Out and About

Clair Foster, Head of Lower Prep, is pleased that co-curricular trips, enrichment and fun are in abundance on the timetable

As we know, the last few years haven't exactly been normal. So it is lovely to see all trips and events returning to Harrodian life. They are so vital, not only to reinforce the learning we do in the classroom. Let's face it, it is these visits that children always remember! But they also allow the year groups to have fun together and bond in a way that is entirely different. Interests are shared, memories made, and friendships forged.

Joining the 8s (Year 4) is an important milestone year for many of our children, as they transition from the Pre-Prep into the Prep School. We also welcomed 24 new children from outside Harrodian into the year group. There have been many opportunities for the children to get to know each other, a trip to the Colourscape Festival in September was just one of these. The children really enjoyed the immersive nature of the Colourscape tunnels and sharing the sensual effects of colour, art and music.  For those who may have missed it, please find a link below to some more photos of the 8s trip to Colourscape below.

More recently our 8s also enjoyed a trip to Gillian Lynne Theatre to see a stage production of C.S. Lewis's The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Their experience of the magic of Narnia was a delight to see! They experienced every emotion with the actors and were absolutely stunned when the White Witch vanished at the end.

Meanwhile back on site, our 9s pupils (Year 5) enjoyed a space workshop led by Dr Gareth Francis, from Working Science, below. He brought in telescopes, models of rockets, samples of meteorites and dry ice and wowed the children with his vast knowledge of the solar system. The children had a wealth of questions as he showed them a large selection of photos and there were some fascinating discussions, mainly about black holes and other possible forms of life. Dr Francis showed them how the sun weighs down on the solar system, meaning that planets closer to the sun have a faster orbit. He also froze various items using the dry ice to demonstrate the temperature on Mars. 

We were also delighted to be invited back to Bradfield College to take part in their annual Prep School Science Challenge, below. Miss Morrow took four very excited members of the 9s – Athena, Oscar, Arsen and Tiffany – and they worked together to complete a series of challenges. They were set a biology task to observe the behaviour of maggots, followed by the examination of three different leaf samples using a microscope. For physics, the group made a speaker and were able to blast Ed Sheeran across the lab! The final chemistry challenge involved handling a range of different substances and carrying out a fair test to reduce the temperature of a liquid to zero. All the tasks required application of their knowledge and strong communication and organisation skills. Whilst Harrodian didn't win, it was still a wonderful event to be part of. The afternoon was rounded off by an excellent demonstration of 'magic' liquids and a delicious tea. 

Our 10s pupils (Year 6) are studying poetry from the First World War as part of their English unit on historical fiction. To bring the poems to life, the children participated in a 'Poetry and Poppies' Drama Workshop run by a group called 'West End in Schools,' below. Part history, part literature and part drama, the workshop investigated the people of the Great War and their stories and during the session the children created scenes that weaved together poetry, interviews with soldiers, and personal accounts from the different people involved.

Our 10s also enjoyed visiting Kew Gardens and were able to take advantage of glorious sunshine outdoors!  The trip was a chance to consolidate their learning in Science and Geography about plant adaptations in certain climates. They visited the rock garden where certain characteristics of plants were pointed out and the children were shown how and why plants had adapted in certain ways. There was lots of discussion about how plants can survive in extreme conditions, how they've adapted to allow for reproduction and how they can defend themselves against predators. 

The children also visited the evolution garden and were shown examples of some of the earliest species of plants and their features, thinking about how plants adapted to reproduce before the existences of pollinators. They spent time examining the spores on ferns with magnifying glasses and thinking about wind dispersal techniques. They also had to sequence a selection of plants (some flowering, some non flowering) in chronological order and give reasons for their answers.

They also visited the Princess of Wales conservatory to look at carnivorous plants such as pitcher plants and Venus fly traps. The adaptations of the enormous lily pads sparked lots of interest and the children enjoyed seeing a variety of different cacti and learning how they survive in such harsh conditions. Finally, the Palm House was full of tropical plants all boasting a myriad of different everyday uses as well as a range of different adaptations. One of the highlights involved seeing a Mimosa plant in action: curling up to protect itself against any nearby threat. It was a fantastic day; some children were even overheard saying that 'plants are really cool!' 

And if that wasn't enough, some of our Prep pupils (9s - 11s) have been working hard after school to gain their Level 1/Level 2 national standard for cycle training.

With all the excitement and hard work so far this term, it goes without saying that we are all ready for the half-term! I hope everyone has a wonderful break and look forward to welcoming the children back on Tuesday 25 October.