Charters News Autumn Term 2013

This autumn’s production of The Lion, The Witch and The Ward-

robe was brought to life with outstanding imagination and tech-

nical expertise. Dramatic lighting and though provoking sets

transformed the school hall into the mystical, wintery world of

Narnia while the audience, seated ‘in the round’, were enter-

tained by a witty script and a talented cast of pupils drawn from

all year groups.

The unsung heros of the

Dining Hall tempted staff and

students with tasty festive

food and outfits to match the

season.

Ten charming Charters’ Santas joined in a chari-

table dash through Swinley Forest to raise money

for Thames Hospice Care.

Sophie Quirk, year 7, observed, “The Santa Dash

was really funny because everyone was in a San-

ta suit and some of the people running looked

really ridiculous, especially some of the Christ-

mas puddings.”

For term dates see www.chartersschool.org.uk/term-dates

Co-Heads’ Comments by Martyn Parker and Richard Pilgrim

Unity Respect Excellence

All members of the school community –

pupils, staff, governors and parents –

will be united in sharing a common pur-

pose: to achieve their personal best, to

pursue lifelong learning, to develop and

model respect for themselves and oth-

ers and play a significant role in the life

of the local community; and they will be

able to articulate this common purpose

and support each other to achieve

these goals.

Our school will be characterised by posi-

tive, appropriate, productive and warm

relationships strengthened by emotional

and physical resilience. We will encour-

age all members of the community to

reflect on and develop their relation-

ships with each other to promote toler-

ance and understanding.

All members of the school community will

strive to achieve excellence - their personal

best in all areas of school life:

academically, in extra-curricular activities

and through their embodiment of positive

attitudes and qualities.

Key Priorities 2013-14

Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG)

– every student receives clear, relevant

IAG at the appropriate time to enable

effective decisions about their future.

We will provide clear advice and guid-

ance setting out our expectations con-

cerning how pupils should interact with

one another, both verbally and via new

media.

Academic results – the school continues to

set challenging targets and achieves, year

on year, strong value-added results within

the top 10-15% of similar schools national-

ly.

As we come to the end of a busy Autumn Term at Charters, we

wanted to give you some examples of how the Charters com-

munity has reflected the school motto

Unity – Respect – Excellence in its activities and events so far

this year:

Unity

The warm welcome given to Mr Harvey, Dr Green and

Miss Hilderley at the end of their epic cycle ride from

Tirabad to Charters

The spectacular production of The Lion, The Witch and

The Wardrobe, showcasing the talent and hard work of

students, staff and parents

The first alumni events in Summer 2013 for the Clas-

ses of 2001-05 and of 1963

Establishing the Charters’ Friends group

Respect

Curriculum Enrichment Day on planning local cycle-

ways by Year 7 students and presentations to our local

Parish Councils on this subject

Our Information Evening for Parents about drugs

Continuing to make our buildings more energy efficient

Excellence

Examination results to shout about! – Hot off the press

this week is Ofsted’s analysis of the progress our Year

11 students made this summer that rates our perfor-

mance at the 11th percentile nationally

Seven successful Oxbridge candidates

Well done to Year 7 for an excellent first term. Here is

a picture of their individual hands just before they

joined us:

We would like to say farewell and good luck to Miss Byrne (Teacher of Drama and Music) who is leaving us at the end of this term

to pursue her love of teaching musical theatre. We would like to thank her for all her hard work during her time at Charters, and

wish her every success in her future career.

Wishing all parents, students and staff a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Peaceful New Year!

And we could go on…… but we’ll leave you to find out about all the exciting activities that have occurred so far this year by reading

on. Instead, we just quickly want to tell you what our main priorities are for the rest of this academic year:

Follow @ChartersCareers on Twitter for latest career opportunities

Outside the Classroom

Dedicated staff and enthusiastic pupils have participated in a

range of events outside of the classroom demonstrating their

talent and ability to the wider world.

In the summer a group of forty students went to Paris on Music

Tour. The pupils worked very hard in the run up to the tour,

spending several weekends at school rehearsing. This meant

that the standard of music making was very high and that pu-

pils were ready to tackle the concerts waiting for them in Paris.

Whilst on tour the group performed four concerts, each provid-

ing different challenges and experience. The week started with

a performance at Euro Disney, where they performed a mix of

secular pieces to a busy audience. The second concert was in

the Luxembourg Gardens, where both tourists and Parisian

locals sat back around the band stand to watch the concert.

Passers-by stopped on their strolls around the grounds to listen

to Charters’ students perform, meeting each rendition with

tumultuous applause.

In between students enjoyed the rides at Disney; a visit to the

Louvre and soaking up the sun on the Paris Plage. But it

wasn’t just the sightseeing that gave them experience of

French culture – they were also lucky enough to perform in two

fantastic French churches.

