Week 28 WSS Newsletter

From the Headmaster Dear Parents, This is turning out to be some year. Just as the celebrations about Faris’s Townsend Warner 1st place quieten down a little, up comes Simon this week with his King’s Scholarship achievement to Eton. As I said in Assembly this morning, when I was at school, my peers and I would always look up to Gemma Pitcher (at prep school) and Nic Brisbourne (at senior school) as the heroes of our year groups and our boys, without doubt, look up to Simon at Wetherby Prep in exactly the same way. Not that Simon needs or invites any hero worship; he is far too humble and pragmatic for that but we can, collectively, share in his achievement as he is ‘one of us’. We are hugely proud to have him amongst our number and enjoy his special contribution to our community as a whole. From everyone connected to the School, “Well done, Simon!” Another fantastic week for #teamwetherby.

With the good weather, comes the cricket and we seem to have started extremely well in both schools this term. I was just chatting to Mr Sullivan about Matthew Monaghan’s prowess in the nets this week and, together with Dom Fraser, they are busy perfecting Matthew’s technique. He sounds like an excellent prospect and, yet again, I state my intention to come and watch some cricket this term. All Wetherby boys, staff and parents have heard this many times before and I can hear them saying now as they read this, something along the lines of, “He always says that and never comes to watch…” but I will try my hardest this term, I promise.

Dads’ Night Out at the Senior School on Tuesday. This is the inaugural event for our Senior School and a tradition at the Prep School; it promises to be a fun, convivial and enjoyable evening. We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible. The Prep School equivalent takes place on Wednesday 8th June, just to mark cards for dads, so they can seek early clearance, in accordance with ‘legal and compliance’…

And, finally, thank you to the many parents (and some staff) who sent me their bluebell pictures over the weekend – one even all the way from Bhutan! I don’t know if I was more pleased to see the pictures or just know that my random ramblings are actually read every Friday!

Have a good weekend,

2 The Barometer - 29/4/2016

DIARY & LUNCH MENU Monday 9th

Monday Clubs

WSS All Stars Year 7 ‘Pantopera’ performances (Theatre) Prep School boys Parents Basketball WSS vs. WPS - Jubilee Sports Centre

Basketball Videography Future Writers Art and Design

13:30 14:30 19:00 17:00

Tuesday 10th

Tuesday Clubs Chess & Backgammon Fencing Football Grub Club Wetherby Science

Wednesday 11th

Wednesday Clubs

Cricket Year 7 U12 WSS A/B vs Falcons A/B (A)

Table Tennis Rock Band History Film Club Quiz Soc

14:15

Thursday 12th

Thursday Clubs

Cricket Year 9 U14 WSS A/B vs Radnor House A (H)

14:00

Lego Table Tennis Samba Percussion

Friday 13th School Choir

13:30

9 Tyburn cake sale - all welcome!

13:40

HM Assembly

15:00

Saturday 14th & Sunday 15th Menu for Week 4

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

French Friday

Pea and Tarragon

Carrot and Orange

Vegetable Consommé

Spicy Bean Broth

Tomate et Basilic

Jamaican Jerk Quorn fillet

Lamb Curry cooked in a Creamy Coconut Sauce

Chicken and leek pie

Grilled Pork Steak served with a Mango Salsa

Poisson pané avec de la sauce tartare

Meat free main / Plat végétarien

Mexican Vegetable Wrap with Salsa

Chick Pea and Herb Casserole

Ratatouille Crumble

Falafel Patty served with a Cucumber and Mint Dip

Frittata aux poivrons rotis

To go with / pour aller avec

Sweet Potato and Lime Mash

Pilaf Rice

Crushed New Potatoes

Parsley Potatoes

Grosses frites au four

Roasted Roots Green Salad

Cumin Carrots

Broccoli

Sweetcorn

Petits pois écrasés Salade verte

Pineapple Fool

Toffee and Cranberry Cheesecake

Apple and Sultana Compote

Chocolate and Orange Brownie

Salade de fruits frais à la menthe

Soup/Soupe Meat main / Plat principal

Served with / servis avec Puddings / Dessert

Always available Fresh Fruit, Salad Bar, Homemade yogurt and Dressings / Toujours disponible Fruits frais, Bar à salades, Yahourt frais et assaisonements

The Barometer - 29/4/2016 3

ON THE NOTICEBOARD From Miss Valentine: PANTOPERAS this Monday After two intense days of rehearsals, the ‘Pantopera’ performances are almost here! We are looking forward to inviting 120 Year 4 and 5 boys from the Prep School over to see the shows on Monday afternoon, and hope to welcome many of you to the evening performance at 7pm in the theatre. Please bring siblings, grandparents, friends, and most importantly, a hearty laugh! We look forward to seeing you there.

