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Curriculum

Our EYFS pupils follow the latest Foundation Stage Curriculum as updated in 2021 and our Key Stage 1 & 2 pupils are taught based upon the 2014 National Curriculum. All pupils are provided with a curriculum appropriate to their needs and potential. Priority is given to developing the skills of literacy and numeracy within the disciplines of English and Mathematics, with constant review of practice in light of changing national demands. Science is taught using a ‘hands on’ approach and computer studies are well established as a separate discipline with access across all subjects to Multi – Media networked P.Cs, laptops and projectors. The National Curriculum forms the basis of the courses followed in most subjects with pupils taking the end of key stage tests at 7 and 11 years with scripts being moderated by St. Helens Local Authority at Key Stage I, and externally marked at Key Stage II. Other subjects taught are: Geography, History, Art, Music, Religious Education, P.S.H.E., Design Technology, French and Physical Education. Introducing children to a foreign language at an early stage is most beneficial and as the school has a strong French connection this language is taught to all levels from Pre-School up. Early in the Junior Department the ground work begins for a smooth transition to secondary education. Children are prepared for entry to the local grammar and independent schools and their progress is closely monitored with regular contact being maintained with parents particularly in Years 4, 5 and 6.

If there is a need to deliver lessons remotely, such as if pupils are isolating or shielding for health reasons, the child’s usual timetabled lessons will be sent to then through either Tapestry (EFYS) or Class Dojo (KS1&2). Teachers are then available to provide feedback and answer questions if necessary. However if children are ill it is expected that they use their time off school to recuperate in order to return to health as soon as possible.

Early Years

Our Pre-School Department is housed on the Garden Floor with direct access onto the lawns and gardens, providing a safe haven where children can learn and play. The unit has its own purpose built classrooms and toilet facilities. Education is initially encouraged through play, leading to a more structured learning process once the classroom situation has become familiar. Equipment and methods are specifically geared to this progressive phase where the nursery and play environment naturally evolve into a more formal classroom atmosphere. Careful assessment of each child takes place in the first few weeks and an appropriate individual programme of work is established with ongoing monitoring and review. Activities are channelled with an awareness of National Curriculum requirements. Gradual integration with the rest of the school allows a trouble-free transition through Kindergarten and beyond.

Key Stage Results

Prenton Preparatory School choose to participate in the Key Stage tests at the end of both Years 2 and 6, these are externally marked and results are reported to parents. We also administer the Optional tests at Years 3,4 and 5. In addition to the end of year tests there is regular testing from Years 1 – 6 providing us with standardised scores in many of the Key Skills. In the Key Stage 1 tests the children exceed expectation for their age. At Key Stage 2 the pupils have achieved excellent levels consistently and also attain well above the expected level for their age. In addition we prepare the children for the 11+ examination in Year 5 as well as for the entrance examinations to the Catholic schools and local Independent Schools. Our pupils have regularly performed superbly well in these tests with excellent pass rates.

Year 6 Leavers’ Destinations

Work Samples

Every child’s work is displayed around the school, fostering a sense of pride and achievement. All pupils are encouraged to aim for high standards of content and presentation and to perform to their potential in every piece of work they complete.

Prenton Prep - Work Samples
Prenton Prep - Work Samples
Prenton Prep - Work Samples
Prenton Prep - Work Samples
Prenton Prep - Work Samples

