Windsor Girls’ School

6 October 2017

Open Evening

Continued on Page 4

We held our annual Open Evening this week which welcomed prospective students and their parents. Two hundred of our students were present on the evening acting as guides, singing in the choir and helping in subject areas. There was a real buzz around the school and our visitors commented on how friendly and welcoming our school was. Thank you to all students who supported the school on the night and were great ambassadors.

Dear Parents and Carers,

As you will see from the later pages of this week’s newsletter, we held our annual Open Evening on Wednesday. The photographs give you a flavour of the event; with over 200 of our students in attendance I was very proud of our school. The evening began with a performance from our choir, with 150 students from all year groups singing ‘Wannabe’ by the Spice Girls. The formal part of the evening also premiered our new school short film which features a number of our staff and students, as well as drone footage to show aerial views of the site. Students and parents and carers then had the opportunity to tour the school, guided by our students, and to try a range of activities in the individual subject areas. Amongst our visiting students and parents and carers were some local families and others from further afield who were keen to learn more about the school. There was even one family with a child in Year 1, which is pleasing to see. We will continue the process of transition through the school year and we also have bookable tours of the school for families who were unable to attend on the evening. Also this week, we held our very popular Oxbridge Evening with visiting speakers from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. Students from Years 9 to 12, across Windsor Learning Partnership, attended with their parents and were able to ask questions relating to admissions and interviews. Beforehand, students in the Aspiring High group attended a presentation on the two universities and our 2018 university applicants were put through their paces with mock admissions interviews. Elsewhere in the school, sports fixtures are continuing and rehearsals for the upcoming production of Beauty and the Beast are going well. Look out for information about purchasing tickets, which will be coming soon, as it is sure to be popular. Our productions and musical performances are of a very high standard and usually sell out.

Mrs G Labrum

Year Information

Year 9 Year 9 are encouraged to get involved with extra-curricular activities. There are a number of opportunities and clubs available. Year 10 A group of Year 10 students will be attending a session with a visiting author on Thursday 12 October. Students are reminded to complete their PiXL Edge profiles. Year 11 Learning to Work one to one careers interviews are continuing on Mondays and Fridays. Students are reminded to check their times and arrive a few minutes early for their appointments. Thank you for the positive feedback about the interviews.

There will be a School Council meeting on Tuesday 10 October at 2:30pm. The deadline for the LORIC logo competition is Friday 13 October. The week beginning 16 October will be Wellbeing Week.

SIXTH FORM

The Psychology trip takes place on Tuesday 10 October from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. Well done to students who have submitted their university applications. Students are working hard to complete Personal Statements and make their final choices. Students should contact their form tutor for guidance on what to include in their statements. Year 13 data will be coming home next week.

Key Dates Term 1

Term 1 Ends Friday 20 October

October Holiday 23 October—27 October

Term 2 Starts Monday 30 October

Beauty and the Beast Tuesday 21 November

Beauty and the Beast Wednesday 22 November

Beauty and the Beast Thursday 23 November

Beauty and the Beast Friday 24 November

Carol Concert Thursday 14 December

Term 2 Ends Friday 15 December

Term 3 Starts Tuesday 2 January

Open Evening

Aspiring High

On Tuesday, 3 October, we had the first meeting of our new Aspiring High Programme, where students had talks on ‘How to prepare to apply for a top university’.

On Tuesday 3 October 2017, myself and many other students from Years 11 and 12 got the chance to attend a meeting. This involved two visitors from universities, Oxford and Cambridge. We learnt about how we can all potentially consider getting into the top universities. I found this meeting really helpful and it really got me thinking on how I could give myself the best possible chance. In addition, we were given a lot of help and booklets showing us what we could do to standout. Overall, I believe it was a great experience and I enjoyed hearing what I can do to get there.

Jasmine Kochhar – 11D

On Tuesday, students from the Aspiring High Programme were invited to a talk about getting into top universities. For Year 11 members, this was our first meeting and we were given an idea of just how useful this programme would be. The speakers were from PiXL and the universities of Oxford and Cambridge. They gave us great advice on how we should start preparing for university applications as well as how to decide where to go to university.

In the evening, two speakers representing Oxford and Cambridge spoke to parents and students from Windsor Girls' and The Windsor Boys' Schools. They explained in greater detail how the system works and what studying at one of the universities is like. It was interesting to hear about the differences between Oxford and Cambridge and other universities, as well as many of the similarities. Anna Foskett, Year 11

Big Question

Oxbridge Evening

On Tuesday evening over 150 students and parents and carers from both The Windsor Boys' School and Windsor Girls' School attended our Oxbridge evening. The evening is designed to give practical information about both Oxford and Cambridge Universities and to encourage students to apply. Dr Joe Organ from Brasenose College, Oxford and Michelle Tang, from Selwyn College, Cambridge were the key note speakers.

