Gryphon School Newsletter

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Sixth Form 7 Spring 2013 Trips 5 News 2 Gryphon @ There were 16 acts displaying a wide variety of talents, from comedy to musical interludes, dancing and singing. The evening was compered by Maddie Webster-Harris, Caroline Hawkins and Charlie Rohde who were all naturals at introducing the acts. All the acts were impressive and entertaining and hugely appreciated by the audience. The judges had a challenging time deciding on the final winners who were: Lydia Robinson, Maisie Bakewell, Naomi Dolbear and Tegan Evans with their acoustic rendition of ‘Hey Ho’ by The Lumineers. Highly commended acts were Aneeta Saji with traditional Indian dancing and Laura May Miller and Thea Burden for their cover of ‘Someone Like You’ by Adele. The audience also selected their favourite act of the evening, using text voting. Over 200 texts were sent, and Bethany Brown and Athena Edwards came out on top with their beautiful acapella delivery of ‘Next To You’. Maths teacher, Sheree Cuff, who organised the event, said ‘It was a great chance to celebrate all the forms of talent within the Year Group.’ Many thanks to everyone who took part and who helped, the evening was a resounding success! Pamela Peacocke – Head of Year 8 A group of Year 8 students performed this term in front of over a hundred of their family and friends and a panel of judges. The Year 8 Has Got Talent competition took place in the Quarr Hall where the atmosphere was jovial and supportive tinged with a sense of excitement. Our talented Year 8 The Gryphon School gets Rights Respecting Accreditation UNICEF assessors have just visited the School to assess us as a Rights Respecting School. They have given us their Level 1 Award. The assessors were delighted with our work in this area and The Gryphon School is now accredited as a Rights Respecting School. We have exceeded their expectations in informing the whole school about the UNCRC (United Nations Convention for the Rights of the Child) and the school having a Rights Respecting ethos. Jilly Hillier of Unicef said ‘ It was particularly noticeable that the school has a strong inclusive ethos and places a high value on both academic achievement and students’ overall wellbeing. Students’ behaviour is exemplary and a culture of respect clearly underpins relationships between members of the school community. The Gryphon School’s rights respecting journey is building on and enhancing this ethos.’ During the assessment they observed an assembly led by our chaplain, took part in a learning walk with the students, saw our many displays and observed 2 lessons. They were happy that staff demonstrated a good understanding of the Convention and gave examples of how they were making links to rights in their teaching and that the students understood the importance of rights and respect at The Gryphon and in the wider world. We are delighted that The Gryphon School has received this important recognition and now hope to go further on our journey as a Rights Respecting School with RRS ambassadors going to other schools helping more and more people to understand and support the UNCRC. If any parents/carers would like to be a part of this journey please contact [email protected]. sch.uk Shelley Coombs Rights Respecting Schools Co-ordinator Imagine the surprise of The Gryphon School students who took part in a languages competition this term when they found one of their fellow competitors was the diver, and Olympic bronze medallist Tom Daley. They were at the Routes into Languages speaking competition in Barnstaple. That made the non-native key stage five category particularly exciting as Year 12 student, Jake Perrett, was competing directly with Tom. Both spoke beautifully in Spanish, and Tom Daley eventually took gold with Jake taking silver. Tom gave an excellent presentation on his dream of winning gold at Rio in 2016 and was an inspiration to our students, all of whom spoke with real self-confidence and fluency in their chosen language and were a credit to the School. Special congratulations go to Luca Melville in Year 8 who won the near-native key stage 3 category, also speaking in Spanish, and to Michael Jones, Year 8, who was runner-up in his group. Clare Brignall – Head of MFL Student joins National Youth Choir of Great Britain One of our Year 7 students has gained a place in the National Youth Choir of Great Britain. Emma Reynolds, who is 12, has won a much prized place in the Junior Girls’ Choir. Emma auditioned in Bristol last term and will now attend two residential training courses in Reading and Oxford and perform at The Royal Albert Hall after Easter. Last year, while Emma was still at Trent Primary School, she sang for Her Majesty the Queen at the Diamond Jubilee Service of Thanksgiving in St Paul’s Cathedral. Emma auditioned for this too and was one of only 40 children from all over the country chosen to perform at the Service. Emma, who will be singing with the second sopranos, says she is really looking forward to singing with the National Youth Choir. She will be singing specially commissioned works and will be given individual training as well as group training sessions. Emma is a very modest student but one who is passionate about her music. She joined The Gryphon Whole School Choir when she came to the School in September and has already demonstrated her ability, commitment and enthusiasm for singing and music performance. We are looking forward to supporting her exciting involvement in the National Choir. Non Davies – AST Music Gryphon Students share honours with Tom Daley! Photograph courtesy of the Western Gazette Naomi Dolbear and Tegan Evans

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News and events from across the school that have occured over the past term.

Transcript of Gryphon School Newsletter

Page 1: Gryphon School Newsletter

Sixth Form 7

Spring 2013

Trips 5News 2

Gryphon@

There were 16 acts displaying a widevariety of talents, from comedy tomusical interludes, dancing andsinging. The evening was comperedby Maddie Webster-Harris, CarolineHawkins and Charlie Rohde who wereall naturals at introducing the acts. Allthe acts were impressive andentertaining and hugely appreciated bythe audience. The judges had achallenging time deciding on the finalwinners who were: Lydia Robinson,

Maisie Bakewell, Naomi Dolbear andTegan Evans with their acousticrendition of ‘Hey Ho’ by The Lumineers.Highly commended acts were AneetaSaji with traditional Indian dancingand Laura May Miller and Thea Burdenfor their cover of ‘Someone Like You’by Adele.

The audience also selected theirfavourite act of the evening, using textvoting. Over 200 texts were sent, and

Bethany Brown and Athena Edwardscame out on top with their beautifulacapella delivery of ‘Next To You’.Maths teacher, Sheree Cuff, whoorganised the event, said ‘It was agreat chance to celebrate all the formsof talent within the Year Group.’ Manythanks to everyone who took part andwho helped, the evening was aresounding success!

Pamela Peacocke – Head of Year 8

A group of Year 8 students performed this term in front of over a hundred of their family andfriends and a panel of judges. The Year 8 Has Got Talent competition took place in the QuarrHall where the atmosphere was jovial and supportive tinged with a sense of excitement.

Our talented Year 8The GryphonSchool gets RightsRespectingAccreditationUNICEF assessors have justvisited the School to assess us asa Rights Respecting School.They have given us their Level 1Award. The assessors weredelighted with our work in thisarea and The Gryphon School isnow accredited as a RightsRespecting School. We haveexceeded their expectations ininforming the whole school aboutthe UNCRC (United NationsConvention for the Rights of theChild) and the school having aRights Respecting ethos.

