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A Message from Mrs Knox

As the half term draws to a close (one which has been really unusual for us all) I am so proud of the way our community has worked tirelessly to support the education and wellbeing of the children. Now is the time to have a well-earned rest as we enjoy some beautiful weather next week.  We will be ready to open our doors to Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and 6 on the 1st June and look forward to seeing the children’s faces. For those still learning at home, we are committed to continuing with the high quality remote learning provision. Until then, take care and keep safe.

Mrs Knox

Mental Health Awareness Week

This week we have acknowledged Mental Health Awareness Week remotely, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for taking part and marking it in such a memorable way! Hopefully you have been able to watch the ‘Well-being Tips’ I’ve posted in your form rooms - remember the tips and looking after your well-being and mental health isn’t just for this week, it is an ongoing project.

Wednesday’s ’No Screen Day’ was a huge success and I have seen some amazing things that students have produced while having a day off from their screens. It was lovely to hear that some of our parents acknowledged the day also - it is so important to limit our time looking at screens and to think of other ways of getting things done. Depending on circumstances, it would be great to do this again next half term.  

I hope that this week has enabled you to think about how you look after your brain - we are slowly seeing a shift towards parity between our physical health and mental health - a hugely positive step.

Please rest up this half term, and as I said in my final tip…try to find 10 minutes to do nothing!

Mr Southee

Year 2 Positivity Jars  

Year 2 had a lovely Mental Health chat on Thursday where we spoke about it being normal to experience lots of different emotions. We reminded ourselves that we're not supposed to feel happy and smiley all day everyday because we're not robots! We spoke about ways to make ourselves feel better when we're feeling down which included: 

* Talking to someone

* Eating something healthy

* Exercising

* Having a nap

We also spoke about how it's important to remember all of the positive and special things about ourselves as remembering these in low moments will also help to lift our mood. The children created 'Positivity Jars' yesterday and filled them with positive comments about themselves which they can reflect on anytime for a pick-me-up. I sent them all a voice note with a personalised positive comment which they added to their jar from me and then they added their own.

        

Miss Able

House Competition

Congratulations to Sydney R (Prep - Hillary) and Natasha B (Senior - Chichester) for winning the House Motivational Poster competition.

The purpose of this competition was for the students to create a poster which encourages a positive mindset or action.

It was felt that both of these posters were innovative and shared a message/action which we could all learn from! 

Well done to everyone who entered (remember you earn points for your House just for entering!) and many thanks to Mr Watson for helping out with the judging!

Miss Anand

Artist in Residence

      

In the absence of a live Artist in Residence this academic year, we have managed to secure three Virtual Artists in Residence. These artists have been putting together videos and projects for our students to work through. These are based on the artists own practice and are delightfully open ended. This has allowed students to explore their own ideas and ways of working; a great antidote to a time where they may be feeling a little constrained. This openness has led to a collective exploration of viewpoint, media and processes and has thrown up some varied approaches from close, detailed observational work to graphic pattern and abstract ink work.

The images attached are a response to the work of Olly Williams. They really reflect his love and enthusiasm for all things natural. This week students have been working on self portraits in response to a lose, gestural drawing process demonstrated by portrait artist Maureen Domoney. I will share these with the community after half term. After our holiday we hope to have a project set by the design group at Heatherwick Studios. Heatherwicks are an internationally renowned, UK based design house, run by the brilliantly gifted designer Thomas Heatherwick. They are famous for their articulated bridges, 2012 Olympic flame and the new London bus, along with a host of international building projects. This should generate some exciting ideas and is certainly a treat to look forward to on our return to schooling, in whatever form it might take.

Mr Watson

Prep and Pre-prep News   

Prep and Pre-prep have been marking Mental Health Awareness Week with a range of activities including yoga in PSHE, outdoor projects on no-screen Wednesday and daily tips on how to look after their wellbeing, such as remembering to prioritise sleep and talking to people if you need to share how you're feeling. I do hope all the children found ways to keep their 'stress buckets' at a manageable level this week, and if anyone needs a laugh at the end of the week to help empty theirs, have a watch of Mr Southee demonstrating the importance of eating healthily and getting regular exercise in your Form Classroom. I must also thank Mr Herbert and his Year 11s for sharing some clips of their own exercise activities, which will no doubt inspire the children to have a go themselves over the break. Lastly, as we end this most busy and unusual of half terms, remember to thank those around you, who have helped to keep you safe, well and entertained. 

