Form 3 Perform Romeo and Juliet
Form 3 gave a wonderful performance of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet just before the half term holiday. The production was a contemporary version of the original play and proved to be a very challenging task for the children to undertake. Nevertheless, the children worked extremely hard in the run up to the performance and really ‘pulled it off’ on the night. They acted with sympathy and humour in equal parts, resulting in a captivating and enchanting recital. It took a lot of dedication to learn a complicated script; many members of the audience commented on how well the children had done.
PP2 visit Castle Museum
As part of our ‘Back in the Day’ theme, PP2 visited the Castle Museum for a taste of life in the 60s. They took part in a totally groovy and fab workshop which involved learning the Twist where they had to imagine they were cleaning the floor with their feet and drying their back with a towel! We found out that the word ‘groovy’ came from the grooves in the records. The children also got to try on some 1950s and 1960s outfits and compare them to see how different fashion was in the two decades. PP2 knew that the first man landed on the moon in the 1960s, but they found out even more about the space race, including climbing into a model of John Glenn’s capsule that went into space in 1962. They couldn’t believe how cramped it was. We also looked at inventions and gadgets such as 1960s cookers, irons and hair dryers. The children learned a lot through handling and investigating artefacts and most of all had a fantastic time. Cool!
Form 6 at Bowes Museum
On Monday 18th May, Form 6 were invited by Greville Worthington to visit the Bowes Museum to view the Gerald Scarfe “Milk Snatcher” exhibition that he has recently curated. The exhibition presents a selection of the many satirical cartoons made of Margaret Thatcher over a period of 22 years from her days as a member of the shadow cabinet to her leadership of the Conservative Party and her tenure as Prime Minister, as well as her political decline. Scarfe pulls no punches, portraying Thatcher as equally cunning, ruthless, mean spirited, vain, terrifying, sharp and sexy. The cartoons, mainly from Scarfe’s own archive, highlight key moments in British social history, such as the Winter of Discontent, the Miners’ Strike and the Falklands War. It was a fascinating exhibition encapsulating great artistic skill, wit and social history and it stimulated some interesting discussion. After viewing the exhibition there was an opportunity for Form 6 to see the impressive permanent collection housed at the Bowes before returning to school to continue preparations for their Common Entrance exams. The school is indebted to Mr. Worthington for so kindly giving the pupils his time and expertise.
Pre-Prep Danceathon for Nepal
Just before half term, the whole of Pre-Prep took part in a Danceathon to raise money for the Nepal Earthquake. The children showed off their best moves non-stop for an hour and a half. Pre-Prep loved dancing away to some golden oldies like the Macarena and YMCA as well as some Rita Ora and One Direction. The teachers were put through their dancing paces and took part in a house ‘dance off’ with Mrs Clarke looking particularly Beyoncé like! Pre-Prep are trying to raise as much money as possible for this cause so would like to remind everyone who has not brought in their sponsorship money to do so by Friday.
Thornton Leavers’ Dinner
120 pupils, parents and staff met in the splendour of Rockcliffe Hall on the last evening of last half term, for the Thornton Leavers Dinner. Drinks were served on the terrace followed by a 3-course dinner hosted by the school and organised by the Head of Upper School Sara Hall. Head Boy and Head Girl, James Gordon and Laura Aspinall, gave a both moving and comical presentation featuring footage of all Thornton pupils both now and in the past, many as far back as Pre-Prep and even earlier! Mr Sample‘s own speech, celebrating the Thornton pupils’ time at Cundall was followed by his presentation of leavers’ gifts; Cundall cufflinks for the boys and bracelets for the girls.
School Walk and Tea on the Lawn
After the mayhem of the morning’s go kart race, the whole school enjoyed a more leisurely afternoon in the afternoon sunshine. Accompanied by a selection of canine friends, staff, pupils and parents spent a few hours away from the classrooms, taking in the air and the beautiful countryside that surrounds the school, before returning to Main School for the traditional Tea on the Lawn. Thank you to all those who donated so generously to the wonderful tea table, and to our own catering team for making sure we all started our half term break well refreshed and replete.