Kendrick News Welcome from the Headteacher Welcome to our first Newsletter of 2014-15 and a special welcome to parents/carers of new students to Kendrick. We have had an excellent start to this academic year and all our new students in Years 7, 12, and the three new students in Year 9 and 10 appear to have settled in well and are enjoying life at Kendrick. I have had conversations with all Year 7 students and some Year 12 students and overall they tell me they are very happy about being at Kendrick. From the younger girls, they have told me how they feel inspired by everything around them: their teachers, lessons and most of all the older students. Students in Year 12 have spoken of how welcoming and pleasant everyone has been and how they have very much appreciated their teachers and staff, as well as, their Buddies who have helped them settle in. We have been joined by new staff this year: Mr Michael Wilson in the Economics and Business Studies Department, Mrs Yusra Malik in the Mathematics Department, Mrs Cathy Johnson in the Biology Department, Miss Katherine McDiarmid who is our Examinations Officer and Data Manager. We also welcome back Dr David Wright in the Chemistry Department. Once again we were very pleased and proud of all our students’ achievements in the summer examinations and congratulate them for their outstanding results. We are looking forward to Speech Day in December when we can welcome back our former Year 13 students, most of whom have started their university courses, as well as the students who left in Year 11 and formally acknowledge and congratulate them for their success. It has been a busy term as you can see from the number and variety of activities contained in this newsletter. The usual Term 1 events have taken place including our now annual School Birthday celebrations in September; charity events, notably Year 9 Charity Week which raised an astonishing £1270.50! There was also the SMILE Day event earlier in October. This week the House Music Competition took place, which for the first time was performed in the evening to a packed audience of parents and friends; we congratulate Sidmouth House for winning the competition. Outside of school, there have been a number of trips including the very successful residential trips to France and Germany that most of the Year 10 students were part of. Another regular feature of this term has been the Year 11 Work Experience Week early in October, when students went on placements, experiencing the world of work in a wide range of work places and professions. The reports we have received have shown us that not only did the girls
enjoy their placements but also the employers were extremely happy to have them.
October 2014
Also this term we have been continuing our commemorations of the centenary of the start of First World War which started with our Battlefield Trip in March and the Reflections Concert in July. This term, Mrs Carden, Head of the Art Department, has been working with Year 9 to produce our own poppies which we will place in our grounds on 11/11 as part of our Remembrance activities. Other Departments, including Textiles, Food Technology, English, History, Music, and Mathematics are also making their preparations for that week.
Term 1 2014/15
I would like to once again ask parents to complete an online survey called Parent View. This survey is run by the government and is the first port of call for an Ofsted inspection team when they begin a school inspection. We feel that in the event of an inspection we would want parental views to be a factor in that process. There is no restriction on who can view the results and the whole process is anonymous. The survey takes the form of a set of 12 statements to which there are responses ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. This is a potential source of parental feedback that we would like to use as we value your views on the school. The survey is limited as there is no space to make comments, but it is very quick to fill in; you have to register with Parent View prior to completing the survey. We would appreciate if you could complete this survey in the next few weeks. Please click here for a link. I would like to thank parents/carers for their support and encouragement so far this term. It has been a pleasure meeting new parents at the Year 7 and 12 Information Evenings as well as parents of Years 8 and 10. I would also like to thank parents who have made a voluntary donation to our School Fund; your support is vital to us and very much appreciated.
Classics News
Finally, my particular thanks to staff and students for their tireless efforts and focused attitude this term; I wish everyone a very happy and restful break. Best wishes Ms Christine Kattirtzi, Headteacher
Y9 Charity Week Work Experience School Birthday National Poetry Day Y10 MFL Residentials
Science News
Geography News KPS Update Valerie Hume Bursary
PE News Calendar
Contact Kendrick School London Road Reading RG1 5BN www.kendrick.reading. sch.uk
0118 9015859 admin@kendrick. reading.sch.uk
Year 9 Charity Week Year 9 Charity Week took place from the 13th-17th October and it was jam packed with fundraising events! Each form in Year 9 organised a bake sale and sold home-made cakes to staff and students around the school. We also ran a food fair on Wednesday lunchtime, where we ran stalls, sold home-made smoothies and organised games. The teachers also supported the cause and on Tuesday lunchtime eight teachers competed in an obstacle course in the Sports Hall! We ended the week with an own clothes day and we also ran a relaxation spa on Friday lunchtime: students and staff could pay 50p each to have their nails painted or a henna design (or both!) In addition to all of the events at school, we also organised sponsorship to raise more money. Each student chose a different way to raise money, such as swimming lengths in the local pool, giving up unhealthy snacks for a week, doing a sponsored skip and a sponsored run! The week was great fun and a great success! We raised
£1,270.50 for Cancer Research. We would like to thank all of the staff and parents who supported us and helped us to raise so much money for a great cause.
