Chrıstmas c mes t AESG!...Chrıstmas c mes t AESG! Millie’s Mark /04 Technology /10 Thinking of Others /12 Sport /14 and more... inside AUTUMN TERM 2017 EARLY YEARS AND JUNIOR SCHOOL

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Millie’s Mark /04

Technology /10

Thinking of Others /12

Sport /14

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AUTUMN TERM 2017 EARLY YEARS AND JUNIOR SCHOOL

Welcome 03 Millie’s Mark 04MFL Day 06The Shang Dynasty 07Beyond the Classroom 08Technology 10PFA 11Thinking of others 12Sport 14

Contents

AUTUMN TERM 2017

#1. DREAMTo be loved and trusted as an academic school that nurtures girls to be happy, confident and resilient and who reach their potential in whichever field they choose.

#2. CHARACTERHappy Dynamic Academic United Nurturing AmbitiousFun Committed Inclusive Friendly Aspirational

#3. BELIEFSProviding an outstanding, educational journey to girls from the age of two to eighteen

Inspiring girls to achieve and to be the very best they can be

Giving every individual girl a truly holistic educational experience

Embracing the very best in technology to provide a personalised approach to learning

Welcoming girls of all faiths in a school with a strong Christian ethos

Producing successful citizens for the future with global awareness, empathy and a strong moral compass

Supporting girls with superb pastoral care; one which develops girls’ resilience, self-confidence and self-belief

Working in partnership with parents to guide girls throughout their school life

#4. SPIRIT“Aspire not to have more, but to be more.”

#5. FOCUSConfidence and self-belief

School Vision

Christmas has arrived in the Junior School!

The corridors have been ringing with the sound of songs from the many productions that have taken place and what a great job the girls and staff have all done, really putting us in the mood for this lovely festive season.

However, whilst it seems at this point that we have been gearing up to Christmas for a while, it has been another busy first term filled with sport, music, art, charity fundraising and of course, work!

Every week is action packed and whilst it is no surprise that we suddenly find ourselves in December, a week away from Christmas, it only seems yesterday that we were returning from that long summer holiday!

We could write a book each time we produce this termly magazine but I hope that this copy of Aspire gives you a flavour and provides a reminder of all the wonderful events and achievements that we have enjoyed in the Junior School since September.

Our Open House and beautiful carol service at the church of St. Philips and St. James is always the perfect end to this term.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy 2018.

Bridget HowardJunior School Headmistress

ASPIREALDERLEY EDGE SCHOOL FOR GIRLS 03

EARLY YEARS AND JUNIOR SCHOOL

Welcome

In the summer term, the Junior School ran a competition to design an AESG mascot. The mascot had to be visualised and drawn, and the entry had to include a list of traits which the mascot would have to inspire our girls.

Mrs Jeys had the difficult task of reviewing the excellent entries and after much deliberation, Eva in Year 4 was selected as the winner! Eva designed Liberty the Lioness, who has qualities of strength, bravery and power. Liberty is also fearless, mighty, determined and motivated. She is dressed in an AESG uniform complete with a corporate blue bow in her hair! Eva’s idea was unique, beautifully drawn and the personality traits of her mascot were perfectly suited to the AESG ethos. After weeks of eagerly waiting to see the final product, Eva, Ms Howard and Miss Lockitt, Marketing Officer, visited ‘Frenzy Creative’ to meet the team and Liberty herself. Ms Howard commented, “This was a great opportunity for our girls. Not only do we now have a wonderful mascot for our Junior School but we have also had an insight into the fascinating work of this local company!”

Introducing Liberty

ASPIREALDERLEY EDGE SCHOOL FOR GIRLS04

AUTUMN TERM 2017



We were absolutely delighted to have been informed in June that we had been awarded Millie’s Mark – a new quality mark for the provision of First Aid in the Early Years; not only because of the great sense of achievement, but also because we are the first independent school in the local area to have achieved this award.

Millie’s Mark is named after Millie Thompson, who tragically died as result of choking in a nursery in 2012. Since then her parents have campaigned tirelessly for all staff in Early Years settings to have paediatric first aid training.

As it was so close to the end of the year, we decided to wait until September to celebrate our achievement. With the Garden Room decorated with balloons and tables laid with cakes decorated by the children themselves ready for our celebrations, we were visited by Millie the Giraffe, the Millie’s Mark Mascot! What a lovely surprise it was for everyone, with plenty of photo opportunities as you can see!