From the Deputy Headmaster Summer Dress I hope that this announcement will not produce an inevitable cataclysmic downturn in the fine weather but I would like to inform parents that on warm, sunny days boys may opt for Summer Dress which consists of shirt with sleeves rolled up neatly to the elbow and top button undone (no tie or blazer). The boys can leave their blazers and ties in their lockers during school time but I would nonetheless recommend that they take a moment this weekend to check that their uniform is named clearly to facilitate the identification of any garments that become lost property.

4 The Barometer - 29/4/2016

Year 7 PANTOPERAS! Monday 1900 in the Theatre

SAFETY IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD Feedback from the presentation to boys by PC Troy Miller Mr Hartley writes...

On Tuesday Years 7 and 9 received a safety briefing from PC Troy Miller of the Marylebone Safer Neighbourhoods Team. The talk focused on pupil safety on the way to and from school. The main points made by PC Miller were: Knowing where you are It’s important to have awareness of ‘safe spaces’ where there are adults and which offer visibility. Consider avoiding areas with which you are unfamiliar and note street names on your journey to or from school so that you can explain where you are if you find yourself in difficulty. It’s an idea to vary your route to and from school so that you are not too predictable in terms of being in the same place at the same time.

It’s important to consider how to get back to somewhere safe if you do find yourself going to an unfamiliar place. How do you get out if you are in trouble? And do you know – off by heart – the number of a parent or guardian whom you can contact if you lose your phone?

On public transport It’s useful to know that people on the lookout for valuables often target tube station exits (where people get a signal after being underground) and those places where they begin to feel more comfortable talking on the phone, for example after a bus journey.

Parks can also offer muggers an easy escape route so vigilance is important. Staying safe on the bus: sit on the aisle seat to avoid being hemmed in by someone targeting you. Go to the driver with any concerns because workers on public transport have a duty of care towards their passengers and will always 6 The Barometer - 29/4/2016

listen to you. Staying safe on the tube: move carriages if you feel threatened, get off train, or stop the train at next station by using the emergency button.

Use the communication points on the station platform if needs be.

Avoiding being a target Wearing headphones can compromise your awareness of your surroundings and also advertise the fact that you have an expensive device on you. Being purposeful when you walk, conveying a sense of heading in a known direction can make you a less attractive or obvious target for people on the lookout for vulnerability. Likewise, avoiding eye contact can help avoid unnecessary confrontation.

It’s important to consider how many valuables are actually necessary to you on your journey. How much cash do you actually need on the way to or back from school? When travelling in groups consider how group size can impact how conspicuous you are and also the kinds of risk you might be tempted to take within the perceived safety of a larger group. Does it make you more reckless? Avoid drawing unnecessary attention to yourself if you are travelling in a group, for example on a bus.

What to do if you are mugged If you do find yourself in confrontation then forget your ego (no need to be ‘brave’) and simply run away if you can. The best advice is to get out and get to a safe space and tell an adult. If you have to give something to someone demanding it then it’s better to lose something material than risk your health or your life.

CLASSROOM NEWS From the Art & Design Department Mr Meyer writes...

The

Summer

Term

has

seen

Year 9 draw to a close on their Art & Salem Nusseibeh, 9B

Alan Azeaz, 9C

Design

curriculum

by

looking

at

'Etching'. area

Adin DeCarlucci, 9A

This

of

printing

has allowed the boys

to

gain

exposure in the following

areas:

engraving into an

Manuel Costa, 9A

aluminium

plate,

immersing

plate

into

an

etching

solution inking

and up

running

Lachlan Walker, 9C

and

through

the printing press.

Next

week,

the

boys will strip the hard

ground

off

the

plate

by

placing it into a solution. More to follow.

Paul Schell, 9B

Alan Angert, 9C

Nelson Tobin, 9B The Barometer - 29/4/2016 7

CLASSROOM NEWS From the Biology Department Miss Lillington writes...

