eNewsletter issue 113

@stgeorgesascot

eNewsletter

ISSUE 113 SUMMER

/StGeorgesSchoolAscot

ST GEORGE'S ASCOT

St George's Annual Jazz and Dance Show More photographs inside...

From the Head I hope you will take some time to look through the many pages of this fantastic publication reflecting on the last six weeks at St George’s. Each edition, published every half term, seems to be bigger and brighter than the last and I am very proud of the diversity of experiences and opportunities showcased here and that are very much a part of everyday life at St George’s.

a real pleasure to welcome those who have (long) since moved on in our Alumnae Reunion Lunch on 28 April and to share in these ladies’ connections to St George’s past and present. In contrast, our very youngest Georgians, the First Years, put on a superbly organised, sun-drenched, Charity Fete just before the half-term break and raised over £500 in barely an hour - the school is clearly in very capable hands going forward!

I often say to prospective families that there is no such thing as a ‘typical Georgian’ but that we give each girl the opportunity to find her own strengths and talents and we nurture these to produce the confident, capable and connected young women who leave us for their lives beyond St George’s. The variety of talents, achievements and interests in the following pages are testament to that and it is fantastic to see vast numbers of girls involved in, and contributing to, so many areas of school life as well as the School, and wider, community.

We look forward to welcoming our many new girls who will be joining us in September for their Freshers BBQ soon after half-term and of course our focus will then be moving to our impressive Upper Sixth leavers as we celebrate their many successes at St George’s towards the end of term.

While many of our older girls have been focusing on public exam preparation and then starting their exams, it was

Liz Hewer Headmistress

St George's Day Celebrations On Monday 23 April we celebrated St George's Day in the Georgian style, starting the day with a special Chapel service, a lunchtime Feast and the Georgian Gallop to end the day.

St George's Day Fun Facts

• The date of St George's Day occasionally changes if it falls close to Easter. In 2011 it was moved from its usual date to 2 May and in 2014 it was moved to 28 April.

• The St George’s cross originally adorned garments in battle.

• St George is also the Patron Saint of many nations, cities and of scouting.

• 23 April also marks the date of William Shakespeare’s death, and his rumoured date of birth.

Georgian Gallop

On Monday 23 April girls from Year groups across the school, and four brave staff members, took part in the annual Georgian Gallop. The relay running race began at the bottom car park, with a tough start up the hill before looping up through the school grounds, down Wells Lane and back to the car park where girls hand over to the next runner. It was an incredible effort all-round. A special mention should go to the Darwin Second Year team who ran in with a combined time of 7 minutes and 18 seconds, but the fastest team of the competition this year goes to the Churchill Third Year team of Thea, India, Charlotte and Chloe, who ran one second faster in a time of 7 minutes and 17 seconds. Congratulations also to Alexander House who were the overall winners with a combined time of 57 minutes 16 seconds.

Jazz and Dance Show

On Thursday 10 May, girls from all Year groups took part in the annual St George's Jazz and Dance Show.

The evening began with refreshments provided by the dedicated catering team whilst parents awaited the opening number. First to perform was the St George’s Jazz Band, who opened with Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen) and La Vie en Rose (Louiguy/David).

Following the Jazz Band was an exciting medley entitled ‘Through the Ages’, which included a background video

by Mr Pearn, and highlighted the girls’ ability in many styles of dance.

The night continued with a range of dance pieces from the contemporary ‘Circus’ to a wonderful ‘Repertoire from The Nutcracker’.

Each performance throughout the night showed off the girls’ hard work and dedication.

The evening was brought to a close by the Jazz Band performing From a Distance (Gold) and Tequila (Rio).

Jazz and Dance Show

Science Week

Starting on Monday 14 May, the St George's Science Department organised a Science Week. It started with Mr Rhodes giving an Assembly where he explored the question ‘What is Science?’, following with an outline of the amazing advancements that have been made possible due to science. This included a description of scientists growing lamb foetuses in "artificial wombs" and the impact this will have on society, through to Elon Musk's ‘SpaceX’ successfully recycling a rocket for the first time in space flight history.

