VIEW FROM THE ABBEY Saturday 2 April 2022
Congratulations to our sailors Very well done to the young sailors who completed their RYA Competent Crew / Day Skipper course after a packed five days (and four nights) at sea around Poole, The Isle of Wight and the Solent. After a unavoidable break in offering this course over the last two years, it was exciting to be back on board the Escapade. Locations passed include Beaulieu, Cowes, Totland Bay, Yarmouth and the Needles.
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We were blessed with glorious weather and near-perfect conditions during the course, giving the students a chance to hone their boathandling skills and complete other aspects of the course, including navigation and route planning, and ‘man overboard’ training. The students leave the course with a valuable qualification allowing them to skipper a small yacht in familiar waters during the day. Giles Vigar | Science Teacher & Head of Sailing
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SUBJECT FOCUS: Fashion Design & Production It’s been an exciting few weeks for our BTEC Fashion students. Karen and Jasmine’s work is currently on display at the Blandford Fashion Museum as part of their ‘through the decades’ theme for the Queen’s Jubilee. The students showcased their research into, and designs inspired by, the 1950s and 1970s. Hospitality students joined us for the launch event, serving refreshments in the museum tea rooms. Both Fashion year groups also visited Bath Fashion Museum for more inspiration towards their practical assignments. They looked at the main collection and ‘Shoephoria’ exhibition. Some of the shoes were blended in with the fashion collection, with the earliest shoe dating back to early 1700. The highlight was the Manolo Blahnik display, which matched fashion illustration designs with exquisite shoes. Elka Charlton | Subject Teacher
WATCH OUR WEBINAR: Preparing for exams and looking after wellbeing Last week we held our second Parents’ Webinar of the term, following the earlier session around how smartphones and tablets can be used positively as a learning aid. This latest session will be especially valuable for parents of children who are preparing for their exams after the Easter holidays. We cover a host of useful revision tips and how to support your child to achieve their best, while at the same time being aware of their mental wellbeing and helping them to unwind. Please click the image to watch a recording of the webinar. Laura Kleiser | SENDCo & Lead Practitioner
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VIEW FROM THE ABBEY
New classroom screens We’re delighted to report that the project to upgrade our classroom screens is well under way. By the time students return, they will find their classrooms enhanced with these excellent screens, currently being fitted by our IT team. We’re really excited about the step forward this represents for teaching and learning at Milton Abbey, after the huge expansion of IT in education we invested in to underpin our successful MOLE learning platform during the pandemic. Now every lesson will be able to showcase the creativity of our students and teachers to the maximum. The august portraits of the Kings Room will now share their home with a portable model: truly the best of both worlds! Judith Fremont-Barnes | Head
COMMENDATION HIGHLIGHTS Gracie F | Fifth Form Gracie produced an outstanding unit of work this term in BTEC Sport. Every assignment was perfectly presented and went into excellent detail. She worked really hard to ensure it was completed to a Distinction level.
Karen C & Jasmine O | Middle Sixth Form In their BTEC Fashion lessons, Karen and Jasmine delivered a comprehensive and thoughtful marketing strategy to launch a ski wear shop. They used real-world market research techniques, mastered the Prezzi.com presentation platform, designed excellent branding and clearly understood their customer demographics. Freya F | Lower Sixth Form Freya wanted to raise money for the people of Ukraine after watching the news. She organised and ran a second hand clothing sale that raised £133 from students for Save the Children’s appeal. We hope her hard work will make a difference to families and children in Ukraine.
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Welcome return of MA tradition After a two-year break due to Covid, the Portman Hunt visited Milton Abbey during the last week of term, a tradition that dates back decades. It was a spectacle for all the students and staff who watched the arrival, especially for those members of the Sixth Form who joined the trail hunt, riding their own horses. Elisabeth Carr | Director of Land-Based Students
Online safety tips for the Easter break Managing teenagers’ use of mobile phones and other internet technology is increasingly challenging for both schools and parents. Of course many of our students - your children - will choose to remain in contact with each other while they are on their Easter holidays and, for most, this will be a positive experience. However sometimes incidents happen during times away from school: friends falling out with each other; unkind behaviour, particularly over group chats; or sharing of inappropriate content. Now would be a great time to help your child ‘spring clean’ their devices, chats and images and to ensure that they have the skills to manage their social media, gaming sites and other apps they like to use. Teenagers need to develop independence online, just as they do offline. While it is not feasible or desirable for parents to supervise everything their teenagers do online, research shows that they still need boundaries and support. You should set clear expectations of how your expect them to behave towards others online, consider appropriate sharing of photos of themselves and others, and when and where they are allowed to use their devices while at home. Allowing your child to self-regulate by encouraging their online interests, discussing boundaries and being available for support if they need it is far more effective than content-blocking tools or WiFi restricted hours, as it will assist them to become resilient to the challenges they will face online. Our School website Safeguarding section contains links to lots of useful information for parents to help them manage and support their child’s online experience. To highlight one resource that may be useful to parents: the Report Harmful Content website gives advice on how to remove inappropriate or illegal content from different online platforms. Organisations such as the NSPCC and Internet Matters also have lots of advice about how to help your children. We would always advise young people to use services from Childline if they have any concerns. You can find more information about each service by clicking the links in the above paragraph. Sarah Badley | Head of Personal Development & Community Engagement and Deputy DSL
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VIEW FROM THE ABBEY
IN PHOTOS: Brecon Beacons The Fifth Form took an adventurous three-day trip to the Brecon Beacons. Highlights included ascending Pen Y Fan, the highest mountain in South Wales, rock-climbing and abseiling, canoeing and waterfall exploration. They worked brilliantly to support one another in more challenging activities and all of the students overcame some initial nervousness to take part in the challenges. Will Fraser | Head of Lower School
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SPORTING NEWS
An eclectic mix of sport has been on offer this Lent Term: from cycling, horse riding and lacrosse, to football, netball and swimming. However, for this update, we’re focusing on the two hotly-anticipated end-of-term staff vs pupils matches. We had a delayed start to the hockey, so that students playing competitive football and netball could join in. This meant a busy sporting afternoon for staff and students alike! The staff team in yellow (ably assisted by a handful of Sixth Form girls) were beaten 4-1 by the mixed year group boys’ hockey team. It was great fun and everyone was ready for a cold drink afterwards. Hot on the heels of hockey on Tuesday, on Thursday it was the turn of the girls’ lacrosse team to take on the teachers. With a big crowd and great atmosphere throughout, both teams played a fast and competitive game, umpired by Mrs Gatward in her last full school day with us. With little mercy shown after the students’ hockey victory, the staff team took the win and evened the standings. It’s all to play for with tennis and cricket fixtures planned next term! Ben Lawes | Director of Sport Don’t forget: You can see results from every match online at www.ma-sports.co.uk.
