Dear Parents

I’m sure you will join me in congratulating our sister school, Wellington College Shanghai, for achieving outstanding recognition from Forbes China: Best International High School, Middle School and Primary School in China!  This annual ranking takes multiple types of data into account, including academic achievement, teaching quality, basic information, and innovation/development.  The tables make very interesting reading.

Of course such accolades are not everything: in the end, we choose the school which we feel is actually best for our child, rather than the shiniest or the most trending.  Nevertheless, such a rigorously-researched award is a really excellent achievement, for a really excellent school! 

I dropped in to Mrs Layfield’s Year 4 science class this week.  Our white-coated students were investigating oobleck, which – in an act of somewhat grandiose rhetorical inflation – is termed a Non-Newtonian Fluid.  I very much enjoyed observing the impressive scientific skills every child was applying to the task, as well as their evident enjoyment of learning.  I suspect we might have some future scientific geniuses in the building!

Goodness me, it’s already May.  Where does the time go?

With best wishes

Chris

Dear Parents,

This week, I was delighted to be able to watch some of the rehearsals for our Junior School production, Aladdin Trouble. Preparations are now well and truly underway, and the energy and enthusiasm shown by the children is a joy to see. With engaging songs, student‑choreographed dances, and some wonderfully dramatic acting, it is clear that this is going to be a fantastic show.

Ticket booking is now open to Year 6 families and will open to Year 5 families early next week before becoming available to the wider school community. Please do book your tickets as soon as possible - we are very much looking forward to celebrating the children’s hard work with you all.

This week also brought further musical opportunities through our String Recitals, involving children from Reception through to Year 6. It was a real pleasure to see musicians at different stages of their learning confidently taking to the stage, developing their performance skills in front of such supportive audiences. Well done to everyone who took part – we are so proud of you all.

Year 1 to Year 6 Summer Term Curriculum Leaflets will be sent to families today at 4.00pm by your child’s Class Teacher. Please do take some time to read through these, as they provide a helpful overview of what your child will be learning this term.

Wishing you all a super weekend ahead.

Kind regards,

Hannah

Dear Parents,

External examinations are now underway, and we are very fortunate to be able to host them in our dedicated examination space in the Crowthorne Building: Elizabeth Hall. From the outset, this space was designed with the student examination experience firmly at the centre, while also meeting the specific requirements of the examination boards. Having held our final Parent–Teacher Conferences of the academic year this week, most parents will now have had the opportunity to see Elizabeth Hall first‑hand and even experience the exam‑board‑approved (and reassuringly comfortable!) seating used during examinations.

We are extremely grateful to our wider school community for the continued support shown during this period, particularly in helping to keep noise to a minimum when examinations are taking place. This collective awareness makes a real difference to students as they focus on their papers.

We wish all students sitting exams every success and encourage them to approach the coming weeks with confidence, composure, and the knowledge that they are well prepared and very well supported.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend,

Jane