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This Week at St Faith’s
Remembrance Day
At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month 1918, the guns on the Western front finally fell silent, marking the armistice and bringing to an end the First World War. At St Faith’s, at 11 o’clock on 11th November, our school stood in stillness outside and we joined the nation in observing the 2-minute silence. This was marked in the traditional way with a pupil playing ‘The Last Post’ on a trumpet, and the period of observance concluded by ‘Reveille’. Those two pieces of music were then played again at our afternoon assembly, when we were joined by The Leys and St Faith’s Foundation Chaplain, Reverend Simon Coleman. Reverend Coleman spoke to the children about how our most significant memories are invariably of people. Monday was also a day for the whole school community to remember by name the Old Fidelians who had lost their lives in conflict and war. As the roll of honour was read out by our Year 8 pupils, they each held a large poppy, one for every person whose name was read out.
The Purcell Ensemble played Henry Purcell’s ‘Chacony in G Minor’ as the children entered Ashburton Hall and later in the assembly, the Chamber Choir performed a beautiful rendition of ‘Pie Jesu’ from Maurice Duruflé’s Requiem. The whole occasion was very respectfully observed by the children.
History off the Page – Florence Nightingale Day
On Tuesday, Year 2 welcomed a very special visitor called Florence Nightingale. They were taken back to the year 1854 and experienced life as it would have been for a nurse during the Crimean War.
The children learnt about the key issues of the time, with the opportunity to participate in a range of cross curricular activities and crafts. The workshop was expertly led by ‘History Off the Page’, a company which provides truly immersive and practical History, Science and Literature workshops to schools.
SFPA Fireworks
The SFPA fireworks evening, which took place last Friday, was a wonderful extravaganza of colour, light and sound. Once again it was sell-out evening and I do hope that you enjoy these photos from the event. I would like to thank all of the staff who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make the event possible. I would also like to extend a sincere thank you to the many parent volunteers who assisted on the night. The following morning we were also joined by a team of volunteers, and some children too, for a clear up of the site, expertly organised by Mr Brent, to ensure the school was ready for Monday morning. From the sale of glow product stock together with most generous donations, the SFPA collected a total of £425.97 for two nominated charities: Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust Ward D7 and Ormiston Families Stars Bereavement.
Super STEM Activity – Year 1 and 2
This week in Super STEM, the children in Years 1 and 2 enjoyed observing some chemical reactions. After watching what happened when Mentos were added to cola, the children learned there are several reasons as to why a reaction takes place. One of these reasons is the many small pores on the surface of the Mentos, which speeds up the release of carbon dioxide (CO2) gas from the cola by providing an increased surface area for the reaction to occur, which in turn causes the cola to erupt.
The children also learned about diffusion as they observed water dissolving the dye and sugar coating of Skittles, with the colour moving towards a place where there is less dye and sugar, in this case, the middle of the plate. Finally, the children made lava lamps using oil, water and Alka Seltzer tablets. Alka Seltzer reacts with the water to make bubbles of CO2, and the bubbles attach themselves to the coloured ‘blobs’ of water and bring them to the top of the glass. When the bubbles ‘pop’, the blobs of coloured water then fall back to the bottom of the glass. The children were enthralled and inspired by these impressive experiments.
Year 4 Trip to London Symphony Orchestra Concert
On a bright and exciting day, 66 of our Year 4 pupils embarked on a memorable trip to the Barbican Centre in London. They had the incredible opportunity to attend a concert by the world-class London Symphony Orchestra (LSO), featuring Holst’s magnificent ‘The Planets’ suite.
The event was attended by over 1,000 children from various schools, creating a vibrant and enthusiastic atmosphere. The concert opened with the powerful and dramatic ‘Mars,’ capturing the attention of all the young listeners. The Animateur and Conductor expertly guided the children through the various movements, encouraging them to listen out for specific musical elements and themes. The children were also encouraged to sing, clap (in 5/4 time), and move in time with the orchestra, with some healthy school competition thrown into the mix, making the experience even more engaging and fun.
