Inside Heathfield enews issue 38

Issue Number 38 w/c 11th May 2015 & w/c 18th May 2015 Summer Showcase Once again, this year’s Junior School Summer Showcase featured all the girls from Forms I – III demonstrating some of what they have been working on over the past month in their Drama lessons.

Entitled Summer Shakespeare, on Sunday afternoon we ventured outside with our audience carrying deck-chairs and picnic baskets, while the girls performed on the lawn. Fortunately the weather was sunny, although a little chilly towards the end, and we were treated to a wonderful range of performances from comedy to tragedy.

Scenes were performed from Macbeth, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream; some girls used the original text while others opted to use a modern translation. There were some exceptional performances throughout all the year-groups and we are eagerly looking forward to watching some of these talented girls develop over the coming years.

Mrs K de Ferrer, Director of Pastoral Care and Co-curricular Activities

A* & 100% for Revision Mass Due to popular demand after a trial run last year, the Sunday 8.30am Revision Mass is back. Students have asked for the option to forgo their Sunday lie-in to attend an early morning pre-breakfast service, allowing them to free up the rest of the day for revision. The service is only available to those sitting public examinations and is entirely optional. The results, however, were extremely impressive with every eligible student present, a 100% attendance rate. Every blessing on your future examination preparations.

Fr T Tregunno, Chaplain

Issue Number 38 w/c 11th May 2015 & w/c 18th May 2015 Lunchtime Music Concert On Wednesday 20 May the school was treated to its termly lunchtime music concert in the Chapel. The girls are focusing on revision and their examinations, so it was lovely to see a good turnout in the Chapel from both the performers and audience. The concert gave everyone the opportunity to relax and unwind whilst they heard seven performances from girls in Forms I-III. During the concert, Harriet (Form II) made her debut concert performance on the flute playing Water Lilies by Sarah Watts. Amber (Form III) performed Landslide by Stevie Nicks playing the guitar accompanied by vocals and Tansy (Form II) sang Long Time Ago by Aaron Copland. All of the girls involved in the concert had worked very hard perfecting their pieces and it was a joy to see them perform with such confidence.

Mrs J Dance, Director of Music

Talk by Stem4 Dr Nihara Krause from Stem4, a charity tackling teenage mental illness and supporting teenage mental health, came to Heathfield and led two fascinating sessions on the stresses facing young people and how these can affect physical and mental health. Dr Krause specialises in treating young people with eating disorders and those who resort to self-harm as a response to the stresses of modern life.

The first session was aimed at students in Forms I and II and was carefully guided by Dr Krause so that the students could explore why young people might respond to the changes and pressures in their lives in these ways. The students were encouraged to think of less damaging ways to reduce stress and anxiety and to reflect critically on things that might contribute to such stresses. The girls asked some very perceptive questions and showed that these topics were something they were aware of and wanted to understand better.

In the second session a group of parents also had a presentation by Dr Krause about the way eating disorders and self-harm can impact on young people at a particularly vulnerable time in their lives. There was a very lively and honest discussion and we were all challenged to think about our own assumptions and anxieties and how these can influence young people and their attitudes.

As PSHE co-ordinator I was able to explain some of the relevant topics we cover, such as managing anger, healthy lifestyles and coping with stress. It was a pleasure to engage with parents in such an open and interesting way and we hope that it will be the start of many such sessions, improving both understanding and communication to benefit our girls.

If you wish to find out more please visit the Stem4 website at www.stem4.org.uk. You might also want to try the smart phone “calmharm� app to see what support it can offer a stressed young person.

Mrs A Diaz, PSHE Co-ordinator and Assistant Housemistress

Issue Number 38 w/c 11th May 2015 & w/c 18th May 2015 Somerville Weekend, 16 and 17 May 2015 The weekend got off to a great start and congratulations to our U15 Track and Field team who won their athletics competition against St Mary’s Ascot. On the Saturday afternoon Forms II and III went to Windsor Horse Show to support the Heathfield Show Jumping team whilst Form IV went to Windsor town centre. On Saturday afternoon our new Form I girls joined us for a sleepover and Form II cooked pancakes while they waited for the new girls to arrive.

After the new girls had unpacked they played "ice breaker" games with Form I to learn each other’s names. Then they worked in groups of three to answer questions about the history, geography and culture of the school.

Before tea the new girls and Form I played rounders with Form III and then British Bull Dog, organised by LVI Form.