At Le Madeleine, they performed some wonderful pieces of

music, which were complemented by the stunning acoustics of

the building, to a packed audience, of four to five hundred peo-

ple. One member of the audience enjoyed it so much that he

researched the school’s email address and sent a message

after he returned home all the way from New York to say how

much he enjoyed the concert.

The second church concert was in the under-stated American

church, which, hidden from view of the street, is a lovely se-

cluded church with a beautiful interior. This was the final con-

cert, and for some of the pupils the most enjoyable, as the

standard of performing was at an all-time high.

Kerala, India was this summer’s destination for the World

Challenge group...

Hiking over mountains through monsoon season, volunteering

at an orphanage where students got to put their love of sports

to good use and finally getting to relax in the idyllic surround-

ings of Kochin made for a fantastic trip for everyone involved.

The students were very impressive and took turns leading

from day to day, taking on responsibilities such as organising

transport, food and leading the group.

Although many students found the monsoon conditions a chal-

lenge they also said the views and experience itself was

‘completely worth it’.

An Indian Summer

To find out about the Sixth Form see www.chartersschool.org.uk/6th-form

Meanwhile our Year 12 geologists were in Kimmeridge Bay to

learn about simple geological structures in the field.

Despite storms that week it did not rain although it was very

windy. The beach was accessible as the tide went out and it

was littered with fossils from the very crumbly cliffs.

Students measured strike and dip on an anticline, and looked

at jointing and then the staff barbequed lunch for all.

They also saw some faults. The second one looked like the

picture in the textbook. Hammers were not allowed on that bit

of coast but everyone enjoyed themselves and felt like real

geologists.

Year 12 Geographers had the opportunity to attend a lecture

series at the Institute of Education based on five case studies

from around the world. The keynote speaker was Michael Pal-

in, better known to students’ parents from his Monty Python

days and TV travelogues.

Eminently qualified to speak, as a BAFTA fellow, comedian and

former President of the

Geographical Associa-

tion, he ended the day

with an inspiring and

insightful lecture on

'Brazil' where he told a

story through images

based on his journey

through different regions

in the country.

Outside the Classroom cont’d...

Our musicians weren’t the only group to visit Paris, over half

term 78 Year 8 language students spent three days enjoying

the sights and sounds of the magical French capital.

On arrival they headed to Tour Montparnasse to take photos of

the city from its 210m peak. Then, it was straight to the Tro-

cadero and a pit stop tour of the Arc de Triomphe and the

Champs Elysées.

Our pupils were treated to a food appreciation event in the

evening where they tried snails and some French cheeses. On

the Monday, students were entertained by Astérix and the

Obélix at their theme park and, in the evening, a disco and

activities were laid on by the French animateurs. Finally, they

headed home on Tuesday via a tour of the Stade de France.

A fantastic time was had by all and everyone learnt lots of new

French phrases, even the teachers!

An exciting day experiencing different types of Medieval War-

fare was enjoyed by some gifted and talented year 8 students

at Ufton Court, near

Reading.

Sophie Maher 8S writes,

‘Once we got there the

Ufton Court team taught

us how to make simple

clove hitch knots and

square lashing knots to

be used in making our

giant trebuchets. After

this we had lunch which

we ate in our four

groups so that we could

discuss battle plans.

In the afternoon we

visited Ufton Court Man-

or which was used to

look after priests on the

run once Queen Elizabeth 1 became Queen. It was really

amazing to see where they used to escape down ladders etc.

We also made bows and arrows with twigs and string to look

like the ones they would have used in the army.

Finally, the battle was on! Trebuchets at the ready and water

balloons filled. Luckily, our group was superior and thrashed

the other groups. I thoroughly enjoyed this trip and I’m sure

everyone else did to!’

A Rocky Road

A day with Michael Palin

Armed and Ready

For Learning Gateway queries see www.chartersschool.org.uk/gateway

Rotary Club Public Speaking

Testing Times

Nine pupils from year 8,9 and 10, took part in the annual Geo-

graphical Association’s Worldwise Quiz competing against 26

teams from 16 other schools.

The three Charters’ teams which were comprised of one pupil

from each year group faced six different quiz rounds that test-

ed their geographical general knowledge including flags and

Teen Tech

40 music students from Years 9 - 13 went to hear the Royal

Philharmonic Orchestra at Cadogan Hall.

