The Prep Qatar Shirburnian 2019/2020

the

Prep qatar shirburnian

2019/ 20

Artwork by Nawaal Latif - Class 3M Joint winner of the drawing competition ‘Best cover design of The Prep Qatar Shirburnian’s 10th birthday edition’

Zoe Chang Adam Chenchara Chi Yee Chong Thaleia Chouery Muhammad Chowdhary Cassie Jo Clayton Dana El Gody Meshaal Khalid El Moghanni Marwan Elfaki Maya Gangineni Belal Ahmed Ghanem Yusuf Haq Raoul Haydamous Anvita Hosahalli Chaitanya Bakizah Mohammed Samir Issa Ali Jabari Isabella Keefe Yasmin Kerwat Faisal Khalil Ahmad Khan Ruby Ryan Eshal Ayesha Saleem Kovan Harman Saman Nur Arissa M Sharizal

Nouray Abdallatif Yasmin Abdel Hadi Renad Khalid Hassan Abdelrahman Haniyyah Noor -Al- Haya Abdul Haq Noor Abuzgia Aariz Ahmed Abbas Mazin Abbas Ahmed Njoud Bader Al Enazi Noora Al Enazi Nasser Al Ghanem Al Reem Hamad Al Hajri Khalid Al Hitmi Nour Al Jabari Maryam Al Kaabi Nawaf Al Khaldi Mansour Haasan Al Khater Jeham Al Kuwari Mohammed Khalid Al Kuwari Mohammed Rashid Al Kuwari Saoud Abdulaziz Al Meer Afif Zayat

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 6

26

56-59

108

OUR HISTORY

RECEPTION A

YEAR 4

10TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY

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29

60

112

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

RECEPTION H

YEAR 5 ROUNDUP

QATAR NATIONAL DAY

12

32

61

114

FROM THE HEADMASTER

RECEPTION W

YEAR 5 PRODUCTION

TEAMS

16

34

66-69

120

SUMMARY OF THE YEAR

RECEPTION T

YEAR 5

ENRICHMENT

18

38

70

124

PR EFECTS

KEY STAGE 1 ROUNDUP

YEAR 6 ROUNDUP

EVENTS

20

40

72-75

132

FR OM THE HEAD OF EYFS

YEAR 1 PRODUCTION

YEAR 6

DISTANCE LEARNING

22

42-45

76-89

138-141

PRE-SCHOOL MEADOWS

YEAR 1

SUBJECTS

COMMEM. PRIZES

24

46-49

90-103

142

PRE-SCHOOL TREETOPS

YEAR 2

THE HOUSES

FROM THE BURSAR

50

104

LOWER KEY STAGE 2 ROUNDUP

52-55 YEAR 3

SPOR TS DAY

106 PTA

S

Our History 6

herborne School is an independent boys’ boarding school re-founded in 1550 under a royal charter granted by King Edward VI. It has grown into a modern school of nearly 600 pupils and about 100 teaching staff. Surrounded by the bustling market town, the school attracts pupils from across the world. Shirburnians follow a diverse range of careers at the highest levels and include diplomats, bishops, politicians, journalists, actors, poets, and musicians.

Sherborne Preparatory School is an independent co-educational school for children aged 3-13 years. The school has a long and distinguished

history and an enviable academic reputation as a feeder to many of England’s leading independent schools.

Sherborne Qatar was founded in 2009 and is a joint venture between Sherborne School and Sheikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Thani. Members of the Qatari royal

family such as the Emir, HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, have attended Sherborne and Sheikh Abdullah and his wife Sheikha Amal have sent some of their sons there too.

Sheikh Abdulla was keen that

education has given him. Sherborne

Sherborne should join him in a

has history, culture, discipline and a

partnership to bring to Qatar education

willingness to transform a child. That is

opportunities and values that he had

what it did for our child and that is what

seen and liked at Sherborne. He says:

we want to give to Qatar. We need to

“Ahmed our oldest son was transformed

bring a more structured educational

by Sherborne. The school’s approach

experience to our country. Qatar needs

helped him to discover different talents

Sherborne’s culture, experience and

in himself and he was greatly nourished

tradition.”

by the experience.

We are

extremely grateful for what a Sherborne

Sherborne Qatar is a founding member of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education Outstanding Schools Initiative and is overseen by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education Private Schools Office. Sherborne Qatar is a self-financed, not-for-profit school with its own Board of Governors, of which Sherborne School has half of the appointed membership. Its ethos, brand and educational standards are overseen by and aligned to Sherborne School.

FROM THE

PRINCIPAL

M

y old Latin Master’s favourite saying was Carpe Diem a phrase that was made famous by Robin Williams in the 1989 Film Dead Poet’s Society and which is often translated as meaning, seize the day. In these difficult and unprecedented times, this advice seems much more profound and relevant today than it did 40 years ago in the old, often cold, Latin classroom of my old school.

cannot replace an outstanding teacher. However, when everything has settled down again, the new skills which staff have acquired will certainly be utilised in the future presentation of learning materials.

In this magazine we celebrate and remember the successes of the last year, the special days and the special opportunities that so many pupils have seized, enjoyed and excelled at over the year.

I must say a few ‘thank yous’: firstly to all the parents for their continued support of the schools, to the pupils for their enthusiasm, commitment and imagination whilst working remotely and to the outstanding teachers who, during the school closure, produced engaging lessons, arranged individual pupil sessions, organised a virtual green day, produced virtual music recitals and performances and even ran virtual house days. Truly, we have been united in separation.

The academic year of 2019 – 2020, a year in which we celebrated our 10th birthday, has been an exciting year. Perhaps, interesting would be a better way to describe the last year; but however we look back at the last 12 months, there is no getting away from the fact it has also been a challenging year.

I would also like to acknowledge the wonderful work of some of our unsung heroes: the cleaning teams from Acciona, the security men led by the excellent Kapila and our medical teams have all done a terrific job in difficult circumstances and they deserve the thanks of our whole community.

The Covid 19 Pandemic, that has affected so many people in so many countries, has immediately changed the way we teach and will continue to change many aspects of education for the foreseeable future. The lock down has forced all schools to look at the way they deliver lessons and the way they interact with their pupils and parents. However, good schools, like Sherborne Qatar, will use the experiences they have learnt over recent months to improve the quality of education they offer their pupils in the longer term, especially around the use of technology and pupil engagement. The lockdown has confirmed the need for pupil interaction with friends and teachers and eLearning has proved that a computer

I must also thank our Qatari owners, Sharaka Education, our Chair of Governors, Sheikha Noura Al Thani, The Ministry of Education and Sherborne UK; thank you all for your continued support and advice.

As I mentioned, this has been an exciting year; schools are and should be exciting places, but we have also faced unforeseen challenges this year.

We started on a high with the preparations for our 10th birthday celebrations but at the start of term we received the tragic news that one of our teaching colleagues, Mrs Afi Ahmed, had passed away.

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Mrs Ahmed taught in the Prep School for eight years and she was a friend to many staff, past and present. She was also much admired by many parents and pupils. Afi’s Garden and the Afi Ahmed Sorts Day Trophy will ensure that she is not forgotten. Tragically, this sad news was followed with the heart-breaking news that one of our senior school pupils, Al Bandri, had also passed away. It was a very difficult time for family, friends, pupils and teachers; in fact, for all those who were affected by the loss of their friends and colleagues it reinforces once again the vital need for human support and understanding in troubled and difficult times.

I would like to congratulate Mrs Jane Goldsack on her appointment as the founding Headmistress of Sherborne Qatar School for Girls. Jane joined us in April (albeit remotely from Spain) and is preparing for the opening of the new school which will have a STEM focus and a wealth of facilities, including science and technology labs, libraries, performance and assembly spaces and excellent sports facilities, including a 25m swimming pool and tennis courts.

I must also take this opportunity to thank Mrs Pauline Puddicombe who is retiring as our Bursar and returning to the UK. Pauline has been a valued colleague and friend and it is difficult to thank her properly for the commitment that she has shown the school over the last five years. Put simply, the school would not be in the position it is today without her leadership, guidance and prudent financial planning. I wish Pauline, David and their boys every success in the future and Pauline and David a happy retirement Finally, please can I take this chance to encourage every pupil at Sherborne to get involved in as many aspects and areas of school life as possible. The lockdown, which has caused so much frustration and feelings of isolation for so many people, demonstrates that we must take every positive opportunity that is presented to us and, especially as these opportunities may be taken away from us, we must not waste any potential gift or experience and seize every chance that is presented to us, whether academic, musical, pastoral, sporting or artistic. Please, I encourage you all to Seize the Day

Mr. Nick Prowse - Principal and CEO

From the

Headmaster

A

very well-known meta study of what actually works in schools to improve learning, covering 25 years and involving 300 million pupils, was updated just a few years ago, to include more than 250 factors.

Elements of the craft of teaching dominated the top of the rankings: the collective expertise of teachers working together as evaluators of their impact on children’s learning, their passion, what teachers see in children and how they bring out the best in each of them, that Goldilocks effect – making the challenge just right, not too hard and not too easy.

However well-equipped we all aim to be, no-one quite knows exactly what we will need for this journey – and exactly when we’ll need it. How can we ‘future-proof’ our children? How do we make an education last a lifetime? This is a challenge that parents, and schools meet together. Our belief is that a Sherborne Education should last a lifetime – Made in Sherborne, Made for Life.

By combining our moral values with our learning dispositions: Creativity, Independence, Curiosity, Resilience, Communication and Risk-taking, we foster learning that develops the whole mind and body, the heart and the soul.

Shiny new buildings? Not even on the list. Small class sizes? 185th out of 252. It’s all about the quality of the craft to improve learning; and that’s the key phrase, ‘quality of the craft’.

What our children are left with, once school is but a fond memory, needs to be far more than just a group of single-digit numbers and a list of letters close to the beginning of the alphabet.

To teach well, we need to engage with children as people first - they know if you care and are interested in them. By nurturing our children with values first: Teamwork, Responsibility, Respect, Perseverance, Kindness and Honesty, we allow them the best chance of being happy and confident and therefore being prepared for whatever life throws at them, including future jobs. It should never just be about work.

Of course, these are mightily important; they will allow pupils to make decisions, and not have decisions made for them. Once they have been made and time roles on, what then? It is at this point that everything else that our pupils have learned and has been instilled within them starts to come to the fore. That's the point at which the true worth of a school such as ours becomes more apparent.

Therefore, we can see that to judge a school by its academic results alone is a lazy approach and tells us very little about what a school ACTUALLY does with children, and how far it ACTUALLY takes them.

Education is a journey, not a destination – it’s about testing limits, not taking tests and that the starting point is a key contributor to where pupils find themselves when they leave. What we as parents should be more bothered about is how much value has been added, how much progress have our children made in comparison to what would have happened if they had not been at Sherborne Qatar.

I believe that has become really evident over the last few months. Technology is wonderful and ever improving and there are many areas that have no doubt enhanced our practice as teachers and will continue in some shape upon our return into school. However, it is very one-dimensional.

Our staff are certainly not one dimensional - they engage with our pupils to think and to learn, and they can do that because the things that are actually important within learning and teaching are all extremely human attributes.

T

here is no doubt that machines will be able to do more and more to help in education but, as they do, the role of the teacher to guide, to care and to nurture will become even more important.

Sir Edmund Hillary, reflecting on his successful assent of Mt Everest in 1953 claimed ‘It’s not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves’. True success depends on how well we are supported and therefore able to find that inner strength, confidence and self-belief to ‘have a go’.

A vital part of my job is to surround your children with amazing people. All that I have just referred to happens here at Sherborne Qatar Prep because of your children’s teachers and teaching assistants, supported so well by you, our parents along with the Bursary team. They have demonstrated these qualities day after day, through their passion and genuine care and commitment to bring out the best in your children, and to be able to radiate all this through screens more recently, has been absolutely amazing – but then that’s what they are – AMAZING. It has been an absolute pleasure working with them all this year. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of them for all that they have given, and to wish Sinead Grennan, Chantal Gowland, Miss Safa and Miss Maha all the very best in their new adventures.

