Echo Issue 24 July 2024

Elstree School Day and boarding school for boys and girls aged 3-13

Echo A Newsletter for the Elstree Community Issue 24

/ElstreeSchool

/ElstreeSchool

July 2024

/ElstreeSchool

/ElstreeSchool

H E A D M A S TE R’ S W E LCO M E It has been a hugely busy and successful time since our last edition of Echo.

As I write, we are drawing to the close of the Summer Term. Common Entrance examinations are over, and the pupils have achieved fantastic results. Both the Junior and Senior Sports Days were a triumph, and it is now just the PrePrep Sports Day, Summer Concert and Leavers’ Celebrations that lie ahead – a final step in the Elstree Journey for our current Year 8 pupils.

In the Lent Term, the academic ambition of many of our Year 8 boys and girls was ready to be tested with an array of Scholarship exams. Competitive battles were played out on netball courts and rugby, football and hockey pitches with great camaraderie. Our Senior boys set off to Jersey for an undefeated Rugby Tour and I was lucky enough to join the Senior girls in Scotland on their inaugural Netball and Hockey Tour – they too returned home undefeated.

Never a school to shy away from social occasions, it was great fun to host our first Dads’ Curry Night in the Lent Term.

This was a chance to do something a little different and bring the ‘Elstree Dads’ together away from pitch sides and concert halls – we do hope it was a fun moment to initiate more family introductions across year groups.

The Lent Term closed with a stunning performance of Shrek by our Year 8 pupils - a masterclass of singing and acting. And so, the term ended as we had begun with the theme of Gratitude - knowing that we are blessed with incredible children, supported by dedicated teachers and staff to achieve wonderful results; we remain very grateful to them all.

As we moved into the Summer Term, it was with great pride that we greeted the Scholarship results as they came in. I am delighted to share that 2024 ranks alongside 2015 as our joint top performing year, with an outstanding 13 Scholarships across Academics, Art, Drama, Sport, Music and DT. The Summer Term always promises much fun and adventure in the Elstree 2

grounds. Our boarding houses have been full to the rafters with children eager to make the most of the opportunities we offer; the lakes, sports pitches, swimming pool and woodlands all put to good use with a host of boarding activities and a boosted extra-curricular programme. It is always wonderful to see such enthusiasm amongst the children; this is a term that builds special friendships.

We have had no shortage of opportunities to unite our Elstree families this term too. The Summer Social threatened to be rained off, but with typical Elstree perseverance we cracked on and swapped a starlit picnic on Lower for a festoon lit feast in the Dining Room – no one could have guessed we’d planned otherwise! The madness and magic that is the Elstree Dog Show, was (dare I say), a barking success and both Prep School Sports Days were a demonstration of the fantastic sense of fun, support and team spirit that is shared between parents and pupils alike.

By the time this edition of Echo is shared, the long-awaited view of an uncertain political landscape will have been revealed to us. We remain optimistic and confident about the future. Elstree is in excellent heart, with a positive and purposeful atmosphere generated by bright, well-motivated pupils, passionate and energetic staff and a wonderfully supportive parent body.

I want to reassure you, that with the expert guidance of our Governors and the unstinting support of Olivia, I am committed to ensuring that Elstree will always offer the best in academic rigour, co-curricular opportunities and exceptional pastoral care. Long may we continue to nurture the unique talents of our pupils and build happy childhood memories for all who join us.

I do hope you enjoy these pages that bring to life a flavour of what Elstree has had to offer over the past few months.

Sid Inglis, Headmaster Elstree Echo Issue 24

B OA R D I N G

each other at Elstree’s Casino Royale social in the Summer Term.

The Lent Term was short, but busy!

As always, the children were superb company and Big Weekends were hugely popular.

Almost every boarder joined us for the Boarder’s Easter Party. Mel and her team cooked up a storm and Mrs Morris outdid herself with a brilliant twist on a traditional Easter Egg Hunt. Following various clues and riddles, the children worked their way around the school only to be led back to the boarding study where they would finally receive their treat!

Year 7s kicked off proceedings with a brilliant ‘Mission Impossible’ themed

weekend organised by Miss Boyd and Miss Bristow. The ‘mission’ was to find and deliver a secret package without being caught – which meant going to ‘jail’ and having to answer a testing Maths question from Mr Williams to be freed!

Sunday morning saw fun and games with Laser Tag being played up in Plantation.

Summer Term in the Boarding House certainly lived up to the hype!

