MHS Newsletter November 2017 - More House School
Transcript of MHS Newsletter November 2017 - More House School
A NOTE FROMTHE HEADMASTER
More House School Newsletter / November 2017 edition
Jonathan Hetherington, Headmaster
Dear Parents,
Welcome to November’s newsletter which presents reviews of
some events that took place in October and offers information
about matters taking place in November and beyond.
In particular, I encourage you to look carefully at the diary dates
shown next to this letter. I hope that many of you will be able to
join us for the Christmas Fayre – always a lively event – taking
place just before Exeat on the afternoon of Friday 24th
November. Thank you to the very hardworking Friends of More
House for their energy and organisation. This annual event is
much treasured by the boys.
Rehearsals are in full swing for the production of Hairspray, with
performances on 29th and 30th November, and 1st December.
This promises to be a fantastic show – provided I can learn the
‘Cello part in time. Luckily, I am certain the success of the
venture does not depend upon my musical skills, or dearth of
them; therefore I really hope that you will come to one of the
performances – a superb opportunity for pupils across the
school to witness the incredible talent and creativity of some of
the senior boys, performing together with girl members of the
cast.
Finally, I draw to your attention a charity cake-sale arranged for
Tuesday 14th November at break and lunch times by a small
group of Year Eight boys to raise money for their litter-busting
social enterprise. Please remind your son to bring to school a
few coins on Tuesday and, if at all possible, nut-free donations to
the cake stall, which can be left at Main Reception.
Yours sincerely,
BA (Hons) MSc (Ed) QTS
A School Mass with readings and music prepared by students will
be celebrated by Fr Niven of St Joan's parish and Fr Pat Sherlock
SDB for the intentions of the whole school community and to ask
for God’s blessing over More House School this academic year. It
will be held at 8.40am on Tuesday 7th November, in the Chapel.
We look forward to welcoming pupils, governors and staff.
Teresa Medlicott, Chaplain
NOVEMBER 2017
Friday 10th November 6.00pm, Presentation ofCertificates to last year’s Year 11& Year 13,Bradbury Heights
Friday 17th November, 4.30pm, Year 10 Parents’ Evening,Bradbury Heights
Friday 24th November, 2.30pm, Friends’ of MHSChristmas Fayre, Sports Hall
Exeat Weekend
Wednesday 29th November, 7.00pm, Hairspray (SeniorSchool Production), Simkins Centre
Thursday 30th November, 7.00pm, Hairspray (SeniorSchool Production), Simkins Centre
DECEMBER 2017
Friday 1st December, 4.30pm, Year 7 Parents’ EveningBradbury Heights
Friday 1st December, 7.00pm, Hairspray (Senior SchoolProduction), Simkins Centre
w/c Monday 4th December, Year 11 & Year 13 AssessmentProgramme
Thursday 7th December, 7.00pm, Christmas byCandlelight, Simkins Centre
Friday 8th December, 4.30pm, Year 9 Parents’ Evening –Core Subjects, Bradbury Heights
Friday 8th December, 7.00pm, Christmas by Candlelight,Simkins Centre
Friday 15th December, 11.30am, Christmas Service (Endof Term), Sports Hall
DIARY DATES
SCHOOL MASS
Dear Parents,
We want to say a big THANK YOU to all parents who donate, volunteer and get involved with the
Friends. The boys are enjoying lots of lovely new books in the Library and having fun with the new
VR headset in Media thanks to all your donations!
Boys’ Christmas Fayre – Friday 24th November, 2.30-4.00pm
We are feeling festive and are full of plans for a super Christmas Fayre! A real highlight for the boys
and we hope to make it as enjoyable as ever for them as well as for parents. Donations would be much appreciated and you can
drop them into the box outside the Main Reception any time before the fayre:
• Bottles for the tombola (alcoholic and non-alcoholic)
• Chocolates for the tombola (all shapes and sizes but nut free please)
• Sweets bagged in small freezer bags
• Small stationery items etc in small freezer bags or jars
• Bric-a-brac - DVDs, computer games, books, games, toys, teddies, puzzles. All things fun for boys!
