BLUNDELL’S PREPARATORY SCHOOL MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2014
Hungry for Success
Regular features: Head Master’s News Trips and Visits Music and Drama Sports Reports
planting the seeds, growing up naturally,harvesting just deserts
reviewInside:
Prize Giving atSpeech Day
Plain Sailingfor Leavers’
Play
Head Master’s NEWS
Andy Southgate Head Master
It seems like only a few momentssince I was writing the introductionto last year’s Summer Review andwhat a lot has happened over those12 months. During Speech Day thisyear our Prep School Chairman, PeterJohnson spoke on the theme of‘Opportunities’ before our guestspeaker, Alice Plunkett thendescribed the opportunities that shehad had during her glittering career.What follows in these pages are
countless examples of the many chances that our childrenhave to take on new things and to find what they arepassionate about. My thanks as always go to the teacherswho contribute to this excellent publication and to Mr Moorefor the many hours spent editing.
In the words of George Bernard Shaw: ‘There is no lovesincerer than the love of food’ and at Blundell’s Prep wewould wholeheartedly agree. This Summer Edition of theReview explores the many food-themed events that havetaken place over the term, from cooking in FT lessonsthrough to delicious teas with cream covered scones. I havelost count of the times that I have heard it said that “the foodat Blundell’s Prep is great” and when you look more closely atwhat is going on at school you will understand why. Ourlegendary match teas are spoken of across the region andgreatly enjoyed by all who visit Blundell’s Prep.
‘An army marches on its stomach’ and I would agree withNapoleon Bonaparte’s assertion and suggest that it translatesquite seamlessly to schools as well. The children here arevery well fed and if you ask them they will tell you that theirfavourite lunch is ‘meatballs and noodles’. They may also tellyou about the salad bar that contains plenty of commonfavourites as well as some items for the more discerningpallet: prawns, olives, radishes and even pickled onions. We encourage the children to try everything and to find whatthey like, after all they are often surprised that somethingpreviously untried is actually much tastier than they hadimagined. We are in the fortunate position of having all of ourfood cooked on site by our own team, led by Mrs Moys.These ladies know every child from Nursery to Year 6, not justby name but also by what they eat and this ensures thatevery child is encouraged to have a balanced and healthydiet. The teachers sit with the children and encourageconversation and good manners, important skills that wewould wish all of our off-spring to have.
“...The teachers sit with the children and encourageconversation and good manners, important skillsthat we would wish all of our off-spring to have...”
Our children know their food. I recently met with theSchool Council and much like the barons at Runnymedeback in 1215, they presented their demands to me,although I might add, not by sword-point. Whilst the 25barons wanted their freedoms and rights guaranteed, ourschool councillors were after more culinary considerationsand we discussed doughnuts, dips and wraps (includingthe ghastly combination of ham and Marmite!) I was veryimpressed with the range of foods being suggested forinclusion on our menus. What is so impressive is theknowledge and interest that our children have in food andthis comes from their weekly Food Technologylessons. Once a week our children are tasked withpreparing a range of treats, many of which you will see inthe pictures that follow. Our state-of-the-art Food Techclassroom would be the envy of any school and it is usedby all of the Blundell’s community, including parents as wellas pupils. Some lucky guests have spent the morning withour FT teachers, the wonderful Mrs Edge and Mrs Watson,and have cooked up Chinese themed banquets and four-course dinner parties. We even invited the Dads to getinvolved with a curry cooking session, complete withappropriate liquid refreshment of course.
This term has seen all of the children involved in a widevariety of ‘foodie’ events. In our Nursery the children havebeen growing their own tomatoes and beans with thepromise that they will taste them all. The Prep Schoolchildren have been involved in the Farm to Fork project andthis has included visits to Tesco and some hard work in ourvegetable gardens in order to produce some ingredients withwhich to cook. Rhubarb crumble was a big hit! Our Year 3children became part of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution andjoined thousands of children from across the world in thebiggest live cooking event of all time. They made tasty andnutritious Rainbow Salad Wraps and had a lot of fun in theprocess. Our Year 6 children cooked up a real treat for theirparents during our BALSA evening this term with gueststreated to asparagus parcels and chocolate tiffin to name buta few of the items on offer. Earlier in the term our Year 6children were tasked with planning, purchasing and preparinga picnic for the year group with a very limited budget,something they all found to be challenging and enlighteningin equal measure. There are plans to create moreopportunities for the children in our Pre-Prep to cook and Iknow that this is something that they will greatly enjoy.
I wish you all the best for a sun-filled summer break.
All year groups in the Prep School were involvedwith the Farm to Fork topic throughout the SummerTerm. We looked at where our food comes from, howit is grown and also behind the scenes at itsproduction. We had visits to Tesco to take part in afood trail and visited Halberton Farm to tour thevegetable fields and to pick strawberries. All thechildren were involved in seeding, planting andgrowing vegetables and flowers in our own Schoolvegetable garden before picking and cooking someof our best produce in FT lessons. S.N.W.
Farm to Fork
The BALSA programme offered a challenge to Year 6 in the twoterms following Entrance Exams, encouraging all to show theirinitiative and develop their citizenship and service skills both insideand outside of School.
