Sompting Abbotts’ annual Speech Cup of Poetry and Performance saw every child from Years 3 - 8 learn and recite a poem by heart! The best performances were chosen at a special competition in front of an audience of their peers and their parents. It was judged by an external expert adjudicator.
Read MoreChoosing the right Senior School for your child can feel daunting and is a big decision. Stuart Douch, Headmaster of Sompting Abbotts Prep School, offers his suggestions for how to go about doing your research and what considerations to factor in.
Read MoreSompting Abbotts has been selected for a prestigious Green Award in the Independent Schools of the Year Awards. This award is for the school which most impresses the judges by the way in which it has made a decisive and positive contribution to the environment.
Read MoreChildren in Year 4 have recorded this lovely version of the wonderful poem 'This is the Best Kind of Classroom' by Yorkshire poet Ian McMillan which reflects Sompting Abbotts’ strong focus on hands-on green learning. They did their reading in situ in the school’s ‘Top Woods’!
Read MorePerhaps the most exciting part of the filming of the school’s new Pre-Prep video happened during a forest-school class when nature delivered up a wonderful surprise ...
Read MoreChildren at Sompting Abbotts Preparatory School have put their feelings of frustration about lockdown into their video performance of their class poem Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when?
Read MoreHow much should you correct your Key Stage 1 child when you hear them read aloud to you? Should you force them to sound out the word? Do you get them to read every day? If they don't want to, do you insist or just not bother? Here, you'll find our top 10 tips for how to hear your child read aloud. It's a skill in itself that's useful for parents to 'learn' to support their child on their learning-to-read journey!
Read MoreDiscover why Latin is not just ‘another language’. Research shows that the more children learn of Latin, the better they perform in all other curriculum areas.
Read MoreSompting Abbotts Preparatory School is providing all its pupils with a full programme of online learning. This is teacher-led, using Google Classroom and live Zoom video lessons. Staff have created a virtual timetable from 9am to 4.30pm. It replicates the children’s normal school timetable and curriculum.
Read MoreDo you wonder if your child might need some SEN support? Listening to what they’re saying about school and not brushing it off, is really important. Make a note of what they may say they dislike or (often) ‘hate’ or find ‘boring’ and you’ll probably have the cause of the problem right there. Your first action is to talk to teachers/specialist teachers or your Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator. They’ll direct you to the right professional for help and can signpost ways your child can be supported, whether there’s a specific learning difficulty or not.
Read MoreSompting Abbotts places a strong emphasis on the performing arts. In different ways, we seek to boost pupils’ confidence and communication skills because we know these will be invaluable to their lives ahead. Self-confidence is gained from each tiny success, which leads to more success. Learning to perform and speak in public are essential skills that will be transferable to the children’s adult lives.
Read MoreThere’s something different about Sompting Abbotts’ school library. It’s run by the children themselves! Some people might think that libraries are antiquated. They carry something called ‘books’ that people can borrow! But we believe children’s access to books is critical for brain development and academic success – doubly so in the digital age.
Read MoreDon’t think you have to take your child to the Open Day. But, if your child is mature enough to come along, then definitely take them with you. Don’t rely on the school inspection report. They tell you little about the school’s ethos. Don’t turn down a school tour from a pupil. Don’t rely on the marketing materials. To get behind the gloss, there’s nothing like actually visiting a school.
Read MoreFormer Sompting Abbotts pupil and best-selling author Alex Preston on the books that inspired him most as a child. A few weeks ago, one of the teachers at my son’s school, who also happens to be the mother of a particularly winning little 9-year-old, asked me to put together a list of books I’d recommend to boys our sons’ age.
Read MoreSompting Abbotts’ teachers pooled their knowledge and experience to create this list of top 30 books for Key Stage 1 children. It's across the ages of five and seven – in school terms this is Key Stage one: Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 – when most children learn to read. Whether your children are reading alone or you’re reading to them, there’s some inspiring book choices here!
Read MoreHere's Pre-Prep Co-Head Mrs Carrington's top 10 books for pre-schoolers. She says: "I always try to match books to children’s interests but there’s a few ‘secret sauce’ ingredients the best books have to show to really grab the attention of children in the age 2 – 4 year group."
Read MoreThere’s a sport out there that every child (even the non-sporty types!) will love, says former Sompting Abbotts pupil Matt Richbell. Now Director of Sports at leading independent school Trinity in Croydon, he believes the life lessons sports teach children go far beyond the physical benefits. They will make your child more successful academically too.
Read MoreHow much screen time is healthy for your child? Scientists have predicted that use of the Internet exposure may change the way children think. So are we in the middle of an unstoppable experiment with our children? So just what is the impact of screen-based technologies and social media on our children's well-being, attention spans, learning and creative abilities? And how do we balance the recognition that digital skills will be essential to our children’s futures in the workplace?
Read MoreI bet you never thought of music as a STEM skill? STEM is a buzzword you'll probably have heard a lot if you follow the education world as we do here. STEM is a curriculum based on the idea of educating students in four specific disciplines — science, technology, engineering and maths – needed to fill the jobs of today. Yet music is a subject that's being cut
Read MoreThe transition from nursery to ‘big school’ or Reception can seem huge – both to you as parent and to your child! But with the right preparation, your pre-schooler will be just as able to meet the challenge as the little mouse who took on the Gruffalo. Read on to discover how your little one get ‘big school-ready’ and how to say goodbye on that first day so it’s a happy one your child – and you!
Read MorePupils have been working as dissection detectives in the science lab at Sompting Abbotts Prep School. They have been investigating Barn Owl pellets found in the school grounds.
What child doesn’t love to collect handfuls of glossy brown conkers? At Sompting Abbotts, they don't just fill their pockets — even socks become makeshift pouches. And so, at this time of the year, we send the children out into our school grounds to look for shiny conkers (not that they need any persuading).
Following our earlier announcement in July of the shortlisted entries for the Independent Schools of the Year 2023 awards, we're delighted Sompting Abbotts Preparatory School has been selected as a Finalist in the Independent School of the Year for Environmental Achievement category.
Sompting Abbotts warmly welcomes Mr Chris Gunn as Headmaster, taking the mantle from Mr Stuart Douch who served from 2013-2023. We're grateful that Mr Douch will continue to enrich our community as Head of English and History. We extend our heartfelt gratitude for his excellent past leadership.
Sompting Abbotts’ annual Speech Cup of Poetry and Performance saw every child from Years 3 - 8 learn and recite a poem by heart! The best performances were chosen at a special competition in front of an audience of their peers and their parents. It was judged by an external expert adjudicator.
© Sompting Abbotts School Ltd. Companies House registration number 417499: Registered office: Sompting Abbotts School Ltd, Church Lane, Sompting, West Sussex, BN15 0AZ. Tel: 01903 235960. Sompting Abbotts Preparatory School is an independent school in West Sussex, located near Worthing, Steyning and Brighton. It is a member of the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools. Bursaries /financial assistance may occasionally be awarded to suitable applicants in cases of genuine demonstrated financial need. Contact: The Principal, Patricia Sinclair, Church Lane, Sompting, West Sussex, BN15 0AZ. Email: office@somptingabbotts.com Website Privacy Notice. Terms & Conditions. Cookies. Website concept, design, videography, photography and copywriting by www.connectedcopy.co.uk
At Sompting Abbotts, we adopt a school-wide ethos that embodies our commitment to the environment. Its principles – 'Embrace Nature; Embrace Learning; Embrace Childhood' – are threaded through our teaching, influencing every child's journey from Pre-Prep to Upper Prep. Our 30-acre grounds and woodland in the South Downs National Park are at its roots.