A word from our Teachers…

Mrs Roberts - Pre-School
My name is Mrs Roberts and I am the class teacher in Pre-school. The children have a lot of fun in Pre-school whilst learning lots of new skills. The children are encouraged and shown how to be independent and develop their self-confidence. They particularly enjoy making new friends, playing in the role play corner and exploring the sand and water tray. We are lucky to have easy access to the garden area, which they use to investigate, explore and develop their gross motor skills. The children love using the climbing and balancing equipment in particular. The garden area has a wide variety of resources which help them to use their imagination and develop their own social skills. Pre-school enjoy learning through different topics which change every half term. Some of the favourite topics include Dinosaurs, Under the Sea, Traditional tales and Superheroes. Different festivals are celebrated throughout the year too. Each week they concentrate on a different letter sound and the children are encouraged to bring in items from home beginning with that letter. Each term, Pre-school take trips to a local library and go on walks in local parks in the Autumn and the Spring. A particular favourite trip is visiting Santa’s Grotto at Christmas time. Pre-school work closely with KG to perform Christmas and Summer concerts for the parents and whole school.
Miss Orme - KG
My name is Miss Orme and I am the KG Teacher. I love working in KG, it is so much fun. Every day is different. The children love their class too. They think the best thing about it is all the new things that we learn, such as reading, writing, numbers, counting, as well as making new friends, learning to share and take turns. We have a lovely garden, which we can use at any time, to explore, investigate and experiment in, all of these activities help to develop our imagination and promote our independence. Each term we have a different theme. Already this year we have learnt about our senses, celebrations and festivals and space. In the coming months we are looking forward to learning about people who help us, lifecycles and teddy bears. Learning does not just take place in school. We go on regular trips to the local library, we have also visited Underwater Street, in Liverpool, Santa’s Grotto, at Christmas and the Liverpool World Museum.
Mrs Dutton - Year 1
Hi! My name is Mrs Dutton and I am the teacher in Year One. We have fun in this class whilst taking steps towards becoming a little more independent. One way we do this is by coming into the classroom by ourselves in the mornings and putting all our belongings, like snacks, hats and homework folders, in the right places. We can earn lots of house points for our teams by doing this! We work hard in this class too, so that when we move up into the next class we are ready to tackle the challenges of Year Two with confidence. We become more fluent at reading so that we can read with expression and understanding, we learn words each week for a spelling test and we learn different ways to tackle adding up, taking away and many more topics in maths. In Year One we usually have a trip to a real castle as part of our study of homes and houses through the ages. It is a long journey but it is worth it! We go on “magical mystery tour” around the Wirral peninsula, on a geography field trip, which is the starting point for our classwork about the local area. Our confidence grows when we perform class assemblies for the school. We enjoy putting on KS1 concerts at Christmas and at the end of the year with our friends in Year Two. You will love being in Year One!
Mrs Beecroft - Year 2
Welcome to Year Two! My name is Mrs Beecroft and I am the proud teacher of our year 2 children. Year 2 is an important year because we have to be sensible and hard-working role models for all of our key stage 1 friends but we also have to prove that we are independent learners who are motivated and work hard in preparation for our move into year 3 and key stage 2! We also have lots of fun in year 2… wherever possible we do our learning in a practical context and have a broad, balanced curriculum. Our trips out of school have included: Liverpool Museums, the cinema, local art galleries, the boat museum, the zoo and more. Our Christmas and Summer performances and class assemblies provide further opportunities for us to develop self-confidence and speak in front of wider audiences in preparation for speech and drama in key stage two. Our class motto is ‘practice makes perfect’ and we strive to do our best. We like to ‘talk for writing’, sing, learn poetry and ‘move about’ to keep our minds and bodies active… Please do look at the gallery to see some examples of what we get up to!
Mrs Taylor - Year 3
I am Mrs Taylor and I really enjoy teaching Year 3 and seeing how quickly the children mature to become more independent learners over the year. P. E. lessons in the juniors are great fun. The children learn how to play tennis, netball or basketball, badminton and hockey, then in the summer term they learn many athletics events. They also thoroughly enjoy their weekly swimming lessons all year round. We are very proud of our sporting achievements in the juniors and have the chance to take part in swimming and water polo galas; netball and football tournaments and athletics events throughout the year. There are also many after-school sporting clubs for the children to choose from, karate is particularly popular. School trips are of course great fun. In Year 3, these include a trip to Pizza Express where the children design and make their own pizzas to take home and share with their families. Another great trip is to Gillmoss Recycling Discovery Centre where the children see what happens to our recycling waste from Wirral and learn why we recycle and what should and shouldn’t go into our recycle bins. Year 3 get the chance to read lots of great books from authors such as Roald Dahl, Dick King Smith, Madhur Jaffrey, Alan Durant and Joanna Troughton. They become more fluent in their reading and really enjoy reading for pleasure. Year 3 also have the exciting opportunity to perform the nativity scene at the Junior Christmas Carol Concert at St Saviour’s Church.
Ms Suchdev - Year 4
I am Ms Suchdev and I thoroughly enjoy teaching Year 4 as well as geography throughout the school. In Year 4 the children work hard and become more independent in their learning. As well as encouraging a love of reading children explore different writing genres and develop grammar knowledge. Books are brought to life through drama activities and visits to local theatres. Maths is challenging but fun and children quickly grow in confidence through practical activities and challenges. Our first history topic is the Stone Age and Iron Age which culminates in us enjoying an Iron Age Feast. Children immerse themselves in the experience by dressing up as Iron Age tribal members, sharing a feast of berries and sliced meats, listening to Celtic stories, making pots and some even build a model of Stonehenge out of Bourbon biscuits! In our next history topic, Year 4 become time explorers delving into the development of Liverpool over time from the 11th century to the present day. As part of this we visit the Old Dock in Liverpool and the Museum of Liverpool. This topic ties in with local geography studies of Cammell Laird and Birkenhead as well as exciting art projects. Children love creating their own ‘Cityscapes’ of Liverpool emulating Ben Johnson’s famous artwork. And what do real-life geographers do? We find out on a trip to the Geography Department at the University of Liverpool where we don lab coats and safety glasses and do coastal erosion experiments and then solve exciting puzzles in the map-room. Year 4 is fun!
Ms. Rooke - Year 5

