WeeklyNews MowdenHallSchool
Embracing November: Academic Excellence and Festive Joy
IhopeyouallenjoyedarestfulExeatbreak Mondaymorningsawafrostystart;justperfectforthestartof theMowdenChristmasmusic AsImentionedacoupleofweeksago,Novembercanbeabitofachallenge, andsoIfindtheVERYearlystarttoChristmashelpsinjectabitoffunintothedailyroutine.Inaddition, thereislessthan4weeksuntiltheendofterm,soweneedtomakethemostofthismagicaltime!
Lastweek,Ifocusedoncreativity.Thisweek,Iwouldliketofocusonallthingsacademic.FromTuesdayto Friday,Year8willsittheirYear8PracticeExams.Thisisthefirstofthreeexaminationperiodsthroughout thecourseofYear8 TheculminationbeingCommonEntranceExaminationsinJune
CommonEntranceisthenameforasetofexaminationstakenbyboysandgirlsforentrancetosenior independentschoolsat13+.ThesyllabusesaredevisedbytheIndependentSchoolsExaminationsBoard whichiscomposedofHeadsfromthethreeAssociationswhichrepresenttheleadingindependentschools inthecountry:TheHeadmasters'andHeadmistresses'Conference,TheGirls'SchoolsAssociationandThe IndependentAssociationofPrepSchools.
Preparingfortheseexamsisalargepartofachild'sprepschoolexperience Theoverallprocessisvery carefully managed to ensure children are challenged in a supportive and responsible manner Having taughtmanychildrenatseniorschools,IstronglybelievethosewhohavetakenCommonEntrancehavea hugeadvantage,whatevertypeofschooltheymoveontoafterprepschool.Theyalreadyknowtheir strengths and weaknesses, they have learned numerous revision strategies that work for them, and importantly,theyhavetheabilitytotakeresponsibilityfortheirownlearning.
Ourweekbeganwithanimpressivedisplayofgeneralknowledgefromsomeofouryoungestprepschool pupils,inoneofourregularHouseAcademicChallenges Onthisoccasion,Bewickwasvictorious,but everypointcountsthroughoutthecourseoftheterm.
Thesearesomeofthequestions,childreninYears3-5answeredcorrectly:
Who lived in Britain before the Romans arrived - Celts, Saxons or Normans?
Which of these was not invented during the Victorian period - photography, electric lightbulb or thermometer?
Who kept a famous diary of events in the 17th century, including the Great Fire of London?
Week Beginning: 18th November 2024 Mrs. Kate Martin, Head
stheannualCakeandCraftSaleonMonday.Dopleaseenjoysomebakingoverthe etothischaritableevent Pleasecanchildrenallbring£2tospendonsometasty yourselvesonMondaymorning0800am-1115am Moreinformationcanbefound ofthisnewsletter
Building Strong Foundations: Learning, Respect, and Giving at Mowden
InOctober,OFSTED(OfficeforStandardsinEducation,Children'sServicesandSkills)releasedapress releasetitledEarlyyearseducationtooimportanttobelefttochance.
Theresearchisclear:earlyeducationistooimportanttobelefttochance.Thestrongfoundationin literacyandmathematicsweareabletoprovidechildrenatMowdengiveslifelongbenefitswhichare crucial to their future success. Early literacy development helps with children’s language and vocabulary and can support their emotional understanding. Equally, effective early mathematical learning and encouraging positive attitudes to numbers and maths are crucial to children’s later achievement Expressiveartsprovidechildrenwithopportunitiestolearnnewskillsandbecreative Understandingtheworldisabroadarea,andyoungchildren'slearningneedstobeconnectedsothey canbuildontheirpre-existingknowledgetolearnnewideasinthefamiliarcontextsaroundthem
Teachers at Mowden understand how children develop and learn to plan the next steps in their learningtodeliverahigh-qualitycurriculum.Knowingthechild’stalents,skills,learningstyles,and interestsisessential.AtMowden,weareabletodothiswiththecurriculum,staffing,andresourceswe haveavailable,whichisnotthecaseinalleducationalsettings.
AtMowden,weofferaneffectiveeducationwhichincludesallthekeyareashighlightedinthisnational report. We strive for high-quality interactions between children and adults, including both caring interactions and those promoting children’s thinking. We carefully consider what we teach our childrensothatwecanmakethebestuseofavailabletimeandensureallchildrenlearnimportant knowledge,conceptsandideas Wehelpchildrenlearnnewthingsbylinkingthemwiththingsthat theyalreadyknow Wemakesurethatwhatchildrenlearnissequencedappropriatelyforeachareaof learning.Weworkondevelopingachild’sexecutivefunction,suchastheirabilitytoholdinformation intheirworkingmemoryandworkwiththatinformation.Weensurethatlearningisnotlefttochance andthatallchildrenhavethesupportandguidancetheyneed.
