Prep for the Week Issue 1810

Prep for The Week Issue Number 1810 13 November 2015 1

Issue Number 1810 – 13 November 2015

Prep for the Week

In this week’s issue… Headmaster's Blog and Commendations Letter from the Library House Art Competition Years 5-8 Ski Trip - BOOK NOW! Kingfishers and Lower School News Shakespeare Schools Festival Girls' and Boys' Sport Calendar Notices

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Thank you and well done to all the staff,

parents, friends and pupils who joined us at

the Remembrance Service this Wednesday,

including those who sang in the choir or played

an instrument.

The service was a serene and well organised

occasion; a great way to remember all those who

have given their lives in service, in particular the

675 Old Cheltonians who died in the Great War.

Thank you also to everyone who bought a

poppy from The Prep Reception, in aid of the

Royal British Legion.


Headmaster's Blog

Dear Parents

There is nothing better to witness in school than a child thriving. The secrets to success are varied, but probably at the heart of any ‘good news story’ is the relationship between the school, the child and the child’s parents. Entering November, that partnership is as important as ever because it is a time when relationships between children can become fractious. So let’s work together!

How tired is your child? Why not show them this section in Prep for the Week where I am encouraging you to put them to bed a little earlier. Try Googling "Circadian sleep patterns” and the adverse impact on a good night’s sleep from electronic devices at home.

Encourage your child to maintain a dialogue with the school. Inevitably, relationships have good times and bad times. It is no good reporting alleged unpleasant behaviour retrospectively. For our response to be effective, we need to know there and then.

Encourage your child to be pro-active if they feel that another child is unhappy.

Remember that there are always two sides to a story. Listen to what your child has to say, bearing in mind it is not always an accurate reflection of what really happened.

Respect the efforts that the staff are making for your children and, if concerns exist, please bring them to the attention of the relevant member of staff in an appropriate manner. Observe the rules and ethos of the school: something as simple as not attending match tea after a fixture will, if unaddressed, eventually undermine the ethos.

Remember our team selection policy. The ‘A’ team is based on the staff’s view of what constitutes giving the team the best chance of victory. Although decisions concerning selection for the ‘A’ team can be explained, the decision of the staff is final.

Celebrate your child’s best efforts even if theirs is not the best. Encourage them to feel confident to fail as well as succeed. If they are scared of failure, they will not try anything new or attempt to extend themselves.

Thank you for your continued support in these matters.

Mr Jon Whybrow


Dick Lewis 10 November 1951 - 25 October 2015"I am sad to report the passing of Dick Lewis, one of the most influential human beings I have known. There are a lot of us who owe so much to Dick Lewis, including myself. Dick worked at The Prep from the 1990s to his retirement, three years ago.

Dick grew up in a mining town, the youngest of six children. His mother saw his academic prowess when he was an infant and vowed never to allow him to go down the mines. Instead, he became a schoolmaster. He was intelligent, gaining a master’s degree, which allowed him to develop real scope to his professional life. Through his career he worked in borstals, grammar schools, comprehensives and private schools. I remember Dick turning to a member of staff who declared to the world how stressed they were. He replied: “Stressed, he said, is when your life is threatened - not working at CCJS” (The Prep). His words could encourage but also keep those who shared his company grounded.

He would always allow a child to reinvent himself or herself and he would never write off anyone. A man, now in his forties, once told me how Dick had picked him at school over an England schoolboy cap who had not turned up to training. This boy was a 2nd XV player. Dick believed in him and his career took off – eventually playing for Moseley – a professional club.

When he took over the rugby at The Prep, he inherited a flagging system that needed an overhaul. Within a couple of years, The Prep was taking on and beating Millfield and The Dragon on a regular basis. His time in charge is remembered by ex pupils as their halcyon days on the rugby field.

One summer’s morning at 7am, I caught Dick on the field staring out to Leckhampton Hill. I asked him if he was ok. He looked at me and stated how lucky we were to work at such a fantastic school with such lovely children. Dick taught me to enjoy the present and not look too far to the future: teaching was a vocation, not a job where you climb the greasy pole. Dick was Chairman of the Youth Section of the Old Patesians RFC for years, fostering a healthy relationship between the school and club.

Dick leaves his wife Ann, son Chris, and daughter Annette, as well as five fantastic grandchildren that he would wax lyrical about - just as he would about your children." - Mr M. Dawson

Remembrance Service


Letter from the LibraryThank you to all those that entered the book recommendation competition. We had some great entries that are now on display in the library.

