06 December 2018
Christmas is welcomed in words and music by John Lyon pupils
Well-known carols and Christmas readings have helped pupils, parents and staff get into the Christmas spirit, as Autumn Term draws to a close.
Hosted by St George’s Headstone, a short distance from School, the annual concert at the start of December was a feast for the ears as John Lyon’s musicians gathered to put on a real Christmas treat for an audience of more than 200.
Based on the traditional Victorian service of Nine Lessons and Carols – first formalised at around the time of John Lyon’s founding in 1876 and made world-famous by the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge – nine readings telling the story of the birth of Jesus were interspersed with songs by the School’s Motet Choir, Year 7 Choir, and Pride of Lyon’s, poems, and congregational carols accompanied by brass and organ.
Favourites included It Came Upon the Midnight Clear, The First Nowell, In the Bleak Mid-Winter and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, with poems by Carol Ann Duffy and Christina Rossetti.
Guests were treated to mulled wine and mince pies after the concert and a retiring collection raised £400 for pupils’ chosen charities.
Love Came Down at Christmas
Christina Rossetti
Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, Love Divine,
Love was born at Christmas,
Star and Angels gave the sign.
Worship we the Godhead,
Love Incarnate, Love Divine,
Worship we our Jesus,
But wherewith for sacred sign?
Love shall be our token,
Love be yours and love be mine,
Love to God and all men,
Love for plea and gift and sign.
John Lyon is an independent school, a member of HMC, ISC and is reviewed in the Good Schools Guide.
Pupils typically join John Lyon in Years 7, 9 and 12, largely from a North West London catchment area including Harrow, Wembley, Stanmore, Pinner, Watford, Rickmansworth, Northwood, Ruislip, Hillingdon, Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Southall, Ealing, Acton, Edgware, Brent Cross, Finchley, Barnet, Camden, Westminster, Kensington & Chelsea, Hammersmith & Fulham, as well as other parts of Middlesex, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire.
See forthcoming open events, concerts and exhibitions on our What’s On page.
We provide a wide range of sporting activities and opportunities for all pupils.
At our Prep School we concur with educational theorists who emphasise the importance of the creative mind and ‘emotional intelligence’ and ‘wellbeing’ – the need to develop the whole personality and our pupil’s imaginations especially. Drama has the power to liberate the mind.
We encourage our pupils to become healthy, independent and responsible members of society. 
At our Prep School, Computing covers the use of electronic technology in all its forms, including computers and other communication devices.
• What is religion?
Art is an integral part of our Prep School’s curriculum, providing our pupils with a unique means of expressing their ideas by allowing them to explore new thoughts and give life to their creative minds.
History is taught throughout the School and pupils are encouraged to find out about events and peoples.
Planet Earth is our only home. It is an mind-blowing, diverse and constantly changing place of awesome beauty and power. 
French is the language of our nearest neighbours, probably the easiest foreign language for English speakers to learn and, after English, one of the most widely-learned languages worldwide.
The core of every science lesson at our Prep School is about developing every pupil’s curiosity in the world around them. 
Mathematics is a key subject for children of all ages at our Prep School.
English is taught using lively and creative methods through a variety of texts and resources incorporating ICT from Pre-Prep onwards.