Junior Reflections Week 15 January 2025

Dear parents,

What a super start to the new year this week has been. We welcomed six new pupils and their families to the school and I know that your children have made them all very welcome to the school and the start of their Exeter School journey. The corridors are full again and even though the twinkly lights and tree have all come down, the laughter and chatter certainly makes up for dark mornings and nights.

New year’s resolutions

New year’s resolutions were the order of the day on Monday. My lovely dog, Rocco, the fox red labrador, made an appearance (not literally) whereby I shared many photos of all the things that he had chewed/eaten, much to the amusement of the pupils: homework, airpods, many pairs of flipflops, books, his bed, sunglasses and finally my iWatch. My new year’s resolution was not a new dog but a new watch to include keeping my steps up, from which the dog, of course, benefits…. Let’s see how long it lasts. It is always good to reset, think about all the good things that happened in 2024 and of course be thankful for all the things that we have to look forward to this year.

Positive start to the year

This week, our junior school buddies gathered to share their hopes and dreams for 2025. It was a delightful session where they reconnected and kicked off the new year by discussing their resolutions and goals for the year ahead. Good work has started with a bang and as always I am blown away by the standard of work that comes to my office. A highlight was enjoying a rap created by three Upper Two boys, bringing in our school virtues; it was simply brilliant and made my day.

Junior school quiz

Our junior school quiz is fast approaching on 24 January, 7-10pm. If you would like to join, please do contact your form rep or email familysociety@exeterschool.org.uk and we will add you to our list. You can also book via the ESFS website and more details can be found below. We are also looking for donations for our raffle prizes so if you are able to contribute please do send any items to the junior school office. It has always proven to be a fun (with a little bit of competition) night out and an opportunity to catch up with the school community.

Warm clothing

Finally, a reminder that your children will need to wrap up warm over the course of this half term, with chilly, wet and windy conditions almost guaranteed! Each morning, we would like them all to bring in the blue branded school coat, gloves and a woolly hat (school colours only, please – red, white, blue). Please also ensure that all items of clothing are named, which makes returning misplaced items so much easier for us.

Stay warm this weekend.

Mrs Saskia van Schalkwyk

Playground people of the week

Theo S-M F1C

Georgia L U2E

ESFS pre-prep and junior school parents quiz

Exeter School Family Society are hosting a fun quiz night on Friday 24 January at 7pm in the main school hall.

Teams of up to six are welcome and tickets can be purchased for £5 each, below. (Please use the password: ESFS1633 when prompted)

Additionally, if any parents have any prizes they would be willing to donate for the raffle this would also be very much appreciated.

 

Click here to book tickets

Junior School News

Junior Sport News

Do you have a story or pupil achievement to share with our community?

If you have a couple of lines of information and a photograph that you and your child are happy to be shared we will try to post these at relevant times through the year.
Email our communications team
Excitement is building for our U2 play on 16-18 June. You'll be able to secure your tickets soon to see Sherlock and Cinders, a hilarious leavers' musical with 9 original songs. We can't wait!

#SherlockandCinders #U2play #Y6leavers #endofjuniorschool #exeterjuniorschool #juniorschool #drama

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If you're in Years 7-9 and fancy a bit of cooking on today's INSET day, or at least to start planning ahead for Thursday, the European Day of Languages, we have just the competition for you. 

Our Modern Foreign Languages department have some Amazon vouchers up for grabs for entries of cakes or dishes representing a country of your choice. Whether you're keen on a Galette des rois, Tarta de Santiago or a classic panettone, bring your entry to the MFL staff room by lunchtime this Thursday to be in with a chance of winning!

Poster designed by L6 pupil Anna ☺️

#galettedesrois #tartadesantiago #panettone #mfl #modernforeignlanguages #europeandayoflanguages #celebrationoflanguages #europeanculture #cookingcompetition #exeterschools #AmazonVouchers

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Happy National Scone day! How do you eat yours? Keep a keen eye on the video note for our preference although we've sandwiched it together in the visual so as not to offend anyone who opts for alternatives😆

At the end of 'The Butterfly Lion', Michael Morpurgo discovers he's been taking tea with a ghost. We tasked our junior school poets with a little extension project to write a poem about this. Here is the poem from Bella in Upper One (Year 4) which we love. 

#nationalsconeday #poetlaureate #exeterjuniorschool #devonscones #creamtea #devoncreamtea #butterflylion #michaelmorpurgo #nationalsconeday2026

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Like Delilah and Rosalila, Benjy is preparing for the trip of a lifetime following his A Levels and is off to Peru with @projecttrust. Here, we see how hearing from alumni helped him to make the decision about whether volunteering overseas was the right choice for him. Various futures events are run throughout sixth form life and before to prepare pupils for the real world. 

If you'd like to support Benjy raise the £6.5k he needs to get on his way, please go to his Just Giving link in the Linktree in our bio.

@exeterschool_alumni  thank you for the inspiration you give to current pupils.

🎵 Copyrighted music licensed from Lickd. https://lickd.co

High Heaven by Spencer Wilson, Jamie Elder, https://t.lickd.co/l/PXpo3X1PplE

#peru #volunteering #projecttrustperu @felix_in_cambodia #sixthformlife #ALevels #tipsfrompupils #independentschooluk #fundraising #welcomeandserve #educationforall #modernforeignlanguages #coeducationtothrive #realworldready

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Yesterday, we heard from Delilah in U6 who is off to Honduras in January and today is Rosalila in L6's turn. She'll be off to Peru for 8 months the year after next. Following her mother and her brothers' experiences with @projecttrust, she's excited about the experiences it will bring her to prepare for a course in human sciences/geography at uni later. 

We love the opportunities available for pupils out there, encouraging their younger peers to think big about the differences they can make in the world and will be bringing these to you over the coming months. 

Anyone wishing to support Rosalila's fundraising will be able to do so shortly through school newsletters. 

🎵 Copyrighted music licensed from Lickd. https://lickd.co

Gitano Rumbero by Miguel Moreno, https://t.lickd.co/l/7lY6vlBmYKM

@felix_in_cambodia #fundraising #honduras #peru #sixthformlife #ALevels #coeducationtothrive #RealWorldReady #futurepathways #charity #welcomeandserve

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Junior school house sport - 12 Dec 2024

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F1 RAMM trip - History Expedition Day 2024