Jilly Hillier of Unicef said ‘ It wasparticularly noticeable that theschool has a strong inclusiveethos and places a high value onboth academic achievement andstudents’ overall wellbeing.Students’ behaviour is exemplaryand a culture of respect clearlyunderpins relationships betweenmembers of the schoolcommunity. The GryphonSchool’s rights respectingjourney is building on andenhancing this ethos.’

During the assessment theyobserved an assembly led by ourchaplain, took part in a learningwalk with the students, saw ourmany displays and observed 2lessons. They were happy thatstaff demonstrated a goodunderstanding of the Conventionand gave examples of how theywere making links to rights intheir teaching and that thestudents understood theimportance of rights and respectat The Gryphon and in the widerworld.

We are delighted that TheGryphon School has receivedthis important recognition andnow hope to go further on ourjourney as a Rights RespectingSchool with RRS ambassadorsgoing to other schools helpingmore and more people tounderstand and support theUNCRC. If any parents/carerswould like to be a part of thisjourney please [email protected]

Shelley Coombs Rights Respecting Schools Co-ordinator

Imagine the surprise of The Gryphon School students who tookpart in a languages competition this term when they found one oftheir fellow competitors was the diver, and Olympic bronzemedallist Tom Daley. They were at the Routes into Languagesspeaking competition in Barnstaple. That made the non-nativekey stage five category particularly exciting as Year 12 student,Jake Perrett, was competing directly with Tom. Both spokebeautifully in Spanish, and Tom Daley eventually took gold withJake taking silver. Tom gave an excellent presentation on hisdream of winning gold at Rio in 2016 and was an inspiration toour students, all of whom spoke with real self-confidence andfluency in their chosen language and were a credit to the School.

Special congratulations go to Luca Melville in Year 8 who won the near-native key stage 3 category, also speaking in Spanish,and to Michael Jones, Year 8, who was runner-up in his group.

Clare Brignall – Head of MFL

Student joinsNational Youth Choirof Great BritainOne of our Year 7 students has gaineda place in the National Youth Choir ofGreat Britain. Emma Reynolds, who is12, has won a much prized place in theJunior Girls’ Choir. Emma auditionedin Bristol last term and will now attendtwo residential training courses inReading and Oxford and perform atThe Royal Albert Hall after Easter.

Last year, while Emma was still at TrentPrimary School, she sang for HerMajesty the Queen at the DiamondJubilee Service of Thanksgiving in StPaul’s Cathedral. Emma auditioned forthis too and was one of only 40 childrenfrom all over the country chosen toperform at the Service. Emma, who willbe singing with the second sopranos,says she is really looking forward tosinging with the National Youth Choir.She will be singing speciallycommissioned works and will be givenindividual training as well as grouptraining sessions. Emma is a verymodest student but one who ispassionate about her music. She joinedThe Gryphon Whole School Choirwhen she came to the School inSeptember and has alreadydemonstrated her ability, commitmentand enthusiasm for singing and musicperformance. We are looking forwardto supporting her exciting involvementin the National Choir.

Non Davies – AST Music

Gryphon Students share honours with Tom Daley!

Photograph courtesy of the W

este

rn G

azet

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Naomi Dolbear and Tegan Evans

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Students raisemoney for localhospiceStudents from The Gryphon School haveraised £771 for St Margaret’s Hospice. Themoney was raised during a non-uniform day.The charity was proposed to the SchoolCouncil as a recipient by Year 10 student,Dillon Shirley, whose uncle, Jamie Shirley,received care there. The cheque waspresented to Sue Medlicott from St Margaret’sby Dillon. Year 10 held a special Assembly atthe School where Dillon showed a verymoving tribute film he had created about hisuncle who died last year. Mrs Medlicott, whohad met Dillon’s uncle, said he was obviouslya much admired man, before talking to thestudents about the work of the hospice.

Sue Medlicott receiving a cheque from DillonShirley and some of his fellow Year 10students.

New Classrooms The Gryphon School has been given thego ahead to build two new classroomsand install a much needed new lift. TheSchool is at capacity and as a thriving,successful school we need to createadditional classroom space. Planningpermission has now been granted by WestDorset District Council and the School hasapplied to the DfE for a grant to pay forthe new extension. We hope to getfunding in the near future. Steve Hiller,Headteacher, has welcomed the Council’sdecision and says the new classrooms willhelp us continue to provide anoutstanding education to our students.The extra lift will make it much easier fordisabled students as at the moment thereis only one lift at the other end of theschool. We are confident the extensionwill not impinge on the surroundingenvironment and will blend in with theexisting building.

Prayers of hopeDuring the last two weeks of the autumn termpupils in Years 7 and 8 were invited to write a‘prayer of hope’ for Christmas. These prayers,written on stars, festooned the Christmas treein the conference centre reception. Altogether242 heartfelt and poignant prayers werewritten and decorated during tutor times andthe end result was both powerful andbeautiful.

Diane Tregale - Chaplain

news

STUDENTS GET TO SCHOOLAGAINST THE ODDSThe School was closed to the majority ofstudents one day this term because of thesnow. However it was open for those taking Alevel and GCSE exams that day as there werearrangements in place for the exams to goahead with sufficient local staff available toinvigilate. Students were told not to come toschool if it was unsafe or impractical and thatthe exams could be retaken in the summer butalmost all of them managed to get to the site.Most walked (one all the way from Bradford

Abbas) and one even took to a tractor. Thedecision to close the School is never takenlightly but a very high proportion of ourstudents and staff use bus transport or thelocal road system and many travelconsiderable distances on routes severelyaffected by snow.

Our snow policy can be viewed atwww.gryphon.dorset.sch.uk

The Gryphon SchoolLibrary introducesinnovative new systemThe Gryphon School has made itsLibrary Catalogue available on an app.It means that students can access e-books and websites, as well as books,from their mobile devices. The librarysystem has just been upgraded and nowstudents and staff can download the appfor their tablets and phones so they canaccess the Library Catalogue. They canlook at the books they have on loan aswell as searching for other availablebooks and can link into websites to helptheir research. This is part of theSchool’s drive to make the most of allavailable new technology.

Julie Hoskins, LRC Manager at TheGryphon School, who introduced thesystem, says “With more andmore students using mobiledevices it is important thatthe LRC uses this to ouradvantage and we are allvery excited to be one of thefirst schools in the area toupgrade.”

