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Preparing for GCSEs

The Residentials and Kick Start to Key

Stage 4 Week

A Multi Academy Trust

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Success in GCSEs is hugely significant to a student’s future. The transition from Year 9 to GCSE courses in Year 10 is important and we believe we can make this more successful through:

• Learning Away during Year 9 residentials• An active and challenging Kick Start to Key Stage 4 induction week

The residential – March 16th to March 20th 2020

Extensive research has been undertaken to suggest that the opportunity to learn away from home has a very positive benefit on a child’s education and skills. The acclaimed Paul Hamlyn Foundation have summarised their main findings:

• Residentials are a leveller, providing a new space and context where participants are equal and existing barriers and hierarchies can be broken down.

• The time, space and intensity of the residential experience is key to developing relationships and learning opportunities.

• The development of a Learning Away community allows participants to create a new community away from their normal distractions and gives them time and space to address their goals (both personal and learning-related) within a supportive environment.

• The memorability of the experience and the shared memories of participants help to maintain the sense of community developed on the residential back in school.

• Providing opportunities to experience success in a range of practical and physical challenges impacts on confidence, self-belief and attitude to learning, both on the residential and back in the classroom.

• Residentials provide a context and model for students and teachers to explore new ways of teaching and learning.

Our Year 9 residential builds on the team work and bonding developed during the Year 7 residential: a time when tutor groups are coming together and preparing for the whole of their Launceston College life.

Our residentials for 2020 include:• Ten Tors Experience – Dartmoor• French Exchange - Brittany• Spanish Exchange - Valencia• Cornish Cliff and Coast Discovery - Newquay• Battlefields - Belgium• Tall Ships Sailing Voyage - Cornish Coast• Mission to Mars - St. Austell

When choosing the residential it is important to note that any learning away event will benefit every GCSE that is studied. The skills and experiences can be applied across subjects and in life situations. Students should not feel

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bound by their possible GCSE choices. The only exception to this is that a student studying only Spanish, if choosing an exchange, should normally be choosing the Spanish exchange rather than the French exchange – and vice versa.

The Kick Start to Key Stage 4 Week – building on the residential June 29th to July 3rd 2020

There are many skills and demands made of students as they begin their GCSE courses. These demands will be replicated in our residentials and will be followed up in a GCSE induction week – where the link to study and success will be very clear.

We want students to be able to develop and review their skills and abilities including: • patience• team work• stamina• risk tasking• individualism• creativity• time keeping/meeting deadlines• commitment• research• revising• speaking in group discussions and presentations• listening skills• planning• preparation

Throughout the week students will be set a series of challenges testing these skills areas. It will be much like the BBC show The Apprentice, but without the “You’re Fired”. For each challenge, however, students will receive graded feedback – much like the graded feedback they will receive on their GCSE examination results day.

Questions students might be asking are:• How much did I contribute to that group task?• How much effort did I put into learning that information for tomorrow?• How much patience and commitment did I put into that seemingly impossible

task?

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French ExchangeBuild friendships for a lifetime

What we will do: • Spend a week in Brittany, the large peninsula in

the north west of France.• Get to know your partner and start a possible

long term friendship.• Experience the French way of life by staying with

your partner and their family.• Improve your French language skills.• Develop your communication and problem solving skills by finding ways to

make yourself understood.• Explore Brittany by going on cultural visits.• Be a host when your French partner comes to visit Launceston.

Where will we stay and when do we leave?• We intend to spend the whole week in France.• We will be travelling by coach and ferry.• You will stay at your partner’s house.• We will be spending evenings and weekends with your French partner and their

family.• You will be spending some time in school with your partner and going on

cultural visits with our group as a whole.

Cost of the trip: £275– TBC (depending on numbers) Deposit : £100Maximum numbers: 25 approx

This includes:• All transport• All food• All accommodation• All entry fees for visits• Students might wish to bring

some euros for extra snacks and souvenirs

• Group passport

Further details on the exchange such as partner allocation, transport, itinerary and final price will be given once numbers have been confirmed. In the meantime, have a look at the display board in the languages corridor to see what we got up to last year!

