Category: Upper School
Self-Belief
12th September 19
Introducing our first goal of this term, Mr Ben addressed Upper and Lower School this week to inspire them about the importance of self-belief. With a can-do attitude, we can achieve anything if we set our mind to it. He highlighted that not only children need to show self-belief, but also adults are often faced with challenging situations which require them to believe in their own abilities and strengths.
Rosie, Year 6 School Reporter writes: “Monday’s assembly about self-belief was thrilling. kicking off with the delightful song, “Sing Hosanna,” which we all sang beautifully! Mr Ben’s well-chosen example of self-belief was about cricket player Ben Stokes rescuing England from losing sooner in The Ashes. He had been batting for an astonishing 330 minutes (5 hours and 30 minutes) in total!”
Mr Ben concluded the assembly with a powerful message: “Believing in yourself is the first secret to success!”
Welcome back!
6th September 19
Sicily, Year 6 School Reporter writes: “On the first day of term Mr Ben welcomed us all back to school. We felt excited to be top of the school as we found our seats in Trinity Chapel. We sang ‘A Little Bit of Kindness’ by Mark and Helen Johnson and everyone remembered the words from last year. When we got our responsibilities it was a great surprise, looking around all of our faces were smiling. Then we sang ‘Thank You for this World’ by Niki Davies and headed off to start our new year.”
Prize Day 2019
9th July 19
What a day! After a year of hard work, it was time to celebrate endeavour, effort, progress and achievements across the school. Assembled in Wandsworth Town Hall prize giving started with some beautiful performances by the choir, recorder ensemble and Upper School band. A variety of prizes were awarded on the day both for academic subject areas as well as rewarding excellent behaviour, diligence, enthusiasm, perseverance, resilience and initiative.
Although prize day is an occasion to celebrate, it also means saying goodbye to our leaving classes. At the end of prize giving, Year 6 could not hold back the tears when watching the film premiere with memories of their seven-year journey at Finton. A very emotional moment for the children! They will be very much missed and we hope that they will visit and tell us all about their senior schools next year.
Sports Day 2019
5th July 19
With a sunny day and an enthusiastic crowd, all children from our four houses battled in field and track events on Friday morning. The colourful display of house flags and fantastic atmosphere on the fields encouraged the children to give their very best for their house. Sports Day is not only fun for the children but it is also the perfect opportunity to teach them about teamwork, fair play, and how to overcome one’s own limits. The children certainly did us proud with their ‘I can’ attitude and enthusiasm on the day.
It is priceless to see the excitement when children cheer on their friends from the sidelines. They feel a real sense of belonging and love to be part of their team. The children do not run for their own personal success but to represent their house. The team spirit on the day was exemplary!
The much-anticipated announcement of the winners was accompanied by loud cheers from Charrington who were the overall winners of the day. Hip Hip, Hooray!
All children had a fantastic day and the main credit for this lies with our PE team who have once again organised a brilliant sports event for the children. Thank you!
SPECIAL VISIT BY WORLD FAMOUS AUTHOR DAVID WALLIAMS
28th April 19
On Monday 11th March, Upper School gathered at Trinity Chapel, bustling with excitement in anticipation of a very special visit by David Walliams. The children’s book author and Britain’s Got Talent judge shared his passion for writing books with the pupils and read extracts from his latest bestsellers. The children were enthralled whilst listening to him read. Some lucky children even got to ask him a question and received a signed copy of one of his books. He certainly inspired a future generation of authors! We are extremely grateful to David for spending time with us here at Finton House. We would also like to thank Atticus’s dad Mr Bruce who made this visit possible, thank you!
Tate Modern Art Project
21st January 19
We are proud to be part of an inspiring contemporary art project which will be unveiled at Tate Britain in 2019. By taking part, Year 3 pupils will see themselves in a major artwork at the heart of the nation’s collection. The workshop in January, led by the Tate photographer, explored themes central to the work like inclusion, difference, identity and aspiration.
This vast new work of art will be one of the most ambitious visual portraits of citizenship ever undertaken. It will capture tens of thousands of Year 3 schoolchildren in a milestone year in their development.
Prize Day
19th December 18
Prize Day concluded an eventful Autumn Term at Finton! As well as the traditional awarding of prizes, we were treated to a performance by the Year 3 choir, who sang ”’Holly and Mistletoe'” in front of Upper School. After the announcement of this term’s house trophy winners, Mr Ben directed a special thank-you to all staff for a successful term, and congratulated the children on their achievements. As always, it was a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the children’s progress and reward exemplary behaviour! Our Head Boy and Girl, Isabel B. and George F. left us with the following message:
“Well done to all those who won an award today. If you haven’t, KEEP WORKING HARD! The teachers know you are all trying your best. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.”
Carol Concerts
19th December 18
Year 1-3 children impressed the audience with a fantastic carol concert on Thursday. Their enthusiasm was infectious and their performing skills top-notch. It was a pleasure to watch them having fun on stage and it was clear that they thoroughly enjoyed it themselves. What a wonderful celebration to end the term!
Also many heartfelt congratulations to all the children and teachers involved in the Upper School Carol Service this year. This was a particularly notable occasion in which the choir sounded outstandingly beautiful.
“Yesterday, the whole of the Upper School had a Christmas carol concert. It was amazing! Although a bit nerve-wracking because we had to stand up in front of so many people, it was a great experience for us all. I would like to thank Miss Maria and Miss Emma for helping us rehearse and also Mr Steve, Mr Jamie and Mr Harry who set up the stage. We are all sad this will be Year 6’s last carol concert!”
– Yoshua A, School Reporter
Class Assemblies
20th November 18
Year 2 and 3 class assemblies are in full swing! Last week we had the pleasure of meeting Florence Nightingale and Julius Caesar. We also saw the book ‘James and the Giant Peach’ spring to life on stage.
Our Year 6 School Reporter Annika writes: “Today we watched a brilliant assembly by our Year 3 Romans and Celts. It was a wonderful play with lots of humour and acting. The assembly concluded with a song all about how Britain was governed by the Roman Empire. We all learnt a lot about the Romans and loved the assembly!”
This week we enjoyed assemblies about the world’s weather and the different countries in the UK.
Crazy Hair Day Fundraiser
23rd October 18
In aid of the Rainbow Trust
One of the most cheerful mornings at Finton must be the Thomson House Crazy Hair Day! It was fantastic to see the children arrive at school with bright, colourful hair which definitely attracted some attention in the neighbouring streets.
After all the early morning excitement, Upper School children were quickly ushered inside to attend their usual Friday assembly. (We have never seen a more colourful assembly at Finton!)
A big thank you to our Year 6 House Captains, Miss PJ and Miss Anna for a fabulous organisation of another fun Crazy Hair Day!