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A Message from Mrs Knox
Over the last 2 days, I have had the opportunity to attend the Independent School Association’s annual conference. Heads from the sector have come together to hear thought provoking presentations from educational and business leaders. There have been some really innovative ideas and practical solutions that I will be sharing with the staff and pupils next week. Huge thank you to the Prep and Senior School Charity Committees for leading us in acknowledging Children in Need today. The vision of the charity is to ensure that every child has a safe place and secure childhood and the money raised will go directly to helping children reach their potential. Finally, good luck to the staff, cast and crew on their last Sunday rehearsal before the first night of The Addams Family next week. Have a lovely weekend.
Mrs Knox
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Anti-Bullying Week
This week pupils at Duke of Kent School have been acknowledging the need to 'Reach Out' if they feel that any bullying has or is occurring. Anti-Bullying week started with Odd socks day which helps us appreciate that we are all different and we should celebrate individuality. Pupils have listened and interacted incredibly well in lessons and assemblies, showing great empathy and committing to a determined approach to make Duke of Kent School a happy and safe environment to work, socialise and play. Activities this week have included researching quotes relating to bullying. An amazing 3D hand has been created within the Art department with the quotes placed upon it; this will be displayed to help encourage pupils to reach out for help if they feel it is needed. Some classes have been creating new PE activities based on traditional games but with new rules to represent how small changes make a difference.
As always, we encourage all pupils to be upstanders and not bystanders if they witness any bullying and remember to inform a trusted adult if they are concerned.
Mr Herbert
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Children in Need
On Friday the Senior and Prep School Charity Committees led the School in marking Children in Need. Pupils enjoyed attending in home clothes and bringing their teddies in to join them at School for the day. Even a few Year 11 School bags were spotted with a furry friend poking out of the top!
Following a collection on the drive in the morning (thank you to all those who donated) the Senior School Committee ran an awareness raising assembly. At lunchtime they entertained Pre-prep with a teddy bear's picnic as well as face painting for the Senior School.
The Prep School Committee ran a fabulous breaktime cake sale. They were so grateful for all the cakes that were donated and were particularly impressed by the effort that had gone into them. Highlights included the crispy cakes and strawberry cream cake!
A great deal of fun was had by all and a substantial amount was raised for the charities associated with Children in Need.
Thanks to everyone who got involved!
The Senior and Prep Charity Committees
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Nursery visit Brooklands Motor Museum
This Tuesday Nursery Class went on a much anticipated trip to Brooklands Motor Museum. This was linked to their interest in all vehicles relating to transport. It was a very, very soggy day, but luckily we were able to dash from building to building! We all really enjoyed seeing different kinds of planes and even had a go at designing our own using a computer programme. They also have a wonderful bus museum where the children were able to be bus drivers and could pretend to go on journeys around the world on a double decker bus! We had a quick tour of the motor car museum and the children were excited to see so many amazing cars. The children have begun to make their own model planes and vehicles with great enthusiasm and attention to detail as a result of the trip.
Mrs Ragless
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Stretch and Challenge Art Trip to Caroline de Peyrecave's Art Studio
On Wednesday a group of Art Scholars and S&C artists visited the studio of Caroline de Peyrecave. Caroline is a renowned portrait artist who trained at the Charles Cecil Studios in Florence, Italy and now lives and works locally. Her portraiture brings a contemporary eye to the techniques of the old masters, capturing a sense of the sitter's personality and the relationship that develops between sitter and artist. If you would like to see more of Caroline's work please follow this link:
https://www.carolinedepeyrecave.co.uk/
During our visit pupils worked collaboratively on a charcoal portrait of Mr Watson, where they explored Caroline's 'sight-size' painting technique, experimented with oil paint, and considered the practical elements of working as an artist, including commissioning, networking, the gallery system and promotion.
As you can tell, a huge amount was crammed into just a short morning! Pupils gained a real insight into the working process and realities of being a successful artist.
