FRIDAY FLYER-Issue 164

26 Oct 2023

Headmaster's Welcome

Welcome to issue 164 of our Epsom Friday Flyer!

It has been a busy start back to school after the mid term break as you can see from our weekly EVENTS.

Next week we look forward to the arrival of Sir Anthony Seldon, the esteemed Headmaster of our sister school, Epsom College UK. Sir Anthony is an experienced educator, historian, and author whom I had the pleasure of meeting during our visit to Epsom UK last academic year.

In one of his books that I have enjoyed reading in preparation for his visit, Sir Anthony writes about Plato’s allegory of the man in the cave.

Plato, the ancient Greek philosopher, crafted the allegory of the cave as a thought-provoking metaphor for man’s journey from ignorance to enlightenment. In this allegory, prisoners are chained inside a dark cave, facing a wall where shadows from a fire behind them are cast. These prisoners have never before seen the outside world and believe the shadows on the wall to be the only reality. They are unaware that the true world exists beyond the walls of the cave. The cave symbolises the world of appearances and ignorance, while the outside world represents the world of truth and knowledge. The process of leaving the cave, seeing the real world, and returning to enlighten others still imprisoned represents the journey from ignorance to knowledge and the responsibility to share newfound wisdom.

We can apply this allegory to education with the example of describing a triangle. Imagine a student who has never previously encountered a triangle, living in the confines of a knowledge "cave." They are shown a simple drawing of a triangle, but they can only see it as lines on a flat surface. In their limited perspective, they may think that the triangle is just a collection of lines without grasping the concept of a geometric shape.

As the student progresses in their education, they learn about shapes and geometry. Slowly, they start to understand that the lines they saw were merely a representation of a three-sided figure with specific angles and properties. This transition from ignorance to knowledge parallels the prisoners in Plato's cave who journey from seeing mere shadows to comprehending the broader reality.

Plato's allegory of the cave has left an indelible mark on philosophy, literature, and cinema, shaping our understanding of the journey from ignorance to enlightenment. It has inspired numerous works, some of which include:

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Country of the Blind by H.G. Wells, the film

The Matrix and The Truman Show.

Some of the key messages of the allegory that resonate closely with us at Epsom are that we should:

Keep asking questions: Curiosity is the path to enlightenment, and questioning the status quo leads to growth.
Embrace change: Accepting that your previous beliefs or preconceptions may be flawed can be challenging, but represent an essential element of growth.
Look deeper: The pursuit of truth and beauty lies beyond the surface, be it in the world of ideas or in the physical world.
Virtue, wisdom, courage, moderation, justice, logic, beauty, rights, reasons, the greater good – these are the guiding principles illuminated by knowledge.

I hope that you are enlightened as you read our Flyer and wish you all the very best for a wonderful weekend.

Happy Reading and Happy Friday,

Mr Matthew Brown,
Headmaster
Follow us on Instagram.

World Scholar's Cup - Tournament of Champions

WSC Tournament of Champions

Next week the World Scholars Cup team embarks on the journey to the Tournament of Champions in the USA. Your dedication and hard work have brought you to this prestigious event, a testament to your exceptional abilities. Embrace the challenges, showcase your talents, and let your passion shine. May this experience be a source of inspiration and growth, both personally and academically. Cherish every moment, support one another, and, most importantly, believe in your capabilities.

Best of luck, and may your knowledge and teamwork lead you to victory.

Good luck from ECiM

A Message from our Leadership Team - Mr Daniel Long, Head of Boarding

Leaving the family home to attend boarding school can be a very stressful time for children, but also for their parents and grandparents. However, children attending boarding at Epsom College in Malaysia are simply moving to a home from home. The role of the boarding home is instrumental in the development of a child and goes above and beyond the conventional 9-5 routine of school.

What are the key features of boarding? How will my child benefit from this? Carol Dweck, has spoken at length about “fixed and growth mindset” and the role resilience plays in developing healthy, successful minds. I have seen first hand the personal growth many students experience over years of boarding, from shy, teary-eyed children to confident, caring and resilient adults. Such growth is amazing to see, and creates for a result that all parents, including house parents are very proud of. While past students visiting school always make me feel old, that melancholic moment quickly passes. The memories, the stories and friendships all come flooding back and naturally bring a smile to everyone's face!

