March 2018 WINCHCOMBE NEWS A round-up of recent events in and outside school Winchcombe is alive with the sound of music! In this issue: Acoustic Night Swing & Things Jazz Night More Able students visit Cambridge Y11 History go to Greenwich MFL students watch a Spanish play Visit from our Japanese link school Future Chef Challenge UK Maths Challenge Pi-Day Library News Careers Talks Science: Big Bang Fair Duke of Edinburgh Sports Leadership Camp Primary School Music Evening Fund-raising for Tennis Courts Last Day of Term Students Success Stories Headmaster s Message Above and below: Mrs Turner and the Acoustic Night performers take a bow, concluding a wonderful evening of acoustic music.
Swing & Things Jazz Band Return! Making their fourth appearance at Winchcombe School, Gloucestershire mixed-age jazz band Swing & Things kindly agreed to help WiSPA and our School raise money to resurface the tennis/netball courts. The School needs approx. 15,000 to carry out the work and this event brought in over 350 whilst giving our students the opportunity to perform to an audience. Photography by Matthew Isemonger Y10 Year 8 dancers rehearse their routine to Left: Swing & Things in action Below: Vocalist Nicole with some of the Y10 Winchcombe Band Below: Maureen Currie, bandleader with junior members of Swing & Things, Nicole and Y8 dancers On 26 th January 2018, Izzy Carter (8PR) and Shannon Baker (8SU) asked Nicole (lead singer), Pip (brass), Maureen (conductor) and Maisie (brass) some questions at the Swing and Things Jazz Concert- written by Daisy Theobald (8CL) How long have you been singing? Nicole: I ve been singing since I was 12 What s your favourite song to sing? On Friday 26 th January 2017, we had Nicole: I like all tunes but mainly jazz and I an amazing time dancing to three of do like Adele as well the songs that were played on the night. How old are you? Some of us had attended the concert Pip: I m 13 as dancers last year and some hadn t. How long have you been teaching/ It was very exciting for all of us and we conducting? wanted to make it as brilliant as it was Maurine: I ve been teaching for about 20 last year. years Our first dance was to a song called Round Midnight. It was a ballet style How long have you been singing in the dance. One of our dancers, Molly, is band? very advanced in ballet so she started Nicole: about 3 to 4 years and ended the dance. Midnight was my How much do you enjoy music out of 10? favourite dance; it went brilliantly and Nicole: 10/10 everyone seemed to love it. Maureen: 10/10 Our second dance Jumpin Jack Jive Pip: 10/10 (as you can tell by the name, was a Maisie: 10/10 jive type dance) which was the closing song before the interval. Our costumes the best we d done it. For the final number, were black and white. We want- Boogie Lou, we got the unexpected sur- ed it to look old-fashioned and 1950s prise to be asked to dance on stage. We style. We did really well just as we d did some of the moves from our previous gone back onstage, we realised we d dances (spotty dog, samba moves etc.) missed out a part in the dance, so and pulled out some tricks as well. After what did we do? We did the bit we d the song had finished, we all took a bow missed out! The members of the audience and waved bye to the audience. never realised we d gone wrong! Before we left, Nicole said keep on danc- We were determined for our last dance ing, and I hope to see you next year. I will to be amazing! keep on dancing and all I certainly will be Our last dance was called Sambeando back next year! - a samba type dance). It was really fun to do as it was a fun and energetic Just some of the MFL Christmas Card creations Daisy Theobald (8CL) dance. Some of us thought that was
More Able Students visit Cambridge Year 11 Cambridge Trip Tuesday 16 th January was the first day back at school for students studying at Cambridge University, it also happened to be when Mr Waller and Mr Coles took 14 Gifted and Talented students to Robinsons College, Cambridge. We went there to get a feel for what it is like in University and to try to understand A- level choices a bit more. of books about every subject you could think of. Then there was the café, bar and common room that every college in Cambridge has. Finally we saw the gardens at Robinsons, we were told that they were one of the best kept secrets at Cambridge, it was essentially a large patch of grass that you can sit and walk on in the summer in the middle of what may appear to be a campus of red bricks. Apparently this was unusual because most colleges like to keep their grass clean and tidy so students aren t allowed to go on them, even if it is the size of an entire field. Directly after arriving we had a talk from an ex-student named Eleanor who showed us a half hour presentation on what Cambridge is, the different types of universities there are and gave us more information on what a collegiate school is. (Hogwarts/Oxbridge). We also later got a talk about A-level and University course