1 

The Cannon

Summer 2018

2 

In this issue

Message from Mr Watkiss Page 3

Harry Bibring and Children from Willesden Green Page 4-5

Trip to Rome and Pompeii Page 6-8

Natural History Museum Pages 9

Indian Dance Workshop Pages 10

Young Writers Club Page 10-11

Earth Rover Page 12-14

University of Kent studying Journalism Page 15

World Maths Day Page 16

Escape Plan Page 16

Harry Potter and the London Trip Page 17

Music News Page 18-19

Sporting Achievements Pages 20-21

Fort Pitt in Siguenza Page 22-23

Dramatic Achievements Page 24

Stupendous Sister Act Page 25

Fort Pitt Old Girls Association Page 26-27

From Demolition to Design of the Year Page 28

Leavers and Joiners Page 29

Dates for your diary Page 30

3 

 

Dear Parent/Carer

Thank you and good luck

At last we have reached the end of the Summer term and another academic year has flown by. This term is always one of the most stressful for those of our students who have taken their public examinations and are now awaiting their results, which will take them to the next stage in their academic lives. We think they have all performed extremely well.

Other students have been concentrating on their end of year assessments and mock examinations as well as participating in our ever-widening range of extra-curricular and Raising Aspirations activities. Fort Pitt really does have a rich and varied annual set of events for students to participate in.

I cannot believe three academic years have passed so quickly. I wanted to write to thank you for your support during my tenure as Headteacher of Fort Pitt. When I first visited, I was told the ethos here was unique and Fort Pitt has certainly proved that schools (and people) can be unconventional and successful at the same time. I cannot emphasise enough how lucky we all are to be part of such an uplifting community.

I have greatly enjoyed serving Fort Pitt and I will hold the memories of the past three years close to my heart.

I hope parents and carers will also continue to be vocal about the school and inform my successor and her senior leadership team when there are areas that need to be improved.

I am absolutely certain that the school will go from strength to strength and I look forward to hearing how the students are progressing.

I cannot believe the beautiful summer weather we have been experiencing over recent weeks and I’m sure we all hope it continues.

All that is left is for me is to wish you all a very happy and restful summer and more importantly to wish those awaiting their results all the very best of luck.

I should like to thank you once again for your support and to wish you all the best of luck for the future.

Yours faithfully

Nick Watkiss Headteacher

4 

Harry Bibring, a WW2 refugee who was involved in the Kindertransport, was born on the 26th of December 1925 in Vienna, Austria. When Nazi Germany took over Austria in 1938, Harry was forced to leave his Austrian grammar school and was transferred to a basic secondary school that was made to accommodate Jewish children. On the 10th November 1938, his father’s clothing business was ransacked during Kristallnacht. (Kristallnacht is when almost two hundred synagogues were destroyed with over eight thousand Jewish shops robbed and ruined. Tens of thousands of Jews were removed to concentration camps.) His father was arrested; the rest of the family were forced to leave their flat and live with fifty other people. His family were allowed to return to the flat but they knew they had to leave Vienna. Their initial plan was to flee to Shanghai but unfortunately that plan fell through. That resulted in Harry’s parents deciding to send him and his sister to Britain on the Kindertransport, when Harry was twelve and his sister was fifteen.

When they arrived in England, they were greeted by Mr Landsman, a man known to Harry’s father who had initially agreed to be their sponsor and offered to give them a home. Unfortunately it turned out there was no room fir them both and they were separated. Gertie (his sister) stayed with the man but after the bombing on 3rd September 1939, Harry was evacuated to Fletton. He stayed with the headmaster of a local grammar school. After Harry had left school and returned to London, there was room for him to live with Mr Landsman. He moved in with his sister and started an engineering apprenticeship.

On his 18th birthday he applied to the RAF but because his mother was still believed to be alive on enemy territory, Harry was turned down.

In May 1949 Harry met his wife-to-be, Muriel and they married two years later. After about fourteen years of study, Harry qualified as a chartered engineer with management qualifications. He worked in this job for twenty years. He had one son, Michael; two grandchildren, Lee and Nikki; and two great grandchildren, Rafi and Eli.

Recently in History, we listened to Harry’s live speech about his life. We also saw him when we went to watch “The Children of Willesden Lane” which shows he is incredibly supportive of other projects that are shining a light on the struggles of refugees. We are very grateful that Harry shared his story with us. It shows how brave he must have been to reopen old wounds. We found it very interesting and it made us view the Kindertransport as something that was incredibly emotional and physically exhausting for both the families and children involved. Linking it to modern day, many refugees are experiencing very similar situations to Harry. They are fleeing from war zones and are emigrating to safer places. We hope his story can inspire them and many more to keep persevering and show a real sense of bravery. .

