Masterclasses
Masterclasses
If your child is naturally curious and loves to learn, our programme of Masterclasses will be a perfect match for them!
We bring together like-minded children to explore subjects such as Philosophy, Spanish, History, English, Mathematics and the Sciences in a fun yet thought-provoking way.
The sessions are highly interactive, cover areas beyond the National Curriculum and give the children the chance to meet and work with others from a wide range of local schools.
“Our Masterclasses welcome pupils from over 70 local primary schools”
How it works
Sessions take place on Saturday mornings, over four or six weeks. Many Masterclass pupils find the experience to be a confidence booster and excellent preparation for secondary school.
Saturday Masterclasses are for current Year 5 children, with an interest and ability in the subject.
- Masterclasses are free of charge
- Each session is independent of the others
- We expect children to commit to a complete series of classes
- Children may participate in only one Saturday course per term
- We welcome all applications, but those from children who have already attended a Masterclass will be given lower priority
- We welcome feedback from parents and children
Masterclasses in action
Masterclass testimonials
History and English
My daughter found the Masterclasses fascinating. She loved spending her Saturday mornings at the classes – enjoying learning for the sake of learning, not achieving. A very positive experience, with inspiring teachers. (ZW, Barnabas Oley Primary School)
The Masterclass showcased Kimbolton’s excellent standards of motivational teaching and friendly staff. The course was so well-organised that both my son and I felt welcomed and engaged. (MP, Godmanchester Community Academy)
Our daughter arrived at the first Masterclass a rather grumpy 9-year-old who was extremely put out at having to be somewhere at 9am on a Saturday morning! She also perhaps felt a little overwhelmed and apprehensive at the introduction within the Castle. However, one hour later she emerged a lively, beaming and enthused child asking if she could go to Kimbolton School! After that she looked forward to the early Saturday starts and enjoyed every session. We can’t recommend the Masterclasses enough and really hope she’ll be able to attend another one. (JC, Thorndown Primary School)
He loved that the history was local and loved seeing the actual spaces in the school that related to the learning – it brought the lesson to life. (Anon)
A wonderful and inspiring opportunity that my daughter has enjoyed every minute of. Thank you so much! (LB, Thurleigh Primary School)
My son loved the English & History Masterclass. The course content was interesting and by recapping throughout, he learnt a lot, which was fun. It was as close to perfect as it can get for a 10-year-old. (MM, Offord Primary School)
Thank you very much for the great Saturday mornings. My son fell in love with Kimbolton School. Great teachers teach there and the atmosphere is amazing. He misses the school already. (AMB, Stukeley Meadows Primary School)
Mathematics
A fantastic opportunity for my child to learn in a fun, stimulating and welcoming environment. His confidence in his own mathematical ability has soared, huge thank you to all of the incredible staff. (Anon)
Our son thoroughly enjoyed his Masterclass sessions and they have had a really positive impact. Thank you so much to the Maths department staff for such a fun and inspirational course! (Mr and Mrs P, Round House Primary Academy)
My son loved going to the maths classes and had an amazing time. (EK, Alconbury C of E Primary School)
The sessions were really engaging and it has definitely improved her confidence in maths at school. (JP, Wheatfields Primary School)
My daughter thoroughly enjoyed her 6 weeks of Maths Masterclasses. She found them really fun as well as challenging. She particularly enjoyed the team challenges even though her team came last!! (SP, Priory Junior School)
My son was extremely excited when he discovered he was going to take part in the Kimbolton School Mathematics Masterclass as he loves numbers and maths. Every time he came out from a session he was always smiling and eager to share what he had been learning. It has been hugely inspiring for him to experience learning about maths outside of the typical curriculum content he’s currently being taught. He had a huge determination to complete his Menger Sponge when he got home from the final masterclass and even employed me to fold card and help with the assembly! He and I are very grateful to Kimbolton School for providing such an awesome opportunity, and to the lovely member of staff who helped make it happen with the advice and information I was given in the early stages of applying for a place. We’d do it all over again if we could! (Anon)
Philosophy
The masterclasses were extremely well-organised and my son found them interesting, thought-provoking and enjoyed learning about things he hasn’t learnt at school. The teachers were friendly and encouraged them all to share their ideas which meant my son felt heard and part of a special group. (RD, Titchmarsh Primary School)
My daughter found Kimbolton‘s masterclass in philosophy particularly thought-provoking and it helped her look at the world in a way that she never had to before. She particularly liked thinking about the current ways the world works and how fair competition is potentially influenced by economic inequality. (MA, Thorndown Primary School)
This is a great initiative by Kimbolton. It enables young children from other schools in the area to experience different academic challenges and meet new people. (RR, Houghton Primary School)
