Foundation Magazine 2021-2022 | Mount Kelly

ACADEMICS
ENGLISH
ENGLISH AT THE PREP
THE WRITING REVOLUTION
2022 saw the launch of our
foundation-wide writing strategy,
based on the principles of Judith
Hochman’s The Writing Revolution. For
years beyond years, English teachers
across the nation have battled with pupils
over capital letters, full stops, whether
it is a verb-fronted adverbial clause, or a
gerund opener, a PEE paragraph, a PEEL
paragraph or a PEATEALIC paragraph. At
times it has probably got quite messy, and
at times, the writing produced by a pupil at
the end of Year 11, has not been dissimilar
from the valiant efforts of an infant.
However, at Mount Kelly, we believe we
may have found the elixir to combat the
‘Eats Shoots and Leaves’ style of writing.
Whilst reducing the cognitive demands on
pupils in the writing process, the simplicity
and consistency of the language and
structures used means explicit grammar
instruction becomes accessible to all,
and the barriers to literacy are being
lifted. Furthermore, our pupils are learning
strategies to enrich their understanding,
retain more knowledge, and express
themselves fluently and eloquently.
Although still in its early stages, the initial
results are impressive and from an English
teacher’s perspective highly exhilarating;
in fact, we are still riding the crest of 2022
GCSE English results. As the strategy
becomes further embedded across the
Foundation, and across all subjects, we
hope our pupils will be thinking and writing
as specialists in their subjects; manifesting
in the depth of their understanding and the
accuracy of their expression, both orally
and written.
ACADEMICS
MILLIONAIRES READING CHALLENGE
Michalemas Term 2021
Lent Term 2022
Summer Term 2022
Samuel Platts 3,015,948
Asha Wimalendra 1,280,134
Samuel Platts 1,595,298
Jude Hamer 1,641,830
Jude Hamer 1,222,855
Ellie Dale 1,342,284
Jack Nagy 1,385,240
William Farrance 1,032,643
Jude Hamer 1,263,525
Thomas Sheridan 1,313,256
Lucas Jeffreys 1,265,740
Marcus Appleby 1,163,392
Annabelle Hancock 1,097,802
Tom Hardick 1,079,714
Asha Wimalendra 1,044,507
Ciara Jordan 1,026,525
William Farrance 1,012,356
Harry Prettejohn 1,008,531
Angus Ollier 1,001,960
Philippa Hasbrig-
Hartley
1,029,193
Samuel Platts 1,026,323
Tom Hardick 1,024,270
Marcus Appleby 1,023,119
Tobias Braine 1,014,421
Jack Nagy 1,006,442
Ellie Dale 1,000,759
Harry Durnall 1,157,451
Eady Dyson 1,054,285
Kitty Floyd 1,037,223
Asha Wimalendra 1,031,524
Angus Ollier 1,015,670
READING FOR PLEASURE
Following the appointment of our
Reading Governor, Mrs Wendy
Davis, 2022 has seen the launch
of our Mount Kelly Reading for Pleasure
strategy. Building on the foundations
established through Accelerated Reader
at the Prep, the aim of the strategy is to
empower and nurture our readers through
four principles. These are as follows:
Learner Led, Informal, Social and Texts
that Tempt. Based on research-informed
evidence from The Open University,
developing these four principles help to
engender a love of reading by intrinsically
motivated children. Needless to say, once
all our readers are exhibiting the above,
then we will have been successful in our
endeavours, and Mount Kelly pupils will
benefit from the advantages of being avid
and lifelong readers, the repercussions of
which go without saying.
Commencing in January 2022, staff at
Mount Kelly Prep were set the challenge
of reading as many children’s books as
they could, in order to be able to discuss
a wider variety of books with their pupils
and offer Texts that Tempt to the children.
Following this, pupils and staff across the
Foundation celebrated World Book Week
by creating subject and personalised
Reading Rivers, to showcase the rich
and diverse reading that surround the
curriculum, whilst acknowledging even
the most reluctant readers have a reading
past that at one time they enjoyed. This
was evident in the culminating assembly,
where pupils from Years 9 to 13 enjoyed
reminiscing in a social environment about
childhood favourites.
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