Code: 1

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Spanish ExchangeBuild friendships for a lifetime

What it entails: • Spend a week in Gandía, in the Valencian Community, on the west coast of

Spain (Costa del Azahar, near the Costa Blanca). • Get to know your partner and start a possible long term friendship.• Experience the Spanish way of life by staying with your partner and their family.• Understand the Spanish education system by attending lessons at your

partner’s school.• Improve your Spanish language by immersing yourself in school and staying

with your partner’s family.• Develop your communication and problem solving skills by finding ways to

make yourself understood.• Explore the Valencian Community by going on cultural visits. • Be a host when your Spanish partner comes to visit Launceston.

What we will do exactly:• Travel by plane from Exeter airport to Alicante airport.• Spend the whole week in Spain. • Spend a weekend plus the following evenings with your Spanish partner and

their family. • Attend the Fallas festival (parade with big effigies, street music, firecrackers,

fireworks). • Take part in a cookery lesson. Learn how to make the local Fideuà (a paella

with a twist!).• Visit the Ducal Palace and the Fallas museum.

Cost of the trip: £370 – TBC (depending on numbers)Deposit: £100Maximum numbers: 25 approx

This includes:• All transport, food and

accommodation• All activities and entry fees for

visits• Small group Spanish lessons• Group passport

Further details on the exchange such as partner allocation, transport, itinerary and final price will be given once numbers have been confirmed.

Code: 2

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Mission to MarsThe year is 2050 and earth is becoming uninhabitable. You will spend the week

planning an expedition to Mars!

What we will do: • Build a Martian habitat.• Learn how to grow our food in little soil.• Design a Martian base.• Decide which plants should we take with us.• Rigorous astronaut training programme at Hangloose Adventure.• Conduct a personality assessment to see if you have what it takes to make the

8 month journey.• You will also have the opportunity to visit the rainforest biome at night.

Where will we stay and when do we leave?• We will be staying in a youth hostel on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday

night;• There will be a day to prepare

and plan challenges in College on Monday and leave for Eden on Tuesday morning. We will return to college on Friday.

Cost of the trip: £190Deposit: £50Maximum numbers: 45 This includes:

• All food• All accommodation• All climbing activities• All transport and entry fees to visits• Students may wish to bring some money for snacks and gifts

Further details of this trip will be announced once numbers are confirmed and the itinerary finalised.

Code: 3

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Cornish Cliff and Coast DiscoveryA beautiful sandy cove on the North Coast of Cornwall

What we will do: • Spend three nights and four days in the

beautiful Treyarnon Bay.• Actively explore breath taking coves,

inlets and rugged headlands in this special place.

• Take inspiration from the rich history of smuggling and unique natural environment.

• Deepen our connection to Cornish heritage and land by working with each other to overcome challenges.

• Create and share our own learning journeys.

• Gain vital learning skills for study at GCSE level, through building on the experience of the Year 7 residential.

• Learn how working together can be hugely rewarding.

Where will we stay and when do we leave:• We will be staying in a Youth Hostel on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday

night.• We intend to have a planning day in College on Monday and to leave for

Treyarnon Tuesday morning. We will return to College on Friday.

Cost of the trip: £150Deposit : £50Maximum numbers: 45

This includes:• All food• All accommodation• All transport and entry fees to visits• Students may wish to bring some money

for snacks and gifts

Further details of this trip will be announced once numbers are confirmed and the itinerary finalised.

Code: 4

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Tall Ships Sailing Voyage

Step aboard the classic oak-built sailing yachts, and the crew will show you to your bunk. Having considered sailing conditions the Captain will work with you to plan your week’s voyage, taking in the sea life and maritime heritage of the South West. If conditions allow, you may sail to the Isles of Scilly or even across the Channel to France.

