The Kingsley School Summer 2014 Newsletter

TheKingsleyNews
ISSUE 33
SUMMER 2014
THE NEWSLETTER OF THE KINGSLEY SCHOOL, ROYAL LEAMINGTON SPA
TEA FOR TWO CULTURES
ART WORLD
MATHS WINNERS
P2
TOP
UNIVERSITY
PLACES
P7
P9
SHAKESPEARE
WEEK
P8
CULTURAL
EXCHANGE
A group of girls from the Aichi Shukutoku
High School in the city of Nagoya in central
Japan joined Kingsley students for a series of
integration sessions during a trip to the UK.
The visitors, who were staying with families in
and around Royal Leamington Spa, used
Kingsley classrooms for English lessons. On
three afternoons they joined Kingsley girls in
Prep and Senior School for joint activities and
presented an assembly to the whole school. The
Japanese girls in their pristine blue and white
sailor-style uniforms soon became a familiar
sight around Kingsley.
On Monday they helped Prep pupils to make
a Mother’s Day card using the traditional
Japanese skills of origami and calligraphy. The
Aichi students had brought special paper and
pens with them and they patiently worked with
the younger Kingsley girls to create some
beautiful designs which were given to Kingsley
Mums later in the week.
Year 9 Kingsley students went off timetable
on Tuesday afternoon to take part in special
lessons with the Japanese visitors in music,
drama, food technology, textiles, DT and art.
Initial shyness on the part of some girls was
soon forgotten as they enjoyed their time
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together. In food technology the Japanese girls
helped Kingsley students to make a traditional
Japanese savory pancake. They then had a
go at baking scones and creating (and eating)
a cream tea. There was a drum workshop in
the music lesson, creation of fabric flowers
and embroidered cards in DT and textiles,
calligraphy in art and improvisation and
movement games in drama – with lots of
laughter in all sessions!
The highlight for Kingsley students was the
Japanese girls’ assembly on the Friday
afternoon during which they performed their
school song and a traditional fisherman’s
dance. Everyone in the audience was impressed
with the precise rhythmic movement of the girls
as they swayed in perfect time to represent the
sea and the hauling in of fishing nets. Their
singing was as hypnotic as the dancing! After
the assembly a planned trip to the Kingsley
sports fields with Year 10 students had to be
cancelled due to heavy rain so there was an
impromptu dance session in the hall during
which Kingsley girls learned the Japanese
fisherman’s dance and then showed the Aichi
students how to do the hokey cokey!
Despite the cultural differences both sets of
students had shared and enjoyed during their
time together, one thing proved that really all
teenage girls are the same at heart. As soon as
a DVD of the boy band One Direction was
played they all cheered and screamed as loudly
as each other and danced in one big group
to the music of their idols! After their week in
Royal Leamington Spa the Aichi students
travelled to London for the weekend before
returning to Japan.
Before they left, the Japanese girls presented
the school with a big thank you card full of
comments about Kingsley. One of them sums
up what most thought about their time at the
school:
“I enjoyed Kingsley’s classes. Kingsley’s
students and teachers are very kind so I had
very great time in Kingsley School. I like this
school very much. Thank you!” – Miku
PREP SCHOOL
PONDERINGS...
The clocks have gone back, the days are longer
and there is a hint of summer in the air - it is the
perfect time to reflect upon the delights of the past
few months and our more recent achievements
in the Prep School.
Last term, the children pursued their academic
work to a high standard, but there was an element
of fun in Prep which made learning exciting,
too. Whether it was performing in the Gym and
Dance Showcase or the Easter Concert, enjoying
science experiments in the Senior School
laboratories, learning calligraphy and origami
skills with our Japanese visitors, or taking
examinations in LAMDA or music, everyone was
busy and productive.
It has been a thrilling continuation of the new
academic year and before we know it the new
term will be upon us! I am confident that the next
few months will be just as exciting.
Miss Anne Hornsby, Head of Prep School
MATHS WINNERS
Certificates have been presented to Prep girls who
were among 70,000 pupils in nearly 2,000 schools
that took part in the Primary Mathematical Challenge
organised by the Mathematical Association. The
Challenge is a tough test – aimed at the top 60
percent of pupils in Years 5 and 6 - with mathematical
multiple-choice problems. Many congratulations to
Freya Warner (Y6), Emma Rees (Y5), Hanna Dennison
(Y5), Isabella Fitches (Y5) and Cecilia Goldwin (Y5)
who were all awarded with gold certificates. Silver
certificates were won by Year 6 girls Molly Archer and
India Marvelly with the following Year 6 girls
achieving the bronze level: Amelia Quelch, Sophie
Maguire, Mia Bermingham, Lara Whitmore, Rebecca
Wallis, Madeleine Glasspool, Rebecca Burden and
Sophia Heath.
CHOCOLATE COMPETITION
Prep has its very own Willy Wonka, Year 3 pupil Georgia Marvelly
whose confectionary creation in the shape of a car was judged the
best chocolate bar produced as part of a DT project. All Year 3 girls
researched chocolate bar packaging and taste tested different
chocolate bars. They then designed their own chocolate bar;
carefully selecting a target market and creating appropriate
packaging.
Class teacher Miss Knight-Adams took the girls to the Senior
School food technology room to make their chocolate bars by
melting milk, white and dark chocolate and then decorating them.
MODEL STUDENTS
Cross curricular activities based on the Ted
Hughes novel The Iron Man resulted in a 2.5
metre addition to the Year 5 classroom in Prep
School.
It took the girls three hours in total to build their
own iron man model out of junk resources ranging from paper clips and nails to tin foil and
cardboard boxes. He was a very impressive sight
standing in the corner of the room!
Maths lessons were used to plan the model’s
dimensions and in science materials were
selected. In English the girls wrote descriptions,
newspaper articles and character studies all
based on the book.
Head of Prep Miss Hornsby judged the Year 3 chocolate bars – not just
on their taste but also the packaging – and chose Georgia as the winner.
BRINGING LEARNING TO LIFE
Learning about traditional tales as part of their
literacy understanding and development has been an
exciting time for Foundation and Reception pupils in
the Prep School. As well as classroom based work,
the girls have been out and about to reinforce what
they have been taught in lessons and bring their
learning to life. Trips included:
• Buying gingerbread teddies from a bakery in
Leamington town centre.
• Going to Leamington library to check out a copy
of The Three Little Pigs to bring back to school and
compare with the version already in the classroom.
• A visit to Coombe Country Park to build shelters
with wood and twigs, just like the characters did
in The Three Little Pigs story.
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TOM’S MIDNIGHT GARDEN
Prep girls in Years 3 to 6 took part in an
educational workshop about the classic story
Tom’s Midnight Garden which they saw at The
Birmingham Old Rep Theatre.The Birmingham
Stage Company, who performed the play, sent
their workshop leader Miss Jo Billingham to
Kingsley to share some secrets about staging the
show. She talked to the girls about the characters
in the story and how it was adapted for the stage
from the original book by Philippa Pearce.
NEW NATIVITY
A new nativity play featuring a midwife as its central character was performed by Kingsley’s Prep pupils. A
Midwife Crisis tells the story of a midwife and her sidekick donkey, Steve, who go in search of Jesus to help
with his birth. Nearly 30 girls aged from 3 to 7 took part in the play, which also included all the traditional
nativity characters and stable animals. Proud parents, grandparents and family friends watched the children
in awe as they confidently spoke their words and sang a selection of foot-tapping songs during the performance.
Head of Prep Miss Hornsby says: "Prep staff and the girls spent hours rehearsing and their hard work certainly
paid off. It was a brilliant performance and the audience couldn’t believe that pupils so young could produce
something so demanding."
