HM Letter to Parents March 2016

HEADMASTER’S LETTER

MARCH 2016

T0 PARENTS

Dear Parents As you know, a team of eleven ISI inspectors visited us last week to review every aspect of the School.

Thank you to parents for completing questionnaires and to the pupils who were so helpful during the week itself. We should have the written report next term and I will share it with you then. Meanwhile, once again pupils have been incredibly busy in a host of areas and the following will, I hope, give a flavour of some of the events of the last month.

Contents Page 1

Trip to Cern

Page 2

Visit to India

Page 3

Trip to Paris Trip to Hamburg

Page 4

Trip to Iceland

Page 5

Drama

Page 6

Festival of the Spoken Word Public Examinations School Shop

Page 7

Poetry by Heart : National Finals in Cambridge

Page 8

Remove Trip to the Somme

Page 9

The Twelve Books that Changed the World National Analytical Chemistry Competition

Page 10

Art Design & Technology Exhibition Howard and Mitchell Essay Competition

Page 11

Netball

Page 12

Boys’ Hockey

Page 13

Boys’ Hockey

Page 14

Friends of Chigwell – A message from Purnima Sen (Chair of FoC)

Page 15

Festival of the Foreign Word Chemistry Olympiad

Page 16

Choral Concert

Page 17

Choral Concert Music

Page 18

British Biology Olympiad 2016 Careers Convention Staff News

Page 19

The Cynics Chigwell Mitre Enterprises (CME)

Trip to CERN Antimatter, The Higgs Boson, cheese

laboratory which produces protons and

fondue and Edelweiss played on cow bells

electrons with the opposite charges to

were just some of the highlights of the

normal so that they could explore some

physics trip to Geneva during half term.

of the reactions that took place in the first few seconds after the Big Bang some 13.7 billion years ago.

After spending the evening in Geneva, armed with packed lunches and nineteen students, Miss Rebecca Childs, Dr Peter Clayton and Mr Bryan Porter set off on tram 18 towards CERN - the main purpose of the trip. Following an entertaining lecture on the history of the CERN and the work of its scientists which focused on the discovery of the Higgs Boson, they were given a guided tour of two of the many facilities on the CERN site.

A short bus ride took them to the workshops where large electromagnets were being assembled and tested as part of the maintenance programme of the 22km circumference Large Hadron Collider. The guide gave an in-depth talk about the operations of the magnets and

how

they

temperatures

were

colder

cooled than

to

those

encountered in outer space to enable them to bend a beam of protons that were travelling 99.99995% of the speed of light. After, they then went to the main control centre where the guide explained his work in the antimatter

1

Visit to India A Chigwell group enjoyed a wonderful visit to Saccidanada Ashram in Tamil Nadu over half term. Fifteen senior pupils and eleven adults made up the party for the 12th visit to the Ashram.

They visited the Tim Pruss Memorial School and attended Speech Day as guests of honour. Tim’s parents were part of the group. They took a huge number of brand new books, pens and pencils and other equipment, all donated by Pre Prep families, and these were presented to the Headmaster.

Chigwell pupils taught lessons at the school and took part in the cultural programme on Speech Day, joining in one of their dances and presenting one of their own!

The group came face to face with the occupants of a refugee camp and met people who had fled from their homes in Sri Lanka during the civil war of 1991.

This was a humbling experience as was the sight of a very happy family, in a village close to the Ashram, whose house had been rebuilt as a result of donations from one of the Chigwell nonuniform days last year.

2

Trip to Paris

Trip to Hamburg

Over the half term holiday, Miss Rebecca Childs, Miss Rosie Pettingill and Mr Ben Wille accompanied twenty five Lower Fifth pupils on a physics trip to Disneyland, Paris. During the trip, students attended workshops and seminars which helped them explore the physics behind the design of a roller coaster. Students then braved the wet and, at times, snowy weather to complete some very valuable research of their own, riding some of Disneyland's big thrill rides. It was an excellent trip, engaging students in physics, while having fun. Pupils have since attended an after school workshop completing their roller coaster design with some fantastic results.

The German Exchange with our partner school in Hamburg was a successful event which is now in its 16th year and this year saw one of our largest exchanges yet. During their stay in Germany the pupils went to school with their exchange partners and gained a clear idea of school life in Hamburg.

