27 April 2018 - Issue 2
HEAD’S
WEEKLY REVIEW
Head’s Introduction The A Level and GCSE examinations are now underway, with speaking tests in a number of languages, Art GCSE, and the Drama performance of the A Level devised piece. Congratulations to all the girls who have completed their GCSE Art and to Esmee, Grace, Jade, and Jess on creating a powerful piece of stage-work about a dystopian society where music, the very rhythm of life, is banned. I wanted also to congratulate the performers from every year group who gave a wonderful music concert at Falmer last Saturday. The local community were full of praise for the quality of the pieces. There have been two Biology trips this week, one to the beach to undertake eco-sampling fieldwork for Year 13, and the second for Year 12 to the
The Tennis season has started, and it’s a chance to play on our resurfaced courts! Hurray!
Millennium seed bank at Wakehurst, where billions of seeds from around the world are stored and protected. It is trips like these which put learning into a context. I’m pleased that the girls enjoyed them. Well done to those who completed their DofE Silver Practice expedition last weekend, and my thanks to Mr Beard, Mr Silvey and Mrs Brett for accompanying them. I hope that those who visited Cambridge today had a wonderful trip, and I am sure that every one of them will have been inspired by the wonderful surroundings and the air of academia. I am incredibly proud that Roedean gives the first concert to begin the Brighton Festival Fringe each year, and this is the 15th year that Roedean has been part of the Festival Fringe – I wish
everyone performing in this concert on May 5 the best of luck. The School has had wonderful tasters of what is to come in our Chapels this week. It is remarkably impressive that we will have soloists from Years 9 to 13, and we heard from the youngest in Chapel – with great confidence and dexterity, Joyce in Year 9 played the slow movement of the Mozart Piano Concerto in C, accompanied by the orchestra. What an opportunity, and what talent – I can hardly wait for the concert and to hear all of our musicians performing. Good luck to all those performing in the Dance Showcase this evening. There have been some long rehearsals but your commitment will pay off. I hope that you all have a wonderful week.
Biology Trip to Wakehurst Place This week, our Year 12 Biologists have been to the most biodiverse place in the world! Even more so than tropical rainforest! We went to the Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) at Wakehurst Place, which contains approximately 200 billion seeds. Seeds from all species of UK flowering plants are stored here, along with others from every country around the world. We realised that the seed bank is an incredibly important resource for the future of the human race. New medicines could be discovered using compounds in the plants that can be grown from the seeds. New characteristics from these plants could be genetically engineered or bred into our crop plants to ensure we all have enough food as the climate on our planet changes. And extinct plant species could even be brought back to life. The MSB is a priceless and inspiring place and we were so lucky to have a behind-the-scenes tour. We also carried out some ecological sampling work in two areas of beautiful coppice woodland. One of the group said, ‘We were learning by doing, and so have a much deeper understanding of this type of practical investigation and are more likely to remember it when it comes to exams!’ PCH
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HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
Unsung heroes in the spotlight
Musical Universalis!
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.
On Wednesday, the Year 13 drama group presented their highly original devised theatre piece to a public audience. Their stimulus was a scene from Shakespeare’s ‘Merchant of Venice’, from which they explored the Elizabethan concept that the very universe makes music; this took the girls on an exciting theatrical journey, as they set about their devising process to create a piece which examined the importance of music in society. Choosing to emulate the distinctive style of the theatre company ‘Complicite’ presented a further challenge of combining the actors’ movement with technology, to create strong and
Tabitha A-P (Yr7) for her constant helpfulness around school [JC]
Amy N (Yr7) for her deep empathy with the other girls in her year-group [JC]
Grace R (Yr11) for keeping everyone positive in the midst of exam fever [DRO]
Flynn M-C (Yr13) for superb coordination and support of the 13S Assembly [HBO]
Martha B (Yr7) for volunteering to stagemanage for Alice in Wonderland [JB]
emotive imagery. Everyone agreed that the girls certainly achieved their aim! Congratulations to Jade, Esmee, Jess, and Grace on a stunningly creative performance! CRI
House 1
On Saturday, House 1 hosted the first Senior Boarders’ Activity, where the girls got stuck House 1 girls enjoyed their first Friday in and made their own pizzas, with optional evening walk to Brighton Marina – it took slightly toppings including cheese, peppers, ham, chilli, longer than usual as we had several photo shoot and rocket. The final results looked fabulous and stops! The girls thoroughly enjoyed themselves, the girls enjoyed eating what they had made. and we are all hoping this glorious weather stays After the pizzas, the girls created their own icewith us! cream sundaes, which was the perfect end to a JWL very sunny day! CHK
Helen Peters – Author Talk Eva P, Eden W-N, Katarina H (Yr10) for excellent ‘improv’ in an English lesson [HBO]
27 April 2018 - Issue 2
