Pep Talk 2018 - 2019

Pep Talk 2018 - 2019

PEPONI SCHOOL WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE THE FOLLOWING TOP PUPILS FOR THEIR EXCELLENT RESULTS ACADEMIC YEAR 2018-2019 IGCSE RESULTS

Savannah Tawk 9A* ,1A,

Reyan Vora 9A* ,1A,

Rhea Shah 9A* ,1A,

Tanisha Ameet Doshi 8A* ,2A,

Shay Shah 8A* ,1A,1B ,

Tara Mann 8A* ,1A,1B ,

Sean Koome 6A* ,4A,

Anya Shah 4A* ,6A,

Julie Waimiri 4A* ,5A,1B ,

Aarav Patel 6A* ,3A,1B ,

Nyamu Karani 6A* ,3A,

Riani Shah 5A* ,3A,2B ,

Dilan Shah 5A*,2A,2B,1C,

Imaan Khawaja 5A*,2A,2B,1C,

Maansi Shah 4A*,3A,2B,1C,

Meer Gudka 8A* ,1A,1B ,

Simran Raikundalia 7A* ,2A,1B ,

Jadyn Chowdhury 6A* ,1A,3B ,

Jonathan Uwase 6A* ,1A,2B ,

Rohan Seedhar 5A* ,4A,1B ,

Carla Byarugaba 3A* ,5A,2B ,,

Khushi Bid 2A*,2A,4B,1C,

UNIVERSITY ADMISSION CLASS OF 2018-2019

Waruguru Kibuga Yale University ,USA Literature

Shiv Malde Imperial College London ,UK Mechanical Engineering

Melat Kanja Williams College ,USA Political Science & Philosophy

Arnav Shah University of Bristol ,UK Aerospace Engineering

Rushil Malde University of Bristol ,UK Economics & Finance

Nikita Acharya University of Bristol ,UK Psychology

Vendela Langbjenne University of Bristol ,UK Biology

Brij Shah University of Warwick ,UK Law

Faith Arina McGill University ,Canada Commerce

Wanjiku Bubi McGill University, Canada Anthropology

Olivia Kairu University of Toronto, Canada Commerce

Zara Vorley University of Edinburgh ,UK Biological Sciences

Bhuvana Mandadi UCLAN ,UK Medicine

Christian Ringler UCLA, USA Genetics

Christopher Tawk UCL, UK Engineering

Arshi Shah UCL, UK Environmental Geoscience

Georgia Fernandes Syracuse University ,USA Architecture

Isha Patel Loughborough University ,UK Finance & Management

Jerome Byabagambi Loughborough University ,UK Civil Engineering

Lance Okeyo Loughborough University ,UK International Business

Neer Raikundalia Loughborough University ,UK Business Economics & Finance

Wairimu Kimamo Loughborough University ,UK Finance & Management

Kieran Darlington University of Stirling, UK Philosophy

Wanjiku Wachira Strathmore University,Kenya Bachelor of Commerce

Savannah Thethy UCLA, USA Business Management

Rushabh S Shah UCLA, USA Material Science

Rushab R Shah University of Manchester ,UK Biotechnology

Ndiritu Kariuki University of Manchester ,UK Chemical Engineering

Jeremiah Spencer Ayiella Ryerson University, Canada Business Management

Lucianna Mareco Brunel University,UK Life Science

Joy Kaunda University of Nairobi Engineering

Sonia Muriu

Mia Lyn Jooste University of Bath Pharmacology

Melanie Njuhigu University of Leicester Law

The Savannah College of Art and Design ,USA

Interior Design

Saman Patel University of Bristol ,UK Mathematics with Statistics for Finance

PEPONI SCHOOL | P. O. BOX 236, Ruiru 00232, Kenya | Tel: (020 )3546456, 020 2585375| Cell: 0733 615193, 0722 287248 E-mail: info@peponischool.org | www.peponischool.org

CONTENTS HEADMASTER’S ADDRESS

2

SCHOOL TRIPS AND EVENTS

8

OUR MUSICIANS

38

PLENTY OF DRAMA...

40

OUR ARTISTS

48

SPORTS 50 YEAR GROUP PAGES

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HEADMASTER’S ADDRESS A man was walking down a coral-fringed beach at sunset, when he noticed a stranger in the distance. As he grew nearer, he saw that the stranger was bending down, picking something up and throwing it out into the ocean. Time and time again she kept picking things up and throwing them into the water. Was it driftwood? Stones? Sea shells?

As the man got closer, he noticed that she was picking up starfish that had been washed up on the beach and, one at a time, she was throwing them back into the water.

The man walking along the beach was puzzled. He approached the stranger and said, “Good evening friend. I was wondering what you were doing.”

Honoured Guest, Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls An elderly woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole, which she carried around her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.

“I am ashamed of myself because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house”.

The old woman smiled, “Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot’s side? That is because I have always known about your imperfection, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.”

“For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.”

Each of us has our own unique talent. But it is the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so interesting and rewarding. You have just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

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“I’m throwing these starfish back into the ocean. You see, it’s high tide right now and all of these starfish have been washed up onto the shore. If I don’t throw them back into the sea, they’ll die.”

“I understand,” the man replied, “but there must be thousands of starfish on this beach. You can’t possibly get to all of them. There are simply too many. Can’t you see that you can’t possibly make a difference?”

The stranger smiled, bent down and picked up yet another starfish, and as she threw it back into the sea, she replied, “I made a difference to that one!”

Two stories: one that I have used before but is worth repetition and one that I have not used before but is well worth telling. Why? Well, in the first one the message is that you should be yourself. In an age where so many people strive for perfection and where that effort to be the best and achieve the highest grades and always to display yourself as flawless, we would do well to look for our strengths but also to dwell on our faults. There is nothing wrong with having aspirations and dreams but we need to keep a sense of reality, a sense of proportion. Like the cracked pot, our perceived weakness could actually be strength in disguise. Be yourself: do not try to be something that you are not.

In the second story, the point is that you can make a difference. Even little you, one of billions of people, if you stand up for what you know is right and trust yourself, others may follow and so the movement grows.

In April, Mrs Blake and I were in London. We had been to celebrate our daughter’s 30th birthday (parents, it comes round very fast, so make the most of your children’s childhood) and we were on our way back home. London was at a standstill, because some people had bolted a pink boat to the road and others had glued themselves to railings, windows and even to Jeremy Corbyn’s fence. Why? They wanted to make a difference. They wanted to make

a statement. They wanted people to wake up and listen to what they had to say. Many had been moved by a girl called Greta Thunberg who, like the girl on the beach and her starfish, had done one small thing and she had started to make a difference.

This term, we had Environment Week, with visitors coming into school with inspirational talks and presentations some of which clearly captured the imaginations or many children.

Children brought in their family’s plastic and it was shocking to see the amount that would otherwise have ended up in landfill – or worse.

Children learn by doing – we all do. And we do a lot. As well as Environment Week, we have had a Science Day, Healthy Me Week, the Young Programmers’ competition, a Maths Challenge, and a Culture Day. Children have benefited from trips to Kilifi, Ol Pejeta, Malewa, Mt Longonot, Ragati; and the Year 8s have almost climbed to the top of Mt Kenya, were it not for bad weather. Many children were able to experience the thrill of skiing in Switzerland, while the Year 7s have had their 24 hours at P2 and the Year 3s have experienced life under canvas, albeit within the confines of the school grounds.

Exams are, for the time being, a necessary part of life and our children have performed exceptionally well. Carlo Blunsum, Joshua D’Souza, Ryan Gontier, Gilly Hechle, Fatma Jeilan, Saavir Karania, Kiki Kontos, Sandy Morton, Senthwale Muya, Austin Omondi, Pranav Patani, Maansi Ruparel, Aman Shah, Ria Shah, Rani Sumaria, Tara Vora and Mikayla Wissanji all leave us with awards to their next

schools, while our Common Entrance results were, once again, first class with the children achieving an average across all the subjects of just over 70% - an A grade in most schools.

And yet … Exams could be summed up thus: sit quietly for two years while I tell what you need to know. I will tell you what to think and I will tell you how to tell me what you have remembered. At the end, I will ask you to tell me what I have told you and if you can do this, and do this in the way that I have told you, you will do well.

It’s not right, is it? And if something is not right it must be wrong and we must change. And change we shall. Over the course of the next few years, we shall be changing the way we teach and the children learn. We shall be introducing more self-directed learning, allowing children to ask themselves the questions to which they want to find the answers. Children will have opportunities for extended project work, we shall be asking them to challenge themselves and learn resilience. We shall be instilling in the children the skills that they will need to tackle a very uncertain world: leadership, teamwork, collaboration, adaptability. The World Economic Forum’s top three skills for success in the current world of work are complex problem solving, critical thinking and creativity. Right up there with these cognitive skills is service orientation: a predisposition to being helpful, thoughtful, considerate, and cooperative. In other words, the skills that we learn in the early years of schooling, skills which have nothing to do with the ability to retain and regurgitate someone else’s facts and opinions.

Common Entrance has served its purpose and we shall be looking towards a curriculum that is not exam-driven but that is fit for purpose. Next year, our current Year 7 children will not sit papers in either history of geography, but will have the opportunity to study these two crucial subjects in ways that are more meaningful and relevant.

Children in Years 3 and 4 will be introduced to Spanish rather than French, and we are going to be looking at our whole languages provision over the next year. Self-directed learning, where children have the opportunity to ask and to answer their own questions, will be part of our timetable.

We shall still have the highest academic expectations of the children and there is still a place for final assessments, scholarship exams and the experience of taking written tests, but there will be more room for the performing arts, creativity and learning to learn.

The performing arts are, quite rightly, given a high profile and children are encouraged to express themselves through events such as the tea-time concerts, English entertainment evenings, the poetry competitions and the school concerts.

We have been entertained and astonished in equal measure by the children’s performances in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Rocky Monster Show and Dragon Days. At the Chamber Music Festival we were able to listen to some of our ensembles, while our quartet were placed third in the Young Musician of the Year Finals.

The annual Art Exhibition once again demonstrated the wealth of talent that we have at Peponi House and it also gave a platform for every child to showcase their work.

We were also able to appreciate the talents of children in other Kenyan prep schools, with the IAPS art exhibition, something that I am sure will grow in the coming years. The works created by Carlo Blunsum, Sandy Morton and Ria Shah were extremely impressive.

Recently, the inventor and designer Sir James Dyson gave a very large donation to his former school. He spoke of the importance of art in education, for without art, without creativity, there is no brilliant design and no ground-breaking engineering. And if ever any of you go on to design a new vacuum cleaner or hand dryer and are feeling kind, then I am sure that your former school would be delighted to hear from you: especially if you come bearing a cheque for a cool 19 million pounds!

We have held two joint schools events with Peponi School: the concert and the poetry recital. Both allowed us to witness the remarkable progress that the children make during the course of their journey through the schools. It gave me great pleasure to see so many of our former pupils gain the highest accolades at P2’s prize giving a few weeks ago. Confident young people being recognised for their achievements in sport, art, music and drama, moving on to the most prestigious universities around the world. Two of our former pupils were given the roles of Head Girl and Head of School.

I was also very glad that I was in the audience for the Leavers’ Assembly at Kabete Kindergarten last week. There are some lively and talented children coming our way, taking the next step on the Peponi journey.

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Our children have continued to benefit from opportunities to help those who are less fortunate and many of them took part in The Family Challenge and The Hog Charge, helping those with mental health issues and those who strive to save our precious environment. Our year group charities allow children to see at first hand the difference that they can make. Benjamin Franklin said: “There are three kinds of people: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those who move”. I hope and indeed I believe that Peponi children are ones that move.

We play a lot of sport and for good reason. Mens sana in corpore sano is probably truer today than ever before. You cannot have a healthy mind if you don’t have a healthy body.

Every child has had the opportunity to take part in sport, through our games and PE programme, and through events such as inter-house cross-country and swimming. Whether it is for the first team at Under 13 or the Under 9 E netball team or the Under 7s football, everyone has the chance to represent their house, their school, their friends. To learn about teamwork and leadership and the warm glow of knowing that you have done your best.

And many children and teams have performed beyond our expectations.

Our Under 13 cricket team won, for the first time, the Peponi School 10 / 10 competition in the first weeks of the year. This was a strong team, from which Saavir Karania, Ryan Gontier, Senthwale Muya and Aman Shah all represented Nairobi Schools.

The Under 9 boys did very well during their season and finished as finalists in their festival. The same group of boys, by and large, also finished as finalists at their hockey festival.

Both the Under 11 and Under 13 rounders teams had good seasons, reaching the semi-finals of their tournaments. Gilly Hechle and Ria Shah represented Nairobi Schools, and both were outstanding in their match against the Up-Country schools, where Gilly was named most valuable player.

On the athletics track, Amani Gikunda set a new IAPS record for the Under 9 1500m, while Austin Omondi broke the IAPS and Kasarani athletics records for 200m. Overall, the school achieved a large number of medal positons in the IAPS meeting at Greensteds.

Our hockey teams fared well. The Under 11 and Under 13 boys both reached the semi-finals at Kenton, while the Under 13 girls were semi-finalists here at our tournament.

The Under 11 girls played their best hockey of the term at that tournament and were deserved winners. Gilly Hechle, Ria Shah, Kiki Kontos and Tara Vora played for the Nairobi School girls’ team, while Austin Omondi, Liam Keshavjee, Senthwale Muya, Hawi Rabongo and Ryan Gontier were selected for the boys. Shortly after that fixture, Austin went on tour to England as part of the Kenya IAPS rugby sevens team.