We also wish Miss Suzan, Helen Fawcett, Kim McMahon and Katie Roberts all the very best for their transition to Sherborne Qatar School for Girls.

Good schools prepare children for the short term; truly exceptional schools prepare children for a lifetime of learning. Welcome to Sherborne Qatar.

Despite the many challenges this year has presented, as a community we have overcome them, supporting and guiding our pupils, your children, who are truly fantastic. Led so well by our Prefects and Heads of School Alia, Aya and Jacob, they have embraced all that’s been laid out before them this year – you have all been amazing and you have demonstrated this to us all over these last 3 months of e-learning.

Much has happened this year in our community that we shall reflect on for a long time to come I am sure but please remember and enjoy all that has been achieved in 2019 - 2020 because there has been much.

Mr. Nick Fawcett - Headmaster

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What If Instead of Being Behind These Children Are Ahead?

What if, instead of falling behind, our children are advanced?

What if they have more empathy, they enjoy family connection, they can be more creative and entertain themselves, they love to read and express themselves in writing?

What if they enjoy the simple things, like their own backyards and balconies, sitting near a window in the quiet?

What if they notice the birds and the dates and different flowers emerge and the calming renewal of a gentle rain shower?

What if our children are the ones to learn to cook, organise their space, do their laundry and help keep a well-run home?

What if they learn to stretch a pound and live with less? What if they learn to plan shopping trips and make meals at home?

What if they learn the difference between want and need?

What if they learn the value of eating together as a family and finding the good in sharing the small delights of every day?

What if they are the ones who place great value on our teachers and educational professionals, librarians, public servants and the previously invisible essential workers like truck drivers, grocers, cashiers, healthcare workers... just to name a few who are taking care of us right now while we are sheltered in place?

What if among these children a great leader emerges who had the benefit of a slower pace and simpler life to truly learn what really matters in life?

What if they are ahead?

By Jaime Ragsdale (and slightly adapted)

Summary Of The Year

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from the deputy head As I approach the end of my first year at the Prep, I find myself reflecting on all those special moments that have made this journey an interesting and enjoyable one. The thing that was evident for me from the start was how warm and welcoming everyone is, from the members of staff to the children and parents. Ours is a school community where everyone plays an important role, and I have enjoyed witnessing this on a daily basis, in the greatest of achievements and the smallest of gestures.

D

otted around the school, we have words like RESPONSIBILTY, CURIOSITY, TEAMWORK and RESILIENCE, to mention a few. Whether it is our Sherborne Values or our School Dispositions, I have loved watching the children demonstrate these qualities. Children in Pre School displayed such curious little minds when we experimented with butter and ice to understand how blubber insulates polar bears – their responses were not only adorable but scientific too! House Days have been another favourite of mine this year. The excitement and competition they bring about in children and adults alike is fantastic, not to mention the creativity and teamwork that is displayed within and across Houses. A few other favourites of mine from this year include the indoor track at the Aspire Dome buzzing with excitement on Sports Day, watching children showcase their learning on Landing Days, Year 5’s overnight camping and of course trying to maintain some coordination on the astro-turf while keeping up with Mrs Mills’ Zumba!

In addition to such memorable events, I would like to acknowledge the positive learning attitude that is the foundation of our school’s successes. As with many other parts of the world, in March this year we found ourselves having to prepare for distance learning. I am exceptionally proud of our school community for the way in which we adapted to the change. Our high standards were reflected in the quality of planning and delivery of online lessons by our team of dedicated teachers and teaching assistants. Despite the challenges, our amazing children showed resilience and responsibility by logging in every morning, attending live sessions online and continuing to learn under such unusual circumstances. All of this was made possible because of the unwavering support of our Sherborne parents. To all of you, I would like to say ‘Thank You’ you are what makes our school special. This, I am certain, will be evident as you look through the pages of this excellent publication, enjoying the successes and memories of this year.

Mrs. Nadira Rahman - Deputy Head

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PREFECTS 18

19

LETTER 20

From

The Head of EYFS

A

t Sherborne Qatar Prep School we pride ourselves on making sure we develop the cognitive skills, emotional well-being, social competence and sound physical and mental health, building a strong foundation for success well into the adult years for all our children.

That starts with the Early Years at Sherborne Qatar Prep School.

As parents, you probably love to see your child playing. It’s incredible to hear their ideas and to learn about the new worlds they create. It’s also fun to see how creative they can be as they put their imagination to use in learning about the world around them. This is done through child-initiated play and this is what we pride ourselves on at Sherborne Qatar Prep School. Through ‘focus child’ observation, the teachers have been able to create enhanced provision for the children to extend their ideas and challenge themselves in their daily play environment.

From offering children a chance to ask questions, problem solve, work collaboratively and conduct structured experimentation, play is a key component of learning at Sherborne Qatar Prep. One way that our EYFS teachers bring a sense of play into the classroom is by taking an activity-based approach to nearly every subject.

For example, when our teachers read a book aloud, they encourage young pupils to role play the story and use props to immerse themselves in the story and bring it to life. They can also prompt pupils to talk to each other about the content and to talk about the associations it sparks from their own lives. Teachers also engage the child’s imagination and sense of curiosity by asking, “What do you think will happen next?”

Pupils are also given an opportunity to bring stories to life through dramatic play. When children are given oppor-

tunities to act out scenes and express themselves, they improve their social confidence, increase their ability to see the perspectives of others and increase the attention they give to the literature.

In the Sherborne Qatar EYFS Department we seek to teach children that learning is not just a formal activity they do in the classroom—it’s actually a lot of fun!

One of our goals is to give pupils opportunities to discover all our learning dispositions:

• foster positive emotions by building a sense of pride and belonging within the school by being resilient.

The teachers' engagement supports children in their creativity, while also challenging them to think about why they chose to create an object. It also requires them to think through the challenges they solved in creating it and helps them become more confident in their problem solving abilities.

• play with different possibilities by being creative;

Our aim in EYFS is to help pupils learn to ask questions, express themselves, collaborate with others and take creative risks. We also want them to retain their natural curiosity and never to lose the excitement of learning something new.

All those things are achieved by making learning fun for children and this is what you will see in the following pages when the class teachers talk about what the children have been learning this year.

• investigate subjects that interest them through being independent;

Mrs. Helen Fawcett - Head of EYFS

• wonder through curiosity; • question through good communication; • work as a team through leadership; • experiment through risk taking;

PRE SCHOOL MEADOWS 22 Wow Meadows, what a memorable year we have had and one that we will never forget for so many reasons! You came into our classroom in September so bright and beady-eyed, eager to learn and now we see you leaving as independent little learners ready to face the wonderful challenges that Reception will bring.

When the Year 9s came and read our books

Alina - RW

W

e began the year learning all about Nursery Rhymes; who pushed Humpty Dumpty off the wall? Do you remember? We had our parents in for a very successful Nursery Rhyme Craft Morning and you showed them all the learning that happens in Meadows. To conclude this topic, we had a special visit from Build a Bear where we all received our own bears and so delicately placed a heart inside, showing the kind little souls that we are.

How could we forget our first school trip to the beach, a memory that will hopefully stay with you for a lifetime. The excited squeals as you came into school that morning all packed and ready were heart-warming. Building sand volcanos, treasure hunts, obstacle courses and not forgetting splashing in the sea - we had a blast!

I enjoyed playing treasure hunting in our beach trip

Najla - RW

The Spring Term saw you develop into readers overnight! From bouncing around outside, making the most of the cooler weather, to finding insects and learning our ‘i’ sound, to arriving into school for tea and toast to learn the ‘t’ sound, you have done a tremendous job in beginning your journey as readers.

Our Summer Term started in an unusual way as we embarked on e-learning amidst the Covid-19 lockdown. However, this was not a challenge for our littlest of learners but an opportunity for you to showcase how resilient you are and how you face any challenge with a smile. We were amazed with the videos and pictures that we received on a daily basis sharing your learning at home, from house tours to re-telling Goldilocks. We couldn’t be prouder of you Meadows!

Mrs. Debbie Eite & Mrs. Sinead Grennan

My friends are so special and that makes me happy

Charlize - RW

PRE SCHOOL MEADOWS 23

PRE SCHOOL TREETOPS 24

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This year in Treetops, we have grown so much. We started as the youngest children at Sherborne Qatar Prep and, over the months, we learnt how to be proud Shirburnians.

We learnt responsibility, taking charge of our learning and doing things for ourselves. We are independent. We learnt teamwork, joining together to make great things greater.

e learnt kindness, sharing and taking turns. We learnt to have respect for others and our belongings. We learnt the importance of honesty and how to solve problems. We also learnt to persevere. For some of this year we had to stay home and stay safe. This meant being away from our friends and learning from home. This was very different from what we have been used to but we persevered and continued to grow and learn. This year Treetops has shown that even the littlest Shirburnians can make an impact.

I can’t do it now but if I try, I can learn to do it.

Halima - RW

The water, it was so funny it scared me.

It was like shhhhhh and then I went away because I was going to get wet. I like to take up the sand and build a sandcastle.

Ali - RW

It's been wonderful exploring numbers this year; we met many number friends who live in Ten Town and we were able to celebrate Freddy Four’s Birthday. He came to our classroom to celebrate with us as we dressed up in our party clothes, ate food and played party games together. We ended the day by singing Happy Birthday to Freddy.

He is so kind and he shared his party cake with everybody!

In the Spring Term we went to the beach for our beach topic. We had a great time digging for treasure, dipping in the sea, playing beach games and we even made volcanos in the sand. It was so much fun! We have learnt about lots of sea animals and how they survive in the ocean.

Now and again, our school day contained a surprise and we went to the hall to watch a performance. The KS1 and Reception class performances were amazing and we loved seeing some of our big brothers and sisters performing! The AfCent Band performance was also really exciting.

This is the best day ever!

Harvey - RW

Some of our favourite days in the year were the Dress Up Days! On Qatar National Day we saw beautiful dresses and amazing military outfits. Pyjama Day was so comfortable, Odd Sock Day was so funny and during World Book Week we got to dress up as insects. We saw many incredible costumes including spiders, lady bugs, butterflies and a very cool Hungry Caterpillar!

When school had to close and home learning began, everything was different. We started watching our teachers on videos or hearing their voices on PowerPoints, and we continued to learn new things with our family members helping us. We showed what we learnt through photos and videos, which our teachers loved watching from their homes and telling us what they thought. We started seeing our teachers and friends in weekly Zoom meetings and learnt how to listen to the person talking and become brave to share with our class in this way. We missed our teachers and playing with our friends so much, but we found a new way to stay connected through photos, videos and Zoom.

Mrs. Michelle Young & Miss. Sinead Ferguson

I played with the sand castles.

Alya - RW

PRE SCHOOL TREETOPS 25

RECEPTION A 26 Reception A have had an amazing start to the year and an unusual end!

W

e began the year with our enquiry Super Me, where the children expressed what they were super at and who are the superheroes in their lives. The end of the Autumn Term marked our most memorable whole class achievement, our Superhero Showcase. The children spoke with big voices and demonstrated their confidence by re-telling a story, performing a poem, and singing songs. It filled the parents and me with immense pride!

Throughout the year the children displayed our school learning dispositions in a variety of ways demonstrating their Fantastic Focus during our EYFS Sports Day to complete a range of physical activities and showcase excellent sportsmanship by working well as a team.

During water play, I often marvelled at the children’s constant ability to Link and Learn as they poured, measured and used mathematical language.

In the Spring Term as part of our topic Where do animals live? we visited the farm and the children enjoyed feeding the camels and the ostriches. This trip allowed the children to appreciate the journey that their food makes from ‘farm to fork.’ It was a delight to see them squeal in excitement, ‘Look at all those eggs!’ Their eyes widened in fascination as they made the connection that the eggs the hens lay would soon become the egg sandwiches they have at home. It is these pivotal little moments I hope Reception A will cherish and take with them.

