While this may seem a simple act, I cannot stress enough how important it is to me personally as a way of getting to know everyone who is involved in our school. 

It means that when I do my (almost) daily tour of the classes, I know which pupils were perhaps not their usual selves on arrival, and I can monitor and support them with their teachers if needed. It also gives me golden opportunities to catch up on the latest and most important events in the calendars of our busy and active families. I have got to know which girls like to dash across the playground and hide in the trees at the end of the day and I love to see our dancers practising their steps as they hurry into class in the mornings.

This week in juniors has been busy and buzzy (as Dr Lee often says!) with pupils managing to fit in a wide range of extracurricular activities among their usual learning. The recital on Thursday evening was both musically stimulating and a great chance for the younger pupils to hear our senior musicians in action. Preparations for Peter Pan have been in full swing, with some brilliant costumes to complement the excellent acting and singing on display. It promises to be a real treat.

Our assembly on Wednesday helped the children to understand concepts of neurodiversity as pupils from the senior school visited us to talk about how conditions such as dyslexia and oculomotor dysfunction affect them. It was inspiring to be able to celebrate the resilience and determination of these students as we help them find the best ways to work and learn. Our supportive and expert Learning Enhancement team, led by Mrs Beezley, are always on hand to discuss anything that might impact a pupil’s learning needs and we are committed to celebrating everyone’s differences in our wonderful and diverse school community.

As we move into the summer term, Mrs Saunders-Wall and I will continue to enjoy our close involvement with Junior School girls and families. We will also be able to share our experiences with Mrs Stawt as she starts to come into school more often, on a weekly basis, both to get to know the pupils and staff and also to spend time with parents and guardians. In my regular calls with her, she has been thrilled to hear about the many activities we have enjoyed this term and can’t wait to play a more active part in the lead up to the autumn when she starts with us permanently.

Mr Rickman
Deputy Head
Junior School Interim Leadership

As a group, Nursery continue to show kindness and strong bonds with each other. 

This age group are beginning to learn about the big emotions that can overwhelm them at various parts of the day and as practitioners we are there to co-regulate with them so that in the future they can self regulate. Learning to regulate their emotions, wait their turn and have empathy with others are important skills and form the basis of their journey into school. With these skills in place, the children can learn. 

This week, we have been focussing on these skills and progress is evident in the day to day interactions that we have and how the girls take part in their scheduled activities like Ballet, Forest School, library visits and Music.

This week, in Preschool, we have continued to focus on subitising skills by playing matching number and quantity games. The girls have also identified the numbers 1-5 out of sequence before the games began.

In PSHE we looked at hand washing and why it is important. Miss Cooke gather the girls together for role play session to explain what might happen if we do not wash our hands. She had previously covered her hands in paint and the girls stopped her just in time as she was about to cover the musical instruments with the paint on her hands! We then all went into the bathroom to see the correct hand washing steps.

At Forest School the girls used tools to drill and hammer small nails into pieces of wood. We had to make sure we were sensible and kept ourselves and others safe when using these tools. Other girls decided to make an obstacle course or play with the mud kitchen.

We have been very lucky to have another emergency vehicle visit us this week – an ambulance. The girls got to explore the back of the ambulance, including the stretcher, and looked at some of the equipment the paramedics carry and use. We even got treated to the very loud siren too!

On Monday we went to Wootton Opticians and found out everything that an optician does in their daily work – this has helped us in our role-play area where we are enjoying taking on the role of customers and an optician.

On Wednesday, we had an exciting morning where two paramedics brought an ambulance into the front playground. There were lots of questions asked about the jobs they do and how they help people who are in need, of medical support and the class enjoyed looking inside the ambulance and trying out the stretcher.

Year 1 have enjoyed their ‘Healthy Me’ topic, and know lots about keeping themselves and other people safe and healthy.

They learned about different food groups and thought about why water is so important. We did different exercises and found out what happens when we sleep.

Last week the girls talked about things in their houses that are safe and not safe. The girls were very good at knowing what they could touch and what they couldn’t… and were able to identify things that were safe, but only when they were given to you by a grown up, like medicine.

The girls have learnt how different types of food (such as carbohydrates, proteins and fats) provide our bodies with different nutrients.

We found out that it is important to eat a balanced diet which includes foods from different groups, and designed a delicious meal that includes a variety of nutrients.

Year 2 also enjoyed visiting the ambulance when it came to school. The paramedics showed us the inside of the ambulance and explained what the different equipment was for.

Year 3 began their ‘Healthy Me’ topic by thinking about how exercise affects the body and setting themselves physical challenges. These included spending longer on an existing physical activity, increasing the intensity of an activity or trying something new to increase their exercise levels.

