Bottisham Village College Newsletter Spring 2012

BVCnews Spring Term 2012

The magazine of Bottisham Village College

Issue 7

Partners join forces to support students Sessions give insight into world of work Two of our Bottisham Education Partners joined forces to support Year 10 students in preparation for their two weeks’ work experience in July.

Six people from John Lewis and the Cambridge Building Society paired up, with each duo holding sessions on job applications, interviews and skill testing and workplace culture.

It was a great opportunity for students to receive first hand advice on what employers are looking for when recruiting.

Two weeks before the event, students had been given the opportunity to complete online applications for both companies which had been created especially for our students to make the experience as realistic as possible. From this, the organisations were able to give the students feedback and advice on completing an application, writing a CV and a business letter.

The companies demonstrated the interview process and students were then able to take part in the group interview John Lewis carry out with all their successful applicants.

Representatives from John Lewis and the Cambridge Building Society joined Year 10’s for PHSE They gave the students an insight into what it is like to work at each company and the expectations of an employer.

This was a unique experience. We feel that the students have gained so much useful information that can be transferred to their applications and interviews for their up and coming work placements and, ultimately, when they have to apply for work, be it

part-time or full-time employment.

Our thanks go to Cambridge Building Society and John Lewis for all the preparation work and for the delivery on the day.

Mrs Matthewson Vocational co-ordinator

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BOTTISHAM VILLAGE COLLEGE www.bottishamvc.org Lode Road Bottisham Cambridgeshire CB25 9DL Tel: 01223 811250 Fax: 01223 813123 enquiries@bottishamvc.org

Term dates 2012 Term dates

Spring Term 2012 March 30 - Term Ends

Summer Term 2012 April 17 - Term begins for all students May 7 - May Day Bank Holiday June 4- 8 - Half term July 20 - Term ends

Welcome to the Spring edition of our newsletter. Once again, the newsletter gives a flavour of the wealth of activity and the range of opportunities available to all of our students. In particular, these opportunities are giving them the chance to develop the attributes and experiences of our collective view of a typical Bottisham Student, as outlined in CREST; Creativity, Reflection, Enrichment, Self-Management and Teamwork.

Our aim is to ensure that all of our students flourish during their time with us and leave, prepared and able to use these attributes and skills to enable them to enjoy a meaningful, happy and fulfilled adult life. Helping young people prepare for their working futures was the focus of a recent PSHE day for year 10 students.They benefited hugely from the input of staff employed by John Lewis and the Cambridge Building Society, two of our partner organisations, who helped them to understand the realities and expectations of recruitment processes.

Our minds are currently very much focused

on developing the BVC response to the forthcoming London Olympics; there will be a wide range of opportunities, sporting and other, in which students will be able to get involved in Olympic-themed activities, all designed to help to develop the Olympic values of Respect, Excellence, Friendship, Courage, Determination, Inspiration and Equality. We look forward to sharing these with you in the next edition of this newsletter.

On behalf of all staff, we wish you an enjoyable Easter holiday and we look forward to welcoming everybody back on vans Tuesday April 17th.

Mrs E

Forms get extra time In response to form tutors’ requests for more time to spend with their tutees having conversations about learning and progress, a series of extended form times were introduced for the 2011-12 academic year.

Once each half term, tutorial time is extended until the end of Period 1 (10:00 am). The time has so far been used to allow students to reflect on their current levels/anticipated grades and compare them with targets levels/ grades. Students have been encouraged to celebrate successes and set themselves personal targets for improvement.

Extended form time has been well received, with tutors being able to have invaluable oneto-one conversations with their tutees.

Love Kenya Day returns

We would welcome your feedback on our newsletter, as well as any other suggestions about ways in which we can further improve our work with you. Email us at feedback@bottishamvc.org or by writing to Mrs Evans directly.

A message from the principal

Once again Bottisham Village College took the children of Kenya to their hearts organising a non-uniform day to raise money for three special causes.

The second Love Kenya Day collected just over £800 to continue the essential work done by the Good Life Orphanage, Feeding the Children project and Shariani Medical Centre.

The College’s link with Kenya began last year through Year 10 student Toby Brooker, whose grandparents retired to the East African country about ten years ago. Toby and his family are regular visitors and have become involved in projects helping local people.

Student Council representatives publicisedFebruary’s event by giving a presentation in assemblies reminding each year why it was so important to support the day.

The Good Life Orphanage is a family-run,

“I found this morning a really valuable experience, and now have a much more ‘personalised’ idea of how my form are doing.”

(Year 10 form tutor).

“It was really useful because we could look back at how we are doing and set targets, with our tutor giving support and talking to teachers about how to improve.” (Year 10 student).

“It was very useful, because I could see my progress and think about how to do better. I could also ask my tutor questions and compare with how my friends are doing.” (Year 9 student).

Mr Merry, assistant principal

Kenya-based, UK-founded charity. It opened in 2008 and now cares for more than 50 orphaned children.

Feeding the Children: The feeding station at Kikambala provides 1,500 children with a hot meal every Sunday and treats to take home to their families.

Shariani Medical Centre: Funded by Toby’s grandparents who were appalled at the number of people dying needlessly from malaria and other treatable and preventable diseases. Last year’s fundraising bought a new computer for the centre, allowing it to be more efficient and see more patients each day.

“A big thank you to staff and students at BVC for another excellent fund raise. One hundred percent of the money raised will go to the three projects,” saidTony’s father.

