As part of our celebrations for World Poetry Day, all the pupils in Forms 5 – 8 gathered in the Walton Hall where we joined, via the internet, a large number of schools for an online poetry writing session. The idea was that each school should let the poet who was coordinating the composition of the work know how many people were present and then to hope that more people than ever before were involved in the composition of a poem. It was wonderful to be part of such a national effort and I will be intrigued to see what level of quality is produced by such an enormous pool of talent!

Incidentally, one of the boys gave a short talk on the origins of the Guinness Book of Records. Apparently it started life as the result of a dispute between two wealthy landowners about which was the fastest game bird. These days it includes entries about more contemporary and vital concerns such as who has the longest finger nails (Ayanna Williams with a total length of nail measuring 576 cm) or who has the world’s longest tongue (Chanel Tapper measuring 9.75 cm).

I was very touched when I went down to read to Nursery on Wednesday. The boys and girls listened with great attention to my first story, a Hairy Maclary classic. They then listened with equally focused concentration to my second story. But, however hard I tried, and how ever dramatically I read, I could not keep my audience focused on my third book. “Em!” said Miss Helen. “I think they are a two-story group.” I had never realised that the unit to measure attention spans is the number of stories that can be listened to. But upon reflection, I think it’s a very good way. Increasingly I am hearing of adults who are listening to audio books as they drive or travel. Do they have two story concentration spans I wonder?

I wanted to recommend to you our upcoming event on Friday 18th October, when we have arranged a visit exclusively for parents of the School to explore Tom Tower, the beautiful tower above the entrance to Tom Quad, designed by the great English architect Sir Christopher Wren, who was most famous for having designed St Paul’s Cathedral in London. Every week the whole Prep School passes under the tower but very few of us have ever been inside. It is much larger than you might think, with an extraordinary interior of considerable dimensions and height. At the top is one of the great objects of Oxford (though almost never seen even if frequently heard), namely Great Tom, one of the largest Mediaeval bells in the country, which really has to be seen to be believed. It weighs a massive six and a quarter tons. The tour will also include drinks in the McKenna Room, one of the private rooms in Christ Church at the top of the Great stairs. This will be an opportunity to visit one of the hidden gems of Oxford and to socialise with other parents. I hope to see you there. 

As part of our enrichment programme, I have just taken a small group of boys to see the place in Oxford where Tolkien gained the inspiration for those hideous creatures that cast a shadow over the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the Orcs. There was no one else there as we cast our eyes on those horrific faces. Perhaps some of the boys will now be able to tell you where they are. I’m not letting on – it’s one of the benefits of the enrichment programme at CCCS!