This year’s Upper Sixth Charity week was a rousing success, raising over £670 for the Latin American Foundation for the Future.The events were a wonderful way to raise money for such a good cause. On the staff and Sixth form Fancy Dress Day, Fairy Godmother Miss Evans led an assembly for characters like Miss Pacman, Barbie and a human Father Christmas. The men vs. women staff netball match had everyone out of their seats, with the women eventually triumphing 7-6. Commendations to Miss Blanks and Mrs Azmat on some spectacular goals and to ‘Man of the Match’ Mr Duncombe. The week was certainly a highlight of the term and will help underprivileged children in Peru and other South American nations get a good standard of education and a better life. Thank you to all who arranged, participated and supported these events. We could not have doneit without you.

Earlier in December, the Careers Department held an Arts and Humanities Careers Forum. Delegates came from Nottingham, Aston, Birmingham and Aberystwyth universities, several law firms including Pinsent Masons, landscape architects and artists, police interpreters and the United Nations to name but a few. Several hundred girls and parents attended the event, which was designed to broaden the girls’ horizons and get them thinking about a wider range of options available to them after leaving school. You can read more about it by reading the Careers Department Blog on the KEHS Blogs website.

newsDec 2012

Sarah Evans

U6th Charity Week

Having just watched the brilliant Junior Production of ‘Alice’, the comparison in terms of frantic activity in the fantasy of the play and the pace of life in the autumn term at school is hard not to make. It is a term when a huge amount of academic work gets completed and for girls in particular year groups, that is not the half of it!

Girls in the Upper Sixth have been busy working

with teachers to complete UCAS forms and the

lucky ones are already starting to receive offers and

interviews. It is a tough time for those who have

applied to courses that wait until well into the New

Year before responding but it will happen! For the

fifth form, there have been the mocks, a useful

reminder of just what needs to be done before

next May, and the thinking about subjects for A

Level next year. Then there is all the school life that

goes on around the academic drive. The Upper

Sixth have been raising money for LAFF through

their Charity Week which got off to a spectacular

start with sixth formers and staff dressed up for

a day. Junior thespians have been building up

to ‘Alice’ while older performers have been busy

with rehearsals for ‘West Side Story’ our Senior

Production at the end of January. Musicians have

performed in some wonderful lunchtime recitals

while working on forthcoming performances at

Christmas. Our Sports teams have had some

terrific matches and returned with quite a few

trophies, while individual sports women have been

continuing to excel nationally. One of the highlights

of the term for me has been the Awards Evening

when we welcomed back Old Edwardian Susie

Rogers, winner of three bronze medals in the

Paralympics 2012. What an inspiration to us all.

I very much hope to see parents at the Christmas Carol Service at 7.00pm on Wednesday 12 December at Edgbaston Old Church to wish you

Seasons Greetings!

review KEHSKING EDWARD VIHIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS

World ChallengeThis term the girls have been preparing for their World Challenge Trip next year. The World Challenge Team began their preparation for their expedition to Madagascar next year at a training camp this term, where they learned the key leadership and survival skills they will need on their journey.

They also held a 12 hour non-stop netball competition to raise funds for their trip. The girls were sponsored to keep passing a netball for 12 hours without stopping. They were joined by a team of staff members and a team from the boys’ school. The guest teams gave the girls some stiff competition and made the day a huge success. Thank you to all those who participated or sponsored girls in the event.

Miss Evans waves her magic wand!

Careers Forum

KEHS has, once again, received a rave review in the Tatler 2013 Schools Guide! Tatler described how our “fantastically good” school, our excellent facilities and our “intriguing” extra-curricular activities, like the Medieval Garden Club, make us a great example for others to follow.

Tatler Good Schools Guide

The staff netball team prepares for the day.

newsreview

AcademicNews

Sixth former, Baljyot Kaur, has been named the winner of the national Education Art Prize Competition run by Specialist Crafts. Baljyot was amongst the ten finalists chosen from thousands of submissions across the UK. Their work was displayed in an exhibition by renowned artist Michael Brennand-Wood in the Ruthin Craft Centre called ‘Forever Changes’.