“Our family appreciate your tremendous support and will be visiting Kenya soon. We will report back on the benefits that your kind donation has provided each project”, said Mr Brooker

It’s Scout of Africa...

Villagers living in a remote area of the Gambia are reaping the rewards of a horticultural project led by Cambridge scouts – among them Mr Pain, the College’s ICT strategy manager.

In December, Mr Pain, a Cambridge Scout leader, took on the six-hour flight to the west African country, to play his part in developing a community garden at Jiroff (population around 600), some 80 miles inland - with half this journey on rough, unmade roads.

It was his second visit to the Gambia, a “working holiday” which involved planting fruit trees – guava, mango, paw-paw, cashew nut - and putting up a six-foot high goat and cattle proof fence, rather than grabbing a tan in the African sunshine (average December temperature 31°C).

As the trees grow, more will be planted to fill the gaps and provide shade for the crops and the workers.

The thinking behind the project is to develop allotments which will be tended by the women to grow food both for the village and to sell. Villagers are provided with the necessary tools – wheelbarrows, buckets, watering cans, spades, forks and rakes.

“The women will be allocated 3 metres by 1 metre allotments and they will be able to choose how many they can manage. For every domestic plot they have, they will also look after one market plot to allow for the garden to be self-sustainable,” explained Mr Pain.

“The main project also funded a well to be dug and, in conjunction with FFHC – Freedom from Hunger Campaign – and SMILE – Smallholder Irrigation for Livelihood Enhancement – a solar pump is to be fitted to the well with four stop taps for efficient distribution of the water.”

Mr Pain said most locals welcomed the Scouts into their community and this year they were honoured to be made citizens of the village of Jiroff.

“Whilst this has no legal standing, the project will be written up in the history books and this will be handed down through the generations,” he said.

Mr Pain’s links with the African continent began about seven years ago.

“I have been running camps and expeditions for Scouts for over 20 years. Seven years ago, I was invited to take a group to Malawi as part of the celebration of 100 years of scouting. I have now been involved with expeditions to Malawi, Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, Botswana and The Gambia,” he said.

“The projects have refurbished a national training centre in Malawi, built a community centre in Ghana, provided school accommodation in Kenya and Uganda, provided accommodation for

teachers in the Gambia and now we have just finished the market garden.”

Mr Pain is hoping to be back in the Gambia at the end of the year.

“I have found this to be one of the friendliest places I have ever visited and would like to be able to visit and help out as much as possible,” he said.

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The joy of timetabling My 60 years on the ice Warm welcome for ‘Ice Man’ Ask most members of staff what is the job that they really want to avoid and you can be sure that, ‘writing the timetable,’ is close to the top of the list. For my sins, that’s part of my job! The process is a long and complicated one which spans the development of a curriculum model during the autumn term, appointments of staff in the Spring term and then the actual allocation of classes, rooms, facilities etc through to the final completion and publication of staff and student timetables in July. That may sound like the end but, in reality, the start of the autumn term then involves making amendments, rooming

changes and improvements.

The construction of the timetable uses a program called Nova T6 which effectively acts as a huge pin board on which you can attach classes and models.

It needs to be powerful as the task is to successfully timetable over 2000 lessons per fortnight involving 70 members of teaching staff (full and part-time). At the same time you need to try to achieve an even spread of subjects across the fortnight, at appropriate times, whilst minimising the number of classes which have more than one teacher. It can be likened to a huge Sudoku puzzle but

one where the outcome is a little more important!

All the way through the timetabling process, the focus is upon constructing the best possible arrangement of lessons, staffing and facilities so that we can maximise the learning potential of all groups. By nature, it is a compromise of ideals with reality, but the amazing flexibility of our teaching staff helps enormously. It’s a little sad, but I have to admit that I do enjoy the challenge!

Mr Tooley, deputy principal

New College ‘Crest’ If you ask people what they consider to be the key roles of a school, you would probably find ‘equipping students with a set of good qualifications’ at the top of most lists.

However, as a College, we are committed to a broad programme of educational development for all of our students that reaches well beyond these crucial qualifications.

To this end, we have conducted a consultation with many of our stakeholders, leading to the development of a set of aspirations which would equip our young people for life in the modern world: ‘The Bottisham Student’.

Each of the year teams and faculties in the school are committed to developing these characteristics in our students and this forms a central message in their improvement plans; this work is likely to develop and gather momentum over the coming years.

In the near future we hope to contact parents to examine how we can work together in developing these personal qualities and opportunities.

Mr Merry, deputy principal

The Bottisham Student Creativity

Thinking ‘outside the box’, generating new ideas and considering alternatives, adapting as circumstances determine.

Reflection

An ability to acknowledge positive achievements and to deal positively and constructively with setbacks. Having a matures understanding of the world around you and respect for the beliefs of others.

Enrichment/extra-curricular

Having abroad understanding of your global and local communities and exercising leadership qualities in supporting these groups.

Self-management

Being increasingly independent, setting goals proactively and being resilient in your pursuit of excellence.

Teamwork

Having the ability to collaborate, adapting your behaviour to suit the circumstances and having empathy for others.

At the age of 85, explorer and glaciologist Dr Charles Swithinbank is still up for a trip to Mars.

He may have travelled to both ends of the Earth tackling the most isolated and unforgiving terrains in the world, but his adventurous spirit was clearly still intact as he told Year 7 students he would love to travel millions of miles into space.

He was approached by NASA and asked for his expert input into planned expeditions to Mars.

