SEPT 2020 - FEB 2021
College Connection
CELEBRATING 150 YEARS • 1868 - 2018
Adapting to Change After what had been most extraordinary Spring and Summer Terms CELEBRATING 150 the YEARS • 1868 - 2018 in 2020, College pupils and staff were delighted to be able to return to the campus, once again in September, for the start of the 2020/21 academic year. The impact of COVID-19 on the world meant that although the College community was able to be together once again, pupils, staff and parents had to adapt to rules, guidance and new methods of learning. Class, year group and boarding ‘bubbles’ were introduced from Pre-Prep up to the Sixth Form, hand sanitising stations were placed at the entry and exit of every building, social distancing between staff and pupils was strictly adhered to, the wearing of face masks was made compulsory for staff and pupils above the age of 13 whilst walking between lessons, parents had to remain in cars for drop off and pick up routines, Open Mornings, College events and assemblies became entirely virtual and ‘hybrid lessons’ became a regular teaching occurrence at the College.
The Sport and Music Departments were quick to adapt lesson formats too. With some inventive adaptation, the traditional Inter-House Sport and Music Competitions were still able to go ahead, but in year groups instead of Houses. For the first time ever, Senior School pupils played mixed year group House competitions; the boys tried their hand at netball and the Upper Sixth girls made College history as the first girls ever to play Tag Rugby at the College. In the Music Department, lessons which usually involved an element of singing were adapted to deliver the same learning and skills development in a Covid-safe manner by using new instruments such as Wak-a-Tubes; a plastic non-aerosol generating percussion instrument that produces sounds at various pitches. Open Mornings, College events and year group or House assemblies took place virtually. Development of the website, an increased capacity for filming and the technology to provide live streaming of events enabled families and members of the College community, past and present, to join our events from all over the world.
Nevertheless, in true College fashion our incredible community stepped up to the challenge. After such a successful Summer term of remote learning, which included over 13,000 live Zoom lessons taking place across the College, teaching staff undertook additional training in ‘Hybrid’ lessons. This enabled them to continue to deliver excellent teaching to pupils both in the classroom and learning from home. In the Prep and Senior Schools, staff became adept at sharing materials with two audiences simultaneously, and through the use of Zoom, were able to develop their interactivity with any pupils who were isolating at home. By the end of the Autumn Term the College reported a total of 20,938 meetings, 8.1 million meeting minutes, and over 256,000 meeting participants on Zoom throughout 2020.
After an unusual, yet fulfilling term of activities, sport, music, drama, and the classroom-based teaching and learning that pupils are used to, the College moved back to remote learning for the final two weeks of term. Nevertheless, the spirit of the College endured, albeit in a digital format, right up until the start of the Christmas holidays. As the Spring term commenced, pupils continued to learn remotely, following as closely as possible, a normal timetable and taking it all in their stride. The College now looks forward to the reopening of schools nationally, and the return of pupils once again.
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The BIG Breakfast Challenge In early October, the Whole College Charity Day and Harvest Festival celebrations joined forces to raise money for the Whitechapel Mission in London with ‘The BIG Breakfast Challenge’. Inspired by the Mission’s continued work throughout the 2020 lockdown, pupils were tasked to plan, prepare, cook and serve a breakfast of their choice for their family. From Pre-Prep to Sixth Form, pupils across the College served up a variety of delicious meals including rainbow-coloured pancakes, toast with fruity jam, eggs with bacon and many more. ‘The BIG Breakfast Challenge’ was followed by a nonuniform day, to which pupils and staff wore ‘white for Whitechapel’. Pupils also watched a special Harvest assembly from College Chaplain, Mr Morris and the plentiful food donations from across the College community were sent to the Whitechapel Mission.
Remembering Those Before Us In a change of format due to COVID-19, the week of Remembrance in November 2020 was marked across the College with several fundraising activities and a livestream of the Senior School Remembrance Service from the Memorial Hall. Members of our College community, past and present, were able to join from all over the world to reflect upon and remember those servicemen and women who have given their lives or have suffered in conflicts across the world. The special service included introductions from both the Head and College Chaplain, readings by the Heads of School, a beautiful performance from the Upper Sixth Choir, the Last Post, laying of wreaths and a 2-minute silence which was observed by the whole College right across the campus. In preparation for the service, Prep School pupils made their own personal poppies using pipe cleaners, tissue paper and other materials, as well as full wreaths which were later laid outside the Memorial Hall.
The Stortfordian Foundation Launches In November a new College-wide community initiative, The Stortfordian Foundation, was launched. The Foundation is for everyone who has the College in their heart: it’s for parents, alumni, staff, the local community and friends. The hub of the Foundation can be found at https://stortfordianfoundation.org/homepage or from the home page of the College website. There, members will find the latest news from across our community, can read about and book events, network with friends, join clubs, buy exclusive merchandise and browse the College archives. A Careers Hub is also available for any individuals wishing to become a mentor to Stortfordians and build a professional network. Those who would like to be involved and support the College in its educational vision are invited to visit the Stortfordian Foundation website to find out more. The Foundation is just at the beginning of building a wonderful home for the College community and it welcomes anyone with ideas on how to build this collective further to sign up. Anyone who wishes to be involved in any capacity, be it mentoring young Stortfordians or suggesting an idea for an event, please do get in touch or visit stortfordianfoundation.org to find out more. Bishop’s Stortford College | COLLEGE CONNECTION
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In February, the College held its 12th annual Festival of Literature which for the first time, took place online. Welcoming, as usual, an array of poets, wordsmiths, authors and illustrators, the written word was celebrated in all its forms by schools, families and individuals across the nation. Spread over 2 weeks, the Festival included a series of evening events; a perfect antidote to those tedious and repetitive lockdown evenings, as well as an extraordinary programme of events for Primary and Secondary Schools. Opening the Festival on Tuesday 2nd February, poet Joseph Coelho shared a fabulous session for Primary School pupils, talking about how he became a writer, his love of public libraries and the themes of horror and gore. Later in the afternoon, Joseph enthralled Secondary School pupils by reading from his book, The Girl Who Became a Tree, and answered questions about his poetry and literary influences. On the morning of 4th February, poet Rachel Rooney wowed Year 4 pupils with her inspiring and hugely engaging talk which included poetry recitals from her much-loved collections and provided many useful writing tips for the next generation of poets.