The School is also using QR codesthroughout the LRC to direct students toe-books and websites about books andauthors. If these prove successful otherdepartments are expected to use themaround the school.

Mrs Hoskins says “I am confident byintroducing this important newtechnology we will improve the accessstudents have to wider resources. It isgreat to be among those leading the waywith alternative ideas for learning.’

Another triumph for the PTA Quiz NightThis year’s Annual PTA Quiz Night was onceagain a huge success with well over ahundred people forming 15 teams to battlefor the trophy. The winning team, for thefourth year running, was the ‘Quizologists’,whose impressive range of knowledge isproving hard to beat. Congratulations tothem and many thanks to the PTA memberswho worked so hard to make it such a greatevening.

It is always an entertaining and fun event, sobook early next year to avoiddisappointment.

The Gryphon School20th AnniversaryThe Gryphon School celebrated its 20th Anniversary in style at the end of last term. There was adinner-dance in the Quarr Hall where teachers, governors, former pupils and parents gatheredto celebrate the launch of the school in 1992. The Conference Centre was beautifully decoratedwith helium balloons and photographs of the building of the school, and of teachers and pupilsfrom twenty years ago. Guests enjoyed Japanese sushi with their champagne, before beingshown to their business themed tables for a delicious dinner cooked by Helen Furness and herteam. After dinner, tables were pushed back to make way for dancing. Live music was suppliedby a former Gryphon School teacher, Pete Griffiths, whose band played right through to the endof the party – a fantastic evening.

Rebecca Anderson-Deas – The Gryphon School PTA

One student took to a tractor to get to school for an exam!

Following the success of the 10th AnniversaryBall, held to raise money for the specialistbusiness status sought by the School, it wasdecided to have a local business theme for thetwenty-year celebration. The School is gratefulto all local businesses who donated tombolaprizes, enabling us to raise £1000 for Julia’sHouse. A further £1,500 was made during theevening and this money goes to PTA fundsand will be spent on selected school causes.

This event was organised by The GryphonSchool PTA. We aim to provide acommunication link between school and

parents and carers. We host a number ofsocial events over the school year, includingthe annual quiz.

We are always looking for new members, so if you are interested in joining the PTA details can be found at:www.gryphon.dorset.sch.uk/pta or you canemail: [email protected] with yourcontact details.

Rebecca Anderson-DeasThe Gryphon School PTA

Are you having a Spring clear out? If you have any large pieces of fabric you no longer need, could you please donate them to the Textiles Department! Thank You.

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Nearly 90 Gryphon School students went toSouthampton this term to take part in RockChallenge UK. It’s a series of performing artsevents and thousands of young people takepart every year. This is the first time TheGryphon School has participated.

The Gryphon performers joined those fromother schools and colleges in the region for aday of rehearsals and fun before performingto a sell-out audience in the evening.

The School won an award for studentleadership which went to the fivechoreographers, Lucy Bennett, Nina Trist,Chloe Burton, Georgie O’Neil and MeganO’Neil. The second award was for BestSoundtrack.

The Gryphon School’s entry was a dancedrama about the Belle Epoque era andinvolved weeks of planning and rehearsal.Their performance was judged by a panel ofspecialists from the performing arts industrywho were particularly impressed by the endscene which they said ‘really contrasted withthe beginning and was incredibly powerful’.

I am incredibly proud of everyone involvedfor all their hard work. It was an amazing dayand everybody, performers and productioncrew, was outstanding.

Jessica Brooks – Head of Drama

Chess ChallengePupils swapped their exercise books for chess

boards in an inter-school chess tournament

this term. Thirty students from our nine feeder

Primary schools took part in the day long

competition, playing six matches each. It was

a very competitive day with some exciting and

hard-fought matches taking place. The

individual competition was won by Luke R

from Milborne Port Primary School, with

Aaron N from Thornford Church Primary

taking the silver medal, closely followed by

Jack F from All Saints Primary School in

Bishops Caundle. The team competition was

very closely contested, however, Thornford

Church Primary School triumphed, and

walked away with the team trophy. A big

thank you goes out to the six members of the

Gryphon School Chess club who helped

ensure the smooth running of a fantastic day!

Leah Frost – Chess Club

Over 5 years ago the School Councildeveloped our anti-bullying campaign ‘I AmMe’ which reminds us all to celebrate eachother’s individuality; recognising our gifts andtalents and what makes us unique. ‘I Am Me’posters are all around the school and are akey part of our Rights Respecting Schoolswork. It is important that we recognise thatwe all have a right to be ourselves andalongside that right is the responsibility torespect each other's differences. Our logo(designed by ex-student Luka Babiy) is aclever reminder of all the characteristics thatmake us who we are.

Nicki Edwards – Deputy Head

Rock Challenge UK

Don’t delay GOCASHLESS NOW Our Cashless Catering (CC) system issuccessfully proving beyond any doubtthat paying by thumb is the easiest andquickest method for our students to passthe tills at very busy break andlunchtimes. CC really is a better andmore secure method of payment with thebenefits of students not needing to carrycash and the ability for parents to paydinner money online by card and trackexactly what their children are eating.With more and more students enrolling itis clear that CC is very definitely thepreferred method of paying for schoolmeals so ‘don’t delay and enrol today’.Students who wish to ‘go cashless’should collect an application form fromcafé@gryphon`.

Gordon Smith - Bursar

First Anniversary for ArtsLink at The Gryphon

A project at The Gryphon School offering Saturday morning art and design workshops foryoung people has reached its first anniversary. The School hosts free Saturday morning clubsas part of Sherborne ArtsLink’s TakepArt project. The anniversary was marked with a ‘Designwith Colour’ workshop for 6 – 8 year olds, and a ‘Giant Junk Sculpture’ workshop for 11 -13year olds. Lizzie Kingsbury of The Gryphon School, who helped set up the sessions withArtsLink, said ‘We are delighted to be working with ArtsLink providing these community artopportunities. It is wonderful to see the enthusiasm of the young people and to see theircreativity come to life’. Jennie Loader, TakepArt community arts co-ordinator, said ‘Ourpartnership with The Gryphon School is a great example of how groups working together canenhance lives and benefit the people within the local community’. For further informationabout courses please contact [email protected]

The four Year 9 students who ran, as part of a Geography project, a staff coffee morning onebreak this term to raise awareness of the benefits of buying fair trade products .

