A round-up of Autumn Term
This has been another Term full of different activities and experiences. The children and parents that joined us in September have been fully welcomed with open arms and now feel like they are a fully-fledged member of the family and the feeling of community continues to flow strongly.
I would like to take this moment to reflect on the many memorable academic pursuits, together with great success in the arts and other areas of the school.
Academic
In academic terms, the pupils have been concentrated and applied; always in good spirits and with smiles on their faces. In every classroom, there has been a great deal of endeavour and the assessment weeks were successfully prepared for and calmly navigated by all.
Previous to half term we had two events which were excellent and worthy of recording here. The first took place across the whole school and all pupils took part in the Annual Poetry Recital. One pupil from each year group was then nominated to perform their poem on stage and a huge well done to those who performed and won overall.
This was followed by our STEAM week which was an amazing experience for the pupils in many ways. During the week the children were often heard talking excitedly about trips to the Science Museum, visiting scientists who made them jump from loud experiments and learning how to build a sturdy tower out of household objects. The children also painted a firework display which is now hanging in the playground was a great success and an apt reminder of time well spent.
The Term ended with the now customary house general knowledge competition which was closely contested once again. My thanks to all who took part with such enthusiasm and there was no shortage of excellent general knowledge.
Sport
Once again, the P.E. teachers managed to create a term which was full of fixtures, training matches, training and new experiences.
The boys have had a successful term in their competitive inter-school matches and the results read out in our final assembly on Thursday morning were very pleasing; there are some strong players coming through the ranks. The girls continue to show an improvement in netball with further excellent displays and we are looking forward to this area continues to develop as the younger years move on up through the school. It has also been a pleasure seeing the girls taking part in football in greater numbers and I look forward to their becoming more involved in the years to come.
As we know the swimming team, at all levels, are doing superbly well and they continue to impress. This Term the school entered teams into the ISA Swimming Championships for the first time and they did very well indeed, returning with a great haul of gold medals, both individual and team. At the inter-school level we continue to dominate and in this year’s London League the swimmers won an amazing 41 out of 46 races.
Art
Ms. Tabuchi has continued to stretch and inspire the children in Art and Design. The art which the pupils are producing looks wonderful and I always greatly enjoy stopping and chatting to the children about their work when I am on my rounds. They are always completely engaged and they never fail to impress. The Art Scholarship Classes continue to be well attended and the students are making excellent progress, as ever. My congratulations to all of the students within this group who are really producing some wonderful and advanced pieces.
Music and Performance
It has been a busy term for the Music Department, culminating in the many Nativities and Carol Services which have been staged during the last two weeks. The Chamber Choir’s recent performances at the Chelsea Pensioners and the Lullaby Concert were memorable, as were the concerts here at school. I am also delighted that so many of our children are engaged in learning an instrument and that we see this translated into the many different musical groups within Eaton Square. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the School Orchestra on Wednesday night who played very well indeed, as I did to the soloists and many choral singers.
Trips and Visits
The Autumn term is not one where we take a residential excursion but that does not mean that we do not get the children out and about. We have had many day trips to places of interest within London and I am always very proud to hear back from the staff (and often members of the public too) how well the pupils have behaved and what excellent ambassadors they are for the school. The visits have naturally linked the curriculum and they really help to reinforce all that we are trying to teach. I must thank the parent helpers who have volunteered to accompany these trips; it is always such a pleasure for us to have your assistance. If not going out to experience different things we have also had visitors to deliver to the children. As ever, these events have been excellent.
I trust that you will have an enjoyable and peaceful Christmas break with your families and I very much look forward to seeing you in the New Year.
With best wishes,