Head of Prep Miss Hornsby says: “All the girls
enjoyed both the theatre production of Tom’s
Midnight Garden and the visit by Miss
Billingham and especially appreciated the
opportunity to ask questions about the how the
play was staged.”
Miss Billingham is pictured with Prep pupils (left
to right): Ishika Doug (Y4), Sophie Maguire (Y6),
Erin Sharpe (Y4) and Toula Gryparis (Y5).
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
The Prep pupils were told that the Gurdwara has an
important place in family and community life for
people of the Sikh faith. Visitors are always welcome
and food is offered to everyone. This can be over a
thousand people in a weekend. The Kingsley girls
received this hospitality and were given a traditional
sweet followed by drinks and biscuits. Visiting
the Gurdwara made a lasting impression on Mrs
Harrold’s class. The comments afterwards included:
Girls in Year 5 visited the Royal Leamington Spa
Gurdwara to give them a greater understanding of the
different faiths in our community. They were given a
tour of the building and told the story of Guru Nanak,
who founded the Sikh religion.
FLOWER POWER
Congratulations to Prep pupils Georgia Rudge (Y3) and
Erin Sharp (Y4) who have been rewarded for their
creative flair and design skills in a competition
organised to promote the town of Royal Leamington
Spa’s first-ever exhibit at the RHS Chelsea Flower
Show. The girls took part in the Dream Garden
competition organised by BID Leamington and their
beautiful gardens on a plate were judged to be two of
the best entries. Erin was placed first in her age category
and Georgia was highly commended.
Behind the scenes The Kingsley School has been
supporting BID Leamington in their preparations for the
world famous flower show. Over February half term
the school hall was used by the designers of the
Leamington exhibit to mark out their display. It
promises to be a floral feast for the eyes and we wish
the team led by Sarah Horne and Debbie Cooke all the
best in the run-up to the world famous flower show.
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“The thing I remember most is seeing the old Sikh
priest sitting cross legged on a bench reading from
the Sikh Holy Book. We took it in turns to bow to
him” - Emma Lawton.
“Having visited the Gurdwara I now feel I know and
understand more about Sikhism” - Emily Mortimer.
WORLD BOOK DAY
Kingsley marked World Book Day with a visit
from local Leamington author Lance Manley who
gave a talk to Years 5 and 6 Prep girls about his
book The Catastrophe of the Emerald Queen. He
read extracts from the novel – a fantasy story with
a strong anti-bullying theme – and answered
questions about the book and being a writer.
Lance was delighted to be at The Kingsley School
as his mother and aunt are former students. He
was impressed with the reaction of the Prep girls
to his novel and the questions they asked him,
saying “it was the most interactive session I have
had in a school.” At the end of the talk there was
a long queue of Kingsley girls wanting to buy an
autographed copy of the book.
TOP OF THE HAT PARADE
Regulation uniform headwear was replaced with hats covered in chicks, rabbits, lambs, eggs and spring flowers for the annual Prep Easter parade. After a seasonal
assembly celebrating Easter and the arrival of spring, children from classes in Foundation, Reception, Years 1 and 2 paraded around the playground for their Easter
hats to be judged. Head teacher of The Kingsley School Ms Heather Owens chose a winner from each year group. They were Hannah Child (Y2), Emily Camilleri (F),
Daisy Davies (R) and Liana Gill (Y1).
POSIES FOR MUMS
FLIPPING GOOD FUN!
Posies containing a cornflower - the Kingsley emblem
– were distributed to the mums, grandmothers and
mother figures of girls in the Prep School during a
special Mother’s Day Celebration in Holy Trinity
Church. Each year group sang a song or read a poem
paying tribute to their mothers and there were musical
performances by individual girls, the Prep Choir and
the Senior School vocal group Cantus Amoris.
The Mums met in Prep School before the celebration
for breakfast and took part in a quick hymn practice
before attending the church. Whilst they sang Lord
of the Dance the posies were handed to them by Year
3 girls.
To mark Shrove Tuesday Prep School pupils
took part in a series of pancake race relays. As
well as keeping their pancake in the frying pan
they had to jump through hoops and don aprons
and hats. It was all “flipping’” good fun!
After the service the Mums went back to their
classrooms with their daughters and were given cards
that the Prep girls made earlier with the help of
Japanese students who had been using Kingsley as
a base during the week.
Pictured are the Year 4 team (L to R): Erin Sharp
(8), Ishika Doug (8), Sarah Phillips (9) and
Sylvia Sinclair (8).
EXPEDITION DAY
The Kingsley sports fields became the North Pole for
Years 1 and 2 Prep pupils when they spent the day
there on an expedition as part of their project work.
Class teacher Mrs Hall thought it was too far to go to
the real location for a trip! Dressed warmly in every
layer they could find, the girls began with a treasure
hunt using a compass to solve the clues. They also
went “hunting” for animals and were shown how to
put up an emergency tent to protect them from the
cold. As the wind was blowing this was quite a battle!
Baked beans were heated on a camping stove and
eaten with sandwiches at lunchtime and hot chocolate
was a welcoming warm drink. In the afternoon the
girls learned about first aid, tying knots and making
little bug houses. Many discoveries of nature were
GOING GREEK
made on the scavenger hunt and the day ended with
some fun playing parachute games.
Mrs Hall says: “The explorers returned to school
happy but tired after a day in the fresh air during which
they learned a lot of new skills.”
They also learnt some Greek words and how to
write their name in the language.
CARING FOR THE CARERS
Prep girls have presented a cheque for £666 to the
town’s Mayor for one of the charities she is supporting
in her year of office. Councillor Judith Clarke attended
a special assembly to receive the donation and told
pupils that their support for the Warwickshire Young
Carers’ Project “is fantastic”. The money was raised
in the Prep School by organising a competition to
identify Kingsley staff from their baby photos, a cake
sale and a weekly collection of small coins.
Year 6 pupil Lara Whitmore (10) was so inspired by
the fundraising that did a sponsored climb of Mount
Year 3 enjoyed a Greek themed day. They all
dressed up in beautiful costumes and tried a
selection of Greek foods (olives, feta, houmous,
tzatziki, taramasalata, pitta bread, yogurt to name
a few).
Snowdon and raised over £600 to add to the school’s
total. Councillor Clarke said that Lara’s individual
effort “is really wonderful” and she invited her to visit
the Mayor’s Parlour to tell her all about it.
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BEAUCHAMP HALL HAPPENINGS
COFFEE AND
A CATCH UP
Year 7 Kingsley students welcomed their former Head
teachers and teachers to the school for a coffee and
catch up. It was the perfect opportunity for the visitors
to see how the girls they had previously taught have
settled into Senior School. The students took the
visitors on tours of Senior School and explained how
they are enjoying life as a Kingsley girl.
Head of Warwick Prep Mr Mark Turner is pictured
with his former pupils Amelia Rees and Harkeirane
Sohal.
FUTURE PLANNING
As part of the on-going development of the careers
provision at Kingsley, the school has gone into
partnership with Futurewise - professional and
impartial careers guidance and planning programme
delivered by Inspiring Futures. Girls are supported
at key educational and career transition points until
the age of 23.
The first step in the programme is the completion of
an online psychometric assessment. The results are
then presented in a profile report containing a
detailed analysis of an individual’s aptitudes,
abilities, personality and interests.
Based on this information, a range of careers are
suggested for consideration, alongside advice on
subject selection. A personal guidance interview then
provides an opportunity to discuss the profile with an
experienced, professional and impartial careers adviser.
Girls in Year 12 have just finished the process and
one parent says: “The report was extremely thoughtprovoking and opened our eyes to a number of career
pathways and resources that we simply would not
have considered without it. We feel more confident
that our daughter will choose a path that she will not
only enjoy, but that she has the skills to succeed in.”
