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Picture of the week: Year 8 window
display. Mrs Townsend
Artwork of the week:
Alix Kingwell (Year 13)
A Level exam preparation on the theme of 'Vertical
Structures' in collage, plaster, mod roc and acrylic
paint.
Picture of the week: Megatron Harolds Night Disco
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Welcome
Dear Parents,
Dear Parents,
This week we have been investigating what it means
to be unselfish. Monday’s assembly focused on a story
of ‘How Coyote Stole Fire’, which is a very old traditional tale from the Pacific Northwest of America. In
the story, a group of animals stole fire from the top of
a mountain for Man who was cold and hungry. We
realised there are times at school when we must think
about what other people need to make them happy.
The challenge for every child was to notice when
someone needed their help and perform selfless and
unselfish acts of kindness around the school.
Wednesday’s assembly continued the theme by
recognising children in different classes who had
carried out unselfish deeds. Year 3 had really taken
this week’s challenge to heart and shared their system
of recognising these acts at the end of each day by
adding a marble into a jar for each one shared. These
included two girls changing a playground game to include more people in their fun, one child who helped
another get up to speed with a task in an Art lesson
as they had missed the beginning and helping each
other with choosing and sharing reading books in the
library. I am pleased to report that at the last count
there were indeed many marbles in their jar!
Lunchtime at our Prep School involves children sitting
at tables in a traditional family style manner; a group
of children together with a member of staff, sitting
around a table enjoying a midday meal together. This
arrangement gives our children plenty of
opportunities to chat and get to know everyone in
their group and to consider everyone around the
table. In the dining room it is common to see our
children carrying out simple, unselfish acts; such as
pouring out the drinking water or clearing and
wiping the tables at the end of the meal. One
member of Year 5 spoke to me after being
particularly kind over lunch and said that carrying out
these simple acts made them feel happy inside and
great about themselves.
So the week has come to an end with many acts of
kindness and good deeds being valued within our
school community and I will leave you with our
thought for the week which is …
‘It doesn’t take great people to do great things, just
unselfish ones’.
With best wishes.
Maria Maslin
I am writing this introduction as our Year
11 and Year 13 students are coming to
the end of an intense week of mock
examinations. As tough as these are, they
play a vital role in preparing candidates
for the real thing in the summer and I am
confident that the outcomes will reflect
the focus and commitment shown by the
relevant individuals. Staying with the
academic theme, I have really enjoyed
setting aside time this term to conduct
lesson observations. Watching other
teachers in the classroom is always fascinating and I particularly
enjoy de-briefing both teachers and students as to what makes
effective teaching and learning. I launched BALTI (Battle Abbey
Teaching and Learning Ideas) a few years ago as a forum for
teachers to share good practice and to experiment with new
and innovative ideas. The recent support for BALTI has been
particularly encouraging and I am grateful to Mr Rowe for his
leadership of this important group. It is also the season of options
and it is always a challenging time as students (and parents)
make choices about GCSE and A Level courses. At Battle
Abbey, we run the options process differently to most other
schools in that we ask students what subject combinations they
would like to do in an ideal world – and then we construct the
option blocks from that feedback. It is a much fairer system than
the pre-blocking, which operates in most schools, but it
inevitably leaves a very small number of students facing
clashes. From what I understand, most of those clashes have
been resolved and I am indebted to Mr Usher for all his efforts
over the last few weeks.
There are other teachers and students I would like to thank too
for their many contributions to the wider life of our School.
Mrs Hebblethwaite did a wonderful job organising the latest
French exchange and the camaraderie shown by both the
English and French students was probably the best I can
remember. The amazing performing arts team of Mrs Hopkins,
Mr Langridge and Mrs Colman have worked tirelessly on
preparing the cast for the upcoming performance of Les
Miserables. The commitment of both the staff and students is
hugely appreciated, especially as they all give up so much of
their time at weekends and during the half-term holidays. The
charitable side of school has been as busy as ever too. St. E’s
have taken fund-raising to a new level this past year and the
leadership from the student heads of house and Mrs Brampton
has been impressive. Mrs Brampton has also done a great job of
motivating our netballers and many were lucky enough to join
her for the trip to Wembley to watch the England match. Finally,
I would like to thank Mr Perry and his team for hosting a
memorable Spring Disco, which, once again, saw Year 5 and
Year 6 students sharing a dance floor with those in the upper
sixth – and there, are not many schools where that would
happen!
Can I finally take this opportunity to encourage you to support
us with our Open Morning on Saturday 4th March and remind
you that any members of your extended family are welcome to
spend a few hours with us in order to see and experience the
special atmosphere that exists at Battle Abbey?
Best regards
David Clark
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Nursery News
What’s been going on...?
Welcome back from half term; the children appear to have enjoyed their week at home and have settled well back into
Nursery.