In May the year group enjoyed a day at Croyde pursuing the‘Adventure’ element of the scheme. The weather was not kind, butdid not dampen spirits as wetsuits were donned for a surfingworkshop and some serious coasteering challenges on and off therocks. Many were able to take a leap of faith beyond the comfort zone with someimpressive rock hopping, and all responded fantastically to the opportunities onoffer.
Many in Year 6 had shown their spirit of adventure and a determination to takethe lead in any number of School events across the two terms, whether it be byvolunteering to serve on the School Council, helping to organise team eventssuch as the House Music Competition, leading by example on residential trips toJersey and London, or playing a key role on the sports field. What was so lovelyabout the BALSA scheme, however, was the opportunities it provided to seewhat the children could offer in terms of adventure, leadership and serviceoutside of School as well – and many tales of helping the community cameforward, from gardening and litter picking, to letter writing campaigns againsttobacco sales and fundraising events for a range of charities, amongst manyothers.
It was great to see all getting involved, and every single child in theyear group earned their Shackleton Award. Some went further,earning their Scott Awards, and four pupils earned the highestaward, the Fiennes Award, for pursuing a range of sustainedindependent initiatives that demonstrated excellent commitment tothe scheme. Congratulations to Mia Butterfield, William Blowers,Zoe Dare and Holly Nugent! We were very fortunate to have Mr.Oliver Shepard come to School to present the awards at the end ofterm. Explorer Mr. Shepard, who had accompanied Sir RanulphFiennes on a number of expeditions, spoke to the group on thequalities encouraged by the BALSA scheme, and read out an emailfrom Sir Ranulph Fiennes himself, in which he congratulated all fortheir efforts. It was great to see the efforts of the childrenrecognised in this way at the end of their time at the School. L.P.M.
Blundell’s Adventure, Leadership and Service Award
BALSA:
...It was great to see all getting involved...and four pupils earnedthe highest award, theFiennes Award, forpursuing a range ofsustained independentinitiatives...
”
“
Blundell’s Prep NEWS
Blundell’s Prep NEWS
On ascorchingEnglishsummer’sday, notdissimilarto weatherin Greece,Year 3was paida specialvisit by
Alexis of Corinth (aka, StuartDavies, who has appeared on theCBBC’s Horrible Histories.) The children and staff lookedwonderful, dressed in the AncientGreek costumes of hoplitesoldiers and Ancient Greek godsand goddesses. Many thanks tothe parents for providing suchamazing costumes.
Alexis put us all through ourpaces. We learnt about AncientGreek history, made puzzlescreated by Aristotle, filled in quizsheets, took part in the play ofTheseus and the Minotaur,(Hector made an excellent‘superhero’, Archie a scaryminotaur, Barnaby the grumpyKing Minos and Florence, thebeautiful Ariadne) obeyedinstructions from the General ofthe army, marched in a phalanxand participated in Ancient GreekOlympics. It was a fantastic day,which was finished off with atasting of Greek food. Definitely aday to remember! W.J.N.
Year 3 children joined thousands of othersacross the country to cook with JamieOliver on screen as part of ‘FoodRevolution Day 2014’. This live nationwideevent provided afantastic opportunityfor the children tolearn somenutritional foodlessons from a chef
well known for his interest in promotinghealthy eating in schools, and allenjoyed grating vegetables in anenthusiastic attempt at creating somedelicious Rainbow Salad Wraps. L.P.M.
T.V. Dinners
We were blessed with blue skies andsunshine for the Year 1 trip toBabbacombe Model Village andKents Cavern this year. The first stopwas to watch a 4D film called "Twothousand Leagues Under the Sea."This was as much fun for the staff asit was for the children as we enjoyedthe full sensory experiences of thestory. We then toured around theModel Village and had great funlooking at the different miniaturescenes. We had a delicious picniclunch in the garden at Kents Cavernfollowed by a guided tour of thecaves. Many of the children werefascinated to hear about the bears,lions and hyenas that inhabited thecaves many years ago. After the tour,we enjoyed eating an ice lolly in thesun. Bea Morrison said that it wasthe best trip she had ever been on!T.N.
Year 6 enjoyed working in groups toplan and prepare a nutritious al frescodining experience. Each group wasgiven a set budget and had to agreeupon the ingredients that they couldafford in Tesco, before returning toSchool to prepare their meals, whichincluded pasta, salad, fruit and dips.Fortunately the sun was shining asthe groups withdrew to the Hub totry out the fruits of their labours!L.P.M.
Food for Thought
Babbacombe
Your Reporters for the Reviewthis year have been: ElizabethCurgenven, Olivia Cowap, MiaButterfield, Alex Pawson, KaitlynSellar-Elliott, Isabella Smart,Imogen Davy and Emma Edwards,Year 6.
The children in Otters lovedmaking clay creatures. Theyworked the clay into the barkof the tree trunks and mouldedit into the shape of a face oran animal. They used theirimaginations well and made avariety of different creatures.They also loved makingwormeries, layering compost,sand and soil into plasticcontainers. They added someleaves and put in a couple ofworms. This was wrapped inblack paper and left to seewhat would happen! S.A.S.