THE PITCH
A team of five Year 10 girls took part in The Pitch, a
two-day business challenge event held at The
University of Wolverhampton.
In the morning they attended three university style
workshops covering:
Congratulations to the team of: Abi Maris, Jess
Harper Radley, Emily Conns, Milly Bracher and Lily
Holbrook who worked hard and got some very
encouraging feedback from the judges including the
following comments:
LIFE IN THE REAL WORLD
Girls in Year 9 enjoyed a day of activities relating
to life in “the real world” as part of the provision
for careers education at Kingsley. During the
morning session the students took part in the ‘Be
Real Game’ in which they had to role-play adults
in different jobs. This enabled them to see how
schoolwork relates to occupational choices and
therefore to lifestyle and income.
Within their job-roles, the Kingsley girls had to
explore adult realities like budgeting (taxes,
mortgage or rent, other bills and transport), work
life balance, different work and family roles and
career making decisions. If that wasn’t enough of
a reality check for the students, in the afternoon
they faced ‘The Crème Egg Challenge’ - an
enterprise activity that starts to bring business into
the classroom. The girls learnt the importance of
teamwork, delegation, negotiation, attitudes to
work and communication skills.
Careers Coordinator Mrs Marriott says: “The
day was enjoyed by all the girls who took part.
It provided an excellent opportunity for the
students to widen their exposure to the career
possibilities open to them in the future, as well as
helping them to foster the ‘can-do’ attitude that
employers are increasing looking for.”
“Fantastic, professional pitch”
• leadership and teambuilding skills
• marketing and how to create the perfect pitch
• creative thinking and idea generation.
With their minds buzzing they were then given a brief
and had just 24 hours to create the perfect pitch.
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“Good, confident presentation, with excellent use of
evidence and research”
EXPEDITION LAUNCHED
Who knows we might see them on Dragon’s Den next!
Kingsley’s 2015 World Challenge expedition to
Thailand, Laos, China and Vietnam has been
launched. To date 14 girls from Years 10 to 12
have signed up for the 28 day trip and have taken
part in initial teambuilding and planning exercises
for what promises to be a life changing experience.
When they are away they will visit many different
kinds of terrain including jungles, mountains and
tea plantations. As well as trekking, the girls will
spend time working on a community project and
living with local people. Between now and July
2015 when they leave, the Kingsley girls will be
organising fundraising events for the trip and
researching the area where they will be spending
a very memorable month of their lives.
ART TRIP TO LONDON
Kingsley’s Art & Photography Department is proud to report back from another
successful trip to London. Even with trains cancelled due to flooding and the threat
of strike action by the London Underground, our Kingsley girls, ranging from years
10 to 13, persevered with good spirits and enthusiasm throughout the day.
girls also chose to visit David Bailey's 'Stardust' exhibition, where they saw a
range of imaginative and thought-provoking photographic portraits. However, the
day did not stop there, as they were able to take a quick look around the National
Gallery before racing back to Marylebone station for the train home.
The first stop was 'The Photographers' Gallery', where they learnt about three
people who were famous, but not particularly for their photography: David Lynch,
William S. Burroughs and Andy Warhol. Girls were engaged in talks with the
exhibition staff during our tour of the gallery, had fun experiencing the effects of
a camera obscura and even had time for some minor-celebrity spotting as a
character from a popular TV sitcom was looking around the gallery at the same
time. After a quick lunch in Trafalgar Square, the girls moved on to the National
Portrait Gallery where they gathered ideas for their independent projects. Several
Mrs Robbins accompanied myself and the students on this trip and we were
delighted to hear so much discussion between the girls and a genuine enthusiasm
towards the rich and varied artworks seen throughout the day.
Mr Lax, Head of Art & Photography
AUTHOR EVENT
Key Stage 3 students had the opportunity to find out about story telling on the
theme of war and events of the First World War at a special event held at Kingsley
as part of the Stratford Literary Festival.
The author panel was organised to commemorate the centenary of the outbreak
of the First World War.
Children’s author Tony Bradman, who has collated a new book titled Stories of
WW1, was joined by three top writers whose work is included in the collection Geraldine McCaughrean, Nigel Hinton and Linda Newbery - for a discussion
exploring the Great War.
Kingsley students were given an insight into different aspects of the First World
War by the authors and took the opportunity to ask them many probing questions
about the subject and their work as writers.
The authors are pictured with a few copies of the many books they autographed
for Kingsley girls who were keen to buy one at the end of the event.
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SIXTH FORM NEWS
TOP UNIVERSITY PLACES OFFERED
Upper Sixth students have been receiving offers to study at some of the top universities in the UK when they leave The
Kingsley School after taking their A Levels this summer. The many and varied courses being offered to Kingsley girls include:
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Modern and Medieval Languages at Cambridge
Chemistry with Biomedicine and Geography at King’s College, London
Social Policy at Bristol
Geography and Accounting and Finance at Newcastle
Philosophy and English Language at Reading
Economics at Loughborough
Psychology and Natural Sciences at University College, London
For some girls studying abroad is more appealing and offers have been made to Kingsley students from:
• The University of British Columbia in Vancouver
• New York University
STUDY SKILLS AT BALLIOL COLLEGE
Lower Sixth students Charlotte Clulee and Lottie Pearson report on the experience
of spending time in the hallowed halls of Balliol College, Oxford:
With the need to start thinking about university and
other higher education choices fast approaching and
one term of AS studies completed, Year 12 girls and
four Kingsley teachers set off for Oxford University
for a course on study skills. We were based at Balliol
College and while there we took part in sessions
delivered by outside speakers as well as by Kingsley
teachers Mrs Bailey, Mrs Bennett, Mrs Robbins and
Mrs Hughes-O’Sullivan.
settled in and familiarised ourselves with our
surroundings we returned to the Great Hall for our
evening meal.
Upon arrival at the beautiful grounds of Balliol
College, our first speaker was Duncan Piper from the
Young Leaders consultancy in Oxford. He gave an
engaging and thought-provoking speech on the
concept of risk taking. This was followed by a talk by
Mrs Robbins on the art of essay writing from which
we gained valuable skills on selecting appropriate
information and structuring it into paragraphs to form
strong arguments that clearly answer exam questions.
The next day Kate Kettle, Balliol College’s Outreach
and Student Support Officer spoke to us about
university courses and the application process. This
was mainly focused on universities in the Russell
Group and gave us a good insight into how the
system works.
Before eating lunch in the Great Hall, Mrs Bailey
addressed the challenging topic of self-analysis,
giving us a valuable insight into how to analyse
ourselves as students to help benefit our learning and
revision. Later she went through the daunting reality
of the UCAS system, helping to settle many of our
worries and uncertainties.
She explained to us that we will have sessions in the
summer term about writing our personal statement
and starting our Extended Project Qualification. The
EPQ is not compulsory but is highly regarded by
most universities as it shows that a student is able
to research a topic in depth, select and analyse
appropriate information and – most importantly – is
passionate about learning.
We then took a short break during which we were
shown to our rooms which were vacant as the
university students were still on holiday. Once we had
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Our evening session was led by Mrs Bennett and Mrs
Hughes-O’Sullivan. We were told about how to mind
map for revision and took the opportunity to mind
map the new ideas we had learnt throughout the day
while they were still fresh in our memory.
After some free time in Oxford we headed back home
feeling enlightened about what the future holds for
us as we continue our studies and apply for places
at our higher education destinations of choice.
BUDDING
BUSINESSWOMEN
Aprons and tea towels designed by Kingsley’s
Young Enterprise Team, Ignite, were a popular
purchase for shoppers in Royal Leamington Spa.
