A new school can look very daunting to an 8 yearold about to begin
boarding school:
First Impressions of School
The palace of a school house,
The great mansion of beds in the dormitory,
The ocean in the swimming pool,
The luscious green fields,
The croquet players,
The lords of Wogga who gather every break,
The stable block where little foals neigh
Their answers to their master-horses,
Then the great bell chimes,
Ding, Ding, Ding,
Lessons ended,
Hooray
School
- Andrew Peaple, aged 10, The Yardley Courtier,
Kingsland Grange, 1981???September 1984
In The Beginning
My first impression was an enormous gigantic house, seeing
that the school I was at before was a mouse compared with the
Blue Whale.
- Christopher Reid, The Farleigh Review, 1988
The first day I was in Kendale, I was in Miss Crump's class
because I had already spent Kindergarten in another school. I
remember the first day: I was crying because I didn't want my mother
to go away. Once I was in, Miss Crump tried to make me feel better but
I was still terrorized. Suddenly the two who are now my best friends -
Dominic and Kate - welcomed me and immediately made me feel part of the
big Kendale family.
- Sean Puglisi, Kendale Newsletter, June 1989.
My Mummy and Daddy came. My Mummy kept shouting Victoria because she
wanted me to win. The badges were all colours--green, orange, yellow,
and blue. My Daddy was very busy camera filming. I saw the film when
I got home. I was on it all the time.
- Victoria Lee, aged 5, Hordle House Magazine, 1987-88.
???? - William Kirkpatrick, The Farleigh Review, 1988
First Impressions
When I first looked at Queen's, all I saw was a big building
covered in dark red bricks and lots of ivy, which looked as if it
was trying to suffocate the wall.
- Junior Wyvern (Queen's College Junior School), 1987-88
Traditional British prep schools were boarding schools, but day schools
in recent years have become increasingly important.