Personally, I found the Oxbridge Evening to be a really informative and enlightening evening. Before, I had not really set my sights on going due to many factors, however, I found that the information they gave was really helpful and showed me that there are many myths surrounding life at Oxbridge. Now, I would really like to apply when I am looking for universities. - Chloe Rodgers, Year 9

On Thursday 5 October we held our second Philosophy Club Big Question meeting, in which we discussed ‘what is truth and how do we know what is the truth in our global and pluralistic society’. We started with the poem of the blind men and the elephant, looking at how truth can be partial and we need others to help arrive at a complete understanding of the truth. A student referred to Aristotle and his concept of logos, pathos and ethics being needed to gain a complete understanding. We briefly looked at the ethical theories of Naturalism and Intuitionism, before concluding with the film clip from the Passion of Christ in which Pilate famously asks ‘What is Truth’ when sentencing Jesus. We did not reach any conclusion, but enjoyed a good discussion which will inform future ethical discussions.

Year 11 Geography Revision

PM Revision Sessions: 3:10 - 4:00pm (All Room 25)

Mrs Noctor (ANR); Miss O’Gorman (KON); Miss Pearce (LPE)

Unit Date

Topics Covered

Paper 1

Thursday 5 October Coasts

Wednesday 11 October Coasts

Thursday 19 October Coasts

October Half Term

Paper 1

Thursday 2 November Coasts Exam Questions

Thursday 9 November Natural Hazards

Thursday 16 November Natural Hazards

Wednesday 22 November

Natural Hazards

Thursday 30 November Natural Hazards Questions

Wednesday 6 December

Weather Hazards

Thursday 14 December Weather Hazards

Christmas Holidays

History Revision

Tuesday

Year 13

Coursework Clin-

ic

Break 2

Miss Salter

Room 11

Tuesday

Year 11

Germany Content

Revision

3:15 to 4:00

Mrs Peck

Room 12

Thursday

Year 11

Revision Clinic

Break 2

Mon 25 September 3:15 to 4:00

How useful are sources and C for an enquiry into

12 mark Q

Mon 2 October 3:15 to 4:00

Germany Explain Why 12 mark Q

Mon 9 October 3:15 to 4:00

Elizabeth Explain Why 12 mark Q

Mon 16 October 3:15 to 4:00

Describe Two Fea-tures Of 4 mark Q

Afterschool focused exam skills revision Room 11 Miss Salter

Extra-Curricular Timetable

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday

After School

3:15-4:15

Netball CCE/ ESR

Sports hall

Rowing SSCO

Fitness CHL

Gym/Sports Hall

Hockey CCE

Astro Netball Year 11/ 6

th

form

Netball Fixtures TBC*

Check Fixture wall ESR/ CCE

GCSE PE THEORY Room 18/ 19

CCE/ESR

Football CHL

Field

4motion Dance SSCO

Gymnastics

SSCO

Michaelmas Half, 2017 Meetings are in the Jafar Hall at 8.45pm on Wednesdays

Public lectures are marked #

6 September (#) Miss Katie Young Core Surgical Trainee Year 2, London

'Hand Surgery: a Junior Surgeon's perspective of a Career in

Academic Surgery'.

27 September Dr Mike Walker

FY2 at John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust

PBL Session (subject to be decided)

4 October (#) Dr Marie Kubo MBBS BSc (Hons)

Senior Tutor, The Medic Portal https://www.themedicportal.com/

Life as a Junior Doctor

8 November Dr Marie Kubo MBBS BSc (Hons)

Senior Tutor, The Medic Portal https://www.themedicportal.com/

PBL session on the Respiratory System

22 November (#) Dr Ee Ling Heng

Cardiology Specialist Registrar (Adult Congenital Heart Disease)

Royal Brompton Hospital.

'Mending Broken Hearts'

g.fussey@etoncollege.org.uk

Lent Half, 2018 Meetings are in the Jafar Hall at 8.45pm on Wednesdays

Public lectures are marked #

17 January (#) Professor Julian Halcox

Professor of Cardiology at Swansea University

"The future of stroke prevention on your smartphone?”

31 January (#) Dr Rashmi Patel

"The Digital Phenotype: using smartphone data to

improve healthcare outcomes".

21 February (#) Professor Philip Goulder

Professor of Immunology, University of Oxford

“Homing in on an HIV Cure”

7 March Dr Leena Karnik

Consultant Paediatric Haematologist

St.Mary's Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

Paediatric Haematology

g.fussey@etoncollege.org.uk