One of the Year 12 girls from the team, Amber
Martin, describes the experience of selling their
products:
Kingsley's Young Enterprise Team, Ignite,
excitedly arrived at the Royal Priors shopping
centre in Royal Leamington Spa to set up our stall.
We were ready and eager to sell the 'Ignite
Kitchenware' products. The items being sold were
tea towels and aprons, both with unique designs
printed on them. The tea towels featured a jumble
of typical kitchen words, such as 'sizzle, spice,
pan, fry' and the aprons had the words 'Just Call
Me...' with a selection of either 'Delia', 'Jamie' or
'Ramsay' printed on them.
Sales were constant throughout the day, peaking
at around lunch time when many targeted dads
found themselves buying their wives, "an early
Mother's Day present from the kids”. It was an
incredibly enjoyable and worthwhile day,
interacting with the other schools competing in
Young Enterprise and seeing first hand our
products being a success. The team all agreed
that the day flew by - along with many of the
products!
LEARNING
IN LONDON
Lower Sixth historians went the National Portrait
Gallery in London to view paintings of Tudor
monarchs and courtiers. They also visited the
Tower of London and viewed the site of the
scaffold where, amongst others, Anne Boleyn and
Lady Jane Grey were executed. A suit of armour
that belonged to Henry VIII provided definitive
proof of his large girth! Upper Sixth history and
politics students also visited the capital city for a
tour of the Houses of Parliament, Downing Street
and the Science Museum.
COLD IN CUMBRIA
Year 12 geography students visited Blencathra to
study Keskadale Beck, in the Lake District, Cumbria.
The day began in Keswick, where the group studied
the flood management of the area. Thankfully these
flood management strategies saved the famous hot
chocolate shop, and after a hard day’s work we all
crammed inside to indulge chocolate treats!
Saturday presented horrific weather - the perfect type
for a day in the field! With a wind chill of minus 2
degrees and harsh hitting hail, we quickly collected
our data for our field study and scribbled it down on
very soggy data sheets. In the evening, we finalised
our findings and came to conclusions about what we
found, which will help us for our exam in June.
On the last day we enjoyed a beautifully sunny walk
up to Easedale Tarn where we were welcomed by the
stunning scenery of the glaciated valley. We spent
our last hour exploring the charming town of
Grasmere. We thoroughly enjoyed this trip and
Saturday’s weather conditions will never be forgotten!
Amber Martin
WHOLE SCHOOL SHAKESPEARE WEEK
Shakespeare featured in more than just English and drama lessons during
Kingsley’s annual week of activities devoted to The Bard. Girls from the youngest
reception class pupils in Prep School to Sixth Form politics students had a
Shakespearian theme to aspects of their work.
• In maths Years 8 to 10 girls were given the
challenge of using algebraic substitution to find
letters that spelt out the titles of five
Shakespearian plays.
• Year 12 politics students related the story of
Shakespeare's Julius Caesar to the relationship
between a 21st century Prime Minister and his
Cabinet.
• Year 4 Prep pupils thought about the words that
Shakespeare contributed to our language. They
read the children's version of The Tempest and
created their own spells to conjure up a storm
just as the character Prospero did in the play.
• A Year 9 chemistry class created a display on
Shakespearian science featuring astronomy,
inventions and even poisons from his time.
• Reception and Foundation pupils went to
the Playbox Theatre in Warwick to take part
in Mustard Seed's Magical Mayhem, an
introduction to A Midsummer Night's Dream.
The girls learnt dances from the fairy court, a
fairy lullaby, how to bow like a fairy and met
the queen of the fairies Titania.
• In food technology lessons Year 7 girls made
cookies from ingredients that were available in
Shakespeare’s time.
• Year 7 girls also used their creative skills
and imaginations to design costumes for
Shakespearian characters in art classes.
Even the Kingsley catering team got into the
Shakespearian theme and prepared a special lunch
with food that would have been served in his day.
The highlight of the week was Brush up Your
Shakespeare organised by Kingsley’s Performing
Arts Department. This revue show featured Years
7 to 13 students in a programme of dramatic
performances, songs and dances ranging from
solo items to ensemble pieces. Audiences were
impressed by the girls’ ability to learn and perform
extracts from Shakespeare’s plays, the standard of
the singing and dancing and at the passion the
whole cast put into their performances.
Before Shakespeare Week took place (March 17th
to 21st) Kingsley’s Year 7 Taster Morning at the
beginning of the month had a Shakespearian
theme to mark this year’s 450th anniversary of
his birth.
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CELEBRATING
The creative talent of Kingsley students
was celebrated at a special assembly
during which the winner of the annual
Kingsley Art Prize was announced.
The entries for the competition ranged
from pencil drawings and watercolours to
collages and sculptures.
Erin Sharpe (Y4)
Grace Arand (Y1)
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Olivia Allan (Y7)
CREATIVE MINDS
Head of Art & Photography Mr Lax told girls that
he believes creativity is equally important as
literacy and numeracy because it “encourages out
of the box thinking in all subjects” and he quoted
Albert Einstein who said that “creativity is
intelligence having fun”.
Overall winner of the annual art competition is
Year 7 student Olivia Allan whose painting was
judged to be the best on the theme of Our World.
She was presented with the trophy and a selection
of art materials.
Prizes were also presented to the girls whose
work was judged to be the best in their age
categories. They are:
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Years 1 and 2: Grace Arand (Y1)
Years 3 and 4: Erin Sharp (Y4)
Years 5 and 6: Divya-Rose Hickling (Y6)
Year 7: Olivia Allan
Years 8 and 9: Georgia Astley (Y8)
Divya-Rose Hickling (Y6)
Georgia Astley (Y8)
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THE KINGSLEY COMMUNITY
The Friends of Kingsley is now an established and
wonderful PTA committee from across the Prep and
Senior schools. This year, with the support of a
dedicated team of helpers and donations, over
£13,000 has been raised. We are delighted to
announce that we will be providing new equipment
for the drama department and Prep School and will
also pay the final instalment for one of the school
mini buses. It has been a most exciting and
successful year with some great events and more to
come. Here is a round-up of what’s been happening:
Discos: we have introduced a mocktail bar and
karaoke for Years 7 and 8 themed discos with
competitions for the younger age groups. Next disco
- July 4th: Foundation - Year 2, Year 3 - 6, Year 7 & 8.
End of year picnic: we hope to repeat last year's
fantastic success on the last afternoon of the summer
term - July 11th, at the school playing fields. More
details to follow and fingers crossed for the sun - all
years welcome.
New for 2014 'A touch of class': we will be
holding a parent information evening on the subject
of Body confidence/raising girls in the 21st century
- June 5th. More information coming soon.
SKIPPING LESSONS
A Year 9 Kingsley student has been skipping
lessons - but without getting into trouble!
Christmas Fayre: this is our largest event, bringing
together the community in and out of the school. 2013
was our most successful fayre to date. This year it will
be held on Saturday November 29th
And finally... as part of the 130th school anniversary
celebrations (and also because we all need the
opportunity to get dressed up once in a while!) the
Friends of Kingsley will be hosting a Friends Ball in
the Spring Term 2015.
If you would like to join our fantastic team and
become a member or a helper of Friends of Kingsley
please contact [email protected]
Thank you to everyone for your continued support.
Helen Glasspool, Friends of Kingsley Chair
The event was a great success and was attended by
family and friends of the school and local community.
Old and young enjoyed the activities that were
organised - ranging from traditional games to pottery
decorating. One of the most popular stalls was the
chocolate tombola!