The performance concluded with the uplifting and joyful ‘Jupiter,’ leaving everyone in high spirits. This trip was particularly special as it followed our singing of the hymn ‘I Vow to Thee, My Country’ in our Remembrance assembly on Monday, which features the famous melody from ‘Jupiter.’ This connection made the experience even more meaningful for our pupils.
The feedback from both pupils and parents has been overwhelmingly positive. Many parents reported that their children had a wonderful time and were buzzing with excitement about the experience. Some even insisted on playing Holst’s music on the car radio on the way home! We are thrilled to see such enthusiasm and look forward to more enriching experiences in the future.
Sound Waves
In Year 6 Science, Mrs Price’s classes are learning about sound waves. Last Friday, both classes learnt how sound travels through our ears. One of our pupils gave a ten-minute talk about how his cochlear implants help him hear with the aid of his ‘Roger’ device (a device worn by teachers to amplify their voices directly to his hearing aids). The pupils watched intently as he drew models on the board demonstrating how his hearing devices work. After his presentation, the children were able to ask questions. Some of the questions were: how does a ‘Roger’ work, how far does a ‘Roger’ reach, and do you need the ‘Roger’ to be close to the boards when watching movies/clips or tv?
The pupil talk was truly inspiring, the children and teachers came away with a far better understanding of how hearing devices work and the benefits they can bring.
English Schools’ Cross-Country Cup (Regional Final)
Well done to our Year 7 and 8 Boys’ Cross-Country team who took part in the Regional Finals of the English Schools’ Cup, hosted by Stowe School last Friday.
Mr Mageean and Mrs Fordham accompanied the team as they competed alongside the best 10 qualifying schools from Cambridgeshire, Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire, following their success in the First Round that took place before the half-term break.
Despite it being a chilly day the boys performed very well on a challenging hilly course. Finishing positions of 12th, 22nd, 23rd, 29th, 47th and 55th placed us as a fantastic 6th team overall, just missing out on a place in the National Final. The boys should all be proud of their achievement at this level and they are already looking forward to the Year 7 & 8 District Schools’ Cross-Country Championships which are scheduled to take place on 5th December at Netherhall School. Further results can be found in the sidebar of the newsletter.
A Fond Farewell to Richard Brent and Annabel Brunner
Governors and staff gathered on Tuesday evening following a Governors’ meeting, to celebrate the most dedicated service of two long-standing members of the school community, who will leave us at the end of the Michaelmas term. Mrs Annabel Brunner, our Chair of Governors of the St Faith’s Committee, was first elected Governor in 2002 and, as well as being Chair of the St Faith’s Committee, she has also served on the Finance and Audit Committee, the Foundation Executive and the Nominations Committee. Mr Brunner’s skilful leadership, wise counsel and deep commitment to our school will be very greatly missed and we wish Annabel and her family every happiness. Mrs Victoria Wienand will be taking over as Chair of the St Faith’s Committee in January.
Mr Richard Brent is a very familiar figure across our school community. In his role as Bursar, during the past 16 years he has overseen significant transformation of the school and he has managed some of the most ambitious infrastructure and operational projects that St Faith’s has ever undertaken. Mr Brent’s extraordinary dedication and tremendous hard work will leave a lasting legacy at St Faith’s and we wish him well in his new endeavours. Mrs Hannah Fox will join St Faith’s as our new Bursar in January.
And Finally…
Next Wednesday we look forward to the second of our Academic Extension Days for this Michaelmas term and on Thursday, we hope that a great many families will be able to join us for our Autumn Concert in Ashburton Hall. This event promises to be a wonderful occasion when we can savour the very fine musical accomplishment of our pupils.
Before then may I wish you all a happy and restful weekend.
With all best wishes,
Crispin Hyde-Dunn