subjects that was enlightening. Secondly, we had a tour around the Robinsons campus. We got to see the dedicated library which was stacked full After lunch we visited the nearest college, Trinity. There was a very long walk between the two colleges so it is understandable that a substantial number of students ride around on bikes. Half way through this very long walk we came across another library, only bigger. It was a national library, they have a copy of every book ever published in England sent to them. There are only 3 libraries like this in England. Trinity College is one of the biggest colleges in Cambridge and has lots of stories within its walls, as well as courtyards. We got to see the chapel, the dining hall and the bar/café which were all extremely large. The trip was a unique and fantastic opportunity that all of us are grateful to have had. Lucy Payne (Y11) Studying History in Greenwich In January, Mr Oliver organised a trip to the Greenwich Observatory for Y11 GCSE History students, which was kindly subsidised by WiSPA. Canary Wharf from Greenwich Year 10 Rugby match Getting ready for the audio tour of Flamsteed s house The home of Greenwich Mean Time and the Prime Meridian
GCSE History Greenwich Trip (cont.) Meryl Campbell was on the trip and writes: The Grand Exploration of the Observatory, London On October 12 th, 2017, we, GCSE history students embarked on a journey to Greenwich; to one of Great Britain s greatest buildings, the Royal Observatory. The journey to Greenwich was actually interesting, a mini-guided tour, with top class commentary of key buildings in London, specifically the O2 arena and Canary Wharf (the big building with the triangle thing on top!). After a three-hour journey, we arrived at Greenwich around 10am and set off to the Observatory. The view itself upon arriving was beautiful: a view point that looks down on the Queen s house and an intimidating set of geometrical buildings placed to make the observatory, all the while we had a grand statue of General Wolfe watching us sight-see. The Royal Observatory was a peculiar sight on the eye, and it was a shame we had to walk past to continue to the museum but we were to return to it later. We saw many cool things in the museum, but what we focused on was the history of the East India Company and the spice trade plus the slave triangle. When we left the museum, we walked down to the River Thames, and saw the Cutty Sark which was a sight to behold and took a while to get the photo as it was so immense! We returned uphill to the Observatory (it was built on top of the hill to have a better view of the stars) to attend a Planetarium show. It was a circular room with very comfy seats to lie in (the perfect spot to sleep after an early start) but the talk itself was very interesting because the astronomer talked a lot about the history of astronomy and the theories of the universe. Winchcombe Students asked loads of questions at the end of the talk. We returned to the Observatory itself where we split into two groups to explore Christopher Wren s Octagon Room and John Flamsteed s house. The house came with an audio tour and we walked round the areas where most of the history of navigation occurred. Our journey home was another tour of the capital, narrated by our tour guide extraordinaire Mr Oliver. We saw various landmarks, including the MI6 building that was destroyed in one of the James Bond films, the Oval cricket ground, Harrods and the London Eye. We arrived home around 8pm, having had a great day out! Photography and report by Meryl Campbell Y11
MFL Students watch a Spanish play Ruby-Mae Buckingham Y10 writes: On Wednesday 28 th February, Winchcombe School became a Spanish theatre for the year 10s that study Spanish. Our students were joined by year 10 students from Cotswold school who also study Spanish. a Spanish speaking theatre company came to our school to show us a play they call La Casa Encantada. The play was performed in Spanish, this meant that pupils learnt Spanish words throughout by watching and noticing the actors gestures. The play was very funny and it was interesting to see despite it being in Spanish everyone managed to follow the pair and their humorous events that took place at la casa encantada or the haunted house. The play was full of laughs and giggles as well as slight embarrassment for the pupil who was chosen to help the duo and struggled at first with his rusty Spanish but was luckily saved by his mates who had his back so he was able to assist Camilla and Alejandro catch el chico malo (the bad guy). Overall the play was a good way of learning new Spanish words but in a fun way. Last year s Japanese trip relived in January On Monday 22 nd January all those involved in the trip to Japan, held an evening showcasing our trip to family and friends. There were presentations, singing, Morris dancing and a short play. The evening was hosted by Jo Arabol and Archie Whillock, and began with a welcome and thank you from Sophie