Senior and Sixth Form Newsletter

Senior & Sixth Form News January 2019

Dear Parents Christmas feels a long time ago now but let’s not forget some of the wonderful events that we enjoyed in the run-up to it, particularly our Carols by Candlelight which features in this newsletter. This is always a magical affair and we were not disappointed this time. Thank you to all involved, particularly Mrs Douglas and Mr Robinson.

Many of our pupils were hard at work over the Christmas holidays revising for mock exams. These are an important part of the academic journey as students learn how to prepare for and succeed in public examinations.

I hope that most of you have by now seen our development plans which are open for public consultation. I have been delighted with the overwhelmingly positive response and am looking forward to the next stage when we formally submit plans and look ahead to breaking ground. We will be keeping you up to date with progress as we move forward. If you haven’t seen them yet, the plans are on our website at https://www.altonschool.co.uk/about/development-news/ If you have any questions please email development@altonschool.co.uk We have a very busy term ahead as usual. I hope to see lots of you at our careers information evening on Wednesday, 30 January (details on how to book your place are in this newsletter) and I’m really looking forward to Oliver, our first co-educational school production, from 20 to 22 March. Our Drama team tell me that early rehearsals are going extremely well.

The development plans on display at the school last Friday.

The school office is here to help. If you have any questions about the school and are unsure of who to ask, please contact the office on 01420 82070 or email office@altonschool.co.uk

Careers

Over the Christmas holidays our students set about finding people with interesting jobs and interviewing them about their careers. The resulting reports were handed in to the Careers Department as entries in a competition about inspiring careers. We have loved reading through them and finding out about jobs as varied as florists, armourers, documentary film makers, and counsellors. Students also considered the different skills that employers are looking for and asked what advice their interviewees had to offer. Amongst the range of responses from among others doctors, tree surgeons, accountants, lawyers, and managers were three clear messages: 1) Don’t be afraid to try new opportunities - you never know where they might take you.

2) Be prepared to work hard - skills can be learnt but a good attitude will make you stand out from the crowd 3) Try to combine a passion with work - you’ll love what you do.

In February, the competition winners and runners-up are having tea with guests who have a variety of careers, including Damian Hinds, Secretary of State for Education. A full report will follow in the next edition of The Alton Term.

Thank you to everyone who entered and all those who have inspired our students.

If you can help support our careers programme please contact Mrs Penny, Careers Co-ordinator, at careers@altonschool.co.uk. We are particularly looking for speakers to talk about their job or career, mentors for students interested in your sector, work experience placements (which sometimes can be as short as 1 day shadowing) and exhibitors at our Careers Fair on 28 March 2019.

Don’t forget to join us at the careers information evening on Wednesday, 30 January from 7pm to hear about additional careers services and what they offer. The evening is aimed at parents of students in Years 10 to 13 but all are welcome. Please book at: https://careersinformationevening.eventbrite.com The competition winners are listed and pictured below with Mrs Penny, with runners-up in italics.

Year 7

Year 8

Year 9

Years 10 - 12

Benjamin Baxter

Anna Daly

Summer Grove Bella Gaynor (Y10)

Emma Boyson

Mia Passingham

Annabel Weller

Flo Weller (Y11)

Isla Maxwell

Jemima Hodges

Jessica Rendall

Bea Desmond (Y12)

Jake Imison Bronwyn Woods (Y12) Monty Cross Jess Stephenson (12)

Drama Day What a way to end the Autumn term! With the theme of ‘spreading joy’, the students in their Houses had one day to create a 12 minute play demonstrating a variety of skills. We had singers, gymnasts, artists, actors all come into their own as they performed to a panel of judges as well as the rest of their peers in the competition to win the Drama Day Cup. As always, each play was entertaining and humorous, but the criteria was tough. Lighting, sound, props, set and costume were all taken into consideration too. This year, all the scores were very close, but after marking each category the winning House was St Madeline’s!

Congratulations to everyone who took part.

Attention! Staff in training

Early in January Mr Swabey, Miss Hobday, Mrs Knight and Mr Bingham took part in the required army training in preparation for opening our Alton School CCF unit.

Having successfully mastered drill, badges of rank, navigation and skill at arms, our brave four are looking forward to a final week of tough training coming up soon. Good luck team!

Duke of Edinburgh award update Dates are now confirmed for the Bronze and Silver Duke of Edinburgh expeditions. These are: • 23-24 March - Bronze Practice Expedition • 5-7 April - Silver Practice Expedition • 23-24 June - Bronze Assessed Expedition • 29 June- 1 July - Silver Assessed Expedition Mr Morgan, DofE lead, says, “By now, all Year 10 pupils participating should be busy volunteering, learning a new skill and a new physical activity in order to complete all the tasks necessary to pass the Bronze Award. The same type of programme is required for Year 11s taking their Silver award. If they aren’t progressing, please contact me as we need to discuss how we get them on track. Our expeditions will take place at the Queen Elizabeth Country Park.”

In the summer term, information will be available for current Year 8s and 9s on the registration process and requirements to start the next wave of Bronze Award activities in September.

Pictured are last year’s Silver Expedition D of E group.

Our 2019 International Guests Arrive!