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When she lived in Australia, Cemre was a
member of a hot rope display team which
became champions in the sport in the town
where she lived.
“I have always loved skipping and I want to teach
the Prep girls how to do it so they can enjoy it
as well,” she says.
Judging by the number of girls in the Prep gym
wielding ropes it is obviously going to be a
popular activity on the Prep playground in the
future!
COLLECTING COATS
FOR CHARITY
FANTASTIC FAYRE
The Christmas Fayre organised by the Friends of
Kingsley PTA raised the wonderful amount of £3,000
to be invested in projects that benefit the girls’
education.
Cemre Gurkan is an expert at rope jumping
(skipping) and as part of her Duke of
Edinburgh’s Award Scheme programme of
activities she is teaching Prep School girls the
skill at a new lunchtime club.
Chair of the Friends of Kingsley Mrs Glasspool says:
“Our thanks to the stallholders who brought lovely
Christmas present gifts to purchase and well done to
Kingsley’s World Challenge and Young Enterprise
groups who showed themselves to be very effective
young entrepreneurs. “
“Carols sung by the school choir are always a
highlight of the fayre and once again the girls did not
disappoint. Our thanks also to Santa for coming to
Kingsley to meet the children and listen to their
Christmas requests.”
Over 70 coats were collected at Kingsley for the
Coats for Kids initiative organised by the charity
Kids Company.
Girls in the Prep School, Senior School and
Sixth Form looked out unwanted jackets,
anoraks, fleeces and other outer garments to be
passed on to children and young people who do
not have a warm coat to wear.
Prep teacher Mrs Harrold, who organised
the collection, says: “Over 3,000 youngsters
supported by Kids Company are in urgent need
of a warm coat. As soon as Kingsley girls heard
about this they were keen to support the appeal
by giving their outgrown and unwanted coats to
the charity. When it comes to helping others
they really love to get involved.”
ECO-SCHOOL
BRONZE AWARD
Kingsley’s Eco-Committee meets every Friday to
discuss environmental issues in school. We have
recently finished our Eco Action Plan and earned our
Eco-School Bronze Award. We have decided to focus
on energy, waste/recycling and biodiversity. This is
what we hope to do:
ENERGY
RETURNING FOR RESEARCH
Former Kingsley student Rebecca Evans (21)
returned to the school to conduct research for her
psychology degree course.
Rebecca, who is studying at Oxford Brookes
University, left Kingsley in 2010 after taking her
A Levels. She spent the morning in Prep School
where she observed girls in Years 3 and 4
undertaking a short handwriting task and completed
questionnaires with staff. The results of this research
will be included in her final year dissertation which
will evaluate the validity of a new screening technique
to assess children’s handwriting.
Rebecca has fond memories of her time at Kingsley
– she joined in Year 5 – and acknowledges how
much she was helped during her time at the school.
• Create and keep a display of the school’s weekly
energy use.
• Check the shutdown times of computers.
• Continue to monitor switching off lights. (Look out
for smart reminder stickers/notices.)
• Ensure all new build/refurbishments include
thermostat controlled radiators and eco-efficient
lighting.
WASTE/RECYCLING
“Kingsley is a really supportive school, which was
especially important for me in the Sixth Form, and
being in small classes in all year groups really
made a difference,” she says.
CHINESE NEW YEAR
The Chinese New Year (of the horse) was celebrated
at Kingsley with a special school lunch menu. The
catering team served up a delicious selection of
Chinese cuisine – and even provided chopsticks to
eat the food with! The dining room was decorated
with lanterns, dragons and other oriental symbols
which all added to the authenticity of the occasion.
Prep pupils in Years 1 and 2 dressed in oriental
outfits and had a day of lessons on a Chinese theme.
• Introduce white paper recycling in school – (look
out for the new paper recycling bins)
• Provide recycling bins for the dining room and food
technology room.
• Have a rota of eco-committee members to empty
recycling bins on Fridays
• Meet with dining room staff to discuss alternatives
to foam packaging and requirements for recycling.
• Order Kingsley reusable water bottles made from
bio-plastic.
• Provide small unit recycling facilities for batteries,
mobile phones, etc.
BIODIVERSITY
SPORT RELIEF
Over £300 was raised for Sport Relief at Kingsley.
Prep pupils attended school in a wide range of sports
and activity gear - from judo and riding to football
and ballet - to raise money and they also took part in
a special zumba session. After school there was a
netball match between a team of Kingsley mums and
girls from Prep and Senior School.
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Ensure flower beds are litter free.
Clear school pond of algae.
Produce bird/wildlife boxes
Research possible sites for creation of ‘bug hotel’
Talk with the site team to select butterfly/bee friendly
plants to put into hanging baskets.
• Research sites for location of cornflower/poppy
meadow
Each member of the Eco-Committee has been given an
area to focus on so that we can put much more effort
into the Eco Plan. We hope we will be able to make
Kingsley a much more eco-friendly school and earn
our green flag.
Ella Jackson & Lucy Alder (Y9)
ON TOP OF THE WORLD
Congratulations to Prep teacher Mrs Machin
who spent February half term climbing Mount
Kilimanjaro.
She says: “I travelled to Tanzania in Africa to climb
the highest free standing mountain in the world Mount Kilimanjaro. After months of training and
preparation, I was ready to climb! I can honestly say
it is one of the hardest physical and mental challenges
I have attempted. The altitude really affects you but
after digging deep and with great team support I finally
made it to the top of Africa after six days of trekking.
In all we climbed to a height of 5895m above sea level
and walked around 100km. It was an amazing
experience, one I will never forget and hopefully it will
inspire others to try something different!”
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NATIONAL SCIENCE WEEK
National Science Week was marked in the Senior and
Prep Schools with a series of innovative and fun
lessons.
In Senior School the following took place:
• Monday – a spaghetti and marshmallow challenge
to build the highest tower strong enough to support
an egg. The winners were Year 8 girls Holly Austin
and Sally Evans.
• Tuesday – custard balls were bouncing around the
physics lab to explain polymerisation.
• Wednesday – girls made bracelets to represent their
DNA.
• Thursday – Years 7 and 8 spent the day at the Big
Bang Show at the National Exhibition Centre.
• Friday –girls watched the film The Story of Science
in Kingsley’s very own “cinema” with popcorn!
In Prep School the week started with a bang with the
youngest pupils in the Foundation and Reception
classes making 'rocket fuel' and then firing an air rocket
outside with special sound effects. Older Prep girls had
their science lessons in the Senior School laboratories
where they enjoyed the following activities:
• Year 3 made ice-cream in just five minutes and
glittery lava lamps.
• Year 4 took part in the spaghetti and marshmallow
building challenge.
• Year 5 dissected daffodils and lilies and used
microscopes to take a closer look at parts of the
flowers.
There was also a presentation by Mad Science and
an inter-house science quiz which was won by blue
house.
PARENT PAY
This secure online payment system was introduced at the start of the spring term as a convenient way for Kingsley parents
to settle bills and pay for extras like school trips. If you have any queries or problems activating your account, please
contact the finance office on 01926 311603 or email [email protected]
KINGSLEY’S 130TH ANNIVERSARY
The Kingsley School celebrates its 130th birthday on September 23rd and plans are being made for a series of
special events during the 2014/15 academic year to mark this historic milestone.
DATES FOR YOUR DIARIES:
The main emphasis of the 130th anniversary
celebrations will be to reach out to former
students, staff, families, governors and other
individuals associated with the school to
welcome them back into “the Kingsley
community”. There will also be surprises and
treats for girls and staff currently at the school.
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to 6pm. It will be a wonderful opportunity to
meet up with old friends and take a tour of the
school for those who haven’t been back in
recent years and a fun way to spend an
afternoon and celebrate Kingsley’s excellent
community spirit.