This week in Biology, the Year

9

boys

learning

started

about

the

process of respiration.

To understand that energy is

released

during

respiration, when glucose and oxygen boys

react, the

observed

'Howling

Jelly

the Baby

Experiment'.

As you can see from the picture, when a Jelly Baby (almost reacts

pure

glucose)

with

potassium

chlorate (a rich source of oxygen), a huge amount of sound, heat and light energy is given off.

This is an analogy of the process of respiration that occurs

in

providing needed

all the

to

keep

cells, energy living

organisms alive.

The Barometer - 29/4/2016 8

CLASSROOM NEWS

Miss Lillington writes...

This week in Biology, the Year 7 boys have been

investigating

the

energy

values

of

different foods using calorimetry. They burned different foods and heated a fixed volume of water with the thermal energy given off. By measuring the increase in temperature of the water, the boys were able to calculate the energy values of the different foods.

The Barometer - 29/4/2016 9

CLASSROOM NEWS From the French Department Mrs Diamond writes...

REVISING FOR YOUR SUMMER EXAMS This is the new WSS French Frog. There are links to French websites, online videos and exercises and all the revision guides for the summer exams on it.

To access this from home, you simply need to paste the following web address into your browser and then use your school log-in details. https://frog.wetherbysenior.co.uk If the page does not look right, click the refresh button. Remember it is for laptops and tablets. It won’t work properly on phones).

Bonne chance !

10 The Barometer - 29/4/2016

CLASSROOM NEWS From the Chemistry Department Mr Hasthorpe writes...

As part of their studies into

separating

mixtures, Year 7 have been

crystallising

copper

sulphate.

Immediately recognisable bright

blue

by

its

colour,

copper sulphate crystals are quick to form under the correct conditions and

demonstrate

crystallisation

clearly,

producing crystals up to a centimetre long within a few minutes!

The Barometer - 29/4/2016 11

CLASSROOM NEWS From the Maths Department Mr Bray writes...

Reckon you were born without a brain for maths? Highly unlikely.

So writes Marcus du Sautoy, the Simonyi professor for the public understanding of Science and professor of Maths at Oxford, in The Guardian recently. Year 9 boys have read and discussed an edited version of the article this week, which includes the following key points: 

Maths is about spotting patterns in everything we experience and using them to plan and invent.



Those who are good at maths today will survive the urban jungle of the modern world, because they have the best tools to plan for the future.



Your mind-set is key to

doing

mathematics.

Fear

can

with

interfere

our ability to think through

problems

logically. 

Often a subject that seemed impossible at

first

suddenly

starts clicking into place when you come back to it for the second time. 

Doing mathematics is a bit like playing sport or learning a musical instrument. You can’t do it well immediately – it requires practice.



Mathematics is the language of the universe and it’s one we can all learn to speak.

The full version can be found at: http://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/mar/26/reckon-you-were-born-without-a-brain-for-mathshighly-unlikely

12 The Barometer - 29/4/2016

TRIB NEWS 9 Tyburn Bake Sale Mr Dawson writes‌ Today 9 Tyburn held a cake sale to raise money for the Walkabout Foundation. Thank you to all who contributed . They managed to raise a total of £315.87. Well done, boys.

The Barometer - 29/4/2016 13

SPORTING NEWS From the Games Department Mr Sullivan writes...

Let me know your

I am always asked this question – can I start doing

on

Monday, boys.

If you are interested

weights and

thoughts

is

in being involved in

strength

Mr Sullivan’s ‘Youth

everything?

Athletic Development’ (especially the PE boys)

I generally

please come and see me.

Regents Park runs:

answer that, whilst strength is important, what counts

Well done to Robert Bektas who ran 3k in 15: 35.

more is your ability to express maximum force in

New target: under 15mins? I think you could do

minimum time and that level of maximal strength

it!

development

may

be lower than most imagine.

Most

importantly skill is the

key

factor

(SKILL IS KING).

Body weight is the best area to start focusing

on

then

you can develop!

Who

are

the

strongest pound for pound

athletes?

Gymnasts and ballet dancers. Why? You can answer that!

If you don’t believe me read this article on Sonny Bill-Williams

–

http://rugbystrengthcoach.com/

sonny-bill-williams/

14 The Barometer - 29/4/2016

SPORTING NEWS Year 7 Cricket Notting Hill Prep School As vs Wetherby Senior School As Mr. Meyer writes...

