News

The Magic Of Maths

Sherborne Prep recently welcomed Leonardo Helicopters to campus for a Junior Maths Day organised by Head of Maths, Martin Stepney. Year 3, 4 and 5 pupils were split into their four houses, and rotated around four different activities, all based on the theme of shape and measure: staircase investigations, tessellations, constructing 3D shapes and helicopter blade design.

The pupils had the opportunity to work in teams of three to design three helicopter blades using paper and a combination of weighted materials including paper clips, blu tack and sellotape. They were encouraged to be creative with their designs, which were then judged by staff from Leonardo’s at the end of their sessions.

The sessions encouraged the children to develop their teamwork skills, creativity and thinking skills, particularly in their lesson with Leonardo’s, as they soon discovered that a few of the intricate blade designs wouldn’t fly for long periods, when compared to simpler, symmetrical designs.

Martin Stepney, Head of Maths said: “The success of our themed Maths day was reflected in every child. Pupils from Years 3 to 5 were excited, engaged and entranced by the variety of activities that took place. The realisation on their faces when they discovered they were learning mathematical concepts from food, helicopters and games of Tetris told me everything! They loved it! Special thanks go to the members of staff for organising their activities as well as Leonardo Helicopter manufacturers for their fantastic propeller designs and flying activity.”

Overall, this was an excellent day for our pupils and we hope to work with Leonardo Helicopters again soon.

A GIRL AMONG GROWN-UPS!

Eleven-year-old Izzy Williams took on the adults at this year’s Horse of the Year Show in Birmingham and incredibly came within one mark of the winner in the Working Hunter Pony competition.

The budding equestrian, who started riding when she was two, attends St Swithun’s School in Winchester. She and her Mountain Moorland pony Hugo qualified for the competition last August and she has spent weeks preparing for the ride of her young life.

Headmistress at St Swithun’s, Ms Jane Gandee, said that pupils and staff at the school were proud of Izzy’s achievement. “Izzy has been a pupil at St Swithun’s since reception. After joining the senior school last month Izzy is already showing that serious hobbies, working hard and having fun are not mutually exclusive. We look forward to seeing Izzy’s riding career progress.”

The new sports hub at Gordon’s School, serving both students of the school and the local community, was officially opened in January 2023 by His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex, who also met students and staff on site and unveiled a plaque to mark the occasion. Completed in 2020, the sports hub incorporates a sports hall, an all-weather pitch, changing rooms and a café, and complements the already extensive sporting facilities at this co-educational state boarding school in West End, Surrey.

The Earl was received by Gordon Foundation Vice President and His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Surrey, Michael More-Molyneaux, who presented Gordon’s student Leonor Nunes, a Lord-Lieutenant’s Cadet, Headmaster Andrew Moss and Director of Sport Jamie Harrison. During his visit, the Earl met students who were using the equipment in the newly built fitness suite, indoor rowing centre and sports hall, as well as those playing rugby and football on the sports pitches.

Rowers are currently preparing for the National Indoor Rowing Championships and the Earl heard that as well as training in the mornings from 6.15am, they are also back in the ergo centre in the evenings after school. Three times Olympics cox Alan Inns, who coaches the students, said afterwards: “His Royal Highness certainly knows about boats and the positions in them”. In addition to chatting to players and teaching staff, His Royal Highness enjoyed the opportunity to take on some of the students in a game of table tennis!

The Earl of Wessex, who last visited the school in October 2014 for the unveiling of the restored statue of General Gordon on a camel, also spent time with the school’s student wellbeing prefects and mental health first aiders and learned about how pastoral staff care for boarding students, particularly those whose families are in the Armed Forces. Gordon’s School is a non-selective state day and boarding school. It was voted Boarding School of the Year in the TES Schools Awards 2022 and judged outstanding by Ofsted in the last four inspections. The school has 946 students and almost 300 are boarders. Half of those boarding are from military families. The Earl heard how houseparents Sam and Daisy Cooper help the 11 year olds from these families as they start their boarding journey, and about the school’s package of support for their mental wellbeing.

Sport is a vital part of the school’s commitment to supporting students’ mental wellbeing as well as their physical and emotional development. Every student has the opportunity to take part in some form of sport or activity daily, with a choice of over 50. Thanks to the new sports hall, further sports have been added to the list such as badminton, futsal, table tennis and indoor cricket and Year 7 boarders enthusiastically demonstrated one of their favourite weekend activities, dodgeball.

