Reception Shape Explorers and Home Builders 23rd May 2025 Pre-prep This week in Reception, the children have had a fantastic time exploring shapes through tangrams, both practically and virtually on the iPads. As part of our topic on Houses and Homes, we’ve been comparing houses from the past to those of today, discussing their features and the materials they were made from. To finish off the topic, the children worked together to build junk model houses, using a variety of recycled materials. It was wonderful to see such brilliant teamwork and to hear their creative ideas—what amazing imaginations they have! Come and explore for yourself and find out what makes Copthorne Prep a great place to grow and learn. We would love to welcome you to our School at an upcoming visitor morning or private tour. BOOK YOUR VISIT
Nursery are in the garden and home 23rd May 2025 Nursery Pre-prep Our youngest pupils in Butterflies and Caterhpillars have loved playing in the garden this week! They run, jump, and laugh together. There are so many fun things to do like digging, looking for bugs, and playing with friends. Bumblebees have enjoyed their story , “A Place Called Home,” they have been learning about people from around the world and the types of homes they live in. They discovered that Greenland is home to the Inuit people, who traditionally live in igloos. As part of their activities, they built model igloos using sugar cubes in their physical development area. Come and experience for yourself what makes our Flying Start Nursery unique. Try out our free weekly Little Caterpillars Toddler Group BOOK YOUR PLACE
Year 2 Help Sal’s Shoes to Make a Difference 23rd May 2025 Community Pre-prep Year 2 took part in a fantastic trip to Sal’s Shoes, a charity that redistributes shoes to children who need them, both in the UK and around the world. They saw first-hand how small acts of kindness can make a huge difference. Before the visit, the children made bright and eye-catching posters to encourage donations from the whole school, helping to collect 65 pairs of shoes and raise £90—a brilliant effort! During the trip, the children helped sort through 275 pairs of new school shoes, 85 pairs of new PE trainers, and 53 pairs of other new shoes. These will go to children in the UK through schools, food banks, baby banks, social services, and more. They also sorted 147 pairs of pre-loved shoes, including those donated from Copthorne—one pair was even brand new! Some of these will be heading to Ghana next month, and winter shoes are being sent to Ukraine later this year. In just an hour and a half, Year 2 helped prepare shoes that will reach 559 children—a huge impact in a short time, making a huge difference here in the UK and around the world. A big well done to all the children for their hard work, enthusiasm, and teamwork!
MFL Day – C’est Magnifique! 23rd May 2025 Global Pre-prep MFL day was all about celebrating the two languages that we learn here at Copthorne. It was such a fun day that started with a whole school assembly where we all did a conga on our beautiful playing fields. It was a Global cross curricular event where children learnt about the history, geography and food of Spanish and French speaking countries. each year group had opportunities for art and DT; year 4 created La Boca style houses while Year 1 created their own Picasso portraits. The Year 6s designed their own Formula One cars for the Monaco Grand Prix whilst the Year 5s learnt all about the Tour de France. We finished our day with a ‘ what have you learnt?’ session, followed by a huge Bingo game! Merci and gracias to everyone for making it a wonderful day! Come and experience for yourself what makes a Copthorne education unique. Check out our entry points with early offers to Caterham School. We would love to welcome you to our School at an upcoming visitor morning or private tour. BOOK YOUR VISIT
Explosive Journey Down the Food Canal with The Royal Institution 23rd May 2025 Pre-prep Science As part of their Global science, Year 1 through to Year 6 were treated to an amazing science show at Caterham School by the Royal Institution thanks to Caterham Prep’s science department. Children enjoyed learning how some foods can explode. Most importantly they learnt how our digestive system works and what happens to food once we have eaten it! Despite some squeamish moments as we saw the journey down the small intestine, the children thoroughly enjoyed the show. The Royal Institution are behind the amazing series of Christmas Lectures with presenters from David Attenborough to Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock later this year – click here to check them out. Thank you for inviting us Caterham Prep!
Nature Kings & Queens at the Bigwood Estate 16th May 2025 Global Pre-prep Year 1 had a wonderful morning on the Bigwood Estate. We were led by the brilliant Farmer David who was so engaging and knowledgeable. We explored around 25 acres of the land and learnt about the Kings and Queens of nature. We first met the queens of stinging nettles and the king of trees, the oak tree. We measured one oak tree and discovered it was 183 years old and King George VI was in power. We met the horses who would pull the rulers of the land and we discovered we were not as strong as a horse when pulling a carriage. Did you know there is no king bee, only queen bees and they lay around 2000 eggs a day. The male bees are called drones and we even learnt a bee dance, the waggle dance. One of the children’s favourite parts was meeting and feeding the animals, especially the pigs. Did you know you can listen to plants sing? The dandelion had the best singing voice.
Reception Focus on Homes 16th May 2025 Creative Arts Pre-prep We’ve been talking about our favourite rooms at home and what we like to do in them.The children created beautiful watercolour house paintings and turned them into pop-up pictures, with drawings of their favourite rooms inside. We also explored animal homes under the sea and discussed how to care for the environment, including the importance of recycling.
Developing our skills in Nursery 16th May 2025 Nursery Pre-prep In Butterflies and Caterpillars this week the younger nursery children did a fantastic job sorting pom-poms and matching them with the correct fish based on colour. They showed great colour recognition and sorting skills, and everyone had a lot of fun during this activity! In Bumblebees class, we have been discussing various types of homes and talking about our own homes. In the Fine Motor Skills area, we have been creating garden models, using pegs and lolly sticks to construct fences and adding decorative flowers to enhance our designs.
Year 2 Fix Off First Football Fixture 16th May 2025 Pre-prep Sport What a glorious afternoon Year 2 had down at Lancing for their first taste of a formal fixture. We travelled down to Lancing Prep Hove to be greeted upon arrival by a number of parents who made the journey down for an afternoon of festival football. What transpired was a fun filled hour of great sportsmanship, goals being scored but above all FUN being had. The behaviour of the children was first class which only added to the afternoon. Well Done to all that took part and to those parents who came down, We do it all again when we have a return fixture against Lancing on Tuesday 10 June at home.