Congratulations to all those involved in achieving this award, which shows how serious we are about ensuring children are safe when they are in our care.


AUTUMN TERM 2017

MFL Day

In 2001, the European Council set up the European Day of Languages. Its aim is to celebrate and promote language learning and linguistic diversity.

To celebrate this day, the whole of the Junior School spent the afternoon learning languages and tasting some of the fabulous foods from Europe, including salami from Germany, cheeses from France and Switzerland and chorizo sausage from Spain.

Wonderful rainbows were created by girls in Early Years and Reception as they learned their colours in French. Across the Infants and Juniors, songs were sung and games were played using the interactive white boards and board games to consolidate learning. Year 3 learned German for the first time, helped by one of our Sixth Formers, Mia.

Everyone had fun and it was wonderful to find out how many different languages are spoken by the girls themselves, and to celebrate the richness of different languages and cultures.

HolaBonjourOláHalloHej

Guten tagCiaoGeia sasAhojHallå



This term, Year 6 have conducted an in depth study of the Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.

The girls began by looking at how the Shang came to power and passed power on to the next brother, then investigated the evidence surrounding the existence of each king. Archaeological evidence does not match the history books, so the girls had to examine the evidence to decide which was most likely.

They have pretended to be Shang generals conducting a battle and imagined the inside of a Queen’s tomb. Artwork has included perfecting how to paint the Four Gentlemen of Chinese art - bamboo, chrysanthemum, orchid and plum blossom. The results were beautiful.

On the final day of the first half term, we were joined by ladies from the Confucius Institute at Manchester University. They introduced us to how to paint Chinese characters and explained their meaning, Classical Chinese dancing and the zither. It was a fascinating day!

Year 6 – The Shang Dynasty


AUTUMN TERM 2017

Beyond the ClassroomYear 4 Instrument & Sound Workshop

Year 4 travelled to Merseyside Maritime Museum to take part in a drama workshop about the children who travelled to the new world alone. After lunch they visited Tate Liverpool to see ‘Artist Rooms: Roy Lichtenstein in Focus’, an artist they were studying in school.

The girls threw themselves wholeheartedly into ‘The Science of Sound and Instrument Making Workshop’. Expertly led by Sam Paechter, composer, junk instrument maker and ex-secondary school music teacher, they enriched their understanding of the Science topic, ‘Sound’, participating in experiments using springs, fishing lines, tuning forks, plastic tubing, a wind up gramophone, a ripple tank, straws, water, an oscilloscope, some millet, a very long stick, a bin bag and a host of other unusual instruments! If that was not all, Sam demonstrated how to (safely!) make a variety of working musical instruments from junk and readily available materials, and each girl was enabled to skilfully create their own working instrument to use in their music lessons. What an amazing time was had by all!

Roberts Bakery

A visit from Roberts Bakery included the girls in Year 5 being able to bake their own loaves of bread, which tasted delicious. The girls have been learning through their topic work about how the earliest bread was made by Stone Age man and they were able to learn from Keith and Paul about how bread-making has developed since then. They heard about how technological advances since the company started in Victorian times have seen Roberts be able to go from producing 800 loaves per week to over 2 million loaves per week. We also learned about all the countries that their different ingredients are sourced from and Keith told us that they export the bread, after it is made, to places as far away as Japan! This was a great learning opportunity for us all!

Year 3’s Trip to Lion Salts

Our Year 3 topic ‘Food for Thought’ about the history and geography of food led us to visit the Lion Salt Works a restored historic open-pan salt making site, in the village of Marston, close to Northwich.

Salt-making sites were set up at inland brine springs at Cheshire at the time of the Roman Conquest. Salt was a vital commodity to the Roman army, so the demand was met by setting up military salt works. Roman soldiers were partially paid in salt.

The Lion Salt Works was built in 1894 when John Thompson Junior and Henry Ingram Thompson purchased the site of the Red Lion Hotel. John Thompson Junior retired shortly afterwards. Henry Ingram Thompson sunk a brine shaft, built a brine tank and engine house and built the first pan and stove house (number 1) on site around the Red Lion Hotel. The salt works exported salt to Canada, North America and West Africa. The domestic market saw salt sold to Cheshire, Manchester and Liverpool.