Otters
Ancient Greek Day
Newspaper Club
IAPS Concert at Exeter Cathedral
On Friday 16th May eight childrentook part in the IAPS South WestRegional Concert at ExeterCathedral. The concert - Songs forAll Seasons - was a collaborationbetween twelve schools and ‘Showof Hands’, a Devon folk band. Theconcert featured folk songs,reflecting the passing of theseasons, and was a truly wonderfulevening's entertainment in a superb,historic setting. B.L.C.
The children in the Pre-Prep enjoyed afun afternoon of music making in theschool grounds with Mervyn Bedford
from Musikgarten. They played various kinds ofbells to accompany an action song aboutbluebells. They used colourful scarves to
represent flowers in asong about seedsgrowing. The childrendanced and sang witha partner in a songabout a merry goround. Everyonejoined in all theactivities withtremendousenthusiasm! J.K.P.
Music in the Woods
Blundell’s Prep MUSIC
Mus
A glorious summer's evening provided aperfect atmosphere for this year's SummerConcert. Children from Year 1 through to Year6 performed in what was a real celebration ofmusic throughout the school.
The concert began with over 40 violinists,from both the Pre-Prep and Prep, playingtogether. It was lovely to see the Pre-Prepbrass group playing - their brightly colouredinstruments looked wonderful on the stage.Other groups performing included the windgroup, orchestra, guitar ensemble, piano triosand a flute duo.
Singing featured throughout the concert.Laura Smith, Duncan Johnson-Ferguson andWill Farmer performed Counting Stars andhad the whole marquee clapping along.Other songs performed included Best DayEver, A Disney Medley and A Tribute toMichael Jackson. Year 2 sang You've Got aFriend in Me and the whole school joined
together to sing Thank You For the Music.The Choir, Boys Aloud, Girls Aloud, Staffand The Mamas and Papas all performedand everyone in the marquee joined inwith Summer Holiday.
A huge thank you must go to all thechildren for providing a fantastic eveningof music. Thank you also to all the visitingmusic teachers who have worked so hardwith the children throughout the year.B.L.C.
Summer ConcertMany children enjoyed theopportunity to showcase theirmusical skills during thisterm’s Tea Time Concerts,where violins, piano, drums,recorder and guitar could allbe heard alongside solo andsmall group singing.Congratulations to all whoperformed so confidently!
“The concert began with over 40 violinists, from both
the Pre-Prep and Prep, playing together.”
ical notes
Blundell’s Prep OUTDOORS
TIVERTON MUSEUM
Year 1 children had great fun visitingTiverton Museum. They enjoyed findingout the differences between our schooland a Victorian school and thoughtthere were many rules. They wouldhave had to stand up when a teacherwalked into the room, not speak unlessspoken to and they could not askquestions. And of course there was thecane! The children played with a varietyof different Victorian toys, discoveringthey were all made of wood, fabric ormetal and they looked at things found inthe home. One of the hardest things to
do inVictoriantimes, theydiscovered,was thelaundry. Itwas a goodjob theydidn't havemanyclothes towash!S.A.S.
In order to complement thecurriculum and push thelearning experience beyondthe classroom, children fromacross the School have beenlucky enough to visit many ofthe local attractions andfacilities available in Devonthis term.
ESCOT
Year 2 enjoyed an amazing day at EscotCountry Park at the end of the SummerTerm. The sun was shining all day andthis added to the excitement. As soon aswe arrived at the park we got straight onwith the activities of the day with anexploration of the maze. All of thechildren managed to solve the maze andmade it to the centre. Once we hadescaped, we headed back to camp andmade name badges using a hand-drilland bits of wood. The children thenmarched off through the woods to feedsome wild boar and climb on some oldtree stumps and branches. Our nextadventure was a thrilling look at somebirds of prey. They flew very close to us,using our heads as a guide for flight!After lunch we toasted somemarshmallows on an open fire beforeheading to the otter enclosure. Wewatched them eat their prawns and playin the water. Then it was our turn to playin some water as we entered a swampfor the legendary ‘swamp walk’. To theircredit, every child went into the swampand most made it all the way to the end.Once we had climbed through the mudto get out we went for a swim in a pondbefore being hosed off! It was a fantasticend to a great day out. G.J.R.
TIVERTON CASTLE
Year 2 visited Tiverton Castle on a lovelysunny morning. We were met there byMrs. Gordon and she kindly gave us atour. We looked at many interestingfeatures and the children could clearlysee where the people used to maketheir fires and how the floor was held up.The children learnt a lot about the workchildren had to do in a castle suchas cleaning the chimneys... asyou can imagine, they werehorrified and were glad thatthey did not have to dothis today! Thechildren reallyenjoyed looking atthe armour, tryingon the helmetsand holding theheavy cannonball. The childrenlistenedcarefully to Mrs.Gordon as she toldthem the history ofthe castle and a fewghost storiestoo! D.M.K.
outand about
Blundell’s Prep OUTDOORS
Knightshayes
THE BIG SHEEP
The Nursery classes, along withmany of their parents, had afantastic day out at The Big Sheep,Bideford. There was greatexcitement as they boarded thecoach, as for many, it was the firsttime they had been on one.