Harry Bibring

5 

 

On Tuesday 12th June we left school to get the train from Chatham to Victoria. We walked to Central Hall to watch an amazing performance by Mona Golabeck. Mona is the daughter of Lisa Jura. She has also written a book, ‘The Children of Willesden Green’ which is about her mother’s experiences as a child growing up, at first in Vienna and then after she moved to England. The 70 minute performance was utterly superb. She and her mother were so inspiring. It was incredible how Mona could memorise all of the music she played and the script. We enjoyed it thoroughly and learnt so much.

The performance was a re-enactment of her mother’s life during the war when she went on the Kindertransport. The Kindertransport carried children from Austria and Germany to England to be safe from the Nazis. When the Nazis took over Austria her parents had to make the difficult decision as to which of their children they would put on the Kindertransport as there was only one place and they had three children. Mona’s mother, Lisa was sent on the train to England and started her life as a refugee. This made us aware of the parallels with today when people flee their countries due to war and famine.

Lisa was an amazing pianist and taught Mona how to play. Music helped Lisa to feel safe and was her way to feel still connected to her family. Mona balanced her performance with a variety of classical and 1930s/1940s music and acting. She is a very talented actor and musician. We really enjoyed this performance and it is such a great topic to study. We thank the teachers for taking us on this extraordinary trip.

Erin Gibbs and Sam Moaby Y8

Children from Willesden Green

The reason Harry decided to share his story in the first place is because he does not think the world has learned from previous tragedies and wants it to become a better place. In today’s society, there is a lot of prejudice and hate. He wants the world to be accepting of all people. “The only race I know is the human race” is a quotation from Harry. It made us realise that he feels quite strongly about diversity and love. We wanted to write this article in order to help spread his story even more.

“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

By Basmah Chraihi and Isabel Close Y8 

6 

On the first day (Wednesday 11th April) we arrived at school at 2:45 a.m. After waiting for everyone to arrive, we left by coach for Gatwick airport at 3:30 a.m. Six hours later, we arrived in Rome. The weather was quite cloudy and rainy on the first day, but it soon brightened up to result in the Italian sunshine that we were hoping for. Our tour guide Francesco took us to see the Spanish Steps and the Fontana della Barcaccia. We also had a shopping opportunity in the street, which had shops like Sephora and Gucci. After this, we moved on to Trevi Fountain - we had previously seen pictures of it, but it was much bigger than we were expecting. The sun on the white statues and clear water made it look even more beautiful and impressive. Later, Francesco led us to the Pantheon and we ate some classic Italian gelato by another statue and fountain. After a dinner of tomato bruschetta and gelato, we arrived at our first hotel and got to sleep after being awake for almost twenty hours - although it was worth it to see all the amazing Italian sights and educational monuments we saw.

Holly Exley and Sharon Liu Y10

On the second day we had planned to visit the Roman Colosseum, the Roman forum, the Arch of Titus and the Palatine Hill. At the beginning of the day we departed from the hotel at around 8 a.m and walked to the entrance of the Colosseum where we met our guide for the day to begin our tour. We went through security, after taking pictures from the outside, and began on the ground floor of the Colosseum where we learnt about the history of the Colosseum and the Roman Emperors such as Nero. After completing our tour of the Colosseum, including the upper floors, we continued our journey to the Roman forum through the Arch of Titus. We walked through the forum on the way to the Palatine Hill, whilst viewing the ruins of the ancient part of the city. We proceeded to travel to the Palatine Hill from where we then set off to walk to the Circus Maximus, which was a place once famous for chariot races, but is now reduced to a few remaining ruins on a field of grass. After this we had our meal and returned to the hotel.

Patryja Malesza and Tegan Wise Y10

Trip to Rome, Pompeii and Sorrento

7 

On day three, we boarded our coach for a three hour drive to our next destination. We were sad to be saying goodbye to Rome, however we were all very excited for the next stage of the trip.