We started our visit by clocking-in for a 12 hour shift and learned about the history and importance of salt from Harry the Innkeeper at the bar of the Red Lion, wearing our caps! We toured the restored salt-work buildings including the stove house with the salt pan, the smithy, engine house and a brine tank to understand the back-breaking method of salt production. Maps, photographs and documents helped us to appreciate the impact of salt on mid-Cheshire’s people, economy and landscape.

We were given the opportunity to conduct experiments with halite, commonly known as rock salt, the mineral (natural) form of sodium chloride. The girls made brine, tested different materials to check if porous and used excellent problem-solving skills to pump water from underground into a tank, utilising a vacuum.



Beyond the ClassroomWinmarleigh

This year’s trip to Winmarleigh was held during the first week of October and not at the usual time in May. We had our fingers crossed for good weather and we were very lucky. The idea of having it earlier in the academic year was to bond the girls with their Year 5 teachers – and it certainly did that!

On the first day, we arrived at lunchtime and the excitement started immediately after lunch with the zip wire and Giant Swing! The girls thoroughly enjoyed these activities and were very brave. After a hearty dinner it was campfire in the woods followed by ‘chill out’ and snacks before bedtime. Our second day required lots of bravery at the start. After a lovely breakfast, we had a challenging morning of activities. Both groups had the opportunity to do both climbing and abseiling. Some girls (and teachers) were so brave, they abseiled three times down the tower!

In the afternoon, it was time for that good old favourite, raft building. It’s always such great fun building a raft from scratch, then getting on it and hoping it will float on the lake. There was lots of ‘falling in’ and to end the session, all the girls got into the lake to make sure they were thoroughly soaked. We have made a request to PGL for some underwater heating in the lake in the future! As well as all this excitement, we also managed to squeeze in a challenge course and a ‘Passport to the World’ game.

Day 3 started with a different type of activity to our ‘adrenaline fuelled’ challenges of the previous days. ‘Animation stop motion’ was a two-part activity that resulted in the girls producing their own animated short movie. They enjoyed each step, from filming the many frames required, to adding special effects and music.

It was back outside for sensory trail and high ropes in the afternoon. The sensory trail really tests the girls’ communication skills, teamwork and use of senses, as they attempt an obstacle course wearing black goggles to ensure they can’t see anything. They have to use their sense of touch to get around and through many obstacles whilst also trying to let the person behind them know what is coming next.

We saw our first rain of the week when it was time for the high ropes course. The girls had to climb a ladder up a very high pole and then walk across a slippery plank which was attached to ropes and so added an extra fear factor by wobbling continuously! Don’t worry - they are always attached to a harness!

On the final night, it was the turn of the disco, which is always a favourite and an opportunity to take off muddy clothes and dress up a bit. On the last morning, we had Trapeze and Vertical challenge awaiting us before we had lunch and headed home. A wonderful time was had by all.


AUTUMN TERM 2017

The Junior School continues to use the latest apps and resources to support learning across the whole curriculum. This term we have been using…

Technology

Green Screen Do Ink! Years 1 and 3 have been using the Do Ink! Green Screen app to present the weather, transport themselves to the top of skyscrapers and to imagine what life would be like under the sea.

Living World Augmented Reality Scheme.

This is a scheme which allows text and pictures to come alive with the use of an iPad and specialist app. The girls have been able to witness Apollo 11 appearing to land and Roman soldiers battling before their eyes on their own desks!

ChatterPix

ChatterPix is a simple but exciting new app where the children are able to take an image of absolutely anything and make it come to life and speak! Key Stage 1 have used this to replace Neal Armstrong’s first words with a recorded phrase of their choice!

Quiver

Quiver allows the girls’ artwork to spring to life through state of the art augmented reality technology, which brings the children an extraordinarily magical experience.

Digital Leaders Improvements have been made to our Digital Leader scheme and this year, the girls were given the opportunity to apply for the role and ‘show off’ their computing ability. The Digital Leader team will meet regularly to train, inform and help the school continue to move forward with technological developments.



The PFA had a great start to the new academic year with the Welcome Back BBQ on the first Friday of the Autumn term. Due to a mixed weather forecast the event was moved to the Millennium Hall but this didn’t deter our parents and girls from attending a great event to welcome new and old parents back to school after the summer break. As always a huge thank you to all those that attended the BBQ and our amazing PFA volunteers!