The Advantages of Boarding

A sense of belonging

For me, identity is at the core of feeling a sense of belonging. I view identity as a personal opinion of who you are. The blend of boarding students at Epsom is a wonderful mix of nationalities. Such a mix of students, cultures, opinions and beliefs allow Epsom students the opportunity to develop an enviable growth mindset. This doesn't happen overnight and there will be difficult times but this further highlights the research on open mindset.

Resilience

Adapting to new environments, routines and social misnomers allow us all to thrive under pressure. Coming from a sporting background, the difference between the good and the very best, is one's ability to perform under pressure. The same is true for industry. Such resilience allows students to develop a personal responsibility and a level of independence that can often be scary, if not for students, definitely for parents! The disagreements amongst peers about the air conditioning and how to spend free time invite students to develop lifelong friendships, while enhancing their social skills. With the curse of blessing of technology every present, upskilling social skills seem more important than ever.

Routine

Research tells us that one of the practical benefits to boarding is time saving, to avoid congested traffic and allow teenage brains more opportunity to use school facilities, learn more skills, build friendships and sleep! The routine of school lessons is consistent for both day and boarding students but there is an equally important, perhaps more important routine that follows for boarding students. The consistency and self regulations further feeds students ability to manage their time, while allowing them to varying degrees of independence. All these structures allow students to build a sense of personal responsibility.

The knowledge learnt in the classroom allows students to pass exams and gain entry into university, while boarding experience harnesses personal growth and prepares students for an ever growing world.

Mr Daniel Long,
Head of Boarding

Granville House Updates

Responsibility in Granville House

In Epsom College in Malaysia, nurturing responsible and engaged young people is essential for fostering a supportive and thriving school community. Teenage boys are often underestimated, but when they take on responsibilities and actively support their school, incredible benefits abound. From leadership development to character growth, there are numerous advantages of encouraging Granvillians to be active contributors to our school environment.

Taking responsibility is seen everyday in small actions around the boarding house. Pupils leading a football squad, looking for lost airpods for a friend, tidying the kitchen, only taking a fair share of the snacks on offer or ensuring our home is a tranquil and friendly place to relax. The result of everyone caring and taking ownership of events and our environment actively contributes toward our collective happiness and success.

The importance of responsibility is also recognised in the large number of opportunities we have in the house for our young men to actively participate in the life of our community.

Perhaps the roles with the highest profile are those of the School Prefects, and in Granville House we are very proud of the clear example set around the school by Shang Jing as our Academic Prefect, Vash as our Social Prefect, Koutatsu as our International Prefect, Leo as our Head of House and Sharvvind as our Deputy Head of House. Holding these positions helps shape these young men into future leaders. When they participate in clubs, student bodies, or community service, they develop crucial leadership skills such as teamwork, communication, and problem-solving. These experiences build self-confidence and prepare them to become influential figures within the school and beyond.

Furthermore, additional roles include our House Captains which comprise of Ean as our Sports Captain, Maize as our Academic Captain, Wonwoo as our Social Event Captain, Daniel as our Service Captain, and Soshi as our Captain of Creative Arts. By getting involved, these young men have had a profoundly positive impact on our school community and their contributions have often led to improved academic performance, increased school spirit, and a more supportive and cohesive atmosphere, benefiting everyone in our institution. This has been clearly demonstrated by Soshi’s leadership in our recent House Singing Competition, Wonwoo’s Saturday night evening festivities and Daniel’s drive with initiatives for our associated charity, Yarisan Chow Kit.

Moreover, other positions include Tutor Group Representatives who take additional responsibility within their tutor group; Academic Ambassadors who provide an additional layer of learning support for students in Granville, and; Language Ambassadors who support those students who are struggling a little more with the rigors of living and working in an English speaking environment. These students have found that taking responsibility within the school community promotes empathy and respect and allows boys to understand the diverse perspectives and needs of their peers and educators. This in turn fosters a more inclusive and compassionate atmosphere, where students appreciate the value of diversity and actively work to create a harmonious learning environment.

In conclusion, it has been a privilege to have witnessed the personal growth that our students have undergone as a result of their actions this term: in leading or assisting in school events they have often discovered a sense of purpose and fulfillment and developed a stronger sense of self, a greater understanding of their values, and a deeper connection to our community. As parents, educators and guardians, please encourage youngsters to participate in or lead a range of activities - the adage is very true that one only gets what one gives!