The competition brief was to create a piece inspired by Brennand-Wood, who works in multimedia and particularly in textiles. His pieces can be found on display in a number of prestigious international institutions, the closest of which is the Victoria and Albert Museum. The finalists were invited to a workshop led by the artist on the 21st of November, where he later announced Baljyot the overall winner and presented her with a vase of his own handmade textile flowers. Baljyot attributes her success to taking inspiration from all aspects of Brennand-Wood’s work, but using her own individual interpretation. Her winning piece combines concepts of geometry, lace and embroidery, the result of which is visually stunning. This is a remarkable achievement for Baljyot. Very well done!

Baljyot Wins The Education Art Prize

Michael presents Baljyot with her certificate and some hand crafted flowers.

Zara Azmat has been awarded a prize in the national Arts and Minds Competition run by NASUWT, the teachers’ union. The competition, which is held to celebrate Black History month, gives pupils of all ages the opportunity to explore and discuss issues surrounding racism and to create a piece of art or creative writing. Zara’s written piece saw her through to the National Finals in London, where Gok Wan presented her with her prize.

Arts & Minds Competition

The Arts & Minds Competition is designed to combat racism.

Maria Wins National Spanish CompetitionMaria Czepiel has won the UK prize in the prestigious Ruta Quetzal BBVA Competition!

The annual Competition, organised by the Spanish Embassy, invites participants to participate in a series of tests that assess their Spanish language skills, their knowledge of Spanish culture and their ability to work with other people. The winner from each country is then taken on a 6 week expedition across South America

and Europe, designed to further the student’s knowledge of history and allow them to see some of the most beautiful sites in the Spanish-speaking world.

The Ruta Quetzal BBVA Competition programme has run since 1979 and has developed a great reputation across the world. It has been deemed to be of “Universal Interest” by UNESCO and each of the participating nations. The academic aspects of the programme are run by the Madrid Complutense University in conjunction with a number

of South American institutions, whilst the sporting aspects allow participants to be taught by Olympic athletes. Winning such an esteemed competition is a fantastic success for Maria, not to mention a mind-blowing opportunity. Maria will be celebrating the fifth centenary of the discovery of the Pacific Ocean in Panama, experiencing the renaissance in Belgium and will be received by Their Majesties the King and Queen of Spain in Madrid! We hope she has a wonderful time and wish her continued success.

Laura Through To The National Final

Congratulations to Laura Cooper of U4E who was named the Birmingham representative in the national final of the Cranmer Awards – to be held in York on February 28th 2013.

The judges at the regional stage of the competition commended Laura for her measured pace, excellent use of punctuation and clarity of expression as she delivered her chosen passages from the 1662 Prayer Book. Well done Laura, we are proud of you and look forward to hearing of your experiences next year in York.

Laura receives her certificate and prize.

Girls Ace French Poetry Competition

The judges looked for accurate pronunciation and intonation as well as original interpretations. Our girls did extremely well. Congratulations to all of the eleven girls who took part, and particularly to Juliette Thomas and Sarah Tayara, who won third prize! Très bien fait !

The Anglo French Society of Birmingham’s annual poetry competition took place at the University of Birmingham this week. Our students were invited to take part by reciting the poem that they studied in class.

Dec 2012

Maths Challenge WorkshopsIn November we held a series of Maths Challenge Workshops for children from local junior schools. The boys and girls had a wonderful time trying a number of fun mathematical challenges, which were designed to stretch them and raise their aspirations.

A particular favourite was the Treasure Hunt, which went down a storm with both pupils and their teachers. “The morning gave the children a chance to do some high level problem solving. It was good to see the children who are more able in mathematics adapt their learning to unfamiliar challenges.” We look forward to hosting more junior schools mornings over the coming year.

Our girls backstage as they prepare for the competition.

The Annual Edward Cadbury Lectures

Funded by an endowment by the Cadbury family, the series of lectures focuses on Christianity. The topics chosen cover history, theology and culture. The lectures will be opened by Professor Gordon Lynch, who takes a cultural sociological approach on the study of religion and the sacred in modern Western society. Girls are more than welcome to register for these free lectures by visiting the university’s website.

