The Prep Times June 2014

June 2014

The Prep Times We are fast approaching the end of this academic year and, as I write this introduction, I can’t help thinking of the many events we are holding over the next few weeks. Please see the “dates for your diary” section at the end of this newsletter and I look forward to our School community gathering for some wonderful times. My thoughts are very much with those leaving this year and, in particular, I would like to wish John Clark and Christine Winn a very happy final few weeks – both have been such a huge help to me during my first year at Birkenhead School.

It was great last month to see Year 6 arriving back from their PGL Adventure, full of exciting stories of their amazing week. I am very proud of what our Year 6 pupils have achieved during their time in Prep and they have been great ambassadors for the School. They are now engrossed in rehearsals for their forthcoming production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” (June 25th to June 27th), which promises to be a huge hit. Tickets are selling fast and this is a show not to be missed, so don’t forget to book!

Although The Prep Times can’t cover everything, we hope it gives you a glimpse of some of the great things that have been happening in Prep. I have thoroughly enjoyed my first full academic year here and it has been a privilege to see our pupils thriving in all that they undertake. It never ceases to amaze me how enthusiastic, polite and confident our pupils are.

I wish everyone a fulfilling and enjoyable end to this School year.

Inside this issue

BSNFC Hairdressing P2

Year 1 do like to be beside the seaside…

P3

Air Raid Attack P4

Visitors from across the Atlantic

P5

PGL P6

Charity netball match P7

Prep hits the slopes P8

Joseph P9

HAC Dates for 2014 P10

Dates for your diary P11

Issue 4

Shelter Box

With Mr FitzHerbert’s

blessing, enterprising Year 4

pupils Amy Gaskell, Isabella

Heckstall-Smith and Abi

Walker sold bracelets,

bookmarks and other novelty

items. They were raising

money for the charity

ShelterBox. The girls

learned about the work of

the charity at their cub pack

meetings (a part of the 20th

Birkenhead Scout

Group). ShelterBox provides

basic survival equipment in

boxes to support

communities around the

world which have become

overwhelmed by disaster or

humanitarian crises. Over

the week, the trio raised the

fantastic sum of £121.25!

Prep Orchestra keeps on growing!

On Thursday 8th May, Prep Orchestra performed incredibly well in the Birkenhead School Summer Concert in Bushell Hall.

A total of 58 children from Years 3 to 6 are now members of Prep Orchestra. The two newest members, Aaliah Barwick (4BC) and Jessica Rooney (3DT), had only joined a week before the concert, but were able to take part in the performance because of their musical ability and hard work.

Prep Orchestra opened the concert with three pieces:

‘C side Rock!’, ‘Side Tracked’ and ‘Movie Buster’. Having been committed to attending weekly rehearsals, all the children played to the best of their ability.

Later in the programme, the Year 5 Choir sang two songs: ‘Believe’ and ‘The Harmony Blues’. The children sang their hearts out and their performance was praised highly by many who attended.

Distinction for Aaliah

Congratulations to all those children who were successful in this term’s Associated Board Music Exams. Special congratulations go to Aaliah Barwick who passed her Grade 2 Piano Exam with an amazing 143 marks, an impressively high Distinction.

H. FitzHerbert

Head of Prep

Jessica Rooney & Aaliah Barwick

All the children took part in a survey to tell us

their favourite supermarket…and the winner is

Tesco!

Leanne got a deep conditioning

treatment from Jemima Travers

The Nursery and Fun Club children are

‘cutting it’ as freelance hairdressers

Supermarket Sweep!

Page 2 The Prep Times

Sophia, Lottie, Tara and Riya

add the finishing touches to

Sue’s hair make-over

BSNFC Hairdressing is the newest salon around, as our staff found out during a recent visit to our role play hair salon. The children enjoyed trying out their creative skills and giving the staff some new hair styles, as you can see from the photographs.

A re-style for Nicky

by Lily Hardy

Busy morning for Darlia…’beep beep’

All checkouts are needed!

I will pay by card

Bye, Bye.

Thank you.

Another satisfied customer at Pre-Prep

Leanne said, “thank you

Jemima, my hair feels

really silky now.”


Chester Zoo

Year 1 travelled back in time

via the Maritime Museum to

find out all about holidays in the

past. Taking part in a seaside

workshop, they learnt how to

get ready for their Victorian

holiday, spring cleaning and

preparing a picnic. It was then

time to journey to the beach

where they played traditional

seaside games, dressed up in

Victorian beach wear and

visited the souvenir shops. In

the afternoon, after touring the

museum, the children were

able to practise their

observational drawing skills

using some of the maritime art

work and models on display.