Some of their favourite activities were walking, gardening, swimming, star jumps, cartwheels, using a treadmill and riding a scooter. After that, the girls learnt about healthy food choices and were surprised by the large amount of sugar in some foods!

They have explored the dangers of smoking and the impact of excessive alcohol consumption. But this week, we shifted our focus to healthy friendships!

To illustrate the connections we forge with others, the girls participated in a fun and interactive activity using a ball of wool. As they tossed the wool to classmates they felt connected to, they shared what brought them together. This not only created a colourful web of connections but also demonstrated how common interests form the basis of friendship. The more connections we maintain, the stronger our friendships become!

We also discussed the important lesson: what happens when someone lets go of the wool? When connections falter, friendships can weaken. This led to a classroom brainstorming session where the girls contributed brilliant suggestions on the qualities that help maintain healthy, lasting friendships. Some standout qualities included: Being kind, listening, respecting each other’s opinions, avoiding jealousy, understanding that friends can have other friends too, helping each other out and most importantly, just having fun together.

Let’s continue supporting them in building strong connections that last a lifetime!

In our PSHE lessons this term, the Year 5 girls have been thinking about the physical aspects of staying healthy. Last week was Neurodiversity Celebration Week, so on Friday we spent some time thinking more about our mental wellbeing and the different invisible challenges that can face some people. We were reminded that, whatever the differences in how our brains work, everyone has their own talents.

“I really liked how we were able to talk about the things we liked and disliked about our own learning styles, and how we feel about them.” Tabby

I feel like it’s great because we’re all unique and all different – we all have different ways of doing stuff. Some people find some things like listening and getting stuff down really easy, but some people find that really difficult because they are given too much information and their brains can’t process it quickly.” Rhoda

“Some people don’t realise that other people have a disability, and they push them over the edge. It is really good if people can be open, even if they’re nervous, and tell people about what they struggle with so they can have help.” Annie

We have discussed our physical and emotional health by answering Agony Aunt letters and offering advice to help solve problems and worries. The girls have shown lots of emotional intelligence and empathy. They have then researched different drugs and talked about those that help people and the ones that can do harm.

We have then moved onto the difficult topic of gangs and child exploitation, with the girls responding with great ideas of how someone could cope if faced with these difficult situations.

All the girls have shown good maturity during these lessons and listened carefully to each others ideas and opinions.

Mother’s Day Afternoon Tea on Thursday 21 March was a tremendous success, with over 70 guests in attendance.

The event celebrated the inspiring women in our pupils’ lives, and everyone enjoyed a selection of delicious treats, from finger sandwiches to cakes and scones, all while engaging in lively conversation.

A highlight of the afternoon was the pupils’ delightful musical performances, including a charming rendition of ‘Cockles and Muscles’ and the upbeat ‘Heatwave.’ Their rehearsed and energetic performances left the audience, myself included, beaming with pride.

This heartwarming event was a true reflection of the deep affection and gratitude our girls feel for their mothers, grandmothers, and other significant women who shape their lives.

A sincere thank you to everyone who joined us in this special celebration.

On Tuesday 25 March we hosted our annual Dance Festival bringing our dancing community together.

Pupils from across the Junior School and Senior School took part showcasing their talents to songs from many different musicals.

It really was a wonderful celebration of creativity, confidence, inclusivity and the High School spirit of being 10% braver.

Well done to all involved.

Mrs Blake
Director of Sport

U8A

The team had their last game on Friday travelling away to Wellingborough.

We have been working on moving into space and they did this extremely well. They communicated with each other well and passed the ball with good power and placement. The Player of the Match went to Emily.

Unfortunately the team were unlucky to score an the final result 1:0.

U9A

We played a fantastic last game of the season versus Wellingborough.

It was a tough opposition and the flow of play went backwards and forwards throughout the entire match.

Unfortunately we lost 5-8 but the girls played extremely well as a team and encouraged each other to never give up. Player of the Match went to Zara. Well played everyone!

We are very excited to share the news of our brand new girls-only toddler group starting this month!

Girls aged 1-3 and their parents, grandparents and guardians are all welcome to come along and delve into a wide variety of toys, crafts and ‘surprise play stations’ created to spark imagination and fun times. Always remember ‘dress to get messy!’.

This toddler group will be held fortnightly on Tuesdays, 9.15am – 10am, a full list of dates and the online booking form can be found on the school website https://www.northamptonhigh.co.uk/admissions/open-events/

Please feel free to share this with any friends who may be interested, and come and join us with your little ones too. Our next session is, Tuesday 29 April.