Archived News | Lent: January to April 2010
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Joint Choral Society Concert
Congratulations to everyone who took part the High School and St Albans School annual Joint Choral Society Concert in St Albans Abbey on 17 March.
The main work of the concert, conducted by Dr Springthorpe, was the Requiem by John Rutter, a popular, modern setting of the requiem mass. The companion piece was the delightful Missa Brevis (Little Organ Mass) by Haydn, whilst Anna Le Hair gave an uplifting performance of the evergreen Concerto No 2 by Shoshtakovich.
Another triumphant success!
Gymnastics Squad Excel
On Tuesday 2 March the Gymnastics Squad performed in the District Gymnastics Display at Sir John Lawes School. The gym squad performed three routines, including a trio perfomance by Lucy Moxham, Catherine Heminway and Melanie Grigg, the second a medley routine involving the whole squad and then finally a very impressive trampette routine. The girls performed absolutely brilliantly and should be very proud of their achievements.
StAHS shine at Technology Tournament
On 10 March sixteen girls attended the Rotary Inter-School Technology Tournament at Marlborough school. This is an annual event and the girls were competing against several other schools in the local area and were divided into Basic, Intermediate and Advanced teams depending on their age groups.
The basic team's design brief was to design and make a beacon with a flashing light, the degree of complexity being increased for the upper two teams: the Intermediate team had to make the light flash ten times and the Advanced team had to make the light flash once per second.
All the girls demonstrated very creative ideas in their planning, produced excellent portfolios and all gained very positive feedback from the judges throughout the day. The Intermediate team tackled their challenge head on producing an ingenious prototype and won the competition for their level. They received an engraved plate and a book token for each winning team member. This is the second year running that this group of girls has won the competition so we were very proud of their achievement.
Read more about the achievements of all the teams in our forthcoming Newsletter in April.
WH Gym Success
Over the weekend both the U10 and U11 teams qualified to take part in the Girls Independent Schools Gymnastic National Finals. The girls competed against 30 other schools from all around the world.
The under 10’s earned medals and a trophy for their group sequence and placed 5th overall as a team.
The under 11’s also placed 6th for their group and medalled in 6th place overall.
WH Julian Charity Day
On Tuesday 2 March 2010 it was Julian Charity Day at Wheathampstead House. Our theme was Fairies and Princesses. We had a great time and everyone enjoyed it. We raised the money for "Make a Wish Foundation" a charity which helps ill children accomplish their dreams. We raised about £370.55 for those ill children. We had two great competitions. Bake a Cake for the juniors and Design a Princess Dress for the infants.
We all had a lovely time and would like to thank Miss Styles and all the other Julian staff for organising this event.
By Ellie Preston-Jones (House Captain) and Bethan Roberts (Vice Captain)
Cake Sale for Haiti
The cake sale held by 9J today raised £155.39 for Haiti. Thank you all for your kind donations and we hope you enjoyed the delicious treats!
Well done to all girls that helped organise the event and to those who donated cakes. A fantastic effort for such a great cause!
BBC School Report Website Launched
The day of the BBC School Report has finally arrived and girls have been examining the news of the day, taking opinion polls on issues of interest to girls in the school and writing new articles. It has been exciting day, giving a really good sense of what it is like to be a journalist.
Click here for up to date photos, blogs and articles.
Click here to go to the BBC School Report website and follow the link to 'Articles'.
Joseph's coat of many colours
The girls in 2WT have enjoyed creating coats for Joseph. They worked hard to design, stitch and add detail to their coats, the final results are a real credit to all their hard work!
U14s win the RMS Invitational Netball Tournament
On Saturday 6 March, the U14 netball team played in the Royal Masonic School Invitational Tournament. The High School team played brilliantly to go through to the semi finals as group winners. They beat Dr Challenor's High School 15-3 and faced RMS in what was a nail biting final. At half time the scores were level at 6-6. In the second half, the High School stepped up their game to win the final 11-7 and take the title for a second year. A truly fantastic performance from the team!
The full match report will be on the extranet.
BBC School Report 2010
A team of students from Year 9 will be making the news for real on 11 March as they take part in the BBC News School Report. The BBC School Report scheme was set up last year and proved so successful that it has been repeated again this year with girls from Year 9. This initiative encourages young people to get actively involved in reporting on local, national and world news through the web and other media. It gives the students a chance to make their own news reports for a real audience, with support from BBC staff and teachers.
After many weeks of preparation, the StAHS BBC School Report website for 2010 is now live and showcases stories written by our team in the run up to 11 March. On this day, the BBC news network will broadcast stories and will pick up particularly impressive reports by school children to show nationwide.
Two members of the team, Anna Merelie and Ellie Freedman, were delighted that Professor Robert Winston agreed to take time out of his very busy schedule to be interviewed by them last week at Imperial College. Professor Winston talked to the girls about his new Reach Out Lab which has been set up to engage children and young people in science. Click here and go to the 'Articles' section of the website to read more about their interview!