The Oaks’ children have been drawing and painting their favourite holiday times such as swimming, visiting grandparents,
the park and beach. This has been a great opportunity to encourage the children to reflect upon the world around them,
use their communication skills to describe their experiences and feelings and be creative.
The new puppet theatre has been popular in the Oaks room and the children have been very busy creating puppet shows
for their teachers and friends.
Please pop in to see the Oaks’ new display that was created by the children using the ipad to record their favourite things
at Nursery, the printer to print out their photographs and also small voice recorders to record themselves talking about their
favourite things and their photographs. This was a great opportunity for the children to learn about and use technology, but
also to tell us about what they enjoy about their time at Nursery.
The Acorns have continued to enjoy their wheels on the bus and vehicle role play activities; we hope you will pop into their
classroom to see the new bus display with the children’s photographs as the passengers!
The Acorns have also been very busy in the garden creating an obstacle course and have been practicing their balancing,
climbing, sliding and jumping skills, alongside working together, helping each other and taking turns.
The weather this week has given us a hint of spring and we’re looking forward to some continued warmer weather so that we
can recommence our Forest School visits.
The Nursery team
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Prep School News
Year 1 Exploring The Town
Prep School Sports
To complete their topic on Houses and Homes, Year 1 went
for a walk into Bexhill on Monday afternoon. On the way they
looked at a variety of different types of houses and homes
and were especially excited to see a motorhome! In town
we visited and looked at different types of shops. The lady in
the bakery was keen to show the children the variety of
products on offer and said how nice it was that we were
educating the children about the small shops the town has
to offer. We then returned to school on a local bus which was
very exciting for the children!
On Wednesday 25th January the Year 5 & 6 girls’ Netball
teams took part in a fixture against Moira House.
In two evenly contested matches the team displayed good
passing and accurate shooting.
The A team attacked well from midfield intercepting passes
and producing good counter attacks. Each quarter was
evenly contested until the final quarter when the superior
shooting of Elisabeth and Ellie C put Battle Abbey into the
lead. The Final Score was a 7 to 5 win.
Mia was commended for her excellent performance as
Goal Defence by the opposition umpire and Elisabeth was
voted Player of the Match by the opposing team.
In the B Team two Year 4 players (Ellie B and Chloe) were
making their debut at this age group. The team passed the
ball well and by half time the score was 3 -3 thanks to
excellent shooting by Kirsty and Erin.
Beatrice played well as Centre and made several excellent
interceptions. The defence of Ellie B as Goal keeper and
Player of the Match Gwen as goal defence, marked tightly
throughout the match limiting Moira House to very few
attacking opportunities.
Yarn Bombing
All the children in Years 3-6 are taking part in the "Yarn
Bombing "project on Hastings Pier that celebrates the
community and environment we live in.
Several local schools and community groups will each be
represented by different installations that will decorate the
pier. The theme is "Seaside" and the creations can be seen
from the 24th of March for three weeks, so there is plenty of
time to go along and see your childrens' work!
We will be making woven fishes and dream catchers after
half term.
Josephine Ho- Art Teacher
Touch Typing Success
Our Touch Typers have completed their course and can
now touch type competently without looking at their
fingers. Well done!
In the final quarter, after dominating possession, the team
scored three more goals eventually won by 6 goals to 3.
Well done to everyone who played.
Jackie Hill
Head of P.E.
Success for Hermione and Elisabeth
Joyce
Over the half term, Hermione and Elisabeth Joyce
competed in the East Kent Hunt Pony Club Triathlon at
Ashford Prep School,
which was their first
event as new
members of the East
Sussex Pony Club
Tetrathlon Team. (The
event was a Triathlon
rather than a tetrathlon
as the riding aspect was
called off.)
After a great day of
competitive shooting,
swimming and running
both their Junior and
Mini teams came third in
the overall
competition. The girls are looking forward to their first full
Tetrathlon in March, which will include a show jumping
discipline as well.
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Portrait
coursework
Year 10 have been
working on their GCSE
Fine Art coursework
using photos of friends
to produce their
portraits.
Sophie Cutting
Alice Leary
Colette Pattenden
Hannah Skilton
Nora Unterholzner
Hannah Taylor
Jade Ye
Sam Mace
Shivani Sathiskumar
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Cultural Dance
Performance
On Thursday 9th February, seven of our BAS Dance Company
members performed at Pestalozzi Village for their annual cultural
evening. This year the theme was based around celebration and
our students really got into the swing of the multi cultural festivities.
The evening was packed full of student stories, African gospel
songs, Chinese Dragons and native dances. It was such a fantastic
opportunity for our students to watch different dances of the World
and realise just how varied dance styles can be.
