HPS Headlines

**Homefield Athletics Festival and School Fair: A Wonderful Celebration of Community Spirit**

On Wednesday, our community came together for an unforgettable Athletics Festival that showcased the remarkable talents and sportsmanship of our boys. The event was a resounding success, filled with enthusiasm, competition, and camaraderie. From sprint races to long jumps, every participant demonstrated dedication and team spirit, making us all incredibly proud. Special congratulations go to our medal winners, but a heartfelt thank you to everyone who competed and cheered. Your energy and support truly made the day exceptional. A parent from one of the visiting schools wrote to me saying, "I really did want to highlight two things though, firstly, your Year 6 students who were helping, showed a maturity beyond their years, notably at the Long Jump pit, where they ran the show themselves; they were organised, coaching, positive and all actually had a devilishly good dry sense of humour”.

We are now eagerly looking forward to our next big event—the Homefield School Fair on Saturday, June 29th from 12:00pm – 2.00pm. This annual fair is not just a highlight of our school calendar but also a significant fundraiser that helps support various school programs and activities. The fair promises to be a day filled with fun, food, and festivities for all ages. There will be games, rides, a raffle with exciting prizes, and stalls offering a variety of treats and crafts.

To make this event as successful as possible, we are reaching out for your support. Here’s how you can help:
1. **Volunteer:** We need helping hands to set up stalls, manage games, and assist with clean-up. Your time and effort will be greatly appreciated.
2. **Donations:** We welcome donations for our raffle and stalls, including baked goods, handmade crafts, or any items that could be used as prizes.
3. **Sponsorship:** Local businesses can sponsor stalls or activities. This is a great way to promote your business while supporting our school.
4. **Spread the Word:** Invite friends, family, and neighbours to join the fun and support our school community.

Your involvement is crucial in making the Homefield School Fair a memorable and successful event. Together, we can create an enriching experience for our children and celebrate the strength of our community.

Thank you for your continued support, and we look forward to seeing you at the Fair!

A S Naismith

Head

Homefield Prep School

Art & DT: Well done to all the boys who have completed their projects. Year 3 have been doing some photography using ink and water, Years 4 and 5 are completing their picture frames and bento boxes. Year 6 are in the final stages of their maze games and Year 7 are looking at the topic of growing up and creating some interesting pieces.

Computing: The boys have been working hard in Computing. Across the school, there has been coding in both block-based format and traditional scripting in four different languages. If they are not coding, then the boys are learning about communicating via podcasts, blogs, and desktop publishing.

English: The boys in the Upper School have come back from half term filled with enthusiasm, inquisitiveness, and a strong work ethic. Over the next few weeks, across all Year groups, we will continue to recap the key skills that can be applied to both critical analysis and creative writing, thereby consolidating and refining the knowledge we have developed this year. Of course, Year 8 sat their Common Entrance exams last week – well done for all your hard work, boys!

French: Another busy term for the French department! Reception are reading Je m’habille et je te croque, a story all about a wolf getting dressed to help them learn the French vocabulary for items of clothing. In the meantime, Year 1 are really challenging themselves by building on this previously learnt vocabulary and beginning to describe the colour of their clothes - an impressive skill at a young age! In Upper School, the boys are continuing to tackle demanding grammar concepts with Year 7 learning how to express an opinion in detail and Year 6 consolidating the future tense.

Geography: It has been a fantastic start to the term in our geography lessons with a particular focus on the ever-changing environment! Firstly, congratulations to the Year 8 boys who have worked extremely hard on their Common Entrance exams. Year 7 are about to focus on sustainability and how this can help the environment. Year 6 are looking at coastal management and how global warming impacts sea levels. Year 5 have been focusing on river landforms and how they are created. Year 4 have been doing their own research on major earthquakes and discovering lots of new facts. Year 3 have been busy writing to the local council with ideas on how to create a more sustainable environment in our local area. Well done everyone for another excellent start to the term!

