📚 All Hallows Preparatory School Review: Curriculum from Age 3 to 13, Balancing Academics and Wellbeing | All Hallows预备学校全解析:从3岁到13岁课程设置,兼顾学术与幸福感
All Hallows Preparatory School is a co-educational day and boarding school in Somerset, England, for boys and girls aged 3 to 13. This review walks through its curriculum framework, its specialist teaching in the upper years, its creative and sporting provision, and the way the school tries to hold academic ambition and pupil happiness in the same hand.
All Hallows预备学校(全圣预备学校)是一所位于英格兰萨默塞特郡的男女同校学校,为3至13岁的男孩和女孩提供日校与寄宿教育。本文会系统梳理它的课程框架、中高年级的专业化教学、创意与体育资源,以及学校如何在学术追求与学生幸福感之间维持平衡。
1. All Hallows at a Glance | 学校速览
All Hallows is a co-educational preparatory school in the south-west of England. It welcomes pupils from age 3 to age 13 and offers both day and boarding places, which means local families and international families share the same classrooms, playing fields and boarding houses.
All Hallows是一所位于英格兰西南部的男女同校预备学校,招收3岁至13岁的学生,同时提供日校与寄宿学位。这意味着本地家庭与国际家庭会在同样的教室、运动场和宿舍中共同生活和学习。
The school positions itself as traditional in values but modern in method. In practice that means clear expectations, good manners and structured routines, delivered through contemporary teaching approaches, up-to-date facilities and a genuinely broad curriculum.
学校把自己定位为"价值观传统、方法现代"。落到实际,就是既有清晰的行为期待、良好礼仪与规律作息,也采用当代教学方式、现代化设施以及真正多元的课程设置。
A brief table helps parents see how the school is organised before looking at the curriculum in detail.
在看具体课程之前,下面这张简表可以帮助家长先了解学校的整体结构。
| Stage 阶段 | Ages 年龄 | Typical focus 主要特点 |
| Nursery and Pre-Prep 幼儿班与预备部 | 3-7 | Play, phonics, early numeracy, Forest School 游戏、自然拼读、早期数学、森林学校 |
| Lower Prep 低年级 | 7-9 | IPC topics, hands-on learning IPC主题、实践学习 |
| Upper Prep 中高年级 | 9-13 | Specialist teaching, laboratory science, senior school preparation 专业教师授课、实验室科学、中学准备 |
2. A Somerset Prep School: Setting, Ethos and Aims | 萨默塞特预备学校:环境、理念与目标
All Hallows sits in the Somerset countryside, within easy reach of Bristol and Bath. The setting matters: green space, fresh air and a manageable campus size allow younger children to move around safely and give older pupils room to grow without being lost in a very large school.
All Hallows坐落于萨默塞特乡村,距离布里斯托尔和巴斯都不远。环境本身很有意义:开阔的绿地、清新的空气以及规模适中的校园,让年幼的孩子可以安全活动,也让年长的学生有成长空间,而不会在一所超大学校里"被淹没"。
The stated aim is to balance academic achievement with pupil wellbeing and to develop well-rounded learners. That phrase is common in school marketing, so it is worth asking what it looks like day to day: small classes, strong tutor relationships, a wide activity programme, and adults who know each child by name.
学校公开的目标是在学术成就与学生幸福感之间取得平衡,培养全面发展的学习者。这句话在很多学校的宣传中都会出现,因此更值得追问它在日常中如何体现:小班教学、紧密的导师关系、丰富的活动安排,以及真正认识每一个孩子的老师。
Wellbeing is not treated as the opposite of academic rigour. The argument is that a settled, confident child reads more, asks better questions and performs more consistently, especially in the crucial final years of prep school.
在这里,幸福感并不是学术严格的对立面。学校的主张是:一个情绪稳定、自信的孩子会更愿意阅读、更敢于提问,也更容易在预备学校最关键的几年里保持稳定的表现。
3. The IPC as the Curriculum Backbone | 以IPC为核心的课程骨架
The core framework is the International Primary Curriculum (IPC), a skills-based programme built around cross-curricular topic units. Each term a particular theme is explored, and subjects such as history, geography and science are linked with art, music and creative design.
学校课程的核心框架是国际小学课程(IPC),这是一套以技能为基础、围绕跨学科主题单元展开的课程体系。每个学期围绕一个特定主题进行探究,把历史、地理、科学等学科与艺术、音乐、创意设计等联系起来。
Because the IPC is thematic rather than purely subject-by-subject, pupils practise transferable skills: research, collaboration, resilience and enquiry. A topic on rivers, for example, can involve map work in geography, measurement in mathematics, persuasive writing in English and model-making in design technology.