Click here to go to the BBC School Report website.
'Faith in the World' Conference
On Thursday 4 February, five Year 12 Philosophy students attended the 'Faith in the World' Conference in Westminster. The girls had an opportunity to listen and discuss issues relating to faith in the world today with the guest speakers; Archbishop Rowan Williams (Archbishop of Canterbury), Elaine Graham (Grosvenor Research Professor of Practical Theology at the University of Chester) and Rev Richard Cole (Broadcaster and Curate of St Paul's Knightsbridge).
Year 2 visit to Radlett and Bushey synagogue
Year 2 visited the synagogue in Radlett just before half-term. They enjoyed looking around the synagoue and learning more about the Jewish faith. They dressed up in 'tallitot' and 'kippot', just like the people who pray at the synagogue. The girls also had to try and write their names in Hebrew, which is very tricky, as it is not only a different alphabet, but goes from right to left!
Sing Up!
Girls from Wheathampstead House recently took part in the National Sing Up Day, which took place in many schools across the country. In 2WT the girls were very keen to choose and sing songs as part of Sing Up. Firstly, they sang 'The Climb' and then an action song 'Run Rabbit' but in Maori! (o ma rapeti).
Sing Up is a national campaign to promote singing in schools. It is led by Youth Music, the UK's largest children's music charity. It is used as a cross-curricular tool as Youth Music believe that every child deserves the chance to sing every day. Singing improves learning, confidence, health and social development. It has the power to change lives and help to build stronger communities.
Click to play the first video clip from Reception Class
Click to play the second clip from Reception Class
Simply Red
Younger girls could only shield their eyes as a red glow descended over the High School on Friday. Sixth Form girls were even brighter than usual, as they got involved in the "Be a part of Red for Heart" day in aid of the British Heart Foundation. There were more red outfits on show than at a Manchester United home game and a coffee morning featured a variety of cakes – all home made and with red hearts, in true High School style. A total of £220 was raised – simply inc
redible!
Guest speaker from London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
On Wednesday 24 February Dr Graham Clark from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine spoke to members of the Biology Society about the gut parasite Entamoeba histolytica. His talk covered the life cycle of the parasite, the symptoms of the disease and genetic fingerprinting techniques used to look at variation within the species. The girls were able to view live parasites under the microscope!
Helping Haiti
On Friday 12 February – one month after the devastating earthquake on the island of Haiti, the children from Wheathampstead House swapped their uniform for colourful, bright casual clothes and paid £1 for the privilege! The money we raised during the day, plus other contributions from individual children's fund-raising efforts, has amounted to £925.47 which will be given to the disaster relief fund.
House Drama 2010
Ever wondered who wrote Cinderella? Who thought of the seven Dwarves? Could a servant really be transformed into a princess? And how could you possibly have a golden goose live on stage? The girls at StAHS will find answers to all these questions and more during the House Drama performances of Grimm Tales. Parents and students are both welcome on Thursday 4 March!
Art trip to Barcelona
On a cold and damp February morning during half-term, twenty three sixth form girls and their three art teachers, Mr McGuinness, Miss Marsh and Mrs Brown, gathered at Luton airport ready to fly off to explore the art and architecture of Barcelona. We were met by our guide, a talkative and personable Frenchman called Franz, who whisked us into the bus and off to see the delights of this beautiful city.
With warmer weather and lightening skies we took to the streets of Barcelona, soaking up the culture, sights and sounds. Of the many places that we visited, the most impressive were the Museum of Contemporary Art with its pared down but stunning architecture, and in complete contrast, the intricate and awe inspiring Sagrada Familia. Antonio Gaudi's work was highlighted throughout the trip, with a visit to his atmospheric Parc Guell, as well as 'La Pedrera' and the Casa Battlo. At these various locations we sketched intensively, trying to capture the feel of the city and the wonders of its art. On our last day we took in wonderful views of the city, high on Mountjuic, at the National Museum of the Art of Catalonia, which was full of Byzantine frescos. In sharp contrast, our visit to the Joan Miro Foundation challenged us with its abstract and conceptual work and its whimsical sculptures.
Of course it was not just 'all work and no play'; plenty of thought had been given to free time for shopping and sampling the culinary delights of the city.
The trip was great fun as well as productive and we all came back with sketchbooks brimming with ideas and inspiration for our forthcoming examination projects.
Report by Deborah Alder and Ellie Goulding
Drama trip to Stratford-upon-Avon
Over half-term 70 enthusiastic Drama students headed to the birthplace of the world's greatest playwright William Shakespeare. The girls took part in intensive workshops led by professional actors in preparation for their House Drama performances in March. Activities on the trip included, a visit to Shakepeare's boyhood home and a live theatre visit to 'The Miser' by French playwright Molière. Girls also took the opportunity to perform in a talent show and then sang the night away with a live DJ and karaoke machine. A big thank must also be given to all the staff who gave up their half-term to take the girls on this enriching trip.