• Unopened toiletries/gifts that could be bought for parents
• Cakes (including some gluten free)
Do come and join us for the festivities!! This year there will be an oasis of calm for parents in the Bradbury Music Centre. We’ll
be serving tea, coffee, cakes and mince pies. Second hand uniform and some lovely gifts will also be available.
We can’t run this event without parental help. Please email Jen Dinkeldein - [email protected] - if you are able to help during
any of these times:
• 9.00am-2.30pm (setting up) - A great way to spend a bit of time getting to know other parents and having some festive fun.
Sandwiches will be provided.
• 2.30pm-4.00pm (the main event) - We need about 50 people to man the stalls at the actual event!
• From 4.00pm (clearing up) - Well it has to be done!
Many thanks in advance for your donations and help and we look forward to seeing you there!
Clubbercise
We are planning to hold a parents’ Clubbercise class at school on 27th January. A fun, easy to follow dance workout with rave
glow sticks & disco lights!! More details soon.
Raffle Tickets
Raffle tickets will be on the way home soon. If they get lost or if you want more, they’re also on sale in the school office.
• 1st Prize - Go Pro • 2nd Prize - Amazon Echo • 3rd Prize - Beauty Hamper
Remember to return the tickets and good luck!
Parent Contact List
The Parent Contact List is a list of boys grouped by year and geographical location, which allows parents to contact one another
for playdates and lift-sharing. If you’re not yet on the list and would like to join please email
EasyFundraising
Did you know that whenever you buy anything online you could be raising a free donation for Friends of MHS? All you have to
do is go to: www.easyfundraising.com, search for Friends of More House School, Frensham, sign up for free and start shopping!
Do let us know if you have any fundraising ideas - and remember, volunteering is a great way to meet other parents and to help
raise funds, so please sign-up for the next event - details will be on noticeboards and on the ‘Parents of More House’ Facebook
page.
With best wishes
The Friends of More House
UVI FORM TRIP TO PARIS19th–22nd OCTOBER 2017
DAY 1 Twenty-five UVI Form students and four teachers left for Paris. A 5.30am start by coach from MHS to St Pancras, London and
Eurostar to Gard du Nord, Paris. Our hostel was only a short walk from the station - bags dropped, a quick bite to eat and off we went for
our city open top bus tour, followed by a fine meal in the Latin Quarter.
DAY 2 First port of call was the Eiffel Tower. Manfully, we faced the challenging walk up to Stage 2 - the lift to the very top which was a
welcome relief! Met with blue skies and glorious sunshine, the views of Paris laid out before us were absolutely stunning. In the afternoon,
we visited the wonderful Musée D’Orsay, housed in the train station constructed by Victor Laloux for the 1900 World Fair, and now devoted
to all the arts between 1848-1914. In the evening, we visited the Basilica of Sacré Coeur in Montmartre, followed by another fine meal.
DAY 3 In the morning, we visited the Catacombs (deep underground ossuaries) holding the remains of over six million people in a small
part of the ancient mines of Paris tunnel network. In the afternoon, the plan was to have a balloon trip in the Ballon de Paris (a 75 ft wide
tethered balloon offering rides to an altitude of 500 ft) in the Parc André Citroën but sadly it was far too windy. Later we visited Notre Dame.
Having toured the Cathedral, our plans to climb up the bell tower to see the bells had to be cancelled due to a medical emergency in the
tower itself. Time was, however, usefully spent by the students on a shopping opportunity, followed by another splendid meal in the Latin
Quarter to make up for our earlier disappointments! Specialities such as snails and frogs’ legs were consumed with great gusto by the more
adventurous!
DAY 4 With our Eurostar check-in time at 11.15am, we enjoyed a more leisurely start to the day, indulging ourselves the hostel’s famed
‘Resurrection Breakfast’ (in essence the French version of a full English) to set us up for the return journey home.
A great trip, excellent food, good company and thoroughly enjoyed by staff and students alike.
MUSICMARATHONOn Saturday 30th September, two MHS ensembles braved the
cliché British fête weather (rain!) to perform as part of the Music
Marathon in St Mary’s Church, Frensham. The marathon kicked
off (to the sheer delight of the local residents no doubt) with
church bells being rung at 8.30am to signal the start of the event.
