Following on from our in-school Poetry by Heart competition last term, we entered the videos of our winning performances into the national competition and were delighted to discover that, in all three key stages, our students were awarded Best in County for Berkshire.
Last month saw the return of the ever-popular Lower School Chamber Concert, featuring solo, duet and trio performances, as well as those in bands from Years 7-9. It is a great opportunity for students to perform music of their choosing from a range of genres and styles throughout musical history. For some, this may be their first public performance on stage, and for others, it gives them a chance to showcase the progress they have made in becoming accomplished musicians.
We were delighted to welcome over 70 Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 students and staff from 6 local primary schools to Kendrick for their Spring Netball Tournament. Students in year groups 3-6 attended with mixed lower and upper school teams from Geoffrey Field, Whitley Park, Christ the King, Ridgeway, Lambs Lane and New Christ Church Primary Schools.
We were delighted to welcome into Kendrick school students from Primary School Years 3 -6 who are participating in our Widening Horizons programme. The students, supported by some of our older Kendrick students, took part in exciting workshops led by our staff.
Years 3 & 4 enjoyed a dance workshop in our dance studio whilst the Year 6 students worked on a maths quiz.
The hard work and dedication of last year's finalists in the Science in Medicine e-poster competition is having a real impact on the Biology Department. Thanks to their success, some of the prize money they won has been invested in brand-new gel electrophoresis kits.
This sophisticated piece of biotechnology equipment is a vital tool in modern biology and these techniques make two appearances in the A-Level science specification. Having this equipment readily available in our school lab truly brings science to life, offering our students invaluable hands-on experience with techniques used by scientists every day.
Our Year 13 biologists embarked on an inspiring journey to the prestigious Oxford University Museum of Natural History on Wednesday, March 26th. There, a select group of 13 students immersed themselves in the cutting-edge world of gene and cell therapy at a special day hosted by The British Society for Gene and Cell Therapy. The event ignited their curiosity through five captivating lectures delivered by leading experts, prompting deep thought about the ethical dimensions and societal impact of this groundbreaking science.
Anya, in Year 11, recently performed exceptionally at the Historical Association's Great Debate finals and was named runner-up in this national competition. The Great Debate is a public speaking competition where students have five minutes to present their speech arguing their answer to a historical question. This year's question was 'How can your local history tell a global story?' Having progressed through a school heat, a round of Reading schools and a national semi-final, Anya impressed the judges and history professors from the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford and York, at a final held at Windsor Castle. In their words:
The Arkwright Engineering Scholarship is the UK’s most prestigious scholarship of its kind, designed to inspire and support the next generation of engineering leaders. The scholarship is awarded through a rigorous selection process to Year 11 students.
Administered by the Smallpeice Trust (the UK’s largest STEM educational charity) and supported by external sponsors, the two-year scholarship provides a range of opportunities, including:
On Thursday 3rd April, a journalist from Reading and Wokingham Today newspaper, Andrew Batt, visited Kendrick to give a talk about his first-hand experiences in journalism, the current landscape of local news, and to give advice to Kendrick's aspiring journalists. After reaching out via email, I was so glad when Andrew responded to my request to have a conversation about a career in journalism and his visit this week went above and beyond.
All of Year 11 had the chance to see a live production of their GCSE set text Macbeth, at the Globe Theatre as part of a special 'Playing Shakespeare' production for schools, produced in partnership with Deutsche Bank. Students loved the chance to visit Shakespeare's Globe and enjoyed this fast-paced and engaging production, particularly the modern-day military setting and the witches' acrobatics!
To support Comic Relief, we had our annual Comic Relief week, starting 19th March, packed full of fun activities!
On Tuesday, 18th March, Year 12 students had the privilege of visiting the Hexagon to participate in the 'Maths Inspiration' event. This event featured several talks from professionals in the field. The discussions about maths in our everyday lives were intriguing, and highlighted the versatility of maths. Hosted by Matt Parker who runs a successful maths-related YouTube channel: Stand up Maths, we discovered interesting mathematical concepts. These were introduced with humour and passion, making the experience so much more enjoyable!