Boys in Years 3 and up were in for a real treat today when Steve Voake, a popular children’s author, came to visit…. the boys enjoyed a workshop and Steve talked about his writing career. A full report to follow in the newsletter this week.
On Thursday 22nd November, Year 3 took part in ‘The Tate Year 3 Project’ with Turner Prize and Oscar-winning artist, Steve McQueen. It is a major new artwork, which will culminate in one of the most ambitious schools projects that London has ever seen.
Every Year 3 class across London was invited to take part in the largest group portrait ever made. This will be an epic picture of our city’s pupils and our rich civic diversity in a unique programme for London’s seven and eight-year-olds to explore their hopes and futures in an entirely free to access programme focused on identity, belonging, inclusion and citizenship.
A photographer visited Year 3 and spoke to them about photography and art. Taking class photographs for the artist to form a vast exhibition of tens of thousands of Year 3 pupils. From November 2019 to May 2020, the Duveen Galleries at Tate Britain will be taken over by a vast installation of the photographs, free for all to visit. It will be a celebration of the tens of thousands of young people who will make London their own in years to come.
By taking part, pupils will see themselves in one of the most compelling British artworks of our time at the heart of the nation’s collection.
Mrs Lauder
Steve McQueen can be seen in his own Year 3 photograph here, second row from the front, fifth in from the left.
Last week saw Keble take part in 19 football fixtures across the school, this meant that all boys from Year 4 to 8 represented the school at least once this week. Last Monday the Colts A-D played against Lochinver House. All of the boys performed extremely well and came away with some impressive results. The A team drew 3-3 in a very close match, the B team won 5-0, the C team won 5-4 in another close match and the D team came away with a 10-2 victory to round of a fantastic afternoon of football.
Last Wednesday the entire senior school played Heath Mount. The Colts A-H teams all performed extremely well, showing that they have been developing well in terms of their skill level and also their fitness and understanding of the game. There were some mixed results but all of the games were very close. The highlights of the afternoons matches were the G teams well earned draw in a very close game, the F teams 1-0 victory and the C teams 4-2 win. All of the boys played well and represented the school in a positive manner. Thursday saw Keble welcome Manor Lodge for our Year 4 fixture (pictured). This was a great opportunity for the boys to build on their performances in the last few weeks and put themselves to the test against some strong opposition. All of the boys gave their all and never gave up in some end to end matches. It was great to see all of the boys having fun, developing their skills and showing great determination on the pitch.
Mr Turner
Year 4 experienced a day in the life of the Romans yesterday when they learned how to make mosaics and in the afternoon had a masterclass on how to create battle scars using make up and stage paint! The boys made a great effort and looked wonderful.
On Tuesday I had the pleasure of taking four of my form to participate in ‘A Play in a Day’ at Haileybury. This was a new event organised by Mr Thomas, the Director of Creative Arts at the school. All the workshops were around the theme of revolution and they consisted of one on stage make-up, one on puppetry and one on musical theatre incorporating Les Miserables and Frankenstein. Our boys worked together with the pupils from other schools to put together a short scene at the end of the day. It was super to see them fully engaged, participating in activities that were outside their normal comfort zone. This was a great opportunity and there will more activities during the year at Haileybury, from an Orchestral day in January to a STEM challenge later in the year. Ms Bramwell
The Senior School held an Armistice Day assembly to honour the soldiers who never returned home from war. There were readings and poems by Year 8, and then the whole school gathered outside around the flagpole. The Last Post played, giving us time to reflect on the sacrifices made by so many to protect the future of a country they would never know. Mr Field lowered the flag to half mast and then we observed a two minute silence; during which you could hear a pin drop! We were really proud of all the boys, but especially the little ones, who didn’t make a sound and stood patiently throughout.
Year 2 boys enjoyed a comic re-enactment of the events leading up to the Gunpowder Plot at the Royal Gunpowder Mills last week; some of the boys were invited on stage to take part. The boys had the opportunity to smell and guess the different herbs which were passed round. They made lanterns and quill pens which they dipped in ink and then wrote their names. The boys found out about the games which existed when Guy Fawkes was alive. They had the chance to have a go with the cup and ball- a game of perseverance. King James II banned this game because it was for time wasters; anyone caught playing it could go to prison or have their hand chopped off. It was a packed day, but an enjoyable one!
Congratulations to the Keble Colts football teams on their fantastic performances yesterday. The A team won the cup, unbeaten all afternoon, taking the title on penalties in a very close final. The B team finished 2nd in their competition. We are proud of all of the boys!
Today Y3 had an Egyptian Day. Steve and Sally from ‘Portals to the Past’ came to do various workshops with the boys including handling artefacts, map work, research and measuring objects using the units Royal Cubits (RC) and Fingers (F) There are 28F in a RC. They danced like Egyptians, watched a mummification and took part in a burial ceremony. This was a great finish to an interesting topic.
Years 4 and 5 had a visit from Tori James today. Tori James is a motivational speaker, business consultant and adventurer. In 2007 she became the youngest British woman and the first Welsh woman to climb to the summit of Mount Everest.
She talked to the boys about the challenge of climbing Mount Everest and showed them exactly how much kit you really need to survive! A truly inspirational woman and the boys really enjoyed hearing her story and trying on some of her survival kit!
