Head's View - 6 September 2019
HEAD’S VIEW
Head's View
6 September 2019
What a pleasure, on the bright but distinctly September days we have had this week, to have welcomed our new Upper III pupils and Lower VI students for their induction days and finally on Thursday to have the new academic year underway with an assembly for the whole community focusing our thoughts on caring for each other and for our world. It won’t be long before shirt collars are less uncomfortably crisp, before timetables are learned and lived and new relationships forged both in and beyond the classroom.
Of course it isn’t just the changing seasons we are aware of at this time of the year: the adjustment to a new class, new teachers, new school is one which we hope all our children will manage easily and happily. But it takes a little time, and whether it’s their first week at secondary school or they’re settling into a new year group it’s helpful if we keep the signals positive, delight in their independence (and avoid letting them see our understandable anxieties): ‘You’re handling this really well. I’m impressed by how you managed the bus journey / change of course by yourself. Don’t panic if you haven’t remembered your planner / decided which subjects are best for you / found the people you want to spend lunchtime with yet; you’ll get the hang of it.’
We are here to support and we look forward to working with you and your daughters this year.
Wishing you a happy weekend
Jan Cresswell
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Instilling in our girls the importance of caring about the world around us
Instilling in our girls the importance of caring about the world around us
Rachel Dent, 6 September 2019
This summer my daughter and I undertook our second road trip together, making the seven-hour drive up to the Lake District. For this Jess had prepared a playlist. It was a mixture of sentimental songs and songs that I had never heard before, including the censored version of the ‘Earth’ song by Lil Dicky. This song really resonated with me as we drove through the remarkable landscapes, which make up this ‘green and pleasant land’. It also seemed to chime with the many things that have happened over the summer in relation to our planet. They include Greta Thunberg’s 15-day, 3,000 mile voyage from the UK to New York to highlight climate change, ever-growing concerns over the raging fires in the Brazilian rain forests and the recent Hurricane Dorian wreaking havoc across the Bahamas.
Yet this blue planet of ours is such an amazing thing. One of the joys of where we stayed in the Lake District was the access to natural light. It was truly remarkable to sit in the garden and watch the wondrous stars appear. It reminded me of Tim Peake’s first words when he looked down at the Earth from the International Space Station: “Looking out of the Cupola window from the ISS for the first time down on planet Earth was a very special moment. It was one that clearly I’d thought about and looked forward to – any astronaut who goes into space knows that it’s going to be one of the greatest things they’ll see and it didn’t disappoint in any way.”
One of my hopes for this year, and for the future, is that our pupils continue to care about the world around them. There will be opportunities to do this in a more active way through the curriculum and our various clubs and extra-curricular activities, but as individuals, I would urge you to make our great planet part of your focus for the year.
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Gold DofE Expedition success for LVI
NEWS
Gold DofE Expedition success for LVI
By Avigail, LVI. 4 September 2019
Abbey girls are always up for a challenge, and the last week of the summer holidays was no exception, as five canoeing groups from LVI set off for their Gold DofE Assessed Expedition along the River Wye.
Complete with beautiful riverside views, our 3-nights 4-days self-sufficient journey was met with hard work, resilience and lots of laughter by all of the girls. From trying out interesting canoeing techniques to seeing how loudly we could sing off-key as we paddled, it’s safe to say that we’ve all come back with plenty of memorable moments and tall tales of adventure. The short yet exciting trip down the rapids was the perfect way to end our experience, with every boat successfully avoiding capsizing – perhaps for the first time in Abbey DofE history!
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Hannah wins Silver Medal on her GB Talent Squad Debut
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Hannah wins Silver Medal on her GB Talent Squad Debut
2 September 2019
Hannah has given a strong performance on her first appearance as a member of the GB Talent Squad at a Junior International competition.
The 14-year-old Abbey pupil is a keen pistol shooter, and her talents have gone from strength to strength in recent years. Being invited to train with the GB Talent Squad was an exciting step forward for Hannah, and this competition was a great start for her as part of the Squad.
The Junior International is a three-day event organised by the National Smallbore Rifle Association (NSRA), and attracts top shooters from across the whole of the UK, South Africa, and Denmark. This was Hannah’s first entry to the competition, and she was up against some tough competitors.
On Day 1, Hannah almost reached her individual PB to win the Silver medal in the 10m Grand Prix, and was close to placing in the Mixed Pairs. She and her partner shot 722, which was only three points short of the Bronze!
Hannah and her team went on to claim a very respectable 4th place in the Team Events over Day 2 and 3, despite the high temperatures posing a challenge.
Discussing the competition, Hannah said: “I was really pleased with my performance for the GB talent squad at my first competition with the squad. I managed to come away with a silver in the individual competition and came fourth in all of my team events. I was disappointed not to win more medals but hopefully I can come back even stronger next year. In the near future I am looking forward to working with my coach to improve my performance in the heat and to doing more international shooting competitions.”
Overall, the three days were a great experience to find out what formal International competition looks like, and will have set Hannah in good stead for similar events in the future. Hannah is next competing at AirOShoot in Belgium in mid-September, and we wish her the best of luck with it.
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Abbey girls celebrate GCSE success
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Abbey girls celebrate GCSE success
25 August 2019
Pupils and staff at The Abbey are celebrating outstanding GCSE results with 80% of all entries 9-7 and 93% of entries 9-6.
