On Wednesday this week, children in K1, K2, Years 1, 2, 3 and 4 spent some time in their new classes with their new class teacher (if this teacher is already at Harrow). This is an important opportunity in preparing the children for the exciting move into a new year group. The children will also now know where they will be going on the first day of the new school year. Their appetites will have been whet with thoughts about what the next year holds with regards to new learning and new challenges. I am sure the children are all looking forward to this move. Some children will not be returning to Harrow in August and I would like to wish them luck on the start of their new adventures at new schools. There are also several staff leaving Harrow and Thailand but more about that in the final edition of the Harrovian.

With one more week of school remaining, there are several important dates to remember:

Monday: Language Lion Lunch (Yrs 1-5)

Tuesday: Junior School House Tee Ball (wear house shirts and PE shorts). Parents are welcome to come and support.

Wednesday: Infant and Junior Fun Days

Thursday: Early Years Parties, last day of school for Early Years children

Friday: Speech Day, House Songs and Infant and Junior Reports distributed

Sea, Sun and Sand

That phrase may bring back memories of a relaxing family holiday on a beautiful beach in Thailand, but this week I am thinking of 3 slightly different locations.

On Wednesday, we wished the Primary FOBISSEA Team good luck as they departed for the island (surrounded by sea) of Phuket to complete in 4 disciplines: swimming, athletics, tee ball and football. We look forward to hearing of their achievements on their return to school on Monday. Very soon there will be an alternative school hat on sale in the School Shop, you may wish to purchase one of these for your child to protect their faces, necks and ears from the sun while your child is playing in the playground. Finally, the new sand pit was installed over the half-term and, since its arrival, has been a very popular place for the children to play. It has been a delight watching the children play here in the shade of the trees outside the Primary School.

With only three weeks left of the School year, there are several exciting events for the children to participate in and next week sees the annual swimming galas for Early Years, Infants and Juniors (please see the calendar for times and dates). Parents, as always, are very welcome to come and cheer on the children and it would be wonderful to see many of you at the poolside next week.

I would like to thank all the parents who came to the presentation on Tuesday which explained your child’s assessment data. I hope you found the content interesting

Juliet Staples, Head of Primary

There were 10 of us – Primp, Jessica, Jess, Jing Jing, Pat, Teddy, Caesar, George and me, of course. We were the lucky few who were given the chance to go to Children of the Forest in Sanglaburi. Children of the Forest is a charity that the Primary School has long supported, it was originally set up as an orphanage and later progressed into a school to provide opportunities for children along the Thai/Burmese border.

After we arrived in Sanglaburi, we had a chance to meet up with Tom and Linda, the parents of the founder, Daniel. They had sold everything in England so that they could come out here and help their son run the organisation. They explained to us what the centre was like and the problems within it. Then we progressed with the day. Activities were assigned – mud house building, farming and feeding the cat fish. 

The work was difficult and the weather hot and humid. We helped make mud bricks for one of the houses and then ended up having a mud fight! It did make our chores very entertaining 

Meeting the children was a once in a lifetime experience, I loved it. We were allowed to make up fun games for the children to play. From looking at their faces it seemed like they really enjoyed it too. Learning all their names was pretty hard. Never mind, we all had fun and that’s what matters!  

Our visit to Children of the Forest was an experience I will always cherish. Kaye, Y5B

Primary FOBISSEA Games 2010 – Tanglin International School, Singapor
An unforgettable experience was had by all participants who were fortunate enough to compete in these quite superb Primary Games. Three days of competitive sport saw our Harrow Lions compete exceptionally well against some of the biggest International Schools in Asia.

As we boarded the plane for Singapore our team was fit, confident and in buoyant mood to do well at this annual competition. Day one saw us compete in our strongest team sport – Tee ball. Months of training finally came to the fore as both Year 5 and 6 teams completed the pool matches as champions. Year 4 came in a close second position, meaning all teams progressed to the semi finals. In a tense afternoon, and some outstanding batting and fielding Year 4 and 5 managed a very respectable bronze position. Year 6 on the other hand narrowly missed out on third by one run and ended the Tournament in fourth position. Blood, sweat and tears and many nerve racking moments ended a quite remarkable first days’ competition.