History: Year 5 made and enjoyed trying Mayan hot chocolate this week in class. Cacao nibs and water—a very strong combination. Some enjoyed this more than others! Year 8 have completed their Common Entrance exams—congratulations to them! Year 7 have been learning about the English Civil Wars and the execution of Charles I.

Maths: The UKMT Junior Kangaroo and Olympiad mathematical challenges kicked off on Tuesday, 11th June. Twenty-four boys from Years 5, 6, 7, and 8 were excited to put their critical thinking skills to the test. Our Year 5 and 6 Maths Quiz Club participants are also preparing for the regional semi-finals on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Year 4 have been plotting coordinate points of quadrilaterals on a full quadrant grid. Year 5 have been exploring imperial and metric units of measurement for capacity, distance, and mass. Year 6 have delved into finding the area and perimeter of trapeziums and other polygons. Year 7 have explored transformations, and our Year 8 boys are to be highly commended for finishing all their Common Entrance exams. A superb effort all around!

P.E & Games: Since the start of this half term, the boys have been taking part in competitive tennis fixtures. Years 7 and 8 won convincingly over Kingswood House on Monday, and Year 3 were valiant in their tennis match against Ewell Castle. Boys in Year 3 have now started their eagerly awaited swimming lessons, and Year 4 is looking forward to the swimming gala to be held at Sutton High in two weeks' time. The Lower School boys continue to practice for sports day, which is set to take place next Friday, 21st June. Boys in Year 3 had the opportunity to take part in an athletics festival on Wednesday afternoon against two local schools, which was heralded as a great success.

As part of a raffle prize, Hussain from Year 4 is currently taking on the role of 'Head of Sport' for the day! Excitingly, we received a visit from Mr. Harrison, who is a new member of the PE department joining Homefield in September. Year 4 are preparing for their last cricket fixture of the season away at Chinthurst. Also preparing are the staff cricket team, who are set to play against the U13 first team. They are unbeaten this year! Watch out, staff!

Science: Year 3 have just begun their unit on plants, exploring their structure and survival needs. In Year 4, students are delving into the digestive system and food processing. Meanwhile, 5P have embarked on a solar system unit, while 5H and 5S continue to investigate different material properties. Year 6 are focusing on animal life cycles, recently enjoying a trip to London Zoo. Year 7 are exploring predator-prey population dynamics, and Year 8 are immersed in their biology, chemistry, and physics Common Entrance exams. Good luck, boys!

STEAM: The boys have been continuing with their project work in STEAM. Year 1 have finished their polytunnels and have started to plant them to use them to grow seeds. They have also started to evaluate their work. Year 3 are making good progress with getting their fairgrounds to work. Year 4 have finished simple flicker books to help them further animate their games. Year 5 are continuing their carousel of Lego Robots, Microbits, and Magnification, and Year 6 have been looking at the theories and evidence for evolution.

TPR: In Lower School, the boys have continued to deepen their knowledge of other Faiths. In Year 1, the boys have been looking at different celebrations in other Faiths and their significance. In Year 2, the boys have been continuing to learn about places of worship in other Faiths and the importance of these for worshippers. Year 3 have been considering a range of Bible stories and their key messages. Year 4 have been asking philosophical questions about the environment and climate change. Year 5 have been exploring questions about life: What is life? What makes life worth living? What is sanctity? Year 6 have been discussing The Good Samaritan. Year 7 are debating the ethics of war.

Reception
Reception have started to prepare for their transition into Year 1. We have read stories such as The Lion Inside and The Impatient Caterpillar. These stories have helped us to discuss our feelings about leaving Reception and moving into Year 1. The boys were great at recognising emotions such as feeling brave, being nervous, and being scared. Over the next couple of weeks, we will be engaging in numerous transition activities to ensure the boys are prepared for the move.

We also had our last Reception school trip to Bocketts Farm. The boys had a wonderful time. We participated in a small animal encounter where we could hold and stroke guinea pigs, chickens, and rabbits. The farmer even said that Homefield was the best school of the day and commented on how gentle the boys were with the animals. It was a very proud moment for Miss Bruton! The boys were also treated to a tractor and trailer ride around the farm, during which we had the task of spotting and counting all the animals to ensure none had escaped.