Dormitories have been full to bursting as the children made the most of Elstree’s beautiful grounds and opportunities.

Our Casino Royale night is now a fullyestablished favourite and the Year 8 ice-cream van, ensuring plenty of summer-themed fun was enjoyed by all!

Elstree favourite, Boarders’ ‘Race Night’

met all expectations once again. Mr Attwood ensured that all the punters, runners and riders were ready to go without any false starts. Winners were announced after 4 fantastic races and the children headed up to bed after a highly enjoyable evening.

children welcomed the Downe House girls to Elstree with great excitement.

Donning full black tie, the boys and girls readied themselves for an evening of glitz and glamour complete with casino games and mocktails. Sunday morning began with the customary full English breakfast and a fun rounders tournament before home time.

Year 6 were treated to a ‘Wet, Wild and Wacky’ themed weekend which saw

Our Year 8s were very well looked after for their Big Weekend at Downe House.

The boys and girls enjoyed mocktail making, pizzas and a challenging quiz.

It was a fun evening that ensured the children would look forward to seeing fun and games in the pool and Elstree favourite, the Slip ‘n’ Slide. We also hosted a ‘Boarding Taster Evening’ for the Year 3 children, where they put the Slip ‘n’ Slide to good use (in the freezing cold!) before heading in for Mrs Morris’s famous Brew cookies in the Long Room with a cosy film.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

Before the half term break, we hosted the Boarders’ Summer Party – the pupils enjoyed a lovely barbecue supper, garden games and a surprise visit from the

After half term, Year 7 completed their Elstree Award Weekend under the watchful supervision of Miss Boyd, Mr Parks and Mr Attwood. Camping in the school grounds is always great fun, although this year, it was a rather chilly wake up! The children all took part in

the Elstree Award walk before heading home for a well-deserved rest.

Mrs Morris and I have so enjoyed our first year in the Boarding House. It has been a huge amount of fun and we are so excited to make more memories, with the help of your children, in the coming years. Elstree is a very special place and, without question, boarding enables the children to enjoy the school and its beauty whilst fostering great friendships and independence.

We have some exciting plans for boarding next year look forward to your children joining us once again! We wish you all a fantastic Summer.

JCM 3

E L S TR E E A LU M N I

ESA and Current Pupils How special that 31 of our current Elstree boys and girls are the children of Elstree Alumni. Debs Burles, Old Girl and daughter of former Headmaster, Terrence McMullen continues to fly the flag for our Elstree Old Girls and her son,

Alfie is now in Year 7. We look forward to adding in more Old Girls to this picture in the years to come. We are thrilled that so many Elstree Alumni choose to share memories of childhood and learning at Elstree with their own children.

Old Boys and Girls: Back row (L to R): Ben Williams, Ed Brims, Alastair Yarrow, Michael Bevan, Debs Burles, Charles Napier, Toby Eldridge, Richard Lloyd, Jamie Rollo (representing Will Rollo), Nicholas Sydney-Smith, Ben Walker, James Elvery. Middle row (L to R): Ed Le Flufy, Francis Long, Archie Duckworth. Bottom row (L to R): Jonathan Drury, Oliver Blackwell, William Blackwell.

Bradfield College

Elstree 2019 Leavers We welcomed back our 2019 Leavers during the Easter holiday. It was a wonderful opportunity to enjoy a relaxed drink and catch up with former Elstree pupils before they headed off to University or on Gap Years.

4

Mr Inglis was delighted to attend the JCR black tie dinner at Bradfield College, a perfect opportunity to catch up with Jack Seaborne, Elstree 2019 Leaver and his Housemaster, Mr Sanford. Jack is planning to read Business and Marketing at Bath University.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

Well done to Elstree 2022 Leaver, Alex Anderson who won the Lady Bourchier Junior Reading Prize on Speech Day at Harrow. As part of the competition, Alex read a prepared extract from David Copperfield.

Congratulations to Archie Goaman, Elstree 2018 Leaver, who is now at Radley College and will have one of his A-level drawings displayed at the Royal Academy’s Young Artists’ Summer Show.

Congratulations to Arthur Ward, Elstree 2023 Leaver, who reached the prestigious final of the Peter Cook Cup at Radley College.

Well done to Louise Benyon, Elstree 2019 Leaver, now VR and AI Ambassador at Bradfield College.

Our pupils were astonished at the learning opportunities presented by VR!

