The glorious weather this week has enabled lots of outdoor teaching and learning to take place as well as some very competitive sports matches. We wish our intrepid Year 10 success with their Duke of Edinburgh expeditions. They set off happily this morning and, thankfully, this time they have blue skies. If you have any family and friends interested in hearing more about our wonderful School, please do let them know to join us during our Open Morning on the 5^th October. Have a lovely weekend.

Mrs Knox

Childhood Cancer Awareness

We suggest donation of at least £1 per badge in order that we may raise as much money as possible for this special cause. The team will be around after school for any parent who would like to buy a badge or simply make a donation. Thank you very much for your support

Evie M, Year 11  and Mr Macdonald

Year 10 trip to Houses of Parliament

The Year 10s enjoyed a fascinating trip to the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday, at this incredible time for British politics. Of course there was no sign of Boris in the central lobbies, or Jacob reclining on the benches, but it was a treat nonetheless. We were shown Westminster Hall, site of the trial of Charles I and Guy Fawkes to name but two. We were allowed into both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. These are incredible, historic chambers, where so much history has unfolded. The Year 10s were wonderfully behaved on the train, and in Parliament, and have to be commended for their astute questioning and their general interest. We hope that this trip helps our students understanding of how our country works and, who knows, may even spark an interest or two in politics as a whole.

Mr Macdonald

Year 4 visit Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden for a creative writing trip

 

On Tuesday, Year 4 visited the Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden in Ockley. The sun beamed down on us while the children practised their drawing, photography and creative writing in the woodland garden. The class were bubbling over with enthusiasm and imagination, making bountiful suggestions for vocabulary, similes and potential storylines. We are now linking these ideas together back in the classroom to create their own narratives. This morning we focused on creating story openings that hook the reader into wanting to read on further. Here are some examples of their exciting introductory paragraphs, which were inspired by the sculptures that they saw and I, for one, can't wait to see how the rest of the stories unfold:

"Magic, magic crystal ball, who will come to Arden today?" spoke Merlin in a strong voice. There, through the glimmering ball lay two beautiful girls waiting for a strong adventure. Tansy-Bela T

Suddenly there was a strange glimmer of a shape, like a shooting star, speeding towards the earth in the forest. BANG! The meteor hit the ground. Joe walked along and saw a massive hole. He adjusted his eyes and saw a ginormous rock which was making the forest black and turn to dust. As he watched the forest disappear he heard a strange voice coming from a tree, "You must find the key and attach it to the portal which will cure the earth." Levi L

Once there was a man called Anderson but Anderson was no ordinary man. He was a man with super powers! Anderson's super power was that he could go as thin as paper, and then as fat as a hippo, as small as a mouse or as tall as a hundred-storey building. Elliott S

Mrs Nicholson

Reception visit the Weald and Downland Museum

On Monday Reception travelled by minibus to the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum at Singleton. The weather was fabulous which meant that we were able to make the most of being outside and exploring the vast array of buildings and displays.

We started our visit by looking at the watermill. Kindly one of the millers opened the sluice gate so we were able to see the water cascading onto the wheel to start it rotating to power the mill itself. We went inside to see the huge mechanism in operation and had a go at grinding our own wheat on a hand-powered smaller version. We then looked at a building housing the stored grain and flour that was perched upon stone ‘mushrooms’ to stops rodents from eating the grain.

We took a walk to the Smithy and marvelled at the huge anvils and metal work. We also saw ‘The Repair shop’ that is featured on television but as filming was taking place, unfortunately we could not go inside.

Next, we met our knowledgeable volunteers Charlotte and Mary who took us around a house that used to belong to a family in East Sussex. There were only five beds in the house to accommodate 8 children and 2 adults so we learnt about how to top and tail in bed. We also found the chamber pot or ‘Guzunder’; nobody thought they would like the job of tipping out the pot in the morning! As part of the chores expected of a child, we learnt how to clean the brass and to beat the carpets outside, creating clouds of dust. We saw how without electricity or running water the family managed to clean the house, make their food and clean themselves in a large metal tub. The children liked the idea of sharing the bath water until they realised that they would probably be the last of 10 to use it! We noticed that there weren’t any toys to play with in the house and wondered what the children did. Mary explained that the children were so busy with jobs and helping to care for their siblings that they had little playtime. We did however, find some wooden toys for playing outside and had a go on the hobby horses and stilts.

Before lunch we looked at the school house where all ages of children sat in rows under the direction of the teacher. On the blackboard was written “Children should be seen and not heard!”
We were able to enjoy our packed lunch sitting in the sun, followed by a lovely run around on the grass. During lunch we noticed a cart horse pulling a cart in the market square area. After lunch we found the horse named Mac at his stable and learnt about how horse shoes are made and fitted to the horses. We were able to stroke Mac on his neck and face; such a big friendly horse. We also liked seeing the hens with their nests in the grassy verges and the russet brown pigs rolling in the dust.

At the end of the day, we discovered some other houses with huge fireplaces and very steep stairs and even a toilet that was just a hole in the floor that extended over the street! We returned to school tired but knowing more about how hard life was for children who lived a long time ago!