Last week we welcomed this year’s international students from Colombia and Germany. They are joining our annual international student programme (ISP) which is a 5-month intensive English course preparing them to sit the IELTS exam, an international English test, in June.

Tatiana, Maria Fernanda and Ana Maria have come from our sister school in Barranquilla, Colombia whilst Alex is from our German partner school in Hamelin.

As part of their course, the group visits local points of interest on a weekly basis. This week, we explored Alton and visited both museums, The Allen Gallery and the Curtis Museum. The students enjoyed learning about local history and had particular fun discovering the art of tea drinking.

As ever, our pupils have made them all feel most welcome and we look forward to a mutually enriching learning experience over the coming months.

The amazing Sauveterre experience Every year our Year 7s and 8s get the chance to spend 6 weeks of the Autumn term studying at the Chateau de Sauveterre near Toulouse in the South of France.

Kitty Thomas (Year 8), who has recently returned said, “I loved meeting new people and how friendly everyone was! My favourite memory is the table football and long pong tournament. I would recommend going to Sauveterre to my friends because it is a unique experience and you meet amazing people. The biggest challenge for me was leaving home but when I got to Sauveterre everyone made me feel so welcome.”

Head of our International Programme, Dr Gould explains, “In addition to improving their French, the pupils who attended Sauveterre have clearly grown as young people. They are more confident in their approach to learning and developing strategies to keep their communication in French afloat. We are working hard to keep their motivation for French alive by offering them a weekly chatter club, an extension work book to push their grammar, authentic youth magazines in French, and pen pals. They will also be talking to the whole school about their experience. Well done to these brave pupils!”

Equestrian News

Alton School and its alumni had an incredible presence and success at the annual Horse of the Year Show at Olympia this Christmas.

Daisy Harrap (Year 8) competed in the Shetland Pony Grand National Championships all week, her highlight being a win at the Thursday evening show. She then went up to Liverpool International Horse Show after Christmas and had two wins out of four races, including on the last night of the season and Daisy’s last ever race in the Shetland Pony Grand National series. So she really has gone out on a high! What an amazing experience she’s had and she’s done incredibly well. Between them, the young jockeys have raised just over £45,000 for The Bob Champion Cancer Trust, so well done to Daisy not just for your riding success but also your brilliant fundraising efforts.

With slightly bigger jumps, Sienna Charles (Year 11) came 5th in the Under 25 Grand Prix, which is a fantastic achievement. Sienna’s brother, Harry (an alumni of our Prep School) won the prestigious Raymond Brooks-Ward Trophy, awarded to the U25 rider who has shown the greatest potential for the future. Many congratulations to both!

This year we have introduced an equestrian scholarship to our scholarship programme. Please visit https://www.altonschool.co.uk/admissions/scholarships-and-bursaries/ for more information.

Spotlight on Tennis Issie Barfoot (Year 12) is on our full time tennis and education scholarship. Alongside studying business and sport, she receives an intense schedule of training. Issie’s programme includes: physiotherapist screening, nutrition workshop, mental performance workshops, twice weekly strength and conditioning sessions in the gym, as well as two hours of tennis coaching a day.

Issie plays at a high level and is part of the county team. Just last weekend she achieved her LTA (Lawn Tennis Association) level 1 coaching award, a fantastic achievement and her first step on the coaching ladder. Issie continues to work hard daily and will be back competing in competitions at the start of February after a small break to work on some technical elements of her game.

For more information about our tennis scholarship go to https://www.altonschool.co.uk/sport/fulltime-tennis-and-education-programme/

Carols by Candlelight Review

By Louise Douglas, Director of Senior Music.

I look from afar….these words from the traditional Matins Advent responsory sung by the Chamber Choir from the back of the Welsford Hall heralded the school’s annual carol services. A candlelit procession to the words from the Advent hymn Come thou Redeemer of the Earth followed, whilst the candles around the hall were gradually lit to bathe the whole space in a warm glow, an added feature this year being our wonderful four ‘stained glass’ windows displayed against the walls.

The exuberant joy of the festive season was aptly expressed by the Chanteurs’ interpretation of The Holly and the Ivy (complete with slick choreography) and the Junior Chamber choir singing Masters in this Hall, featuring our lovely Year 7 boys in their first public appearance. This mood was set at the beginning with A Little Child there is Born (Chamber Choir).

The reflective mood of Advent was represented by so many poignantly beautiful moments…from the Chanteurs with Carol of the Children, our Year 10 ensemble with a lullaby by the contemporary a capella group Pentatonix, to pieces capturing seasonal weather like Glow (Chamber Choir) and Blow, Blow Thou Winter Wind (Year 11 ensemble). The arrangement of See amid the Winter’s Snow (Senior Choir) with added colours on the wind chimes, cymbals and string quartet was exceptionally beautiful.

The traditional elements of the Christmas story were told in Star on Distant Star (Chanteurs) composed by our very own Mr Robinson, and The Shepherds Spiritual (Senior Choir) with movements and tambourine for that more contemporary touch.

Finally, the mood turned joyous again with the combined choirs and orchestra joining in with an arrangement of People look East.

A big thank you to the Senior Orchestra for accompanying the whole event with such professionalism and an equally sincere thank you to all the unsung heroes (no pun intended!) who made the whole event run so smoothly.