In my family, we are all big fans of the Harry Potter books. So much so that the latest additions to our family have all been named after Harry Potter characters. We’ve had Padfoot, the black labrador, Luna, Tonks and Moaning Myrtle, the hens, and most recently Albus and Remus the cocker spaniels. J K Rowling creates some wonderful characters in her books and I always feel that each character has something significant to teach us about life. One of my favourite characters is Fawkes the Phoenix and, particularly, the role he plays in The Chamber of Secrets. Maybe it’s because, as Headmaster of Highfield, I wish I could have a pet Phoenix in my office, but I think it’s also because of the personal qualities that Fawkes embodies: loyalty, bravery, strength and acceptance. Fawkes is the star of the show in The Chamber of Secrets. Not only does he show great loyalty to Dumbledore and Harry by entering the chamber, but he also shows great bravery when faced with Tom Riddle and a deadly basilisk, he heals Harry’s fatal wound and he is able to carry four people out of the chamber to safety. As a phoenix, Fawkes bursts into flames when his time comes and then is reborn out of the ashes, stronger than ever. He represents endings and beginnings and our acceptance of these facts of life. Today we are looking at an ending, as we say farewell to our remarkable Y6 class. They are leaving us today in a blaze of glory and although we are feeling sad about losing them, we are excited about what lies ahead for each of them.
A big thank you to everyone who came to support Sunday’s Summer Fayre. It was great to see so many children and parents enjoying themselves and to see so many past pupils coming back to visit and catch up with everyone! A big thank you to staff and parents who helped on stalls and made all the fabulous food and cakes, we couldn’t do it without you! There are too many people to name you all individually in this newsletter, but please know that all your time and hard work truly is appreciated, especially by the children. Despite traffic issues for a second year the fayre was well attended and we made slightly more than last year, even with the inflatables being unable to attend as they were stuck on the M6! We are delighted to share with you that this year the total collections been over £2,300. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Desai and his wife Mrs Desai for all their help and support over the many years their children have been at Highfield. Mr Desai will stand down as treasurer of the PTFA this year and he has done a phenomenal job. Mrs Desai has also been a previous chair of the PTFA and we are very sad to lose them as their youngest daughter moves on to Year 7. We would like to welcome new parents to join us for next year’s events. Dates of meetings for the Autumn Term will be given in advance in the school calendar which will be distributed at the end of term, so please pop these in your diary.
Established in 2015, the PSM Awards aim to encourage a life-long love of reading and writing in young people, with competitions for children aged 7-18. Out of 506 entries, coming from Madrid to Newcastle and everywhere in between, we are immensely proud to tell you that a member of our Highfield community won. Well done, Aidan! With his submission of ‘The Chronicles of a Leaf’, he blew the judges away as he followed a leaf on its magical journey through the seasons.
On Tuesday 18th June, we played in the Betty Huggon Memorial Netball Tournament. We played against Cottam, Queens Drive, Sherwood, St. Claire’s, St Peter’s and St Laurance’s. In the group stages, our team scored 26 goals and conceded only 1! Our team played so well that we made it to the semi-finals round where we beat St Francis and Broughton, leading us to the final. After enjoying our final netball tournament together at Highfield, we brought home the 1st place shield! - Written by the Year 6 Netball Team
It is that wonderful time of year where the kitchen is filled with the sweet aroma of freshly baked croissants and pains au chocolat in the early morning! Year 5 were more than happy to come into school at 7.45am for their highly anticipated French Breakfast. Not only were they going to eat some delicious pastries, but they were also able to make them! They ordered their food in French saying, ‘Je voudrais un croissant et un pain au chocolat s’il vous plaît’ with confidence and perfect pronunciation. The children even had some ‘chocolat chaud’ and enjoyed French conversations at the table about their favourite subjects, hobbies and sports with some help from Mme Morrice and Mme Lockwood. All this, with French decorations and French music playing in the background, made it an unforgettable event!
Highfield Priory has been shortlisted for the Independent Preparatory School of the Year and has been invited to attend the Awards Ceremony in London later in the term. There will be schools present from across the United Kingdom; this is the most prestigious School Awards Ceremony, and we are delighted with our nomination. Congratulations to the whole school community for this amazing achievement.
It has been a busy start to the term with the commencement of our Summer sporting fixtures and preparation for our Year 3 and 5 performance of ‘A Letter to the Trenches’. We have some exciting trips planned for this Summer Term, as well as visits from some very special guests. We will keep you updated on our online calendar and in our fortnightly Newsletter. The artist of the term will be pop artist, Roy Lichtenstein. The composer of the Term will be John Williams. The composer and artist of the Term will be discussed in class and during assemblies.
This week saw our annual World Book Day, with children and staff dressed as a wide range of characters from their favourite books. It was a real celebration of literature. It was great to see the children telling each other about the characters they were dressed as and finding out more about the books they come from. I hope it will inspire our children to pick up a book and learn about a new character they have seen today.