On Monday, the Year 7s were treated to a talk by our in-house author, Helen Peters, on her latest book, ‘Evie’s Ghost’. As well as teaching Year 7 and Year 8 English at Roedean, Helen is also a well-established children’s fiction writer, with her book ‘The Secret Hen House Theatre’ being shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in 2013. ‘Evie’s Ghost’ has been shortlisted for the East Sussex Children’s Book Award 2018, and also for the James Reckitt Hull Children’s Book Award 2018. It has also been longlisted both for the North Somerset Teachers’ Book Award 2017 and the Redbridge Children’s Book Award 2018. Helen described how her visits to historic houses and stately homes, some owned by the National Trust, had inspired her ideas for ‘Evie’s Ghost’. Helen used the plan of Chastleton House in the Cotswolds as a basis for the layout of Charlbury House in her book. Page 2
During the talk, Helen read an extract from her book where Evie is trying to sleep in her godmother’s spooky house and sees the ghost of a girl, Sofia, at the window. Running from her bedroom in fright, she finds herself dressed as a scullery maid in 1814, where she tries to help Sofia, who was the daughter of the house at that time. To write in detail about the life of a scullery maid in the early 19th century, Helen had had to carry out an enormous amount of research into the conditions in which servants worked over 100 years ago. She explained to the girls that the servants had no days off and they had to get up at 5 am, light the fires without matches, empty the chamber pots, and bring water in from the well. At the end of the talk, the Year 7s were eager to ask many questions about Helen’s writing and book cover for ‘Evie’s Ghost’, and they queued up for book signing in the Library at lunchtime. Many thanks to Helen for talking to us in a very busy week for her as she was travelling to Hull for a book award event. SBL
HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
Seashore Study Trip Year 13 Biologists have carried out some ecological sampling, and they did it on the stunning beach area in front of our school. The wildlife on the seashore here is so diverse and important that the area is considered nationally significant and is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). We saw many species, including anenomes,
Musicians perform at Falmer village A group of musicians representing every year group in the school performed in a very successful morning recital at the Church of St Laurence, Falmer. The sheer beauty of the setting of the church in Falmer by the pond, nestling in the South Downs, was matched by the beauty of the music performed by the girls. The programme is included for your interest here. Vocal music formed a significant part of the programme, ranging from exquisite cradle song, Italian
ALLELUIA W A Mozart Lucy B and Zarbanu M – Trumpets CARO MIO BEN Guiseppe Giordani Olivia B – Soprano SONATA NO. 8 IN C MINOR OP. 13. ADAGIO CANTABILE Beethoven Kamali M – Piano WITHOUT YOU (FROM MY FAIR LADY) Frederick Lowe Jess R – Soprano JAZZY Aaron Copland Pearl Y – Piano
crabs, periwinkles, and top shells. However the focus of our work was to measure limpet shells! Our hypothesis is that the shape of the shells changes as you go down the shore, as an adaptation to coping with temperature changes when the tide is out. This is the last practical investigation of the A Level course and it was certainly a lovely and memorable way to end. Back to the revision now....! PCH
27 April 2018 - Issue 2
Duke of Edinburgh Awards Well done to over 30 girls who completed their Silver DofE practice expedition last weekend in the New Forest. They were remotely supervised by Mr Beard, Mr Silvey, and Miss Brett. One team got stuck in a bog for a hour, but they did eventually get themselves out! They did find navigation challenging, but they are improving. There was also an amazing thunderstorm on Saturday evening - this tested their camp-craft skills to the limit, but they pushed on through. LFI
aria, musical theatre, and a particularly fine performance of Laudamus te from the Vivalidi Gloria, performed by Amelie S and Jacqueline L. Impressive ensemble skills were highly evident in the Ravel trio, and particularly so in the sister duo (Katarina and Alissandra H) performance of the opening movement of the Bach D minor concerto for two violins. The stand out bravura performance was the violin Scherzo in C minor by Brahms, performed most ably by Freya S and Mr Rous. Very well done to all the performers who took part in the recital. VF
TU LO SAI Torelli Amelie S – Soprano
DIE FORELLE Franz Schubert Vanessa T – Soprano
SCHERZO IN C MINOR Brahms Freya S – Violin
SCHERZO Eugène Walkiers Frieda J – Flute
AMERICAN LULLABY Gladys Rich Katarina H – Soprano
PAVANE POUR UNE INFANTE DÉFUNTE Ravel Katarina H – Violin Kamali M – Cello Coco A – Piano
LAUDAMUS TE (FROM THE GLORIA) Vivaldi Jacqueline L and Amelie S – Sopranos CONCERTO FOR TWO VIOLINS IN D MINOR J S Bach Allisandra H and Katarina H – Violin
NOCTURNE IN C SHARP MINOR Chopin Scarlett J – Piano
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Investigative Experience Day at Roedean Nearly 30 girls visited Roedean this week to attend an exciting Investigative Experience Day. This was a day of two halves. They spent their morning with Classics learning the Greek alphabet and hearing all about the life and eruption of Vesuvius, and the afternoon with English learning about crime and detective-genre writing, including an exciting clue hunt around Roedean, culminating in a creative writing workshop where they created their own fictional detectives and villain. Amongst the visitors were our Year 7 academic scholars who we are looking forward to welcoming us in September. Thank you to the girls and staff who were involved in this brilliant day.