Dean Jones
Housemaster, Granville House

Holman House Updates

“The whole world over, there is only one thing that separates ‘haves’ from ‘have nots’: establishing and achieving personal goals.” Dan Sullivan

We are proud to have a living example of this quote in our boarding house. Luis, a new Epsom student, has been recently granted a music scholarship recognising his talent but also his ambition and hard work. Our head of Music, Mr Crann said “ I was very impressed with his potential. Luis has a very delicate touch on the piano and plays with a good range of expression and dynamics. In many ways, he plays with a maturity beyond his years. Luis shows a desire and dedication to work hard at music and make very fast progress. He is in Year 7 and he is a student that has long term potential.”

We decided to have a little chat to know a little bit more about him, his passion and his path to obtain the scholarship.

First of all, well done to you for achieving this. How do you feel?

I feel very happy but also overwhelmed and slightly nervous because now that I have the scholarship I need to keep to the school standards. I have quite mixed feelings at the moment.

We think you can be very proud of yourself! Could you tell us a bit more about your relationship with music and piano more specifically? For example, since when have you been playing the piano?

I started when I was 6 years old. It was a hobby at first but I have been playing more intensively for three years now.

How many times per week do you play?

It really depends. Maybe 5 times a week for 45 minutes to 1 hour and a half. I have a private lesson and I do a lot of solo practice. Generally, 2 to 3 hours a day on the weekend. It’s hard but I noticed that if you play something you really like it is a lot easier and you can play more!

What triggered your love for this instrument?

First, I like the piano because it is an instrument that allows you to play independently. I can play and practice when I want. I also love the sound of it. A few pieces also made me fall in love with this instrument. At the moment, I really like playing the soundtrack of Pirates of the Caribbean.

We imagine that getting a scholarship must have been difficult and long. What was the hardest part?

It was the first step! Stop talking and get out and play!

Motivation is useless without discipline, you need to discipline yourself as well as remain motivated.

Did you have moments of doubt?

Yes, I had several but then I cleared my mind and remembered my goals.

What would you recommend to other students who would like to achieve similar goals?

In my opinion, you need to be prepared to pull in the hard work. It is not going to be easy and you must prepare yourself for it. Also, never forget your goals, and don’t side-track.

In your opinion, what skills or mindset helped you the most?

To be disciplined. It allowed me to practise more and be successful.

What is the next step, now?

I have to learn a second instrument and also look for opportunities to perform in public.

I also need to improve my ability to play with others.

Thank you very much Luis for your time and, once again, congratulations. At Holman we are very proud of you and will support you all the way!

We hope this interview will give our readers the motivation to “pull in the hard work” as Luis said!

Mr Laurent Larburu,
Housemaster, Holman House.

Sean, Year 9 Holman Visits Parliament

I did a number of things over the half-term break, the best being visiting the most important building in Malaysia, The Parliament.

The whole experience of seeing the inside of the building we see on Malaysian coins for the first time was very exciting to say the least.

Since it is the most important building in the country, filled with the nation's leaders, as expected security was tight. There were metal detectors around every corner with security personnel eyeing you suspiciously, all armed to the teeth.

Well, maybe I exaggerate a little. The security staff are very nice and the people working there are kind and even allowed me to take pictures with them.

So, the most important building in Malaysia has existed since 1959. But what makes it so important?

Parliament is the highest legislative body in the Malaysian government meaning it performs a number of duties, including passing new laws or amending those that already exist, reviewing policies, approving spending and new taxes and acting as the primary platform for discussing a number issues of public interest through hearings and inquiries.

The parliament of Malaysia is based on the Westminster System, used in England, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Though the structure of Malaysia's government is mostly due to British influence, there have been some local adaptations made through the years.

I went to parliament on October 19^th, the third meeting (period of 32 days) in the second session of the Dewan Rakyat - the hall where elected representatives from 222 federal constituencies in Malaysia sit to discuss and debate various issues of public and national interest. They are called members of parliament (MP) and wear the salutation Yang Berhormat (The Honourable) or YB in short before their name.

Members of parliament are chosen by the people of Malaysia, aged 18 and above, through general elections held every five years, and the recent one was in November last year.