Once there, they went to theSheep Show and discovered thatthere are many different types ofsheep. Several children thoughtthey spotted Baa Baa Black sheep.There were lots of animals, andmore sheep to see in the AnimalBarn and while on the TractorSafari.
Later there was the opportunityto feed the lambs, which theythoroughly enjoyed. The childrenquickly realised that they had tohold on tightly to the bottles of milkas the lambs were very strong andthirsty. They were excellent atpassing the bottles around so thateveryone was able to have a go.
There were rides on the train,during which the children enjoyedspotting Nursery rhyme characters,and the Piggy pull along wasextremely popular, especiallywhen it went over the bumps andthrough the muddy puddle! Manytook part in the duck trials, helpingthe sheep dog to guide the ducksthrough the obstacles, and many ofthe children watched fascinated asa sheep was sheared.
With tractors to pedal, jumpingpillows to bounce on, pony rides,and a large indoor play area, theday passed all too quickly and itwas a much quieter coach full ofchildren that returned to school.Everyone thoroughly enjoyed theday and certainly came awayknowing a lot more about sheep!S.M.A.
THE WORLD OF COUNTRY LIFE
There was tremendous excitement rumbling through both Kindergarten classes as theywaited to board the coach for their day at The World of Country Life, Exmouth.
On arrival, they went to explore the enormous pirate ship. They had great fun running inand out of the ship, jumping in the sand and running over the rickety bridge.
They then went to feed the lambs. They had to hold on tight to the bottles as the animalswere very hungry! After that they went to walk some of the young goats. This was veryentertaining for the children as the goats had a mind of their own. It was a case of seeingwhich ‘kid’ was in control of the other!
Before lunch the children had great fun on the adventure playground then tucked into theirrolls, ready for the afternoon’s adventures. The deer train was their next port of call and theyall bundled on just as it started to drizzle. Spirits weren’t dampened though and they had arare chance to see a white calf as it came right up to the train. Nearly all the children had ago at feeding the deer and some very proud looking llamas.
The afternoon was topped off with a Birds of Prey demonstration. The children absolutelyloved this and they all had the opportunity to have one or two birds land on them. Theywere shown a Golden Eagle named Buster, an Eagle Owl named Echo and a very smallAfrican Owl named Taz. He was very small and young but definitely won over the audience. We all clambered wearily back onto the coach after a fantastic day out… C.B.
Year 3 had already had a busy week visiting Tesco and Paignton Zoo, but the childrenstill had enough energy left to enjoy a super day at Knightshayes too.
We were met by the Education officer, Rachael Hall, who looked after us brilliantlythroughout our visit. Firstly she took us to see the kitchen gardens and we saw
where all the plants and vegetables grow. In small groups the children labelled aflower and were able to show Rachael how good their knowledge was, she wasimpressed! The children also enjoyed making cress heads using tights, cotton wooland felt pens.
After our picnic dinner, we went for a lovely quiet walk around the grounds of thehouse. Then we met up with Rachael again and she showed the children how to makea bug hotel using straws and pots and they decorated them to use in their gardens athome.
The day ended with us all going for a lovely energetic walk through the woods andthe fields. The journey back to school was a lot quieter than the journey there in themorning! K.E.M.
After that they went towalk some of theyoung goats... It was acase of seeing which‘kid’ was in control ofthe other!
“”
Imogen ‘Tinkerbell’ Davy
“I really enjoyedjust being a partof the play!”
Play timeThis year’s Leavers’ Play was Peter Pan, and Year 6 rose tothe challenge of bringing this well known tale to the stagewith admirable enthusiasm. With Indians, Lost Boys, Pirates,Fairies, Mermaids, a Dog, a Crocodile and lots of littleDarlings all playing their part, this really was a teamproduction and it is fair to say that every single member ofthe year group stepped up to the mark on stage at OndaatjeHall to give their all. Special mention must go to GraceChapman, playing Wendy Darling, Olivia Cowap, playingPeter Pan and William Farmer, playing Captain Hook, forlearning so many lines and delivering such strong solosinging performances. The costumes, the make-up, thelighting, props and set design all came together tocomplement the whole cast perfectly on the night, andwhilst the children performing must inevitably grow up andmove on themselves, I am sure that they will never forgetthis magical part of their childhood L.P.M.
Peter Pan
Blundell’s Prep ON STAGE
The Year 1 Summer Play was called ‘The Elephant'sChild’. It was a play based on the story by RudyardKipling that tells the tale of how the elephant got itslong trunk. The children loved dressing up as thedifferent animals; there were giraffes, ostriches,snakes, hippopotamuses, monkeys, elephants and ofcourse, a crocodile. They really loved performing fortheir friends and families, sang some super songs andperformed some great jungle dances too. The mums,dads, aunties, uncles and grandparents who attendedthoroughly enjoyed watching the children have fun onthe stage! T.N.
The Elephant’s Child
Year 5 had great fun when they came off timetableto learn Shakespeare’s comedy from the Bottomup... They performed their play-in-a-day with appropriatemerriment and magic!