Pestalozzi students performed Butenese, Napelese, Indian and
Chinese dances, with Battle Abbey performing a contemporary
piece. The students were in awe of the performers rhythm and
movement. We have even borrowed a few movements for our
next company dance!
The students were as professional as ever. While on stage both
their performance and technique skills left the audience amazed.
Well done!
Miss Grando - Senior Dance Teacher
KS3 Captains Announced
Our Key Stage 3 Captains for 2017 are:
Dan Savage, Klara Waring, Joshua Sheffield, Hannah McAlister, Ollie Skeet, and Ollie Van Noort.
This is a new and exciting tradition that began under Mr Rowe in 2015 and is one we are eager to continue with; to provide
these young people with positions of responsibility within the school as a whole and also with their Key Stage cohort. Each
applicant had to write a letter of application to myself and Mr Clark to explain how their appointment would improve the
wider ethos of the school, how they have already shown keen interest in leadership and responsibility opportunities, as well
as interpersonal skills and relationships with other students.
Originally, Mr Clark and I were expecting four Captains, however, the sheer quality of both their applications, the references
from other members of staff and the responses in their group interview made it very clear that we would need all six!
Please join me in congratulating them! Mrs Ingall, Head of Key Stage 3.
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Public Speaking
On Thursday 2nd February, two teams from Battle Abbey school took part in the annual 'Youth Speaks' public speaking
competition run by The Rotary Club and held this year at Vinehall School.
The intermediate team was made up of Evie McCabe (Chair), Phoebe Upton (Vote of Thanks) and Corbyn Smithers (main
speaker). Corbyn delivered a very mature and engaging speech on the rise of robots and the impact that this will have on
society in the future. The team members were commended for the confidence of their delivery.
The senior team - Philippa Cunningham (Chair), Sian Pearson (Vote of Thanks) and Louisa Leach (main speaker) - explored
the impact of our reliance on smart phones. Louisa, in particular, was praised for the passion of her delivery and the team
were awarded second place.
As always, it is humbling to listen to not only our teams, but also those of all of the schools as the quality of the speeches is
impressive; it is easy to forget that some of the students involved are only eleven!
Smartphones: But are we? By Louisa Leach (Year 11)
“I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. That World will have a generation of idiots.” This is a quote
by Albert Einstein who was a theoretical physicist whose work is known for its influence on the philosophy of science. Now I’m
not going to stand up here as 21st century teenager and try and convince you that we should all throw our phones away
and never touch them again, so we can go back to a better time when the only way to contact friends and family was by
sending a letter or showing up unexpectedly on their doorstep; I enjoy the opportunity just as much as the next person to talk
to friends across the country from the comforts of home. This convenient and easy way of communication has helped
develop new ideas and research that has changed the world. However there is something in his prediction that makes us
think that actually this ‘day’ is not so far away.
Take a normal day at my school. During break time we are allowed to go on our phones, so in the common room all you see
are teenagers looking at their phones having an occasional conversation with the person next to them. Even if the person
is not using it at that particular moment it is out ready for the next snap chat of the person two metres away from them, or a
notification from the group chat whose members are in the room too. This completely normal occurrence, could actually be
connected to a well-documented mental state called ‘FoMo’ - the fear of missing out. This is where an individual feels either
panicked or extremely anxious when they are unable to check their social media in case they miss something important. A
survey put forward by MYLIFE revealed that 56% of social media users suffer from this. Yet it’s a mental state we’re not even
taught about.
Constant use of our phones allows us to have contact with friends and family without even seeing them, and in some cases
the use of apps such as Skype, WhatsApp and Email allow some to build friendships with complete strangers across the world.
However this constant use, with 80% of teens using their mobiles on a regular basis, has caused an increase in cyber bullying which is the use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages of an intimidating or
threatening nature. Studies have shown that one in three teenagers have received cyber threats online and over half of
these young people didn’t tell a parent or guardian about it. A child psychologist Julie Lynn Evans talked about how the
increase in mobile use has “changed the pace and the power and the drama of mental illness in young people.” This is
understandable as many young girls compare themselves to the airbrushed, photo-shopped pictures they see online, and
the constant threat of bullying everywhere they go.
Returning to Einstein, although it’s a huge generalization that the generation would all be idiots, if we think of it as Einstein
highlighting the lazy and less motivated nature of this generation then it makes sense. There was a study assessing the verbal
and literacy skills of 660 people; it found that those who searched information less on their phones performed better in the
assessment, than those who frequently searched for the information on the internet. This shows that the more reliant we are
on technology the less we really know for ourselves.
A study by Mark Goldring supports this. He found that over two thirds of Britons rely on spell check and were unable to spell
words such as ‘definitely’, ‘separate’ and ‘necessary’. This basic skill is being neglected by many as they rely on the
computers and phones doing the work, which could lead to a society unable to communicate without technology between
them.