由于IPC是主题式而非纯粹分科推进,学生能够训练可迁移的能力:研究、合作、抗挫力与探究精神。比如一个关于"河流"的主题,可能同时涉及地理的读图、数学的测量、英语的说服性写作,以及设计技术课上的模型制作。
International-mindedness is another strand. Children are encouraged to look beyond their own immediate experience and understand how people in other places live, which is especially valuable in a school with a mixed local and international intake.
国际视野是另一条主线。学校鼓励孩子跳出自身经验,去理解不同地区人们的生活方式,这对一所本地学生与国际学生混合的学校来说尤其有价值。
4. Cross-Curricular Topics in the Lower School | 低年级的跨学科主题学习
In the lower years, learning is deliberately practical and topic-based. Younger pupils explore knowledge through doing, handling objects, going outside and asking questions, rather than only sitting and copying from a board.
在低年级,学习方式刻意偏向实践与主题化。年幼的孩子通过动手、触摸实物、走到户外和提问来探索知识,而不是仅仅坐着抄写板书。
One often-cited example is a visit to Bristol Zoo to study rainforest ecosystems. A trip like this links science (habitats, adaptation), geography (climate, location) and English (descriptive and explanatory writing) in a single memorable experience.
一个常被提到的例子是前往布里斯托尔动物园学习雨林生态系统。这样的外出活动把科学(栖息地与适应性)、地理(气候与位置)和英语(描写与说明性写作)整合进一次难忘的体验中。
Trips, visitors and practical projects also build the vocabulary that later academic work depends on. A child who has seen a rainforest exhibit, touched a leaf and drawn a food chain is far better placed to write about it with confidence.
外出考察、客座讲座与实践项目也在积累后续学术学习所依赖的词汇量。一个见过雨林展区、摸过叶片、画过食物链的孩子,在写作时会明显更有底气。
5. Progression in the Middle and Upper School | 中高年级的进阶路径
As pupils move up the school, the curriculum becomes more specialised. Science is introduced in a laboratory setting from Year 5, so pupils learn to handle equipment and follow proper experimental routines before they reach senior school.
随着年级升高,课程逐渐走向专业化。学校从五年级起在实验室环境中开设科学课程,让学生在进入中学之前就学会使用实验器材、遵循规范的实验流程。
From Year 6, all core subjects are taught by specialist teachers. This shift mirrors the structure of a senior school, so pupils get used to moving between departments, different teaching styles and higher expectations of independent work.
从六年级开始,所有核心科目都由专业教师授课。这一转变与中学的学科结构接轨,学生因此会习惯在不同科组之间切换、适应不同教学风格,并面对更高的独立学习要求。
The progression is not only about content. Organisation, note-taking, meeting deadlines and preparing for assessments are all rehearsed deliberately, because these habits decide how smoothly a child settles into Year 9 and beyond.
这种进阶不只体现在知识内容上。时间管理、笔记整理、按时完成任务以及应对测评,都是被有意识训练的能力,因为这些习惯直接决定孩子进入九年级及之后能否顺利过渡。
6. English, Reading and the Accelerated Reader Programme | 英语、阅读与加速阅读系统
English and reading are given particular emphasis across the school. Reading is treated as the engine of academic progress: it feeds vocabulary, comprehension, writing style and confidence in every other subject.
学校尤其重视英语与阅读能力。阅读被视为学业进步的发动机:它为词汇、理解力、写作风格,以及在其它所有学科中的自信提供支撑。
To make this concrete, the school uses the Accelerated Reader system, which tracks pupils' reading and helps raise their level over time. Pupils choose books within an appropriate range, then complete short quizzes that show whether they have understood what they read.
为把这件事落到实处,学校使用加速阅读(Accelerated Reader)系统,追踪学生的阅读情况并持续提升其阅读水平。学生在合适的难度区间内选书,读完后完成简短测验,以检验是否真正读懂了内容。
The value of such a system is the data it produces. Teachers can see who is coasting on books that are too easy, who is struggling silently, and who is ready for a bigger challenge, and then adjust guidance accordingly.
这套系统的价值在于它提供的数据。老师可以看清谁一直在读过于简单的书、谁在默默挣扎、谁已经可以挑战更高难度,并据此调整阅读指导。
7. Learning Support and International Pupils | 学习支持与国际学生
All Hallows has a Learning Support Centre, and international pupils can receive additional help there. Support is typically targeted rather than generic, focusing on the specific gap that is holding a child back.