There are several meetings in a parliamentary year. Each meeting can happen from a period of a few days or up to a month even.

Meetings are presided by the speaker of the Dewan Rakyat and he has two deputies who also sit in the speaker’s place when in session because, frankly, some people need a break. The people elected to be speaker or deputy speakers in parliament can be a current service MP. Currently, both the deputy speakers are elected MPs and the speaker is a former MP.

Everybody in that building was so full of determination and it really seemed like they wanted what was best for our country.

My visit there was on invitation from YB Young Syefura Othman, the MP of Bentong. She couldn’t be there that morning because she was away accompanying the prime minister on an official visit to Riyadh.

I was met by YB Rara’s assistant, Ms. Suhana Ishak that morning and she took me into the Dewan Rakyat through the MP entrance! Imagine my shock and excitement sitting right behind the government MPs you see in the news everyday instead of the usual public gallery reserved for visitors to the Dewan. It was spectacular.

From my seat, I watched MPs and ministers walk by as they took their seats in the hall. From 10am, I heard Q & A sessions from MPs to the different ministries in Malaysia. Ministries are headed by ministers who are members of parliament or senators who are appointed by the prime minister.

It was an eventful morning because I heard YB Nancy Shukri (Minister of Women, Family and Community Development), YB Hannah Yeoh (Minister of Youth & Sports), YB Fadhlina Saddiq (Minister of Education), YB Senator Tengku Zafrul (Minister of Investment, Trade and Industries), YB Mohamad Sabu (Minister of Agriculture and Food Security), YB Nik Nazmi (Minister of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change) and a few deputy ministers, speaking and answering questions from MPs.

I heard MPs ask questions and ministers’ answers on so many different issues of national interest – none too small or too big, like the rise of child abuse cases to ASIAN Games to food security to parking difficulties in hospitals to oil royalty to the current conflict in Gaza.

I should mention that Malaysian athletes who represented the country at the recent ASEAN Games sat at the public gallery while the Minister of Youth & Sports spoke of their achievements. The other MPs tapped their table quite loudly every time a medal win was announced by the minister.

Apparently, instead of clapping or cheering, everybody in Parliament taps on nearby furniture loudly because it’s more civilised. To be honest, it would seem more civilised to just clap, rather than grab the nearest piece of furniture and have an impromptu drum solo every time somebody said something you agreed with.

Nevertheless, I had an incredibly good time and it was truly an amazing experience. It was spectacular to see the people working tirelessly everyday to make our country a better place and I hope by reading this you gained some insight or some knowledge behind these people.

Here are some photos:

Me at the MP entrance into the Dewan Rakyat

Me with the Minister of Youth & Sports, YB Hannah Yeoh and YB Syahredzan Johan, the MP for Bangi, the biggest parliament constituency in Malaysia.

Me with YB Tuan Ibrahim, a former minister, current MP of Kubang Kerian and the deputy president of Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS)

Me standing under the portraits of former Yang DiPertua Dewan Negara (former speakers of The Senate)

A Message from Epsom Art Department

As we shine a spotlight on Mental Health here at Epsom this week, it is a good time to question how often are you mindful, still and calm enough to be able to appreciate what is around you? When was the last time you ever stopped to look closely at the details and beauty of a single flower? Or are you too often busy to notice nature's details, as you rush from one place to the next?

“When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it's your world for the moment. I want to give that world to someone else. Most people in the city rush around so, they have no time to look at a flower

Georgia O’Keeffe

We all have busy lives and sometimes we overlook what is around us and appreciate nature and how it can inspire us, but in recent weeks Year 10 IGCSE art students took time to stop, look, and capture the beauty of flowers inspired by the artwork of Georgia O’Keeffe and their own photography.

Oriental Poppies Georgia O’Keeffe 1927

With colour being the element of Art focus, pupils reflected on their current art vocabulary as we questioned, how many ways can we describe a single colour? Pupils then used a colour thesaurus to help enhance this further to describe their own colour palettes such as honey yellows, coral and blush pinks, teal blues and olive greens.