Ellis. In the run up to the trip a group of Morris Dancers led by Mrs Proctor, the Chair of Governors, taught the students a Morris dance to perform to the Japanese students as a display of English culture. Mrs Proctor and her group also very kindly performed a different routine for us on the presentation evening which was really impressive and lively. After the dancing, sisters Laura and Ailsa Davies, told everyone about the fundraising that went into the Japan trip, which was followed by Jay Habgood talking about his experience with the host family. As another display of English culture another small group of student performed and extract from Shakespeare s A Midsummer Night s Dream. Lucy Payne, Morgan Platt, Jay and Jovian Habgood, Catherine Cox and Laura Davies, did an amazing performance gaining lots of laughs from the audience. Following this, Rhiannon Brick gave a short presentation on the best parts of the Japanese trip, including the culture difference, the scenery and the Japanese people. Next, Lucy Brown gave an outstanding solo performance of Love Yourself as she performed this for the Japanese students while we were in Japan. Catherine Cox then told everyone about school life in Japan and the vast differences between our school life and theirs. Guest speaker, winner of MasterChef, Andrew Koj then gave a talk on Japanese food and culture. He spoke of his love for Japanese food and the history and influences behind different dishes. As a final presentation Jovian Habgood and Ed Keen gave a very amusing talk about the cultural trips their host families took them on the day where is was just us and them. As a surprise to the students, all students were given a certificate for their participation in the Japan trip. The night then ended on a thank you from Lucy Payne and Mr Hall, and a round of applause for Mrs Playfair, Mr Bale and Mrs Wardlaw, without whom the trip wouldn t have been possible. It was an AMAZING trip! By Lucy Brown and Rhiannon Brick Y11
Japanese Students Visit Winchcombe School On Monday 5 th February, Winchcombe School was delighted to welcome staff and students from Kyoto in Japan. Winchcombe students volunteered to buddy the Japanese students, bring them to all of their lessons and generally show them what life at an English school was like compared to their daily school life. The students attended school from Monday to Thursday, going to all of their buddy's lessons and leaving early at 3pm to see English towns and villages. After they came back from these visits, they would be picked up by their host families. Most students noticed that the Japanese student they were buddying was older than them, but the age, language and culture difference didn t prove to be much of a problem, as all the students enjoyed themselves hugely and made great friends. Although everyone at Winchcombe was sad to have to say goodbye on Thursday, we all enjoyed their visit and hope that they have great memories of our school, and we cannot wait to welcome future Japanese students to Winchcombe. Catherine Cox (Y9) More Japanese Students Visit Winchcombe School! During the final week of term before the Easter holidays, the School has been hosting students from Tsurumine, our Japanese partner school. MFL ambassadors are escorting them to and from lessons and a Winchcombe buddy has been allocated to each of the visiting students to keep them company at break and lunchtimes. Mrs Playfair, Head of MFL says, Some of our students are hosting these Japanese young people as they stayed with them when we went to Tokyo and I have a long waiting list of students keen to be buddies. This is always a very popular and positive experience for our students. Lottie, Ruby, Jess, Shannon in Year 8 were four of the buddies and they write: We were very nervous and extremely excited when we first signed up to help the Japanese students. We are delighted we chose to help. They arrived on the Sunday the 25 th of March to England and we met them at school on the Monday to find out who our Japanese buddy was. When the Japanese students arrived we were all very exited to meet our buddies. This was a very good opportunity to learn a lot more about Japan. All the students were very nice to meet, we also got a chance to teach them how to read English maps and they taught us how to pronounce some Japanese words. They were very kind, teaching us some new words and tasting yummy sweets which they had brought over to share with us. We all had a great laugh and we will all miss them very much. We are glad they all got the chance to come to England and learn more English. They got a opportunity to learn a bit more about the history behind Winchcombe. And they got to do some sport with Mr Waller. That day we had a great time with our buddies. We would like to say a big thank you to Mrs Playfair and all the teachers who had the students in their lessons and we all wish them a safe journey home. We will miss them very much and are so glad to have made new friends from Japan.