Mrs Henry

Nursery visit Painshill Park

This Tuesday Nursery Class set off on their first trip of the year to Painshill Park in Cobham. The children all love stories and I thought that a fairy tale walk at Painshill would spark their imagination. We were not disappointed! Our guide through the woods was called Adam. He immersed himself in the role of story teller by wearing a cape and a feathered cap. He led the children through the woods using language rich in rhyme, nonsense and tall tales. The children hung on to his every word. During the walk we searched for the three bears' house, hid from the wolf, built a house for baby bear, hugged a giant's tree and gathered ingredients for gingerbread men whilst being chased by a fox! One of the children's favourite moments was acting out the tale of sleeping beauty in a beautiful castle by the lake. They were also rather fond of the wolf's cave and squealed with excitement when Obie the wolf chased after her friends. During the walk the children dressed up in simple outfits which helped to bring their favourite tales to life. Since our return we have begun to create our favourite characters in class, inspired by our happy day at Painshill Park.

Mrs Ragless

Senior Student Council

A week of proposals, suggestions and ideas culminated in the voting for the Senior School Student Council representatives this Thursday. A lot of persuasive arguments were made and many of the teachers commented on the mature manner of the prospective candidates. The Student Council will meet every three weeks and provides a platform for students to get their views across under the stewardship of the Head Boy James F and the Deputy Head Girl Blue R. The successful applicants received their badges during Friday's school assembly and will no doubt be itching to share their views on a number of topics! Representatives for year 7 will be Alessandro P and Ava W, for year 8 Harley B and Natasha B, year 9 Dylan M and Iris R, year 10 Oscar B and Daisy K, and year 11 Jeremy H and Josie M. Congratulations to them all and I look forward to hearing their ideas.

Sponsored Swim

This Sunday 22nd September from 10am-11am, 12 amazing pupils from year 4, year 6 and a former Duke of Kent School pupil will be challenging themselves and having fun to raise money for Macmillan Cancer support as part of the Duke of Kent School 2019 Coffee morning event. A couple will test their football skills at a penalty shoot out or run laps and the rest will be jumping in the deep end to swim as many lengths as each child is able to at Cranleigh Leisure Centre.

We are already super proud of these wonderful children for taking part and devoting their spare time to help others. If you can we they would be so grateful for any contributions to support their efforts and an amazing charity.

www.justgiving.com/fundraising/dokswimkickrun

Mrs Littman

Food Bank Donations

As the leaves start turning and the nights begin to draw in we face the inevitable change of season - Autumn! Traditionally this is the time when we celebrate Harvest. Although we live in the countryside most of us are far removed from the daily toil of having to pick, plough or produce our own food. We are blessed to be able to nip to our local shop and choose from a wide selection of fine food. However, this is not the case for an increasing number of families who live around us.

As part of our Harvest celebration this year as well as remembering and giving thanks for the abundance of provision we enjoy we will be collecting for the foodbank again. Shockingly the people who use foodbanks is sharply on the rise. Last year 1.6 million people were in need of their help, a 19% increase on the previous year. Although the causes of poverty might be out of our immediate control we can still help!

Please look at this link from Cranleigh foodbank which tells us what our families near us desperately need at the moment.

https://www.cranleighfoodbank.org/donations

They would also love soap powder, washing up liquid and anti-bacterial spray.

We will be asking the children to bring these in for our Harvest Assembly on the 9th October.

Thank you so much for your support!

Rev'd Kia

A few match reports from this week

Boys' Football: U14 A v. Kingswood House 

U14 Boys' v. Kingswood House

In a swift turnaround of fortune the U14 A team bounced back to record an impressive 4-1 win over Kingswood House. With Charlie K, Dylan M, Casper C and Ben W being successfully marshalled at the back by an impressive Freddie N in goal, we proved very tough to break down. This allowed Teddy J some space in midfield with Charlie B, who had a really good game going forward, and Ben D who was a constant menace to the opposition. Ben W was man of the match with two well taken goals, Freddie S scored a goal of the season contender with a 30 yard thunderbolt and Jack A slotted home from close range to get our fourth. Well played boys!

Mr Seeley

Netball: U14 v. Shoreham

The U14 girls had a fantastic afternoon playing against Shoreham College in netball on Tuesday afternoon. They played at a very fast pace throughout the game despite the warm weather. The girls won the match 30-7 with some excellent playing from each team member. Well done to everyone who played!

Miss Spence

Girls' Football: U11/10 v. Belmont

The U11/10 played their first football match of the Summer term against Belmont on Wednesday afternoon and had a great game. Each girl played with great enthusiasm and enjoyed the match! Girl of the match was awarded to Sydney R who ran circles around the opposition and kept a high spirit throughout. Each of the girls played fantastically well and showed great football skills! Well done girls! 

Miss Spence

Girls' Football: U8/9 v. Belmont

On Thursday afternoon, the U8/9 team played their first match of the season. The girls played a football match on the Wilsons' Pitch against Belmont. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon, perfect weather for spectators but rather warm for the players! Duke of Kent School showed some brilliant determination and effort level throughout the game and with regular water breaks they managed to keep their energy up for the whole match! Belmont scored first with a great goal but Duke of Kent School came back quickly with a fantastic response - Holly B dribbled the ball over half way up the pitch to score an amazing goal for the team. Meanwhile, Poppy F and Erin C worked tirelessly in defence, managing to clear the ball out wide on multiple occasion to slow down the Belmont attack. Tansy B made some great saves too! Isabella N used her strength to make some good tackles and regain possession for Pip C-G, Penny A, Lulu B and Isla W to use their passing and dribbling skills! The score finished 3-1 to Belmont. Congratulations to all the girls involved and well done for your wonderful behaviour throughout the afternoon.

Miss Vickers