A large Science Dome graced our Sports Hall and our girls experienced the world and the solar system in an interactive manner - for those who suffer motion sickness maybe a little too interactive! Girls also listened to two speakers from Oracle who explained their role in the Bloodhound initiative and how they are using information technology to solve the current bee crisis.

Girls took the opportunity to enter our Science Fair throughout the week where entries ranged from Solar System models through to investigation into the weird world of dimensions.

Chapel Choir Chapel Choir sing for HRH Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex at Prince Philip Trust Fundraising Event at Ascot Racecourse

Twenty girls from the Chapel Choir had the pleasure of performing to HRH Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex at Ascot Race Day on 2 May for The Prince Philip Trust, a fund which supports good causes across the Royal Borough.

This is the third time the Chapel Choir has been asked to perform at the bi-annual event, and gives the girls the chance to exhibit their best music. The Choir sang grace before lunch, going on to perform pieces by Mendelssohn, Henry Ley, Charles Wood, Richard Rodgers along with The Collect of St George and a motet in celebration of the Queen's recent birthday 'O Lord grant the Queen a long life'. The girls were delighted to be singing at Ascot Racecourse again and thoroughly enjoyed performing for Prince Edward.

Alumnae News

Alumnae Reunion Lunch at St George's #SGAConnected We were delighted to welcome alumnae and former staff to a reunion lunch in school on Saturday 28 April. These are always really happy occasions, and this one was no exception, with the former Georgians all delighted to see each other again and to have the opportunity to look round their old school, visiting familiar corners as well as totally new ones. A highlight for the group who left in 2012 was being able to meet up with quite a few of their teachers. All marvelled at the Vagliano Library in the new Luker Building and commented how fortunate currentday Georgians are to have such wonderful study and research facilities.

Our catering department did us proud again, and a group of Junior girls very kindly donned their school uniform on a Saturday in order to show the visitors round (not that they were really visitors of course!). The older alumnae are always thrilled to see the familiar navy blazers with the red edging, just like the ones they wore right back in the 50s.

There was a wonderful, warm atmosphere throughout, and we hope very much to see these and other Georgians again soon.

One of the alumnae who had been Head Girl in the 50s, Jill Addison (now Jill Whiteley), was thrilled to meet Honor Pheysey, Head Girl in 2012. Both their names are displayed on the Head Girl boards in the school.

Alumnae Careers Lunch: Acting #SGAConnected On Wednesday 16 May we welcomed back Manpreet Bambra to the School to lead an Alumnae Careers Lunch in the Old Library. This new initiative this year sees Alumnae and others with a link to the School joining the girls for lunch to discuss their experiences in the world of work, provide advice and inspire current Georgians. Manpreet is a successful actress starring in the Netflix television series ‘Free Rein’. In fact, an earlier date for lunch had to be postponed owing to Manpreet attending the Daytime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles where her series won two awards. Manpreet explained to the girls a number of the challenges of getting into the world of professional acting and had some excellent advice. What also stuck out was her need to show resilience and to learn from auditions that went less well to achieve her ambitions in the long run. All those who attended were inspired and better informed for her advice and enthusiasm.

Open Mic Night On Thursday 26 April, we hosted our second Open Mic night, which was very popular with a packed audience of parents, girls and staff. Every performance was awe inspiring and showed how confident and capable St George’s girls (and staff) really are. The talent on display, from flautists to ukuleles, singers to pianists, was wonderful to see, and we hope to have started a tradition that will continue for many years to come.

Third Year Play 'The Ash Girl' The entire Third Year took part in ‘The Ash Girl’ on Wednesday 2 May, either as a performer or backstage. It was fantastic to see how successfully the girls worked so well together, supporting one another in order to create a visually exciting and dynamic piece of theatre which was influenced by the Theatre Practitioner Brecht and the ‘Kneehigh’ Theatre Company using a variety of drama techniques, such as physical theatre and body as prop. The girls worked tirelessly to help achieve the vision of their director, Mrs Gregan.

The play is based on the story line of ‘Cinderella’ with a darker twist where the forests outside of the palace are populated by an animalised version of the Seven Deadly Sins, which are out to destroy humanity.

