MONMOUTH SCHOOL for Boys BOYS 11-18 NEWS Michaelmas Term Week 6 September 2017 A note from the Monmouth School Headmaster I would like to thank the many students who helped with our very busy open days last weekend. Students delivered tours of our school, and presented a wide range of activities. We had a large number of visitors on site, and, as ever, the Monmouth School boys were impeccably polite and friendly in hosting them. During the past week, as highlighted in this newsletter, there have been a great variety of activities that have taken place in school. However, please could I draw your attention to the latest superb report that Tatler have provided for our school: they also made a point of commending the boys on the friendly and engaging welcome that Tatler have received on their various visits to school. Top Stories MACBETH SURPRISES ENGLISH STUDENTS IN THE WOODS Last week all of Form II enjoyed Shakespeare in the autumn sunshine as they travelled to Puzzlewood to participate in a promenade performance of Macbeth. In an action packed and dynamic production, the boys were warriors, dinner guests and even the trees of Birnam Wood as they became immersed in the unfolding tragedy. All felt that this was a great opportunity to see this classic play brought to life and know that it will help them when they undertake their study of this text during the year.
CHARITY CYCLE RIDE RAISES 1000 FOR CHARITY... AND STILL RISING! Huge congratulations to Ben who cycled from Monmouth to London in 3 days in aid of The British Heart Foundation. He left Penallt on a Friday morning and arrived in Greenwich on the Sunday evening, cycling 212 miles over the three days. He cycled down to Chepstow and then picked up National Cycle Route 4 which he followed all the way, stopping at Devizes on the first day, and Twyford on the second day. It was an amazing cycle ride following country lanes, disused railway lines, The Kennet and Avon Canal and the River Thames. He was accompanied by his parents, who cycled with him as well as offering back-up in their car. On the final day he cycled from Twyford to Windsor, through Windsor Great Park, along The Thames, past Hampton Court Palace, through Richmond Park and into Central London, ending in Greenwich. This cycle ride was all Ben s idea and it has taken several monhts of planning which also included choosing a charity to donate the money to. So far, if you include Gift Aid, he has raised over 1000 for the British Heart Foundation and his parents as well as all of us at Monmouth School for Boys are incredibly proud of him. Well done, Ben! If you would like to contribute to Ben s fundraising please click on the link below, which will take you to his Just Giving page: www.justgiving.com/ben-morgan18 INCREDIBLY IMPRESSED TATLER MAGAZINE S VERDICT ON MONMOUTH SCHOOL FOR BOYS Parents searching for their dream school should look no further than Haberdashers Monmouth Schools. Tatler magazine s highly regarded Schools Guide delivers a glowing verdict on Monmouth School for Boys in its latest edition. In the feature on Monmouth, the magazine examines the characteristics that parents consider when selecting the dream school for their children. And the Tatler Schools Guide 2018 says: This school exists and we ve found it. Or rather, them Monmouth School and its sister, girls school Habs Monmouth. We were incredibly impressed by everything we saw and heard at Monmouth. The school s solid academic results are recognised along with the strong pastoral care. The feature highlights the school s sports team, music and drama on tap, and singlesex teaching, with plenty of co-ed interaction to equip them for the real world. The scout, who visited the school, also discovered engaging, confident pupils with their feet on the ground and an awareness of life outside their privileged bubble. The article finishes with a question from headmaster, Dr Andrew Daniel, who asks whether Monmouth School for Boys is the best-kept secret in education and the author concludes: Well, Dr Daniel, maybe it is, but we re doing our best to change that. WyeHack event on Sunday 3 December from 2pm to 5pm. Free meet for student coders to bring projects and ideas, use hardware & software to build an app, a website, a game, anything. Get support for ideas & join workshops. Bring a laptop, Raspberry Pi, tablet, or any device you can code on. Click on the image to find out more and book your place.
JUNIOR HISTORIANS BATTLE IT OUT IN STYLE The Junior History Society re-enacted the Battle of Hattin in cardboard and sports kit on Monday lunchtime and this annual festival of homemade weaponry and historical discovery did not disappoint either participants or onlookers. Form I, led by their generals from Form II, fought it out on Chippenham Fields with great skill and determination and, in the end, the verdict of history was upheld with success for the forces of Saladin. CROSS CURRICULAR ART PROJECT FINDS A HOME George s GCSE exam piece exploring the themes of religion and death is now on display in Mrs Wynne-Lord s classroom, alongside other exciting art works which have been influenced by similar ideas of afterlife and mortality. The work, a wonderful crosscurricular with Biology, Religious Studies and Modern Languages was influenced by Mexico s Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) and George was particularly enthused by the lino-cutting technique. George s work is just the latest of many student art works which adorn the walls of classrooms and corridors in the school and upholds a great Monmouth School for Boys tradition of putting our artistic talent on display. PROFESSIONAL SCULPTOR ENGAGES 6TH FORM ARTISTS Herefordshire s Newport House and its stunning gardens was the destination for 6.1 artists this week. They drew inspiration from a breadth of sculptural forms created by nationally and worldrenowned artists as part of the Out of Nature exhibition. Sculptor, Jon Edgar set students rapid-fire challenges exploring form through additive and reductive techniques; a range of materials including wire, clay, chalk and soap were used and students gained a greater understanding of the language and the basic principles of sculpture. Students recorded and gave personal responses to exhibits created in a range of materials including granite, clay, wood, wire, bronze and apples!