Many local music groups then performed a variety of works,
swapping over about every 30 minutes. The Steelpan Band took
position just after 2.30pm and played a lively set of Caribbean -
and not-so-Caribbean pieces - with guest bassist, Mr
Hetherington, filling in in for a member of the band who was
absent due to illness. The final piece was greeted with rapturous
applause as the boys made their way off stage with the twelve
vibrantly-painted ex-oil drums in tow, which were piled into the
somewhat poky vestry.
More acts followed until 4.30pm when it was then the turn of the
MHS Jazz Combo (aka Tony Flow and the Dubious Dukes of
Dixieland) to take to the stage; and this they did in fine style,
playing away and improvising wonderful solos, to the delight of
the audience. The Reverend Jane Walker commented to the
audience how nice it was to hear young students improvising jazz
as she thanked the boys for their polished set.
As we packed up our equipment, the final few acts did their bit
before the finale of the day – a two-hour evening concert by
Cantique. The music marathon was organised to raise much-
needed funds for St Mary’s church and it was hoped the event
would secure funds to install the audio/visual system.
Huge thanks to all the parents of the boys involved for ensuring
that they were delivered on time and ready to perform, and
especially to those who helped us pack up at the end of the set!!
ALTONSCHOOLREVUE NIGHTOn Tuesday 17th October, the VI Form Performing Arts students,
Max Fraser, Wilson Dutton, William Howard, Robbie Moore and
Travis Garrod, along with students from Salesian College, joined
Alton School’s annual comedy revue evening. The MHS thespians
performed three songs, “Oh What a Beautiful Morning”
(Oklahoma), “Luck Be a Lady” (Guys and Dolls) and “You Will
Never Walk Alone” (Carousel).
As an extra bonus for the audience, MHS’s own rock band starring
Finbar Lyons on lead guitar, Robbie Moore on bass guitar and
Theo Power on drums played two rock songs to liven up the
proceedings.
A most enjoyable evening and our thanks to Alton School for
putting on such a good show.
MHS has recently hosted network meetings for Exams Officers and
for users of Engage - the management information system the
school now uses.
The Exams Officers’ meeting was extremely helpful and
informative, allowing for in depth discussion on the new Joint
Council for Qualifications (JCQ) regulations which oversee the
entire exam process and access arrangements. Information has
already been made available to parents of Year 11 and VI form.
The Engage user group meeting welcomed other schools from
various parts of the country, providing workshops and helpful
guidelines on making the most of their management information
system. With the conference being on site, a number of key users
of the system were able to attend relevant sessions. Watch this
space for new developments in the coming weeks…
ENGAGE
PSHEE!Tuesday 14th November will see another whole school
PSHEE session, where your sons will explore different
topics surrounding their personal, social, health and
economic education. Please see the parent mail dated 26th
September for further details on subjects for discussion
and if you have any questions regarding the curriculum.
PARENT INFO - WATCH THIS SPACE!Parent Info is a collaboration between Parent Zone, which
has been providing information and support to parents for
a decade, and CEOP, the Child Exploitation and Online
Protection command of the National Crime Agency. We are
currently in the process of enabling the articles featured in
Parent Info to be streamed directly to the MHS website and
will keep you updated as to when this exciting change is
due to happen. As parents, you will have access to many
useful links, articles and advice surrounding online safety
and well being. If you are not already a signed-up member
of ParentZone, there is a wealth of information readily
available. Just follow the link and create a free account -
https://parentzone.org.uk/
TES SAFEGUARDING SPECIAL REPORTLast month the Times Educational Supplement produced
an excellent online safety special, which has now been
made available for schools to release to parents. It does
include some challenging, often shocking articles but,
‘please don’t look away.’ This safeguarding special issue is
available for you to read via the Parent Portal.
If you have any issues you would like to raise, please
contact Hannah Stiff via the school office.
