The Prep School had a theme of ‘normal school uniform with a splash of red’ in aid of Comic Relief and had lots of fun welcoming their families for a fun Friday, and the Pre-Prep raised £240!
Year 5 enjoyed a trip to the Tower of London to consolidate what they have been learning about the Tudors. They had a guided tour from one of Henry VIII’s wives, Katherine Parr, and they also saw the crown jewels. Fantastic!
Our Prep School swimmers travelled to Culford School to compete in the area qualifying round for the Independent Association of Prep Schools Swimming competition. The top 20 swimmers from around the nation will be invited to swim at the National Finals in June. For the last few years we have had swimmers from Gresham’s Prep at the National Finals and we are very much hoping that some of our pupils might swim fast enough to make the cut in 2024. Good luck to all and thank you to Culford for hosting!
The Prep School Green Team set a challenge to all Prep School pupils last week to decorate their recycling bins and raise awareness in our school community of ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’. The hotly contested competition was judged on Friday and ‘5TH’ are the winners of a fully recycled and recyclable prize – well done to all!
Scarlett spoke to parents on raising daughters and she also did a workshop with all of our Year 7 and 8 girls which the HSMs from Oakeley, Queens and Edi attended with representatives from their Houses.
Scarlett is the author of The Smart Girls Handbook and is the CEO of Smart Girls Tribe. She is a fantastic ambassador and has some incredible achievements for a woman in her twenties, including being the host of top rated podcast Smart Girl Tribe, a TV commentator on women’s issues, and an ambassador for the NSPCC and Childline.
In Science this week Year 3 recreated the rock cycle in chocolate. By using different types of chocolate and different processes they were able to make chocolate versions of the three rock types. They even made a chocolate volcano!
Year 6 pupil Olivia competed in the Norfolk Sportshall Athletics County Championships at University of East Anglia on Saturday. Olivia achieved second place in the Under 11 girls standing long jump and second place in the Under 11 girls standing triple jump, whilst also achieving PB’s in both events.
She has also been selected to represent Norfolk at the Sportshall Regional Finals at the UEA on Saturday 17th February.
Paul Marriage has been appointed as the School’s new Chair of Governors from July 2024, taking over from Michael Goff who will step down after a six-year tenure.
Paul is an Old Greshamian (Kenwyn & Tallis 1982-1990), a Liveryman of the Fishmongers’ Company and he became a Governor in 2012. Having read Modern History at University College, Oxford he began his career in the insurance market before entering the investment industry in 1997. Having run leading specialist UK equity funds at Cazenove Capital and Schroders, he founded Tellworth Investments in 2017.
Paul Marriage, said: “I am honoured to be taking over from Michael Goff as Chairman of the Governors, he has done an exceptional job and will be a hard act to follow. Parents, staff, pupils, OGs and my fellow governors can be assured that I will do my utmost to keep the School on its upwards trajectory as we approach our 475th anniversary.”
Our U11A girls hockey team played in the East regional finals of the England Hockey In2Hockey Championships on home turf last week. The girls had a great start, winning their first two matches with ease. They then came up against the bigger challenge of a skilful Perse side. Things didn’t go to plan with them losing 0-2. However, the testament of a good side is the ability to bounce back and this they did by winning their remaining group matches to finish 2nd in the group and qualify for the semi-finals. This was a tough local derby against Langley Prep School, things were very tight throughout and they fought back from lots of strong play with excellent defending. Thankfully, they managed to score in the closing minutes to reach the final, once again facing The Perse. This time, the girls executed the plan with real commitment and managed to score late in the second half and hold off last minute pressure to win the title. This is a trophy Gresham’s haven’t won in recent history and is certainly an achievement of which to be hugely proud.
The Piano Showcase on 22nd November saw a combined programme from the Prep and Senior Pupils, launching the start of the new Steinway Status school. Ranging from Classical piano solos, and contemporary duets, to a boogie-woogie number and a four – part paso double, the performances were incredible and showcased the full range of the new piano, and the variety of genres being taught and enjoyed across the schools.