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
It was a real treat to watch the Kindergartenchildren perform their Summer Play ‘BillyNo Buzz’ – a story of a bee who could notbuzz like the other bees. The other bees didnot want to be his friends because he wasdifferent from them. Luckily, a group ofdragonflies came to his rescue and taught the bees thatthey should be his friend whatever he was like. Thechildren thoroughly enjoyed dressing up as bees anddragonflies; they sang beautifully, acted their parts verywell and were all buzzing with excitement to be a part ofthe performance. T.N.
Billy No Buzz
The Nursery Summer Play wascalled ‘Rumble in the Jungle’and all thirty-four 3 and 4 yearold children took part in theproduction. It involved a groupof explorers travelling aroundthe jungle discovering thedifferent types of animals thatthey encountered. The childrenentertained their audiences fornearly an hour with theirpoems, songs and dances. It was an absolute delight towatch! T.N.
Rumble in the Jungle
Overnight sens
The next day we had a massive breakfastbefore going off toexplore Dartmoor,where we did climbingand abseiling beforewalking up a giantmountain to havelunch.
“
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sations
Year 5 enjoyed four days at the Kelly CollegeAdventure Centre on Dartmoor...
Year 5 on Dartmoor: Five Go Adventuring Again
When we got to Kelly College we took our bags to ourdorms – there were loads of bunk beds and a loo ineach dorm! The Instructors met us at a place calledSheep’s Tor and told us that we were going to gowalking in the river! We got soaking wet! The next daywe had a massive breakfast before going off to exploreDartmoor, where we did climbing and abseiling beforewalking up a giant mountain to have lunch. On the wayback we walked through another river and I got soakedagain! The next day we went canoeing and kayaking in alake in our wetsuits and we built rafts... and got soakingwet! We had to do challenges on our rafts, and sadly mygroup came last! On our last day after another lovelybreakfast we went climbing in trees and did the trapeze.It was fun but very high up and scary! We also didorienteering, which was fun, but sadly our time inDartmoor soon ended and we had to make the longjourney home again.Ollie Butler,Year 5
Following the closure of Beaford ArtsCentre, Year 3 was looking for a newvenue for their Residential Trip.Paignton Zoo not only provided anexcellent alternative, but such anexciting time, that it would definitelybe repeated next year!
Cooked food featured highlythroughout our trip! After a train ride tofamiliarise ourselves with the layout ofthe Zoo, we headed for the restaurantfor the first of many delicious hotmeals. We then met up at the EducationCentre for a Welcome Talk and a ZooSafari. The children set off in small groups with their ActivityBooklets to explore. Three hours later, we drove to the hotel for anearly Roast Turkey dinner and then returned to the Zoo, with ourtorches, for an evening walk. It was a special experience becauseit was eerily very quiet as we were the only people visiting theanimals. A delicious hot chocolate drink was waiting on our returnto the hotel before bed. Everyone slept really well!
A cooked breakfast of our choice set us up for the next day. We packed up, said goodbye to our lovely hosts at the hotel andreturned to the Education Centre at the Zoo for the second day. Our talk about Habitats and Adaptation re-enforced what we hadlearnt in school about bird adaptations. We then had time to visitareas of the Zoo that we had missed the previous day, and to playon the assaultcourses, beforeassembling again atthe restaurant for thelast of our meals.Lastly, we visited theGift Shop to buypresents to takehome. We returned tothe minibuses for thetrip back to school,very tired, but happy!W.J.N.
Year 3 at Paignton Zoo: Animal Instincts
Blundell’s Prep ACTIVE
On Wednesday 21st May Year 4embarked on ‘Operation Folly Farm’,arriving at 10.45 am ready to facethe challenge of the two day‘Predators and Survival Course.’Everyone passed the course withflying colours and survived to tellthe tale! Badger watching and firelighting were just two excitingevents in a packed programme. We arrived back at school onThursday afternoon tired but hungryfor more! E.S.H.
Year 4 at Folly Farm: A Natural Selection
We had the smartest coach ever with a cool drivercalled Steve. The journey seemed to take forever butplaying Top Trumps helped it go faster! As soon as wegot to London we went to look around the NaturalHistory Museum, where the enormous blue whalewas my favourite exhibit. Then we had a meal atSouthwark Cathedral’s Refectory before boarding theGolden Hinde for a dress up and role play as sailorson Drake’s flagship. It was very exciting to sleep onthe ship’s gun deck – although rather uncomfortablewithout a soft bed! In the morning we had a tour of the Tower of London,where we tried our best to make the beefeaters laugh but couldn’t! We checkedinto the Baden Powell House youth hostel (which was much more comfortablethan the Golden Hinde!), and after tea set off to see Wicked at the ApolloVictoria. This really was wicked – and the highlight of the trip for me, I loved it!We got back very late, and were woken up early again the next morning whenthe fire alarm went off! We were scared, but it turned out that there was not areal fire, but it was a toaster that had set the alarm off!The ScienceMuseum wasfun and we allbought coolthings in theshop to remindus of our trip andkeep us busy onthe long journeyhome. We wereso lucky to go toLondon, it wasAWESOME! Tom Reynolds,Year 6
Year 6 in London: City Break
Overnight sensations
Blundell’s Prep ACTIVE
PREP SPORTS DAYWith picnics on the field, the sun kindly made anappearance for what was set to be the best PrepSports Day ever! New events, great participation andnew records all made for a thrilling afternoon and bythe end of the day over 120 medals were presented.Everybody had the chance to compete at the highestlevel they could achieve and to gain points for theirHouse. The field events continued during the fasttrack events, and a few school records fell, includingin the Year 3 Cricket Ball Throw, when the old recordwas broken then broken again! From Girls’ Shot Putand Boys’ Vortex to the new 300m and Dash eventsthere were things happening all around the field.The final events were the Relay Races. These wereclose, especially the Boys’ U11 race which nearlyturned into a photo finish. Many thanks to all thestaff, the catering team and the parents for supporting and makingthis year’s Prep Sports Day a huge success. S.G.S.