World Book Week was another favourite moment for Reception A. The children were able to take part in the Story Jar competition. I was hugely impressed with the level of detail and imagination that went into all them. This week was made even more magical by our Mystery Reader. Each day we were visited by a parent dressed up as a book character. The children were captivated by the passionate reader, only to joyfully discover that the reader was one of their parents.

As spring continued and we were instructed to stay indoors, we saw parents put on their Superhero capes, turn bedrooms to classrooms and assist their children with distance learning. It was a great pleasure to see the children bake bread, build castles and plant at home.

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Reading and listening to stories is my favourite thing to do at home

Danil - RA

The Summer Term began with this unprecedented challenge whereby the children continued to learn from home. What impressed me the most was the children’s love for learning, the perseverance to remain unfazed even in this new learning environment.

Teaching through Zoom has been a real highlight for me because of how quickly the children became accustomed to learning online and developing the modern-day skill of video communication.

Reception A have demonstrated resilience by adapting to the unexpected changes of this year and I feel these skills will be an asset to them, not only next year but for many years to come.

I loved it when we could go outside and play in the mud kitchen

Yusairah - RA

Miss. Ubah Barasab

I can now teach my family how to read

Tristan - RA

I loved it when Yusairah’s mum came in and read a story

Hasan - RA

My favourite activity at home was to make a magic mirror and magic potion

Aishah - RA

I enjoyed it when we went to the farm

Liza - RA

My best memory in Reception A was learning about superheroes

Yaaseen - RA

RECEPTION RA 28

RECEPTION H We have had a brilliant year in Reception H. The children have made wonderful progress, both academically and socially and it will be sad to see them leave the Reception classroom.

We have had so much fun with our learning this year with the children showing great enthusiasm for each of our topics.

B

ack in the Autumn Term we explored the topic, Guess Who? The children had afantastic time at Kidzania role playing various occupations that they had learned about during the term. Reception H children were very keen on pretending to be fire-fighters and paramedics during the trip! At the end of the term we had a brilliant dress up day when the children came into school dressed as their favourite occupation. We had chefs, doctors, policemen, nurses and pilots to name a few!

In the Spring Term we began our Around the World topic. The children were especially fond of playing in our very own classroom aeroplane and we would hear, “All aboard, this is your captain speaking!” regularly during child initiated play. Reception H had a great interest in learning about iconic monuments in the world, including the Eiffel Tower, the Pyramids and the Taj Mahal. The children enjoyed a day out to the National Museum of Qatar where they listened to native stories of Qatar and saw some amazing displays of artefacts.

Reception H then moved onto asking, “Where do animals live?” and, as a part of this topic, we visited a farm for a jam packed day out. The children and teachers loved this trip.

We started the day with science experiments, followed by visiting where vegetables grow and the flower tunnels. I think our favourite part of the day was seeing various animals and getting to feed the camels and ostriches!

Unfortunately, because of the Covid-19 school closure, our Summer Term learning couldn’t take place in the classroom but the children showed great engagement and enthusiasm for our topic, Who Lives in a Castle? through their completion of home learning tasks and online learning. Reception H made some fantastic potions to help cure the dragon pox!

It has been a pleasure to support this group of children in their learning this year and to see the progress they have made has been so rewarding. I am proud of each child in Reception H and I look forward to visiting them as they continue their learning journeys in Year 1.

Best wishes to you all!

Miss. Cara Hackett

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afeeya’s replies to the questions were as follows:

D

abia quotes:

What did you enjoy the most in Reception H? “Everything” What did you find most fun this year?

“I enjoyed the potion activity.”

What did you like learning about this year?

“I liked learning how to write because I like writing”.

“I liked learning about what we are going to be when we grow up. I want to be a scientist. " “I enjoyed playing in the sand and water outside.”

Ahmed, “I enjoyed making new friends in Reception” “My favourite activity is playing in the playground”

I liked going to the farm and got some flowers from a plant shop.

There were lots of vegetables.

We were following a man and he was telling us how plants grow. I fed camels and sheep grass.

Mariam - RH

What are you looking to in school?

“I’m looking forward to new activities”.

“I really like counting and my maths”

RECEPTION RH 31

RECEPTION W 32

My favourite aspect is the trip to Kidzania because I enjoyed it and did a lot of things to earn money.

Sara - RW

I think it is fair to say we have never had a year like this before! We have spent such a lot of time this year exploring the different types of learners we can be, from persevering as a Keep it up Captain to linking our ideas as an Ideas Agent. They have taken this on board and made it their own. I am so proud of how the children took these dispositions and used them at home during their distance learning.

What an inspiration, they really are superhero learners!

Y

ou know that you have had fun when the year has whizzed by! In our first topic, Guess Who? we learnt about different jobs in our community and then had a chance to try them out in Kidzania! I felt spoilt as a group of ‘hoteliers’ treated me to dinner there! We also became experts at brushing our teeth and used our new Talk for Write skills to help us create step by step instructions.

We were able to help rescue Supertato from The Evil Pea who trapped him in the classroom, by putting up wanted posters and discussing how we could help the pea become kind.

I liked it when I went to the National Museum because I saw the animals. My favourite lesson is Maths, I love counting and adding. I also enjoy playing with my friends and role-playing

Tilly - RW

We explored different parts of the world in our enquiry, Where in the World? and even got to perform our Talk for Write poem Around the World to our partner class in 4F. We went to a farm and saw what fresh fruit grow in Qatar. We had a lot of fun in our role play Safari when we visited Africa for Handa’s Surprise! Straight from our imaginary trip to Africa, we found ourselves working in a new location, our homes! The children all continued with the same enthusiasm to keep the story alive and taught their families the story of Handa’s Surprise and for that, they deserve a huge ‘marshmallow’ clap!

Throughout the fun we have had, the children have taken on each learning challenge and applied it in their play, which is a joy to watch, teach and support. I have loved to see how they apply their new skills in their play, such as measuring whose car could travel the furthest down our classroom door slope or writing notes in the role play corner.

Watching the children grow in their time in the classroom and how dedicated they have been to continue to learn at home just shows me how ready they all are to take on the exciting new challenges that Year One will offer them!

Mrs. Lindsey Wilkin

My favourite part of Reception W was playing outside with my friends. I also loved going to the museum and seeing all the animals in the ocean.

Aidan - RW

RECEPTION RW 33

RECEPTION T 34 What an incredible year we have had in Reception T! The children fully immersed themselves into all our wonderful inquiries. At the beginning of the year, they had so much fun meeting new friends and learning all about themselves and their families as they settled into Reception.

A

“Kidzania, was fun because we played for a long time”.

Deema - RT

fter that, they catapulted into our Why am I super? Inquiry learning, developing and applying all the learning dispositions needed to be a Superhero. Since then, they have continued to be Superhero Explorers throughout our Guess Who? inquiry. They showed curiosity, through exploring, investigating and roleplaying all about People Who Help Us. They were aspiring dentists, doctors, nurses, firefighters, police officers and teachers.

During this inquiry, we had an amazing opportunity to visit KidZania, where the children thoroughly enjoyed experiencing all professions and developing the skills and dispositions needed for their futures.

In the Spring Term, we jetted off around the world, visiting many different countries and exploring the similarities and differences of many cultures. In our class assembly, the children were Super Achieving Heroes; proud to celebrate and represent all the amazing countries they are from. They showed amazing focus during rehearsals and when it got difficult, they were Keep it up Captains showing fantastic perseverance by not giving up.

During the Summer Term we were doing distance learning, away from our friends and the adventures of our classroom. However, the children responded superbly and with their parents they made an amazing effort to stay engaged with their learning, accessing our online VLE and attending our online Zoom sessions. They were excited to see their friends again, as well as eager to continue learning new things. The quality of the learning produced at home was fantastic. They enjoyed being creative with building castles from junk materials or Lego and creating magical potions. As well as this their Maths and English skills continued to improve through the online modelled video tutorials, guidance and Zoom sessions.

I am incredibly proud of all the children and their progression; they are now Fantastic Focus Heroes, risk-takers, adventurers, explorers and Keep it up Captains. I am certain they will continue to develop these qualities as they progress to Year One and beyond.

Miss. Ciara Trainor

“I liked the farm trip. There were lots of animals and we could feed them and there was lots of grass”.

Najla - RW

RECEPTION RT 35

KEY STAGE 1 - YEAR 1 38 In Year 1 this year, our children enjoyed a range of engaging and educational activities, many of which were such good fun that children did not even realize they were learning new skills and acquiring knowledge as they participated in them!

C

hildren started with a look at what makes us special and the story of The Rainbow Fish helped children to understand the value of kindness. Someone who could have used these lessons was a young girl who visited the Year 1 corridor and left quite a trail of destruction in her wake. Acting as detectives, the children analysed the crime scenes before deducing that Goldilocks had been. This led to the question, Do all stories have a happy ending?

Another cheeky visitor was Ted who caused havoc when he visited Sherborne and left a diary entry detailing all the naughty things he did on his night-time adventures, including knocking over glitter and drawing on the teachers’ faces!

In the weeks leading up to our Qatar National Day celebrations, the children asked the question, What is the difference between Qatar and the UK? They looked at the weather, landmarks, food and clothes. The enquiry climaxed with a celebration of Qatar and the UK with a national dress up day and a feast of foods from all over the world.

Year 1 were lucky enough to be one of the first year groups to visit the National Museum of Qatar where they enjoyed a guided tour of this beautifully curated museum. They returned with a far greater understanding of Qatari history and how the country became what it is today.

The Spring Term saw the arrival of a giant beanstalk on the Year 1 corridor and the science investigation into what makes things grow. Children used their knowledge to plant and grow their own seeds.

The children were intrigued by guest artist Mr Shore who presented an inspiring insight to help answer their next question, Can anyone be an artist? Through step by step guides and learning about the techniques used by famous artists such as Vincent Van Gough, the children soon realised that anyone can in fact be an artist!

This enquiry continued during the Covid-19 school closure with many children continuing to explore their creativity and artistic skills.

The Summer Term burst into action with news of The Great Fire of London, shared with the children on their first virtual day back with a news report starring a couple of very familiar faces. This catchy ‘WOW!’ led to a wonderful enquiry into this important historic event with a focus on how it changed the world. Children wrote their own newspaper report alongside in their English lessons.

KEY STAGE 1 - YEAR 2 39 Year 2 opened with the question, How do we use the Sherborne values?

This allowed children the chance to explore and get to know the values, thinking how important each one was and how they define our Sherborne pupils.

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he next enquiry was a scientific investigation into materials with the question, Can we use different materials to do the same job? This proved to be a really interesting insight into all the natural and man-made materials around us and their uses.

Paddington Bear provided the inspiration for English as children learnt to write a travelling story. The creativity they showed as they used this entertaining character to explore settings was wonderful.

A rather Royal visitor was welcomed by Year 2 and the children were in awe as Queen Elizabeth II came for a question and answer session before staying for a photo shoot with each class. After exploring all the things that make the UK so special, the children wrote invitations to the Queen inviting her to attend their British tea party, complete with Paddington Bear’s favourite marmalade sandwiches. Dressed in their finery, the children celebrated together and were delighted that the Queen returned to see how much they had learnt about her country.

Poetry was written about the Sherborne values and then later taking inspiration from 10 things you would find in a wizard’s pocket. Children reinvented this to be, 10 things you would find in the pockets of …a dinosaur, a puppy or a kangaroo!

The Rainbow Dragon provided the subject material for the next English topic with information texts being written about the children’s favourite animals. Alongside their enquiry about habitats, the children researched facts and information to include in their information texts.

As school closed for Covid-19, children began their new enquiry by looking at famous people who shaped our world. Some of the most creative and entertaining pieces of work were submitted including videos of Ernest Shackleton and his exploratory adventures.