The girls worked as an ensemble and multi-roled throughout the play, enabling each girl to challenge themselves by playing a range of different characters. The character of sadness was created with three girls who moved in unison to music, and the deadly sin lust used a symbolic red ribbon to suggest her power of allurement.

The use of broom sticks were used to create the forest, tables and chairs and were a key part of this collaborative production.

All the girls did very well with a special thanks to Poppy who undertook the enormous task of doing the Costume Design.

John Dunston Assembly It was a treat to welcome Mr John Dunston for our Chapel service on Friday 4 May. Mr Dunston, the retired headmaster of Leighton Park , gave a thought-provoking and engaging talk with some insights into Judaism. Mr Dunston managed to somehow bring together the diverse topics of Sat Navs, Refugees, Passover, Modern Slavery, Kanye West and Jewish Mothers! Lots of girls were involved in answering questions and it was great to have a lot of interaction. The final thought was a brilliant challenge, referencing Jewish Nobel Prize Winner, Isidor Rabi. When asked what prompted him to go further in the study of physics, he said it was his mother’s daily enquiry after school: ‘Did you ask good questions today?’

Senior Scholars Lunches The Senior Scholars Lunches held during this half term for Academic, Arts and Sports Scholars were a highlight for all involved. During the lunches the girls and staff discussed subjects such as the development of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics and the impact these new technologies may have on 21st Century life, and in the girls' personal fields of excellence.

Assembly with Australian Exchange girls We were delighted to welcome the 'Australians' to St George's at the beginning of the term. India, Matilda and Megan proudly introduced Chloe, Bella and Ruby as their exchange partners to the whole school at Assembly on Thursday 17 May. There was much anticipation surrounding their arrival as well as welcoming back the Georgians who had been away for almost a term. No one was disappointed as they recounted tales of rowing at 5am and swimming in the 'Iceberg' on Bondi Beach. Now, however, Chloe, Bella and Ruby have become very much a part of St George's.

Chloe ran the fastest time in the Georgian Gallop and all of them took part in the Third Year play. Nevertheless, when asked to name the best thing about St George's, the response was clear, they are all in complete agreement - the food! Enjoying their time at St George's has been good, but the experience of going to watch the Royal Wedding was definitely their most exciting moment of the exchange so far.

Prefects' Dinner On Thursday 17 May the Upper Sixth Prefects who are coming to the end of their term in office joined Mrs Hewer and Mr Wright for dinner in the Old Library. The occasion was a fitting way to mark the point at which the girls will be starting to hand over their responsibilities to those taking on their roles next year. Whilst enjoying fabulous food, the girls shared their experiences across the Upper Sixth and regaled each other with stories of their earlier years at St George’s as well as members of staff who had made an impact on them during their education in Ascot. The formal hand-over of prefect responsibilities will occur at Prize Giving with the passing of badges of office from the Upper Sixth girls to their successor in the cohort below. However, the dinner was a well-deserved thank you for everything the girls have given in their support of the School this year.

Singing Teachers sparkle at the Royal Wedding St George’s singing teachers Mr Thompson and Mr Carleston were invited to sing at the wedding of HRH Prince Harry and Ms Meghan Markle in Windsor Castle on 19 May as a small part of the larger St George’s Chapel Choir. Mr Thompson and Mr Carleston are part of ’The Queen’s Six’ and we are very proud and lucky to have them at St George’s.

Upper Sixth EPQ presentations After many months researching a wide range of topics, covering issues such as Montessori Education, the impacts of breast cancer on society, and the functionality versus aesthetics of cars, girls in the Upper Sixth presented their Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) projects during the week beginning 23 April.

The EPQ is an independent research project which girls undertake in the Sixth Form. The qualification gives the girls an opportunity to broaden their studies beyond their A Level subjects, and prepares them for University level study. Girls are able to choose a subject that aligns with their career aspirations or relates to something of personal interest. The audience were treated to an array of topics and learned about the subjects which the girls had dedicated so much of their time to researching.

Salters' Festival of Chemistry On Thursday 24 May four of our budding young First Year scientists, Lucy, Oona, Portia and Amelie, attended the Salters' Festival of Chemistry, hosted by the Chemistry Department at the University of Surrey.