Holocaust survivortalks to Year 9Students from Year 9 were privileged to hearthe first-hand account of a Holocaustsurvivor this term. Harry Bibring gave histestimony to the whole year group as part ofa visit organised by the HolocaustEducational Trust. Mr Bibring, who is 88, andoriginally from Austria, came to England withhis sister on the Kindertransport and still liveshere. The students heard Mr Bibring’smemories of the Second World Warincluding the deportation of his mother to adeath camp in Poland.

His moving testimony was followed by aquestion and answer session which enabledthe students to better understand the natureof the Holocaust and to explore its lessons inmore depth. The visit is part of the HolocaustEducational Trust’s Outreach Programme. Steve Hillier, Headteacher, said ‘Our Year 9students have benefited from visits organisedby the Holocaust Educational Trust forseveral years and it was a privilege for us towelcome Mr Bibring to our school. Histestimony is a powerful reminder of thehorrors so many experienced. We aregrateful to the Holocaust Educational Trustfor co-ordinating the visit and we hope thatby hearing Harry’s testimony, it willencourage our students to learn from thelessons of the Holocaust and make a positivedifference in their own lives.’

Karen Pollock MBE, Chief Executive of theHolocaust Educational Trust added: ‘TheHolocaust Educational Trust educates andengages students from across the UK, fromall communities, about the Holocaust andthere can be no better way than through thefirst-hand testimony of a survivor. Harry’sstory is one of tremendous courage duringhorrific circumstances and by hearing histestimony, students have the opportunity tolearn where prejudice and racism canultimately lead.’

Anna-Louise Griffiths – 2nd in RE

25% DiscountFor parents of

Gryphon School Students Tel: 01935 814011

Two Awards for Gryphon Team

Some of our students who took part in the Giant Junk sculpture workshop with Helen Allcock,Sherborne ArtsLink Community Artist.

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music

BAROQUE CHAMBER ENSEMBLE:Congratulations to Holly Parish, Lucy Rash, Lauren Dickinson and Anna Bolhuis – members ofthe Baroque Chamber Ensemble who performed in the Semi-finals of this year’s Pro CordaNational Chamber Music Competition early in March. This is an extremely high profile event,and to be one of the very few State Schools to successfully reach the semi-finals is a hugeachievement; we are very proud of them all. Huge thanks must go to Maggie Nightingale forall of her enthusiasm, time and superb chamber music training.

Carol ServiceOur annual Carol Service is one of the most special events in our school year. Thespectacular Sherborne Abbey provides an amazing physical and spiritual backdropto our service which, by tradition, starts in darkness and is gradually illuminated, firstby candles, before the glory of the building is fully illuminated. This year over 130students took part in the service. The Abbey was packed with students and staff, pastand present, with their families who all enjoyed the music and readings. Thecollection raised just under £900 for Crisis at Christmas, a national charity whichprovides support to the homeless.

For many people this Carol Service forms a strong foundation for the Christmascelebrations. Our 2013 service is already in the school calendar for Monday 16December. We hope that you will put it in your diary too!

Nicki Edwards – Deputy Head

GUILDHALL SCHOOL OF MUSIC AND DRAMA STUDENTS VISIT THE GRYPHONWe are extremely grateful to the brass students from the Guildhall School of Music and Dramain London who visited the School this term, playing some very entertaining pieces at the Year 9Assembly and running an extremely useful and enjoyable Brass Workshop with Gryphon brassstudents. The Guildhall students were a real inspiration to all of our students, and we are mostgrateful to Paul Cosh of the Sherborne Town Band for bringing them once again and toMr Steve Fox for helping set up the visit.

YOUTH MAKES MUSIC CONCERT:Students of the Junior Brass, Senior Brass and Recorder Ensembles represented the School atthis year’s Sherborne Rotary Club’s Youth Makes Music Concert. This is an annual concert inaid of various local charities with students performing from all of the local schools. Gryphonstudents once again represented both the School and Music Department admirably - thanksto all of the students involved and to the numerous parents who turned out to support them.

Val Mizen - Head of Music

Year 12 Geographyresidential to theDorset andHampshire coastsWhen we met in the car park, we wereimmediately identified as geographers.The huge red-and-white poles had alot to do with it! Not to mention theother equipment, most of which lookedlike a pretty good weapon if youneeded it and all of which had to beloaded into the minibus.

Our first day centred on Barton-on-Sea, where landslides have left housesteetering on the cliff. Ignoring theslightly odd glances we got fromlocals, we studied the erosion defencesand why they weren’t working and ateour lunch on one of the defences: asection of rock armour that was only alittle bit freezing.

Our second day at Boscombe coveredthe ‘rebranding’ course. After a ‘FullEnglish’, we explored the seafront, andsurrounding residential areas to takephotos of how the area had changed.This would enable us to assess thesuccess of the rebrand.

On the final day, we headed toStudland to do a sand dune profile.Although measuring hills, countingplants and picking up handfuls of mud,might not sound like everyone’s idea offun, believe me when I say we enjoyedourselves.

Next we headed to Lulworth, theclassic Purbeck Beds, crumpled rockand beautiful cove. And fish andchips! For people who like humangeography, this day was great, withquestionnaires for the public andevaluating the area’s strengths andweaknesses.

Although we were a bit chilly and‘absolutely shattered’ (as Vicky wouldsay), we’d all had a good time.

Jake Perrett - Year 12

Maths Students Excel170 students from Years 9, 10 and 11 took part inthe Intermediate Maths Challenge in February.Between them they achieved 55 certificates; 38bronze, 12 silver and 5 gold. Holly Ward, Year11, and Sophia Rogerson, Year 10, shared theaccolade of obtaining 'Best in School', withCraig Barfoot and Thomas Swann also gainingGold certificates. Special congratulations must go to Matthew Suri in Year 9 for achieving a Goldcertificate, and qualifying for the European Kangaroo. This competition is by invitation only and istaken by the best mathematicians in over 40 countries worldwide.

Leah Frost – Maths

Farm DiversificationThe Toy Barn at Black Marsh Farm nearSherborne hosted Year 12 Geographystudents on their field trips to explore farmdiversification projects. Peter Huntwelcomed the students and gave them anintroductory tour of his dairy farm,enabling students to gain anunderstanding of the demands of amodern farm business. The tour continuedto The Toy Barn, where these 16 year oldswere able to experience first hand thewide range of products on sale for gardensand outdoor fun. The students hadprepared some excellent questionsbeforehand so that they were able toexplain how the farm had been rebrandedand then evaluate the success of therebrand. Extensive fieldwork is an integralpart of ‘A’ level Geography.

