

Newsletter
20th September 2019

HEADlines
by Justin Chippendale
Well, we all enjoy an Indian Summer but the hotter spells this year have been more akin to Flaming June at times. The upside is glorious coffee mornings like today’s at the Astro Café, break times with children scattered across the park land and yet I do hear concerned rumblings from those anxious about water tables.
Wednesday served up a spectacular example of the upside both at break time and then again during matches. There were break time groups all the way down by the lakes (pretty low themselves) and to the corners of the south field and after lunch the top field was picture perfect bedecked in flags as parents watched their children exert themselves in warm temperatures. I was there in my trousers and tie and jealous of the many who were in shorts and flip flops – probably not going to be the same in January.
Today marks just about a quarter of this term done – good job we haven’t wasted any of it and once again this Newsletter and associated news feeds will give you some insight into what has been going on.
A reminder that the Autumn Fayre is just a week away and I hope it is firmly in your family diary as well as in advance preparing any items you need to: I notice there is a terrific opportunity to bid for a week in a 10-bed Cornish seaside cottage!!
We are heading to a family wedding on the south coast this weekend and so I’m very grateful for the Indian Summer – sun cream and sunglasses packed!

This Week in Pre-Prep ...
by Claire Luckhurst
We began this week celebrating our amazing Teaching Assistants as Monday marked ‘Teaching Assistant Appreciation Day’. Martha, as Pre-Prep Ambassador, completed her secret mission during assembly (ably assisted by Mrs Kittow) to find Mrs Stanley, Miss Beecher and Mrs Simpson and summoned them to the theatre. Upon their arrival we revealed why they were there and agreed they were Teaching Assistant Superheroes so we presented them with some chocolate ‘Heroes’ and awarded them a very shiny merit badge each. They are all brilliantly talented in their roles and make a huge difference to the lives of both children and the rest of the staff and we probably don’t tell them that enough!
The rest of the week has zoomed past, helped by the very glorious weather, in which we battled through the logistical chaos of family and individual school photographs and started to think about our forthcoming Harvest Festival which takes place on Monday 7 October at 3pm in the Arts Centre and to which you are all most warmly invited. Year 2 children will lead the service and will be bringing home their lines to begin practising; it is not expected that they should learn these by heart but we will encourage them to read them with a clear, confident voice and would appreciate your support to help them achieve this. Nursery, Reception and Year 1 will also be taking part by performing a song they have especially rehearsed for the occasion. The children are also invited to bring in a non-perishable item of food which will be donated, along with that collected by Prep, to the Open Door charity.

A Few Words from ... Cameron Wallace
This term's Head Boy
It has been a busy few weeks since starting back at school after the summer holidays – it’s been great fun to see my friends again and I can’t quite believe that I am finally in Year 8! Being the oldest year in the school means we get certain privileges but it also means we have to set a good example to the younger years and have more responsibilities as well. So far I have had to take some of the younger children who arrive on the bus over to Pre-Prep and I have also read in Chapel.
I have been at King’s Hall since Nursery and have really enjoyed my time here, although my favourite moments are probably all sport related. In Pre-Prep one of my highlights was the football tournament in Year 2. Since I have been in Prep the best moment was when King’s Hall won the Larkman Cup in 2018 – this is a really hard cross country competition which is held at Blundell’s. The only problem is that when we went back last year we couldn’t find the actual trophy so I suppose that means in a way that we retain the Cup?!
Everyone is enjoying their rugby and hockey fixtures so far this term, but there are lots more to come – including biathlon and football. On top of that, Years 8 and 7 are working hard on preparations for our performance of The Wiz later this term, and we have started the hard work towards Scholarships or Common Entrance which we will all take this year.
I hope you all enjoy the Long Weekend, let’s hope it is as sunny as last weekend was.

Reminders
Tuesday 24th September
Year 6 Geography field trip to Carymoor Environmental Centre
Pre-Prep Maths presentation
Wednesday 25th September
Year 5 Geography & PSHE residential trip to Kilve Court (returning on Friday)
Pre-Prep Maths presentation
Thursday 26th September
Year 4 History residential trip to New Barn Field Centre (returning on Friday)
8S English & Drama visit to Coleridge's Cottage
Year 3 parent-teacher 'settling' in meetings
Friday 27th September
Years 4 and 5 return from their residential trips
Saturday 28th September
Autumn Fayre

Library Blog
A very busy week of Book Club gatherings
Bright and early on Tuesday morning, a group of enthusiastic readers met in the Library to chat about the two books that they had read over the summer holidays, The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak and When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr, as they feasted on a delicious spread of Danish pastries and fruit juice. It was, we all agreed, the very best way to start the day!
Then on Thursday it was the turn of Year 3 Book Club who had been reading the hilarious Adventures of Harry Stevenson by Ali Pye. This story features an intrepid yet rather accident-prone guinea pig named Harry who gets up to all sorts of mischief. We all had lots of fun imagining other funny adventures that Harry could get up to and ideas included travelling to the library to explore all the exciting books there, inadvertently ending up on an aeroplane headed for the beach and mistakenly tumbling into the basket of a hot air balloon just before take-off! A thoroughly enjoyable time was had by all.
Finally, Year 5 and 6 Book Club met on Thursday afternoon to discuss Abi Elphinstone’s latest novel, the gripping fantasy adventure Rumblestar. Many of us remembered meeting Abi when she visited King’s Hall in 2018. We really enjoyed Abi’s online video masterclass which gave us tips for creating our own fantasy stories as well as giving us insight into Abi’s writing and the inspiration behind her stories.