AESG PFA

Just four weeks later, the PFA were hosting their second social event of the academic year, The PFA Quiz Night. Our reps did a great job of putting teams together with over 80 parents, teachers and staff competing for the much sought after Quiz Winners 2017 title. Historically the teachers have gained this title. However, this year it went to a table of Year 10 and 12 parents. Well done parents!

As well as organising social events, the PFA held their first themed fundraiser of the academic year, the Christmas Coaster Project. This is always a popular fundraiser that highlights what amazing little artists we have in our school as well as producing lovely Christmas gifts and keepsakes.

The PFA also runs a very successful 500 Club which works like a lottery. One draw takes place each term and allows each 500 Club member the opportunity to win a cash prize. The 500 Club costs £12.00 per year, per person to participate and the cost is debited on an annual basis. 50% of the funds raised is put towards cash prizes whilst the other 50% is donated to

PFA funds. If you are interested in joining the 500 Club, please contact Kirstin on [email protected].

In addition to our social events and themed fundraisers, do not forget to visit the Second Hand Uniform Shop on a Thursday afternoon to purchase excellent quality second hand uniform.


AUTUMN TERM 2017

Thınkıng of othersThinking of others is an important part of Junior School life, not only within our own school community but beyond this as well.

We are so fortunate in all that we have: our families, our homes and our health and it is important that we all, staff and girls alike, think of others and remember that there are many in the world and in our own local area who are not so lucky.

Here you are reminded of some of the ways in which your daughters have demonstrated compassion and understanding through events in school.

Harvest Once again your generosity allowed us to create a fantastic array of goods at our Harvest Festival. Lifeshare and Hampers of Hope were delighted to be able to share these between their two charities and distribute them within Manchester and our local community.

Remembrance Day Chaplain Lenny led a poignant and thought provoking assembly for this special day. Our service included beautiful singing, the sharing of memories and the playing of The Last Post. Reception and Year 1 made a wreath and laid it at our local cenotaph where they said prayers to remember those who have lost their lives at war.

Anti-Bullying Week This made us all stop and think for a while about how we are all different but all special, and that these differences should be embraced. Wearing odd socks for the day highlighted this and brought it to the forefront of the girls’ minds, prompting valuable discussions in class.

Rota-box We welcomed Ian Bradley from Wilmslow Rotary Club who reminded us all about those in our own locality who will struggle this Christmas. A great many shoe boxes were filled with goodies to help brighten someone’s Christmas Day this year.

‘Rucksack Project’ The Wellspring ‘Rucksack Project’ supports local homeless people. Our girls were asked to fill an old or unwanted rucksack with such items as blankets, clothing etc. All donations went directly to the homeless this Christmas time.

Jeans for Genes Day In September we all made a donation and enjoyed wearing our jeans to school for the day. The money raised went to help those born with genetic disorders.

Children in Need As a school we support this charity every year, usually by donating some money and wearing something spotty for the day. This year we decided to follow the lead of BBC’s Countryfile and take part in a school ‘ramble’ around Alderley Edge.We decided that the whole school would join in on this adventure, from age 2 to age 11. We planned an hour’s route around the outskirts of the village and then into its centre, with a shorter route devised for the youngest members of the School. We were blessed with a beautiful, crisp, sunny Autumnal day and it was a fabulous occasion. Reception ended up having a sneaky hot chocolate as a reward for managing the whole route and to warm them up a little!

We raised over £800 for this great cause.



AUTUMN TERM 2017

Year 5 Year 5 netball team have seen notable improvements with regard to individual skills and game awareness. More girls are involved in training and this is beginning to shine through when they are playing against others schools. This culminated in an outstanding performance against Cheadle Hulme School with the A team recording a 5-5 draw and the B team winning 7 – 4.

Year 4

The Year 4 A team are going from strength to strength. The girls have played four matches to date and have been unbeaten all term. They have scored a total of 31 goals, conceding just four. The team have many individual superstars who have all played as an absolute unit to carve out these victories.

The Year 4 B team have also experienced success. They played with determination in every match and have defended as a team. All the players are showing character and willingness to improve, culminating in a 6-0 victory against King’s Macclesfield, and a hard fought draw against Cheadle Hulme.

Year 3 The Year 3 team have really enjoyed netball this year. They have had two matches recording a draw 1-1 against Wilmslow Prep and a super 7-0 against Bowden Prep. As a team these girls are very enthusiastic and keen to learn, they are clearly benefiting from all their training at lunch, after school and now Saturday mornings.