Values awards for this week are awarded to:

Effort - Eddie C, Patrick W, Myles C, Rose S, Sam R and James B

Kindness - Daisy N

Responsibility - Eve M and Thibaut J

Congratulations this week also goes to Sydney R for winning the House Motivational Poster competition!

Here is a link to the Prep and Pre-prep podcasts too, enjoy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCnGQTwHVYc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OM2qPNsaHY

Mr Wright

Stars of the Week

Nursery: Rocket M for his improvement in mark making and writing and his imaginative, careful work at home.

Reception: Mila-Rose S for amazing work with her dictation sentences, having written ‘could’ the previous day she used it to inform her spelling of ‘should’.  Fantastic!

Year 1: Olivia W for an outstanding attitude to learning and going above and beyond in your work.

Year 2: Alex G for his positive attitude towards Home Learning and for putting in so much effort this week! Well done! 

Mr Wright

Grace Carter Q&A

We are very excited to announce that BBC Sound of 2019 Artist Grace Carter will be holding a virtual Q&A with our pupils. Grace is a rising star with over 10 million Youtube views. She is regularly played on Radio 1 and Radio 2 and is building a big following both here and in the US. Our pupils have been sending in videoed questions which Grace will be answering over half term and then a final cut of the interview will be released after half term.

Mr Rye

Performing Arts News

House Drama is proving to be very popular with over 30 entries registered so far. Keep them coming as the closing date is the end of next week!

Summer Concert: Mr Rye will be compiling this from submitted videos after half-term. We have had some lovely submissions already and it will hopefully be an uplifting and eclectic mix that ends up being made into the virtual concert.

Three Little Birds is growing and growing. We have now had 100 CONTRIBUTIONS! Keep them coming as it is going to be epic and an amazing effort from all involved.

FIZZ T.V. The latest instalment of the adventures of Mr and Mrs Fizz and the Fizlets is up on Youtube. Check it out here. It's worth it just to laugh at Mr Rye... 

https://youtu.be/JpuGMVgMDfw

Mr Rye's ukulele lesson 4 is available here. This week you can start learning You Are My Sunshine!

https://youtu.be/L2QZY2C3BuY 

Mr Rye's Podcast Episode 7 is available here. This week a look at the world of silence. Or rather, silence and music and all the usual tenuous links, connections, songs and artists that have been influenced by the idea and power of silence.

https://soundcloud.com/nickryemusic/mr-ryes-podcast-ep7-2152020-silence-is-golden/s-r4Rb8yUIcjV?in=nickryemusic/sets/mr-ryes-music-podcasts

Mr Rye

E-Safety Tips

 

EasyJet have announced this week that almost nine million customers have been put at risk due to a cyber attack that was targeted at their details.  Email addresses, travel details, and credit and debit card information have been accessed due to the attack which EasyJet became aware of in January.

Only a small percentage of those affected have had their financial information taken, and EasyJet has stated that they will inform everyone who has been affected by May 26th.  If you are concerned that you might be affected then make sure you check your bills for any unexplained transactions and notify your bank.

Also, if you get any calls or emails claiming to be EasyJet or your bank make sure you contact the bank directly yourself instead of answering a call or replying to an email.  It  will also be worth checking any accounts you use with the same logins as the EasyJet site and make sure you have strong passwords with two-factor authentication on as many accounts as possible.

Here are some links with more information:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-52722626

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/may/19/easyjet-hacking-attack-what-to-do-customers

https://www.techradar.com/uk/news/easyjet-hacked-nine-million-customers-at-risk-heres-what-you-need-to-know

Thanks for reading! 

Mr-Win-Pe

Pause for Thought

Well, we made it through 5 weeks of online learning! Well done everybody!

Have a wonderful half term, see you on the other side!

With every blessing

Rev Kia

Duke of Kent School Follow
At the end of an activity packed #mentalhealthawarenessweek2020, Year 2 created 'Positivity Jars' and filled them with positive comments about themselves which they can reflect on anytime for a pick-me-up. Here is Harry C with his jar #KindnessMatters #Positivity #TheDoKWay https://t.co/Tz34tIbYt7
5 hours ago
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Duke of Kent School Follow
Episode 7 of Mr Rye's music podcast! 'Silence is Golden' - A dip into the silent world. Looking at songs of silence, the power of silence in music, what it might mean and of course some tenuous links. Plus the weekly musical fact! Enjoy #Music #Podcast https://t.co/G5tM4Ichd1
1 day ago
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