Sydenham HighLIGHTS Spring 2022
Our Senior School Play, ‘Education, Education, Education’ - an upbeat, chaotic and irreverent comedy - was a great success this term. The four performances, with two casts, was highly entertaining and it was even more special to be back in our Westwood Theatre after two years. Our Lower School production, which is open to years 7-9, will be announced later in the year and the performance will be staged in May. In addition to this, there will also be the ever popular Technical Theatre Club and Drama Club. A group of year 12 students took part in a day of mental health mentor training, facilitated by Change Your Mind, a workplace skills and enrichment programme helping to improve the wellbeing of younger pupils. The students designed and planned mental health and wellbeing workshops and will have the opportunity of presenting these to some of our younger pupils both here and at other local schools. As part of Jewish Book Week’s school events, we were delighted to welcome Debra Barnes to speak about her book, The Young Survivors, recounting her family’s experience of the Holocaust. Hearing Debra’s family story, based on her many years of research, was incredibly poignant and moving and a timely reminder of the horrors of the Holocast. Coming in advance of Holocaust Memorial Day, of which the theme was ‘One Day’, Debra’s final message to us was ‘to be kind, be tolerant, be brave and be the one to speak out’. Maya, year 7, and Annabelle, year 6, came third in the U12 Surrey Youth Epée competition. We are so proud of them both and can’t wait to see if they follow in the footsteps of alumna and former GB fencer, Claire Bennett! They certainly have the skill and determination. Watch this space Team GB! Year 10 participated in the GDST day of dance, joining our 24 sister schools at Base Studios in central London. Including Musical Theatre expert Ellie Mitchell, Lyrical Jazz professional Josh Denyer, Commercial Dancer Alex Shoendorf and Contemporary specialist Sheida Mas, our pupils definitely had an enjoyable day. Our inter-house Quick Draw competition took place in the Sports Hall and was made up of knockout rounds where the pupils had five minutes to draw an item before being judged. After some close calls and tough decisions, the eventual winner was Maryam, year 9 of Grey. The runner up, Juliette, year 8, was also in Grey, so all in all a great day for this House!
Our pupils have been busy, engaging with a range of activities, inside and outside the classroom. During PSHE year 8 were visited by the Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART) and shown a presentation about the HART Prize for Human Rights, a competition for young people who are interested in global issues. We were delighted to welcome Class of 2017 alumna, Freya Sloane, who spoke to year 13 about her journey since leaving school. Freya is a PMO Analyst Apprentice with M&G Investments, whilst being supported in a degree in project management. Alongside her colleague Ruby, Freya highlighted some of the positive factors of choosing an apprenticeship route, including having professional responsibilities, having a salary, gaining a qualification and networking with different people outside her immediate field. It was a great experience having our Culture & Identity Day, celebrating our cultures and identities as a whole school community. Both staff and pupils were able to wear clothes, or bring an item, that represents who they are and there were a variety of activities during break and lunchtime to allow for further expression. There was the opportunity to learn new languages, enjoy authentic cuisine and of course our amazing fashion show at lunchtime. A huge thank you and well done must go to our newly formed year 12 leadership team, and our Heads of School, for organising and leading such an uplifting day.
On Tuesday 22 February (22.02.2022!) we celebrated our 135th anniversary and will continue to celebrate this astonishing achievement throughout the course of the year. On Tuesday, we gathered as a whole school inthe Longton Hall (with the Prep School on livestream) for the first time in two years to reflect on the history and legacy of those that came before us and laid down the foundations that have remained at the core of everything we do at Sydenham High. It would not be a proper birthday without cake and so after our two youngest Reception pupils and our two eldest Sixth Formers cut a ceremonial cake in assembly the whole school sang “Happy Birthday”, and every pupil was gifted a cupcake at lunchtime as part of the festivities to help mark the special day. Laura Hooper Tamsin Culmer-Guevara l.hooper@syd.gdst.net t.culmer-guevara@syd.gdst.net Director of Marketing & Communications Registrar @SydenhamHigh
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