Hundreds of pupils from a North Yorkshire School braved bracing January winds and difficult cross-country terrain as they completed the Cancer Research Race for Life.

Cundall Manor School held the event on Tuesday 11 January, with pupils as young as FOUR and as old as 13 taking part in the race.

The youngsters braved the blustery January weather to take on cancer and walk, jog or run in aid of Cancer Research UK’s life-saving work.

To help the pupils prepare, teachers have been using specially created resources by the charity which includes everything needed to stage the event as well as top fundraising tips.

Louise Bessey, Head of Girls’ Games at Cundall Manor School, said: “The Race for Life is a great addition to the school timetable. The whole school community is supporting the event so it will be a real team effort, all whilst raising money for a wonderful cause.

“Most of us know someone who has been affected by cancer and we all have our special reasons for taking part and wanting to help more people survive.”

Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life, in partnership with Tesco, is an inspiring series of events which raises millions of pounds every year to help fund vital research.

Schools across the UK are being invited to hold their own Race for Life events in aid of the charity. They can choose a day that fits with the term calendar and pick a distance which suits the age and abilities of all pupils.

Rachel Carr, head of Race for Life, said: “Race for Life Schools is a fantastic way to have fun, get fit and save lives. Young people today are the generation who could see ground-breaking treatments and cures for cancer in their lifetime. They will be the researchers and lifesavers of tomorrow. But first, we need them to be the fundraisers of today – and walk, jog and run to help beat cancer sooner.”

For more information on the Race For Life at Cundall Manor School and to see more photos from the event visit the school Facebook page.

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On Tuesday 6^th December 2016, the North Yorkshire School celebrated 20 years of the Pre-Prep department with a party for the current pupils. Guest included Chair of Governors, Sir Thomas Ingilby, Joint Head, Amanda Kirby, Head of Pre-Prep, Kathryn Creed and pupils who previously attended the Pre-Prep school.

Originally known as The Orchard, the Pre-Prep of Cundall Manor School was opened in 1996 with only a handful of pupils in each year. Now, twenty years later, over 80 pupils attend Pre-Prep at the leading North Yorkshire independent school.

Amanda Kirby, Joint Head, said: “Today marks a very special milestone in the Pre-Prep’s history. We have such a special and unique environment that our pupils enjoy. It has been fun to look back on our journey and it has been a pleasure to see so many people come through the department who continue to develop, grow into successful young adults in Upper School and beyond.”

Pupils celebrated with a party, cake, games and even saw a special work of art unveiled to celebrate the occasion. The specially commissioned artwork from local artist, Daniel Watson, was delivered to the Pre-Prep house captains.

Ex-Pre-Prep pupils reminisced about their time in the department and enjoyed telling younger pupils about their experience of Pre-Prep and some even took time to find their names on the House Captain Board.

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Children from PP2 took to the stage to tell parents about the highlights of the term to date. Highlights included times tables, clever ways to read tricky words, tales from their recent trip to Whitby, a story inspired by the history of Ripley Castle and a wonderful performance of a song from their Harvest Festival service.

A huge well done to all of our Pre-Prep and thank you to all the parents who showed their support.

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PP2 recently enjoyed a great day in Whitby. The children had fun exploring the town and noticing features to compare with the remote Scottish island of Coll. This of course included a lengthy, comprehensive, hands-on study of the sandy beach! We visited the RNLI lifeboat station and learned all about their important work at sea – some budding lifeboatmen were even allowed to try on the kit for size. A trip to the seaside wouldn’t be complete without fish and chips – delicious!

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Children from Pre-Prep have set their imagination ablaze following an interactive workshop into the Great Fire of London.

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A study by the Institute of Education for Save the Children found 21% of pupils who struggled with language as they began school, failed to meet the expected standards in national tests when they left.

Children with poor language skills at age five are significantly more likely to struggle with Maths and English at age 11, the BBC reported on February 17th.

The researchers said poor language skills had an effect on all children, regardless of family background.

Academics at the Institute of Education analysed the progress of 5000 children using data from the Millennium Cohort Study and the National Pupil Database in England.

Gareth Jenkins, from Save the Children, says the research demonstrated the most crucial determinant of success in Sats tests is how well children can communicate when they start school.  The charity suggests ensuring nurseries are led by a graduate teacher is the key to improving quality.

“The most important thing we could do is to see every nursery led by an early years graduate teacher, because the research is really clear that this helps improve the quality of the activities,” he said.

Amanda Kirby, Joint Head at Cundall Manor School in North Yorkshire, says graduate-led nursery care is a vital foundation of the school’s early years’ provision.  “While it is important that all early education is achieved through play, an experienced graduate teacher is able to ensure the foundations of learning are solid before children move into Reception.  Language, communication and fine motor skills need to be firmly established in the early years.  In particular sound and letter recognition and pencil grip are key skills which are very hard to relearn if established incorrectly”.

Amanda adds, “Graduate teachers have a knowledge of education beyond the nursery and it is this broad knowledge which helps them to take each individual child through the stages of learning at his or her own pace.  Their higher level study also arms them with a range of strategies to be able to tailor learning to each and every child.  Children then begin Reception and progress through our school with confidence. ”

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