He told the Year 7s, “I said, I’ve never been there. They said ‘Neither have we!’”and added he had volunteered to join the crew.

Dr Swithinbank, Emeritus Associate at the Scott Polar Research Institute in Cambridge, was special guest in an extended assembly and talked about his ’60 Years on Ice’.

He showed a series of breathtaking pictures of vast, dramatic landscapes as he told them something of his life devoted to exploration in subzero temperatures.

However, the first slide he showed was taken in hotter climes in Burma, the country of his birth in 1926, with Dr Swithinback pictured with a python coiled round his neck.

But he turned his back on the sun, heading off for his first expedition to the Antarctic in the 1940s.

He told the students about some of his adventures, some of the people he had met and the equipment and transport used - much of it far from sophisticated in the early days.

One story that captivated his young audience was how he, and other men, were asked to help a surgeon at an operation to remove an eye.

He said there was no choice.

It was that or a man would die. Whatever an expedition threw your way, you had to respond as best you could.

He also talked of how members of his party died in a drowning accident and showed how the story had been reported in the national press.

“Comrades had died, but the work carried on,” he said.

Throughout his talk, Dr Swithinbank gave remarkable facts and statistics, how ice in some places was 2,000 metres thick, temperatures dropped to -89C and how icebergs had cleaner water than the triple distilled water in a chemistry lab.

He also spoke of how global warming was not a new phenomenon and that scientists were aware of it in the 1940s.

But the message of his talk was as clear as the water in Antarctica – there is nothing to stop anyone becoming an explorer and seeing the world. He was urging students to follow in his icy footsteps.

“You don’t have to be academically brilliant to do this stuff,” he said. “And never believe that all the exploring has been done – it hasn’t.”

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Amy’s top award

During the February half term holiday, 17 Year 10 students and two teachers braved the cold weather in Germany to meet their German partners at the Erich-Kästner Realschule (EKR) in Kempen.

After a long journey by coach and ferry, they arrived around 8pm on Wednesday and went straight away to the families’ homes where they would be staying for the week. Mrs Hill and Mr Midgley also met their hosts, Herr Müller and Frau Gàl.

Thursday was a day to remember, with the BVC students joining in with more than 1,000 students on a whole school ice-skating trip to nearby Grefrath, followed by a pizza lunch with their exchange partners in the school cafeteria. Herr Hötter, the EKR headmaster, welcomed the group warmly.

On Friday, the group went to school for the morning and enjoyed a variety of lessons including English (quite easy for us!) and RE (a trip on foot to the nearby cemetery) before travelling to Cologne by train to visit the famous cathedral.

After a relaxing weekend spent with the host families, the group met again to celebrate Carnival on Monday, with BVC and EKR students alike dressing up in costume to watch the famous carnival

Taste of Germany procession (or Rosenmontagszug) wind its way through the streets.

Everyone who took part in the trip had a great opportunity to sample German life, food and culture and, of course, to try out their language skills for real. The BVC students involved made the most of every opportunity and were excellent ambassadors for the College. Well done to all!

Mrs Hill

Poster project for language students

New friends as penpals go global

This term our German Foreign Language Assistant, Steffi, has offered students a chance to learn more about German life and culture outside of their normal MFL lessons. Here’s an update…

Do you know German cities? A small group of Year 8 students has been meeting once a fortnight during lunchtimes to work on bi-lingual posters about German cities and to try out some tasty German food at the same time. Look out for their posters in the corridor of the Languages faculty, and maybe learn something about the ‘Oktoberfest’ in Munich or ‘Karneval’ in Cologne.

Year 10 Email project. A few weeks ago, 20 Year 10 BVC students and 20 German students from a school in Steffi’s home region started writing emails in English and German to each other. In addition, the students taking part have designed posters to exchange information about their school, school life and local area. We are looking forward to a parcel exchange at Easter when we will be sending some typical “British” items to the German school and hopefully receiving a similar parcel from them. Watch this space…

Bottisham students have recently received replies from their new Sri Lankan and Swaziland pen pals. The students were excited to receive their letters and are eager to reply. The pen pal club is strengthening the links with our international partners and the students both here and in the partnership schools are greatly benefitting from this communication.

Mrs Hill

They are not only making new friends across the globe, but learning about new places and cultures. We were surprised by how similar life can be in Swaziland and Sri Lanka: “Harry Potter is my favourite film.” (Vishlea Nipini Heshani, Sri Lanka), and also shocked by the differences: “It usually reaches 45oC here. I have never seen snow in my life.” (Lungile Ginindza, Swaziland).

Thanks to all the students that have written letters and if you are interested in getting involved in this wonderful opportunity please see Miss O’Grady.

Year 11 student Amy Courtenay-Moore has won a prestigious national award for her work with the countywide anti-smoking programme, Kick Ash. Amy was presented with a Diana Award, which is given to exceptional young people who inspire the lives of others.

The Award was founded in 1999 to act as a lasting legacy to Diana, Princess of Wales, who believed in the power of young people to change the world.

Amy was nominated for overcoming many personal challenges to become a mentor for Kick Ash - an initiative which aims to stop young people from taking up smoking and help those who do smoke to quit.

Amy has contributed to training mentors from other schools by giving up her own time and speaking in open forums about her role.

She has worked as part of a special interest group on developing smoking cessation services for young people.

Amy has been praised by Cambridgeshire PSHE Service and NHS for her commitment, attending all training sessions and mentor meetings and challenging herself to co-lead Kick Ash education programme work with 10 and 11-year-old children in primary schools and with 13 and 14-year-olds in her own school.