Our swimming remains a significant strength of Peponi House and we came second in the IAPS Swimming Championships in February, having won it, up till now, every year in its current format, where all 10 schools take part.

Gold medals were won by Carlo Blunsum; Amani Gikunda; Shashwat Harish; Yannick Kamphuis (who claimed two) and Kario Karani. Most impressive was Carlo Blunsum’s swim in the 50m Backstroke, where he set a new IAPS record time.

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From this gala, five swimmers from Peponi were selected to represent the IAPS Kenya Swim Team in the IAPS UK Swimming Championships. Carlo Blunsum, Kario Karani, Yannick Kamphuis, Rianna Shah and Samuel Kibogo all qualified for the UK Championships, a huge achievement, considering that over 4,500 children take part in the qualifiers. Not all of our Kenyan swimmers could make it for various reasons, but Kario, Rianna and Yannick all made the trip over to London’s Olympic pool and competed at the highest level. In the boys ten and under 25 metre butterfly finals, Yannick produced a superb performance and claimed the silver medal.

Teachers: wonderful people. Those of who saw Mr ParkesBristow’s musical medley video may have seen some of them in a different light. We take our work seriously but we never take ourselves too seriously.

This term, we saw some wonderfully determined performances at the Turi cross country. Amani Gikunda won the Under 9 girls race, helping her Under 9 team to claim the winners’ trophy. Our Under 13 boys also ran very well and were deserved winners of their competition.

“Yes it is, I was told it had to have at least six characters and one capital”.

Our football teams have been in fine form this year.

For the first time since the tournaments began, all three Peponi teams won the Under 9, Under 11 and Under 13 tournaments. Indeed, this was the first time that our Under 13s had ever won the tournament and it was therefore fitting that Saavir Karania should have been named as Under 13 player of the tournament.

Our rugby and netball teams have all played with skill and determination this term and what struck me at both recent tournaments was that the children all ended the day as considerably better players than they had been at the start.

They did not progress as far in those tournaments than they might have wished for and dreamed of, but such is the nature of sport. Even so, talent was recognised with Gilly Hechle and Kario Karani for netball, and Austin Omondi, Liam Keshavjee, Senthwale Muya and Hawi Rabongo for rugby being selected to play for the Nairobi Schools’ teams.

Tennis, as part of the PE curriculum, is played all year round but this term we have our matches and tournaments against other schools. In the Goodwin Cup, the Under 11 boys were runners-up, while the Under 13 boys came third in the Hemmings Cup and, in the Dods Cup, the Under 13 girls were runnersup. In the Under 9s, Amani Gikunda, whose name has been mentioned already as you may have noticed, won her tournament.

However, concerts, recitals, plays, tournaments, festivals and competitions are not ends in themselves; they are part of a process. And it is the teachers who make that process a reality. We have remarkable teachers here at Peponi and they deserve our heartfelt gratitude.

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I was called the other day by a teacher who was concerned that they had left an important document unsaved on their computer – which was in school. I found the computer and it was locked so I asked this person for their password. “It’s batman spiderman robin hood wonder woman elsa Katniss Everdeen paris” “Wow”, I said “That is quite a long password”.

Well, possibly.

Sadly, we have to say goodbye to some of our teachers today.

Peter Jewkes has been with us for two years, during which time he has introduced some challenging elements to both RS and PSHE. He has entertained us with his guitar playing and has always impressed us with his colourful dress sense and avante garde coiffure.

Eleanor Fox-Bekerman has been an inspirational teacher in the junior department and has also brought rabbits to school. She is one of those rare teachers for whom nothing is ever too much and who has the uncanny ability to see what needs doing and do it before being asked.

Paddy Davis has given his all to Peponi, in the science labs, as a form teacher, as a sports coach and as a generally fine person. He and Miss Fox are off to UK, to boarding school life, possibly to bee-keeping and horseback archery but also to married life.

Jim Ross has upped the ante in terms of our expectations of our sports teams and his unrelenting desire to do better tomorrow that which we did today serves as a fine example to all of us. He has also been a wonderful English teacher to some of the older children and has led, with great success, the IAPS Kenya rugby 7s team.

Emma Morton leaves a very different Peponi House to the one she joined. She has been the instigator of changes both seen and unseen, but all of them remarkable. Firefly, our web site, our pupil progress tracking, our successes at CE and scholarship, our outstanding inspection. All of these are in large part down to Emma’s relentless pursuit of excellence and her total commitment. To say that I shall miss Emma is an understatement of staggering proportions.

I shall miss her wise counsel, her energy, her occasional but brilliant performances on the stage, her sense of humour and her ability to say “No, Robert” when one of my flights of idea would lead us into stormy seas.

To all of you, to the leadership team of James Heanley, Sophie Ross and Emma Morton, to all our teachers and our amazing teaching assistants, I say Thank You. And others also deserve my thanks. Behind the scenes, in the office, in the accounts department, in the kitchens, behind the wheels of our buses, on the fields and in the gardens, cleaning washrooms and classrooms, looking after the pool, building things, repairing things and generally making the school function, we have a remarkable team of people who go the extra mile for the benefit of the children. To all of you, thank you.

The Bursar, Ernest Njuguna, is seldom seen but his influence is far-reaching and I thank him for his sagacity and wit – and for setting a zero percent rise in next year’s school fees. Our Board of Directors have an ambitious vison for the school, a vision made reality with the new buildings, phase one of which is nearing completion.

Mrs Blake has continued to fit an hour’s work into every minute and without her this school, this community, indeed this country would be a poorer place.

And, of course, the children. You are remarkable. You work hard, you play hard, you entertain us, you amaze us, you greet us with a smile and today some of you will leave us with a tear. Thank you.

perseverance, open-mindedness, of nurturing others, of having a sense of identity, and of selflessness. They talked about principles, inspiration, respect, ideals and teamwork.

And you will, of course, have noticed that the initial letters of those qualities spell out the words The Peponi Spirit.

That twelve year old children can speak with such eloquence says a lot for what we believe in.

After they had spoken, children and teachers were asked to vote for the candidate they thought would be the best person to take on the Head Boy and Head Girl roles, and it gives me great pleasure to announce that our Head Girl will be Isobel Bush and our Head Boy will be Prinay Galaiya.

We also chose our House Captains and they are, for Chania, Netania Mwaura, for Mara, Christian Ligale, for Tana, Ruby Wakaba and for Tsavo, Kazaina Senanu.

Mr Parkes-Bristow, Mr Heanley and I have decided that we will nominate other prefects over the course of the next year, giving every child in Year 8 the chance to be nominated for a position of responsibility. I would like to thank all those Year 7 children who spoke so well the other day, and all those who wrote to me about their desire to be a prefect.

Remember what you wrote and try to live up to those high standards!

I was told the other day that a Headmaster’s speech is like the horns of the buffalo. I felt pretty pleased with myself.

“Yes, I can see what you mean. Capturing the audience in a powerful grip.”

“No. A good point here and a good point there with a lot of bull in between”.

Let me leave you with a quotation. It comes from a man called Warren Buffett, who is one of the richest men in the world. However, he does not have a flashy life style. He lives in a modest house, does not have a big car and never shows off in the way that some so-called celebrities do. He has pledged to give away 99% of his fortune to help other people.

This is what he said: “Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago”. Be yourself. Be proud of who you are. Make a difference.

Thank you.

A few days ago, some Year 7 pupils talked to the school about why they wished to take on the role of Head Boy or Head Girl. They spoke eloquently and with maturity about what it means to hold a position of responsibility. I noted down some of the points that they made. They spoke of truth, honesty and empathy. They mentioned passion, effort,

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TRIPS & EVENTS ITEN SPORTS TRIP Before the September term began, a group of 50 pupils and teachers kicked off the new school year with a trip to Iten.

We set off from school before sunrise, with a long journey ahead of us. Luckily everything went according to plan, and we arrived at the High Altitude Training Camp before lunch time. In the afternoon our coaches, Richard and Timo, took us for a walk to the Kerio view point. We spent a while there admiring the incredible scenery in front of us, before heading back to the camp for some swimming and running, and then dinner.

On day two, the real training began. We were up and out for a 5km run before breakfast, running along the same roads as marathon winners and world champions. A well-deserved breakfast was waiting for us upon our return to camp, but we still had a lot more planned for the day. After breakfast we set off on a sightseeing adventure. We drove down into the Kerio valley, stopping to see yet more breathtaking views along the way. When we got to the bottom of the valley, we saw something even more exciting – the renowned Kerio Valley divers. We watched in amazement as the divers jumped off the sides of a high gorge and plunged into the crocodile infested river below… and all breathed a sigh of relief that we didn’t have to do the same! Our next stop on our journey was a brief lunch break, and then we continued on to one of the day’s most anticipated activities – a lovely twenty minute walk up a hill to visit a beautiful waterfall.

Twenty minutes later…. No waterfall was yet in sight. Two hours later…. The front group was nearly there! Our

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‘short walk’ turned out to be a somewhat intensive hike, but it was worth it for the spectacular scenery.

Day three was our day to hit the track. We set off for the Lorna Kiplegat track shortly after breakfast, and spent the morning there working with the fantastic trainers on developing and improving running styles and skills. That night was our final one at the training centre, so we decided to put on a bit of entertainment. In groups, the children came up with and acted out their own short skits.

It was an enjoyable evening full of laughter, and certainly helped to create some strong memories of the trip.

The next morning it was time to head back to Nairobi, but not before a quick visit from the camp’s founder, Lorna Kiplegat herself. It was very inspiring for the children to meet and chat with her, and I was very impressed with the number of shoes that she managed to sign in a short amount of time!

After another smooth plane journey, we arrived back at Peponi House safe and sound with lots of very tired but happy children (and teachers).

YEAR 8 GEOGRAPHY TRIP - MALEWA

This year’s field trip promised to be exciting and different.

This is because, for the first time in many years, the location of the trip changed from the Aberdares in Central Kenya to Gilgil in the Rift Valley. The Ragati River that had been studied for the past few years was now replaced by the River Malewa.

We set off early in the morning on the 10th of October, which just happened to be a public holiday. This made the drive to the Rift Valley a lot easier. The Malewa Bush Ventures Camp where we were to stay for the next three days was beautiful. The facilities were excellent and this promised to be a productive trip.

The first order of business was to pitch the tents and set up camp. This proved to be an interesting exercise as some tents flew away, others were set up with the door blocked by fly sheets, and a few took so long to set up, one would think they were building a foundation first!

On the first day, we went to the first two sites. This was a bridge and a bit further up was another feature of the river. Many of the pupils were a bit scared of getting into the water as the current looked a bit strong. However, after Mr. Odera went in first to ensure it was safe and soon the data collection began. The pupils had divided themselves into groups and it was the responsibility of each group to

delegate the duties for each group member.

The next day was probably the hardest as the study had to cover four sites. It was indeed hard work, but the pupils enjoyed themselves a great deal, whilst also engaging in productive data collection. Some groups chose to sit in the river to try and get accurate cross sectional data. The only problem with this strategy was that they underestimated the strength of the current and started rolling along like boulders! Measuring the velocity of the river was not as easy as it seemed. Many oranges were lost in the process and getting the oranges back to the start to get at least three readings required rounders, cricket and netball skills.

The last day was an interview with one of the guides.

This proved to be an extremely useful exercise in getting background information about the human activities around the Malewa River, the source of the river, where it drains, which government agency manages the water levels and the advantages and disadvantages of the river.

We left on Friday the 12th of October with a tired, but happy bunch of pupils.

Well done Year 8 on a successful and enjoyable field trip.

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YEAR 7 TRIP - RAGATI CONSERVANCY

The children departed from Peponi House early on a slightly damp Wednesday morning. We were anticipating lots of rain, so wellies and rain jackets were in evidence.

However, after a long and damp drive, we arrived at our campsite in the Ragati Conservancy to sunshine and dry conditions. This beautiful weather held throughout out the trip and we even had a lovely sighting of the peaks of Mount Kenya on the way out.

Our location was picked carefully by Rift Valley Adventures in a pristine environment. It was in the middle of a clearing, close to the river and surrounded by lovely forest.

Upon our arrival, the children were served lunch and then set about putting up their own tents and making camp.

This was a proper ‘fly’ camp where toilets had to be dug, tents erected, fire pits designated and communal shelters (in case of rain) had to be set up. The afternoon was spent making sure that everything was in place and teams of children either cooked dinner or erected the large space station tent. Following this, they played a number of team building games with a great deal of enthusiasm.

The night passed uneventfully and the children were up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed ready for action early the next morning. Our Thursday was packed full of exciting activities and the children were split into groups before heading off on their round-robin of adventures. These included river-based tasks which ranged from catching the

local red crabs, crawling along the river bed and floating down the river in tubes. Some children headed off with GPS devices on an orienteering exercise through some gorgeous managed forest of non-indigenous trees (indigenous to Mexico!) which are cultivated for timber and firewood. Yet another group headed off to archery where they learnt how to shoot with a bow and arrows, practising this skill with an enthusiastic instructor. The final group of children participated in a hike through the conservancy to a large waterfall surrounded by giant ferns.