Future Chef Challenge 2017 Beau Beames (Y9) reported in our last News that she and Maisey Andrews gained places at the local finals of the Future Chef competition at Gloucestershire College in January. We re delighted to announce that Maisey won that heat and ended up in the SW regional finals held at Petroc College in Tiverton in February. Competing against seven other talented youngsters, each representing their county, Maisey impressed the panel of three head chefs from top hotels to win 3rd place for her 2-course meal for two costing under 10. Well done Maisey! Another Challenge - but this time Maths! Well done to Ben Carley-Macauly (Y10) who came first in school in the UK Maths Challenge. He s contributed the paragraph below with some details of the event: This year representatives from all 5 year groups took part in the 2018 Maths Challenge, A Nationwide maths competition that challenges top mathematicians across the country. The school had a lot of success with multiple Gold, Silver and Bronze awards given out to students within Winchcombe. Well done and good luck to all the students that attained awards and qualified for the next round of the challenge. Maths teacher and event organiser, Mrs Conlon congratulates all the following students who achieved awards: Best in school, Best in yr 10, Gold Award and PINK Kangaroo qualifier: Ben C-Macauly, He will sit a follow on round on 15th March for achieving one of the highest scores. Best in yr 11 & Silver Award: Lucy Payne Best in yr 9 & Silver Award: Sai Patel Silver Awards: Y11: Meryn Scammell, Archie Whillock, Emily Bale, Elysia Fleck Y10: Amelia Earl Bronze Awards: Y11: Imogen Taylor, Conrad Cannon, Maya Morris, Molly Podd, Millie Wilson, Joe Kelly, Eleanor Cowper, Libby Hall Y10: Nathaniel Powys Pi-Day Numeracy Co-ordinator, Mr Watson, is delighted to announce that Joe Moore (Y7) won the Pi competition for reciting the value of Pi to an amazing 73 digits! Mr Watson organised some fun, if messy, activities for Pi-Day and raised 130 for Sudeley House charities (BHF and NET Patient Foundation). Proceeds came from a competition to guess the weight of the Pie, as well as the sale of raffle tickets which were drawn on the tennis courts at lunchtime on Friday 16th March. The lucky raffle winners were given the opportunity to pie their not so lucky Heads of House and Maths teachers with plates of whipped cream (see next page for photos).
Pi-Day photos Above: A nervous-looking Miss Beard, Head of Langley House before and after Maths teachers - Left: Mrs Atkinson and Right: Mr Bale (although they are quite well disguised!) Library Literacy News A group of Year 8 pupils have been studying a book called Cow Girl by Giancarlo Gemin (photo below right). They thoroughly enjoyed the story and when they had finished reading it they sent their comments on the book to Giancarlo. 'I love this book, it's amazing' and 'this book is brilliant' were just two of them. Giancarlo responded immediately to say that he was sending a copy of his latest book Sweet Pizza for each pupil - a very generous gift. The pupils were thrilled to receive their copies and have asked to study that next! If you haven't already booked and would like information about the 2019 Ski Trip, please do not hesitate to contact Mr Rudkin or leave a message via the School Office.
