Spring into Science: The Connection Between Springtime, Vinehall's Inquisitive Learning Habit and British Science Week 2025 (Change and Adapt)
As the days grow longer and nature awakens from its winter slumber, springtime brings a sense of renewal and curiosity - making it the perfect season for British Science Week. This annual celebration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) encourages us to explore the wonders of the natural world, just as spring itself reminds us of the endless cycles of life and discovery.
A Season of Discovery
Spring is a time of transformation, with flowers blooming, animals emerging, and ecosystems bursting with life. This mirrors the very essence of science — observation, exploration and discovery. As Albert Einstein once said:
“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.”
Springtime sparks our curiosity, from watching the first buds open to witnessing migratory birds return. Just like scientists, our children are asking, “Why does this happen?” or “How does nature know when to wake up?”
A Time of Growth and Adaption - In Nature and in Learning
Just as plants grow and thrive in the warmth of spring, so too does our potential for learning and exploration. Whether through school enquiry, science weeks, or outdoor learning, British Science Week provides a platform to cultivate a love for science.
Carl Sagan beautifully captured this spirit of discovery when he said:
“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.”
As we welcome spring, let us embrace its lessons of renewal, of wonder and of scientific curiosity.
Joff
Pre-Prep Spring Walk
Holly Newton - Reception Teacher
We were thrilled to have been joined by so many parents and grandparents for our glorious walk this morning in the sunshine. It was wonderful to be able to make full use of our beautiful grounds and a happy morning was had by all.
Nursery - Busy Busy Bees!
Sarah Wolford - Head of Nursery & Kindergarten
The Nursery environment was filled with the sound of the composer Rimshij Korsakov as we listened to 'The Flight Of The Bumble Bee'. The children buzzed around using scarves as their wings and creating the lovely buzzing sounds! Lots of learning opportunities have been created through studying the life cycle of bees, planting seeds to create a wild garden in readiness for the bees to collect the nectar and creating yellow and black bees from play dough. The children have been just like busy buzzing bees as they showed curiosity, engagement and fabulous thinking and language skills. The children made honey sandwiches and honey oat biscuits which were, according to the children, absolutely delicious - what great bakers they all are!
Kindergarten
Catherine Garlick - Kindergarten Teacher
This week is National Science Week and the theme is changes. In Kindergarten we have enjoyed looking at seasonal changes, exploring the different properties of cornflour, making our own fizzy explosions, and observing the changes that took place. We have also continued to explore traditional tales, and our focus book was 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears'. We have used story language to retell the story, playing teddy number games on the iPads, comparing sizes and matching items to the three bears. One of our favourite activities was making and tasting porridge! We tried porridge with honey, cinnamon, raisins and chocolate drops and decided which was our favourite. We took great care to make it “not too hot, not too cold but just right”.
Our week ended with a lovely walk with the whole of Pre-Prep and lots of parents.
Reception
Holly Newton - Reception Teacher
We had a wonderful time following the Stickman Trail and completing our ‘Forest Adventure Passports’ as we went. We read the maps to help us to find our way and had great fun exploring all the exciting play areas that we discovered along our route.
This week we have continued exploring the magnificent books by Julia Donaldson. We looked at the illustrations of the witch's broomstick from ‘Room on the Broom’ and thought about how broomsticks are constructed. We made our own from sticks we gathered outside, using a bigger stick for the handle and smaller twigs for the sticks. They were tricky to tie together but we persevered and did a super job fixing everything in place with some string … with a little help from our friends!
We also thought about words that rhyme with hat and what makes two words rhyme. We have been practising reading these words and writing them on our own witch's hat!
During our trip to Bedgebury we made our own stick person and we had so much fun back at school making clothes for them. We now have stick men, stick ladies and stick children running all around our classroom! The children designed their own clothes, decorated them and thought about how they were going to join the different materials together. We are thrilled with how wonderful they look.
Year 1
Jacklyn Garwood - Year 1 Teacher
The children worked together investigating animals and how they could be sorted into different groups by making observations based on their physical appearances. It was also an exciting week of science experiments to celebrate ‘Science Week!’ Some of the favourites included: 'Making Lemon volcanoes’ and ‘Magic Milk Potions.’ Well done for your enthusiastic learning this week Year 1!