“She excelled herself and impressed all the programme team, school staff and pupils and other Kick Ash mentors by volunteering to be the only Kick Ash mentor to perform a role play exercise in front of 200 13 and 14-year-old pupils,” said a spokesman.

Bottisham VC’s Head of Learning for Year 11, Mr Hall said: “Amy is a very special young person who has overcome many personal challenges to be part of this programme. She has proved beyond doubt to be a model Kick Ash mentor. It has been a delight watching her confidence grow while she has been part of the programme.

“Amy’s story of perseverance is a fantastic example of how someone can make amazing progress in their personal development and to gain such confidence that they have not only been able to become a mentor but also become a leading example of how to be a successful mentor and role model for other students,” he said.

Evie’s ‘wicked’ writing wows judges Don’t be surprised if the name Evie Nichols is a household name and gracing the front covers of storybooks and novels in years to come.

Evie, who is in Year 7, has just proved herself a rising writing star having taken a top prize in a national competition.

Her story, The Devastations of War, was runner-up in the Wicked Young Writer’s Award which attracted thousands of entries from all over the country.

As a result she was invited to an exciting prize ceremony at London’s Apollo Theatre attended by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall and top children’s author Michael Morpurgo (writer of War Horse) plus cast members from the West End musical Wicked.

“My hobbies are writing fiction and reading,” said Evie. “I had read a book

were so obviously close to the writer’s own experience and voice.”

The long-running West End show Wicked launched the award in 2010 to encourage and help develop talent in young UK writers.

An extract from The Devastations of War

by Evie Nichols about war and it inspired me to write.

Devastations of War is a sad story set in Nazi Germany and written in the first person.

“I was really surprised to have won a prize as it’s the first writing competition I have entered. I’d definitely like to do some more now.”

As part of her prize, Evie will see her story in print. It is to be included in an anthology with other short-listed entries Michael Morpurgo said judges were impressed with the high standard of writing.

“Writers need to feel that what they have to say is important and we were delighted to read so many pieces of writing that

Air raid sirens pierce the night. I bolt upright, heart pounding like a drum and trembling like a leaf in a tornado. Nausea washes over me. I leap from bed and hurtle to my parents’ room.

“Mama! Papa!” I yell.

They appear bleary-eyed and looking incredibly fatigued. As a group, we dash down the stairs three at a time. We don’t utter a word.

We arrive at the door to the basement. I reach for the handle but it won’t give way.

It is locked. We are stuck. I frantically try and try again but to no avail. We are locked out of safety and bombs are going to fall any minute now…..

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Manga Club is big draw East meets West every Friday at Bottisham VC courtesy of a new Extended Schools Manga Drawing Club.

KS3 students are learning the popular art form that originated in Japan – probably best known through such series as Yu-Gi-Oh and Naruto - with the expert help of Mrs Irina Richards, the College’s reprographics and IT administrator, herself a published manga author and illustrator.

We are used to seeing manga characters with their large almond-shaped eyes, tiny mouths and exaggerated emotions; the creation of these characters and the telling of their sometimes quite complex stories is a highly-skilled process taking years of practice and training.

Mrs Richards has been drawing manga since she was a child.

“I have always been artistic and was drawing from the age of five. When I was about 12, I watched an anime called Sailor Moon – it blew my mind. I knew then that I wanted to draw manga,” she said.

After attending art school in her native Russia studying painting, graphics and composition she went on to university to read Linguistics and Intercultural Communication, continuing to draw in her free time and joining an anime club.

Two years ago an independent Cambridge-based publisher, Sweatdrop Studios, which specialises in original UK manga, printed Mrs Richards’ original title, Chemical Blue. The 220-page book, which started as a webcomic, tells the story of chemistry student Amber and her experiences, good and bad, of college life. It has proved popular with manga fans having just had a second print run.

She has also had her interpretation of a Russian fairy tale included in Telling Tales, a collection of short stories.

Manga is traditionally two-tone – white with one other colour, usually black, with shading providing the ‘colour’. But if you think all manga is like this, think again. Intricate examples of brightly-coloured vibrant work can be seen on Mrs Richards’ website, beautiful human and mythical creatures, animals, nature and

humorous characters.

“Each manga artist has his or her own style but the principles of manga remain the same, such as clear contours and characters with expressive faces,” she said.

“It is sequential art, it tells a story and any type of story can be put into manga form.”

“I have been drawing for a while now and I have learnt a lot about the manga style and philosophy – I am more advanced but there is always room for improvement. I still have some of my earlier work and it means a lot to me – I would definitely try and save it from a burning house!”

So what is her tip for the would-be young artists attending the weekly after-school sessions?

“A lot of it comes with practice but the ability to draw is not as important as the story you tell.”

At the Manga Drawing Club, students have been learning how to create characters and setting, working towards producing their own manga-style comics.

Manga: kanji: 漫画; hiragana: まん が; katakana: マンガ is the Japanese word for comics and print cartoons. In the West, the term manga has come to mean comics created in Japan, or

by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th century. In their modern form, manga date from World War II, but they have a long pre-history in earlier Japanese art.

Animeアニメis the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of animation.

In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons.

Gallery: Arts students showcase skills

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Year 10 students enjoyed spending the day creating a series of life drawings. The workshop was taught by the Royal Academy Outreach Programme and the tutor encouraged the 30 students to try new approaches and to think differently about what drawing is.