A View from the Rose Garden
Year 3 had a fantastic day at the New Barn Field Centre near Dorchester when they experienced life as it would have been in Celtic Britain.
They made butter from milk and they ground wheat using rotary, saddle and saucer querns – although the whole year group only made enough flour for a very small bread stick! They also made a poultice to help heal wounds and got very messy carving chalk.They had a story in a round house, lit only by the fire which was toasty warm – too warm for some – but a bit smoky and pretty dark!
The children thought life would have been much harder in Celtic times, but they enjoyed the experience for one day!

Our Autumn Fayre Needs You!
Saturday 28th September
Please donate, volunteer and come and spend, spend, SPEND!

Please Donate ...
... to the stalls | ... to the Silent Auction |
|
|
All items to be brought to school before Friday 27th September and left either side of the stairs in the Pemberton Room please (no perishables before the 27th please).
You should hopefully all have your raffle tickets by now; the ticket stubs and money should be returned to the School Office by Friday 27th September or
to the Raffle Stall on the day please. The draw
will take place at 4.00pm on the afternoon of the Autumn Fayre.

Mrs Cole's tutor group take their reading very seriously and even have their own Reading Cafe on a Thursday morning.
They thought it would be fun to share what they are currently reading ...

One of those Weekends!
Boarding Blog
Summer is back again, so why not make the most of it? However, it was one of those weekends where things just didn’t go our way! The children wanted to go to Hestercombe for a picnic by the ponds, followed by a long walk and ice-cream. Upon arrival, armed with food, drinks and Snoops, we were told that no picnicking was allowed.
Never to be defeated, we decided to eat our picnic before going in. We then queued, only to find out that our membership had recently expired (to later find out we did have current membership!) Persevering, I said "let’s go to the pirate park instead!". This was well received and we ended up having a wonderful afternoon soaking up the remainder of the summer sunshine.
Click below to find out what else they got up to!

Snoops' Diary
by Snoops the Dog

New Year, New Responsibilities
Hello friends,
Where did the week go? We are steaming full speed ahead into the term and time is flying by! As you know, I turned two earlier this year, which means I am able to take on roles with ever increasing responsibility. Well, what do you think about this? I’m going on my first residential trip to New Barn with the Year 4 pupils next week. My main role will be ‘Chief Pastoral Carer’, but I am looking forward to having oodles of outdoor fun with the children. I can’t wait to post some pictures when I return.
On Tuesday, I also received many compliments for my impeccable posing with the school photographer. I was well turned out thanks to an extra special grooming session with Matron and I hope my portrait is sited in a prominent position; maybe next to Mr Chippendale’s? We'll see ...
Over and out,
Snoops x
Latin for Beginners!
As we welcome another new group in Year 6 it is a timely reminder that one of the most important elements in learning Latin is building up one’s vocabulary.
In a series of vocabulary tests over 3 years, the Latin sets will be building up their vocabulary knowledge. As points are accumulated, the pupils will earn certificates on the way to show they have reached a certain level on the senatorial Roman ladder of office, called the Cursus Honorum. There are a number of offices to acquire, culminating in the title of IMPERATOR or IMPERATRIX.
However some pupils, who have done particularly well over time, may have the chance of becoming a god or a goddess on gaining a certain level. Each rung on the ladder will be an achievement of course, but please do congratulate your son or daughter if they report to you in due course that they have been deified!

Year 7 Pay a Visit to Historic Montacute
Last week our Year 7 pupils took a trip back to the 16th century as part of an English and history cross-curricular project.
During their lessons, the children have been exploring what life was like for the Tudors and Stuarts. The aim of the project was to plan and write a historically accurate story reflecting the period, taking inspiration from further studies on the most famous Renaissance of them all, William Shakespeare. To fully understand the voices of the period, the children have been reading one of his most inventive plays, The Tempest.
If this was not exciting enough, last Friday, the whole of Year 7 decamped to Montacute House, a beautiful late Elizabethan mansion just 50 minutes’ drive from King’s Hall.
Read More
King's Rugby Camp
for 8-12 year olds
Following the successful rugby camps in the summer holidays, King's College are running another camp for 8-12 year olds during half-term ...
When?
Tuesday 29th October 2019
10.00 am - 4.00 pm
Where?
King's College
Cost?
£30
Please click here for more information and to book your place(s)

Satisfying Win Leaves U12s Bursting with Pride
The U12 girls were extremely excited about their first few fixtures of the season and demonstrated this in a quality warm up and preparation session before their first game of the season.
With lovely passing hockey and accurate finishing, the team blazed through the first game with ease, despite good goal keeping from the Hazlegrove keeper. They carried this momentum through to the next game against Taunton School and managed to maintain a lot of the possession with good defending at times from the two backs. This allowed us a narrow victory against our rivals, and took its toll as both teams played withenthusiasm.
In the deciding final game against an unbeaten Millfield, the girls opened well but were unfortunate not to close with some good attacking play (credit must be given to the opposing defence). Just before half time, Millfield managed a great break and thundered a ball home to go 1-0 up at half time.
Read more Fixtures and Reports
King's Loop Success!
Two pieces of brilliant news. Ella McMillan, Will Mowat and Darcy Tomlinson (pictured here) have completed 12 laps of the King's Loop, and Charlie Sidhu has set a new course record - 8:54 - well done everyone!

Do you Have a Story? Get in Touch!
Has your child achieved something that you'd like to share with us? Email our marketing department: khsnews@kingshalltaunton.co.uk with your news and photos!