5 Jun 2020

WEEKLY MAILING

This week’s mailing is:

Letters:

Notices:

From the Headmaster to all parents: 

Dear Parents

I hope you and your sons were able to enjoy some downtime over the half term break.

It was good to welcome everyone back to our online school on Monday and I’m delighted with the way that the boys have been engaging with their studies. The Upper Sixth have shown high levels of commitment to their pre-university courses which started this week, while the 5th Year have continued with their pre-A Level courses which will ensure that they are well-prepared for their studies in September. Other year groups are making good progress with their work and it is impressive to see how effectively they have adapted to our online incarnation.

Both the boys and the staff are responding creatively to the challenges of sustaining involvement in the Other Half online. During the second half of term we will be holding inter-house sports days for different year groups and your son’s Housemasters will soon be encouraging participation. It should be a great way to keep house spirit flowing over the coming weeks.

I enjoyed welcoming back Reception, Year One and Year Six pupils to Abingdon Prep School at the start of the week and to hear again the sounds of boys talking and laughing in the corridors. Their return has been a real success, based upon a great deal of hard work from the team at APS. We have learnt important lessons which we are using as we plan for the physical reopening of the Abingdon School site.

We are working on opportunities for 4th Year and Lower Sixth students to see their peers and tutors in school in line with government guidance and will be in touch with the relevant parents about this in the near future. All academic lessons will remain online, including for these year groups.

In the first half of term we concluded our procedures for the nomination and selection of our new team of prefects from the current Lower Sixth. We had a superb field to choose from and selection was incredibly difficult; as a result we have a very strong team in place to offer leadership to the pupil body over the coming year. I’m very pleased to announce that Andreas Lo and Freddie Merrett will be leading the team as Heads of School.

Best wishes. Mike Windsor

Headmaster’s assemblies – w/c Monday 1 June 

This week’s assemblies from Michael Windsor discussed the relationship between emotion and reason; and racism. View the assemblies

Joint Bus Service update

As a result of the current Covid-19 pandemic we are likely to be faced with some unprecedented challenges with transport arrangements to school for the Michaelmas term starting in September.  Please rest assured that we will do all we can to bring pupils safely into school by running the most effective service possible.

It is possible that stop locations and departure/arrival timings will be affected in the short term. It is unclear what the implications will be at this stage but as things stand:

  • New Bookings – the process to allow parents to book a place for children to travel to school will open on Monday 22 June 2020.   Once completed you will receive an acknowledgment of your request. To help us get a clear picture of requirements, please book as soon as possible once the process is open.
  • Existing Bookings – all existing bookings will remain in the system and will be considered, in conjunction with new bookings, when planning what is possible in September 2020.  There is no need to rebook if you already had a booking for the 2019/2020 academic year. 

Consolidating learning – the 3Rs

In the latest school blog, Sarah Beynon, our learning support teacher, uses ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recall’ as a mantra for boys to consolidate their learning – interesting reading for all!

ASPA – Lower School Family Quiz: Friday 12 June at 7pm – Reminder

Lower School families are invited to take part in an online quiz – fun questions for all ages and abilities!  The quiz will take place using Zoom. Please click on the link here for further information and to register your interest and contact details by 5pm on Wednesday 10 June. A Zoom meeting link and further information will be sent nearer the time.  We look forward to seeing you!

News from the Week:

School Calendar

Given the number of calendar changes, owing to the impact of Covid-19, please continue to consult the School Calendar.

Here is the link to previous weekly mailings.