One student said, “It was really good fun and we learnt a lot about drawing and created great pieces of art work. We used charcoal and pastels and a range of different techniques. This work will become part of our GCSE coursework”.

Lily Blakely and Katie Askham

The fifth annual primary choirs festival saw nine sets of singers performing a wide repertoire of tunes – watched and adjudicated by two members of BVC’s music staff.

Mrs Hall, teacher in charge of music and Mr Minchin, arts development officer, had an enjoyable afternoon at Burwell Village College (primary), commenting on the various groups.

“All choirs performed one song each and it was very entertaining.

We gave positive feedback,” said Mr Minchin.

The pupils also sang some Beatles songs together.

Students worked in pairs to produce an atmospheric painting based on the theme Another World. The project was crosscurricular, inspired by other activities taking place in music and drama lessons. The paintings will be used as a backdrop for a performance, which will be enhanced by music created by the students.

Victoria Spofforth (ITT teacher for 7.6)

Year 9 students proved they are a talented bunch when they took part in a lunchtime concert organised by the music department.

The session featured a whole range of musical styles – and instruments – from the past (Hawaii Five- O) to the present (Mumford and Sons).

“We held an informal lunchtime concert in February with a variety of items from folk to original songs, all performed by Year 9 students for their year group,” said music teacher Mrs Hall.

“The music room was filled to capacity with a supportive audience enjoying their entertainment. It was a huge success and we hope to organise another soon,” she said.

On Monday, February 27th, a group of Year 9s with a keen interest in music participated in a music seminar designed to stretch students and encourage them to try something different from their ordinary lessons.

We were introduced to seminar leader Aga who started by playing a soulful song he wrote himself. Then it was our turn. Aga split us up into soprano, alto, tenor and bass sections and we sang three songs, ‘Ordinary People’, ‘Swing Low’ and, as the finale piece, ‘Lean on Me’. For the last song, students were invited to play their instruments. These ranged from oboes to a banjo and ukulele! We learnt how to sing and perform in a gospel style with a variety of challenging songs.

It was a truly terrific two-and-a-half hours. Thank you Aga. Ruby Steckelmacher 9.6

Students speak their minds Bottisham students aired their views about the forthcoming Olympics during a schools public speaking competition.

Will Matlock, Ram Lakshman and Paige Street, all in Year 10, represented BVC in the annual Youth Speaks competition organised by Sawston Rotary Club and held at Sawston Village College.

“We were discussing The Olympic Myth.

There were six schools, including us, and we did very well as the schools competing were at a very high standard. It was a fun evening,” said Will.

Rotary Club’s Simon Lake, said: “May I say a thank you to Will, Ram and Paige for taking part in Youth Speaks. I think they did very well and were very perceptive in their observations on The Olympic Myth.”

Teams comprise a chairman, speaker and proposer and are judged on subject matter, construction, impact, delivery, audibility and teamwork. They have to speak for 15 minutes on their chosen subject and take a question from the floor.

Bottisham’s speakers practice their skills at the college’s debating society which meets in the English block every Tuesday after school.

Issues tackled so far have included – “Should we bring back grammar schools?” and “Should Argentina get the Falklands back?”

Further information is available from head of English Mr Compton or any English teacher.

Will Matlock 10.5

No Flies on this show Lord of the Flies is the 1954 debut novel by author William Golding, and is currently being studied by Year 11s for their English Literature examination. The novel is about a group of schoolboys who find themselves stranded on a desert island after a plane crash during WW2. They are the only survivors and with no adults present or with the assumption that they are sharing their idyllic island with ‘a beast’. The events that unfold soon after are chilling, as the boys lose their childish innocence and begin to think, and act, like a tribe of savages intent on murder.

Forty students, along with Mr Compton, Mrs Wayman and Mrs Lawton, departed for Bishop’s Stortford, in order to watch a theatrical production of the novel. The play was a ‘Sell a Door’ production, a company that has been described as “one of the liveliest theatre companies in the UK”.

The play opened with the scene of the boys in a typical secondary school PE lesson before the stage was transformed to a desert island.

Props were minimal, with lighting playing a major role in creating the feel of the play.

Mirroring the staging, the cast was minimal.

Piggy was played by Daniel Buckley, and a sonet of the main characters managed to stay true to the mannerisms and beliefs of Piggy; the reasons which would ultimately lead to his untimely death. He also bore the resemblance of James Corden, a source of amusement for some in the audience.

Ralph, the main protagonist was also well cast. Played by Ben Wiggins, he managed to portray both the authoritative and more sensitive, dependent side of his character’s personality. The script was one that had been reduced, but retained the important elements of plot and felt in keeping with the original intentions of the novel. Aside from some unexpected improvisation at the end, the play was an enormous success and helped visualize the main events of the novel, aiding the Year 11s in their understanding in preparation for their up coming exam.

Flora Wood 11.5

LOL! It’s Shakespeare There were lots of laughs when a group of students went to see an updated version of a classic play.

Drama teacher Mr Woodman said the production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Cambridge University’s Marlowe Society was, “the funniest thing I have seen in years” – and the students agreed, their chuckles echoing round the Arts Theatre in Cambridge.

The visit was arranged to inspire students from all years who will be performing in a special summer production of the play as part of BVC’s 75th anniversary celebrations – and it did the trick.

“The production was really superb. The students who watched the play are now looking forward to trying out their own ideas. There was a lot of physical theatre and the cast played it for laughs. It was a student review version of Shakespeare and it really worked,” said Mr Woodman.