Welcome to the Year 5 class page. My name is Ms. Rooke and I teach Year 5 and I am also the music coordinator. This means I get to plan a wide variety of musical experiences and performances for the juniors and the highlight for me is the annual ‘musical’ which we perform at the Gladstone Theatre in Port Sunlight. Year 5 is a very important year at PPS as a large proportion of local grammar school entrance examination preparation takes place. Many of these are held at the very beginning of Year 6 so getting ready for them in Year 5 is vital. We cover a great deal of new vocabulary but we do this by studying a wide selection of reading material ranging from short extracts to whole book studies. A firm favourite is ‘War Horse’ by Michael Morpurgo. I love history and I combine this beautiful story with history by teaching the children all about World War One. It is amazing how many of our relatives were in the Great War and some children bring in medals and enjoy researching their own family connections. Another favourite is the classic ‘The Railway Children’ by E Nesbit. Again I like steam trains so this is an excellent way to combine History with English. It fits in well with a topic on the Victorians and I get the children to get into a spot of role play by pretending we are in a Victorian classroom. Class trips are always fun and we have been on quite a few- we went to St George’s Hall, in Liverpool, for a drama session called ‘The Narnia Experience’, we went to the ‘Spaceport’ space museum in Wallasey, we have been to the Chester Military museum for a WW1 experience and perhaps the best one of all is our two day residential to the Colomendy Outdoor Education Centre in North Wales. We work and play hard in Year 5 but our learning is fun and we like to make it come to life as much as possible.

Mr Huskisson - Year 6

It’s not all school-selection tests, SAT’s and leadership responsibilities in Year 6: far from it! In our English studies, we enjoy lots of drama work, including writing and performing our own play scripts, and staging performance poetry. We also have debates on various topical issues, and deliver presentations on topics of our own choosing. As the icing on the cake, we also have the opportunity to take on the biggest roles in school productions. In Topic work, we have visited a Bronze Age mine, and taken part in an Iron Age re-enactment lunch and craft session, suitably dressed for the occasion of course! We learn about earthquakes and volcanoes, covering The Science Room in fierce simulated eruptions of lava. For I.T, French and Music, we go to teachers who specialise in these subjects. P.E lessons cover basketball, badminton, hockey, football and athletics skills, and sessions are held at Bidston Tennis Centre, Europa Pools in Birkenhead, and The Oval in Bebington. In June we head off to Barnstondale Outdoor Pursuits Centre, for a couple of days of kayaking, archery, rifle shooting and more. In this final term we will also have a visit by a children’s author, and attend cycling proficiency, road safety and personal development courses. Finally, we have our Leavers’ Assembly to prepare for. It’s a busy time! When we leave Prenton Prep in July, we know we will be sad to leave a place that has become so familiar to us, a place where we have learnt so much and invested so much. But we also know that we are moving on to a new and exciting phase in our lives. Year 6 is the stepping-stone between the two.