The first exciting event and launch of our
celebrations is a garden party on the afternoon of
Saturday September 20th. Held on the lawns
behind Beauchamp Hall, this promises to be a
joyful occasion with a jazz band, champagne bar,
afternoon teas, ice creams, a selection of stalls,
side shows and a Punch & Judy show.
During the anniversary year there will be a
special whole school event for all current Prep,
Senior and Sixth Form girls and staff. This treat
is still being planned and full details will be
announced at a later date. The aim is to make
it a fun and memorable day for all concerned
so watch this space! Other 130th anniversary
events will include:
Past and present Kingsley students and
families, staff and governors are being invited
to the garden party which takes place from 2pm
• A specially commissioned choral piece for
the school choir to perform at the Easter
Concert in April 2015.
• A celebration ball being organised by The
Friends of Kingsley on 14th March 2015.
• Drinks receptions and coffee mornings for
parents and the local community.
A competition to produce a 130th logo is being
held and the winning design will feature on
school publications and stationery throughout
the anniversary year.
The school website will feature a new page with
information about the 130th anniversary and
reports of events and updates throughout the
year.
Get out your diary now and make a note of
these dates so that you can join in the
celebrations.
PERFORMING ARTS IN THE SPOTLIGHT
RECITING POETRY AND PUBLIC SPEAKING
Year 10 student Alice Meixner won the title of County
Champion in the national Poetry by Heart competition
and took part in the finals weekend staged at The
National Portrait Gallery in London.
Kingsley also entered five teams in the Youth Speaks
public speaking competition organised by the Rotary
Club. In both the Leamington and Warwick events the
school were runners up in the intermediate sections.
She beat five other students from schools in
Warwickshire by reciting three poems: Divorce by
Anna Wickham, Invitation to Love by Paul Dunbar and
Stretcher Bearer by Tommy Crawford.
Congratulations to the Year 12 team of Ella Worlidge,
Anya Brown Charlotte Clulee and the Year 9 team
comprising Blaise Hughes-O'Sullivan, Ella Jackson
and Lucy Alder.
The judges were looking for “an audible manifestation
of an inwardly-understood and enjoyed poem” rather
than “an arm-waving, props-supported thespian
extravaganza” and Alice’s delivery of her chosen
poems was deemed to be the best performance.
DRAMATIC NEWS
Every one of the following 23 girls who took
LAMDA (London Academy of Music and
Dramatic Art) exams passed with the top mark
of distinction. Many congratulations to:
All competitors had to memorise and recite three
poems from an anthology on the competition website,
including one from a special collection of First World
War poems.
Prep: Year 5
• Hannah Dennison
• Molly Hunt
• Clara Lihou.
SHAKESPEARE LIVE
Theatre company Traffic of the Stage took senior
school students on a journey through some of the
best known Shakespearian plays in a lively,
interactive performance in the main hall.
There may have only been four actors but they each
undertook an amazing array of characters during the
Shakespeare Live! show - from comedy to tragedy
via the history plays.
As well as performing extracts, the actors narrated
key moments of Shakespeare’s life and history and
explained the context of the plays. Wild, exuberant
hilarity was swiftly followed by anxiety and tragedy
as Beatrice and Benedick, from Much Ado About
Nothing were replaced by the torment of Macbeth
and Lady Macbeth.
Head of English Mrs Hamilton says: “At times the
enthusiastic audience was stunned to rapt silence
only seconds after enjoying the fun of Shakespeare’s
comic creations.”
Students were enlisted to stage dramatic deaths,
create the control of the witches in Macbeth and
entertain the audience with portrayals of Bottom and
the fairies in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
The afternoon ended with a fast and furious account
of Macbeth in just eight minutes.
Prep: Year 6
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Molly Archer
Rebecca Burden
Sophie Stewart
Freya Warner
Senior School: Year 7
• Olivia Allen
• Amelia Rees
• Natasha Smith
Senior School: Year 8
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Chloe Esom
Anna Hardy
Anya Sanders
Alexandra Smith
Poppy Whittaker
Senior School: Year 9
• Freya Kenny
• Sophie Pearson
• Felicity Whelan
Senior School: Year 10
• Sophie Barlow
• Liberty Guillamon
Senior School: Year 11
• Ellie Coldicutt
• Angelina Godfrey
• Georgina Heap
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BEST YOUTH PRODUCTION
For the second successive year Kingsley’s Senior
School show has been named as the best youth
production in the district of Stratford, Leamington
and Warwick. The Wizard of Oz has been given
this accolade by The National Operatic Dramatic
Association (NODA) of which the school is a member.
Over 50 girls from Year 7 upwards took part in the
show and were involved in the production and design.
The Wizard of Oz received rave reviews from the sellout audiences. The representative from NODA who saw
the show wrote the following:
The lead role of Dorothy was played by Ellie Coldicutt
(Y11) with Year 13 girls Lydia Kelly, Zoe Robinson and
Anya Brown as the Lion, Tin Man and Scarecrow
respectively. There was even a real dog as Toto! The
show was a feast for the eyes with colourful scenes in
Munchkinland and the Emerald City and a very sparkly
dance routine in the enchanted forest.
Put together and rehearsed in one term, this school
production by students of every age was a colourful
and joyful show. From the cheery Munchkins to the
sparkling Emeralders and jiving Jitterbugs to the
sombre Winkies every member of the ensemble
connected with the audience. The enjoyment of the cast
was plain to see.
“The Wizard of Oz is one of the classics, the problem
with classics is most people know the story, songs and
characters and has an idea of how they should be. This
production took the extra pressure and thrived on it.
MUSICAL NOTES
Following on from their excellent performance at the Banbury Young Musician of the Year
competition vocal ensemble Cantus Amoris are preparing to take part in the school choir section
of the Leamington Spa Competitive Festival on Friday 27th June in Holy Trinity Church.
A group of Prep and Senior girls took part in a strings day at Stowe School. Head of Strings
Mrs Walton says: “They entered into the day with spirit and enthusiasm, playing well and
behaving impeccably. It was a challenging day musically, with difficult repertoire being tackled,
and a tiring one as there were long rehearsal sessions and not much down time. The end concert
was a great success and the girls really enjoyed being part of the 60-strong orchestra. All in all
it was a really valuable experience.” The girls who took part were: Daisy Southgate (Y3), Claudia
Lihou (Y3), Esme Chapman (Y4), Cecilia Goldwin (Y5), Divya Rose Hickling (Y6), Freya Warner
(Y6), Emily Jewel (Y7) and Year 8 students Matilda Dumas, Hollie Jones, Menna Jones and
Sally Evans.
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The principals were equally polished. There was a
beautiful performance of Somewhere over the Rainbow
by Ellie as Dorothy, note perfect even while holding
a determined dog. Her acting was equally strong.
Dorothy’s companions were a delight to watch,
especially Lydia as the cowardly lion with convincing
big cat moves. Of course, the show was stolen by
Toto – Bertie the dog.
Performed on the hall floor with minimal set (any set
used was made by the pupils) the challenging staging
moments (a tornado and an intimidating large wizard)
were solved with clever use of projection.
With young performers like these the future of theatre
is in very safe hands.”
SHAKESPEARE
CHALLENGE COURSE
All Year 7 students have been entered for the National
Council for the Arts Bronze Arts Award – Shakespeare
Challenge, a national programme of study established
by Trinity Guildhall. The Shakespeare Challenge was
set up by the Royal Shakespeare Company and Arts
Award to encourage young people to engage with
Shakespeare’s language through practical exploration
of his plays and by experiencing live performances.