Students were further motivated following a two-hour drama workshop in school led by education mentor Virginia Grainger who has worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

The annual Readathon saw young bookworms at BVC raising money for children’s charities.

Year 7 students took part enthusiastically in the national sponsored reading event which has raised more than £20 million pounds since it was set up in 1984.

Readathon supports CLIC Sargent – the UK’s leading cancer charity for children and young people; Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity – specialising in helping children with serious neurological or blood conditions and also ReadWell – set up in 2010 to provide books and storytellers for children in hospital.

Blood Brothers Students enjoyed a London theatre trip to see a production of Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers – a GCSE drama text.

“The visit provided students with a valuable opportunity to see a professional production to enhance their learning,” said drama teacher Mr Woodman.

Musicians from Bottisham VC have been hitting the high notes in graded exams.

Lucy Loughlan (9.4) scored 140 marks out of a possible 150 in a Grade 6 euphonium exam to gain a distinction, while Freya Williams (10.7)achieved 121 marks (merit) ina Grade 6 clarinet exam.

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Waitrose tokens will aid college Each month every Waitrose branch donates £1,000 between three local good causes.

During April, Friends of Bottisham Village College will have a token collection box in the Waitrose store.

We will be raising money to support a hardship fund for young people to benefit from extra-curricular opportunities.

Residential trips, Duke of Edinburgh Award, music tuition.. and many others.

At the checkout, you’ll receive a token. Just place it in the Friends of Bottisham Village College box. The more tokens we get, the bigger the donation we will receive.

Fashion Show Another date for your diaries is the fashion show. We are hoping as many people as possible will want to attend this event on Friday, April 27th (7pm for a 7.30pm start).

The price is £5 for adults, which includes a glass of wine, and £3 for under-18’s. The evening will include High Street brands and other selected items. Tickets and further information are available from friends@ bottishamvc.org or 07881 588 971

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Year 11 students have been invited to join a Government initiative encouraging teenagers to be more involved in their local communities.

Gareth Waldock, a representative from the National Citizen Service (NCS) spoke about the scheme in an assembly and had a good feedback from students.

“The presentation went very well and I received 23 expressions of interest,” he said.

NCS is a voluntary eight-week summer programme for 16 year-olds promoting societal cohesion, transition into adulthood and community projects.

Feast of fashion at Clothes Show Textiles students explored the world of fashion when they spent a day at the Clothes Show Live at the NEC Birmingham.

They had more than four hours to look at exhibits and also attended a fashion show.

There was an opportunity to find out more about textiles and fashions through major labels, small businesses, universities and colleges.

“The Clothes Show Live exhibition is a popular trip for GCSE textiles and is attended widely by secondary school students. The range of fashions and textiles exhibited are inspirational for both Year 10 and Year 11 project and coursework,” said technology teacher Miss Price

NCS is a being piloted over two years across England. Thousands of young people took part in the first pilot last year. In 2012, there will be some 30,000 places on offer.

Charity results A non-uniform day, cake sale and concert organised by Year 7s and the annual Year 8 Christmas Fair saw more than £1,000 being raised for three charities at the end of last term. The learning disability charity Mencap received £162.34, with a further £112 going to Red2Green and £988.64 to the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Leavers’ Ball Year 11 students are still busy fundraising for their Leavers’ Ball at the end of June.

They sold red roses for Valentine’s Day and have lots of money-spinning ideas including a cake stall. The glamorous theme of this year’s Ball is Broadway/New York.

Bottisham Village College Adult and Community Learning

Training for trek Bottisham students participating in the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award successfully completed their expedition training on Saturday, February 25th. They participated in a fun-filled day learning campcraft, such as putting up their tents, cooking with trangias (alcohol-burning portable stoves) and learned about expedition safety.

The students successfully took part in their practice expedition earlier this term and will be completing their Award in April after their assessed expedition in Southwold.

Thanks to all staff and parents who have supported students and good luck to all in completing their Award!

Miss O’Grady

Win a free 10 week course of your choice, worth up to £90!

We are always looking for new and exciting courses to offer, and would like to hear your views.

Why not take a look at our website www.bottishamvc.org/commed to see what we already offer and if the course you are looking for is not there, please let us have your suggestions by 27th April 2012. You will then be entered into our free prize draw.

Would you like more arts and crafts, languages, health and fitness, ICT, or anything else?

Please give as much detail as possible so that we can help. Do you like evening classes or Saturday day schools? Do you like 5 week or 10 week courses?

You can email us on commed@bottishamvc.org, or telephone (01223) 811372.

We’d love to hear from you and we’ll do our best to put on the best suggestions in our September programme.

High scores for BVC at maths challenge

Young mathematicians at BVC proved they are number one, notching up high scores in this year’s UKMT Intermediate Maths Challenge.

The annual event, open to Years 9, 10 and 11, saw six students gaining gold, seven getting silver and 22 taking bronze.

The challenge is set by the UK Mathematics Trust (UKMT), a registered charity whose aim is to advance the education of children and young people in mathematics.

The UKMT organises national mathematics competitions and other mathematical enrichment activities for 11-18 year old UK school pupils.

In the last academic year over 600,000 pupils from 4,000 schools took part in the three individual challenges, the UK’s biggest national maths competitions.