The final enquiry looked at What kind of artist am I? and provided children the chance to explore a variety of artists from all around the world. Pupils imitated and reinvented the works of famous artists, such as Mondrian, with creativity across a variety of themes.

Mrs. Antonia Confalone - Head of Key Stage 1

YEAR 1 PRODUCTION 40

‘I loved Qatar National Day when I dressed in National dress. I have had lots of achievements this year including Greater Maths Club and using Read Theory’

Filza - Year 1

‘I liked art class and all the scavenger hunts!’

There’s a Sunflower in my Supper

Fatema - Year 1

T

he highlight of the Spring Term was without a doubt the spectacular performance of There’s A Sunflower in My Supper. This all singing, all dancing triumph followed the story of Daisy the Cow as she planted an unfamiliar seed and, with the help of the Wise Old Owl, nurtured it into a giant sunflower which was not only enjoyed by her and her cow friends (even Mr Bull) but also birds and bees and bugs and butterflies. This feel good tale showcased the talents of our sparkly Year 1 children who enthusiastically sang a variety of catchy songs and spoke their lines with loud voices and clear expression.

‘I loved the dress up days.’

Hanna - Year 1

‘I enjoyed all activities we did on House Day and the sports day too.

I also had fun making sculptures with dough and pickles’

Mikael - Year 2

This play was chosen to work alongside the science enquiry about what plants need to grow, with pupils writing instructions on what plants need to grow in their English topic.

The children drew on the words from one of the many wonderful and educational songs, It can’t do it on its own, to recall that they would need, ‘soil, sunlight, water and a little space…’.

‘I enjoyed the new topic in Enquiry about Technology and I want to be an astronaut’

Amna - Year 2

The best ‘WOW!’ was when Queen Elizabeth came to our school. It was lovely to see the Queen of England!

Tobi - Year 2

‘My teacher helps me with my work and takes care of us’

Iman - Year 1

‘I enjoyed the sport day activities and the Qatar National Day’

Turki - Year 2

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KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 1 42

KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 1 43

KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 1 44

KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 1 45

KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 2 46

KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 2 47

KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 2 48

KEY STAGE 1 YEAR 2 49

LOWER KEY STAGE 2 50 Lower Key Stage 2 pupils had an action-packed year of learning which did not stop, despite the change to home-learning in March. Highlights include Year 4’s visit to Baladna Farm where they learned about the milk production process and gathered helpful information for their Animals unit of work in Science.

Z

akariyah said, “The best part about going to Baladna Farm was seeing how the cows were milked! The automatic milk belt was so cool! I didn’t know cows could be milked that way. I can’t wait to go back and watch it all over again!”.

In Year 3, the pupils thoroughly enjoyed their unit on Ancient Egypt and a certain favourite was the making of Canopic Jars where children not only learned about the purpose of these jars for storing major organs to preserve them, but they had the opportunity to create their own too… don’t worry, they did not need to use them!

Year 4 were also treated to what is surely a ‘first’ in the whole of Qatar… a visit by a Viking! Year 4 pupils settled down underneath the hanger to listen to their teachers when, all of a sudden, there was a Viking towering over them. The Viking told the pupils the wonderful story of Beowulf – a hero of the Greats. Maisie reviewed her year of learning in Year 4: “I have really enjoyed Year 4, especially our project on the human body. It’s amazing how complicated everything is under our skin! And our hearts are so strong pumping our blood around our bodies.”

The excitement and build up to Year 3’s first ever performance in the new Multi Purpose Hall fully lived up to expectations. With significant parental support and enormous commitment and dedication from the Year 3 teaching and support staff, an extraordinary purpose-made set was created and the story of Tutankhamun began, long ago in Ancient Egypt. The rest was then handed to our incredible Year 3 pupils to show off their acting skills through their performance of A Glint of Gold. Every child worked tirelessly to produce three performances for parents, teachers and other pupils in school which will be in our memories for a very long time. The photos provide a wonderful depiction of the success of the performance. To finish the summary, we have some wise words from Amna in Year 3 reflecting her feelings about school: “You must do the things you think you cannot do.

Going to school every day gives us more challenges. It encourages us to work hard and be proud of ourselves at the end of the day. Thanking the teachers for teaching and encouraging us; for believing in us and not giving up.”

Mr. Andy Bray - Head of Lower Key Stage 2

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 3 52

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 3 53

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 3 54

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 3 55

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 4 56

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 4 57

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 4 58

KEY STAGE 2 YEAR 4 59

YEAR 5 60 Year Five started the year with a trip back in time investigating the question, ‘Who won the space race?’ The WOW saw the children enter the Sky Dome, a 3D experience of flying through space looking at the constellations and taking them on a journey along the timeline of space travel.

S

pace Day was the highlight of the Autumn Term for so many children and culminated in an exciting science show providing a snapshot on what was to come during science investigations linked to forces. Throughout Black History Month, the children read the story of Hidden Figures and learned about the courageous women at the heart of some of NASA’s successes. Throughout the term, the children researched several influential scientists and famous astronauts, wrote a biography about Neil Armstrong and then presented a Live Museum to parents where they took on the characteristics of some key influential people in the world of space. In Design Technology the children created working moon buggies which they raced down the corridor – great excitement was had by all!

The term ended with their production - an incredible rendition of the imaginary story Space Pirates.

The Spring Term taught the children everything they need to know about ‘survival’. The WOW saw them navigate a set of instructions on a treasure map challenge as they learned how to read and plot co-ordinates.

They read a variety of books about other children’s stories of survival, including Michael in Kensuke’s Kingdom and Zoe in Floodland. Our English lessons were themed around the novels, creating their own diary entries, desert island poems and warning stories. In Science, the children discovered all there is to know about materials, from their properties to reversible and irreversible changes. Our twenty-four-hour Survival Day had to be the most memorable day of the year for the children. A series of activities from cooking and knife skills, natural art, water filtering, and team building challenges were taught throughout the day. After school hours, the children completed a desert island scavenger hunt, learned how to pitch a tent and enjoyed a barbecue and campfire under the stars (including toasted marshmallows!). In Qatar History, the children thoroughly enjoyed a visit to the Museum of Qatar, learning about Qatar’s heritage and looking at the fascinating exhibits and artefacts.

During the Covid-19 school closure the Year 5 team continued to provide an exciting and diverse learning experience as they took the children ‘down under’ in the Summer Term through a series of virtual and online lessons. The children embraced the situation and learned about the geographical features of Australia as well as their history when Captain Cook found Terra Australis and the British colonised the land. They researched a specific area and created a persuasive tourist brochure for a specific target market. Furthermore, the children have flourished in their independence and created some well-structured and researched reports on Australian animals, including diagrams of life cycles and classification learned in Science. The highlight of the term was creating a beautiful virtual gallery of aboriginal art on Art Day. Mrs. Sarah Bennett - Head of Year 5

YEAR 5 PRODUCTION 61

T

he story starts in the museum when a group of children are separated from their tour guide and mysteriously end up being teleported into space on an alien ship. The aliens don’t like their own planet, Zooglebotz, and have a fascination with Earth. Meanwhile, the space pirates see a large image from Earth has been teleported to space and attack the alien ship looking for treasure. Unbeknown to them the treasure is the children! The children help the aliens, defeat the pirates before being safely returned to the museum and re-joining their class.

I was really proud of our space pirate production. I loved playing the character Jack and overall I really enjoyed it.

Zaid - Year 5A

I loved learning about survival and I learned so many new things to do with being stuck in the wild. The best activity was when we had to learn how to assemble a tent!

Diti - Year 5H

I loved learning about space and all the planets, I really enjoyed learning about the men who went to the moon.

Amna - Year 5H

I really enjoyed learning about Bear Grylls – the survival master!

I also liked the scavenger hunt and sleeping with my friends.

Mate - Year 5H

I loved making the map of Australia and learning about the different territories and states. I especially enjoyed the Aborignal art – I love art.

Corey - Year 5H

62

I really enjoyed Survival Day and I’ll

The memories of preparing for and

always remember that my Year 5 teacher

experiencing the Survival Day and

is from Ireland, just like me! I loved doing

all the activities we did, such as

musical theatre, the live museum in the

setting up tents, the scavenger hunt

space topic and being part of the choir.

game and sleeping in tents with

Year 5 was amazing’

our friends has to be my favourite memory of Year 5.

Elizabeth - Year 5F

Christopher - Year 5F

I enjoyed working in a team with everyone on Survival day and we all had a lot of fun. We didn’t want to go home! I think this was a very interesting way to learn

My Favourite day in Year 5 was our camping night at school and I loved learning about Australia in the Summer Term

Fuad - Year 5S

about survival.

Leena - Year 5A I loved the treasure hunt on Survival Day because it was exciting and fun to play!

Ediz - Year 5A

DIARY ENTRY - YEAR 5 63

Diary Entry – Year 5 Written by Mamoun Ibrahim 12th May 1947

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wave of reality hit me as I knew my new life had just begun. I shot the idea away as I stared out of the window looking at the world I was leaving behind. My eyes filled with tears as my memories kicked back like a boomerang. Through my blurred vision, I saw cornfields swaying in the breeze, which made a sort of rhythm.

Out of the blue, a deafening roar awoke me – it was my stomach. Eyes in the darkness slowed eyed me as my anxiety struck like lightning. A woman, who seemed nice, offered me a jam sandwich which I accepted, but still I daren’t start talking to her.

Soon after, we reached the station. Time flies when you’re having fun eh? My heart stopped when I stepped out from the train and I sat there alone waiting, waiting, waiting. I was getting impatient and worried but all hope was not lost as a couple suddenly emerged on the platform. Slowly but surely, they came towards me and I realised it was my new parents!

I contained my joy as we headed to the carriage. The carriage ride through the country was quiet and I didn’t move a muscle. I’ve noticed they are a very quiet couple. The orphan age wasn’t like that...

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 5 66

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 5 67

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 5 68

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 5 69

YEAR 6 70 What a memorable and enjoyable journey it has been for Year 6!

Interesting enquiries from each term have enabled children to confidently demonstrate our Sherborne Learning Dispositions such as Creativity, Curiosity and Risk-Taking.

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he children really showed their maturity during the school closure; their approach to E-learning was commendable as they demonstrated great resilience and independence too. Skills acquired over this past year will serve the children well as they take on more exciting challenges in the next chapter of their lives.

The year began with air raid sirens blaring down the Year 6 corridor. Children grabbed their gas masks and rushed into 6P’s ‘Air-Raid Shelter’ for safety. This was just the start of what would be an ultimate trip back in time to 1939.

Year 6 loved learning all about the children who were evacuated during WWII, and how they lived in comparison to youngsters today. The topic culminated in a VE Day celebration filled with delicious food and party games. The children looked just the part in their outfits as evacuee children - a memory that will certainly stick with them from their time at the Prep.

To answer the question, ‘What makes a Successful Business?’, Year 6 took entrepreneurial advice from Lord Sugar’s Junior Apprentice, which they thoroughly enjoyed. They collaborated in groups to generate a business plan that would result in the most profit. With each child having a specific job, Year 6 learnt the essential skills needed to create a successful business. It was a real team effort! Landing Day was celebrated as part of Qatar National Day which made the topic even more exciting, when children from the whole school were invited to buy something from our young entrepreneurs. Year 6 made an impressive profit of approximately QAR7000 which will be spent on a fun-filled treat for the children.

The Spring Term’s enquiry was inspired by Banksy’s artwork. Mr Mortimer from the Senior School visited the children and explained how to make and use stencils, showing them examples of very cool stencil work. Year 6 then went on to create their own stencils and designed interesting pieces of street art. They replicated Banksy’s artwork by making stencils of their own faces that were used for spray-painting. Their fabulous artwork resulted in the Year 6 corridor looking like Sherborne’s own little street with graffiti! It was vibrant, imaginative and unique. The children also carried out research on Banksy and other graffiti artists. Not only did they show an appreciation for this style of art, they also debated whether graffiti is art or vandalism. It was a thought-provoking enquiry which brought about many differences in opinions.