Both the Geography Department and ourstudents are grateful to Peter and his wife,Amanda, for the opportunity of these visits.www.toybarn.co.uk

Shelley CoombsHead of Geography

Dorset Music Service presents

Sherborne SambaThursdays

SHERBORNE ABBEY PRIMARY SCHOOL4.00-4.45pm

Open to children of all ages from all schools www.dorsetmusicservice.org.uk

www.gryphon.dorset.sch.uk

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A Gryphon School student has just beenon a National Skiing Camp inSwitzerland. Sophia Rogerson, who is inYear 10, was one of only 25 students whodo not live in Switzerland to be given theopportunity. The week long ski-camp wasestablished for Swiss Nationals 72 yearsago and takes 600 students fromSwitzerland and 25 from abroad everyyear. Sophia was able to apply becauseshe has dual nationality as her mother isSwiss. Sophia had never been skiingbefore but says she was lucky to beaccepted and had a wonderful time.Here is her report of the week...

Standing on the station platform with myaunt, I was apprehensive. I didn’t knowwhere to change trains, who I could sitwith, or what was waiting for me at theother end of my journey. Luckily, therewere hundreds of other kids in the sameposition; all of us strangers, all of usnervous. This meant there was a greatatmosphere throughout the camp;everyone was making an effort to get toknow each other and help each other out,and I was surprised by how easily wemade such good friends within such ashort space of time. It was my first time

skiing, so I was worried; especially of thelessons being in German! Fortunately, myteacher spoke English, and so ensured Iknew what was happening. Inevitably, Ifell over many times- I was teased forgoing ‘off piste’ on my first day when Islipped down the side of a mountain- butwas left unharmed (apart from a fewbruises). For me, the best moment of thetrip was the camp’s traditionalFackelabfahrt- literally ‘torch descent’-onthe last day, in which all six hundredparticipants ski, or snowboard, down themountain, carrying flaming torches. It was

absolutely terrifying, and so exhilarating-although my main focus was not to fallover! In the evening there was a carb-heavy meal (often with typically Swissfoods that can’t be found in England),followed by sports, games and activities,so we were never bored. All in all, it wasa great experience, and an educationalone, improving my skiing, my German,and my knowledge of my heritage. Imade great friends, and can safely say itis a week I will never forget.

Sophia Rogerson – Year 10

Hello, Hello, HelloLittle Gryphons were entranced this term by avisit from the police. Community Police Officer,Jon Radford and his colleague, TessaChappell, let the children try on their hats andexplore the police car. They were even able tooperate the lights and siren and, for them ahighlight, talk on the police radio.

The visit was in support of the work LittleGryphons does with the children and’ SuperHero play’ which reinforces a positive imageof how our super heroes are here to help us.The children were able to explore the role ofthe police and their police vehicle. They learntabout how the police can rescue dogs from hotcars and work with the RSPCA to help animalswho may be hurt or trapped. They also learntthat if the children need help the police willhelp them and look after them. The childrenthoroughly enjoyed the visit as this selection ofsome of their comments shows: ‘I wish I hadone of these cars at home for Mummy andDaddy’ , ‘The handcuffs stop baddies’, ‘I likedthe sirens best’ and ‘The policeman had asmasher to smash windows’.

Sally-Ann ProutLead Nursery Nurse, Butterflies

History Trip to BerlinThis year’s Berlin trip saw The Gryphon School upgraded, at the last minute, toa four star hotel. It was the Park Inn at Alexanderplatz in the heart of East Berlin,a hotel built by the former Communist government of East Germany for itsinternational visitors. Refurbished since reunification, the hotel has excellentfacilities and the food was tremendous. Students could not believe their eyeswhen they were confronted with a buffet that included a wide choice of mainmeals, over twenty cheeses and too many desserts to eat in one go. The hotelwas built in typical communist-style architecture with over 37 floors, which madethe view from your room window enough to induce vertigo. The purpose of thetrip was to experience the culture and history of Germany first hand and Berlin isan ideal city to meet this objective. The trip included visits to the Stasi prison atHohenschonhausen, the nuclear bunker at The Story of Berlin Museum and thehouse at Potsdam where Churchill and Attlee met Stalin and Truman in 1945 tosort out the peace arrangements for Germany after the Second World War.

One of the highlights of the tour was the visit to Sachsenhausen concentrationcamp at Oranienburg to the north of Berlin. Our students were shown theremaining barracks where prisoners were held by the Nazis and worked todeath. A prison cell block also survives where some of the Nazis most famousvictims were held: Stalin’s son, Pastor Niemoller and members of the RAF. It wasa sobering experience culminating in a visit to Station Z where a gas chamberwas used to kill prisoners at the end of the Second World War. We were taken tothe spot where, in 1943, 10,000 Russian prisoners of war were shot. The spot ismarked by huge photos taken of the prisoners before they were killed; photoswhich, ironically, were used at the time as propaganda to show how well theNazis looked after their prisoners. Their cremated remains still lie on the groundaround the site.

It was, therefore, rather light relief to find ourselves caught up in the excitementof the Berlin film festival during one of our evening visits. George Clooney wasin town and the prospect of meeting a famous film star was too much to miss, soour students lined up next to the red carpet to await the arrival of the stars. Lotsof famous people did appear waving their Golden Bear awards from thefestival but unfortunately none of them was recognizable to us. It did not stopour students screaming and applauding several unidentifiable Germancelebrities who seemed very pleased with the attention they were receiving,even posing for photos with us.

The success of the visit was due largely to the help provided by Mrs Vicary, MissDurant, Mr Wake and Mr Healey but especially to the co-operation of thestudents. Their interest and enthusiasm helped make the trip so enjoyable.

Steve Phillips – Head of History

Rare Opportunity

Apprentice of the Year Award Little Gryphons are celebrating with amember of staff who has been givenan Apprentice of the Year Award byYeovil College. Lottie Laver, who is 17and joined Little Gryphons in April lastyear, was given the award forImmediate Apprenticeship inChildcare. She joined Little Gryphonsas an apprentice straight from school.

Sally Barrett, Manager of LittleGryphons, said ‘It's fantastic that Lottiehas been recognised for her excellentwork practices and for the academicknowledge that go hand in handpreparing practitioners for the world ofEarly Years. The nursery is extremelyproud of ensuring that our 'homegrown' apprentices receive the bestwork environment possible whichcreates an excellent foundation for theapprentices and for the children, staffand visitors.’

