River House Montessori School

Just before half term we were visited by Animal Workshops Mobile Zoo. The excitement in the building was palpable as group by group, the children got to meet many cute and cuddly (and some not so cuddly) critters! There were polecats, the fluffiest angora bunnies we've ever seen, meerkats, an African pygmy hedgehog that should've been called Houdini because he kept trying to climb out of his enclosure, two terrific tortoises, a giant millipede, a 'skinny' pig (a guinea pig with no hair!), a snake, frogs, a spotted gecko and even a giant African land snail.

The two ladies were so knowledgeable and passionate about the animals imparting so much information that the children were awestruck as they listened to the interesting facts while moving around from enclosure to enclosure. They tailored their explanations to suit different age groups, ensuring that all the children understood and enjoyed the learning experience. Many of the children enjoyed stroking a variety of the animals but quite a few of the teachers were a little squeamish and not so brave! The animal that divided opinion the most was the hairless guinea pig, or, as they called it, the skinny pig.

All in all it was a very enriching and exciting visit and it provided a unique and memorable learning opportunity that our children will be talking about for a long time. Each class have sponsored an animal and have an adoption certificate in their classroom, so the memory of their furry (or scaly) friends will live on.

We were lucky enough to have a visit from geologist Mike Jones last week. He spoke to the children about how rocks are mined and the different formations of rocks. The children did a workshop where they got to handle different kinds of rocks and discuss how they thought they were formed. It was a thrill to see part of an actual meteor that had come from space and there was also a rock with diamonds in it, which got all the teachers excited! The children also got to see the 'toilet roll of time' which made a comparison to our time on earth and just how short a time we have been here in the grand scheme of things. It was all very fascinating 😀

Year 8 students had a great time visiting QE Olympic Park and the Olympic Village 🙌😀

We are proud to announce that we are now members of Independent Schools Association and that our periodic inspections will no longer be carried out by Ofsted but instead by the Independent School Inspectors.

Join one of our open morning events, we would love to meet you!👇👇👇

Would you like to visit our school? Drop us an email today! 👇😊