World Smile Day World Smile Day was a huge success, with many girls throughout the school wearing an item of pink and buying a cupcake. £92.44 was raised from selling all the cakes at the cake sale and £770.66 was raised in total. All the money raised was donated to Breakthrough Breast Cancer, an incredible charity that funds a quarter of all breast cancer research facilities in the UK. We would like to thank all the girls, parents and staff for making World Smile Day possible and raising a huge amount of money for a great charity. Thanks Abigail Cairns 12AFH and Louise Rooker 12TW
Year 11 Work Experience‌ by Naysa Munga On the week commencing 6th October, I ventured into the world of work. Having been told that there was the possibility I would be bored when working 9-5 I wasn't apprehensive but I was a bit nervous about the type of work I would be doing. I envisaged my 40 hour week to be full of coffee making, filing and running errands. But, it was much more than that. My work placement was at an E-commerce company called Advansys in Wokingham. I did my research before arriving so that I had an idea about the company and what they did, but to be honest I was still unclear about what they actually did. When I first arrived at the company, a whole 20 minutes early, I was asked to sit in one of the meeting rooms until Sharon, the lady who would introduce us to the company, arrived. The meeting room was essentially a glass box, so I sat waiting surrounded by people who were probably wondering what I was doing there. Eventually Sharon arrived and I was given my induction to the company, which included the rules about the company. After that, we went and looked round the building and I was introduced to each of the 'groups'. It felt a bit like High School Musical with the cliques as each group of workers had their own area within the open-planned room. There was the 'techie' group, the 'sales' team and the copywriters. I spent my week with the copywriters. Before work experience, I had no idea what copywriting was, but I was swiftly introduced to it and I found it really interesting. I really liked the fact that we were given our own desk space, with our own computer and login, so I felt as if I was part of the company. Copywriting not only enhanced my literary and research skills, I also learned how to collect relevant information and use it in either an article, blog or press release. I've always struggled with being concise, so this week really helped me to think constructively about how much to write, what the business' needs and wants are as well as what is relevant. Whilst on work experience, I learned all about the Island of Rhodes in Greece particularly about a small resort called Pefkos as I had to write many a blog about the best places to visit as well as family guides for holidays in Greece, how to create the perfect habitat for hamsters as well as how to groom cats - one of Advansys' clients was a pet supplier, how LED lights work and why you should switch from incandescent bulbs to save you money, electric bikes and their benefits for your health and the environment but most importantly I learned about the company. My favourite copywriting tasks were the ones on SEO Junkies, a subset of the company, who were responsible for SEO, Search Engine Optimization. Whenever I type into Google I'm now aware of the websites that are at the top and why they are lucky enough to be there as 75% of web users never click beyond the first page of search engine results. I also learned about Pay-Per-Click where companies pay to be either on the sides of search engines or at the top as advertisements to gain more sales. The most interesting part of SEO was Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO). Having chosen business studies for GCSE, this aspect really appealed to me as it was about how businesses online ensure that visitors convert (do what they want them to do which could be either purchase something or download an app, for example) as much as possible. Groups like SEO Junkies, work with businesses to optimise conversions, essentially make sales to increase revenue, by tweaking fonts, making the 'click to buy' button bigger or stand out more or even just make sure the customer's baskets are visible at all times. It's amazing how little tweaks statistically make a difference to conversions. As well as learning a lot from hours of research, I did have a fun time. I shared my work experience placement with Sakshi and during our lunch break, we created our own little routine of eating and then playing a game of table football. Yes, table football! There was also a ping pong table but we only got to play that on 'casual' Friday. I really enjoyed work experience and although when asked if I preferred work or school I did respond with school, I enjoyed learning some really new things, that I won't forget as I use the internet all the time, and also meeting some hilarious, lovely and new people that were always making jokes and laughing so they made my 40 hour week go much quicker. The one thing I won't forget was when on my last day, having baked some muffins as a 'thank you' and given them a card, at 5pm instead of the usual 5:30pm finish the phones were turned off and the music and disco ball was switched on and the table football and ping pong tournaments began! I was completely in awe and loved it and felt like I'd earned it after commuting and working all week. I was especially proud of only losing 10-2 to the Advansy champion of table football. I highly recommend work experience even if it's not in the field you're interested in as you can learn so much about the world of work from what you do and the people around you.