SCOUTING JAMBOREEDOWN UNDER

Will Pullen, who’s in Year 9, has just been to Australia toattend a Scouting Jamboree. There were 11,000 scouts thereand Will was one of only 23 scouts representing the UK.Here is his account:

Being given the opportunity to visit Australia with anorganisation such as The Scouts was amazing; going toAustralia is one thing, but when you are one of only 23representing the UK in an event as large as the AustralianJamboree, it adds to the whole experience! I was asked ifI’d be interested by my leader, Geoff, to whom I’m verygrateful, and I immediately accepted as did two fellowscouts, Korban and Jordan. My group is 2nd Templecombeand there were five of us going – the fifth being Maria,another leader. Templecombe Scout Group is twinned withgroups in Canada, New Zealand, and 1st Engadine ScoutGroup of Sydney, Australia, who were our very hospitablehosts during the stay. We travelled 17 hours by bus toMayborough, Queensland, which – after 27 of hours oftravelling from the UK and only half a day to recover – wasdifficult! The gruelling journey was definitely worth it though,as the next 3 weeks proved to be fantastic. Despite the 40degree plus heat, activities such as climbing and abseiling,snorkelling and an extremely muddy obstacle course madethe days a blur of fun. Many friendships were forged, and Ihave learnt a huge amount not just about scouting, but alsohow to understand Australians! It was a wonderfulexperience and I have brought back many great memoriesand skills that will serve me well for life. As this Jamboreeonly happens once every three years, I am hoping to returnto the next one in Sydney, 2016, as an Explorer. Until then, Iwill keep in contact with all those I made friends with, and Iwill hope to teach other members of 2nd Templecombe allthat I have learnt on my ventures!

Will Pullen – Year 9

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10K runnershave their dayOn very cold, crisp Sunday morning in mid-December, 17 Sixth formers and 4members of staff lined up nervously on aquiet road in Christchurch; this was theculmination of 12 weeks of training – was itabout to pay off? Back in September Iasked for a small group of volunteers wholiked cake and were a bit lazy to join myenrichment group. Our aim was simple; totrain for and complete the Christchurch10km Christmas pudding run. The prize? AChristmas pud and sense of satisfaction.After weeks of training in pouring rain,freezing cold, wind and the odd bit of sun,the students decided that the prize was notenough; we wanted to use this experienceand challenge to raise money for charity as well.

So, back to the start of the race; some of uswere more apprehensive than others,wanting simply to get around the courserather than setting a record, but we wereall feeling positive. As we started there wasa fantastic sense of camaraderie bothwithin our group, with no one being leftbehind, and between us and the otherrunners who were very impressed with ourself-designed t-shirts and that we wereraising money for charity.

Bryan Wong, Year 13, led The GryphonSchool team from the start, completing the10km in an amazing 42mins 55secs, 7thfastest in his age category, followed byChris Wright (50mins 7secs ) and Mr LeeMoore (52mins 11secs). Everyonecompleted the race, with the last of uscoming in at just under 1 hour and 20mins;not bad for lazy people even if we do sayso ourselves!

We returned to Sherborne tired but with agreat sense of achievement; we got fit,trained hard, completed the race andraised over £600 between us for threecharities; Help for Heroes, MacmillanCancer Research and Cancer Research UK– in all a very successful and memorableAutumn Term.

Phillipa Huggins – Head of Year 12,Deputy Head of Sixth Form

Gryphon Studentbecomes deputyMYPNatasha Glendening, who is in Year 12, hasbecome one of 2013’s Deputy Members of theYouth Parliament. Natasha, who received3,284 votes, has been involved in the YouthParliament for the past two years as a Memberand a Deputy Member. Students at the Schoolturned out in force early in February to vote inthe elections. In all more than fourteenthousand young people from schools acrossDorset voted.

Last year Natasha, who is 16, took part innational and regional sitting of the UK YouthParliament and sat on the Dorset YouthCouncil. She says she is really looking forwardto continuing working for young people and tofinishing the projects she has started. Natashasays among the things the 3 new MYPs and 3Deputies will be campaigning for is de-stressing exams by providing support to youngpeople suffering due to stress, getting youngpeople involved in local decision making andincreasing awareness and acceptance of LGBTyoung people.

The third ‘Careers Café’ in our successfulseries of events involved a visit from BarryCoupe of Barry Coupe Architects. Barry,who is an architect of national repute, led aninteractive and highly entertaining session toa mixed group of Sixth Form and Year 11students. The students heard first-handabout the varied role of an architect andabout allied occupations such as quantitysurveyor and architectural technologist.Some students came away further inspired toundertake the seven year training

programme necessary to become a fullyqualified architect and others will use theinformation and knowledge gained to aidtheir future career planning.

Further Careers Cafés in the pipelineinclude talks by a veterinary surgeon, aphotographer and a journalist so watch thisspace.

Richard Jones – Careers Advice andGuidance Manager

Translating SkillsCongratulations to Hebe Neate-Clegg,Year 13, who has had a specialrecognition for the quality of hertranslation in the European Uniontranslation competition. There is only onewinner per country, and this is the nextbest thing. It is credit, not only to Hebe’sFrench, but also to her English, as that ishalf of the skill of translation.

Red Berry RecruitmentHelen Lacey from Red Berry Recruitment spoke to Year 12 business students this term, about howbusinesses go about recruiting. The talk she delivered was interactive and engaging andinformed the students’ Unit 2 coursework which requires them to pretend to recruit for abusiness of their choice. Many thanks to Helen for giving up her time and inspiring them!

Kelly Hodges – Business and Enterprise

CAREERS CAFÉ

National Portrait Galleryand Hayward Gallery Visits

50 KS4 Art students went to London lastterm and experienced a wide range ofintriguing artworks at these majorgalleries. First stop was the TaylorWessing Portrait Prize Exhibition at TheNational Portrait Gallery with somethought provoking photographicimagery on display. After a short coachride to the Southbank’s HaywardGallery, the students found themselvesimmersed in an incredibly diverse rangeof interactive contemporary artworksfrom China, which certainly challengedthe senses! A genuinely uniqueexperience and judging by the studentsfeedback, truly memorable.

Mike Fenton-WilkinsonHead of Art, Design & Technology

Photograph courtesy of Charles Whitton, charleswhittonphotography.com

Clare Brignall Head of MFL

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100% EPQSuccess... Nineteen Year 13 students submitted theirExtended Project Qualification in November2012. Following external moderating, thestudents achieved a 100% pass rate at A*-A(A* at 63%!). These students are to becommended for their hard work anddedication.

The EPQ requires students to undertakeindependent research into an area thatinterests them, they then have to produceeither a 5000 word essay on their research,or produce an artefact and a 1000 wordreport. In effect the EQP can be a minidissertation akin to university level research

The School is now looking forward to astrong set of results from those studentsentering in May 2013.