During the Summer Term, writing skills in English were seamlessly woven in with the Enquiry, to produce interesting examples of Information Texts. London is a popular destination to visit so the children were tasked with writing their own tour guides. Those who had first-hand experience of this bustling city shared their videos and photographs from previous visits. This helped support children’s learning and encouraged them to research and write about various London landmarks and famous Londoners. The artwork children produced was fantastic; they painted and drew London landscapes and designed their own London Underground stations with imaginative tiled backgrounds. This enquiry was one of the favourites this year - London was very special indeed.

71

Mrs. Nadira Rahman & the Year 6 team

I loved graffiti art because it taught me a new way of making art and was really fun!

Kulsoom - Year 6S

“My best memory was becoming

My favourite memory was

a prefect in Year 6 and having Mrs

Enterprise Day because I could

Lashley as a teacher twice!”

work with my friends the whole day

Shireen - Year 6L

and have fun!

Muhammed - Year 6P I have been at Sherborne for six years; I was honoured

Sports Day was fun because I got to spend the day with all my classmates and teachers outside of the school boundaries.

to have been selected as a prefect of the Shirburnian

My favourite part of Year 6 was

family. Sherborne Prep School is my second family - it was

when we dressed up as World War II

where I made good friends and I am pleased to have such

evacuees. It was really fun because

lovely teachers. My favourite memories were all of the

we got to see what it was like to

PTA Winter Fairs, becoming a prefect and receiving the

evacuate”

achievement award at Commem.

Cassie - Year 6P Omar - Year 6L

Angelina - Year 6S

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 6 72

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 6 73

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 6 74

TUTOR GROUP YEAR 6 75

ARABIC & ISLAMIC STUDIES 76 The academic year 2019 – 2020 has been a very positive, productive, and challenging one.

Teachers in the Arabic Department have attended many training sessions and workshops offered by the Ministry of Education and the benefits of these have been reflected in the pupils’ work and understanding of the Arabic language.

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he class reading challenge and competition has allowed the pupils to improve and develop their reading skills and become more confident when reading in front of a crowd. There has also been an increase in the number of pupils participating in the annual Quran competition as more and more pupils become willing and motivated to participate in such events. Our pupils returned with excellent results, whilst also excelling in schoolwork.

The department hosted a very special author from the Qatar National Library who read a story for the children, based on the importance of the Arabic language and tackling modern challenges. The author was very impressed with the pupils. The pupils are also always excited when the Arabic Department organises and supports the school’s Qatar National Day celebration, as it brings the community closer through contributions and celebrations.

Throughout the year, there was continuous development of the pupils’ skills and many pupils have improved their confidence in class. For example, Jassim in Year 6 felt that he had gained confidence and said, “I find it easier to read and talk in front of the class”. Another example is Jude in Year 1. She said, “When I enter the Arabic class, I find both classes similar (Arabic and English), all I have to do is switch language.”

A major challenge we have all faced is e-learning. The department was ready from the beginning and a weekly letter was published with links from the Ministry of Education that followed the Arabic and Islamic Studies syllabi.

The parents sent in their children’s work and feedback was always delivered to the pupils with targets for their future work. E-learning has incorporated all year groups and has been very successful.

Mrs. Suzan Saada - Head of Prep School Arabic & Islamic Studies

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FRENCH 78 2019-2020 was an exciting and challenging year!

D

uring the Autumn Term, from Reception through to Year 6, we had lots of stimulating and fun activities. Year 1 were tasked to act out the story of a caterpillar (La chenille qui fait des trous), so they made masks and used colourful paper tissues to tell the story.

They also had the chance to learn the names of the shapes in French through a treasure hunt in which they had to look for the shapes in the school grounds along with Year 2.

They all enjoyed it very much!

Year 3 had to an outdoor activity about weather phrases. They managed to find the weather words and link them together to create a weather phrase which they also seemed to enjoy as they were interested in learning the different phrases.

Year 6 went to visit the Qatar National Library to read and search for French stories which proved a successful trip!

The last 3 months of the school year have been tough and challenging for all because of the current pandemic and everyone had to adapt to using IT based teaching methods.

As a teacher, I think the classroom atmosphere is very important for pupils to stay focused and learn the subject at hand and we have had to recreate that on-line through Zoom sessions and on-line activities. It has been an incredible year for teachers and pupils alike; everyone has adapted well to the change in how we teach and in how the pupils learn.

Mrs. Nadia Sulaiman - Head of French

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MATHEMATICS 80 We have seen the continued success of White Rose Maths being used throughout Sherborne Qatar Prep School, from our youngest mathematicians in Pre-School all the way up to Year 6. As the mastery approach has become more embedded in our teaching and learning, we have witnessed the deepening of understanding achieved and the confidence our pupils show in approaching reasoning and problem solving tasks.

W

hite Rose Maths provided many additional challenges for children with the Barvember series in November and later, during school closure, with the popular Problem of the Day to keep our young thinkers busy.

In the Autumn Term, our first house day was a celebration of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) and children were encouraged to attend dressed as a member of a profession which uses these skills. The school was full of engineers, doctors, astronauts, builders and famous scientists as Molecular Science launched us into what was to be a hugely entertaining and educational day. Children enjoyed activities such as programming Beebots, solving tangrams, making lava lamps and creating marble runs. One of the highlights of the day, a memory I will remember fondly, was the vision of children throughout the school flying their paper aeroplanes across the Astroturf, the Hangar and the Circus Tent.

Times Table Rock Stars has continued to motivate our pupils to learn, practise and increase their fluency from Year 2 onwards. Battles are regularly arranged between classes and year groups, boys and girls, houses during Inter House events and even, for the first time, other schools. In February this year Sherborne Qatar Prep accepted an international schools challenge and we were delighted to win against the rival British school.

In November, all of Year 5 and 6 took part in the Primary Maths Challenge with many children surprising themselves with how well they could approach and complete unfamiliar questions. I was very proud of the resilience and calm approach all children took towards this challenge and the dedication they showed in completing as much as they could in the time given.

Following the success of last year’s one hundred square challenge, children throughout the school were invited to join our Maths in Nature competition. The response was overwhelming with such a wonderful variety of images sent in, showing examples of maths all around us. Well done and thank you to everyone who participated. Images were displayed around school with many being framed so that they may be enjoyed for years to come.

Mrs. Antonia Confalone - Head of Maths

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PE & GAMES 82

P

E has continued to thrive this year and we have seen more children taking part in Sports PE andthe Games Enrichment Clubs and more children having opportunities to represent the school in a variety of different team sports than ever before. The addition of a comprehensive Rugby programmePEhas meant tothat the community even more has con*nued thrive this school year and we have seen morehas children taking part inchoice Sports when it comes to Enrichment and more children having the opportuni*es to represent the enjoyed school in a variety of choosing an active Clubs lifestyle.

The PE Department has also hugely the benefits of different team sports than ever before.

The addi*on of awith comprehensive programme has the new Multi-Purpose Hall (MPH), which is alive activityRugby for much of every day. meant that the school community has even more choice when it comes to choosing an ac*ve

lifestyle.

The PEend Department also hugely enjoyed the benefits of the new Mul*-Purpose It was a very strange to thehasschool year, probably the strangest in my Hall 10 years of alive with ac*vity for much of every day. teaching. I (MPH), hopewhich thatisthe children enjoyed the Fitness with Mr Fawcett, the Brain Breaks It was aOlympics very strange end to the year, probably the strangest in my 10 years of teaching. and Household that weschool released during the Covid-19 closure andI hope the various that the children enjoyed the Fitness with Mr FawceN, the Brain Breaks and Household Olympics that Zoom sessions that the PE Department hosted as well. I also hope that your children have we released during the Covid-19 closure and the various Zoom sessions that the PE Department been able to continue to hope maintain active during summer holiday, despite hosted as well. I also that youran children havelifestyle been able to con*nuethe to maintain an ac*ve the challenges that we allholiday, faced because of Coronavirus. lifestyle during thehave summer despite the challenges that we have all faced because of Coronavirus.

I look forward to the challenges that we will face in the new academic year and ensuring I look forward to the challenges that we will face in the new academic year and ensuring that the that the children have access towesport that we can provide. children have thethe best best access to sport that can provide.

Mr Ali Palfrey Head of Prep PE and Games

Mr. Ali Palfrey - Head of Prep PE & Games

QPPSSA Results for 2019-20 Academic Year.

Year Group Finishing PosiBons Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Year 6

Indoor AthleBcs

5th

5th

2nd

3rd

Boys Football

2nd

5th

7th

7th

Girls Football

7th

1st

5th

8th

7th

12th

Netball

No Compe**on

Cross Country

2nd

Outdoor AthleBcs

5th

4th

Cricket

No Compe**on

5th

Rugby

No Compe**on

5th

Boys Basketball

No Entry

10th

4th

2nd

Girls Basketball

No Entry

1st

5th

2nd

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MUSIC This has been one of the most challenging years at Sherborne Qatar Prep.

We have had many ups and down but as a school and as a community we continue to strive and move forward. It was important to stay positive and as a team I believe we did this very successfully.

I

would like to thank all our pupils, our parents, Mrs Williams, the peripatetic staff and our amazing team of teachers and management. This year would not have been possible with all your support and encouragement. Thank you.

Our highlights this year include:

•

The 10th Anniversary Celebration – one of the most successful events of the year;

•

Sherborne Qatar pupils’ performed on the Oryx Stage at the Mall of Qatar;

•

30 pupils performed at the Yamaha Music Square as part of a special music recital;

•

Sherborne Qatar Prep Choir were invited by Kidzania to take part in a special video to celebrate Qatar National Day;

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The ABRSM music exams yielded 7 passes, 5 merits and 4 distinctions;

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110 pupils learn an instrument every week;

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The American AfCent Band returned to Sherborne Qatar and celebrated their music with us;

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At the invitation of the South African Embassy, pupils performed at the Katara Opera House;

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Sherborne Qatar Prep Choir took part in the Choir of the Year competition at the Qatar National Convention Centre;

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A wonderful video of the song Heal the World was produced during the Covid-19 closure –– to spread hope and positivity.

Sherborne Qatar Prep Choir were invited to perform in the finals of a talent competition at Kidzmondo;

OUR LEARNING 86

In Pre School and Reception, we looked at the importance of performance, standing still, looking tidy and listening to one another whilst singing. We learnt that watching the conductor is also very important.

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e then had to learn many songs and memorise many words and sang those songs without a backing track and with live musicians in our new big Multi Purpose Hall. The pupils also started to learn about the piano and all the different sounds it makes. We enjoyed playing the white and black keys on the piano. During the Summer Term we learnt about the heartbeat of music and all the sounds we can hear in our home. “This was so much fun.”

In Key Stage 1 we enjoyed long and shorts sounds, using voice and instruments and further enhanced our learning through composing musical patterns and creating our own bands. We also performed with live musicians at our end of term assembly. Key Stage 1 thoroughly enjoyed learning the songs How Far I’ll Go and Stand by me. In the Summer Term we learnt about the heartbeat of music, different moods in music and understanding texture.

In Key Stage 2 we focused on understanding our voices and enhanced our learning by using different techniques to warm up our voices. We tried various exercises with our voices and focused on diction. Our aim was to perform a song with various parts and with live musicians accompanying us. We continued to learn the recorder, expanding our repertoire of notes and our knowledge of music notation. During the Summer Term we had to create a poster explaining all the different families in the Orchestra. Years 3 and 4 researched famous composers, musicians and singers around the world.

The Music Department would like to thank the PTA of Sherborne Qatar, Sharaka Holdings, Kidzania, Mall of Qatar, Katara, Yamaha, Music Square, the South African Embassy, Haydee Soul, Kidzmondo and the AfCENT Band for their support this year.

Mr. Razwan Sarwar - Head of Prep Music

ENGLISH 88

After a weekend of training in January, we have continued to develop the Talk for Writing approach across the school, further enhancing our knowledge and understanding of the concept. Our children are now quite adept at performing stories and love the drama involved in English lessons.

