We were once again blown away by the range and quality of entries from students across the school into our Winter Poetry competition. Students wrote about many different aspects of winter, from snowflakes to Christmas lights, to winter wildlife.
Congratulations to all students who submitted poems!
Last weekend, we had the opportunity to compete for the Regional Air Squadron Trophy. We were competing against 12 schools from the South West in 5 categories - Drill, Military Knowledge, Command Task, Shooting, First Aid and Aircraft Recognition. We came 2nd in the whole competition that included a 2nd place in First Aid, 3rd place in Drill and joint 3rd in Command Task.
We left Reading School on Saturday morning, to travel to Blandford Forum in Dorset. On the way there, we stopped at the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop, learning about the history and uses of different aircrafts over time.
This morning, at Kendrick School we commemorated Holocaust Memorial Day (27/01) with an assembly lead by Ms. Kattirtzi. Some Year 12 History students took us through this year’s theme of the 'Fragility of Freedom' by explaining how those who are targeted for persecution have had their freedom restricted and removed, like Anne Frank who spoke in her diary about Jewish people not being able to ride a bicycle or take a talk when they wished. Our students also explained that others risked their freedom, like Vali Rácz risked her freedom and her life to save Jews in Hungary during the Second World War. Despite being aware she would likely be murdered if caught, she built a false partition into a large wardrobe to hide people.
On Wednesday 10th January, we had the opportunity to travel to Oxford University to participate in the Top of the Bench competition, a challenge designed to put practical and teamwork skills into action whilst inspiring excitement about Chemistry.
We spent the day at the university’s world-renowned laboratory and were able to use advanced equipment, such as a UV-vis spectrophotometer! The challenge required us to use our understanding and knowledge of Chemistry to attempt the challenges set for the key stage higher than ours.
With two in-patient long-term wards, various clinics and incredible teams, the local community has benefited greatly from the children’s ward at Royal Berkshire Hospital. Having recently been there to shadow a doctor, I saw many patients presenting with vastly different concerns. Some only a few months old, some edging into adulthood. But all of them and their families were going through one of the most difficult times of their life. To help provide some distractions, I decided to start a gift drive.
On Friday 8th December, a group of A-Level Geographers had the privilege of attending a Model UN conference at Reading Town Hall, representing the USA and Brazil.
The conference kicked off with an inspiring talk from the Mayor of Reading, who spoke about the importance of stopping climate change and protecting the world for future generations to come. This was followed up by a keynote speaker who then set the ground rules for diplomacy and officially called for the conference to begin.
On Tuesday 3rd October, 70 Year 12 and 25 Year 13 Maths students took part in the Senior Mathematical Challenge run by the UK Maths Trust. This is a 90-minute multiple choice paper featuring stimulating problems designed to make students think carefully and apply their mathematical skills in new ways. We are delighted that this year, 78 students achieved either a Bronze, Silver or Gold certificate.
On the 4th November, I competed in the 50th Wado Kai European Karate Championships in Strasbourg, along with 450 other competitors from all over Europe and emerged with a Silver medal in the individual category and a Bronze from the team category, despite only having two days to practise with my team members. In preparation, I attended extra weekly training sessions with my sensei and even politely requested some assistance from an ever so slightly-unwilling older brother.
On the last day of November, we were given the opportunity to fly a plane by our CCF unit, who encourage their RAF cadets to experience airmanship first hand. The experience was a once in a lifetime opportunity - from controlling the plane ourselves to experiencing aerobatics. We also met cadets from other cities and talked to pilots about their experiences. Being at an airbase was an educational experience as we learnt about different planes throughout history.
On 12th December, students studying GCSE German had the opportunity to go to Reading University for a 'German on-campus day' to discuss migration and identity in Germany.
We started the day by discussing how we would define identity and what many people may feel when they have mixed ethnic backgrounds. We then learnt about the ‘Wirtschaftswunder’, also known as the economic miracle, where, shortly after the Second World War, Germany invited many people from Turkey to join their workforce to help revive their economy. These Turkish workers were known as ‘Gastarbeiter’ (guest workers). We watched a film, Almanya (2011) which followed the life story of a ‘Gastarbeiter’. The film illustrated his struggles to get used to German customs and how his successive generations tried to find their individual identities.
Neha in Year 7, recently entered the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL) School Science Prize competition, for which she had to write a short essay about ‘Why I love Science’. Neha’s piece was so good that she was shortlisted for the final, which took place on Friday 8th December and for which she had to prepare an additional two-minute presentation.