Setting sail from Plymouth Sound you will sail to your first overnight anchorage. The itinerary for your voyage will depend on the weather conditions and the enthusiasm of the crew. As a member of the crew you will learn to: hoist, trim and stow sails; helm (steer) the ship; navigate (sometimes at night); cook meals and, importantly, keep everything ship-shape.

By the end of the week you will have:• Worked in a close-knit team and made

new friends.• Improved communication skills and

had to cooperate with others• Tested your resilience and willingness

to take on challenges.• Improved your ability to cope with new

situations and environments• New found confidence and self-esteem

leading to greater independence.• Experienced a unique environment• Wider horizons and raised aspirations• Practical sailing skills (Island Trust or

RYA certificated).• Had an active adventure with

improvements to health and wellbeing.• Had to think on your feet and make

difficult decisions.• A better understanding of potential career opportunities linked to the maritime

environment.

Sailing involves learning how to navigate and can include calculating direction of sail from information about wind speed and tide, as well as using charts to plot your own passage. Sailing includes many examples where skills from maths, physics and geography can be applied in the context of life on the Channel and Atlantic Ocean. Students who have been on this trip have benefited immeasurably in terms of the educational and life skills they have acquired.

Cost: £395 Deposit: £120 Maximum Numbers: 23

Code: 5

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Ten Tors ExperienceAn adventurous journey through

our association with the moor

What we will do: The course aims to offer a physically challenging experience exploring wild Dartmoor. The days and nights will include adventurous activities, survival skills and a project working with the Dartmoor Rangers. You will explore Dartmoor through local history looking at how it has been shaped by the military and industrial developments from the Bronze Age to today.

• Spend three nights and four days exploring the wild landscape of Dartmoor and the surrounding area.

• Investigate how Dartmoor has been shaped by human usage over the years.• Undertake some adventurous activities that could include moorland navigation,

survival skills and climbing.

Where will we stay and when do we leave?• We will spend Monday in College preparing for our wild adventure.• Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights will be spent at a youth hostel whilst

we use the days to further our exploration of Dartmoor.

Cost of the trip: £150 Deposit: £50Maximum numbers: 30

This includes:• All food (Tuesday-Friday, packed lunch needed Tuesday lunch time)• All accommodation (Tue, Wed, Thurs night)• All transport and cost of activities

Further detailed itinerary will be available once numbers are finalised.

Code: 6

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BattlefieldsVisit the Battlefields of the

First World War in France and Belgium

Learning Objectives: • To enrich understanding of the causes and consequences of WW1.• To understand the impact of the Centenary remembrance of World War One• To develop skills of enquiry required to be successful at GCSE.

We will be visiting France and Belgium to see the trenches and memorials of the First World War. We will be there to remember those who lost their lives in the conflict by visiting various cemeteries and memorials as well as some of the preserved trench sites and museums.

The trip will include a visit to trenches in the Ypres area including Sanctuary Wood, where the shattered remains of the original forest can still be seen. The visit will also include visits to Langemarck German Cemetery and Tyne Cot Cemetery which is the largest British cemetery on the western front.

There are also trips to the Passchendale Museum. The group will also visit the Thiepval Memorial, Ulster Tower and Newfoundland Park, all consequences of the Battle of the Somme.

Our third night includes the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate, where two of our students will lay a wreath to commemorate the Launceston fallen. This proves to be one of the most moving events of the trip; the monument is where 54,896 British and Commonwealth soldiers’ names with no known grave are inscribed. We will depart early on Monday and return late on Thursday.

Cost of the trip: £395 (based on 35 students)Deposit: £100Maximum numbers: 35

This includes:• All food• All accommodation• Group passport• All transport and entry fees to visits• Students may wish to bring some money

for snacks and gifts

Further details of this trip will be announced once numbers are confirmed and the itinerary finalised.