We reached Herculaneum around 12:30 p.m. Before setting off on our tour, we enjoyed delicious pizzas and a panini in a traditional Italian Pizzeria. Herculaneum was a small town set at the bottom of Mount Vesuvius that was completely buried by volcanic ash, mud and rocks up to 20 metres deep during an eruption in 79AD. Excavation of the ruined town started in the eighteenth century, but even today up to 70 percent still remains buried. It was so interesting to walk around a Roman town that had been preserved in the very instant that the catastrophe had occurred and see how people lived and how they had tragically lost their lives to the volcano. Of the two of us, only one studies Latin, however we both found it fascinating to see the remains of buildings such as houses and shops and how you could still see the original layout of the rooms. After the tour we met with Francesco and returned to the coach for a very scenic journey around the Amalfi coast to the Hotel Giosue a Mere in the Bay of Naples. We were excited to find that some rooms had amazing views across the bay and large balconies, so after dinner most people went to the rooms of friends who had the balconies to relax and enjoy the view. At 9 o clock we all had to be back in our own rooms ready for bed before the next fully packed day ahead of us.

On Saturday, we visited Cumae, the location of the first Greek colony on the mainland of Italy and the home of the ancient Cumaean prophetess Sibyl, who was the most famous out of several sybils in antiquity. Sybils were priestesses endowed with powers of divination and believed to be semi-divine beings. Apollo granted her the gift of immortality, but she forgot to ask for eternal youth. The Cumaean sybil lived for about a thousand years, her beauty shrivelling into an emaciated face, and her body shrinking with age until, eventually, it was kept in a jar. Finally, only

her voice was left. To reach the oracle of the Cumaean sybil, the visitors had to pass through a long, vaulted tunnel. Inside there is a chamber where Sybil prophesied by writing on oak leaves, placing them at the mouth of her cave and refusing to replace them if they blew away. Afterwards, we visited the preserved amphitheatre in Pozzuoli, the third largest Roman amphitheatre in Italy. Unlike at the Colosseum, we were able to visit the underground level and understand how the amphitheatre originally

operated. The openings in the ceiling divide the arena and served to raise animal cages, performers and decorations up to the surface via a sophisticated system of ramps and elevators. Following the tour round the amphitheatre, we headed back to our hotel having thoroughly enjoyed our day.

Becky Ball and Maisie Land Y10

.

8 

Day 5- 15th April, Pompeii and Vesuvius

On the 15th, we ventured to Pompeii, arguably one of the major highlights of the trip. We found Caecilius’ house, where everyone gathered to either fan-girl or pay their respects. We took photos of the mosaics, and of the sign next to the doorway of the house. We found ourselves being followed by a small dog, who we collectively nicknamed ‘Cerbera’. She stuck very close to Georgina for a while, which was funny considering she didn’t actually have any food for the dog to be smelling on her.

We were given an hour for lunch and buying gifts, many of us splitting off to buy pizza from one of the market stalls. After the hour we were given for leisure, we made our way back to the coach, now with filled bags. We were then taken to Vesuvius, catching some amazing views of the trees on the mountain. And so we began our hike!

It was tiring, but it was worth it for the breath-taking view. Not everyone went to the top, but for those who did make it to the summit, it invoked a great sense of achievement. There was a stall at the top, where we could buy more gifts. After acquiring more gifts we proceeded back down the trail and waited for our coach to arrive. After a long, tiring, but fun day, it felt great to be able to relax on the coach, and to catch up on lost sleep.

On the Monday, our last day, we had our final breakfast in the hotel, before packing up all our things and returning to the reception. We were then allowed to the beach outside our hotel for a few hours. We sat on the rocks and invented the ‘Moped Game’, where we got more points the older the moped rider was - everyone in Italy seems to own one!

We left the beach at midday for lunch and then straight to the airport, where we bought many lemon-themed trinkets and sweets. We said a (slightly tearful) goodbye to our beloved tour guide Francesco, and waited to board our plane.

We returned home, tired and slightly achy, but having had a wonderful time in Rome, Pompeii and Sorrento.

Katherine Chambers and Thalia Fairclough Y10

9 

On Friday the 22nd of June 8L4 and 8L3 took a trip to London to visit the Natural History Museum to learn lots about earthquakes and volcanoes, which is what we had been studying at school.

Throughout the day we went to various interesting sections including, mammals, the human body, insects and finally earthquakes and volcanoes, which was the bit we enjoyed the most. However, we also thought that the room with all of the animals was very impressive, especially the huge whale in the middle of the room hanging from the ceiling.

But, of course, we were mainly there for the volcano and earthquake section which we learnt a lot from and we were able to fill in the whole booklet with lots of information. We even got to experience the simulation of what a real earthquake would be like which really helped us understand how traumatic they really are. We really had a good time on this trip and would urge anyone to go as it is very educational but in a fun and amusing way.