Girls studying their GCSEs and A Levels, particularly those studying RS, may be interested in attending the annual Edward Cadbury lectures at the University of Birmingham.

Birmingham University.

Sixth Formers Train With Astronauts!Lydia Kanari-Naish, Paramvir Dhanda and Louise Tomkins went to visit the centre and get a first hand look at cutting edge science and technology in space-related fields. They even received some astronaut training! It was a wonderful and unique experience for all those involved. The girls also brought back a gift for the school: a poster signed by astronaut Mike Lee. Make sure you take a look next time you visit the Physics department!

Three girls from our Sixth Form have recently returned from a trip working with NASA!

Louise at Pearl Hall. NASA. The girls receiving astronaut training.

We are keen to encourage girls to enrich their academic studies and many departments provide additional reading lists.

Intellectual Curiosity Blog

We have just launched a new web page where girls can access a range of Online Learning Resources. There are online debates, web seminars, podcasts and PowerPoints from some of the world’s top universities—subjects include computer coding, medical sciences, the arts, engineering, history and literature. We will keep adding links over the course of the year.

Engineering SuccessCongratulations to the girls who are participating in this year’s Engineering Education Scheme.

The KEHS team won the Launch Day Competition, where they had to build a chassis out of only paper and straws. The chassis was then used to bridge a gap and tested with weights. Our girls’ creation supported 11.8 kilos. We hope that their success continues throughout the year. The girls will be posting a regular blog, which you can read on our blogs website.

Our engineers on their way to Birmingham City FC as part of their studies.

newsreview

Carmen Wins Biathlon

She finished first in the 100m swim and fourth in the 1000m run, leaving her in second place overall. However, as the person in first place was from out of the area, she was awarded the gold medal! This is a fantastic achievement for Carmen, who has now been asked to join the England Talent Pool. Congratulations, Carmen!

Carmen Elliott (U4H) took part in the West Midlands Schools’ Biathlon Championships at Tudor Grange this term.

Paralympian Returns to KEHS

She presented the girls with their

A Level certificates and awarded

prizes to those who had excelled in

their time here. Susie spoke about

her Paralymic experiences and her

life since KEHS. She recommended

that girls make the most of their time

here by nurturing their friendships

and making the most of their extra-

curricular activities.

Paralympic swimmer and three time bronze medallist Susie Rogers returned to KEHS this term as the guest speaker at this year’s Awards Evening.

Regional Netball Champions

Our U14 team have won their place in the West Midlands Regional Schools’ Competition to be held in January. Having played eleven schools from the area, they made it through to the Birmingham Final. It was a close match and the girls were eventually pipped at the post by just one goal. Nevertheless, they have earned their place in the Regional Tournament and we wish them the best of luck!

KEHS Netball squads have also achieved similar success.

The under 14, 16 and 18 Hockey Squads each won the Birmingham rounds of the Schools’ County Tournaments and all three went through to the regional finals. The U16 squad reached this stage without conceding a single goal! The regional finals went brilliantly, with all three squads coming in first place! The under 14 and 16 teams are now the County Champions, with the under 18 team ultimately coming second on goal difference. Their performance this term has been superb, proving their dedication and commitment to the sport.

Hockey Triumphs Across The Board!SportingNewsAutumn 2012 has been wonderfully successful for Hockey at KEHS.

The U16 Hockey Team.

The U14 Netball Team.

Susie and Miss Evans.

We wish Carmen the best of luck in her next event!

Dec 2012

Miss Warne explained that one of the

purposes of her trip was “to further develop

our cultural links and to explore the North

West Coast of North America as a potential

university destination for girls from KEHS. As

well as familiarising myself with the delights

of British Columbia, I visited universities

in Vancouver and Seattle and also visited

Victoria on Vancouver Island.Vancouver is

a beautiful city, surrounded by ocean and

mountains. As a pupil at York House or a

student at British Columbia or Simon Fraser

universities in Vancouver, it is perfectly

possible to ski in the winter and go sailing

or rowing in the summer. In the Autumn

and Spring you could do both in one day

and the nearest mountain is less than

30 minutes by public bus! The University

of British Columbia hosted many events

connected with the Winter Olympics, so

their sports facilities are outstanding. The

university is going through a period of huge

building development at the moment, so I’m

not convinced that somebody wanting to

embark on an undergraduate programme

now would find it the most pleasant of

campuses on which to be based, but in

two or three years’ time it will be stunning. It

boasts impressive libraries and facilities and

is clearly strong on business and science

programmes. It values A level qualifications

very highly and girls with good results

would be very likely to receive some sort of

scholarship on arrival”.