Mr Watson
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Virtual Author Workshop
Yesterday, the Year 9 pupils had a very exciting virtual workshop with award-winning publisher and author Daniella Blechner. She taught pupils steps to writing their own children's book including how to generate ideas for a storybook and how to create realistic settings and characters.
In the next few weeks, the pupils will start writing their own children's books in their English skills lessons. Next term, they will produce a digital and audio version of their book in Computer Science, they will even experiment with augmented reality!
On World Book Day 2023, they will take the wonderful books they have produced to Pre-Prep where they will read them to the Pre-Prep children!
Miss Anand
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House Bake Off Semi Finals
The semi-finals for the Duke of Kent School Bake Off were held this week. Our 9 semi-finalists had a chance once again to dazzle the judges with the cakes that set them apart from the rest of the 53 bakes that were entered this year.
The attitude of the pupils was excellent. All Prep and Senior competitors approached their semi-final with enthusiasm and gusto. Whether it was adapting when things didn’t go as expected or encouraging and congratulating their competition on their hard work. The cake quality was exceptional, which made it even more difficult for the judges to pick out two Prep and two Senior entries to progress to the final.
The finalists are:
Prep - Manon A (Kestrel), Oliver T (Buzzard)
Senior - Eva L (Buzzard), Edie H ( Kestrel)
Well done to all of the semi-finalists! You all have a great deal to be proud of. Good luck to our finalists! They will have already discovered what challenge awaits them for the Grand Final on Tuesday, 6th December.
Mr Gritton
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We are always an odd lot in Prep and Pre-prep, but on Monday even more so, as we donned our mis-matched socks for the day; what a fun and colourful way to celebrate difference and embrace each other's own unique personality. This message was further emphasised throughout 'Anti-bullying Week' in a variety of ways, including PSHE lessons, class conversations, posters around the school and a highly thought-provoking assembly from Mrs Nicholson.
Year 4 have been busy with their studies of the legend of Robin Hood, putting the man himself on trial earlier in the week! They set up a courtroom scene, complete with prosecution, defence and various witnesses who all had their say, and debated various points. Unfortunately for poor Robin, the jury decided he should go to jail! In Science, Year 3 explored the different uses for materials. They had the chance to use an App called PicCollage for the first time to present their findings, showing impressive listening and creative skills to achieve their final piece. In their Maths lessons, Year 2 have honed their measuring skills of various objects around the department, and Reception pupils have been learning about 2D shapes. Reception also deserve congratulations for completing the first stage of their Jolly Phonics scheme - great stuff, Reception, well done!
Values Certificates:
Oliver T for Effort and Charlie S for Responsibility
Aloud & Proud Readers:
Jasmine W and Evie B
Mr Wright
Stars of the Week
Nursery: Lucas P for his positive attitude in class and his enthusiasm for all activities throughout the day.
Reception: Aoife F for great work in maths, careful reading and enthusiasm in Phonics!
Year 1: William C for his wonderful attitude to his learning. William wrote a lovely letter to the pigs from the wolf.
Year 2: Annabelle T for using noun phrases to make her writing exceptionally descriptive.
Ottilie H for using commas so expertly in your English work and for trying hard to spell words independently.
Mrs Henry
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We have celebrated both Anti-Bullying and Children in Need this week, with a number of initiatives supporting two excellent assemblies on the theme. Mr Herbert, Head of PSHE, addressed the school with a thought-provoking assembly on Tuesday discussing what constitutes bullying and how we can all work together to ensure it does not happen. On Friday, the Charity Committee introduced the various plans for the day, and explained what Children in Need is and how they use the money raised.
Across the Senior School we have been looking at reviewing our current school practices, with the Sustainability Committee meeting on Tuesday to focus on how we may better conserve our energy usage whilst also educating pupils regarding waste, litter and global citizenship so that they feel more informed in their choices. Some exciting new initiatives are planned involving composting and plastic waste as we continue to look at how we can reduce our carbon footprint.