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ostering a love for reading in all our children has been a priority this year. We have introduced more books to the curriculum, linked to our enquiries and reading for pleasure has been incorporated into our weekly timetable.

We pride ourselves on being very word rich and surrounding children with quality text and novels. Our library is always busy at lunchtime and it is wonderful to see so many more children enjoying reading in their spare time.

Links with older and younger classes were introduced for our Pre Prep pupils to enjoy being read to by our Key Stage 2 pupils. Despite the school closure because of Covid-19 this continued online as Upper Key Stage 2 pupils, including prefects, recorded themselves reading stories to share with Key Stage 1.

World Book Week this year was themed around the famous author Anthony Browne and in particular the book character Willy the Monkey, as we helped him develop confidence and self-esteem. Pyjama day saw many children enjoy reading animal stories with their parents and raised over QR1000 for our library. Midweek, the Year 9 children came to Prep for the day, performing poetry and supporting children across the school with their writing and animal art. It was delightful to see so many children participate in the Book Quote Treasure Hunt competition, themed around famous animal stories. The week concluded with an animal dress up day. The costumes were fantastic and the atmosphere electric as everyone embraced the fun and drama organised by every year group.

In March we introduced a Story Jar competition in which children were asked to create a story book image in a jar and in May we held a Ramadan Reading competition in which children had to work out the book title, based on a series of images. Well done to all the winners!

Mrs. Sarah Bennett - Head of English

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Story Jar winners: Aishah Abbas - RA Zaynab Mosharraf - 2L Isla Caldwell - 3M Jacob Baqla - 6L Ramadan reading competition: 20th May

I read so many books this year I lost count!

Elizabeth - Year 5

Sherborne has encouraged me to read more books and I actually really love to read. I am so proud to have been bookworm of the term.

Ashkan - Year 5

THE HOUSES

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AMNA HOUSE 2

019-20 has certainly been a memorable year. Unfortunately, for Amna, it started very sadly with the news of the death of Mrs Ahmed which greatly affected all those who had known her. The first house day was definitely a quieter and more sombre affair without her and she is much missed.

The first major house event of the year, Friendship Week, and the accompanying house day was a great success. The family groups have gone from strength to strength and were particularly in evidence on Friendship Day where we saw the children working across all age groups to complete the set tasks which included making friendship bracelets, creating a communal collage and constructing a house family tree.

Other house days this year included a STEM day, Qatar National Day where we had the opportunity to find out more about the country we live in, Environment Day and of course our first Virtual House Day. This last event, born out of necessity when the school closed due to the Coronavirus, was a resounding success, culminating in mass house Zoom sessions where families logged in together to share what they had been doing with others from their house.

As always, we have had a mixed bag of results with Inter House competitions but I am always very impressed with the positive attitude of Amna members and grateful for the support of children and parents at these events. Notable wins this year were in 2 out of 3 of the Indoor Athletics competitions, the Tag Rugby tournament and the Year 1 & 2 Football event. Other, non-competitive, events included creating a wonderful Doha Skyline, the House Song Competition, Ready Steady Cook, Spelling Bee and, of course the annual Lego Competition. Inter House events are, by their very nature, totally inclusive events and give every child the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of sports and disciplines.

Sports Day at the Aspire Dome was as loud, energetic, surprising and exciting as always but special mention must go to Alalya Al Thani for her amazing run in the relay. Her determination and grit were exceptional and she was definitely the secret weapon in Amna’s arsenal in that event. Alalya thoroughly deserved the Headmaster’s Commendation she received for her contribution to Sports Day. Another, very poignant, moment was the renaming of the Sports Day trophy as the Afi Ahmed Trophy. It is lovely to know that this very special lady’s name will live on in an event she so enjoyed.

During the course of the year we have been very glad to welcome two new members of staff to Amna – Miss Gittins and Mrs Harris. Sadly for us, Miss Gittins will be moving to another house in the new academic year, to take up the Head of House position. We will also be saying goodbye to Mrs Fawcett and Miss Safa. Mrs Fawcett has been a very valuable member of the Amna team since she joined the school and we thank her for her many years of loyalty and support. Miss Safa has been a very keen and supportive member of the house for two years and her enthusiasm will be much missed. We wish them all the very best in their new roles.

Our prefects this year – Adam Chenchara and Hla Mohamed have done a fantastic job and we are very grateful to them for their hard work and support.

Mrs. Gail Williams - House Leader Amna

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Yasmin - Year 6P

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was so excited to take on the role of Irons House Leader at the start of the academic year and WOW, what a fantastic year it’s been!

The year started with our Prefect Jacob being appointed with the well-deserved title of Head Boy. Maya and Yasmin followed as prefects soon after and the trio was complete! With brilliant manners and a consistent willingness to help others, they were great role models.

Highlights included the Tag Rugby Tournament, losing my voice cheering for KS2 on Sports Day and winning the House Song competition (we are still soaring high off the back of that!) Inter House on a Thursday is something that I look forward to all week and I am so proud of you for the impressive turnout at every single event! The KS1 Spelling Bee, the Year 5 and 6 Football and the Family Quiz were some of my favourites and the Year 1 – 6 Art Competition had our highest attendance all year...I think Mrs Lashley counted 30 of you!

The way that we all get together and support each other has been particularly special to see. Stand out moments were seeing Nouray confidently taking the stage with Mrs Mills to lead the school in an energetic Zumba routine and the enthusiasm you all showed during our first Virtual House Day! It was fantastic to see so many of you getting involved with the tasks and showcasing your creativity in fantastic artwork, poems and thank you posters for all of the hardworking individuals who have been on the frontline battling COVID-19.

It has been an absolute pleasure being your House Leader this year, but without our wonderful House staff and all of you amazing children in Irons, I wouldn’t have had half as much fun as I did! See you all next year!

Miss. Khadine Richards - Carberry - House Leader Irons

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Jassim is pure, perfect and purple. #winners!

Benjamin - Year 2L

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A memorable event for me was being involved in the 10th Anniversary Celebration as it was my first big event as a prefect. I am so grateful for this role and have not taken it for granted. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

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hat an amazing year Jassim has had! Lots of wonderful memories have been made, friendships built, new children welcomed and successes achieved. Well done to every Jassim member for your commitment to house events and working hard to gain merits for your house – all of the Jassim staff are so proud of you!

Throughout the year, we have taken part in a wide range of exciting Inter House events including athletics, Lego, art, football, spelling bee and times table rock stars. In the Autumn Term we tried something new with our Inter House Ready Steady Cook! which was a huge success! I was so proud to see members of Jassim sharing their food, working as a team and taking risks with what they were making.

Sports Days are always a highlight of the year at Sherborne Qatar Prep and this year certainly did not disappoint. Our Year 3 - 6 Sports Day at the Aspire Dome was such a fantastic day and Jassim were the overall winners for the second year in a row, which is a huge achievement! Go Jassim! A stand-out moment for me at Sports Day this year was seeing the encouragement and outstanding sportsmanship shown by members of our team. I would like to give a special mention to Nawaf Sultan Al Mahmoud in 4F for his sheer determination and positive attitude during the relay race which lead to him winning a Headmaster’s award. This was a very proud moment for Jassim.

I had the privilege of awarding full House Colours to the following children this year:

Syed Hussayn Shah Syed Ali Shah John Olowu Shireen Kamal Khan Ibrahim Abdalla.

Well done to all of you and thank you for your contributions to Jassim.

The success of Jassim would not be possible without support from our wonderful children, staff and parents. We have shown once again what a fantastic house we are and our community spirit makes it such a lovely house to be a part of. A special thank you goes out to our prefects who have really stepped up to their responsibilities this year.

They have been fantastic role models to the whole school, helping in many inter house events, assemblies and house days. Noora Al Enazi, Shireen Kamal Khan and Aya Ortashi: you have been such outstanding prefects and I am so grateful for everything you have done for Jassim. This will be my final year as Jassim House Leader as I will be focussing on my new role as Head of Year 1. However, I will of course still be part of, and continue to support, the house.

Miss. Jessica Deane - House Leader Jassim

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halifa have many marvellous achievements to look back on. Over the year we have taken part in a huge range of Inter House activities, including Ready Steady Cook and Lego! In true Khalifa style we showed our determination, our kindness and team spirit in all the Inter House events! Prefect Omar Khalil enjoyed all inter house events but especially cricket and has said working as a team is always a success in Khalifa!

House days have always been a highlight for many Khalifa members and this year was no exception! Some children performed a puppet show to highlight the importance of friendship, we also experienced lots of fantastic Qatari traditions during Qatar National House Day. My favourite house day was the STEM Day. Victoria Barron in Year 4 says she always has a great time during the amazing house days because she learns new things and has made lots of friends.

Khalifa’s team spirit runs high in all events, especially when Khalifa parents get involved. It has been lovely to see so many supportive families take part and cheering on the children during the year. This year Khalifa came 3rd at Year 3 – 6 Sports Day at the Aspire Dome, which is the highest we have ever finished. This success was made even more fantastic as Sports Day just so happened to be on my birthday this year! What a wonderful gift!

This year full House Colours have been awarded to: Lina Sellami Samarah Abassi Ahmed Haythem Ali Raoul Haydamous Omar Yosif Khalil I have had a fantastic year as Head of Khalifa House and it would not have been as possible if it were not for the amazing children, the wonderful staff and the fabulous parents. I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone in Khalifa House and I will be cheering you all on from England next year and hope you continue to succeed and be as hardworking as you have been this year! Go Khalifa!

Miss. Chantal Gowland - House Leader Khalifa

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hat a fantastic year for Powys! Joining as House Leader was an absolute privilege and I was made to feel so welcome by everyone. I quickly came to know that it was going to be an awesome year!

Powys children have made all of us proud on many occasions this year. Inter house competitions have been a real highlight and it is difficult to choose just a few to talk about! A particularly fun afternoon was the Inter House Lego with Powys children from Reception to Year 6 working as a great team. The children demonstrated lots of creativity with their brilliant models and, to top it off, we won! We also saw success with the Year 1 and 2 Inter House Football competition which we won, and the House Song, in which we were a respectable joint 2nd. It was so much fun coming up with the lyrics to our own song and I often find myself humming it still today! “Singing Powys, Powys lions give me a roar…”.

The Powys team have really enjoyed House Days too. Themes have included Friendship, STEM, the Environment, and our recent Virtual House Day. Diti and Aashi said, “We really enjoyed the Recycling House Day because we want to save the environment”. Sports Days were also brilliant and the Powys children amazed us all with their perseverance and teamwork – powering through when it got tough and encouraging each other throughout! Sereen said, “I was very happy to be in the finals!”.

I want to say congratulations and thank you to these children from Powys for being awarded full House Colours:

Nada Ayoub Tasneem Ayoub Monira Ayoub Matthew Rammouz

I also want to congratulate the following for being Prefects: Kulsoom Rizvi and Maryam Al Kaabi Thank you so much to all of these children for consistently representing Powys with dedication and enthusiasm.

Go Powys!!

Mrs. Katie Roberts - House Leader Powys

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SHEPPARD HOUSE S

heppard shark’s doo, do, do, do, do, dooo... I know all the children and staff have thoroughly enjoyed the fun Inter House activities, competitions, and house days. I would like to thank all the Sheppard Sharks from Reception up to Year 6, as well as the Sheppard staff. I believe the team spirit is a fantastic example to all. It has been another competitive year. It seemed that we started the year as we had previously ended, strong and determined and we were the weekly Merit Cup winners for several weeks.

The numbers of pupils attending Inter House events after school on Thursdays has grown over the year, which was brilliant to see. One Inter House event I remember fondly is the Year 5 and 6 Cricket in which we only had a few participants but made an incredible effort and narrowly missed out on winning the event.

I would like to thank all the children who attended Sports Day and made it the great day that it is at the Aspire Dome with many Sharks in the finals of events. The Inter House Cross Country was again a close call but for me the best result was that every child in Sheppard displayed fantastic attitude and completed their course. Another amazing and memorable event was the World Cup House Rugby with the Sheppard girls leading the way across the year groups.

