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Gatton Triumph in the Sovereign’s Cup

The Sovereign’s Cup was inaugurated in 2012 and is awarded to the winner of the First XV Rugby match between the Royal Alexandra and

Albert School and Gordon’s School. In the first two years of the competition, Gordon’s School won the cup, but this year Gatton won with a 17-12 victory. Congratulations to the first XV on their historic

win!

Paul Spencer Ellis Headmaster

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School Office: 01737 649000

Weekly Newsletter Issue No.9– 2014/2015 14th November 2014

The following items can be found within this week’s Newsletter:

Front Page: Sovereign’s Cup Whole School

Rocky Lane Closures (p3) Chaplain’s 400 (p3)

Boarding Development Committee (p4) Junior School

Christmas Fayre Donations (p5) A Day in the Woods (p5)

Star of the Week & Golden Book (p6) Senior School

Y11 Revision Support (p7) Public Examination Certificates (p7)

Sports Results (p8) Menu w.c 17/11/2014

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK

“It’s not whether you get knocked down. It’s whether you get up.”

Vince Lombardi

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WHOLE SCHOOL

Rocky Lane Closures

We have received notification that sections of Rocky Lane will be closed for repairs from 8.00am on Saturday until 7.00pm on Sunday over the following weekends: 29th/30th November 2014 6/7th December 2014 13th/14th December 2014 20th/21st December 2014 The closures will affect either ‘Long Rocky’ or ‘Short Rocky’ (not both at once), but the exact schedule of works is still to be confirmed by Surrey County Council – further information will be provided once available. Diversions will be in place via Gatton Bottom.

CHAPLAIN’S 400

Two Governors, three pupils, four teachers, five parents and three administrators used, unbeknown to one another, the same word after Remembrance Day. They had found the occasion ‘beautiful’. In several cases, they hesitated before settling on this idea as best for their purpose. People hesitate to use this word. It can feel weak, effeminate, pastel. A pity. It is a robust and clear word. A memorial moment full of beauty fulfils its purpose. A girl plays the cello beautifully, her teacher the double bass. An eminent trumpeter inspires flair and brilliance. Senior girls float apt words tunefully. Whether at the Tower, or our flagpole, scarlet poppy stalks or wreaths spark annual memory of sacrifice and war graves. A former broadcaster declaims atmospheric poems written in Trenches by those who, hours later, were no more. None of these elements alone makes an occasion beautiful. They may be admired in isolation, but the genuinely beautiful occurs when the chemistry of the people present aligns. If our occasions were beautiful commemorations, they were so because of what every boy, girl, and adult brought to bear. Silence, attention, quiet thought en masse, these are beautiful through distilling the unconscious truth of individuals into the community. This is, of course, subjective. But it is real, and it cannot be faked. Such experience is what souls pine for - because starved of it. It is an experience at the intersection of religion, psychology, sociology. It may be experienced primarily from any one of these. It will not be denied. When it is, dysfunction follows. The beautiful is the exact opposite of the prevailing culture. The one draws human nature out into society, the other is ugly, confining and narrowing souls intended for the opposite experience. One Head of Year this week was obliged to miss Remembrance Day with his year group. In an unusual move, two days later, he asked his pupils to keep a shortened silence with him, so that he might not feel omitted from something highly important to him. The intuition was exactly what community is about. The pupils understood it at once. It was, in its way, as beautiful a moment as anything on the day itself. Beauty is a vital human function. It is one key to the extreme highs and lows generated by human beings. I close with words of Julien Green, a veteran of both World Wars, writing days before he himself left this world, as beautifully as anyone may! How many [cities of] Atlantis have I seen disappear, slowly foundering... countries, ways of life, civilisations... these slow shipwrecks will require generations to comprehend. This century... the most dangerous torpedoes have not been the bloodiest wars, but the [steady] lowering of intelligence and a scorn for beauty.

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JUNIOR SCHOOL

A Day in the Woods

On Monday we entered the woodlands and were split into two groups of eight. The first group wove with willow while the others made papier-mâché apples and mono printing. During the willow weaving we had to make a leaf out of the bendy material (willow). The whole procedure was very physical and my fingers were stiff after every process. Personally, after this finger numbing task I felt that we had accomplished a difficult task. Then one half of the group were provided with a metal frame to make a sort of shield like shape using the same technique while the others carried on with a marvellous pear creation created by the willow artist. While we were in the classroom we had to make a re-creation of half an apple out of papier-mâché. The whole method was very sticky and it did look like a proper apple except for the fact that it wasn’t three dimensional. After the very sticky forty-five minutes we did mono printing. We had to stick pieces of wood onto cardboard, paint them and then dab them onto a piece of paper and give it a tree impression. The whole morning was a blast!

Sidhansh Dighe

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Year 11 Revision Support

All Year 11’s will be receiving in their Citizenship lessons a booklet called “Revision Cracked!” to provide useful tips, advice and guidance to support their preparation for the mock exams and the GCSE’s. As part of the Citizenship lessons on revision and revision techniques, they will be encouraged to use this booklet as a revision tool. There is also a section in the booklet on how parents can help.

Kathryn Hobbs Deputy Head

SENIOR SCHOOL

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