Father Courage
17th June 2017
This week we have had an amazing number of exciting activities at school and as I sit here thinking about a focus for my Blog it is hard to know what to choose. It all began on Monday with the start of Rock Week. We had a wonderful opening assembly with the children entering the assembly hall to Queen’s iconic song ‘We will rock you’. Young children do not need to be encouraged to join in and as they filed in with a huge smile they began to clap along and soon the hall was filled with the lively chorus ‘we will, we will rock you’.
Matt, a seasoned rock star from Rocksteady, who I would heartily recommend, then delivered an enthusiastic assembly featuring electric guitars, drum kits and keyboards and the singing and the clapping continued in a most impressive way. Who knew that our children were more than familiar with a catalogue of rock tunes both new and iconic!
The rock joy continued all week with rock music at play times and another fabulous guest with an acoustic drum kit who delivered a history about drums followed by some exciting playing which the children loved. It was then the turn of the children to have a go on the kit and some serious talent was revealed in Year. Do check out our Twitter feed @StChrisEpsom for the evidence.
Every year on the Friday before Father’s Day we hold our Father’s Day Challenge morning and this year it was also the day that closed Rock Week. Fathers were duly emailed to see if any dads were courageous enough to play us out of the week with a live performance. The only caveat was the one rehearsal available was a few hours in the school hall the night before. 12 good men accepted the challenge led brilliantly by Super Dad Mr Adam Assen who prepared and coordinated the two pieces and the results were just fantastic!
On Friday the sun shone and 90 wonderful dads arrived at school accompanied by children bursting with joy. A trio of enjoyable challenges were presented on a rotational timetable: obstacle races in teams on the tennis courts, construction challenge fun in the bark area and horse trials on the lawn. Do see the website News page for photographic evidence! I have never seen such a group of sporting gentlemen who threw themselves into each activity so wholeheartedly (if at times a tad competitively!). It was a magical morning. We then all sat down for well-deserved refreshments on the lawn and up stepped ‘for one night only’ our very own Fathers of Rock. The whole field jumped up to dance their way through the encore and we really didn’t want it to end.
After thanking all the Fathers for giving up their mornings and joining in with such a terrific spirit we all thanked the gallant band of 12 who had entertained us so beautifully. The children joined their fathers for photos with the band and mention was made by departing guests of recreating this moment for another PTA event. Stepping up and having a go is at the very heart of the St Christopher’s ethos. To see this modelled by the dads warmed our hearts. Thank you all for inspiring us. Happy Father’s Day!
Annie Thackray