Head’s Welcome – Mrs Owen, Head of Prep
With only one week to go before the half-term break, things have not slowed down in school, and lots has happened this week as usual. Of particular note is the Year 2 Football Festival which took place on Tuesday, involving all our Year 2 pupils as well as many more children from several local primary schools. The event was masterminded by Emily, our Year 13 Community Prefect, and I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate her publicly for her outstanding organisation and commitment, alongside the other Senior School pupils who coached the Year 2 pupils for the afternoon. Thanks must also go to Kettering Town Football Club for their support of the event and, of course, to their mascot for making an appearance!
I have also had the pleasure this week of showing a number of prospective parents around the Prep School and it was lovely to hear their positive impressions of everything they saw and how happy our pupils are in school. An event that I would like to highlight for current parents is the Parental Forum taking place on Wednesday 15th October from 5pm-6pm in the Sixth Form Centre which will be an opportunity for you to help shape aspects of our new School Development Plan. You will have seen the letter earlier in the week from Mr Hawkes about this meeting, and if you would like to attend, please click here by Monday 13th October.
History Update – Chris Pickett, Head of History
Year 3
This half term, Year 3 have been diving into the fascinating topic of ‘Temples, Tombs and Treasures’, an exciting exploration of Ancient Egypt packed with historical intrigue. Pupils have taken part in a variety of hands-on and thought-provoking activities, from pinpointing Egypt on a map to investigating the lives of its rulers, uncovering the secrets behind pyramid construction, and learning how Egyptians communicated with hieroglyphics.
To help develop their understanding of how Egypt has changed over time, children have compared ancient and modern maps, identifying key differences between the Egypt of the past and the country as it is today.
The River Nile has played a central role in their learning. Using books, websites, and other resources, pupils have discovered why the Nile was so vital to everyday life in Ancient Egypt.
Creative tasks have brought the topic to life, including mummifying apples, exploring the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb and creating models of sarcophagi.
Pupils and teachers are looking forward to crafting mini mummies from popsicle sticks as the exit point for this topic.
Year 4
This term, Year 4 have been exploring the rich and delicious history of ‘Chocolate’ as part of their history learning. A key focus has been on developing an understanding of chronology, with pupils using timelines to trace the journey of chocolate—from its traditional use in ancient South American cultures to its discovery by Spanish explorers, and all the way to the global chocolate trade we know today.
Children have enjoyed creating large-scale timelines that stretch across the classroom, using their existing knowledge to place events in historical context and understand how one moment connects to another.
One of the highlights of the unit was a visit from a representative of Hotel Chocolat, who shared fascinating insights into how chocolate is made and the unique flavours and aromas that distinguish different varieties.
Excitement is building for the upcoming trip to Cadbury World, where pupils and staff alike are looking forward to seeing chocolate production in action.
Year 5
This half term, Year 5 have been travelling through time with their history topic, ‘Time Tunnel’. The unit began with an inspiring visit to Chester House Estate, where pupils explored how people have lived in the area from the Stone Age right through to the present day.
Back in the classroom, the focus has been on building a strong sense of chronology, with pupils learning about key periods in British history spanning the last 2,000 years. They’ve created detailed timelines and sharpened their enquiry and research skills by uncovering fascinating facts about different eras.
A highlight of the unit has been a cross-curricular project with the Computing Department, where pupils used Microsoft Sway to create interactive presentations showcasing their knowledge of historical periods.
Year 6
This half term, Year 6 have been delving into the ‘Build a Village’ topic in History, building on and expanding their understanding of chronology developed in previous years. Their journey began with constructing timelines of the key periods in the history of London.
Pupils then used visual sources to examine how towns and cities looked at different time periods. They honed their observational skills by noticing key features from each time period and then identified some of the significant changes that occurred between time periods. Finally, they considered the potential causes and consequences of these changes.
As part of a cross-curricular link with computing, pupils brought history to life by designing and constructing buildings from various time periods using Minecraft Education, reinforcing their historical knowledge through creative digital projects.
Reception Update – Katie Mason, Reception Teacher
The children in Reception have continued their learning over the last few weeks and have been busy learning lots of new things. They have enjoyed learning new sounds in phonics and have worked hard learning how to form them in handwriting too. In maths, the children have started to explore concepts of measure and have worked hard to explain their thoughts when investigating mass, length and capacity.
All the activities are very practical and involve the use of a variety of different resources. Many of these are available in the provision, once they have learnt about them, so they can continue exploring their ideas independently. It is lovely to capture these moments and share these with you on Seesaw. The children have started to learn about patterns this week and have been finding patterns in the environment as well as making their own using counters and beads, etc. We have introduced Drawing Club into the timetable. This encourages and develops early writing skills through the medium of stories and mark making. It has been a huge hit so far, and all the children are excited to write their codes and draw their pictures.
Mrs Mason, Miss Herbert, Miss Pentalow and Mrs Hill have really enjoyed getting to know the children and watching them grow. We all feel proud of how far they have come already.
Working Together to Keep Our Young People Safe – Safeguarding Newsletter
Artificial Intelligence (AI) chatbots – such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini and others are becoming more common in everyday life. While these tools can be useful and fun, it’s important for parents to understand how they work, the potential risks and how to keep children safe.
Read the full safeguarding newsletter for this month here.
Key Calendared Events for the next two weeks
Monday 13th October
- Teatime Recital 16:30-17:15
Wednesday 15th October
- Year 3 Temples, Tombs and Treasures (Parents invited to view work) 14:45-15:45
Thursday 16th- October
- Year 4 trip to Cadbury World 09:00-16:00
Friday 17th October
- Term Ends 16:10 Prep School: ASC/Late Prep and Co-Curricular Activities as normal
Monday 3rd November
- Term begins (08:25)
- Year 4 How Humans Work with Mr Chauhan, Dr Naik, Dr Kaur and the School Nurse
Tuesday 4th November
- Year 6 trip to Coventry Transport Museum
Thursday 6th- November
- Year 5 Maths Challenge Laxton Junior School
Friday 7th- November
- Year 4 talk from Mrs Aneta Wawrentowicz about Sleep
To view the most up-to-date calendar information, please log onto Firefly – click here.
WSSPA Christmas Wreath Making Evening – Book Your Spot Now!
Our Christmas wreath-making evening is coming up on Thursday, 27th November, at 7pm. Join us for getting in the Christmas spirit while making a wreath for your door.
See below for examples of previous years:
Sporty Scholars Camp at Wellingborough School – Book Now!
Sporty Scholars will be running a multi-activity and sport camp here at Wellingborough School from Monday 27th October until Friday 31st October. This camp is for children aged 4-14.
For more information, click here.
To book your place, please visit: Sporty Scholars at Wellingborough School
Stay Connected
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You can also explore upcoming events and activities on our Events Page here.
Wellingborough School Business Directory
Please find the Business Directory at the following link: https://wellingboroughschool.org/community/business-directory/