In the afternoon, writing duo Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison delivered a superb session to pupils in Years 9, 10 and 11, chatting about their friendship, career paths and providing insight into the process of coauthoring novels. Emily Hanna-Grazebrook wove her storytelling magic and transported Years 7 and 8 pupils to an ancient Japanese temple as well as to the Victorian era for an eery ghost story with a twist; it was deliciously spine-tingling storytelling at its best. On Friday evening, poet Harry Baker opened the Festival evening events by doing what he is best known for; mixing Maths, poetry and comedy. His audience enjoyed an exclusive recital of a 5-star toilet seat review he wrote during lockdown
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and were also treated to favourites, 59, When This is Over and How Much Falafel Is Too Much Falafel? Lemn Sissay took to the virtual Festival stage on Saturday evening and his reading from his powerful memoir My Name Is Why, interspersed with commentary on the care system and family relationships, provided for an incredibly moving and thoughtprovoking evening. Storyteller Emily Hanna-Grazebrook returned to begin the second week of schools’ events and entranced Reception pupils across the country with her tale of a little girl with a parasol, a deep, dark jungle, naughty monkeys and a dragon, as well as entertaining Year 1 and Year 2 pupils with a story of young Jimmy who falls into fairyland. Andy Shepherd delighted Year 4 pupils with a dragon-filled discussion about her series The Boy Who Grew Dragons and she even revealed the secret of her success, telling pupils how they could grow their own dragons. On Tuesday morning children’s author, Matt Oldfield, kicked off his event for pupils in Years 5 and 6, talking about his journey to becoming a writer, his inspirations, how he began writing the Ultimate Football Series and how to make non-fiction fun. He read from his award-winning sports book Unbelievable Football and presented a fabulous session, not just for football lovers, but for budding writers too. In the afternoon, 2020 Carnegie Medal winning author, Anthony McGowan, joined Year 8 pupils to talk about Lark, the book which earned this prestigious award. Anthony inspired pupils as he spoke about his background, what life was like growing up in Yorkshire and the dramatic surroundings and nature that inspired his novel. Pupils from Years 5 to 11 were blown away by the high energy and motivational event hosted by adventurer and author, Anna McNuff. Metaphorically taking the pupils along, as she shared her journeys across the world, Anna relived her adventures journeying through every American state on a pink bicycle, cycling the Andes, running the length of Hadrian’s Wall and also running barefoot across the UK. Award-winning crime-writer Chris Whitaker took to the stage on Tuesday evening and spoke candidly about his difficult upbringing, traumatic personal events, addiction battles and how writing stories got him through his darkest of times. Moving his audience with
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how he struggled in the past, Chris discussed his writing process, how he gets into his characters’ heads and the complexities of editing and publishing. Author and illustrator, Emma Yarlett, amazed Reception, Year One and Year Two pupils on Wednesday with her readings from Nibbles The Book Monster. Emma also showed her young audience how they could draw their own version of Nibbles and later in the morning, treated pupils in Years 3 and 4 to the dragon-tastic tale of Dragon Post. On Wednesday evening, multiaward-winning author Claire Fuller met up with Radio Times journalist Bill Borrows and spoke about how she was a late starter to writing, her writing ritual, her favourite writers and revealed exclusive details about her next book. Children’s author and human right’s activist, Onjali Q Rauf, started Thursday’s events with an inspiring and motivating talk about her latest book, The Night Bus Hero, the inspiration behind it, and how pupils can make a difference in the future by participating in charity work and helping the homeless and refugees.
In the evening, acclaimed writer, Chas Newkey-Burden, took journalist Bill Borrows through his transition from childhood newspaper editor to million-selling author of books on subjects as diverse as Adele, Arsenal Football Club and his obsession with running. Chas let his audience into secrets such as why he listens to the
ET soundtrack whilst writing and how Ricky Gervais came to hold him in his arms! Bringing the Festival to a close, award-winning author Tom Palmer hosted a brilliant session with Year 5 pupils on Friday. Whilst talking about the process of writing his latest book and the extensive research involved in writing a historical novel, Tom introduced his audience to his dog, Finn, and shared exclusive details of his next book. Our sincere thanks to all our Festival sponsors without whom this annual event would not be possible; Savills, Delta 2020, Tees Law and Pardon Chambers Architects. Thanks also to the Bishop’s Stortford Independent for their fantastic coverage of the Festival events and the Norfolk Children’s Book Centre for their help throughout. We look forward to welcoming everyone back again next year.