By the end of the day, all of the children had participated in each of the activities offered by RVA. Their enthusiasm and willingness to try out all the different challenges was super. Returning to camp for the last time in the day around 4.00 pm, they were divided into their original groups and then swapped out the activities from the day before - half of the children prepared and cooked dinner, whilst the rest of the children helped move the mobile toilets and set up new areas for ablutions. The evening culminated in roasting marshmallows by the fire.

Our final morning at Ragati was spent breaking camp. The idea was to return the campsite to its original, pristine state.

Children helped pack away tents, damp down the fire, put away equipment and clean up the environment. After this they then walked from the camp to the main gate, ready for lunch and then departure from the conservancy.

Many thanks to the RVA staff, the conservancy rangers and all of the teachers and children who made this trip such a success.

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YEAR 6 TRIP - OL PEJETA

For their school trip this year, Year 6 visited Ol Pejeta Conservancy to discover more about the environment and conservation.

After a long drive, we arrived at Ol Pejeta and met with Susan, the volunteer co-ordinator who helped us to arrange the trip. She took us to The Stables, which was to be our home for two nights. Some of the pupils were allocated bandas to sleep in, whilst others were given tents.

After lunch, we split into two groups. Group A went to the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary and Group B went to the Endangered Species Enclosure.

At the Chimpanzee sanctuary, pupils were given a brief history of the centre and introduced to some of the chimpanzees who had been rescued. The pupils enjoyed walking along the nature trail and had lots of fun with Poco, a chimpanzee who can walk (and run) on two legs. They also had fun teaching him how to ‘dab’!

In the Endangered Species Enclosure, pupils got up close to the two remaining Northern White rhinos. They were so happy to see us that they kept trying to sneak around their guards to say hello! After spending a while with the rhinos, pupils were put to work; shovelling rhino dung! Some of the pupils really got stuck in, showing lots of promise and having a competition to see who could throw it the furthest into the trailer. They also got to say hello to Baraka, a blind black rhino.

After the two visits, the groups combined. Some pupils were taken off to learn about Lion Tracking, whilst the rest of us were taken to the Rhino Memorial, a cemetery where the rhinos of Ol Pejeta are laid to rest.

The Lion Trackers had a whale of a time. They were taught about the radio collars that have been put on some of the lions and then used the antenna to pick up their signal.

The signal was faint to begin with, but as they got closer it became louder. The group were very lucky, as the lionesses were on a kill and they were able to get extremely close to them. One lioness was pregnant and another only had half a tail! Pupils helped with the conservation effort by filling in record sheets about the lions. On the way back, one of the cars got a puncture. Would you like to change a tyre next to a lion?!

At the Rhino Memorial, pupils took the opportunity to reflect on the issue of poaching. Many of them were shocked by the number of rhinos that had been poached. A particularly sad moment was seeing the grave of one rhino who was pregnant when she was killed, as both she and her baby died. However, there were happier moments, as some of the rhinos had lived full lives thanks to the efforts of the Ol Pejeta rangers.

On the way back to the camp, we had a mini-game drive.

We saw lots of wildlife, including free-roaming rhinos, antelopes, guinea fowls and much more.

After supper, we had a presentation about the work of Ol Pejeta. We learnt about how rhinos are identified by the notches that are created on their ears and the use of the infra-red camera traps and the wildlife corridors to keep track of animals moving in and out of the conservancy. It was interesting to learn that the fences have been designed to keep the rhinos in, whilst other animals are free to move around. We also learnt about the other work that the conservancy does within the local community, providing schools, farms and pharmacies.

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YEAR 5 TRIP - KILIFI The SGR The trip to Kilifi started bright and early with the exciting experience of the SGR. For many of us, this was our first opportunity to use this fantastic mode of transport. It was particularly exciting for the Year 5s, having visited the railway museum in Year 3 and learnt about the old trainline. The Madaraka Express Passenger service makes two round trips a day. The inter-county one runs in the morning and makes stops in Athi River, Emali, Kibwezi, Mitito Andei, Miasenji and Mariakani, which is where we disembarked and were met by the Peponi school bus. Although it was a longish journey, the children relished the opportunity to be with their friends, watch out for wildlife and glimpse sightings of rural village life. They could sit four to a table in the air conditioned first class carriages, play card games, read and develop their game spotting skills. We did see an amazing amount and variety of domestic and wild animals. Our favourite were all the elephants we spotted, whether they were groups from afar or right near the train track.

Mnarani Hotel We stayed at The Mnarani Hotel. They were very accommodating, the food was brilliant and all the children got to share a room with two other friends. There was a big pool that the children could use during their free time and a private route down to the beach.

From the minute we stepped off the bus, it was go, go go! The children’s time was packed with team building skills, educational visits, a challenging board walk, an introduction to pool diving, sailing and wobble boarding, as well as evening activities. The whole trip was a fantastic learning experience for all the Year 5 pupils.

Here is a taster of what the children did and the places they visited.

The Mnarani Ruins

Kilifi Creek. Mnarani is a The Mnarani Ruins overlook the ower Place. The history of Swahili word that means the T h Century when Omani these ruins goes back to the 13t coast for trade. Their Arabs came to the East African built their residence at businesses flourished and they Mnarani.

bs. The site was first Mnarani has 2 mosques and tom tury. However, the Great occupied in the early 14th Cen 425. The foundations of Mosque was not built until AD1 , located in the Eastern the Great and Smaller Mosque Mosque has 6 sections: Tower, are still intact today. The and stored in a tank to a well where water was fetched sandals, a worship area use before prayers, a baraza for (leader of the village) for men and women, an Imam’s ch is known as a ‘Kibla’ changing room and a pulpit whi e dish in the cistern

by Muslims. There is a Portugues mosques were probably not (well), which shows that the tury, and also occupied by completed before the 16th Cen the Portuguese. get up to the Mnarani You have to climb 104 steps to in groups called Kipler Ruins. We saw piles of stones Africa. It may have been and it is the only one in East i Ruins are important used for the house. The Mnaran Ancient Lives. It is good for because it shows us about the our education.

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By Rian Shah

Here is a piece of creative writing about life back then.

ee; this tr te d e v o priva dren l e chil wrote d he n a All th ve in t ed it a l e c l ir o c t we en paper ges on a s s e m . hollow d that tree’s elieve b s r e ou ttl tree, y b hili se a a b w o a S b ed the The find a y prais obab e u h o t y o e a wher ater, s cred B t get w he Sa d ‘T pu l u y it o e w s th lled r a u c o l d o n c fruit tree a of the e from the e m o S s cam ere in Tree’. clothe e. If they w ll ir e h tre and te on t b o g a b d o l rs u ba ey wo 00 yea of the elp th now over 8 h l f a o w k need , then hich is s w m , e e l e b etreat ro the tr then r heir p t d n t a u o b times old, a seven it d n u back. aro y ooking l t u houdhr o with alia C

The sun s hone down on me and crunchy s reflected and, as I w on the gol as cleanin saw the b den g the dirty oys walkin dishes. I g home fro kicking pe m school, I h bbles eve rywhere a eard them football. nd about to go to p lay I’ve alway s wondere d what it and write would be , but every like to re day I’m st chores lik ad u ck doing a e fetching ll these water fro cleaning t m the dee he dishes, p well, preparing house. dinner and cleaning t he All I wan t to do is go to scho I always fi ol and be nd myself able to le tracing th doors and arn. e Arabic w on the pil ords on lars in th wondering e beautifu what they l big mosq mean. ue Every day I climb 10 4 steps t and I sit l o walk to eaning aga the mosqu in st the pil life is goin e lars wond g to take e ring where me. Oh ho school. w I wish I could go to

By Aanya Shah

By Am

We were able to link our visit to the slave trade, which we studied back in Term 1.

Here is a poignant piece about that era, written by Yannick Kamphuis.

Life at Mnarani As I got home, I smelt the delicious smell of my mother’s cooking. Outside, the sun was setting and it was getting cooler and damp. My mother and I sat down to eat. Through the small window, I could see a large boat docking on the beach. It was built out a timber, very unlike ours.

After I had finished my dinner, I went to bed but I lay there thinking about what the boat was doing here?

Why had it come to our beach? As I finally drifted off to sleep, I heard hushed voices outside and the rustling of leaves. I kept hearing noises like screams and

voices. All of a sudden, I heard my mother screaming and men shouting. I jumped out of my bed with a start and knew that I wasn’t dreaming. The mosque stopped praying and that is when I realised that things were bad. Through the screaming and the shouting, I heard gunshots and that is when I really knew that we were being attacked. I tried to run but was caught by a big, bulky man and tied fast to a tree. I tried to scream but they put a smelly sock in my mouth. From then on, I knew we were captured and we would be taken way from our homes..... Taken as slaves.

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The Snake Park In the snake park, the children got to actually handle different non-poisonous snakes and observe tortoises feeding on scrumptious fruit and vegetables. One of the highlights was holding a rock python, who was shedding its skin. Children got to hold pieces of the old skin.

Mida Creek Year 5 also go the opportunity to visit Mida Creek. The creek stretches inland from Arabuko Sokoke Forest, it has an area of 32 square kilometres and is home to plenty of wildlife, much of which is endemic.

When we arrived, we were greeted by two fantastic guides who began by explaining that the mangroves surrounding the creek are of three varieties; red, black and white. Our guides showed us the different varieties and how to identify them - this would come in use later, during our dhow trip!

We split into two groups and began by exploring the mudflats. There are lots of varieties of crabs at Mida Creek. The pupils particularly loved the male fiddler crabs, which unusually have one oversized claw. Year 5 also spotted marsh and hermit crabs and, those who were brave enough, got to hold them. Other animals that we spotted were buffalo horned spiders, jellyfish, white crayfish and sacred ibis. Our guides were very knowledgeable about all the animals in Mida Creek and answered all the questions the children had.

After we had investigated the creek, we went along the boardwalk. The boardwalk at Mida Creek is a little wobbly, but all the children were incredibly brave. We were thankful we crossed it because the viewpoint at the end of the boardwalk looking out over the creek is incredibly beautiful!

Once we had taken lots of pictures and done a touch more bird spotting, we headed back to the bus for a quick snack before heading to the forest.

Arabuko Sokoke Forest This excursion began with an informative and engaging talk and slide show about the forest, and was followed by a walk through the beautiful, cool forest, stopping now and then to observe plants and trees and to look out for the many animal, bird and butterfly species the forest hosts.

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• The Arabuko Sokoke Forest is a 420 km squared coastal forest in Kenya managed by Kenya Forest Service.

• It is the largest and most undamaged coastal forest in East Africa.

• It has 20% of Kenya’s rare bird species and 30% of the rare butterfly species.

• It has some of Kenya’s rarest mammals, for example

the golden rumped elephant shrew, Sokoke bushy tailed mongoose and Ader’s duiker.

• It has three forest types: brachystyegia, cynometra and mixed.

• There are over 270 species of birds recorded in the forest some of which include globally threatened bird species such as the Sokoke Scops owl.

Whilst we were there, Year 5 played animal-spotting bingo, seeing who could spot some of the rare species that are to be found!

The Dhow Trip around Kilifi Creek For many, this voyage was the highlight of the trip. The views were stunning, the sunset gorgeous, and the creek just magnificent! We were all allowed to cool off in the calm, warm waters of the creek, by jumping off the dhow and swimming around. There were very many bird spotting opportunities too. The children were accompanied by some very knowledgeable guides who helped them spot the different types of mangrove tree and the wildlife the creek has to offer.

Nahla Jeilan wrote this poem about the Dhow Trip:

The Sunset Cruise

It started at four and ended at 6 But it was one of the most Enjoyable parts of the trip.

The water let our boat Float smoothly over The ocean’s calm and sparkly waves, As we gazed Upon the sun setting Beneath the horizon line.

Our hands skidded in the water Whilst our hair was flying free, And the only thing in our minds Was joyful glee.

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Wobble boarding and sailing For most of the children this was a new experience and one which was met with great excitement. The highlights for everyone were trying to dance on the wobble board and capsizing the dinghy!

Evening Entertainment One of the best things about Mnarani Hotel was the evening entertainment. On our second night at the hotel, a group of Masai dancers put on a fantastic performance. It was incredible to see how high they could jump and some of Year 5s (and the staff!) gave it a go too! We didn’t jump quite high enough to make the cut and join the group, but Mr Kimotho will keep working at it in PE classes!

On the final night at the hotel it was time for a group of acrobats to entertain us. Their performance was equally impressive, particularly watching them forming human pyramids and jumping through rings of fire. They even taught us a couple of tricks - although don’t worry, no fire was involved!

Pool Dive Whilst at Mnarani Hotel, Year 5 had the great opportunity to do a trial pool dive in the lovely pool at the hotel!

Scrapbooking our adventure!

After returning, Year 5 were tasked with making a scrapbook about our Kilifi adventure. This was entirely self-directed, with the children working on their projects at home with a little help from their parents. The creativity of the children amazed us!

They also did a fantastic assembly about the trip!

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On the 13th of May the Year 4 children and teachers were on their way to Ol Pejeta. We departed school at 7.30am and the children had no idea how long the drive would be and the constant question “Are we there yet?” or “How many more hours until we reach?” was the anthem of the bus journey.

YEAR 4 TRIP - OL PEJETA

After a long 5 and a half hours in the bus the singing and the chanting as we got closer to the camp site got louder and louder. The children got off the bus, stretched their legs and were told to carry their bags to the main area. Mr Richie was the head of the camp. He briefed the children on what we had planned for the next couple of days.