Blundell’s Prep SPORTS
PRE-PREP SPORTS DAYIt was a rare treat to have such a hot, sunnyafternoon for the Pre-Prep Sports Day. Thechildren thoroughly enjoyed running in their races;some of the races involved skills such as throwing,balancing and kicking a ball. There was a traditionalsack race which is always a favourite, and noveltyraces for the Nursery children. This year weintroduced House Races which involved childrenfrom across the years working together. A highlightof the afternoon for the children was watching theirMums and Dads becoming very competitive in theirraces: the Dads in a Bunny Hop Race and the Mumsin the Egg and Spoon. The fun ended with apresentation of certificates to all the winners. T.N.
We started our season as usual with theannual Blundell’s meet in which all ageswere represented. We seemed to startslowly but a good win from Ollie Wright inthe U12 800m served to galvanise the team.We had resounding success in the 200mwith wins for the U10 Girls and Boys and U12Girls and Boys; all but one of our relay teamswere victorious too. There were someexcellent results in the field events and ourU12 Boys and Girls retained their trophy,with the combined Prep and Senior Schoolwinning the overall trophy. We then took 15athletes to the South West Championships atMillfield. We had mixed results throughoutthe day with many athletes finding the stepup hard going, but the experience will havebeen invaluable especially for those whowere competing a year young. Notableperformances came from Mia Butterfield inthe 200m, Will Blowers who placed third inthe discus and Zoe Dare who won thediscus with an excellent series of throws togain selection for the area team at theNational Finals held in Birmingham. S.J.M.
Athletics
Blundell’s Prep SPORTS
U8 ROUNDERSThe U8 Team has worked hard and shown agood improvement in Rounders this term. The girls have developed their understandingof the game and are beginning to work wellas a team. With Jess Bunting's accuratebowling, Tilly Lane's fast fielding andGeorgia Withey's hard hitting, they areshowing great promise. Thank you to theparents for your support too. W.J.N.
Rounders
“... I was really pleasedwith the girls’ drive and
determination on thatday, they supported
each other.”
U11 ROUNDERSAlthough the sun is shining now, this seasondidn’t get off to the best of starts with raincancelling a few fixtures and tournaments forthe U11A Team. You can always rely on anEnglish summer! Rounders is a challenginggame with two very different disciplines inbatting and fielding. It was evident very earlyon in the season that the U11A Team aremore confident at fielding. When play finallygot going, we started strongly with winsagainst Stover, Taunton and St Peter’s.Stopping the score has been far easier forthis team than putting a score on the boardduring our own innings. I must howevercongratulate Mia Butterfield for hercontribution with the bat; it is always usefulto have a ‘leftie’ in the team and herconsistent hitting has been crucial duringeach game. I have been most proud of thefielding effort the team have made this term;there have been some superb catches fromZoe Dare at backstop, Olivia Cowap asbowler, and Mia Butterfield and Holly Nugentin the field. Fielding deep can often be quitepressurised and Grace Chapman and EmmaEdwards have managed to keep their cooland use their strong and accurate overarmthrows to return to 4th post. It was the gameagainst Millfield in which their fielding wasmost impressive; Blundell’s had managed toget six of their players out and hold them to4½ rounders! I was really pleased with thegirls’ drive and determination on that day,they supported each other and Zoe Daremanaged to keep the team focused andpumped up! Unfortunately, you can’t simplywin games in the field, rounders have to bescored as well and that has been the greatestchallenge for the U11A’s. These girls havebeen a pleasure to teach this year and I hopethey continue to enjoy their sport next year!F.L.E.