Other trips took them to the ‘Arriba’ adventure swimming pool, the “Universum” in Bremen and the “Miniatur-Wunderland” in Hamburg.

One of the most popular events for the students was when they had the chance to make their own chocolate bars in the ‘Chocoversum’.

3

Trip to Iceland A group of Middle Sixth geography students visited Iceland to bring to life the geographical features and processes they have studied in school. On the first day the students visited the Blue Lagoon.

This popular man-made geothermal spa of crystal clear water is the only site on earth where it is possible to swim in 40 °C water all year round.

The sun was shining and the students described it as one of the most memorable places they had visited. This was followed by visits to three stunning waterfalls and a geyser situated in South West Iceland that has been active for over 10,000 years. Other popular attractions included Thingviller, the national park where Iceland’s parliament was established in 930 AD. It is also scoured by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and rift valleys are clearly visible where the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates pull apart at around 2cm a year. However, the most stunning part of the trip was Solheimajokull (which means ‘sun house glacier’), one of several outlets from the Myrdalsjokull icecap and is located in an 8km long valley. It has been retreating since the end of the 19th century at a rate of around 100m per year.

4

Drama In drama this half of term, we have been treated to an outstanding performance of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” performed by the Lower Sixth AS drama class. This was a one hour, cut down version with dance, physical comedy and some beautiful costume and make up by AS candidate Ella Froud.

Ella chose costumes from the Royal National Theatre costume hire and also made a number of pieces herself. GCSE drama students watched the play and will be writing about it in their examination on live theatre.

The Upper Fifth GCSE students treated us to five plays over two nights at the end of term. These included “The Cagebirds”, “Be My Baby”, “Semblance of Madness”, “The Opposite Sex” and a post-acopalyse piece written by our very own Miss Janey Foster called “No First Names”.

Candidates offered light, sound, costume, make up and set design as well as acting.

Amber Lorrell’s set design was particularly striking and was well complimented by excellent use of lighting

by Vikrahm Sivakumar. These were two

highly impressive evenings of theatre – well done to all involved and many thanks to Mr Andrew Lewis for all his help with the technical aspects of the shows.

5

Festival of the Spoken Word

Public Examinations Students in the Middle Sixth, Lower Sixth and Upper Fifth are advised to print a copy of their finalised summer timetable and place it in a prominent position at home, such as on the fridge. The exam timetables have been available on both the Pupil and Parent Portals since the start of the Lent term. This will help them to know exactly when their exams are taking place and avoid problems. Apart from listening exams, all take place in the Sports Hall. Morning exams start at 9am and afternoon exams start at 1.30pm. If your son/daughter has an exam clash then they will be seen on an individual basis and handed a letter stating the new order of examinations. This will take place after the Easter break.

This year’s Festival was distinctive for at least two reasons: the excellence of the Swallow’s Remove housefest contribution and the standard of the individual performances. Compered by Will Weightman and Barney Walsh, who also performed several pieces, the evening was one of real variety.

In a very strong field in the Serious Readings Jusden Halabi won with a riveting performance from John Grisham’s “A Time to Kill” while Barney Walsh gave a stunning performance of Hamlet’s “O that this too, too solid flesh would melt” in the Monologue section.

Special mentions should go to Ziyad Chaudhary for his menacing monologue of “The Joker” and to runner up in that section, Stacey Cockram for her performance from Shaw’s “St Joan”.

School Shop Over the Easter break, the shop will be open at the following times:

Charlotte James-Pajwani’s “Mum” won with very strong competition from Barney Walsh’s “Custard Cremes” in the Original Writing category. In the More Than One it was almost impossible to compare the contributions but the winners were Max Albert and Rajas Chitnis for a very spirited shared reading of Tennyson’s “The Charge of the Light Brigade”.

29th to 31st March 10am – 3pm 4th to 14th April

The Performer of the Evening award was shared by the Drama Scholars Barney Walsh and Will Weightman.

6

10am – 3pm

Poetry by Heart : National Finals in Cambridge

resident in Baltimore, acted as chair and was obviously delighted by the very high standard reached by so many over the two days.

If Poetry by Heart was to be judged solely by its organisation it would be hard to beat. The whole two days was like the proverbially ‘well-oiled machine’.