Trip to Auschwitz
Two Year 12 History students, Lucy Edwardes-Jones and Chloe Woodmansterne, visited Auschwitz concentration camp on Thursday 11 February. The trip was organised in conjunction with the Holocaust Education Trust which enables two students from every participating British school to make the trip as part of the Lessons From Auschwitz programme. On their return, Lucy and Chloe will continue the programme by sharing their experiences with the school community.
Lucy wins Gold in Gym Competition
Congratulations to Lucy from St Albans High School who took gold in both the advanced trampette and tumble at the recent schools' competition held at Marriotts Gymnastics Club in January.
Celebrating Oxbridge Success
Congratulations to all ten of our girls who have secured themselves the offer of a place at Cambridge or Oxford for 2010. Between them, the girls will be reading Chemistry, Classics, Engineering, English, Modern Languages, Geography, Medicine and Natural Science. As ever the competition was tough and even more hard work lies ahead as the girls focus on the task of gaining the grades they need. But for now there's a time for celebration. Well done to all the girls, we are very proud of you!
Coming Soon to StAHS: Oxford Admissions Conference – Book your place now!
On Wednesday 24 March, St Albans High School for Girls will host a Conference on admissions to Oxford University, supported by St Anne's College.
This informative and thought-provoking event is a follow up to the successful conference last year and promises to be useful for anyone considering applying to Oxford or Cambridge. The conference begins at 4.00pm on Wednesday 24 March and is already proving popular, so please email Oxbridge@stalbans-high.herts.sch.uk for more information, or to enquire about attending. Please note that pre-booking is vital!
Mayor talks to High School pupils
We were delighted to welcome Chris Oxley, the Mayor of St Albans to the School last Friday, 29 January. Cllr Oxley gave a talk in PSHCEE lessons to Year 9 and Year 10 pupils about Local Democracy in which he not only demystified the role of Mayor, but also explained the various levels of government from Parish Councils through to the role of the European Parliament. Pupils enjoyed a lively debate in which they were invited to give their opinions on various topics including whether or not the voting age should be lowered. They were also able to ask a range of questions concerning future plans for St Albans.
HAITI EARTHQUAKE
Further to the horrific earthquake in Haiti, School Officers held a collection for the British Red Cross Appeal at the end of Senior School assembly on Monday 18 January and raised over £960.
High School Talented Gymnast goes from strength to strength
Lucy in Year 7 was awarded the Welwyn Hatfield Queens Jubilee award this week for Gymnastics. The grants are awarded to help and encourage talented young people to reach their full potential. In 2009 Lucy achieved Grade 8 and came 4th at the Regionals. She went on to represent the Eastern Region in The National Finals in Birmingham where the team took Silver and Lucy finished 10th overall. She is County Champion at Level 3 taking gold in all 4 pieces (floor, vault, beam and bars).
Lucy also represented Hertfordshire in November, in the inter-county competition where the team finished 1st.
Her plans for 2010 include Regional Grade 8 by the end of February and then Level 2 in September. She has also been selected for the Herts County Senior squad again for 2010.
Lucy plans to use the grant she was awarded to purchase new hand guards and wrist bands, gloves and hoops for the metal bar and a new long sleeved competition leotard. We wish her all the best over the forthcoming season and look forward to following her progress.
Former Head of Wheathampstead House features in Who's Who 2010 Guide
Former Head of Wheathampstead House, Mrs Dunkerley, has joined the world's great and good by appearing alongside famous names in the newly-published edition of Who’s Who, which details the biographies of the most influential people in the world. Mrs Dunkerley's entry includes her hobbies of textile art, scrap booking and choral singing, and is two lines longer than Nelson Mandela's!
Mrs Dunkerley, who retired in July after 11 years at the High School, was delighted with her newly acquired accolade and features amongst other notable people such as US President Barack Obama.
The Who's Who Guide was first published in 1849 and once a person's name has appeared in it for the first time it remains there for the rest of their life.
St Albans High School and St Albans School Joint Choral Society Concert 2010
This exciting annual event will be taking place in St Albans Cathedral, on Wednesday 17 March 2010 at 7.30pm and will include the choirs of both schools including the High School Senior Choir and the Middle School Choir. We also welcome brothers, sisters, parents and friends to join us in singing two magnificent works - Rutter's
'Requiem' and Haydn's
'Little Organ Mass'.
Tickets for the concert will be available from either school. Click here for a ticket application form and further information.
Latest News |
Lent Term 2010 |
Michaelmas Term 2009 |
Trinity Term 2009 |
