywhere, and this week I wanted to see if the boys in Year 2 could capture those patterns in a clay plaque. The boys selected their natural items carefully, thinking about the impressions they would make. Favourite items were carefully rolled into the clay and delicately lifted off to reveal the beautiful pattern left behind.

Mrs Fiona Walker
Forest School and LAMDA Teacher