Reception

Reception have started to prepare for their transition into Year 1. We have read stories such as 'The Lion Inside' and 'The Impatient Caterpillar'. These stories have helped us to talk about our feelings and how we might feel about leaving Reception and going into Year 1. The Boys were great at recognising emotions such as feeling brave, being nervous and scared. Over the next couple of weeks we will be doing lots of transition activities to make sure the boys are prepared for moving on.

We also had our last Reception school trip at Bocketts Farm. The boys had the best time. We participated in a small animal encounter where we could hold and stroke guinea pigs, chickens and rabbits. The farmer even said that Homefield were the best school of the day and commented on how gentle they had been with the animals. It was a very proud moment for Miss Bruton! The boys were also treated to a tractor and trailer ride around the farm, we had the job of finding all of the animals and trying to count them to make sure none had escaped.

Literacy: Our focus book has been Sharing a Shell, and we have been discussing different ways to be kind to one another. The boys wrote sentences explaining how they could be good friends and also completed a random act of kindness for their homework. To help with their teamwork, we have also been playing board games and completing challenging puzzles in small groups. It has been wonderful to see the boys come together and work as one big team over the last couple of weeks.

Maths: In Maths, we have been learning all about ordinal numbers. We have learnt that "ordinal numbers tell us the position of something" - Shrey. The boys have been having races on the field and telling each other their positions, as well as racing remote control cars. We have had so much fun with ordinal numbers, and it has been fantastic to turn Maths into a really physical subject this week!

Year 1

Year 1 have thoroughly enjoyed their learning over the last two weeks. In English, we are focusing on seaside-related poetry, and they all found the tongue twisters hilarious this week! We were so impressed by the standard of their own tongue twisters and their understanding of alliteration. In Maths, we are learning about time. The boys have learnt o’clock and half-past and have had lots of practice with our teaching clocks. This week, we introduced the boys to quarter past and quarter to.

This Monday was especially exciting as we all took part in our sports-themed House day. The boys were so creative all day and enjoyed all the sports day preparations ready for next Friday! This Friday was equally exciting as we were involved in the Year 8 election day! I hope the boys came home and told you all about it.

Year 1 are looking forward to our trip to Hever Castle next Wednesday, and we are keeping our fingers crossed for nice weather!

Year 2

In Year 2, the boys have continued to develop and consolidate their learning in the last few weeks of the academic year. In Maths, the boys have been recapping their knowledge of time and have enjoyed exploring how to tell the time on an analogue clock. In history, the boys have learned about Greta Thunberg and her mission to save the environment and protect the planet, in preparation for designing their own change-making missions in the next few weeks. In art, the boys experimented with colour mixing and were able to understand what colour harmony means and why artists use it in their work.

The boys also had lots of fun on our Science Museum trip this week! They were able to explore and develop their knowledge of various scientific phenomena. A great day was had by all! 🥼

Reception: In RS, Azai for asking such great and interesting questions at the farm; Aarin for his independence in his writing tasks; and Ali for trying so hard with his reading. In RH, Robbie for being creative and speaking about rockpool creatures; Adam for being so resilient this week and adapting his activities; and Luke for amazing reading and trying his best.

Year 1: In 1H, Tian for a beautifully written seaside poem based on the five senses; and Ishaan for excellent concentration and focus in science when learning about seed dispersal. In 1S, Cyrus for writing a lovely sensory seaside poem; and Ryan for great effort and understanding during our time topic.

Year 2: In 2H, Tahazyan for exemplifying Homefield values in all that he does; and Rayaan for his positivity and enthusiasm in all curriculum areas. In 2S, Philip for his excellent contributions in science lessons; and Zaid for fantastic effort on our Science Museum trip.

Year 3: In 3H, Zaviaan for working hard and being a fantastic listener in lessons; and Ethan for working so hard in English and being helpful. In 3S, Ryan for his engagement in lessons and positive attitude to learning; and Vincent for consistently good contributions in science.