The 2021 Bishop’s Stortford Picture Book Award The 2021 Bishop’s Stortford Picture Book Award was once again the culmination of a very closely fought competition, this time nationally, as individuals and schools from across the country, voted for their favourites from the 9 shortlisted books.
Presented on Wednesday 10th February by last year’s winner, Ross Collins, 27 schools from across the UK participated in the award, casting between them and members of the public, over 1,500 votes. In third place was Inch and Grub by Alastair Chisholm and David Roberts, in second place was Dog Gone by Rob Biddulph and the winner, was Pirates vs. Monsters by David Crosby and Lee Cosgrove. The College was delighted to be joined online by some of the participating schools, shortlisted authors, illustrators and publishers to the Award presentation, as well as winning duo David and Lee. Throughout the afternoon, pupils watched presentations from the shortlisted authors and illustrators as they spoke about their picture books and gave demonstrations of how they approach illustrating. Bishop’s Stortford College | COLLEGE CONNECTION
To finish the event, shortlisted author and illustrator, Rob Biddulph, presented an exclusive ‘Draw with Rob Draw-Along’ for all the pupils to get involved with from home. Picture Book Award Coordinator, Andrea Lamyman said, “The Picture Book Award Event was a joyous celebration of all picture books. We were joined by 11 authors and illustrators and the event was expertly hosted by the acclaimed author/illustrator Ross Collins, last year’s winner. All the contributors thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to showcase their books. The winners were absolutely delighted with the award, particularly as Pirates vs Monsters is David Crosby’s first book. Spot prizes made the award even more exciting and interactive for participating schools and ranged from signed artwork to books, including Maverick Publishers’ prize of an entire set of their early reader scheme (200 books).”
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Thinking About the Future Throughout the Autumn and Spring Terms, Sixth Form students have been attending a variety of lectures, presentations and workshops, both online and in-person when at school, as part of the Pathways Programme. Whilst the Lower Sixth have listened to an inspirational and moving talk from TV Presenter, Annie Price, attended an informative finance workshop and engaged in an insightful lecture about the key qualities of a good leader, the Upper Sixth have been given plenty of advice on how to prepare for university life from 6 Old Stortfordians, practiced their interview technique together and learned about various future career paths including photojournalism.
Rapping about Safety in Science Using their understanding and learning of how to be safe in a science lab, three Lower Third pupils devised an informative and imaginative rap about laboratory safety rules for their peers. Rapping to the tune of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s 10 Duel Commandments from the hit musical Hamilton, the boys performed their rap in class, used dance movements and actions to illustrate the rules and emphasised the need for all pupils to “check your equipment”, “be careful all the time” and “listen to instruction”.
Lively House Assemblies
An Explosion of Learning
Throughout the Autumn Term, 4th Form girls came up with some very creative yet informative assemblies in their year group ‘bubble’ to present in their weekly House Assemblies. With themes ranging from Christmas, movies, fashion and music to Halloween and food and nutrition, the girls made each of their assemblies particularly engaging and interactive with quizzes, challenges and competitions. Whilst putting a lot of effort into their research and how best to present their themes, the girls learned new facts and information and got to know each other a little better all whilst having fun.
Back in October, Year 2 pupils let their artistic skill and creativity run free whilst learning about Guy Fawkes and fireworks. Pupils used their ICT skills to create vibrant digital artwork of fireworks using the ‘Paint’ software, designed ‘wanted’ posters for Guy Fawkes using all the new information they had learned about him and painted fireworks pictures using coloured wax and black paint.
BookLoose Lower Third Library Ambassadors worked together with Prep School Librarian, Miss Hall, to create a promotional, fun and engaging video to share with their peers during the Autumn Term. On a mission to encourage pupils to continue reserving books and visiting the Prep School Library, pupils brainstormed the idea of creating a parody version of the iconic Footloose song, renaming it ‘Bookloose’. Keen to make the video engaging and purposeful at the same time, pupils worked together to consider the various scenes and props that would be most effective in the video.
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Gaining New Experiences In early September, Upper Shell pupils took a trip to the Essex Outdoor Centre in Harlow for an afternoon of thrilling activities and adventure sports. Eager to get stuck in and have a go at each of the activities on offer, pupils tried their hand at archery, indoor climbing walls and canoeing. The pupils all thoroughly enjoyed the trip and returned having strengthened friendships, built upon their teamwork skills and experienced sports they may not have tried before.
Navigating Bishop’s Stortford
The Grimwade Boarding Community Following their return to the College in September, Prep School boarders quickly adapted to the new COVID-19 guidance and rules of Grimwade House and were able to enjoy many weekends and evenings of exciting activities both within the House and around the Bishop’s Stortford area. Autumn Term group activities within the House included playing board games, constructing Lego models, table tennis competitions and hosting Just Dance competitions on the Xbox. Sunny evenings were spent outside playing tennis, cricket and boules whilst at the weekends the boarders took a few outings to local parks and woodlands together.
Over a September weekend, Upper Fifth Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award pupils completed the expedition element of the award after previous plans had been postponed due to COVID-19. With the weather on their side, pupils embarked upon an expedition around the area surrounding Bishop’s Stortford, and although there were a few navigational errors, the pupils were determined to complete their tasks and found solutions to the problems they faced. Well done to all 54 pupils for completing the expedition element of their award!
Paramedics Visit the Pre-Prep On a November afternoon, Year Two pupils enjoyed a special visit from two Paramedics who arrived at the Pre-Prep in an ambulance which the pupils were invited to tour. In small socially-distanced groups, the pupils were introduced to the St John Ambulance organisation, talked about how to get help or how to phone for an ambulance. They were shown items from a first aid kit, learned what each item is used for and discussed what Paramedics do. They even had a go at turning on the blue lights and the siren!