In the morning they took part in two challenges, the Salters' Investigation, where the pupils had to complete a series of experiments to help them determine "who stole the cup", and the University Challenge, which involved the pupils creating a range of different dyes from natural products.

While the girls worked away, Mrs Radley had a tour of the fantastic analysis machinery and labs in the Chemistry Department, some of which are set up just like those at Glaxo Smith Kline.

After lunch everyone enjoyed a fantastic chemistry "magic show" which was a thrill of colour and fire!

Our team were then delighted to be awarded 3rd prize for the University Challenge, a fine achievement considering they were pitted against many older pupils from a range of schools.

We left the University in a buzz of excitement, feeling inspired and with a sense of achievement.

Young Enterprise Girls Go to the Races Sunday 25 March saw our three Lower Sixth Young Enterprise teams head to the Spring Family Race Day Meeting at Ascot Racecourse as part of their Young Enterprise experience. The Spring Family Race Day meeting is an annual event which is designed to be a fun-packed day for the whole family. Apart from the exciting horse racing that takes place throughout the day, there were a host of other entertainments on offer including a petting zoo, face painting and a live band.

Our girls were privileged to have Ascot Racecourse’s marketing team design a banner advertising the Young Enterprise programme at St George’s and to have a prime situation on the Plaza Lawns to set up their trade stands. The day was an enormous triumph in which St George’s Sixth Form girls enjoyed both significant financial success with the sale of their company products and also participation in the many fun activities on offer.

Young Enterprise Teams Win a Hat-Trick at Finals On Thursday 19 April the three St George’s Young Enterprise companies headed to the Bracknell Area finals. This programme has been a yearlong venture for our Young Enterprise participants, where the teams have been tasked with setting up companies, deciding on a product to sell and attending a range of trade fairs in the local area. This year we have seen some of the most imaginative ideas yet from our girls. Team 'Elektra' chose to sell ‘Illuminated Dog Collars’, 'Dina' chose seasonal giftware sets and 'Calypso' took a sustainable route with the sale of reusable water bottles.

The finals pitted our teams against local schools in the area who were vying for the coveted Young Enterprise Company of the Year Award. The teams were required to set up their trade stands for the final time whilst four judges came round to speak to the girls about their ‘enterprise journey’ and judge the quality of the products on offer and the overall approach to marketing and sales. After a brief pause for refreshments, the companies were then required to deliver a four minute presentation to the same judging panel. St George’s girls did incredibly well in this competition and each company left with an award. Elektra won the Best Trade Stand award whilst Dina won the award for Best Company Report. Calypso won the award for Most Innovative Product. We congratulate all our young entrepreneurs for an outstanding year of work.

Trips News

Trips

@SGA_Academic

Fourth Year Maths Visit to Bletchley Park On Tuesday 23 April the Fourth Year visited Bletchley Park to learn about codes and ciphers and the challenges faced in trying to decrypt them. They saw a real Enigma machine and encoded a short message using it. They also got the opportunity to walk around the site and hear about the diverse skills and talents of the people involved in the code breaking process.

The girls enjoyed the wide variety of displays and interactive machines dotted around the grounds and came away with a much better understanding of the role played by mathematicians during the war.

Sixth Form trip to 'The Importance of Being Earnest' On Wednesday 2 May English Literature pupils from the Lower and Upper Sixth went to see one of their set texts, ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’, being performed at the Theatre Royal in Windsor.

The girls sat in the second row of the stalls and could almost have touched the actors as they expertly delivered Oscar Wilde’s pithy dialogue from all points of the stage.

At the end of the second act a teacake fight occurred between the two would-be Ernests in the play, Jack and Algernon. Crumbs were everywhere, but the actors fought on, and the whole audience greatly appreciated the way in which the performers threw themselves into the mayhem, as they did throughout the play.

It was a thoroughly entertaining evening, with the pupils having been profitably and enjoyably reminded of the text on which many would be answering questions in just a few weeks.

Third Year Geography Visit to the Natural History Museum On 9 May the Third Year went to the Natural History Museum where they were taught about the earth’s layers, how tectonic plates move and how volcanic eruptions can be predicted. A number of the experiments required audience participation, including a competition to see who could make the biggest earthquake as measured by a seismometer.

