School Office: 01737 649000 Weekly Newsletter Issue No.20 2013/2014 28th February 2014 The following items can be found within this week s Newsletter: Whole School Chaplain s 400 (Page 2) Borrowed Uniform (Page 2) Food Tech Plea (Page 2) Music News (Page 3) Mothers Day Gift Sale (Page 3) Junior School Angels & Top Men (Page 3) Y5 Egyptian Artefacts (Page 3) Senior School DofE Photography (Page 4) Alexandra House (Page 4) Y10 Vaccinations (Page 4) Science Department Website (Page 5) Menu w.c 03.03.2014 THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK Don t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant. Robert Louis Stevenson 1
WHOLE SCHOOL Chaplain s 400 Four minibuses of RAAS Year 9 pupils are in Poland, exploring the former concentration camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau. The sixty-ninth anniversary of closing these sewers of human degradation is taking place. Few spend time in these sobering memorials without concluding that so great a concentration of evil on such small spaces has made a tangible impact. At some, no birds have flown overhead then or since, despite woodlands flourishing all around. Also as I write, a school nearby mourns the untimely death of a fourteen year old. An attractive, talented human being will never realise wonderful potential. Immediate family and other community is torn by separation and loss. A dishonourable, malign, and perverse action has unleashed decades of suffering. There is a strong representational aspect inside both events. It is good that our School is represented annually by a pilgrimage to one of the most terrible places in the world. An act of violence against a young person inspires in most of us outrage against the perpetrator, and solidarity with the deceased and their family. The 5 th March next week is Ash Wednesday. There will be a mass and a ceremony of aching in St Andrew s Church at 6.30 p.m. All staff and pupils are welcome at this occasion, which launches annual reflection and renewal before Easter in the Christian church. These celebrations are open to anyone who wishes to drop in. They are not just for regulars. During a recent inspection visit, I observed a wonderful R.S. lesson. It was a second class on theodicy, the problem of how evil co-exists with a good and powerful God. All of us, faced by the evil we experience and observe, need an explanation of it. To ignore this universal human need, is to live a lie. And this truth of all truths needs to out. It is natural that most of us revise these conclusions as long as we live. Questions like Why evil?, Why do bad things happen to good people? raise further questions about the purpose of individuals and the entire human race. Why are we here? Is it just to get through our years with a minimum of fuss? To get the most money and comfort obtainable? Beyond the classic discussions of R.S. lessons and universities is an idea advanced by a great twentieth century English philosopher, John Hick. He suggested that at its heart, the purpose of creation is soulmaking. The Oxford teacher I observed had not quite reached this point, but I hope she did. Hick s process of soulmaking is the best we get so far to wringing some sense and meaning out of evil, whether it wears the face of carefully planned concentration camps, or the wilfully engineered destruction of a single human life. Borrowed Uniform Can all parents please remind their child/ren that any borrowed uniform must be returned on the day that it was borrowed to the Social Inclusion Area. Any unreturned items will be invoiced at the end of each half term. Please review the school website as to the schools correct uniform criteria. In Food Technology we are desperately short of plastic containers with lids for students to take their food home in. Ice cream, butter & margarine boxes are ideal! All contributions gratefully received Thank you 2
Music News The Spring Concert is on Friday 7 th March and all performers should now be aware of their rehearsal commitments for the week. Family members who wish to attend are very welcome; please email alisonbutler@gatton-park.org.uk to confirm your attendance. The concert will begin at 7pm, with doors opening at 6.40pm. The event is not ticketed, but there will be a retiring collection to support further development of music at RAAS. Alison Butler Director of Music Mothers Day Gift Sale CONGRATULATIONS to Maddie Sprague Y5 for her winning poster design for the Junior Mothers Day Gift Sale, Maddie has won a 5 voucher to spend at the sale! The Senior & Junior Mothers Day Gift Sales are at lunchtime on the 14 th & 17 th March so extra pocket money will be needed this week! Gifts are priced between 2-5. JUNIOR SCHOOL Angels of the Week: Charlie Cross-Fairhurst Kizzy Foster Top Men of the Week: Egba Gbagi Ben Lehain Mr Stafford Housemaster Rank Weston Y5 Egyptian Artefacts In Art this term we have made links to our History topic of the Ancient Egyptians. The children spent their earlier lessons looking at a variety of containers and in particular canopic jars which are used to hold organs of the body once someone has died. The children spent their next few art lessons designing their own containers. They had to decide what it would hold and how it would be decorated in theme with the Ancient Egyptians. On Thursday afternoon, they enjoyed a clay pot making workshop, led by Kirstin Wood (Artist in Residence) where they put their designs into practice. They made some beautiful pots and containers including one with a boar s head as a lid! 3
SENIOR SCHOOL Alexandra House News On Thursday 20 th March (4.30 6pm) there will be a social event for Year 10 Alex House students with cake and other goodies. All Boarders and Day Boarders are welcome it will be a great time to get together as a year group within the house. Georgia Vinall (Year 12) is one of 15,000 state school applicants to have secured one of 500 places on an Undergraduate Placement Day in March at Brasenose College, Oxford University. She will spend the day as a Geography Undergraduate through a programme from the Sutton Trust for social mobility through Education. Steph Smith Alex House Parents of Year 10 Students From September 2013, the Department of Health has recommended that Meningitis C Vaccine is to be given at the same time as the Diphtheria, Tetanus and Polio booster in school. This will be given to year 10 girls on Friday 14 th March and year 10 boys on Friday 28 th March. Consent forms have been emailed home this week and must be completed and returned to the Health Centre by Monday 10 th March. If you would like a hard copy sent to you please contact the Health Centre. 4
Science Department Website The science team have put together a new website to enable students to access revision resources online. The address is : www.scienceraas.weebly.com The link can be found on the pupil pages of the school website. The site is password protected and students can get this information from their science teacher. If you would like us to add resources (currently we only have KS4 and A Level resources on there KS3 resources will be coming soon) please let us know. Sarah Leeton Head of Science 5