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SPORTING NEWS
Sport Awards
🏆 Congratulations to the winners of all our Sporting Awards for Lent Term 2022 and especially to those students receiving Colours for excellence in their chosen sport and for being a great role model throughout their time at MA.
🏑 Hockey 🏑 Junior Player of the Season | Jimmy L (IV) 1st XI Player of the Season | Ed H (MVI) Junior Most Improved Player of the Season | Ed D (IV) 1st XI Most Improved Player of the Season | Jacob S (LVI) Colours | Ed H (MVI)
🥍 Lacrosse 🥍 Player of the Season | Marina P-J (LVI) Most Improved Player of the Season | Grace L (III) Colours | Georgia S, Lily A, Izzy L & Anna D (all MVI) 🏊 Swimming 🏊 Swimmer of the Term | Lily A (MVI)
🚴 Cycling 🚴 Road Cyclist of the Term | Toby A (III) Mountain Biking Rider of the Term | Sol B (III)
🏃 Cross Country 🏃 Runner of the Term | Hunter T (MVI) Colours | Henry R, Charlie H & Hunter T (all MVI)
⚽ Football ⚽ Senior Player of the Term | Isaac S (MVI) Junior Player of the Term | Edi A (IV) Colours | Joaquin EVdS, Isaac S & James C (all MVI)
🗑 Netball 🗑 Player of the Season | Chloe T (LVI) Most Improved Player of the Season | Theresa W (LVI) Colours | Jeanne P (MVI), Fleur H (MVI), Chloe T (LVI) & Tatty B (MVI)
⛳ Golf ⛳ Golfer of the Term | Toby C (V) Page 7 | www.miltonabbey.co.uk
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HOUSE NEWS Athelstan On the last Sunday of term, Athelstan House raised money for the Southampton Hospital Charity by walking 24km along the Jurassic Coast. They have already raised £981, but if anyone still wishes to donate, this is the link: https://www.justgiving.com/ fundraising/athelstanhouse
Hambro Hambro had a brilliant House Weekend full of activities! On Saturday teams battled it out in a competitive tournament of glow in the dark dodgeball. Hunter’s team came out on top with excellent teamwork against tough competition from Arshia’s team. After the dodgeball, we all went down to the NBT to watch England vs France with hot dogs. On Sunday, the house took off to Southampton to enjoy ten-pin bowling and the cinema, with plenty of free time after to explore the shops and restaurants.
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HOUSE NEWS Sixth Form Lounge Just before the Easter Break, a pool table - chosen by students - arrived in the new Sixth Form Lounge. They couldn’t wait to unwrap it! It’s the latest addition to the Sixth Formers’ separate evening social space, which is used by students from all hosues. The Lounge already sports a piano, games console, plenty of sofas to relax on, and facilities to make their own refreshments. The space will continue to evolve, with students leading on what it contains and how it’s designed.
Welcome baby Azariah Azariah Olwen Ruby Proctor was born on 21st March 2022 in the wee small hours of the morning. She’s already a budding Villa fan and loves dancing around to classic reggae and her uncle Reuben James! Bobby and Fire are delighted with the new human addition to the family - even if they are confused as to where her fur is! She can’t wait to make her Chapel debut during the Summer Term and meet all the pupils! Ruth (Butler) and Stuart
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CREATIVE SHOWCASE
VIEW FROM THE ABBEY
An excellent photo from Fifth Form Photography Student Florence M, who has just started her personal project on ‘Levitation’. Florence has demonstrated excellent Photoshop skills in this experiment, appearing to capture a snapshot of fellow classmate, Laurie, floating in mid-air. Ed Lynn | Photography Teacher
DATES FOR NEXT TERM 18:00 Tue 19 April
| Boarders Return
08:35 Wed 20 April
| Start of Summer Term
Fri 22 to Sun 24 April | CCF Trip to Snowdonia Tue 26 April | Whole School & House formal photographs 12:30 Sat 30 April to | Exeat starts 21:00 Mon 2 May
| Exeat ends
14:30 Tue 3 May
| Cricket 1st XI vs MCC
Wed 4 May
| History of Art & Classical Civilisation trip to London
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