SportYear 6

The Year 6 netball ‘A’ team can look back on this term with great pride and satisfaction. The team have played six games and have recorded five wins out of six. The highlight of this term has to be the team’s performance at the St. Pius Netball tournament in October. Winning all their group games convincingly they faced a rearranged King’s Macclesfield side in the final. The squad performed magnificently, demonstrating a high standard of netball to be crowned champions.

The Year 6 B team have also had a successful term, winning five matches. All the players took each game as a new challenge and have worked hard for each other on the court. The highlight of this term has to be their achievement of reaching the quarter final in the St. Pius netball tournament in the main competition as well as their convincing win against Cheadle Hulme School.

We have also had some extra matches which have combined players from all our teams this term. These girls have performed with enthusiasm, improved passing and have demonstrated a desire to win.

Our Year 6 girls have shown great discipline and commitment at training. We have had a fantastic number turning up on a weekly basis and they have achieved great results across the board.

Sporting round up

We have seen a huge amount of change and development within the sporting areas of the school and it has been fantastic to use the new pavilion on Ryley’s Lane and Junior Gym for sporting fixtures, lessons and clubs. The girls and I feel inspired by the changes and we are very proud to be able to use these facilities to further the sporting excellence within the Junior School.

On the sports field the girls have excelled themselves once again. They have given their all in both team and individual pursuits and have continued to raise the standard. We have had more teams competing in each year group and more girls representing school in competitive sport.

I hope you enjoy reading about this term’s successes and I hope the girls themselves are as proud of their performances and results as I am.


30 fixtures across

the term

43 girls have represented school in one or more matches

Yr 6 Champions

of netball and hockey

Netball



Year 3 The Year 3 team have played one match this term against Terra Nova. It was a highly entertaining match which included some fantastic goals by our girls. The team have enjoyed developing their skills in lessons and were very excited to play in their first match. This game was won 5-0.

Year 4 The Year 4 team have played excellent hockey this term. They have recorded wins against Preston, Rossall and a thrilling game against Terra Nova, which saw the team come back from three goals down to win 5-3. The team are showing real promise on the hockey pitch and are clearly benefiting from practising their skills in lessons.

Year 6 ISA North Hockey champions The Year 6 team have recorded some excellent results this team, including wins against Pownall Hall, Birkenhead and a draw against Preston. After experiencing some more match play, the girls then exceeded all expectations by going onto win the ISA North Hockey tournament, beating Lady Barn House School in a closely fought final. Throughout the day, the team played with great energy and enthusiasm which gave the opposition no time to settle into their stride. This is a fantastic achievement by our girls showing we are champions at hockey as well as netball.

Junior Sports Day On Tuesday 21 June the Junior School girls took to the athletics field to compete against other houses in their bid to win the new Sports Day Shield. A new format was in place with different events and with every girl competing in the same amount of races, it was set to be an inclusive yet competitive day. The races were closely fought and there was a great determination from all the girls to do their best. The ‘tug of war’ from Year 6 rounded off the day in great style with teamwork being key to take the victory. St. Emilie were crowned champions on the day and are the first house to be recorded on the new shield. Many thanks to all our parents for getting involved in the parent races and for supporting the children on the day.

Cross Country The Cross Country team have been in action in two events this term which include the Manchester Harriers league and the AJIS Cross Country Run.

In the Manchester Harriers league, the Year 5 & 6 team have led the way remaining in first position out of eight schools.

The Year 3 and 4 team have also displayed excellent effort and grit to earn points for the school. A special mention to Lalli who has stormed her way through the course in 1st place in all the races so far.

AJIS Cross Country

Congratulations to Mimi and Lalli who made their way round a gruelling course, battling the wind and the rain to earn themselves a medal against a strong field of 112 runners at the AJIS cross country run. Over 20 schools competed in this event with two of our girls finishing in second place in their races.

Hockey

Alderley Edge School for Girls, Wilmslow Road, Cheshire, SK9 7QET. 01625 583028 E. [email protected]

www.aesg.co.uk @schoolforgirls /Alderley-Edge-School-For-Girls

Registered Company No. 2659703 Registered Charity No. 1006726

Documents

Chrıstmas c mes t AESG!...Chrıstmas c mes t AESG! Millie’s Mark /04 Technology /10 Thinking of Others /12 Sport /14 and more... inside AUTUMN TERM 2017 EARLY YEARS AND JUNIOR SCHOOL