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Happy 20th Birthday Benson House! Wednesday 23rd September 2020 marked the official 20th birthday of Benson House, the first girls’ day House at Bishop’s Stortford College. Although the current Benson House girls were unable to celebrate this special anniversary as they had originally planned, they were still determined to mark the occasion in some form and so adapted their celebrations. As well as creating a vibrant poster based on the theme ‘Dare to be different’, for which each of the girls was tasked to decorate a letter, the girls also dug out from the archives some old Benson House photos and recreated them to the best of their ability in their year group ‘bubbles’.
Normans for the Day
‘The Gruffalo’ Visits Pre-Prep!
Upper Shell pupils travelled back in time to the Norman period when they visited Mountfitchet castle in October. Helping to consolidate their learning on their Norman history topic, the trip gave the pupils an insight into life during Norman times and they returned having learned many new and interesting facts.
On a cold wintry October afternoon, Reception pupils wrapped up in warm coats, hats and scarves and went on an adventure around the College campus to find the Gruffalo who was hiding somewhere. Having already visited their classrooms over half term, pupils discovered that the Gruffalo, from Julia Donaldson’s bestselling book, had returned. Pupils enthusiastically followed a trail of clues around the College and worked together to unravel the mystery, whilst meeting all the other characters from The Gruffalo book along the way. The pupils managed to figure out all the clues and found the Gruffalo had been hiding in the Pre-Prep all along!
Thanksgiving Celebrations Over the Thanksgiving weekend of 28th November, Prep School boarders enjoyed a weekend of activities together in a warm and cosy Grimwade House. After clearing floor space, the scene was set for the boarders to construct the House Scalextric set, which was made more exciting with a ‘Top Gear’ style timing ladder for who could set the fastest 10-lap time. To bring the adrenaline levels down a notch, a craft activity was next on the agenda and the boarders made an array of Thanksgiving Wreaths. Pupils then wrote on each of the leaves what they were particularly thankful for throughout 2020.
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Exploring Nature Last term, Pre-Prep pupils investigated nature and wildlife during their Forest School sessions. After learning how to be safe in the Forest, Reception pupils scoured the ground for interesting natural materials to create designs with repeating patterns. Whilst reflecting upon the story of The Three Little Pigs, Year One thought of ways they might be able to capture the wolf in their Forest and devised their own traps. To consolidate all they had learned on the topic of fire, Year 2 pupils were excited to see a real fire built and lit in one of their Forest School sessions. The pupils toasted marshmallows, made delicious s’mores and went on to build their own mini fires to demonstrate their understanding of the topic.
Battle of Hastings
Spooky Activities for Hallowe’en
To further their learning in History, Upper Shell pupils recreated the Battle of Hastings, to dramatic effect, on the College campus in the Autumn Term. Using ‘freeze frames’, the pupils became Anglo Saxons and Normans for the afternoon as they battled it out on ‘Senlac Hill’. After a tough fight which saw the ‘Saxons’ admit defeat, the ‘Normans’ revelled in their victory and confirmed William of Normandy’s place on the English throne. The pupils drew upon their history knowledge throughout the afternoon and had great fun re-enacting the battle.
Hallowe’en celebrations were in the air in both the Pre-Prep and the College boarding community at the end of October. Whilst Senior School boarders got into the Hallowe’en spirit and enjoyed a fun afternoon together carving intricate designs on pumpkins, Reception pupils were inspired by the story The Room on a Broom by Julia Donaldson and used their writing skills to devise their own magical spells, painted pictures, dressed up in spooky costumes and concocted potions!
Lower Shell Mummify Tutankhamun Lower Shell had an intriguing November afternoon last term when they learned how to mummify a body! Whilst supervised, pupils practiced the ritual which preserved ancient Egyptian bodies for the afterlife including; washing the body with sacred water, extracting the organs, placing the organs in canopic jars, covering the body in salt, stuffing the body with linen and sawdust and wrapping the body in twenty layers of fabric. Pupils were engaged and keen to participate throughout the lesson, which ended with a re-enactment of the weighing of the heart ceremony. Bishop’s Stortford College | COLLEGE CONNECTION
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Police Cadets Together Again In October, the Bishop’s Stortford College Police Cadets, one of the Senior School Personal Development Programme activities were able to return to the College campus for their weekly sessions. Operating in year group ‘bubbles’, College pupils, staff and East Herts Cadet Volunteers were thrilled to be back together again practising their drills, stop and search procedures, delivering anti-hate crime slogans, looking at different drugs and how to identify them and much more. During the Spring term, whilst remote learning was in place, the Cadets, adapted well to their new virtual venue on Zoom were able to continue to meet and learn the many new procedures and protocols that are part of being a Police Cadet.