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Kendrick News
Kendrick School Birthday and KOGA Reunion September 2014 On Friday 19th September 2014 the school celebrated its 137th Birthday. This started with a whole school assembly written and led by students from Year 10. Mr Richmond had looked back through school magazines and other artefacts to find information about Kendrick at War and the students had written the Assembly using these facts. Chief writer was Warda Mansur, ably assisted by Vini Goyal, Harini Suren and Atena Soltanian. It all started with the sirens and then the ‘all clear’ sounding on 11th February 1943 and four girls emerged from one of the school’s three air raid shelters, ‘Dingley Dell’. Isobel Dyer, Shefali Kelkar and Serene Thomas played three Kendrick girls and Chloe Naylor played the part of an evacuee from East Sheen. They talked about the bombing on Reading the previous day and also the experiences of the evacuee and the Kendrick Knitting Klub (KKK). Mrs Runnells played a teacher of the time, who reflected back over life at Kendrick in WW1 and finished with a moving poem, written by a student at the outbreak of War in 1939.. The assembled students and staff joined together in a rendition of the school song ‘Floreat Kendricka’, which the students had been practising in their Music lessons with Miss Coad. All tutor groups also prepared their cakes for the cake competition. Year 7 were tasked with making individual cupcakes and arranging them on a board, Years 8 and 9 decorated theirs with an Arts theme, Years 10 and 11 with a subject of their choice and Years 12 and 13 with any aspect reflecting Kendrick life. All the cakes were displayed for everyone to see at first break and were then judged to find the best in each Year Group, the best in each Key Stage and also the overall best. The overall winning cake was a clever representation of the English Department sitting on books by 11S. Central to the cake display was the beautiful official cake created by Sophie Weeden 11S. The students enjoyed an extended lunch time with a picnic with their tutor groups. Unfortunately, this had to be indoors due to the unsettled weather, with Years 7 and 8 in the School Hall and other Years in their Form Rooms. At the end of the picnic, photographs were taken of the girls who were actually celebrating their own birthdays on the day, with Ms Kattirtzi by the official cake and everyone joined in singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to them and to their school. Following the Birthday celebrations with the current students, former students and staff were invited back to attend a Reunion on Saturday 20th September from 2.00pm to 4.00pm. They were able to enjoy tours around the school, with guides from Year 8 and members of the Head Girl Team, an address by Ms Kattirtzi, followed by refreshments and a taste of the celebration cake in the Gym. Among the ‘old’ girls present were a number who were at Kendrick during WWII, or just after and we were able to share their memories of the time, which gave more meaning to the facts we had learnt from our assembly. Many thanks to all who helped to make this day a success: Mr Colin Lewcock, Mrs Dale Vaughan, Mrs Sam Jordan and Mrs Lesley Pearce. Also thanks to the Year 8 guides: Emma Bannister, Orla Brown, Mya Coulter, Sophie Matthews, Lauren Mentiply, Esha Mungale, Eunice and Kirsty Phillips, Zaynab Rashid and Wanqing Sun; and the Head Girl Team: Simran Mann, Ellie Dodson, Sravani Royyuru, Sana Ali, Leah Ward, Faith Adikpe and Ka Yan Cheung, who also played the piano as the ‘old girls’ assembled in the Hall and accompanied the school song. Mrs Brunsdon and Mrs Griffiths, Cover Supervisors
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National Poetry Day -Thursday 2nd October Thursday 2nd October was National Poetry Day. The theme this year was REMEMBER which tied in nicely with thoughts of the First World War. Students were given the challenge of using their poetic talents to write a poem on the subject and the poems produced were extremely moving and thought-provoking. This is the poem written by Mary Lobo 11S. All of the students who took part should be commended and their poems will remain on display in the Library for Remembrance Day. Mrs Pearce, Librarian