In the Earthquakes and Volcanoes gallery the girls learned more about the Earth’s history and were told about the fact that scientists believe that South America and Africa were once connected.

The girls also had the chance to visit the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition where they saw thought provoking pictures that included wildlife, the ocean and plants, and the impact humans are having on nature.

The trip was fun-filled and exciting, and the girls learned new things at every exhibit.

First Year History Visit to Chepstow Castle and Tintern Abbey On Tuesday 8 May the First Year girls visited Chepstow Castle and Tintern Abbey to bring to life the Medieval history they had been studying.

The girls heard amazing stories and found out what a Medieval feast was really like, and they were even taught how to defend their own castle with Jessie and Miss Stepp dressing up in Medieval armour and charging up the hill with their shields.

At Tintern Abbey the girls saw the different rooms that made up the monastery and came away having had an enjoyable time and having learned a great deal.

Junior Concert On 15 May girls in the First, Second and Third Years put on a delightful concert of musical items. There were flute and piano solos, along with many duets and solo songs. Highlights included a lovely performance of ‘Bow Chikka Wow Wow’ by Lucy on the piano and ‘Beauty and the Beast’ sung by Elodie and Gemma.

The First Year Choir also gave a brilliant final performance of the year, choosing to sing their three favourite songs from the year.

They sung ‘Everything has changed’ by Taylor Swift, ‘Home’ by Gabrielle Aplin and ‘Try Everything’ from Zootopia with great enthusiasm and even the parents joined in with the actions!

Junior Concert

Charity News

Charity News #SGAConnected

First Year Summer Fete The First Year Summer Fete was held on Tuesday 22 May and was a great success. The First Year girls worked extremely hard in coming up with ideas for stalls and the event ran smoothly thanks to the help of Lower Sixth pupil, Emily-Louisa who ran the event as part of her EPQ in Event Management.

The girls had a range of stalls from sponge the teacher to biscuits and apple bobbing. A particular highlight was the trinket stall where three of the girls had made hand key charms which they sold. There was a great turnout for the event from the whole school and we enjoyed welcoming lots of the First Year parents along to support their daughters.

Over ÂŁ500 was raised at the event, which will be donated to Water Aid, one of the school charities this year that the girls chose to support for this event.

First Year Summer Fete

MoonWalk

A huge congratulations to the brave group of St George’s staff who took on MoonWalk London on Saturday 12 May, raising money in aid of breast cancer. The MoonWalk involved walking a marathon (26.2 miles) around central London, at night, in decorated bras! It was a tough night with the staff battling tiredness, injuries and demons but ‘Team Tassel’ completed the walk in good spirits and with lots of teamwork.

The team, made up of Miss Myers, Mrs Lowe, Mrs Simpson, Miss Johnson, Mrs Shevills, Miss Antolik, Mrs Foster and Mrs Wood raised nearly £3700, smashing their original target of £1000.

Fourth Year Charity Film Evening The Fourth Year planned and ran a film evening on Thursday 26 March to raise money for the school's nominated charities. Tickets were sold to First and Second Year girls who, along with the Fourth Years, enjoyed watching Camp Rock in the Drama Studio.

The Fourth Year girls were creative in their ideas for making money, including selling tickets for VIP beanbag seating. The girls’ mature and helpful approach ensured the event ran smoothly.

Photo courtesy of Disney Channel

Electric Eels Club On Saturday 21 April Mrs Hewer presented the annual awards to the Electric Eels, a local competitive swim club for young people with Down Syndrome. St George’s are proud to be fundraising and volunteering to support these young people as our local charity for this academic year. A special thank you to our four girls in Fourth Year who are volunteering with the club, Georgie, Olivia, Eve, Fleur