Despite a very early loss against King’s Hall,the U11B Team began to put together somevery encouraging team performances thisseason. Our bowler Isabel Leyshon wasaccurate and kept the scoring down withsome sensible decision making, Kaitlyn Sellar-Elliott at back stop was extremely effective atcontrolling the field, showing sound tacticalawareness. Imogen Davy at 4th, Emily Sellar-Elliott at 2nd, and the deep fielders of EllaMartin, Isabella Smart, Alice Lilley and TylerRead all improved their accuracy whenthrowing and contributed well in the field.Scoring rounders did not come easily at first,however, Megan Sharp developed in hertenacity and went on to score somememorable rounders which helped securewins against Exeter Prep, St Peter’s and TheMaynard. Well done girls for working hard onsome great tactical performances. S.J.M
U10 ROUNDERSAfter a dreary start to the season and severalmatches having to be cancelled due to rain,the U10A Team finally got the chance toshow off their Rounders skills against TauntonPrep in their first match. It was a fantasticgame for Blundell’s, with the girls fieldingbrilliantly in the first innings and keepingTaunton to a very low batting score. They thenstepped up to bat, and hit some powerfulshots deep into the field to secure earlyrounders. By the second innings, they reallybegan to hit well as a team, and by the end ofthe game they had doubled the Tauntonteam’s score. They narrowly lost to Exeterschool by 1½ rounders in their next game andthen beat King’s Hall convincingly in the finalmatch of the season. The highlight of theterm has to be the Millfield Tournament,where the girls did themselves proud beatingMillfield, Wells, Bristol Grammar and PortRegis in the group stages to qualify for thesemi-finals. Here they played Perrot Hill in amuch more tightly contested game, butmanaged to win by ½ a rounder to put themthrough to the final against Exeter School. Thefinal was a very tough game with both teamsfielding extremely well, but unfortunately wenarrowly missed out on becoming championsby ½ a rounder. The girls’ performancesthroughout the whole day were outstandingand they should be very proud of achievingrunners-up status and in particular for beatingMillfield. Lottie Southgate bowledconsistently well and took several greatcatches in the field alongside Alice Williams,and Honor Huggett. Cosima Mundy and FreyaMarr were a dynamic duo on backstop andfirst post, getting several players outimmediately if they missed the ball. ElizaLloyd, Lottie Southgate and Honor Huggettfound their finest form in the batting, andJessica Payne and Anna Maunder also hitseveral outstanding shots deep into the fieldto secure rounders. Gabriella Ciappara fieldedstrongly backing up second post and AbigailHoran put the opposing teams underpressure with her tactical hitting and running.It was a great end to the season and all of thegirls should be very proud of how much theyimproved over the term. Well done! F.L.E.
U9 ROUNDERSThe U9A Team have foughthard this term to achieve anunbeaten record! There havebeen some nail bitingmoments and although somegames haven’t been easy thegirls have worked hard andtaken instructions on board.There is great potential in thisteam, so much so that theEngland cricket team couldwelcome some of the fielding andbatting talent! The pupils haveplayed in a variety of positions in a bid to find each person’sindividual strength. There havebeen some super hits from HonorTobin, Isobel Morrison, ElizabethHoney and Millie Evans. In thefield, Rachel Brown has bowledconsistently well and LucieSpencer’s competitive characterand good hand eye coordinationhave prevented anyone who daretry and approach 2nd post! I havebeen most impressed with thequality of overarm throwing fromShea Clark and the pupils’ matureawareness to back up fielders.These girls have been a pleasureto work with and I’m sure as theyfurther develop their understandingof the game they will be a force tobe reckoned with! Well done girls!F.L.E.
The weather at the beginning andthe end of the season wasn’tparticularly kind to the U9B Team.Early fixtures against Millfield, St Peter’s and West Buckland werecancelled due to heavy rain. Ourfirst match was against Wellingtonand we came away with a greatwin. At home we hosted a festivalwith The Maynard; all the girlsplayed well but Jessica Barneshad a really strong innings and Tilly Lane was excellent on 2ndbase. In more recent weeks wehave come up against KellyCollege and Taunton School. Bothteams were tough to play. Wemanaged to come away from Kellywith a draw but unfortunatelydespite Hattie Barnes scoring awhole rounder and Ottilie Davyplaying admirably at back stop, we narrowly lost the match againstTaunton. Despite the weather wehave had a fairly successful andprogressive season. Well donegirls, it has been great fun! K.E.M.
“...There were some stand out performances but
the strength of the side was in the way that they
played as a team and credit must go to all of the
players for their efforts with both bat and ball.”
U10 CRICKETThe U10A Team played 7 out of 8 scheduledfixtures, winning 3 of the matches and having acouple of close finishes whilst playing againstmainly U11 players. Kit Barnes was our captainthis year and he worked hard during thematches to keep all players alert and in thecorrect positions. Some of the highlights wereKit scoring 54 in the first game against Queen’sand also Harry Huggett’s 51 at King’s Hall. Harrywas leading batsman, scoring 126 runs, just twoahead of the captain. Our leading all-rounderwas Nathan White, who scored 85 runs and took6 wickets, three wickets behind our leadingbowler Henry Crease, whose 9 wicketshighlights his consistency this season.Freddie Labdon also took 6 wickets. It was a big learning curve for allinvolved as at U10 level you begin toplay full 20 over matches. Players arein the field for a long time and need tobe alert at all times. Our wicketkeeper Will Venner deserves amention as he only let 32 byesthrough in all matches. A great effort!S.G.S.
This was a season where somematches were won and some werelost and the team improved as theseason progressed. The U10B Teamplayed with a happyspirit and they were ableto play togetherthroughout the seasonwithout any greatchanges to players in theteam being needed. SamOlive captained from thefront, and Thomas Labdonmust be congratulated forsuch a strong contributionwith both the bat and ball.A special mention too toBen Hutton, for showingthe most improvement inthe team. Well done boys!E.S.H.