Careers Update Miss Willmott, Head of Careers, invites visitors from a range of professions to speak to students during Tutor Time (fortnightly on a Wednesday morning). Students are invited to sign up to attend the sessions. Here are reports by students on some of this term s visits: The Army Career Talk (by James Relf Y7) This was a very informative talk about what jobs are available in the British armed forces. It ranged from the infantry to a chef for the food that they eat, all these jobs are equally important. He also told us about how the army isn't just guns but is also a lot of fun because when you are put in a country you have a specific sport and you can go on nights out with your friends. This talk gave me and the others who went a deeper insight about what the army actually is and the right knowledge to pursue this ambition. Helen Plumb from Just Gems in Winchcombe came to talk to us about her career in Gemmology and what she does. She is a Gemmologist which means that she buys gems from all over the world such as rubies, garnets and diamonds and she makes them into jewellery and sells them in her shop in Winchcombe. Helen told us about her fascination with gemstones, fossils and rocks. She did a Geology degree and later, she went to work on an oil rig. Later, she went on to owning her own business (Just Gems) and she goes around the world buying new gemstones to bring back and make into jewellery and sell in her shop. She had this shop in Scotland but had to move to Winchcombe to stay near her parents and look after them. Now, she has a client who has travelled from Derbyshire to see if she can get matching Oval Diamond Earrings. Oval Diamonds are very rare, so they cost a lot and they are very hard to get; especially in pairs. It was very interesting hearing about what Helen does and her career in Geology and Gemmology - I never really knew that this was even a career. (by Jessica Hughes Y9) Careers Talk Veterinary Nurse and Vet Brad and Natalie from Folly Gardens Vets came in to do a careers talk on Veterinary Nursing and showing us pictures of what type of causes and problems that happen to pets that come into their surgery. Natalie is doing a course at Bristol University to do a degree in Veterinary nursing which is a 5-year course and she is doing her work experience at Folly Gardens in Bishops Cleeve. She talked about what grades she needed to become a Veterinary student and she said that you need an A in Biology and Chemistry to get into the course. In the practice, Brad does neutering daily and that is a job that always needs doing. But they sometimes get the odd patient such as a snake that was found in someone s washing basket. By Jess Hughes and Freya Lane Y9
Science Department: Big Bang Fair - NEC Birmingham Photos by Emily Chilton Y7 The Big Bang Fair On 14 th March, fifteen Year 7 students visited The Big Bang Fair at Birmingham NEC with Mrs Barrett What we did I loved experiencing The Nuclear Institute which told me more about nuclear physics and I learnt a lot about preserving nuclear objects (e.g. Uranium). Josh Gill I really enjoyed learning about the ways in which light works and how it reflects and absorbs different colours. Natasha Hicks It was an absolutely great experience, I'm really inspired to become a robotic engineer!!! Lara Chilton It was amazing and I wish I could go again! I was really inspired! Emily Chilton Duke of Edinburgh Award Mrs Russell is pleased to announce that a successful Duke of Edinburgh practice walk was completed by all students on Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th March. Photo right
Sports Leadership Camp Four Y9 students Calvin, Logan, Ellamay and Charlie, had an inspiring day at Oxstalls University on a Sports leadership camp run by the Paralympic swimmer Kate Grey. Kate spoke about her loss of a limb and how that changed her life for the better as she was determined not to give up. She never dreamt that she would represent her country at the Olympics. Now she is a reporter on TV and spokeswoman to promote sport in school to all, no matter what the difficulties. Primary School Music Evening It s always lovely to see some of our future students at Winchcombe School, particularly when they come to showcase their singing talents. Mrs Turner arranged the annual cluster Primary Schools Music concert on Tuesday 27th March and we were delighted to welcome pupils and parents from Gretton, Isbourne Valley and Gotherington Primary Schools. Mrs Victoria Kane presented our own Vocal Group, who opened the show (left). WiSPA provided refreshments and are pleased to say that the proceeds and retiring collection amounted to just over 60 towards the School s tennis/netball court re-surfacing project. Tennis/Netball Court Re-surfacing Project The surface of the tennis/netball courts at the school is starting to deteriorate (see photo left). We re therefore raising money to resurface them as they are a key feature of our school, used in lessons, for extra-curricular activities and for students to play ball games at break time throughout the year. We re thrilled that WiSPA s recent quiz night raised 850 towards the 15,000 that we need to restore them. Thank you to Felicity Hall and Sarah Edwards for setting the questions and to the 14 teams who took part. It was certainly a fun evening. We ve also had generous donations of 1,000 each from the Cheltenham Round Table from last November s Fireworks and from Winchcombe Cycle Club from their HONC (Hell of the North Cotswolds) profits from 2017. Thank you to them. If you know of any other organisations who might be able to help us, please contact Mrs Kate Franklin, Business Manager.