学校设有学习支持中心,国际学生可以在此获得额外帮助。这类支持通常是有针对性的而非笼统的,重点在于找出真正拖住孩子的那一个具体缺口。
For pupils learning in English as an additional language, the priorities are usually vocabulary, reading fluency and the confidence to speak in class. Extra sessions are most effective when they are coordinated with what is happening in the mainstream classroom.
对于以英语为第二语言学习的学生,重点通常在于词汇量、阅读流畅度,以及在课堂上开口表达的自信。当额外辅导与主课堂内容彼此配合时,效果最为明显。
Parents considering a UK prep school from overseas should ask clear questions: how often does support take place, is it individual or in small groups, how is progress measured, and does it cost extra? Precise answers tell you more than warm reassurances.
从海外考虑英国预备学校的家长,应当直接提问:支持课程多久一次、是一对一还是小组、进度如何衡量、是否需要额外收费。具体的答复往往比一句"请放心"更有参考价值。
8. The 9-Acre Forest and Forest School | 9英亩森林与森林学校
The school has a nine-acre forest on site, used as an outdoor classroom for its Forest School programme. Children learn bushcraft and practical outdoor skills, including outdoor cooking, in a controlled and supervised environment.
学校拥有占地9英亩的森林,用作森林学校项目的户外教室。孩子们在受控且有监督的环境中学习野外生存技能与户外实用技能,其中包括户外烹饪。
Forest School is not simply a reward for finishing work early. It develops risk assessment, teamwork, patience and problem-solving, and it gives children first-hand experience of ideas that appear in books.
森林学校并不是"提前写完作业"的奖励活动。它培养风险评估、团队协作、耐心与解决问题的能力,也让孩子亲身经历书本里出现过的概念。
Being outdoors regularly also supports concentration and emotional regulation. Many children who find sitting still difficult indoors thrive when a task involves building, fire-lighting, cooking or navigating.
经常在户外活动也有助于专注力与情绪调节。很多在室内坐不住的孩子,一旦任务变成搭建、生火、烹饪或辨向,反而表现出色。
This connection with nature is deliberate: the school links outdoor learning to environmental awareness, so pupils learn to look after the spaces they use.
这种与自然的连接是有意设计的:学校把户外学习与环境意识联系起来,让学生学会爱护自己所使用的空间。
9. Art, Design and the Creative Centre | 艺术、设计与创意中心
Creativity has a dedicated home. The school has a purpose-built Art and Creative Design Centre equipped with modern tools including an A2 laser cutter and 3D printers.
创意教育拥有专门的空间。学校设有独立建设的艺术与创意设计中心,配备包括A2激光切割机、3D打印机在内的现代设备。
Pupils have the chance to work on genuine projects rather than only exercises. One example is a shoe-making project run with an external partner, in which pupils design and make a real product and see an idea move from sketch to finished object.
学生有机会参与真实项目,而不只是做练习。一个例子是与外部合作方开展的鞋履制作项目,学生需要自行设计并制作一件真实产品,亲眼看到想法从草图变成成品。
Design work of this kind teaches iteration: try, test, fail, improve. Those habits transfer directly to science investigations, mathematics problem-solving and essay drafting, where the first attempt is rarely the best one.
这类设计学习训练的是"重复改进":尝试、测试、失败、优化。这种习惯会直接迁移到科学探究、数学解题和文章写作中,因为第一次尝试很少就是最好的版本。
10. Tennis Academy and Sporting Opportunities | 网球学院与体育机会
All Hallows is one of a small number of preparatory schools with a dedicated tennis academy, and it has links with the tennis programme at the University of Bath. That connection gives pupils access to a high-performance environment and to coaching expertise.
All Hallows是少数拥有专门网球学院的预备学校之一,并与巴斯大学的网球项目保持联系。这一联系让学生有机会接触高水平训练环境与专业教练资源。
Coaching is available for pupils of different levels, not only for the strongest players. A well-run academy should stretch the elite while still giving beginners proper technique, enjoyment and match confidence.
学院为不同水平的学生提供指导,而不仅面向最强选手。一个运作良好的学院,既要让高水平学生继续突破,也要让初学者获得规范技术、乐趣与比赛自信。
Sport more broadly matters at prep age because it builds fitness
更多咨询请联系16621398022(同微信)

或截图后用「扫一扫 → 相册」选择本图