The results were: Year 11 Gold - Rama Lakshman; Silver - Jake Bowden; Bronze - Hannah Slater. Year 10 Gold - Ram Lakshman, Leo Charlesworth, Ben May; Silver - Isobel Gabain, Elias KassellRaymond; Bronze - Will Matlock, Ben Scholan, Kate McGrath, Angelina Cao, Catriona Marriott, Kit Turner,Georgia Marshall. Year 9 Gold - Chloe Millard, Roman Armstrong; Silver - Joseph Lancaster, Jordan Delanoy, Ruby Steckelmacher, Gemma Galletly; Bronze - Bea Loveridge, Milly Parry, Hannah Murphy, Chester Swann-Auger, Rachel Towers,Emilie Chard, Cameron Nicholls, Connor Houghton, Helena Pumfrey, Jamie Hammond, Miriam Amrani, Maddy Wood, Sean Irving,Will Foreman.

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BOTTISHAM SPORTS CENTRE

Leading the way at festival

Swimathon Swimmers will dive into the world’s biggest fundraising swim at Bottisham Sports Centre on April 28th and 29th. They will take on one of the five Swimathon Weekend 2012 challenges, raising money for either Marie Curie Cancer Care through Distance Challenges or Sport Relief through the Big Splash Mile. Swimathon Weekend hits 645 pools across the UK. In its 25th year, Swimathon has joined forces with British Swimming and the BBC’s Big Splash, Marie Curie Cancer Care and Sport Relief to promote what is hoped will be the biggest Swimathon weekend ever, with thousands of swimmers raising vital funds for the two charities.

Bottisham Boot Camp Would you like to shed up to 10lbs and lose inches from your waist…all in just four weeks? Join us at Bottisham Boot Camp – a four week camp consisting of 12 intense group workouts all led by experienced personal trainers. This is the best way to achieve fantastic results in the shortest time possible. Full Nutrition Plan to follow. Before and after measurements taken. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday early morning sessions. FREE taster session – where all camp details will be provided. Please contact Jason or Richard at the centre for more details.

New Junior Classes for Spring We have some new exciting classes starting at the centre. There is junior football on Saturday (10-11am), street dance on Tuesday (6-7pm) and dodgeball on Thursday (6-7pm). For more details and to book your place, call 01223 811121.

On Tuesday March 6th, 15 Year 9 Sports Leaders (list below) went to Burwell Village College to assist with the delivery of Bottisham VC’s annual Year 4 Football Festival.

Some 270 pupils from all 11 feeder primary schools (Bottisham PS, Burwell VC, Cheveley, Ditton Lodge, Great Wilbraham, Fen Ditton, Fulbourn, Kettlefields, Swaffham Bulbeck, Swaffham Prior, Teversham) attended the event, enthusiastically braving the cold conditions.

The Sports Leaders were each given a school and spent the first hour delivering fun football related activities. This was then followed by competitive small sided games, with pupils representing their schools.

Runners are just champion Having retained the Cambridge and District Schools Cross Country Championships Shield in December with a fantastic example of team running (the trophy is awarded to the best performing school, girls and boys across all year groups), a number of the runners were selected to represent the District team in the County Championships, held on a beautiful cold, crisp and sunny day at King’s School Ely on Saturday, January 14th.

All the runners ‘walked the course’ to establish where and when was the best

place to make a move in their races.

Distances varied from 2,000 metres to 5,000 metres according to age group/ gender.

Bottisham had the largest contingent of runners, and a number of them competed so well that they were selected to represent Cambridgeshire in the Anglian Championships. Well done to all involved.

The following were selected for the District Cross Country team: Evelyn Nichols, Alice Newcombe*, Belinda Dow*, Lucy Loughlan*, Joseph Howe*, Jonathan

Lankfer*, Lorenzo Uribe, Joe Nichols, Kenny Jenkins, Joe Swift, Luke Crisp*.

The students marked * were selected for the County team.

Alice Newcombe was selected to run in the National Cross Country Championships and came 35th in the whole country (and she is a year 8 student running against year 9 students). A brilliant achievement! Well done Alice.

Bottisham basketball success

Classes at a Glance:

Special offer Half price court hire on Saturdays and Sundays March and April 2012 for Tennis, Badminton and Table Tennis.

Subject to availability.

Not available for block hire bookings.

Bottisham Sports Centre Lode Road, Bottisham Village College, Cambridgeshire CB25 9DJ Phone: 01223 811121 Email: sportscentre@bottishamvc.org Website: www.bottishamvc.org/sportscentre

Both the activities and games were well received by the Year 4 pupils who proved to be very respectful, responsive and energetic.

Sports Leaders issued stickers in association with the Olympic and Paralympic values ’Excellence, Friendship, Determination and Inspiration’ as part of the run up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The Sports Leaders did a fantastic job, proving themselves to be excellent role models to the Year 4s and Year 6 leaders who supported them on the day. Congratulations to all!

Year 9 Sports Leaders involved were: Becky Arksey, Jaina Hall, Miriam Amrani, Izzy Swift, Harriet Walker, Parth Jethwa, Jack Delaune, Ben Morris, Jake Jupp, Sam Bellis, Josh Lees, Jack Carter, Alfie Ball, Byron King and Sam Johnson.

Miss Martell

Students from Years 8 to 11 have been attending basketball club every week and representing the school in various matches, leading to the district competitions. There have been some very close games for all teams, and pleasingly Bottisham nearly always fields a number of teams from each age group. There have been some excellent individual performances, the most successful team being the Year 8/9 girls who were crowned district champions in February. Congratulations to all the squad members.

Congratulations to all the students who are regularly involved as sports leaders in the PE Faculty. You are all gaining some great life skills, such as organisation, risk assessment, planning, communication and empathy. You are changing the lives of others for the better, and we appreciate your help.

