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BANCROFTIAN COMMUNITY / PREP SCHOOL 19
SHINE
Ekaahh Sumithran, L6N and
Rahul Goel, L6S
The Serious Fun on Saturdays
programme, funded by SHINE
Trust, ran again once during the
autumn term. The purpose of the
programme is to give primary
school children from local state
schools the opportunity to use the
facilities we are fortunate enough
to have to enrich their knowledge.
Each Saturday morning year 5 children from
Coppermill, Edinburgh, Sybourn and Broadford
Primary Schools attended these sessions.
Initially they were quiet and shy, however,
over time, we saw their confidence grow as
they became more familiar with us and the
School.
During sessions the children participated
in various lessons including science,
catering, maths, music, classics, PE, Spanish,
photography, philosophy, German and English.
They were exposed to many new subjects
and facilities and their excitement for these
opportunities shone through. Not only were
they learning new skills, but clearly having
so much fun at the same time, which made
it all the more enjoyable for us volunteers. It
was a pleasure to work with them and watch
friendships between them grow.
We had a great time with the children in
the science sessions and they had an excellent
time too. They all really enjoyed making their
DNA necklaces and learning what an important
role DNA has within the human body and all
other living organisms, as they sawwhen they
unravelled the DNA of a strawberry with the
expert help of Mrs Dawkins and Mrs Graham.
They also learnt the importance of washing
their hands (as did the student volunteers) as
they looked at the bacterial cultures from their
hands, as well as using UV light to look at the
amount of bacteria on their hands before and
after washing.
In classics they read and went over the story
of Theseus and the Minotaur; this was also fun
for the student volunteers as it reminded us
of Greek mythology, which most of us hadn’t
read in years! Then they learnt the meaning
of Latin words with Mrs Baker’s expertise in
order to construct their own monsters. It was
great fun to see the children’s imagination at
work in the creatures they created as well as
the good artistic talent of a few.
We feel privileged to have had this experience,
and working with the SHINE children has
allowed us to appreciate the amazing facilities
we have at Bancroft’s. By sharing stories,
experiences, and knowledge with the children,
we feel as though we have positively impacted
them in a way in which we may not have done
before.
This programme would not have been run
without the diligent work of Mrs Hague and
Mrs Dawkins and the photography and video
skills of Mr Munch-Petersen.
Prep 2 at Young Voices
Mr Adam Baum, Musical Director –
Prep School
Young Voices 2017 was an
extraordinary experience for pupils
and parents alike. There were 7400
children singing their hearts out and
raising the roof of The O2 building:
a feat in itself! Little dots of light
from a million torches gave a totally
magical atmosphere and reminded
us of Christmas not too far gone.
We had the best seats in the house
and were blessed with views of
conductor and the band. We were
so lucky.
But the music! The Beatbox Collective are
three extraordinarily talented voice artists who,
with only voices sound like a rock band and
rap artists rolled in to one. The children were
mesmerised. They were hooked too by the
dancing of Urban Strides and their director,
Andy. How brilliant that parents and children
together could strut out to Justin Timberlake. It
doesn’t get any better! Our guest star singers,
and in particular, Tabby Callaghan, former
X Factor
finalist were incredible. Tabby led rock
anthem after rock anthem and to hear 10000
people sing
I Love Rock and Roll
was truly
memorable.
There are too many highlights to mention,
although The Mexican Wave stands out for a lot
of Bancroft’s students. They say they started it!
Did they?
I think though that final words and thoughts
should go to our pupils and parents. “It was a
truly exhilarating experience for children and
parents alike,” said one parent. “It was the best
thing ever,” said a pupil. “Also to thank you Mr
Layburn and the staff for getting sixty six kids
to The O2 and getting them back to us safe and
sound. It takes a lot of planning and organising
and is a big undertaking,” commented a parent.
And “I really want to do it all again”, said an
enthusiastic Prep 2 student.
In short, one of the best nights ever. And, as the
song goes, there was magic in the air.