Friendly, helpful staff, excellent food and accommodation and it just got better. It was a privilege to hear the ‘competitors’ from around the country as well as a moving and uplifting experience. Our own Will Weightman represented London Northeast and did us proud. Although he didn’t quite make the final cut of nine finalists, he was one of the very few awarded a commendation for his recitation of “The Stretcher Bearer”. After his performance he was congratulated by many of the audience, both teachers and students, and many came to add their congratulations after his award. One of the highlights was the Friday evening readings by the panel of judges, all practising poets. Sir Andrew Motion, the co-founder of the competition and now

7

Remove Trip to the Somme The History department took forty six

the group.

Remove pupils to the Somme region of

mainly on changing technology and the

the First World War battlefields to mark

use of tanks. The group were lucky to be

the centenary of the Battle of the

shown a tank from a private collection

Somme, a couple of months early. After

that actually fought, and was knocked

an early start they visited various sites of

out, during the fighting. Later that day

interest including Newfoundland Park

they went to the cemetery where those

where the pupils were able to walk in

who died in ‘Tank Deborah’ were laid to

original trenches that are preserved.

rest. Their final stop was at the Arras

They also visited the Ulster Tower and

memorial, where a further six Old

the Thiepval Memorial where the pupils

Chigwellians have their names recorded

paid tribute to two Old Chigwellians

and a seventh, F.C. Stovin is also

whose names are recorded along with

commemorated as part of the RAF

77,000 others who have no known grave.

memorial there. The behaviour of the

A

pupils throughout was first class and

reef

of

poppies

was

left

to

The second day focused

they were a credit to the school.

commemorate the troops along with some words by Christopher Collins from

8

The Twelve Books that Changed the World Alongside activities in English lessons, the School came together to celebrate World Book Week. Twelve Middle Sixth students presented a chapel service on ‘The Twelve Books that Changed the World’ and they gave a spirited argument in support of why their book should be voted the most significant text for western civilisation.

The books up for debate were: Newton’s, Principia Mathematica; Stopes’ Married Love; Darwin’s The Origin of Species; Wilberforce’s On the Abolition of the Slave Trade; Wolstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman; Arkwright’s Patent for his Spinning Machine; Smith’s The Wealth of Nations; Shakespeare’s First Folio; Faraday’s Experimental Researches in Electricity; The King James Bible; the

Magna Carta; The Rules of Association Football. The senior school was then asked to debate with their tutors which book they thought was the most influential and the results were close with Faraday, Newton, Darwin, Smith and Wolstonecraft coming closely behind the winning text: The Magna Carta which gained 5 of the 20 votes.

National Analytical Chemistry Competition Three Lower Sixth students, Rahul

determination via spectroscopy. Much

Aggarwal,

Julia

of this work is degree level chemistry

Kotowska, worked very hard to achieve

and the students worked extremely hard

second place in the regional heat of the

as a team.

Royal Society of Chemistry Analyst

second place and a book token each.

Evey

Zheng

and

Competition. The competition is held at Queen Mary College University of London every year, and this year sixteen schools from this region entered. Rahul, Evey and Julia took part in a three hour practical including the standardisation of hydrogen peroxide, serial dilution of a Ti(IV)

solution

and

concentration

9

They were rewarded with

Art Design & Technology Exhibition The Chigwell Open Junior Art and Design Exhibition has been an annual event since 1997. It is an ‘open’ exhibition in every sense; local primary schools are invited to submit up to eight pieces of 2D or 3D work without restrictions on size or medium. The exhibition is then held in The Gallery and professionally presented. This year we mounted and displayed 206 pieces of work from artists aged between 3 to 11 years of age and a

special private view was held for all of the children, their teachers, parents and friends. This year we have had a wonderful selection of art on display from twenty two schools, ranging from beautiful still life studies, William Morris inspired silk ties, to a wonderful frieze inspired by Remembrance Day. We had about 250 visitors at the opening who were all amazed at the high standard and variety of work.

Howard and Mitchell Essay Competition Nearly a hundred Chigwell pupils, staff and parents attended the annual presentation of the winning essays in the Howard and Mitchell Essay competition.