In 2020 Gordon’s formed a partnership with Harlequins, providing a DiSE (Diploma in Sporting Excellence) programme for talented 16 to 18 year olds wishing to pursue a career in professional rugby while receiving an excellent education. During the visit, His Royal Highness met students on the Harlequins Partnership Programme getting ready for their 7s tour to Portugal and hoping to emulate the two who left Gordon’s last Summer with contracts for the Harlequins Senior Academy and more recently selections to play for their country.

The school also partners Aldershot Town FC, whose players train on the 3G pitch and use the sports hub four or five times a week through the season. The Earl met some of the Vanarama National League’s U21s players and the club’s Chairman Shahid Azeem, a Trustee of the Gordon Foundation, Vice President of the Community Foundation of Surrey and former High Sheriff of Surrey. Participation in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme is strongly encouraged at Gordon’s as a means of building skills in students such as teamwork, survival and leadership. This year over 100 Year 9 students have started their journey towards their Bronze Awards. The Earl of Wessex spent time talking to some of the Year 10 students taking their Silver Awards about their early morning training sessions and the command and leadership tasks they were demonstrating.

Wells Cathedral School Musicians Celebrate National Recognition

A large number of musicians will be representing Wells Cathedral School in national-level ensembles and choirs this year, both in the UK and beyond.

Five pupils from Wells have obtained places in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain (NYO), the country’s flagship orchestra for amazingly talented young musicians. Among the five Wells pupils, particular congratulations must go to Defne A, who has been appointed Principal Harp, and will be a member of the orchestra for a second year. Defne’s “golden shoes” are famous within the school, and audiences across the country will enjoy both hearing and seeing her!

Across the channel, violinist Hannah K has been given a place as the youngest member of the National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands. Last year she played in front of the Dutch Royal Family in the Amare, the new concert hall in the Hague.

Closer to home, no fewer than seven pupils have been offered places in the National Children’s Orchestra of Great Britain (NCO), while a further four younger pupils from the Prep School have all been invited to join “NCO Projects”, a fabulous initiative that provides an excellent training ground for the older age banded orchestras.

Wells singers are also finding their voice in some of the UK’s top choirs. Three pupils have been invited to join the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain, while two of our sixth formers have been offered places in the prestigious Rodolfus Choir, which helps talented singers aged 16 to 23 bridge the gap between school and university.

Director of Music, Alex Laing said: “We are so proud of all our musicians here at Wells. It is lovely to know that the School is helping to produce young musicians recognised as amongst the finest in the land”.

Wycliffe Supports Us University Applications

At Wycliffe, specialist Overseas University Co-ordinator Ms Miller has been very busy supporting US university applicants with SAT, PSAT and ACT preparation courses, exam writing and advising families on US sports governing bodies processes. As one of a few US exam host centres in the UK, Wycliffe is in a strong position to help its scholars pursue their US university dreams.

Rachel originally had a place at Yale but decided to take a gap year to pursue a six-month art internship at Christie’s. Her experience at Christie’s enthused her love of art history. She reapplied through our US university programme and is due to start at Harvard as an Art History scholar.

Yasmin joined Wycliffe with the ambition to go to the US to row. Working with her rowing coaches, she focused her attention on the rankings list. At Henley, Ms Miller introduced her and her family to US coaches and supported them throughout the two-year application process. Yasmin has recently signed her National Letter of Intent with The University of Texas at Austin and is looking forward to becoming a Texas Longhorn.

It is not just rowers and art historians heading over the pond. Ksenia recently joined her old Wycliffian squash teammates Harry and Jack at St Lawrence University, New York. With ex-Wycliffian squash coach David Morrish recently accepting the Head Squash Coach position at the University, we are sure they will be familiar with the rigorous training schedule he will offer.

DAUNTSEY’S ANNUAL DANCE SHOW A SUCCESS

More than 200 pupils took to the stage for Dauntsey’s annual Lower School Dance Show. It was an entertaining and uplifting evening as pupils performed a total of 17 dances, based around the theme of ‘Legends’. The performances showcased a number of different dance genres including classical, street dance and contemporary, and pupils performed with confidence, energy and enthusiasm, showcasing all they have learnt since the start of the school year.

The show was opened by the Lower School Dance Company who performed an upbeat and impressive dance to ‘Another one bites the dust’. There was then a playful tribute to the Royal Family and Queen Elizabeth II then the Boys Dance Club took the audience back to the 80s with a slickly choreographed performance to ‘Beat It’ and the Third Form Dance Company impressed with a superb display of talent and passion.