House days have been brilliant and full of fun. For me, the STEM and Environment days were the best, seeing all the children dressed up in their science themed outfits and working cooperatively in their family groups. I loved how creative and resourceful Reception and KS1 were and the amazing recycled inventions that were made. Next year I have no doubt we will go on to achieve great things again.

Mr. Andy Callas - House Leader Sheppard

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P TA

The Autumn Term 2019 was an extremely busy time for the PTA Committee. We met the term head on with our first event in September to support the school’s 10th Anniversary celebration and the official opening of the new Multi-Purpose Sports Hall (MPSH) at the Prep School. It was wonderful to see such fantastic support from parents, staff, pupils and dignitaries of Sherborne Qatar School enjoying looking back over the 10 years of the accomplishments and achievements of the school. The PTA committee provided refreshments and supplied delicious home-baked cakes, made by our Committee member, Gill Johnsen.

During September, with the assistance from our wonderful team of PTA Parent Helpers, we hosted one of our Coffee Mornings and Second-Hand Uniform Sales at the Prep School. In October, we supported the Meet the Tutor afternoon and Year 11 Parents’ Evening at the Senior School and again, we provided refreshments and cakes.

Additionally, the Committee was asked to provide refreshments, sandwiches and more cake, for the first ever Colour Awards evening at the Senior School. Many parents, pupils and staff attended this event and I can safely say, Gill Johnsen’s sandwiches & cakes are by now renowned for their deliciousness and are widely enjoyed by everyone, including myself!

The hosting of PTA events is divided between the schools and they are for EVERYONE from both schools to attend and enjoy! The PTA Committee’s Family Fun Day took place in November at the Prep School. Again, with help from our team of PTA Parent Helpers, many tickets were sold prior to the event and on the day. It was a hot day for November but lots of sports activities, arranged by the PE Department, took place inside the MPSH and outside for parents and children to enjoy! The Committee supplied burgers, hotdogs, refreshments, snacks, popcorn and, of course, cake and we were entertained by the Senior School band.

Parents Teachers Association

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owards the end of the Autumn Term we hosted our annual Bake Sale at the Prep School and this is always one of our busiest events. Our thanks to Mr Bray & teachers and parents in Lower KS2 who provided some wonderful homemade cakes & biscuits. A huge, ‘Thank you’ from the Committee goes to you all: our parents, pupils, the Headmasters, all members of staff and our PTA Parent helpers. Without your continued support and assistance, we would not be able to provide these events!

Sadly, our planned events for the remainder of the school year, including the PTA Spring Fair and the PTA Quiz Evening could not take place because of Covid-19 and the school closure. However, once we return to school, we will be arranging more events.

Through your help and support of our events we have been able to continue with our contributions to both schools: donations to the PE Departments at Prep and Senior; annual donation to our Facilities and cleaning staff at the Prep and Senior Schools for their outstanding help and assistance at our events; Rolling donations to the Sherborne Qatar nominated charity - United World Schools (UWS).

The PTA are here to help and support all Sherborne Qatar schools. We have supplied our BBQs and Popcorn machines for the Charity house days at the Senior School. In addition, we are always happy to supply second-hand uniform to parents and pupils at the Prep and Senior Schools, along with the daily loaning system of school ties and blazers.

Following the very sad and untimely death of the lovely Mrs Afi Ahmed, the PTA Committee was able to provide Afi’s Bench, painted in green to honour her house – Amna.

The bench is situated in Afi’s Garden, which is at the Prep School behind reception and provides a tranquil place for people to stop and reflect.

Mrs. Jackie Wollaston - Chair, Sherborne Qatar PTA

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10th Year Anniversary S

herborne Qatar was officially opened by Sheikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Thani (founding Chairman of Governors) at 9.00 p.m. on 9th September 2009, during a celebratory event in The Atrium at Bani Hajer. At 9.00 a.m. on 19th September 2019 Sheikh Abdulla was in attendance once again as we celebrated the school’s 10th Birthday and the official opening and naming of the Sheikh Abdulaziz Bin Ahmed Multi-Purpose Hall at Al Rayyan. Just as he had done ten years before, Sheikh Abdulla gave an address to a packed MPH. This celebratory event brought together a cross section of staff, pupils and parents from both the Prep and Senior Schools and included a commemorative presentation to all founding staff and pupils who are still at the school after 10 years.

Also in attendance were other members of Sheikh Abdulla’s family, including Sheikha Amal Al Thani, Managing Director of Sherborne Qatar, Sheikha Noura Al Thani, Chairman of Sherborne Qatar Governors, Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Ahmed Al Thani and Sheikh Hamad bin Ahmed Al Thani, Sharaka Holdings Board members, Miss Donja El Gendy from the British Embassy, who brought a personal message from the British Ambassador, Mr Omar Abdul Aziz Al Naama, the Assistant Undersecretary for Private Education, Mr Khaled Al-Mulla, Acting Director of the Licensing Department and Heads from other British Schools in Qatar. After the singing of the Qatari and British National Anthems all were welcomed by Mr Nick Prowse, Principal and CEO of Sherborne Qatar and founding Headmaster of the school in 2009.

109 Mr Prowse also relayed a message of congratulation from Dr Dominic Luckett, Headmaster and CEO of Sherborne School, UK. Dr Luckett had himself just been named the UK’s Headmaster of the Year.

A selection of Senior School pupils who have been in the school for the full ten years, took the opportunity to talk about some of their memories and these reminiscences were punctuated by performances from musicians from both the Prep and Senior Schools. The event concluded with Prep School pupils surrounding the audience and singing Dana Al Fadan’s inspirational song, Wings of a Falcon.

The hall was decorated with a timeline of photographs from across the years and everyone present enjoyed viewing them whilst reminiscing. There was also an opportunity to view other exhibits in the Small Hall whilst enjoying refreshments produced by our ever supportive PTA. Overall, this was a joyous event which reminded us not only how far we have travelled in the last ten years but also how exciting the future looks for Sherborne Qatar.

Mr. Richard Williams

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QATAR NATIONAL DAY CELEBRATIONS 112

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soon realized that House Days are one of my favourite things about being part of Sherborne Qatar Preparatory School. I love planning these with House Leaders and thinking of fun and creative ways for children to spend the day in Houses working with friends from all year groups.

Qatar National Day was celebrated as a House Day this year; I believe for the first time. Miss Suzan was instrumental in making this day successful with the help and generosity of many parents from the Prep. The day consisted of a variety of things which the children thoroughly enjoyed:

◊ We started off our National Day with a wonderful whole school assembly which included two groups of KS2 children performing dances that showcased Qatari culture; ◊ Each House created two amazing pieces of ‘big art’ that promoted our country’s landscape and celebrated its history of pearl diving;

◊ We enjoyed seeing the falcons and sheep that visited us for the day; ◊ Children and staff had the option of having henna patterns; ◊ We had tasty regag bread made for us freshly that morning in the Small Hall; ◊ Children from all year groups visited the Enterprise stalls in the Dining Room, buying a selection of items from Oreo milkshakes to knitted pencil cases, all made from scratch by our very own Year 6 pupils!

Thanks to parents and carers, we all enjoyed a very hearty lunch.

The buzz and excitement of Sherborne’s National Day marked the end of a very successful Autumn Term and it summed up how well our school community works together for the benefit of our children.

Mrs. Nadira Rahman

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TEAMS

BOYS' BASKETBALL

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U10 Boys' Basketball Team Back Row (L-R): Yusuf Amaan Chaudhry, Christopher Haddad, Matthew Rammouz, Raihaan Sharief Front Row (L-R): Yousef Albagha, Jassim Al Shammari, Fuad Haj Bakour

BOYS' FOOTBALL

U11 Boys' Football Team Back Row (L-R): Ediz Duzgit, Yusuf Amaan Chaudhry, Christopher Haddad, Raihaan Sharief, Matthew Rammouz Front Row (L-R): Yousef Albagha, Jassim Al Shammari, Ali Al Sayegh

U11 Boys' Basketball Team Back Row (L-R): Mishal Al Sabahi, Marwan Elfaki, Aariz Ahmed, Ibraheem Arif, John Olowu Front Row (L-R): Adam Chenchara, Rutendo Mutezo, Jacob Baqla

U11 Boys' Football Team Back Row (L-R): Mishal Al Sabahi, Marwan Elfaki, Aariz Ahmed, Ibraheem Arif, Dylan O’Connell Front Row (L-R): Adam Chenchara, Rutendo Mutezo, Jacob Baqla, John Olowu

GIRLS' BASKETBALL 117

U11 Girls' Basketball Team Back Row (L-R): Shireen Khan, Lamya Al Thani, Nouray Abdallatif, Eshal Saleem, Dana El Gody Front Row (L-R): Yasmin Kerwat, Syeda Kulsoom Rizvi, Maryam Al Kaabi, Nur Arissa Sharizal, Aya Ortashi

GIRLS' NETBALL

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U10 Girls' Netball Back Row (L-R): Bianca Wilson, Daisy Hanna, Lina Sellami, Amina Fayek Front Row (L-R): Tasneem Ayoub, Claudia Brown, Lucia Hanna, Juleen Hajaj, Monira Ayoub

U11 Girls' Netball Back Row L to R: Maya Gangineni, Nouray Abdallatif, Lamya Al Thani, Cassie Clayton Front Row L to R: Shireen Khan, Syeda Kulsoom Rizvi, Maryam Al Kaabi, Isabella Keefe, Yasmin Kerwat

GIRLS' FOOTBALL

U10 Girls' Football Team Back Row (L-R): Bianca Wilson, Zeena El Gebely, Lina Sellami, Lucia Hanna Front Row (L-R): Tasneem Ayoub, Malak Yagoub, Elizabeth O’Donnell, Monira Ayoub, Nada Ayoub.

U11 Girls' Football Team Back Row (L-R): Lamya Al Thani, Maryam Al Kaabi, Aya Ortashi Front Row (L-R): Syeda Kulsoom Rizvi, Chi Chong, Isabella Keefe, Yasmin Kerwat

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Back Row (L-R): Maisie Scott, Freddie Fawcett, Cassie Clayton, Talaykwan Rees, Ibraheem Arif, Chi Chong, Yasmin Kerwat, Lina Sellami, Leena Kerwat, Hussayn Shah Middle Row (L-R): Christopher Haddad, Miandri Korf, Rutendo Mutezo, Duru Yilmaz, Jayden Nowuram, John Olowu, Abdelmalek Sennoun, Adam Chenchara, Fuad Haj Bakour, Victoria Baron.Front Row (L-R): Ruby Ryan, Isla Caldwell, Noor Husain, Malak Yagoub, Ayad Saeed, Kareem Molokhia, Sayda Abdalla, Siddharth Ranglall, Ben McDermott, Sara Chenchara

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Enrichment The enrichment programme we offer at Sherborne Qatar is a central element in the school’s mission to offer an outstanding British style education in the Middle East.

We believe that encouraging pupils to engage beyond the curriculum in a broad range of activities is key to inculcating them with our school values.

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s in previous years we have steadily built upon our offering by providing a mixture of activities delivered by a blend of our passionate teaching staff and established outside agencies. This has allowed Sherborne Qatar pupils to access an array of wonderful opportunities that we are sure will stay with them for a lifetime.

In the field of music and the arts Sherborne Qatar pupils have continued to dazzle audiences this year. Our well-established and nationally respected Prep School Choir has given more than 80 pupils the opportunity to perform in some of Qatar’s most renowned venues and the Musical Theatre Society wowed shoppers at the Mall of Qatar with a rendition on the Oasis Stage of Tales From the Arabian Nights which Walt Disney himself would have been proud of.