New Form and Vice Captains Summer 2018 Summer 2018

Form Captain

Vice Captain

1NA

Lily

Portia

1CL

Isobel

Lucy

1CM

Teniola

Carolina

2AF

Aleah

Amira

2SD

Alice

Ava

2PK

Joanna

Angelina

3LJ

Grace

Olivia

3MJ

Olivia

Daisy

3CW

Lydia

Tilly

4NS

Daisy

Dominique

4AO

Adelina

Pippa

4IH

Imogen

Ruby

Upper Sixth Prefects for 2018/19 On Friday 18 May, following a thorough application process, the Prefect Team for 2018-19 was announced. All girls in the Lower Sixth were invited to apply and provided with a series of job descriptions and expectations for them as Prefects as well as the individual roles for which they wished to apply. All the girls involved in the process then wrote letters and these were studied alongside staff recommendations. Houses held votes for their future leaders whilst the whole pupil body heard from the candidates who had applied to be Head Girl at Assembly before voting for their preferred candidate. Subsequently the girls applying to be Head Girl were interviewed by a panel including the current incumbent, Lily, and Mrs Hewer. Competition this year was extremely tough and any number of pupils could have been appointed to the Prefect Team. Our hope is that all will have benefited from the experience for future applications and everyone is to be congratulated on putting themselves forward. We are delighted to announce the post holders for 2018-19 are as follows:

Head Girl

Camelia

Deputy Head Girls

Susannah and Leila

House Captain - Alexander

Katie

House Captain - Becket

Fiona

House Captain - Churchill

Alice

House Captain - Darwin

Sophie

Art Prefect

Ruth

Charity Prefect

Emily-Louisa

Library Prefect

Faith

Marketing and Admissions Prefect (Day)

Ellie

Marketing and Admissions Prefect (Boarding)

Bernice

Sport Prefect

Edina

Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Practice Expedition

Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Practice Expedition On 17 and 18 May twenty-four girls from the Third Year took to the New Forest for their first Duke of Edinburgh expedition. Leaving school full of excitement, and with some very full backpacks, the girls headed to Deerleap where they began the first stage of their expedition. With some guidance by their staff team leaders, the girls made their way around Deerleap, stopping on route for lunch.

They encountered cows, horses and donkeys on this first stretch, plus a few unfortunate bogs, where their teamwork was really tested.

The girls then set off to find their way to the campsite where they would be staying for the night. Arriving at camp every group looked ready for a sit down, having walked around 10km that day. The staff were very impressed by the girls' teamwork in setting up their tents for the night and cooking dinner, and the girls were rewarded with a campfire and toasted marshmallows. Before bed there was just time to plan their routes for the next day, with a little help from the team leaders.

The following morning the girls set off early to begin their walks of 10-12km. The girls worked incredibly well in their groups, checking map readings and bearings to ensure they stuck to the right paths and made it to meet the staff at check-points along the route.

Despite the beautiful sunshine, the girls did well to overcome many challenges, including more bogs and the odd path not actually existing! The girls are now looking forward to their assessed expedition later in the year.

Parent Association May Ball A delightful evening at the Parent Association May Ball on Saturday 19 May raised funds with £4,000 going towards the equipment for the new school swimming pool, and £4,000 for our chosen external charity ‘Level Water’, who provide swimming assistance for children with disabilities. Over ninety parents and staff gathered in the beautiful Chapel at Beaumont House Hotel in Old Windsor for an evening facilitated by alumna actress Emma Handy. Raffle tickets were on sale for lavish themed

Hampers, generously donated by parents from all year groups, whilst a silent on-line auction ran during the course of the evening. Emma conducted a very successful live auction to round off the fund raising. Huge thanks to Tanya Thompson and Amelia MacPhee for their tireless organisation of the event. Many positive comments were made to PA members on what a wonderful and memorable evening it was.

Achievements Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award Many congratulations to Upper Sixth Form pupil Eleanor who received her Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award at Buckingham Palace on 17 May. This is a really impressive achievement and we are very proud of her!

Lower Sixth Textiles pupil finishes in top 20 in major UK Competition ‘Wool4school Fashion’ When Sixth Form pupil Ruth found out about the ‘Wool4school England’ Fashion Competition through social media she immediately registered.

The competition, supported by UAL and the Woolmark Company, consisted of designing an outfit for a singer to wear on stage; including a technical drawing, design idea, mood board and creative statement. Ruth chose Demi Lovato whose style she connected. This required a lot of research into the properties of wool as Demi Lovato is not the typical artist to wear the material. The competition gave Ruth the chance to learn skills that she did not possess before and she successfully managed to juggle her school work and the large amount of research required for this competition.