The winners were:Year 3: Raif Nelson Year 4: Tulliah ShawYear 5: Sydney FairsYear 6: Eva de Quincey Adams Among the books recommended were;

from Middle School: Demon Dentist by David Walliams, Percy Jackson by Rick

Riordan, Millions by Frank Cottrell Boyce, Murder most Unladylike by Robin Stevens and Aldophus Tips by Michael Morpurgo

from Lower School: Matilda, The Twits and Danny Champion of the World by Roald Dahl, Football Academy by Tom Palmer and non fiction books such as the See Inside series published by Usborne.

Thank you also to everyone who supported the book fair this week; it was a great success!

Headmaster's CommendationsHarry Dawson

for a detailed and professional looking leaflet on rusting

Archie McNeill for a very scientific account of rusting investigation

Freya Wood for fantastic detail in her rusting investigation write up

Jude Richardsonfor producing excellent artwork before Half Term

Felix Taceyfor producing a beautifully sensitive drawing in Art and being a keen Art Enthusiast

Alice Wheatleyfor fantastic reading and for her detailed comments in her Reading Record

Theodore Nelson, Poppy Watkins, Autumn Conner, Sky Jamieson and Alice Wheatleyfor excellent work on frog life-cycles in Biology

Timur Kazakovfor completing extra work at home and then bringing it in to school to show staff and pupils

Archie McNeill, Aidan Portch, Isobelle Mace, Benjamin Cunningham, Charlie Butlerfor their excellent Geography prep

Florence Piggottfor her independent Geography project work

Thomas Hillman-Cooperfor an outstanding firework poem, which he wanted to finish during break


House Art CompetitionAutumn Leaves

One of the things that most concerns me when choosing the subject for the House Art competition is choosing something that children aged 7 through to 13 will find relevant, interesting and accessible enough that they feel able to take part with confidence. 'Autumn Leaves' seemed appropriate in so many ways. However, I could not have anticipated the level of creative ideas, original use of materials and genuine skill, as exhibited by so many of our pupils this Half Term. Any misgivings I might have had about coming back to school after two weeks' holiday were immediately dashed as the first piece of artwork arrived at 07.45. It was a genuine thrill to receive such heartwarming, beautiful things on that Monday morning, from an Autumnal Orb to dress designs and from rockets to hot air balloons. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing from the children how ideas were born and made, holiday stories, involvement of grannies and grandads, aunties, uncles and "Mum's best friend". Just fabulous!

There were 121 entries, a huge improvement on the 36 we had in 2014. The standard was also very high. One look at the displays makes me feel like putting on a hat 'n' scarf and going outside to eat a hot dog. Autumn has arrived! My favourite season.

Once counted and displayed the difficult task of grading and marking the work began. There were three criteria: creative ideas, commitment to the task and skills shown. Each carried 5 points, maximum 15 points total.

Needless to say, there were many with the same mark of 12, in this case, if no one had a higher mark, I brought in Mrs Bond to mark independently those with the same score. The individual results will be announced in Assembly on Monday. But this was a House Competition. the House with the most entries wins... well done Persia!

Many thanks to all who took part, well done, everyone surpassed themselves. All should be proud.

Mrs A. Parsley, Head of Art

""

A selection of entries as the winners have not been announced yet


Don't miss out - book the Years 5-8 Ski Trip now!

During the Easter holidays, Years 5-8 Prep pupils will have the chance to jet off to Ponte di Legno in Italy for a week of fun in the snow! Don't miss out on this fabulous opportunity for your child to travel in Europe and develop adventure sporting skills.

Flying out to the Italian slopes, and staying at the 4* Hotel Mirella, Ponte di Legno, pupils will have the chance to learn new or develop existing skiing skills. In addition, we'll be making the most of the resort's swimming pool, enjoying a movie night and a pizza night - amongst various other entertainment.

"What I love about skiing is the mountain-fresh air! Being in breathtaking surroundings with friends makes this kind of holiday a truly memorable experience!" - Ms A. Duggan. The trip will take place 19 - 26 March 2016 and will cost £975 per child, with flights, accommodation, food, ski pass and equipment hire included. To secure a place for your child, a deposit payment of £250 is required ASAP. Book now for a place - they are limited and the booking period is running out!

For more information, or to book, please see Ms Duggan in classroom 2D in Kingfishers, or email [email protected].