It was a pleasure to welcome back Elstree 1986 Leaver, Nick Christie and find out more about his ground-breaking protective headwear, Rezon Wear.

Mrs Inglis was honoured to join Seb Francis, Elstree 2023 Leaver, at the Pangbourne College Scholars’ Dinner. Seb has taken up rowing, captained the U14A rugby team and joined the Chapel Choir.

Elstree 2018 Leaver, Tristan Betts, won both the Junior and Senior Director Awards at Eton and is currently studying Drama at RADA. Joining our Junior Play Rehearsal, he relived his time playing the part of MC in the very same play, ‘Zeus on the Loose’ in 2014.

Congratulations to George Johnstone, Elstree 2023 Leaver, who performed in the Sherborne School Junior production of ‘The Three Musketeers’.

Congratulations to Elstree 2017 Leaver, Ryne Robson who won Gold in the Intermediate Singles, came 5th in the Championship Doubles and won another Gold in the Championship Quads at the British Universities Regatta.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

5

E L S TR E E A LU M N I

Following his success in the starring role of ‘Joseph’ last year, Elstree 2023 Leaver, Leonardo La Corte has gone on to perform in ‘Les Misérables’ at Wellington College.

Oppidan Scholarships Congratulations to former Elstree pupils Taro Sakamoto, Toby van den Bergh, and William Anderson who are clearly thriving at Eton, having been awarded Oppidan Scholarships at Eton College during E block.

Mr and Mrs Inglis enjoyed a dinner with the Housemasters and Senior Team at Harrow, it was a wonderful opportunity to catch up with former Elstree pupils, Jackie Guo (2020), Jerry Zhang (2021), Oliver Anderson (2023) and Alex Song (2022).

6

Elstree Echo Issue 24

E L S TR E E CO M M U N IT Y Summer Social Never to be perturbed by the rollercoaster ride that is British summertime, the Elstree Summer Social went full steam ahead despite a rather damp and chilly evening.

Twinkling festoon lights together with the pink glow of the Elstree 175 bar made for a very warm welcome in the Elstree stretch tent. The assembled crowd of 200 Elstree parents enjoyed drinks under cover before unpacking delicious picnics to be shared in the Dining Room. The room was full of chatter and laughter in what was another wonderful opportunity for the Elstree community to get together.

Our huge thanks, as ever, goes to our fabulous Friends of Elstree committee who are so thoughtful and dedicated in creating these special occasions.

Thanks also to Joe and Will, who lead our Operations and Maintenance teams; they were brilliantly supportive in getting everything set up so quickly.

While we sadly didn’t get to enjoy the Elstree grounds as we had hoped, we know just how busy the grounds team are – and the views from every angle of the school always speak for themselves.

Thanks to all the Elstree parents for making it such a lovely evening!

Pre-Prep Quiz There was something for everyone at the Elstree Pre-Prep quiz.

In what was a first for the Elstree community, over 60 Pre-Prep parents gathered in the Dining Room to be challenged by quiz master extraordinaire, Mr Morris.

With couples randomly assigned to tables, there was no telling where team strengths lay, especially when it came to answering an eclectic mix of questions across five highly demanding categories including General Knowledge, Food and Drink, Sport, TV and Elstree Pre-Prep – answers for which were worth double points! Full knowledge of the Pre-Prep lunchtime prayers were slightly muddled, but everyone did well, not least those with some very specialist and in-depth TV knowledge that surprised us all!

The Elstree catering team produced a delicious chilli, washed down with drinks from the Elstree bar. Our heartfelt thanks go to the Pre-Prep Friends of Elstree team for organising such an entertaining and fun evening.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

7

E L S TR E E CO M M U N IT Y Elstree Dog Show Back by popular demand, the Elstree Dog Show took place on a fine summer’s day.

The all-too-brief hour of summer magic and madness was a happy blur of over 100 wagging tails, colossal quantities of ice-cream and children barking orders at dogs – who seemed mostly content to do anything apart from what they were being asked to do!

Former Elstree parent, Dr Chris Tufnell MRCVS, from Coach House Vets, was joined by Mr Inglis, Mrs Inglis and Mrs Robertson to judge Fancy Dress, Musical Sit and Best in Show in the main arena.

With Mr Morris masterfully MC’ing the event and the ever-resourceful Mr and Mrs Attwood showcasing their cleverly designed Obstacle Course in the bottom Arena, there was never a dull moment!

Judging for Best Trick took place at Alec’s House courtesy of Mrs Kidson and Mrs Syckelmoore, and Mrs Burles managed entries into ‘Guess How Many Dog treats in the Jar?’ from the shade at the top of the lawn with a lovely view over the afternoon’s proceedings.

their dog Frank, all dressed as hot dogs.

Saffy Francis and Winnie won Musical Sit and Alice Fawcett was delighted to take home a well-deserved rosette for her dog Scruffy, who won Best in Class. Felix Brims with the hoop jumping Ebony took home Best Trick and we had joint winners for ‘Guess How Many Dog Treats in the Jar?’ Well done to Maisie Brown with lucky Sid and Tom Utley with Splodge – we do hope your dogs shared the winning jar nicely!

Dads’ Curry Night In what was a first for the Elstree Community, we had a great time welcoming the ‘Elstree Dads’ to their very own Curry Night.

Following drinks in the Long Room, our fantastic catering team served up a delicious home-cooked curry and enormous cheeseboard in the Dining Room. Plenty of chat and laughter kept the boarders awake a little later than usual – it was clearly fun to be catching up away from the pitch sides and concert halls at Elstree!

A firm favourite in the Elstree calendar, this was a wonderful event for families and their dogs! There were some fantastic costumes on show and some very eager competition across all disciplines. Well done to all the boys, girls and dogs who took part – you were all brilliant!

Congratulations to Ralph, Ronnie and Ned Poole who won Fancy Dress with 8

Elstree Echo Issue 24

PR E P N E WS AC A D EM I C Victorian Day Year 4 enjoyed getting hands on with history by dressing up as a Victorian character and attending a ‘Victorian School’ in the Long Room. Each child had to pay their penny at the door for entry and then they had their hands inspected by the Headmaster.

Chants of times tables and The Sun Never Sets on the British Empire were heard from well beyond the Long Room, as were strains of God Save the Queen.

Queen Victoria looked down on them from the wall, and we are sure she would have approved of the very strict and austere teachers sweeping around the room.

One of the boys commented during a break, “I can really start to feel the intense feeling of what it was like to be a Victorian child at school.” Most were very relieved to return to their normal happy Elstree routine at lunchtime.

However all of them agreed it was a wonderful way to really get to grips with history.

TRIPS Lulworth Cove At the end of April, Elstree Year 6 pupils set out on a Geography field trip to Lulworth Cove in Dorset.

The cove and surrounding coastline are part of the famous Jurassic Coast – a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Before the children set out on an educational tour to view the Cove and famous Stair Hole, they were introduced to Lulworth Rangers, Emily and Dee, who worked on the Lulworth Estate and offered valuable insights and facts about the coastline.

With stunning views, lessons on the formation and erosion of different types of rocks, field sketches and fossil hunting, there was so much for the children to take in during this inspiring trip.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

9

PR E P N E WS

S P O RT Sports Days This year’s Junior and Senior Sports Days set the perfect scene for athletic triumphs and School firsts.

We were delighted to award Victrix Ludorums for the first time, recognising the athletic achievement of our top performing girls on both Sports Days. Very well done to this years’ Junior Sports Day winner, Aggie Foulds (runner up, Felicita Burnett) and our Senior Sports Day winner Sophie Payne (runner up, Mila Tryon).

Daughters of former Headmaster Terrence McMullen, Debs Burles (Elstree 1980 - 86) and her sister, Rachel Antelme (1975 - 80) kindly donated The McMullen

L I B R A RY Cup for a newly established Old Girls’ Race. Debs, quite rightly, was delighted to walk away with the cup as the fitting 2024 winner for its inaugural presentation.

This year we also saw an exciting school record smashed! Well done to Mofe Adeyinka who ran the 100m in 20.7 seconds, taking on the position of new school record holder, which has stood since 2005.

Capping off a series of firsts for Sports Day 2024, it was both Head Boy, Monty Robinson and Head Girl, Sophie Payne who took to the stage to deliver a joint speech. Sophie was later awarded the Olivia Inglis Head Girl’s Cup as our first ever appointed Head Girl - all truly memorable milestones in the history of Elstree’s co-educational journey.

RAP poet Karl Nova Pupils from Years 3 to 8 enjoyed an interactive performance from the multi-talented, award-winning rap and hip-hop performance poet, Karl Nova, in Elstree’s fabulous Ward Library.

Karl included a dramatic but humorous description of his early years with his Nigerian mother in a poor area of North London. He told the story of how his life changed when he was eight years old, and his mother took him on a long plane trip. She then left him to live a completely different life growing up with his rich father and stepfamily in Nigeria. He had previously been completely unaware of his family in West Africa.

Karl Nova commented, “I totally enjoyed my warm welcome at Elstree School. The students were amazing, and a lot of great writers will emerge from this school.”

School Librarian Ruth Walker concluded, “It was great to see the pupils so excited and inspired and embracing poetry in a new way. They thoroughly enjoyed his brilliant and thought-provoking performance. We were also very pleased to invite the Year 6 children from nearby Woolhampton Primary School to join us for this wonderful experience.”

10

Elstree Echo Issue 24

MUSIC House Music Competition After a lot of practice, the Elstree children took to the stage for the highly anticipated House Music Competition.

East, West, North and South battled it out with incredible shows from solo artists, House bands and then entire House performances. Mr Alex Arkwright, Head of Instrumental Studies at Marlborough College had the unenviable task of adjudicating and picking a winner at every stage of the competition. With performances including Mendelssohn, Ed Sheeran, Handel, Bastille, The Killers, Haydn and Robbie Williams amongst others, it was an eclectic and lively mix that kept the audience wonderfully entertained!

Huge congratulations to East for pulling out all the stops on the day and delivering a stunning performance of Circle of Life

by Elton John. Every House Song was a triumph but this was a really well deserved victory!

With thanks to Mr Arkwright for joining us and to all House staff for supporting the pupils both on the day and through many hours of practice.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

11

PR E P N E WS

DR AMA

EN R I C H M EN T

Shrek

Cresta Run Mr James Sunley, our long standing and hugely respected Chairman of the Governors (Elstree 1971 – 1975) thrilled our Year 7 and 8 pupils with stories of the Cresta Run. Speaking at one of our Friday lectures, Mr Sunley brought in a collection of kit, memorabilia and nail-biting footage that celebrates the history of the Cresta Run, a natural toboggan racing track in Switzerland, founded by the St. Moritz Tobogganing Club.

Mr Sunley held the record for the fastest run from Top for 16 years and last year, Mr Inglis tried his luck – he proudly wears the tie to prove it but he sadly didn’t beat Mr Sunley’s record!

Throughout Years 5 to 8, children are joined by Senior Staff or External Speakers who bring to life a huge and varied array of subjects. These have recently included Neurodiversity, The History of Magic and debating whether removing statues re-writes our history.

In the Lent Term, the Year 8s took to the stage with a colourful, joyous and brilliant production of Shrek the Musical Jr. In a madcap adventure full of fairytale characters, guards, rats, ogres, storytellers and a talking donkey, the pupils sang and danced their way to a fabulous finale of I’m A Believer which had the audience clapping along enthusiastically.

Tom Utley’s Shrek confidently portrayed the ogre’s journey from gruff and guarded to friend, hero and true love. Kate Oliver and Sophie Payne brought Princess Fiona to life with astonishing composure, beautiful voices and characterisation. Mila Tyron had the audience in stitches with her comic timing, Kitty Butler blew everyone away with her villainous Farquaad (and his extraordinary eyebrows) and Monty Robinson’s turn as Gingy will not be easily forgotten.

Special mention to the vocal performance of Isla Sanford as the Dragon; from the second she appeared above her tower, lit by eerie red, she stopped everyone in her tracks with her rendition of Forever. Alex Wu’s Captain of the Guards was a real force, and the knights appearing with their straggly beards was a comedy highlight.

Likewise, the panto-inspired ‘cave’ brought on by a fabulously deadpan Freddie Carlbom.

In fact, there were so many highlights it would be impossible to mention them all; the entire cast did Mrs Bond and the production team proud with their enthusiasm, skill and willingness to throw everything into it.

As ever, it took an enormous amount of time, energy and dedication to bring this show to life, but the end result proved well worth it as audiences were wowed by the spectacle that they saw unfold. What a brilliant show; it will live long in the memory. Well done all!

12

Elstree Echo Issue 24

PRE-PREP NEWS AC A D EM I C Outdoor Learning Day The Pre-Prep children were split into groups across different year groups and spent the morning exploring, building dens, taking wax crayon leaf rubbings and finally, they took part in an exciting Spring Scavenger Hunt.

The groups rotated through different activities across Elstree’s beautiful grounds and woodland. Rolling down the hills was a favourite activity as was making dens in Plantation. There were some determined faces when it came to collecting huge sticks to make their dens.

Next was a Spring Scavenger Hunt, starting from Alec’s House. Working in pairs, the children had to find a whole host of items, such as a crocus, something soft and even something to jump over!

Finally, we ventured up to the woods, where the children explored the natural textures around them by creating wax rubbings of leaves, bark, pine cones and lots of other materials.

After a delicious lunch, each child planted a ‘bee bomb’ of wildflower seeds in our newly renovated vegetable patch at the edge of Farmyard. They are excited to see what grows!

All of the children returned to school exhausted, but happy, after an exciting day. It was a wonderful way to bring the age groups together and lovely to see the older children supporting the younger ones and working as a team.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

DAYS O U T Story Museum After an exciting bus journey to Oxford, the children were ready for the Story Museum adventure to begin. The children arrived in a low-lit room where they heard a story about Bakunawa, a dragon who liked to eat moons.

With lots of actions and roars, the children were captivated and involved throughout.

The bear hunt continued, until they eventually found a giant teddy bear on the most enormous bed! After a wonderful bear version of a Squash and a Squeeze, the children explored the ‘Small World’ area. Lots of fun was had in Traction Man’s kitchen and with torches and binoculars in the Space Room, but best of all were the many great stories read together on the big bed.

The children found the dinosaur tails just in time for a visit from Prince Edward, who, luckily, was not at all phased when one of the children shook their tail at him! Tired but very happy children returned to school, ready to dream of their adventures that night.

13

PRE-PREP NEWS

CO M M U N I T Y

MUSIC

Stroke Care

Grandparents’ Afternoon We were thrilled to welcome our Pre-Prep Grandparents into Elstree for a very special afternoon. The boys and girls in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and 2 performed in a wonderful musical concert before they enjoyed a delicious afternoon tea with their Grandparents in the Dining Room.

The children then escorted their Grannies, Grandpas and special guests across the Elstree grounds to Pre-Prep, where they were so proud to show off all their hard work in their classrooms.

It was lovely to see the children and Grandparents together; an afternoon filled with love and pride in what these boys and girls achieve every day - and their singing was fantastic!

14

Throughout this academic year, groups of Year 2 children have been taking it in turns to visit patients of Stroke Care at Woolhampton Village Hall.

They have spent their mornings supporting patients with their easy ability to have fun and innocent chatter as they set up jigsaws, played games and enjoyed an array of arts and crafts including making Christmas cards, Easter bonnets and book marks.

These are wonderful occasions that both the patients and boys and girls look forward to. It has been heart-warming to see how thrilled the members of Stroke Care are to see the Elstree children – and how readily the children take to these sensitive situations and want to listen and help others.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

DR AMA Poetry Competition With 17 performers in our Pre-Prep poetry final, it was a magical morning to hear such confidence and enthusiasm from every pupil, from Nursery through to Year 2.

One Nursery child commented how he enjoyed making everyone laugh and another Reception pupil was filled with relief when his older brother stepped in to help with a few words that had escaped his mind!

Head of English, Mrs Payne, listened to all the recitals and gave very thoughtful feedback to every child. You could see from the smiles on their faces how thrilled they were to receive their certificates in front of their friends and families.

S P O RT Each poem was delivered with expression, a varied use of tone and pitch and even actions to bring the recitals to life. From snowballs, lions, crocodiles, dolphins, homework and even the Titanic – there were rhymes about everything!

Ball Handling Skills In the Lent Term, we were delighted to be joined by the Foundation Class from Woolhampton Primary School. Teaming up with our Early Years pupils for an afternoon of Tiny Tots Ball Handling Skills, they all enjoyed a wonderfully fun and informative training session, masterminded by Mr Bates with help from a team of Year 8 experts.

A carousel of ball-handling activities was set out on Bates, these included throwing, catching, dodging, dribbling and kicking stations. The older pupils offered plenty of encouragement and wonderful tips to help the youngsters improve their skills and bolster their confidence. There was plenty of eager talent – very useful when it came to defying the blustery conditions out on Bates!

It was a brilliant afternoon and, as ever, lovely to welcome our Woolhampton neighbours back to Elstree for a sporting occasion.

Elstree Echo Issue 24

15

OPEN MORNING Saturday 12th October, 10am – 12 noon Book online or email registrar@elstreeschool.org.uk Elstree School Woolhampton Reading Berkshire RG7 5TD T: 0118 971 3302 | E: office@elstreeschool.org.uk www.elstreeschool.org.uk