Pupils then selected the aspect of the flowers they wanted to explore further using their own viewfinder to help magnify interesting sections of their flowers. It was great to see how the pupils then went on to develop these through new techniques such as impasto acrylic painting and wet-on-wet watercolour effects, oil pastels and colouring pencils. The Year 10 pupils showed excellent creativity and concentration throughout and we will soon be able to enjoy their final outcomes as we exhibit them around the art department.

Developing a culture of Flow within Art lessons

Seeing how well the pupils worked on this unit of work reminded me of the work of "Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. (1990). Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience." This describes a concept of those moments when you are completely absorbed in a task where your skill level and challenge are equal.

(Csikszentmihalyi, 1990).

Through research, Csikszentmihalyi began to understand that people are their most creative, productive, and happy when they are in a state of flow, this can often happen when you are so engrossed in a task you question…where has the time gone?

Aiming to ensure our pupils have the skills required with the challenge they are capable of is our philosophy for learning as we aim to develop independent and creative thinkers who enjoy the subject, as they express themselves in a positive way.

Year 8 Melting Clocks Inspired by Surrealist Artist Salvador Dali

Year 8 have enjoyed exploring the work of Salvador Dali and his Persistence of Memory. Pupils replicated his work using grid technique to help with accuracy, scale and proportion. From this pupils refined their skills in a range of media, including clay to capture the essence of the surrealist painting.

Below The Persistence of Memory 1931 Salvador Dali

Below Year 8 Artwork

Art Competition time Deadline 6th November

We are also pleased to launch our Art Competition this week, see details below. We look forward to seeing the entries, with the best examples put forward to the Fobisia Art Challenge, Good Luck Everyone, From the Epsom Art Department

Ms Gemma Marsden,
Head of Art

A Message from Epsom DT Department

Year 8 and Year 9 DT students successfully completed their Workshop Health & Safety and Sketching Units during the first few weeks of Term 1. Both year groups are now working towards completing a set of VEX Virtual Robot challenges. VEXcode VR lets students code a virtual robot using SCRATCH Blocks which can then be viewed in Python text coding.

The integration of technology into the curriculum is at the forefront of what we try to achieve here in Design Technology; as such, students are required to create screen recordings of their virtual robots completing each of the Challenges in addition to taking screenshots of the Block code for uploading to Google Classroom as their main submission.

Next, Year 8 and Year 9 DT students will move on to SCRATCH game design; SCRATCH is the world's largest coding community for children and uses a coding language with a simple visual interface that allows young people to create digital stories, games, and animations. Finally, as we head towards the end of Term 1 we will finish off with an Introduction to Shapr3D. Shapr3D is an innovative 3D modelling tool for industrial designers, engineers, product managers, manufacturers, and other design professionals.

Year 10 IGCSE DT students have concentrated on developing their understanding of the theory section of the course to include materials, tools and machines. Students (after Mid-Term) will move onto sketching, Computer Aided Design, card modelling. Students in Year 10 will also start to practice Past Paper 1 (Product Design) and Paper 3 (Resistant Materials) questions.

Year 11 IGCSE DT students recently started their main project worth 50% of their IGCSE final Grade. The IGCSE project contains seven Criterion and is internally graded; however, the grades awarded by the teacher are externally moderated by Cambridge for quality assurance purposes. The Design Technology Department itself continues to be improved upon and recently the school approved the purchase of a new Mk4 PRUSA 3D printer.

If you have any questions regarding the Design Technology programme at ECiM please do not hesitate to contact me: brian.thorburn@epsomschool.com

Best wishes,

Mr Thorburn,
Head of Design & Technology

Epsom Mouratoglou Programme

Our Mouratoglou Tennis Programme (MTP), recently hosted our penultimate round-robin championship of the year at our on-site tennis complex.

We hosted over 70 participants from more than 7 countries, and witnessed 18 of the best players compete.

A record breaking number of students from our tennis academy and Epsom competed in six of the nine final matches.

Our contenders were:

U10 Girls - Shino
U12 Girls - Riona
U14 Boys - Yordan
U14 Girls - Lavinya
U18 Boys - Nicholas
Junior Pro I - Kevin

We were delighted to host our honorary camper to train with our coaches for the past two weeks from India, Junior Pro II - Darsh.

It was a wonderful event and we look forward to many more!

Best wishes for the weekend,

Epsom MTP Team.

