Ms Louise Simpson Bromley High School GDST Blackbrook Lane Bickley, Bromley, Kent 8th November, 2011

BR1 2TW

Miss Jay Routh 3 Scadbury Cottages, Scadbury Park, Chislehurst, Kent BR7 6LS

Dear Ms Simpson, I am writing to you to apply for an academic scholarship at Bromley High School. Since joining the school in Year Nine I have greatly enjoyed both studying and participating in extracurricular activities at Bromley High, and I would love to continue the next step of my education at your school. Personally, I feel that I owe a debt to this school as, though I had many talents when I started here, I knew that there was more I could do to reach my potential, specifically in terms of examination technique and organisational skills. I have improved a great deal in both these areas whilst being at this school, and I feel confident that every week I spend here the teaching, environment and opportunities help make me the best that I can be. The improvements I made in my grades over Year Ten are a testament to this and I look forward to continuing to improve. One factor that I attribute to my success at Bromley High is the teachers encouragement to have open discussions about the broader issues surrounding topics, making lessons more challenging. I find this particularly in English where study of political commentary in texts such as J. B. Priestleys An Inspector Calls invites the individual to form and voice their own ideas. I think this approach to teaching means that students think beyond the curriculum, which is something I value highly. In terms of what I can offer the school, I believe that I am a capable individual with a range of abilities and ideas that could benefit Bromley High. For instance, this year I have been my forms representative every term bar one. I hope to continue to be voted into this position by my form, and would love to carry on in a role of responsibility in the sixth form. Additionally I would like to become a role model to younger girls who struggle with learning difficulties such as dyslexia; to do so I could share my personal experiences and the techniques which I have both learnt from our SEN support team and developed personally. Currently I take part in a variety of extracurricular activities such as the Senior and Cantabile Choirs, Jazz Band, Theatre Society and Trampolining Club. Thanks to the support of the music staff I feel sufficiently confident to start a new group, Fusion Band, with Shanta Islam. The aim of this group is to showcase the schools diversity and multiculturalism, and we have already received much interest from prospective musicians across many school years. I have recently been invited to join the new Rotary Club by Mrs Jenner after asking for her advice regarding starting a school charity group of my own. Through the new club I hope to start a school project working with one of the local nursing homes. I would like to talk to the elderly people there

about their memories and capture them by writing them up. I have asked a few members of my year if they would consider giving up some of their time to help do this and have received a lot of positive feedback. I think this could be an excellent opportunity for the girls of this school to help the wider community in a new, creative way. Academically, I feel I am a suitable candidate for a general scholarship because my abilities cover a range of both scientific and creative subjects. The subjects I wish to study are English Literature, Drama, Geography and Biology; these are all areas which I find interesting and intellectually stimulating, and I would like to study all four through to A2 level. I also plan to do an Extended Project Qualification during Year Twelve. Currently my ideas for an EPQ combine my love for drama and psychology. For example I could analyse the mental state of famous and controversial characters such as Iago in Othello from the perspective of modern day understanding of narcissistic behaviour. I have always loved consolidating the things I learn in school with additional research and in doing so, I have discovered new favourite authors and playwrights; I read 1984 and Burmese Days after reading Animal Farm in class. I know that independent research is a key part of study at Bromley High in higher years, so this skill should support achieving my A level goals. The examples of work I have chosen to include with this application comprise three GSCE controlled assessments, two from English Literature and one from Geography. These have been my favourite topics so far and have received the following grades: English re-creative writing 10/10 for content and 9/10 for spelling and grammar, English linguistic analysis 19/20 for content and Geography The Price of Fashion Case Study 60/60 for content and structure. In conclusion I believe that I have a strong case to make in support of my application, and I hope that I will have the chance to prove myself further in an interview. Thank you. Yours sincerely,

Jessica (Jay) Routh, 11S