We are very proud that her hard work paid off and placing in the top 20 from over 4500 entries in the UK.

Team Maths Challenge Very well done to St George’s girls Ruby and Lucy (Second Year) and Rosie and Milly (Third Year) who competed at the ‘Team Maths Challenge’ regional finals held at Wycombe High School on 17 April. The girls spent the day taking part in the competition, which consisted of several rounds of engaging mathematical activities with boys and girls from twenty five schools taking part altogether, and thoroughly enjoyed the day.

Boarding News

Boarding News @SGA_Boarding

Trips and Activities Kidsrome Farm On Sunday 27 April Kidsrome Farm came to visit the St George’s boarders. A range of farm animals, including a Shetland pony, ducks, a donkey and many more greeted the girls on the playing fields. Everyone was excited as they got to pat the animals and some got the opportunity to bottle feed a 3-week-old lamb. The farmer told everyone lots of interesting facts about the animals, including that many of them are stars of the screen and have appeared on shows such as Top Gear and Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares. A great afternoon was had by everyone at the farm.

Punting in Oxford The boarders had a fantastic day exploring Oxford on Saturday 19 May. The morning started with ice cream in the sun, followed by a walk around the city and punting on the River Cherwell. The girls described that a highlight of punting was gliding alongside the Oxford Botanic Gardens and through Christ Church College Meadows. A bit of shopping was also enjoyed before travelling back to school. The boarders can’t wait to return to Oxford for another punting trip in the future.

Escape Room The boarders were up for a challenge on Sunday 20 May as they took part in an Escape Room that was set up at school. The girls were “locked” in the room, and with a timer counting down from an hour, they needed to work as a team to solve series of different riddles, puzzles and clues in order to escape the room before time ran out. All the girls used great communication and teamwork, with one team managing to crack the codes and find the key to escape the room with 10 minutes to spare. Lots of fun and laughter was had and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of the Escape Room.

Boarders Rounders On Tuesday 1 May the boarding houses came together for a funfilled night of rounders. The weather brought them into the sports hall but didn’t dampen the spirits of the girls.

The girls were split into teams which mixes up the age groups and played brilliantly together. There were some silky skills on display and plenty of rounders scores. It was lovely to see the girls working together when fielding and encouraging each other throughout.

Fifth Year and Lower Sixth boarders visit to Gravity Force On Wednesday 9 May, five Knatchbull girls joined Miss Myers at Gravity Fit, a high intensity workout on trampolines. The girls worked hard and got their heart rates up to dance music doing lots of squats and lunges, as well as plenty of bouncing! This is a weekly activity and the girls are looking forward to the next session.

St George's Day evening activities Cupcakes and Pampering before exam leave begins

Upper Sixth Bubble Tea Party Early Morning Running Club

Sports News

Sports News @SGA_Sport

Athletics Masterclass with Great Britain Athletes On Saturday 28 April and Saturday 12 May St George’s girls were treated to athletics masterclass by GB Athletes Cyle Carty and Daniel Davis. Athletes from First to Fourth Year were put through their paces and challenged by GB hurdler Daniel to help the girls find consistency with stride pattern and hurdle technique, and all had improved in leaps and bounds by the end of the session.

Sprinter Cyle then took them through a technical relay session, teaching them a relay changeover method that would ensure smooth baton exchanges and consistent speed. The girls were given some invaluable tips on how to ensure the baton travels at speed in a straight line and all demonstrated slick baton changes by the end. We cannot wait to see the improvement in the girls’ performance at our next athletics competition and at Sports Day!

Junior and Senior House Rounders Early in the summer term, the four Houses came together to contest the interhouse rounders trophy. Due to poor weather conditions, the event was split into Seniors on one night and Juniors later in the week. With all Houses represented by an A and B team for both age groups this is a very popular and hotly contested event, giving valuable House points to teams.

In the Senior competition three points separated the top three teams, with Churchill finishing on 9 points, Darwin on 10 points and Becket House finishing on 12 points.

