Dear Parents

We are excited to share an update on our playground – a space that brings so much joy, movement, and discovery to our boys each day. Our aim is to create a space that inspires imaginative play, supports physical development, and fosters positive social interaction. For various reasons the playground reopening has been delayed by the building team. The new expected date to open our playground is on 5 May.

This upcoming week is a special time for reflection and celebration in South Africa. As we honour Freedom Day and Workers’ Day, we are reminded of the values of courage, unity, and the importance of every contribution – big or small – that helps build our country and community. These are also the values we hold close here at school, and which we see our boys learning to live out in small but meaningful ways. As we head into another little break, we want to wish all our families a restful and joyful week ahead.
Whether you're heading away for a change of scenery or enjoying a quieter pace at home, we hope this break gives your family time to connect and create memories.

Please remember that the boys will change over to winter uniform from Monday, 5 May after our week's break.

Please take note of the following:

Water polo pool upgrade and the inpact on our parking

Please be advised that the existing drop and go facility off Sandown Road will be closed from the 5th of May 2025. This has become necessary as the lane is to be used as part of the construction site for the development of a new modern water polo pool facility.  Parents are encouraged to use the School entrance off the public carpark opposite Rondebosch Park.The existing pedestrian gate off Sandown Road will also remain open for the duration of the build. Mr Mthintsilana and his team will be there to help the boys out of the cars. The construction will last until the end of the year. Apologies for any convenience caused.

Access to Lutgensvale
During the week and on weekends, whenever the gate is locked, those who have purchased a key from Bishops Reception, have access to the fields to walk, play and to walk dogs. Dogs must be kept on a leash at all times and walkers must clean up after their dogs.

Access to the College campus
Access to the campus is permitted for current pupils at Bishops at reasonable times. Boarders residing on campus may use the facilities within the times set by their respective Houses. Day boys may come onto campus outside school hours and on weekends, provided these visits are made during the day and that the facilities are respected at all times. The following specifics apply:

•  There are to be no organised games on Sundays but boys may come onto the campus if they are dressed in Bishops uniform (easily identifiable as a pupil) or in a vehicle carrying a Bishops access sticker. A boy’s parents or siblings may accompany them for the purposes of using the facilities such as the cricket nets.
• The Astroturf is out of bounds to all pupils unless a Bishops hockey coach is present or permission has been granted by a member of staff. The mini Astro may be used without permission or a coach present. The Astroturf and cricket nets are closed to all on Sundays.
• No organised coaching may take place on a Sunday unless specifically approved by the Executive.
•  No private coaching may take place on Bishops grounds without the expressed permission from the Executive.
• The use of the grounds and facilities by ODs is not guaranteed as the facilities are for current pupils, but ODs may request special permission through the Head of Sport.
  

Happy birthday to Mrs Maged for 25 April, Ms Fisher for 1 May and Coach Mo for 4 May.

Kind regards

TARYN BAIN
HEAD: PRE-PREP

Fun Sports Day with Gr N and R VUSA children on our fields.

Our Fun Sports Day starts at 09h30 and will end by 10h30. Grades N & R will host our friends from VUSA, and our Grade 1 & 2 boys will have fun races against each other in their respective grades. All parents are invited to support the boys.The boys will remain at school after our sports day and continue with their day and extracurricular activities.

School closed

School will be closed for public and school holidays from Monday 28 April until 2 May as per our calendar. School will re-open on Monday, 5 May.

Hope-Hear Civvies Day Collection

Hope-Hear is a locally based non-profit company that focuses on optimising brain growth by facilitating language development. Language has a critical time frame for acquisition and is integrally linked to brain development in the first 4 years of life. They have done this through a three-pronged approach. First, Hope-Hear have implemented the only universal newborn hearing screening programme in the state sector in South Africa. It is based at Mowbray Maternity Hospital, which accounts for 10% of the babies born in the Western Cape each year. They hope to expand the programme for better follow-up and coverage during the course of the year. Secondly, Hope-Hear are working with provincial departments to prevent infectious and preventable causes of hearing loss through education programmes for primary healthcare nursing staff. Thirdly, they are addressing the language gap that children from low socioeconomic groups display through a technician-led, community based language stimulation programme for mothers and infants on the Cape Flats. Please make a monatory donation to support this worthy cause.

• It’s not always enough to know what’s right—we must also have the courage to do what’s right.
• We’re called to be brave, to stand up for others, and to make kind and just choices—even when it’s hard.
• Easter invites us to live with integrity, compassion, and strength.

As we return to our school rhythm after the Easter break, we encourage our boys to carry the Easter message forward:

• In the classroom, by including others and showing kindness.
• On the playground, by choosing fairness over popularity.
• In their hearts, by remembering that Jesus stood for love, and calls us to do the same.

Let’s help our children grow into young people who don’t just celebrate Easter once a year—but who live out its message every day.
Wishing you a continued season of joy and renewal,

Thank you to all our families for the very generous Easter egg donations that were made. Easter eggs were given to our three VUSA schools. We received an overwhelming response and also shared the Easter eggs far and wide with Luke's children's home, Heaven's Nest Child Care and Recreation Centre, Leliebloem children's home, Hospice in Athlone, Edendale Primary School in Manenberg, Sherwood Park Assembly of God Church in Manenberg and Oak Haven which is a care facility for the aged.

It's been a short 2 weeks leading up to the Easter weekend and the four school days we've had this week. We've been discussing New Life in line with our second Easter theme. The boys made beautiful Easter baskets and had a very exciting hunt for their easter egg. We have a great relationship with the Easter bunny and he always comes to Bishops a little earlier than to your homes. Each Monday the boys experience the most fantastic music lessons with Mrs Swanich. They are given opportunities to play all sorts of instruments and musical games. Through these interactions they are already learning about rhythm and beat and even being exposed to what music notes look like and mean. Mrs Gedu set up an exciting hair salon in the art room imaginative play area. Many moms had their hair done on their Monday morning visit! 

Our term started with welcome rains and cooler weather, and our boys ready to explore the colder seasons.  “Egg-citing” Easter art has sparked lots of free drawing and painting.  Remarkable Blue Hues were created, inspired by Picasso’s Blue Period. Colour mixing was the highlight, as our boys encouraged each other to mix new shades of blue. 

Mrs Green and Mrs Hendrickse's classes have each had their turn to go on their class outings to the Alphen Trail. The boys had a lovely day in the great outdoors learning about all things South African and even created a South African flag using whatever natural resources they could find in the forest. In Maths we have been learning about measuring length and capacity and have measured all kinds of things. We have moved onto the ‘Magic e’ sound in phonics and are always on the lookout for words where ‘Magic e’ makes the vowel say its name. The boys are having so much fun with this phonic sound and spend each day spotting words or names of objects with the Magic e sound. They have even made a kite and written fantastic stories about travelling to all sorts of places. Even with all this fun, the highlight has to be the recent visit by the Easter Bunny. Our campus has been a flurry of excitement as the boys spent the day finding ‘proof’ that the Easter Bunny had in fact made his annual visit and left an easter egg behind for each of them.