It may take hundreds of years but as our time increases on the internet, studies have shown that we may become not only
less intelligent but dehumanised. It is all about the senses you use and light you see. For example, when you look out of a
window you use so many senses and an array of colours and textures and these affect our emotions (happy about the sun
and sad about the rain) but when we stare down at our phone screens we just see the bright light and it doesn’t affect us in
the same way; therefore, the more we stare at screens the more it clouds our judgement leaving us with factual and textural
information but losing the emotional aspects. Essentially dehumanising us.
In conclusion, although of course I can’t predict the future so I couldn’t tell you what the physical effects will be, what I am
trying to say is that, before we evolved to be compatible with the world with technology, we survived as a world without and then evolved. It’s fair to say we don’t think like the cavemen. So in the future we must be careful, as we seem to be
going towards a world where we are reliant on technology. Although it has changed our lives maybe we should take a step
back as maybe, just maybe we’re helping create a “generation of idiots.”
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Congratulations Isabelle Riley!
Battle Abbey School are delighted to report that Isabelle Riley (Year 13) has just
been offered a place on the Musical Theatre course at Royal Central School of
Speech and Drama in London for September 2017.
Isabelle will take one of only eighteen places on the course at what is widely
regarded to be one of the top three facilities in Europe for performance related
courses.
With over 1,500 applying for just 18 places this really constitutes a superb
achievement.
The RCS audition process is notoriously brutal featuring delivery of two contrasting
vocal pieces, two drama monologues and a dance workshop, with culls
throughout the first day and the majority not getting past
day one. Recalled candidates repeat this process with an
additional interview.
Isabelle went through the first wave audition process in
London in November and December and found out by
letter this week.
Isabelle said “My first reaction was probably shock to be
honest. I’m honoured and humbled to get this opportunity.
It’s fantastic to see my hard work pay off and I’m already
looking forward to taking up my place in September. My
Mum is obviously really proud too! I’m eternally grateful to
everybody at Battle Abbey who helped me with my
performance training and skills over the last five years.”
Featured Club of the week:
KS3 Discussion Group
KS3 pupils take a working lunch in Mr Clark's study and ruminate over a
number of subjects including Nuclear disarmament, the right to strike and
workplace equality. In this lively discussion pupils contributed freely to the
underlying principles behind pay. Why for instance do Footballers get paid
more than Doctors? This broadened into a more general discussion about
market forces, supply and demand, scarce skill sets and replaceability. The
pupils then looked at this from the point of view of the careers they
themselves hoped to pursue one day.
Lively, fun and thought provoking!
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
School Snapshots
Congratulations to the A2 Theatre Studies group
who achieved top band marks for their
adaptation of James and The Giant Peach.
The performance was enjoyed by Year 7 and 8
students.
Congratulations to Oscar who has been very
successful in recent dancing competitions
(pictured here with his medals).
Isobel Beadle got students during
St Mary's House time into a creative
frame of mind by running a
marshmallow challenge. Well done
to Paddy and Josh for winning,
building the tallest and strongest
tower!
Food for thought? - Year 13 Biologists are currently
learning about the cutting edge topic of Epigenetics.
Students have used edible materials to create a model
to show how genes can be in a switched on, or switched
off state. This forms the basis of the idea that we don't just
inherit genes but also acquired characteristics.
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
St Etheldreda's Fundraising
Day
Mrs Brampton and her team have been in business this
week raising money for our two charities: Great Ormond
Street Hospital and Stroke Association. We have been quite
adventurous and rolled out a Movie Theme Day, with
pick n mix, popcorn and cake sale, photo booths to
capture your best moments and movies to watch during
lunch. The hard work paid off and the continued
commitment from school staff and students enabled us to
raise a staggering amount. Once the prizes were awarded
to the best outfits the proceeds were counted and we
made an amazing £725! Mrs Brampton wishes to thank her
house members that supported the daily sales and main
event last Friday to make the fundraising drive such a
success. We cannot wait to share the news with our
charities.
Most Movie like Stars of the Day were:
KS3 - Corbyn Smithers
KS4 - William Ashenden
KS5 - Leo Newton
Group - Samara Chaudhry & Hermione Joyce
They all won a goody surprise from Spoilt Rotten.
St Etheldreda’s on a charity roll!
Our combined income from fundraising activities with support of the school continues to grow. Having made £2408 last term
and with our recent fundraising work added in, we have made a total of £3133 to date! That's on average £184 per week of
our academic calendar, which is simply outstanding. Thank you so much for your contributions and support. It means a lot to
us and even more to all our charities. Mrs Brampton
Focus on: School Laundry
Clare Williamson
Laundry Supervisor
Hours: Monday to Friday 8am - 2pm
The Laundry Service primarily covers Boarders clothing but on occasion other items
such as the branded Tradeshow tablecloths go through the service.