With this in mind, Year 7 went to see the RSC’s First
Encounter production of The Taming of the Shrew.
Head of Performing Arts Mrs Walton said afterwards:
“This was a brilliant performance and workshop and was
pitched perfectly. The adaptation was extremely well
thought out. I am very pleased with how this fits in with
the Shakespeare Challenge tasks and certainly the
classwork completed so far has been very productive
and the girls have responded very positively.”
TAKE A BOW...
RECENT
PERFORMANCES
Katy Cant (Y9) recently danced on the West End
stage (for the second time) at Her Majesty’s Theatre as
part of a national Stagecoach Showcase. She is in
her 11th year of membership at Stagecoach, which she
attends every Saturday to study dance, acting and
musical theatre. Katy hopes to have a career in dance
and is working hard to achieve this goal. As well as
dancing in the school Dance Express troupe No Mean
Feet and studying Dance GCSE as an extra subject,
she dances extensively outside school. She studies
ballet, pointe and tap with Nikki Shurvinton; is a
member of the youth group of Motionhouse - the
internationally renowned contemporary dance troupe
based in Leamington Spa, and one Sunday a month
attends the Urdang Dance School in London, where
she studies ballet, jazz and musical theatre. Her hard
work is obviously paying off as last year she was
selected as one of 40 young dancers in the UK to be
in an anniversary performance of Cats in front of
Andrew Lloyd Weber at the NIA in Birmingham.
Daisy Swaby (Y7) is playing the part of one of the
workhouse children in the musical Oliver which is
being staged by the Stratford Musical Theatre
Company at The Courtyard Theatre in Stratford upon
Avon in early May - the last show being staged at the
theatre before it closes.
awarded a Drama Scholarship when she joined
Senior School. Daisy is pictured bottom left with
fellow cast members.
She was one of 100 children who auditioned for 25
coveted places in early January and has been
rehearsing very hard in the run up to the show. Daisy
has been involved in Performing Arts for several
years and played the lead role of Viola in the Year 6
production of Twelfth Night in 2013. She was
Tanya Saunders (Y9) played the part of the orphan Duffy in the musical Annie presented by Leamington &
Warwick Musical Society at The Spa Centre, Royal Leamington Spa from April 8th to 12th. Since being successful
at the auditions last September she rehearsed twice a week after school for the role which showcased her singing
and dancing as well as acting skills. She is pictured on the far right with some of her fellow cast members.
Lights, Camera, Action 2
Brush Up Your Shakespeare!
To mark this year’s 450th anniversary of the birth
of Shakespeare this end of term revue featured a
programme of songs, dance and dramatic
performances related to the Bard.
Brush Up Your Shakespeare was a celebration
of not just Shakespeare's plays but also how he
has inspired later creative works including ballet,
musical theatre and other genres. Performances
ranged from ensemble musical theatre numbers
to individual Shakespearean monologues and
many were based on the theme of strong
independent women.
Highlights included Dance of the Knights from
Prokofiev’s ballet Romeo and Juliet, an edited
spoof of Hamlet by Tom Stoppard and ensemble
pieces from Cole Porter’s Kiss Me Kate. There were
also many individual and group performances of
extracts from Shakespeare’s plays.
LAMDA Performance Evening
The LAMDA Performance Evening is Kingsley’s
annual celebration of the effort and achievement
of girls from Prep to Sixth Form and showcases
developing talents within the range of courses
available under the LAMDA Examinations
umbrella: Acting, Speaking of Verse & Prose,
Reading for Performance, Speaking in Public,
Mime and Devising Theatre.
The programme was very entertaining and great
fun and gave all girls performing an opportunity
to proudly share their creativity with a wider
audience.
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SPORT
ROWING CHAMPIONS
The strength and determination of Kingsley’s Year 9
and Year 10 indoor rowing teams has brought them
great success and the title of Central Warwickshire
Champions. They went on to represent the district at
the County Finals where the Year 9 team won a silver
medal and Year 10 came fourth out of 10 districts. The
successful teams are:
SPORTS AWARDS EVENING
• Year 9 - Lottie Wright, Laura Twite, Isobel Rhodes,
Ellie Sinclair
• Year 10 - Abi Maris, Olivia Stokes, Libby Guillamon,
Lily Holbrook
For the first time ever Kingsley has held an awards evening to honour the sporting success of girls from
Prep School to Sixth Form. Trophies and sports colours were presented for winter sports and there was
a celebration of achievements by teams and individuals since the start of term.
Special congratulations to Isobel Rhodes who was
ranked the third best individual rower in Warwickshire.
A similar event is being planned on Wednesday 9th July to celebrate performances in summer sports.
Awards for the Winter Sportswoman and Most Improved Sportswoman were presented as follows:
• Y5 Winter Sportswoman of the Year:
Hannah Dennison
• Y5 Winter Most Improved Sportswoman:
Sophie Stanley
• Y6 Winter Sportswoman of the Year
Maddie Glasspool and Lara Whitmore
• Y6 Winter Most Improved Sportswoman:
Karina Baden
• Y7 Winter Sportswoman of the Year:
Isobel Hudson
• Y7 Winter Most Improved Sportswoman:
Olivia Griffiths
• Y8 Winter Sportswoman of the Year:
Tabatha Sinclair and Imogen Forster
• Y8 Winter Most Improved Sportswoman:
Annabel Holder
• Y9 Winter Sportswoman of the Year:
Lottie Wright
• Y9 Winter Most Improved Sportswoman:
Charlotte Dennison
• Y10-13 Winter Sportswoman of the Year:
Caroline Furey
• Y10-13 Winter Most Improved Sportswoman:
Megan Steel
There were also special trophies for:
• Outstanding Sporting Recognition Award for reaching the national standard in their sports:
Emily Mortimer (Y5) – rhythmic gymnastics and Becky Burden (Y6) swimming
• Team of the Year: Y9 Netball Squad
• Senior School Long Service Award: – EJ Macleod (Y13)
NETBALL NEWS
• Kingsley’s Years 7, 8 and 9 netball teams have all
won the 2014 Emerging Schools’ Netball
Tournament for their age group and won most of
the games they have played this season. (Years 7
and 9 only one loss and Year 8 just two defeats).
• Year 9 players Lottie Wright and Laura Twite
have been selected for the U14 regional squad.
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• The Year 9 team has scored a total of 212 goals
this season - an average of 17 per game with
only 46 against them.
• Year 9 girls Cemre Gurkan, Georgie Hill and
Lizzie Westley are waiting to hear if they have
been accepted to play for Warwickshire.
PREP GYMNAST
QUALIFIES FOR BRITISH
CHAMPIONSHIPS
Just a few weeks after being selected for an elite GB
training squad, Kingsley’s 2020 Olympic hopeful,
rhythmic gymnast Emily Mortimer (Y5) has been
named as the West Midlands U11 champion and
qualified for the British Championships in May.
Despite being just 10 years old she has also won a
bronze medal in the under 12 Zone C competition –
one of four competitive zones for the sport in the UK.
Emily’s fantastic success was honoured by Kingsley at
the Sports Awards Evening when she was presented
with a special trophy in recognition of her achieving the
national standard in her sport. Emily trains six days a
week at the City of Coventry Rhythmic Gymnastics Club
under the guidance of her coach Hannah Walker.
Her mother Mrs Kate Mortimer says: “The Kingsley
School is very supportive of Emily which helps her
balance her training needs with a hectic school life,
both from a sporting and academic perspective”.
ON TOP OF THEIR GAME…
• Imogen Forster (Y8) – selected for the Warwickshire U14 hockey team.
• Becky Burden (Y6) – achieved regional qualification times for swimming
and will be representing Kingsley at the Independent Association of Prep
Schools’ swimming finals.
