Discovery Centre and Sanctuary

The Discovery Centre

The Discovery Centre is a place for exploration and discovery about our world and the universe. It houses our extensive new library, from which teachers and children across the school can borrow books. The Discovery Centre is, however, much more than just our new library! It is also our STEM hub at Southborough. STEM stands for: Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. 

Book Reviews and Book Recommendations

Not sure what to read next? Ask for a book recommendation and we will find something for you! When you complete this form, Miss Hinton and our Year 6 Reading Champions will find your next book for you. When your book recommendation is ready, your Discovery Centre Ambassadors will collect your new book and bring it back to your classroom for you.

If you have really enjoyed reading a book from the Discovery Centre, you can also submit a book review! All children are encouraged to submit a book review, if they would like to, for a book they have borrowed from our Discovery Centre. Every term, we will select reviews to be displayed alongside book reviews by our Reading Champions in the Discovery Centre.

The Sanctuary

The Sanctuary is a very special space at the heart of our school where our children can find peace, reflect in prayer and flourish together in Christian community. In the autumn we asked pupils and staff what they would like to see the Sanctuary used for. Their vision is that the Sanctuary becomes a guiding light, a safe harbour, a beacon of hope and a solid foundation for our school community.

Keepers, Ambassadors and Champions

Discovery Centre Ambassadors, Year 6 Keepers and Reading Champions all work together to promote the Discovery Centre, the Sanctuary and reading to children across the school. 

Year 6 Keepers

Our Year 6 Keepers look after the Discovery Centre and the Sanctuary. A Keeper is someone charged with responsibility for the preservation and conservation of something valuable. Our Year 6 children are all invited to apply for the position of Keeper. They work for one term in either the Discovery Centre or the Sanctuary for one lunchtime every week.

Being a Keeper means holding a position of responsibility in our school. We expect that Keepers will promote our school vision in all that they do and become beacons of light in our school community.

Each week, Keepers share podcasts about the Discovery Centre and the Sanctuary which you can watch here:

Find out who our Keepers this term are and what they are doing below:

Keepers of the Discovery Centre

Our Keepers of the Discovery Centre look after the library in the Discovery Centre and promote the space to children across the school.

Keepers of the Sanctuary

Our Keepers of the Sanctuary look after the Sanctuary and ensure that everyone treats it with respect and care.

Discovery Centre Ambassadors

Our Discovery Centre Ambassadors are children who act as ambassadors for the Discovery Centre in their classroom. An Ambassador is a representative or promoter of a specified activity. Ambassadors help their class teacher to choose new books from the Discovery Centre and they look after their classroom library. All children in Years 1-6 have the opportunity to be the Discovery Centre Ambassador for their class during the school year.

This term, our Discovery Centre Ambassadors are:

STEM Ambassadors

Reading Champions

Our Reading Champions promote reading for pleasure across our school. To be a champion means to enthusiastically support or promote a belief, right or principle. Our Reading Champions are responsible for sharing their love of reading and promoting the right to read for pleasure. Every term, our Reading Champions lead an assembly during which they share their love for reading with the whole school.

This term, we have three groups of Reading Champions. Reading Champions meet once a week in the Discovery Centre and they are all expected to read lots and write book reviews about the books they have read. As Reading Champions, they have the privilege of being able to use the Discovery Centre during their lunchtimes to read a book, browse the library, write a book review or work on their projects. Find out what they are up to below:

Year Five

Arabella, Sookie, George, Ava, Ayla and Louis are all reading 'A Kind of Spark', written by Ellie McNicholls. The story follows Addie, a young girl in Edinburgh who is tormented by peers and adults in her school. Addie is autistic, has a supportive family and is very alert to the injustices of the world around her. When Addie learns what happened to women from her community who were believed to be witches in the past, Addie is determined to set up a memorial to honour their history. The novel is a moving and encourages empathy and awareness. The Year 5 Reading Champions will write reviews, take part in quizzes and discuss passages to explore the themes in their text. In the last few weeks of term, they will be planning and creating their project to share with the wider reading community at Southborough. 

Year Six

Julia, Bruce, Ralph, Eliza C, Eliza L and Bella are reading Tom Palmer's WW2 novel 'Resist'. The story is inspired by the life of Hollywood star Audrey Hepburn and her childhood spent in Arnhem during the Nazi occupation of her hometown. Each week, the Reading Champions will discuss passages from the text, play drama games and share their responses. They will be spending the last weeks of term prepping for their end of term project, which will be shared with the rest of the school in an Assembly Video. 

Year Six Quiz Group

Gaspard, Isabella, Poppy, Ralph and Hattie are registered to take part in the National Reading Champions' Quiz this year. Each week, they will read and review a diverse selection of texts to introduce themselves to new titles and authors. They will be taking part in weekly quizzes testing their book knowledge, and will be creating their own Southborough Reading Quiz to be shared later in the year. This Reading Champion group will continue into terms 4 and 5, meeting every other week throughout the term. Their first round of quiz heats will take place on March 24th, 2023.

Reading Champions' Assembly

At the end of each term, Reading Champions lead the Reading Champions' end of term assembly, sharing the books they have been reading with the pupils at Southborough. 

The end of term assembly is an opportunity for Reading Champions to promote reading for pleasure, share their ideas and 'bring a book to life' through their creative projects. 

Term 1 Assembly Video: 'October, October' and 'Belonging Street'

Term 2 Assembly Video: 'Coraline', 'The Last Wild' and 'High-rise Mystery'

Term 3 Assembly Video: Quiz Group and 'Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Being Good'

Story Seekers 

The Story Seekers are a group of children from Year 4 who have undergone training to develop their oracy and storytelling skills. Following 8 weeks of training outlined by the National Theatre, the Story Seekers sought out traditional tales from around the world to prepare for their final performance. Click the link below to view their performance of the Ugandan tale, 'How Death Came to the World'.