The Laundry Room features among other things a monstrous gas powered Tumble
Drier and a commercial size washing machine. Shirts, Skirts and Trousers are all ironed
before returning as is the bedding. The Laundry service also covers PE Kits, Lab Coats
and Art overalls.
Clare says “Its like being a mum to 40 kids! I take real pride when I see the Boarders
looking smart in their freshly laundered uniform.”
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Textile of the week:
Johnny Cheung
(Year 13)
Photo taken by photography student,
Jacob Puplett, Year 12 and modelled
by Stephane Moafo, Year 12. This piece
of work is for Johnny’s AS textiles
coursework.
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Sport News
Netball
U14A&B v Buckswood / U14A won 20-3 / U14B won 16-4
The BAS U14 girls stole the show at Buckswood on Tuesday.
The well drilled teams worked excellently together and
formed a united front.
The B team saw Flo Johnson move into GS adding some
extra height in the shooting circle and she rebounded shots
consistently. Daria McCarthy was captain for the game and
played like a leader. Lillie strode out covering centre court.
Taking an 8-2 lead by half time the girls were in high spirits
for the secnd half. Final score saw BAS run out 16-4 winners.
GOTG: Ella Stockdale
Played Well: Daria McCarthy & Amalie Primdahl
Most improved: Flo Johnson
The A team established a good scoring pace in the first
quarter. Harriet dominated centre court and with the
support of excellent wing play the ball was regularly fed into
our shooting circle. Some great attempts from Klara and
consistent shot quality from Hannah saw the score climb.
Defence was solid and led to seamless interceptions. A
quieter 3rd quarter left the girls challenging themselves to
score 20 goals by the end of the game. At 13 goals, this was
a tall order, but the girls pulled together. They succeeded,
making their highest scoring quarter! Great dedication &
teamwork and plenty of smiles all round at the end. Final
score 20-2.
Battle Abbey Girls travel to
International Quad Series Netball at
Wembley
We were all very excited to be attending this trip to
Wembley Arena on Sunday to watch some of the finest
netball teams play. First we saw England v Australia and it
was a tight race to who could score the most goals, right
to the final whistle. England lost out by just one goal so you
can imagine we were on the edge of our seats with the
score finishing at 46-47!
Next on were New Zealand and South Africa, but whilst this
game was playing we had some fun 'stealthing' out some
of the England Netball team. As I rounded up the girls we
ducked down corridors to find some of the players. They
signed our Netballs and tickets and had lots of photos with
us. Almost the highlight of the trip if it wasn't for the one
point goal difference! A great day for everyone and an
action packed trip.
Mrs Brampton
GOTG: Maia Lambert
Played Well: Lucy Fresson
Most improved: Megan Hopper
U13 ABCD v Mayfield
All of the Year 7 & 8 girls travelled to Mayfield on
Wednesday and played in freezing conditions. With a few
players from the C & D teams missing, the girls had to work
extra hard to fill positions.
U13A
This was an exciting, closely contested match. During the
first half it was simply anyone’s game. Lucca was
outstanding in GD, demonstrating some great timing,
jumping in the air to receive the ball and doing so
consistently. Samara was new to the A team and didn’t
look out of place in the quick pace of the game. At half
time the score remained 1-1 with both teams battling
throughout to get an advantage. Mayfield then changed
their shooting set up and went on to score a succession of
goals. A shame for the BAS girls after such a close & exciting
start. Final score; 10-2 to Mayfield.
GOTG: Ruby Chisolm-Beyer
Played Well: Lucca Kelf
Most improved: Phoebe Upton
Mrs Brampton
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
U13C
U14 A & B Netball v Mayfield
Mayfield lent us 3 players, and the girls from both schools
displayed great attitude. Despite never having played
together as a team before, they showed improvement
throughout the game. Hope scored the goal for BAS with an
excellent shot, managing to get past Mayfield's
impressive defence and Tabatha was given the Player of
the Match accolade for the progress shown in her
defensive skills both as GK and then WD. Although the girls
worked hard, it wasn’t reflected in the score line in an 18-1
loss.
A team lost 11:5
Although our final score was a loss, Battle Abbey won the
second quarter with some excellent team work and passing
down the court. Harriet Wheatley was declared to be the
best player by the opposition. Emily Carey helped to umpire
this game by blowing up all "Out of Court" infringements on
her side.
GOTG: Tabatha White
Played Well: Josie Taber
The B team won 9:11
Throughout the whole match the players dominated from
the first to the final quarter. Great shooting was exhibited
by Ella Stockdale and Lillie Rigby Faux made some fantastic
interceptions.
U13D
Daria McCarthy was awarded best player by the
opposition.