KingfishersHoses At The Ready!

The children in the Cottage decided that they wanted to be well prepared for Bonfire Night so were all at the ready with their fire engines. They had a focus on fire safety throughout the week and their art work included some wonderful firework paintings.

On Friday afternoon, Lower School was filled with the excited buzz of 16 Kingfishers and Lower School children who had assembled for a challenging afternoon of chess.

The Kingfishers children enjoyed some coaching on a 1:1 basis from a member of the more experienced Lower School and consolidated their knowledge of how the pieces move and game strategy.Finally, the competitions were held; one for Kingfishers and one for Lower Schoolers. The children were focused and it was impressive to see their concentration, as if practising for a real chess congress.

After several rounds, the finalists of both sections emerged. These were: Harry Richardson and Felix Warr for Lower School and Monty Campbell Black and Michael Warr for Kingfishers. After an epic battle on both boards, the champions arose victorious. Well done to Felix and Michael for winning their respective tournaments.

Well done to all those who took part in our Autumn Chess Challenge. We look forward to inviting all of those who want to get involved with ‘pushing the wood’ in our next tournament.


Lower SchoolRoad to RioThis term, Lower School pupils have already started looking ahead to the 2016 Olympic Games, to be hosted in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. For this Olympic Games, there will be 42 sports and the pupils have been busy taking photos of themselves participating in as many of the sports as possible. Some photos are here, but visit the entrance hall in Lower School to view the sports on

show. Any parent from Years 3 and 4 still keen to take part, please email photos to [email protected] to help fill the board by the end of term.

Goededag from The Netherlands!

Lower School have been lucky enough to have some special visitors this week, all the way from The Netherlands. These Dutch students have been teaching us lots of interesting new things:In Year 4 we have been learning about famous Dutch people. We heard about Dick Bruna, a famous Dutch author, who has written the Miffy books since 1955, and Johan Cruyff, a famous soccer player. He played for Ajax, Barcelona and Los Angeles! We also heard about Willem van Oranje (William of Orange), a founding father. He stood up against the Roman Emperor and fought for the rights of the Dutch people.

The visitors taught us some fun games to play outside, then Year 3 learnt all about Dutch culture, songs and their language. We even learnt some new words. Can you guess what they mean?

"Hallo" "Goedemorgen" "Dank je" "Welkom!"


Shakespeare Schools Festival

The Shakespeare Schools Festival casts of Year 6 and Year 8 Prep pupils entertained an audience of three hundred people this week at Cheltenham’s Everyman Theatre, with their abridged productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Comedy of Errors. They performed with two other local schools who, in turn, showed Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet: four abridged plays in one night!

The Year 6 actors and actresses, directed by Miss Anderes and performing A Midsummer Night’s Dream, were the youngest cast throughout the evening. The SSF coordinator commented “the world of the fairies was wonderful all the way through, with what is a very young cast. You brought out the characters, had lots of enthusiasm and created the comedy well, which is very difficult. There was a youthful vibrancy to the whole production and you were clearly having fun. I loved the 1960s music soundtrack. It was absolutely wonderful.”

The Year 8 group, directed by Mrs Douglas, performed The Comedy of Errors, which is a play that is rarely seen due to the extremely complicated and chaotic storyline. It is difficult to achieve with clarity and sense, but the plot can be

It has been, as always, a fabulous experience for all of the pupils! To have rehearsed and produced a play, participated in cast workshops with National Theatre actors and then to be able to perform in a professional theatre with all their staff, equipment and expertise, is an experience that our pupils will never forget.

At the end of the show, the area festival coordinator addressed the audience to give a critique of each play performed. She was very complimentary about both of the Prep productions!


made clearer by clever costuming and props. Our comments from the SSF co-ordinator were equally pleasing for this group! “You told the story with such energy and gusto," the coordinator said. "You made all the

relationships very clear whilst clarifying what is an extremely difficult story. This play is not performed very often and it was lovely to see something different shown as part of the festival. The clever use of simple props and super costumes was inspiring and really added to the fun of the show. I loved the mix of girls playing boys and boys playing girls as that added to the comedy, as well as the Hollywood-style music that enhanced the story brilliantly.”

If you missed the show, don't panic! There is a chance for anyone who missed this event to come and see it on the last morning of term when both plays will be performed to pupils and staff in the Assembly Hall.

Congratulations to all the pupils involved as they worked extremely hard and should be proud of their achievements!


