11th October 2008
Repeat Success for Rugby Club?

Shiplake College’s U16A is putting in an early bid to be the Rugby Club’s team of the season. Last season the squad finished with victory in the final of the Oxfordshire U15 Cup and they have continued with their winning ways.

“We’ve had some slow starts and we have often had to come from behind in the last ten minutes. Good fitness levels and a great team spirit have seen us through to some nail-biting wins,” said coach Andy Dix.

After a 17 – 12 win over Abingdon School the team continued their habit of winning by less than 7 points. They beat Oratory 26 -23, followed by a tense 32-33 win against local rivals Reading Blue Coat School. “The 20 – 14 win versus Merchant Taylor’s School was probably our best performance with some good offloading,” said Simon Cane-Hardy, Assistant Coach.

The team have consistently been cast in the David role as a tough start to their fixture list has pitched them against schools with far larger year groups to select from. Only against Lord Wandsworth College has the team pulled away, winning 3 – 58 to enjoy the rare luxury of a safety margin on the scoreboard.

The 2nd XV with three wins, including a very impressive win over Merchant Taylor’s School, is also in the running for team of the season. Meanwhile the U15Bs, who have played just three games, have also made a good start with two wins.

10th October 2008
Married to the job?

Saturday October 11th, the Year 7 & 8 Open Day, is another big Saturday for Tom Caston, Year 7 & 8 Co-ordinator for Shiplake College. From September 2009 the College will be admitting 11 year old day boys for the first time. “I’m sure Tom is absolutely the right man for the job. Tom is an Old Boy of the College. He was a Prefect and his name is up on the Honours Board as 1st Xl Cricket Captain. In July he and his beautiful wife Consuela even had their Wedding Reception in our Great Hall,” said Gregg Davies, the College’s Headmaster.

“We will provide an exciting and broad education for eleven and twelve year old boys with three years to get them ready for their GCSE courses. Small classes, exceptional teaching and the resources provided by our riverside site will provide outstanding academic foundations,” said Tom Caston, who lives on the College site.

The College, which has a reputation for sporting prowess beyond that usually expected of a school of just 325 pupils, is making plans to provide entrants with the skill sets they need to be successful in the College’s major sports of Cricket, Hockey, Rowing, Rugby and Tennis. The College employs a number of visiting sports coaches and they believe that boys will become sportsmen after receiving the benefits of professional coaching at a young age.

“Above all Shiplake is a small and friendly community. All of the boys will have the opportunity to take part in drama, field trips, music and field trips. They couldn’t hope for a better start to their secondary school education,” concluded Tom Caston.

The College is holding an Open Day for Year 7 entry at 1015 on Saturday, October 11th. Parents interested in a place in the Year 7 intake, but unable to attend should ring Jane Jarrett, the College’s registrar, to make alternative arrangements.

9th October 2008
Finding the bomb

The classic geography lesson – locating countries using longitude and latitude in an atlas. We all remember it! Let’s be honest it only comes in just behind ‘ox-bow lakes’ as the all-time favourite comment from your parents recalling their own geographical education. But here at Shiplake we like to make it all the more memorable by adding a ‘24’ type tension to the proceedings.

Having been given a grounding in the fundamentals of using lines of longitude and latitude the students are told that there is a bomb in the department and that we must crack the code before the end of the lesson in order to defuse it. The pace of work is frenetic and the competitive nature of boys leads to a desperate attempt to work out which way around the lines go.

The code lies in the first letter of the countries or capitals that they find and this spells out the location of the bomb. As the boys scramble to save us all an ‘excellent slip’ lay waiting for the winner of the game. And what’s more - the boys end up knowing how to use longitude and latitude lines without even trying!