This competition is open to Lower Sixth students whose essays, chosen, researched and written independently, enter either the Howard (arts and humanities) or Mitchell (maths and sciences) contests. This year’s winners were (Mitchell) Lara Hobbis, on “Should the germ line genetic modification of humans be allowed in order to treat or prevent disease?”, and (Howard) Autumn Foord, on “To what extent has the portrayal of mental illness in literature differed in representation over time and how has it impacted modern perception?”. Both talks were expertly prepared and confidently delivered – as evidenced by the wealth of perceptive

questions which followed each. The presentations were followed by a dinner, which included a talk by former Howard winner, Isabella Bird who is now studying at Warwick University.

10

Netball

The netball term has been absolutely

success at the Netball Tour in Orlando,

fantastic with huge success across every

Florida in October half term.

year group. The 1st and 2nd teams have

The biggest achievement of the season

continued to perform well in matches

has been the standard of play from the

and

great

U11s, U12s and the U13s who took part

development over the last few weeks. A

in the IAP’s competition. This was an

weakened 1st team competed at the

outstanding day for all teams, with the

Kelsall tournament finishing third in

U11s just missing out on the finals by

their group, which is an amazing

one point, finishing third in their group

achievement. The U14s have also had a

with the top two teams qualifying for

spectacular season, losing only the one

the finals. A special mention must go to

game. Their court play and versatility

the U12 and U13 girls. Both squads were

has been outstanding and we are very

unbeaten in their pools throughout the

pleased to see such a vast improvement

tournament with the U12s qualifying for

in all three teams for this age group.

the National Finals automatically at

They are competing in the Georgia

Roedean School – only twelve schools

Cordery Cup just before Easter, where I

from across the country did so. The U13s

am sure they will impress upon the

unfortunately lost in a closely fought

opposition. The girls in the U14 and U15

play off semi-final match against

squads will now be preparing and

Bishop’s Stortford College. The U11s

looking forward to building upon their

performed well.

they

have

shown

11

Boys’ Hockey evident within this talented squad. The 2nd XI continued to make excellent progress and, in terms of results, proved to be the most successful senior team. As mentioned in the previous report, there has been a great deal of movement of players between these two squads and this bodes very well for the future. In the middle school, the U15 squad have also shown a significant development this half term. Despite sometimes not achieving the success of the previous terms football season, the boys should gain a great deal of confidence following their performances and wins against both Haileybury and Aldenham. The U14s, however, have produced the stand out performance of the season. They were crowned County Champions and went on to represent Essex at the Regional Tournament at Bedford Hockey Club. This talented group, many of which are club players, have made great strides forward this season and we to look forward to watching their development in future years.

Following the half term break, tournaments and fixtures have come thick and fast for both the Junior and Senior School pupils.

At the top of the school the 1st XI kicked on in the second half of the season and their continued hard work and perseverance paid dividends. Impressive wins over Mill Hill, Haberdashers and local rivals Bancroft’s were achieved and a clear sense of togetherness and teamwork was

12

Boys’ Hockey

Not to be outdone by the seniors, the Junior School boys also finished the season in strong fashion. The U13 boys reached the shield semi-finals at the regional IAPS tournament at Bishop’s Stortford College losing only once winners Bedford School in the group rounds. In addition, playing in their first competitive tournaments, the U11s finished County runners-up and produced some exceptional hockey in the regional IAPS tournament. Their attendance at the new after school KS2 hockey club has been excellent and has

furthered their development and understanding of match play. Well done to all the boys for their hard work and participation throughout the season.

13

Friends of Chigwell – A

message from Purnima Sen (Chair of FoC) not just our kids but those that need the help more? I have not come up with any bright ideas yet but please do contact us if you have any thoughts on this and I would love to hear from you.

Last week I was in Mumbai for five days and decided to visit a local private school to find out what the PTAs there do, thinking I could be looking for inspiration for new ideas.

Outside the walls of this state-of-the-art school, you find contrasts at every corner, urban slums near posh shopping malls, rickshaws sharing the roads with limousines.

Step inside the school and you notice academia at its best, colourful student artwork, thoughtfully designed interiors, and abundant greenery. I heard about a number of ambitious initiatives at various stages of implementation, including design thinking, makerspaces, and project-based learning.