The whole school enjoyed delicious sushi dishes for supper.

After supper a camp fire on top field was lit for the new girls with Forms I and II, and everyone enjoyed toasting marshmallows on sticks. The evening finished with another game of rounders before heading back to the dorm, and off to bed with lots of chat before finally going to sleep.

On Sunday Father Tim held an early mass in Chapel for those revising for examinations. This allowed the girls plenty of time to revise for the rest of the day and academic staff came in to school to support the girls with extra revision sessions. A Chapel service was held for the rest of the school at 10am and the new girls’ parents arrived for morning tea before leaving with their girls.

After lunch, all girls in Forms I-III were involved in the junior drama showcase Summer Shakespeare. Excerpts from Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, The Tempest and A Midsummer's Night's Dream were performed outdoors on the playing fields, to a large and appreciative audience of parents and friends who enjoyed the weather and the performances.

Mr J Doyle, Teacher of Mathematics and Head of House - Somerville

Ascension Day Celebrations Postponed There was once a time when the Feast of the Ascension, to which the Chapel was dedicated, was celebrated by a day free of lessons and a whole-school picnic in the surrounding countryside. This tradition sadly had to stop due to the Feast clashing with public examinations. Not to allow the Ascension to go uncelebrated, last year an ice cream van visited the school distributing free Flake 99s to all the girls and staff. With such success it was instantly rebooked for 2015, only to be postponed on the day as the school learnt the sad news of the sudden death of Madame Régine Lankshear, the great servant, inspiration and pillar of our community. As we gathered in the Chapel as a community to mourn the loss of a great teacher, colleague and friend who brought so much joy and glamour into all of our lives, the Ascension reminds us that Christ goes to prepare a place for us in Heaven. So where He goes, we may follow.

A week later, in glorious sunshine the ice cream van arrived, as a welcome relief for those sitting examinations and as a final treat before the start of half term.

With every faith in the resurrection, Fr Tim Tregunno, Chaplain

New Girls Sleepover On Saturday 16 May we were delighted to welcome our new Form I girls for September 2015 for a sleepover with our current Form I. The girls arrived at 4pm and then took part in some ice-breaker games with Form I and the LVI Form. They had an action packed evening which included a treasure hunt, a camp fire with marshmallow toasting and a delicious supper with the rest of the school in the dining room. The girls were collected on Sunday morning, excited to have made new friends and prepared for starting at Heathfield in the Michaelmas Term.

Mrs S Frost, Marketing Manager

Issue Number 38 w/c 11th May 2015 & w/c 18th May 2015 Windsor Horseshow 2015 Heathfield was represented in the Interschool Show Jumping Challenge at the Royal Windsor Horse Show on Saturday 16 May. Bella (Form LVI) rode Ronnie, Ellie (Form UVI) rode Zara, Matilda (Form V) was on Billy and Liberty (Form II) was on Lunar. The girls were well supported by plenty of friends from the school and family. They were very fortunate to walk the course with Sophie Fawcett, a professional England show jumper who had herself enjoyed a very successful week at the show in the main jumping classes.

The girls were 21st to jump out of 30 school teams who each had four riders. They were in good form and jumped some strong confident rounds but on this occasion the competition was too strong and we were placed mid-way down the field in 14th place, still a creditable result for the team.

Mrs G Glimmerveen, Equestrian Coordinator

England Netball vs Trinidad and Tobago Form I was invited by Charters and the Marist to join a year 7 netball trip to the Copper Box at the Olympic Park. The girls had an amazing opportunity to watch England vs Trinidad and Tobago in their three day test series. We were all delighted when England won 3-0. This trip was an excellent opportunity for the girls to experience top level netball and live sport.

Miss S Kay, Teacher of Sport

Pop Lacrosse Afternoon We were delighted to welcome 30 girls from Glendower Prep who came to Heathfield for an afternoon of Pop Lacrosse training with our Director of Sport, Wendy Reynolds. Wendy is passionate about lacrosse and is the only woman in the United Kingdom to have played, coached and umpired for Great Britain. The girls went through a series of drills before playing in matches. The weather was perfect and tea was served outside on the lacrosse pitch. We would like to thank Miss Probert, Head of Sport at Glendower along with teaching assistants and Heathfield Old Girls Georgie Procter and Clemmie Bache for taking the time to bring the girls to Heathfield for the experience.

Mrs S Frost, Marketing Manager

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