Congratulations to the following who have all now earned 25 merit points this term and attended 'Celebration Snack Break' today, receiving a lunch fastpass and a stationary prize each. Those attending were Willow D, Alma E, Poppy F, Isla W, Alice B, Arthur D-K, Daisy R, Tom B, Rufus B, George P and Sam S. Well done and keep up the good work!
Mr Wilson
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Waverley and Guildford District Cross Country at Charterhouse School
Sixteen Senior School runners from Duke of Kent School took part in the District Cross Country Event on Thursday 17th November at Charterhouse School. State and independent schools took part from all over Waverley and Guildford. The number of participants taking part in each race was quite incredible; one race had over two hundred entrants. The Duke of Kent School runners performed brilliantly and we hope to hear of some qualifying to represent their district at the Surrey Schools Championships after Christmas. Congratulations to Ollie K, Ollie C, Sam R, Felix C, Harry L, Jude B, Oscar H, Isaac P, Alice B, Jessica I, Clara H-S, Rose S, Emily B, Rufus B, Will R and Alex S (c).
Mr Herbert
Netball: U10/11 v. Frensham Heights
On Wednesday the U10/11 A team played Frensham Heights at home. The girls had had a few weeks off Netball with Hockey matches and so it had been a while since they had played together as a team for a match, but this didn't worry the girls at all, they were focused and excited to start.
Both teams started well, and we ended the first half of the match 2-1 up. We struggled to get the ball into the circle at times and moving towards the ball, but every player was listening to coaching points and trying to improve on this which led to some triumphant match play in the final quarter. The team finished with a well deserved 4-1 score (even when the heavens opened in the final few minutes). You should all be proud of yourselves and I look forward to our next match.
Mrs Woolgar
Girls' Football: U8/9 v. Belmont
On Thursday afternoon, the U8/9 team girls' football team made the short journey to Belmont to play their first football match of the year! It was a thriller game from start to finish with fantastic play from every single member of the team. After 10 minutes, Duke of Kent School went 1-0 down after a fantastic goal scored from outside the box by Belmont. The girls dug deep and the defensive team went from strength to strength with Eva W and Seren G working well to clear the ball at every opportunity whilst Layla B played in goal and made countless saves. Shortly after a half time team talk, the team went back onto the pitch and scored 2 goals within 5 minutes from Florence A and Violet W. Belmont were determined not to give up and brought the game back to 2-2. Violet W played fantastically, later being awarded player of the match, and managed to create more opportunities with Ivy B and Charlotte P working tirelessly in midfield. It was goal time once again for the U8/9 girls giving them a 3-2 lead. With just minutes left to play, Belmont scored another cracking goal to make it 3-3. A brilliant match and a very well deserved result, well done to all the girls involved for a great display of determination, effort and team work!
Miss Vickers
Girls' Football: U8/9 v. Belmont
On Thursday the Year 3 and 4 girls travelled to Belmont to play football. This was the girls first football match against another school, and they all played brilliantly! All of the girls tried different positions within the football team, and their skills really shone through. Elizabeth S made some great saves in goal, and had some great runs when playing outfield. Emily C and Evie B were amazing in defence, making tackles and clearing the ball whenever it came near. Nora C was great as striker, making tackles and having shots on target! Mila S and Beth F worked great together to make tackles and pass the ball towards the goal. It was a great match and the girls had a really good time.
