8 February 2019 - Issue 5
HEAD’S
WEEKLY REVIEW
Bryony Capped for England (please
see page 5)
Head’s Introduction
Chinese New Year with a bang and a flash at Roedean!
I have really enjoyed seeing our community come together this week with a focus on Chinese New Year. Girls have shared their lovely stories in Assemblies and Chapels, hundreds of girls braved the biting cold to watch the wonderful firework display in front of School, and well done to Leila and Fawn who devised a Chinese culture treasure hunt and ran some traditional activities for the girls today. Everyone has loved being part of this very important festival.
恭喜发财 and 恭喜發財! It was wonderful to celebrate Chinese New Year at Roedean on Tuesday. It has been very interesting to hear the girls explaining the history, traditions, and significance of the New Year in our Assemblies this week, and to add a personal reflection.8 March, with some wonderful and diverse speakers.
This week has been as busy and varied as ever, with the Year 9 Business Day on Monday, the Roedean Academy continuing, and the Year 13 Parents’ Evening at this key point in their education. I am grateful to my colleagues for their valuable contributions to these events, particularly to those who met some parents, then delivered an Academy session, before returning to see more parents! Congratulations to Bryony in Year 13, who played for the England Independent Schools’ team against Scotland last weekend. Looking ahead, we will have Woolly Hat Day next Friday, to support the incredible work of the charity Off the Fence, who support the homeless in Brighton. For a donation of at least £1, the girls and staff will be able to wear their own clothes, but they must be wearing a woollen item, such as a hat, gloves, or a scarf, to acknowledge the importance of keeping warm for those sleeping rough when the weather is very cold. I know that the girls will get behind this excellent charity. Further ahead, we have Open Day on Saturday 2 March, World Book Week the following week, and our Festival Celebrating Women on Friday 8 March, with some wonderful and diverse speakers. I wish you all a wonderful weekend, and a restful half-term break when it comes.
The School was treated to some wonderful traditional music in the Assemblies from our Chinese band – Melanie (guzheng), Maggie (hulusi), Leila (flute), Ellen (piano), and Lareina (yangqin). There were also amazing fireworks in front of School, lovely red paper-cut decorations in the Houses and the Fireplace, and the catering staff prepared delicious Chinese food.
It has been lovely that Roedean’s community, with students from all over the world, has been keen to learn more about Chinese culture and embrace this important celebration in the Chinese calendar. New Year is traditionally focused around the family, so it has been particularly important for us to mark it for the boarders - we hope that Roedean has gone a little way to make up for the fact that the Chinese girls are away from home. 恭喜发财 and 恭喜發財! RB
It was great that some of the girls had the opportunity in Miss Hyam’s Chapels to tell the School how they would normally celebrate the most important date in the Chinese calendar at home - thank you to Carrie, Camille, Ashley, Cherish, Rita, Louie, Eileen, Shirley, Chloe and Jasmine for sharing their stories with us.
Have you donated a book to St Mark’s Library? We are delighted with the progress made with building the Library at St Mark’s – there is just 1 month to go until the opening, which will take place in World Book Week. About a quarter of the School community have donated books so far – thank you – but we need to have one last big push, and for every single girl to get behind the project and donate a book. We certainly need books for 5-7 year olds – we would prefer new books if possible, but second-hand copies in good condition would be great. Please bring them in next week, and give them to your tutor. Thank you in advance – your donations will make a huge difference to the pupils at St Mark’s!
HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
Unsung heroes in the spotlight Each week, many wonderful things happen at Roedean, about which many in the school are perhaps unaware; this section of the weekly review is dedicated to ‘unsung heroes’, in order to draw our attention to these people and remind us that our community is special. Mwaba M (Yr10) for exceptionally insightful discussion points in the Roedean Academy session on Blake [HBO]
Maria V (Yr8) for setting up a cricket club with her Dad for anyone at Roedean who would like to start indoor cricket training on a Tuesday evening [KWA]
8 February 2019 - Issue 5
Bake Sale for Downs View This Wednesday, Gowri P, Niah S, Darcey P, and Chloe N (Yr10) held a ‘bake sale’ to raise funds for Downs View Special School in Woodingdean. For over a year, the girls have been visiting the school on a weekly basis to support the teachers and students. They have made a real impression at the school and the students love having them. With such close bonds developed, the girls have taken it upon themselves to raise funds to provide classroom equipment. They made vegan carrot cake, gluten-free lemon drizzle, various cupcakes, and more. Thanks to their endeavours and the generous students at Roedean, they raised £95! This now takes their total for this year to £160. The girls are aiming to increase the total amount during the year, so keep an eye out for more fundraising events in the near future! GWI
Tiri M (Yr11) for going up 3 grades in her English retrial, as a result of outstanding diligence [ERO]
Lottie M (Yr12) for stepping in at the last minute to cover an absentee in KS5 Assembly [MWE]
Roma T (Yr7) for courageously engaging in critical debate on global issues with A Level Geography students, and for exploring ways we can implement system change to make Roedean more environmentally sustainable [JS] Serene SR (Yr11) for being incredibly supportive of one of her friends in difficult circumstances [DRO]
Hands-on Business for Year 9 On Monday, the whole of Year 9 took part in the Funky Lunch Enterprise Challenge. This was an opportunity for the students to work in groups on a variety of challenges, based around designing a new sandwich that would encourage young children to eat new foods. Throughout the day they had to use a range of skills from across the curriculum, such as creative writing, Art & Design, and Maths, to help present their business ideas. The day ended with the students pitching their concept to Mark from Funky Lunch and the Senior Team. Well done to the winning team (Zara C, Millie J, Gabby P, and Beau from Roedean Moira House). The day was an enjoyable one, with all the students putting in lots of energy to their ideas and coming up with amazing products and packaging. Hopefully it will help some of the students decide whether Business may be a good choice for one of their GCSE options for next year. SLO
Olaitan M-S (Yr8) for kindly offering her scone for the chef’s children’s party when the chef’s scones went missing [Brighton Cookery School]
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HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
Chinese New Year This year is the Year of the Pig, and Leila and Jenny told us about the different signs of the Chinese zodiac. So what is your Chinese zodiac animal? And do you have the right characteristics?
Rats are wise
Niamh’s singing at Glyndebourne Congratulations to Niamh A (Yr8) who has successfully auditioned for a place in Glyndebourne Opera House’s production of La damnation de Faust by Berlioz. Niamh will be singing in the children’s choir in this spectacular opera during the summer season! Well done!
Oxen are hard-working
Pearl won a Dance Bronze
Tigers are courageous
Rabbits are careful
Well done to Pearl P (Yr7) who did very well at the recent Worthing Dance Festival. In amongst her many dances, Pearl was awarded bronze for her Modern Solo dance, from a large group of 19 entrants.
Lola’s A* Snakes are romantic
Goats are sincere
Roosters are endowed with beauty
Dragons are ambitious
Horses represent speed and freedom
Monkeys are smart and flexible
Dogs are faithful
And pigs are amiable...
Congratulations to Lola C (Yr9), who sat her French GCSE in November. She did brilliantly, and was awarded an A*, almost 3 years early. What an amazing achievement!
8 February 2019 - Issue 5
Unsung heroes in the spotlight Each week, a member of staff who has gone above and beyond the call of duty can be nominated by their colleagues or the girls. Ms Sambrook for making such delicious and special cupcakes and gingerbread treats for all staff to enjoy at Staff Briefing this Monday to celebrate my maternity leave – I’m extremely grateful! [SEW] Mr Burlinson for giving up two hours a week to coach the hockey goal keepers – his expertise is invaluable and we would not be able to run such a strong programme without him [KWA] Mrs Newman for stepping in and giving extra help with Year 9 Enterprise day [SLO]
Mr Lutwyche for generating a huge number of incredible resources that are used widely in the department, but also throughout the country [MWE]
Miss Best for jumping in with enthusiasm when asked to do a last minute interview [JCO]
Holocaust Memorial Lecture On Wednesday afternoon, our Year 12 historians attended a Holocaust memorial lecture at the University of Sussex, accompanied by Mrs Black and Mr Morris. The girls heard Professor Overy (Professor of History at University of Exeter and well-known author) give an informative and clear analysis of the links between World War 2 and the Holocaust in his speech ‘Torn from Home’. This was followed by a conversation between Anita Lascker-Wallfisch, a survivor of Auschwitz, and Niklas Frank, the son of the notorious Hans Frank who was responsible for exterminating Polish Jews. Aside from gaining deeper historical insights which will tie in closely with their A Level History studies, the conversation between two people who were so personally affected by the Holocaust gave the girls a powerful opportunity to see the power of reconciliation, and reflect on the importance, now more than ever, of ensuring a tragedy such as genocide, is never allowed to repeat itself. SBB Page 3
Mr Sampieri leading the new French fashion craze sweeping Europe!
HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
8 February 2019 - Issue 5
House 4 The wonderful House 4 boarders enjoyed a fabulous family meal together! Thank you to the fantastic catering team for such a special and delicious dinner.