Protecting the College Community In the Autumn Term, the Sixth Form Prefect Team and members of staff from across the College worked together to come up with effective ways to reinforce the requirement for social distancing in school. The brief given to the Prefect Team stated that existing floor stencils, which had become badly worn, needed to be renewed or replaced with a replacement message or graphic. As well as thinking about how they might involve the pupil body in the task, the Prefect Team were asked to consider where the messages might be most effective. After careful consideration, the team suggested a 4th Form design competition from which the winning entry would be made into a new stencil. The competition received a number of very high-quality entries, but the Prefect Team declared Nancy G’s design the winner, highlighting that Nancy went above and beyond in her stencil design, not only meeting the requirements of the brief but also using her creative skills to ensure the design was universal and allencompassing with the message of community at its heart. The stencil was manufactured over the half term break and upon their return, the Prefect Team worked with members of staff from the Marketing and Estates teams to devise an extensive list of locations for the stencil to be sprayed. On their return to school after half term, list in hand, members of the Prefect team, along with Nancy, began applying the stencil around the Senior School. Impactful and clear, they were soon asked to apply the same stencil around Pre-Prep and the Prep School.
Ben Climbs for the Community
Christmas-Themed Charity Fundraising
Last term, PrePrep pupil Ben, who is registered legallywblind, raisedwover £2,500 for local c haritieswby embarking upon a sponsored climb. 5-year old Ben, who wears special contact lenses to give him a focus range of approximately 70 cm, was inspired by his older sisters, to take on a climbing challenge in aid of the Bishop’s Stortford Food Bank which kick-started the Pre-Prep charity fundraising for the year. Ben completed his sponsored climb at Clip’n’Climb in Cambridge; it was also the very first climb Ben had ever done. Spurred on by his family, Ben climbed almost entirely by touch alone, to the top of 10 different walls a total of 30 times. After hearing about his endeavours, Ben received an official House of Commons letter from Hertford and Bishop’s Stortford MP, Julie Marson, congratulating him for his efforts and inviting him and his sisters for a tour of the Houses of Parliament once it is safe to do so. Well done, Ben!
In early December, the Prep School began the first part of their Autumn Term Charity Day activities in aid of the St Elizabeth’s Centre. The morning started with pupils being asked to check their raffle tickets whilst the winning numbers were announced. Pupils were later challenged to get their creative thinking caps on and design a wreath for their classroom door, each one based on a Christmas carol or song. The Prep School Prefects also set up a mini ‘Christmas Fair’ in the Prep School Hall which fellow pupils visited in their year group ‘bubbles’. There was an electric atmosphere in the Hall as pupils tried their luck at the sweet tombola and tested their aiming skills by throwing snowmen into the Christmas chimney. The second part of the Charity Day was carried out over Zoom as the pupils entered remote learning for the final week of the Autumn term. Taking part in entertaining quizzes such as ‘Guess the Teacher’s Christmas Tree’, competitions to bake and decorate Christmas-themed cookies, plus a few rounds of BINGO pupils were able to come together virtually and closed the day by watching a Christmas film. This wonderful series of activities was enjoyed by all members of the Prep School community and a total of over £3,000 was raised for St Elizabeth’s Centre.
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College Staff Team Up for Teams4U To raise money for Teams4U, an international charity whose aim is to change the lives of deprived children around the world, several members of College staff teamed up to run, walk and cycle the equivalent distance of a half marathon (13.1 miles). Determined to remain positive throughout the November lockdown and take on a challenge to do what they could to help those in need, the team trained and prepared themselves for the challenge ahead by going out on socially-distanced or individual weekly runs and cycles. Undeterred by the cold weather and the mountains of mud they were set to endure, the team completed their challenges on 6th December and raised over £1,500 for Teams4U, smashing their initial target of £1,000.
Ella’s Flag Made it To Antarctica!
Shoebox Appeal
Form One to Upper Third pupils let their creativity run free when they took part in a House Competition to design a flag for the continent of Antarctica. Using the knowledge and information they had gained in their lessons about the continent, the children considered various Antarctican factors in their designs such as the weather and the species of animal that live there. The judges were given a very difficult task to choose the overall winner from a superb selection of entries, finally declaring the design by Ella S the winning flag. Ella’s flag design, which was given to the UK Polar Network Team, later travelled all the way to South Georgia, a sub-Antarctic island in the Southern Atlantic Ocean.
To help those around the world who are less fortunate, over 300 Christmas shoeboxes were lovingly filled with various thoughtful items by the College and its local community of neighbours and churches. At the end of November, these were collected and sent on a journey to east Romania and Moldova in time for Christmas.
Let the Green Games Begin! Throughout January and February, to keep their spirits up throughout the lockdown and to remain in touch with each other, Tee House girls and staff initiated a series of weekly challenges called ‘The Green Games’. Based on different themes each week, the girls completed challenges including gathering any green items from around their homes and creating an interesting photo, sharing photos of their pets, baking, cooking or preparing a dish of green food, going for daily walks and building ‘towers’. As well as providing a creative outlet for the girls, taking a break from their screenswandwremote learning, these activities ensuredwtheywall continued to look after their mental health and well-being, kept in touch with and supported each other and created a virtual House atmosphere.
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GCSE Drama
A Level Dramatists Take to the Stage
This year’s GCSE Drama cohort devised a series of fantastic plays which they confidently performed during the Autumn Term in small groups. Based on different stimulus including a Beyonce quote, A Little Life novel by Hanya Yanagihara and The Earth painting by Igor Morski, the plays were titled ‘Quack’, ‘Beneath the Surface’ and ‘The Trial’.
In late September, A Level Drama students put all their hard work into action as they performed their A Level piece in the Leo Price Theatre. Based on A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, the students performed with spirit, enthusiasm and certainty in their piece titled ‘The Kindness of Strangers’.