Journey’s End On Thursday 18th September, Year 9 went to the Watermill Theatre, Newbury, to watch a play named Journey’s End. Journey’s End is a play by R.C Sheriff and is set in the trenches in 1918- towards the end of WW1. Here are some thoughts from various Year 9 students: “I found it very interesting how each of the characters had their own way of trying to ignore the violence.” “It was really interesting and gave us a really informative view into what the first world war was like and how much of a strain the soldiers experi ence.” “The play was shocking and eye-opening from beginning to end.” “Stanhope’s mood changing was really effective.” “The venue was great and the play gave a real, informal feel of the first world war.” “The actors, the venue and the set were great and it felt so real.” “It was an interesting experience to watch a play based around just one set.” “Although the end was so sad, it was definitely an effective reminder of the first world war and also an en joyable play.” “After a coach journey, we were all pretty excitable, but the play was so good that we were drawn in straight away.” Jess West and Yukina Partington, 9N
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Kendrick News
Year 10 Residential to Wiesbaden, Germany We left for Germany on Sunday 5th October and returned on Friday 10th October. The trip was amazing! We stayed in pairs, threes or fours in the houses of German families and spoke to them in German in the evenings and in the daytime we did a variety of activities… Monday 6th October: We travelled to Rüdesheim where we got on a cable car to go up to the top of the mountains. The views were amazing .There were lots of vineyards below and we had excellent views of the river Rhine. When we got to the top, we walked to a huge monument called “Germania” that was built to remind visitors of the strength and courage of the German nation in wars of the past. Then we went to a place called “Die Zauberhöhle.” This is a cave which had a pitch-black passageway leading to a viewing-point at the end where hunting friends of Prince Wilhelm used to admire the stunning views in the 19th Century. We then visited some ruins of a castle that was built in the 19th century to encumber sailors below on the Rhine with melancholy thoughts and inspire poets. On the way back down the hill, we travelled by ski lift and got off in Assmannhausen where we stopped for lunch. After lunch we took a boat trip to the beautiful Rheinstein Castle with lovely views and a fascinating history. Tuesday 7th October: We visited the Mathematikum museum in Giessen which was very interesting. Then, we were given some questions to answer and things to find in Giessen town centre so that we could explore and discover things about the area. Later, we visited a huge Haribo shop which was a real thrill – so many new varieties!!. Wednesday 8th October: We visited the Hessenpark, an outdoor museum, where old buildings from various parts of the Federal State of Hessen had either collapsed or were about to collapse and had been rebuilt. We had a guided tour and discovered what the lives were like of common people in Germany hundreds of years ago. Afterwards, we went to the top of a hill (the Neroberg) in the centre of Wiesbaden, the capital of Hessen, and then travelled down it and back up it again by a funicular railway. The way in this train works is so clever and yet so simple. Does anyone know how it works? We then visited a cafe where we had hot chocolate to warm up after the wet weather. Then, to finish off the day, we visited a beautiful Russian Orthodox chapel. Thursday 8th October: We visited Wiesbaden which is a spa town and the capital of Hessen. We were given the chance to sample the thermal waters which allegedly have great healing powers, although we were not convinced on account of the extremely salty taste! We had a guided tour during which we witnessed the pathetic performance of the tired cuckoo of the largest cuckoo clock in the world! Then we were given time to go shopping. Then we went to Schloss Freudenberg which is castle that has lots of exhibits designed to test your senses, which was totally novel and very fascinating. On the way home we visited a German supermarket which enabled us to make our last minute purchases for our families. The trip this year was amazing and so much fun. The activities were great and it was a great experience living in the houses of German people. We would recommend this trip to all future Year 10 classes as it benefitted us on many levels: culturally, linguistically and also it gave our selfconfidence a massive boost too! We hope you have an equally fun time when it is your turn. Viel Spaβ! Orla McCoy and Sarah Hurden