The array of creative and craft clubs this year has been a real highlight with pupils allowing their imaginations to run wild. Our Arabic Department has led the way with a range of activities encouraging creativity whilst allowing pupils to explore the unique culture of our Middle Eastern home. As always, the opportunity to develop culinary skills in the Cookery Club has proved to be a real hit with the children who have tantalised the taste buds whilst developing skills which will serve them well in the future.

The school’s Rainbow and Brownie packs allow our girls to explore what it means to be part of a global movement. Many of our British pupils find this the perfect way to have a touch of home whilst learning new skills and making friends for life. The indoor camping expedition with fruit kebabs was a real highlight for our Rainbows this year. The Brownies have especially enjoyed learning skills for their future from interior designing and learning to use tools, to sewing beautiful pencil cases and looking after our natural environment.

“I have loved my enrichment experience this year because I have learnt new skills, made new friends and enjoyed lots of new activities.

I have enjoyed football the most as it teaches you teamwork, discipline and commitment.”

Yousif - Year 3

As always at Sherborne Qatar sport plays a major role in the life of our school and the enrichment programme. This year has seen the introduction of Rugby and Girls’ Football to our sporting offering. Both of these activities have been delivered by our teaching staff which has inspired many pupils to engage for the first time. Our pupils have had the chance to participate in competitive fixtures in both areas, something we will look to build upon in the future. The rugby squads in particular have enjoyed competing in local tournaments, testing themselves against well-established club teams here in Doha.

‘My two favourite enrichments are Choir and Football. I like football because I love being goalie and because of the enrichment practice I was selected for the QPPSSA squad and was jubilant to be part of the team. With the Choir we performed at the Mall of Qatar which is a memory I won’t forget.”

Mr. John Oakes - Enrichment Coordinator

Mair - Year 3

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EVENTS

EVENT 126 126

AEROPLANE & STEM EVENTS

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BOOK WEEK

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EVENT 128 128

FALAH

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A GLINT OF GOLD

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H E A LT H Y W E E K

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Covid-19 Distance learning

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he Covide-19 pandemic is a totally unprecedented phenomenon which brought a new challenge to schools across the world: to maintain teaching and learning whilst schools were closed. This is a challenge which was enthusiastically taken up by teachers, pupils and parents at Sherborne Qatar Prep School and encouraged the school to consider different ways of delivering a modern education.

The principle aim was to ensure that the pupils’ education continued as fully as possible by utilizing the school’s Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). Whilst it is impossible to completely recreate the buz and dynamic of the real classroom, the Prep School staff worked harder than ever to create a stimulating online learning environment by setting engaging and challenging tasks which covered the whole curriculum. To help the pupils fulfil these tasks they were supplied with supporting materials and videos. Staff were also in regular contact with pupils through class and individual Zoom sessions and pupils received feedback on work submitted and advice on the next steps for their learning. Additionally, the pupils’ overall welfare was very much in teachers’ minds as they encouraged pupils to engage with them and their fellow pupils. The programme included exercise sessions with the school’s PE team which pupils could follow at home to maintain their fitness and healthy living. Additionally, many pupils and staff joined together online to perform the song Heal the World and we even had a virtual Commem.

Altogether there was a fantastic response to distance learning from our pupils as they engaged with the programme with real enthusiasm and imagination, proving that in separation we had unity as the school worked collectively to stay safe, stay happy and maintain our high standards of education whilst supporting the country’s effort to beat coronavirus.

Mr. Richard Williams

Lockdown poem 133 133

The lockdown has started, The disease has spread.

Alas! Everything is closed.

The malls, the parks, the fun places to stay, We need to stay home as supposed to.

Don’t touch your face!

In order to keep the virus away.

Don’t touch your hair!

People are scared, frustrated but optimistic,

Coronavirus is everywhere!

We are not hopeless, nor pessimistic.

We will fight and fight to win this pandemic.

Salute to key workers to beat this epidemic.

First there were three, Then there were five, Then there were eighteen, Oh, what a surprise! This virus is becoming alive!

And a special thanks, To all the doctors and nurses, Who have made our day, By keeping coronavirus at bay.

It means so much to people like me, Who are shut up at home, Only watching TV.

It spread from China to Italy, From Italy to Spain.

One day, this disaster will be over, And then we shall rejoice.

It travelled all around the globe swiftly,

So, take all precautions by staying inside,

But I think it sounds insane!

Because it is entirely your choice.

Kulsoom Rizvi - Year 6

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135

136

137

C O M M E M O R AT I O N P R I Z E S J U N E 2 0 2 0 PREP SCHOOL Form Prizes 138

Pre School Meadows

EYFS PRIZE - Achievement

Pre School Treetops

EYFS PRIZE- Achievement

Halima Vohra

EYFS PRIZE - Progress

Lulwa Al Sulaiti

Reception A

Reception H

Reception T

Reception W

1A

1D

1R

1S

2N

EYFS PRIZE - Progress

EYFS PRIZE - Achievement EYFS PRIZE - Progress EYFS PRIZE – Achievement EYFS PRIZE - Progress EYFS PRIZE - Achievement EYFS PRIZE - Progress

Najla Al Muzaffar Muhammad Faris Durraiz

Danil Nassif Ahmed Qureshi Modu Seun Ogunbiyi Mariam Najjar Syeda Farwa Rizvi Abdlrahman Al Ansari

EYFS PRIZE Achievement

Sara Al Thani

EYFS PRIZE Progress

Aidan Ahmed

Achievement Progress

Mason Loki Maramara Aaleh Saeed

Achievement

Muneera Al Sulaiti

Progress

Bader Al Bader

Achievement Progress

Abdullah Murray-Jacobs Umar Haq

Achievement

Nadine Khalil

Progress

Jaafar Kadhim

Achievement

Aseel Abdel Hadi

Progress

Mikael Ahmad

2M

2K

Achievement Progress

Zaid Talafha

Achievement

Sarah Khan

Progress

Ziad Ezzeldin

Achievement 2L

Progress 3O

3G

3M

3W

4G

4R

4F

4C

5S

Yousuf Elsayed Aly

Oluwatobiloba Toluwanimi Akintayo Lolwa Sultan Al Thani

Achievement

Yousif Jabbar

Progress

Noor Husain

Achievement Progress

Ahmad Wajahat Summer Rouzier Spinks

Achievement

Nawaal Latif

Progress

Ali Al Ansari

Achievement

Isa Ahmed

Progress

Rodina Abdallatif

Achievement

Faris Youssef

Progress

Duru Yilmaz

Achievement

Manu Karthikeyan

Progress

Amna Bashir

Achievement

Aarthi Byreddy

Progress

Nasser Al Thani

Achievement

Sai Yajamanyam

Progress

Nasser Al Hajri

Achievement Progress

Muhammad Durraiz Ghada Al Enazi

139

Achievement

5A

Progress Achievement

5F

140

Progress Achievement

5H

6L

6S

Christopher Haddad Ahmed Jaward Diti Jain Nasser Al Khalifa

Achievement

Omar Yosif Khalil

Progress

Mubarak Al Nuaimi

Achievement

Thaleia Chouery

Achievement Progress Achievements

6G

Haya Al Kaabi

Progress

Progress

6P

Syed Hussayn Shah

Progress

Angelina Regina Panaretos John Olowu Gabriella Panaretos Chi Yee Chong Ruby Ryan

The Carolyn Savage Cup:

The Beccah Barton Cup (Most Merits Years 3 – 6):

Shaikha Al Thani

Ben McDermott

The Bailey Bowl:

The Alice McVeigh Cup (Most Merits Years 1 & 2):

Georgia Beetham

Filza Farhan

The Jennifer Mitchell Music Cup:

Pefects:

Anvita Chaitanya

Zainab Gharatkar - Amna Leena Kerwat - Irons Syed Ali Shah - Jassim Syed Hussayn Shah - Jassim Lina Sellami - Khalifa Diti Jain - Powys Claudia Brown - Sheppard

The Saville Cup:

Zena Ayoub Sports Personality of the Year:

Girls: Boys:

Maryam Al Kaabi Rutendo Mutezo

QURAN COMPETITION AWARDS Year 1

Abdullah Murray Jacobs

The Dawn Ayling Cup:

1R

Mohammed Al Sayegh 141

Year 2

Colin Niven Prize (Years 3 and 4):

Aseel Selim 2K

Safia Yusuf 2M

Yousuf Elsayed Aly 2M Hamza Mohamed 2L

Mohammed Al Sayegh 2K

Miandri Korf

Year 3

Aisha Al Kuwari 3W Dyala Ibrahim 3M Lama Abdulfatah 3G Adam EL Demiri 3O Sami Albagha 3M

Year 5

Syed Hussayn Shaah 5A Arsh Muhammad Ali 5S Syed Ali Shah 5H Mohammed Abdulfatah 5F

Syed Hussayn 5H

Muhammad Raahim Durraiz 5S Year 6

Hla Mohamed 6S Aasia Yusuf 6S Belal Ahmed Ghanem 6S

Eyad Mohamed El Naggar 6P

Sheikha Noura Prize (Years 5 & 6):

Yasmin Abdel Hadi The Headmaster’s Prize

Jacob Bugla Aya Ortashi Headmaster’s Commendations

Maisie Scott Sports Captains

Girls: Boys:

Bianca Wilson Jassim Al Shammari

The Jo Callaway Cup for Inter House Events

Irons The Inter House Trophy

Jassim

B FROM THE

142

There is little doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic will have created a shadow over the academic year 2019-2020.

Certainly, it is not a year expect that many of our pupils may have thought more about school than that will be easily forgotten.

Whilst it has challenged they would have done previously. School offers a place to meet and make new friends. School creates opportunities for academic fulfilment, challenge every aspect of our lives, I physical capabilities through sport and provide a space to engage with believe it has also helped us to other people and learn about yourself and the world around you. Crucially, school creates independence and provides the foundation on which children appreciate the simple things and young people establish their own identity and values. that we may have taken for granted.

Despite the difficulties imposed on us by the pandemic, we have not lost

ursarI

sight of what is important for our pupils. We have continued to make sure that we can provide the resources and facilities that our children will need to fulfil their ambitions.

Our new Sherborne Qatar School for Girls is on target to open in the new academic year. The Girls’ school promises to provide amazing and different learning options as it focuses on Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. (STEM).

Next academic year will also be a busy one as the senior school prepares to move to the new school site at the Mall of Qatar scheduled to open 2021/22. A display on the design and facilities at the new school can be found in the reception area at the Bani Hajer site.

Completion of the new multi-purpose hall at the Al Rayyan site has completed the 3-year development plan at this campus. I am very pleased that Sherborne has made so much progress with these planned developments.

At some point in the future, most of us will reach a point where we will say goodbye to our peers and colleagues. This will be true for many of our pupils and staff. The time has come for me to say farewell as I plan to retire at the end of the year. I have worked in the education sector for more than 30 years and will miss being surrounded by young people whose energy, humour and enthusiasm have always served as great inspiration to me.

Working in Qatar has helped me to fulfil a long-held ambition. I am leaving with a wealth of knowledge that I will always treasure. I will return to my home country much richer for the experience and with a more complete perspective about myself. I wish to pay tribute to the team of bursary staff with whom I have worked very closely. None of us achieve in isolation and the projects outlined above as well as the daily routines of organsing a school that is safe and fit for purpose are examples of the mutual co-operation and collaboration of these teams.

It has been a pleasure and a privilege to have worked alongside colleagues who understand how to bring out the best in each other. They have been generous in sharing their skills and knowledge and I have been amazed at their work ethic and capacity to make things happen, even when it has seemed impossible. I also acknowledge the support and expertise from my colleagues at our Head Office, Sharaka Holdings.

I wish you all continue to experience success, to feel fulfilled and most of all to seek out what makes you feel happy and content. It has been a pleasure and indeed a privilege working for Sherborne Qatar and I will genuinely miss it. I take with me fond memories, valuable skills and no regrets.

My love and best wishes to you all.

Bursar and Clerk to the Governors

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Fatima Al Mulla Mubarak Al Nuaimi Muhammad Jassim Al Qadi

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