Wasting no time, the children put their bags in their tents, and went straight onto team building activities. They did the “spider web”, walking on planks across the field, making fire and many more activities that they all thoroughly enjoyed.

The next day, the first group woke up at 5:30am, ate breakfast and were soon on their way to see the rhinos and the chimpanzees. Their first adventure was being charged by a rhino which hit the side of their van! They also had fun comparing the similarities and differences between humans and chimps.

The second group were lucky and had more of a lie in. They got up at 7.00am, had breakfast and did not want to waste any time. They were split into 2 smaller groups. One of the groups and teachers went BMX biking on tough terrain and the other group went rock climbing. After lunch the groups swapped over. After a long tiring day, the children were put to bed by 8.30pm.

On the last day, the children got up, had breakfast and were asked to clean their tents, pack their bags and their sleeping bags, after which a few more fun team building activities were done.

We then packed the buses and started our never ending journey back to school.

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YEAR 3 TRIP - RAILWAY MUSEUM In the January term, the Year 3s learnt about Kenya in their humanities lessons, which included finding out about the construction of the MombasaUganda railway line and the huge impact it had on the development of Nairobi. To find out as much as possible about the railway, the Year 3s took a trip to the Nairobi Railway Museum.

Each class visited the museum on a different day – 3K on Tuesday, 3N on Wednesday and 3F on Thursday. They learnt about the history of the railway as well as lots of other interesting facts about Kenya, saw and went inside lots of trains, and found out about the new SGR. The most popular to the part of the trip was, somewhat unsurprisingly, n the bus st o t n e w n we e fir hearing about ‘The Man Eaters of Tsavo’ and “Whe ilway Museum w nd real a o R r i a b re u Nairo other lions that have claimed lives along the nd we we a k c a n s ate railway over the years. The children were even trains!” wesome a shown the claws of one of the lions and had great fun pretending that they were the lion themselves!

“It w as so fun ! It is actually the first t

I’ve ever

ime seen a tr ain!”

“We were surrounded by interesting trains while we were eating our break. After that we went inside the museum and our tour guide showed us the map from when the Britons completed the railway from Mombasa to Kisumu. They started building it in 1896 to 1901.”

The trip was a huge success and each class not only had a fantastic time, but also learnt a lot. When we returned to school, their work was inspired by what they had seen and they couldn’t wait to tell everyone else all about it!

“At the museum I saw lots o trains it w f as amazin g. Some w big and so ere me were s mall but w very inter ere all esting.”

YEAR 3 TRIP - NAIROBI NATIONAL PARK

“I learned that a man called Charles got killed by a lion. I also know that Nairobi was made by the Ugandan Railway and Kenya was named after Mount Kenya.”

As part of the Year 3 Charity, the entire year group was involved in not only raising money for Friends of the Nairobi National Park, but also had an opportunity to visit the park for a game drive as well as hand over the important cheque. 3 bus loads of very excited children and 2 hours later, the pupils were finally at the park. Park entry rules demanded a little more patience on the part of the pupils. Eventually, they were in and off to a lovely game drive, interspersed with a nutritional break. Discussion and an informative talk were also part of the day, as the children were given information on some of the activities of FONNAP. A scrumptious lunch followed by another short game drive brought an end to an adventurous day. Well done Year 3.

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YEAR 2 SCIENCE FIELD TRIP In the first term of Year 2 the children are introduced to animals and plants. They observe and recognise some simple characteristics of animals and plants and look at different habitats. To give them some hands on experience, we decided to take them to the Morton’s house which has both domestic and wild animals and a huge variety of plants and vegetables, as well as a beautiful forest that leads down to a stream at the bottom of the compound.

We started off our activities with a treasure hunt down at the stream, where the children had to find a variety of living and non-living things, from seeds to spider webs to coffee beans, but their favourite had to be animal poo! They then had a chance to watch footage from Sandy’s camera trap to see what wildlife comes to the stream at night. After that, they moved onto an insect hunt and had a look at the bee hives. After quite a busy morning, they enjoyed a bit of relaxation on the luscious lawn with some delicious snacks.

After everyone had been hydrated and stomachs filled, they had a chance to have a look at and discuss some of the domestic animals such as chickens, guinea pigs and even a very friendly goat called Nasira. Finally, they had the chance to show how much they knew about fruit and vegetables and had a quiz in the vegetable patch to see if they could recognise what was being grown.

It was the Year 2’s first field trip and was thoroughly enjoyed by all. A big thanks to the Mortons for sharing their home!

YEAR 2 TRIP - BOMAS OF KENYA On Friday the 8th March, the Year 2 classes trooped down to the carpark and boarded the big yellow buses for a looong journey to Karen. After the first 10 minutes the teachers already heard the first calls of, “How much longer?”

Our Term 2 topic was Kenya and a trip to the Bomas of Kenya seemed like a fun way for the children to learn more about how some of the different cultural groups of Kenya lived.

The children had fun measuring themselves against the doorways and deciding how tall some people must have been.

The dancers were amazing and, once again, the children were enthralled by their performances.

They even had a chance to go on stage and dance with them at the end!

The baboons were a distraction after lunch and a little bit scary as well, but we managed to get onto the buses without any of them joining us.

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YEAR 8 TRIP - MT. LONGONOT

YEAR 8 TRIP - SANCTUARY FARM

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FAMILY CHALLENGE 2018

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YEAR 3 CAMPING TRIP

TINGA TINGA TALES In September, the Year 3s and 4s were lucky enough to go on a very exciting trip to watch Tinga Tinga Tales – The Musical at the Kenya National Theatre!

The performance was amazing, with incredible music, spectacular costumes and loveable characters. The children all had a fantastic time, especially as they got to meet some of the actors afterwards and were even given a goody bag to take home!

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THE KENTON COLLEGE MATHEMATICS CHALLENGE On Monday 10th September 2018, 24 children from Peponi House participated in the inter-school mathematics challenge held at Kenton College. It was conducted

by Mr. Douglas Buchanan (www.dcbeagle.com). There were two teams with two participants from each year group, from Years 3 to 8.

Group 1 was comprised of Theo Brown in 3F, Charlie Zagoritis in 3N, Sarah Tchoketch in 3N, Gina Musangi in 3K, Raheel Shah in 4D, Sonit Rane in 4F, Raahi Vora in 4F and Rohini Shah in 4F. Group 2 was comprised of Yuv Galaiya in 5R, Yannick Kamphuis in 5P, Aanya Shah in 5T, Aria Taylor in 5P, Karina Maini in 6B, Zachary Gardener-Hutchinson in 6B, Rohan Shah in 6H and Nesa Kochhar in 6D. Group 3 was comprised of Pasha Haria in 7PB, Leonora Vujnovic in 7P, Abhay Mohan in 7P, Prinay Galaiya in 7O, Ryan Gontier in 8D, Maansi Ruparel in 8D, Carlo Blunsum in 8T and Eleonore Calice in 8D. In total, there were 10 schools participating in the event: Peponi House, Kenton College, Braeburn Mombasa, Greensteds Preparatory, Pembroke House, Hillcrest Preparatory, The Banda, Brookhouse Preparatory, Braeburn Gitanga and St Andrews Turi. The challenges were problem solving tasks and puzzles.

Peponi House was outstanding and we won 3 out of 6 categories on the day, thanks to the incredible problem solving skills from our children. Mr. Buchanan was particularly impressed at how progressive our teams were. Well done!

WORLD CULTURE DAY This year, to celebrate the fact that we are ‘A School of Many Nations’, the School Council decided to hold our first World Culture Day. During the week running up to Friday 3rd May, each class researched the culture and customs of a particular country. On Friday, they then presented what they had learnt to other classes, as well as having the chance to visit other classrooms to learn about different countries.

Children also came into school wearing clothes from their own cultures.

It was a wonderful day and a great reminder of how diverse we are as a school.

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ENVIRONMENTAL WEEK This year, we held the school’s first Environmental Week at Peponi House. The aim of the week was to raise awareness of some of the environmental issues facing our world, and it was an overwhelming success.

The week began with the appearance of an interesting new sculpture on the school field‌ a giant fish, ready to eat lots of plastic for recycling!

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JUNIOR FANCY DRESS DAY The juniors had a great fancy dress day. It was simply amazing to see the children dress up in so many different costumes. The children had a circle time session where they explained why they chose to be dressed as the character they were.

This was followed by a creative writing activity in their English books which brought to life all the fancy dress characters.

SENIOR FANCY DRESS DISCO This year the Senior Fancy Dress Disco was, as always, a highly anticipated and talked about event. This year, the theme was…

SPOOKY and KOOKY The children (and teachers) came dressed in all sorts of spooky and kooky outfits, ranging from vampires and witches to ‘no wifi’ and ‘battery low’ symbols!

Alongside the traditional fancy dress and dance competitions, we also had a pumpkin carving contest, with some amazing and imaginative entries!

Throughout the evening there were all sorts of games and activities, including flashlight games on the field and even thrilling ‘Murder Mysteries’ which had everyone putting on their detective hats to work out “whodunit?”.

A great evening was had by all!

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WORLD BOOK DAY

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STEAM DAY On Friday 15th March, the whole of Peponi House experienced a STEAM cross curricular day. STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics, and so all lessons had elements of these disciplines featured in them.

Over the course of the morning a huge variety of activities were done. The Junior department discussed engineering when it came to building the tallest marshmallow and wooden stick towers. They looked at 3D shapes and different nets were compared. Bridges and tables with given measurements were made from newspaper and tested for their structural integrity. Human food chains and assault courses were created and some pupils were also able to invent new machines that would make life easier. Some of the Year 2s even created a motor boat and watched it float whilst singing “Row, Row, Row your boat� in Kiswahili!

In the Senior department, measurements and scale were discussed in French to make replicas of the Eiffel tower.

Periodic scrabble was used to extend French vocabulary.

In mathematics, pupils made hypotheses about different bone measurements and collected data from their peers (and teachers) to plot and analyse their results. In science, pupils created musical instruments and life size models of their hands showing all the finer movement of the carpal joints. In History, modern warfare and medieval weaponry were discussed and swine flu, climate change and earthquakes were talked about in Geography. In English, rafts from famous stories were constructed and tested in the Peponi fountain and experiments using skittles, washing up liquid and food dye were conducted to enhance imagery in storytelling. Musical technology was experimented with during Music lessons and environmentally friendly places of worship were designed in R.S. Fitness tests were created in P.E. and healthy living, angles and power were discussed during hockey sessions. The swimming department also investigated sound and water resistance. These are just to name a few! As you can see, it was a jam packed day for all!

Many thanks to all the teachers and children who made the day an extremely enjoyable and memorable one. Hopefully all were able to make many cross curricular links between STEAM and the world around them.

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HOUSE SHOUT

Every year in March, the approach of the end of term can only mean one thing… HOUSE SHOUT! As per usual, the competition this year was fierce. There was plenty of House spirit on display and the hall was transformed into a sea of green, yellow, blue and red.

The House Shout was started off by Martin McNally and the children who have been in his dancing activity this term, who gave us a wonderful display of what they have been working on.

Then it was time for the competition itself. Chania went first, followed by Mara, then Tana, and finally Tsavo. All four Houses did a great job and sang the roof off the hall, but there could only by one winner…

1st

Tsavo, ‘Shotgun’

2nd

Mara, ‘Colours’

3rd

Chania, ‘Believer’

4th

Tana, ‘Happy’

Well done to Tsavo, everyone agreed it was a welldeserved win!

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YEAR 8 TRIP - MT. KENYA

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HEALTHY ME

THE SEAHORSES IN MANCHESTER

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THE PTA FETE The theme of this year’s fete was….

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN! Due to the change in half term dates, this year fete was held, for the first time, on a Friday afternoon. Children across the school spent the week in the run-up to Friday 8th February preparing their stalls and activities, and everyone was relieved when the day arrived and turned out to be beautifully sunny, but not too hot.

The range of activities on offer was outstanding. There were camel rides, quadbikes, slippery football and even an inflatable gladiator game – it was hilarious to see Mr Odera and Mr Owiti battling it out on the podium! The children did a fantastic job of preparing a wild and wonderful range of stalls.

The Juniors worked in year groups to make items to sell at theirs. The Year 2s made amazing beaded keyrings and greetings cards, the Year 3s created some fantastically strange monster bookmarks, and the Year 4s made beautiful paper flower bouquets.

In the Senior School, children worked in groups with their friends, and the variety of ideas was incredible – from Nerf gun battles, to milkshakes, to lucky dips, to petting a pig… no two stalls were the same.

The fete was a lot of fun for all involved and it was brilliant to see the children’s smiling (and often rather mucky) faces, but, most importantly, lots of money was raised for the school charities.

Well done, everyone!

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HOG CHARGE 2019

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THE PEPONI SKI TRIP

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IAPS CHESS TOURNAMENT

IAPS YOUNG PROGRAMMERS COMPETITION The activities were even more challenging this year than they have been in previous years, but this didn’t stop the children from showing off some amazing talent in the subject.

Attending the event this year were Braeburn Mombasa and Braeburn Gitanga Road, Hillcrest Preparatory School, The Banda School, Kenton College, St Andrews, Brookhouse, Greensteds and, of course, Peponi House. This year, we welcomed the return of companies to host specialist challenges in their field and bring independent judges. These were: Kuuna3D, Davis & Shirtliff and Tunapanda.