On Tuesday 20th May, the Reception children and

staff went on a wonderful day out to Chester Zoo.

They attended an informative session called ‘Me,

You and Animals too.’ This gave them the

opportunity to look at many animal artefacts and

to learn more about the animals around them. The

classes then got an opportunity to explore the zoo

which has over 11000 animals and 400 different

species. A fantastic day was had by all. The

Reception staff and children would like to thank all

the parents who helped on the trip.

Zach, RGM, said, “I

loved seeing the

cheetahs as they can

run so fast!”

Year 1 do like to be beside the seaside…

Miss Lee commented, “The children had a wonderful day,

but most decided that holidays in the past would be too

much hard work.”

Conrad Baker, 1L, said, “I

really enjoyed relaxing in

the deck chair.”

Marvellous Mini beasts

The Reception children, staff and KS1 Science Club were delighted to welcome Professor

Hurst and his team to Birkenhead School earlier this term. Professor Hurst is a Professor of

Evolutionary Genetics/Biology at Liverpool University as well as an entomologist. The team

helped the children to search for and observe mini beasts in the School grounds using various

scientific apparatus. The hunt led to some fascinating discoveries including a solitary bee nest

site. The afternoon was enjoyed by all. The children and staff involved would like to thank

Professor Hurst and his team for an amazing afternoon full of mini beast encounters.

“I really liked the mini-beast hunt. My favourite mini-beasts are ladybirds,” said Faith, RGM


Air Raid Attack

During the Lent term, Year 3 studied the

Caribbean in their Geography

lessons. They learned about climate,

people, physical features, industry,

tourism and agriculture. The topic

culminated in a ‘Caribbean Week’, when

pupils tasted exotic Caribbean fruit,

carried out a pantry survey, made

banana bread and wore their Caribbean

T-shirts for the day.

Jacob Wilson, 3B, said,

“I will be wearing mine

when I go on holiday!”

A taste of the Caribbean

On March 13th 2014, the Year 2 children and 6 adults boarded a coach and headed over to the Maritime

Museum in Liverpool. Brimming with excitement, they entered the room through an arch of singing ladies.

Unsure of where the activity was going to be heading, the children settled quietly in front of a 'front room'

stage, inspired by the styles from WWII.

After listening to Chamberlain's famous declaration of war speech, the children were heavily involved in

re-enacting what life was like for a family during the war. Most of the children had the opportunity to come to

the stage and help pack a bag, use the equipment to put out small fires and to be part of a family involved in

the effects of war.

They were also able to see and be part of how evacuees were housed in the countryside and the types of

jobs they had to do. Some were selected for the manual labour of the farms and others for the maids of the

manor houses.

The climax of the day was when an 'air

raid siren' pierced the air. The children

quickly followed instructions to duck

down and protect themselves from the

'falling debris'. The ladies’ group that

provides this service have been doing

so for the last 25 years and are

sharing their real life experiences with

the children.

Caspar, 2A, said, "When the

air raid siren went off it was

scary and felt real!"

Y3 pupils wearing their colourful, Caribbean themed

T-shirts, designed and created during their DT lessons

Miss Lizy Lord, a final year student from the USA,

completed her teaching practice in great style. She had

worked with pupils in Years 3, 4 and 6 and the last day

of her four month visit was on Friday 9th May. Before she

jetted off back to the US, she arranged for her family to

“come visit.” Pupils in 4B met her two brothers and her

mum and dad, who all shared facts about various cities

in the USA. Each group had to produce a poster and

then present it to the rest of the class. They learnt a

huge amount and thoroughly enjoyed having visitors

from across the Atlantic.


Visitors from across the Atlantic

Beyond Words

Kresten, 4B, said, “I learnt that

Madison is the capital of Wisconsin

state and it is famous for its

cheese!”

Mr FitzHerbert, who

presented Jack’s award

in assembly, commented,

“We are all very proud of

Jack. He is an example to

anyone with dyslexia and

I am delighted that he has

achieved this award.”

Sam Janikiewicz, 4B, said, “I learnt

that Winona’s closest body of water is

the Mississippi River.”