Year 10 Residential to Tours, France From the 5th to the 10th of October, 35 year 10 students went to Tours in France as an Educational trip. Tours is the largest city in the central region of France and it is nicknamed ‘Garden of France (“Le Jardin de la France”)’ because of the many parks in the city. We visited many places such as the Clos Lucé and gardens, Chocolaterie Bigot and Grand Aquarium de Touraine, Underground Caves and Futuroscope. We also visited two of the many castles in Tours such as Château Villandry and Château Chenonceau. On the day we arrived, we met the families we were staying with. In the mornings each one of our families would drop us off at the meeting point, where we met all the others on the French trip, before we went off visiting places in and around Tours. After visiting places, we would return to the meeting point and meet our families who would then take us back to their house. We had dinner with them and went to sleep at their house. Staying with a French family was truly an interesting experience because we learnt more about the local French peoples’ lives , but more importantly our French improved greatly. On the first day, of visiting places, we visited Clos Lucé and gardens, Mini Châteaux, Chocolaterie Bigot and Grand Aquarium de Touraine. Clos Lucé was one of the many homes Leonardo Da Vinci lived in, however this house was the last house he stayed at. Clos Lucé was very beautiful and we all had an amazing time exploring the gardens. The second day could have easily been one of the most interesting days of the trip. We visited Villandry Châteaux, Villandry caves and went on a very scenic boat trip along the river Loire. Villandry is known for its outstanding gardens and its very amusing maze. Some of us played hide and seek in the maze and had a great time! After the castle we visited the hand made caves, in the caves there were stalactites, stalagmites and amazing items undergoing the process of limestone petrification. Some animal statues, plants and very detailed paintings that took over 3 years to be completed. On our last day, before travelling back to England, we went to Futuroscope. Futuroscope is a theme park based upon the theme of multimedia, cinematographic and audiovisual techniques. There were many amazing simulations, most of us had never been on brilliant simulations like the ones at Futuroscope. One ride that all 35 of us loved was a ride called ‘dancing with the robots’. Some of us even went on the ride seven times in a row. We all enjoyed the trip very much as we visited some very beautiful castles and had an amazing time at Futuroscope. We could all say that it is one of the best trips we have ever been on so far. Thank you to Madame Hulley, Madame Cevera and Mrs Starkey for organising and accompanying us on the trip. We could not have done it without you! by Vidhushi Taduri and Simran Suden 10J
Having a ‘Star Party’ Over the summer holidays, some of us borrowed the binoculars and a telescope from the Physics department and had our own star party one night. We stayed out there for hours, identifying constellations and enjoying the clear night, all wrapped up in our sleeping bags. The equipment was also taken to Guide camp. The Guides thoroughly enjoyed their time with the equipment and the evening even inspired a few of them to sleep under the stars that night (however due to the temperature they were back in their tents half an hour later). Ruby Jones 13TC The Physics dept now has binoculars, ‘backpack’ telescopes, and miniDobsonian telescopes, all purchased with prize money won by last year’s students from the AWE science challenge. These all provide an easy way of ‘getting started’ in observing the night sky (and can be used for wildlife!). They are all easily portable and if you are interested in borrowing one, please see the Physics department noticeboard. Mrs Conlon, Head of Physics
Physics Coursework Trip On Monday 6th October 2014, the 41 Year 12 Physics students went on a trip to Thorpe Park as part of our AS Level coursework. The trip allowed us to experience "Physics in Motion" and let us see, at first hand, how physics can be used in the "real world", namely in the design and creation of rollercoasters. We will use our experience of Conservation of Energy when we investigate a related practical in our AS Unit 3. Since it was a weekday, the queues were short, allowing us to go on as many (or as few!) rides as we pleased. We experienced accelerating up to 80mph in under 2 seconds on Stealth, the 4.5 maximum G-force of Nemesis Inferno and the 100 degree drop of Saw: The Ride. All of us had a lovely, albeit slightly wet day, and we would like to thank Mrs Conlon, Mrs Sheppard, Mr Walker and Mrs Shyam Prasad for accompanying us and organising the trip! Ria Pandit 12 AFH
British Physics Olympiad 2014 -15 A2 Challenge 12 A2 Physics students have just completed this preliminary round of challenging Physics questions. 5 students achieved a MERIT award, Alicia Carrington, Naomi Pygott, Avishi Saxena, Chiara Sexton and Leah Ward who achieved the highest mark. They will be going on to do the main BPHO competition in November.