Year 4: In 4H, Christopher for his growing confidence and sensible contributions to class discussions; and Axel for his positive attitude and enthusiasm in lessons. In 4S, Ralph for his diligence in lessons, setting a great example to others; and James for excellent work in his STEAM Bloxels game.

Year 5: In 5H and 5P, Zain and Elijah for excellent performance in their cricket matches. In 5S, Max for excellent effort and focus in Maths lessons.

Year 6: In 6H, Phoebus for showing great enthusiasm and engagement in the Year 6 trip to London Zoo; and Josh for a mature attitude whilst leading the Year 3 sports day activity station. In 6P and 6S, Ranvir and Sulaymaan for great effort in their science lessons and excellent engagement during the trip to London Zoo last week.

Year 7: In Year 7, Alex for great progression in his confidence, as well as being kind and offering boys and staff his school snacks.

Year 8: Well done to all for completing their summer Common Entrance exams. Lots of concentration was needed and they conducted themselves brilliantly.

Well done to Adam in Year 8 for his fantastic oil painting of a cityscape.

Massive congratulations to the Red team, who remain unbeaten after beating Hawthorns by 10 runs—the first time an U8 team has achieved this in 6 years! Player of the Match: Roshan.

The Blue team won by 26 runs. Player of the Match: Ryan.

The Yellow team lost by 36 runs. Player of the Match: Yohaan.

The Green team had a draw! Player of the Match: Aaron.

‘Every child has the right to express their views, feelings and wishes in all matters affecting them, and to have their views considered and taken seriously.’ - Article 12, The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

‘My Voice Matters.’ The theme of this year’s Children’s Mental Health Week has struck a chord with all of us at Homefield Prep. Long gone are the days of the teacher dictating from the blackboard. Walking through the corridors this week, I was struck by the numerous opportunities that our boys have to speak up, collaborate and be part of our community – both in and out the classroom.

In lessons, oracy and discourse are championed across the curriculum through debates, discussions and presentations from a very young age. Group work allows boys to establish relationships with peers, consider others’ points of view and have the opportunity to share their opinions and feel valued. ‘Purple pen’ in exercise books represents our students’ reflections on their work, responses to marking and – in many cases – allows boys to complement teacher feedback with their own examples of self-assessment and peer-assessment too.

Our boys are actively encouraged to take on positions of responsibility – form captain, sports leader and language ambassador, to name just a few – which in turn provides them with a platform to ensure that their voice is heard and sincerely does matter. Naturally, the student council provides a perfect opportunity for boys across the school to contribute to whole-school development and see the impact of their work and how it benefits their peers:a highly rewarding and gratifying experience.

A broad range of extra-curricular opportunities allows the students to have their voice heard outside of the classroom walls. Those in Gardening Club have, over the years, helped to design the garden and grow fruit and herbs that bring the whole school such pleasure. In addition, the Debating, Planet Protectors and Model United Nations clubs offer rich and exciting opportunities for pupils to participate in activities that promote pupil voice, aiming to instil our boys with confidence when sharing their views.

Students are encouraged to join a range of other extra-curricular groups, particularly within the ports and music departments – communicating with teammates in a high-stakes rugby fixture and working together as one orchestra to play a beautiful piece of music are just two more examples of students ensuring that their voice matters, both as individuals and as a community.

It has been a pleasure to celebrate pupil voice during this year’s Children’s Mental Health Week – but it goes without saying that ‘my voice matters’ is a concept that applies to more than just one week of the academic year. Pupil voice is to be constantly nurtured, valued and, above all, listened to if we are to establish a genuine love of education for all of the boys under our care – a challenge that we, as a school, are genuinely delighted to undertake.

We'd like to celebrate and congratulate our most recent set of in-house ABRSM music results.

15 candidates: 9 Merits, 6 Distinctions- No passes or Fails!