FOBISIA Friendly Games

The Federation of British International Schools in Asia (FOBISIA) began in 1988 as an information-sharing and discussion group among a small group of international schools. Today, FOBISIA is a diverse membership association of over 95 schools with members stretching from Kazakhstan to Brunei and China to Thailand. The Friendly Games were one of the Federation's very first initiatives, and have a long-standing reputation for being the most popular events in the FOBISIA calendar, offering students a fantastic opportunity to compete at the highest levels. However, the greatest trait of the Games is for students to form global friendships and to make connections with peers throughout the region.

The Friendly Games are run in U15, U13 and U11 age groups. Each Games takes place over four days and will involve both individual events (Athletics and Swimming) and team sports (Football, Basketball for seniors and T-ball for U11s). Whilst it is not an expectation that competitors participate in all 4 activities it is a general guideline that competitors participate in 2 or more of the 4. No school will be defined as an overall winner, although each component activity will have a winner. In recent years, the Games have been held at the Pattana Sports Resort, which is in Chonburi, Thailand.

The Friendly Games are a unique opportunity to enrich the sporting experience for ECiM students. We will be entering the Friendly Games for the first time this year, and would like to send teams to all 3 competitions. Since the start of the academic year, Mr Long, Miss Pleshivtseva and Mr Wooler have been working with students across Years 8 and 9, often 3 times a week to prepare our U15 boys and girls teams who will be travelling on 28th November. They will be playing against the following schools;

The British School Kathmandu (TBS)
Tenby Schools Setia Eco Park
Renaissance International School
Hua Hin International School
Crescendo HELP International School
British Vietnamese International School Hanoi

The U13 Games will take place at the end of March and we are running trials on 28th October and during the week of 30th October to determine the interest and choose training squads. The U11 Primary Games are at the end of April. If you are interested in signing up, please speak to a member of the PE team or contact Mr Wooler for more information.

Best wishes,

Mr Guthrie Miller,
Director of Sport

Squash Success

Congratulations to Haneesha, Year 11 Crawfurd who competed in the CIMB National Junior Circuit Squash Grand Final (qualification round). Hanssesha ranked 6th overall in the GU19 category.

Great Golf

Dinie Zaki, a seasoned golfer with 20+ years of experience, hailing from Australia and Malaysia, has been passionate about golf from a young age.

Starting at the age of four, he climbed the ranks from junior to professional tournaments. Settling in Melbourne post-college, he pursued a golf career while also gaining expertise in golf sales and club fitting. His comprehensive industry knowledge now centers on golf's strength and conditioning aspects.

Dinie boasts victories in amateur and junior competitions, with numerous top-ten pro finishes. His key insight: prioritising fitness gives players a significant edge. Presently, Dinie Zaki aspires to impart his wealth of experience and know-how to cultivate a well-rounded golf team, one striving to be the region's fittest and strongest.

Congratulations to Adrianna who has been chosen to do media work in collaboration with Maybank as their junior golf ambassador for the coming LPGA Maybank Golf Championship competition in Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.

PE Department News

24/10/23
Epsom 3 - KTJ 1

Girls in Key Stage 3 have been learning Hockey in Games this term as we strive to grow the range of sports on offer at Epsom and to develop competitive teams to play against neighbouring schools. Miss Madely and Miss Prestidge have also been running a vibrant Hockey CCA which has greatly improved players' awareness and knowledge of the game. With our first fixture cancelled before half term due to the haze conditions, students had been eagerly awaiting the match against KTJ. For nearly everyone, this was their first official game of Hockey!

Rachel and Emira suited up to play in goal and playing 11 aside on a full size pitch was a daunting challenge. Both teams were focused and the game soon began to flow. Leah, Callista and Ee Xynn were stout in defence making some excellent tackles and starting off plays from the back. Kaegan, Fatiha and Adriana worked tirelessly in midfield breaking down KTJ and connecting passes to our forwards. Mona, Kate, Sofia and Soi ran hard throughout the game and caused the KTJ defence significant difficulties and were unlucky not to school more. Sofia finished off a wonderful right wing move, created by Kate, to open the scoring. The crowd went wild.

With the team rotating due to rolling substitutions, Terry, Cai Hua and Sunny came on to show fantastic determination. Epsom dominated the second half creating chances on a regular basis. Sofia converted a close range effort and more goals looked like they were coming. KTJ had some breakaway attacks and Emira made a number of fine saves. Against the run of play KTJ scored with 15 minutes to go to make it 2-1. However, Cai Hua scored with 5 minutes to go to ensure the Epsom victory.