Just before Mrs Wilson went off on maternity leave, the House 4 girls couldn’t get enough of her delicious home baking during their Sunday boarding house meeting!
House 3 The House 3 Year 7 full boarders enjoyed trying out a range of different fruits to make fruit skewers and smoothies.
A taste of Spain in boarding Lawrence would like to thank all the wonderful junior boarders who visited us last Saturday to sample some of the most popular Spanish tapas. We particularly send a very heartfelt thank you to the wonderful House 4 Year 7s and 8s. They came earlier to help out, to the delight of Dr del Campo who, as a typical Spaniard, was already running a bit late... and was still frantically cooking. The enthusiastic Year 7s and 8s immediately set up one of the most effective production lines ever seen, and were able to dip and roll the three batches of ‘croquetas’ in record time! Proof of their cooking mastery is that this tapa was the most successful of the night, closely followed by the Spanish omelettes, ‘patatas bravas’, and ‘pan tumaca’. Little was left for the Lawrence boarders who ventured into the kitchen later in the evening to take a break from their revision, but they happily ate the remaining ‘ensaladilla’ and ‘gazpacho’, which they dipped in the, I quote, ‘nicest bread’ while they enjoyed a lively chat with which we closed the fiesta. MDC
All the House 3 girls have joined in with our annual tradition to celebrate Chinese New Year by writing little messages of good luck and fortune in their native languages and exchanging them with each other. The messages were presented in a red envelope with a small chocolate token inside.
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8 February 2019 - Issue 5
HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
#NetballNeverStops It’s been a very busy week in the Netball Department here at Roedean! Over 30 individual games have been played in the space of a week, be it during Wednesday fixtures, Saturday fixtures, or one of the SISNA tournaments. Our Juniors took part in a triangular fixture hosting Seaford College and Christ’s Hospital with some very misty conditions! Our U14, U15 and U16 made the trip to Hurst for the annual Sussex Independent Schools’ Netball Association Tournaments with some very impressive performances. This week only highlights again how far we have come with Netball at Roedean, and our girls never cease to amaze us with their determination, teamwork and love for the sport! This weekend sees Mayfield coming to visit for our seniors turn to play a block, and we are really looking forward to welcoming over 20 different schools for the U12 and U13 SISNA on the 6th March. Keep it up #Roedeers!
Netball victories vs Seaford College U12B
Our match against Seaford College this week showed fantastic determination and grit from our U12B girls as they completely transformed their performance from their first match against CH. The girls were in control from the start and really set the pace and tone of the game. The final score was Roedean 11 – Seaford 2. The opposition’s girl of the game was Katie L, and the coaches’ player was Lizzie RL.
U12C
The U12C team had a great match vs Seaford. They had warmed up in their previous match, so they had learnt from their mistakes and were determined to improve in this match. Roedean girls were applying the pressure well to the opposition, making it hard for them to successfully bring the ball down the court. There were some positive drives being made, and we were able to get the ball into the D successfully. Overall, Roedean won with a score of 3-1.
U12C
U13A
Another Wednesday, another fixture, and another fabulous result - twice! We welcomed both Christ’s Hospital and Seaford College to a very misty Roedean and the performance was again something to be proud of! Ava L and Sasha H are building a wonderful relationship in the circle, rotating round the space and working together to draw defence one way and leave a clear drive to post for the other. It’s so impressive to watch! Down the other end, Bella D and Isabella P are doing the same but in defence - communicating well and picking out the right time to hunt for the ball. Our mid courters are working just as hard, so well done to everyone. GCR
U13C
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U13C
The girls were able to watch Seaford play Christ’s Hospital before the start of the match which helped them gain an advantage. They looked out for the high passes into the circle, and Mimi D was able to create 3 turnovers. The defensive unit came together to prevent the ball from coming into the D and a number of forced errors ensued. The girls won the match 3-0. The players of the match were Rania K and Tallulah H.
Bryony capped for England Congratulations to Bryony (Yr13) who represented English independent schools’ football last weekend. The match was against Scottish independent schools and played at the University of Edinburgh. The final score was 4-0. No doubt this is just the start of something great…
8 February 2019 - Issue 5
HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
Netball vs Christ’s Hospital U12B
The U12B netball team started this week in a physical match against Christ’s Hospital. It was a shaky start, and the opposition was very tight at one-to-one marking. The final result was Roedean 3 – Christ’s Hospital 2. The opposition’s girl of the game was Katie L, and the coaches’ girl of the game was Jamie O.
