Pre-Prep Reflections 6 March 2026
Dear parents,
This week we were delighted to welcome back Mrs Wannell in the Nursery class, following her maternity leave. It feels like she has never been away! Yesterday, we said a temporary “goodbye and good luck” to Ms Richards who starts her maternity leave today. It was also great to see many parents on Wednesday night at parents’ evening. We hope you found the meetings useful and came away with a clear sense of your child’s individual strengths and next steps.
Book Week
This week has been all about celebrating books! As 2026 is the National Year of Reading, we tried to make the week even more exciting than normal: teachers have been visiting different classes across the week to read their favourite stories; we have rung a bell at random points each day to signal D.E.A.R time (Drop Everything And Read); we ran a ‘Who’s behind the book?’ photo competition where the children had to guess the adult behind the book cover; we were visited by Graham Milton, an OE (Old Exonian) and retired classics teacher, who led some storytelling workshops with the children; and today we have been sharing moving nursery rhyme books made by Year 6 children in their DT lessons over at the junior school. What a fun week!
World Book Day
Yesterday, we celebrated World Book Day with an exciting off-timetable day. The children and staff all looked brilliant in their costumes, which they were able to show off during a parade in the hall. I had much fun, dressed as Professor Snape from Harry Potter, terrifying various children, liberally insulting everyone and casting withering glares in the corridors! The children moved around the school to take part in themed workshops, each related to a different book. It was a fun and memorable day and a chance to celebrate our love of books and reading. A reminder the closing date for entries to our Book Bento competition has been extended to Monday 9 March. If you haven’t already done so, make sure to submit your entry over the weekend.
Reception class lobby
Work to upgrade the Reception class lobby extension at the rear of the building has now been completed and signed off. This has involved a complete renovation, including replacement of the roof, new lighting and flooring, installation of heating, and full internal redecoration. We have also moved the parent noticeboard inside the room, so please do have a look when you drop off your child in the mornings. Thank you to the Reception children and parents for being so patient and flexible while this work has been undertaken, and I hope you all agree that it was well worth the wait.
Next week
I am planning to meet with the school council reps on Monday morning. We will also be holding interviews on Thursday for a part-time co-deputy head and class teacher role starting in September. Please note that Mr Hamilton is away next week so there will be no rugby club after school on Thursday – the children are welcome to join Late Room without charge if needed.
Please do try to visit your local book shop over the weekend and make use of the World Book Day token below if you get time. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend and happy reading!
