Senior Music Concert
One cannot help but marvel at the talent in maroon!  Prep boys and girls brilliantly performed a fantastic and vast array of musical pieces for the audience’s delectation.  From Handel to Hendrix, singing or strumming, on piano or piccolo and percussion the Prep pupils entertained those present with heart-felt effort and quality.  Hours of practice go into being able to play a musical instrument: this night proved it was worth it all!  Well done to all the children involved and a huge thank you to all the music teachers for the expertise and inspiration.
Mr D Smith

The Kindergarten Nativity and’ The Bossy Christmas Fairies’ Performances
Every year the magic of children performing and singing delights us all.  The inner warmth of love, the glow of pride and tears of emotion can overwhelm us mere adults.  The sheer joy that the children bring us is immeasurable.  My sincerest thanks go to you all for enabling the children to give spectacular performances with the Christmas message.  Without the support from parents, teachers, office, kitchen and ground staff, when all the routines fly out of the door, it would be impossible for the children to feel ready and confident to perform with such enthusiasm and excellence.  Many seasonal thanks to you all.
Mrs M Shea

Twelfth Night
‘But be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon the.’  This cast had greatness thrust upon them by the Great Director, Mr Harrison.  They admirably took up the challenge by bringing Shakespeare’s  ‘Twelfth Night’ to life for a modern audience with a yellow suit, Beatles’ songs and the X Factor all thrown in!  Many performances from our Form 7 and 8 pupils will live long in the memory.  Well done to all the cast and a huge thank you to all the support team.
Mr D Smith

Music Exam Success
Congratulations to the following pupils who have achieved success in their music examinations:

Elisabet Dijkstra  Violin Grade 4 Pass
Iona Cowie   Violin Grade 2 Pass
Anne-Joke Dijkstra  Violin Prep Test
Myfanwy Smetham  Descant Recorder Grade 1 Distinction
Sophie Westbrooke  Jazz Piano Grade 4 Distinction
Francis McAuley  Piano Grade 1 Distinction

Senior School Charities Summaries
This calendar year the pupils in the senior school have collected for their chosen charities the following:
• Seal – MS Society   £    950
• Vine – Guide Dogs for the Blind £ 1,000
• Weald – Hospice in the Weald £    650
• Knole – Plan UK   £    600 
(These amounts included the 2008 Carol Service Church collection of £380 and £250 donation from Amherst Rotary Society, divided between all four charities above.)
• Haller Foundation £ 1,040
• HopeHIV  £ 1,844

Future Communication
Web site - www.theprep.org.uk
• Newsletters will now be emailed to you each week with a web link as we endeavour to cut down on our carbon footprint and go paperless wherever possible. Hard copies will be available to collect from either school office if this is your preference. We hope that parents will automatically go to the web site for our news in the not too distant future.
• The Spring Calendar and all future dates are constantly being updated and can be printed from our web site.  We shall no longer be issuing a printed card version which very quickly becomes out of date as fixtures and events arrangements change. 
• From January, team sheets and match arrangements will be published on the web site and this information should be available from the Monday lunchtime for that week.  Changes to team selections (e.g. owing to illness or injury,) will be updated accordingly.  The sports information line will still be in use for news on cancellations etc. – 01732 761111

Mouth Guards for Rugby and Hockey
We have already had occasions when pupils have not brought their mouth guards to school.  There is a limited supply in the office but this is really only for emergency team supplies as they offer only very basic protection.  Please can we ask parents to remind pupils to bring their mouth guard with them for hockey and rugby lessons and matches otherwise they may not be able to participate.

Dogs – again!
A polite reminder to dog owners who bring their dogs to school at drop off or pick up times.  Please keep your dogs in your cars or on a lead well away from the children.  There are many children, especially in the Pre Prep, who do not appreciate the close proximity of dogs.    There is plenty of opportunity after drop off and before pick up times for the dogs and their owners to enjoy our space and beautiful environment. 