U9 CRICKETThe U9A Team were unbeaten this season,although we were deprived of matches due tosome mistimed downpours. The boys as alwaysplayed in a very attacking manner, batting freelyand bowling with a fair degree of accuracy. Bestbowling figures in our four matches came fromDominic Wielenga, with the best batting pairbeing the two Year 3 players, Harry Southgateand William Maunder. Our U9A’s played with atremendous amount of enthusiasm and focusduring training sessions and matches alike andshowed real promise as a unit S.J.M.
Although a number of matches were cancelledbecause of bad weather, the U9B Team stillplayed plenty of matches and achieved a fairamount of success. It was good to see how
much our bowling hadimproved when we playedShebbear and Kelly Collegeand finished the seasonwith victories in two closegames. Lochy Cronkshawworked hard as captain,Gus Tiernan impressedwith the bat and OscarWinsley proved an ablebowler. Joshua Ramsay-Smith showedcommitment andimproved steadily as theseason progressed. Welldone to all the boys. E.S.H.
U8 CRICKETThe U8 Team has bowled hardand fast in the nets, toiled inthe field practising theirfielding, smashed the ballduring batting practices andlooked into the tactical side ofcricket. This preparation stoodevery member of the team ingood stead for their firstmatches. With some teamsworried about our batting theyturned to under arm bowling,but this only increased ourbatting scores. Some teamsfeared our bowling so movedtheir order about, but withstrength and depth in the teamall bowlers were up tobowling against anyone. Everyaspect of the game hasdeveloped and improvedthroughout the season. Someunlucky weather saw anumber of matches cancelledearly on in the season,however the final part of theseason saw the U8 Team go onto compete at the highestlevel. A special mention mustgo to Romulus Hillwho cracked bowlingand ended up with thebest bowling average,to Alexander Fewtrellwho played thegreatest variety ofshots, includingsweep, reversesweep, pull, reversepull, and cut, and toJoshua Sellar-Elliottwho amassed thegreatest amount ofruns. Well done boys!S.G.S.
Cricket
Blundell’s Prep SPORTS
U11 CRICKETThe U11A Team have had a really enjoyable season with the final statsof 4 wins and 3 losses not telling the whole story. The season beganwith an exciting, last ball defeat to Queen’s (Will Blowers 44no and BenWright 3-5) and then a heavy loss to Taunton (Leo Ogden-Barker 15no)so confidence was a little low as the boys went into their third gamewithout a win. Our opponents were St. Peter’s who bowled well andrestricted our boys to 85 from 20 overs so some tight bowling was calledfor. That is exactly what happened and all 10 bowlers performed withgreat skill to restrict our guests to 79 (Duncan Johnson-Ferguson 1-1).This set us on a roll with three more wins in a row, the first againstWest Buckland (Tom Reynolds 54, Alex Curtis 2-8) then King’s Hall (Leo Ogden-Barker 24, Rocco Hartley 2-14), and finally Exeter Cathedral(Tom Reynolds 57no). The final match of the season was againstMillfield and this was a close affair but in the end our boys were not
Blundell’s Prep SPORTS
quite able to chase down the 167 set by Millfield, finishing on 126 for 8from their 20 overs (Tom Reynolds 54no). There were some stand outperformances but the strength of the side was in the way that theyplayed as a team and credit must go to all of the players for their effortswith both bat and ball. Boris Ames, Sam Morrison, Will Farmer, CharlieHutchinson, Ollie Wright, Leo Dummett, Isaac Low and Zoe Dare haveall worked hard in a very enjoyable season and I thank them for theirefforts. A.D.S.
The U11B Team had an immensely enjoyable season, winning six oftheir eight matches with every boy having regular opportunities toperfect their batting and bowling skills. Primarily we played pairscricket with the batting order reversed for the bowling order, whichenabled every boy to have an equal share of the bowling and batting;the wicket keeping position was also shared amongst those boys whowanted to give it a go. Throughout the season the team was superbly ledby Harry Rackham who mixed his excellent knowledge of the sport witha wonderful desire to win. In the bowling department Matthew Tait andFreddie Frankpitt bowled with ever increasing levels of skill andaccuracy while Isaac Low developed into a penetrating leg spin. Whenit came to scoring runs, Harry Perring and William Honey improvedthroughout the season and Boris Ames proved to be an excellent scorerof runs throughout, ably supported by the whole team. J.C.K.
Blundell’s Road, Tiverton
Devon EX16 4NA
Telephone: 01884 252393
Email: [email protected]
w w w. b l u n d e l l s . o r g / p r e p
Chairman of the Governors Mr. Peter Johnson,Head Master Mr. Andy Southgate and GuestSpeaker Miss Alice Plunkett all addressed pupils,staff and parents at Speech Day. While MrSouthgate highlighted the many successes andachievements at the School during the past year,Miss Plunkett spoke a little of her equestrianexperiences and urged the children to make thevery most of all the many and varied opportunitiesopen to them. Prizes were then awarded, many toYear 6 leavers, in recognition of the numerous triumphs achieved in the classroom, onthe sports field and beyond, and all in Year 6 were presented with their fabulousLeavers’ Books. Whilst parents enjoyed afternoon tea following the speeches andpresentations, Year 6 enjoyed gathering signatures for their Leavers’ Books – a finememento of their times at Blundell’s Preparatory School. L.P.M.
Speech Day
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