Jack Doran entered the annual

national writing competition

organised by the British Dyslexia

Association to celebrate

Dyslexia Awareness Week. The

theme of the competition was

'Beyond Words' and the judges

chose Jack's WW2 themed story

from many hundreds of entries.

Jack's story, which told of the

exploits of good friends Ginger

and Alfie, won him the Primary

age writing award.

Goodbye, Lizy

The annual Adventure Holiday invariably proves to be one of the highlights of the year for all Year 6 pupils and this

year’s excursion was no exception. Fifty nine pupils and their teachers all headed for the Lincolnshire countryside,

intent on thrills, spills, excitement, rest and relaxation. Apart from the rest and relaxation, all these things came to

pass. As Abi Saverimutto describes:

“The brave teachers who embarked on our adventure were: ‘The Mummy’ (Mrs Sewell), ‘The Heroic Mr Halpin’,

‘The Lovely Miss Lord’, ‘The Courageous Mr Corran’, and last, but definitely not least,

‘The Disco Diva’ (Mr Stockdale.)

Excited and disorganised, we headed to our rooms and, after dumping our bags, we raced for dinner. That night

our team leaders, Adam and Annette led ‘Wacky Races’ with us and off to bed we all went after a great start to our

week’s adventure!

The first morning we awoke, excited and ready for our first breakfast, having been split into five groups in time for

our different activities. Our Team Leader was Miss Lord and we were ‘The Unicorns!’ Our first activity was kayaking

and, though scared of capsizing, we carefully manoeuvred around the lake.”

Kayaking and raft building were two of the most popular activities, despite a couple of obvious drawbacks, as Tom

James describes…

“Many people capsized (including myself) and were soon freezing cold. Fortunately we all had showers in our

rooms so we could warm up. Unfortunately there was only one shower per room, so some of us stayed soggy for a

while.”

The non-stop nature of a PGL Adventure Holiday is summed up by the observations of Luke Crocker, who was later

presented with the ‘All Weather Cricketer’ award, for his services to cricket in adverse conditions.

“We usually played football and cricket on the field behind our rooms in between activities. It was fantastic fun

because the events were many and varied, and we always had a different instructor. Activities included high ropes

(walking around, seemingly a thousand feet in the air, on unsteady platforms!), fencing, survivor, archery, shooting

and much more. My favourites were abseiling, survivor, orienteering and, of course, high ropes, which I’m sure

everyone enjoyed (even those suffering from vertigo!)”

The Prep Times

PGL Caythorpe Court, Lincolnshire May 2014

Page 6

The final word on the week away comes from Abi …

“I can sum up my PGL experience in five words: Great,

Exciting, Different, Challenging and Fun! I loved every

second of it with my friends and teachers!”

Tom James, 6MS, commented, “From high

roping to archery, all the activities were

thoroughly enjoyed by the children. No

matter how scary or frightening, everyone

bravely accepted the challenges they faced.”

On Friday 21st March, Y6 Mums joined together to take on Y6 girls and teachers in a fiercely competitive netball match. Y6 girls helped with the preparations by making posters, banners and cakes and were all bursting with excitement about the event.

Many staff, pupils and parents stayed to spectate, and those who were less keen to play enjoyed the delicious cakes that were on sale.

The whistle blew and they were off….. Y6 girls were victorious in the first match, but the Mighty Mums came back to ‘narrowly’ defeat the staff in a match that had end-to-end thrills and spills. A fantastic way to end our most successful netball season ever and to top it off, £400 was raised for a local charity which supports children who have Down’s Syndrome.


Charity netball match

Emma, 6MS, said, “I can’t

stand still, I just can’t wait

to play against my Mum!”

Orienteering

The Orienteering Season ended on Saturday, 10th May, at Birkenhead Park. Congratulations to the Year 6 pupils who have taken part during the course of the year.

The following were presented with Certificates and Medals:

David Turner: Gold Medal at the Primary Schools Championships (certificate & medal), as well as certificate for successfully completing 5 events this season.

Aden Husseyn: Silver Medal at the Primary Schools Championships (certificate & medal), as well as certificate for successfully completing 6 events this season.

Grace Harvey: Certificate for competing in the Primary Schools Championships, as well as certificate for successfully completing 5 events this season.

Matthew Palmer: Certificate for competing in the Primary Schools Championships.

Nicholas Johnson: Certificate for competing in the Primary Schools Championships.

Samarth Kumar: Certificate for competing in the Primary Schools Championships.