The newly fashioned D team got stuck in straight away in
what was an eventful game. Jada finally got to put her skills
into practice umpiring her first fixture for the season. Monica
made good progress up the court in Wing with Amber & Abi
providing good support. Lots of movment in our scoring end
saw the girl secure 7 goals. Unfortunately not quite enough
to win, but a triumphant effort for their first team run out.
Final score 12-7 to Mayfield.
William Ashenden
secures a place at
the British Youth
Championships
(National Finals)
GOTG: Monica Lucas
Played Well: Amber Allen
Most improved: Abi Goldsmith
U13B
A very fast paced game saw the BAS B team pushed to
their limits! A team consisting of Year 7 and 8s pulled
together effectively but were out played by a sharp
shooting Mayfield team. Some great centre court work from
Jemima Larkin and Lexie Collins, coupled with support from
defensive players, Bella Al-Khalifa and Annabelle Usher,
kept the ball moving from end to end. The final score didn’t
reflect the overall pace of the match with BAS losing to
Mayfield 18-4.
GOTG: Olivia Mullarkey
U14A&B v Lewes Old Grammar
Lewes only attended with one A team so our BAS girls only
got half a game each. This meant the B would need to step
in against the A team opposition. In the first half the A Team
drew 5-5 in this extremely close game with both teams
creating many scoring opportunities. The B team worked
hard against the stronger opposition but couldn’t quite finish
off the hard work in centre court. Although they had
scoring attempts the opposition’s keeper had a good
height advantage. Final score 8-0 to Lewes.
GOTG
Played Well
Most improved
A Team
Maia Lambert
Isobel Fosbery
Alice Clements
At the end of January
William went to Sevenoaks
School to fight against the
best fencers in the South
East Region (comprising
Sussex, Kent and Surrey)
at the South East Fencing
Championships. He fought
well in the initial rounds of
the Under 16 competition,
eventually securing himself
a place in the final after a hard fought semi-final in which
he picked up an injury. Inspite of his injury, he fought well
and the final was a nail-biting fight. William and his
opponent were equally matched and he narrowly lost
with a score of 13-15 and came away with the trophy for
second place. This means that he has also qualified to
represent the South East at the British Youth
Championships which will be held in Sheffield in May.
Well done William!
B Team
Megan Hopper
Hannah Gardiner
Lucy Fresson
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Hockey
U13B v Lewes B
Tuesday 7th Feb
U14/15
This was another evenly matched game from the very
beginning as both teams had periods of possession and
defence. Michael Kouvarakis worked tirelessly in the
midfield and the defence of Finn Rowan, Dom Ford and
Rupert Shoesmith looked solid. The teams were even at 1-1
at half time. The second half saw the game open up a lot
more which resulted in constant end to end action.
Captain James Turner worked especially hard and was
seemingly involved in every attacking and defensive play,
often being the transition between the two on
attack. Prokop Spanel in Year 8 was also very busy in attack
throughout, being a constant menace to the opposition
defence. The winning goal came with 90 seconds left to go.
James Turner picked the ball up on the edge of his own D,
ran the entire length of the right hand wing and provided
a cross which Prokop neatly deflected into the far corner.
The goal celebration was one of the strangest things I have
seen in youth sport. No cheer, no smiling, no
congratulation each other. Any onlooker could have been
forgiven in thinking they were the ones who had just
conceded! Once the game had ended the boys seemed
an awful lot happier!
BAS welcomed Lewes Old Grammar School for an U14/15
Hockey match. There was a scrappy start to the game with
play being predominantly in the middle third of the pitch.
After this initial period both teams settled into the game and
began to put some passages of play together. The midfield
of Hamish McAlister, Zak Daniel and Alfie Walker fed winger
Thomas Domenech Valsells who launched several attacks
down the right flank. The end product escaped BAS, mostly
due to some timely interventions by the Lewes defence.
Lewes fought back with a number of promising
attacks, only to be thwarted by the back trio of Charles
Levett, James Ward and Louis Choron. It wasn’t until three
quarters of the way through the first half that goalkeeper
Lucas Von Mullen Brown was called into action kicking
away a goal bound shot from close range. Both teams
continued to attack with intensity but found clear cut
chances hard to come by. The deadlock was broken mid
way through the second half after BAS applied sustained
pressure to the opposition’s D. Good running behind the
defence from Zak Larkin led to a flurry of shots with the ball
eventually falling to Josh Sheffield who smashed a shot
towards the bottom corner. The keeper made a fantastic
stop with his outstretched stick, only to parry the ball to
Ollie Skeet who reacted the quickest to tap home the goal.
Lewes did press for an equaliser but came up short due to
strong defensive performances from the BAS boys.
MOTM: Hamish McAlister
Wednesday 8th Feb
U13A v Lewes A
MOTM: James Turner
Point to Point
On Sunday Alexandra Bramwell took part in her first point
to point race with her horse.