Hannah Stiff, Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead,
Director of Personal Development Education
SAFE AT SCHOOL
FLASHMOBAt the end of the day on Monday 16th October, in the new area
outside the back of Gard’ner house, the whole of Years 4, 5 & 6 got
together to sing the ‘Eye of the Tiger’.
We performed this twice, as the first time we noticed a few parents
starting to join in with a few of the lyrics; how discourteous it
would have been to deprive the adults of a chance to join in with
our offering to the Rock Gods!
This was a superb performance and we will be looking to do
another event towards the end of the term.
Craig Burnett, Department of Music
THE ARTPRIZE
TO ENTER: Give your submission to Mr Aldred.(This can be in digital format or in physical form)
Deadline: 24 November
PHOTOGRAPHYART, MEDIA
OPEN SUBMISSION TO ALL
Prizes for: Years 4-7, 8-9,10-11,12-13 and Staff
In aid of #nationalboardingday on Saturday 7th October,
boarders recreated a typical boarding room - at Frensham Ponds!
Last half term Boris, a 4 month old Guide Dog Puppy, joined MHS
for a week. As a Guide Dog puppy it is essential that Boris gets
used to all kinds of different situations so what better training
than a week at MHS!
Boris literally went everywhere with Mrs Kerr – Deputy Head,
including assembly, duties and lessons; even Headmaster’s
morning briefing and as you can imagine he caused quite a stir
wherever he went!
Guide Dog puppies spend about a year with their puppy walkers
who teach them basic obedience and familiarise them with
different situations which occur in normal life – shopping, bus
and train rides, busy roads etc. Mrs Kerr, who has puppy walked
three guide dogs, was ‘boarding’ Boris for the week whilst his
puppy walkers were on holiday.
BORIS THE GUIDE DOG
On Wednesday 1st November, Year 11 ‘Design, Engineer, Construct!' students had the privilege of an inspiring presentation about surveying
by one of the lead Engineers from Laing O’Rourke. They also had two hours practical use of surveying equipment within the school grounds
around the Department of Engineering, and from the information gathered were able to replicate the grounds through a computer software
program, providing a wonderful opportunity for the boys to see a theory lesson about roles within construction actually put into practice.
Many of the boys said how they thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated the experience.
Mrs Kerr reports that as Boris didn’t disgrace himself he is scheduled for another guest appearance later this term.
ALL THEY SURVEY
More House School, Frensham, Farnham, Surrey GU10 3AP � 01252 792303 � [email protected] � www.morehouseschool.co.uk
T H E B R O A D W AY M U S I C A L
This amateur production is presented by arrangement with Music Theatre International (Europe) All authorised performance materials are also supplied by MTI Europe - www.mtishows.co.uk
Based on the New Line Cinema film written and directed by JOHN WATERS
Welcome to the 60s… Tracy, a big girl with big hair and a big heart, is on a mission to follow her dreams asshe sets out to dance her way onto national TV. She soon becomes a local star, using her new-found fame
to fight for equality, bagging local heartthrob Link along the way… May the best girl win!
Wednesday 29th November / Thursday 30th November / Friday 1st December Simkins Centre 7.00pm
MORE HOUSE SCHOOL PRESENTS
MHSMaximum
HoldSpray
Tickets available from the Bursary
Adults £8.00, Children £5.00 Family Tickets (two Adults, two Children) £22.00
Book by
Mark O’Donnell
Thomas Meehan
Music by
Marc Shaiman
Lyrics by
Scott Whittman
Marc Shaiman
Orchestrations by
Harold Wheeler
Arrangements by
Marc Shaiman
Team 1 (all Year 10 at the
time) sat on top of the
Baranco Wall two thirds
of the way up Mount
Kilimanjaro.
All the boys summited
two days later - an
amazing achievement.
Can you guess who is
who under the hoods
and hats?
MORE FROM WORLD CHALLENGE
TANZANIA 2017 Year 6 and 7 boarders enjoyed Halloween
activities on Tuesday evening - a scavenger hunt
in the dark (in costume) followed by chocolate
shape making and a film. Year 8 boys did
pumpkin-carving and made Halloween drinks.
As you can see, much fun was had by all!
SPOOKTACULAR