Chris Smith – EPQ Co-ordinator

Granville TripIn February six Year 12 students went toGranville in France, with the Douzelage,an organisation which promotes friendshipbetween the European member towns.Luckily for us, Sherborne is the UK’srepresentative – so we were lucky enoughto have the chance to go!

After waking us up ridiculously early,Kevin Waterfall (the organiser, on the leftin the photo) braved the cold drive downto Portsmouth docks – and when we saycold, we mean COLD! The crossing toCaen was mercifully smooth, and wearrived there at about 3pm. The next bitwas Kevin’s fatal mistake – asking Jake andDan to navigate. Still, we only went roundthe same roundabout three times…Among our very busy four days there, wevisited Mont St Michel on a beautifulsunny day (yes, sunny days do exist inFrance!), visited Granville centre for someshopping and, on the way home, saw thebeaches where soldiers landed in theSecond World War.

The object of the trip was to take part inthe local carnival; and what a carnival it

was! It lasts five days, with children’sprocessions, street performers and, ofcourse, the floats themselves. Thesemonoliths take up to nine months to buildand attract 120,000 visitors. It was trulyawe-inspiring. Except, of course, for thesteady rain, with which the words ‘les

Anglais’ were frequently associated.Wonder why…?

We had an amazing time, and would liketo say a huge ‘MERCI!’ to everyone elsewho made this trip possible.

Jake Perrett – Year 12

Amnesty ReportWorking towards human rightsinternationally the Gryphon AmnestyClub, which supports AmnestyInternational, meets weekly with a 13strong group of Sixth Formers. This smallgroup has achieved big things. ‘We haveraised £75 in our cake sales and havewritten and sent Christmas cards toworthy recipients in locations as distantin geography and culture as Shayacounty prison, China, and labour campsacross Russia ’ says chairwomanNatasha Glendening. The group, inresponse to the horrific attack onPakistani female rights campaignerMalala Yousafzai, has providedmultiple messages of support andcontinues to track her progress throughnational and Amnesty Internationalbulletins. The future is also looking brightfor the club as, for the first time in theclub’s history, members from the groupare being sent to National AmnestyAGM at Warwick University where theywill be listening to speakers frominfluential human rights groupsworldwide. Information about the clubcan be viewed on our numerous andever changing information boards, butalso through assemblies to Year 10, 11and Sixth Form which are likely to takeplace during the Easter term.

Matthew Akerman Gryphon Amnesty Club

Museum exhibitionJess Pring, Elizabeth Gallimore, JadeBatstone and Emma Douch from year 12 arein the process of creating an exhibition forthe Sherborne Museum. It is based aroundtwo residents of Dorset from the 16thCentury: Sir John Horsey and his family whowere wealthy landowners with propertiesincluding Clifton Maybank House, and SirThomas Wyatt who was a celebrated poet atthe time and introduced the sonnet toEngland. The exhibition will be open tovisitors during the Easter holidays.

Senior Maths Challenge70 students from Years 12 and 13 took partin the Senior Maths Challenge inNovember. Between them they achieved 45certificates; 25 bronze, 16 silver and 4 gold;our best ever results! James Gard, Year 12,obtained the 'Best in School' certificate.Special congratulations go to TomAnderson-Deas, Year 13, Richard Jenkins,Year 13, and James Gard who all qualifiedfor the Senior Kangaroo. This competition isby invitation only and is taken by the bestmathematicians in over 40 countriesworldwide.

Leah Frost - Maths

Visit to Londonlaw firmEarly in March three students from TheGryphon, Shannon Gilchrist and JakeWoolner and I, travelled in conjunction withthe Sherborne Girls School to Linklaters inLondon- an international law firm.Throughout the evening, we were engaged indiscussions with various professionalsincluding a criminal barrister, consultant,solicitor, visiting professor and a QC.Afterwards there was an evening meal and aQ&A session. Altogether it was a veryinformative and eye opening insight to thelegal profession. Well worth the long journey!

Ian Dawes – Year 12

om

There is a very rigorous selection process that ensures theawards go to inspirational young people. Heather wasnominated by the School for her work as a mentor foryounger students and her volunteering at a wide range ofchildren’s groups including Brownies, the Youth Centre inSherborne and the Sunday School at St Paul’s in the town.Heather also helped organise The Gryphon School Sixth Formtrip to Rwanda with the Dorset based charity Msaada. Sincereturning Heather has worked tirelessly as a Msaadaambassador raising awareness of the work the charity doeshelping rebuild the lives of the people of Rwanda followingthe1994 genocide.

Jane Tutton, our Director of Sixth Form, said ‘We areextremely proud of Heather. The Diana Award will encourageher to continue her work and will inspire others to volunteer inthe School and community. Heather hopes to study CreativeExpressive Therapies at the University of Derby next year. Thecourse teaches using Art as a therapeutic technique with patients, something for which Heather’sskills are perfect.’ Heather says she is delighted to receive the award, ‘I am honoured and excitedto have been given this recognition for work which is a privilege to do.’ This is the second time aGryphon School student has received a Diana Award. In 2009, Luka Babiy, who was 18 at thetime, was honoured for her work for the School community.

DIANA AWARDFOR SIXTH FORMER

A student has been honoured with a prestigious Diana Award. HeatherYeadon, who is in Year 13, received the award for being a Diana ChampionVolunteer. The Diana Award is a national award that celebrates the best inyoung people and recognises those who act as a force for good for theirschools, families and communities. It was established in 1999 as a lastinglegacy to Diana, Princess of Wales’ belief that young people have the power tochange the world.

UCAS: We processed just over 170 universityapplications this year, approximately40 of these being post-resultsapplications from students who left uslast summer and are currently on agap year. Whilst a few of our studentswait for their final choices to get backto them, many are deliberating overfirm and insurance choices. Manystudents have received offers fromprestigious Russell Group universitiesas well as Oxbridge.

Applications: As ever we have been delighted toreceive well over 300 applications toYear 12 for September and we arecurrently in the process ofinterviewing students for A level andBTEC courses.

Our congratulations to EmmaPengelly and Marcus John in Year 13and Dan Peace and Gemma Penny inYear 12 who were the Jan/Febwinners of Student of the Month.