This year ’ s anti-bullying week theme was 'Respect’, which tied in closely with our own Character valuesofKindnessandHonesty.OddSocksDay(lastWednesday)isusedasanannualreminderof each individual’s unique character, encouraging us to respect everyone for who they are and to celebrateourdifferences.Ourchildrenhavebeendiscussingandseekingtodemonstraterespectin manydifferentwaysacrosstheweek.
LastFridaymarkedChildreninNeed,andPre-Prepwasawashwithvariousbrightlycolouredoutfits manyofwhichfeaturedPudseybear!Weloveadaywhenwecangetdressedupandraisemoneyfor charity.TheSchoolCouncilwasthrilledtocountover£200.00!IntruePre-Prepstyle,wereallydo always‘thinkofothers’.
Haveawonderfulweekend,
Mrs. Kirsten Knight, Head of Pre-Prep
Boarders
WehaveanopportunitytoenterintoacoupleofcompetitionsandchallengeswithBSA(Boarding SchoolsAssociation)thishalfterm.Oneoftheminvitesboarderstocreateafestivedesignusingany non-digitalmediumincludingpaints,markers,pencils,pastels,collage,oranyotherartsupplies.The winningdesignswillfeatureacrossBSAdigitalchannels,newslettersandthenextBSAmagazine We willencourageandsupportanyboarderswhowouldliketoenterandwillsendtheirentriesinfor them. Thedeadlineis29thNovember. Thesecondopportunityisonewe’realreadywellpreparedfor!BSAwouldloveschoolstoshare photosandvideotoursoftheirdecoratedboardinghousesacrosssocialmediafortheirnew‘Deckthe Halls’challenge.We’rewellonourwaybutthechildren’sMowden‘DormsDecs’competitionwillvery muchsupportthissoweencourageboarderstocontinuetobringintheirhomemade‘DormDecs’.The deadlineforourcompetitionis6thDecemberwhendormswillbejudged,onefinaltime,byMrs
Martin
Photosfromdormswillbesharedinthefinalstagesofthecompetition
Miss. Leonie Serbrock, Head of Boarding
Year4werelearningabout thedigestivesystemthisweek and…itwasprettydisgusting!
Mowden Hall’s Annual Reading Competition
Lastweeksawreadersfromallyearsgoinghead-to-headinthe annual Reading Competition. Well done to all the finalists. All pupilswhoplacedin2ndplacewillbereadingatMatfenHalland thosewhoachieved1stplacearepresentinginourendofterm serviceatHexhamAbbeyonthefinaldaybeforetheChristmas holidays.AlsoabigthankyoutotheEnglishdepartmentandour judgesformakingthisevent,whichranacrossthewholeoflast week,ahugesuccess!
Mr. Philip Brooks Head of English and Drama
FixturesfortheWeek Ahead-Week13
Allparents,grandparentsandfriendsareinvitedtowatchschoolmatchesinwhichtheirchildrenare playing.TeawillbeprovidedatWednesdayandSaturdayfixtures–usuallyintheSmallDiningRoom orPavilion–afterthematch PleasekeepacloseeyeontheSOCSportal(sportsportal)ortheSchool Calendarbothofwhichprovidethemostuptodateinformationonfixturesthatmayinvolveyour children.Informationwillalsobesharedinviathisweeklynewsletter,ifchangeshavebeenmadeto thepublishedcalendar.Ifyouareinanydoubtaboutafixture,pleaseringtheSchoolOffice.
Team lists and details of matches are published on the School Sport website (https://sport.mowdenhall.co.uk).FixtureinformationcanbeaccessedeitherviatheSportCalendar or by choosing the specific team your child is involved in (ie U10 Netball) The password for accessingteamlistsonSOCSisMowdensport.Inordertosecuretheprivacyofourpupils,pleasedo notsharethispasswordoutsidetheMowdencommunity.Forfurtherinformationonhowtousethe SOCS portal, please contact Assistant Head (Co-Curricular), Sam Shaw-Kew or Head of Sport, Tim Hardy.