Our students were an absolute credit to the school and displayed an amazing team spirit. A big thank you to Miss Marcy for umpiring and to Miss Madely and Miss Prestidge for their ongoing support for our students.

Mr Miller,
Director of Sport

Epsom Science Department Updates

The Biology Department has been busy upgrading its noticeboard displays over the last half term and there are many exciting and interesting things on show. Ranging from the impressive work of the Key Stage 3 students for the Science Fair last year and highlights from the last Science Week to course information and possible careers in Biology, there is a lot to inspire students within the Biology corridor. The main highlight is the latest interactive addition: top picks from the IUCN red list, and the Biology Challenge Board. Every week, a new challenge question will be displayed on this board, be it a statistics problem using experimental data, or a genetics puzzle to solve, the Biology Department invites all who visit the Biology corridor to give their best attempt, with the promise of fun prizes!

Friends of Epsom Meet our SLT

At the end of half term, the Friends of Epsom met with our Senior Leadership Team (SLT). This meeting served as a crucial platform for nurturing stronger connections with our parent community. The aim was to engage in open dialogue, exchange ideas, and address any concerns together. By doing so, we collectively work towards enhancing various aspects of school life, including academic progress, the diversity of Co-Curricular Activities (CCAs), and the ever-popular topic of food.

At Epsom, a commitment to continuous improvement is at our core. We value the invaluable feedback from our parents and stakeholders, which fuels our journey to surpass our previous best. Your input is always appreciated as we strive for excellence.

We thank our parents for their ongoing support and especially those who give so generously of their time as part of the Friends of Epsom.

Marvelous Music

The Annual House Music event is always greatly anticipated! This year the theater was full to the brim which was wonderful to see!

In the 2023 music event, several exciting changes were introduced:

Junior and Senior House Competitions: The competition featured both Junior and Senior House teams, adding a new dimension to the event. Notably, Crawfurd and Rosebery participated with both Junior and Senior teams, making the competition even more spirited.

Shorter Time Limits: To accommodate a greater number of performances and ensure a well-organized event, there were shorter time limits for each act. It was crucial to stick to these time constraints, as penalties were in place for exceeding them. This change aimed to create a more efficient and dynamic musical showcase.

Junior Houses and Categories: Junior Houses competed exclusively in the Instrumental and Unison Categories. This specialized focus allowed them to showcase their talents in these specific areas, promoting diversity in the performances.

Backing Tracks for Junior Houses: A new addition for Junior Houses was the ability to use backing tracks in the Unison Category. This offered more creative possibilities for the young talents to explore and demonstrate their musical prowess.

Accommodating Year 13s: Some Year 13 students had retakes during the House Music week. In a considerate move, they were still welcome to attend and perform, albeit without taking on lead or significant roles. This flexibility encouraged their participation without compromising their academic responsibilities.

No Voices in the Instrumental Category: A change from the previous year, the Instrumental Category focused exclusively on instrumental performances. This clarified the guidelines for the category, ensuring a consistent and fair judging process.

These adjustments made the 2023 music event a more inclusive, efficient, and diverse showcase of talent. With both Junior and Senior Houses competing, shorter performances, and more creative options for Junior Houses, it was a memorable musical celebration. The event also fostered an understanding and supportive atmosphere, allowing Year 13 students to participate, even in the midst of academic obligations, and maintained a clear focus in the Instrumental Category. The event highlighted the musical talents of all participants in exciting new ways.

It really was a wonderful evening and we are so very proud of our students for their hard work to prepare!

Best wishes for the weekend,

Epsom Music Department.

More Marvelous Music

Warmest congratulations go to Anna Ruth, Year 8 Crawfurd, who was selected for a Masterclass session with Datuk Mustafa Fuzer Nawi last Sunday at Istana Budaya. Anna Ruth played Mozart Violin Concerto No.5 1st Movement by Mozart 🙂 PSM was previously known as GSM (Genius Seni Muzik).

Mental Health Awareness Week

To mark the end of Mental Health Awareness week, our whole school went out onto Granville Green and danced - it was a special event as these pictures show…