The Juniors saw a change in fortune for Alexander House, winning this competition with 12 points, with Becket and Churchill finishing in joint 2nd place.

Overall, the final positions with Juniors and Seniors added together were: Alexander-16 Becket- 20 Churchill- 18 Darwin-16

Staff Sixth Form Tennis The annual Staff and Girls tennis tournament took place on Monday 14 May. Eight pairs took to the courts with the initial games being played in two pools of four players. Luckily the weather was fantastic which meant that all involved had a thoroughly enjoyable experience. There were many laughs and jokes, with at times some ‘interesting’ shots being played!

At the end of the pool matches the semi-finals were to be decided between Mr Greenall and Fiona against Mrs Radley and Edina and Mrs Anderson and Katie against Miss Lofthouse and Grace. After some tight matches Mr Greenall and Fiona and Miss Lofthouse and Grace made it through to the final, although special mention should be made to Katie who did play most of the semi-final on her own and still managed to only lose 3-2!

In the final the match was again very tight and with the scores all level at the end of play it had to be decided by a tie-break. The scores were close at the beginning but following the change of ends Miss Lofthouse and Grace ended up pulling away, eventually winning by 7 points to 3.

Well done to all of the players who took part. A great time was had by all. Final rankings were as follows: 1st Miss Lofthouse and Grace 2nd Mr Greenall and Fiona 3rd Mrs Anderson and Katie and Alice 4th Mrs Radley and Edina 5th Mr Lee and Ella 6th Mrs Hewer and Camelia 7th Miss Kennedy and Izzy 8th Mr Naeem and Emily-Louisa

Cricket Masterclass with Mark Nicholas On Tuesday 15 May we welcomed former professional cricketer Mark Nicholas for an Introduction to Cricket Masterclass. First and Second Years girls thoroughly enjoyed the masterclass, where they learned about batting and fielding in preparation for their first cricket festival the following day.

Sports Academy welcome English Institute of Sports’ Louise Gubb Monday 21 May saw a dietician coming to St Georges to speak to First to Third Year girls about sports nutrition and the importance of eating correctly in order to excel at sport. Louise Gubb from the world renowned English Institute of Sport based at Bisham Abbey, spoke to the girls in a highly enjoyable interactive session. She spoke about the work at the EIS and their impact on performance on the world stage, the importance of diet to high level performers, the importance of diet during recovery for sport and injury, the importance of hydration and the different food groups that athletes need. The girls were all very engaged in the session, asking lots of questions and related the information back to their own sports.

Image courtesy of English Institute of Sport

Admissions News

Admissions News Boarding Taster Night On Friday 11 May, we had a fun–filled Boarding Taster Night, where our First Years, Leila and Jessie, were great hosts. The girls spent time chatting away by the swings and also by getting their T-shirts tie-dyed for the summer ahead.

After that, the girls decorated their unicorn cupcakes. The evening would not have been complete without practising their singing skills doing karaoke just before bedtime! The following morning, the girls enjoyed a scavenger hunt around Markham House before heading home.

Boarding Taster Night Friday 12 October, from 5.00pm The very best way to really discover what boarding is like at St George’s Ascot is to join us for a sleepover!

To reserve a place on our next Boarding Taster Night please contact Admissions: admissions@stgeorges.org.uk www.stgeorges-ascot.org.uk St George’s Education Day - Diwali Workshop Saturday 13 October, 9.45am-2.00pm Attendees will discover the Hindu story of Rama and Sita, learn about rangoli patterns, make diwa lights and take part in an Indian Dance workshop. Parents will be invited to watch a short performance of the girls’ newly acquired Indian dance moves at pick-up.

The day is open to girls from any school, in Years 5, 6 and 7 and is available on a first come, first served basis. Early booking is advised.

For more information, or to book please email admissions@stgeorges-ascot.org.uk or telephone 01344 629 920 +44 (01344) 629900 | @SGA_Head @StGeorgesAscot St George's School, Ascot Berkshire SL5 7DZ | @SGA_Boarding @SGA_Academic @SGA_TheArts office@stgeorges-ascot.org.uk | www.stgeorges-ascot.org.uk | @SGA_Sport @SGA_Library @SGA_Sixthform