The PTA here along with the students also take on service-learning projects in the community, building empathy along with problem-solving strategies. These are not random or disconnected programs by the PTA, they form an ecosystem for learning. It is what happens when students and teachers are immersed in an environment that encourages innovation and risk taking. The PTA regularly arranges days for the students and the teachers along with parents to go to the poorer government schools in the slums and spend an hour a week teaching the children about technology and languages.

Teaching someone else improves your own learning and drums in the feeling of empathy amongst students and parents alike. I learnt so much and the biggest lesson was that our kids are so privileged and that the role of the PTA here is far too internal focussed. It got me thinking about what else it is the FoC can do to share what we have and how we can have a symbiotic relationship with our community. What can we do that will help

Back in England and time moves on, March has arrived as if the year is in a hurry to move on and the season is showing some signs of slipping into Spring. At least one is saved the pleasure of going into work in the dark and returning in the dark.

Since the Christmas period the FoC have been busy as always. In terms of events, we managed to serve drinks at the staff panto, have a theatre night at Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, we served at the bar for the Old Chigwellians dinner on Shrove Tuesday and also had a movie night showing Peter Pan to the Pre Prep and Robosapien to the KS2 pupils. In total we managed to raise £1,443 in profits from all these events.

We also managed to donate £500 back to the school towards the Pre Prep Hidey Hole this term. If you do get a chance please have a look, it is so amazing.

In terms of what is coming up – please note the Easter Egg Hunt on the 23rd March and the very sought after Musical Evening (Jazz Evening previously), involving music students from the whole School on Friday 1st July. Please note the date in your diary as tickets will be on sale soon.

In the meantime, I hope you all have a restful April and a joyous time with your children at home.

14

Festival of the Foreign Word The MFL department recently organised the inaugural Chigwell Festival of the Foreign Word. This is a competition for the Dales’ MFL Reading Prize, which is presented at Speech Day. The event was judged by guest of honour Sir Richard Dales, who alongside his work as a Governor and his long career in the diplomatic service had a very personal attachment to the speech day prize since it was donated by his father in the 1940s. We are grateful to Sir Richard for his involvement with the competition as well as his words of encouragement to all Sixth Form MFL students. Being able to read and present in a foreign language opens a door into another culture and all present were treated to a variety of excellent presentations and performances ranging from 17th century French drama to a modern German novel.

central question, if life is a dream, as well as exploring Spanish identity in the 17th century. Many congratulations also to Neha Patel, reading Le Monologue d’Harpagon by Moliere, who won second prize.

Many congratulations go to Laurence Brooks, who won the competition, performing Segismundo’s soliloquy from La vida es sueño by Calderón de la Barca., a fantastic tale that asks the

Chemistry Olympiad Congratulations to the twenty two Lower Sixth and Middle Sixth students who took part in the Chemistry Olympiad. Particular mention should be make of Evey Zheng and Julia Kotowska who both gained silver awards

15

Choral Concert The final weekend of the term saw a real

Yasmin Antoniou and the tenors; Max

musical

Church,

Albert, Gopal Kambo, the baritones;

Spitalfields, when a choir of over one

Michael Scott, Jusden Halabi and the

hundred and ten, accompanied by a full

bass, Lucas Abrami-Gill and Henry Bird.

orchestra gave a spiritual and exciting

They were certainly not overawed by the

performance of Rossini’s Petite Messe

grandeur of the architecture and, indeed,

Solonnelle. The fourteen soloists, apart

rose to the occasion producing some

from the contralto Daniella Thomas,

wonderfully tuneful, beautifully phrased,

treat

in

Christ

were all pupils. A specific mention must be made of the sopranos; Kate Hawes, Maddie Lovett, Brooke Newton, Alice Melvin and Lara Hobbis, the altos; Hana Edwards, Rhea Gupta, Tamra Paul,

confident singing. They were backed by a well-trained chorus which gave not only an accurate rendition of the score but also a thoughtful interpretation of the text. It was wonderful to see pupils, former pupils, teachers, parents and friends join together in a truly uplifting occasion.