AWE A Level Science Challenge Day Wednesday 10th September 2014 was a very exciting day for the Physics department - representatives from AWE visited, bringing a whole host of fun physics challenges for us to try out. All 30 A2 Physics students were involved, grouped into 5 teams of 6. We had 45 minutes per challenge which was a lot less time than you'd think when you're working through the tasks; we had a go at launching ball bearings and predicting their landing point, refracting a laser, code breaking and even did some chemistry. There was also a quiz section, with tough questions on different topics like Nuclear Fusion. Even as part of the winning team (we got a book each as a prize - it was great) the tasks really got us thinking and some parts completely stumped us, but the morning was really good fun and it'd be wonderful to have them back again another time. Bethany White 13TC
Biology Week Cake Competition In celebration of Biology Week 2014 (12th-18th October), and to raise awareness of all things physiological, the National Physiological Society challenged science-lovers to make and send in photographs of homemade biology-themed cakes, with the chance of winning their BioBakes competition. After receiving nearly 300 entries, individuals from Imperial College London, the Academy of Medical Sciences, Science London and the Physiological Society compiled a shortlist of 11 cakes, of which my brain-inspired creation was one. I thoroughly enjoyed making my cake, as well as learning about all the parts of the brain while doing so! Mrs Kenward, Biology Department
River Chess Trip Report – Year 9 Geography Fieldtrip Last week, Year 9 went to Amersham to collect data from the River Chess. It took an hour in the coach, to reach the Field Studies Council centre, so we entertained ourselves by taking selfies! At the centre, we had a short lesson from the centre staff to brief us on what to do and to teach us a bit about the two sites on the River Chess that we would be collecting data at. We then drove to our first site and got stuck in. We had to measure width, depth, velocity, pebble length and pebble smoothness. Unfortunately, during this process, many of us found that our wellies didn’t quite reach above the surface of the water and that, between us, we had probably taken half of the River Chess away with us in our boots, along with some tiddlers! At our second site in the river, we took the same measurements, before heading back to the centre, dripping wet and laughing. We are now going to use the data we collected to do a project examining the downstream changes on the River Chess. The trip was really good fun; we were allowed to have a river race which resulted, for those who chose to be involved, in very high splashes and sopping wet Year 9 students. We would all like to thank Mrs. Wheeler, Mrs. Holden, Mrs Brunsden, Mrs Cook and Mrs Moreland, for making the trip happen. By Bethan Martin 9L
Year 10 and 11 Visit to Bath On Monday the 22nd of September, a group of year 10 and 11 GCSE Latin students enjoyed a long-anticipated daytrip to the Roman bathing complex at Bath. Whilst there, we were treated to a truly fascinating workshop, during which we examined many of the deeply religious to just plain odd messages uncovered on dedications and tombstones around the site. If our two-hour tour of the interactive museum had opened our eyes to the rich tapestry of life at Roman Aquae Sulis, this, truly, propped up the lids. The small personal tags imprinted upon the carvings, having survived untold ages, were simply enthralling. Here was a dedication stone intended as an advertisement, with ‘sculptor’ spelt incorrectly- could this be said to breed the slender possibility that the artist was Roman British, with Latin as a second language? And there we had ‘haruspex’ (‘soothsayer’) with the ‘spex’ crammed in at the end of the line- perhaps the abbreviation ‘haru’ was somewhat less than wellknown outside Italy? Furthermore, to lay on with the morbid details, whoever knew that ‘dis manibus’ was the Latin for ‘to the spirits of the departed’? Or, for that matter, that ‘VSLM’ was a foreshortening of ‘votum solvit libens merito’- ‘willingly and deservedly fulfilled his