While in the museum we saw many interesting things including dinosaurs, rocks, creepy crawlies and inside humans. Everything we saw was entertaining, but our favourite thing was the earthquake simulation. It was amazing, without being in danger!

Some of our memorable moments are eating lots of sweets on the train, dressing up in dinosaur tails in the gift shop and Miss Hibbins being asked if she was everyone’s mum! The museum was a little busy and there was a group of Year 6’s also on a trip. In spite of that, it was very fun and interesting and we feel like everyone had a great time.

Students from 8L4

Natural History Museum

10 

Young Writer’s Club member Freya Cook, Year 10, has achieved a ‘runners up’ position in the British Legion ‘Thank you’ campaign competition, with her poem #ShieldMaidens seen opposite. She is now working on her entry for the Foyle Young Poets Award, run by the Poetry Society.

See Mrs Page for details if you are interested in entering.

Young Writers Club

Indian Dance Workshop Our class, along with the other year 8 groups attended an Indian dance workshop in the main hall. We had to spread out, so we didn’t hit anyone for the warm up and main dance. The warm up was enjoyable and got our hearts pumping. The warm up routine consisted of some stretching exercises and some jumping exercises to help raise our heartbeats.

The main dance routine was physically demanding and exhausted all of us to the edge of collapse. We started off in a kneeling position with slow movements ending up in a standing position. The music then began to increase in tempo and so did the dance moves. There was a fair amount of hip wiggling in it, for in Indian dances, they always exaggerate the moves. It was good exercise, and everyone was smiling and seemed to be having a great time, but one problem was that we weren’t told to wear our PE shorts, so we were dancing in our uniform. It was still fun with that aside.

The cool down involved us doing a bit of yoga. Even that tired us out. It consisted of laying on the floor then pushing our bodies up into a position where our legs were still on the ground, but our torso was lifted. This is called a Cobra. From there, we went into a downward facing dog, in which from the Cobra, we pushed our bodies up into a triangle shape, bringing our feet closer to our head. Then, we did a bunny hop to our hands and the process started again. By the end of the workshop, we were all lying on the floor, all our energy drained from our bodies. We learnt lots about the Indian culture and that the dance moves are all very energetic and lively.

By Lauren Richardson 8L4

11 

#shieldmaidens

My darling, do not listen to them when they Implore you to “go home and sit still”.

Do not listen to them. You are magically crafted from the

Blood, sweat, tears of all the women Who came before you and were just as

Terrified. Your atoms are sestras of

Maria Bochkareva. From her, learn the best Way to fight battles is to run headfirst into them

With your sestras at your back and determination In your heart.

Your scars are healed by Flora Sandes. From her, learn the unthinkable Is achievable, even if you are the first to carve

Out that path and set forth on it, with (Karadorde’s) stars In your eyes.

Your adventure-yearning-soul is joined with Betty Stevenson’s. From her, learn the importance Of doing what you love and fighting for it, and then

You can go forward with “The Happy Warrior” forever engraved In your bones.

Your bones are woven together with magic from Esther Hasson. From her, learn the definition of perseverance

For until you have lost a part of yourself, you will never Understand the struggle of continuing onwards with hope

In your words. Your heart beats in time with

Edith Cavell’s. From her learn you “must have no hatred or Bitterness towards anyone”, even those that have or will wrong you

For life is not long enough to carry kindness and hatred In your hands.

And so, darling; do not listen to them. Make them listen to You. Tell them all about your ancestors. Your strong, Wonderous ancestors who shaped the war (and you).

Lace your words with love and joy and hope and stardust. Throw them up to the sky so the shieldmaidens may hear them and

the silent ‘thank you’ woven between the words that you will forever remember in between

Hashtags and follower counts.

12 

The Fort Pitt Computer Science group meets the robotics team solving farming problems on Earth by using tech designed for Mars exploration

Earth Rover is a new team of computer scientists, designers and engineers, who are developing autonomous robotic vehicles for farming. At the beginning of July, representatives from A Level Computer Science (George Bunyan, Priya Kambo, Caitlin McCall and Willow McCall) visited the Earth Rover’s London lab in Somerset House to find out more.

Earth Rover – Autonomous Farming. Image used by kind permission: © Earth Rover.

We were met at Somerset House HQ, by Earth Rover’s chief technical officer Paul Harter, a software and electronics engineer who previously worked for BBC Research and Development and is an expert in 3D design. Paul took us on our own private a tour of Somerset House through areas not normally accessible to the public. We learned about the history of the site dating back to 1796 and how its use has evolved from crown, military and government offices to an art gallery and business hub.