16

Choral Concert enjoy the piece itself in equal measure, partly thanks to the use of video technology with live camera feeds onto screens magnifying the dynamics and capturing the finer details of the performance. The evening was brought together under the assured conducting of Before the Rossini came a bravura

Mr Howard Ebden and Governors,

performance of Prokofiev’s Piano Concert

friends, parents and pupils left having

No 1 featuring the 2015 Chigwell School

thoroughly enjoyed another very special

Musician of the Year Gopal Kambo. This

evening of Chigwell music-making.

was an incredibly assured memorised

Music In February, the Chamber Concert had a somewhat

lighter

tone

with

the

audience sat at tables with refreshments to

accompany

the

stunning

performances. The Chapel Choir, two flute ensembles, and the brass group all played their part and there was a delightful vocal duet and harmonious vocal trio which interspersed the rendition of a piece which makes huge

saxophone group playing ‘Down by the

demands on the pianist. The audience

Riverside’ and the clarinet ensemble

were able to admire Gopal’s skill and

playing ‘The Entertainer’. The evening was completed by the string orchestra playing ‘The Holberg Suite’ by Grieg.

17

British Biology Olympiad 2016 The Biology Olympiad is an online quiz

Medal (top 6.6%) and Lauren Keiller –

run by the Society of Biology for Sixth

Silver Medal (top 9.5%).

Form students. Approximately 7,200 pupils took part in the competition this year including a team of twenty one from Chigwell. The results were very good with eight of the team achieving medals.

Congratulations and well done to Anna Chelchowska and Julia Kotowska – Gold

Careers Convention On Thursday 21st April, we will once again be holding our annual careers convention. As always, the aim of this is to help older students consider the possible future career options that are available to them and to allow them to hear about different employment areas from those working in various areas. We are keen to represent as many fields as possible and would be delighted to hear from parents from across the School who would be prepared to represent their area of work. The format of the evening is: 6.00pm

Welcome and buffet for all advisors in the Swallow Room Coffee Shop

7.00pm

Arrival of parents and pupils in New Hall

8.45pm

Evening concludes

If you would be prepared to help by attending what is invariably a very pleasant evening, please e-mail Mrs Sue Lee (slee@chigwell-school.org) with details of the area that you would be willing to represent.

Staff News We send our congratulations to Hannah and Will Tomsett on the arrival of their baby daughter Florance.

18

The Cynics The Cynics is a new informal philosophy

justified. They hope to ask further big

discussion group which meets every

and difficult questions, and to scrutinise

Wednesday of Week B, in CL1, from

philosophically and debate our thinking

4:15pm to 5:00pm. It is open to all

and

students in the Lower Fifth and Upper

preparation

Fifth. So far, the group has discussed

academic

what it is to know something, how we

university application. Further details are

can decide what the right thing to do

available from Mr Chris Lord.

values.

All for

Sixth

this

is

excellent

independent

and

Form

and

study

is, and whether torture can ever be

Chigwell Mitre Enterprises (CME) Once again, over Easter, Barracudas will

CME profit is returned to the School in

be holding a holiday camp at Chigwell.

order to keep fee rises down and to

Where we can do so with minimal impact

provide funds to enhance existing

on the School itself, we let our facilities

facilities.

through our trading subsidiary CME. All

Thank you for all your support once again this term – for the School and for your sons and daughters. We have had a number of parents’ evenings over the last few days and I hope these have been useful. For students in the top three years of the School, that feedback will hopefully guide the necessary revision for public exams but in addition to study, I hope all families have a very happy Easter.

With best wishes Yours sincerely

Michael Punt

19

Term Dates 2016 Trinity Term (Easter Day is 27th March) First day: Monday 18th April Half term: Saturday 28th May to Sunday 5th June INSET Day Monday June 6th Term ends: Wednesday 13th July Michaelmas Term Staff meetings and INSET on Monday 5th and Tuesday 6th September First day: Wednesday 7th September Half term: Saturday 22nd October to Sunday 6th November Term ends: Wednesday 14th December 2017 Lent Term Staff meetings and INSET on Wednesday 4th January First day: Thursday 5th January Half term: Saturday 11th February to Sunday 19th February Term ends: Wednesday 29th March 2017 Trinity Term (Easter Day is 16th April) First day: Wednesday 19th April Half term: Saturday 27th May to Sunday 4th June INSET Day Monday June 5th Term ends: Wednesday 12th July