Head Master's Notices

Another week of remote learning brings us within sight of half-term, in this strangest of Summer Terms.  It will provide a welcome break from screen time for learning, if not for social activities, gaming and catching up with friends; while it would seem that we will all be staying put in our homes.

Last Sunday’s briefing from the Prime Minister provided a disappointing level of clarity about the future.  We still don't know when school can re-open, other than vague notions from the Government about bringing in the Lower Sixth and Fourth Form year groups at some point.

We are actively planning for a return to school, albeit with allowances made for the restrictions that social distancing regulations will impose, and hope that the talks between teaching unions and ministers today are positive.  What I can say, having canvassed the views of our staff this week, is that they are desperate to return to work and will be back at the earliest possible opportunity.  If the restrictions continue to be lifted gradually, we are hoping to open up the athletics track, Mercers’ fields and tennis courts to pupils and parents for exercise, following all relevant guidelines and rules, in the second half of term.  Clearly this is only a provisional plan at present, but if we can proceed it will provide an opportunity to see friends and staff.

Lastly, members of the Senior Management Team and I will be available next week to take questions from parents via two online Q&A forums. Please see more detail about this below.

Whole School Notices and Reminders

Question and Answer Forum

Given the recent Government announcements about plans to reopen schools, we are conscious that parents will have questions about how Dauntsey’s will be approaching this.  The Senior Management Team are developing plans at the moment and these will be adapted as additional Government guidance for educational settings is published.

However, we would like to take the opportunity to address any questions that our parent community may have at this time.  The Headmaster and members of the Senior Management Team will be available to take questions from parents via two online Q&A forums to be held next week.  Parents wanting to join either of these webinars should please fill out the short form and click on their preferred option below.  Joining details will then be sent to you. Many thanks

Start of Half-Term Arrangements

The arrangements for the start to half-term on Friday 22 May will be as follows:
-  Pupils will have Friday morning’s lessons (for Third, Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Forms)
-  Half-term will start after Lesson 4 on the Friday (for Third, Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Forms) or when the Assessments end for the First and Second Forms

Careers

Careers Department Enrichment Courses for the Upper Sixth

A series of workshops and discussion groups have been developed for the Upper Sixth. They are designed to assist with transition to university and help develop an improved insight into employability.

1.       Employability I-  Employer's Core Values and their place in the recruitment process.
2.       Employability II. Business Behaviours and Management Styles including an introduction to DISC profiling.
3.       Reflective Practice Under Lockdown - How to understand and then articulate your experiences to an employer.
4.       Interview Skills I- How to show the best version of you.
5.       Interview Skills II - Individual practice interviews with professionals working in HR. 
6.       Presentation Skills - Getting your message across.
7.       Assessment Centres - How to stand out: An overview and interactive guide to the components of  Assessment Centres 
8.       MOOCs - The Why and What of undertaking online courses. 
9.       Internships at university - Seek & Secure. 
10.   Building your CV - What you can do under lockdown to increase your likelhood of being screened 'in'. 
11.   Transition to university - How to make a success of it - including  Mental Health & Well Being.
12.   What's that all about then? A series of mini interviews with professionals working in everything from Conservation to Fintech.

Details of each course can found on Firefly here

Please also feel free to contact James O'Hanlon Head of Careers for more information  j.ohanlon@dauntseys.org

Dance Notices

Dance Clubs Timetable

Monday 18, 14:00-14:40: Musical Theatre ‘Chicago’ workshop 

Tuesday 19, 14:00-14:40: Contemporary Class

Wednesday 20, 14:00-14:40: Ballet Class

Thursday 21, 14:00-14:40:  Street Dance 

DSPA

DSPA Fly Fishing Day

Due to ongoing circumstances, the DSPA Fly Fishing Day on Sunday 31 May has been cancelled. Many thanks for your understanding.

DSPA Noticeboard

Please have a look at our digital noticeboard here. It is our own online community to connect Dauntsey's parents and businesses in order to buy, sell and advertise to each other in one trusted place. If you'd like to place an advert here, please email dspacontact@gmail.com

If you have not yet signed up to join the DSPA then please do so here.
If you are not sure if you have already joined then please contact Pip Wall, Membership Rep at pipsjwall@gmail.com

Please follow us on Twitter here @DauntseyDspa

Virtual Cyber School

Virtual Cyber School is now open to ALL students in the UK between the ages of 13-18.  

• Access to over 200 cyber security challenges
• Join industry experts for an hour of free training once a week.

Whether approached by beginners with a casual interest or hobbyists who are steps away from becoming a cyber security professional, it offers challenges that engage the mind, teach new skills and enhance existing knowledge.

Creativity in Captivity

I send my continued thanks to everyone taking part in the ‘Creativity in Captivity’ initiative. It is a delight to receive your entries. From pebble painting to furniture redesign the concepts and formats are inventive, playful and topical. You can see the work of painters and makers, typographers and photographers on our gallery page here. 

Whether it’s cooking and baking or candle stick making keep sharing your creativity by sending your entries to v.rose@dauntseys.org so your talent can be celebrated in our online gallery on the school website.

You are welcome to send new images as you create new things!

Many Thanks
Victoria Rose, Director of Art

Lower School Notices and Reminders

Manor Matters

Many of our Lower School boarders are enjoying the weekly ‘Manor Bake Off’ challenge, and the photos that are being sent in for judging are making the tutors very hungry indeed!  Well done to Isla and Max for making some delicious looking chocolate dipped cookies last week; they were our worthy winners of week 1 of the competition, and we look forward to seeing how the Manorites get on this week with the challenge of baking cupcakes and decorating them with the theme of ‘Summer’ in mind.

Next week sees the Lower School taking part in ‘Running Week’ as part of the PE curriculum. Alongside this, we will be holding the ‘Remote Manor Marathon’.  The Manor Marathon is a hugely popular event which is held every year, and we hope to bring up fond memories for those Manorites who have taken part in the event before, and encourage others to think about doing it in the future, when life is back to ‘normal’.  This year, each tutor group is being asked to complete a marathon over the week, and run a total of 26.2 miles (42.2km) between them; the tutors have also risen to the challenge, and will aim to complete the marathon as a team.  In addition, we are creating a new video for our Manor Moment on Monday as part of our preparations for the Remote Manor Marathon – we hope it brings a smile to the Manorites’ faces!

Our 'Manor Marathon poster' can be seen here.

The tutors and I are missing the Manorites hugely and we love hearing about your news and seeing photos of what you have been up to – if you have any news to share, please do send it to Miss Seager and she will upload it to the Remote Manor page on Firefly.
Anne Sampson, House Mistress.

Please do follow us on Twitter @ManorDauntseys to keep up to date.

Lower School Assessments

The Lower School assessments will take place in the week of Monday 18 May to Friday 22 May for the First and Second Forms and the week of Monday 1 June to Friday 5 June for the Third Form. Please find further information on the assessments here.

First Form Assessments TimetableSecond Form Assessments TimetableThird Form Assessments TimetableLower School Assessments: How To Guide