One of the tour highlights was a vertigo-inducing trip up the Nelson stairs, a famous cantilevered spiral staircase used in film and television, before we descended beneath terra firma in search of the future.

Earth Rover is building a number of prototype machines based on the European Space Agency’s ExoMars Rover technology for use in agriculture. The rovers they are constructing are robotic vehicles, programmed to get around on their own, learn about their environment and make decisions for themselves.

This is Fort Pitt calling Earth Rover

13 

 

Above the Nelson Staircase, Image used by kind permission: © Somerset House.

Below: The ExoMars Rover. Image used by kind permission: © ESA/ATG medialab.

 

14 

The rover design has two main computers, one for the driving systems, the other helps it analyse and literally see the environment. The team from Fort Pitt learned how the rover was designed and spoke to some of the engineers and computer scientists making it possible.

Artificial Intelligence specialist Sergio Martinez talked to us about the rover’s stereoscopic vision system. Caitlin and Willow from our intrepid team were allowed to experiment to see how it can recognise people, spaces and plants in 3D.

We learned how it moves and how it learns; something called autonomous machine learning. Given certain instructions, it is able to learn by itself and make its own decisions on what to do and where to go. We found out from Sergio how it can tell the difference between a plant it needs to tend and a weed it must destroy.

Earth Rover’s mechatronic expert Juan Paz, a Graduate of the University of Piura in Peru, explained the guidance and driving system that he has been working on. He told us how the rover knows where it is by simultaneous use of a combination of technologies including GPS and location sensing. When asked if this means that we were witnessing the start of the robot revolution, we were reassured by Paul that ‘robot’ is from the Czech word ‘robota’ basically meaning slave or servant. In terms of how the rover will be used, it’s more along the lines of the robots in ‘Silent Running’ than ‘Terminator’. Although Sergio explained, they are thinking about equipping the rover with its own laser to incinerate weeds! With safety as our number one priority, we almost quite literally had a blast.

Earth Rover works with RAL Space, Harper Adams University and Pollybell (the UKs largest organic farmer). They have also discussed their technology with the Duchy of Cornwall and DEFRA. We were mindful that we were visiting the team while they were working but it wasn’t like any stereotypical 9-5 job. Apart from scheduled meetings, the team turn up for work when they want, often working through the night. As Sergio said “This isn’t like work.. it’s something we are passionate about”.

Fort Pitt is always where the action is: in the middle of our visit the team had a call from the Guardian who were keen to get an exclusive about Earth Rover. Just to let you know: Fort Pitt and The Cannon were there at the start, sealing our reputation of learning about and reporting on cutting edge innovations and being there at heart of world changing developments.

This is Fort Pitt Computer Science group reporting back from the future with many thanks to the Earth Rover team both human and robot.

Mr Smith – Computer Science Department

(For more information go to: www.earthrover.cc)

15 

University of Kent

Studying Journalism On Friday 18th May, a group of year 12 students visited KMTV studios, based at the University of Kent, to explore journalism as a career choice. We began with a tour of the Centre of Journalism and KMTV with Tim Luckhurst, Head of Centre for Journalism. We went on to experience a sample lecture, discussing the differences between types of newspaper and the influence politics has over how stories are written and perceived in the news. We met Laura Garcia, a Lecturer in Television and Multimedia Journalism. During this discussion, we looked at the development of technology within journalism, specifically the use of immersive 360-degree storytelling. It was interesting to learn that as technology improves journalism develops with it. News reporters are beginning to use 360 cameras in their reports, in order to immerse the audience that watches them because it allows them to see what is going on for themselves, rather than just being told by the reporter which often leads to people losing interest, however the more interactive the report becomes, the more interested people are and therefore we are able to gain knowledge in a different way. We had a talk with the Drill Hall Library staff and how to use an academic library before another sample lecture, based on political reporting with Dr Ben Cocking, Director of Research. The day ended with a Q and A session based on applying to university as a whole. Overall, the visit was very interesting and definitely developed our knowledge of journalism as a subject and how this can be used in many different ways, but it also opened up my mind to a new career within a subject that I love. Rachel Goode Year 12

KMTV

16 

On Thursday 1st February, Year 7 held an honorary day to celebrate Number Day and how lucky we are to be at school and to be learning it. Instead of having our usual stimulating Mathematics lesson, we filled it with celebration and we decided to play some Math-based games. We played one game, which was the class favourite, making shapes with our friends and to see who could do it the fastest - as we were in teams. However, we had to use our knowledge of shapes to get the task done.

