For most girls interested in becoming a future Roedeanian, the most anticipated day in the calendar is Rockpools Day. Usually the day involves a trip down the tunnel to the sea to explore the rockpools as well as themed games and exercises from various departments in the school.
The Coronavirus pandemic has of course meant that the Admissions Team haven't been able to welcome everyone to Roedean as they would do normally, so instead, they have set three virtual tasks for prospective students to complete.
The PE Department challenge was set by 6th Form student Ademi. The challenge was to throw a netball (or whatever else they had available - even a ball of socks!) behind their backs, catch it, and then throw it back to the front, repeating as many times as possible within a minute. Two other students also set an easier alternative (to pass the ball round their side back to the front, or to pass it in a figure of eight between their legs before throwing it behind their backs). Creativity was encouraged - as well as it being a test of speed, so it was great to see the various different ways the girls adapted the challenge.
The Biology Department, who normally have a great time looking at, and identifying all the different creatures in the rockpools, challenged the girls to create an identification chart with at least 6 organisms on it. Creativity was again encouraged - with those who could encouraged to find some rockpools, but if not to try the trees in their local park, house plants, or even household objects. The results were again wonderful to see, with a huge variety of different types of organisms chosen, the picture on the left is an example of one of the entries.
The final challenge was set by the Art Department, and this is where that creativity that has been encouraged throughout the challenges was really able to be set free. The girls were asked to create an underwater scene on the floor, using objects they could find around their house. The photograph at the top of the article was created by Head of Art Mrs Strachan, featuring her soon to be a Roedeanian daughter, Elspeth, to help inspire them.
Below are a few examples of the art challenge entries:
