Summer 2014

August 2014

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A Note from the Head

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very warm welcome back to all our families, staff and friends. It is hard to believe that the summer holidays have come and gone and the Autumn term is here already. I am very much looking forward to seeing all the entries in this year’s digital photography competition and noting what you have chosen under the theme of ‘I love.....’. The entries for last year’s competition were outstanding .

UK Fine Art Competition Merit Winners

At the end of last term we said goodbye to Year 8 and a large number of year 6. The schools chosen by our students this year were; Berkhamsted, St Clement Danes; Dr Challoners Grammar School; Eton; John Hampden Grammar School; Misbourne School; Merchant Taylors’; Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe; Radley College, Reigate Grammar; Shiplake College; Thorpe House and Westminster School.

This magazine reflects back on last term and you will see, as ever, that we were extremely busy. The Summer term is always a physical term with sport and drama reaching their end-of-term climax in Bugsy Malone and the various Sports Days. Even our parents became involved; see page 3 for Nursery Sports Day and The Big Toddle. Of course, the Summer weather brought many opportunities for being outdoors and both Year 4 and Year 6 spent time at camps. Read about them on pages 6 and 7.

Celebrating the ‘end’ of something is a bit of a theme for many of our pupils in the Summer term.

See page 8 for how our senior boys chose to commemorate their ‘ends’.

Art Summer Term 2014

Finally; year 3 is being increased to 4 classes from September 2015. With that in mind we are holding a special Open Morning just for families interested in year 3. Please do let anyone you know, considering us at this stage, that we would love to see them on the 17 September.

I wish you a happy Autumn term with all that the lead up to Christmas brings!

Mr A J Sims Headmaster

GAYHURST SCHOOL Independent Preparatory School for Girls and Boys 3 - 11

Year 3 OPEN MORNING Wednesday 17 September 2014 9.30am - 11.30am

For further details please contact visit gayhurstschool.co.uk

The Stormont Summer 2014 Edition Many thanks to the whole Gayhurst community for their contributions to this Term’s edition of the Stormont

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Nursery & Reception

Post-Easter Egg Hunt

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aster seems to have been such a long time ago now, let alone that dreadful weather we had in the Spring. Nursery children had a post-Easter egg hunt this year and enjoyed hunting through the Gayhurst Grounds for all sorts of Easter goodies in the first week of the Summer Term. Over the holidays, Easter bonnets had been created and there was not a drop of the previous weeks’ rain to hinder proceedings.

Odds Farm

The Big Toddle

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ursery and Reception children toddled to £844 this year. Each year they raise money for Barnados by walking around the School playing field. Mums, Dads, Brothers, Sisters and friends were encouraged to come along and take part. The Reception classes had been busy making animal hats to bring a little extra excitement to the event.

Nursery Sports Day

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he sun thankfully shone on the day of the annual Nursery visit to Odds Farm. Twenty four excited Nursery children with their teachers boarded the bus which took them to the farm for the day. On the journey they sung ‘The Wheels on the Bus’ and ‘Old MacDonald’very loudly. On arriving at the farm they were told all the things to do to ensure they were safe whilst on their visit and then they went on the trailer ride which took them past the goats, Jacob sheep, donkeys, a horse, a Shetland pony and some cows. The children were delighted to see a baby donkey and some Highland cattle.

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he Nursery boys and girls took part in their Summer Sports Day as they prepared to say goodbye to their fist year at Gayhurst School. The traditional races with friends, Mums and Dads, brothers and sisters taking part as well made for an enjoyable morning in the sunshine after a very busy year in Nursery.

Feeding the hungry goats and sheep was one of the highlights of the visit. All the children remembered to keep their hands flat to avoid any nipping! Following a picnic lunch, the Nursery girls and boys had some time in the outdoor playground. There was huge sandpit to play in and a long tunnel and slide. Just before the end of the day all the children climbed onto the huge colourful tractor for a ride. The tired group boarded the bus to come back to Gayhurst. Strangely, the journey home was much quieter!

Fathers Day Biscuits

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ather’s Day this year was celebrated on Sunday June 15th. The Reception children spent time, in the week leading up to that date, carefully making beautifully circular biscuits and transforming them into edible footballs to celebrate the day with their Dads.

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Chalky Dinosaurs

Years 1, 2 and 3

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Country Dancing

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ear 1 have been having instruction in country dancing during their PE lessons. Learning set dances, steps and actions has been immensly enjoyable for the girls and boys and taught them alot about working with a partner and keeping time.

Facial Proportions

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ear 1 children used the canvas on the playground to create their version of Donasaurs. Working in small groups they created pastal predators that became extint with the follow day’s rainfall.

uring a Summer art lesson Year 3 took their work outdoors. They have been studying facial proportions. They were encouraged to study their own faces in a mirror to prodce life like self portraits.

They all learnt how important it was to place the mouth, eyes, nose and ears correctly in order to produce a pleasing result.

Bubbles show their force!

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ho knew science could be such fun. Year 2 were learning all about forces, and what better way to learn about push and pull than to demonstrate the force of pushing the air through a soapy mixture to make bubbles. The children also noted how the force of the air took the formed bubbles off into the sky

Viking Boats Boats

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istory came to life for the Year 3 girls and boys when they began preparation for the famous Year 3 Viking Boat Race.

They had to use their knowledge of science in order to create boats that would not only float but move well with a little wind behind them.

The children were very exciting on the afternon of the race when each boat individually crossed a pool set up in one of the classrooms, powered by the moving air created by a hand held fan. As you can see the winners were delighted that their hard work had paid off.

Oxford University Science Museum of Natural History Amersham Field Study Centre

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mersham Field Study Centre, owned by the Field Studies Council is the location for a visit each year by our Year 3. Of course, the centre being located in the Chilterns is the perfect place for Gayhurst children to discover and be inspired by nature with all its diversity and beauty.

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ear 3 went to the Oxford University Museum of Natural History for their science topic on rocks and soils.

The children enjoyed seeing large specimens of the rocks they had discussed in class and particularly liked the hands on session where chocolate was used to reinforce what they had learned about each type of rock. They were given a piece of a Mars bar to remind them of the layers of sedimentary rock and a piece of Crunchie to remind them how igneous rocks formed.

The Year 3 group were able to study habitats in woodland, grassland and ponds. A real local gem to help the children with their studies.

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Bird Watching

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ast Thursday, year 5 went to College Lake on a birdwatching trip to help them in their science projects.

They spent the day studying the different types of birds and observing them in their natural habitats.

Year 4, 5 and 6 Mexican Food Tasting

They also got to study the adaptations of various birds, by looking at different bird skulls that had been found on the reserve. The highlight of the trip for most however, was dissecting owl pellets in order to find out what owls ate.

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delicious geography lesson was in store for the Year 4s who were learning about different countries and their cultures. They discovered all about the importance of avocados and chillies to the Mexican culinary traditions.

The activity leader informed them their findings would be used by reserve researchers and so the children were given booklets so they could identify what animal the bones in the pellets belonged to. An interesting and eye-opening trip for everyone.

Battle of Hastings

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istory was re-enacted in the grounds of the School.

Year 4 took part in the Battle of Stamford Bridge and the Battle of Hastings. Each year 4 class had been briefed on their role in the battles before charging at each other in their ‘armour’ and with home made weapons.

There were many dramatic performances, fortunately without any bloodshed!

Bushcraft

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ear 4 were incredibly lucky with the weather as the sun came out they left for their very first ‘overnighter’.

The year 4 girls and boys left Gayhurst early on Friday morning to stay overnight at the Adventure Camp The children had a great time making their own fires to cook lunch and then the afternoon was spent shelter building and learning how to make traps.

An early rise on Saturday morning saw the group tramping out in the mud and painting their faces with ‘muddy camouflage’.

The children and the staff who took them were all glad of a hot bath when they arrived home.

Wooly Art

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his term Year 4 have been learning about Textiles. They have looked at various raw fibres such as wool, cotton and silk, and they have learned about the processes involved in creating textile fabrics such as Knitting, sewing, spinning and felting.

The children have each made a French Knitting Spool using a cardboard tube and lollipop sticks and they have learned to use it effectively to create the first stage of their Flower Broach.

The children will then sew the knitting on to a felt flower template and add buttons to complete the decorative wearable artwork.

Clinometers Year 6 were tasked with making their own clinometers in Maths last term. Clinometers are used for measuring angles, tilt, elevation or depression of an object. This maths lesson was made all the more interesting by the fact that the boys had a hand in creating their own instruments.

Skern Lodge Leavers celebrate with paint!

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he Year 6 leavers had a great day at Delta Force in Hertfordshire, paintballing and in the final game 5 staff defended the castle against 64 pupils. There were plenty of war wounds by the end of the battle.

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very year, Year 6 go to Skern Lodge in the Summer term. It is a fantastic opportunity for the children to try activities that they may never have tried before and at the same time build their confidence and self esteem.

Team work is an important part of the trip as well as challanging themselves as individuals. Everyone comes home having gained a great deal and having fully enjoyed their experience.

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Microsoft

Years 7 and 8 Budget day out

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ear 7 celebrated the end of their Summer exams with a trip to London.

As part of their economic awareness in PSHCE, they worked in small groups to plan, organise, and investigate a suitable venue for a day out in London. They were allocated a budget and presented their ideas with a powerpoint to the rest of Year 7. A secret ballot determined which was the winning group. The itinerary for the day was to take the train/tube to Hyde Park, hire a paddle boat on the Serpentine, go to the Princess Diana fountain for lunch and then a quick visit to the Science Museum. As it was such a glorious day Y7 decided to skip the Science Museum and play cricket in the park. All the children had a great deal of fun, one remarked, “This is the best day ever.”

Maths Challenge 7 & 8

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etting a taste of the Bill Gates lifestyle was the name of the game when year 8 went to visit Microsoft Headquarters.

It really gave the boys a taste of life working in the IT industry and a touch of wonder at the latest Microsoft gadgetry.

Oxford

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s part of their ‘leavers’ activities, year 8 visited Oxford.

The boys managed to combine the culture of the famous city with a Pizza lunch in the shadow of the famous University.

Bugsy Malone 2014

his year’s UKMT Junior Maths Challenge saw over 240,000 pupils from across the UK taking part. The Junior Maths Challenge is run by the UK Mathematics Trust and aimed at those in Years 7 and 8. It is sat in the participants’ schools.

The top 6% received a Gold Certificate, the next 13% a Silver Certificate an the next 21%, Bronze.

Well done to James, Oliver, Sean, Alfie, Paul, Eamon, James, Kian and Yash and a wonderful set of results for Gayhurst.

Market Day

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ear 8s were given 4 days, £20 and a captive audience (the rest of the school) to see if they could plan, advertise & manufacture products to sell.

Competing to make the biggest profit, they held a market sale where pupils in Y3-7 were allowed to spend a maximum of £2. The year 8 boys managed to raise £275 for charity.

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The sale made a total profit of £274.10, which was donated to the charity of choice from the winning team.

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Whole School News

Chess Champ

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iden Gajadhar, a Pupil in Year 4 had a double reason to celebrate this term. He took part in two recent chess competitions in both Buckinghamshire and Berkshire with amazing results.

To achieve such an accolade Aiden won all six of his matches.

Four other Gayhurst children competed in the Megafinal and they were Duncan Meazzo in the U8s, Thomas Marshall and Mathew Murphy in the U9s and Aiden Meazzo in the U10s.

Aiden and his impressive trophy

Sponsored Walk The rain was no deterrant for this Year’s spons0red walk.

The girls and boys enjoyed the challenge of walking through the School grounds in the drizzle knowing that they were doing so for charity. At the end of the collection over £2000 had been raised.

Half of the money raised was donated to the Anthony Nolan Trust and half was sent to the Jenda School in Ethiopia, whom Gayhurst has been regularly supporting.

Aiden also took part in the Berkshire County Under 11 EPSCA Final.

Aiden, competing against players several years older than him, was placed 11 of 20 and received a medal.

Le Chateau Pencil Case Collection

A visit from French Drama Company, Onatti Productions provided the Senior School with a slap stick comedy, fifty percent of which was delivered in French. The actors cleverly combined English Characters with French to bring the French language to life for our pupils.

Over several weeks in the Summer term, Gayhurst pupils took part in a charity collection for Project Pencilcase. Each pupil packed a colourful pencil case with a selection of fun and functional pens, pencils, rulers and erasers. They were then collected by a member of the charity and distributed amongst various schools in Ethiopia.

There was plenty of audience particpation and a lot of laughs. By the end of the play the children were amazed and just how much French script they had understood.

GX FUN RUN The Gerrards Cross Fun Run is a sporting event hotly anticipated each year by the local community. Fiona Sellers from gxfunrun. org.uk visited Gayhurst prior to the event, with some of her friends!

Roger Budd, Founder and Chairman of Kids in Sport, explained to the Gayhurst pupils how the money raised at the run helped children with various needs and disabilities, take part in sport.

Ann Green from the Fun Run committee was also in attendance, along with, of course, Puffin the GX Fun Run mascot.

Many students and staff from Gayhurst School took part in the run. It was a fabulous day for the local community which raised a large amount of money for ‘Kids in Sport’.

Some of Gayhurts’s pupils at the GX Fun Run Fiona Sellers and Puffin

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Athletics

Sports News Tennis

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ur Tennis players have been very successful this summer.

Our year 3 and 4 teams both won their tournaments in June at the Inter-schools tournament held at the Bull Lane Tennis club and the year 3 team came second overall at the Schools Mixed Red Tennis Competition held at Dr Challoners High School.

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umerous atheltic events have been held during the Summer in and around Gerrards Cross. Many Saturdays in May, June and July have seen the boys and girls don their their running vests for races, triathlons and other athletic competitions.