1. Aaron Singing 5 Merit
2. Kenon Clarinet 1 Distinction
3. Wesley Clarinet 1 Distinction
4. Isaiah Flute 2 Distinction
5. Dakarayi Cello 2 Distinction
6. Zien Cello 2 Merit
7. Kaloyan Trumpet 1 Merit
8. Oliver Trumpet 5 Merit
9. Harry Cello 4 Merit
10. Eric Piano 5 Merit
11. Ethan Piano 2 Merit
12. Joshua Guitar 2 Distinction
13. Nathan Guitar 1 Distinction
14. Harry Guitar 1 Merit
15. Antoine Guitar 1 Merit

A note to parents that the deadline for registering for entry to Eton in 2027 is the 30th June 2024. Please click on the link below for the application form:

https://application.etoncollege.com/.

The last day of all school clubs is Friday 28th June. From 1st - 3rd July, there will be no after school staff or peri-run clubs.

Parent Consultation information

• If your son has a scheduled Individual Music Lesson, these will still take place during the Parent Consultation Days on the 24-26th June.
• Upper School after school staff-run clubs will not take place on Monday 24th June due to the consultations.
• On Tuesday 25th, only the following staff run club will take place: Year 3-5 Cricket Club (Mr Edwards).
• Lower School after school staff-run clubs will not take place on Wednesday 26th June due to the consultations.
• All Peri-run after school clubs will take place as normal from the 24-26th June

From 1st - 3rd July, wraparound care will still run. Breakfast Club and Morning Sports and Activities Club will take place before school, and Orchard Childcare will take place after school. Book via https://homefield.schoolcloud.co.uk/ and https://www.orchardchildcare.co.uk/Homefield-Prep-school

Boys must be registered before attending Orchard Childcare, so please register in advance should you need arrangements for the Parent Teacher Consultation days (or any other) at https://www.orchardchildcare.co.uk/Homefield-Prep-school

Rainforest Rain Shakers at Homefield

During the afterschool club this week, we have been crafting beautiful rainforest rain shakers!

Led by Amy, the boys enthusiastically participated, creating vibrant instruments that mimic the soothing sounds of rainforest rain. These lovely shakers will let the children bring the enchanting music of the rainforest into their homes.

If you would like to enrol your son into Orchard Childcare, please visit:

https://www.homefield.sutton.sch.uk/school-life/wraparoundcare

🎫 Tickets available from the 3rd June!

Volunteers Needed for Homefield Association Summer Fair

The Homefield Association is excited to host the Summer Fair on Saturday, June 29th, from 12:00pm to 2.00pm. This event is a fantastic opportunity for our community to come together, have fun, and raise funds. To make this event successful, we urgently need volunteers.

Whether you can help on the day or assist with preparations in the weeks leading up to it, your time and effort will be highly valued.

To volunteer please contact the Homefield Association: homefieldassociation@hotmail.co.uk

Exciting news awaits! Get ready for an unforgettable adventure this school holiday as Let's Leap launches an exciting holiday camp for six weeks, starting on Monday, 8th July - Friday, 16th August 2024.

Let's Leap invites you to join the excitement at our renowned holiday camps, conveniently located in your child's secure school - Homefield Prep!

Discover a diverse array of thrilling activities tailored to suit every interest. Experience the wonder of Animal Shows, the exhilaration of Electric Segway Go-karting, the thrill of Fencing, and the fun of Zorb Football.

But that's not all! Dive into the excitement of Archery, conquer our Inflatable Obstacle Courses, engage in dynamic multi-sports like Kin Ball, or indulge in some friendly competition with Nerf Tag. And for the creative campers, our Arts & Crafts sessions are sure to spark imagination and delight.

At Let's Leap, we're more than just childcare; we're a hub for growth, learning, and confidence-building. Our carefully curated activities ensure that children remain engaged, active, and beaming with joy throughout the week.

With flexible attendance options from 8:00am - 6:00pm to accommodate your busy schedule, including single-day or full-week bookings, standard and extended day choices, and fantastic discounts for siblings and weekly bookings, Let's Leap makes it easy to join in on the fun!

Secure your child's spot now for an unforgettable school holiday adventure brimming with excitement, learning, and adventure!

Click here to book now!

Western Road, Sutton, Surrey, SM1 2TE

+44 020 8642 0965

administration@homefieldprep.school