Family Fireworks Night

Thanks to all the pupils, parents, friends and staff who joined us this Saturday to enjoy an evening of hotdogs and fireworks! The Friends of the Prep put on a great do, and we all enjoyed being wrapped up in wellies and scarves.


TEAM OPPOSITION DATE SCORE RESULTU9A Dean Close 7 Nov 1 – 4 LOSTU9B Dean Close 7 Nov 1 – 1 DREWU10A Dean Close 7 Nov 5 – 0 WONU10B Dean Close 7 Nov 2 – 0 WONU11A Dean Close 7 Nov 0 – 2 LOST1st VII Dean Close 7 Nov 1 – 2 LOST2nd VII Dean Close 7 Nov 0 – 3 LOST3rd VII Dean Close 7 Nov 1 – 5 LOST4th VII Dean Close 7 Nov 3 – 6 LOST5th VII Dean Close 7 Nov 0 – 3 LOST

Team of the Week – U10A

Horizontal rain lashing down, the wind swirling, sending the leaves dancing across the pitch to a backdrop of dark grey sky... This was the scene as the U10A’s unleashed a devastating storm of hockey on Dean Close, winning this local derby with some style! Dominant and hardworking until the final whistle we played assertive hockey, with each player confident and effective in her role within the team. Our collective mojo is well and truly back – well done team!

For news, fixtures and

updates, follow us on Twitter!

@cheltprepgirls

TEAM OPPOSITION DATE SCORE RESULTU10A Prior Park A Team 11 Nov 1 – 1 DREWU10B Prior Park A Team 11 Nov 0 – 2 LOSTU11A Abberley Hall 11 Nov 5 – 4 WONU11B Abberley Hall 11 Nov 2 – 0 WON1st VII Abberley Hall 11 Nov 2 – 2 DREW2nd VII Prior Park 1st VII 11 Nov 1 – 4 LOST3rd VII Abberley Hall 2nd VII 11 Nov 3 – 6 LOST 4th VII Abberley Hall 3rd VII 11 Nov 1 – 0 WON5th VII Abberley Hall 3rd VII 11 Nov 0 – 2 LOST

Team of the Week – U11B

U11B played a good game. They were determined, speedy in their decision making and kept a fast pace on the pitch. It was very pleasing to see them playing more of the width of the pitch, and whilst there was still some inclination to bunch around the ball once they sent it wide, things started to happen. Once again, they tried to make sure that someone was ahead of the ball carrier and passing was much more effective. There was strong determination in both defence and attack; had we had players on the posts, widening the goal, we could possibly have scored a couple more times. This is the next area that we need to work on.

Staff v Year 8 Girls Hockey By Freya Coull (Hockey Captain) and Fionnuala Dowling-Membrado, both Year 8

On Wednesday night we had the staff v pupil hockey match and it was a pretty tense experience. All of the spectators were cheering on the better team (the pupils). The staff only won because of Mr Whybrow’s psyching words of wisdom but the pupils were definitely better. The match was very close and the staff won 3-1 and we all had great fun.

Girls' Sports


U13 IAPS

Last week, eight Upper School girls travelled to Epsom for an overnight stay in preparation for their IAPS competition. Not able to go to our usual venue, we knew the competition in the London area would be fierce. The girls rose to the challenge both mentally and physically over the course of the day and, heartbreakingly, finished only one goal away from reaching the National Finals. After qualifying from the group stages with some fantastic, disciplined and flowing hockey, they met Danes Hill in the quarter finals, a large prep school in London more than double our size. We went 2-0 down but remained calm and got back into the game with a brilliant team goal that started right at the back with a defensive 16 yard hit out. The Prep girls were gaining control of the game and had the Danes Hill defence under huge pressure, but unfortunately they ran out of time and the score finished 1 – 2. The girls learned a huge amount from the IAPS experience and they really bonded as a team. They were an absolute credit to the school.

Well done to our young swimmers, particularly Year 3, who competed in their first gala last week. They swam extremely well and were rewarded with an emphatic 157-101 win over local rivals, Dean Close. Hopefully our Year 5 – Year 8 swimmers can get a similar result against Prior Park this week.