Representing Peponi House were two age groups: Under 13 and Under 11, with Aneya Tanna, Harnek Singh and Rohan Shah in Year 6, and Grace Muema, Ilyaseen Nimji and Salone Rane in Year 7. All pupils were determined and knowledgeable in the challenges and content, while also being brilliant hosts and team players to the visiting pupils.

The event got underway at 9am. Mr. Blake opened with a warm welcome, explaining the value of being at the forefront of this ever-changing subject, and that we, as the collective group of schools were continually investing and striving to ensure our pupils had access to the resources to learn such a dynamic curriculum. Then the challenges started at 9:30…

The challenges were split into 4 categories: screen-based coding, 3D design using SketchUp, Systems Control using Arduino software and devices for practical outcomes to programming, HTML and Notepad, and Scratch2 for screen-based coding, and finally, problem-solving on paper.

Rohan Shah won gold for the Systems Control, Harnek Singh for 3D Design and all our pupils winning awards and certificates of participation. Well done Peponi!

Our appreciation goes to all the participants from the IAPS schools and their teachers, Peponi House technical support staff and ground staff who collectively made the event the best it had ever been. Roll on next year’s event; to be even bigger and better…

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YEAR 5 - RIFT VALLEY FIELDWORK DAY

up

By Jake Karanja, Norma Kenyatta, Mukiri Mugambi, Aanya Shah and Rian Shah.

ng

Goi

We were all super excited about the climb. We thought it was going to be hard, but we were wrong. We followed the guides up the steeper parts of the mountain. We took turns using the guides stick for balance.

When we reached the little hut that marked we were at the middle, we stopped to have a quick snack.

When we had replenished our energy, we quickly continued on the hike up the steep mountain. Some parts were so steep we had to go on our hands and feet and scramble!

The top group were full of energy and were at the crater rim in no time, while the bottom group were still battling their way up. Did you know that some parts of Mount Longonot are almost as steep as Mount Kenya?

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(Here’s a different version of the same event!)

Going up was dreadful. As my bones creaked scrambling up the infamous volcano named Longonot, the sun shot piercing golden rays at my boiling skin, working together with the sweat to make my face to damp. The dust was getting kicked up into our tired eyes and the air was growing thinner and thinner, the higher and higher we climbed. We groaned for one of those sweet relaxing breaks, but Mr Haynes was pushing us to our full potential, as usual. When I thought we were finally done really it was just a break. As we pushed our aching knees to carry us forward, we could see the top group already at there, munching away at their snacks.

There were some stairs on the mountain but they had gravel and were really slippery.

When we were going up we occasionally looked down trying to catch sight of the school bus but all we saw was a yellow dot.

We also looked at the Great Rift Valley and the pattern that the lava had made. You could see all of the dried rock that had spewed out of the dormant volcano all that time ago!

Our legs ached as we climbed higher and higher. Soon we felt our bags were filled to the top with heavy rocks because we were so tired. When we were allowed to take a break, we would turn around to face a beautiful view of the savannah stretching on and on into the distance. The top loomed up ahead of us. The next part was extremely difficult but we made it to the top!

When we had reached the summit of the crater, some of us were ready to lie exhausted on the flat ground. The top produced a wonderful view of the crater which once was boiling with hot lava ready to erupt into the air. We were even congratulating ourselves on how comfortable we were on the hard seats or stone blocks, after what for some of us was a tortuous climb. Everyone ended up munching happily on our deliciously healthy packed lunch, and some people even went around some of the crater edge. We all, (well maybe not all of us!), wanted to walk around the rim but only a few of us did. The rest of us were very satisfied with what we achieved!

Once we finished our lunch we took a photo next to the sign so that there was proof that we had got to the rim.

Going

wn do

the top

After eating a wonderful lunch we headed excitedly back down the mountain, occasionally glimpsing Lake Naivasha in the distance.

It was slippery and slidy, we were skidding around and trying to make steady breaks, (which didn’t work).

Grains of dust were leaping into our eyes, it was hot and tiring but we kept the energy up. We were sliding on our bottoms trying to find animals and not bump into anything. Coming down the mountain was much easier, faster and so much more fun.

We were super thirsty and really hot; we just wanted to get down, but we also wanted to climb it again. We could see the bus, it was really tiny. We only saw about five zebras when we were going up and coming down.

By the end of it we were dusty, dirty, sweaty and stinky! We had scratches and bruises on our hands and legs. After all the hard sliding and climbing we finally reached the bottom of the mountain.

the talent

around the rim

Some of us took a short break then powered away round the rim hoping to get to the peak, though sadly we did not have time to get there because our time was limited. As we walked you could peer into the crater where there were many trees and plants. We were told that there were still leopards in the crater.

We were feeling really feisty, so we set off at a speedy pace.

show

We were initially destined to do the Year 5 ‘Peponi’s Got Talent’ show in Kilifi but we never got the chance to perform. When we got to the bottom, (luckily we all survived), we got into our groups and came up with short skits. Some of us did comedy, song, dance and short skits. It was so much fun.

Well done to all the Year 5s for proving themselves capable of facing a challenge, with a very positive attitude and a sense of adventure. What a brilliant opportunity for us all to experience the great outdoor life Kenya has to offer us, and be a part of the Great Rift Valley.

The crater track wasn’t flat like most of us assumed, instead it had lots of sheer hills and it was quite alarmingly narrow at times. We stopped when there was a sort of slide on the crater which was really smooth and slippery. Over there, there was lots off small pieces of black shiny magma.

When we returned back to the rim shelter, we drunk litres of water and ate quite a lot. We were now ready for an swift gambol down the dormant mountain.

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OUR MUSICIANS ABRSM High Scorers’ Concert Sunday 30th September

Four Peponi House pupils, together with other musicians from around the country, featured in a concert to recognise candidates who had scored Distinctions in the June 2018 ABRSM exams. Congratulations to the high scorers’ from Peponi House and well done to all the pupils who worked equally hard for their exams.

Butterfly Trust Concert Sunday 7th October 2018

All were invited for this year’s edition of the Butterfly Trust Concert at Kenton College, featuring young musicians playing music to raise funds for a worthy cause. Look out for this event next year.

St. Andrew’s, Turi Orchestral weekend 26th - 28th October

Our orchestra members had a busy but fun time playing with their colleagues from affiliate schools during the Turi orchestral weekend. The pupils were all inspired by the experience. A big thanks to all the parents for their superb organisation, coming all the way to Turi to watch the concert and pick up their children. This teamwork always stands out at the event. It shows a fantastic Peponi community spirit.

The music department greatly appreciates this support.

Peponi Schools Combined Concert Thursday 8th November

Many thanks to all the pupils, from Year 3 to Year 13, who presented a wonderful concert for Peponi’s community of family and friends. The concert featured a fantastic range of music genres from 17th century baroque music to Radiohead and Bruno Mars! Thank you to all the parents and family who attended. We are already looking forward to next year’s edition.

Senior Choirs’ Interschool Cantata Rehearsal Saturday 17th November

Some members of the senior choir joined their counterparts from various schools for a 200 strong mass choir rehearsal to prepare for the ‘Yanomamo’ cantata to be performed in February 2019. The sound in the Courtney Hall was fantastic as the singers went through the songs from the environmental-consciousness-themed cantata. (...29 letters in that hyphenated word...anyone for a game of scrabble...)

Carol Service Wednesday 5th December

Pupils, parents and staff all joined together in the annual Peponi House Carol Service. There were traditional readings and the congregation joined the choirs in singing Christmas carols. There were mince pies and drinks after the colourful service as the community got into the mood for the Christmas season.

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Charity Concert Friday 1st February 2019

On Friday 1st February, there was a charity concert run by the Year 8s. It was organised by Mikayla Wissanji. Here is her account of how well the event went: ncy. the Ol Pejeta Conserva I had raised money for 6, ar he’ Ye eat in ‘Br ta it eje P ed . I nam After the trip to Ol distribute the money charity, ‘Breathe’, to allowed to breathe. be to d nee y I had set up my own the , are to thrive nts pha ele and nos rhi because, if the Elephants i Duff about the Save nta Ka n sso tI Re by ech spe for both charities bu Following an inspiring d to raise more money nte ause I wa bec I , t 17 cer 20 con in a y d uld like to hol wo I charity at Speech Da t tha d ide dec I t. ing differen wanted to try someth . sic love mu very full so it was 7. The school year is ar Ye in d rte en I was in sta t it would be held wh Planning for the concer finally decided that s wa it and e dat a difficult to pick e! uary was the final dat Year 8. Friday 1st Febr t to narrow the yed so it was difficul pla e hav ld ted cou o wh ople re are a lot of talen There were lots of pe k the Year 8s as the pic to d ide dec y all performers down. I fin musicians in the year. young musicians group that supports sic mu a , ics ass Cl o ite Ghett wanted to give them We also decided to inv rmed at school and I rfo pe had y cert as The s. son les as soloists for the con with instruments and uld like to perform wo n to y kee the y if ver m re the we ed sicians. They more support. I ask greater identity as mu a m the e giv d ul wo I thought this perform. , agreed to be the MC from Ghetto Classics y gel hu d much tte efi ben has tainly made the event Kevin, a musician who of humour and he cer se sen at gre a has for the event. He , livelier!

Ol Pejeta Conservancy Richard Vigne, CEO of m fro n the tio uc for e rod int h an that, it was tim The concert began wit etto Classics. After e, the founder of Gh rog Njo h bet iza El and music! assics and oists from Ghetto Cl al. They included sol tot in na opened the es ian anc (R s rm cer rfo pe dan There were 28 staff band) and the g din clu (in ff sta s, s).

Peponi House, ensemble eet dance with his son McNally did some str n rti Ma ile wh t cer con nce had a good ne in the packed audie ryo eve and h hig lly music was rea The standard of the event. n 300 tickets for the tha re mo d time. We sol s and exams to pay for school fee nsor Ghetto Classics spo ween Ol Pejeta to bet d ere nly off eve s it dge Sopa Lo money was spl the of t res the all over 200,000/-. for the soloists while ts. In total, we raised han ep El the ve Sa Conservancy and ence. I felt proud t it was a great experi bu rk wo d har s wa causes. ge event ence to so many good Organising such a lar ething to make a differ som do to e abl s wa that I the cert, the adults and involved with the con got the o t wh hos ne to ryo eed eve Blake, who agr I would like to thank I’d like to thank Mr in ed. me rm rfo ped pe hel o and wh ped a, children who hel e to thank Mr Watak particular, I’d also lik support and help in concert in school. In my parents for their nk tha to e lik I’d , all of so many ways. Most t. putting on the concer

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Mikay

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PLENTY OF DRAMA...

ENGLISH ENTERTAINMENT EVENINGS After the success and excitement of last year’s Entertainment Evenings, we were all keen to get going on this year’s set.

The Year 7s started us off with performances of ‘Ernie’s Incredible Illucinations’, ‘Tanya the Tooth Fairy’ and ‘A Trip to the Beach’. All three are great, silly stories: a boy whose imaginative day-dreaming comes to life, a tooth fairy who loses her powers but can still teach some nasty children a lesson and a rowdy group of children on a school trip who manage somehow to both put their teacher in peril and rescue him at the same time!

It was an intense process of line learning and blocking in only two weeks’ worth of English lessons. The children all worked incredibly hard and they certainly enjoyed the process of bringing everything together. Their audiences too had a wonderful time.

Year 6 were next. They had written their own last year but were looking forward to performing existing plays this year.

They brought ‘Tidy That Room’, ‘The Nightly News’ and ‘There’s Something Under the Bed’ to life. Again, these are silly stories, but designed to make people chuckle. And how they succeeded!

Stories were told. Strange things happen, sometimes magical. There are naughty people out there. However, good ALWAYS wins out in the end. The children were brilliant, their audiences highly entertained.

The benefits of these Entertainment Evenings are wideranging. The children enjoy the creative freedom of drama, of putting together a short play from scratch and seeing it all come together. They enjoy the collaborative challenges it presents. For the younger ones, it gives them a chance to have the spotlight, as they wait for their chance to audition for main roles in the senior production. Overall though, the main reason is: it’s just fun!

From looking at the amazing range of performances on show, there are a lot of actors coming through at Peponi House!

Mr C Parkes-Bristow

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BADMINTON SPEECH AND DRAMA TROPHY Held every year, the Badminton Trophy is contested between schools throughout Kenya. They are given a single word from which they have to create an entirely original piece of theatre. There are strict rules: no props, no costumes, and no before-hand preparation. The theme revealed on the day was “fascination”.

The Peponi team took on this daunting task with aplomb and created a piece involving two realities, one which boredom reigns and in the other, fascination. Merchants from each realm travel to the other to sell what they lack.

The completion was strong, and there was a huge variety in the pieces created. Although Peponi didn’t win, the team did themselves proud with an original, bold and fun performance.

NAIROBI ACADEMY VERSE SPEAKING COMPETITION

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U

S

INTER-HOUSE POETRY COMPETITION

T

Z

U

R

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M S

Z

U

Dragon days

YEAR 2 PLAY

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THE ROCKY MONSTER SHOW Term 2 saw the Year 3 and 4 children put on their production of The Rocky Monster Show. Bizarre, anarchic and very funny, this Rock ‘n’ Roll musical was a riotous mix of the Addams Family, Young Frankenstein and Phantom of the Opera.

Baron Frankenstein’s descendant, and ex-pop star turned professor of Genetics, created DNA moulds of people in his computer. How these moulds come to life as the ultimate Rock Group, headed by a clone of Elvis himself is the highlight of the hilarious plot.