InternationalNewsThis term the school has welcomed a number of visiting international principals.

The two groups, one from China and the other from Denmark, came to view the school and speak to Miss Evans about education in England.

They were very impressed by our building and grounds, and particularly interested in the professional development programme that we provide

for KEHS staff and our work as a Teaching School. We hope to have more international visitors soon.

KEHS Welcomes International Principals

Alison Warne visits CanadaVice-Principal Alison Warne embarked on a trip earlier this year to study the school and university systems in Canada.

newsreview

“The challenge for schools today in delivering a first class education is to

create a stimulating learning environment that keeps children focused while

pushing them to exceed, both academically and as individuals. [KEHS] is

an institution that takes this very seriously, making little distinction between

curricular and extra curricular activities”.

Mike Gilbert Publishes in American Magazine Mr Gilbert has written an article on the KEHS Video Technology Department for the international School Video News magazine. The cover story describes how the work he and the video technology teams do contributes to a well-rounded education and broad personal development.

Video Technology.

The students were from Liceo Scientificio, a specialist maths and science

college which is the Italian equivalent of an English grammar school. After

touring Oxford and Birmingham Universities, and visiting a number of local

attractions such as the Barber Institute, the students came to KEHS to

experience school life. It proved to be quite different to their Italian education!

They were very impressed by our extra-curricular activities, particularly our

media lab, and were very pleased with the sixth form common room – an idea

that they will be recommending when they return! It was a great opportunity

for our girls to get to know their partners before they venture to Italy for the

second leg of the exchange in April. Our girls will be spending two days in

Rome before visiting their host families. We hope that they will enjoy it as much

as our visitors did!

Italian Exchange ProgrammeThe first leg of our Italian Exchange Programme was held at the start of December.

Liceo Scientificio.

J’ai habité à Vancouver, au Canada, pendant quatre semaines. Je suis restée avec Sophie Menzies et sa famille. Dans la

famille, il y a sa mère (Martine), son père (Neil), son frère (Phillip, qui a 15 ans), sa sœur (Adele, qui a 10 ans) et Sophie (qui

a 13 ans). Ils sont très gentils et sympathiques. Martine vient de Québec (au Canada), mais Neil vient de Vancouver. J’adore

cette famille, parce qu’ils sont amusants, heureux et très énergiques. J’avais de la chance!

Quand j’étais à Vancouver, j’ai parlé l’anglais, mais j’ai écouté beaucoup de français. Martine parle le français à la maison

(parce qu’on parle le français au Québec), donc ses enfants comprennent la langue. J’ai compris quelquefois, mais pas

toujours! Aussi, Sophie parle très bien le français. Elle le parle couramment, et elle fait des classes supplémentaires en

français au collège! C’était très intéressant pour moi.

Au Canada, le français est utile parce que beaucoup de personnes parlent cette langue. A Vancouver, les gens parlent le

français moins que l’anglais, mais tous les emballages doivent avoir les instructions écrites en français et en anglais.

Il y a deux semaines, on a fait du camping à l’île Gambier, près de Vancouver, avec le collège de Sophie qui s’appelle York

House School, pendant une semaine. C’était assez amusant, et j’étais très heureuse. J’ai rencontré les amis de Sophie, et

elles étaient gentilles. Pendant notre séjour à l’île Gambier, nous avons fait du canoë, joué à un jeu de camouflage dans la

forêt, dormi dans un sac de couchage et plein d’autres choses en plus.

J’ai bien aimé mon séjour au Canada, et je veux dire un grand merci à la famille Menzies. Je n’ai pas les mots pour dire ma

gratitude pour cette famille. Un jour, je vais retourner au Canada. J’adore Vancouver, et Vancouver me manque!