The second cricket fixture of the term saw Year 7 take on Notting Hill Prep School at the Linford Christie Stadium. With the early May sunshine intensifying and wall to wall blue sky - this made for perfect cricketing conditions and so it proved. Captain for the day, Finlay Waters, won the toss and elected to field first. Playing on the AstroTurf pitch, the bounce played true and made the batsman play. Lucas opened, bowling with a consistent line and length. He was rewarded for his efforts by getting two wickets for a mere three runs.

Fielding looked promising also, with Finlay and Manu swooping low to prevent many boundaries.

The batting showed a lot of potential with boys displaying a fine level of maturity by playing themselves in.

The middle pairing of Max and Alex displayed how best to use the forward defensive shot and waiting patiently for the bad ball where they could be more expansive with their shot selection. The As fell just ten runs short of the total, but as I said in my debrief a lot of positives to take away from their performance. I cannot wait to see how they get on in next week's match against the Falcons.

The Barometer - 29/4/2016 15

SPORTING NEWS Notting Hill Prep School Bs vs Wetherby Senior School Bs

Year 9 Cricket After our lessons and trail matches we would

Mr Murphy writes...

like to announce our 1st XI captain for the

The Linford Christie Stadium hosted the recent U12 cricket fixture against Notting Hill Prep.

Beautiful sunshine greeted players, coaches and spectators alike as they embarked on the spectacle of the game ahead.

Wetherby elected to bat first and it showcased some great performances from Billy (28 runs), Lucas Kane (13) and Bohemond (12) producing some respectable figures for the innings total.

Beau Beale provided one of the shots of the match to reverse sweep the ball beyond the second slip deep into the field.

As with the batting, the fielding and bowling also showed some great performances typified by the effort and enthusiasm of John Tucker to provide some excellent positional play blocking a number of balls from going beyond the wicket keeper’s reach. The catch of the match was made by Bohemond from a well struck ball lofted high with great depth.

With great technique and calmness Bohemond plucked the ball from the sky to a rapturous applause from the sideline. Notable bowling performances must go to Beau for offering a good line.

The match ended dramatically in a narrow defeat by 6 runs in a well-fought encounter.

Cricket season: Congratulations Pip Evans!

Sports Quote of the Week ‘Men succeed when they realise that their failures are the preparation for their victories’ Follow us for results and updates on Twitter via @WetherbySSports #teamwetherby The Barometer - 29/4/2016 16

CLUB NEWS Quiz Club Mr Hasthorpe writes…

This week's quiz was won by a strong Walbrook team, consisting of Michael (Captain), Lachlan, Tom and Talal.

This round of bonus questions is on the subject of trees. Which tree: (a)

the araucaria, might baffle primates?

(b)

has red berries and is also known as

‘mountain ash’? (c)

has a variety called ‘osier’ used for

basket-making and biofuel?

Lego Club

And the answers… Monkey puzzle, Rowan Willow The Barometer - 29/4/2016 17

CLUB NEWS Grub Cub Miss

Lillington

writes...

This

week

in

Grub Club, the boys

made

Banana Split and Peach

Melba

Sundaes. boys

The

displayed

great team work, taking it in turns to

whip

the

cream by hand before producing some

beautiful

deserts.

Star

bakers this week were and

AdhĂŠmar Billy,

done, boys!

18 The Barometer - 29/4/2016

well

CLUB NEWS Chess Club Mr

Warner

A good week in chess club with of

played.

Leo vs George Tom vs Salem Philip vs Frejvid

writes...

lots

Week 3

games This

Rory vs Luca Seb vs Nicky Rory vs Salem Tom vs Philip Luca vs Frejvid

week’s results

Bennett vs Thomas

can be seen on

Alan vs Michael

the right.

Hamoud vs Armand Josh vs Edourd Massi vs Zack Josh vs Armand Thomas vs Edouard Bennett vs Hamoud Mr Warner vs Nicky

The Barometer - 29/4/2016 19

From the Editor On this week’s front cover:Boys enjoy a quiet game of chess on Tuesday afternoon. On the back: Year 9 learn about respiration in Biology. For all comments and feedback please email: henry.warner@wetherbysenior.co.uk

http://www.wetherbysenior.co.uk/