The children performed incredibly well and with never ending enthusiasm and energy!

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

Another year down, another play done, It seems to get quicker every year, But it is my pleasure and honour to stand here, And to say a few thanks, spread a little cheer.

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This play has been a labour of love, An ambition of mine for a long while, So to see it here all come together, You’ll forgive me for having a smile.

Planning for this play started last December, ‘Aladdin’ was still running, it had yet to close.

As I set about creating a production That would be different, where anything goes.

We’ll have a child sitting high up in the roof.

Why bother with one stage? We’ll have two!

Children can run in with a trolley And so the vision steadily grew.

The issue with being a man with a plan Is that people need to agree, I have to be given permission To create the production you see.

Plays can often turn schools upside down But this one was way off the chart, So, my first thanks is to Peponi House, I am grateful with all of my heart.

Everyone got on board, My ideas got all the green lights, So we started rehearsing and creating With Dukes and Fundis and sprites.

As you work on putting on a play, Rehearsals can often be slow.

But the children persevered and surely Our production started to grow.

Anyone involved with a production Knows that you’re pulling a whole load of strings, You’re painting, finding props, building stages, Creating costumes and finding fairy wings.

This play simply wouldn’t have been possible, To even attempt it would have been simply a laugh Without the help of the most amazing team Of Samson, chef Ali and our support staff.

They have moved chairs and plant pots, Hung up curtains and ivy to swing, They’ve laboured yet never stopped smiling Even when I was asking for ‘one more thing’.

I can never show them enough gratitude For their dedication to this whole dramatic cause, So can we please all our appreciation By giving them all a huge round of applause.

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CONTENTS

So my next thanks goes for the costumes, The cast look amazing, colours so bright and so bold.

A lot of what you see was made from scratch And is truly a wonder to behold.

So I’d like to thank Gina Ciampa Barely in the country yet she accepted my plea, And also Melanie Blake And the seamstress ladies from Kamili.

On top of the costumes, we have make-up, They deserve their very own shout out.

I wanted to make the children look magical And they’ve certainly succeeded, there’s no doubt.

They made the cast look beautiful, Enchanting fairies, captivating creatures, So I offer my eternal thanks to the mums Who worked so hard, alongside all of the teachers.

There are other adults who need my thanks, And names that I mustn’t forget, For they worked hard in each of their areas So I shall be forever in their debt.

Mrs Bush created the poster Mrs Peck, now abroad, created the art, Alacoque Ntome made the stage come alight, While Mr Martin helped the fairies dance the part.

There are staff members too Who are plenty busy with their own work, So I have a little something to offer, To thank them, a small little perk.

Mr Jewkes was on hand backstage and on Fridays, Mr Mugambe, on sound, helps whenever I call, While Miss Gilmour and her young props team Created decorations and, of course, our fine wall.

A feature of all our recent productions Has been the incredible scenery on show, They look so catching and lifelike, They make our stage pop out and glow.

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So a huge thank you to Georgie van Hasselt, The fine line between magic and art, she can weave, She’s our very own Leonardo da Vinci, So she’s forbidden to leave!

CONTENTS

There’s one person I’ve left to the end, Without her, the chance of success was none, She’s worked a sewing machine, found me a trolley Worked so hard to get everything done.

Every year, she says she’s not supposed to help, For she juggles so many balls up in the air, But this time she got in at the beginning And I’ve been so glad to have this project to share.

It is sad that this is her last performance, But she bows out with a bang and a crack, So my eternal thanks to Emma Morton, If we clap loud enough, maybe she’ll come back!

I’ll finish up my thanks as I should do With the children, the stars of the show.

They’ve done everything I’ve asked for and more On the stage, they’ve dazzled and glowed.

You’ve seen realistic drunkards and fairies, Humans, Fundis and more, Their hard work and enthusiasm has been endless What they’ve done has knocked me out on the floor.

So please join me in one last huge clap For this play has been quite a blast, A final big thanks and well done To this amazing young crew and young cast.

So now my thanks are all finished, Thank you all for your claps and your cheer, How can ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ possibly be topped?

Well for that, you’ll have to come back next year.

Mr. Chris Parkes-Bristow

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OUR ARTISTS

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SEPTEMBER SPORTS 10/10 CRICKET AND ROUNDERS On Saturday 15th September, the 1st Cricket XI and the 1st and 2nd Rounders IX set off for Peponi Secondary to take part in the annual P2 Ten/10 Tournament. As in previous years, the children came up against Kenton College, The Banda and Pembroke House. This tournament, the first of the year, has always been an excellent time to gauge the levels of the other schools and the areas needed for development in our own squads.

The girls Rounders draw was altered slightly this year, with all 1st teams drawn in one group and the 2nd teams facing each other in the second group. The 1st girls found the going very tough and they came up against some very strong opposition. Although they batted, bowled and fielded well, they were not able to overcome their opponents in each of their three matches. They played exceptionally well against three very well drilled sides have gained a huge amount of experience.

The 2nd Rounders team found their group equally challenging, losing their opening game against Kenton and then falling in a very close game to Pembroke House. Their third and final game against The Banda saw everything click into place. Their fielding was sharp and they beat The Banda 6 to 5.

The boys fared better in their opening match vs The Banda.

They won the toss and opted to field first. Some excellent bowling from Saavir, Amaan and Noah ensured the total was always in their reach and they achieved the target of 69 runs with two overs to spare. They would face Pembroke House in the final of the tournament and, from a neutral perspective, it did not disappoint. Pembroke won the toss and opted to bat first. Again, some excellent bowling and wonderful fielding restricted their batsmen from getting on top of the game. Saavir led by example when Peponi came in to bat. He was calm and composed at the crease and demonstrated an impressive shot selection. He was well partnered by Ryan Gontier, Ethan Steele and Noah Somen.

The brilliant Peponi batsmen managed to reach their target in the penultimate over. A superb start to the season for the boys who will take a great deal of confidence into their inter-school fixtures.

Congratulations to all the players and to their coaches, Mr. Odera and Mr. Obuya.

STOWE PUTTER GOLF COMPETITION

The annual Stowe Putter golf competition, organised

by Pembroke House, was held on Sunday 7th October 2018 at the Gilgil Golf club. The Peponi House team was comprised of Joshua D’Souza, Aveer Channa, Noah Somen, Ehren Dhariwal, Aahil Jessa and Arjun Chotai. They were accompanied by Mr. Ogara and their coach, Mr. Owiti.

We played 9 holes stable ford with each player given 2 shots, regardless of their handicap. The Peponi team won in 4 out of 6 groups. It was a great show from Peponi House over the 9 holes played, with Aahil scoring 27 points, Noah scoring 22 points, Arjun scoring 22 points, Joshua scoring 18 points, Ehren scoring 17 points and Aveer scoring 13 points.

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Overall, Kenton took the fifth position with a cumulative of 26 points, Pembroke House was fourth with 58 points, Braeburn (Gitanga) was third with 76 points, The Banda was second with 103 point and Peponi House won the competition with a total of 122 points.

Aahil had the best individual score in the under 11 category, especially as his score would still have won if he had played in the Under 13 group.

This competition was great fun and I would like to congratulate my team for their outstanding sportsmanship.

Another appreciation goes to the parents who came in their numbers to support their children. We are looking forward to retaining this trophy next year.

By Mr. David Owiti

INTER-HOUSE CROSS COUNTRY

BANDA 6’S CRICKET TOURNAMENT We were in the same pool with St. Andrew’s, Hillcrest and The Banda. Our first game against a competitive St. Andrew’s team was a solid performance where we batted first and scored 62 runs. Saavir retired on an unbeaten 25 runs. We got St. Andrew’s all out for 26 runs.

Our second match vs Hillcrest was crucial, as a win would put us into the semi-finals. Hillcrest batted first and scored 30 runs. We got to their score with a number of overs to spare.

The last game vs The Banda was tense and exciting.

The Banda batted first and scored 62 runs. Our first over was very expensive. We gave away 22 runs. We chased really well, but came up short scoring 38 runs.

We were through to the semi-finals to play Kenton. We batted first and scored 49 runs. We felt that we probably needed another 10 runs. Saavir retired, once again, on an unbeaten 25 runs. Kenton got to the score with an over to spare. We put in a great effort.

Senthwale was named as wicket keeper of the tournament. Saavir, Aman and Senthwale were picked to play for Nairobi. Saavir came close to being batsman of the tournament with a score of 78 not out, off 38 balls and unbeaten in 4 matches. An outstanding batting performance.

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ATHLETICS The Year 2 Inter-House Athletics aims to increase participation for all children across a range of activities.

The children are grouped according to their House; Chania, Tsavo, Tana and Mara. There are 9 stations around which the children rotate. The events focus on jumping, sprinting, throwing, skipping and coordination.

The events are; Hurdles, 50m Sprints, Ladder Course, Bean bag Shuttle, Vortex Howler Throw, Ball Throw, Skipping and Standing Long Jump. These events are also meant to prepare the year 2 children for the U9 athletics and build their team work as a house. After every child has completed the stations, all children get together for the Whole House Relay which is timed. The winning house gets a house trophy which is presented by the Headmaster. All houses are awarded house points depending on the position.

After every group has completed the stations all children come together in one area for the final two events; 4 x 100m (4 Boys & 4 Girls selected by games staff depending on the times recorded in 100m during P.E. lessons.) Whole House Relay- this event involves all children in the house and is timed.

The Under 9 Inter House Athletics aims to increase participation for all children across a range of activities it also starts introducing competition.

All Year 5 to Year 8 children submit their 1st and 2nd choices to the sports department for the events for the senior Inter House athletics. Every pupil is put into three individual events and one relay. Points are awarded to everyone and the Under 11 and Under 13 winning houses are presented with a cup. Those top athletes are awarded a special shield for their individual performances. Well done to the following athletes:

The afternoon starts with the 800m. This gives our top middle distance runners a chance to showcase their performance. In the 800m race, 2 Boys & 2 Girls per house are selected by games staff depending on the times they recorded during their P.E. lessons. Once the 800m has finished, the children move onto the house group events.

The house group event has 12 stations around which the children rotate, similar to the Year 2 Inter House Athletics, with a few additions. These events focus on endurance, speed, throws, explosive jumps, coordination, fine motor skills and stamina.

Like the Year 2s, the winning house gets a house trophy which is presented by the Headmaster. All houses are awarded house points depending on the position.

U11 Victrix Ludorum – Cuyuni Khan U11 Victor Ludorum – Aahil Aziz Jessa & Zayyan Virani U13 Victrix Ludorum – Tara Vora U13 Victor Ludorum – Austin Omondi

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INTER SCHOOL ATHLETICS At the pre-season warm up at Iten, Austin Omondi struck us as being a contender for the sprint events, and through hard work, determination and will power, he went on to beat two school records, a Kasarani record and an IAPS School 200m record. He added the High Jump event to his set of gold medals. He is truly an all-round athlete: it was hard for us to decide which field event he would be competing in.

Rianna Shah, Hawi Rabongo and many other children were on top form in their events, throughout the term.

At the IAPS meet held at Greensteds we had some lovely surprise results from Amani Gikunda, who won the Under 9 1500m and Ria Shah who stormed into 3rd place in the Under 13 1500m.

It is always a pleasure to witness our top athletes from being awarded a medal or achieving their personal best on competition day. This is a true indication of their dedication and perseverance. Well done to all our budding young athletics.

HILLCREST GOLF TOURNAMENT Friday 16th November saw six up-and-coming golfers set off for Hillcrest Preparatory School.

This year we took a full complement of players to compete in the Under 13, Under 11 and Under 9 categories for the Pitch, Chip, Putt and Drive Competition.

Ria Shah and Joshua D’Souza represented Peponi House in the Under 13s’, Agamjot Kalsi and Arjun Chotai the Under 11s’ and Shashwat Harish and Rohini Shah the Under 9s’.

All of the children should be very proud of their achievements in the competition. They putted, chipped, drove and pitched their golf balls with ease and precision. It was a rotation of the skills, so they did not get to see much of each other playing, but when they did, they supported and cheered their team mates on.

Medals were awarded from 5th place upwards. Joshua placed 5th in the Under 13 boys’ and Ria placed 2nd in the Under 13 girls’. In the Under 11s’, both Arjun and Agamjot placed first, in the boys’ and girls’ categories respectively. Shashwat was awarded 2nd place in the Under 9 boys’ and Rohini came 3rd for the Under 9 girls’.

The two previous years have been won by Braeburn and St. Christopher’s, however, this year, for the first time, Peponi House came away as the overall winners for 2018.

Congratulations to the Peponi House golfers!

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PEPONI HOUSE GIRLS VS. KAWANGWARE PRIMARY CRICKET MATCH Saturday 13th October saw the much anticipated Peponi House vs Kawangware Primary match, where two full teams assembled at the Peponi House Cricket ground and a great crowd of parents came to watch their children play.

Peponi House lost the toss and were sent in to bat first.

They scored a brilliant 123 runs for the loss of 9 wickets.

Daphne and Tessa opened the innings for Peponi and looked good on the crease, giving Peponi a great start before Tessa got run out after scoring 2 runs. Netania was the next batter. She scored 4 runs in total and set up a great partnership with Daphne, who was also run out scoring 20 runs. Rani, the captain, chipped in her 10 runs, while Zoe was bowled out on a duck by Margaret from the Kawangware side. Nina and Ria then put up a great partnership, scoring 30 runs and 26 runs respectively, which put the fielding team under pressure. Rianna and Pepper got bowled out on ducks leaving Grace, who made 1 run, and Ria, who was not out (26), wrapping up the innings for Peponi House.