Miss Arnold
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Boomerang Student Planner Poster Competition (Ages 8-16)
Design a poster and have it displayed nation-wide on digital screens as well as win some great prizes including an iPad for the winner in each age category! Design and create a portrait poster to persuade and inspire young people to become more active and fit during the summer months. Your design could be about a particular sport, activity or challenge – or a combination – that you love or an activity that is more easily pursued during the summertime. Deadline for entries is Friday 25th November 2022. For more details visit - https://oodlesof.info/poster/#about
East Riding Festival of Words Poetry Competition
The East Riding Festival of Words poetry competition is now open for entries. This year's theme is 'My wonderful world'. Entries will be judged by a panel of published Yorkshire poets, led by James Nash. Your poem should be no more than 45 lines, on one side of A4 paper. There are three categories, adults, primary school aged children (4 years to 10 years) and secondary school aged children (11 years to 16 years). Closing date for entries is 30th November 2022. For more details visit - https://www.festivalofwords.co.uk/poetry-comp/
New Writers Flash Fiction Competition
The New Writers Flash Fiction Competition 2022 is open until November 30th, 2022. They are looking for entries of 300 words or less, on any subject or theme. Entry fee: £6. £1 from each entry will also be donated to First Story (England’s leading creative writing charity for young people).
Prizes:
1st – £700
2nd – £200
3rd – £100
For more details visit - https://newwriters.org.uk/flash-fiction/
Mr Wyllie
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What Parents Need to Know about How to Combat Online Bullying
Defined as “ongoing hurtful behaviour towards someone online”, cyber-bullying makes its victims feel upset, uncomfortable and unsafe. In the digital world, it has numerous forms – such as hurtful comments on a person’s posts or profile; deliberately leaving them out of group chats; sharing embarrassing images or videos of someone; or spreading gossip about them. Cyber-bullying can severely impact a young person’s mental health … so, in support of Anti-Bullying Week, we’ve provided a list of tips to help trusted adults know what to look for and how to respond to it.
In the guide, you'll find tips such as playing online games with your child, talking about your child’s online life and being prepared to listen without showing any judgement or criticism.
Click on the link to find out more information about "What Parents Need to Know about How to Combat Online Bullying".
Mr Boden
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I am sure the pupils have all enjoyed the opportunity to wear their own clothes and join in the FUNdraising activities for Children in Need today. It has been an opportunity to do something proactive to make somebody else’s lived experience a little better.
Fundamentally, this is a focus on the skills of kindness and empathy - hugely valuable and worthwhile traits it is important we all develop. Feeling and demonstrating empathy toward others helps us recognise what people may need. As we never know for sure what somebody else is going through (unless they tell us), we should endeavour to always be kind. Sometimes, particularly if we are struggling ourselves, or only aware of people with similar lives, viewpoints and experiences to ours, we can find it more difficult to be empathetic. We can develop and work on this trait however.
The New York Times, in their article ‘How to Be More Empathetic’ stresses the importance of empathy not only for individual personal improvement but for the greater good of a humane society. Tips to develop and build you own empathy skills are:-
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Talk to New People - chat to someone different at lunch/in class, follow somebody on social media with different life experience to you, put your screen down and fully engage with someone face to face.
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Try out someone else’s life - take time to consider why someone’s behaviour may be troubling you - what is their life like? Are they tired, hungry, lonely, going through something life-altering? Travel to the less touristy spots of a country and see how people really live, visit a different place of worship to your own.
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Join forces for a shared cause - much as the pupils have done for Children in Need today. They could continue this by joining the school council or charity committee, taking part in a community project like the forum garden or in their local community fetes or raffles.
‘You can only understand people if you feel them in yourself.’ – John Steinbeck
Mrs Douglas
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Numbers of pupils visiting the medical room for assistance have increased this week, with many pupils across the school starting to feel fatigued and generally "under the weather". This is entirely normal for this stage in a busy autumn term, in particular for those who have busy schedules both in and out of school. The senior pupils involved in Production in particular have been working tirelessly to create what will no doubt be a really impressive performance of The Addams Family Musical next week. During the weekend and next week, we would encourage them all to rest well whenever they have some time out at home, stay well hydrated, eat healthily, and get a decent nights' sleep as far as possible, in order to be able to put their best efforts into the show next Friday and Saturday. It would be such a shame for any of them to miss out through ill health.