vow’? Then there was the sobering tale of the adopted freedwoman who perished at the brutal age of only one and a half years, her age recorded, lovingly, to the very day. We were also able to experience the thrill of our own detective work as we peered, fruitlessly, at fiddly instruments seemingly un-embracing of any purposeful definition and unfathomable bits of centuries-old broken cooking pot. That strange twiggy thing with a flat bit at the pointy end? Why, what else could it be but an earwax scoop? All the Roman ladies of leisure have (or, rather, had) one at their easy disposal! Mixed in with genuine artefacts, there existed a great deal of unrealistic- yet enthralling- replicas, giving a disparate sense of the here and now to the antiquated display. This, truly, was what the Romans would have searched for in the line of suspiciously fresh- not to mention intact-looking- glass perfume containers. Yet the truly ancient pieces held the deepest poignancy. Of course, the people of long ago would not have settled for mere chipped fragments of roof tile, but seeing even the splinters gave, I believe, all of us a deeper sense of the opulence of Roman high society andto be frank- the civilisation of this, I am afraid, civilisation so far predating our own. Classics Department
The Kendrick Trust—Trust Grants Available Each year the Trustees are able to give grants to students and ex-students. Details of these grants are given to all Year 11 and Year 13 students with their exam results in August each year, but are open to all students at the school. Current grants available are:
Travel scholarships of up to £500 each, to help with travel costs if a student is carrying out charity work abroad. The amount Trustees can offer will depend upon the number of students requesting a grant in any one year; Maintenance allowances of up to £500 for former students of the school whilst training for a profession, or similar advanced qualification, provided their application is made within 5 years of having left Kendrick. In exceptional circumstances allowances may be extended to former students undertaking a course in higher education; Assistance with the cost of travel, course fees etc. to current students who may be studying Music, Drama, Dance etc out of school hours; Exhibitions to relieve hardship which may arise during the course of a student’s education at Kendrick School.
Applications for grants for 2015 should be submitted to the Kendrick Trust no later than 31st January 2015. However, in exceptional circumstances applications may be considered at other times of the year. Students and former students should send their applications to Mrs J Elliott (Trustee) via Ms Kattirtzi at Kendrick School. Ms Kattirtzi has been requested to approve these applications before they are submitted to the Kendrick Trust. These applications should indicate the total amount the student must find and how they are raising the money themselves. The Trustees would also like to know how the student has contributed to school life. The Trustees urge all students to consider applying for these grants and look forward to receiving your applications. (Mrs) J Elliott, The Kendrick Trust Grants & Expenditure Committee
Whilst the majority of our students arrive at school well before the start time of 8.25am we do have a very small minority who are repeatedly arriving at school after this time. If a student arrives after the register has been taken either during morning or afternoon registration, they will be given an authorised late mark. If they arrive after 9am in the morning they will be given an unauthorised late mark which will count as an absence when calculating her attendance. Obviously if there is a problem with public transport we will take this into account, but if you drive your daughter into Reading and she is late we will not. Reading traffic is always busy in the morning and we ask that you leave in plenty of time to arrive in school so that your daughter is in her Form Room by 08.20am. These late marks are then analysed by the Headteacher and the Attendance Officer who will decide on appropriate further action. Please ensure that your daughter arrives at school before 8.25am every morning.