U12C
The U12C team had a steady match against Christ’s Hospital – we got off to a slow start, before regaining our composure to start applying the pressure well and keeping on their players well. The overall score was 11-8 to Christ’s Hospital. Well done to all the players and a special mention goes to Stella who received player of the match for her excellent shooting. The girls played particularly well in a triangular against Christ’s Hospital and Seaford College to come away with 2nd place.
M and Dani C worked hard in mid court. At half time, the girls introduced PAM (pass and move) and managed to bring back the score. It was a close finish, with our opponents winning 9-7 just before the whistle blew.
Petra B made 4 great interceptions in the D and the ball started to transition with ease as Amelia
The players of the match were Rania K and Tara K.
U13C
U16A
U16 vs Ardingly The U16 squad took the court in their last tournament for this season at Hurst College. The SISNA includes all the best independent Netball Schools in the county to battle it out to be the best in Sussex, and the girls didn’t disappoint. In their 5 group stages games, they battled hard against some tough teams... First up against Hurst. At half time, they trailed by only 4 goals and really didn’t allow them to pull away. They were unlucky and just missed out 20-12 in the end. Next up, Worth. A strong performance to take the win 13-8. Another tight game and evenly matched against Mayfield, but again, Roedean took the win 12-8. On to Farlington where the Roedean girls really upped their game! Demi A and Ella L were amazing in defence and Liv H’s shooting was on fire, as well as Carla F. They won 18-7. One last game stood between them and a place in the semi-final. The school to beat was Ardingly. It was goal for goal the entire way and at half time, it was 5 goals apiece. The girls had a quick team talk and then took to the court for the 2nd half. Goal for goal again, interception after interception. It was 9 goals all with seconds to go, a draw would secure Roedean that semi spot! But, in the dying seconds, a mistake by Roedean meant Ardingly got one more shot on goal, and all credit to them, it went in! 10-9 to Ardingly and we just missed out on the semi spot. However, the performances throughout the day were amazing and the girls and coaches can take a lot away from this tournament. Congratulations girls and well played. GCR
U12C
Football Masterclass at St Mark’s Primary School On Monday 4 February, Bryony, Ellen, and Janki began a new initiative at St. Mark’s Primary School – regular football coaching. The three Sixth Form students were given the opportunity to develop their leadership skills by using their footballing ability to deliver a football coaching masterclass to 15 Year 6 pupils. The sessions will take place every Monday afternoon during term time. The girls showed enthusiasm, skills, and knowledge, all of which inspired the St Mark’s pupils to develop their football ability and enjoy participating in physical activity. The staff at St Mark’s were particularly pleased to see their girls getting involved and playing football. Well done to Bryony, Ellen, and Janki for proudly representing Roedean in the wider community, and acting as role models to a younger generation. The St Mark’s pupils are already looking forward to their next football session. GWI Page 6
8 February 2019 - Issue 5
HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
Alex’s skating even faster! Alex S (Yr7) has improved her 500m time by 2 seconds (to 54.56sec), and her 777m time by 3.5sec (to 1min29.81sec). Unbelievably, she is only half a second away from qualifying for Junior C star class (U15)! The ice was terrible, making this new PB all the more impressive. Alex is a supported athlete with the GLL sports Foundation, and she is very proud to have been made athlete of the month in February! She is competing at the Challenge et Trophée de France competition in 10 days’ time in Grenoble. It should be good ice and Alex has plans to take her 500m time down to 50 seconds. If she were to, she would hold the British record and be ranked 7th in the world. We all wish Alex the best of luck with her latest challenge – let’s see how she gets on!
Cycling from Eastbourne to the Lakes?! In World War II, Roedean Moira House was evacuated to Lake Windermere. RMH Principal, and former Faculty Lead for Science at Roedean, Mr Andrew Wood has set himself the amazing challenge of a charity bike ride from Eastbourne to Lake Windermere – that’s 600 kilometres in 4 days! He will be raising money for BHCT, a search and rescue charity in the local area which trains Chaplains and makes them available to offer support to those in distress, and his target is to raise £6000! His epic journey starts at RMH on Saturday 20 April, and he is due to arrive at Lake Windermere on Tuesday 23 April. If you would like to support Mr Wood and BHCT, please follow this link: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AndrewWood75 JJ WHAT’S COMING UP IN THE
WEEK AHEAD?
Mon 11 Feb
House Dance Festival
Tue 12 Feb
Year 11 Parents’ Evening
Wed 13 Feb
Netball U12A,B,C&D and U13A,B,C&D vs Windlesham (H)
Thur 14 Feb
Geography Iceland Trip departs
Fri 15 Feb
Non-Uniform Day: wear something ‘woolly’ HALF TERM BEGINS
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