We had boys and girls taking part in the London Regional Prep Schools Compeition in June which took place at the Thames Valley Athletics track in Eton

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e have had a great rounders season this year. The girls have really grasped the rules of the games and have started to apply tactics to their game play. We have had some great wins with some excellent fielding and tactical play. We came across our real competition when playing against Chesham Prep A team and fought hard to stay in the game. I have been amazed with the progress that has been made this year and can’t wait for the next season!!

It has also been good to see both the boys and girls playing rounders in their games lessons and in matches and the boys have really shown how they can transfer their cricket knowledge to the game of rounders.

Netball Tour

Cricket 2014

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Rounders

t has been another successful season on the cricket field.

At Gayhurst we have been looking to help the children progress their skills without becoming too prescriptive. We believe it is important children find ‘their way’ in such a technical sport, ensuring that their skills can be replicated even when they feel under pressure in a game situation.

The 1st XI managed to make excellent progress. Playing on the new cricket pitch, they have been adapting their games and learning the finer points of the game. William S managed to clinch both the most wickets and most runs award, however this masks what has been a true team effort this season. Bhushan D has responded admirably to the task of captaining the side and has by and large taken control of every game with little coach assistance.

Oliver Mansfield made excellent strides forward and was deservedly awarded the most improved prize at the end of term awards. There were also impressive performances by our 2nd XI, Colts, U10’s, U9’s and U8’s this year, with children enjoying learning more about the game, scoring lots of runs and taking plenty of wickets and catches.

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rs Shaw, Miss Donovan and Mrs Lingley took the year 4 and 5 girls off on a 4 day netball tour to Skegness, Butlins in June this year.

Participants in the tour were diverse. The action happened on Saturday and Sunday morning and was for under 11s and consisted mainly of club teams (as opposed to schools), meaning the standard was extremely high. The Gayhurst Girls managed to beat two of the teams and Anand K and Kate W both won players of the day.

Saturday afternoon included swimming at the Butlins camp followed by a fancy dress disco in the evening. Kate W got her second award of the weekend - ‘The Best Fancy Dress’.

The disco was complete with a karaoke session.

On sunday afternoon the girls went to a funfair and spent time in the arcade before spending their final night at Butlins. Though the journey back to Gayhurst on Monday was a very slow one, the weekend was not spoilt at all.

Our cricket festivals for the Junior School were also a huge success, giving the children the opportunity to perform for their Houses in fiercely contested House matches.

Further to this we have had several children represent the Buckinghamshire County cricket & development teams this year: Wiliam S, Oliver W, Tarun E, Jacob S, Paddy A, Harvey H William W, Teddy F and James B.

Senior School Sports Day

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he rain nearly got the better of us again this year but when the Senior School Sports Day went ahead the sun shone and the girls and boys were able to show off their atheltic training to a large crowd of cheering parents.

Gymnastics

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ymnastics at Gayhurst School is going from strength to strength. The girls and boys delighted parents and staff on our Open Day in May by putting on a colourful display showing off just how much they have learnt so far!

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School Council

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he School Council this year have achieved many things and has been a great success after being introduced for the first time in 2013. Here are some things we have had a hand in:-

Water bottles on Pease Field. There are now bottiles in the container.

2 new water fountains in the School grounds. One is near the office and one near the art room.

The setting up of an ‘eco-council’ to help us get green flag award.

New playground equipment on the adventure playground.

New cricket equipment for next year.

Extra games on the Senior School playground.

A section in the Stormont for School Council news.

A new lunch timetable. Fish and chips will be served alternate Fridays.

School Council member 2013-14 James Gowers

The table manners competition promoted good behaviour at the table and was eventually won by 4L. A talent show is to be organised for the new academic year.

All in all, the School Council has had a successful year and Oliver M and Alfie R have done a great job as Chairman and Secretary respectively. We leave the Council in the very capable hands of next year’s elected members.

James Gowers (Former pupil, 6C)

Gayhurst School Staff at the GPA Ball

Black Tie and Sparkles beats all our expectations!

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he big news from the GPA this year was the final fund raising result of the ‘Black Tie and Sparkes’ Ball.

The GPA started out with the ambition to raise £20,000 in order to pay the salary of a Lymphoedema Care Nurse, at South Bucks Hospice, for one year.

Not only did the families, friends and staff at Gayhurst manage to raise £20,000 for this fantastic cause, the final total raised on the night was over £40,000! The Gayhurst Parents Association is using the remainder of the funds raised to build an ‘Outdoor Classroom’, for the children, in the grounds of the School.

Gail Slowikowski, the GPA Chairman, Catherine Murphy the GPA Treasurer, and their children, who are pupils at Gayhurst, presented a cheque for £20,000 to Jo Woolf the South Bed Hospice’s Chief Executive.

Plans for the new outdoor classroom are in full swing.