Antony Edwards, Head of Dance at Dauntsey’s, said: “The annual Dance Show requires all of our First Form and Second Form to perform – many of the pupils in the First Form may not have had any previous dance experience, so to see them up on the stage, performing in front of a large audience is incredible. All of the pupils fully embraced this opportunity, getting involved in the choreography and really thinking about how we could bring the theme of legends to life. It was a fantastic show and I am so proud of them all.”

A parent who attended the show said: “Since September I have watched my son develop confidence and a love and appreciation of dance and it was incredible to see that all come together on stage. The excitement and energy from all of the pupils was just brilliant –what a lot of talent in one room!”

At Dauntsey’s, pupils can take Dance as a GCSE and A-level option, with street, jazz, contemporary and ballet all being popular studies.

Mr Olly Langton, Headmaster at Belhaven Hill School, is keen to ensure environmental issues are part of the curriculum. That’s why the East Lothian school has planted a native woodland, become a plastics-free school and updated its sustainability policy.

Belhaven was nominated a runner-up for an Eco Warrior Award in the Tatler Schools Awards 2023 for prep schools that have gone green and champion environmentally-friendly initiatives. Part of Belhaven’s sustainability policy has been to plant a woodland with native saplings. “The native saplings were locally sourced from Cheviot Trees, and consist of a mixture of beech, oak, silver birch, crab apple and aspen,” says Mr Langton. “The design of the plantation sees the trees curve towards a focal point, lined along a winding path between two gates built into a deer-fenced rectangle. In the south-east corner, a mound of earth will provide a look-out point and guard a camping area for the children. The site has one of the best views in East Lothian over the Bass Rock and Tantallon Castle. The land itself, the crucial first ingredient, has been generously donated to the school by the McNicol family at Castleton Farm, North Berwick.”

“Every child in the school was given his or her own sapling and instructions on how to plant it. Passing the spade down the line after use, the children dug a hole, inserted the sapling and replaced the soil around the tree before protecting it with a tree-guard attached to a wooden stake. These stakes were then named (some very extravagantly!) as everyone took ownership of their part in a collaborative project.” The new native woodland is part of the Queen’s Green Canopy and creates an area for observation and education which will grow over the decades. “Partnerships with local schools and wildlife organisations to allow for combined use of this area will enhance Belhaven pupils’ education as well as adding to the thriving community spirit,” concludes Mr Langton. “As part of our stated aim and our cherished status as a Green Flag and eco-friendly school, this project has enormous potential and is something of which everyone involved should feel extremely proud.”

Embley children, from Nursery to Sixth Form, have enjoyed another packed Wellbeing Week. At Embley, the wellbeing of pupils and staff is at the centre of all that they do every day. To celebrate this, at the start of every Spring term, the independent day and boarding school in Hampshire, has a whole week dedicated to wellbeing.

Across five days Embley staff devise a programme of guest speaker talks, workshops and wellbeing-focused activities which are embedded into the curriculum.

This year Nursery and Prep children were delighted to welcome a range of animals with a visit from a mobile farm. Prep pupils participated in a Nordic themed Hygge Day and had an introduction to weird and wonderful vegetables from the school’s in-house catering team – one of a number of activities aimed at promoting nutrition and healthy eating.

For Senior School students, wellbeing walks on the schools 130 acre campus, drop in yoga sessions, and a chance to relax in a dedicated cosy space with hot chocolate and a log fire were popular additions to the school’s lunchtime activity programme.

Anti-bullying, drug and alcohol education workshops were also on the agenda, whilst for parents, Alicia Drummond, founder of the Wellbeing Hub and Teen Tips was invited to give a talk on ‘Raising Resilient Teenagers’.

Mrs Leah Goody, Assistant Head of Pastoral at Embley is the driving force behind ‘Wellbeing Week’.

“Alongside the support we give to students, all Embley parents have free access to ‘The Wellbeing Hub’ which is designed by experts to meet the social, emotional and educational needs of young people.

With Wellbeing at the core of all we do at Embley we were delighted that in our recent ISI report, inspectors noted that pupils' understanding of their own health and wellbeing is excellent with pupils speaking clearly about the need to keep healthy in all respects, and recognising this is the key to being happy and successful.”

Boarders warmly describe the boarding culture being like a