What an incredibly busy first week back we have had here at Highfield! 1W visited Manchester Airport. From the moment they set off, the minibus was filled with excitement and giggles! As they neared the airport, shouts of ‘look! A plane!’ burst out of the minibus and could be heard for miles! The children climbed the mountain of steps into their classroom for the day, which was inside a real plane. They learnt all about the jobs people do in an airport from pilots and air traffic controllers to police and security staff. They dressed up as pilots and even got to sit in the cockpit, pretending to fly the plane to different destinations: Australia, Africa and Dubai to name a few! The children were amazed by the Concorde which they got to see and learn about. Despite the rain, they had lots of fun watching the planes land and were lucky enough to see the biggest plane in the world land…it was extremely loud! They had a fabulous day and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.
On Wednesday evening, our talented children took Crossgate Church by storm with their performance of Pinocchio. Our young performers exuded clarity and confidence as they told the story of Pinocchio through dance and drama. In front of a large audience, bright lights and loud music, they showed no fear and thoroughly enjoyed their moment on stage. Miss Burns’ dancers elegantly showed off everything they have learnt in their dance lessons this year. Our Year 4 actors commanded the stage, delivering their lines with poise and confidence. All the children thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience, from practising at home with family, rehearsals in school, fun filled rehearsals at the venue and the final production. It will be a memory that they will cherish for a lifetime.
Happy New Year! The children returned last week, full of energy and excitement for the spring term ahead. With all clubs and activities now running this week, there is something for every child to enjoy, from Spanish Club to Mad Science! We also have our wonderful production of Pinocchio at Crossgate Church at the end of the month, which the children are already working hard towards. On Sunday 17th March, we will be hosting an Open Day to welcome new families to our Highfield community. It is a really important day for the school and a chance to celebrate your children’s work and extra-curricular activities.
Our Junior Seasonal Celebration on Wednesday saw our final festive performance of the term. The Christmas concert was led by our Year 6 pupils who had written winter poems and sang together in small groups. I was very proud of their performance and the way they set an excellent example to the rest of the school. The Year 6 children have had a huge impact on this years performance, selecting some of the songs and even writing lyrics for 4 verses in 1 of the carols. As well as a flute duet being included this year, most members of the choir performed as a small group, which is more than ever before, due entirely to their enthusiasm. The performance was truly sensational and it was the perfect way to conclude our winter performances for this term. Thank you to all the children who took part, and to Miss Macklam for directing a beautiful concert.
Our Nativity preparations are well underway for this year’s performance of Lights, Camel, Action! All the children and staff are very excited to share this show with their parents! Please take the time to practice with your children at home in order to improve their confidence and help them to enjoy the performance! Thank you to Mr. Desai and his team of PTA helpers for transforming the school last Friday. It was very rewarding to witness the excitement on the children’s faces as they came out of their morning lessons to a winter wonderland.
Last Friday, we had our first Musical Assembly of the year. It was a wonderful morning for the children where they could showcase their musical talent on a range of instruments. There were beautiful pieces played on the piano and flute, as well as impressive pieces on brass instruments and the guitar. For some of our musicians, this was their first performance, although with their stage presence, you couldn’t tell! We look forward to more Musical Assemblies this year with the support of our talented peripatetic music teachers. Thank you to all our musicians for a wonderful morning’s entertainment.
Our wonderful Y6 tour guides, represented our school to the highest standard during the open morning and did an excellent job of welcoming prospective parents into our community. Our visitors were very impressed with the school, commenting on the high standard of work on display as well as the knowledgeable discussions taking place in the classrooms. We are extremely proud of everyone in our Highfield community and we hope to welcome new members after a successful open morning.
Thank you to everyone who donated to the Harvest Festival last week. We received a huge amount of food that will be vital to, and greatly appreciated by, local charities and businesses. We also raised a massive £464.26 which will be donated to WaterAid. After performing their Harvest Festival Assembly, the pupils in 6H took some of our Harvest donations along to Bethany House – a local home for the elderly. They entertained the residents with their Harvest songs before spending some time chatting with the residents. The children’s enthusiasm spread to everyone there and we were all delighted when the residents joined us in our final song of the day. We were sad to say goodbye but so proud of our Year 6 children and the joy that they had so evidently brought to others.
I would like to congratulate Mr Drake, Mrs Jones and the whole school community for Highfield’s approach to Mental Health and Wellbeing. We have been acknowledged by the Independent Schools Association (which represents 646 schools in the UK) for the emphasis that the school has placed on Mental Health and Wellbeing in the last few years.
It has been a very busy and successful start to the new school year. It was lovely to welcome all the children back to school last Tuesday, catch up with all their news and chat about what they are looking forward to in the year ahead.
The playground has been buzzing with excitement, friendship, smiles and laughter. A joy to behold!
I had the pleasure of accompanying Year 1 to Grimsargh play park last week. As part of their design and technology lesson, the children explored playground equipment before designing and making their own. They examined the materials used and identified the moving parts. They used this information to draw and label pictures which will assist them in creating their own play equipment when they return to school. The lesson concluded with some time to play on the equipment before heading back to school. Thank you, Year 1! I thoroughly enjoyed our trip out.
The children have been having a great time at the Highfield Holiday Club! ☀️ ☀️
Enjoying the warm summer sun, they kept cool by enjoying ice lollies and playing in the paddling pool. 🙂 🙂Photos from Highfield Priory School's post ... See moreSee less