Lastly, we did a map colour sheet which was really fun. We had to use four or less colours to shade in some shapes but the colours were not to touch one another. We had lots of fun using our mind to solve all the puzzles and some were very complicated to hack. Although with the help of friends and the teachers we finally got through it all.

And lastly, for the NSPCC we raised £131.96 and we were very proud and happy with how much we raised.

Samira Sadi, Natalie Kambalame and Ingrid Linn, Year 7.

World Maths Day

On Saturday 30th June the Psychology department took a number of year 9 student to Escape Plan in Rochester. Students were locked into puzzle rooms for an hour and in order to ‘escape’, they had to solve the various puzzles within the room.

The two rooms students went in were Murder on the Pier and The Witching Hour. All of the students enjoyed the experience and has asked if they can go again. The behaviour of the students was fantastic, so much so that the owner of Escape Plan commented on how polite and well-mannered the students were in spite of being trapped in a room all together!

Mrs Wilby

Escape Plan: Psychology

17 

Harry Potter and London Trip Recently, our year 10 computer science class along with others from the year had the opportunity to go on an overnight trip to London to learn more about the tech industry. On day one we took the train to London and went to Harry Potter Studios. I had never been here before and it was spectacular to see real sets and costumes from the movies in real life! I learnt lots of things I had never noticed about the movies such as in the books wearing a uniform was never actually said, all that was said was that the students wore robes! Also that the costumes were based on 1990’s fashion. It was crazy to see the amount of detail put into each and every set with a 5 stage design process but my favourite part of all was the scaled down model of Hogwarts. Mr Pitman had asked me if the experience had changed my look on the ‘magic’ of Harry Potter, to which my response was that the technology of making things spectacular is a magic in itself.

That night we also got a chance to ride on the London Eye, which was a relaxing yet terrifying experience. We all took many pictures of London which you do not usually see whilst personally it allowed me to see the beauty of big city architecture.

The second day consisted of a tour around Tech City, a part of east London. Our tour guide was so excited to show us around the artwork and community of the town and there was a real sense of community there. He taught us about the rising use of Bit coin and he showed us a bank run incubator, which is a place where the bank helps fund new companies in order to keep up with new trends. Later on, we went to a company called Verb Brands, this company designs web pages and does marketing for other big companies. We had a presentation by the boss who allowed us to have our own go at improving websites with things such as bigger buttons, more colour, or less steps to completion. One thing we noticed about the company was that all the workers were wearing headphones, Mr Pitman spoke to the manager who told him that headphones allow his workers to get into their own work which he claimed increased productivity. Therefore, we are now trialling this method over the course of our GCSE Programming Project.  

Selected students from Yr 9-10

 

18 

BROOK THEATRE WIND BAND CELEBRATION DAY!

On 14th June, I went to the Brooke Theatre in Chatham to spend the day getting used to playing alongside other musicians. In the morning, because I play the trumpet, I just rehearsed with all the other brass players but in the afternoon we had another rehearsal with the woodwind players and had a concert at the end of it. The concert went really well and I was surprised with how good it sounded after only one day of rehearsals. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the day and would definitely do it again.

Ingrid Linn 7L2

 

SECONDARY MUSIC CELEBRATION CONCERT at St. George’s Centre, Chatham

Well done to the Year 11 Vocal Ensemble who represented Fort Pitt and performed so professionally at the Medway Secondary Music Celebration Concert on 15th June. This concert was a wonderful celebration of the talents of students in nine different Medway secondary schools. In addition, in the line up was the Medway Schools Wind Band, in which a handful of Fort Pitt students play. It was a really enjoyable evening, well done to all who performed.

Naomi Ost Y11

RAISE YOUR VOICE!!

Well done and congratulations to the cast of Sister Act! You will read reviews of the show in other pages of the Cannon, but we’d like to give a special mention to the singing! There were many challenging songs and vocal harmonies in this show, which the soloists and ensemble worked so very hard at. It’s been a pleasure to hear the vocal skills of the cast really develop over the past few months. If you came to see the show I think you’ll agree they did a great job! A massive well done to all the cast for the amount of time and effort they put into all rehearsals. It was well worth it – you sounded “fabulous baby”!

Mrs King

Music News

19 

GCSE MUSIC TRIP TO WICKED!