Changes to Fixtures in Week 13
Wednesday 27th November
2.00pm U9A Hockey v Cundall Manor School, Cundall, York, YO61 2RW
GirlsinYear4willtraveltoCundallManorSchooltocompeteinaHockeymatchwiththepush backat2.00pm,parentsarewelcometospectateandthefixturewillfinishataround2.45pm beforereturningbacktoMowdenHall
2.00pm U13C Hockey v Cundall Manor School, Cundall, York, YO61 2RW
GirlsinYears7&8willtraveltoCundallManorSchooltocompeteinaHockeymatchwiththe push back at 2.00pm, parents are welcome to spectate and the fixture will finish at around 245pmbeforereturningbacktoMowdenHall
2:45pm U13A Hockey v Cundall Manor School, Cundall, York, YO61 2RW
GirlsinYears7&8willtraveltoCundallManorSchooltocompeteinaHockeymatchwiththe push back at 2.45pm, parents are welcome to spectate and the fixture will finish at around 330pmbeforereturningbacktoMowdenHall
2:45pm U13B Hockey v Cundall Manor School, Cundall, York, YO61 2RW
GirlsinYears7&8willtraveltoCundallManorSchooltocompeteinaHockeymatchwiththe push back at 2.45pm, parents are welcome to spectate and the fixture will finish at around 330pm,beforereturningbacktoMowdenHall
2:00pm U13A, U9A, U9B and U8A Rugby v Cundall Manor School at Mowden Hall
BoysinYears3,4,7&8willplayathomeinRugbyfixturesagainstCundallManorgameswillbe at Mowden Hall kick-off will be at 2.00pm spectators are welcome and refreshments will be availableafter.
FixturesfortheWeek Ahead-Week13
Thursday 28th November
1.00pm U13 In2Hockey Competition at The Parks Sports Centre, North Shields, NE29 6TL GirlsinYears7&8willcompeteinmultipleHockeyfixturesatanIn2HockeyeventatTheParks SportsCentre,studentswillleaveMowdenarrivingat1230pmforregistrationbeforefixtures beginning at 1.00pm, fixtures are due to be concluded at 3.00pm before students return to Mowden.
Friday 29th November
10.00am U9A Hockey at Dame Allan's Festival, TBC GirlsinYears3&4willtravelat900amtoplaymultipleHockeygamesatDameAllan'shockey festivalfrom10.00amonwards,studentswillreturntoschoolatapproximately12.30pmand backtolessons,spectatorsarewelcometoattend.
10.00am U9A Rugby v Dame Allan's, Dame Allan's Senior Site, NE4 9YJ BoysinYears3&4willtravelat9.00amtoDameAllan'sseniorsitetoplaymultipleRugbygames at Dame Allan's Rugby Festival from 10.00am onwards, students will return to school at approximately12.30pmandbacktolessons,spectatorsarewelcometoattend.
Boarders: The start of December is just around the corner! Please could we respectfullyaskthatchildrendonotbringinadventcalendarswhichcontainedible goodiesaswe’reunabletoensurethesearesafeforthosewithallergies.
Year 7 Play: FinalpreparationsareinfullswingfortheYear7productionof'The GovernmentInspector'whichpromisestokeeptheaudienceentertained!Welook forwardtowelcomingYears1-8,alongwithYear7families.
BookingisnowavailableforournextHolidayClubinDecember.Spacesarelimited,sobook nowtoguaranteeyourspot:
TobookforMonday16th toFriday20thDecember My Mowden Holiday Club - Book now for December and January
MOWDENCHRISTMAS FOODBANKCOLLECTION 2024
DearParentsandCarers,
Asthefestiveseasonapproaches,wearehopefulthattheMowdenschoolcommunitywillonceagainshow incrediblegenerosity,bysupportingthelocalChristmasfoodbankappeal.
Bycontributingtoourclasscollections,youwillbehelpingtheWestNorthumberlandFoodbankintheir effortstogivevitalsupportandsomeChristmascheertothoseinneedinourarea.
Eachformclasshasafestivelywrappedboxreadyandwaiting,sowewouldbeverygratefulifeachchild couldbringanitemortwo(ormoreifyoucan!)intoschoolbyFridayDecember6th.Thisearlycollection willgivetheFoodbanktimetosortanddistributethedonationsintimeforChristmas.
Formoreinformationaboutthisseasonalinitiative,pleasegotoourFacebookpage–WylamFoodbankInfo orfeelfreetocontactmedirectly–rachaelshaw_kew@yahoo.co.uk07966663738
Wearehugelygratefulforyourcontinuedsupport.Thankyousomuch!
Withwarmestbestwishes,
RachaelShaw-KewandKatrinaConaty
TheFoodbankwouldbeverygratefulfordonationsofanyofthefollowingitems…
Tinnedfruit,tinnedPasta,tinneddesserts,tinnedveg,tinnedfish,tinnedmeat,tinnedsoup, bakedbeans,instantcoffee,teabags,sugar,biscuits,snackbars,cook-insauces, microwavablericepouches,instantnoodles,toothpaste,razors,toiletrolls,bleach, cleaningspray,deodorants,showergel,shampoo,conditioner,babywipes,nappiessize4/5/6
FortheirChristmashampers,theywouldwelcomeChristmasfoodietreatslike chocolatetins,mincepies,Christmaspuddings,crispsandselctionboxes. , Thankyoueversomuch.