House 3&4 Trip Houses 3 and 4 had a trip down to Brighton Marina at the weekend for a ‘Cheeky Nando’s’. All the girls had a good time and it was the first visit to a Nando’s restaurant for a few girls. I think they will be back!
27 April 2018 - Issue 2
HEAD’S WEEKLY REVIEW
Tennis
Tennis vs Lancing
GSA South East Tennis Tournament Roedean Moira House
Our U12, U14, and U18 Tennis teams had a fantastic day at the South East Tennis tournament this week. We were up against a number of schools, ranging from Bromley to St Swithun’s. The format of the day was for both the U12 and U14 to play 7 games and for the U18s to play 9 games. Our first matches were tough games and it took a while for our girls to get warmed up and familiarise themselves with positioning and working together as a team. This was not to impact the rest of the matches as Roedean played some fantastic tennis, across all age groups. There were some outstanding groundstrokes on display, with lots of outright winners. Our U12s thoroughly enjoyed the matches and we managed to beat Kent College 4-3 which was a great result, as this was both Amy N and Nia S’s first time competing in a doubles match. Our U18 team of Francesca G (Yr13) and Eloise G (Yr10) played and served brilliantly. They had some very close matches throughout with the other schools only winning by one game. Lastly, our U14s, Sophia C and Ines PB performed fantastically throughout the day. They had some brilliant wins against Kent College where they won 7-0 and against Queen Anne’s 6-1. 3rd place overall was a superb result! A huge well done to all of our girls who participated – it was a great day with everyone showing determination and support throughout the day.
U13 Cricket Tournament On Wednesday, the U13 cricket girls competed in the Bede’s cricket pairs tournament. We won all our pool games against Bede’s 2s, Lingfield, and Blatchington Mill, meaning that we progressed into the final against Cumnor House. Unfortunately, Roedean could not chase Cumnor House’s high score – they were worthy winners, leaving us as runners-up of the tournament. This is a fantastic achievement for the girls, and I would like to thank Bede’s for a very wellorganised tournament and a huge thank you to the parents who came to support. A special mention must go to Maria V (Yr7) who led the team to the final; she showed a lot of strong leadership qualities, organising the field well and providing lots of encouragement. Well done to all of the team! ACA
SCH
Here are the results of the tournament: Pool Stages Roedean (109 runs) to Lingfield (87 runs) – won by 22 runs Roedean (135 runs) to Blatch (107 runs) – won by 28 runs Roedean (138 runs) to Bede’s (122 runs) – won by 16 runs Final Cumnor House (152 runs) to Roedean (110 runs) – lost by 42 runs
Our U14 and U15 girls had their first tennis fixture of the season against Lancing College on Saturday 21 April. It was a perfect sunny day and the courts were looking pristine. The format was 15-minute timed matches where each pair plays all the others pairs in their group. Roedean were hitting the ball consistently and putting Lancing under real pressure. In particular Ines and Sophia had some great rallies against the U15 1st pair, but we proved to be the stronger pair, resulting in a win overall. As the matches progressed, our U14s were showing great resilience, whilst persevering serving into the sunshine. Harriet and Saskia showed great teamwork throughout and some good volleys. Furthermore, Molly also demonstrated some excellent forehand winners when she was playing. A special mention should go to Scarlett and Lucy, who showed super teamwork, communication, and fantastic net play. Overall, our girls made a fantastic effort and showed solid groundstrokes during match play. Our U14s lost with 7 match wins to 2, and our U15s won 7 overall matches to 2, resulting in an overall draw. It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and a fantastic well done to all! SCH
Lucy’s playing hockey for Sussex Lucy P (Yr8) has been selected to represent U14 Sussex Hockey this year. Her squad played on Sunday, winning against Oxfordshire 2-1, and they put in a very good defence against Middlesex, with a final score of 3-0, which gave Sussex a loss they can be proud of! Lucy was proud to represent Sussex well done to her!
JJ WHAT’S COMING UP IN THE
Tue 1 May
WEEK AHEAD?
Year 13 Geography trip to Brighton Museum U15 Tennis vs Roedean Moira House (A)
Wed 2 May
U12 Rounders Tournament at Westbourne House (A) U12 Tennis vs Lingfield College U13A & B Cricket vs Mayfield (A)
Fri 4 May
U15 Tennis Aegon vs Heathfield (A) Year 11 and Sixth Form BBQ
Sat 5 May
Festival Fringe Concert D of E Bronze Award Practice Expedition
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