Code: 7

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HOW TO APPLY FOR YOUR CHOSEN ACTIVITIES

1. Read all the information carefully and consider the choices available• Speak with parents• Speak with friends• Speak with your tutor• Speak with your teachers• Research the locations for the visits on the internet

2. Think carefully again before you go on to the next stage.

3. Remove the form from the back of your booklet.

4. Fill in your name and tutor very clearly.

5. Fill in your 1st and 2nd choices together with their codes.

6. Make sure your parents/carers sign the form at the bottom.

When you have completed the form with the help of your parents/carers, you must then return the booking form with appropriate deposit. Bookings must be handed in at the finance office put in an envelope marked Year 9 Residential. Cheques should be made payable to Launceston College with your child’s name, tutor group and first choice of trip written on the reverse

PLEASE NOTE: Bookings should be returned between Wednesday 4th September and Friday September 20th 2019.

A receipt will be given for the deposit (upon request) but this does not necessarily mean that a student is guaranteed a place on either their 1st or 2nd choice activity.

We hope you will be able to get a place on your first choice residential, however it maybe you will be allocated your second choice. The deposit will be used as the first payment for the residential, whether this is your first or second choice. Where a deposit is greater than that for the trip allocated this will be used to reduce future instalments. Any payments made are non-refundable.

COSTSThis booklet contains a range of different residentials. We have made every effort to reduce costs – however, where significant transport is required this unavoidably increases cost. We believe the quality of each residential will be similarlyoutstanding; unfortunately the cost of travel is not similar. We understand cost may be a difficulty. In cases of exceptional circumstances parents should contact the College. We will give consideration to the support that the College and other agencies can offer. This will be undertaken on a confidential

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and individual case basis. To communicate this concern and to ask other finance related questions please call the finance team on 01566 772468 option 4 and speak to Mrs Tyrrell to get further information on the options available.

PAYMENT1. First deposits should be cheque or cash.

2. A banking system will be open to enable parents and students to make further payments for the residentials in instalments. We hope this will make payment easier. We are also encouraging as many of you as possible to use Parent Pay. It is quick and easy to use.

Parent Pay cannot be used to make the deposit payment as the deposit needs to be sent in with the booking form.

3. Once places have been confirmed for all of the residentials, we will contact parents regarding future payment and all other details e.g. Battlefields trip willrequire initial £100 deposit; second deposit of £100 by October 29th and full payment by December 13th 2019.

What will happen once your form has been received?The booklet will be available on the College website from July. Booking forms with the deposit should be returned between Wednesday 4th September and Friday September 20th 2019. Where a residential is oversubscribed places will be allocated via a draw.

Final confirmation of places on either your first or second choice residential will be made during the week beginning September 30th 2019. Additionally, reserve lists will be made for each residential for pupils who might be contacted about their first choice should a place become available.

Once the lists for each residential have been drawn up students will receive confirmation of their place, with details of further payments. In the unlikely event of both a first and second choice being unavailable we will contact you directly.

FINALLY - if you or your parents have any queries about Year 9 residential week, or would like any further details on any of the activities advertised, please ask your tutor or Head of House.

BOOKING FORM AND DEPOSIT

Year 9 Residential Week 2020

1st Choice Code 2nd Choice Code

NAME: _____________________ TUTOR: __________

Please choose a 2nd choice activity as a back up in case your 1st choice is already full.

Parent/Carer Signature: __________________ Amount of Deposit enclosed with booking form: £_________ (cheque/cash) (delete as appropriate)

*It is not possible to use Parent Pay to make the deposit as this is required with the booking form. All further payments for the confirmed activities can be paid using Parent Pay

PLEASE RETURN THIS FORM AND DEPOSIT TO THE FINANCE OFFICE. Bookings should be returned between Wednesday 4th September and Friday September 20th 2019.

Allocation is not by first come, first served. A draw will take place where trips are oversubscribed.