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Christmas Arrives in the Pre-Prep In their class ‘bubbles’, Pre-Prep pupils performed superbly in their Christmas plays this year. Taking to the stage to perform ‘The Nativity’, the Reception performance was testament to how much they have grown in confidence since September. The Year One production was a brilliant show of an original play titled ‘The Meaning of Christmas’. The pupils all did exceedingly well to remember their lines and acted, danced and sang with enthusiasm.
‘Around the World in 80 Days’ 4th Form pupils showed excitement and poise as they rehearsed this year’s production, ‘Around the World in 80 Days’. Throughout the Autumn Term, pupils practiced their lines with each other, rehearsed in the Leo Price Theatre and were determined to give it their all in the final performance. Although the performance had to be postponed as a result of COVID-19 and school closures, it is very much hoped ‘the show will go on’ at a later date.
Lower Fifth Devised Play: Normalcy After a long period of creative development, working closely with theatre company, Rough Fiction, our Lower Fifth dramatists created an incredible adaption of their devised play ‘Normalcy’. Determined not to let school closures stop them from sharing their production, the pupils worked together to film their play over Zoom throughout January. Visually dramatic and extremely well put together, the final performance was spectacular. Well done to all involved.
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Carol & Christingle Services This year, although we were unable to come together for our annual Senior School Carol Service and the Prep School Christingle Service, each event was live-streamed for all members of our community to join in and watch from around the world. In each service, Prep and Senior School pupils gave clear and articulate readings from the Bible as well as beautiful performances of classic Christmas carols. The services were an excellent reminder of the reasons we celebrate Christmas and it was wonderful to see the College community come together, albeit virtually, to celebrate the season and join in the Christmas carolling from the comfort of their own homes.
Pre-Prep Craft Handmade Instruments Year One pupils crafted some excellent instruments made from various materials during the Autumn Term. Whilst thinking hard about what types of materials they would need to use and the sound it needed to produce, pupils made a wide range of instruments including guitars, drums and rain-shakers.
Pupils Deliver Virtual Concerts Following on from the success of the Summer term virtual concerts, and seeing as the talented musicians at the College found a little more time to practice during lockdown, the Music Department once again set up a virtual platform for them to share their incredible music with the College community and beyond. Prep School pupils demonstrated they were bursting with desire to perform and undeterred by lockdown, submitted their musical masterpieces on various instruments including the piano, violin, flute and vocals to create the first virtual concert of the Spring Term.
4th Form Get to Grips With Wak-A-Tubes During the Autumn Term, as the pandemic prevented pupils from singing together as normal, the Music Department considered alternative methods of making music lessons fun and interesting. One such alternative was a percussion instrument made from differing lengths of plastic to produce various pitches, known as Wak-a-tubes. Wak-a-tubes are easily disinfected and nonaerosol generating. These unusual instruments provided a superb alternative for 4th Form pupils to continue to practice teamwork and communication in ensemble partnership performances.
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Te Aroha During the first half of the Autumn Term, the Upper Sixth Choir learned, and later performed, a beautiful Maori song called Te Aroha by Te Puoho Katene; a Maori action song for a fourpart choir. In Maori culture, there is a strong connection between the words and actions of a waiata-a-ringa (action song) and the students used various ‘mahi-a-ringa’ (hand movements) to emphasise the meaning of the words. The choir gave a gorgeous performance of the song which resonated strongly throughout the College community.
Upper Third Drum to the Beat Back in November, Upper Third pupils composed and played a variety of rhythms using Djembe Drums, which originate from West Africa. The creativity of the various rhythms from the pupils was astounding and demonstrated the high level of communication and teamwork that is required when performing a musical piece as part of a group. Different groups showed call and response textures, as well as polyphonic drumming, which is when many rhythms happen at the same time.
Christingle in the Pre-Prep In a change of tradition this year, the Pre-Prep held their annual Christingle Service in the Pre-Prep Hall instead of the Memorial Hall. In their lessons leading up to the service, pupils learned about the meaning of Christingle and had great fun decorating their oranges with sweets and other items to represent the different parts of the Christingle. Led by Year 2, the service created a lovely atmosphere in the Hall as pupils sang songs together and performed their readings confidently.
Justin Debuts on BBC Radio Essex During the Summer and Autumn Terms last year, Sixth Form student, Justin M, made six appearances, live on air, on BBC Radio Essex. Following the success of his debut composition, ‘Let’s Fly’, which made it to the semi-finals of the 2019 International Songwriting Competition, Justin was contacted by BBC Radio Essex in May 2020 to take part in a live interview with Helen Scott and hear the radio premiere of his composition. Since then, Justin has made a further five live appearances with radio show hosts Helen Scott, Victoria Polley and Rob Jelly, discussing his most recent compositions and piano arrangements of hit songs such as Believer by Imagine Dragons and Rule the World by Take That. Justin found further success in the 2020 International Songwriting Competition in which his piece, ‘Feels’, made it to the Teens category semi-finals in the Unsigned Only section of the competition. Justin was one of just 64 teen semi-finalists representing England in the entire Unsigned Only 2020 Competition which received over 7,000 entries. Well done, Justin! Bishop’s Stortford College | COLLEGE CONNECTION
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Christmas Jumper Day To get everyone into the Christmas spirit and celebrate the season, pupils and staff from the Pre-Prep through to Sixth Form dressed up in their finest Christmas jumpers on one of the final days of the Autumn Term. A Christmas dinner, complete with all the trimmings and Christmas music made for a wonderful atmosphere in the Dining Hall at lunchtime as the pupils commenced their celebrations in year group ‘bubbles’. With pupils singing along to classic Christmas songs and enjoying their festive meal with friends, it was a fantastic final day of fun on campus for everyone before switching to remote learning for the rest of the term.