Year 2
Louise Hawtin - Year 2 Teacher
As it was Science Week, Year 2 began each morning by carrying out a quick science experiment. The children were amazed to observe the reaction between bicarbonate of soda and white vinegar, as well as what happened to food colouring in a bowl of milk when washing up liquid was added. They also watched how colours travel up a paper towel and mix together, as well as matching different feet to the correct animal, discussing how they have adapted to suit their habitat. The children showed great curiosity and awe - what a fun week!
Year 3 - Amazing Magnets
Carina Everist - Year 3 Teacher & Religious Studies Teacher Years 3-6
Are big magnets more powerful than small ones?
How many sheets of paper can a fridge magnet hold?
Which magnet is the strongest?
Are magnets just as powerful underwater as they are in the air?
These are some of the questions Year 3 investigated, having planned a fair test first. They are beginning to understand that predictions and results are not always the same!
Mrs Grob, the real dentist, came in this week to speak to Y4. She told us some really interesting information about how and why we should keep our teeth clean. I even learnt a few things. The children enjoyed using the disclosing tablets to see how well they have been brushing their teeth.
Year 5 - Victorians
Louise Barrett - Head of Juniors
Year 5 have been looking at some of William Morris prints. They then created their own with inspiration from a walk around the school grounds. I was very impressed by the end products.
British Science Week
Becky Prior - Head of Science
What an incredible week celebrating British Science Week! This year’s theme, 'Adapt and Change', has sparked curiosity, excitement and some seriously explosive experiments!
Pupils have been exploring chemical changes in action — one highlight was the thrilling reaction between magnesium and hydrogen, producing that unmistakable squeaky pop explosion! Seeing science come alive in such a dramatic way has been a fantastic way to understand how substances transform.
Beyond the bangs and flashes, students have been working together on research posters, diving into topics that link to adaptation and change. From the evolution of animals to climate change solutions and futuristic technology, the creativity and dedication on display have been truly inspiring. The best entries from each year group will be submitted to the British Science Week annual competition — watch this space for updates!
This week has been a brilliant reminder of how science is all around us, constantly evolving and shaping our world. A huge well done to all our budding scientists for their enthusiasm and hard work — we cannot wait to see where your scientific curiosity takes you next!
Art - Form in Architecture
Tracey Konyu - Head of Art
As part of their project on 'Architecture', the Year 5 pupils designed and created their mini sculptures inspired by Zaha Hadid, Gaudi, Hunderwasser and kinetic form. Their task involved building a structure without tape or glue. Instead, they had to tie knots.
Sport
Matt McKinnon - Director of Sport
A busy week in which we had hockey being played in wonderful sunshine, followed by rain and, 15 miles away, the girls playing football in snow and hail. It is fair to say that some of our teams struggled in the conditions and I must ask that all pupil have a pair of skins/base layer for games. It helps keep them warm, especially when the weather is so unpredictable.
John Newman and Laura Percy-White have been impressed with the progress the football teams have been making. The 1st & 2nd teams played a triangular at Marlborough House with Claremont, with the 3rds playing a slightly longer game against the latter. In Arctic conditions they battled hard, with the highlight of the afternoon Margot C's screamer to level the score for the 2nds against MHS. They did well against Claremont, winning 4-0, this being a team they drew with earlier in the season. The 3rds won a competitive game 5-2, having lost to them 2-5 a few weeks ago.
The Colts A & B footballers hosted Beechwood on the main field. It is always pleasing to hear of the effort the group are putting in. The results may not have gone their way, but their understanding of the game is improving.
The Senior boys hosted Dulwich. The 1st team played some of their best hockey of the season, drawing an exciting game 3-3. The 2nds playing Dulwich's 3rd team and did well in their 5-2 victory and the 3rds proved too strong for the Dulwich 5ths in their 5-0 win.
The Colts ABCs travelled to Dulwich. The A team battled hard but not being able to convert a number of chances meant they went down 1-3. The Bs did well in playing two matches against strong opposition and the Cs found some great space, scoring two great goals in their win against the Dulwich Ds.
On Thursday the U8/9 boys continued their good form against MHS at home, playing a number of competitive and exciting small-sided games of hockey. The girls travelled to Claremont for football and Hannah McAlister was impressed with their collaboration throughout the afternoon.
COMING SOON ...
Marlborough House Vinehall - Talk for Vinehall Parents - 19th March 2025
This is an opportunity to learn about details of the new school logo, uniform, planned capital investment developments, tweaks to daily timings and, very importantly, the mission and vision for Marlborough House Vinehall. Please follow this link to sign up for the talk on 19th March at 7.00pm – with drinks from 6.45pm.