• Yellow House – winners of the first ever Prep House Hockey Tournament.
• Year 9 badminton team – winners of the District Championships.
• Year 9 badminton players Emily Pettigrew, Tabatha Sinclair, Erica
McCallum, Emma Chamberlain and Tanya Saunders who represented
Central Warwickshire in the Warwickshire County Finals and won bronze out
of ten districts.
BEING BALL GIRLS
Eight members of the Year 9 A netball team took on the
job of being ball girls at the Loughborough Lightening
Netball Superleague home game against Bath. It was a
once in a lifetime opportunity to get very close to a top
level game.
RIDING RESULTS
Schools’ Eventer Challenge, Bloxham
PE teacher Miss Jones says: “They deserve this
experience as a reward for their total commitment and
fantastic success.”
One of the girls selected was Lizzie Westley. Here is her
report about the experience:
“Placed around the court myself, Felicity Whelan,
Charlotte Dennison and Ellie Sinclair were ready for
the match to begin. With a towel in hand our duties
were needed little but the thrill was amazing! Swapping
at half time, Lottie Wright, Georgie Hill, Cemre Gurkan
and Tanya Saunders took up their places at the side of
the court for the remainder of the game.
Loughborough and Bath were extremely close
throughout the match with intriguing interceptions
and faultless footwork. The match was inspiring. One
team had to win and Bath took the victory over the
home team to lead the Super League.
After an unforgettable match we were fortunate to
meet the Lightening squad, getting autographs and
photographs. We then travelled home not wanting
the experience to end. Our teachers Miss Jones and
Mrs Close returned us safely to our parents at quite
a late hour and ensured we had a fantastic night filled
with fun, thrill and inspirational women.”
JUMPING INTO THE
COUNTY FINAL
Year 8 rider Hollie Jones and her horse Poppy Day
will represent Warwickshire in the NSEA National
Schools' County Challenge Final at Bury Farm in
Buckinghamshire.
The pair achieved an excellent fourth place in a class
of 74 in a show jumping competition at Kings
Bromyard in March to qualify for the event.
In the meantime, the Kingsley Riding Squad is
training hard for competitions over the summer.
Preparations are also underway for the two annual
Kingsley/Princethorpe dressage and show jumping
events at:
• Princethorpe on10th and 11th May
• Offchurch on 24th and 25th May.
• Intermediate 3’ – Kingsley team 2nd overall
(Georgia Henry (Y10) on Millie, Amy Newcombe
(Y9) on Mallow, Hannah Gardener (Y9) on Swift
and Steph Robinson (Y9) on Jack). Individually
Steph Robinson 5th and Amy Newcombe 10th.
• Open 3’3 – Charlotte Northwood (Y13) on Kitty
placed 4th as an individual and 3rd in a mixed
team.
Southam College Show Jumping
• Class 1 – 65cm – Kingsley team 1st (Sophie
Phillips (Y8) on Buffy, Hollie Jones (Y8) on
Poppy and Amy Newcombe on Miss Molly).
Individually Sophie Phillips 1st, Hollie Jones
2nd and Amy Newcombe 8th.
• Class 2 – 75cm – Individually Sophie Phillips
1st, Hollie Jones 2nd and Millie Hatton (Y8)
8th.
• Class 3 – 85cm – Kingsley team 1st (Imogen
Forster (Y8) on River Dance, Amy Newcombe
on Mallow, Georgia Henry on Millie and Laura
Twite (Y9) on Bud is Wiser). Individually Laura
Twite 1st and Imogen Forster 3rd.
• Class 4 – 95cm – Kingsley team 3rd (Imogen
Forster on River Dancer, Amy Newcombe on
Mallow, Georgia Henry on Millie and Charlotte
Northwood on Kitty). Individually Amy Newcombe
6th and Imogen Forster 7th.
TERM DATES 2014 / 2015
Summer Term 2014
Autumn Term 2014
Spring Term 2015
• INSET Day – Monday 28th April
• INSET DAY – Monday 1st September
• INSET Day – Monday 5th January
• Term begins – Tuesday 29th April
• Term begins (Prep/Y7/Y12) Tuesday 2nd September
• Term begins – Tuesday 6th January
• Term begins (all other years) Wednesday 3rd September
• Term ends – Friday 27th March (time tbc)
• Bank Holiday – Monday 5th May
• Half Term – Monday 26th to Friday 30th May
• Term ends – Friday 11th July (12.40pm)
• Half Term – Monday 16th to Friday 20th February
• Half Term - Monday 20th to Friday 31st October
• Term ends - Wednesday 17th December (12.40pm)
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KEY DATES FOR 2014
2nd July
13th September
4th October
Senior School
Open Evening
Taster Morning
for Year 7 (entry Sept 2015)
Prep School
Open Morning
4th October
14th October
8th November
Senior School
Open Afternoon
Sixth Form
Open Evening
Entrance Exam
for Year 7 (entry Sept 2015)
SMALL CLASSES...
BIG SMILES...
GREAT ACHIEVEMENTS...
Musings from the Head’s Office
I began this term by talking to all the girls in assemblies about success being the sum of small steps of effort taken day
by day. I am mindful that our older girls are currently stepping up their efforts even more to ensure they are as well
prepared and achieve the best they can in the upcoming public examinations.
Equally important in this wonderful through school
is the amount of effort our younger girls put into all
they do here – and the overwhelmingly high
standard achieved in the Prep Easter Bonnet Parade
was a shining example (see page 4).
This is my fourth year at Kingsley and leading this
wonderful community is still a daily privilege. I am
aware of the lovely rhythm of the school calendar and
it is the time when the Senior Leadership Team is
looking ahead to the 2014-15 academic year. Besides
making plans for our 130th birthday (see page 13),
and looking at the new entrants for September, it is
very definitely the interview season as we have to
ensure that the best subject teachers are in place to
help our students learn.
I have been spending a lot of time interviewing recently,
including interviewing our fabulous sixth form girls for
positions in next year’s Sixth Form Leadership Team.
What a wonderfully heart-warming experience this
always is! It is such a joy to see the end products of a
Kingsley education. Kingsley girls always have such
poise, confidence and composure and without
exception tell of their love of our unique community.
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Written and edited by The Kingsley School
This year we were curious to find out if the girls perceive
that there is such a thing as a ‘Kingsley girl’. Although
the general view was that Kingsley is excellent at
promoting individuality and our girls are exceptionally
accepting of difference, there was definitely a strong
sense that a Kingsley girl demonstrates some
particularly wonderful qualities.
What is clear is that even though every Kingsley girl
is different, often independent and unique in her own
way, overwhelmingly the sixth form girls agree that a
Kingsley girl is friendly, welcoming and caring; she is
determined, hard-working; she is enthusiastic, a cando person who puts her whole heart into everything
she does; she is mature, sensible and smart, and at
the same time has a fantastic sense of fun with a
positive optimistic view of life. What has been
especially lovely this year is that at least half of the new
girls who joined Kingsley less than a two terms ago
are so proud to be part of Kingsley – they acknowledge
how Kingsley has changed them and their behaviour,
how the welcome they have been given has made them
more confident, comfortable in their own skin and able
to be their true selves and finally able to flourish in a
happy learning environment.
One girl who has joined us from an international
school spoke of her worries that a close knit
community such as Kingsley might be a difficult one
for a newcomer to fit into, but she now knows that her
worries were unnecessary and she could not have
been more wrong. She has been thrilled by the
welcoming smiles and helpful support with which she
had been welcomed, how ‘being Kingsley kind’ is a
trait which pervades our lovely community. As another
girl, who has been here since she was three years old,
said: “we are all just a family here.” And so we are.
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