Spring Term Invoices
Parents who are in receipt of Early Years Funding from Kent County Council are eligible for 10 weeks as opposed to 13 weeks for the Spring Term and therefore the payment is reduced accordingly.
Fees are due for payment on 6th January- for those who pay by internet bank transfer the school’s bank details may be found on the invoice enclosed.

Spring Term Activities
• Swimming lessons for Form 2 begin Friday 15th  January
• Swimming lessons for Reception begin Tuesday 12th January
• Fencing lessons begin Wednesday 13th and Thursday 14th January
• Judo begins on Monday 11th January at 3.15pm to 4.15pm for Form 2 and  4.15-5.15pm for Forms 3 and above
• Ballet begins Monday 11th January
 
SEC Report

As usual, this has been a busy term for the SEC, with three great family events which I hope you all enjoyed. 
The first event of the term was the mouth-watering Gourmet Gamble. Thanks to the many parents who baked or bought to provide a splendid array of dishes for everyone to win and also to those who turned up to gamble.  Many delicious goodies were taken home that night and, with so many gorgeous cakes, I suspect we were all a little heavier the next day! Special thanks to Rebecca Eifion- Jones and Kate Denyer for organising this popular event.
Bonfire Night was a wonderful night out for the whole family. As always, the bonfire was splendid and the fireworks seemed brighter and bigger than before.  Hot dogs, glow sticks, toffee apples and friends all around – memories of Bonfire Night stay warmly in the memory of all Prep children so this must explain why so many former pupils attend the event. Despite a ‘little’ rain on the evening itself, nothing seemed to dampen the children’s enthusiasm or enjoyment.  Many thanks go to Jo Hopkins, Mike Clyne, Jackie Gwyther and Katherine Medlock for all their hard work in producing such a great evening.

Also in November, the Christmas Bazaar got us in the mood for the festive season, an opportunity for some to start their Christmas shopping and others to finish theirs.  We were all bedazzled by the stunning decorations in the hall and the beautiful array of hampers and Prep teddy bears, as well as many of our favourite old stalls. This year we were able to spread out into the Oakery which meant that Santa had his own luxurious grotto and the expanded  Secrets Room was even more resplendent that usual. I for one will be looking forward to opening my presents on Christmas morning...
It was a lovely opportunity for present and former Sevenoaks Prep families to get together and a wonderful start to the Christmas festivities. Many thanks to Kelly Bennett, Fiona Drysdale, Gillian Keeling and Jo Smetham who worked so hard to organise the event.

I should like to take this opportunity to thank all the committee who willingly and enthusiastically offer their time and efforts to enable us to enjoy a wide variety of events and to help bring the Prep community together. 
As well as being a way of maintaining contacts within the Prep family and a source of great excitement to our children, we are lucky that many of the SEC events also raise money. This term saw a change in the way the SEC works - all families had a chance to vote on how our funds are to be spent. I am pleased to let you know that we have now completed the purchase of an outdoor table tennis table for the Senior pupils and in the Spring you will see a new pagoda-style outdoor classroom for the Pre Prep. Additionally we will have sufficient funds to start work on a Prep Kitchen Garden.  All profits from events in the Spring and Summer terms will go towards an outdoor classroom / shelter for the Senior School. Full accounts will be available in the New Year. 

Amid the end of term chaos, please try to make time to put next year’s events in your diary – a Curry Night with entertainment on Saturday 27th February, a fashion show on Thursday 11th March and – not to be missed – the Summer Ball on Saturday 12th June.
We also have a newly expanded SEC Website – please do take a look to get more information on what is going on or for up to date information about future events. If you have any ideas about the website or other SEC matters, we also have a new e-mail address to send them to:  SEC@sevenoaksprep.kent.sch.uk
I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy 2010
Mrs Jane Rigney

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone – we hope you all enjoy the holiday season and look forward to the children returning on Wednesday 8th January rested and ready for the new Spring Term.
Mr Oldroyd, Mrs Shea and all the staff at Sevenoaks Prep School