The programme consisted of Tchaikovsky's 5th Symphony,

Ravel's haunting Le Tombeau de Couperin, and Elgar's famous

Cello Concerto, played by Jamie Walton. Cadogan hall, just off

Sloane Square, is a wonderful intimate concert venue and the

students had fantastic seats, right above the orchestra on ei-

ther side of the stage. The orchestra played superbly well, un-

der the baton of Christoph Koenig

Rob Gray 12LS writes of a recent Biology visit, ‘In biology at

school I always thought mastering the art of using a micro-

scope is a relatively easy task, or so I thought. On a recent trip

to Reading University, courtesy of the biology department, the

dozen or so 6th formers lucky enough to be on this trip were

introduced to the electron microscope that resided deep within

the impressive science department of the university. Capable

of magnifying objects 500,000 times, this complicated and

rather large machine both overwhelmed and fascinated me at

the same time. I was unaware of the long process required to

prepare samples for viewing under the microscope, and I also

learnt about how the microscope works: an electron gun fires

volleys of electrons at the sample to produce an image where

the electrons hit the specimen.

This trip has made me aware of new areas of the subject that I

had little knowledge of previously and I would like to thank the

teachers who organised the trip for the chance to see such

fascinating machine working in real life, a much better experi-

ence than reading about it in a textbook. This was an enjoyable

trip that I have learnt a lot from.’

A Bird’s Eye View

Microorganisms and crystals

capital cities and also their skills with OS maps.

Our fantastic teams finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th and the pupils in-

volved should be very proud of themselves,

The pupils who took part were: Ishan Chawla, Isabella Somer-

ville, Amirah Holmer, Tom Flower, Myles Kearsley, Angel Thom-

as, Sean Frost, Conor Murphy and Henry Roberts.

Best Speaker, Best Team

In the annual Rotary Club Public Speaking competition held at

St George’s School, Ascot, Charters’ students won the prize for

best intermediate speaker: Alix Webster, and best intermedi-

ate team: Piper Barrett, Hannah Heitplatz, and Frankie Killen,

and will now go on to represent the Ascot area in the zone

finals. Congratulations to all who took part.

TeenTech

A day of interactive challenges and prizes for our budding

engineers, whose fantastic teamwork and business plan for a

‘Live Life’ app won special praise from the judges and an

award for best logo design.

Join ChartersConnect on Linkedin, follow us on Facebook or on www.twitter.com@chartersschool

Charters Connect … the alumni society of Charters School

Class of 2001-2005

Just before the Summer holidays former students reunit-

ed and reminisced over drinks and nibbles in the school

library. Tours of the school were available and staff came

along to catch up with their former pupils. It was a great

evening and more are planned for 2014.

If you would like help organising a reunion for your year group, please email cc@chartersschool.org.uk

Now we are 30 ….!

Among the events planned for 2014 is a reunion for alumni who will be celebrating their 30th birthday! So if this in-

cludes you please update your contact details via the alumni section of the school website so we can send you your

invitation. If you need your log in details, email us on our new address cc@chartersschool.org.uk

Whether you left us after Sixth Form or earlier, for those who celebrate the ‘Big Three 0’ between September 2013 and

August 2014, you will be invited to join staff and others from your year group at Charters School on the evening of

Friday 9 May 2014. In the meantime, zoom in on these images to see how many faces you recognise!

Save the date! Friday 9 May 2014

Tirabad Sports Tour

'It was a really great opportunity and really fun' (Rosie Jen-

kinson)

'Fun, exciting and sporty!!!' (Ali Povey)

Year 8 and 9 sporty pupils set off for Tirabad Centre ready for a

week of outdoor adventure and competitive Hockey and Net-

ball fixtures.

The week was a great success with some high class Netball

and Hockey Fixtures played. The students’ behavior was a

credit to the school; as was their sporting prowess. Overall we

had two Netball and one Hockey victory, with two other close

contests which were narrowly lost.

The students also took part in Caving, Kayaking and Mountain

Walking where they really showed their ability to work as a

team. In addition they saw the Scarlett Rugby team play in the

Heineken Cup final; even being part of the pre- game parade

around the pitch!

A great week, well done all! Miss Holt & Mr Hancock

Inter Girls Cross Country Team

Junior Girls Cross Country Team

National Cross Country Finals Success

We are immensely proud of our Inter and Junior Girls’ Cross

Country teams who made it through all the preliminary rounds

to represent Charters in the National Finals.

The girls only realised what a ‘big deal’ the National Event was

when they were given their unique chip IDs. The race itself was

tough! The best 144 girls in England, representing 24 teams,

launched themselves into a 15 minute cross country run. Each

member of both teams ran brilliantly and contributed the the

overall success.

The Inter girls came 10th overall and the Junior girls came 9th

overall in the country. In addition, both teams are the BEST

teams out of those in the South West region. Finally, of special

note Morven Goodrum came 3rd overall, only beaten by girls

who already represent England Schools; a phenomenal

achievement.

If you would like to join the XCountry Club, boys and girls, and

would enjoy going to the Look Out in Bracknell on Mondays in

search of trails to explore, see Dr Green to sign up.