Future Gala dates to note this term –

Thursday 19 November: Years 4-6 v Clifton High School (Away)Thursday 26 November: Years 3-5 v Beaudesert (Away)Thursday 26 November: Years 6-8 v Dean Close (Away)

Swimming


Boys' Sports

TEAM OPPONENT RESULT SCORE1st XV Dean Close 1st XV Lost 5-312nd XV Dean Close 2nd XV Won 24-103rd X Dean Close 3rd X Lost 15-324th X Dean Close 4th X Lost 20-40U11A Dean Close U11A Won 20-5U11B Dean Close U11B Won 15-5U11C Dean Close U11C Lost 20-30U10A Dean Close U10A Lost 10-25U10B Dean Close U10B Lost 10-20U10C Dean Close U10C Won 45-30U9A Dean Close U9A Won 50-0U9B Dean Close U9A Lost 5-15U9C Dean Close U9B Won 40-20U8s Dean Close U8s Festival formatU13 VII Severnside 7s Semi FinalistsU12 VII Severnside 7s Semi FinalistsU11A Severnside Tournament Joint WinnersU10A Severnside Tournament Plate WinnersU10BC Down’s Festival Festival U11BC Down’s Festival Festival

Team of the Week – The U9B v Dean Close U9A – lost 5-15

Over the last few weeks the U9B team have found themselves punching well above their “official” weight category. Due to the strength of the side, they have entered all the recent festivals in the A team competition rather than the B team event and have not only competed, but thrived. They have beaten a number of other school’s A teams and even drew with the Dean Close A team at a previous festival.

On Saturday, a few players down due to illness and injury, they again took on the Dean Close A team and played some outstanding rugby. Defence was very tight throughout the game and a nail biting first half finished 5-5. In the second half a couple of quick fire Dean Close tries out wide took the game away from the The Prep boys, but we cannot fail to praise the commitment, determination and passion shown by the boys.

For news, fixtures and updates, follow us on Twitter!

@cheltprep_boys


Calendar

Sunday, 15 November 201513:30 Boarders' Ice Skating (Full and Regular Flexi-Boarders Only)

Monday 16 November 2015, Week 11 Cheltenham College 13+ (Year 8) Sports Scholarship (College)08:30 11+ (Year 6) Assessments (Internal Candidates)16:30 Pupils' Informal Concert (Lake House)

Tuesday 17 November 2015 Cheltenham College 13+ (Year 8) Sports Scholarship (College)08:30 11+ (Year 6) Assessments (Internal Candidates)13:30 Young Shakespeare Company Workshop: Romeo and Juliet for Lower School (Assembly Hall)

Wednesday 18 November 2015Fixtures12:45 Departure for Rugby v Abberley Hall (A): 2nd XV, U11A IX, Barbarians VIII. Start 14:30. Pick up 17:4514:30 Rugby v Abberley Hall (H): 1st XV, 3rd XV, U10A VIII. Pick up 16:3014:45 Hockey v St Edward's (H): U10A VII, U10B VII, U11A VII, U11B VII. Pick up 16:1516:00 Hockey v Pate's Grammar School (H): 1st VII, 2nd VII, 3rd VII, 4th VII. Pick up 17:30

Thursday 19 November 201515:30 Departure for Swimming Gala v Clifton High School (A): Years 4-6. Start 17:00. Pick up 19:1518:15 Parents' Meeting for parents of Year 8 pupils who sat Mock Scholarship Examinations

Friday 20 November 2015 Exeat begins: Boarders can depart, timings by prior arrangement13:00 Year 5 DCB Eagle Maths Challenge (Assembly Hall)14:15 Chapel (parents welcome)15:30 Exeat begins for children in Kingfishers (no after school care, activites or tea)15:30 Rugby v Bournside (H) U12A. Kick off 15:30 • Pick up 17:0016:00 Exeat begins for children in Lower School (no after school care, activites or tea)16:15 Exeat begins for children in Middle and Upper School (no after school care, activites or tea)

Sunday 22 November 201510:00 The Cheltonian Association and Society Christmas

All changes and additions to the School Calendar appear in pink.


NOTICES

Sebastian Mawdesley-Thomas 7

Tiger Shaw 7

Emily Lopez 10

Happy Birthday to the following pupils next

week!

School Uniform Shop

The school uniform shop term-time opening hours are:

Tuesday 13.30 to 15.30 Wednesday 15.30 to 17.00

We are happy to receive email enquiries, as it is not always possible to get to the shop.

We are also happy to accept clean uniform in good condition for sale.

Santa Family Fun Run 11.00 - 12.00 on Sunday 6 December 2015

Will you run and raise money for Gloucestershire Bundles?

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Prep for the Week Issue 1810

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