How is Kendrick school really like?

[panacea]

Cheers Tinkers! You are quite a cool babe

[Tinkers]

Whoops! Intended that to be a PM! Wondered where it went. Obviously being very dizzy this morning. I blame it on DD being extremely hyper as she is going to France with school on Monday.

Still hopefully the answers will be helpful to others as well as us.

Also not sure about being a cool babe.

[Reading Mum]

Whoops! Intended that to be a PM! Wondered where it went.

I am sure there will be plenty of people interested in the answers

[sonasona]

My DDs say I'm cool but I'm def no babe

I am however very interested in any answers to Tinkers posting

[aliportico]

School dinners, are they any good? Do most girls have them or take packed lunches? If they take packed lunches can they eat in the canteen with the girls having school dinners? Typically daily costs?

The tasters I have had seem good, and I think the costs are on either the Kendrick or the RBC websites? Dd1 takes a packed lunch though as she is a bit of a picky eater. She thinks it's about half and half, and lots of people mix and match. The canteen area is tiny, so generally only the people having a hot meal on a plate eat there - the ones who buy paninis/sandwiches/pasta in a pot/pizza/other snack food take it back to the classroom which is where most people eat.

Older girls will push in front of y7s in the queue. Don't get upset.

Do you know how they allocate classes, will they keep girls who know each other together or split them up? There's probably four from DDs school altogether. Do they stay together as a class all the time, or do they get mixed up. Do they get mixed up in year 8?

There is a bit on one of the forms (there will be about 6 million) that asks whether you want to be with someone in particular, or avoid anyone in particular. Seemed to be a mixture dd1 thinks.

For the first 3 years they stay as one form. Except for Maths, which gets set after Christmas in Y7, and for Science, Art and Music, where the 3 forms get split into 4 groups (so if the forms are A, B and C, the 4 groups will be 3/4 of A, 1/4 A and 1/2 of B, 1/2 B and 1/4 of C, 3/4 of C), and for Techs where each form is split in half. But yes, basically you are always with the same group of people. In Maths there is some movement up and down.

At the end of Y9 they have a PGL residential (short one at end of Y7 too) and they make a massive thing out of this, about how in Y10 the forms get completely mixed up and the GCSE groups will of course be mixed up, and so the PGL trip is necessary to spend time with girls from other forms.

They have one teacher for y7, and then one teacher takes them through Y8 and Y9. (And then another for Y10 and 11.)

How much homework will they get in year 7?

About an hour a night? Don't really remember, lol! 20-30 minutes, 3 subjects a day? DD1 says she feels like she got more homework then than she does now - "or perhaps I just did more then"!

From the uniform/kit list what do we really need to get? DD does struggle with the cold so I would think I need to get her the optional track suit bottoms and PE fleece, will she be able to wear them during PE anyway? Is it worth getting a hockey stick? Do they really need a tennis racket?
The optional stuff for dance. My DD already does ballet/modern/tap so has a black leotard, however it is sleeveless. Do you think it will be suitable? The ones on hawkin sport have sleeves. When would they wear dance stuff anyway. DD is interested in dance club, so any further info on that would be great, if you know anything.
DD wears glasses, so I'm also wondering about her wearing them when playing hockey, she can't see without them!
Do most girls tend to get all their uniform and PE kit (the none branded stuff) from hawkin sport anyway, or is it a hotch potch?

With the caveat that my dd is not in any teams, so if you get good you might want your own:

Yes to tracksuit trousers (can just wear plain black ones) and fleece if she wants to wear them.

Hockey stick, no, plenty to use at school. Dd wears glasses, never had a problem wearing them for hockey.

Tennis racquet - we bought one, they encourage it I think, and will engrave them for you. dd says there are a few rubbish ones to borrow.

Black leotard - yes, imagine sleeveless is fine, wearing it is optional anyway. There is a dance club, run by 6th formers - details change each year. They have an inter-form dance competition each year, and the best ones get to do it again at the Evening of Dance in December, so lots of opportunity to have a go.

I got a lot of PE kit secondhand at the July new parents information evening, so worth having a look there. Any black swimming costume is fine. Other uniform - any old black trousers/white blouses are fine. I'm not sure what the current skirt status is! Anything else?

What stationery are they expected to have? Obviously pens, pencils, rulers etc, but Im thinking more along the lines of folders, geometry sets, compasses.

Subjects that use ring binders instead of exercise books give them them in Y7. Yes to compass and protractor for maths, but they will remind them in advance when they're going to use them! Coloured pens and pencils obviously - dd says especially in Y7 as they do a lot of colouring!

I've noticed photos where the girls are wearing science overalls that they embroider their names on, something they have to do? (DD will enjoy doing that, or might get my mother to do it on her embroidery machine )

Yes, would recommend. This will not prevent it going walkies however. I embroidered her initials on the first one (and PE kit) and it disappeared. Didn't embroider the second one. The third one just has her name written on the front in Sharpie. The second one did reappear, but dd is telling me now that she doesn't have a lab coat atm!

Anything else they need or would be useful that isn't covered in the school lists? Anything I haven't even thought about?

Can't think of anything - will come back if I do. The school will send you loads of bumpf, which will either spark more questions or answer ones you didn't know you had!

Asked dd for helpful advice - she says don't wear a skirt past your knees. Y7s are renowned for wearing enormous backpacks and running everywhere - this causes amusement, but hopefully of the affectionate variety! DD says, just join clubs (she'll probably be running/helping with Classics Club in the autumn), get involved in things. And do your homework

Ali x

[Tinkers]

Excellent, thank you. (DD says thank you too)

Just have to wait for Friday now!

[Pendu]

Hi All I'm new to this site, although have been following it for a year or so now. Its so close to allocation date that I could no longer just follow posting.....I just had to speak up! The support and information I have gained from all the postings has been second to none and very valuable to me and my DD's journey. With less than a week to go I think now and after D Day is when the support is going to be most needed. My stomach is churning and Friday really couldn't come quick enough now. Tinkers I think you hit the nail on the head and asked many of the question I have spinning round inside my head at the mo, look forward to many of the answers. Here's to an agonising week ahead. Fingers crossed for all of our lovely girls x

[Reading Mum]

Really useful stuff aliportico. Particularly the 4 groups for science, art & music as one of perceived arguments for going for the green uniform rather than the red is smaller class sizes of 25/26 when compared to the 32. Without insider knowledge I would not have had an answer for that one.

[panacea]

Awesome info! Thanks Aliportico

[Pendu]

Aliportico, amazing, detailed info. Thanks! This is why I love this forum sooooo much, anything niggling you can soon be sorted.