Prep School
Discover a Love of Learning
Our Notre Dame Prep School forms the foundation for our children’s educational career. Our strong academic grounding is interweaved with a rich exposure to sport, STEAM, art, music. languages and drama all taught by specialist teaching staff in exciting and stimulating learning environments.
A message from the Head
Notre Dame Prep School is a very happy school with a wonderful sense of community and a great sense of fun and spirit! We are very proud that we have been educating girls and the youngest boys for more than 400 years since our foundress, Jeanne de Lestonnac, established the Order of the Company of Mary our Lady in 1607 with the aim to provide girls of all faiths with an education in life and for life.
The Prep School forms the foundation for our children’s educational career. Everything we do is underpinned by a strong academic grounding in a safe, exciting and stimulating learning environment.
We are committed to the pastoral needs of our pupils. All children have a voice and all successes, no matter how small, are celebrated. We strive to educate our children to be good people with strong moral values and encourage all members of the community to stretch out a hand of kindness to others. Most importantly, our pupils look forward to coming to school and have a genuine love of learning.
I look forward to welcoming you to our school and relish the opportunity to start your children on their educational journey at Notre Dame.
Mrs Amelie Morgan
Prep Headmistress
All-round, Exciting and
Challenging Prep Education
We believe in a mastery approach to teaching and learning where key skills and concepts are taught and understood before moving on, encouraging deep learning and thinking. We want our children to be inquisitive problem solvers and to use their imaginations for creativity and original thought; we are very proud of our strengths in drama, art, music, sport and languages and by our pupil-centred humanities curriculum.
We have high expectations of our pupils, encouraging them to excel in all areas of school life though we work hard to allow our children to be children by giving them access to a truly, rounded, exciting and challenging curriculum.
Reception Curriculum
Our Reception class(es) welcome girls age 4 to 5 years. We follow an enhanced version of the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum and each week’s activities for all girls are planned around a particular theme.
Read, Write, Inc (our English scheme) and White Rose (our Numeracy scheme) encourage the mastery of key skills through fun, well-paced, focused lessons that incorporate ICT and stimulate an energetic, confident love for learning.
Our curriculum is further enhanced with lessons taught by specialist teachers that include drama, dance, swimming, PE, music, forest school, and Spanish.
Reception girls are taught by a dedicated teacher and teaching assistant. Staff work and plan together to ensure the principles of the EYFS curriculum are met and in line with each girl’s age and stage of development.
These themes encompass seven areas of learning:
Prime Areas:
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Physical Development
Communication and Language
Specific Areas:
Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the World
Expressive Arts and Design
Infants Curriculum
(Key Stage One)
Infants incorporates Year 1 girls aged 5 to 6 years and Year 2 girls aged 6 to 7. Following your child’s early years education, our department continues to provide a child-centred, supportive and exciting environment in which each of our pupils can thrive to their full potential.
The Key Stage 1 curriculum is rich and varied and covers all the standard National Curriculum Key Stage 1 subjects. We teach the core subjects of English and maths through up-to-date schemes. Read, Write, Inc (our English scheme) and White Rose (our numeracy scheme) encourage the mastery of key skills through fun, well-paced, focused lessons that incorporate ICT and stimulate an energetic, confident love for learning.
Our curriculum is further enhanced with lessons taught by specialist teachers that include drama, dance, swimming, PE, music, and Spanish.
Each of our Infant classes are taught by a dedicated teacher and teaching assistant. Staff work and plan together. Lessons are carefully differentiated to challenge and motivate, to encourage independent thinking, risk taking and to allow all pupils personal success.
Throughout the infant department, personal and social skills are a fundamental part of our teaching.
We are a family and, like all families, our children are taught to care for and support each other and to work together harmoniously. We want our pupils to become well-rounded, confident, sociable individuals who persevere when met with challenge and who flourish as their strengths are recognised and celebrated.
Junior Curriculum
(Key Stage 2)
Juniors incorporates Years 3 to 6 (ages 7 to 11). Following your child’s Infant education, our department continues to provide a child-centred, supportive and exciting environment in which each of our pupils can thrive to their full potential.
The discovery of self is especially important during the Junior years. The girls are encouraged to increase their independence and to take more responsibility for their own learning.
The Key Stage 2 curriculum is creative and rigorous and goes beyond the standard National Curriculum Key Stage 2 subjects. Girls are given a strong foundation in the core subjects of English, maths and science. A broad range of other subjects (including humanities, art, drama, dance, Latin, ICT, swimming, PE, music and Spanish) is taught by subject specialists. Girls also have the opportunity to develop their spiritual and social education through our RE and PSHEE programme.
We know our girls well and track their progress carefully to ensure a high quality experience for each individual. Every girl has challenging, objective targets against which her development is measured. This means we can intervene quickly to assist in keeping all girls on track, to achieve above and beyond expectation.
Throughout the Prep School, we share the same aims as our Senior School where girls have a strong sense of place and worth.