Valerie Hume Bursary In June 2014, Leonie Hutch was awarded the Valerie Hume Bursary for a Year 13 student in 2014 to pursue her interest in Arabian cultures and dialects. Below is a report on her trip:
It was entirely due to the kindness of others that I found myself on a flight to Marrakech this summer. As I stepped off the plane I was engulfed by a wave of heat and the faint scent of spice. Apparently on my first day temperatures reached 48ᵒC. I spent it travelling via bus, motorbike and foot to a small village in the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains. For the next fortnight I stayed in a mud brick house with a family of traditional Berbers. The irony was not lost on me that in the village I was the main attraction, whilst Marrakech was awash with gawping tourists. I spent my days fetching water from the well (sometimes with a donkey, sometimes without), baking a type of bread called khobz, making lentil soup known as harira if I was lucky, otherwise semolina soup, which I was less fond of, picking and preparing cacti, herding sheep, hiking and learning to make mint tea, all to varying levels of incompetence. I also made faltering attempts at speaking Amazigh, for which I was awarded the Berber name Tefawin. For the remainder of my trip I travelled around Morocco, which provided a very interesting contrast to the rural life I had been living. In Casablanca, I went out with the local skinny-jeanwearing, King-deriding, swearing, smoking liberal youth; in Rabat I had cocktails with some American diplomats and journalists; in Fez I acquired a ‘fiancé’ and was given a carpet as a ‘wedding gift’ and in Marrakech I spent my time assuring many concerned Moroccans that na’am, I know this is not the way to the célèbre Dejmaa el Fna, but this is the way I want to go, no, I am not avec mon mari, but wahid, and that although I am sure your son is very charmant I am expected elsewhere for Iftar, but perhaps our paths will cross again, Insha’Allah. For the entirety my trip, it seemed to me that I was the only one who did not think I was lost. Leonie Hutch
U18 Hockey Tour Kit was packed, tiger socks given out and food replenished. The U18 team were ready to go. After a 62 mile an hour limited bus trip on the M4 we arrived in sunny Swindon for a team training session. We started with a warm up and swiftly moved onto high paced passing exercise before learning a new box warm up for shots on goal. The most valuable exercise was the discussion and execution of "The Press" which was carried effectively into our later match. The training session was extremely beneficial for working as a unit by taking individual players with unique skills and enabling them to work together. The next stop on our whistle-stop tour was Cheltenham where the team enjoyed a good few hours of retail therapy and the staff savoured a welcome cup of coffee. After a lot of ogling at the sheer size and grandiose of Cheltenham Ladies College we changed into our tiger socks and headbands and got ready to play. The match was a fantastic challenge for the team and everyone played really well. Every individual improved throughout the game and gave 100% for the whole of the 50 minutes. At half time the score was 2-1 to Cheltenham with Kendrick feeling confident that more goals would be scored. By the end of the match the score was 3-2 to Cheltenham however this was unimportant to the team who were thrilled at the fantastic level of hockey played. A celebratory dinner was had at the local Harvester which was thoroughly enjoyed by all. Jovi Chendriah-Patel was voted player's player for strong tackling, passing down the wings and showing great improvement. Prina Sumaria was our donkey of the day for her own goal which involved busting some moves behind the goal line. The coaches' player was Stephanie Barnes for holding the back line, often under a great deal of pressure from opposing forwards, and for finding ways out of defence drawing on the morning training session. After a long day the majority of the team fell asleep on the drive home which, to be fair, was well earned. PE Department
Calendar for Term 2 2014/15 Wednesday 5th November
House University Challenge Y10 Art Trip, Watford U14 County Hockey, all day Thursday 6th November Oxbridge Evening, 6pm Senior Maths Challenge, Y12&13 Monday 10th November KPS AGM, 7pm KPS Meeting, 7.30pm Tuesday 11th November Y13 Safe Drive Trip Thursday 13th November L&T Committee, 6pm Friday 14th November INSET Day, School closed to all students Saturday 14th November Tanzania Training Weekend Monday 17th November U16&U18 Indoor County Hockey Y7 Study Skills Day Tuesday 18th November Y11 Sixth Form Conference Wednesday 19th November Sixth Form Open Evening, 6.15pm Thursday 30th November Autumn Profiling Day Y10 Enterprise Day International Evening Monday 24th November Y8 Charity Week Y11 Interim Reports to Parents Tuesday 25th November PSHCE Evening Wednesday 26th November Y11 Parent’s Consultation, 3.45pm
Thursday 27th November Friday 28th November Tuesday 2nd December Thursday 4th December Monday 8th December Friday 12th December Monday 15th December
Tuesday 16th December Friday 19th December
Food Show Trip, Y10&11 Resources Committee, 6pm Y13 Interim Reports to Parents Maths Olympiad Dance Enterprise Day Y13 Parent’s Consultation, 3.45pm Y11 GCSE Options Launch Y7-10 Interim Report to Parents FGB Meeting, 4.30pm Aachen Trip departs Christmas Jumper Day Speech Day (school finishes at 1.10pm) Christmas Concert, 7pm Y11 GCSE Options deadline End of Term 2, finish at 1.10pm
Link to Full Calendar on our website via this link