The PSHE programme continues across the school. This week, Mrs Sarjant took a lesson with Year 6; the latest in their programme of four sessions with the School Nurse on Puberty during their time in Prep School. This time we had a more in-depth look at the science of puberty, including understanding the role of hormones, and the male and female reproductive organs and female menstrual cycles. We had a think about body image, and how helpful (or not!) the media is in forming expectations of how we want our bodies to look as we grow up. Finally, we used this opportunity to refresh ourselves on the meaning of "consent" in relation to our bodies, using the NSPCC "PANTS" rule:
The School Nurses
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PADoK News
PADoK Christmas Hamper Collections
Raffle tickets went on sale on Monday 14th November, and have already had lots of requests. For the past two years we have made donations to the local food bank and two local schools, so any tickets sold will enable us to support them again this year. Please email padok@dokschool.org with the number of tickets you would like to purchase, your child’s name and year group. Thank you for your support.
PADoK Book Club - Thursday 24th November 8pm in Old Hall
– A Fatal Crossing by Tom Hindle –
We wanted to read an old fashioned Who Dunnit and set the challenge to all that join us to send your guesses to Mrs Newman (claire@bluetreerecruits.co.uk) about who you think the Murderer is as you read the book and there will be prizes for those who guess who the killer is! Join us at 8pm on Thursday 24th November by the roaring fire in the great hall with a glass of wine to chat about the book, which has been described to have 'A very clever plot and a final twist which will delight Agatha Christie fans. You'll love it.'
A Taste of Burns – Friday 27th January 2023 – LIMITED TICKETS AVAILABLE
PADoK are delighted to invite you all to our first “Taste of Burns” evening, here at the school on Friday 27th January from 7pm. An evening of ceilidh dancing, poetry and food to celebrate Scotland’s greatest bard, Robert Burns.
Half of the tickets sold within hours of going on sale. If you would like to attend and haven’t yet bought tickets, we recommend booking them soon as there are only a limited number left, email: padok@dokschool.org
Duke of Kent School Singers
Another fantastic turn out this week at our Parents Singing Group. The parts are all coming on beautifully with everyone singing along with the tracks and lyrics at home.
Hilarious warm ups with lots of laughing, followed by some really focused phrasing work on ‘Somewhere Only We Know’.
You really do have to concentrate, listen to each other and work together when singing in a choir, it is a wonderful way of switching off from everything else for 40 minutes, doing something you really enjoy. We make a nice sound too!
New singers are welcome at any time with no pressure to perform whatsoever. Please contact Cathy Williams on rhodricathy@sky.com / 07813 282910 with any queries.
PADoK Running Technique – Friday morning 08.30 in Ness Hall
- Running Technique group was great last week and worked on more challenging core exercises that translated into arm pumping and high knees work in their running technique.
- This week, for any skiers we will be putting in lots of squats and knee and hip stability work that also translates into power when you run/ski.
All welcome. 0830-0900 at the sports hall, please email julia@therunningspecialists.com if you are new to join. Happy Running!
Mrs Phillips
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Senior School Optional Hoodie
The Senior School hoodies have redesigned by members of the School Council and the finished product can be seen above. They have done a fantastic job at putting this design together and now finally getting to see the finished product.
This new hoodie is available from Stevenson's on their website: https://www.stevensons.co.uk/. There is also the option to have your child's initials printed onto the front of the hoodie for a slight additional cost, something we would advise to avoid mixing up tops with other pupils. This hoodie is not an essential item of School uniform, so there is no expectation for pupils to have it.
If you wish to see the sample, please pop into the Main Office to see me and have a look at the new hoodie.
Mrs Woolgar
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School Social Media
At Duke of Kent School we have three social media platforms; Instagram (dukeofkentschool), Twitter (@DoKSchool) and Facebook (Duke of Kent School). All of our social media accounts are public.
We recommend following all three accounts to receive push notifications with news, updates, educational articles, interactions with other schools, communities and public figures.
Mrs Woolgar
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