The wickets were shared around by the Kawangware side - Melvin 16/1, Margaret 17/2, and Esther 5/1. Their best bowler was Pauline, clinching 2 wickets for only 9 runs in 3 overs.

Kawangware then opened their inning and started their chase of the possible 123 runs set by Peponi House.

Netania and Nina opened the bowling for Peponi, which gave their side a great start. Rani came in first change while Tessa was in as second change bowler. Zoe, Pepper, Daphne, Dia, Ria, and Rianna all got a chance to bowl as well. Siana, Anaya and Parushi played for the Kawangware team, as they had 3 fewer players, and scored 7, 3 and 0 runs respectively. It was a close chase‌ Kawangware got bowled out for only 120 runs, resulting in a great moment for the Peponi girls who could not hold in their joy and celebrated their brilliant 3 run win over Kawangware.

Peak of the day: Siana was chosen as the best player from Peponi House for her beautiful batting and patience at the crease which saw her build up a great partnership with her team mates. She received a Kenya Cricket Jersey from Miss Kaparo, as was promised before the match. It was great to see amazing cricket being played by the girls and the great crowd that came to support them.

If the result of a game can be said to reflect the balance of the sides, then it does not get much better than this.

Such finishes don’t happen by accident and great credit for a truly wonderful game of cricket goes to the two skippers, Rani for the Peponi House team and Margaret for the Kawangware Primary Team.

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SPORTS AWARDS SEPTEMBER 2018 ATHLETICS ATHLETICS COACHING AWARD CERTIFICATES:

ATHLETICS COLOURS:

U9

U11

U13

Shashwat Harish

Wanjuki Kanyogo

Ethan Steel Kian Allport

Amani Gikunda

Peper Granskog

Abby Njoroge

Awarded to Charles Smith and Tara Vora Re-awarded to Austin Omondi, Gilly Hechle and Hawi Rabongo

ROUNDERS YEAR 2 Luisa Onyango Liya Singh

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER CERTIFICATES

U9A Mumbi Kenyua U9B Inaya Virani U9C Tizita U9D Florence Aldridge U9E Elsa Lloyd

OUTSTANDING PARTICIPATION

U11A Aanya Shah

1st IX Rianna Shah

U1B Katanu Muindi

2nd IX Edith Barratt

U11C Faith Njoroge

3rd IX Ruby Wakaba

U11D Nahla Jeilan

4th IX Abby Njoroge

U11E Tamika Ledger ROUNDERS COLOURS

Gilly Hechle and Ria Shah

ROUNDERS INTER HOUSE RESULTS TEAM

UNDER 9

UNDER 11

UNDER 13

MARA

3rd

4th

3rd

CHANIA

2nd

3rd

2nd

TSAVO

4th

1st

1st

TANA

1st

2nd

4th

U11 SPORTS GIRL OF THE TERM: Tessa Steel and Peper Granskog U13 SPORTS GIRL OF THE TERM: Gilly Hechle

56 Pep Talk 2018-2019

CRICKET YEAR 2 Ollie de Vise Lewis Krish Malde

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER CERTIFICATES

U9A Hunter Njoroge U9B Eyad Chaudhri U9C Theuri U9D Kush Kantaria U9E Ayden Khalfan

OUTSTANDING PARTICIPATION

CRICKET COLOURS

U11A Rohaan Shah

1st IX Sen Muya

U1B Dhyan Khimasia

2nd IX Charles Smith

U11C Yannick Kamphuis

3rd IX Ilyaseen Nimji

U11D Milo Brown

4th IX Samuel Kibogo

Saavir Karania, Senthwale Muya, Ethan Steel & Armaan Shah

CRICKET INTER HOUSE RESULTS TEAM

UNDER 9

UNDER 11

UNDER 13

MARA

Equal 2nd

Equal 2nd

4th

CHANIA

Equal 2nd

Equal 2nd

2nd

TSAVO

1st

1st

1st

TANA

4th

Equal 2nd

3rd

U11 SPORTS BOY OF THE TERM: Aziz Jessa U13 SPORTS BOY OF THE TERM: Austin Omondi

Pep Talk 2018-2019 57

JANUARY SPORTS NAIROBI VS UP-COUNTRY SCHOOLS ROUNDERS This was a beautiful match to watch, and the children played to a very high standard. Nairobi schools won by 19 to 3. The up-country schools were all out by the 18th ball in the first inning, and all out by the 21st ball in the second inning. Gilly Hechle’s batting was phenomenal, hitting one into the drive way behind the outfield, scoring 6 rounders in total.

Gilly caught 3 players out, while Ria caught one out and scored 2.5 rounders.

Gilly was voted joint player of the match after a sterling performance on the day.

Congratulations Gilly!

TENNIS We have had a very successful term with our tennis.

The under 9 girls and boys team performed very well at The Banda tournament, with the girls coming first and Amani Gikunda winning.

The under 11 girls have also performed superbly winning most of their matches while the under 11 boys have had an awesome season winning all their matches and runners-up at the Goodwin cup.

The under 13 girls were runners-up at the Dods cup and the U13 boys where third at the Hemmings cup.

Congratulations to all who took part this term plus the tennis squad members. Very well done!

58 Pep Talk 2018-2019

HOCKEY The Hockey season was a whirlwind of wonderful results, excellent individual achievement and superb team performances stretching over the entire 12 weeks of the term. I do not recall having worked with such a talented and enthusiastic group of children, who are all so keen and excited to improve their own skills and abilities.

Nearly every single child from year 3 to year 8 was able to represent the school in a competitive fixture. It was lovely to see so many children taking part in this team sport; learning to work together, communicate and develop as team players.

All the teams involved in school fixtures were determined to win and this really did show in the matches they played.

There were a large number of children selected to play for the Nairobi Schools teams at Kenton; Gilly Hechle, Ria Shah, Kiki Kontos and Tara Vora for the girls and Ryan Gontier, Liam Keshavjee, Austin Omondi & Hawi Rabongo for the boys.

Well done Peponi!

Pep Talk 2018-2019 59

IAPS SWIMMING GALA Peponi House was once again a force to be reckoned with in the swimming pool. This year the two swimming captains, Alexandra Kontos and Carlo Blunsum led the team to a 2nd place finish at the annual IAPS Kenya Swimming Championships.

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THE BANDA GOLF TROPHY

Pep Talk 2018-2019 61

SPORTS AWARDS JANUARY 2019 GIRLS FOOTBALL MOST IMPROVED

Peper Granskog

COACHES AWARD

Tiara Ngumbi

SQUASH COLOURS AWARDED

Ilyaseen Nimji

COACHES AWARD

Reeyan Gosrani and Cuyuni Khan

SWIMMING COLOURS AWARDED

Kiki Kontos, Rianna Shah and Kario Karani

COLOURS REAWARDED

Charles Smith and Carlo Blunsum

MOST IMPROVED

Amara Pannu

COACHES CUP

Carlo Blunsum

GIRLS HOCKEY YEAR 2 Katherine Selwood Ishani Mandaliya Akosua Eshun

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER CERTIFICATES

U9A Mumbi Kinyua U9B Crystal Hall U9C Aanya Shah U9D Yemna Roberts U9E Samara Mbugua U9F Adeline Mugisha

COLOURS AWARDED

U11A Maya Cooney

1st IX Netania Mwaura

U1B Annemarie Wachira

2nd IX Fatma Jeilan

U11C Alina Chaudry

3rd IX Isobel Bush

U11D Agamjot Kalsi

4th IX Nefertiti Ndugu

Gilly Hechle, Ria Shah, Kiki Kontos and Tara Vora

GIRLS HOCKEY INTER HOUSE RESULTS TEAM

UNDER 9

UNDER 11

UNDER 13

MARA

3rd

3rd

CHANIA

4th

2nd

TSAVO

2nd

1st

TANA

1st

4th

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BOYS HOCKEY YEAR 2 Krish Malde Ollie De Vis Lewis Arhum Bid

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER CERTIFICATES

U9A Shyam Thakerar U9B Hunter Njoroge U9C Alonso Galiana U9D Yash Gathani U9E Aarin Kochhar

U11A Justice Davies

1st IX Prinay Galaiya

U1B Yannick Kamphius

2nd IX Christian Ligale

U11C Alastair Njoroge

3rd IX Alexander Morton

U11D Ascanio Tuccillo

4th IX Samuel Kibogo

COLOURS AWARDED

Liam Keshavjee, Austin Omondi & Hawi Rabongo

COLOURS REAWARDED

Ryan Gontier

CRICKET INTER HOUSE RESULTS TEAM

UNDER 9

UNDER 11

UNDER 13

MARA

2nd

4th

CHANIA

4th

3rd

TSAVO

3rd

1st

TANA

1st

2nd

U11 SPORTS GIRL OF THE TERM: Siana Shah U13 SPORTS GIRL OF THE TERM: Kiki Kontos U11 SPORTS BOY OF THE TERM: Yannik Kamphuis U13 SPORTS BOY OF THE TERM: Carlo Blunsum

Pep Talk 2018-2019 63

APRIL SPORTS CROSS-COUNTRY This year the cross country was marked by the introduction of the beautiful and challenging early morning runs at Karura where there was dedication and commitment from the team. The selected children were working hard to beat their personal best times over various distances. School early morning trainings were well attended and we highly appreciate all the parents who supported and encouraged their children during these sessions.

At the Kenton warm up, the team performed to their best ability and we were 2nd overall, with some good individual performances. At the IAPS St. Andrew’s Turi Championships, our runners performed tremendously well by having both our Under 9 girls and Under 13 boys attain 1st position in their category. We came a very respectable second place overall, with Amani Gikunda winning a gold medal in the Under 9 girls category. There has always been a great deal of running talent in the school and remarkable performances!

Well done to all the children in the cross country teams for a job well done. Thank you to all the parents for supporting your children and to all the coaches who have really worked hard with these children.

64 Pep Talk 2018-2019

UNDER 9 GIRLS

Kenton team position

St. Andrew’s team position

UNDER 9 BOYS

Kenton team position

St. Andrew’s team position

Amani Gikunda

2

1

Shashwat Harish

9

5

Sophie Graham Bryce

9

7

Reyan Bulsara

4

9

Saskia Van Hasselt

6

8

Milo Cooney

DNF

11

Emilia Graham Bryce

10

13

Maina Kaniu

7

13

Mara Musangi

22

20

Nana Opoku Nyame

30

31

Mumbi Kenyua

18

25

Vihaan Bulsara

19

33

UNDER 11 GIRLS

Kenton team position

St. Andrew’s team position

UNDER 11 BOYS

Kenton team position

St. Andrew’s team position

Jaanvi Shah

3

5

Ari Ligale

4

8

Kavata Muindi

5

9

Mukunda Mbuguah

9

12

Katanu Muindi

11

23

Mukiri Mugambi

12

13

Peper Granskog

10

28

James Barrat

Alina Chaudhri

13

32

Shahram Sulaiman

15

34

Amalia Chaudhri

12

DNF

Dhruv Sumaria

30

DNF

UNDER 13 GIRLS

Kenton team position

St. Andrew’s team position

UNDER 13 BOYS

Kenton team position

St. Andrew’s team position

Ria Shah (Captain)

3

14

Hawi Rabongo (V. Capt)

4

5

Pasha Haria

14

18

Christian Ligale

14

8

Rianna Shah

17

27

Kian Allport (Captain)

9

10

Gilly Hechle (V. Capt)

21

30

Daniel Ohaga

10

14

Edie Barrat

22

32

Senthwale Muya

13

21

Kario Karani

31

35

Austin Omondi

20

DNF

24

Pep Talk 2018-2019 65

NETBALL All Peponi House girls have performed with immense enthusiasm and desire in our practice sessions to develop their existing skills, understanding and knowledge of netball.

It is almost impossible to single out any one individual player given the collective team-effort and hardworking performances the girls have displayed in our competitive games. The season was characterised by many improvements as well as a fun and brilliant team spirit.

Before each game the girls knew what their own targets were as well as the team tactics.

Initial success was followed by some weeks of consolidating skills and picking up some clever tricks we had learned from cannier opposition. This led to a better sense of team-spirit, and a greater resource of techniques to assist us in matches.

Over the season we saw girls who were very keen to learn and were responsive to coaching tips, but when playing a match against another school, they tended to forget a lot of what they had practiced!

Special mention must go to Gilly Hechle and Kario Karani for their exemplary leadership and amazing sportsmanship in the 1st VII, the team has benefited immensely from their ever enthusiastic presence on and off the court.

Consequently they were selected to play in the Nairobi Schools Team.

The overriding success of the season is measured by how much fun the girls had whilst involving themselves in drills, skill practices, small sided games and a few matches against other schools.

66 Pep Talk 2018-2019

U7 BROOKHOUSE FOOTBALL FESTIVAL The U7 football team did very well to get through the tough group stage matches. Their enthusiasm to face each opponents was catching as they played their hearts out throughout the tournament. Negus Henderson’s speed was electric and aggression was outstanding which resulted in dominance in the midfield.

Having won one, drawn one and lost two, we were unfortunately knocked out in penalty shootouts against the hosts Brookhouse. A special mention goes to Lisa Khamphius for fantastic and solid defending skills that melted the hearts of the fans. The entire squad put in their best effort and represented the school in a great way.