Last Day of Term: Thursday 29th March 2018 Year 7 have gone to Warwick Castle The rest of the year groups have been doing various activities here at school, including a Bake Off Competition and a House Talent Competition. Ready, Steady, Bake! Two and a half hours later We have these delicious creations Well done all bakers - Congratulations to Cleeve representative Maisey Andrews Y9 for her winning creation of Iced Berry Mousse Cake with Mini Meringues and Coulis. House Talent Competition Cleeve - Daisy Theobald Y8 Langley - Laura Davies Y10 Prescott - Maisie Booker Y9 Sudeley - Molly Albutt Y10 The winner of the Grand Final was Molly, who played and sang her own composition. A huge round of applause for all students who got up on the stage to represent their House in the Talent Competition. Students voted in each of the House heats for their own finalist. They were:
Congratulations!! to Lily Marchant Year 7 Shortly after the December News was published, Lily competed for Cheltenham County Harriers in the U13 Sportshall Athletics competition. Her Mum explained that this was quite an achievement as she d just graduated from the U11 team. Her training meant she missed various birthday parties etc. so her family is proud that Lily s team won a bronze medal. Lily individually came 8th overall out of approx. 32 athletes. Well done Lily! All at Winchcombe School wish you every success in future competitions. to the Winchcombe School Equestrian team: Lucy Hayling, Sophie Godfrey, Amy Day, Katie Godfrey, Hannah Marsh, Polly Turner, Olivia Dawkins, Amity Turner, Libby Ashenford, Ellie Godfrey, Kaitlyn Chaplin, Poppy Greasby, Harry Greasby, Katie Marsh On 19th February, 14 Winchcombe horse riders took part in the Allens Hill Show Jumping event, getting off to a great start with Lucy Hayling winning her class. In the next class, two teams took part, achieving excellent results - well done! The team continued to have a brilliant day, with all riders in the Grass Roots series qualifying for the regional finals. The horse-riders have all put in a lot of hard work. A big Thank you to Equestrian Team Manager, Vicky Turner and to Jill for her help. An excellent display for Winchcombe School! Thank you to Mrs Hayling for her report PE Fixtures Results: January - Y7 Rugby team won v Cleeve 55-20 January 24th - Y7 Netball v Cleeve A Team won 8-3, B Team won 6-1 January - Y8 Rugby v Tewkesbury won 45-20 with Winchcombe forwards, Bobby Ballinger, Ed Cowper, Theo Young, Eddie Lewis, Oli Madle and Josh Jeffries dominating the forward battle to set a great platform up for the Winchcombe back line. January 31st - Y7 and Y8 Boccia teams came 2nd in competition, progressing to County Finals February 19th - Netball v All Saints Academy, Winchcombe won convincingly March 14th - Y9 boys progressed to the Semi-Final of the Football District Cup after winning their league which included four other large Cheltenham schools. Mr Waller was absolutely delighted with this result! March 22nd - Y7 Rugby team won v Tewkesbury 45-15 March 23rd - House Hockey: Cleeve are new House Hockey champions, narrowly beating Langley in the final. Players of that match were Dan Hammond and Ben Sreeves. At the Winchcombe Hockey Club Awards, Will Brazier Y11 was awarded Best Young Player. Congratulations and Well Done to all of them! If you have news about your child s success outside school and want to share it with the school community, please do email details to their Head of House.
A Message from the Headteacher: Mr Hall and all staff wish you a happy Easter and look forward to seeing you back on Monday 16th April (Week 1).