Year 3’s Magnetic Investigations 15th May 2026 Science Year 3 have been investigating magnets by testing how many paperclips different ones can hold. The children discovered that bigger doesn’t always mean stronger—some smaller magnets worked better! This led to great discussions about how magnets work and what makes them strong.
Nail Biting Final at Spelling Bee! 8th May 2026 Academic This week we held our highly anticipated Spelling Bee! Children in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 put themselves forwards to compete and we were really impressed by how many children wanted to take part. The first round was held in classes, then two finalists were selected from each class. The final took place in assembly and had two sections – the Year 3 and 4 list, and the Year 5 and 6 list. After some very impressive spelling and nail-biting head-to-heads, we crowned our two winners. Congratulations to all the finalists and well done to everyone who took part. We are looking forward to holding a Flag Bee and a Number Bee later in the term!
Maths Clubs to Competitions 8th May 2026 Academic Co-curricular We are excited to announce that we have launched maths enrichment clubs for children in Years 2, 3 and 4. These clubs will focus on the sort of reasoning and problem-solving challenges that make up many external maths competitions, and we are hoping to enter some of these competitions in the next academic year. Children are able to choose if they want to join – the entry requirements are a real enthusiasm for maths and a desire to dive into some challenge questions! Mrs Potgieter is running the club for Years 3 and 4, and Mrs Harris is running the club for Year 2.
Investigate, Reason, Suceed in Maths 1st May 2026 Academic Copthorne Maths Investigation Day was a wonderful celebration of our commitment to creative, challenging maths, often linked to our wider global focus. Across the school, pupils engaged in rich investigations that encouraged collaboration, reasoning and problem-solving. Year 3 pupils applied their understanding of capacity to concoct imaginative potion recipes, carefully measuring, adjusting and justifying their choices. In Years 5 and 6, pupils tackled the Dicey Dilemmas challenge, submitting thoughtful explanations of winning strategies to nrich.maths.org as part of a current live problem. We actively encourage the use of this Cambridge University resource to deepen mathematical thinking and communication. We are especially proud of Adam A in Year 5, whose impressive submission to a recent NRICH challenge has been published on the site — a fantastic achievement and a wonderful example of mathematical curiosity and perseverance in action.
Year 1 Make Memories at Hever Castle 1st May 2026 Co-curricular Global Pre-prep We had a wonderful trip to Hever Castle, where we explored its rich history and learned about its links to Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. We were excited to see many fascinating artefacts, including a real knight’s suit of armour, and enjoyed spotting lots of castle features we had been researching in class. After a day full of learning and exploring the beautiful grounds, we spent time together in the castle playground, re‑enacting life in a castle. To end the day, Mrs Richardson set us a challenge to find our way out of the maze! Luckily, everyone made it out safely and back to the bus. It was a fantastic trip that we are sure to remember.
Exploring the Journey to Senior School 27th March 2026 Academic It’s been a week of looking ahead for pupils and families in Years 4 and 5! On Monday morning, parents were invited to join a presentation from our senior leadership team giving insight into how we prepare our pupils academically and holistically for their time not only in Years 5 and 6 here at Copthorne but in readiness for their move on to their chosen senior school. As part of the Caterham Family of Schools, our children can choose the through school route to our award winning senior school, Caterham School. Our Early Offer process avoids the stress of an 11+exam for pupils and gives peace of mind early on for parents. With this in mind, we were delighted to welcome Mr Ceri Jones, Headmaster at Caterham School to the presentation. Mr Jones talked about the ethos, diverse culture and academic ambition at Caterham that is shared here at Copthorne and welcomed families from all year groups to visit Caterham. Transition from Year 4 to Year 5 is an exciting step for our pupils, as they move to a senior school model of subject specialist teaching and begin to navigate their timetables independently. This week, Year 4 had a taster of life in Year 5, visiting the Year 5 and 6 corridor for English and maths lessons led by Mrs Litchfield (Head of English) and Mrs Potgieter (Head of Maths). They rose to the challenge and impressed us with their maturity and engagement! In the afternoon, Year 4 visited the impressive Performing Arts Centre at Caterham School and were able to watch the Lower School production of Emil and the Detectives. They were thrilled to see lots of former Copthorne pupils on their route through the school to the Humphreys Theatre who spotted our distinctive red blazers in the sunshine. Year 5 also visited Caterham this week for some senior school taster sessions. They enjoyed a bug-tastic art lesson with Head of Visual Arts, Mrs Veldtman where they played with a limited colour palette before they donned 3D glasses to pop their bugs into life. They also visited the science lab and carried out some investigations into forces. Mrs Hills-Matthew, Head of Prep Science was very impressed with their energy and enthusiasm! A pit stop for lunch in the big refectory and then straight off to an EDGE session with Mr Lang, Deputy Head Innovation, for some collaborative problem solving, including some time on the ever popular spheros. The Copthorne – Caterham shuttle bus awaited at the end of a busy morning to whizz them back to school. Thanks to all our Caterham colleagues for a wonderful visit!
Into the Wild with Year 3 at the Bigwood Estate 27th March 2026 Global This week, our Year 3 children enjoyed a fantastic spring visit to the Bigwood Estate. They had a wonderful time exploring the outdoors with Farmer David and were excited to meet horses and spot cows with their calves – including a magnificent Highland cow! The children loved spending time in the woodland, where they discovered a variety of plants and even had the chance to taste wild garlic. In our English lessons we have been studying the classic story of Charlotte’s Web and at Bigwood we were able to go on a mini‑beast hunt, searching for spiders on their webs! We saw lots of beautiful, intricate webs and little, delicate spiders to inspire our creative writing back in the classroom. What a brilliant morning out in fresh air immersed in nature. We loved it!
Reception Explore 3D Shapes 27th March 2026 Academic Pre-prep Reception have been exploring 3d shapes this week and as part of outdoor maths day we decided to test different 3d shapes. We had to work with a partner and investigate which shapes were able to stack, roll or slide. We had a wonderful discussion working out if certain shapes were sliding or just rolling.
Reception to Year 6 Maths in Motion 27th March 2026 Academic Pre-prep This week, following the completion of our end‑of‑term maths assessments, pupils across the school celebrated their hard work with a series of collaborative and active outdoor maths lessons—a wonderful example of the Copthorne approach in action. Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 took part in a unique Place Value Bootcamp, led by Mrs Richardson, complete with a rousing place value “army chant” and a range of fun, physical games designed to build confidence and understanding. In Years 3 and 4, pupils worked together to solve maths problems hidden around the school in an exciting scavenger hunt, combining reasoning, teamwork and resilience. Our Year 5 and 6 pupils rose to the challenge of the much‑loved Copthorne Escape Rooms, where demanding mathematical problems required collaboration, communication and perseverance, helping some teams unlock the treasure sooner than others. These experiences perfectly reflect our belief that maths at Copthorne is active, inclusive and deeply rooted in collaboration and thinking.
Year 3 Uncover the Secrets of Seeds 27th March 2026 Science This week, Year 3 explored the fascinating world of seeds. From tiny snowdrops to mighty oaks, every plant begins with a seed, and the children enjoyed examining a variety of fruits to discover the seeds hidden inside. They learned that seeds come in many shapes and sizes and there are some that we can eat, and some we can’t. The classroom was buzzing with lots of curiosity and discussion.