On the 28th June many GCSE Music students went to see the musical Wicked, which we have been studying in class. I had never seen a musical before, therefore I had my hopes high that this was going to be spectacular, and it did not disappoint. The setting and stage made you feel as if you were part of the action and the songs drew you to their characters. I was a bit sceptical that the Elphaba wouldn’t be as good as the original actress (Idina Menzel) but she was amazing and some of the notes she hit, I will never reach! When ‘Defying Gravity’ started, all my friends around me started calling out the musical terminology that we have studied in class, and it was like a mini revision session! I’m pretty sure that the people around us thought we were crazy! Wicked was so amazing that some of my friends and I started crying throughout the second act and the tears didn’t stop until we were asleep on the train. I would recommend anyone who takes Music to go and see Wicked, as it has been one of the best experiences of my school career, and I hope I will be able to see it again very soon.

By Hannah Roarty Year 10

20 

It has been a very exciting term in the PE Department with a number of sporting events and sporting successes taking place. After a number of trials, the Fort Pitt Athletics Team took part in the District Athletics Event at Medway Park. It was a very successful day and the majority of students returned with a medal. Overall, Fort Pitt Grammar School were placed 4th out of all the Schools across the District. We would like to congratulate all students that took part for their excellent efforts throughout the day. The Year 10 GCSE class have worked exceptionally hard to plan, prepare and deliver a number of sports sessions to Swingate Primary School as a part of their Sports Week. The sessions built upon the GCSE PE student leadership and coaching skills and their sessions were brilliant and exceptionally well organised. The students received lots of positive feedback from both the children and staff at Swingate Primary School and the day was thoroughly enjoyed by all. The PE Department have been extremely lucky to have some external coaches come in to Fort Pitt to deliver specialist sports lessons. The cheerleading team had a session with a cheerleading coach and have worked really hard to prepare for their competition. The students had an insight into the jumps, tumbles and dance associated with the sport with a number of students hoping to attend the extra-curricular club. The students came 2nd in their category and an amazing 5th place out of over 15 Schools. Medway Rugby Club delivered an outstanding one day course to an array of classes. Students

developed their ball handling skills, along with their spacial awareness and positioning within the game. Medway Rugby Club have continued to deliver and coach our Rugby Team at the extra-curricular club which is well attended and thoroughly enjoyed by all.  

 

 

 

 

Sporting Achievements

21 

A new approach to Fort Pitt's Sports Day was taken this year with a number of new events taking place. Students had the opportunity to represent their house in the traditional athletic events as well as Retro Sports Day events. Such events included, the egg and spoon race, the sack race, the space hopper race, the skipping race and the three legged race. Sports day begun with a parade from each house who had to dress up, parade around the athletics track and best represent the school's theme. Mr Watkiss had a very tough decision to make as he was judging the event but the final winner of the parade was Ryder house. With so many different events taking place, the competitive element between each of the four Houses was higher than ever. All students were cheering on their peers from start to finish and the overall Sports day results are as follows, 4th place; Ryder, 3rd place; Somerville, 2nd place; Meaden, and finally 1st place was Westwood.

The summer Inter-House tournaments were a huge success as each house competed against each other in cricket, rounders and tennis events. The sports captains selected a team from each year group for each event. All the participating students displayed excellent sportsmanship and should be extremely proud of their efforts. The overall winners for this competition were Westwood and Somerville. The Year 7 cricket team took part in a

cricket tournament competing against the other secondary schools in Medway. The tournament took place at Lordswood Cricket Club and the students received some specialist cricket coaching before undertaking a number of matches. All students involved played exceptionally well, well done to all involved! Miss Tickner and Miss Holmes 

 

  

22 

Siguenza

Our annual trip to Spain with our Spanish students took place in June this year. The trip involved staying with Spanish families and eating traditional Spanish food alongside attending Spanish lessons in their school.

We also had the chance to visit Madrid and explore some beautiful Spanish scenery.  

23 

An amazing trip...which we highly recommend to any student in Year 10 studying Spanish.

Muy Bien!

Mrs Achata

24 

Drama achievements

We are delighted to report that following the National Youth Theatre auditions held in school back in February, two of our very talented students have been accepted!

Molly Morel (Year 13) and Keri Mosuro (Year 11) will be attending Summer courses in London, after which they will be fully fledged members of the National Youth Theatre.

We wish them every success, and look forward to organising a trip to see them in their first show!

Drama & Music Department

All Night Rehearsal Success!

The cast and production team of Sister Act held a sponsored All Night Rehearsal in May, to raise money for the production fund.

Everyone worked so hard – commencing rehearsals at 7pm on the Friday evening, and finishing at 7am on the Saturday morning.

Just a couple of hours sleep then followed for most of us before waking up to watch the Royal Wedding!!

