On Thursday 5 July, Mrs Keryn Neaves, Senior Deputy Head of Magdalene House Prep School, welcomed guest of honour, Wing Commander Manu Patel OBE. She then made her speech using horticultural allegories.

“From little acorns mighty oaks grow” explained Mrs Neaves, commenting that every one of the pupils had taken a journey of growth through learning, experiencing and achieving this year.

She praised colleagues throughout the Prep and Senior school who have created environments where the pupils have been provided with opportunities to explore, investigate and enquire.  “It is now”, she said, “how they use these skills, which determines the route they take”.

Our older pupils spent time away from home on residential visits, because you have to plant out tender seedlings to harden off. They went to Aylmerton, Flatford Mill and York… learning how to cohabitate with people other than their family.

This is all part of the growing process that is vital to our pupils’ independence as we prepare them for life.

As teachers, it is when the seedlings start to flourish that we gain the greatest feeling. It is the sense of pride when Alice said: “Those are words on those circles aren't they Mrs Oram? I can read them now”.  Or when Logan remarked “That’s a motif isn’t it, Mrs Missen” and when Zeeve was asked if he had any lightbulb moments and he replied: “I learn something new every lesson, Mrs Beck.”

When you make things grow you attract bees to your garden, and this is just what we did in the Lent term by performing the world premiere of The Bees’ Knees. A delightful array of colour adorned the stage and the pupils amazed us all, once again with their fabulous talents.

We all know that being outdoors has such a positive impact. The introduction of the Bugs ‘n’ Bees patch has provided our children yet another learning opportunity and one that particularly enhances their well-being.

By the end of this week our Prep 6, who were once the acorns of honest inquiry, will have sprouted and matured into tall saplings of understanding. They have the tools given to them along the way by their teachers and now have the opportunity to put those tools to good use as they move on to the Senior School.

John Lawrence and Emma Markillie, outgoing Heads of School, then gave a confident speech about their time in Prep School and how excited they are to be moving up to Senior School in September.

John summed up his experience by saying that the Prep School gave him the best start in life with lots of fun memories from trips, events for raising money for charity. He also mentioned taking the ESB exams which had helped him to stand up at this Speech Day to give a speech to hundreds of parents, pupils and staff. “WGS Prep School has encouraged me to challenge myself, and no-one can take away my happy memories of Prep School”, John said.

Outgoing Head Girl, Emma Markillie, said Prep School has allowed her to reach her full potential. Commenting on how scared and tearful she was when she started school; it was great to now have the confidence to stand in front of everyone. She thanked her teachers for helping her to grow. Emma reminisced that over the years she had wanted to be an Archaeologist, Geologist, and a Tornado Chaser. “Thankfully”, she said, “I have changed my mind (my parents were relieved), and now my passion for Science has been sparked by Science classes and clubs at WGS”.  Emma’s closing words were “Don’t be afraid to try new things, sing your socks off, push yourself and don’t forget to care!”

Speech Day then closed with a prayer from Reverend Canon Matthew Bradbury, and pupils and parents dispersed for the summer break.

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