It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas A special team of Santa’s Elves (staff from across the College) worked hard one weekday evening in late November to get the College campus ready for Christmas. As well as decorating the Christmas tree in the Memorial Hall, wreaths and garlands were placed around the walls, the balcony on the window ledges and outside on the Memorial Hall columns.
Christmas Touches Down at Pre-Prep In preparation for the festive season, Pre-Prep pupils, across all three year groups, made some very imaginative and creative Christmas decorations, then took it in turns to decorate the PrePrep Christmas tree. In Reception, the pupils very much enjoyed their morning making Christmas decorations; using the ‘recycle’ theme they had been learning about, the children were challenged to make something new from something old. They painted glass jars with Christmas and winter scenes, turned old CDs into Christmas dangles, made salt dough decorations and used old Christmas cards to make new Christmas messages. An excellent reuse of resources! Meanwhile in Years 1 and 2, pupils worked together in their year groups to make paper chains, which they added to the Pre-Prep Christmas tree, painted stars and stamped festive patterns onto their Christmas bags whilst listening to Christmas music.
Carols for Causes Just before Christmas, the Upper Sixth Choir gave a stunning virtual performance of several well-known Christmas carols in this year’s Fine & Country Foundation Carols for Causes event. Held every year since 2014, the Carols for Causes event aims to raise money to help the fight against homelessness and poverty throughout the UK and the world. This year our Upper Sixth Choir was asked to perform alongside the Ndlovu Youth Choir, who made it to the final of America’s Got Talent 2019, and the Kansas City string quartet, Opus 76. Although this year the event had to be held virtually, people from all over the world tuned in to sing along to the carols and spread the festive cheer.
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Pupils Battle to Win House Rounders
‘Try-umphant’ House Rugby
Whilst the sun was still shining, and to make up for not being in school in the Summer Term, Senior School pupils played a series of Mixed House Rounders Competitions in their year group ‘bubbles’. Boys’ and girls’ Houses teamed up to try and win those all-important House points and the competitive, yet friendly, atmosphere across the fields was electric. Playing their first competitive matches since March 2020, it was clear all the pupils thoroughly enjoyed being able to participate in House competitions once again. After some very close-run matches, congratulations must go to the year group winning teams: Lower Fifth - Trotman and Robert Pearce Houses (A team) and Tee and Hayward Houses (B team) Upper Fifth - Trotman and Robert Pearce Houses Lower Sixth - Alliott and Collett Houses Upper Sixth - Alliott and Collett Houses
In early December, Form 2 and Upper Third boys grabbed their rugby boots and ascended to the fields for their annual House Rugby Competitions, this year played in year group ‘bubbles’. In what was an exciting and closely contested afternoon, there were some superb skills on display. The boys thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon and it was clear the results of their hard work and training throughout the term had paid off. Congratulations to Grimwade House who claimed victory in the Upper Third competition and Newbury House who won the Form 2 competition!
Brilliant Bowling in House Cricket Spirits were high when Prep School pupils got well and truly stuck into their boys’ and girls’ House Cricket Competitions in the Autumn Term. Having not been able to play cricket on campus throughout the Summer term, it was evident the pupils had been practising their skills at home as there were some great performances throughout the matches and some hard-fought victories. Well done to all the pupils for some fantastic competitions and congratulations to the winning Houses! Overall Girls’ House Cricket Winners Seniors: Monk-Jones Juniors: Westfield Overall Boys’ House Cricket Winners Seniors: Grimwade Juniors: Newbury Congratulations must also go to the Prep School for making it into the Top 50 Prep Schools for Cricket, as judged by The Cricketer magazine.
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Zara Leads the Way in Eventing In October, Senior School pupil, Zara Clark-Jones, won the U18 Childéric Saddles Little Downham International One Day Event, on Rickamore Royal, a horse she had been riding for just two weeks. Zara scored a total of 29 (penalty) points with Rickamore Royal in the dressage, jumped clear in the show jumping and also the 100cm cross country course inside the time limit. This was Zara’s first time out on Rickamore Royal, who stands at 16.2 hands. The win means Zara and Rickamore Royal have qualified for the U18 Regional Championships due to be held in the spring. Congratulations to Zara on this incredible achievement!
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Upper Sixth Girls Make College History Upper Sixth girls made College history last term when they took part in the first ever Mixed Tag Rugby House Tournament. In bright and warm sunshine, students played a total of 10 games and gave their all in every one. The girls were determined not to shy away from the challenge, even those who had never played rugby before. Lots of superb skills were on display with the students using teamwork, co-ordination and accuracy learned from other team sports such as netball, hockey and football, whilst laughter rang out across the fields. After an incredible afternoon and an amazing display of camaraderie and sportsmanship, the Sutton and Benson House team were declared the winners!
Prep School Pupils Take to the Fields In early November, Form One, Form Two and Lower and Upper Third pupils took to the College playing fields for the annual Prep School Marathon, Park Runs and Relay Races. In a slightly different approach this year due to social distancing and year group ‘bubbles’, each group chose one of the three events in which to compete. All the pupils were brimming with enthusiasm and their friendly competitiveness and determination made for a great atmosphere up on the fields. Well done to all those who took part but particular congratulations must go to Newbury House who won the Junior Competition and Grimwade House who were declared victors of the Senior Competition!