We were overwhelmed by the generosity of those who sponsored us. We managed to raise an incredible £1,500, which will be used for technical equipment, props & costumes as well as paying our royalty fees.

Prizes of free family tickets were awarded to Hannah Stutely and Katherine Chambers for the highest individual sponsorship.

Well done to the whole cast and team, and thank you so much to everyone who supported. It is hugely appreciated!

Tina Reeves

25 

The Stupendous Sister Act I loved every minute of being in Sister Act and would love to share my experiences with you. This was my 5th production with the school so I knew what to expect from the auditions. When I found out I had been cast as Mother Superior I was so excited because it was the biggest role I had ever been given and I was looking forward to taking it on. This production was my favourite one mainly because of the amazing cast. We instantly clicked and all became really close during rehearsals which allowed all of the songs and dances to become even better. The overnight rehearsal also helped us to bond as a cast as we had to spend 12 hours together while all being really tired, but it was a lot of fun. I truly loved learning all of my lines and the challenge of learning two whole solo songs along with little solos in the group numbers as it allowed me to push myself slightly out of my comfort zone and really have some fun. The shows all went so well and the audience all seemed to really enjoy it, which really meant that all of the hours in rehearsal were worth it. I would highly recommend being in the production to anyone because it really is the best experience I’ve had at Fort Pitt.. Hannah Stutely Y12

 

I am so happy Sister Act was my first production at Fort Pitt as it was an amazing experience. I liked that it was such a big cast as we all became a family and we all made friends with each other really quickly. I made many new friends as a result of being in Sister Act, some in Y7 and also some in the older years. Even though rehearsals were sometimes tiring, they were always thoroughly enjoyable and seeing all our hard work pay off in the performances was amazing. I'm so pleased I was able to be involved in this and I can't wait to do it again next year!

Ingrid Lynn Y7

26 

Would you like to know more about the history of the Fort Pi  site ?   

Fort Pi  is a site of historical significance, be this as a fort, a hospital and more recently as a school.   The War Office purchased Fort Pi  Hill and the surrounding land in 1780 but work to construct the fort did not start un l 1805 and was not completed un l 1815.  In 1828 Fort Pi  was chosen as the site for the principal military hospital to treat invalids from overseas as they could be transported by sea to Chatham.    Then in 1926 the buildings became the first Day Technical School for Girls in the country and it has con nued to be an educa onal establishment since that  me.             

Fort Pitt Old Girls Association

27 

Fort Pi  Old Girls’ Associa on has arranged a history a ernoon on Saturday 22nd September from 2 pm to 4 pm.  We will be able to provide you with interes ng facts about the site and you will also be able to look at our archives with old photographs, memories of students from the 1920’s onwards, their school books, reports and much more    Admission will be £1.    This event is open to all students, parents/carers, rela ves and staff – so why not make a note of the date and come along to see us.      Marion Cogger (Chair of the Local Governing Body) 

28 

And finally unveiled the very new science building to be named after:

Dr Elizabeth Garrett Anderson

From Demolition to Design of the Year

This amazing building has finally been handed over to us and the architects have entered the design into the Kent Building Design of the Year 2018 and we shall look with excitement to see if it wins! In the meantime for the hard work and time taken by all involved (too many to mention) in this project—well done—we are there—ready for the 21st century science of discovery to begin!

Mr Ost

29 

We wish the following staff a wonderful future wherever their journey takes them.

Nick Watkiss: Headteacher

Frances Bray: Art

Louisa Hallett: Science

Andy Lillie: Maths and Science

Fran McGinn: Art

Dan Morley: Science

Ian Wesson: Science

Leigh Wilby: Psychology

 

The leavers and joiners in 2018

And we also wish well our new teachers starting in the Autumn who will be:

 

             

Nicky Archer: Headteacher

Nathan Blight: Science

Alberto Borrell-Romero: Science

Rachel Davies: Psychology, Sociology and Politics

Deborah Griffiths: Science

Sarah Huxen: Art

Tanya Terry: Maths

Aimee-Beth Warburton: Art

30 

We hope you have enjoyed the latest edition of the Cannon.

If you would like to write an article for the next edition please send it to 00Cannon@fortpitt.medway.sch.uk

And finally…

Don’t forget your Fort Pitt Passport

when you visit places over the break.

Record the things you have experienced

Dates for your diary

31 August Years 7 & 12 Induction Day

3 September All year groups return

11 September UCAS Information Evening

13 September Year 7 Information Evening

18 September Year 12 Information Evening

25 September Year 9 Information Evening

28 September Year 7 Challenge Day

9 October Open Evening