Reading Week

Whilst we have a range of themed weeks throughout the year, Reading Week always has a special buzz about it and this year has been no exception! The week kicked off with an assembly from Mr Roberts and our Library Assistants who spoke passionately about some of their favourite books and how they have been inspired by them.

The Belmont community came together to celebrate the joy of reading through a variety of activities across the School. Pupils got competitive during their House Book Quiz which tested their knowledge of some much-loved classics as well as contemporary books, and the older Belmontians loved listening to our younger pupils read at Belmont and at Grimsdell.

The week was punctuated with the House Parade – a new addition to the format which promised colourful characters and team spirit, and it certainly delivered! We were thrilled to see our pupils and staff make an exceptional effort to embody their favourite characters and equally happy to see so many parents come to spectate.

Upper School
Year 6 transformed the Proctor Hall into a Victorian Fayre to bring the sights and sounds (thankfully not the smells!) of Dickensian London to Belmont. The pupils did a magnificent job of creating fun Victorian games for their stalls and blew away the staff with their creativity and ingenuity! The pupils delighted in visiting each other’s stalls which ranged from: target shooting to tarot cards! After all their hard work of pulling in the punters and rewarding them with treats, the pupils were treated to Afternoon Tea to celebrate their reading of ‘A Christmas Carol.’

Awards for Victorian Fayre

The pupils below demonstrated excellent collaborative skills:

1^st Ava 6 and Evie 6F
2^ndRoxi 6FB, Oyku 6FB, Nathalie 6FB and Thea 6LT – Marble Target
3^rd Arthur 6AH James 6AH and Nikhil 6FB – Coconut Shy

Highly Commended

Mimi 6AH and Cemre 6FB – Tarot Card Reading

Our Year 7s entered the Dystopian realms and engaged in a variety of creative reading and writing tasks to showcase their understanding of heroic characters and their predicaments. After reading excerpts from ‘Touching the Void’ by Joe Simpson, pupils enjoyed writing Black Out Poetry to explore how a piece of writing can be reimagined for a different audience. The pupils’ curiosity for the topic and story was enhanced by Mr Hayward’s captivating presentation about his own experiences as a climber. The expression of awe and wonder was a sight to behold!

Year 8s became thespians and took to the stage to dramatise Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’. The pupils enjoyed researching the Bard’s Lost Years and produced some wonderful creative writing and artwork to reflect their understanding of the play’s key themes and characters.

Upper School Reading Awards
Book Factor Pupils were invited to share their favourite book with their peers. It was a real joy to hear them speak eloquently and passionately about their favourite book.

1^st Ben 8SM
2^nd Yasmine 8LM
3^rd Fifi 8LM

Recreate to make it great! The pupils had to create a new text or artefact inspired by their reading.

1^st Mia 7SI
2^nd Sophie 8OM
3^rd Holly 7JR

Highly Commended

Alba 8OM , Fifi, 8LM , Luca, 8JC , Skyler, 7FH , Levi, 6LT , Sofia, 6ZS, Cemre, 6FB

Exceptional effort for reading:

Year 6 – Nelson 6GJ

Year 7

1^st Edwina 7FH
2^nd Harry 7FH
3^rd Alessia 7SI

Lower School
Well done to 3LG for winning the classroom door decorating competition based on George’s Marvellous Medicine and to all the classes who brightened up the week with their colourful designs.

Poetry Recitation Finals
All the finalists performed amazingly well. They were confident, clear and expressive, showing good pace, rhythm and knowing when to pause to great effect. There was a super selection of poems. One even in French! Thank you for such an entertaining morning.

Year 3

1^st Kisharli 3TW
2^nd Annie 3LG
3^rd Alexander 3TW

Year 4

1^st Leah 4TB
2^nd Aristos 4TB
3^rd Max 4NH

Year 5

1^st Rafa 5JDS
2^nd Sophie 5JDS
3^rd Imogen 5CC

Winners of the Book Character Dressing up Competition
It was wonderful to see Lower School dressed up for the day. It is always such a special event. Thank you to all the parents who put such effort into the costumes. The children looked amazing and it was great fun guessing who everyone was.

Year 3

1^st Emily 3GC as Peanut Jones
2^nd Kisharli 3TW as Aunt Sally
3^rd Nicholas 3LG as Draco

Year 4

1^st Simran 4TB as Saucepan Man
2^nd Oskar 4EP as Loki
3^rd Yevheniia 4EP as Isadora Moon

Year 5

1^st Teah 5CC as the Mandrake and Jessica 5AD as Coraline.
2^nd Toby 5CC as George’s Marvellous Medicine
3^rd Stanley 5CC as Frankenstein

Staff Winner – Mrs Atytalla as the Queen of Hearts.

LS House Book Quiz
Drum roll … the results are in! In a closely fought competition, the Angles won with 31 points out of 40.

Where’s Wally?
Possibly the most exciting event of the week, with half of Lower School running around on a mad dash to find ten Wallys! Well done if you found them all!

Lower School Book Factor
This year several Lower School pupils visited the Library on Tuesday and Wednesday lunchtime, eager to share their favourite reads with the audience and the panel of judges. Pupils spoke with passion and insight into a variety of different titles, ranging from comedy to drama and adventure.

Year 3