LANGUAGES WEEK Monmouth School for boys celebrated world s languages between Monday 25th and Saturday 30th September with an array of activities including foreign food and music, learning different languages, a real French café, pétanque games, a Spanish giant board game on the lawn and a French cinema. We also had competitions: Hello in 50 languages and a French treasure hunt. Year 7 and 8 girls from MSG joined the boys in Chapel House to play French boules and Year 9 girls took part in a German speed dating activity with our Form III boys. The week was very successful and undoubtedly contributed to raise the profile of languages through fun. A THANK YOU FROM THE FOMS The annual Friends of Monmouth School Curry & Quiz Night last Friday raised a fantastic 516.50. Well done to the winning team and thanks to all who came along. It was a lovely social evening and the curry was absolutely delicious! Next week, some of the boys will pitch their projects and equipment requests at the FOMS Lion s Den. (Think Dragon s Den). The money raised at the quiz night will go towards supporting some of these projects. Keep up to date with news from the Lion s Den and our annual calendar of events. Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. Your support is critical.
X-COUNTRY TEAM GOES FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH On Thursday 29 juniors and 9 seniors ran in the 2nd Brecon League fixture at Brecon High School. The juniors won even more comfortably than last time, with the top 4 being Josh3rd, Oskar 5th, Tom 7th and Henry 11th. Even the B team came 3rd overall, beating all but 1 of the other A teams! And the C team came 5th, beating 4 of the A teams! Meanwhile the seniors had a much closer battle, beating Christ College 30 points to 34. Our top 4 runners were George 4th, Robbie 5th, Tony 10th and Ieuan 11th. COMING UP AT THE BLAKE THEATRE: Live on stage: Wednesday 18th October 7.30pm Antigone Live on stage Friday 20th October 7.30pm Showaddywaddy Calendar Dates: CLICK ON THE IMAGES TO BUY TICKETS FOR THESE EVENTS Fri 13 October Sat 14 October Sun 15 October Mon 16 October Tue 17 October Wed 18 October Thu 19 October 8.40a.m. Chapel (Tudor House) 2.00p.m. Form III Inter-House Ergos: New, School, Weirhead (Boat House) 2.30p.m. School Committee (Conference Room) 4.15p.m. William Jones Society (MG Sixth Form Common Room) Rugby: v. Malvern College: 1st XV (Ledbury RFC) K.O. 7.00p.m. Boarders Activity: 6.30p.m. Cinema (Newport) Rowing: Monkton Bluefriars Head: J15 - J18 (Saltford, Bath) Rugby: v. Malvern College: 2nd, 3rd, U16A & B XVs (A) Lunch 12.30p.m., Depart 12.45p.m., K.O. 2.30p.m. U15A, B & C, U14A, B & C XVs (H) K.O. 2.30p.m. 9.15a.m. MBP Choir rehearsal (Chapel) 10.15a.m. Chapel: Harvest Service:MBP Choir, Chapel, New, School, Weirhead, Buchanan (Chapel House) Boarders Activity: 12.00 noon Indoor Climbing (Cardiff) 6.00p.m. Deadline for submission of all Oxbridge, Medicine, Veterinary Science and Dentistry applications to UCAS Tutor Period: Period 1 9.00a.m. - 4.00p.m. Form V GCSE CompSci Programming Workshop (COM2) 1.50p.m. - 2.30p.m. Form VI Literature Students: Literary Society Lecture (E6) Form III Street Art Trip (Bristol) Depart 9.00a.m., return 4.30p.m. 8.00p.m. Boarders Multi-Activity: Form IV/Year 10 (MG) Cross-country: Brecon League #3 (Christ College, Brecon) Depart 2.45p.m. Canoeing Club: Cardiff Indoor White-water Slalom. Depart 4.15p.m., return 8.30p.m. Rugby: v. Caerleon Comprehensive School:U13A & B XVs(A)Lunch1.00p.m.,Depart 1.15p.m.,K.O. 2.30p.m. v. Queen Elizabeth s Hospital Bristol: U12A, B & C XVs (H) 4.00p.m. House Photos (Main School Lawn) Rugby: v. Crawshay s Welsh Youth XV: 1st XV (H) K.O. 2.30p.m. 4.30p.m. Cranmer Awards: Reading Competition (Chapel)