IAPS FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT

Pep Talk 2018-2019 67

RUGBY The rugby season started with strength and conditioning activities to bring fitness levels to a higher standard that rugby demands. The Under 9, Under 11 and Under 13 boys had a personal target to achieve in various aspects of the game. When the season began, there were high expectations and we needed to focus on our tackling and ball handling skills.

There were some outstanding performances in the season with the under 9A team competing well at The Banda festival, Under 11A team winning several matches at St. Christopher’s Ngini 7’s and the U13 boys playing fantastic rugby in a very tough group in Ndume 7’s at Pembroke .

The Under 9 teams’ main targets were to tackle and execute good passes. This objective seemed to be achieved as it was displayed in the matches they played during training and inter school fixtures. The Under 9A team only lost one match in the season with consistent leadership by several boys. The Under 11 teams worked hard in training and their passing, running with the ball and tackling improved greatly and these basic skills enabled them to play competitively in all their matches. The Under 11A team had a good season well under the leadership of Nana Osei Nyame. They improved in their rucks and defensive tackling skills as the term went forward. The Under 13 teams made some good progress in their ball handling skills and support play. They got better every time they played. The 1st team, led Austin Omondi as a captain and Liam Keshavjee as a vice captain, had a good contest from a combination of hard running, good tackling and excellent passing skills. Our strong points was wonderful back line intelligence and great unit play in the Under 11 and Under 13 teams. The Under 9 teams made a significant improvement in their tackling and ball handling skills.

Well done to Austin Omondi, Hawi Rabongo, Liam Keshavjee and Sen Muya who were all selected to play for Nairobi Schools vs their Up-Country opponents.

68 Pep Talk 2018-2019

GIRLS TOUCH RUGBY On June 22nd 2019 we had another wonderful opportunity to field a girls’ touch rugby team at the Ndume 7s rugby tournament at Pembroke House School. Our squad of 8 girls was mostly made up of Year 8s, some of whom had played in the first tournament the year before, and two Year 7s.

The team played in a round-robin format against five other teams, namely The Banda School, Pembroke House, Kenton College, Braeburn School and SHAMAS. The top team after the round robin matches were completed went into the final and the second and third teams played for qualification to play the top team to determine the overall winner.

Although our girls were not in the top three, they showed good team work and understanding of the game, and they improved with every match played. They won one, drew one and lost three matches. Despite not getting the number of wins that they wanted, the girls played every match competitively until the end and they gave their all in attack and defence.

Well done to our team this year and we continue to build up for next season as we aim for even better results.

Thanks to Mikayla Wissanji (Captain), Gillian Hechle (ViceCaptain), Tara Vora, Andrea Kabogo, Rani Sumaria, Ria Shah, Tiarra Ngumi and Netania Mwaura who represented their school proudly.

Pep Talk 2018-2019 69

OUR SWIMMERS 2018 - 2019 KENTON RELAYS

U13 BANDA GALA

The first Inter-School competition of the year took place at Kenton College and Peponi House got the swimming season under way with a very shaky start, with disqualifications in key events resulting in a second place finish for the first time since 2013.

In January the Under 13s opened the swimming term with a dominant display of aquatic prowess at The Banda to compete against the other Nairobi IAPS schools.

Notable swims from the Under 13 girls relays Rianna Shah, Alexandra Kontos, Kario Karani and Maisha Done. The girls Under 9s Amani Gikunda, Saskia Van Hasselt, Mara Musangi and Tizita Musyoka, broke a meet record in the freestyle relay. The mixed freestyle Under 9s of Shahwat Harish, Amani Gikunda, Mara Musangi and Andre Kanau also broke a meet record. Not to be outdone, the Under 13s mixed freestyle relay also broke the meet record, the team consisted of Carlo Blunsum, Maisha Done, Kario Karani and Samuel Kibogo.

The overall results were: Position Points 1st 214 2nd 182 3r3 128 4th 90 5th 79 6th 59 7th 24

Team Kenton College Peponi House The Banda Braeburn Brookhouse Greensted Hillcrest

TRIANGULAR GALA The Banda hosted the second Inter-School gala of the year on Monday 26th November 2018.

Peponi were well represented in this gala although our under 13 team was heaily effected due to the school play in the morning.

Notable swims and first place individual finishes in the ‘A’ Gala came from – Amani Gikunda, Shashwat Harish, Darsh Shah, Tizita Musyoka, Andre Kamau, Zayyan Virani, Mara Musangi, Yannick Kamphuis, Sophie Cox and Harnek Singh.

The overall combined scores were: Position Points 1st 328 2nd 276 3rd 268

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Team Peponi House Braeburn The Banda

Swimmers who won their individual races were: Kario Karani A Gala – Butterfly & Freestyle Carlo Blunsum A Gala – Backstroke Maisha Done B Gala – Backstroke & Freestyle Charles Smith B Gala – Backstroke Tara Vora B Gala – Breaststroke Senthwale Muya B Gala – Breaststroke Rianna Shah B Gala – Butterfly Austin Omondi B Gala – Freestyle Combined scores in the Under 13 Friendly Swimming Gala 2019 held at The Banda.

Position Points Team 1st 248 Peponi House 2nd 187 Kenton College 3rd 178 Braeburn 4th 176 The Banda 5th 119 Hillcrest 6th 49 Brookhouse

U11 HILLCREST GALA

U9 PEPONI GALA

The Under 11 friendly swimming gala was again held at Hillcrest.

Once again Peponi House hosted the Under 9 Swimming Gala.

1st place finishes in this gala came from: Yannick Kamphuis A Gala Butterfly & Freestyle Harnek Singh A Gala Breaststroke & B Gala IM Karl Senanu B Gala Backstroke Mukunda Mbuguah B Gala Butterfly Thandie Muya B Gala Freestyle Darsh Shah B Gala Freestyle

Outstanding swims and first place finishes came from: Amani Gikunda A Gala – Individual Medley Andre Kamau A Gala – Backstroke and Freestyle Sophie Cox A Gala – Breaststroke Shashwat Harish A Gala - Breaststroke Tizita Musyoka A Gala – Freestyle and B Gala Butterfly Kioko Muindi B Gala – Breaststroke

Combined scores in the Under 11 Friendly Swimming Gala 2019 held at Hillcrest Preparatory School: Position Points Team 1st 195 Kenton College 2nd 180 Peponi House 3rd 117 The Banda 4th 84 Braeburn 5th 70 Hillcrest 6th 65 Brookhouse

Combined scores in the Under 9 Friendly Swimming Gala 2019 held at Peponi House: Position Points Team 1st 189 Kenton College 2nd 176 Peponi House 3rd 155 The Banda 4th 112 Braeburn 5th 58 Hillcrest 6th 44 Brookhouse

Pep Talk 2018-2019 71

IAPS CHAMPIONSHIP GALA The IAPS Championships was once again organised by Peponi House and held at Peponi Secondary School. All ten IAPS Kenya schools took part in an extremely hot day of swimming.

Eight school swimming records were set during the gala.

Boys’ Captain, Carlo Blunsum, broke the school in the under 13 50m Butterfly (33.50). Kario Karani smashed two school records in the 50m Butterfly (33.63) and the 50m Freestyle (31.16). Sophie Cox was awesome in the Under 9 Breaststroke, even though she finished just outside of the podium places she broke the breaststroke school record (25.42). Andre Kamau was equally great in the Under 9 boys 25m butterfly swimming a new school record (19.81).

Yannick Kamphuis was in outstanding form as he lowered the under 11 50m Butterfly (38.25) and the 50m Freestyle (33.62).

Special mention must go to Carlo Blunsum in the 50m Backstroke he set an Under 13 school record and an IAPS Kenya Swimming Record (31.96). His second school record came in the 50m Butterfly (33.50) Peponi House Swim Team were competitive throughout the gala and in all age groups.

Winning individual golds at this gala were: Carlo Blunsum 50m Backstroke Amani Gikunda 25m Butterfly Shashwat Harish 25m Backstroke Yannick Kamphuis 50m Butterfly & 50m Freestyle Kario Karani 50m Butterfly Winning individual silvers at this gala were: Carlo Blunsum 50m Butterfly Amani Gikunda 100m Individual Medley Andre Kamau 25m Butterfly Kario Karani 50m Freestyle Mukunda Mbuguah 50m Backstroke Winning individual bronze at this gala were: Andre Kamau 25m Freestyle Tizita Musyoka 25m Freestyle Karl Senanu 100m Individual Medley Rianna Shah 50m Backstroke Harnek Singh 50m Breaststroke Charles Smith 100m Individual Medley

72 Pep Talk 2018-2019

The overall school results of the IAPS Kenya Swimming Championships held at Peponi Secondary School were as follows: Position Points Team 1st 456 Kenton College 2nd 447 Peponi House 3rd 372 The Banda 4th 342 Braeburn 5th 337 Pembroke House 6th 269 St Andrew’s, Turi 8th 201 Brookhouse 7th 187 Hillcrest 9th 161 Greensteds 10th 141 Braeburn International School, Mombasa

IAPS SWIM TEAM QUALIFIERS. From the IAPS Kenya Swimming Championships 5 swimmers from Peponi were selected to represent IAPS Kenya Swim Team in the IAPS UK Swimming Championships. Carlo Blunsum, Kario Karani, Yannick Kamphuis, Rianna Shah and Samuel Kibogo all qualified for the UK Championships; a huge achievement.

Those swimmers who represented IAPS Kenya at the UK swimming gala were: Kario Karani Girls U12 Finals Time: 30.91 50m Free Place 5th Rianna Shah Girls U12 Prelim Time: 38.56 50m Back Place 16th Yannick Boys U10 Finals Time: 16.01 Kamphuis 25m Fly Place 2nd SILVER MEDAL Yannick winning a silver medal is a very high achievement that the school should be very proud of!

INTER-HOUSE SWIMMING GALAS The Year 2 Inter-House swimming gala was, as ever, a wonderful event. This year, as in previous years, saw the Year 2s demonstrating their aquatic skills by competing in events such as holding the longest mushroom float, performing the furthest push and glide and swimming the furthest underwater as well as a new event that was introduced this year the whole house float relay race. Well done to all Year 2, especially to Chania for winning the Overall Year 2 Inter-House Swimming Cup. Year 2 Inter-House Swim Gala – Results 2019 TEAM

Position

Points

CHANIA

1st

101

TSAVO

2nd

88.5

MARA

3rd

82

TANA

4th

74.5

The Year 3 and 4 gala was a more structured swimming competition in which they competed in each stroke over 25m. Outstanding swims in this gala came from Florence Aldridge, Petra Mwaura, Kavishan Magalinga Patten, Radha Pearson, Aina Henderson, William Done, Nana Opoku Nyame, John Njoroge and Ephraim Mugisha.

Individual medley winners for the Under 9 boys: 1st Andre Maina Kamau 2nd Shashwat Harish 3rd Nana Opuku Nyame Individual medley winners for the Under 9 girls: 1st Amani Gikunda 2nd Tizita Musyoka 3rd Mara Musangi Tsavo were the overall winners of swimming gala for the first time. Well done, Tsavo!

The Senior Inter-House Gala saw an exciting morning of swimming where three school records were broken! Carlo Blunsum was the first swimmer in Peponi’s history to swim under 30 seconds in the 50m freestyle event (29.16). He also broke the U13 Boys IM Record (1:14.26). Chania House broke the girls U13s 4x25m Freestyle Relay record (1:06.09) Individual Medley winners for the Under 11 boys: 1st Yannick Kamhuis 2nd Karl Senanu 3rd Darsh Shah Individual Medley winners for the Under 11 girls: 1st Thandie Muya 2nd Siana Shah 3rd Katanu Muindi Individual Medley winners for the Under 13 boys: 1st Carlo Blunsum 2nd Samuel Kibogo 3rd Charles Smith Individual medley winners for the Under 13 Girls: 1st Kario Karani 2nd Maisha Done 3rd Alexandra Kontos Well done to all the swimmers, what a great finish to the second term!

Overall house winners in the Senior Gala were Tana.

Senior Inter-House Swim Gala – Results 2019 TEAM

Position

Points

TANA

1st

201

CHANIA

2nd

185

TSAVO

3rd

176

MARA

4th

174

Year 3 & 4 Inter-House Swim Gala – Results 2019 TEAM

Position

Points

TSAVO

1st

157

MARA

2nd

154

CHANIA

3rd

147

TANA

4th

133

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YEAR 2

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YEAR 3

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YEAR 4

76 Pep Talk 2018-2019

YEAR 5

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YEAR 6

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YEAR 7

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YEAR 8

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“Wisdom comes not from age, but from quality education and learning.�

Peponi School fully embraces a genuine holistic approach to education. Whilst academic success is important and impressive examination grades are expected, the school strives to deliver a great deal more.

Essentially Peponi School is a humane, open-minded school with both feet firmly on the ground. Our pupils are well grounded in preparation for their future beyond school.

Our facilities are superb and a constant desire to be at the forefront of educational methods results in a constant development of what we offer. Tradition is respected and a constancy of experience supports our ethos of belonging, however, where interest and change are needed we remain open minded.

Mark Durston Headmaster

Book your personal tour today. Email our registrar on registrar@peponischool.org

Peponi House, PO Box 23203, Nairobi 00604, Kenya Tel: +254 (20) 2585710-12, +254 (0)774 385330, +254 (0)734 881255, +254 (0)722 202947 Email: admin@peponihouse.sc.ke www.peponischool.org/house