Jane Tutton Director of Sixth Form

Heather Yeadon in Rwanda with Ferdinand,

who lost most of his family during the genocide

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The Gryphon School, Bristol Road, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 4EQSchool and Sixth Form – T: 01935 813122 • F: 01935 816992 • E: [email protected] Conference Centre – T: 01935 810103 • F: 01935 816992 • E: [email protected] Nursery – T: 01935 810112 • F: 01935 816992 • E: [email protected]

The Gryphon School is a company limited by guarantee • Registered in England with Company Number 08130468Editor: Liz Oatts

Designed and Printed by Shelleys 01935 815364

Olympic LegacyFollowing the huge success of the London 2012 Olympic Games, the Sherborne Rotary Clubs have set up an AnnualSports Bursary Scheme to help the top sports performers in the school achieve their dreams of competing at thehighest standards.

With the wealth of sporting talent at The Gryphon it proved immensely difficult to whittle down the 16 original applications. With international performersin Tug ‘O’ War to Sprint Kayaking it was clear that this was going to have great personal benefit to those who applied. During the final interview stage ofthe scheme it was amazing to see how our young students were able to deliver such professional presentations and answer questions with confidence. Oneof the panel commented ‘We were blown away by the articulate nature of each candidate and they should be commended on the way they prepared andconducted themselves in the interviews.’ Ultimately one girl and one boy were chosen to receive the financial award, which this year went to RebeccaBowles (Pentathlon) and Ross MacFarlane (Sailing). Both of these pupils have already performed at a very high standard in their respective sports and willbenefit hugely from the money they receive. It is envisaged that this scheme will happen every year and I am confident that pupils at The Gryphon Schoolwill take full advantage of such a fantastic opportunity.

Alan Cummings - Joint Head of PE and Sport

PE ReportIt has been a terrifically busy term in PE whereA and B teams across Years 7-13 haveparticipated in Football, Rugby, Netball,Basketball and Cross Country fixtures withsome fantastic results. We also ran a primaryschool cross country event. In addition to this,in Year 10 PE lessons, students have beentaking part in a Sports Leadership Unit wherethey have been working with BishopsCaundle Primary School pupils developingtheir basic physical skills.

Five girls from Years 9-11 attended the DorsetLeadership Academy. Each of the girls had adifferent role, from Event Organiser toPhotographer, as well as being part of theDance Crew. This has set them up to be partof the Dorset Winter School Games, a sportsevent for all primary and secondary schoolwinners of the winter competitions across thewhole of Dorset. The girls who attended theevent were Kelly Coombes and LisaBlatchford (Event Organisers), Alina Hibbert(Photography and Media) and BethanWilliams and Charlotte Harding (DanceCrew).

Other exciting news is that the Year 11 NetballTeam are fundraising for netball dresses byrunning a Netball Match versus the Staff atthe end of the term. Please come andsupport! We are also really looking forwardto all Netball Teams in Years 7-11 reachingthe finals of the Yeovil and District Leagues, aTrip to see Plymouth Raiders Basketball Teamand the ski trip to Italy which will all takeplace soon.

BasketballA Year 9 student has been selected to playbasketball for South West England. BradleyParks was chosen to join the South West ofEngland Basketball Performance Centre’s fullsquad. In March he will travel to Prague withthe squad to a training camp and to representthe area in European tournaments.

Brad’s basketball career took off following atrial last summer. He was selected to play withthe under 14’s Taunton Tigers (County)Development Squad. He then joined theUnder 16’s team and now plays NationalLeague Basketball in the South WestConference, two years above his age group.Bradley, who hopes to travel to other parts ofEurope with the squad in the summer says he isreally looking forward to seeing how far hecan take his basketball career. Brad isfollowing in his brother Matt’s footsteps. Matt,who is in Year 11, also plays top levelbasketball. He plays for the Taunton Tigersand has already been offered a place to studyfurther at two elite basketball colleges.

GymnasticsAlice Derrick, who is in Year 11, is in thefinals of a national gymnastics competition.Alice came first in the Grade 1 Women’sTumbling at the South West TumblingPreliminary Rounds in Taunton. She is nowgoing to the National Finals. Her trio alsocame 3rd. Well done to Alice and we wishher good luck in the National Finals.

Sister Karate Act!Holly Ward, Year 11, and SophieWard, Year 9, have beenpractising the martial art of Karatesince they were 7 and 6respectively and are hoping to taketheir Black Belts this year. They have now beenselected for the WKU National Squad and areparticipating in National Karate competitions allaround the country. They train in Yeovil and alsoattend training sessions in Bristol and London.Holly has so far achieved 5 Gold, 7 Silver and11 Bronze medals at National competitions andSophie has achieved 13 Gold, 9 Silver and 14Bronze medals at National competitions. Theyare both now training for the National HigashiCompetition in London this month and theEnglish National Championships in Sheffield inApril. We wish them success in these events. Apair to keep an eye out for in the future!

Gold Medals in ShootingCourteney Sanson, who is in Year 11 has won threegold medals in shooting. Since SeptemberCourteney has made rapid progress in her lightweight sporting rifle shooting. The event involvesshooting at a rotating target at 25 metres and aprecision target at 50 metres. Her scores for thecombined event resulted in a first place forCourteney and her first two gold medals in theseevents. Courteney also shot well in the air section.She entered the Somerset small bore rifleassociation event and gained the most improvedrifle score in Somerset and a first place goldmedal in her division.

Netball Trip 201348 keen netballers were taken this term towatch Team Bath Super League team playtheir first game of the season against CelticDragons. It was great for the girls to see a hostof international players in action from bothEngland and Wales playing in a verycompetitive game.

Team Bath was the eventual winner 57-50. Itwas a great trip and the girls came away readyand raring to play their netball league games.

Rachael TroughtonJoint Head of PE and Sport

Cross CountryPupils from Years 7-11competed in theDorset Schools CrossCountry competitionearly this term. Thecourse, at BryanstonSchool nearBlandford, waschallenging, nothelped by the wetweather we had inthe run up to thecompetition. All thepupils ran well andachieved greatscores. Specialmention goes toMichael Biss who

came 13th out of 150 runners and NatashaJones who was 14th out of 140 runners.

Girls’ Football Festival:

The PE department ran a Girls’ Football Festivalthis term in conjunction with the Dorset FA andSherborne Town Football Club. They want toexpand current provision for girls’ football inthe area. Girls in each Year Group developedtheir skills and game play with two femalecoaches from Bournemouth University. As aresult of this session, those who are interestedin improving their football skills are nowattending a Futsal club (a weekly skills club)with local FA coach Leon Jennings. The club ison Thursdays after school. If any more girls areinterested please see us in the PE office.

OUTSTANDING SPORTING ACHIEVEMENTS

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