Well done Alexandra!
Both teams started positively looking to run the ball at the
defence early. One Lewes player had some exceptional
stick skills which kept the BAS defence on their toes
throughout the game. The BAS midfield trio of Noah Allen,
Ben Van Noort and Sol Young moved the ball about nicely
and started to utilise the width that had been practiced in
training. This allowed Year 7 Cass Stallion to run the
channels and drive at the defence, which he did obligingly.
The Lewes defence looked nervous but made some
important jab tackles at crucial times to deny clear shots.
The BAS defence had some shaky moments of their own
when a Lewes attacker dribbled past three defenders with
some lightening quick eliminations, only to be thwarted by
David Jempson as he was about to pull the trigger. The ball
wasn’t fully cleared and Lewes were able to apply pressure
for a sustained amount of time which resulted in a number
of short corners. BAS managed to hold out however through
some further last ditch tackling. BAS had some short corners
of their own towards the end of the half where they looked
like they might take the lead. A narrow shot wide ended
the half. In the second half BAS came out a different team.
They seemed to lack cohesion and direction and struggled
to find any rhythm. Lewes grew into the game and began
to dominate. Four goals coming from four short corners
for Lewes didn’t reflect the competitiveness between the
teams, but Lewes were worthy winners.
MOTM: Sol Young
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Les
Miserables
a Battle Abbey Senior School Production
Tickets £ 9 / £ 6.50 concessions
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available from the Senior School office
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01424 772385 or
[email protected]
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Wednesday 22nd March
Thursday 23rd March
Friday 24th March
7pm
Battle Memorial Hall
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LES MISERABLES SCHOOL EDITION
Performed entirely by students
TM
A Musical by ALAIN BOUBLIL and CLAUDE-MICHEL
SCHONBERG
School Edition special adaptation licenced by JOSEF WEINBERGER
LIMITED on behalf of MUSIC THEATRE INTERNATIONAL and
CAMERON MACKINTOSH (OVERSEAS) LIMITED
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
'STEAMing' - What has gravity ever done for us?
Every year, Dr Jonathan Hare (Creative Science Centre,
Brighton) and Prof Richard Robinson (Director, Brighton
Science Festival) come to Battle Abbey School to run a
workshop in the run-up to Brighton Science Festival. This
year, they came to Battle to do a bit of STEAM (Science,
Technology, Engineering, Art and Maths), the theme of this
year's Science Festival.
Alexander Calder was a great artist of the 20th century,
very prominent during the 1920s and 1930s when there
were fabulous movements such as surrealism and cubism.
Alexander invented the mobile. Before him, people did not
think you could hang things off other things hanging off
other things without creating a complete mess falling all
over the floor. He realised you could balance things very
nicely and create beautiful art work.
Why did he realise this?
Alexander was an engineer. He was trained as an engineer
and so managed to make things that no-one else could.
Our Year 7 and 8 students made some beautiful art but only
after going through some science, technology, engineering
and even maths.
It was completely painless and all had a great time!
Dr Demoncheaux (Head of Science)
http://www.brightonscience.com/
Following on from the STEAMing workshop, our Sixth Form
Physicists measured the acceleration of free fall using a trap
door an electromagnet and ticker timers.
“One day your students will be on a platform, fiddling
earphones into a pocket of a rucksack while cramming
their own children onto a train, scooping up their bags and
talking on the phone, when they feel a sneeze coming on.
As they deftly reach for a tissue they will be grateful for the
dexterity they have learnt during their science course.”
Prof Robinson
Director, Brighton Science Festival
Winning Weekend of Jemimah
On the 14th February 2017 Battle Abbey School pupil Jemimah Berkeley (Year 8) travelled to the Olympic Park London
Aquatics Centre where she won the Age 13 50m Breast Stroke, retaining her Kent County Championship Title in a new South
East Region Record Time of 33.87s. This reconfirmed her GB ranking of No1 and improved her British Championships entry
time.
Jemimah also won the Kent County Girls Junior (16U) Championship Title and took Silver in the Ladies’ Senior Open
Championship Title.
Jemimah's European Junior Ranking, 17u category, 50m breast stroke puts her at number 27 at only thirteen years of age, this
makes her the fastest thirteen year old in Europe!
Battle Abbey School have a great track record in swimming with the Prep School having been National Swim Finalists two
years running (2015/2016).
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Photography of the week: Ruby Freeman (Year 12)
Contragulations to Izzy
We are very thilled to announce Isobel Richardson has
been offered an unconditional place at Bath Univeristy.
Paris Snow Theatre tickets - Reduced
for Battle Abbey Students.
Congratulations Izzy!