Quand j’étais au Canada

Vancouver Exchange ProgrammeEleanor Jennings, in the Upper 4th, writes a short account about her exchange visit to Vancouver.

Dec 2012

Congratulations to sixth former Grace Gwynne on being cast

as Madame Thernardier in the recent performances of Les

Misérables at the Old Rep Theatre! Grace brought to life this

comic character for four nights in November and the whole

production was a resounding

success! Her performance

was described as “sparkling”

in a review by the Birmingham

Mail. This is an excellent

achievement. Well done,

Grace!

Theatrical Success for Grace

In November, Chris Hope of the English Department became a published poet. Mr Hope’s poem is published in the Ice Anthology alongside such classic poets as Keats, Blake and Dickinson.

Mr Hope Becomes Published Poet

An excerpt from That Winter

“That winter, backdoors opened

somewhere nearby;

Light lay like a remembered tablecloth;

All became even.

Evenings were gently slung behind boxes

And her central heating clicked on at six.”

Congratulations to Adelaide Yue on her performance in the Moray Piano Competition this year.

Musical Success For Adelaide

Competition is designed to

give young people under 20 an

opportunity to perform at a national

level. It is one of the most prestigious

of its kind in the UK. Competitors

enter in a variety of classes and

four finalists are chosen from each.

Adelaide entered the Cathedral

Class and went through to the final

in November. She played beautifully

and was awarded the Gold Medal.

This is a spectacular achievement.

Well done, Adelaide!

ArtsNewsOn Friday 12th October, six pupils from KEHS/KES gave a lunchtime concert at the prestigious Barber Institute of Fine Arts.

Barber Institute Lunchtime Recital

With a large and appreciative audience, the concert was a huge success. Solos from Adam Phillips, Adelaide Yue,

Dominic Spencer Jolly and Simon Kent were of a standard that many university music departments and

conservatoires would envy, with all performances oozing confidence and musicality. Rounding off the

programme was Shostakovich’s First Piano Trio, for violin, cello and piano, played by Roberto Ruisi,

Sophie Cheng and Adelaide Yue which was simply stunning and was greeted with rapturous

applause from an audience who couldn’t believe they hadn’t had to pay for the concert!

Congratulations to all six musicians on a wonderful recital.

Adelaide was spectacular in both the Moray Piano Competition and the Barber Institute Recital.

Sophie Cheng.

Quand j’étais au Canada

Dec 2012newsreviewKEHS in WonderlandWell done to all the girls involved in this year’s Junior Production of Alice. The play is a modern humorous reworking of the Lewis Carroll novel Alice in Wonderland. The show was well received by all audiences, particularly the Junior School children invited to an exclusive matinee performance! Friends and family from Israel, India, France, Canada and the USA were able to tune in to watch via the Live Stream link. Many thanks to Mr Gilbert for setting this up. This service will also be available for the Senior Production of West Side Story.

Christmas Concerts 2012On Sunday 9th and Monday 10th December the Ruddock Hall was packed for its first ever Christmas Concerts, with performances given by 11 of the KES/KEHS ensembles and choirs. Sunday saw performances from the KES Choir, KEHS Chamber Choir, Brass Ensemble, Wind Band, Senior Swing Band, Concert and Symphony Orchestras and on Monday the KEHS Lower School Choir, Junior Swing Band, Concert Band, Choral Society and Symphony Orchestra performed.

With the hall decorated, beautifully lit and completely sold out on both nights, 2012’s Christmas concerts went down a treat and have set the bar very high for future festive performances in our stunning new venue.

All groups gave well-rehearsed, polished performances showcasing a whole term’s worth of hard work in a range of different groups, some individuals appearing in no fewer than six groups over the two nights!

Sunday’s concert was also an apt time to say farewell to Annie Oakley, ex-CBSO percussionist, who is retiring having taught percussion at both schools for the past 38 years. Several of her former pupils joined her and the Symphony Orchestra for one final performance of Sleigh Ride. Many thanks to Annie for all her hard work; she was presented that evening with the plaque for the newly dedicated Annie Oakley Percussion Studio at KES.

Congratulations to all who performed! Merry Christmas from the Ruddock Performing Arts Centre!