We have seven classes at The Priory School.
Reception
The Reception class is sometimes known as “The Foundation Stage” and is taught by Mrs. Austin. Mrs. Hawtin is a full time classroom assistant. In addition, several parents help out on a voluntary basis. The children have “free flow” access to an outdoor play area which has a large covered outdoor wooden classroom with seating and two driving wheels, a sandpit, playhouse and chalkboard. Children are able to play with a variety of equipment including hoops, scooters, stilts and tricycles. A very popular “honorary” member of the class is Max the dog who, with his suitcase of clothes, goes home with a different child each evening. When he returns to school the following day, everyone enjoys listening to his exciting adventures!
The children in the Reception class very quickly settle into the routines of the school. Although they have their own play area, they join the rest of the school for playtime and lunchtime. They take a full part in whole school activities such as Assembly, theatre workshops etc.Year R now has its own blog!
Year 1
Year 1 is taught by Mrs Britt with Mrs Head and Mrs West as classroom assistants. During this year, the children become increasingly independent in all aspects of learning. They are encouraged to use word books to produce unaided writing and this results in high quality pieces of work. Play is still an integral part of the day and the children have access to an outside play area. Highlights of the year are visits to Bekonscott Model Village and the “Japan” topic where children experience at first hand the delights of sushi. Year One currently has its own blog!
Year 2
Year 2 is taught by Mrs Love who is also the Deputy Head Teacher. She works with Mrs Lakhani and Mrs White. Mrs Love and her learning support assistants are an excellent team and during this year, they cover many interesting topics. These include “Castles” which involves an outing to Portchester Castle on the south coast and “Zambia” which unfortunately does not involve a visit but does include the children learning about the schools we sponsor in Africa.
Year 3
Year 3 is taught by Miss Tucker. She has a part time classroom assistant, Mrs Lakhani (who shares her time with Year Two). Children in Year 3 are making the transition from Key Stage One (Years 1 and 2) into Key Stage Two (Years 3 to 6). Year 3 is situated in the oldest part of the school. Year 3 take part in a variety of interesting topics such as felt making and playing the violin. Children in Year 3 begin to take part in coaching sessions of sports such as football and tag rugby as part of their P.E. lessons.
Year 4
Year 4 is taught by Mrs Candy. Her part time classroom assistant is Mrs Whitehead. Year 4 enjoy a trip to the Living Rainforest in Newbury and the children enjoy learning about conservation issues and explore the themes in a variety of cross-curricular ways including art, design technology and literacy.
Year 5
Year 5 is taught by Mr Beckett with Mrs Blake offering support as his classroom assistant. Year 5 enjoy visiting Whitchurch Silk Mill as part of their ”Victorians” topic. During the course of the year, the children enjoy many exciting projects, including a Polar Exploration topic. Another enjoyable part of the curriculum is swimming which takes place at the Aquadome in Basingstoke during the spring term.
Year 6
Year 6 is taught by Miss Scott. Ms Gilby and Mrs Chambers are part time classroom assistant in this class. Children in Year 6 assume key positions of responsibility such as prefects and house captains. A highlight of this year is the residential visit to Osmington Bay, a PGL Holiday activity centre. There, the children take part in adventurous activities including abseiling and the night hike which as well as being highly enjoyable help to build confidence, self-esteem and independence in preparation for secondary transfer. The Year 6 classroom is situated in the oldest part of the school.