My son recently took part in the philosophy masterclasses at Kimbolton and I have to say it has been one of the best learning experiences he has had. The teachers were knowledgeable and enthusiastic which helped him to consider concepts he has previously never questioned. (Anon)
My son has come away every week with a thirst for more of this and questioning much more. He commented, “I don’t want it to end!”. He has taken so much away from this, thank you again. More of these are needed!! You are doing a great job. (RR, Thrapston Primary School)
Sciences
I enjoyed the science masterclass very much and I thought all teachers were really nice. (AD, Westfield Junior School)
The science at primary school is so boring compared to the Kimbolton Masterclass, it’s the best thing ever! (Anon)
Our son looked forward to his Masterclass each week and was excited to learn new topics with each session. He enjoyed having a folder where he could bring home items to show us what he had learned. (JS, Thrapston Primary School)
H has thoroughly enjoyed the masterclasses, a fun and inspiring way to learn. The fun, practical interactive sessions enhanced the academic learning. The information and arrangements were clear and detailed. Beautiful surroundings for the children to learn within and for families to spend time whilst waiting. The tuck shop was a hit with our family! The welcome and final meeting with the headmaster, who presented certificates, gave a lovely sense of occasion and achievement! Thank you for the experience and opportunity. (Anon)
Masterclasses provided a fun environment to learn and inspired a new interest in science! (SN Great Staughton Primary Academy)
My son really enjoyed his science masterclass. The experiments were exciting, and he loved being in a group with other children who love science as much as he does. (Anon)
Spanish
My son really enjoyed Spanish. Learning new language is tough but made fun with the class examples! Plus the experience of a different school and teachers is an excellent opportunity. Would recommend. (VA, Brington C of E Primary School)
My son loved his weekend Spanish classes. He is looking forward to applying for the next lot of classes. (MH, Winhills Primary Academy)
My daughter thought her Masterclass was ‘super interesting’ and that it was a great learning environment. We found the whole application/introduction process very smooth and were delighted with just how much Spanish she picked up in a few weeks. (LJ, Bushmead Primary School)
My daughter loved experiencing the Kimbolton environment, being in the school was inspiring in itself for her. The teachers were welcoming and knowledgeable and made her learning experience challenging but fun. She particularly enjoyed making the guacamole for homework one week as something different from her normal style of homework. It has certainly motivated her to want to carry on learning Spanish. (AT, Crosshall Junior School)
My son really enjoyed the Spanish Masterclass course – he thought it was fun and looked forward to going every week. His teachers were welcoming and enthusiastic about the subject and the content was engaging. We would both definitely recommend the masterclasses as they are a unique extended learning opportunity. (VD, Brampton Village Primary School)
The masterclasses are fantastic. I really think it also gets them prepared a bit for the next stage in their school lives, meeting new people and exploring new things. The masterclasses are fun and my daughter has loved each week she has been. (KS, Ringstead C of E Primary School)
Chemistry (evening lecture)
The evening was excellent, and kept the audience attention with exciting experiments and an engaging teacher.
I enjoyed this as much as my daughter did, I’d forgotten how fun Chemistry is! This brought it all back for me and my daughter now has a new found interest!
Well planned and presented, so much so that my son and his year 6 friends were fixated for the whole 90 mins. The masterclass inspired my son so much that he now wants to study chemistry at GCSE.
I am so pleased my daughter and I got to experience this event. It was well organised and extremely engaging from start to finish. The teacher presenting was knowledgeable and clearly had a passion for chemistry which was great to see. I wish this event could invite all local schools to help generate a love for science in children. A great event. Thank you for having us.
A really enjoyable evening for both myself and my son. He was a bit reluctant to go but came out beaming and said it was ‘awesome’! The speaker was excellent, very engaging and made chemistry come alive! Have already recommended to friends. Thank you.
We found the masterclass absolutely wonderful. The teacher was so passionate about science and the school is very lucky to have such engaging, passionate and inspirational staff.
Physics (evening lecture)
My daughter absolutely loved it and I really enjoyed witnessing her reactions throughout. She definitely thinks physics is exciting now!
Fantastic session and show! It was so engaging and informative. A brilliant way to help children aspire to be thrilled with science. Well done to all involved including the organisers etc. Great job.
The boys absolutely loved the Physics Masterclass. It was both educational and fun and I don’t think either of them wanted it to end!
My daughter and I had an awesome time, it was entertaining, funny and educational, my daughter loved being able to join in, thank you.
Absolutely Brilliant. So welcoming. Great ‘Fun’ bunch of physics teachers!! My daughter came away begging me to come to the school for such fun classes. Thank you!!
Extremely enjoyable and a great way to learn.