Mr Alvey says:

- Mon 6-6.45pm; Thurs 10.15-11am & 7-7.45pm.

- Tues 7-7.50pm.

- Mon 6.15-7pm.

- Mon 7-8pm.

- Thurs 10.15–11am.

- Thurs 8-9pm - Tues 7-8am; Thurs 7-8am; Sat 8-9am.

- Tues 10-11am.

- Tues 11.30-12.30pm; Thurs 9.15-10.15am.

- Fri 10.20-11.20am

Introduction to fencing: Students tried their hand at the noble sport of fencing - with six achieving Level 1. The five-week course was run by experienced coach, Gerry Doe, who is affiliated to the British Fencing Association.

Twelve students from all years took part in the introductory course.

“Fencing is a fast, exciting and athletic sport,” said PE teacher, Miss Mann.

“It is like ‘active chess’ and keeps both body and mind fit. It is a very easy sport to start at any age,” she said.

Participating students were: Samuel Weinberger, Tom Smith, Ben Nash, Louis McGee, Karl Heider, Luke Wood, Josh Dodds, Murray Munro, Eleanor Lodge, Owain Robinson, Emilia Hubbard and Bea Loveridge.

Badminton/Table Tennis Club: This popular Friday evening club regularly attracts over 30 participants and there is not a space to be found in the sports hall/gym and Ros Suttle Room as students from all year groups play matches at varying levels of intensity and competition. Some choose to rally, others are there to win!

Everyone is welcome.

‘

The Olympic/Paralympic values are Determination, Inspiration, Excellence, Respect, Equality, Courage and Friendship. Take a few minutes to think about them and discuss with your family and friends what each of these means to you and how you might take them on board to make life better for you and for others.

There will be thousands of ‘Olympic Volunteers’ helping to make this global event run smoothly. Why not be an ‘Olympic Volunteer’ in your family/ village/at school and pledge to so something to help others?

‘

Disco Spinning Circuits Zumba Toning Zumba Fitness Aqua Aerobics Bolly Dance Workout Boot Camp Water Workout Pilates Chair-based Exercise

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College countdown to Olympics

What a prospect it is to have the greatest sporting event in the world coming to North East London (just down the road!) in the summer, writes Mr Alvey. The countdown clock is ticking away in Trafalgar Square, and here at Bottisham we have already started to celebrate.

Some events have already taken place and many more are planned, both in and beyond the Physical Education curriculum in order to give all students the opportunity to feel part of this wonderful event.

OLYMPIC COUNTDOWN ROWING: In January we took part in the Olympic Countdown rowing competition at Parkside Community College in Cambridge. Teams and individuals competed against other schools on Concept 2 indoor rowing machines. These machines are linked via a computer so each race (up to twelve competitors at a time) can see how they are faring as the positions are shown on a big screen. With much effort and encouragement Bottisham gained a silver medal for the Year 9 girls team, and the boys went to the top of the podium by winning the gold! Well done to all rowers.Bottisham rowing team:Jola Maczkiewicz, Megan Howlett, Harriet Walker, Izzy Swift, Miriam Amrani, Lucy Loughlan, Poppy Farrington, Aidan O’Brien, Sam Johnson, Jake Jupp, Luke King, Tom Ellis-Daish OLYMPIC VOLLEYBALL COMPETITION: Key stage four students were invited to enter teams into our Olympic volleyball competition. Each team chose a country to represent, entered the sports hall with their national flag and the competition commenced. After some two hours of play the final positions were as follows: Gold Medal - Gambia (Sam King, Ben Jeacock, Dan Cornell); Silver Medal - Zimbabwe (Connor Hazelwood, David Hall, Matt Marsh); Bronze Medal - Ivory Coast (Allen-Roy Mendonca, Danny Emerton, Josh Titley).

OLYMPIC TABLE TENNIS AND BADMINTON COMPETITION (COUNTDOWN LEAGUE: 148 DAYS TO GO): Schools from the Cambridge and District area participated in this exciting competition. Here at Bottisham we played host to Sawston VC, Netherhall and the International School from Cambridge. The atmosphere in the sports hall and gym was excellent as Year 7 and 8 students competed for the top places. Results were: Table Tennis Gold Medal –Bottisham A (Ben Cooke, Harry Darling, Callum Stevens, Tom Raine); Silver – Bottisham B (Elliot Mann, Tim King, Olly Holt, Josh Dadds, Joe Howe). Badminton Bronze medal – Bottisham 1 (Will Hasleham, Aiden O’Brien); 4th – Bottisham 2 (Sam Johnson, Bryon King); 6th – Bottisham 3 (Craig Sadler, Lewis Hall); 7th – Bottisham 4 (Charlie Hall, Sean Woodroffe)

FORTHCOMING OLYMPIC EVENTS In the coming months we are looking forward to offering you the chance to participate in Olympic Futsal Competition Olympic Water Polo Competition Olympic Relay Swimming Gala Olympic Water Polo Competition Olympic Gymnastics Competition Olympic Cycling Competition Olympic Athletics Paralympic Sports such as wheelchair basketball, Boccia, Goalball, ‘blind’ sprinting, wheelchair shot putt, wheelchair javelin. A trip to London to parade on the track in the Olympic stadium and watch demonstration activities by some great Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Olympic gold challenge: All students will get the chance to help raise money for Olympic charities by running/cycling/swimming or rowing as we try to cover 2012 kilometres!