The Junior School at Dulwich College
Introduction
We are delighted to offer your son a place at Dulwich College for this coming September. We hope this booklet will give you and your son a flavour of life at the Junior School and at the College and convey our sense of purpose; a school where the boys are bright, interesting and full of boundless energy for the breadth of opportunities around them. Dulwich College always puts the individual needs of each boy at its heart from the Junior School upwards.
Dr Toby Griffiths Head of Junior School
Independent School of the Year 2022 for Contribution to Social Mobility
Helping Boys Settle
Arriving in September
When boys join the Junior School, we do all we can to make sure that they settle in quickly, make friends and really enjoy learning and their new environment. • We have a very well tried and tested process for welcoming new boys and their parents into the school; parents always remark on how smooth the transition is for their son in a feedback survey submitted during the first term. • By June, each joiner will be assigned their own Year 6 buddy, who will also be in the same House. • Buddies then write to introduce themselves to the new boys before an induction afternoon and typically new boys write back. • At the end of the summer term, we host a new boys’ Induction Afternoon where their buddies meet them and provide a tour of the school. Of course, all the new boys will also meet their new teachers and classmates on this occasion. • All new boys are photographed during the afternoon and teachers learn their names over the holiday in time for their arrival in September. • Over the holiday, the Clubs booklet is sent out to all parents and boys so that they can select the lunchtime and afterschool clubs they would like to join. Choices are confirmed at the beginning of term.
• When boys arrive in September, they are again paired with their buddy and given a checklist of things to achieve in their first few days, such as learning the rules of patball or reading a book to each other in the Library. • In the first week of term the whole school has a team building day where each House is divided ‘vertically’ with each group containing boys from all four Year Groups. Over the course of the day, staff from their House will cheer the boys on through eight team building challenges taking place all around the campus. This memorable day leads to bonding with boys up and down the school.
“The buddy system is excellent and from what I can tell the Year 6 boys have been utterly welcoming and kind to the new Year 3s, which has made the experience so wonderful for them. Well done Year 6.”
“I have settled in well at the College thanks to friends and teachers.”
“We felt that our son was really welcomed, he loved the atmosphere at the College from his first day and has made great friends.”
Helping parents settle into the Dulwich Community
Excellence inside and outside the classroom Learning is at the heart of Dulwich College and the Junior School, referred to as the ‘primacy of the classroom’. In practice this means our academic expectations and standards are very high. This is not measured simply in terms of results and attainment, crucially it is seen in the attitudes of the boys in the areas of study and knowledge beyond the curriculum. Throughout their time at the College, boys are given intellectual opportunities and experiences designed to encourage curiosity as well as a deep and independent enjoyment for learning. Learning at Dulwich is by no means confined to the classroom; annual examples include themed Symposium Days with lectures by internationally-known academics with seminars led by experts in their fields, A-level
• After the boys’ Induction Afternoon, we host a New Parents’ Evening, which provides an introduction to staff members and a helpful briefing on the school day, uniform, music lessons, extra curricular activities, after-school care, the coach service and more. Over drinks, parents can chat with their son’s Form Tutor and fellow Form parents. • Reps from The Friends of Dulwich College (our ‘Parents Association’) host an introductory coffee morning on the first day of term to welcome new families to our community. • Shortly after the start of term, all parents are invited to a Social and Curriculum Evening to learn the plans for their son’s Year Group (academically, pastorally and from a co-curricular perspective) and to offer another chance for new parents and staff to get to know each other.
plus courses studied alongside the A Levels are used to delve deeper into the subjects, scholars’ groups and our off-timetable weeks explore different themes under the titles, for example, Dulwich Creative/ Inventive/Linguistic/Political. The Junior School starts the free-learning journey with our own age-appropriate Symposium, shared with a local girls school. In addition there are Dulwich special subject weeks, trips, workshops, academic House competitions and an emphasis on approaching research projects in the most creative, widest way (eg boys can write songs, stage a puppet show, devise a board game or construct a model to demonstrate their newly gained knowledge on their chosen topic). Throughout the Junior School, the boys will have many opportunities to engage in project work to develop their academic curiosity, independence and creativity. We now have Forest School across the Junior School. Free Learning culminates in the Year 6 “Great Exhibition” in which the children answer their own questions about the UN Global goals in the form of several mini-projects, an ‘action’, and presentation to parents and children.
“The settling procedure, environment and teacher / child relationship has exceeded my expectations. I see my son happier and flourishing in his class, wanting to learn and not disappoint . I’m very pleased for him.”
The Junior School starts this process with its inclusive, extensive and diverse programme of clubs, Music, Sport, Drama and Dance as well as the comprehensive House system. One of our maxims is that all boys get ‘to be and do everything’ by the time they leave the Junior School.
“Every interaction we’ve had, and our son has had, with the school has made us feel so inspired and so welcome. Our son literally loves school...he jumps out of bed ready and excited, bounds out of an evening with stories, loves every single aspect. We’re honestly so delighted with the school and his/ our experience.”
Exceptional holistic education
We believe in a holistic education, ensuring our pastoral care and extra-curricular provision is as excellent as our academic achievements. Our facilities, set in 70 acres, and staff expertise allow for a diversity of opportunities outside the classroom. Boys are valued for their individuality and our teachers encourage them to understand themselves and to appreciate each other. We ensure that all our children have rich experiences beyond Dulwich to ensure they become empathetic citizens of their local and global community. We also ensure that community service is embedded into the curriculum so that the children learn to ‘serve’; for instance, our Year 4s support local food banks and our Year 6s work with children from a local refugee project.
“The pastoral care has exceeded my expectations. My son has never been so happy to attend school.”
Co-educational Opportunities
We use our links with local girls’ schools JAGS and Sydenham High to provide a bespoke co-educational programme for each year group so the boys and girls can work together on fun days, workshops, and projects. These may be free learning events like our Junior School Symposium, Debating days, Philosophy Days, or undertaking Forest School or charity projects together. The children learn how to work with each other and they build lasting friendships. In the Lower and Upper Schools this collaboration continues with team building project days and co- educational opportunities that include drama productions, CCF, Scouts, music and a fully
integrated weekly Liberal Studies curriculum in Year 12 and Year 13.
DULWICH COLLEGE Dulwich Common, London, SE21 7LD Telephone: 020 8299 9248 Email: junior.school@dulwich.org.uk Web: www.dulwich.org.uk Registered Charity No 1150064
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