Pupils Aim to Score House Points
Top 100 and Top 50 Schools for Cricket
Throughout the Autumn Term, Senior School pupils took it in turns, in their year groups, to test their teamwork and skills in the Mixed House Hockey Competitions. As with the other House competitions last term, the girls’ and boys’ Houses partnered up for the matches. In each of the competitions, pupils played exceedingly well and there were many displays of superb technique. The competitions once again demonstrated the pupils’ fantastic passion and enthusiasm for the sport, and each team in every year group should be very proud of the effort, commitment and team spirit they gave in their performances. Well done to all who took part, but particular congratulations to the winning House teams: 4th Form - Benson House Lower Fifth - Tee and Hayward Houses Upper Fifth - Trotman and Robert Pearce Houses Lower Sixth - Benson and Sutton Houses Upper Sixth - Alliott and Collett Houses
Bishop’s Stortford College has not only been named as one of the top 100 schools for cricket in the UK by The Cricketer magazine once again, but the Prep School has also made it into the top 50 Prep Schools for cricket for the first time. This is the fourth successive year that the College has appeared in the Cricketer’s Top 100. Last year saw a record number of entries from schools, from both the state and independent sectors, despite the ongoing pandemic. All entries were judged against an extensive and increasing set of criteria, with the chosen schools all having a compelling commitment to cricket in the curriculum, excellent facilities, fixtures programmes and coaching. Dave Hughes, Head of Cricket at the College, said, “To be included in The Cricketer’s Top 100 Schools and Top 50 Prep Schools Guide, in what has been a challenging year, is an enormous achievement and one we are immensely proud of. We are thrilled that The Cricketer has recognised the outstanding facilities and coaching programme we offer.”
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Pearl & Yeo Cups Are a Runaway Success
Pupils Net House Points
Senior School pupils participated in the annual Pearl and Yeo Cups cross country races in late September, this time within their year group ‘bubbles’. Pupils competed both individually and for their Houses and as usual, there were some incredible individual performances. Although the Houses were unable to come together to spectate the events this year, year group ‘bubbles’ cheered on their classmates as they awaited their turn to compete. Well done to all who took part but particular congratulations to Sutton House, the winning boys’ House in all five year group competitions. Congratulations also to Trotman House who won the 4th Form girls’ competition, Alliott House for winning the Lower and Upper Fifth girls’ competitions, Young House for the Lower Sixth girls’ competition and Tee House for the Upper Sixth girls’ competition.
Senior School pupils were eager to win those all-important House points in their year group ‘bubble’ Mixed House Netball Competitions last term. Pupils played some terrific matches and the friendly rivalry between the Houses was apparent both on and off the court. The boys in particular played incredibly well, considering that netball was not their usual sport and for many this was the first time they had played it! Well done to all for demonstrating a wonderful level of tactical awareness when intercepting the ball and creating space to receive passes. Congratulations to each of the winning year group House teams including the Benson and Sutton 4th Form and Upper Fifth teams and the Alliott and Collett Upper Sixth team!
Thrilling House Tennis
Tabitha Jumps to New Heights
In their year group ‘bubbles’, Senior School pupils took to the courts to compete in this year’s Senior School Mixed House Tennis Competitions last term. In a series of keenly contested matches, pupils gave their all, played in a friendly yet competitive manner and produced some incredibly close results. Congratulations to each of the winning year group House teams including the 4th Form and Upper Fifth Benson and Sutton teams and the Upper Sixth Robert Pearce and Trotman House team!
In early October, Prep School pupil, Tabitha D-G, competed at her first ever National Schools Equestrian Association (NSEA) Show Jumping Competition whilst representing Bishop’s Stortford College. Tabitha did amazingly well and won the 40cm class on style and performance and the 50cm class with the fastest time. Tabitha’s success means that she has qualified for the Regional Championships which are due to take place over Easter this year. Well done, Tabitha!
Bishop’s Stortford College | COLLEGE CONNECTION
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CELEBRATING 150 YEARS • 1868 - 2018
LOOKING AHEAD
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BRATING 150 YEARS • 1868 - 2018
Excite your child’s curiosity!
Open Mornings Please join us
Pre-Prep Open Morning For 4+/Reception Entry Saturday 24th April
Open Morning for All Stages of Entry in 2022 Saturday 25th September 9.30am - 1.00pm
Sixth Form Open Morning For Sixth Form entry in 2022 Saturday 16th October 10.15am arrival
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To register to attend an Open Morning, please go to our ‘Admissions Portal’ accessed from the homepage of the College website. Full details of the format of each Open Morning will be confirmed nearer the time with all those registered to attend. The Admissions Portal will guide you through our admissions process step by step, allow you to book an Open Morning or private visit or to simply make an enquiry. In person events will only take place when it is safe to do so in accordance with the prevailing guidelines.
150th History Book Copies of The History of Bishop’s Stortford College, a limited-edition book published for the 150th anniversary of the College, are available for purchase via the College website. For more information please visit the Celebrating 150 Years page on the College website. www.bishopsstortfordcollege.org/9568/celebrating-150-years
Keeping in Touch Don’t forget to visit our website, like our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram, thebishopsstortfordcollege and Twitter, @BSCollege, @BSCollegeSport and @BSCFestLit to keep in touch with all the latest news from the campus. thebishopsstortfordcollege Pre-Prep: 01279 838626 Prep School: 01279 838583 Senior School: 01279 838575 www.bishopsstortfordcollege.org CELEBRATING 150 YEARS • 1868 - 2018
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