Congratulations also to Cameron Brown, Maddie Unsworth,

Lexi Jones, Erin Coughlan, and Abi Saverimutto for their

contributions to the sport this year.

Aden Husseyn proud of his silver medal

in the Primary School Championships

During the recent Easter holidays, six brave teachers accompanied 42 enthusiastic (but slightly

nervous) pupils to the popular resort of Alpe D’Huez in France, for the inaugural Prep Ski Trip.

With children ranging from age 9 to 12 and experience ranging from ‘expert’ to ‘beginner’, there was

a refreshing blend of excitement and anticipation.

The week ran smoothly and the children were allocated ‘Ski-School’ groups with enthusiastic French

instructors, covering everything from the basics on the Nursery Slopes, to 180 degree turns in the

Snow Park.

A well run hotel ensured that everyone ate well and had sufficient fuel for their skiing, even catering

for Mr Corran’s caffeine addiction. The hotel also provided the evening entertainment and this proved

a great hit with BPS pupils; particular highlights included a games evening and a disco night.

After an exhausting week, all children returned home safely, having learnt something not only about

their skiing skills, but also about themselves and their resilience. It is fair to say that all children

thoroughly enjoyed themselves and were a credit to Birkenhead School.

The Prep Times

Prep hits the slopes

Page 8

Novice skier, Sasha Petrenko, 5B,

remarked, “My instructor, Michelle, was

great and I really enjoyed learning how

to ski; I can’t wait to try it again soon.”

The teachers

Excited pupils on their first night


Matthew plays at Goodison Park

Matthew Diaz-Rainey, 6S, completed an amazing season with Wirral

School Boys’ Under 11 Football team in the Barnet Shieldhouse Cup

Final at Goodison Park on 21st May.

This was the team’s best ever season, with the boys achieving five

trophy wins this year. Their final game at Everton’s world famous home

was against Huyton and they drew 1-1 to share the shield.

The Wirral School Boys Under 11 trophy cabinet now holds the

Pennine League Cup, the Merseyside League Cup, the Airbus Cup, the

Tranmere Cup and The Barnet Shieldhouse Cup. What a season!

Matthew has also just completed his third successful season with Tran-mere Rovers FC academy. He was top scorer for the Under 11s with 27 goals. Congratulations, Matthew!

Playing for Wirral Schoolboys has been a big

commitment for Matthew, but he has loved

every minute of it and despite being exhaust-

ed after the Goodison Park match, he said, “I

want to do it all over again!”

Matthew pictured here with the Merseyside

League Cup and the Barnet Shield

The Prep Times Page 10

HAC Dates for 2014

Lunch included Before and after care Childcare vouchers accepted

Book online www.birkenheadschool.co.uk/holiday-courses

For a brochure or enquiries call 0151 651 3095 Email [email protected]

SUMMER

7th-11th July

14th-18th July

21st-25th July

28th July-1st August

4th-8th August

11th-15th August

18th-22nd August

OCTOBER HALF-TERM

20th-24th October

27th-31st October

—–———————————

BRAND NEW

FOR 2014 —–———————————

Graphic Design

5 Day Water Sports

Young Adventurer Master Chef

Book now to avoid disappointment !

The Prep Times Page 11

Dates for your diary:

Thursday 12 June 2014 Reception Parents' Evening

Tuesday 17 June 2014 13:00 Infants Sports Day

Thursday 19 June 2014 12:00 Junior Prep Sports' Day

Friday 20 June 2014 18:00 Parents' Association Prep Disco for Years 2-6, Bushell Hall

Sunday 22 June 2014 12:00 Parents' Association: Summer Fête/Midsummer Madness (ends 3pm)

Monday 23 June 2014 Year 3 Visit to Port Sunlight Village

Wednesday 25 June 2014 Prep Induction Day

19:00 Year 6 Production 'Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'

Thursday 26 June 2014 14:00 Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 Summer Performance - Little School Playground


Friday 27 June 2014 14:00 Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 Summer Performance - Little School Playground


Tuesday 1 July 2014 14:00 Pre-Prep Summer Performance - Prep Hall

19:00 Prep Prize-giving, Bushell Hall, Prizegiver: Dr Julia Moore OBE

Wednesday 2 July 2014 Reports issued to Prep

11:45 Prep End of Term

Thursday 28 August 2014 Staff Training Day – School closed to pupils

Friday 29 August 2014 Staff Training Day – School closed to pupils

Monday 1 September 2014 08:30 Term Starts

Documents

The Prep Times June 2014