The show is on the 9th March at 2pm with Q & A and is
priced at £10 per person for students at Battle Abbey.
Battle Abbey Alumni
Past Battle Abbey student, Oliver Dunn, has been
appointed Deputy Company Manger at Glyndebourne.
This has always been his dream job and after a very long,
rigorous interview process he was offered the job.
All the information on the show is on their website:
https://www.kino-teatr.co.uk/parissnow
and on the shows facebook page here:
https://www.facebook.com/parissnowmusical
Congratualtions Oliver!
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
French Exchange students get involved at Battle Abbey
A group of French students (and their English teacher) flew over from their
school just outside Geneva to visit us in early February.
The eight students stayed with their Battle Abbey Upper School hosts;
Louisa Leach, Emily Fosbery, Ellie Jones, Isobel Beadle, Lauren Ramsden,
Katy Melville, Leon Dobson and Stephane Moafo.
It was a very productive week during which the visitors enjoyed day trips to
Brighton and London as well as immersing themselves in school life.
They thought Battle Abbey was a very special school; its history and
tradition fascinated them and they really enjoyed getting to know our
students and their families.
Many thanks to all the staff who included the French students in their
lessons. They loved their Netball match and, having never played before,
were impressive in their ability and enthusiasm.
Thanks too to our Battle Abbey families and Mr Rowe, in Westnedge, who
hosted them so kindly.
We hope our return visit at the end of March will be as linguistically and
socially successful and we look forward to seeing them again!
Testimonials from student hosts:
“Having an exchange student for a week was quite challenging but also
really exciting and interesting. I especially enjoyed being able to talk to her
about our different schools and cultures. Meeting her has made me very
excited to visit her home and I hope that I improve my language skills to be
half as good as her amazing English.” Lauren, Year 12
“The exchange students were all nice and friendly. They enjoyed the whole
week and loved the lessons and atmosphere at Battle Abbey.” Isobel,
Year 12
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
Tickets
Bookings being taken now – email: [email protected]
www.outofboundscomedy.co.uk
£25
Includes
Curry supper
Available fro
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Huffington Post
Comedy & Curry Night
** CASH BAR **
Parking at School
Advise any dietary requirements
Francis Foster is a stand-up
comedian who talks about failure,
mainly his own and also other people's
as well. He walks around perpetually
frustrated with life and at the
situations he finds himself in. When it
all gets too much he gets on stage and
has a rant about it. Francis was placed
3rd in the prestigious NATYS 2015.
Mike Cox reached the semi-
u're
finals of both So You Think Yo
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3.
Square New Comedian in 201
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‘’The upbeat and highly enjoya
Latest 7 @ The Komedia
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Like an Everyman, if that Everym
mesh Ranganathan
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wit.
cynicism and a razor sharp
"The sort of comedian you run a new act competition
to find" Up The Creek
"The best new act I've seen this year" Adam Bloom
Andy Askins is a first class, guitar-wielding comedian with a
captivating voice and wickedly dry sense of humour. Andy has an
expertly crafted routine littered with an eclectic mix of off beat comic
songs and parodies. Popular songs have been rewritten and given a
perverse twist to tremendous comic effect. With impeccable timing,
his inventive and quirky songs are peppered with inspired patter and
the darker material is sweetened by his impish demeanour.
As seen on The John Bishop Show – BBC1”
Dark humour with faultless timing”– The Stage
“An awful lot of charm”– Chortle
Caution: this performance will contain some adult humour as well as occasional bad language
Management Disclaimer: Please note – that while we make every effort, shows can change without notice due to unforeseen circumstances and commitments of artists
www.battleabbeyschool.com
Newsletter: February 24th 2017
FIGHTING FOR A FIRST-RATE SCHOOL PLACE?
PREPARE FOR BATTLE.
SeniorSchoollistedin‘TimesTop200’August2016.
•
PrepSchoollistedin‘TimesTop100’August2016.
•
Outstandingrangeoffreeextracurricularclubs.
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Aregisteredcharity,ISIandIAPSaccredited.
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SEAFRONT_POSTER_SEPT2017.indd 1
Strongfamilyethos,exceptionalpastoralcare.
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PleasecontactthePrepschoolforfurtherdetails.
[email protected].
NationallyrecognisedPerformingandCreativeArts.
•
1 0 0 Ye a
Battle Abbey Prep & Nursery School
Saturday March 11th 2017
10.00am-12noon(Bexhillsite)
•
Bat
Pleasecontacttheschoolofficeforfurtherdetails.
[email protected].
(Ages2-11)
Battle Abbey Senior School
Saturday March 4th 2017
10.30am-12.30pm(TheAbbey)
(Ages11-18)
Open Days March 2017
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Battle Abbey
School
www.battleabbeyschool.com
04/01/2017 08:38:45
www.battleabbeyschool.com