At The Abbey this year:
- 58% of all entries were grades 9-8
- 80% of all entries were grades 9-7
- 93% of all entries were grades 9-6
More than a third of students gained all 9-7 grades.
Rachel Dent, Head of The Abbey, said: “Once again, Abbey students have risen to the challenge and have excelled themselves. These spectacular results reflect the dedication and commitment of all our girls and staff, and I am absolutely delighted for them all. We have some staggering individual student performances in terms of achieving grades 9 and 8, but what I’m equally delighted about is the consistent progress many of our students have made irrespective of their starting point.
Behind every set of examination results there is a personal story of hard work, commitment and perseverance, which we are keen to celebrate. Our pupils have achieved these wonderful results whilst also demonstrating a genuine passion for learning and pursuing a wide range of interests beyond the classroom. We are all very proud of them.
We look forward to welcoming many of these students in our Sixth Form and witnessing their educational growth even further.”
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Sixth Formers celebrate their A-level results
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Sixth Formers celebrate their A-level results
20 August 2019
Over half of all entries were A*-A and a third of students gained all A*-As.
Around 15% of Sixth Formers are taking up places at Oxbridge, with many others securing places at Russell Group Universities.
The wonderful A-level results come after impressive results achieved by fellow Sixth Formers who took the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma earlier this year. Half of the girls scored 40 points or more, out of a maximum 45 points, placing them in the top 7% of all students studying the IB worldwide.
A-level students are going on to study subjects including; Music, Modern & Medieval Languages, Criminology, Cyber & Computer Security, Law with German & German Law, French & German Linguistic Studies, Biochemistry, Veterinary Science, Medicine, Mechanical Engineering, Electronic Engineering and Mechatronics & Robotics.
One student is going to study a Defence Engineering Degree Apprenticeship with the MOD, which includes supporting the Royal Navy with their fleet of submarines.
Rachel Dent, Head of The Abbey, said: “I’m incredibly proud of all that our students have achieved. As a School we continue to be academically ambitious for all our students and once again these results are testament to our outstanding teaching throughout the School.
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Summary/intro sentence e.g. Upper Sixth pupil and Abbey Sports Captain Phoebe has placed 7th in the world at the 2019 Junior World Rowing Championships.
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Tranthini shares the joy of winning
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Tranthini shares the joy of winning
16 July 2019
Team success is a good feeling. That’s the view of 11-year-old Tranthini from The Abbey Junior School. With a team of eight other boys and girls at Berkshire Junior Badminton Association she won the Best Achieving Team of the Year at the Reading Sports Awards.
Tranthini, who is just about to move up to The Abbey Senior School, has been playing since the age of seven and says she gets a lot of support from her parents and her coaches. She trains three times a week and also goes to tournaments at the weekend.
She said: “It was a fantastic experience, it was my first awards ceremony. We didn’t expect to win, there were a lot of other really good teams shortlisted.
“We were nominated because we won the Under 12 Shires League Finals last year. And already this year we have won the Under 14 Shires League Finals.
“Badminton is really fun to play and you get to meet quite a lot of people at tournaments.”
Tranthini is so passionate about the sport that she set up a Badminton Club at The Abbey Junior School, and hopes to do the same at The Abbey Senior School.
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Celebrating outstanding IB Results at The Abbey
NEWS
Celebrating outstanding IB Results at The Abbey
8 July 2019
It’s been another outstanding year for students at The Abbey in Reading today as results for the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme are published across the world.
18 students at The Abbey Sixth Form took IB Diploma examinations this year, achieving an average score of 39 points, a typical Oxbridge offer tariff. The world average is 29.
50% of our students scored 40 points or more.
Over 90% of students have secured their chosen university place. Nearly a quarter of the cohort will be taking up their places at Oxford and Cambridge universities while many others will be going off to a range of destinations including Russell Group universities. Subjects being studied include: Italian & Politics, Modern Languages, Astrophysics, Dentistry, Law, Asian & Middle Eastern Studies, and Liberal Arts.
The Abbey has been offering the IB Diploma Programme since 2008. The programme aims to develop students who have excellent breadth and depth of knowledge and much then to offer the world as global citizens.
Rachel Dent, Head of The Abbey, said: “We are absolutely delighted with our International Baccalaureate results this year. This is a demanding course and IB graduates show continued curiosity and critical thinking throughout their lives. These are the skills of the future.
“IB graduates are highly prepared to contribute to their own communities and, increasingly, to help find solutions to the broader challenges facing the world. I offer this year’s graduates from The Abbey my heartfelt congratulations and I look forward to hearing how they continue to make a world better place as they join our alumnae network.”
Julie Mackie, IB Diploma Co-ordinator, said: “They are stunning results. It’s the individual successes after a remarkable journey that are the true highlights of this set of results. I’m really proud of all the students.”
At The Abbey we recently completed our second five-year review of International Baccalaureate provision at Sixth Form, confirming our accreditation as an IB World School. As part of the review we were praised in particular for the fact that we have ‘actively promoted self-directed learning to help engage students as inquirers and thinkers’.
The Abbey is the only independent girls’ school in Berkshire offering both the IB Diploma and A-levels, allowing students to choose the programme of study that’s right for them.
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